=:= Stacey =:=
It was Thursday morning and the week had gone by all too quickly. Stacey worked on Tuesday, and she had to work again today. She might've been able to take one or both days off, but the full moon was coming up soon and she was booked solid with people wanting to talk to her about using the spell.
So yesterday was the last full day she had with her sister and niece. Tomorrow she'd be taking them both back to the airport in the afternoon and that would be it until whenever the three of them could get together again. Probably not till next summer.
Stacey had been watching her sister closely all week, and the more she saw, the more worried she got. Despite her reassurances, Katie seemed to be growing more uptight as each day passed and the full moon drew nearer. She'd nearly forgotten to use the prep spell almost every single night, until either Sarah or Stacey reminded her.
Last night, Stacey had been worried enough to send a text to Cindy, asking for help. It was a long-shot of course, she hadn't heard from the sorceress once in two and a half months despite sending a handful of messages.
Today, Stacey was driving her sister and niece to QSAW with her. They wanted to see the support org where she worked, then the two would be taking the car and going off to do some touring for the day while Stacey was busy.
It was about half past eight as she pulled into a spot around back of the building. There weren't any other cars here, but she'd already figured out that at least some of her co-workers teleported to and from work. At least she was pretty sure Jessica, Kara, and Maria did. Most of the young volunteers took public transit or biked in, but one or two had their own vehicles.
"The place doesn't open up till nine," Stacey said as she unlocked the back door, "So I can give you a tour without bothering anyone. Then you two can get started on your day."
Sure enough Jessica was already here, in the break room getting the coffee machine started.
Jessica greeted her with a smile, "Good morning Stacey."
"Hi Jess," Stacey smiled back, then did the introductions. "This is my sister Katie, and her daughter Sarah. Katie, Sarah, this is Jessica. She's one of the organizers here, and one of my bosses so be nice."
Jess grinned, "Technically Maria's your boss, I'm just a colleague." She greeted the other two, and of course her eyes lingered on Katie as she took in the small catgirl's appearance.
She then looked at Stacey again and said, "There's a couple people already here to see you actually. They're waiting in your office, Stace."
"What, now?!" Stacey sighed. "We don't even open for another half hour, Jess. Why'd you let someone in this early?"
Jessica gave her an apologetic smile, "I think you'll understand when you go and see them. I'll keep your family company here, why don't you go take care of the guests in your office first."
Stacey sighed and looked to Katie and Sarah, "Sorry. I'll go see what they want. If it seems like it's going to take a while I'll leave them waiting and come back out to see you both."
Katie nodded, "Go, deal with work stuff. I get this too, students turning up any time they like, regardless of posted office hours."
"Thanks sis, see you in a minute or two." Stacey left them with Jessica and headed straight to her office. She opened the door, got one step inside then stopped in her tracks as her eyes widened.
Waiting quietly in the two guest chairs were none other than the small sorceress and her catgirl associate.
Stacey blinked, "Miss Talbot! I wasn't expecting to see you again. And Miss Zaitsev, it's a pleasure to meet you."
The small blonde grinned, "Just call me Cindy, please."
"And you can call me Zoe," the catgirl added. "Nice to meet you too, Stacey. Jess and Maria tell us you've been doing really well here."
Stacey nodded, "Uh, thanks." She frowned and asked, "What brings you two here? I hope I'm not in some kind of trouble?"
Cindy giggled, "No! I'm sorry I haven't replied to your texts, we've been just really busy. In fact as soon as we're done here me and Zoe have to go deal with a huge mess in England." She sighed dramatically, "But never mind that. You said you were worried that my spell did something wrong when your sister used it?"
"Yes," Stacey nodded, and she moved past the two young women to sit down behind her desk. "Katie used the spell at the last full moon, but in addition to the changes she'd wanted, she had something unexpected happen. She used to be about the same height that I was before? But the spell left her extremely uh, petite. She's having a lot of trouble adjusting, and I feel like it's really hurt her self-confidence."
Zoe frowned, "She's going to reverse the effects on Monday, right? Or at least, fix the part that she's unhappy about?"
Stacey nodded, "Yeah, that's the plan. Though she's been getting forgetful about doing the prep spell. Either her daughter or I have had to remind her pretty much every night this past week." She sighed, "I think she's got so much anxiety about the whole thing it's affecting her concentration. I'm honestly a little worried she'll get so uptight about it, she'll flub the spell on Monday and be stuck for another month."
Cindy was listening quietly, and finally asked "You're wondering if maybe I could help your sister along? Maybe skip the full moon and help her out directly? I'm here, I could do it right now." She added softly, "For that matter so could Jess, Kara, or Maria. Obviously they keep quiet about it, but all three of them are very capable witches."
Stacey's eyes widened at that news. Even after she started to suspect her coworkers could teleport, it hadn't occurred to her what else they might be capable of. She nodded to Cindy, "Honestly if you could help her that might be a huge relief for Katie."
"The thing is," Cindy said, "That spell works by intent and desire. Like, both consciously and unconsciously. And it has some failsafes built in, so it's more or less foolproof. Like, I needed to ensure people didn't do anything stupid or awful to themselves even if they used it while they were drunk or high or whatever."
After a pause, the small sorceress added, "Over two million people used the spell last month alone, and out of all that, I've only had four serious requests for help. And two of those were because of abusive family members, not because of the spell. It's interesting that Katie didn't contact me herself. The instructions are pretty clear about that, right? My email address is there, if people need help."
That brought a frown to Stacey's expression. "What are you saying? Wait... Are you saying that she actually wanted that to happen? Even if she didn't realize it?"
Zoe shrugged, "It's possible. Maybe she's not forgetting to use the prep spell, so much as looking for an excuse not to undo things on Monday."
There was a slight noise from the door, and Stacey turned then her eyes went wide. Katie was standing there in the open door, blushing brightly. Her ears were folded back and her tail was down between her legs, but the tip was twitching slightly. Sarah was there too, standing a pace or two behind her mother.
"Oh crap," Stacey muttered under her breath. "Uh... Katie, Sarah... This is Cindy and Zoe. Cindy, Zoe, this is my sister, Katie, and her daughter Sarah."
Zoe stood up and smiled warmly, "Hi Sarah. Hello Katie. Always nice to meet a fellow feline."
Cindy got to her feet as well, "Hi Katie, Sarah."
Stacey was watching her sister as she stood there, her expression was a mix of embarrassment, confusion, and perhaps a bit of anger. Stacey knew she probably shouldn't have been discussing this stuff behind Katie's back, she just hoped her sister would understand she did it out of concern.
Sarah had a thoughtful expression on her face as she said "Hello Cindy, Zoe." She was mostly staring at Zoe at the moment. Even now it was still fairly rare to meet 'hybrids' like Katie and Stacey.
Everyone was silent for a minute or so, till Cindy spoke up. "Katie, if you really need help sorting out the spell's effects, send me a text. Your sister has my number. I'll drop by and help when I can."
Zoe added, "We really have to get going. There's a huge mess we have to go clean up over in Oxfordshire." The catgirl turned and said, "Bye for now Stacey, it was nice meeting you." She turned towards the door, adding "Nice to meet you too, Katie and Sarah."
Cindy nodded, "Bye, let me know how it all works out. Or text me if you really do need help."
A moment later the two of them simply vanished, without a sound and without a trace.
Katie, Sarah, and Stacey all blinked in surprise at that, and Katie's mouth dropped open a bit as she stared.
"Who... what...?"
Stacey nodded, "Yeah. That was that Cindy. The one who created the spell."
Katie asked, "...Where'd....how'd they..."
"They teleported." Stacey smiled. "I told you that was a real thing."
Her sister and niece finally stepped into the office. Katie slumped down in one of the guest chairs and Sarah sat in the other. Katie was still blushing, and her eyes dropped down as she stared at the floor.
Stacey sighed, "I've been worried sis. I asked Cindy for help. I didn't think she'd actually show up in person though."
Katie nodded slowly, still looking at the floor. "You think I did this on purpose. You think I'm going to mess up on Monday so I'm stuck like this for another month."
Stacey said softly, "You heard Cindy say she'll help you, if you ask."
"Yeah." Katie sighed, still staring down at the carpet.
After a few moments, Sarah asked quietly "Mom? If you actually wanted..." She hesitated, then said, "What I mean is, I'll support you, whatever it is you decide to do. I know I haven't really said that, and maybe I should've made that more clear."
Katie was still looking down as she whispered, "It was a mistake. I didn't... The picture was..."
Stacey could see some tears in her sister's eyes now. There was a box of tissues on her desk and she quietly slid it a little closer to her sister.
"I saw the picture you used, mom." Sarah said, her voice still quiet. "I mean, I know you said you didn't notice the size but it seemed pretty obvious to me."
"But why? Why would I want this?!" Katie asked, frowning. "It doesn't make any sense... It's been nothing but a hassle, and it'll just get worse once the semester begins. Nobody will take me seriously. Students won't respect me. People will start pushing me around. Maybe even literally."
Stacey was silent for a few moments, then with her eyes on her sister she commented, "Katie, you've mentioned those potential drawbacks a few times over this past week. But I don't think I've actually heard you say you're unhappy with your size."
Sarah's eyebrows slowly rose as she stared at her mother. "You know mom, she's right. You've had a lot to say about why it's bad and how it'll make your life difficult, but you've never said you didn't like it."
Katie was blushing brightly as she blinked some tears out of her eyes. She finally reached out and took a tissue, though she looked embarrassed even to do that, like it was a sign of weakness or something.
Then it sort of clicked for Stacey. "Sis, you're worried people won't respect you, won't take you seriously. Do you really believe your height was the only reason your students and peers respected you, or listened to you? I don't believe that. But I could see maybe you leaned on your physical presence at first, when you were just starting out. And perhaps you've just got used to doing that ever since, even though it's not necessary."
She took a breath then continued, "You're an excellent teacher, you're well-known and well-regarded, and you've made a name for yourself. None of your accomplishments had anything to do with how tall you were. I've read the papers you've published, and your latest book. You're really good at what you do, and that has nothing to do with your size. That's actually the biggest difference between the two of us. My career depended on it, in your career it's irrelevant."
"But... Why would I do this to myself?" Katie asked softly. "Why would I put myself through all this stress and worry?"
Stacey shrugged, "Maybe on some level you wanted to prove you could do it without the physical advantages. Maybe some part of you decided to throw away the crutches and stand on your own merits." She added, "And maybe you're scared, because another part of you is afraid you'll find out it really was all about your stature. That's fair and valid sis, we all have doubts and uncertainties like that. For what it's worth though, I don't think those fears are justified. But it's normal and natural to have them."
Katie took a deep breath then sighed. She wiped her eyes again then nodded, "Thanks Stace. I guess I have a lot to think about." Her ears twitched and she added, "And I think this place is opening up soon so we should get out of the way and let you get to work."
Katie got to her feet, then Sarah did the same.
"Are you going to be ok, Katie?" Stacey asked, watching her sister.
The tiny catgirl nodded, "I think so. Thanks again for the talk, Stacey."
Sarah gently put a hand on her mom's shoulder and said, "I'll make sure she's ok. Thanks aunt Stacey. We'll be back with your car around five."
Stacey got to her feet too, "If you're out having fun, don't rush back on my account. I can take the bus home." She added with a grin, "Or maybe I could talk Jessica into giving me a lift. Anyways, you two enjoy your day, and look after each other."
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