Chapter 9

Andy took the card out of his wallet and rang ‘Off the Bone’. When he put his phone away, he laughed.

“Jim told me that if I can get the team in, he’ll set up the function room, on Saturday evening, just for us. He is still happy with us, and the place is, or so he said, going gangbusters. The room is big enough for your team and their partners if they want to come. I’m sure that Jim will have enough food for us all. Here’s the address, it’s smart casual, and we’ll meet you at seven. Now I’ve got to round up the others.”

A Grumpy Old Man’s Tale 45 Teachers and Tofu

“However, we’d been talking for no more than ten minutes when I realised I was in way over my head. I’d already made my mind up about her.

She is our kind of folk, and desperate to be seen as such, so I rang for Adalheidis to take over. A part time chiropodist I could manage, but one who intends to spend the rest of her working time as a ladies’ manicurist and was trying desperately hard to convince me she can do the job, just forget it. My secondary sex characteristics just don’t meet the requirements necessary to understand the differences between acrylic and gel nails. Adalheidis spent the next two days giggling and laughing at me.

How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl!
By
Rebecca Coleman

Note to readers: The “How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl!” is an ongoing in-universe serial that appears each Saturday Evening in the “Benton Evening Post” the story focuses on the ongoing struggle of Emil “Emily” Hannah Anderson as she strives to adapt to her new life in a small southern town that straddles the hills and the delta. The story chronicles her life as she tries to figure out what direction she wants to take.

-3-
Brass Tacks and Summer Bucket List

How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl
By 
Rebecca Coleman

Note to reader: The “How I spent my Summer Vacation: I became a Girl!” is an ongoing in-universe serial that appears each Saturday Evening in the “Benton Evening Post” the story focuses on the ongoing struggle of Emil “Emily” Anderson as she strides to adopted to her new life in a small southern town that straddles the hills and the delta. The story chronicles her life as she tries to figure out what direction she wants to take her life.

-2-
Being Discovered

The most dangerous point?

 

Tales of Faralmark
The Margrave Descends


by Julia Phillips

02 – War Zone

Chapter 27

Louise got on her phone to Etienne to get him to call the place we had been to lunch yesterday because he knew the owner. Then she told him that we needed lunch for the Stable Sisters plus four and she smiled as she put her phone away.

“He’s shocked,” she said. “He said that the music shop will pay for lunch as long as we stroll around the corner for some pictures there.”

Janet laughed. “Edie, we let you come early and when we arrive you have helpers, transport, and now free lunches. What else did you organize?”

It is a warm morning as I run through the desert. The sky is orange as the sun starts to rise over the horizon. The terrain was rough, scattered red step like escarpments disrupting the plains. Cacti and rocks scattered across the plains.

I was running out to my favorite rock tower, which is not popular among the tourist sites. I can visit without worrying about seeing another human. I do not know why this rock structure has such interest to me. It is not particularly special, but I feel drawn to this location.

Feathers

by Erisian

It had been a bad fight that night almost a year ago, the worst we'd ever had. The wings had appeared on our backs that morning - everyone got them, and it hadn't taken long for the significance of the colors to be understood.

If you had been morally good, your wings were white. If bad, they were stained with black. News video of prisons demonstrated that sharply: almost all inmates and too many of the guards had wings smeared and splotched as if with black tar. Most people had a blend of white and grey - some of the patterns were actually rather pretty. You could even glide with them if they were big enough and you were in moderately good shape, and children started figuring out how to actually fly - though there seemed to be an upper limit to how high up they could get. About ten feet or so seemed to be the limit. Physicists and biologists were utterly baffled, of course. Chemists were having a field day in tremendous excitement analyzing the composition of the feathers - but that's another story.

This is about us. Me and my wife. My wings were no better nor worse than most folks; though I could see a few splotches of darker grey mixed in. My wife, Sarah, hers were brighter than mine - except for a couple feathers that appeared rather splattered with black ink.

My relationship with my auntie we where always close and loved each other she treated me like her son but when she met sissy things changed from that first weekend, it was kinda like love at first sight all over again but would definitely be going down a different path.

The ongoing trials and tribulations of Ronin Kassius as he assumes the identity of Isabel val Sanreal and returns to Ar Telica City. Having survived the encounter with the Gun Queen of Ar Telica, Ronin returns to Ar Telica and begins his/her new dual life as Isabel val Sanreal, illegitimate daughter of the uber rich Sanreal Family, and as the Gun Princess, Mirai, an artificially created entity with preternatural abilities.

Ursula had previously thought that her Navy post would only begin once she arrived in Palarand. How wrong she was! With four different factions to manage plus Norse and Zebrins, wounds and other ills to attend to and near one hundred fifty mouths to feed, suddenly she is the center of attention. Unfortunately her resources are limited but she does what she can.

The Voyage of the Visund

A tale of Anmar by Penny Lane

81 - Director of Welfare

This is just a short story idea that came to me while having a walk today thinking about "stuff". Sorry not my "normal" stuff.

"Houston, approaching orbital point alpha in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Orbit optimum. We are looking good."

"Roger that Captain Adams." You will be out of radio contact in 5 minutes. How are your instrument readings?"

"There are A-OK Dave. I have more than enough fuel for 10 more orbits, a landing, and then some."

9 & 10

Gaining a better look & More exposure

Alex snaps back at Carrie when she suggests that he let his hair grow longer and that he should go to her hair dresser to manage it while it does.

“You really need to let your hair grow out some more, but in the meantime, I think we should get it styled. You know different parts of your hair grow at different rates and for it to look right as it grows out, someone who knows about such things should take care of it. Just a little trim about every two weeks, to keep things growing even.”

“What!? Are you suggesting we tell someone else about our experiment? …Or did you already talk to your hairdresser?”

“No, but I was thinking I could tell her that you wanted to recapture your youth and grow your hair out, but that I put my foot down on you looking scraggly like some kind of 70’s hippy. Then I could ask her if she’d oversee your journey into the past.”

“I just don’t want to deal with another of your cronies knowing that I’m letting you feminize me.”

“Oh Alex, I’m not feminizing you. I’m guiding you as you discover your feminine side. You know all men have a feminine side, just as all women have a masculine side.”

“Yeah, yeah, we went through that before. Call it what you will, but all I know is I’m discovering a lot more of my feminine side than I could have even imagined was there.”

Alex gets the special order bras and loves the experience of wearing them and even enhances the look.

He also goes to the salon to have his hair styled and finds Janet, the hair tech, to be a really professional and friendly woman that is going to be capable managing his quest for longer hair. He comes away feeling assured that this time Carrie hasn’t betrayed his trust.

The Triplet Planswalkers Part 2
By David/Flyer Hiserman & Joceden Hamilton

Chapter 2

The Triplet Planswalkers Part 2
By David/Flyer Hiserman & Joceden Hamilton

Chapter 2

Chapter 27

6:00 PM

Mage hadn’t had time to prepare anything big with driving Stephen to the doctor’s but on the way back she stopped long enough to pick up a couple of take and bake pizzas.

At eight o’clock, the kids went upstairs when the doorbell rang. Chet answered it as Mage called out to the kids to be nice to each other. Lately, they had started bickering as siblings often did.

Chapter 25

On the flight home on Sunday afternoon, I sat between Maureen and Mom and quietly spoke about the future as Ali dozed in my arms.

Mom said that she was going to push Dad into being in Fort Lauderdale by Easter and Maureen said that this would be a traditional weekend for Jordan and me to wed.

We batted it around a bit, and, between us, we thought about an Easter Sunday wedding, at the farm, with a big marquee set up. It would be kept quiet from the press, just for invited guests.

As soon as I woke up I knew that this would be another scorching hot June day. It also meant that the boys’ decision to stage a skirt-protest against the dress code not allowing shorts would be implemented that day. I smiled. I had the most dashing skirt I was planning to wear. I decided to really girly up. Instead of having my long blonde hair in a low ponytail I decided to let it flow down to my shoulders over my ears. I picked my favourite white blouse and some thin tights. The tights somewhat negated the purpose of the protest but I couldn’t resist.

I’m a trainee witch from a rural town where even the slightest deviance is frowned upon. There, witches are expected to follow a strict way of acting, and even being. And it is expected that a witch is to act as basically a medicinal servant for the village. She is to gather weeds and prepare potions to help deal with stomach aches and other ailments. Witches are to never wed. to never fall in love. To never have sex.

It’s patriarchal bullshit! Moreover, as I’m transgender, I don’t fit into their narrow view of what makes a witch! You have to be born female, and born to a wealthy non-witch family. I’m poor, and haven’t had the, quote, appropriate education. Only upper class villagers get an education in my hometown. Poor folk are expected to do hard labor such as farm work or hunting.

For that reason, I’ve decided to leave my hometown and travel to the capital city, where everything is better! The people are nicer, and nobody cares if you’re trans or poor or whatever! I arrive on foot after a month of travel. Most people fly on their brooms, but I’m not experienced enough for that. I can barely fly. Others take the train, but I’m too poor for that. The travel is rough, and I have to forage and hunt for food as I’m simply incapable of brining one month worth of food along with me. But, with blistered feet, I finally arrive at the capital!

Chapter 5

Monday morning brought them back to earth. The had breakfast, tidied up and both left the house. They kissed, and then Maria went west, towards the Aston station, while Andy went towards Coventry and the Police College. When he arrived, he walked to the swimming pool, a place he remembered with happiness.

When he walked into the pool area, he saw the dive leader, now known to be DCI Alex Anderson, who was checking over a wetsuit.

Chapter 24

“We are the administrators of the Swan Club. It all started when a few of us got together, one evening, to watch your classical DVD. When it finished, we were all crying and felt as if we could tell each other what we had been holding back.”