=::= Tally's PoV =::=

I lay on my bed and stared up at the ceiling as I thought about everything Beth just told me.

As much as I didn't want to believe it, the stuff she said made too much sense. It explained so much about her, about some of her funny quirks and mannerisms. Like how she could do a perfect mom-voice, or heck she sometimes even acted like a mom.

I couldn't even count the number of times I'd seen her do the mom thing with Jenny. And I always thought it was odd but kind of cute, especially since Jen was so much bigger than her, and older too. But now that I knew she was actually really Jen's mother, the whole thing left me feeling weird and confused.

And that reminded me of that time at school when I was getting to know Jenny, and the two sisters had a weird discussion about calling Ms. Watson their real mom. It was odd at the time, but thinking back now it felt even stranger. Like Jenny obviously still thought of Beth as her real mom, even if they acted like sisters.

At least it made things a little less weird about how Beth and Sadie acted together. Like they were only sisters through adoption, but really they were a married couple.

That was another whole layer of weirdness right there too, knowing Sadie used to be a grown-up but now she was Amanda's twin sister. But both Jenny and Amanda treated her like a sister, same with Bethany. And Ms. Watson really did seem like a perfect mom to all four of them. Like they really did seem like a happy caring loving family.

It was only when you spent time with them and started to see those weird things, then you started asking those funny questions. But nobody would ever guess the truth. Even now when everyone in the world knew about Cindy's spell and that magic was real, nobody would assume Beth and Sadie used to be a grown-up married couple.

I quietly sighed again as I tried once more to figure out how I felt about it, but all I got was numb. I didn't know how to react or how to feel or what to think. It was too much, too big. I'd been laying on my bed for what felt like an hour or two trying to get my head around it all, but I just kept thinking the same things over and over without really getting anywhere.

Eventually I looked at my phone, as I wondered if maybe if I could talk to someone they'd help me work through it.

I actually thought about calling my mom again. Even if I couldn't tell her any of this stuff, just talking to her might help. Except I knew things were still kind of weird between my folks and me. On the surface our relationship was ok, but I didn't really trust mom to give me good advice. Or actually I just didn't really trust mom period.

That realization made me sigh once more, but I tried not to get too down about it.

Then I thought about texting Steve, but I dropped that idea just as fast. We were still friends, sort of, but things were still weird between us and we didn't really hang out anymore. I'd only seen him once since summer break started, we mostly just messaged each other now and then. And I couldn't tell him any of this anyways.

The only people I could actually talk to about this stuff were in the coven. And it felt like half the coven was Beth's family, while the other half were folks I barely knew. After thinking about that for a bit I decided Jessica or Kara might be good choices. They both worked at QSAW, they both knew how to help people and stuff. And since they were always there for the meetings with my folks, I'd got to know them both a bit.

I glanced at my phone again as I thought about maybe texting or calling Jessica. Even if I felt like I knew Kara a bit better, I knew the enby wasn't as comfortable discussing emotional stuff. Or at least that's the impression I got, maybe they were more open about that stuff with Jess.

Before I actually made the decision my ears twitched to the sound of the front door opening, followed by Jenny's and Ms. Watson's voices.

My stomach lurched slightly as I double-checked the time. It was half past four, so it was later than I thought plus they were home earlier than I expected. I sighed and put my phone down, as I could imagine what was going to happen next.

I heard Jenny come up the stairs, the faint sound of crinkling plastic meant she was carrying a few bags of purchases. Her footsteps went straight into her bedroom and the bags were dumped on her bed, so she could start going through all her new clothes and putting stuff away. And probably taking old stuff out of her closet or dresser.

My ears strained a bit to hear past the noises Jenny was making, as I listened for voices downstairs.

I was positive Beth was still in the living-room, she'd been quiet down there ever since we talked. I figured Ms. Watson would find her and the two of them would talk about me and the stuff Beth told me. The only thing I wasn't sure of was if Ms. Watson would stay down there talking with Beth after that, or if she'd come up here to check on me.

So I lay there, staring at the ceiling while I listened as best I could. For the next fifteen minutes or so mostly all I heard was Jenny messing around with clothes. But every now and then I could pick up Ms. Watson's voice from downstairs. She was keeping quiet though, and if Beth was talking she was even quieter.

Then at long last I heard footsteps coming up the stairs, followed by a gentle knock at my door. Then Ms. Watson asked, "Tally, may I come in?"

"Ok," I sighed.

The door opened and she stepped in, then closed it again behind her. She gave me a kind, sad smile and asked "How are you feeling hon?"

"Numb," I replied with a shrug. "I don't know what to think or how to feel, so I'm just numb."

She gave me another sad look, "I'm sorry Tally, I know it's a lot to take in hon. Is there anything I can do to help? Or do you have any questions, or anything you want to say? I want you to know I'm here for you."

I looked at her for a few seconds, then finally asked "How do you all just live with this stuff? Like all I did was transition with Cindy's spell, and it messed up my family and almost ruined my life. Beth and all her sisters and you have had to deal with so much. She said she even tried to kill you? And you still love her and stuff? And her sisters do too?"

Ms. Watson took a deep breath then quietly sighed, "We've definitely had challenges Tally. Things were very difficult for all of us, and I'm sure Beth didn't tell you all the details. The fact is, I spent several months in therapy to help me process the whole situation. Sadie was originally my older sibling, Beth was my sister-in-law, and I was Amanda and Jenny's aunt. Then a year and a half later I was adoptive mother to four teenage girls, and I carried a great deal of guilt over the events which led to that."

She moved to sit down in the chair next to the desk as she continued, "I got past it, we all did. I love my girls with all my heart, and they love each other just as much. I'm not saying it was easy, there were struggles and rough times. The four of them have been through so much it breaks my heart to think of it, but they stuck together and I think we're all stronger for it."

I still didn't know what to say or how to feel. I ended up staring at the ceiling again, while Ms. Watson watched me.

After a minute or so she asked, "You and Beth have been together almost six months right? Do you remember what it was that made you want her to be your girlfriend?"

"I guess I thought she was cute," I frowned. "I knew she was kind of shy and quiet but she was also kind of funny? I mean she had a good sense of humour. And I guess the more I got to know her, the more I liked her."

I thought a bit more then continued, "I also figured out she's smart. And I knew she and Jenny were super close. I was kind of scared of Jen at first but I guess I envied the way Beth and Jenny were so friendly and supported each other? Me and Dylan were never close like that."

"When I accidentally turned myself into a foxgirl I was scared she'd dump me," I added quietly. "But instead she stuck with me. And she helped me sort things out with the school, she helped me get my name and ID changed, and she got you to help me."

Ms. Watson smiled, "That's my Beth. And you know Tally, the person she was in the spring is the same person she is right now. Fox ears and tail notwithstanding. I know the things she told you seem overwhelming, but all of that happened three years ago."

"Yeah," I frowned. Then some more questions occurred to me, "Do the other people in the coven know about Beth? Does Ashley know Sadie used to be..."

My girlfriend's mom nodded, "I think most of them know. At least those who were part of the coven at the time will know who Bethany used to be. And yes, Ashley knows about Sadie. I was with them when Sadie told her girlfriend about her past."

"Wow. I guess it worked out though right? Since they're still together?" I asked quietly.

She sighed quietly, "Almost everyone in the coven has experienced challenges and difficulties Tally. For some people those come before they join, for others it happened afterwards. While those experiences help shape us, they don't define us. What matters isn't who we were or what happened to us in the past. It's who we are, and what we do in the present and future that matter most."

That got me thinking for a bit, and I couldn't help wondering what sort of things she was talking about. Or what sort of stuff everyone else had to deal with. I knew it wasn't polite to ask though, so I kept quiet about that.

Instead I finally looked at her and asked, "How's Beth doing? She's been quiet since we talked earlier."

Ms. Watson looked kind of sad and maybe a bit anxious as she replied, "I think Beth spent the afternoon crying. She's very worried about you. I am too Tally. Bethany and I are both concerned about whether or not you're still comfortable staying here with us, now that you know about her past."

"Oh," I grimaced as I looked up at the ceiling again.

After a few seconds I shook my head, "I don't think I can go back to my parents' house. And I don't really want to. Um, I think I'd still rather stay here, with you and Beth and Jenny? If that's ok?"

"Of course it's ok Tally," she replied with a kind smile. "You're always welcome here hon. We just want to be sure you're comfortable and happy."

For some reason hearing her say that was enough to nudge my emotions out of their numbness. I felt tears start pooling in my eyes as some of the stuff her and Beth said all sort of hit me at once. Like despite everything Bethany said, the stuff she told me, the thing she was most afraid of was making me too uncomfortable that I couldn't stay here. Like basically they were both just worried about me being ok and having a safe comfortable place to live and stuff.

"Thank you Ms. Watson," I mumbled as I wiped my eyes. "I really appreciate that."

She gave me another compassionate look and asked, "Do you think you'll want to join us for dinner? We're going to order something in tonight."

"Pizza? Or Chinese?" I asked, naming Beth's and Jen's favourites.

"We'll see," Ms. Watson smiled as she stood up. "I'm going to go check with Jenny. We can talk again later ok?"

"Ok," I nodded. Then I got up as well, and while she went across the hall to Jenny's room I slowly went back down the stairs then into the living-room.

My girlfriend was laying on her side on the sofa, curled up in a little ball with her tail hiding her face. She looked super cute but I could tell she was sad and worried, from how her ears were sort of droopy. Mine probably looked the same, and my tail was hanging down low between my legs.

I sat down on the sofa right next to her, then reached out and gently stroked her hair and rubbed the backs of her ears as I asked "Hey Beth, are you ok?"

"Maybe," she mumbled softly. "How are you feeling Tally?"

"I'm not sure yet," I admitted. I kept stroking her hair and scritching her ears, then added "We're still friends though ok? And still girlfriends too. I mean, if that's ok with you?"

The tip of her tail had started twitching back and forth, then she suddenly sat up and pulled herself against me in a tight hug.

"Thank you Tally," she whispered, while her tail started full-on wagging back and forth behind her. "Of course it's ok with me! I'm really happy to still be your girlfriend."

By that point my tail was flapping back and forth as well. I hugged Beth just as tightly and smiled, "Thanks Beth. I'm really happy to be your girlfriend too."

The two of us were still like that when Ms. Watson and Jenny finally came into the living-room a few minutes later. A silver foxgirl and an arctic foxgirl cuddling tightly on the sofa, with smiles on our faces and both our tails swishing happily back and forth.

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