Olives
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Sun rose on the three of them, Maxine and Victoria who both woke like they were being paid to look like lesbians in a woke commercial, gently smiling at each other. 

 

“Gmorning”

 

“Morning”

 

Max felt like they should feel more awkward. They'd only met… Two days ago now? But this felt safe and comfortable, and she enjoyed the morning sun on Victoria’s face right up to the point where she rolled off the couch with a soft thud and a bruised butt. 

 

V laughed softly and right then it was the best sound Maxine had ever heard. They both got up and had a very quiet breakfast. Neither of them said much except for the occasional “coffee?” and “yes please”, spoken so softly it was barely a whisper. Neither dared break the silence, stealing only occasional glances at each other. Every time they caught the other looking and their eyes met something in Max’s chest did a backflip. 

 

But after an hour of useless lesbians, Maxine realised she actually had to leave and get ready for work, and Victoria admitted that she needed to spend time studying today. Their goodbye was gentle. Maxine promised she'd call. Victoria mumbled something about having more questions but promised to keep Maxine's passenger a secret, who mumbled the softest, gentlest “thank you”. In return, all Victoria could do was mumble an “of course” so slight it almost made Max cry. 

 

She said goodbye and almost caught herself reaching out to… What? Touch Victoria? Just straight up “BOOP”? She didn't even know. So her hand hovered there for a second before she dropped it by her side again. She saw V’s hand raise for a second as if she was going to take it but was too late now, she panicked. 

 

“I'll talk to you later,” she smiled and shuffled off to the elevator. Behind her, she heard Victoria softly call out to her. 

 

“Get home safe, Max.” Even the way she said Max’s name. Gah. 

 

Once inside, she finally breathed in for what felt like the first time that day. Unknown to her, Victoria was doing much the same, face in her hands inside her apartment, mumbling “What are you doing??” To herself. 

 

Maxine almost pressed the button for the ground floor, but changed her mind and went for the top floor, then took the stairs up to the roof. 

 

“Penny?”

 

Yes?

 

“How long did you manage yesterday?”

 

Sunset to Dawn. 

 

“So, what? Eleven hours? Ten and a half?”

 

Give or take. But you weren't conscious for a part of that. So about half with your…

 

Penumbra paused.

 

Resistance. 

 

Maxine paused and nodded. After work then. Fine. They could still enjoy this, she thought, as she opened the door to the roof. She looked out over the city and tried figure out the way to her house. Penny seemed to gently nudge her attention in the right direction and together they discovered that they could, indeed, see her house from here. She took a dozen steps back and smiled. 

 

“Are you ready for this?”

 

As she asked, Penumbra enveloped her, its warmth spreading throughout her, until its toothy maw covered her head and they smiled in unison. 

 

We were born ready.”

 

They took a running sprint off the roof, launching themselves with a strength and power neither could possibly achieve on their own and in mid-air they extended themselves into their full form, all curve and muscle, landing on the next roof with barely a sound, hit the ground running and launched themselves again. The only sound was the air rushing past them, their senses amplified by each other as the morning sun warmed them. 

 

The experience was divine alternating stretches of near-flight of weightlessness, still moments frozen in time, with short bursts of pure power, of adrenalin, legs pumping, of feeling invincible and unstoppable before the next launch. 

 

They reached the last of the taller buildings and paused for a moment, taking deep breaths, enjoying the cold, thin air. They saw the river, far below them. 

 

“You know, I haven't been swimming in years?”

 

Why n- Oh 

 

“Yeah.”

 

A short pause. A Cheshire grin. 

 

“Let's.”

 

They dove, the rushing wind an exhilarating proof of their constantly increasing speed. They hit the water like a spear, shooting through it and curving up before hitting the bottom. Maxine silently worried about having to breathe but she was aware of Penumbra subtly changing its outer shell, arms slightly wider shape slightly sleeker. She realised they probably didn't need to breathe. 

 

Nevertheless, they dove out of the water in a way that would have made most dolphins extremely uncomfortable and mildly intimidated. Underwater, they moved with grace and fluidity. As a child, Maxine had been called all manner of fish nicknames by her family. She'd have spent all her time in the water if she could have - and did exactly that for many summers - but once she'd hatched and the dysphoria had kicked in, that had ended from one day to the next. This water wasn't clean, but the experience was extremely refreshing and invigorating nonetheless. She could swim again, and she thanked Penumbra for it. 

 

You're welcome. 

 

When they finally approached their own place, they jumped out and Penumbra quickly hid. Max noticed her clothes were dry but, well, she'd been in them for two days. 

 

She turned the corner to their house. She didn't want her housemates to see her wearing clothes one of them might recognise as “not hers” so she went around back, bent her knees fired herself at her balcony. For all intents and purposes, she was successful, quickly opening the sliding door to gently massage her bruised chest and ego. 

 

She took a shower and got dressed and ended up making it to her part-time job at a local bookstore. The day passed quietly. It was exam season so most of their customers were panicked undergrads, so she had time to think and have quiet internal conversations with Penny, who was very good at picking up on language and culture, but some of the finer aspects of her life were so subtle that she'd never considered them consciously so she enjoyed carefully explaining trans culture, the nonsense that was the English language (“Buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo buffalo”, she told Penumbra, who responded by hissing), and the fluidity of Internet culture, which fascinated Penny to no end. 

 

When their shift was over they got sub sandwiches and sat down by the waterfront. 

 

“So I've been thinking,” Max began. 

 

I noticed 

 

“Hush you. Thinking out loud helps me figure stuff out. Anyway,” she said, chomping down on the first sub. “I think we should practice. I'm gonna…” Munch Munch. ”I'm going back to therapy. Work on myself. But!” She interrupted Penumbra who she felt was about to do a self-satisfied nod in her head, “we're gonna train you.”

 

We are what 

 

“Every day. Or night. Whatever. We are going to push this thing to its limits. If we work together, we can extend the transformation. I know we can.”

 

Are you sure? Don't you remember..

 

“I remember,” Maxine said, chewing with determination. She stared ahead. “It's worth it.”

 

Penumbra nodded. It felt what she felt in that moment. It wasn't pleasant, but it was sustenance. Maxine, in the meantime, finished the sandwich and put the other one away. 

 

“That one is for after. Keep your energy levels up.”

 

Does it have olives? 

 

“No? Should it?”

 

I like olives. 

 

Maxine raised an eyebrow and thought of olives as if it they were a new concept. 

 

“Fuck, I think I like olives now.”

 

“Looks like we like olives.” they laughed in harmony, severely spooking a random passers-by who would take hours to convince herself she'd imagined things. 

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