I reveled in the luxurious bath, surrounded by the soothing scent of oils and the gentle ministrations of the servant women. The bath was large enough to have several people in the tub at the same time. The tile was placed in a mosaic of the Caravelle crest at the bottom of the tube. It was a rare moment of relaxation, a respite from the challenges and mysteries that had unfolded since my arrival at the Caravelle Empire. As I lay in the tub, I couldn't help but think about the enigmatic Grand Cleric and the society I now found myself a part of.

That Stag Night
A Vignette
By Maryanne Peters

I wonder if I had not looked as good as I did, whether it might have been different. Perhaps I did not even look that good – what do you think? I had understood that drag was more about roasting women than imitating them, but the makeup artist saw something in me which persuaded her not to go too crazy on the eye makeup as she did for the other guys.

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Wherein all your questions are answered. Happy Halloween, everyone!

Chapter 6

For the rest of the day, they continued sorting out the evidence and transcribing the recordings they had made. Sally rang Laura.

“Laura, it’s Sally. I do have one question for you. How long was it after your mother got her reminder note before she was killed?”

“That was a week, I think. The note was in the post on the Monday, and she was found the following Tuesday. How are you going with it?”

“We have the name of the smaller man. Would you believe that their nicknames are really Horse and Cart?”

Lance sees a makeover offer at a costume shop that he couldn't pass up. Unfortunately, he didn't have the money to pay for it, but the store owner was willing to make a deal.

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I wasn’t crying, I was sobbing. Lying on the floor of my bedroom in a nightgown, bawling my heart out.

I think at this point in my girlhood experiences mom was accepting it and enjoying it, seeing how I was really enjoying it too mom probably realize that I didn’t have a need to be a girl but just loved girl things and the fact that my sister was a tomboy jock mom was just happy to have a new daughter to have some girl fun with.

Toni is in Light Avenue, yes! on a worknight, and what has she agreed to? Worse, what has she done to herself? Nothing other than invite the barman who was flirting with her to join her for a drink. What he wants from her she can’t even begin to fathom but considering the flirting it must involve man and woman things. What’s she going to do?

And worse, how does she continue her life after that? If she doesn’t drop dead from shame on the spot she’ll have to continue working on the healthcare report from work. She’ll have to continue having actual guys as friends knowing she, well... maybe likes doing things with them. Depending on how her drink with Jackson goes... If it’s not a joke... It’s all in Toni’s future, and all of her own making.

"Suze, I've got a problem, the sole has come off of my shoes, I can't walk like this."

"Try going to the office, they might have some shoes in the lost and found, maybe you can borrow something from them."

"Good idea," I said as I left to the office, which thankfully wasn't far as my sole flopped around, being only attached at the heel.

"Sorry, Bobby, I'm afraid there aren't any shoes in the lost and found that might fit you," said Mrs. Peterson, the school secretary.

Remember
Copyright 2023 by Heather Rose Brown

Sometimes, if you're especially lucky, you'll get a brief moment to meet someone you will always, always ... remember.

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Either my mind was playing tricks on me and I wasn’t remembering things I had done . . . or my mind was playing different sorts of tricks on me.

I ran back into the living room, paced around, ran back to the bathroom, stared at the mirror, closed my eyes and then opened them. Damn, she was still looking at me.
“Mom and Dad will be home any minute. Maybe at the same time. I can try to explain this to them at the same time.” I darted back to the living room and peeked through the blinds. “How am I going to explain this? I don’t even understand it myself.”