23:50. 

Only 10 minutes until the big day. To be honest, I’m a little nervous. Every birthday is exciting of course, but 22 is special. It’s not every day you manifest your Spirit Guides for the first time, after all.

I wonder if there’s a reason they only develop at age 22...?

Google Search: why do spirit guides appear at age 22?

Results:

-Health.uk: Your Spirit Guide And You

-ThemTube.com: Manifesting my Spirit Guides for the first time [GONE WRONG] *112k views*

-Rainforest.co.uk: Angels and Devils for Dummies (Hardback)

-Feedbuzz.com: 10 reasons why 22 really is a Lucky Number

Okay... that’s a no then. I guess it could be because there’s two 2’s in it? Just one of those things I guess. I wonder what they’ll be like? At least the Angel should be nice, right? I could really use the company. At least I already know what they’ll look li-

My train of thought comes to a crashing halt as I feel a tug deep in my chest. Glancing at the clock confirms it.

00:00

Showtime.

I’ve seen videos of course, but nothing can really prepare you for how your own manifestation feels. As that telltale glow built up under my skin and began creeping out into the air, it felt to me a little like a numb limb slowly coming back to life. For a moment I swear I could feel them, the little devil and angel forming inside that light, and I know they could feel me too, reaching back through my chest and up into my mind, learning everything from my hopes and dreams to what I had for breakfast when I turned 7.

As the last of the light left my chest out connection cut off, leaving me gasping for breath. It formed itself into a loose ball in front of me, then slowly separated into two distinct, almost egg-shaped lumps, that drifted down to rest on my knees.

With a bright flash, they burst, leaving behind my very own Spirit... Guides...

Wait, what?

The Angel is exactly as I’d imagined him. The same short brown hair and green eyes as me, a freshly shaved face, and a sharp white suit, to go with his little wings and halo.

But... this can’t be my devil, right? I mean... she’s a girl? Long blonde hair, that worryingly short skirt... actually now that I look closer, she looks almost exactly like Stenia, the character I play in the MMO World of Spirits. Except with little devil horns and a tail. What on earth is going on?

“...why are you a girl?”

She grins “You’d have figured it out in a few years anyway, and I’m no good at waiting. Thought I’d save us all the trouble.”

“....figure what out?

*sigh* “I’m you”

“...yes?”

“And I’m a girl”

“Yes?”

“Which makes you...?”

I point at the Angel, who looks deeply uncomfortable “pretty sure I’m a guy”

She turns to glare at him, and starts raving about “giving a bad impression” and “reinforcing a negative self image”. I tune her out, and turn to the only person I can trust for guidance at a time like this.

Google. I mean come on, it’s midnight, I’m hardly going to call someone.

Google Search: why is my spirit devil a girl?

Results:

-Feedbuzz.com: Top 10 signs you might be transgender

-ThemTube.com: Coming out to my parents [CRYING WARNING] *120k views*

-Rainforest.co.uk: How My Spirit Guide Taught Me To Be Myself (Softback)

-Bluedot.com/b/transpirits: Introductory Omelette Thread (Chaos.gg Link in comments)

Well, that was no use. I’m not trans, I’d have known by now right? It must be something else. Still, this last link... Chaos is a chat app, right? Maybe I can find someone who’s awake to ask for help?

A flash of light makes me look up from my phone, and I nearly drop it in surprise. Where my angel had floated, being berated by the devil (who is now looking very smug), is... another stenia, dressed in a long white dress, with the same wings and halo as my angel.

“...oh no, is it contagious? Am I going to turn into a girl too?”

“Sorry, I’m afraid not. This is spirits only, you’ll have to go the long way around.”

“Oh, that’s a shame. It would have been interesting... anyway, why are you a girl too now?”

The new angel rubs the back of her head shyly “well, um. You were expecting us to look like you, so I manifested like you were imagining... but SOMEONE decided to jump the gun a little. So uh. Yeah, this is us? Sorry for the shock...”

Suddenly, the devil flits in front of my face, and points an imperious finger at me.

“SO. Let’s do this again. We’re you.”

“Yes, we’ve covered this.” Again? Really?

“And we’re both girls”

“Yes, and?”

Her victorious grin falters, and she stares at me for a moment.

“And what might that say about you...?”

“Uh... do I need to get more in touch with my emotions or something?”

“...yes, that’d be helpful. But also not the point.”

“Okay, well never mind all this, I think I found somewhere that might be able to help us work out *why* you’re girls. Want to give it a try?”

The devil seems to droop in midair for a moment, looking almost... defeated? The Angel floats up behind her, pats her shoulder, and whispers something about “too soon”. They both sigh again. Can spirit guides get asthma? They seem to be sighing *a lot*.

“Sure, lets give it a shot” wow, okay, spirits speaking together like that’s pretty creepy.

They flit up to my shoulders so they can see the screen, and I download and open Chaos, then put in the link I found. It opens to a chat tab asking me for... pronouns? Well, I could put he/him, but these spirit guides are here too... after mulling it over I spot an option marked ‘Questioning’. “Perfect! We’re here to ask questions!” I mutter to myself.

There’s a slapping sound to my left, and when I turn look I see the devil with her head in her hands. I wonder what’s gotten into her now?

Focusing back on my phone, the Chaos server seems to have divided itself into a lost of different chatrooms, organised by topic. “General-questioning” seems promising, so I start there. Happily, the last conversation seems to have ended a few minutes ago, so hopefully I’ll get some replies.

(00:20) PowerShiba -we’re here to talk anytime, lily! I hope we helped!

(00:47) TheRealStenia - Hi, hopefully this is the right place for this. So I turned 22 tonight and manifested my spirit guides, but... the devil is a girl! Then she convinced the angel to turn into a girl somehow. And they keep hinting that I’m missing something obvious! Has anyone heard of this happening before?

*Several people are typing*