I made my purchases at the convenience store quickly - a two liter of rootbeer, a couple burritos, and a can of ravioli. More than enough to keep me sated until I could get to a proper store. True to my request, Chrys stayed silent the entire time I shopped, too - though she spoke up the very instant I left the store behind.

So, uh. You can hear that, right?.

I did, in fact, hear ‘that.’ It was the sound of high pitched sobbing, coming from around the corner of the grocery store. I’d heard the same sound when I’d entered the store, but hadn’t really wanted to interfere with the girl’s privacy. The fact that she was still sobbing was a little concerning, though.

You’re not going to just ignore it, are you?

“I’m not really sure what I’m supposed to do about it,” I muttered back. Despite that, I was already moving closer to the sound.

Oh, I don’t know, Chrys replied, as I rounded the corner. Maybe sorry for stealing her crystal? Not that you could give me back if you wanted to, now that the goo’s stolen all her magic potential…

“Wait, what!?”

“Bwuh?” The girl in question flinched backwards at my sudden exclamation, staring up at me with wide eyes. “O-oh… Um…. H-hi?”

“Right,” I replied. “Ignore me, I was just… um…” Leaving? Yeah, no. What sort of hero-wannabe ducks out just because a girl’s staring at him with tear filled eyes? Or… her, I guess? Maybe? I mean, not really, but for the sake of avoiding confusion while I was in this form… yeah. 

“Um… Are you… okay?” the girl asked me. Which was really sweet, considering she was still red eyed herself. 

Kinda made me feel crappy, though, for even thinking about leaving her…

“I’m fine,” I replied. “I was uh. Actually wondering about you? You seemed… upset.”

“Y-yeah… I um… I got fired, I guess?” the girl admitted, wiping at her eyes with her sleeve. “Even though I basically just got started on the job… It was um…. Yeah… I’m just… I’ll be fine, so just…”

“R-right,” I muttered, rubbing a hand against the back of my head. What was I even supposed to say to this girl? Chrys’ impossible declarations of her being Pink Heart aside - I mean, they looked nothing alike! - I was just… not that great at comforting girls. And now I was a girl - or at least looked like one - which added whole new layers of awkwardness to this….

The girl, meanwhile, oblivious to all this, just stared at me while sniffling a little. Her eyes wide and red, her body trembling…

“Do you maybe wanna talk about it?” I asked her, rubbing at the back of my head. “I could uh… Give you my number or something? And we could chat when you calm down? If that’s what you want…”

“I… I’m not…” The girl paused, her eyes momentarily flicking down to my chest, before a red blush touched her cheeks. “I mean… Um… Maybe?”

“Right,” I muttered, reaching into my skirt’s pocket to pull out my phone. A few awkward moments later, and I’d swapped numbers with the oddly flustered looking girl. 

“I-I’m Rachel, by the way,” she informed me, brushing a strand of brown hair behind her back.

“I’m… Uh…” Crap. What did I call myself? Max was off the table. Missy worked - kinda - but it wasn’t exactly my fave… Though if I wanted to go with my favorite name… “Olivia?”

“You don’t sound too sure,” Rachel pointed out, giggling.

“Y-yeah… I uh… I mean. It’s my name, so of course I’m sure! It’s just… uh… I’m not used to giving it out to pretty girls?”

She smiled - somewhat weakly, but with a warmth to it. “Me neither… I’m not really sure why I am now, either. But… Well. It… sounded fun? And I could use some fun right now…:”

“Y-yeah,” I agreed, my cheeks reddening as I realized that - from an outside perspective - it probably looked like I was trying to pick Rachel up, or something… “Well, uh. I’ll talk to you later?”

“Uh-hm. It’s a date! Though… uh… maybe you could leave the colored contacts at home, next time? If we meet up, I mean…”

“Contacts?” I asked, tilting my head to the right. What contacts?

“You know, the violet contacts? They’re pretty, but that color is sorta… triggering, for me… Sorry.”

Wait… Were my eyes purple? I could have sworn I’d changed them, along with the rest of me. Or at least I’d meant to… 

“R-right,” I managed to say aloud. “Sure. I’ll do that…” 

“Thanks.” Rachel gave me another smile. I returned it, of course - though I couldn’t help but feel like mine was a little bit strained by comparison? And then I did the obvious thing - the only thing one could do, really, when trapped in an awkward conversation with a girl you barely know and just exchanged numbers with. All of which is to say…

I ran away.

Smooth.

I was standing in front of my apartment door when Chrys spoke up next.

Weren’t you planning on changing back to your old form before heading home? Y’know, to keep people from tracing you?

“...Right.” I’d kinda forgotten that little detail. In fact, not only hadn’t I changed back into a guy, but I hadn’t even bothered cycling through forms at all. “Couldn’t you have reminded me a little sooner, though? Preferably before I reached my front door?”

Not my fault you got distracted by a cute girl and forgot to change.

“Yeah, but you’re my crystal! Aren’t you supposed to be helpful?”

I’m plenty helpful! When I want to be. Which is why I’m telling you now that trying to change into a guy is going to take a lot more magic power than your little fashion show. Enough that people might actually notice it, if you aren’t careful. I’d recommend holding off until absolutely necessary.

“Wait, what? Why would it take more energy to turn back into my real form?” I asked, frowning.

Maybe because it isn’t your ‘real’ form anymore? You’re the Violet Queen now, remember?It’s sucking up your magic power just to stay not-violet! Of course it’s going to take way more to rearrange your internal organs! Not to mention the whole growing a dick thing. The further you go from your true self, the more it costs you…

“Great,” I muttered, reaching into my pocket and pulling out my keys. “Just great… So I’m stuck looking like a girl if I don’t wanna burn through all my magic reserves?”

Yup! Which is why I’d save guy-time for when you absolutely can’t avoid it.

“Like say, during my classes?” I pointed out, sourly. I was going to be burning through so much energy tomorrow…

I recommend being a hot girl as much as possible. It’ll not only save your energy, but help you gain more! Plus you’ll be a hot girl. That’s basically a benefit in and of itself!

“Easy for you to say. You’re not the one with a giant rack…”

Says the girl who can literally make them smaller on a whim.

…Chrys had a point. Not that I was going to admit it. For one thing, the mere thought of it felt blasphemous. For another? I’d already swung open the door, to find a very surprised looking blonde girl coming out of the kitchen.

“Uh…” 

The girl - Clarissa - obviously unimpressed by my dumb stare, decided to lean against the wall and give me a once over with her eyes. 

“...So… Did Max lose his keys to you in a bet or something? Because I’m pretty sure I’d remember if he mentioned getting a super hot girlfriend. Not that I would have believed him, or anything.”

“Wait, what? Why not!?” I demanded. “I could totally get a hot… I mean… Uh… I’m a friend?”

Clarissa blinked, then narrowed her eyes, giving me another once over. “Yeah, no. Max doesn’t do friends. Other than me, I mean. Waaaay to obsessed with Magical Girls to actually socialize. In fact, the main reason I came over was to make sure he didn’t forget to eat! Again. I swear, the moment some dumb documentary comes on-”

“Hidden Heroes is not dumb! It’s a much needed look into the trouble magical girls run into living a double life! The friendships they lose out on, the social events they miss… The sacrifices they make!”

“...Uh-huh,” Clarissa murmured, looking me over yet again. From the way her gaze lingered, though, I was pretty sure she was just taking it as an excuse to check me out. “Let me guess. You met Max on a Magical Girl forum, fell madly in love, and got sent a copy of his keys to come over?”

“Like I’d send my keys to a complete stranger!”

“Really?” Clarissa asked, arching an eyebrow. “Because I’ve seen you do some pretty stupid shit when magical girls are involved. Like trying to skim from your college fund just to buy an autograph that probably wasn’t even real…”

“That’s… I mean… I wasn’t actually going to do it! I was just… considering it… And I’m still mad at you for sitting on me until the auction ended, by the way! I mean, you could have at least let me dream about it for a little bit, couldn’t you?”

“Ah-hah!” Clarissa shouted, pointing a finger at me. “You are Max, aren’t you?!”

“That’s… uh… I mean… Well, it’s…” Crap.

“You totally got turned into a magical girl, didn’t you? And considering you’re in plain clothes, it’s affected your civilian identity too, right? Unless you just changed clothes or something… bet you checked yourself out pretty thoroughly while doing it, too, knowing you. Did you grope your new tits yet? Fondle your pussy? Don’t tell me you’ve already taken it out on a ride…?”

“Don’t mix me up with you!” I protested. “I mean, sure, maybe I did a bit of a fashion show, but that’s it, alright!?”

“Suuuure you did, buddy…” Clarissa ‘agreed,’ a smirk on her lips and a twinkle I didn’t like in her eyes as she pushed herself off the wall and came closer to me. “So, is the hot new look here to stay? Or are you still stuck in that male-presenting meatsack?”

“You mean my real body?” I grumbled. She was always like this. Completely uninterested in even acknowledging the fact that I was a guy. Sometimes, she even messed up and talked about me like one of the girls. “It’s… Complicated.”

“Complicated how?” Clarissa asked, frowning. “Do you still have a dick, or something? Because there’s nothing wrong with that, if so. Unless you wanna get rid of it anyways, in which case you should probably start looking up gender affirming surgeries or whatever.”

“What? No. What are you even talking about?” I asked, rolling my eyes. “It’s complicated because my Magical Contract went all… wonky. It’s… Um. Well. A lot to take in, actually…”

Uh, Olivia? You sure you wanna tell her about this?

‘Of course,’ I replied, mentally for once. ‘I mean, sure, she’s a bit crude, but she’s been my best friend since, like, kindergarten. It’s fine.’

“A lot?” Clarissa asked, unaware of my private conversation with Chrys. 

“A lot,” I repeated, stepping inside my apartment and closing the door behind me. Then, taking a deep breath, I released the spell, allowing my skin and hair to take on their new purple pigment. At the same time, a surge of relaxation ran through me.It was like… putting down a burden I wasn’t even aware I was carrying. Loosening muscles I hadn’t known I had. 

Unfortunately, the experience wasn’t nearly so pleasant for Clarissa, who stumbled back in shock.

“You’re… Purple? Like…”

“The Ooze?” I finished for her. “Yeah…” 

Her eyes went wide. 

“Look, I know it’s a lot to take in, but I promise I’m still me, alright? Still… Well, I’m going by Olivia right now, actually, but still! It’s me. I’m just… sorta. Purple, now… And have a weird connection to the ooze… and have a magical crystal in my head insisting that the magical girls are the actual baddies for some reason… it’s… I’m still processing it.”

Clarissa said nothing, just staring at me with wide eyes.

“Come on, Clarissa… it’s me. Say something? Please?”

“...Hot girl nude…”

“Bwuh?”

It was at that point that I remembered I’d been wearing clothes made of ooze. Ooze that was now on the floor, after being released by my spell. Leaving me tit to face with a very horny, slightly dazed looking sexual deviant of a lesbian… And a crystal that couldn’t stop giggling in my head.

Great.

~~~
Author's Notes

Meet Clarissa! She's kinda awful, but I love her. Also Pink Heart! I have no idea what I'm doing with her, but that's sorta the norm for this series... I'm trying very hard not to overthink it, after all.

I'm kinda behind on posting this series - I'm actually up to chapter 11 in terms of public releases, and chapter 13 on Patreon - so I'll be trying to release a chapter a day until I'm caught up.