Alek stood up and pointed around the room, "Tina, you will pack up all of these things right now, and you WILL come home, and that is FINAL."

Christina screamed, "No way! This is MY life, and I say I'm staying RIGHT THE FUCK HERE!"
 

Poor ole Joe Bockkernodd . Upset with life. Work, work all the time. Whenever he saw a girl with her boyfriend, a wife with her husband, he thought, “Oh how lucky they are. Never having to work. Always having somebody to take care of them. Oh, if only he was one of the lucky ones with someone to take care of him.”

A tear ran down Christina's cheek. "You have to talk to me Nina," she cried. "Please?" she whispered as she dropped her head and sobbed quietly. "Nina, you have to open the door. I'm leaving soon, and I don't know if I'm ever going to see you again. Please, don't be mad at me."

 

Synopsis: Cindy and Allyssa are convinced Terri doesn't need to be so depressed at her situation. They begin trying to change her attitude and self image. They want her open up a bit more.

Christina couldn't stand the devilish look on her aunt's face. "I know," Christina explained, "I got up early to cook something for lunch." She looked pleadingly towards Misha in the hopes she would let the subject drop.

Christina had reached an entirely new stage of embarrassment; she could feel heat pulsating throughout her entire body. "Aunt Misha, I know what you're thinking, but it's not like that at all," Christina protested.

"Come back tomorrow," he beamed.

Blushing, Christina said, "I think you'd work faster without any distractions."

Richard answered seriously, "I need you around to answer any questions that may arise." In a much more playful tone, he added, "Besides, you are far and away my favorite distraction."

Abby shrugged and continued, "Not a word of that, but they did say you two made quite the couple on the dance floor."

"Yeah," Christina admitted with a sneer, "There might have been some dancing."

"If Richard took you to the Clairmont, then he must have you in his sights."

"Is that his thing?" Christina asked.

Abby leaned in and warned, "That Richard Masters is one smooth talker. I swear he has dated more girls than a crocodile has teeth!"

"You don't say."

"Just watch your back, Sugar. He's not one for settling down."

"Oh I will," Christina assured. "I've seen him in action. I'm sure he has all the girls eating out of his hand. But I'm not all the girls. I'm not... even one girl."

        Doing her best to pretend that nothing was wrong, Christina spent most of Friday helping Misha and Nina with household chores. Her attempts to savor her time with Misha and Nina were crushed by their concerned looks. When she looked into their faces, all she saw was worry. The women carried on all day, making small talk and doing chores. None of them dared to address the complications that that were tearing Christina in two.

        Christina felt utterly lost. Had she ever felt so disconnected? Perhaps, when Amy had dumped her, but this was far worse. There was no way she could hold on to her family, and she doubted that even her gift, if Andrei could pull it off, would mend the rift that had formed between her and Alek.

        Pulling the pillow off of her head, Christina forced her eyes to focus on the alarm clock. "Crap," she yawned. It was already past eight; she'd slept late yet again. She had spent most of last night Googling taxation problems to no avail. Dropping her bare feet onto the cold floor, she went into the bathroom. Her eyes winced in the pale light as she took stock of what she saw. As usual, after her Oak Grove vacations, Christina was still a girl. Even without her false breasts in place and with her disheveled morning hair, there was no doubt about it. Her powder blue cotton pj's, which were covered from head to toe with yellow chicks, certainly didn't help her cause. She was in a difficult spot- she would be returning home for Christmas, so she did not have the luxury of getting a haircut. She'd just have to find some way of making herself a convincing boy in the meantime.

Synopsis: Terri gets to meet the Council and quite a few things are revealed. Like who might be responsible for all her problems...

Mike’s purchase on TG-Bay has unexpected features and consequences.

        Christina could feel time stalking her all day. She'd called Steph last night after dinner to give her all the bloody details of their double date.

        Steph, of course, had been absolutely elated. She'd explained that the Clairmont Inn was a small bed and breakfast on the edge of town. Its dining room was the closest thing to an extravagant restaurant Oak Grove had to offer, and it was certainly the most romantic place anyone could have picked.

        Had Christina known this, she would have insisted that they go anywhere else, but it was too late now. While she was sure that the day was dragging for Steph, she could feel the minutes slipping away. She wondered if this is what it felt like to be on Death Row.

Darla and Molly

by Maggie O'Malley and shalimar

Note: The Transgender element is based on previous stories.

        Pulling the still-hot load of towels out of the dryer, Nina piled it into the laundry basket. Taking a towel off the top, she started folding.

        Christina took the next one, folded it, and placed it on the stack they were building on top of the dryer.

        "Thanks for helping out with my chores," said Nina.

        Christina responded, "Your chores are my chores."

        "In that case, do you want to write my history report?" Nina joked.

Harriet Porter and the Chamber of Victoria's Secret
By Missy Crystal

Harriet Porter was very concerned.

"Herman, do you think the old wizard is in some kind of trouble?" she asked. "He has been acting very oddly, disappearing for days at a time. Perhaps you should use your magic map to see where he is going."

"Really, Harriet, can't you mind your own business. I am sure he can take care of himself. Besides, the map only works inside the school."

As promised, the Special Edition! Special Features (clickable) include -- Cast of characters breakdown, the “Behind the Scenes” Author Interrogation IRC Log, and a quick description of
MY personal favorite part of each Chapter. Maybe having the whole story all at once will make it easier to enjoy!!!

        It was nearly eleven-thirty at night when Christina stumbled through the door of her apartment. Her legs burned after ascending the six long flights of stairs. She let her suitcases drop; her arms feeling dull and stretched. The humidity in the dark apartment was oppressive, the hot air encasing Christina's skin, causing every inch of her body to sweat. Feeling the energy seep out of her muscles, she dropped onto her hard bed. She kicked of her shoes and socks then shimmied out of her tight jeans. Christina leaned back and turned on the fan mounted in the window over her bed. It did little more than cycle the hot air, but that was better than nothing.

        Christina got up early, long before the rest of the family and was already dressed and downstairs before the sun had come up. Deciding that she was going to be the first girl in the house to make wearing pants a habit, she had thrown on a pair of capri pants and a simple off the shoulder top. She went into the kitchen and put on an apron; the plan was to surprise her uncle with breakfast before he went to work. Christina had seen very little of Alek this visit, and she longed to spend some time with her uncle.

        Nina was the first one awake, and she shook Christina by the shoulder.

        "Come on, we have to get ready," Nina scurried towards the door.

        Christina sat up in bed, "Get ready for what?"

        "It's Sunday," Nina shouted as she rounded the corner. "We have to get ready for church."

        "Church?" Christina repeated to herself. She couldn't think of a time she'd been in a church that wasn't for a wedding or a funeral. She jumped out of bed and chased after Nina. "What do you mean church?"

        Chris now realized that it was going to take more than just a casual effort to resurrect Christina Chase. It had been foolish to think he could just throw on some old clothes and hop on a bus. It was going to take planned and determined effort. He was going to work on being Christina every day until the end result was flawless. He decided on a few steps early on. First, he was going on a diet. Chris had always been tall and thin, but he wasn't going to take any chances. From now on, it was salad for lunch. Secondly, he was going to change his workouts. He hadn't spent much time exercising, but after his experience in Oak Grove, he'd tried some weight lifting. That was over. He was switching to aerobics or Yoga.

I wrote this chapter quickly before work this morning, but I wanted to keep my hand in play.

It is short but might be important later, depending on my muse. I hope you enjoy!

DD

        Christina lay in bed on her side with her arm around a pillow. She hadn't checked what time it was, but judging by the sunlight, she expected it was past noon. Her mind was so seized with despair and worry that she'd slept only a few fitful hours since Andrei and left her at her bedroom door last night. Her hand was numb from clutching her gear necklace. She'd been holding it so tightly and for so long that the teeth had cut grooves into her palm.