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Morning went by slowly. Andrew was sent home - that is to say, was allowed to leave -  after it was certain that Maxine was okay and Penumbra wasn't going to eat him in retaliation. 

Penny was somewhat disgruntled, of course, but understanding. Apparently they'd been separated so violently it had knocked them out cold, something they hadn't expected and never experienced before. They were, however, happily impressed with Max’s recovery after the transformation. Especially the part where she had punched Andy in the throat. Penny had liked that. 

They let Andy take the stolen cash and jewellery. He did need it right away, it's not like he could bring it back and, most importantly, neither Victoria nor Max were fucking narcs. He had promised to come back tomorrow so they could discuss other options that weren't as likely to have him arrested. Also they were going to look into his powers more because some of this stuff was just straight up racist. 

After he was gone, Victoria cradled Maxine for a bit, then nudged her up. 

“Come on, you need a shower.”

“Are you telling me I'm stinky?”

“I'm telling you you're covered in your own blood and hair.”

Max flicked her hair back dramatically. 

“I think it's sexy.”

“I- do… Too…”

“What”

“No but you're ruining-”

“No hold up-”

“-my couch I'm not-”

“No repeat that first bit.”

“-gonna say it again.”

They were playfighting all the way to the bathroom where V stripped her with practiced expertise.

“You're such a dork.”

Max nudged her nose with her own. 

“You love me.”

“You know it.”

She spun Maxine towards the shower and slapped her ass. 

“Git!”

“Wow.”

“That was sexier in my head.”

“W o w.”

“I'm sorry?”

“Not good enough,” Max said with a smirk and turned the shower on, grabbed Victoria by the hand, pulling her in. She didn't have the time to undress but, to her credit, she was distracted. They spent a lot of time and water distracting each other for thirty minutes. Victoria managed to get undressed by the time the water stopped. 

Both still standing in the shower, Max and Penumbra transformed, her body smaller and curvier. There was a powerful energy to having to look up at V. She felt so very small. Victoria kissed her, then dragged her out of the bathroom. Penumbra chirped in, letting them both know they could probably only keep the shape up for two, maybe three hours. That would be enough, V and Max confirmed with a smile. 

It was after being together for some time that Victoria and Max whispered to each other in a moment of quiet. Then, Victoria spoke up. 

“Hey, Penny?”

“Yes?”

“Would… Would you care to join us?”

More stammering, like last time, but after a moment they appeared, enveloping Max's frame. Their maw was inches away from Victoria. She remembered how scared she'd been the first time she'd seen it. But she'd grown used to them over time. Knew Penny wouldn't hurt her. But there was one thing…

“Not like this.” She patted Penny's thigh. “All of you. The real you.”

Penumbra stretched and expanded to their full form, towering over Victoria who was incredibly intimidated and equally turned on. She lay a hand on their cheek. 

“Penny?”

“Yes.”

“Max?”

“We're here, Victoria.”

“Oh my.”

That was the last coherent thing she said. 

—- 

A little over an hour later, V tapped out. She had gone completely nonverbal, simply panting as Max shrank back into her daintier form, and held Victoria against her chest, who could only smile and mewl softly.

“Did you get a little overestimulated?”

“Mm-hmm”

Max kissed the top of her head, gently, over and over again. 

“Did you like it?”

“Mmmmm-hmmmmmm!”

“Good girl.”

They both giggled a bit. 

“Are you okay?”

With that, V propped herself up and kissed Max back, then nodded with a great deal of certainty. 

“Penny did too.”

“Oh?”

“Listen.”

She opened her mouth wide. Penny purred loudly through her. 

“What the fuck,” Victoria laughed. It was as good a phrase as any to resume speaking. She tried to get up, her legs shaky. It took her three tries to stand up, and she stumbled towards the door, looking back at an extremely self-satisfied Maxine. “You monster,” V said, laughing at her inability to keep her composure. 

They just grinned and winked. 

Victoria made herself some tea and, saddening everyone involved, she did end up putting some pants back on so she could study without making a mess of the couch. 

Maxine was going to do the same when Penumbra prodded her. 

I want to try something

“Oh?”

We are relaxed right now, so it's a good time 

“Let's have it.”

Let's see if we can train you to shift yourself. 

“Shit, that does sound rad.”

Maybe the way I do it will work for you. Maybe it won't. 

The next half hour, both keeping an eye on the clock, Penny would gently morph small things. An extended knuckle. A stronger muscle. Then morph them back. Trying to help Max feel where it was happening. See if she could influence it. 

There was a quiet tearing sound. Max made a face, but she was used to much, much worse by now. And her knuckle extended. And Penumbra wasn't doing it. It stopped after a second. She was elated. 

“I did it!”

You did it

“Why does it hurt when I do it?”

That's because you don't floss.

“Hurr”

It's because you're stretching the bone and healing everything around it. You have to…

They moved her finger back into place gently. 

All at the same time, see? Muscle, sinew, bone, cartilage. Feel them work together and help them go where they need to go. 

She nodded. It made sense, it just required a lot of concentration, a sense of her body she didn't have yet.

“How much longer do we have?”

I'd say twenty minutes before I'm out 

“Cool. I want to try something. Then shower.”

—-

Victoria sat on the sofa quietly giggling to herself. She was having a hard time concentrating but that's because her whole body was a distraction. She was getting stuff done but she was swimming against the current. 

Her mother, she considered with a smile, would probably be really mad and not surprised. When she had come out as trans at a young age, she'd received all the love and support from her parents who wanted her to be herself no matter what. But when she was in her teens and she'd come out to them as gay, they had a lot of trouble with that. It had baffled her. Over time her mother had accepted that she was going to love who she was going to love and that she'd rather have a happy daughter than one who didn't pick up the phone. 

Big slime monster imprinted on her trans girlfriend was probably a bridge too far. Victoria giggled again as she looked back on her life and her weird dating history, her tendency to find herself surrounded by the absurd, the macabre or the impossible. It would probably be on her epitaph. 

 “Here lies Victoria Cryptidfucker. 

She died as she lived, 

making out with something she shouldn't.”

She snorted at that. Then the room to the bedroom opened and Max's head poked out. 

“Babe look here for a thecond,” she lisped.”Thee what I can do.”

She stuck out a nine-inch tongue, drooled for a second as she crossed her eyes, then popped back into the bedroom giggling. Victoria sat there, like a lesbian, eyes wide open, deer in headlights as she heard the sound of the shower running again.

“Fuuuuuuuuuuuuu-”


Spree shoved a wad of cash into the man’s hand. He wasn't in the mood to play games, but he wanted this done legal. The mustachioed clerk fumbled with it for a moment, clearly uncomfortable with what was happening. 

They both stood in the deserted lobby. Daniel wasn't going to sit in this low-level manager's grubby little office. He was only being this polite because he didn't want problems to arise early on. 

“Look, sir, this isn't how things are done. There aren't any games planned in the next few weeks but if a club wants to-”

Daniel's very limited patience had run out. He grabbed the man's head in his hands. 

“I paid you the amount needed to use this stadium until the end of the month. You are going to process that money and all the required paperwork. Then you're going to go home. Every time you see a red car, you're going to shit yourself. When you're home, I want you to sit at the kitchen table with a knife. Every hour, on the hour, you're going to cut off a digit. Don't talk to anyone. Now get out of my sight.” 

The man walked off in a daze, as if he was sleepwalking. Daniel huffed.

“Bureaucrats,” He mumbled to himself, then walked through the double doors into the football stadium that was his for the next few weeks. He stepped onto the grass field, took off his coat and immaculate blazer, folded them, and sat down in the middle. Not a sound. It would require some fine tuning, but he knew he could make the cauldron pick up sound, all sound, even thoughts, echo into the stadium. 

He looked at the copy of the chip in his hand, encased in glass. The theory was the same. Amplification. But rather than outgoing signals, he now needed for things to get much louder. Then, he'd be able to find anyone who could fix him. And they would never see him coming.

Daniel didn't smile. But a small spark in his eye betrayed the glee, the anticipation. He'd be unstoppable. 

—-

He called the construction company the next day. All the permits had been approved but nobody could get a hold of the clerk. It was a temporary construction, Spree assured the foreman with the fake cheerful voice he had to use over the phone, when he didn't have access to people. The foreman made a non-committal sound and reminded Daniel in legalese that any possible problems that arose here would be his legal responsibility. 

Daniel was having a lot of trouble staying calm. He was happy this was a voice call because the rage was clear to read on his face. He understood, he said. But everything was taken care of, if they could come by tomorrow to begin construction. 

“No can do, sir. We have a block that needs finishing downtown. I can pencil you in next Nov-”

That won't…” sharp inhale. “I'm afraid that doesn't work within the time table. What do you say I come by tomorrow. We'll go over the calendar together and find something that is mutually beneficial.”

He made sure to stress the right words. People could be so dim when they didn't even realise they were being bribed.

“All right sir. I'll see you then.” There was a weird pause. 

“... Did you just wink?”

“Yes sir. I didn't think it through. “

Daniel hung up and screamed. A flock of birds above tumbled to the ground, their brains turned to mush. 

—-

Andy came home and sat on his bed. He'd stopped by a bunch of pawn shops, and sold all the jewellery, then deposited the money in his account. By the evening, he'd paid a chunk of his mother's medical bills. There was still so much left to cover, but he kept a bit aside so he could buy her some luxuries, the coffee she liked, a small cake. 

It was nothing, but it was everything. 

It was hope. He cried. His parents cried. When they asked where he got the money from he made a guilty face and told them he'd started a crowdfunding page for her. His parents were proud, but they were also desperate, and felt blessed that people were so willing to give them, random strangers, so much. Andy felt a little guilty lying to his parents but honestly, that evaporated when he saw his mom smile, when he saw his parents smile at each other. 

He smiled, and cried. 

A bit later, he sat in his room and for the first time in decades, felt a little good about himself. He looked in the mirror, had always hated the person looking back and his stupid, ugly face, but now it was someone he was proud of. He smiled and instantly regretted it. It wasn't a good face. 

He turned away and messaged Max and Victoria in a group message. They'd both given him their usernames so they could talk anonymously without social media giants ratting them out. 

> R: Thanks again for helping me out 

> M: new fone who dis

> R: Andy 

> M: R-Andy? Really? Randy Andy?

Andy rolled his eyes. Randy Andy was a really unpleasant nickname. 

> R: No its short for Rew

> V: It's cute. I like it.

> R: Thanks :3

> M: and it's no problem. I'm just happy we could help your mom. She's a SAINT

> V: I don't know her but yeah, people like us gotta stick together 

> R: Thanks guys

> M: come by soon. We've got some ideas that might not be *as* illegal

> R: Like what?

> M: you could do magic shows :p

> R: Really? 

> V: More practically, have you considered like, the construction industry? An army of super strong demons that can follow instructions could be useful. Just register yourself. 

> R: I'd… Rather not.

> V: Suit yourself!

> M: you could do some killer cosplay

> M: set up a patreon

> R: Wouldn't that be weird?

> M: i think you'd look cute with pink hair :p

> R: asdfghjkk

> R: fuck off

> R: No I wouldn't

> V: Don't bully the poor kid 

> M: can I offer you an egg in this trying time

> V: lmao don't 

> R: ANYWAY 

> M: Anyway.

> V: Anyway. Jokes aside, I think we can help you out. You're not alone in this, sweetie. If you need anything out have questions, about anything, just ask. 

> R: Thanks guys

> M: sorry, no guys here 

> R: Oh, sorry.

> M: Just girls :D

> R: weirdoes

He put his phone away and decided to game until he fell asleep. He moved through the levels on autopilot, replaying classic games he'd grown up with, the bounty hunter chasing space pirates. It was comforting, kept his brain busy so he could relax while his hands went through the familiar motions. 

He felt weird, but not entirely uncomfortable. He had hope. It looked like he even had friends. People who understood what he was going through. People who knew what it was like to not fit in, like him. And they looked really happy together, too. He slowly dozed off, wondering if he'd be like that with someone some day. 


The next few days went by studiously. Victoria helped where she could, but mostly worked on her papers, with exam season coming up. When Andrew wasn't around, Maxine practiced shape shifting, showing off new weird tricks she'd learned, parading them in front of V. Once, she walked out of the bedroom in a miniskirt with hooves, horns, ashen skin and a tail and Victoria had only responded by biting her lip and then dragging Max to the bed. 

Other transformations were more practical. She learned how to change the shape of her face, carefully, without hurting herself, so she could look like anyone. There was a bit of Mrs. Potato Head and Picasso cross-over going on at first but she got the hang of it after a while, even changing eye colour. Hair was more difficult, as it needed to be shed before she could grow it in a different colour. Penumbra mentioned that, with practice, she could probably learn to retract it. Wouldn't want to waste body mass. 

When Andrew was there, they went over different ideas for what they could do with his power that didn't end up with suicide-by-cop three months down the line. His abilities were useful for all kinds of work, but they were also highly visible. 

Their time was also used to acclimatise him to Penumbra, who he'd have to get used to seeing if he was going to be around the apartment. They talked to each other for a while, and in time he got used to Penny interjecting in conversations. 

They were also trying to figure out something to do about white boy summoning deities that were decidedly not his. The breakthrough there came from Victoria, who handed him a folded piece of paper. It was from her family’s tribe, she said, a ritual that, according to legend, summoned a burning bull that would trample your enemies. 

Andrew changed into his robes as always. They had proven to make his summoning more effective. They went up to the roof. It worked perfectly, a majestic ten-foot-tall bull that charged through the air and left burning blue footprints in the sky. He looked at her triumphantly until she plucked the paper out of his hands with a smug look. 

“There is no giant bull, Andy. I made him up.”

“I… What?!?”

Training for him from then on took a turn. At first, he couldn't summon anything anymore. 

“I just… If I can only summon things because I think it'll work, and I know they aren't real… Then I can't summon anything!”

Victoria shushed him. They sat opposite each other on the couch, cross legged. 

“If you can summon what you believe is true, and you know you can summon, doesn't that mean you can summon anything? After all, you already know you can. You just have to believe it, too. Just try like… Know that you could make a bird. I know you can do it. You know you can do it. All you have to do is believe you can do it and… Make it happen.”

He sat there for a long time. After two days, Victoria was working on her laptop when a blue, translucent lovebird perched itself on her screen and looked at her curiously. She smiled. 

They went up to the roof again, Andrew in full regalia, arcane jewellery and all. 

“You know you don't have to wear those, right?”

“Oh, I know. They just give me confidence.”

Maxine rolled her eyes behind his back with a smile. 

“At least take off the culturally inappropriate stuff,” Victoria said. ”It's really uncomfortable.”

“That's fair,” he smiled. “But the robes stay on.”

Up on the roof, he sat down, and took a deep breath. The girls stood behind him, supportive, on either side. 

“Alright Andrew, you can summon anything you want. You just have to believe. What would y-”

Blue, shimmering grass grew out of the roof. Then, plants. Giant blue trees. Birds materialised in thin air and flew in pairs, chirping and playing with each other. A blue river ran off the side of the building and disintegrated. Within seconds, the roof of the building was a verdant blue garden. In the middle of it sat Andrew, his arms wrapped around his knees, a melancholy smile on his face wet with tears. A bird landed on his shoulder. 

Carefully, Victoria and Maxine went downstairs, and left the garden to its gardener. 

—-

Andrew lightened up a bit after that. He was often seen in his robes, and whenever he was in the apartment he had a bird or a butterfly on his shoulder. He also found that he could make some useful constructs, like vehicles and even clothing, though translucent. 

“Hey,” Max said jokingly. “If you don't like your outfit you can borrow some of mine. I'm sure they'd fit.”

Andrew blushed and frowned at her. “What… Why would..”

She twirled in her skirt. “These go spinny too.”

Andrew looked down at his robes. “That wouldn't… Look good. On me.”

“Gently,” V said from her spot on the sofa. Andrew didn't get why. 

Max grabbed him by the hand and sat him down, then shoved a cup of tea in his hands. 

“Andrew.”

“What, Max?”

“Do you want it to look good on you?”

“I mean… If I could wear dresses too… It's not that I want to be… I wish I had the option…”

“Girls do have more fun clothing options.”

“Exactly.”

“And they're more fun to look at.”

“Yeah.”

“But you can't wear girl's clothes because they would make you feel gross.”

“Exactly.”

“Because the masculine body is gross.”

“Yes!”

“And your body is gross.”

“Yeah…”

“And you wished it was that of a girl.”

“Y- W- H- What... I… Yes but… Everyone… Gets that… That's normal…” 

The voice petered off. Victoria gave Maxine A Look. 

“Gentler than that, babe.” 

She turned to the mess in the chair. 

“You can be a girl if you want to. You know that, right?”

“Oh fuck.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh FUCK.”

“Yeaaah.”

—- 

More hot leaf water. Hugs. Crying. Headpats. Cookie. 

“You're under no obligations here, sweetie. But if you want to try a different name and see how that feels, this would be the place to do it.”

“I… I don't know…”

“It's okay not to know. Take your time. Do you want to use your old name while you figure things out?”

“No! No. I… Oh, maybe my username?”

“Rew?”

“Well, pronounced like that, but R U E.”

“Rue. I like that.”

“Hey Rue!”

“Hey Max.” Smile. 

“Hello Rue.”

“Hi Penny.” Single tear. 

“Hey Rue.”

“Hey Victoria.” Big smile. Lots of tears. Hugs. Leaf water. 


Construction was going well and not nearly fast enough. And people were starting to ask questions, questions Daniel didn't want asked and that he certainly wasn't going to answer. Questions like “Why is there a big tower in the stadium?”

The bodies of people who had asked these questions had been mixed into the cement. There were dozens of them. For shits, some had been alive when they had been encased. 

Daniel Spree was impatiently observing construction when the police officers came in. He didn't even turn to them, had them simply shoot each other while fully conscious about their actions. He barely got any fun out of that anymore. He turned to one of the construction workers. The man was bleary eyed. His clothing soiled. That's what happens when you work a week without food or rest, he supposed. He'd need a few replacements soon. He motioned to the dead cops. 

“Throw those in the cement.”

“B- but sir…”

Instantly, Daniel went from bored and impatient to edge of fury. 

“Yes?!”

The man was quivering, exhausted and on the verge is collapse but his nervous system wasn't his. 

“I- it's just… We have enough. Construction of the internal tower is almost complete.”

“Oh! Very well then! Thank you, man. You have my permission to die.”

He did. 

Construction was almost finished. Daniel Spree inhaled the rancid air of rot that permeated the stadium with a smile. He had done great work, he thought. Nobody knew yet, of course. But they would, in time. In a matter of days. Maybe a week. 

Not long now. 

—-

Rue beamed. She was experiencing euphoria for the first time and it came from the smallest and the biggest things. Carefully, Maxine and Victoria had taken her shopping, finding her new clothes. Some had worked. Some had caused her pain. That was normal, Maxine had told her, who had more experience with adult dysphoria than V. The most important thing right now was figuring herself out, taking it slow, and letting herself make mistakes. 

They found some long-sleeved summer dresses that really fit her, and taught her how to put a dress on. Taught her about the unpleasant process of tucking which, while not for everyone, was a useful tool in the fight against the brain demons. Victoria taught her the basics of makeup. It was hard. Rue hated looking in the mirror. That, too, would take time. 

Then, the big steps. Rue decided to hold off on telling her parents while she figured things out. That was understandable, and nobody pushed in that respect. Rue knew her parents better than they did. But they made the call to a specialised therapist together. It would be a few months until the appointment but it was there. It was a date, set in stone. Rue cried and thanked them both. 

—-

During those days, Maxine and Victoria also made a couple of changes. It had now been a few months since they met and honestly, Maxine spent all her time at the apartment anyway. She officially moved in on a Wednesday. Victoria gave her a key. Max gave her a kiss. Rue gave them a cactus.

Only two days remained until everything was going to be different, but of course, they had no idea. They simply trained and studied. Rue spent time in her garden but also learned how to better control some of her constructs. Maxine kept growing different kinds of horns to seduce Victoria. It was super effective. 

—-

Construction was finished. Daniel could cry. He looked up at his tower, a brutalist monstrosity that would serve his purposes. From here, he would rule his empire. He would burn all who stood in his way and the rest would grovel. 

He considered how far he'd come and felt genuine pride. He deserved this. He really did. He had been denied basic human pleasures and been burdened with knowing humanity's flaws. If anyone deserved what he was going to achieve, it was going to be him. Nobody had worked harder or suffered more, he knew, than him. 

He looked around and the construction crew all collapsed in unison. In the past week, the bodies in the Stadium had quadrupled. Mostly people looking for other people. It wasn't his concern. He was almost done. Soon, he'd hear everything. Everyone. And then he'd find the one who could fix him. He put his coat back on and approached the tower, and began the ascent to his throne. 

The tower was tall, but he was in excellent shape. He appreciated the organic interior as it contrasted with the tower’s outer shell, the server banks inside wrapped in miles and miles of cable, running throughout and filling the heart of the tower. The whole thing was a tangled, rancid mess, human faces cemented in the walls, limbs rotting where they protruded.

He reached the top. It was colder up here. It was the wind, obviously, but it didn't bother him. He could look over the city from here. He crashed another news helicopter on its way to have a look at the structure, and sat down in the stone chair at the center of the platform. 

He placed his hands on the control panel. The lights around the stadium should have turned on, but all their power went into the structure, thick black power cables running from all sides to him. He flicked another switch. More power. There was an audible hum in the air as electricity crackled and systems began to spin up. The air was charged. It was almost ready. 

While he waited, half a dozen police officers ran into the stadium. He made them all shoot themselves in the stomach. Their cries as they bled out reached him all the way at the top of his tower. It was chilly up here. He'd have to invest in another construction crew some time build him a fortress around his tower. But that was later. Now was now, and now was the beginning of the end.

He traced the last button on the display. The one that would activate his throne, and make him a god. He relished this moment. Once he was cured, he'd have it all. Everything he had worked towards. He pressed it. 

Now. 

—-

It was a Friday. The city was warming up. Summer was approaching. Max had just gotten home with groceries. Rue was on the roof. Victoria had taped a bunch of pages to a wall to get a better overview. 

Suddenly, the air itself seemed to turn to treacle. It was hard to move. It was hard to breathe. Their heads were pounding. Deep below them in the street, people were collapsing, cars were crashing. 

Maxine cried out. This was comparable to the pain of her transitions. She was used to this. Victoria was not. She tried to force her way to V, to catch her, when she heard the voice. 

“You.”

“What… Who are you?”

“Not your business, come here.”

Ssstop Hhhim

Penumbra sounded pained, like it, too, was having to fight to move. 

“Now.”

Then, the spell, the inhuman pressure that had overtaken the city was gone. Nobody knew what had happened. But Maxine knew she had to go, and where. She picked up Victoria, who had fainted, and put her on the sofa. When Rue came in, she told her to stay with V. 

“Where are you going?”

“We're going to see what the FUCK that was. And kill it.”

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