We spent the next hour on the couch, Grace holding me as I babbled on about memories and repressed desires and never feeling like I had fit in. I don’t remember when, but at some point I fell asleep curled up on the couch, wearing the shirt and the necklace both. The form I wore was more comfortable than my old one, even if it still wasn’t quite right. I took much pleasure in feeling how little space I took up on the couch, curled up as I was. 

I woke up bright and early the next morning to the sounds of breakfast being cooked. I blinked awake and discovered that I was still curled up on the couch as I had been before, but a pillow had found its way under my head and a blanket was draped over me. 

It was an odd experience. I could feel the fabric of the blanket and the fabric of the couch on my legs and the soft texture was much more apparent than it ever had before. A part of my mind that had gone neglected for many years thrilled at the feeling. This was closer than I had ever been to being happy with my body, and according to Grace, it could get much better if I were to go get one of the more complex enchantments done. 

I still hadn't completely recovered from the night before either. My mind was still reeling with all of the revelations. The conversation had been intense but cathartic as so many feelings and memories I hadn’t thought of in years came bursting back to mind in a flood of tears. It felt good to get it all out. Surprisingly, it had even felt good to cry like that. I had wept for all of the things I had repressed, for all the things I wanted to be and for the little girl that had never gotten to live her own life, smothered by enforced ideas of what a ‘man’ should be. I had cried myself to sleep and now waking up, my mind felt heavy, but also freer than it had in years. 

The small voice in the back of my mind tried to quiet the feelings of comfort with thoughts of how my family would react and others of how I would lose everything I had worked for in life to that point. I shoved those thoughts back down with a vengeance. I still wasn’t entirely comfortable, but I was closer than ever and I wasn’t about to let myself be taken over by those dissident voices in my moment of bliss. There would be days yet to come to deal with those issues. I just wanted to enjoy what I had then and there.

I pulled the blanket a bit tighter around me and curled up a bit more on the couch, luxuriating in the more positive feelings that filled my mind.I knew I would have to get up at some point, but why not bask in it a little longer? Of course, my soft sigh and smile had to be interrupted. A gentle hand touched my shoulder and I looked up into Grace’s face staring down at me. Unable to help myself, I shifted and sat up before quietly hugging her. My ears picked up a soft ‘oof’ as my arms circled her, but I almost immediately felt her arms wrap around me. 

“Good morning. Looks like you slept well?” Her voice was quiet and the lights were still dim in the room. I wondered if the others were awake yet. The sounds from the kitchen had stopped when Grace walked over. 

She patted my back gently and then I pulled away, slightly red in the face after having hugged her like that unexpectedly. I kept my voice quiet to match hers. “A lot better than I thought I would. This couch is a lot comfier than mine back home. Goodness, I must have hardly moved last night.” I stretched in place and let out an almost squeaky yawn as I did so. My face flushed even more red when I heard the sound of it and I let out a small ‘eep’ of embarrassment and surprise at how cute it sounded to my ears.

My host stifled a giggle and smiled. “Took me some time to get used to the voice, too. There are still days that I have to just allow myself to squeal a bit because I’m so happy with it. Hard to believe that a bit more than a decade ago I was still thoroughly hating my body and voice. Makes me very glad that I figured it out when I did and that my parents supported me through it. I definitely don’t miss my egg days.”

I gave her a confused look. “You mentioned something about eggs in the car yesterday, too; what do you mean by that?”

She laughed aloud this time, though she quickly covered it. The humor still infected her voice when she spoke. “Don’t you know, hun? Little eggs hatch into cute chicks!”

My confusion deepened. “Yes, that is how eggs work…” I trailed off as she motioned down at my body and suddenly realization dawned on me with the force of a memory foam pillow in a pillow fight. “Oh…” My blush returned full force. “That kind of ‘chick’.” 

“Yeah. That kind. And I would imagine that you are going to be even happier by the time the day is up. You have an appointment with a friend of mine at ten if you are ready for it. She is one of the better enchantresses in Queens and she specializes in confirmation enchantments. If you aren’t comfortable with the generic form, she’s the one that can help you get something that fits better.”

Whiplash might be the proper term to describe my mental state at the time. I had only just come to the realization that I didn’t want to be male anymore twelve hours ago, and this woman was giving me the opportunity to design my own body just like that?

“Isn’t that really expensive, though? You and Ian, er, Ivy? Whatever their name, both of you have told me that enchantments like that are inhibitively expensive. I’m just some guy lost in New York from your perspective. Why on earth would you do that much for me?”

Grace put a finger to her lips and shushed me. “Because helping people is the right thing to do. Beyond that, you are a lost girl, not a guy, as we discussed last night. You have been put into this situation completely against your own wishes. You might as well take advantage of the magic while you can. As for the money, well, we aren’t exactly poor around here and if I really need to, there is a charity that funds trans people such as yourself getting access to such enchantments. It would take a bit of paperwork, but you could get funding from that if needed. 

“If you really want to pay me back though, I won’t tell you no. I can always use more help around the bar and I’m sure Krystal wouldn’t mind an extra cleaner in the Top Shot either. You spend a few nights every week helping out until the mages can send you home, and I’ll call it even. I would do it all anyways, though, just to see another younger trans girl find herself. Too many of us and our trans brothers never have the support they need to be themselves and it never ends well.” I could hear the tones of regret and sorrow in her voice as Grace finished her statement. My heart broke a little thinking about it. 

I blinked away a few tears and hugged her again; this time she readily accepted and we stayed like that for a few moments before we pulled away. “Thank you. You have got to be one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. I don’t know how long I’m going to be here for, but I’ll do whatever I can to just begin paying you back for what you’ve done for me.”

The nigh on evil grin I got in response was completely unexpected. “Well, then, it's a good thing that I’m going to take you up on that generous offer. You should be glad that my business generously offers assistance in buying uniforms for its employees. We are taking this little baby trans girl on a shopping trip after she gets her new look figured out. I can’t have my newest employee looking like a slob in the same oversized outfit every day now, can I? And of course, it being my turn to have a day off from the bar means I’ll have a couple of other girls to help get you kitted out.”

My mind nearly shorted out. Not even twelve hours of knowing who I was, and this woman wanted to take me on a shopping trip? In public? With her daughters as assistants? My face must have betrayed my thoughts because Grace nearly cackled. Good grief, she really was a witch. I feared for my sanity.

“Oh, and by the way,” my tormentor said, “if you don’t like ‘Allan’, you should probably start thinking of a name. Might be good to get the new one on any documentation the council makes up for you.”

“A new name? Eesh… you’re right, of course, but wow. I’ve not really had to think about that before.” I paused for a moment as another couple memories pushed forward in my mind. “Actually that’s a lie. I’ve made several characters for various games I’ve played, but I haven’t ever really considered having to name myself before. I mean, I could be lazy and go with something like ‘Allanah’ or something, but I feel like that would be silly of me.”

That got a chuckle out of her. “Well, you think on that. In the meantime, breakfast is about ready in the oven. Do you want to tell the rest of the family or do you just want to let them draw their own conclusions?”

It seemed that my poor mind was not getting any breaks. “Maybe you can help? I don’t know… damn it… You brought up the name thing and suddenly Allan really does feel wrong and I’m not about to use my legal first name either.” That got a raised eyebrow. “It’s Jonathan. Jonathan Allan Carter. Though I suppose you wouldn’t understand the reference there. Dad was secretly a nerd, named me after the main character of one of his favorite books.”

Grace ‘hmm’d’ in response and moved back to the kitchen to get breakfast finished. When I looked, the clock showed that it was still only a few minutes after seven, rather early for my mornings. I rarely woke up before eight or nine in my old world, mostly due to having a later schedule at work and not sleeping well most nights. 

Thinking about my father’s nerdism got me thinking though. If he could be a complete nerd, why couldn’t I? “You know what? Screw it. I may not keep it, but I have a name I can use, my favorite character that I made in one of my old role playing games. Jaylyn Kaesyliradür.” The name slipped easily from my tongue due to more than two years of practice while using that particular character in sessions of TTRPG. 

Apparently it didn’t pass through Grace’s ear without some level of discomfort though. “That uh, second name? You might want to shorten it a bit if you want people to use it at all. I do like the first name though. Maybe something like Jaylyn Kae?”

“Jaylyn Kae…” I tasted the name on my lips. It was shorter, obviously, but it also seemed a bit more pleasing to the modern ear. “Okay, I can handle that.”

The woman in the kitchen gave me a bright smile. “Well then, Miss Jaylyn Kae, would you like to come have breakfast? I’m about to go wake the kids and tell my partners that it and you are ready.”

Hearing that name used in reference to me, especially with the honorific attached to it… Something about it felt really good. I wanted more of that feeling. I nodded in return, my tongue too tied up with the feelings of elation I was experiencing. A fog had descended upon my mind and all I could think of was how that one simple phrase had felt. I absently moved from the couch to the counter and plopped into a chair. Grace apparently took my silence as an affirmative because she moved away. I heard her give an ‘all clear’ through her bedroom door and then Grace walked past me again to the kids’ rooms. 

Within a few minutes Ace and Krystal walked in together with Grace soon after with the girls in tow. I felt my jealousy rise a bit as I saw the adults fuss over their children for a moment, giving good mornings and similar pleasantries. Seeing all five of them just being a family was so wholesome. Once they were done, all five turned to me and I suddenly found myself with the feeling of being under a microscope. Grace especially looked at me expectantly, but I was too busy shrinking down in my seat to escape the attention. I heard her sigh.

“Family, this is Jaylyn Kae. She and I had a heart to heart last night. Jaylyn, care to say anything?”

I felt the five pairs of eyes bore into me. “I uh, hi. I’m Jaylyn, and uh, yeah, I’m a girl.” My stumbling voice apparently was able to communicate my message well enough because I quickly found myself under an onslaught of validation that I was completely unprepared for. 

“Well, of course you are, what else would you be?”

“Yay! Will you have a tea party with us then?”

“Good girl.”

Andrew, Arianna and Grace, in that order and with each I blushed deeper until with the last one, I nearly fell out of the chair. I was unprepared for that. Completely unprepared. My mind could not compute.

“I… Thank you.” My voice squeaked.

“Alright, back off of her. She needs to breathe.” Krystal, you are a lifesaver. 

I did indeed take a few deep breaths to steady myself. Regardless of how many breaths I took, nothing could abate the heady feeling of validation. There was no question, there was no doubt, no hesitation. These people had simply taken what I said and accepted it. It was a good feeling. I closed my eyes to bask in the feeling.

“You know, I find myself somewhat disappointed that I am still the only guy in this house after all.” I heard a smack. “Oof! Jeez Gracie,  it was just a joke! You know I love you girls! Though uh, Jaylyn? On the note of me being the only guy in the house, I know you are new to this whole being a girl thing, but do you think you could put on some shorts or something? I hardly think it's appropriate for a young woman to be sitting around in just a shirt, regardless of how cute it might be.” Another smack. "Okay, Krystal, I guess I might have deserved that one."

My face may have actually exploded at that moment and I may have left a smoke ring in my wake as I darted to the bathroom. I then had to make the walk of shame back to the living room to grab the shorts I had left with the rest of my things. 

I returned to the kitchen several minutes later, still imitating a tomato. I muttered an apology to my hosts, who were still giggling at me, bullies that they were.

“Yeah, yeah, laugh it up at the new girl.” I was a bit salty, but that only seemed to serve to make them laugh harder. 

Breakfast ended up being a rather fun affair for me despite the embarrassment. I heard several stories from all three of the adults of trans people that had ended up around the bar for one reason or another. A couple of them were even about trans people that had yet to figure it out. Listening to the stories about these people finally hatching was hilarious and made me feel a bit better about having been so dense myself. It seemed others even from this world were far from immune to having the density of a neutron star. Through it all, none of the family made mention of the fact that just yesterday I had looked like an entirely different person. No one made mention of my old name. I told them that I was a girl and that's how it was for them. The sheer acceptance was heartwarming. 

It terrified me how excited the two younger girls were when they found out they were going on a shopping trip for their guest with their mother. I still swear to this day that Ariel had an evil glint in her eyes as she made mention of putting me in a princess dress. Arianna was just thrilled to play dress up at the department store. I was thrilled for the chance to go clothes shopping for once in my life, I certainly would need at least a few outfits if I was going to work around the bar downstairs. Part of me was still unrealistically fearful of being figured out while doing so. It was a ridiculous fear, but one I still felt. I had no clue what I was doing. 

I did end up helping in the cleanup after breakfast was concluded. Dishes were cleaned and put away and the remaining food was packaged and put in the refrigerator. The open layout of the kitchen actually made it decently comfortable to work in even with two other adults to work around. The kids had gone to their rooms to get ready for the day and Ace had left to go do some work on his motorcycle for a bit until it was time to open the bar. 

Apparently the man managed not only his job, two young daughters, and two wives, but also managed to keep a hobby as well. I had to give him props for that. 

I ended up getting dragged into a board game by the kids for the next hour. I was pleasantly surprised to find that something so similar to Chutes and Ladders existed in this world. I was less pleasantly surprised to find that I had gotten my butt handed to me by both of the little girls and neither were afraid to tease me about it. I tried asking Grace for help, but she only laughed and joined their side. It was all in fun, though, and it was a nice way to keep my mind off of what was to come. 

Before long though, Grace came back to me, holding a bundle of clothes. 

“I took a look through our closet. These probably won’t fit very well, but they should be close enough. I got some sweat pants and a hoodie that I use on colder lazy days. The shoes were the most difficult, but I figure that these slippers will have to do. We aren’t going far and there is no telling exactly what you will look like after we are done with the appointment. Luckily, Madame Iridia  should be able to give you a temporary solution until we can get you some proper outfits. Anyways, though, go get changed. We need to leave here soon if we want to be on time. That is, if you are up for it?”

Her face showed concern but also excitement. From what I had learned of Grace, she found an incredible amount of fulfillment in helping transgender people find their way. Apparently I was the first she had invested this deeply into, but by her own words, I was a lost girl in need of help. I felt incredibly lucky to have been found by this woman. 

“No, I think I can handle it. This is all still a bit new to me, but you are right, I don’t know when I’m going to be going back and there is no real reason to put it off longer than necessary.”

“Jaylyn, your own feelings need to be taken into consideration as well. If you aren’t ready, we won’t go.”

I took several moments to gather my thoughts and judge my feelings. “No, I think I’m about as ready as I’ll ever be. I don’t want to go back to my old self and I still am not completely comfortable with how I am. If I can fix that, I want to. There’s no reason to delay it and risk my old thoughts creeping back in and holding me back.” 

“Alright,” she said. “Go change, then. I’ll get ready and wait for you by the door.”