Christian Aceves was one of the few people who still went to libraries. Every kid he knew spent their time poring over video games, Netflix, and Instagram. Christian liked those things too, but he also enjoyed reading a good book. He liked reading from almost any genre, be it fantasy, mystery, or romance. The most recent book he had read was Dark by L. J. Williams, and today he was going to the library to return it.

On Sunday after church, Christian planned to go to the library with his ten-year-old sister Mia. Mia was a book nut herself, and she had cut her teeth on encyclopedias and world record books. She was eager to go to the library and see if she could find any interesting books. Since both of their parents were either working or busy with church stuff, Christian (who was sixteen and had just gotten his driver's license last month) agreed to take Mia with him to the library.

At the library, Christian returned the books he had borrowed and went off to go to the romance aisle. The book Dark had been the first in a trilogy, and Christian was looking for the second book titled Darker. The first book had ended on a major cliffhanger, and Christian was very curious about what was gonna happen next. He looked through the bottom layer of the bookcase, where the books by the authors whose last names started with W were held. He struck gold when he found the last copy of Darker near the end of the shelf.

Christian then went to go find Mia. He looked in the encyclopedia aisle and found Mia looking over a large blue-covered book. Inside the book was a series of old-style writing and drawings, much like those Wizardology, Egyptology, Pirateology, and other -ology books Christian used to read in elementary school. "What book is that?" Christian asked.

"It's called 'Ancient Spells,'" Mia answered. "It's really cool."

"You wanna borrow it?" Christian asked.

"Of course!" said Mia.

"Well, then, let's get it," said Christian. He led Mia to the checkout counter. Christian placed Darker on the counter, and Mia placed Ancient Spells alongside it. Christian swiped his library card, and the librarian gave them their books.

"Thank you so much, Christian," Mia said as she carried her borrowed book out to the car.

"No problem," said Christian. "I hope you enjoy your book."

***

The Aceves family lived in a small (ish) house in the city of Chicago. Christian was an active participant of his school's swim team, and Mia was heavily involved in ballet. Christian had swim practice that evening, so he couldn't read his book. Mia had a free afternoon, so she had a chance to go over her Ancient Spells book. She read about lots of cool spells that could turn rocks into bread, cause toys to come alive, and create water out of thin air. Mia wished that she was a witch herself and could actually do this stuff. There were some spells that she really wanted to try out. For example, there was a spell that could warp a teacher's mind and make them forget to give you homework. Mia hated homework, and she would do anything to get her teacher to stop giving her homework. Another spell could turn a stuffed animal into a real cat. Mia loved cats, and she had wanted one for her whole life, but her parents had refused to get her a cat.

Mia would've spent all night reading, but when she was halfway through the book, her mom came into her room. "It's time to go," she said.

"Go?" Mia asked.

"Yes," said her mom. "Your playdate with Emma."

Crap. Mia had forgot. She and her friend Emma had set up a playdate at Emma's house for today, but Mia had been so excited about her book, she had forgotten all about it. "Sorry Mom," she said. "I'll come."

"You can bring your book if you like," her mom said. "I'm sure Emma would like it."

So Mia brought her book to Emma's house so they could both read it. They both sat on Emma's bed with the book open in front of them. Mia skimmed through what she had read so far, causing Emma to be impressed. "Have you tried any of these spells?" Emma asked.

"No," said Mia.

Emma looked at a spell written on the lower corner of a page. "I'll try this one," she said. She cleared her throat and started reading. "Feeling lonely, want a cat. Poof, now I have one, just like that." Instantly, Emma's brown stuffed cat sparkled with magic. There was a flash of light, and the stuffed cat was gone. In its place was a real, living, breathing tabby cat.

"Oh my gosh!" Emma exclaimed, hugging her new cat. "The spells actually work!"

"I know," said Mia.

"Wait," said Emma. "Will my parents be mad that I suddenly have a cat-"

"Probably not," said Mia. "It said in the beginning of the book that when one of these spells changes something, it changes the world around us so that everyone thinks that you always had a real cat. Only you and I know the truth."

"What else is there?" Emma asked. She flipped through the book and found a chapter on human transformations. "How to get a new family member?" she read.

Mia read through the page. She had not read this one yet, and she was curious. Her eyes settled on a box that had information on how to get a new big sister. Mia's eyes widened at this. Even though she loved Christian from the bottom of her heart, she had always wished she had a big sister. She thought it would be nice to have an older sibling of her gender that could give her advice about girl issues, or go to the mall with, or to have heart-to-heart girl conversations with. "I think I'll try this one," she said. "I would like a bigger family. So create a sister for me!"

Emma frowned. "That doesn't even rhyme," she said.

"Did...it work?" Mia asked.

"There weren't any magic sparkles, so I don't think so," said Emma.

***

Christian was tired from his swim practice. His coach had made him swim about three hundred laps in the course of two hours, and it had taken its toll on him. He drove his girlfriend Olivia home to the foster home where she lived, then went home to get some rest. He went into his bedroom and took off his shirt and shorts, leaving only his swimsuit.

He was right about to take off his swimsuit when it happened. Suddenly, his whole body was engulfed in magic sparkles, and he felt his skin tingling. As he looked in the mirror, he saw his face shrinking and rounding out, becoming more feminine. His throat flattened as his voice became several octaves higher. His brown hair grew out past his shoulders, stopping right where his pectoral muscles were.

Christian's arms shrank down until they were as thick as Slinkies. His body frame also shrank and lost fat. This alone stripped ten pounds off of Christian's weight. As his waist shrank, Christian felt his nipples tingle harder than any other part of his body. His nipples puffed up, and the fat behind them swelled until he had C cup breasts. All of the hair on his chest disappeared.

The changes continued down below. Christian's butt grew outward in a heart shape as his hips widened. His legs thickened and his waist shrank, giving him a womanly figure. The last change came when his penis shrank backward into his body, leaving a smooth space. This smooth space grew into a full vagina.

Christian felt the tingling die down and looked over her new body. She touched her left breast and gasped at how sensitive it was. "Oh my goodness!" she exclaimed. "What just happened to me?" As she said it, her swimsuit started to change. Its legs shrank away, and the material that made up its waist began to stretch upward. Christian's swimsuit grew until it covered her breasts and was held in place by two straps. Christian's swimsuit was now a one-piece girl's suit.

"What are my parents gonna say?" Christian worried. "What are they gonna do it they see me-"

Suddenly, Christian heard her mom calling her. "Christina!" she called. "Christina, are you home yet?"

"Christina?" Christian thought out loud.

To be continued...

Christian's mom opened the bedroom door. "Oh, you are home," she said. "How was swim practice?"

Christian looked at her mom like she was crazy. "I-I mean, it was fine, but..."

"What's wrong?"

Christian was apalled at her mom's lunacy. "I just turned into a girl!" she exclaimed. "Aren't you-"

"Christina, you've always been a girl," her mom said. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Christian opened her mouth, but realized that there was no point arguing with her mom. "Yes," she said.

"Okay then," her mom said. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm going over to Emma's house. It turns out Mia wants to spend the night there, so I'm gonna go bring her sleeping bag and pillow."

"Right," said Christian. As her mom left, she went over to her school backpack to get out some homework to start working on. But when she pulled out her school ID card, she saw something seriously wrong. It had a picture of her new female self, along with the name "Christina Aceves."

"This can't be right," Christian said to herself. She looked at her driver's license, and it was the same situation there. She looked at the family picture that was on her desk, and she saw that her male self was replaced with her female self.

"Please tell me this is a bad dream," Christian said as she lay down on her bed. But she felt her breasts jiggling inside her swimsuit, and her big butt act as a cushion for her pelvic area. It was totally legit. Somehow, by some unexplained magical force, Christian had been turned into Christina.

Christina realized she should probably change out of her swimsuit. So she opened up her dresser drawer and found a plethora of girls' clothing. She took off her swimsuit, hung it on the drying hook on her wall, and selected some clothes. She first took a pair of white panties and stuck her legs through them. She set the panties snugly around her butt, hips, and vagina. Then she took a bra and set it over her breasts. She wriggled her arms through the straps, then clipped the bra in the back. Next, she put on a pair of short shorts and a plain yellow T-shirt.

Christina looked at herself in the mirror. In these clothes, she looked really sexy. If she were still a guy, she would definitely want to get in bed with the girl she saw in the mirror. Christina had never gotten to that point with her girlfriend Olivia, but she had always fantasized about what it would be like.

Her euphoria was short-lived. Christina realized that she had school and swim practice the next day, and everyone there would probably remember her as a girl. But would that mean she'd have to use the girls' bathroom? Would she be ogled by teenage boys in the hallways? Would she suddenly have new friends that were girls?

***

Christina's heart hammered as she went to school the next morning. She had double-checked her schedule and verified that all her classes were the same, but she was still worried. She took a deep breath and entered the school's hallways. She tried to act casual as she got her textbooks from her locker, but she couldn't stop worrying about whether people would stop and stare.

Not a bit of it. Everyone-students and teachers alike-walked past Christina as if she were invisible. Some of them cast her a sideways glance, but that was it. Every time she ran into someone that she knew, they would say hi and address her as Christina. Christina would always say hi back, in an attempt to be friendly. But it still felt weird to be called by a different name.

At lunch, Christina sat at her usual lunch table. A few minutes after she sat down, Olivia came. Olivia had been Christian's girlfriend for about six months now. They had met when Olivia, along with her friends Bailey and Stephanie, had been taken in by a local foster home and started coming to school with Christian. Christian was in a class with Olivia, and he had talked to her and gotten to know her. Olivia had grown up in Evanston, but her family had died in a fire. Olivia was taken in by an Evanston foster home, but when that foster home shut down, Olivia had came to Chicago with Bailey and Stephanie and found a new home* there. Christian and Olivia had grown closer and closer, and toward the end of the last school year, they had started dating each other. They had shared their first kiss just a month before.

Except now, Christian had turned into Christina. And she was pretty sure Olivia was straight, so they were probably just friends at this point. But when Olivia came and sat down at Christina's lunch table, she froze on seeing Christina. "Oh my goodness," she said. "What happened to you?"

"Uh...what are you talking about?" Christina asked. She decided she should just play along with everyone else's perception that she was always a girl.

"You-you've changed," said Olivia.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean!" said Olivia.

Before Christina could respond, Bailey came and sat down next to Olivia. "Hi Christina," she said. "Olivia, what's wrong?"

Olivia bit her lip. "Nothing," she said. "So...how did your date with Scott Ferguson go?"

"It went great," said Bailey. "We went to Applebee's, and then..." Bailey went on and on about her date. It was clear she had had a total blast, but Christina wasn't interested in hearing it. What she was interested in was that Olivia seemed to have known the truth. For some reason, she was the only one who didn't think Christina was always a girl. Christina would have to talk to her about it. Not right now, at lunch, but hopefully later. Maybe at swim practice.

***

Fate smiled on Christina later that day. She arrived at swim practice a little earlier than everyone else, and when she entered the changing room, Olivia was the only person there.

"Hi Olivia," said Christina.

"Hi...Christina," said Olivia. She had taken off her shirt to reveal her bra, and she seemed embarrassed. "I, uh-I mean, I guess if you're a girl now, then it's okay for you to see me like this."

"Right," Christina said as she set her own bag one the bench. She knew she was going to have to strip down, too, but she had done that plenty of times in the boys' room. "That's actually what I wanted to ask you about. Why are you the only one who knows the truth about me? Everyone else thinks I've always been a girl, even though I just changed last night."

"I have no idea," Olivia said as she took off her shorts. "All I know is that when you dropped me off at home last night, you were male. And now you're female." She unclipped her bra from behind.

"Yes, it's crazy," said Christina. She took off her shirt and shorts, then slid her panties down her legs. As she undid her bra, she added, "It's like someone performed some kind of magic on me."

Olivia nodded. "Yes," she said. She took off her bra and panties, revealing her fully nude self for the also-fully-nude Christina to see. "I know, because...well, it might sound crazy..."

"I'm listening," Christina said.

"The same thing happened to me," said Olivia.

Christina nearly dropped her swimsuit. "What?"

"I used to be a boy," said Olivia. "But the owner of my first foster home-she was a witch who transformed me into a girl. I met Bailey and Stephanie at that foster home, and we discovered that the owner-Miss Johnson-was actually a witch who had a habit of turning boys into girls and enrolling them in her foster home."

"So you were immune to whatever magic affected me, because you were changed by magic, too," said Christina. "But why didn't Bailey know?"

"Because she was always a girl," said Olivia. "Miss Johnson's secrecy depended on none of the transformed girls revealing they used to be boys. It helped her to bring in girls who had always been girls."

"Is this witch still alive?" Christina asked.

"No," said Olivia. "Me, and Bailey, and Stephanie, and our other friends Saige and Tony-we went back and killed Miss Johnson. We had to end her spree of turning every boy into a girl."

"Shoot," said Christina. "Well, how are we going to get to the bottom of this?"

"I don't know," said Olivia. "I don't know."

***

After swim practice was over, Christina went home on her own. Olivia was getting a ride home with someone else, so Christina drove home by herself. And when she got home, she saw Mia standing there. "Oh, Christian," Mia said when she saw her new big sister. "I'm so sorry."

"Mia? You too?" Christina asked.

"Yes," said Mia. "I know this is gonna make you mad, but it's my fault you turned into a girl."

"Excuse me?"

"I was reading that spell book with Emma," said Mia. "We found out that its spells actually worked, and I read a spell that would give me a big sister. And now...here you are."

Christina breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, that's good," she said. "We can just look through that spellbook and find out how to reverse this."

"Yeah, about that," said Mia. "I kind of don't have it anymore."

"WHAT?"

"Emma wanted to borrow it," Mia explained. "I didn't know I had turned you into a girl, so I let her take it to her cousins' house today. She told me she'd give it back to me at school tomorrow. But if I'd known I changed you, I wouldn't have given it to her."

"Great," Christina sighed. "Well, I guess you'll have to ask for it at school tomorrow."

If only it were really that easy.

To be continued...

*if you've been following me for a while, then you'll know what I'm referring to...

Mia promised Christina that at school the next day, she would talk to Emma and get her book back. Meanwhile, Christina would have to put up with another day as a girl. Even though she pined for her old life as a boy, Christina would have to get used to being a girl.

The following morning, Christina woke up with her hair swept over her face, just like yesterday. She got out of bed and went over to get ready for the day. She went into the bathroom, took off all her clothes, sat down on the toilet with her thicker butt, and peed out of her vagina. She had always wondered what it would be like to pee as a girl. Christian had always found it hard to pee as a boy. He found it tough to aim without splattering pee on the toilet seat, or the floor. Even when he saw down, he'd still end up having pee trickle down the front of the toilet and onto the floor. But as a girl, it was super easy. Barely an inconvenience.* All she had to do was sit down and let loose.

Showering as a girl wasn't that hard. But when she got out, Christina ran into some other problems. First off, drying her hair. She had seen her mom and sister do it by wrapping towels around their heads, but Christina thought that looked weird. She instead opted to use a hair dryer. The warm air blowing on her head felt nice, but it took a while to fully dry her hair. Another problem was figuring out how to wrap a towel around her. The Aceves' towels were rather small, so Christina wasn't sure if they'd cover her whole body. She carefully wrapped it around her torso, being sure to cover her breasts. But looking down, she saw that her butt and vagina were still visible. Christina inched the towel downward, until it satisfyingly covered her pelvic area. She was still showing massive amounts of cleavage, but her nipples were hidden.

For today, Christina decided to wear a pair of white short shorts, a blue tank top, and leather boots. She tied her hair back in two pigtails, which finished her look rather nicely. She packed up her notebooks and textbooks, then went off to drive to school.

School was rather uneventful. It still felt weird using the girls' bathroom and locker room, though. Christina had heard of transgender people who "transitioned" into the opposite gender and used the different bathrooms as part of it. She wondered if this was how transitioning people felt. They had been used to growing up with boys' customs all their lives, and then start doing girl stuff all of a sudden. The change was so sudden, and drastic, and it was permanent. That is, except for Christina. She hoped that she would be able to transform back into a boy soon.

In Physics, Christina was at a table with Saige Johnson. Saige was one of Olivia's friends, but Christina didn't know her super well. They talked every now and then, but Saige wasn't that close to Christian. But now, Saige seemed to recognize Christina. "Good afternoon, Christina," said Saige. "Or should I even call you that?"

Christina frowned. "What?"

"A little bird told me you were turned into a girl," said Saige. "Christian," she added.

Christina's jaw dropped. "How does every girl I know know that I used to be a boy?" she asked.

"Well, it was Olivia who told me," said Saige. "It seems that everyone who was magically turned into the opposite gender is immune to whatever spell made everyone think you were always a girl."

"But-but you're telling me that you used to be a boy?"

"Yes," said Saige. "You remember Sage Johnson, the guy you were in P. E. with in your freshman year?" Christina nodded. "That was me."

"What happened to you?"

"I accidentally wandered into the wrong bathroom," Saige explained. "It turns out that the bathroom was magic, and it turned boys into girls."

"Wait," said Christina. "If the girls' bathroom at this school turns boys into girls, then does that mean the boys' bathroom turns girls into boys?"

"Not if you've been magically transformed," Saige replied. "Believe me, I've tried."

"Wow," said Christina. "I can't believe this. How were you able to handle your new life?"

"My mom helped me," said Saige. "And I got in touch with Olivia and found out about her origins. Then her evil foster mom found her and took her back to her foster home, and I had to go rescue her."

"Was she the witch who transformed Olivia?"

"Yep. She was angry at Olivia for poking around and discovering her secret, so she tortured her so the other girls would know what the consequences would be if they followed Olivia's example. But me, and Bailey, and Stephanie, and my boyfriend Tony-we rescued her and killed Miss Johnson."

"Oh, you even have a boyfriend?" Christina asked.

"Yes," said Saige. "Tony was my best friend when I was a boy, and when I became a girl, he was really accepting. And we ended up dating each other, so-" She broke off as a thought entered her mind. "I just realized," she said. "You're dating Olivia, aren't you?"

"Ah...I was. I am," said Christina. "But I'm a girl now, so..."

Saige nodded sympathetically. "Sounds like you have a problem."

"I-I still love her," said Christina. "But if we're the same gender, then it would be homo."

"You sure you're not okay with just being friends?"

"Saige, I've worked toward this for ages," said Christina. "I've had a crush on Olivia ever since she showed up, and it took months for me to convince her to start dating me. We finally got to our first kiss a month ago, and now it's all on the kabosh because my sister borrowed a spell book from the library and used a spell on me!"

"Wait-you said your sister used a spell from a book?"

"It was an accident," said Christina. "She let her friend borrow it, and she's supposed to get it back today. Then we can use it to set things right."

Saige smiled. "That's a relief," she said.

***

After school that day, Christina went straight to Mia to ask about the spell book. But when queried, Mia hesitated to respond. "Please don't be mad," she said.

"What is it?" Christina asked. "Did Emma not have the book?"

"She, ah..." Mia nervously fidgeted with her backpack's straps. "She told me she took it home, and her baby brother got to it. He threw it into Emma's fireplace, and..."

Christina slapped her forehead. "You've got to be kidding me!" she said.

"I'm so sorry," said Mia. "Emma told me to tell you she's sorry, too."

"Oh, gosh darn it," Christina grumbled. "Now I'm gonna be stuck as a girl! And now we're gonna be in trouble with the library!"

Mia's face brightened. "Wait a minute," she said. "We can buy a new copy of the book!"

"What?"

"It's what you do with libraries," Mia explained. "If you lose a book or have it damaged, you buy a replacement."

"Then let's do that," said Christina. "Let's go look on Amazon."

So Christina and Mia went over to the computer to search "Ancient Spells" on Amazon. But the book wasn't up for sale on Amazon. The closest result was an encyclopedia called "Ancient Wizards And Their Spells." Christina actually checked this item to see if it was a different edition of the book they were looking for, but it wasn't. Christina searched on Ebay as well, but the results from that site weren't much better.

"Did you see what year that book was published?" Christina asked.

"No," Mia answered.

Christina sighed. She went into the regular Google search engine and searched "ancient spells," but she was in for a nasty surprise. She found the "Ancient Spells" book listed under a publisher's website, and it was the same one Mia had borrowed from the library. But the site said that the book was out of print.

"Great," Christina moaned. "I'm stuck as a girl forever."

"I'm sorry," said Mia. "I'm very, very sorry."

Christina felt tears welling up in her eyes. How could she deal with being a girl forever? Would she have to deal with dating boys in the future-or, worse yet, motherhood? And her relationship with Olivia. Olivia had seemed to understand Christina's trauma over being turned into a girl, but what of their relationship? Olivia had been Christian's first love. But did this mean that it was over?

To be concluded...

*If you get the reference...

Author's Note: Before I get to the conclusion of this story, let me address the vagina vs. vulva vs. uretha controversy that I've been seeing in the comments and messages. I confess that I am a genetic male, and as one person pointed out, I did not know the full details. I'm sorry for offending females that have read this, and in future stories, I will try to be more anatomically accurate.

Okay, now that I've apologized for that, let us get on with the story.

After finding out that there was no way of getting the book back, Christina fell into a deep depression. She had built up a life as a boy, and then had it taken away from her. She had found it hard to adjust to everyone thinking she was a girl, and she wasn't sure if she ever would. Worst of all, she was distressed that she seemed to have lost her relationship with Olivia. Despite having female hormones, she still felt the romantic love she had felt for Olivia when she was a boy. But she wasn't sure Olivia would feel the same way. Olivia had only ever shown romantic infatuations toward boys. Olivia did often say she loved people like Bailey or Saige, but that was a sisterly love. Christina loved her like a girlfriend.

The more Christina thought about it, the more she realized she didn't want to live her life as a girl. She had never expressed any symptoms of gender identity disorder (at least, she thought that was what it was called), and she had never wondered what it was like to be the opposite gender. Now she had been turned into a girl against her will, and it looked like she'd be stuck that way. She did not want to live her life as a girl, but it was clear she wasn't gonna be changing back. So she saw only one way out of it.

During swim practice that day, Christina swam about ten laps and then asked the coach if she could use the bathroom. The coach said yes, and Christina got out of the pool. She went back to the locker room and got a belt out of her bag. She went into the bathroom and locked herself inside a stall door. As Christina felt the belt in her hands, her heart rate started to speed up. She had heard stories about kids that had done this before. Years ago, in seventh grade, Christian had heard the story of Megan Meier when he was in seventh grade, and he had almost cried at the tragedy. He'd never thought he would be brought down to her level, but in this situation, she couldn't think of any other way out.

Christina wrapped the belt around one of the posts holding up the bathroom stall and locked its buckle. She stood on the toilet and slipped her neck through the looped belt. "Well, here goes nothing," Christina said as she took a deep breath. She thought of her uncle Frankie, who had died of cancer just a year before. Soon she would be seeing him again. Christina jumped off the toilet and let herself hang by her neck.

The agony in her lungs came almost instantly. Air was cut off from her respiratory system, and Christina could feel herself losing strength. She fought against her instincts to claw at the belt, intending to allow it to kill her. Her vision started to go dark as her throat involuntarily sputtered for air.

Suddenly, someone from outside pounded on the stall door. "What's going on in there?" a female voice asked. That voice belonged to Olivia, who stuck her head under the stall door and saw Christina hanging herself. Her eyes widened as she realized what was happening. "Christina!" she exclaimed. Olivia crawled underneath the stall door and grabbed Christina. She lifted Christina up, loosening the belt's grip around her neck and allowing air to flow through her lungs. Olivia undid the belt's buckle, opened the stall door, and laid Christina on the floor. Christina gasped, blinked her eyes, and looked up at Olivia.

"Olivia? What...how..."

"Coach Helen sent me in here to grab something," said Olivia. "And then I heard you choking. Why on earth did you hang yourself?"

"It's...none of your business," said Christina.

"Of course it's my business!" said Olivia. "What is it that you're depressed about?"

Christina sighed. She didn't see any reason to hold back why. "I'm upset about being turned into a girl," she said. "I've been a boy for sixteen years, and now my life was suddenly taken away from me. My friendships are totally different, and now my relationship with you is over."

Olivia frowned. "Who said our relationship was over?"

"Well...we're both girls now," said Christina. "You-you only like boys, right?"

"I still love you," said Olivia. "I've actually been worried about the same thing-that is, whether you still felt romantically attracted to me, since you're the same gender as me."

"I still feel the same way," said Christina. "But I don't know if it'll be okay, since we're the same gender."

Olivia exhaled deeply. "Christina, there's something I should tell you," she said. "It's something I've held back for years, even before I was turned into a girl. I..." she hesitated. "I'm bi."

"Bi?"

"Bisexual," said Olivia. "I favor both genders."

"What? Why did you never tell me that?"

"Because there wasn't any need to," said Olivia. "I'd never found a girl who I liked that way, but when I met you, as a boy, you were my love."

"So...you're okay with being my love even now?" Christina asked.

Olivia smiled warmly. "Yes," she said. She brought her face down to Christina's and kissed her on the lips. The sensation felt just as pleasant as when Christian and Olivia had kissed a month ago. Christina felt her mind being swept away, and her memories being blotted out. She almost forgot where they were, and what they were doing, and why they were wherever they were. She was too focused on the sexual pleasure of making out with her girlfriend.

Neither of them were sure how long their kiss could've lasted. It could've been anywhere between five minutes or five millennia. But when they broke apart, Christina could feel her memories coming back to her. "Wow," she said. "I never thought I'd be in a lesbian relationship."

"Me either," said Olivia. "Look, I know it's hard to be turned female against your will, but I can help you with it."

"Really?"

"Of course. If you have any problems at all, you can always come to me."

Christina smiled. "Thank you so much," she said. "I just love you."

"I love you too," said Olivia. The two of them got up and left the locker room, ready to start a new life.

***

Transitioning still wasn't easy. But with Olivia's help, Christina was able to segway into being a girl. She went with Olivia to the mall one day and spent money on some cute, girly clothing and makeup. This made Christina feel so much more comfortable as a girl. She also started talking with Mia more, giving her more advice about school and dealing with friends. Mia wasn't sure what to think at first, but she soon grew to like this change. After all, she had always dreamed of having a big sister to fulfill this very purpose. And now was the time to live her dream.

Also, I expect you're wondering how they dealt with the library, since they had borrowed a book from them and then lost it. Well, Mia and Christina went to the library and explained what had happened, and that they were unable to find a replacement book. The librarian was surprisingly accepting. He said that he understood that accidents sometimes happened, but they still had to pay him fifteen dollars. Christina and Mia both pooled their money to give the librarian fifteen dollars, which he gladly accepted.

From that day forward, Christina grew to like her life as a girl. She realized that there were some good perks to being female. She no longer had to perform young men's duties at church, and she could now try out to be a cheerleader at school. Being a cheerleader was a ticket to instant popularity at her school, and Christina was not going to pass up the chance. Best of all, she still had her girlfriend Olivia at her side, giving her constant support through whatever hardships she'd encounter down the road.

The End. Hopefully that'll suffice, as I didn't really have the ending of this story planned out.

I hope you enjoyed the story, since I enjoyed writing it. But once again, I apologize for my critical research failure.

Quick note: it's been a long time since I posted on here. Even though my stories were well-received, I haven't had a whole lot of ideas for new ones. But one of my first stories was "New Home," which revolved around the protagonist Oliver/Olivia being turned into a girl and going to an all-girls foster home, only to find out that the foster mom isn't quite what she seems. For a while now, I've been wanting to revisit that idea and maybe create an improved version of that story. And now the day has arrived.

With that-enjoy.

***

Landon Evans hated his life. He was fifteen years old and lived in Nashville, Tennessee. He was a social outcast at his high school, and his home life wasn't much better. His father Richard was an alcoholic who frequently got angry and hit Landon. The situation was so bad, Landon's mother had abandoned the family when Landon was only five. Landon had called the police several times about his abusive father, but whenever the police showed up, Richard acted very pleasant towards them and gave no impression of being a drunkard. Therefore, the police never believed Landon's stories.

It all came to a head one gloomy Thursday evening. Landon had spent the day helping his dad clean their apartment complex, and now he and Richard were eating their dinner. "You're still going to Leland's house tonight, yes?" Richard asked as he ate his Ramen noodles.

"Yes," Landon answered. Leland was one of the few friends he knew from school. Even though it was summer vacation, and school wouldn't start for a few more weeks, Landon went over to his house almost every evening. After dinner was the time when Richard got drunk and had a much shorter temper. Landon had learned a long time ago that he was better off getting out of the house when his father was drunk.

"Well, just make sure to do our dinner dishes before you go," said Richard.

"I will," said Landon. He finished eating his Ramen noodles and took his bowl over to the sink to start washing. He quickly scrubbed out his bowl and spoon, then did the same for his father's utensils. Once they were all sparkling clean, Landon set them down on a towel to dry and went to go get his shoes on.

"Bye, Dad!" Landon said as he was heading out the door. Richard didn't respond-not that Landon was expecting him to. His father often pretended to care about him, but it was obvious to Landon that that wasn't the case. Richard never asked Landon about his school life, or his friends, or anything else. When he wasn't yelling or thrashing at Landon, Richard only communicated with his son when he wanted him to do chores. If Landon was being honest with himself, he thought Richard had only had a kid so he could use said kid as a servant.

Landon and his father lived in an apartment on the third floor of a large apartment complex. When Landon left his apartment, he immediately made for the stairway that led down to the bottom level. But he'd only made it halfway there when his father came thundering out after him. "Where are you going?" Richard growled. "You were supposed to dust the living room!"

"What?" Landon asked. "No I wasn't!" This was a fairly common habit of Richard's-he'd make Landon do one chore, then berate him for not doing a completely unrelated chore. But right now, Landon could smell the alcohol on his father's breath.

"Yes you were!" Richard replied. "And you're gonna come right back in and dust our family room!"

"No!" said Landon.

"Yes you are!" Richard lunged forward and grabbed Landon's left arm. Landon tried to break free, but his dad had an iron grip. He held Landon by the arm and started to drag him back toward their apartment.

"Let go of me!" Landon growled. He balled his right fist and punched Richard across the face. His hit disoriented Richard just enough to make him loosen his grip, allowing Landon to yank his left arm free.

Unfortunately, it didn't take long for Richard to regain his senses. "Don't you punch me, you little shit!" He clenched his fists and rounded on Landon again. But this time, Landon was ready. He karate-kicked Richard in the chest with all his might. Richard stumbled backward and fell over the balcony's guardrail. He tumbled through the air and landed headfirst onto the concrete below.

"What the..." Landon looked over the edge of the balcony and saw his father lying on the ground below. There was a big spot of blood where his head had hit, and his body was motionless. That meant...

"Oh no..." Landon gasped. His adrenaline was wearing off, and he was starting to panic. He'd just killed his own father! But it was self-defense, right? Hadn't Richard been about to pound him? No, Landon thought. No one would believe him. He was a minor, and whenever he called the police to report domestic violence, they hadn't believed him. Why would anyone believe him now?

Landon turned and ran. He went down the stairs, ran past Richard's dead body, and went out onto the street. Where could he go? Leland's house? No, he couldn't get Leland or his family mixed up in all this. But there was nowhere else he could go. Landon would have to get out of the city. He took a deep breath and started running down the street.

After running for several city blocks, Landon finally stopped to catch his breath. He didn't hear any sirens coming his way, so that was good. But it was only a matter of time before someone discovered Richard's dead body and linked him to the crime. Landon had to keep moving. He started down the street again, but this time he walked. Running may have been a faster means of travel, but it also made him look guilty. Walking at a normal rate would draw a lot less attention.

Eventually, when Landon was rounding a corner, he heard a siren wailing. Uh-oh! Landon frantically looked around for a place to hide-a garbage can, a car, anything. But the only place he saw was an alleyway nearby. Landon ducked into the alleyway and held his breath. He heard the police car which the siren belonged to driving down the street past the alleyway, but the police car did not stop. It went right past where Landon was hiding and off down the street-presumably toward Landon's apartment complex.

Once he was certain that the police car was gone, Landon left the alleyway. But once he'd stepped back out onto the sidewalk, he bumped right into a woman walking down the street. "Oh-sorry about that!" said Landon.

"No, it's okay," said the woman. She was about thirty-five years old, with curly blonde hair, smooth tanned skin, and shiny painted fingernails. She wore a white tank top, a smooth black skirt, and high-heeled shoes. "Where'd you come from?"

"Well, uh..." Landon wasn't about to admit to murder, but his mind was going blank on excuses. "I'm...homeless."

The woman's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Homeless, you say?"

"Yeah."

"My, my, what a coincidence," said the woman. "I work at a foster home for kids like yourself."

"You do?"

"Yes. Would you like me to arrange to take you in?"

Landon thought for a moment. He'd heard a lot of bad things about foster homes from other kids his age. He didn't like the idea of moving into one himself. But right now, he couldn't really go back to his apartment. Maybe a foster home would be a good place to stay while he figured out what to do next.

"Sure."

"Excellent. What's your name?"

"Landon."

"Great. I'm Ruth Kayne, but you can just call me Ruth. If you come with me, I'll take you to my car."

Ruth's car wasn't anything special-just a black Ford Fusion. But when Landon got into the passenger's seat, he thought it felt pretty nice. Plus, the car had air conditioning, so that was a plus. "Are we gonna go right to the foster home?" Landon asked.

"Er, not quite yet," Ruth answered. "I'm gonna have to talk to my boss about letting you move in. But for tonight, you can stay at my house."

***

When they got to Ruth's house, Landon was pretty impressed with what he saw. It had a kitchen, a living room, a bedroom, a laundry room, and a garage-all of which were pretty spacious. Sure, the furniture didn't look particularly expensive, but it was better than anything at Landon's apartment.

"So what happened to you, young man?" Ruth asked. "What made you homeless?"

"Well...it was my dad," Landon answered.

"What did he do? Did he kick you out of the house?"

Landon hesitated. "You could say that."

Ruth nodded. "It sounds like he wasn't a very good father."

"Yeah, he was-he's a drunkard. And he always gets really mad and takes it out on me."

"That is unfortunate. Did you ever try calling the police?"

"Yes, but they didn't do anything."

Ruth shook her head. "Policemen," she scoffed. "You can never rely on them for protection."

"I know. That's why I had to get physical with my dad."

"What?"

Landon realized he'd said the wrong thing. "I, uh..." He wished he could take it back, but it was too late. "I was being assaulted by my dad, and I...well...I kicked him and knocked him over the edge of my apartment's balcony."

"You did what?"

"I didn't mean to! He was threatening me, and I was acting in self-defense! I ran away because I knew the cops wouldn't believe me if I told them what happened!"

For a few seconds, Ruth just stood there in shock. Then she unexpectedly hugged Landon. "Oh, Landon," she said. "That must be awful, knowing that you killed your own father."

"I know!" said Landon. "And I don't know how I'm gonna escape the police when they find out it was me who killed him! I don't have anywhere I can go, or anyone to-"

"You have me," said Ruth. "You're perfectly safe here for the night. I promise, we will figure all of this out in the morning."

Landon nodded. "Okay."

***

Since Ruth didn't have a guest room, she had Landon sleep on her living room's couch with a pillow and blanket. Once she'd helped him get to bed, and he'd nodded off, Ruth went into her bedroom to call her boss. She dialed her boss' number and waited a few seconds while the phone rang.

After a few seconds, there was a click, followed by a smooth, feminine voice. "Good evening, Ruth," said the voice.

"Hi Angelina," said Ruth. "I have some good news for you."

"Oh, you do?"

"Yes. I have found him. The boy you were looking for, Landon Evans-I've got him here at my house."

Angelina squealed in delight. "Finally!" she said. "I've been looking for him for years!"

"Do you want me to bring him right to you in the morning?"

"No, admit him to foster care at your building for now," said Angelina. "Give him some time to settle into his new life. Or, more accurately, her new life."

To be continued...

The next morning, Landon woke up on the couch in Ruth's house. For a second, he wondered what on Earth he was doing there, but then he remembered the previous day's events. "Ugh," he groaned. He got up and went into the kitchen for a glass of water. To his surprise, Ruth was already in the kitchen.

"Well good morning, Landon!" said Ruth.

"Hey Ruth," said Landon. "Did you talk to your boss?"

Ruth hesitated. "We'll get to that in a minute," she said. "First, there's something I need to tell you about myself."

"What is it?"

"I'm a witch."

For a few seconds, Landon just stood there, wondering if this was some kind of joke. But then he realized Ruth was being serious. "What do you mean, you're a witch?" he asked.

"I mean, I have magical powers," said Ruth. To prove it, she waved her hand and caused a spoon to levitate off the counter.

"What the..."

"Yes, that's right." Ruth held out her hand and willed a bright blue flame to light itself in her palm. "I'm one of the few witches left in this world. There used to be a lot more of us, but we were hunted to near-extinction by the normal folk. So the witches that survived had to hide their powers and keep their identities secret."

"That's cool," said Landon. "But why are you telling me this?"

"Because I talked to my boss last night," Ruth answered. "She told me to admit you to my foster home. But there might be some...procedures we'll have to perform."

"What kind of procedures?"

"Well, the foster home I manage is an all-girls foster home, so-"

"All girls? Then why did you offer to put me there?"

"Landon, it's complicated," said Ruth. "You see, when we first started, our foster home was intended as an all-girls foster home. I've been trying to convince my boss for years to make it coed to allow ourselves to take in more kids, but she wouldn't go for it. That's why I took you in last night-because I thought I could convince my boss to change things. But I should've known better."

Landon sighed. "Then...I guess I'm not going to your foster home after all," he said.

"Actually," said Ruth, "I think you're going to have to." She snapped her fingers, and the TV in the family room behind Landon turned itself on and tuned into the news channel.

"Breaking news!" the news anchor declared. "The dead body of a local civilian named Richard Evans has been discovered on the floor of his own apartment complex. The authorities have witnesses who claim Richard's son Landon was the one who pushed him off the balcony. Landon Evans has not been found yet, but the police are mounting a search to find him and bring him in for questioning."

Landon's face went pale. "They're looking for me," he said.

"Yes, they are," said Ruth. "But I have a way for you to avoid the authorities."

"How?"

"I will enlist you into my foster home," Ruth explained. "And to do that, I'll have to turn you into a girl."

Landon's jaw dropped. Did he really just hear what he thought he'd heard? Was this witch going to morph him into the opposite gender? No. He couldn't do that. He'd been a boy all his life, and he saw no reason to change that. "No way," he said.

"There's no other choice," Ruth insisted. "If you lose your old identity and take on a new one, the police won't be able to link you to your father's murder. And in any case, my foster home is a very nice one. The rooms are neat and well-kept, and the girls there are very nice. You might even make some new friends there!"

"But...I can't be a girl! I can't braid my hair, or gossip, or spend every day clothes shopping, or..."

"You can learn all that," Ruth assured him. "Just so long as you open your mind."

Landon sighed. "I mean...I guess," he said. "If it's the only way to evade the police, then...sure."

"Excellent," said Ruth. "Now, for the procedure..."

"What kind of procedure?" Landon asked. "Can you not just wave your hand and turn me into a girl?"

"No, it's a little more complicated than that," Ruth answered. "I can either mix a gender-swapping potion, or I can put you through a magical trance that will change your body without you even knowing it."

"Which one do you recommend?"

"The potion transformation would take a lot shorter, but it will also be a lot more painful. But if you go through the trance, then you won't feel anything."

"Then...I guess I'll take the trance."

"Alright then," said Ruth. "Let us get ready."

***

For the gender-changing enchanted trance, Ruth had Landon lie down on a blanket on the living room floor. She also told Landon to clear his mind as best as he could, since that would make it easier for him to fall into the trance.

"Now, let your mind go blank," Ruth said soothingly. "Imagine nothing else in this world exists except you and I. Listen to my words and nothing else."

Landon fought down his anxiety. He took deep breaths, closed his eyes, and started to slip into a calmer state of mind.

"Picture yourself floating...free...flying through the clouds, free to do whatever you want. You can reshape yourself into whatever form you want...and you choose to take upon a feminine form." As she spoke, Ruth waved her hands. Magic sparkles started to envelop Landon as he entered a hypnosis-like state.

"Think of your new face...it's so beautiful, and soft. No pimples, no whiskers, no anything. Just a smooth, angelic face. Imagine big, kissable lips and cute, wide eyes. And imagine long, wavy hair flowing around it. You are the most beautiful girl anyone has ever known, with a stunning face, a perfect smile, and a musical voice."

"Imagine a perfect, delicate, hourglass figure. You gladly accept your new slimmer shoulders, smaller torso, and thinner arms. Most of all, you accept your new pair of breasts forming. These are what you've wanted your whole life...soft, squishy boobs you can squeeze. You have the best rack a girl like you could ever want."

"Now anticipate the biggest change of all. You gladly welcome your smaller waist, your wider hips, and your fatter thighs and ass. You love how much nicer your booty is now. But most of all, you relish the feeling of your penis shrinking away. You feel free down there as an extra hole opens up between your legs. This hole is your new vagina."

"Finally, feel your legs and your feet getting smaller and daintier. You feel so much lighter as you jump, skip, and dance your way through the clouds. You love your new female form. It's so smooth, and graceful, and beautiful. You cannot wait to wake up and feel it all for yourself..."

***

Landon didn't know how long he was out for. It could've been a minute, or an hour, or even longer. All he knew was that when he woke up, he felt a lot lighter than before. He sat up and looked up at Ruth.

"Well done, miss!" Ruth exclaimed. "You came out looking so beautiful!"

"I...did?" Landon realized that his voice was much higher now. He started to look down, but then his hair fell into his face and blocked his view. He swept the hair out of the way and saw two large lumps of fat inside his shirt. The sight of them made him start to hyperventilate.

"Oh my gosh," Landon gasped. "Did...did you..."

"The process was a success!" said Ruth. "You're a girl now!"

"I don't believe it," said Landon. But he felt an urge to reach down and find out if he was really female. He ran his hand over his crotch, hoping to feel his familiar penis and balls. But all he felt was a smooth area between his legs. It was...it was...

"Believe it," said Ruth. "You're a girl."

Landon looked back up at Ruth. "Can I go to the bathroom?" he asked. "To see myself in the mirror?"

"Of course."

Landon got up and went into Ruth's bathroom. He looked in the mirror and saw the reflection of his new self staring back at him. He was a couple inches shorter and about twenty pounds lighter. His brown hair was a lot longer now, reaching down to his mid-back. His face was smoother and more delicate, and his body was a lot curvier. His butt and hips stuck out, and his waist was a lot smaller. His new breasts weren't the biggest, but they were still very noticeable inside his shirt. And, of course, the bulge in his crotch was nonexistent now. There was no questioning it. Landon was now a girl.

"You like?" Ruth asked.

"Yes!" Landon answered. "I look pretty!"

"I agree, you're beautiful," said Ruth. "But you look a little ridiculous in boy clothes."

"Oh yeah..."

"Perhaps we should take you shopping for some new clothes before we take you to my foster home?"

"That would be a good idea," said Landon. The idea of clothes shopping didn't seem that much more exciting to her now, but she knew Ruth was right. She couldn't wear boy clothes anymore now that she was a girl.

"I thought you'd agree," said Ruth. "Oh, and we need a new name for you. Landon isn't a very feminine-sounding name now, is it?"

"No," Landon agreed, "But I don't know if there's a girl-name version of 'Landon.'"

Ruth thought for a moment. "How about Lanie? How does that sound?"

"That sounds...kind of good, actually?"

"You like it?"

"Sure I do."

"Then Lanie it is."

***

Landon, or now Lanie, went with Ruth in her car to the local shopping mall. The first thing they did was get some measurements for Lanie to figure out her clothing sizes. Once they'd gotten those, they started picking out some girl clothes for Lanie. Since Lanie didn't quite feel ready for skirts or tank tops yet, Ruth let her pick out basic pairs of jeans and T-shirts. But the one thing Lanie couldn't skip out on was the bras.

Looking through the racks of bras was overwhelming. There were so many different types of bras to choose from, and they all looked so similar and yet so different. Since Lanie wasn't sure what to choose, Ruth decided to take one of every kind of bra and let Lanie try them on in the fitting room.

The first time Lanie put on a bra, it was a rather...interesting experience. She'd known for years what purpose bras served, but to actually have one wrapped around her boobs...yeesh. It was so uncomfortable. But she found that once she'd fitted on the bra properly, her breasts stopped jiggling everywhere. That, she thought, was a pretty major draw.

After they'd gotten some bras and underwear, along with a swimsuit, Ruth took Lanie to get a purse. "A purse?" Lanie asked.

"Yes, a purse," said Ruth. "A lot of girls use purses to carry their stuff in."

Once again, Lanie didn't get anything too fancy-just a regular white purse with a strap. But putting it over her shoulder felt...different. It was like Lanie was a certified woman now.

"Well, I think that's everything we need," said Ruth. "Is there anything else you want?"

"Uh...no, I don't think so," Lanie answered.

"Then let's get you to our foster home."

To be continued...

After the were done shopping, Lanie and Ruth went to the foster home Ruth had been talking about. It was a large, four-story building that looked more like a school dorm building than an orphanage. The front of it had the name "Pretty And Pink Foster Care" written in dark pink paint.

"Pretty And Pink," Lanie said when she saw the foster home's name.

"Yes, that's right," said Ruth. "Now, before I take you to your new room, there are a few things I need to tell you. First, you're gonna be in a room with three bunk beds and four other roommates."

"Three bunk beds," Lanie repeated. "That would be enough for six people..."

"We do have a lot of vacancies here at Pretty And Pink Foster Care," said Ruth. "And sometimes girls get adopted, or transfer somewhere else. In any case, we have a cafeteria on the building's ground floor, where you can come for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. We also have a game room where you and your friends can get together to play board games. Each dorm is given a credit card for all its members to share when shopping, but it has a limit of two thousand dollars a month. So please be careful when shopping."

"I'll try to."

"And last, but most important," said Ruth. "You are not to tell anyone else at this foster home that I am a witch, or that you used to be a boy."

"What? Why?"

"Because, once again, us witches have to keep our identities secret," Ruth answered. "The only reason I told you was because my boss insisted I turn you into a girl to admit you to our foster home, and I felt you had a right to know the truth."

"You mean none of the other girls here used to be boys? So I'm a special case?"

"Yes, you are," said Ruth. "For years, I've been pleading with my boss to start accepting boys into our foster home, but she's refused. So it's just been all girls-until we found you. But then again, you are a girl now, just like the rest of the kids in our foster care."

"Yeah," Lanie said, though it still felt kind of weird to be called a girl. Just 24 hours ago, she'd still been Landon. She had no idea that witches existed, or that she'd be admitted into an all-girls foster home to avoid getting apprehended by the police.

"So are you ready to go?"

Lanie took a deep breath. "Yes, I'm ready," she said.

"Then let's go."

***

Ruth led Lanie up to the building's front doors and into the entry hall. In the entry hall, Lanie saw a large picture of a woman hanging on the wall. The woman in the picture looked like a retired Victoria's Secret model, with coppery tanned skin, a thick yet voluptuous body, perfect makeup, and a friendly, yet seductive look in her eyes. Her brown hair was swept to the side in a ponytail, and she wore a black skirt and low-cut top.

"Lanie?" Ruth asked. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh!" Lanie hadn't realized she'd stopped in her tracks. "Just-just this picture here."

"Oh yeah," said Ruth. "That's Angelina Aguilar. She's my boss."

"Is she?" Lanie asked. Something about this Angelina Aguilar person seemed familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. Had she seen her on TV at some point?

"Yes. She was the founder of Pretty And Pink Foster Care. It all started five years ago in Washington D. C, where Angelina opened the first Pretty And Pink Foster Care establishment. When the first location proved to be a success, she decided to franchise her company and open new locations in North Carolina, and here in Tennessee."

"That's cool," said Lanie. Tearing her eyes away from Angelina Aguilar's picture, she followed Ruth down the hall and towards the stairway to the second floor. Once they were on the second floor, Ruth led Lanie to Room #206.

"This is gonna be your room," said Ruth.

"Alright then," said Lanie. "Let's see it."

Ruth opened the door for Lanie, and she entered her new dorm room. It was fairly large, with three bunk beds, a soft, fluffy rug, a couple of dressers between the beds, and a sofa in front of a TV. Towards the back was a door leading into a bathroom area.

There were four other girls in the room. One was lying on the bottom bunk of a bed looking at her phone, one was reading a book on the sofa, one was making her bed, and one was in the bathroom doing her nails. "Good evening, everyone!" said Ruth. "This is your new roommate Lanie!"

The girl on the sofa looked up and smiled. She looked to be about Lanie's age, with black hair that went down to her butt and eyes the color of maple syrup. "Hi Lanie!" she said. "I'm Rachel."

"Hey Rachel."

The girl making her bed looked up and waved. "Hi," she said. "I'm Taylor. And this is Alexis."

"Hey," Alexis said without even looking up from her phone.

The last of the girls came out of the bathroom with her nails and makeup all finished. "And I'm Melody," she said, tossing a curl of blonde hair over her shoulder.

Lanie looked around her new roommates. "It's nice meeting all of you," she said.

Ruth nodded. "Is there anything else you need?" she asked.

"I might need somewhere to put my clothes..."

"You can use that dresser over there," Rachel said, pointing at one of the dressers. "Right by our bed."

"Our bed?"

"Yes. You're my new bunkmate."

"Wait, if each bunk bed can fit two people, and there are four of you..."

"My old bunkmate left a few weeks ago," said Rachel. "She got adopted by a new family."

"Oh, that's too bad."

"Yeah. But at least I have you now!"

Rachel directed Lanie over to the dresser beside their bunk bed. With a little help from her and Ruth, Lanie unloaded all her clothes into two of the dresser's drawers. "Well, it looks like you're all situated," Ruth said when they were done. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go down to my office. But if you need anything at all, you can come talk to me."

"Thank you so much, Ruth," said Lanie. "I really appreciate it."

After Ruth had left, Lanie turned to face her new bunkmate Rachel. "So...what do you guys do around here?"

"Well, we like to go shopping," Rachel answered. "And go to the local swimming pool."

"Oh, that sounds fun!" said Lanie.

"It is fun," said Rachel. "But we also like to just hang out here and watch TV."

"Oh."

Just then, Melody pulled out her phone and looked at the time. "Guys, it's 5:00," she said. "That means it's time for dinner."

"Ooh, Lanie, you're gonna love the food we have," said Rachel. "Pretty And Pink has the best cooks there are!"

"And tonight's enchilada night," Taylor added. "The enchiladas here are really good."

"Okay," said Lanie. "I'm getting kind of hungry anyway."

***

It turned out Taylor was right. The enchiladas were really good. Lanie's father had never been much of a cook, so she'd never had any really good meals. But it was great to have such good food prepared especially for her.

"So Lanie," Rachel said as she, Taylor, Melody, Alexis, and Lanie sat together at a table to eat their food, "How'd Ruth find you?"

"Well..." Lanie hesitated. She hadn't forgotten Ruth's warning about not telling anyone she used to be a boy, and she certainly didn't want to reveal that she'd murdered her own father. So she decided to tell a partial truth. "I ran away from home."

"You ran away? Why?"

"Well, I grew up with just my dad," Lanie explained. "My mom left when I was little because my dad, well...he was abusive. He drank a lot, and he'd get really angry at me and my mom. She left because she couldn't take it anymore."

"But why didn't she take you?" Melody asked.

"I have no idea," Lanie answered. "But just yesterday, I decided I'd had enough, so I just up and left my dad's apartment. Then Ruth found me, and I ended up here."

"You're not worried, are you?" Rachel asked. "That your dad might come looking for you?"

"Uh...he won't," said Lanie. "Because he's dead."

"What?"

Fuck. That had come out wrong. "I-I saw it on the news this morning," Lanie quickly amended. "He got drunk again and fell off our apartment's balcony."

"Huh," said Melody. "Sounds like it serves him right."

Lanie slowly nodded. "Yes," she said. "He was a really bad father."

"My dad died when I was only three," said Taylor. "I never knew him."

"My whole family died in a fire when I was twelve," said Rachel. "I was the only one who survived. I was living on the streets for a week and a half before Ruth found me and brought me here."

"I was always homeless," said Melody. "My parents were already living in poverty, but when I was born, they lost what little money they had left with child support and buying more food for me. So we ended up living on the streets."

"How'd you end up here?" Lanie asked.

"My parents both died," Melody answered. "My mom got hit by a truck, and my dad got sick and died. I was living on my own for three years before Ruth took me in."

"And you were..."

"Thirteen. I've been here for four years."

"I've been here for just one," said Alexis.

"Me and Rachel have been here for three years," said Taylor. "And Lanie, I guess you just got here today."

"Yeah," said Lanie. "But I'm glad Ruth brought me here. This definitely beats living with an abusive dad." As Lanie said it, she knew she really believed it. Ruth had been really nice to her, and her roommates seemed nice too. Plus, the Pretty And Pink Foster Care place offered some really nice living conditions-especially considering it was a foster home. But she still couldn't get over the fact that she was a girl now. Having her hair fall down in front of her face all the time, and dealing with the feeling of large boobs on her chest...and she hadn't even gotten into makeup, or hairstyling, or any of that other stuff yet.

No, Lanie would need a lot more time to adjust to her new life.

To be continued...

Lanie woke up bright and early the following morning. When she awoke, she saw that Rachel and Melody were already up and getting some of their clothes out of their dressers. "Good morning, guys," said Lanie.

"Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "We're just getting ready to shower for the day."

"Nice," said Lanie. "I guess I should do that too."

"The showers are in the bathroom area," said Melody. "Just beyond the bathroom stalls."

"Okay." Lanie had used the bathroom a couple times last night, but she hadn't been to the shower area yet. She got up, got a fresh change of clothes from her dresser, and followed Rachel and Melody into the bathroom. But when they went past the bathroom stalls and around the corner, Lanie stopped dead. The "shower area" had no stalls or anything-just a line of shower nozzles and dials on the wall, and a drain in the middle of the floor. There was a bench full of towels at the end of the room.

"Uh, this is the shower area?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," Rachel answered.

"Why doesn't it have any stalls?"

"I don't know," said Melody. She was already taking off her shirt to reveal her skin-colored bra. "That's just how they designed the place."

"We all shower together here," said Rachel. "I know it feels pretty awkward, but you'll get used to it."

Lanie still hesitated. A week ago, the thought of being in a room with a bunch of naked girls would've been titillating. Now that she had different hormones coursing through her body, the thought did not arouse her. Even so, when she was Landon, he'd been taught that barging in on girls that were showering or changing their clothes was a HUGE no-no. But if he was a she now, then it was different...right? Of course, Lanie told herself. She was a girl now. This wouldn't be that much different from when he used to go to the public swimming pool, and all the people in the men's locker room stripped down right in front of everyone else.

Lanie took off her shirt, laid it on the bench, and reached back to unclip her bra. After sliding her bra off her arms, she took both her shorts and her panties and slid them off her body. Rachel and Melody did the same, and now the three of them were fully naked. Each of them went up to a shower nozzle and started washing themselves off. Lanie found that washing herself as a girl wasn't that much different from washing himself as a boy. Just take the soap and scrub down her torso, her armpits, and her limbs. The only complication was with her hair, which was much longer and thicker now. But even then, it wasn't a huge deal to wash it out with shampoo.

While Lanie, Rachel, and Melody were showering, Taylor came in to join them. "Hi guys," Taylor said as she pulled down her pants. "How'd you sleep?"

"Pretty well," Rachel answered. "What about you?"

"Not great," Taylor answered. "I woke up in the middle of the night because I had to pee."

"Oh."

"Yeah. But at least I got back to sleep okay."

"I'm guessing Alexis is still asleep?" Melody asked.

"Yes."

Melody nodded, unsurprised. "She'll probably be out till lunchtime," she said.

"So Lanie," Rachel said, wringing the shampoo suds out of her hair, "What do you want to do today?"

"Um..." Lanie thought for a minute. "Didn't you say there was a local swimming pool?"

"Yeah. You want to go there?"

"Sure!"

"Alright. Melody, Taylor, do you guys want to go too?"

"Of course!" said Melody.

"Me too," said Taylor. "Should we wait for Alexis to wake up?"

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. "Yeah," said Rachel.

"I guess it would be polite." Lanie had finished washing herself, so she turned off her nozzle's water. She stood and let herself drip for a minute before going over to get a towel. She was able to dry off her body with no problem, but she ran into a problem with her hair. "There's a hair dryer here, right?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," Rachel answered. "It's by the bathroom sink."

"Got it." Lanie took the towel and wrapped it around her naked body. She made sure the towel wrapped itself around her breasts while also concealing her butt and vagina. Once she'd set the towel, she walked back out to the bathroom sink and found the hair dryer. She set to work drying her hair, blowing the warm air onto her hair to make the water evaporate quicker.

While Lanie was drying her hair, Alexis walked into the bathroom. Her hair was a rat's nest, and her shirt...was that a drool stain? "Hey Lanie," Alexis said in a bored, drawling voice.

"Hi Alexis," said Lanie. "We're gonna go to the pool today. Wanna come?"

"No. I have a headache."

"Oh. Well, okay. Hope you get better."

***

Once all the girls (sans Alexis) had gotten dressed, they all set out to go to the local swimming pool. It was just a ten-minute walk away, and to Lanie's relief, the pool did not require a membership or anything to attend. So she and her friends were able to go into the pool with no problem. They found a picnic table under an awning and set their stuff down. Lanie and her friends immediately started taking off their clothes to reveal their swimsuits.

Even though Lanie had done some fitting with Ruth yesterday, it still felt odd to actually wear a bikini in public. For years, she'd been used to wearing a pair of swim trunks with nothing above the waist when he went swimming. Now she had to wear something around her chest to cover her boobs wherever she went. Then again, wearing a bikini wasn't that much different from wearing a bra and panties. The real question was why it was appropriate for girls to run around in public in a bikini, but not in their underwear.

Lanie, Rachel, Melody, and Taylor spent the next few hours swimming in the pool and doing tricks off the diving board. It was a pretty hot day, so it felt good to swim in cold water. But after a while, the girls got tired, so they took a break to get some lunch from the pool snack bar. Lanie and Rachel both got hot dogs and fries, Melody got a grilled cheese sandwich, and Taylor got a corn dog.

"Well, this is nice," Lanie said as she ate her hot dog.

"I know," said Rachel. "My old bunkmate and I used to come here all the time."

"What was your old bunkmate's name?" Lanie asked.

"Linda," Rachel answered. "She and I were really close."

"Have you heard from her at all?" Lanie asked. "Since she got adopted?"

"No," Rachel said sadly. "The family that adopted her moved to Australia, and I haven't been able to call or text her, so..."

"I'm sorry," said Lanie.

Rachel nodded slightly. "I miss her," she said. "But I'm glad I have you now."

Melody stood up. "Well, I'm gonna get back in the pool now," she said.

Lanie frowned. "Didn't you just finish eating?" she asked. "Aren't you supposed to wait for an hour before swimming again?"

"That's a myth," said Rachel. "I've gone swimming right after eating lots of times, and I'm okay." She stood up and added "I think I'm ready to get back in the pool, too."

Taylor swallowed a bite of her corn dog before saying "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Okay."

"Lanie, you want to come with me?"

"Oh..." Lanie had forgotten-going to the bathroom in pairs was another girl thing. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Thank you," said Taylor. She and Lanie both went into the women's bathroom together. Lanie waited while Taylor locked herself inside a stall. But after Taylor had sat down on the toilet and started doing her business, she let out a groan.

"What's wrong?" Lanie asked.

"I just got my period," Taylor answered. "Could you get me a tampon?"

"A tampon?"

"I think I've got a couple in my purse. Could you go back out and get one?"

"Sure." Lanie left the women's bathroom and went back over to her and her friends' picnic table. As she went, her head spun. She didn't even think of having to deal with periods every month. Would she be getting her period soon? She didn't know much about how menstruation cycles worked, but surely it had started after she morphed into a girl and gotten all the new female equipment? How long would it be before she hit that time of month? A week? Two weeks? The thought scared her. She may have had a decent handle on being a girl, but she wasn't sure she could handle periods.

When she got to the picnic table, Lanie bent over and started rifling through Taylor's purse. She soon found a cluster of tampons tucked in with Taylor's wallet and lipstick tube. But when she looked up, she saw a sight that made her freeze. A couple of teenage boys, no older than sixteen, were staring at her as she leaned over the picnic table. The boys' eyes were focused on Lanie's curvy abdomen and her plump booty. It was like they were admiring her as a sex object.

Trying to hide her embarrassment, Lanie stood up again and faced the boys. "Can-can I help you?" she asked.

"Oh, uh..." one of the boys stammered. "It's okay. We were just..."

"Checking you out," the other boy said. "You're really sexy." Even though he meant it as a compliment, his tone of voice really crept Lanie out.

Lanie glared at the boys. "Thank you, but I'm not interested," she said. Then she turned and went back into the bathroom to get Taylor her tampon.

***

For the rest of the day, Lanie kept stewing about those boys that had stared at her. As a boy, he'd never had anyone sexualize him like that, so this was a new experience for her. But the worst part was, Landon used to do that exact thing. He'd seen girls in bikinis at the beach and at swimming pools, and he'd "rubberneck" their hot, sexy bodies. Now that Lanie was on the other end of the stick, with boys ogling her body and likely getting hard in their pants...it made her feel really guilty. All those times he'd stared at girls' bodies, he'd never given a thought to how they'd feel about being objectified like that. It was a really shameful feeling, now that Lanie was the very thing she used to make fun of.

"Hey Lanie?" Rachel said when they'd gotten back to their dorm. "What's wrong?"

"At the pool today..." Lanie hesitated. "I caught a couple boys staring at me, in my swimsuit, leaning over our picnic table."

"Ooh," said Rachel. "That must've been embarrassing."

"Yeah." Lanie wanted to open up about how it reminded her of when she used to be a boy, but she didn't want to risk breaking the confidentiality rule. "I've never had that happen to me before, and now..."

"I know," Rachel said, putting her arm around Lanie's shoulder. "I've had that happen to me a lot. Sometimes I wish the boys would just stop staring at me like that."

"Me too," said Lanie. "It's like I'm some kind of..." She struggled to find the right word. "Object."

Rachel nodded solemnly. "I think we all feel that way when boys look at us like that," she said. "But my mom used to tell me when she was still alive: just remember you're still an awesome person on the inside."

Lanie smiled. "Thank you, Rachel," she said, hugging her bunkmate deeply. "Thank you so much."

To be continued...

QUICK NOTE: does anyone know how to properly organize story chapters like this? For my previous stories that were multiple chapters, someone (I assume a BCTS staff member) organized the chapters into a sort of folder-like page for the single story. Example: For Christian's Gender Problem, I wrote each chapter separately, but all four of their links were put on this page: https://bigclosetr.us/topshelf/book-page/82024/christians-ge... For some reason, every chapter of Lanie's Journey has had its link put in the page for Chapter 1, with no page for the series as a whole. Anyone care to help me fix that?

Without further ado, let us begin Chapter 5.

***

For the next week, Lanie continued to have fun with Rachel, Melody, Taylor, and on occasion Alexis. Aside from going to the swimming pool, they also went to the mall and played board games in the foster home's game room. Lanie also got to meet some of the girls from the other dorms, such as Vanessa, Amber, Lillian, and Rebecca. They were all really nice.

But one day, a week after Lanie had first came to the Pretty And Pink Foster Home, something big happened. Lanie and Rachel were just getting back from the mall when they ran into Ruth in the hallway. "Hello, Lanie!" said Ruth. "Hi Rachel."

"Hi Ruth," said Lanie.

"Are you guys coming in for dinner?"

"Yes, we are," Lanie answered.

"Good," said Ruth, "Because we have a special guest tonight."

"Who?"

"You'll see."

So Lanie and Rachel went to the foster home's cafeteria. They found Melody, Taylor, and Alexis sitting at their usual table with bowls of tomato soup. "Soup night?" Rachel asked.

"Yup," Alexis answered.

"Okay." Rachel and Lanie got some soup of their own, then sat down with their friends. While they were eating, Ruth came into the cafeteria.

"Good evening, everyone," Ruth said, causing all the girls to turn in her direction. "Please welcome the founder of Pretty And Pink Foster Care, Angelina Aguilar!"

Ruth stood aside to let Angelina come into the room. She looked just like in the picture Lanie had seen in the foster home's entry hall, except she looked even better in person. Angelina's hair hung loosely behind her, and her eyes were lined with enough black eyeliner to make an ancient Egyptian jealous. She was wearing a low-cut white dress with a seam in it that showed off her slender left leg.

"Hello, my lovely ladies!" Angelina said with a smile. "How are you all doing?"

"Angelina!" one of the girls, who Lanie recognized as Vanessa, exclaimed. She got up and ran over to give Angelina a big hug. "Oh, it's so good to see you again!"

"Wow," Lanie said to Rachel. "She must really like Angelina."

"She does," Rachel replied. "Vanessa was in an abusive foster home when Angelina found her and transferred her here. She's really grateful to Angelina for getting her out of that hell."

Just like with my dad, Lanie thought. But when she looked back at Angelina, she remembered the circumstances surrounding her transformation and admittance to the foster home. Why had Angelina been so insistent on turning him into a girl? She knew Ruth had been pushing to have boys at this foster home, but what was Angelina being so stubborn for?

Lanie felt her heart rate increase when Angelina approached her table. "Hello," said Angelina. "Lanie, isn't it?"

"Uh...yes." Lanie wanted so badly to start asking Angelina some questions, but she couldn't. Not with the other girls here.

"How are you liking your new home?"

"I like it," Lanie answered, which was true. She'd genuinely enjoyed the last week with Rachel, Melody, and the others.

"I heard about how you ended up homeless," said Angelina. "I'm very sorry."

Lanie nodded. "Yeah, it was...pretty rough."

"But that is the reason why I founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care in the first place," said Angelina, "To provide girls like you with better living conditions."

"Well, this is a lot better," said Lanie. "Thanks for letting me move in here."

"No problem," said Angelina. "No problem at all."

As Angelina was leaving, Melody said "She is such a nice lady."

"I know," said Rachel. "When I first got here, I was still feeling sad about losing my family, but Angelina and Ruth helped me deal with my loss. I still feel sad about it now, but I've mostly moved past it."

Lanie didn't listen to them. She was too busy thinking about how she'd get to Angelina with her questions...

***

Angelina sat at the desk in the foster home's office, sorting through the piles of paperwork. Ordinarily, this was Ruth's job, but since Angelina was the head of the organization, and she was visiting the Nashville establishment, she'd taken it upon herself to help out with the paperwork.

She was distracted from her work when she heard a knock on the office's door. "Enter," said Angelina.

Lanie walked into the office. "Hey Angelina," she said. "Can I call you Angelina? Or Ms. Aguilar, or-"

"Just Angelina is fine. What do you need?"

"To talk. Alone. In private."

"I believe we are already alone."

Lanie took a deep breath before asking "Why did you make Ruth turn me into a girl?"

Angelina blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Why did Ruth have to turn me into a girl?" Lanie asked.

Angelina gave Lanie a quizzical look. "I thought she already explained that to you," she said. "Because we were admitting you to an all-girls foster home, and we couldn't allow a boy to be with a bunch of girls."

"Then why did she even rescue me in the first place?"

"Because she wanted to trick me into letting a boy into my foster home."

"She said something about that-"

"This isn't the first time she's tried to convince me," said Angelina. "For quite some time, Ruth's been insisting we make our foster home coed so that we have less limitations on who we can accept. With you, Ruth thought she could convince me by saying she'd gotten a boy and that she'd already told him we'd give him a place to live. And I have to admit, it was a pretty good tactic on her part. I don't imagine it would've looked good to you if we accepted you into an all-girls foster home even though you were a boy, then kicked you out because you were a boy."

"Well...yes, but..."

"And in any case, I hear you murdered your own father. And by adopting a new identity, you were able to remain safe from the authorities."

Lanie said nothing. She knew Angelina was right.

"Lanie, my dear, I'm sorry that it had to begin this way. I really am. We've never had to do this with anyone else. But given the circumstances, we had no choice but to turn you into a girl. And you have been enjoying your new life here, haven't you?"

"I guess so."

"Great. Hopefully, we can put all of this behind us and forge a brighter future together."

"Well, thanks, Angelina," said Lanie. She felt disappointed that Angelina had basically just reiterated what Ruth had said, but she clearly wasn't going to get any more answers. "I guess I'll talk to you later."

"You too," said Angelina. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get to some private business downstairs." She indicated a door at the back of the office that Lanie hadn't noticed before. It had a small sign that said "Restricted Area! Authorized Personnel Only!"

"Okay," said Lanie. "Have a good night."

***

After Lanie had left, Angelina left her desk and went through the door at the back of the room. She made sure to lock it behind her before descending the stairs that led to the secret underground bunker beneath the foster home.

When Angelina got to the bunker, she found Ruth there waiting for her, mixing ingredients in a large black cauldron. "Have you found success?" Angelina asked.

"No," Ruth answered. "I've tried everything I can, but I can't seem to find a way to disguise our gender-swapping potion as regular water."

Angelina shook her head. "Well, hopefully we'll figure it out sooner or later," she said.

"I saw you talking to Lanie earlier," said Ruth.

"Yes, I did," said Angelina. "She seems to be enjoying her new life here with the other girls. But she did come to me in the office just now."

Ruth looked up from her potion. "Did she, now?"

"Yes. She wanted to know the truth about why I had you change her."

"What drove her to ask you?"

"I am not sure," said Angelina. "It seems that the rest of the young ladies in our care have toed the line and kept their little secrets. But it does appear that I quelled Lanie's suspicion."

Ruth sighed. Choosing her words carefully, she said "I am not saying I like males any more than you do. But this is the reason why I've been suggesting we let boys into our foster home. So that the ones like Landon who we decide to turn into girls won't get suspicious about what our organization really is."

"Ruth, when I founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care, I intended it to be a girls-only foster home," Angelina insisted. "You know that. And, in any case, Landon is no more. He is now Lanie."

"And did you tell her the real reason you sent me out to find him-I mean, her? That she's-"

"Lanie will know in time," Angelina answered, smiling evilly. "But the time has not come quite yet."

To be continued...

Lanie woke up really early the next morning. After leaving the office feeling dissatisfied and unhappy with what Angelina had said, Lanie had decided to just go to bed early. But she ended up waking up at 6:00 the following morning. She couldn't get back to sleep, so she decided to just get up and shower for the day.

After getting out a fresh change of clothes, Lanie went back into the shower area. She stripped down, left her dirty clothes on the bench, and turned on a shower nozzle. While she was soaping down, Rachel came in wearing only her bra and panties.

"Rachel?" Lanie asked.

"Hey Lanie," said Rachel. "I lost a game of Truth Or Dare with Taylor last night, so I had to sleep in my underwear."

"Ah," said Lanie.

"But it's morning now," Rachel said as she reached back and unclipped her bra. "So that means I can actually wear clothes again."

"That's good."

Rachel took off her panties and started showering at a nozzle opposite Lanie's. "Oh, and one other thing happened last night that I think you should know about," said Rachel.

"Oh?"

"One of the staff members came by our dorm after you went to bed. She said we'd be getting a new roommate today."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I don't know what her name is, but she's gonna be bunking with Melody."

Lanie nodded. "That's nice," she said. "It'll be fun to show her around the place."

"Yep, it will."

***

After breakfast, Lanie and Rachel waited in their dorm room with the rest of their roommates for their new roommate to show up. At around 10:45, there was a knock on their door. "Come in!" said Lanie.

The door was opened by none other than Angelina. "Good morning, ladies!" she said. "Welcome your new roommate Jenny!"

Angelina stepped aside to allow a new girl to enter the room. The girl looked significantly younger than Lanie or any of her roommates-no older than twelve or thirteen. She had strawberry blonde hair, dark brown eyes, and freckles all over her face. Her clothing wasn't anything fancy-just a plain white T-shirt and purple shorts. "Hi," the girl said awkwardly.

"Hi Jenny!" said Melody. She went up to Jenny to give her a welcoming hug, but she stopped herself when she saw how uncomfortable Jenny looked.

"She's a little nervous," said Angelina. "She just lost her parents and her sister to a burglar, and she's never been to a foster home before. But I told her you all would welcome and accept her, so-"

"Don't worry," said Rachel. "We'll help her get used to living in a foster home."

"Excellent," said Angelina. "That is exactly what I want to hear." She gave Jenny a hug and said "You'll be okay," before leaving.

When Angelina had gone, Jenny smiled awkwardly. "Well...hi guys," she said. "What are your names?"

"I'm Melody," Melody answered. "I'll be your new bunkmate."

"My name's Rachel," said Rachel.

"I'm Lanie."

"Taylor. And that's Alexis."

Jenny nodded. "It's nice to meet you all."

"Want to sit down?" Lanie asked.

"I guess."

Lanie and Rachel both sat down on the couch with Jenny, with Melody standing right beside them. "Sorry about your family," said Rachel. "The rest of us have all been orphaned, too."

"It's not just that," said Jenny. "It's..."

"What is it?"

Jenny hesitated. "I...don't want to talk about it?"

"Really, what?" Lanie asked. She was getting a bad feeling. "Go ahead and tell us. Get it off your chest."

"No, really, I don't want to," said Jenny. "I just don't."

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. It didn't look like this girl was gonna crack easily. But from the way Jenny was acting, and how she didn't want to talk about what was eating at her...could it really mean what Lanie thought it meant?

"How about we go get some lunch?" Lanie suggested.

"In the cafeteria?"

"No. There's a Subway just down the street. We can go there for lunch."

"Can we do that?"

"Of course! And besides, Subway is really good!"

"Well...okay, I guess," said Jenny.

Yes! Lanie thought. Her idea to get Jenny to crack just might work.

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody took Jenny with them as they went down the street to Subway. The four of them ordered sandwiches for themselves and sat down at a table while they waited for their food.

"Do you guys always go out to eat?" Jenny asked as they waited.

"No, not always," Rachel answered. "We usually get food from the cafeteria at the foster home."

"It's pretty good food," said Melody. "You'll love their pizza."

Lanie cleared her throat. She wasn't going to beat around the bush here. "Jenny, what is it that's bothering you?"

"Lanie!" Rachel scolded. "She said she didn't want to talk about it!"

"Rachel, this is serious," said Lanie. "Jenny, I promise you can tell us. We're not in the Pretty And Pink foster home. There aren't any security cameras watching us."

"Wait, they have security cameras at the foster home?"

"I...don't really know," Lanie admitted, "But I know they don't have them here."

"Lanie, what are you getting at?" Rachel asked. Rachel may have been a sweet girl, but she thought Lanie had stepped over the line. Hadn't Jenny said she didn't feel comfortable opening up to them? Did Lanie not have any respect for people's privacy?

But what Lanie said next shocked everyone at the table. "You were a boy, weren't you?" Lanie asked. "Angelina and Ruth turned you into a girl, didn't they?"

Jenny's jaw dropped, as did Rachel's and Melody's. Jenny tried to move her mouth, but no words came out. "What did you just say?" Rachel asked.

"I asked her if she used to be a he," said Lanie. "Well? Did you?"

"Yes," Jenny forced out. "How did you know?"

"Because..." Lanie hesitated. Over the last week, she'd built up a taboo around revealing that she used to be Landon. But spilling the beans now was the only way to earn Jenny's trust. "Ruth turned me into a girl, too."

"WHAT?" Rachel gasped. "You...you were a boy before you came to Pretty And Pink?"

"Yes," said Lanie. "My name was Landon. But Ruth talked me into letting her turn me into a girl."

"My name is-was Jimmy," said Jenny. "The lady who found me said this was a chance for me to start a new life, and to put my tragedy behind me."

"That's kind of what Ruth said to me," said Lanie. Suddenly, another thought occurred to her. She slowly turned to look at Rachel and asked "Rachel? You didn't..."

Rachel looked horrified, but she nodded. "Randy," she said. "That was my name."

"And I was Mel," said Melody.

Lanie buried her face in her hands. "I should've known!" she said. "How did I not see it? Ruth told me that all the other people at the foster home were girls. She and Angelina wanted me to think I was the only one who used to be a boy! Them and their cronies-they probably told that to the rest of you guys, too! And everyone else that they turned into girls!"

Rachel and Melody were both having emotional breakdowns. It was as if they'd been given red pills and realized they'd been plugged into the Matrix all their lives. "Lanie, I'm so sorry," said Rachel. "I had no idea. I thought Angelina was giving me a new life-a better life. But-"

"Rachel, it's not your fault," said Lanie. "It's Angelina's fault. She's the one who founded this whole operation."

"But why?" Jenny asked. "Why is she turning innocent boys into girls?"

Lanie looked up. "I think I know how we can find out," she said. "There's a secret door in the office. I saw it last night when I was talking to Angelina."

"I've seen that door, too," said Melody. "You think Angelina's got something hidden behind there?"

"She has to. There's no other explanation."

"But we can't break into there," said Rachel. "If it's a restricted area-"

"We're going to have to," said Lanie. "To try and get to the bottom of this. And I'm gonna need your help."

"What can we do?" Jenny asked. "Angelina and Ruth, and that lady who collected me-they're witches. They have magic."

"We'll have to create a distraction," said Lanie. "Tell Angelina there's something going on outside the office, so we can sneak in and see what's behind that secret door."

"I'll do it," said Melody. "I'll tell her that a girl jumped off the top of the building and killed herself."

Everyone stared at her. "You're going to tell her someone committed suicide?"

"If it'll get her distracted, then yes."

Lanie shook her head. "Whatever, as long as it works," she said. "Once Angelina's gone, we'll go into that secret room."

"What if Angelina comes back?" Jenny asked.

"We can have someone stay back and keep watch," said Lanie. "Jenny, you think you can handle that?"

"Yeah, I think so," Jenny answered.

"Okay," said Lanie. "Melody, you'll tell Angelina someone killed herself, and once she's gone, Jenny, you stay back at the office to stand guard." She turned to Rachel and asked "Rachel, are you with me?"

Rachel reluctantly nodded. "Yes," she said. "Bunkmates are supposed to have each other's backs, right?"

"Right," said Lanie. "Now let's hope we have some luck on our side."

***

The plan went well at first. Melody went to the office to find Angelina and tell her a girl had tried to kill herself, and Angelina fell for the lie. She left the office in a hurry and went off to find the suicidal girl. Once she was gone, Melody rendezvoused with Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny. Jenny took her position as door guard while Lanie, Rachel, and Melody went into the office and tried the secret door.

"It's locked," Rachel said when she tried to turn the doorknob.

Lanie frantically looked around. "There's gotta be a key somewhere," she said. She started rifling through the papers on Angelina's desk, hoping to find the key buried in there somewhere.

"I think I found it!" Melody exclaimed. She pointed at the bulletin board, where the key was hanging on a hook.

"Great going, Melody." Lanie took the key, inserted it into the door's lock, and unlocked it. She opened the door to reveal a set of stairs that led down into a dark basement.

"Uh-oh," said Rachel. "I think this might take longer than we thought."

"We'll close the door behind us," said Lanie. "Come on!"

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody went down the stairs. Since Melody was the last one down, she closed the door behind them. The trio followed the stairs for a good thirty feet before coming to a large underground bunker. Lanie flicked on a light switch that lit up the whole room. It was big enough to park several semi trailers in, filled with tables and boxes of potion ingredients and other magical equipment. There were also several cauldrons filled with different colored liquid.

"This is it," said Rachel. "The witch's lair."

"Are they making a bunch of potions?" Melody asked.

"Ruth did mention potions that could turn boys into girls," said Lanie. She went up to one of the tables and picked up a notebook. She flipped through the pages, hoping to find some information about what Angelina's plans might be. But all she found was different lists of potion ingredients and how to combine them.

"Uh, Lanie?" said Rachel. She picked up a notebook from another table and held it out for Lanie and Melody to see. "You might want to see this."

Lanie and Melody both gathered to see the notebook Rachel had found. The frontmost page had the words "Potion? Undetectable? Distribute Through Food?"

"I think I know what they're doing," said Rachel. "They're trying to brew a gender-changing potion and find a way to spike people's food with it to turn more boys into girls!"

"But that doesn't make sense," said Lanie. "How would they go to everybody's houses and put this potion into their food? People would just think they're weird!"

"Maybe they're thinking about sneaking into food manufacturing companies," Melody suggested. "So they can put this potion into food as it's being packaged so people can eat it without realizing it's got a potion inside."

Lanie shook her head. "I guess that's not much weirder than gathering homeless boys and turning them into girls so they can go to your all-girls foster home," she said.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Lanie's heart missed several beats.

"Oh no," Rachel said in an undertone. "I knew they'd find us!"

"How do we..." Melody trailed off when the person coming down the stairs stepped into view. It was Jenny, looking more horrified than ever. "Jenny?"

"Yes, that's right," Angelina said as she and Ruth came up behind Jenny. Angelina looked livid at the sight of them down in her secret underground bunker. "And you four are in a real heap of trouble."

To be continued...

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody stood there in horror. Now that Angelina and Ruth had caught them red-handed, their plan seemed a lot more stupid in hindsight.

"You want to tell us why you went poking around down here?" Angelina asked.

Rachel and Melody looked at Lanie, since she was the one who'd instigated the whole thing. Lanie looked Angelina right in the eye and said "We wanted to know."

"Wanted to know what?"

"We wanted to know why. Why you turned all of us boys into girls and put us in your foster home."

Angelina looked between the four girls. "So you disobeyed us," she said. "You told each other that you used to be boys!"

"We weren't going to," said Lanie. "But when Jenny got to our dorm, she was acting really strange. She seemed really insecure and uncomfortable. It reminded me of how I felt when Ruth turned me into a girl and sent me here, and I got suspicious. So me, Rachel, and Melody took Jenny out to Subway and got her to break down."

"And then we broke down, too," Rachel admitted. "Me and Melody-we hadn't suspected there was anyone else at the foster home besides us that used to be a boy. But then Lanie opened our eyes to the truth."

Ruth slapped her thigh. "Now do you see why I've been trying to convince you to make our foster home coed?" she asked. "It was to prevent something like THIS from happening!"

"Silence, Ruth!" Angelina barked. She shook her head at the girls and said "Well, it seems I made a mistake in assigning Jenny to a dorm with someone whose gender transition was still fresh in her mind. But, for your actions, you will still face consequences." She drew a knife and held it to Jenny's throat.

"Wait!" Lanie exclaimed. "Why are you even doing this? Why are you turning boys into girls? And why are you doing that..." She gestured at the notebook Rachel had found, "Potion...thing?"

"Because it is my life's goal to purge the world of its disgusting males," Angelina answered. "All my life, I've hated men and boys. They burp and fart in public, they constantly get in fights, and they disrespect women."

"Girls get in fights too!" said Rachel. "Don't you remember last year, when Amber got in a fight with that girl at school?"

"Males still get in many more fights than females," said Angelina. "And that's not the end of it. They abuse their wives, they cheat on them, and they still expect us to love them. Well, us women will not stand for it any longer. We will turn every male in this world into a female and make them see how bad they really were. Once they do, they'll all realize how much better it is to be female."

"You're crazy!" said Lanie. "There's no way you can go around and turn all three billion men in the world into women!" As she spoke, she slowly edged toward a thick metal spoon sitting on the table.

"I know it will take a long time," said Angelina. "That is why my fellow witches and I are working on more ways to turn unsuspecting men into women. We have several divisions of our Pretty And Pink organization, all of which we use to take in homeless boys and turn them into girls to start new lives. Our next plan is to create a gender-changing potion that looks just like regular water, then start distributing it to people via food, tap water, and other beverages."

"That's a stupid plan!" said Rachel. "What if the police end up figuring out that people's food and drinks were spiked with the potion and trace it back to you?"

"That's why we plan on devising on even more strategies," said Angelina. "But none of you will be there to see them." She started to draw her knife back, ready to stab Jenny.

"Yes we will!" Lanie grabbed the metal spoon, threw it at Angelina, and bull's-eye! The spoon hit Angelina square in the face, making her drop the knife and lose her grip on Jenny. Jenny broke out of Angelina's arms and ran over to Melody.

"Stop right there!" Ruth shouted. She dashed past Angelina and ran at Lanie, Rachel, Melody, and Jenny with her hands ablaze with magic sparkles. She hurled a blue fireball at the girls, forcing them to scatter. When Ruth rounded on Lanie, Lanie made a fist and punched at Ruth. Ruth dodged her strike and waved her hand. Lanie was suddenly frozen in place, unable to move a muscle.

"I almost didn't want to go after you," Ruth said as she readied another fireball. "But Angelina insisted on it. You were her most important target."

What are you talking about? Lanie wanted to scream. But Ruth's freezing spell didn't even let her talk.

"Ruth, no!" Angelina ordered. "Don't kill her!"

Ruth had been getting ready to throw her fireball, but Angelina's order made her falter. Neither of them noticed that Rachel had picked up a knife from the table and was coming up behind Ruth. Right as Ruth was turning to regard Angelina, Rachel thrust the knife forward and stabbed Ruth through the back. Ruth's eyes widened in shock, then rolled up inside her head. Ruth's spell broke as she fell dead onto the floor. Lanie gasped as she found herself able to move again.

"No!" Angelina gasped. "My servant...you miserable girl..."

Rachel looked down at her bloodied knife, like she was only just realizing what she'd done. "I...I..."

"You will die!" Angelina summoned a fireball even bigger than the one Ruth had created and hurled it at Rachel. Rachel stood rooted to the spot, too stunned to react. But Melody saw what was going on and jumped in front of Rachel. Melody's body took the brunt of the fireball, and she burned into a pile of ashes on the floor.

Jenny screamed. "Melody!"

"We've gotta get out of here," said Lanie.

"No," said Angelina. "Your pathetic friends will die, but you, Miss Lanie..." Her expression softened ever so slightly. "You and I have some special business to take care of."

"No, we don't," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny dashed past Angelina and ran for the stairs.

Angelina grabbed Lanie by the arm as she went by. "You can run," she warned, "But you can't escape me."

"We'll just see about that," said Lanie. She balled her fist and punched Angelina harder than even she would've thought possible. Angelina let go of Lanie's arm and flew backwards into the wall. Angelina crumpled onto the floor like a rag doll.

Lanie didn't know how badly she'd hurt Angelina, but she wasn't gonna stick around and find out. She, Rachel, and Jenny ran up the stairs and back into the office. They burst through the door and ran off down the hall. Right when they were nearing the foster home's front doors, they ran right into Taylor.

"Lanie? Rachel? Jenny?" Taylor asked. "What are you doing?"

Lanie stopped and looked Taylor dead in the eyes. "Trust me, Taylor," she said. "The less you know, the better." Then she turned and ran out the door with Rachel and Jenny.

Taylor stared, bewildered, at her roommates ran down the street. "I am so confused right now," she said to herself.

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny ran through the streets. They ran across crosswalks, avoided pedestrians and honking cars, but they didn't have any particular destination in mind-only away from the Pretty And Pink foster home.

The trio didn't stop to catch their breaths until they'd reached the edge of Nashville. All three of them panted heavily for almost a minute. When she'd regained her breath, Lanie asked "Is...is Angelina following us?"

"No," said Jenny. "I can't believe she's a witch!"

"We can't stop here," said Rachel. "We've got to find somewhere to hide!"

"But where are we gonna go?" Jenny asked.

"I don't know," Lanie answered. "I know we can't go to any of my old friends' houses, and-"

"We should call the police," said Jenny.

"No!" Lanie and Rachel said at the same time.

"Why not?"

"They wouldn't believe us," said Rachel. "Imagine a bunch of teenage girls coming in and telling them that there's a witch hunting them."

"We have to get out of Nashville," said Lanie.

"How? We can't keep walking and running forever!" said Jenny.

Lanie thought for a moment, then had a lightbulb go on over her head. "I have an idea," she said. "There's a train yard just a few blocks away from here. If we can stow away on a freight train, then we can ride somewhere far away from Nashville."

Rachel and Jenny exchanged glances. "Are you sure that's safe?" Jenny asked.

"Of course it is," said Lanie. "I've seen lots of homeless people hitch rides on freight trains. It's how they travel from city to city."

"I guess it's better than taking our chances with Angelina," Rachel mumbled. "Show us where to go, Lanie."

***

The train yard wasn't far from where the girls had stopped-just a ten-minute walk away. The metal wire fence didn't have any rings of barbed wire lining the top, for it was easy for Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny to climb over and start looking around. Much to their relief, there was a freight train just starting to depart the yard. The train was pulled by two locomotives and consisted of three tanker cars and about a dozen boxcars. Toward the back of the train was an empty boxcar with its side doors open.

"Wow, that's convenient," Rachel said when she saw this empty boxcar.

"I know," said Lanie. "Come on!"

The girls all ran after the train as it continued to chug along and pick up speed. Lanie was the first to reach the boxcar's open door and jump up onto the edge. She pulled herself into the boxcar and turned to see Rachel and Jenny coming. "Come on, guys!" Lanie urged.

Rachel put on an extra burst of speed and jumped up into the boxcar. Lanie helped pull Rachel into the boxcar.

"Come on, Jenny!" said Lanie. "You're almost there!"

"I can't do it!" said Jenny. She was running as fast as she could, but the train was picking up speed.

"Yes you can!" Lanie said as she and Rachel reached out their arms for Jenny to grab. Jenny put on an extra burst of speed and reached out for them, too. Soon, Jenny had managed to grab Lanie's and Rachel's hands. The two older girls pulled with all their might and heaved Jenny onto the boxcar's bed.

Now that all three of the girls were safely inside the boxcar, they shared a sigh of relief. "That could've been dangerous," said Rachel.

"I know," said Lanie. "But at least we made it."

"I can't believe we just did that," said Rachel. "I can't believe we just had to escape Pretty And Pink Foster Care."

"Me either," said Lanie.

"And..." Rachel hesitated. "And I can't believe I killed Ruth."

"You killed Ruth?" Jenny asked.

"Yes," Rachel said miserably. "She was threatening Lanie, and I stabbed her in the back."

"You saved my life," said Lanie. "I owe you for that."

"I know," said Rachel. "But still, the fact that I killed someone..."

"I know how you feel," said Lanie. She was hesitant about saying what she was thinking, but it felt like the right time to admit to what she'd been hiding. "Remember how my dad died right before Ruth found me?"

"Yes."

"It was me who killed him."

Rachel looked over at Lanie with shock. "You did?"

"It was in self-defense," Lanie explained. "He was threatening me, and then I kicked him and knocked him off the balcony. I knew my dad was kind of a bad person, but I still felt really horrible that I'd taken away a human being's life."

"But Angelina killed Melody," said Jenny. Her eyes were starting to well up with tears as she remembered the horrible scene in that underground bunker.

"I know," Lanie said, hugging Jenny. "Melody was a great person."

"Yes, she was," Rachel agreed. "She didn't deserve to die."

Lanie looked between Rachel and Jenny. "Guys, I'm very sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to drag you into this."

"You shouldn't be," said Rachel. "It's Angelina who should be sorry."

"Should we go back?" Jenny asked. "Tell the other girls what's really going on?"

"No," Lanie answered. "Showing our faces at that foster home again would be suicide."

"But what Angelina's doing to everyone is terrible!"

"I agree," said Lanie. "But I don't think there's anything we can do about it."

"Not right now, anyway," said Rachel. "I think all we can do is just..."

"What?"

Rachel hesitated, trying to put her thoughts into words. "Keep going," she finally said. "Get away from Nashville. Hope Angelina doesn't find us."

Neither Lanie nor Jenny argued with that. All they could really do now was ride the train and wonder where it would take them.

To be continued...

ANOTHER QUICK NOTE: Thanks to Heather Rose Brown for responding to my dilemma with organizing this story's chapters, and helping point me in the right direction. Thanks to erin as well, for helping me with the technical stuff that allowed me to access the "Outline" tool for my stories and organizers. Your help is greatly appreciated.

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny rode the train for the rest of the day until it started to get dark out. The train kept going for a little while until it came to a train yard at the edge of a city.

"We should get out," Rachel said when the train was starting to slow down. "We can't let the train workers find us when they're unloading the train."

"You're right," said Lanie. "And I kind of have to pee."

"Me too," said Jenny.

"Get off first, find a bathroom later," said Rachel. "Now come on!" Rachel hopped out of the boxcar's door and landed on the ground. Lanie and Jenny both jumped down beside her. The three of them crept through the darkened train yard, hiding behind train cars and locomotives at every opportunity. Eventually, the three of them came to the metal wire fence at the end of the train yard. There was a city out beyond the fence-but it was at least five miles away.

"Great," Lanie groaned. "It'll take forever to get to that city!"

"Is there a bathroom here?" Jenny asked.

"There might be," said Rachel, "But I'm not sure if they'll let us use it."

"It won't hurt to ask."

So Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny climbed over the fence and went around to the front of the trainyard. They went up to the booth at the front entryway and got the worker's attention. "What are you young ladies doing out here?" the worker asked.

"We were...abandoned," Lanie answered. "We're trying to find our way back to the city."

"The city's that way," the worker said, pointing in the direction of the city the girls had seen.

"Thank you," said Lanie, "But do you have a bathroom we can use?"

The worker looked to his right. "Well, we do have a couple porta-potties over there," he said, pointing.

"Great, thank you!" said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny ran over to the two porta-potties that the worker had indicated. Jenny wasted no time in getting into one of the porta-potties and locking herself inside. Lanie tried the other porta-potty's door, but it was occupied.

"Oh, great," Lanie grumbled. She'd been holding in her pee all afternoon and evening. If she tried to hold it any longer, than she'd explode.

She furiously knocked on the porta-potty's door, but a gruff male voice from inside barked "Occupied!"

Lanie recoiled in alarm. "Oops," she said.

"I think you'll have to duck behind a bush," said Rachel.

"What?"

"Oh yeah," said Rachel. In an undertone, she added "You haven't gone to the bathroom in the great outdoors, have you?"

"Yeah," Lanie answered, "When I was a boy."

"Come on," said Rachel. "I'll help you out."

Lanie felt butterflies in her stomach as she followed Rachel into a cluster of nearby bushes. Up till now, she hadn't had any issues with using the bathroom as a girl. It had been easy to get used to having to pee sitting down. But now, in the wilderness, it would be a lot trickier now that she didn't have a penis anymore.

"Okay," Rachel said when she and Lanie were hidden in the bushes. "So it's kind of like when you're taking a shit. You just pull your pants down, squat, and let it loose."

"Right," said Lanie. She pulled her jeans and panties down around her legs, squatted down, and spread her feet as far apart as she could. She closed her eyes and tried to pretend she wasn't hiding in the bushes with only her best friend watching her. After a minute of concentration, Lanie succeeded. She felt herself peeing out of her vagina (or urethra hole, whatever) and heard a sprinkling noise two inches below her butt.

Once Lanie had relieved herself, she rose again and pulled her pants back up. "I guess that could've been worse," she said.

"Yeah," Rachel said, nodding understanding. "It's one of those things you have to just get used to."

Lanie nodded. "I just wish I'd told you sooner."

"What? That you're a boy-turned-girl?"

"Yeah. Then you would've been able to help me with this whole...transition."

Rachel put her arm around Lanie's shoulder. "I get it," she said. "It's hard. I remember when Angelina turned me into a girl."

"There's just all this stuff, like washing your hair, and brushing it and styling it, and wearing girly clothes, and having boys stare at you..."

"You're adjusting to it pretty well, though," said Rachel.

"Really?"

"Yeah. You've only been a girl for, like, a week, right?"

"Right."

"You seem pretty comfortable wearing girls' clothes, and swimsuits, and doing your hair."

"Well...I haven't really braided my hair yet," said Lanie. "And I haven't started wearing skirts or high heels yet."

"Still, you've adjusted pretty well," said Rachel. "It took me a few months to get really comfortable being a girl."

"Well, you said you were, like, twelve when you were transformed. Like Jenny."

"That's true." Rachel looked out towards the porta-potties. "Think she's out now?"

"We should probably go check."

Sure enough, Jenny was out of the porta-potty. "Lanie! Rachel!" Jenny exclaimed when she saw the two older girls coming. "Where'd you go?"

"Lanie really had to go," Rachel answered, "So we went into the bushes."

"You should probably use the porta-potty, too," said Lanie. "Just in case."

"You're right," said Rachel. She got into the porta-potty and locked herself inside.

While they were waiting, Lanie and Jenny looked out at the city. Even though it was night, they could still see the lights from the city. "What city is that?" Jenny asked.

"I don't know," Lanie answered. "I have no idea where we are."

"Is Angelina following us?"

"I hope not."

"What if she does find us?"

Preferring not to answer that question, Lanie said "We'll just have to keep running away. Hide somewhere she can't find us."

A minute later, Rachel came out of the porta-potty. "Okay," she said, "Now that we're all feeling better, what do we do now?"

"Are we gonna get on another train?" Jenny asked.

Lanie looked back at the city. "I say we go to that city," she said. "Find out just where we are."

Rachel and Jenny both nodded. "Good idea," she said. "Just so long as we keep a low profile in case Angelina's out there looking for us."

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny trudged through the thick, grassy fields all night long. By the time they reached the outskirts of the city, the three of them were exhausted. "Should...should we stop and rest for a bit?" Jenny asked.

"Sure," Lanie answered. She was trying her hardest to not fall asleep.

"How about those benches?" Jenny suggested, pointing at a line of three benches on the sidewalk.

"Looks good," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny each picked out a bench for themselves to lie down on. They were so tired, they fell asleep at once.

When they awoke the next morning, it was much brighter out. The sun had risen, and people were bustling about the streets once again. Lanie looked and saw that Rachel and Jenny were just waking up themselves.

Jenny felt her pockets and gasped. "Oh no!" she said. "I think I got pickpocketed!"

"What?" said Rachel. She patted down her own pockets and realized that her cell phone and wallet were missing. "Oh, fuck..."

"Me too!" said Lanie.

"Now what do we do?" Jenny asked. "How are we gonna call anyone, or buy anything, or-"

"Wait," Lanie said as a thought occurred to her. "Maybe it's a good thing."

"What?"

"If we use our phones to try to call someone, then Angelina might be able to trace those calls."

"That's true," said Rachel.

"But what do we do?" Jenny asked. "How are we gonna get something to eat?"

"We'll ask for directions," said Rachel.

Lanie and Rachel both approached a passing businessman. "Excuse me," Lanie said, trying to sound polite, "Do you know what city this is?"

"Atlanta," the businessman answered.

Wow! That train must've taken Lanie and her friends farther than they thought! "Is there a homeless shelter anywhere around here?" Lanie asked.

"Um..." The businessman looked around. "I think there's one just a few blocks that way." He pointed down the street to the north.

"Okay, thank you," said Lanie.

As the businessman left, Lanie and Rachel went back to Jenny. "We're in Atlanta," said Lanie. "Atlanta, Georgia."

"Oh my goodness," said Jenny. "Angelina will never find us here!"

"We can't be sure," said Rachel. "But that guy said there was a homeless shelter near here."

Jenny looked confused. "So...we're just gonna go live in a homeless shelter?"

"No," Rachel answered. "We're just gonna stop there to rest. Get some food and water. Formulate a new plan."

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny went down the street and found the homeless shelter on the corner. It wasn't very big-just one story high and covered about as many square feet as a laundromat. When Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny entered, they saw that it only consisted of one room. There were about thirty beds in the room, plus two tables of sandwiches and bottled water. Naturally, the girls went straight for the food table.

"Remind me never to take food for granted again," Jenny said as she took two turkey sandwiches and a bottle of water.

"Same," said Lanie. She and Rachel took sandwiches of their own and saw down on a bed together. "So...now what?"

Rachel took a bite of her sandwich before answering. "We should probably find a way to get even farther away from Nashville," she said. "Maybe go to Florida? Or Mexico?"

"Wait a minute," said Lanie. "Weren't there more Pretty And Pink foster homes beside the one in Nashville? Ruth said Angelina founded the first one in Washington D. C, but she hinted that there might be more."

"Yeah," said Rachel. "There's one in Philadelphia."

"That's in Pennsylvania, right?"

"Right."

"So Tennessee, Virginia, and Pennsylvania," said Lanie. "I think we should definitely stay out of those states."

"Me too," said Rachel.

Jenny swallowed her bite of sandwich and chimed in. "We should go to Australia," she said. "There's no way Angelina would find us there."

"Brilliant," said Lanie. "I'll go get our first-class plane tickets to Australia, and you can pay for our hotel."

Jenny wilted. "It was just an idea," she said.

"She's kind of right, though," said Rachel. "We don't have a car, or a bike, or even any money. It's going to be pretty hard to get to another state, let alone another country."

"We could ride on another train," said Jenny.

"Yeah, we could," said Rachel, "Except we can't be sure where the train will be going. We just got lucky with the one we stowed away on yesterday."

"Not to mention, it would take us forever to walk anywhere," said Lanie.

"So...what are we gonna do? Just stay here and hope Angelina doesn't find us?"

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. Neither of them wanted to say yes, but was there really anything else they could do?

Just then, the shelter's front doors opened to allow a man to enter. The man looked old enough to be Lanie's father, but he didn't look like he was homeless. He wore smooth black pants, a black suit coat, and a green striped tie. His face was clean shaven, and his hair was damp as if he'd just gotten out of the shower.

"Good morning, Mr. Ryan," said one of the homeless shelter workers.

"Good morning," the man, whose name was Mr. Ryan, said with a smile. "How's it going?"

"It's all going well. Harry and his wife left last night to go find somewhere else to live."

Mr. Ryan nodded. "Hopefully they will," he said. He looked at Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny and said "I see you have some new arrivals."

"Oh yeah," said the homeless shelter workers. "These three young ladies just came in a few minutes ago."

"Have they been in here before?"

"No, I don't think so."

Mr. Ryan approached Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny. "Hey girls," he said. "What are your names?"

Lanie didn't answer. After Ruth, she didn't trust people who came to take in homeless kids.

"Well?"

"I'm Jenny," said Jenny.

Mr. Ryan nodded. "Nice to meet you, Jenny," he said. "And you are?"

"I'm...Rachel," said Rachel. "And this is Lanie."

"We've kind of got Jenny in tow with us," said Lanie.

"Hm," said Mr. Ryan. "Just where might you three come from?"

"Somewhere else," Lanie said. She made sure not to mention Nashville in case this Mr. Ryan was secretly working for Angelina. "We ran away and ended up here in Atlanta."

"I'm guessing your parents are all dead," said Mr. Ryan.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Rachel. "That's why we're on our own now."

"That's too bad," said Mr. Ryan. "But, luckily for you, I run an orphanage not far from here. If you want a permanent place to live, I can find you a couple of rooms at my place."

Lanie's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "How do we know we can trust you?" she asked.

"You can trust him," said the homeless shelter worker. "He's taken in homeless kids who came to this shelter before."

Lanie looked at Rachel, then back at Mr. Ryan. "Could we have a moment?" she asked. "To decide?"

"Of course," said Mr. Ryan.

"Come on, Jenny," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny all went back to the corner of the room to huddle up and talk in private.

"I don't know if we can trust this guy," Lanie said in an undertone.

"You think he's working with Angelina?"

"He could be!" said Lanie.

"But remember what Angelina said yesterday?" said Rachel. "She was saying that she hated men, and that she wanted to rid the world of them. Why would she have a man working for her?"

"But what if Mr. Ryan's part of some new secret organization?" said Lanie. "What if he's gonna end up turning us into frogs or something?"

"You just think the worst of everyone, don't you?" said Jenny.

Lanie did her best to hold her temper. "Look, I know it looks good," she said, "But doesn't it sound a little too good to be true? We run away from Pretty And Pink, we end up homeless in Atlanta with no idea what to do or where to go, and then some random guy comes in and offers to take us in? Isn't that what happened with us, when Angelina lured us into her trap?"

"Well...yes," Rachel admitted. "I kind of agree with you. But that other man who works here at this shelter-he said he'd seen Mr. Ryan before. He said Mr. Ryan was legit."

Lanie sighed. "How about this?" she said. "We'll ask him if his orphanage is coed. If it is, we'll accept. If it isn't, we'll decline. How's that?"

"That sounds good," said Rachel.

"I agree," said Jenny.

"Okay," said Lanie. "Let's do this."

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny went back to where Mr. Ryan was waiting. "One last question," said Lanie. "Is your orphanage all boys, or all girls, or does it have both?"

"It has both," Mr. Ryan answered. "I take in any homeless kid I meet, regardless of gender."

"Great," said Lanie. "Then we accept your offer."

"Excellent!" Mr. Ryan said with a smile. He looked genuinely happy that the girls had accepted his offer. "We'll all be happy to have you join us!"

"Is there anything we have to do?" Rachel asked.

"Don't worry, I'll walk you through the sign-up and registration stuff," said Mr. Ryan. "Just come with me."

To be continued...

When Lanie saw Mr. Ryan's orphanage, she knew things were about to get a whole lot better.

It was three stories high, and it was in much better shape than the homeless shelter. The walls were painted bright orange, the windows were nice and shiny, and it was all very neat and well-kept. It was just like the Pretty And Pink foster home, except without a heart of darkness under the surface (probably).

Mr. Ryan took Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny into the orphanage's registration room. There, they found a lady at the desk waiting for them. "Well hello!" she said when she saw the three girls Mr. Ryan had brought. "Welcome to the Orphanage For All Ages."

"Orphanage For All Ages?" Lanie asked.

"Yes, that's the name of my orphanage," said Mr. Ryan.

"And what's your name?" Lanie asked the lady at the desk.

"I'm Fiona Sierra," the lady answered. "And I see you've already met Bryan Ryan."

Mr. Ryan's full name was Bryan Ryan? No wonder he went by Mr. Ryan. "Who's the boss? You or him?"

"I am," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, about that registration..."

The registration didn't take as long as Lanie expected. All she, Rachel, and Jenny had to do was provide their names, ages, clothing sizes, and the reasons for them not having parents. Of course, Lanie left out the detail about her killing her own father. She'd been okay with confiding that to Rachel, but not to Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra. At least, not yet.

"Right then," Mr. Ryan said when they'd filled out the paperwork. "Now, Lanie and Rachel, you're both fifteen, and Jenny, you're twelve. Is that right?"

"Yes," said Lanie.

"Uh-huh," said Jenny.

"Jenny, I think we should find someone who's your age for you to bunk with."

"What do you mean?"

"Each of the rooms at our orphanage houses two people," Mrs. Sierra explained. "And we assign roommates based on ages. When we first started, we tried pairing kids up with no regards to their age gaps. But it proved pretty awkward when we had five-year-olds bunking with high school Juniors."

"Oh," said Jenny.

Mrs. Sierra looked at her computer and said "Lucky for you, we do have a vacancy on the girls' floor. There's a girl your age named Samantha whose roommate got adopted last month."

"Is Samantha nice?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah, she's pretty nice," Mrs. Sierra answered. "And she's been asking us for a new roommate ever since Paige left, so I'm sure she'll be happy to meet you."

"Okay," said Jenny. "I'll do it."

"And as for you two," Mr. Ryan said to Lanie and Rachel.

"We'll bunk together," Lanie said quickly, to which Rachel nodded agreement. Even before they'd met Mr. Ryan, they'd known it was a given that they'd end up bunking with one another. They'd been bunkmates at Pretty And Pink, and they'd developed a somewhat sisterly bond. Both of them knew they'd be more than happy to share a room at the Orphanage For All Ages.

"Excellent," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, if you'll come with me, I'll show you around the place. And I'll show you to your rooms."

***

Mr. Ryan's tour took them all throughout the ground floor of the orphanage. Just like at Pretty And Pink, there was a mess hall and a game room-except said game room was much bigger. There were two tables full of boards games and a TV with a couple game consoles and a whole cabinet of games to play on those consoles. In addition, there was a bookcase full of books next to a couple of armchairs where you could sit and read.

The two topmost floors were the dorm room floors. The second floor was for the boys, and the third floor was for the girls. Mr. Ryan took Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny to Jenny's new room first. Mr. Ryan opened the door to find a 12-year-old girl in the room folding her laundry. "Hey Samantha," said Mr. Ryan. "Look who's come to live with you."

Jenny forced a smile. "Hi," she said. "I'm Jenny."

"My name's Samantha," said Samantha. She had short brown hair and a pair of thick glasses.

"Jenny's gonna be your new roommate," said Mr. Ryan.

Samantha's face lit up. "Finally!" she said. "I've been asking for a new roommate for ages!"

"Which is why I found one for you," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to show our other two new additions to their room."

"We'll talk to you later," Rachel said to Jenny. Jenny nodded.

Mr. Ryan took Lanie and Rachel to another dorm room-one that was empty. This one was a bit smaller than the one they'd shared at the last foster home, but it was still reasonably spacious for two people. There was a dresser, a TV, and two beds. The dorm also had a bathroom with a shower.

"So this is your room," said Mr. Ryan. "We have cleaners come in once a week to tidy things up, but you can decorate it however you want."

"When are we gonna get our new clothes?" Lanie asked. "You said you'd get us some new clothes."

"We'll get them to you by the end of the day," Mr. Ryan answered. "But feel free to wash up in the meantime."

"We could also use some new cell phones," said Rachel. "If you can get us some."

"I'll look into that," said Mr. Ryan.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Ryan," said Lanie. "We really appreciate it."

"No problem," said Mr. Ryan. "I'll just leave you young ladies to yourselves for now."

When Mr. Ryan had gone, Lanie and Rachel looked at one another. "So...should we shower?" Lanie asked.

"Yeah, probably," Rachel answered.

So the two of them went into the bathroom and found there was only one sink, one toilet, and one shower. "Oh..." said Lanie.

"Want to shower first?" Rachel asked.

"No, you can do it," Lanie answered. "I'll wait."

So Lanie sat and waited on her bed while Rachel took a shower. When Rachel finished and started to dry off, Lanie got into the shower herself. She spent ten minutes washing all the caked-on dirt and sweat from her body and her hair. But when she'd finished, she realized she didn't have any clean clothes to change into. So she ended up just taking a towel and wrapping it around her naked body for the time being.

Lanie came out into the main dorm room and saw that Rachel was wearing nothing but a towel herself. "Hey," said Rachel. "Feeling cleaner?"

"Yep," Lanie replied.

"Still suspicious of Mr. Ryan?"

"Eh...not really."

"It doesn't seem like he's turning any boys into girls. Or girls into boys."

"I know," said Lanie. "And it doesn't seem like he has any connections to Angelina, so that's good."

Rachel nodded. "I think we should stay here for now."

"What do you mean?"

"We probably shouldn't leave this building," said Rachel. "Just in case Angelina comes to Atlanta looking for us."

"So you think we should quarantine? Like when the pandemic first started, and everyone had to shelter in place?"

Rachel shuddered. "I don't like it when you put it like that," she said, "But yeah. For now."

Lanie nodded. Suddenly, another thought occurred to her. "What about school?" she asked. "Mr. Ryan's probably gonna sign us up to go to school, so..."

"I think we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it," said Rachel.

***

For the rest of the week, Lanie and Rachel opted to stay within the walls of the Orphanage For All Ages. Jenny didn't seem happy about complying with the regime, but she did so too. The girls spent their time reading the books in the rec room and playing games with the other orphanage kids. In the process, they got to meet some of the other kids at the orphanage-Aaron, Emilio, Trevor, Brianna, and a few others. All the names blended together in Lanie's head, but she figured she'd get to know everybody eventually.

During this time, Jenny spent a lot of time playing video games in the rec room. Apparently when she was Jimmy, she'd loved video games, and that hobby had carried over with her. She quickly grew so addicted to playing Rocket League, Mr. Ryan had to come in one day to tear her away from the screen.

It all came to a head on Friday evening after dinner. Lanie and Rachel had gone back to their room when someone came knocking on the door. Lanie answered the door to find Mrs. Sierra there. "Hi Lanie!" said Mrs. Sierra.

"Hi Mrs. Sierra. What's going on?"

"I just wanted to let you know that we're having an opening social tomorrow."

"Opening social?"

"Yes. We're holding it to commemorate the end of summer and the beginning of the school year. We're all gonna go to the lake and go swimming. There's gonna be a bunch of food there, too. If you want to come, all you have to do is show up tomorrow morning with your swimsuits."

"We'll think about it," said Lanie.

When Mrs. Sierra had left, Lanie turned to Rachel. "Think we should do it?"

"What-I thought we agreed not to leave this building."

"I know. But it does sound kind of fun, going to the lake for a little 'beach day.'"

Rachel shrugged. "I mean...if Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra will be there, then it might be okay," she said. "Plus, I am getting a little tired of sitting around the orphanage all day."

"Me too," said Lanie. "I think I'm gonna go."

***

The next morning, Lanie and Rachel donned their bikinis and put on shirts and shorts over them. They went out to the front of the orphanage where Mr. Ryan, Mrs. Sierra, and a few other chaperones were waiting with the rest of the kids that were going. Lanie looked for Jenny among the kids, but she was nowhere to be seen. Guess she'd rather do a few more rounds of Rocket League.

Mr. Ryan had rented a big bus to carry everyone to the lake. The bus ride was about half an hour, with a rather bumpy second half when they got to the dirt road. But when they got to the lake, it was a rather pretty sight. There was the lake with its smooth surface, a range of mountains in the distance, and a beach made of rough sand. At the edge of the lake was a large rock that the kids could jump off into the lake.

"Well, here we are," Mr. Ryan said when everyone had unloaded from the bus. "You guys can all start swimming while we set up the food tables!"

"I call first dive!" the boy named Aaron declared. He took off his shirt, threw it aside, and went up to the big "diving board" rock. He climbed to the top and stood at the edge of the rock. "Here we go," he said. He crouched down and dove into the lake.

"Dude," said Trevor, another boy Lanie had met at the orphanage. "Let me do a cannonball." He climbed onto the rock and did a cannonball into the lake.

"How about this one?" said a boy called TJ. He jumped off the rock and did a somersault in midair before splashing into the lake.

Rachel looked at Lanie. "Wanna jump together?" she asked.

"Sure," said Lanie.

Lanie and Rachel both climbed onto the rock and went up to the edge. Lanie and Rachel took each other's hands and jumped off the rock together. They landed in the water with a big splash, prompting a cheer from the onlookers.

"Whoo-ee!" Lanie said when she and Rachel had surfaced. "The water's so cold!"

"I know," said Rachel. "That's what makes it feel so good!"

Aaron was treading water nearby, and he heard what Lanie said. "Until you make it a little warmer," he said with a smirk.

"Uh..." Lanie stammered. From Aaron's tone of voice, and the look on his face, it was pretty obvious he was peeing in the lake. "I think I'm gonna get out of the water now."

Lanie swam back to shore and grabbed a towel. As she was drying off, she noticed that Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra had set up a table full of hot dogs, chips, potato salad, and chocolate chip cookies. She decided to go and get herself a plate of food. Lanie filler her plate with a hot dog, a handful of Barbeque Lay's chips, and a scoop of potato salad. She decided to wait on getting a cookie for a little while.

When Lanie turned away from the food table, she ran smack into a boy she didn't recognize. "Oh-I'm sorry!" said Lanie.

"No, it's okay," the boy replied. He looked to be Lanie's age, with windblown brown hair, a clean shaven face, and pretty brown eyes. He was wearing only his black swim trunks, exposing his...rather nice chest. Wait. Did Lanie just have that thought? Did she think a boy's chest was...sexy?

"Who are you?" Lanie asked. "I don't think I've seen you at the orphanage."

"My name's Conner," the boy answered. "And I don't live at the orphanage."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"Mr. Ryan knows my family," Conner answered. "He invited me to come today, so I decided to come."

Lanie smiled. "Nice," she said.

"Are you going to Eastside High?"

"Eastside High?"

"It's the school where Mr. Ryan sends his high-school-aged kids," said Conner. "I go to that school too. I'm gonna be going into my Sophomore year."

"Really? I'm gonna be a Sophomore too!"

Conner smiled, which for some reason moved something inside Lanie. "Nice," he said. "Maybe we'll see each other then."

"Probably," said Lanie.

Conner nodded. "Well, it was nice meeting you..."

"Oh!" Lanie felt embarrassed that she hadn't introduced herself. "My name's Lanie!"

"Nice to meet you, Lanie," said Conner. "I'll see you around."

"You too!"

***

The rest of the lake day was pretty fun. Lanie and Rachel jumped off the diving rock a few more times, and they got to swim in the lake some more. Throughout the day, Lanie did see Conner a few more times, but she didn't get to talk to him again. All the same, that weird feeling he gave her...it was different. She'd never felt that way about a boy before. When Lanie had been Landon, he'd definitely had crushes on girls-but he'd never gotten any farther than a simple "Hi, my name's Landon, what's up?" But now...was Lanie feeling attraction to a boy? And the fact that she'd had an actual conversation with said boy...more than he'd ever had with a girl...it should've felt really weird. But for some reason, it didn't. Lanie kind of liked this weird attraction she was feeling toward Conner.

Even when the lake day was over, and they were all riding back to the orphanage in the bus, Lanie kept her feelings bottled up inside her. She wasn't ready to tell anyone-not even Rachel. Some dreams and ideas are just too absurd to share.

When Lanie and Rachel got back to their dorm, they both looked at each other. "Well," said Rachel, "I think that was worth it."

"Me too," said Lanie. "Do you want to go change first?" Since they'd moved into the Orphanage For All Ages, they'd started going into the bathroom to change clothes in privacy-unlike at Pretty And Pink, where everyone essentially showered and changed together.

"You know, we can just change out here," said Rachel. "It's not like we haven't seen each other naked before."

"I guess not," said Lanie. She reached back and undid her bikini top. She took it off and put it on her bed. She then slid off her bikini bottom and laid it next to her top. She got a clean pair of panties out of her dresser drawer and slid it on. She was just getting out a bra when she felt it: a wet spot forming on her panties. Looking down, she saw a small patch of red at the bottom of her crotch.

"Oh!" Lanie gasped.

"What?" Rachel asked.

"Rachel," Lanie half said, half laughed, "I think I just got my period!"

"You what?" Rachel looked at Lanie's panties, saw the red spot, and started to laugh herself. "No way!"

"I know, right?"

"No, it's not just that," said Rachel. "I started my period just this morning!"

"You did?"

"Yeah! I guess you and I were somehow synced up!"

"No way."

"Yes way," said Rachel. "Come on, I'll help you out."

Lanie went into the bathroom, pulled down her panties, and saw on the toilet. She waited while Rachel dug around in the bathroom drawer and got a maxi pad out. "You may want to use a pad first," said Rachel. "It's a little tricky to use a tampon."

"Right," said Lanie. With a little help from Rachel, she aligned the pad with the bottom of her panties and used its "wings" to fasten it in place. As a result, when Lanie pulled her panties back up, she didn't have to worry about them becoming a bloody mess.

Lanie couldn't believe it. She'd been doing her hair and wearing girls' clothes for some time now, but getting her period was taking it to a whole nother level. It felt different. Almost like she was a certified woman.

And you know what? She actually kind of liked it.

To be continued...

A week after the opening social was when school started. Mr. Ryan signed both Lanie and Rachel up for Eastside High School, much to Lanie's delight. Conner had said he'd be going there, so she was looking forward to potentially seeing him again.

The night before the first day of school, Mr. Ryan came up to Lanie's and Rachel's room with a surprise. "Hello, ladies," he said. "Guess what I've got for you?"

"What?" Lanie asked.

Mr. Ryan reached into his bag and pulled out two brand-new, unopened Samsung Galaxy phones. "We got new phones for you," he said.

"Oh my gosh!" Rachel exclaimed. "Thank you, Mr. Ryan! Thank you so much!"

"We thought they'd come in handy," said Mr. Ryan. "I'll bet you two are gonna start meeting a lot more people at school and wanting to keep in touch with them."

"Yeah, probably," said Lanie.

"Speaking of school, I'm also here to give you your schedules." Mr. Ryan handed Lanie and Rachel printed-out schedules of their classes for the school year.

"Thanks," said Lanie. "How far away from here is the school?"

"Just a few blocks," Mr. Ryan answered. "You guys can walk there."

"Alright," said Lanie. "Thanks again."

After Mr. Ryan left, Lanie looked at her schedule. It looked like it was a block schedule, with First, Second, and Third Periods on Mondays and Thursdays, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Periods on Tuesdays and Fridays, and all six periods on Wednesdays. Lanie's Periods were Geometry, English, P. E, US History, Chemistry, and Art, in that order. "Rachel, what have you got?" Lanie asked.

"I've got Photo Arts, Geometry, P. E, US History, Chemistry, and English," Rachel answered.

Lanie looked at Rachel's schedule and compared it to her own. "Looks like we have Third, Fourth, and Fifth Periods together," she said.

"Not bad," said Lanie.

"We'll just have to worry about getting a good spot at lunch," said Rachel.

"Oh yeah," said Lanie. "That'll definitely be a challenge."

***

The next day was Monday. Lanie and Rachel both woke up at 6:30 and started getting ready for school. They took turns showering, getting dressed, doing their hair, and packing their backpacks. Once they were ready, they left the orphanage and set out for Eastside High. As they went, they ran into a few of the other high school-aged kids from the orphanage, such as Aaron and Trevor. Aaron and Trevor told the girls that they'd been to Eastside High in years past, and they assured them that it was a good school. "You'll like it," said Aaron. "The teachers are nice, and they've got a lot of good clubs."

"Most of the kids are cool, too," Trevor added. "Just make sure you stay away from the weird kids."

When Lanie and Rachel reached the school's front gates, they both got out their schedules to remind themselves where their First Period classes would be. It turned out Lanie's Geometry class was in a separate building from Rachel's Photo Arts class. "Well, I guess this is where we split up," said Rachel.

"I'll see you at lunch," said Lanie. She turned and went in the direction of Mrs. Kirkland's Geometry classroom. She got there just a few minutes before the bell rang and entered the room. There were a handful of other kids already in there, as most of the class hadn't arrived yet. Since Lanie wasn't sure where to sit, she just took an empty desk near the back of the room.

A minute later, another girl came up and sat down in the desk next to Lanie. "Hey," the new girl said. "Are you new here?"

"Yeah, I am," Lanie answered.

"Nice," said the other girl. She looked to be a grade above Lanie, with wavy, mousy brown hair and smooth pale skin. She wore a white coat over a pink tank top and a light blue skirt. "What's your name?"

"I'm Lanie."

"My name's Diana," said the other girl. "Diana Jackson."

"Cool."

Diana looked Lanie up and down again. "You're not from around here, are you?" she asked.

"Oh no," Lanie answered. "I just moved to Atlanta a couple weeks ago. I'm originally from-" She stopped herself, remembering that she wasn't supposed to say she was from Nashville. "-Tennessee."

"Huh," said Diana. She and Lanie probably would've talked more, but then the bell rang, and Mrs. Kirkland stepped up to begin the first day's lesson. "Well, I guess we'll talk more later," Diana said quickly.

***

After Geometry was over, and Lanie had made it through Second Period English, it was time for lunch. As Lanie was making her way to the cafeteria, she ran right into Rachel in the hall. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How'd your first two classes go?"

"They were alright," Lanie answered. "I didn't see anyone I recognized from the orphanage, but-"

"Me either," said Rachel. "But remember that guy Conner Hawkins Mr. Ryan invited to the opening social?"

"Yeah."

"He was in my Geometry class."

Lanie's jaw dropped. "No way," she said.

"Yes, he was there," said Rachel. "He said he recognized me from the opening social, and I told him I was your roommate. He said he'd talked to you at the opening social."

"Yeah, we did talk," said Lanie. "Did he say what other classes he had?"

"No," Rachel answered. "But he did tell me he was gonna be the vice president of the school's board games club. And their first meeting's gonna be on Wednesday at lunch."

"Nice," said Lanie. "That should be fun."

Lanie and Rachel both got their lunches and went in search of somewhere to sit. Neither of them were sure where to go, until Lanie heard someone calling her name. "Lanie!" someone was saying.

Lanie turned and saw Diana sitting at a table with two of her friends. "Oh! Diana!"

Rachel looked confused. "You know her?" she asked.

"Yeah, she was in my First Period class," said Lanie.

"Want to sit with us?" Diana asked.

"Sure," said Lanie. She and Rachel both sat down at the table with Diana and her two friends.

"So what are your names?" Rachel asked.

"I'm Diana Jackson," said Diana. "This is Penelope Christensen."

Penelope smiled and waved. "Hi," she said. She had two flaming red pigtails and a low-cut T-shirt.

"And this is Nicole Collins."

Nicole was a dark-skinned girl with black hair and a leather jacket. "Hey," she said. "What are your guys' names?"

"I'm Lanie Evans," said Lanie.

"And I'm Rachel," said Rachel. "Rachel Miller."

Diana nodded. "It's nice to meet you," she said. "How long have you known each other?"

Lanie and Rachel looked at each other, unsure how to answer that question. "About a month," said Lanie.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, we're both orphans," said Rachel. "I was at a foster home when Lanie was admitted to the foster home, and she became my bunkmate. Then there was some..."

"Shenanigans," Lanie said, her tone clear that she didn't want to go into detail about what happened. "Me and Rachel-and another younger girl-ended up going to Atlanta and having Mr. Ryan take us into his orphanage. I assume you know about the Orphanage For All Ages?"

"Oh yes," said Penelope. "I've met a lot of people here that live at that orphanage."

"That's where we're living now," said Lanie.

"You're lucky," said Nicole. "I've heard Mr. Ryan's a really nice guy."

"He is," said Rachel. "He got us new cell phones just yesterday."

"No way!" Diana exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know," said Rachel. "I wasn't sure if an orphanage like that would have the right budget to give its kids their own cell phones, but..."

"Well, the Orphanage For All Ages is supposed to be one of the better orphanages out there," said Penelope.

"Have you made any other friends there?" Diana asked.

"A couple, yeah," Lanie answered. "And there was an opening social where we met a few other kids Mr. Ryan knew."

"Really?"

"Yeah. There was this guy named Conner Hawkins-"

Diana's smile faded. "No," she said.

"What?"

Diana shook her head. "Conner's my ex," she said. "He is off-limits."

Lanie felt a stab of annoyance. "What do you mean, 'off-limits?'"

"Diana used to date him last year," Penelope explained, "But then Conner dumped her, and she's been sore over it ever since."

"We don't talk about Conner," Nicole sang.

Ignoring her, Diana looked Lanie and Rachel square in the eyes. "Listen," she said, "If I'm going to let you hang out with me, then you can't go mixing with my exes. Comprende?"

Lanie sighed. "Comprende," she said begrudgingly.

"Great!" said Diana. Just like that, her friendly smile was back again. "Anyway, how was your other class?"

"Oh...it was alright," said Lanie. "It was English, with Mr. Hayden."

"I have him for Fifth Period," said Diana.

"Nice."

Lanie, Rachel, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole continued to talk about their classes and their past school experiences for the rest of the lunch period, until the bell rang. When the bell did ring, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways. "Well, it was nice meeting you," said Diana.

"You too," said Lanie. "See you tomorrow."

***

Since Lanie and Rachel both had P. E. together, they both went to the gym right after lunch. There wasn't anything really major in P. E. that day-just a few laps of walking around the track. The coach didn't even have them change into their P. E. clothes. Since it was only the first day of school, there really wasn't anything big planned for class. So the kids just got to walk around the track and socialize to their hearts' content.

When the final bell rang, Lanie and Rachel both started making their way through the halls to the front of the school. As they went, they ended up running into Conner Hawkins. "Hi Lanie!" Conner said when he saw them. "Hey Rachel!"

"Oh...hi Conner," said Lanie. Ordinarily she would've been happy to see someone she kind of had a crush on, but after her conversation with Diana earlier, she couldn't get excited. She didn't want to risk losing a friend before they'd even established a relationship.

"Did Rachel tell you about our board game club?" Conner asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you gonna come?"

"I don't know...I mean, I'd like to, but..."

"Is something wrong?"

"Well...you know Diana Jackson?"

Conner frowned. "Yeah. Why, did you have a run-in with her?"

"She invited us to sit with her and her friends at lunch," Lanie explained. "They seemed pretty nice, but Diana said we couldn't hang out with you, or else she wouldn't let us hang out with her..."

"Oh, don't listen to her," Conner scoffed. "She's not worth it."

"She said you were dating her last year, and then you dumped her," said Rachel.

"Yeah, I did," said Conner. "I didn't like how chatty and gossipy she was, and she just didn't feel like the right girl for me. So I broke up with her."

"It sounded like she was still mad about that," said Lanie.

"Yeah, I wouldn't hang around people like her," said Conner. "If they try to control what you do, then they're not your real friends."

Lanie wasn't sure; Diana, Penelope, and Nicole had seemed pretty nice, aside from the no-hanging-out-with-Conner rule. But Conner did have a point. "You're right," she said. "I think I'll go to that board game club of yours on...Wednesday, right?"

"Right," said Conner. "See you then."

***

Angelina angrily paced her underground bunker. After Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny had escaped the Nashville location, Angelina had gone back to the original Washington D. C. location of Pretty And Pink Foster Care to meet with some of the other witches that were helping run the operation.

"So you had four of our girls break into the Nashville building's secret bunker," one of the witches, whose name was Anna, said. "And three of them escaped."

"Yes," said Angelina. "I've searched all throughout Nashville and the surrounding area, but I haven't found hide nor hair of them! And I can't let them keep running amok and risk them exposing us to the authorities!"

"Why don't you get in touch with the authorities to help them find those girls?" another witch named Elena asked.

"Because if the authorities started looking into what we're really doing, then we'd be done for," Angelina answered. "No, we'll have to do this on our own."

"But what of those girls?" Anna asked. "Rachel, and Jenny, and Lanie-they could be anywhere by now. I know you're especially obsessed with finding Lanie..."

"Yes," said Angelina. "And I will find her. She and her pathetic friends can run and hide all they want, but they can't escape for good-especially Lanie. She may not realize it now, but she has an important destiny..."

To be continued...

NOTE: Sorry that this one's a tad shorter than most of the other chapters. I'm kind of figuring out the structure of this story as I go along, and there wasn't really much ground to cover for this chapter. So...enjoy what you've got, I guess.

***

When Wednesday came, Lanie and Rachel both went to the board game club Conner had told them about. It was held in Mrs. Lin's classroom, with about a dozen kids gathered to play board games. The president was a Senior boy named Justin Kathy.

"Good afternoon, guys," Justin said when everyone had gathered. "Welcome to the first meeting of the board game club. And, well...I don't think there's really much to say for our first meeting. We've got chess, checkers, Monopoly, and Scrabble."

Conner looked at Lanie and Rachel. "Either of you want to play checkers?" he asked.

"I'll do it," Lanie answered.

"Alright then," said Conner. "Black or red?"

"Red."

"Okay, I'll be black then."

Unfortunately, Lanie's skills at checkers were rustier than she realized. She only managed to capture two of Conner's black checkers while he got all of hers. "Guess I win," Conner said when he'd jumped the last of Lanie's red checkers.

"Guess so," said Lanie. "Want another round?"

"Maybe see if Rachel wants to..." Conner trailed off when he saw that Rachel was deep into a Monopoly game with three other kids. "Okay, never mind."

Lanie and Conner played a few more rounds of checkers, all of which Conner won. "Wow, Conner," Lanie said when Conner had beaten her for the fourth time in a row. "You're really good at checkers."

"Yeah, I've had a lot of practice," said Conner. "My brothers really like checkers, so I've played a lot of games with them."

"You have brothers?"

"Yep. Two of them, and they're both younger. I'm guessing you don't have any siblings."

"Nope. I don't think Rachel counts."

"Did you have any siblings before?" Conner asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Before you went to the Orphanage For All Ages. What was your family like then?"

"Well, it's...kind of complicated," said Lanie. "I was born in Nashville, and I grew up there with just my dad. My mom left us when I was little."

"Really?"

"Yeah. My dad was an alcoholic, and he'd always get drunk and abuse my mom and I. So that's why my mom left."

"Why didn't she take you with her?"

"I don't know," said Lanie. The truth was, she didn't have a lot of memories of her mother, considering she (or, since that was while she'd been Landon, he) was only five when she left. She did remember one time when she overheard her mom saying that she wished she'd had a daughter instead of a son, but that was it.

Conner shrugged. "Maybe she just wanted to start a new life," he said. "Leave her failed family behind her."

"Maybe," said Lanie. "But then about a month ago, my dad was having another drunk fit, and he...he ended up falling off the balcony and dying."

Conner's eyes widened. "Wow," he said. "That's horrible."

"Yeah." Lanie deliberately left out the part about her being Richard's killer. She still had the hots for Conner, and she did not want to risk putting him off. "Then I got admitted to a foster home-where I met Rachel-but she and I and another girl ended up leaving. Then we ended up here in Atlanta, where Mr. Ryan found us and admitted us to his orphanage."

"How'd you get all the way from Nashville to Atlanta?"

Lanie shuddered. "I don't want to talk about it," she said.

"Well, at least you're safe now," said Conner.

I hope, Lanie thought. "What about you?" she asked. "What's your family like?"

"Well, my parents are both working," Conner answered. "My dad's an attorney, and my mom works at the zoo. I've got a ten-year-old brother named Melvin, and a seven-year-old brother named Kevin."

"Nice," said Lanie. "Do you guys get along?"

"Generally, yeah," Conner answered. "But sometimes I mess with them just for fun."

"Really?"

"Yep. That's what big brothers are for, right?" Conner said with a smirk.

"I guess," said Lanie.

"Didn't you say you had another girl with you?"

"What?"

"When you left that first foster home. You mentioned another girl that came with you to Atlanta."

"Oh yeah. Her name's Jenny, and she's in middle school."

"Oh," said Conner. "How's it going for her?"

"I don't know," Lanie replied. "I haven't gotten to see her since school started."

"Well, hopefully it's all going well for her."

Since Lanie was getting tired of losing to Conner at checkers, she and him decided to watch Rachel's game on Monopoly for the rest of the lunch period. At first, Lanie just watched, but then she ended up joining Rachel in managing her money and property cards. Rachel came pretty close to getting $2000 and winning the game, but before she could pass Go, Justin spoke up again. "The bell's about to ring," he said, "So it's time to start putting the games away."

"Aw," Rachel fumed. "I was so close!"

"At least you tried," said Lanie.

"And you had fun," said Conner, "Right?"

"Yeah, it was fun," said Rachel.

"Even if you kept beating me at checkers," said Lanie.

Conner chuckled. "Well, it you want a rematch, you can come back on Friday."

"I think I will," said Lanie.

***

After school that day, Lanie went down to the orphanage's game room. Since Jenny was so into video games, Lanie had a feeling she'd be in there. And sure enough, there Jenny was, playing Rocket League just like always.

"Hey Jenny," said Lanie.

Jenny paused her game and looked up at Lanie. "Hi Lanie," she said.

"Hey, I haven't gotten to talk to you for a few days," said Lanie. "How's school going?"

"Not great," Jenny said miserably. "No one talks to me, and nobody lets me sit with them. It's like I don't fit in with anyone."

"I'm sorry," said Lanie. "Are you sure there's no one at school you can talk to? Your roommate Samantha-she goes to the same school as you, right?"

"Right," said Jenny. "But I don't have any classes with her."

"That's too bad," said Lanie. "But just so you know, I'm still here for you. And Rachel is, too, if you need to talk to us."

"Thanks, Lanie," said Jenny.

To be continued...

For the next couple weeks, Lanie and Rachel continued to go to the board game club and hang out with Conner, Justin, and the other guys there. Outside of the club, Lanie practiced playing checkers at the orphanage with Rachel, Aaron, Trevor, and some of the other kids at the orphanage. It took some time, but she was able to improve. And it got to a point where one day, in the game club, Lanie actually beat Conner in a game of checkers. She felt proud of her victory-but she didn't let it cloud her feelings for Conner.

In spite of her feelings, Lanie wasn't sure she was ready to admit she had a crush on Conner. Right now, they were only on "just friends" terms, and she didn't want to risk damaging that by coming on too hard. But she should've realized she wasn't being too subtle with her flirting.

One Thursday morning, after Lanie had gotten out of the shower and wrapped a towel around her body, she walked past Rachel braiding her long black hair at the bathroom sink. "Hey Lanie," said Rachel.

"Yeah?"

"Could I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Do you like Conner?"

Lanie paused at these words. "Uh...yeah," she said. "He's a nice guy, and he's-"

"No, I mean, do you like him, like, have a crush on him."

"Uh..."

"It's okay if you do!" said Rachel. "I won't tell anyone."

"No, you're right," Lanie admitted. "I do like Conner."

"I knew it!"

"How'd you know?"

"I've seen the way you look at him," Rachel answered. "And when you're talking to him, you always seem to be smiling. And you willingly ditched Diana's clique so you could hang out with Conner at the board game club."

Lanie should've felt relieved that she didn't have to keep her secret bottled up inside her anymore, but instead she felt embarrassed. She wished she'd been a little more subtle about her feelings for Conner. "I guess I-"

"Don't be embarrassed," said Rachel. "I've had crushes on guys before."

"You have?"

"Yeah. You and I are girls now, so it's not gay if we like guys."

"Huh." Lanie hadn't even considered that it might be "gay" for a guy to turn into a girl and then feel romantic attraction to another guy. But she knew Rachel was right: she was a girl now, so it wasn't homosexual.

"Well, if you want to try asking him out-"

"Rachel, you just said I'm a girl now!" said Lanie. "I can't ask a guy out!"

"Before you came to Pretty And Pink, I had a roommate who asked a guy out," said Rachel. "And Ruth kicked her out for it, but it's not like you have to worry about that happening to you."

"I mean...I don't know if I feel comfortable about doing that," said Lanie. "I've been hoping he'd ask me out, but I don't know if he..." She trailed off as an idea formed in her mind. "Hey, you have Second Period with him, right?"

"Right."

"Maybe you could talk to him? See if he might be interested in dating me?"

"I can try," said Rachel.

"Great," said Lanie. "Thank you so much."

***

When Rachel got to Second Period Geometry that day, she immediately started looking for Conner. Sure enough, there he was-at his table in the middle of the room with his tablemates Hugo, Joey, and David. But the four boys were deep in conversation with one another, and there was just a minute and a half before the bell rang, so Rachel knew now wasn't the time.

Fortunately, the time came halfway through the class when Mrs. Kirkland called a ten-minute break. This was something almost every teacher at Eastside High did-give their classes short breaks in the middle of their two-hour classes. Rachel suspected that the teachers did that because they understood teenagers.

Right when the break started, Rachel went over to Conner's table. "Hey Conner," she said, "Could we talk for a minute?"

"Ooh," said Hugo. "I think she likes you."

"Shut up, Hugo," said Conner. "She's just a friend." He got up and went with Rachel over to her table. "What's going on?"

Rachel was prepared. She'd rehearsed this conversation in her head for all of First Period. "You know Lanie?"

"Yeah, I do."

"You don't like her, do you?"

Conner wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Well...she is a nice girl," he said. "And she's kind of pretty, too."

"So you do like her?"

"What-I mean, she's a friend," said Conner, "But I don't, like, want to date her or anything."

"She told me she kind of likes you."

Conner's jaw dropped. "What?"

"Like, she wants to be more than friends."

For a few seconds, Conner wasn't sure what to say. "Wow," he said. "That's...that's surprising."

"Well? You wouldn't date her, would you?"

"If she wanted to, well..." Conner sighed. "I guess maybe I kind of like her, too."

"Great!" said Rachel. "Lanie's been hoping you'll ask her out, so if you do, then I think she'll say yes."

"Awesome," said Conner. "I'll have to do that."

***

"You're kidding me? It was that easy?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," said Rachel. "He said he kind of had the hots for you, too, so he'd be down for a date."

Lanie squealed in delight. "Thank you, Rachel, thank you!" she said, hugging Rachel deeply. "I owe you big-time for this!"

Rachel smiled and hugged Lanie back. "It's okay," she said. "It really wasn't any trouble for me to talk to Conner on your behalf."

"How about we go get lunch together? How's that sound?"

"Sounds good."

Lanie and Rachel both went down the school hallway toward the cafeteria. But when they rounded a corner, they ran into the three people they'd been trying to avoid: Diana Jackson, Penelope Christensen, and Nicole Collins. "Uh-oh," said Lanie. She and Rachel started to turn away, but it was too late. The other three girls had already seen them.

"Lanie! Rachel! There you are!" said Diana.

"Oh, fuck..." Lanie muttered.

"Where have you been?" Diana asked. "Why haven't you been hanging out with us at lunch?"

Lanie and Rachel were both at a loss for words. Neither of them wanted to admit that they'd been hanging around Cooper Hawkins, but they didn't have any good excuses.

"It's none of your business what we do at lunch," Rachel forced out.

"You've been hanging out with Conner Hawkins, haven't you?" Penelope asked.

"How did you know?" Lanie blurted out.

"Because I heard from someone who knew Justin Kathy, who told him you guys have been going to the board game club," Penelope replied. "Which Conner's a part of."

Lanie sighed. "You're right," she said. "We have been going to the board game club. And we haven't sat at your guys' lunch table because Diana said she wouldn't let us sit with you if we hung around her exes, so..."

"Yeah, I guess I did say that," Diana said, though she sounded more disappointed than angry.

For a few seconds, there was a silence between the five girls. It was broken when Lanie said "But if you want us to sit at your table, then we can-"

"Actually, that's not the real reason we were looking for you," said Diana.

"Oh?"

"You see, we had tickets for an Olivia Rodrigo concert tonight-me and Penelope and Nicole-and my cousins were supposed to go, but they had something come up at the last minute. So we thought maybe we could invite you guys to come with us?"

"Of course!" Rachel exclaimed. "I love Olivia Rodrigo!"

Diana nodded. "And you, Lanie?"

Lanie shrugged. "I guess," she said, "If you're offering."

"Great," said Diana. "The concert's at 7:00 tonight, so I'll come pick you up at 6:30."

"What-you have your own car?"

"Yes, I do," said Diana. "We'll get Penelope and Nicole, then go to the concert. How does that sound?"

"That sounds great," said Rachel.

"Alright," said Diana. "See you at 6:30."

***

It took Lanie half an hour to find the right clothes to wear to the Olivia Rodrigo concert. She thought it would be easy to pick out the right outfit, but then Lanie realized all she had were jeans, T-shirts, a couple long-sleeve shirts, and a jacket. Not a whole lot of options, which now seemed like a pretty serious flaw in her wardrobe. With help from Rachel, Lanie managed to settle on her nicest pair of jeans and the best shirt she could find. But she made a mental note to go shopping for some better clothes when she had the chance.

Diana showed up at the front of the orphanage at 6:30 in her gray Hyundai Sonata. She watched as Lanie and Rachel both came out and got in the backseat of her sedan. "Hi guys," said Diana. She was wearing a leather jacket and thick, dark blue jeans with her hair tied back in a ponytail. "You look nice."

"You look pretty good yourself," said Lanie.

"Thanks," said Diana.

After they'd picked up Penelope and Nicole, they drove to the big theater where the Olivia Rodrigo concert was being held. After parking the car, the five of them got in line to enter the theater.

"You guys excited?" Diana asked as they were waiting in line.

"Of course!" Rachel answered. "Olivia Rodrigo's, like, my favorite singer ever!"

"What about you?" Nicole asked Lanie.

"Yeah, I'm excited," said Lanie. The truth was, she'd never been much of an Olivia Rodrigo fan. Even though she liked her music fine enough, she'd never been the type to obsess over celebrities and track every move of their careers. But the prospect of going to a theater that had a big stage with huge speakers and lights and a real, actual singer performing songs live without any lip-syncing or anything was pretty exciting in and of itself.

The girls entered the theater right as Olivia Rodrigo was coming onto the stage and starting to belt out "good 4 u." Diana and Rachel cheered with the rest of the crowd and even sang along when Olivia Rodrigo got to the chorus. At first, Lanie wasn't really doing anything, but after a couple songs, she started to get into the groove of things. She started cheering and chanting with the rest of her friends, watching as Olivia Rodrigo danced and sang about the stage. The combined experience of seeing an artist perform their songs live, being in the theater with a legion of fans, and sharing in the fun with everybody present, was better than anything Lanie had experienced in her life. She was too overjoyed, too exhilarated to think about anything else besides the concert-not even Angelina.

The last song Olivia Rodrigo performed was "driver's license." At the end of the song, she thanked everybody for coming to the concert and wished them a good night, to which everybody cheered. And Lanie had to admit, she felt kind of sad to see Olivia Rodrigo walk off the stage and out of sight. It meant that the night-this phenomenal night-was coming to an end.

"Wow," Rachel said as they left the theater. All of the girls were exhilarated by the experience of the concert, but especially Rachel. "That was amazing!"

"I know!" said Diana. "I've been wanting to see Olivia Rodrigo perform live for, like, a year!"

"I just wish there was a meet-and-greet," said Rachel. "Then I could get her autograph."

"Maybe someday," said Nicole.

"But this was still really awesome," said Lanie.

"Oh yeah," Diana agreed. "Are you glad you came?"

"Of course!" Lanie answered. "I've never been to an actual concert before!"

"Well, there's a first time for everything," said Diana.

***

Diana took Penelope and Nicole home before dropping off Lanie and Rachel. When she pulled up in front of the Orphanage For All Ages, she paused before unlocking the car doors. "Guys, before you go, there's something I want to say to you," Diana said.

"What is it?"

Diana took a deep breath before saying "I'm sorry for saying you couldn't hang out with me if you hung out with Conner."

"Oh...that's okay," said Lanie.

"I was still feeling bitter about Conner breaking up with me," Diana went on, "I was just so mad, I didn't even want my friends getting involved with him. But then when I talked to you guys earlier today, I realized I'd kind of pushed you away..."

"It's alright," said Lanie. "If Conner dumped me, I'd probably be pretty sour, too."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Lanie hesitated before saying "I kind of have a crush on Conner."

"Oh, you do?" Diana asked in surprise.

"Yes."

"And I helped set them up earlier today," said Rachel.

"Wow!" said Diana. "Well, if you want to try dating Conner, then...go ahead!"

"What?"

"Yeah. You never know, it might work out between you!"

"Thank you," said Lanie. "And thanks for the concert, too."

"Anytime," said Diana. "Now you guys have a good night."

"You too."

To be continued...

The next day was Friday. Lanie went to her Fourth and Fifth Period classes with Rachel, then went to Mrs. Lin's classroom for the board game club. Lanie was eager to see Conner, since she knew Rachel had let it slip to him that she wanted to date him. But as it turned out, she and Rachel got to the classroom early. The only other person there was Justin.

"Hey guys," Justin said when he saw Lanie and Rachel. "You're a little earlier than usual."

Lanie shrugged. "The early bird gets the worm," she said.

Right then, Conner came into the room. "Hi Lanie," he said.

Lanie's heart leapt with excitement. "Hi Conner!" she said with a smile.

Conner smiled back. "I heard you were interested in me," he said.

"Oh, really?" Lanie asked, though she knew perfectly well who had told Conner.

"Yeah," said Conner. "You want to go on a date, don't you?"

"Yes, of course!"

"How about tomorrow?" Conner asked. "Want to meet up at the mall and get dinner at Starbucks?"

"That sounds good," said Lanie.

"Do you need a ride there, or-"

"Yeah, probably," said Lanie. "I don't have a car or a bike or anything."

"I can probably get my dad to drive us," said Conner. "But I warn you, he can be kind of embarrassing."

"That's okay," said Lanie. "I think I can tolerate it."

***

After the board game club's meeting, Lanie and Rachel left Mrs. Lin's classroom to go to their Sixth Period classes. But on their way out, they ran into Diana, Penelope, and Nicole again. "Hey guys!" Diana said when she saw Lanie and Rachel.

"Hi Diana!" said Lanie.

"Did you guys dream of Olivia Rodrigo last night?" Diana asked with a smirk.

"Oh, I did," said Rachel.

"I'll bet."

"You want to go to the mall with us tomorrow?" Diana asked. "We're all gonna go shopping, and Penelope's gonna meet her boyfriend, and-"

"Oh, I've actually got a date at the mall tomorrow," said Lanie. "With Conner Hawkins."

"No way!" Nicole exclaimed. "He already asked you out?"

"Yes, he did. And I said yes."

"That's great!" said Diana. "What time are you going to the mall with him tomorrow?"

"Probably around 5:00. We're gonna get dinner at Starbucks."

"We can probably make that work," said Diana. "You can go shopping with the rest of us in the afternoon, then meet Conner for dinner."

Lanie thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah," she said. "That sounds good."

"Alright then," said Diana. "Let's plan on it."

***

The next day, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole all came to the Orphanage For All Ages to pick up Lanie and Rachel. The five girls then drove to the mall and started browsing. Diana and Penelope wanted to go to the bath and body wash store, so they started there. After getting some bath salts, the group then went to the makeup place. It wasn't until that moment that Lanie realized she hadn't really done makeup yet. Rachel had helped her figure out some basic hairstyling, but she hadn't tried using lipstick or mascara or anything like that. Lanie decided to get a lipstick tube for herself to try and figure out later.

But it wasn't until they went clothes shopping that Lanie really started to get "out there." She, Rachel, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole looked through racks of shirts, pants, and blouses to find something that they thought would look good on them. After some browsing, Lanie came across a nice-looking electric blue tank top. "Whoa," Penelope said when she saw the tank top Lanie was looking at. "That shirt looks really good."

"You think?"

"Yeah. You should try it on."

Lanie felt some of her early anxiety at being a girl rearing its head again. When Ruth had turned her into a girl, she'd felt overwhelmed with all the girly stuff she would have to adjust to. Clothes shopping with Ruth was especially uncomfortable, since she wasn't quite ready for the really girly clothes. Even now, she was hesitant about trying on a tank top. Wearing a bikini when swimming was one thing, but wearing revealing clothes in public places...

No. It was okay. Those awkward days were over. Lanie was hanging out with her girl friends now, so she had to be girly. "Alright, I'll try it," said Lanie. She took the tank top and went back into the changing room with her friends at her side. She changed into the blue tank top and came out for her friends to see.

"Whoa!" Rachel said when she saw Lanie in the tank top. "You look sexy!"

Lanie looked at herself in the mirror. The tank top's straps barely even covered her bra strips, and the neck was so low you could see her boobs. But somehow, that made it look even better. "Yeah," she said. "This thing looks really cool!"

"Want to try some more?" Diana asked.

"Sure!"

Lanie tried on some more tank tops, all of which felt just as good to wear as the first. She even tried on a couple skirts-which, to her surprise, felt great! When it came down to it, the skirts were just circles of fabric that wrapped around her pelvic area and his her panties. But, again, that was somehow what made them feel so good. They felt so unique, so stylish, so...girly.

In the end, Lanie ended up buying three tank tops and two skirts. She waited for everyone else to finish their shopping before they all left the clothing store. "You like those clothes you bought?" Rachel asked Lanie just out of earshot of the other girls.

"Of course!" said Lanie. "I can't believe I haven't tried out clothes like these before!"

"So where next?" Nicole asked.

"We've gotta meet my boyfriend," said Penelope. "He said he'd wait for me at Bluey's."

"Then let's go there," said Diana.

Lanie started to follow the rest of the girls, but she faltered when she remembered she was on her period. "You guys go ahead," she said. "I've gotta go to the bathroom."

"Alright," said Diana. "Don't take too long."

Lanie turned and went into the women's bathroom at the end of the hall. She locked herself in a stall, pulled her pants down, and sat on the toilet. This was the second period she'd experienced, and it had started just an hour before Diana came to pick her and Rachel up. For her first period, she'd only used pads, but when her second period started, she'd tried out a tampon to Rachel's suggestion. Now it was time to change her tampon. Lanie took the string and pulled the now-red tampon out of her vagina. Then she got a fresh tampon out of her bag.

Okay, Lanie thought to herself. Just relax and remember what Rachel showed you. She spread her vagina's "lips" apart and held the tampon applicator up to it. She pushed on the smaller tube and inserted the tampon into her vagina. With a little adjustment, she managed to settle it in there. Lanie let out a sigh of relief. She'd actually managed to do it! She'd successfully inserted a tampon by herself, with nobody's help!

Once Lanie had washed her hands, she left the bathroom and went out to Bluey's where she knew the other girls would be. But when she got there, she saw a horrible sight. Penelope was sitting at a table, crying her eyes out with Diana, Nicole, and Rachel standing around trying to comfort her.

"What happened?" Lanie asked. "Where's Penelope's boyfriend?"

"He told her he was breaking up with her," Diana answered.

"He's a jerk!" Penelope sobbed. "He-he told me he loved me, but then he told me he didn't want me around anymore. He..." Penelope couldn't talk anymore. She just broke down into a sobbing fit.

"I'm sorry," said Rachel. "That must really suck, having your boyfriend kick you to the curb like that."

Diana nodded, though she didn't say anything. She didn't want her history with Conner to ruin Lanie's date plans.

Nicole went up and bought an order of Bluey's Fries to try and cheer Penelope up, but it didn't have much effect. Penelope was just too upset at having her boyfriend break up with her. "Penelope," Diana said gently, "Do you want to leave now?"

Through her tears, Penelope nodded. "Yes, p-please," she said.

"But what about Lanie?" Rachel asked. "She still has to meet Conner in an hour."

"It's okay," said Lanie. "I can wait here by myself."

"You sure?"

"Of course." She wasn't really sure she could keep herself entertained, but she didn't want to complicate things for her friends.

"I'm guessing Conner's gonna give you a ride home?" Diana asked.

"His dad is, yes," said Lanie.

"Okay," said Diana.

"Have fun!" said Rachel.

"I will," said Lanie.

***

After the other girls left, Lanie spent the next hour walking about the mall. She went to the Disney store and the Apple store to look around, though she didn't buy anything. When the time was 4:45, Lanie knew it was almost time. She ducked into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Yes, she looked good. Her hair wasn't too messy, and her face was pretty clean. But she still felt she had to look her best. She took a damp paper towel and wiped down her face, making it look nice and shiny, and made sure her teeth were pearly white. Once she was satisfied with her reflection in the mirror, Lanie left and went down to the mall's Starbucks.

To her delight, Conner was there waiting for her, clad in a green polo shirt and navy blue pants. "Hey Lanie," said Conner.

"Hi Conner!" Lanie said with a smile.

"You ready to get some dinner?"

"Sure!"

Lanie and Conner got in the Starbucks line and waited for a few minutes. While they waited, Lanie looked at the menu and decided she wanted an English muffin sandwich and a cup of hot chocolate. "Where's your dad?" she asked Conner.

"He went to the furniture place," Conner answered. "He's gonna poke around there while you and I hang out here."

"Nice," said Lanie. She felt relieved-not because she didn't want to meet Conner's dad, but because she would've preferred some time with just herself and Conner. No friends, no parents-no one there to awkwardly listen in on everything they talked about. Just Lanie and her new boyfriend.

When they got to the front of the line, they met the barista working the cashier. He looked old enough to be in grad school, with messy blonde hair, uneven stubble, and a piercing in his right ear. His name tag read "Bryce."

"Hey guys..." Bryce trailed off when he saw and recognized Conner. "Hey, Conner!"

"Hey Bryce," said Conner. "Long time no see."

Bryce looked at Lanie. "Well," he said, "You've got a cute girl."

"This is Lanie," said Conner. "I know her from school."

"I take it you know this guy?" Lanie asked.

"Yeah," said Conner. "This is Bryce. He and I go to the same church."

"I dropped out of college a year and a half ago," said Bryce. "Now I'm working here and trying to figure out a career path for myself."

"Nice," said Lanie.

"What can I get for you today?" Bryce asked.

"I'll get a hot chocolate and a scone," said Conner. "And you, Lanie?"

"I'll have hot chocolate too," said Lanie. "And a breakfast sandwich."

Bryce rang them up and said "That'll be $22."

Conner produced a handful of dollar bills from his wallet and paid for their food. "Here you go," he said.

"Thanks," said Bryce. "We'll get right to it."

Lanie and Conner took a seat near the back of Starbucks. "So how'd your shopping trip go?" Conner asked. "You said you'd be going shopping with Rachel and Diana before you met me here."

"I did," said Lanie, "But they all ended up going home early."

"Why?"

"Penelope met up with her boyfriend, and he gave her a breakup talk, and she was really upset. We didn't want that to ruin the rest of the day for us, so the others went home while I waited here for you."

Conner nodded slowly. "That sucks," he said. "I heard Diana was really mad at me when I broke up with her."

"That's what it sounded like to me too," said Lanie. "But I guess she had a change of heart about letting me date you."

"That's good," said Conner. "I'm glad we can all put that drama behind us."

"Conner!" Bryce called from the counter. "You order's ready!"

"I'll be right back," said Conner. He went off to get his and Lanie's orders, then came back with his scone, Lanie's breakfast sandwich, and the two cups of hot chocolate.

"Thank you so much," Lanie said as she took a bite of her breakfast sandwich.

Conner took a swig of his hot chocolate before saying "So what else is new?"

"Not much," said Lanie. "You know my friend Jenny-she's not doing so well at her school."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. She's getting bullied a lot by her classmates."

"Ooh," said Conner. "That's rough."

"It is," said Lanie. "I don't think Jenny's adjusting to Atlanta well. Me and Rachel are adjusting well, but Jenny isn't."

"Didn't you say the three of you were from Nashville?"

"Yeah. We met at a foster home there, but then...well..."

Conner looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, then craned in closer to Lanie. "Lanie, I have a feeling there's something else you're not telling me," he said. "About your old foster home."

"Well..." Lanie didn't know how to answer that. She wasn't sure if Conner would believe her secret, but if she was gonna be dating him, then he had a right to know...didn't he?

"This is going to sound really crazy," Lanie warned.

"How crazy?"

Lanie took a deep breath before saying "I used to be a boy."

For a few seconds, Conner just sat there, not sure what to make of Lanie's words. "What do you mean, you used to be a boy?" he said. "Are you trans?"

"No, I'm not trans," said Lanie. "Well, I mean, I guess I kind of am, since I basically had to transition to being a girl, but-"

"What are you talking about? Are you trans or not?"

"Like I said, it's gonna sound really crazy," said Lanie. She told Conner the whole story-how she was once Landon, his fight with his father Richard, Ruth finding him and taking him in, Landon's metamorphosis into Lanie, the Pretty And Pink foster home, meeting Rachel, Melody, and her other roommates, Jenny's arrival, the revelation that Pretty And Pink wasn't what it initially seemed, the fight with Angelina and Ruth, her, Rachel's, and Jenny's escape, and their arrival in Atlanta.

By the time Lanie finished her story, Conner was staring at her incredulously. "So you were turned into a girl by evil witches who hate men," he said.

"Yep."

"And those witches are looking for you."

"Yes-well, I think so," said Lanie. "Me and Rachel and Jenny haven't even heard from Angelina since we escaped Nashville, but somehow I don't think she'd just let us run amok."

"I...I can't believe you used to be a boy," said Conner. "You're just so...girly!"

"You really thought I was always a girl?"

"Yeah. You've never seemed tomboyish or anything like that. Everything you've said, and done-it just gives me the vibe of a normal girl."

Wow. Lanie must've settled into "girliness" even earlier and better than she thought. "Well, I'm glad you think that," she said.

"Are you still worried?" Conner asked. "That this Angelina lady might come back and try to...I don't know, kill you?"

"I think we all are," Lanie answered. "But it's been weeks and we haven't seen any sign of Angelina hunting us down, so...I just don't know."

"Well, hopefully you stay hidden for good," said Conner.

There was a short pause where neither of them spoke, and both Conner and Lanie took the chance to drink more of their hot chocolate. After a minute, Lanie asked "You're not gonna break up with me, are you?"

"What?"

"Well...do you not want to date me anymore? Now you know who I really am, and..."

"No, it's okay," said Conner. "You're a beautiful girl, Lanie. You're really smart, and fun, and easy to talk to. I don't know if you like being a girl, but I like you."

Lanie felt relieved. "Thank you, Conner," she said. "I'm glad you like me too."

A few minutes later, Conner's dad came into Starbucks. "Hey guys," he said. "How's your date going?"

"It's going great," Conner answered.

Lanie looked Conner's dad up and down. "You must be Mr. Hawkins," she said.

"Yep, I am," Conner's dad replied. He grinned at Lanie, then turned to Conner and said "What a cute girl, Conner. Well done."

"Dad," said Conner. He sounded a little embarrassed, but Lanie took their exchange as a compliment. Even Conner's father approved of her.

"Are you guys ready to go?"

"Are you ready, Lanie?"

Lanie nodded. "Yes," she said.

"Then let's go."

***

Conner's dad drove back to the Orphanage For All Ages and parked right in front of the building's front doors. Conner got out of the car and escorted Lanie to the front doors. "Well, thanks for the fun date," said Lanie.

"You're welcome," said Conner. "Want to do it again sometime?"

"Of course," Lanie answered. "I'll see you soon." She gave Conner one last hug before entering the orphanage. She went up the flights of stairs until she got to the girls' floor.

When Lanie came to her dorm, she opened the door to find Rachel changing into her pajamas. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How was your date?"

"It was great," Lanie answered. "Conner said he'd be willing to do it again soon."

"Wow!" said Rachel. She high-fived Lanie and said "You've officially got a boyfriend!"

"Yeah," Lanie said, grinning. "But I also told him the truth."

"What truth?"

"You know. That we used to be boys."

Rachel's smile faded. "You...told him?"

"Yeah. He seemed kind of suspicious that there was something I wasn't telling him, so I opened up and told him the truth about where you and I came from."

"Oh..."

"Sorry," said Lanie. "I guess I should've-"

"No, it's okay," said Rachel. "We probably needed to confide in someone besides each other."

"And I told him about Angelina, too. And how she was looking for us."

"Oh, that reminds me," said Rachel. "I looked up Pretty And Pink Foster Care earlier, and it looks like they're still operating."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah. They're still taking in homeless girls and giving them a home."

"You mean homeless boys."

"The Internet doesn't know that."

Lanie shook her head. "This is horrible," she said. "Everything we did...it was for nothing."

"What do you mean? All we did was discover Angelina's true intentions and then escape with our lives."

"I guess."

"But you'll never believe this. The Nashville location shut down."

"What?"

"Yeah. There was a news article about a 'security breach' at Pretty And Pink's Nashville building, so they decided to shut it down and transfer the girls there to the Philadelphia and Washington D. C. locations."

"Wow," said Lanie. "You don't think that 'security breach' had anything to do with us?"

"The news article was dated two days after we escaped," said Rachel, "So I think it does."

In spite of herself, Lanie felt a rush of pride. "So that's one step in foiling Angelina's plans," she said. "We got one of her locations shut down."

"I know," said Rachel. "But there's still two more Pretty And Pink locations. And Angelina's a witch, so..."

"Yeah," Lanie sighed. "But at least Conner's in the know. I don't know if he'd be able to help us, but..."

"It's something," Rachel agreed. "Look, I'm feeling pretty tired now, so I'm gonna go to bed a little early tonight."

"Me too," said Lanie. "It's been quite a day."

A few minutes later, Lanie and Rachel were all ready for bed. They shut off the lights and got under their covers. But after fifteen minutes of lying in bed, Rachel spoke up. "Lanie?" she asked. "Are you still awake?"

"Yeah," Lanie answered. "What is it?"

Rachel hesitated. "I know Angelina's a witch and everything," she said, "But what if she's right?"

"Right about what?"

"Remember what she said, about how she wanted to turn all the world's men into women? What if she's right about that? What if that really would be better?"

"How would that be better?"

"Well, Angelina kind of had a point," said Rachel. "A lot of men do cheat, steal, and abuse their families. And they disrespect women, too."

"I mean...I know my dad was abusive, but-"

"And everyone at Pretty And Pink-you, and me, and Melody, and Taylor, and Alexis-we all adjusted pretty well to being girls, didn't we? I'm sure a lot of us were uncomfortable at first, but we all grew to like being female."

Lanie wasn't sure what to say to that. Rachel was right: Lanie had come to like being a girl. Everything about being female-the different clothes, being part of school cliques, flirting with boys...all of it felt right to Lanie. If anything, being a girl felt better for her than being a boy. But all the same...

"Pretty And Pink did turn out to all be a front though, didn't it?" said Lanie. "And pretty much all of the boys Angelina lured into her trap-they didn't want to be turned into girls."

"No, but still."

"Besides, Angelina tried to murder us. And she successfully killed Melody."

"You're right," Rachel admitted. After a moment's pause, she said "You won't tell anyone I said that, will you? Not Jenny, or Conner? Or Taylor or Alexis, if we ever see them again?"

"I won't," Lanie promised. But for a little while after that, she lay in bed awake, thinking, What if the Devil Woman was right?

To be continued...

From that point on, it seemed like all anyone could talk about at school was the fact that Conner Hawkins was now dating that girl Lanie Evans, who'd just came in out of nowhere and surprised everyone with her charm and her good looks. Heads in the hallways turned whenever they saw Conner and Lanie walking together. Both Conner and Lanie loved the attention and soaked it in. Neither of them had been particularly famous at school before, so it felt great to be treated like celebrities. Lanie had thought getting to hang out with Diana's clique felt great, but it was nothing compared to having a boyfriend. It was as if nothing could go wrong for her anymore.

Naturally, that meant something would end up going wrong for Lanie. It happened on Friday evening, just shy of a week after her first date with Conner. She was walking home from Conner's house, where she'd gone to have dinner and get to know the rest of his family. Conner's mom, and his two little brothers, and their cute little Chihuahua had all loved Lanie. They found Lanie to be very sweet and likeable. In turn, Lanie took great joy in meeting Conner's family. They were very hospitable to her, and they made a really tasty dinner of pasta and vegetables. It had been a great evening for Lanie, but it was about to get ruined big-time.

Lanie entered the Orphanage For All Ages and ran into Jenny in the foyer. "Hey Lanie," said Jenny. "Where have you been?"

"At Conner Hawkins' house," Lanie answered. "His family wanted to meet me, so I went over for dinner."

"That's great," said Jenny. "Where's Rachel?"

"I think she's still here. Why..." Lanie trailed off when she noticed that Jenny's eyes were red-rimmed, and there were tear marks on her cheeks. She'd just been crying.

"I need to talk to you and Rachel," said Jenny. "Somewhere private."

Lanie sensed there was trouble afoot. "Of course," she said. "Let's go up to our bedroom."

Lanie took Jenny upstairs to her and Rachel's bedroom. There, they found Rachel lying on her bed reading a book. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How was dinner with the Hawkinses?"

"It was great," said Lanie. "But Jenny said she needs to talk to us."

Rachel's smile faded when she saw how miserable Jenny was. "What's wrong?" she asked. "More trouble at school?"

Jenny nodded. "It's getting worse," she said. "You know that boy I told you about, Ben Snipes-he beat me up today at lunch. He called me bad names, and he...and he..."

"He did what?"

"He said no one would notice if I just disappeared tomorrow."

Lanie was dumbstruck. "That's horrible," she said.

"Have you talked to any teachers about this?" Rachel asked.

"I did," Jenny answered, "But then Ben Snipes called me a snitch."

"I've got to tell you, Jenny, I don't think you should keep going to that middle school," said Lanie. "You should talk to Mr. Ryan about transferring to another school."

"I can't," said Jenny. "Even if I did find some other middle school, it wouldn't be any different."

"You don't know that!" said Rachel.

"Yes I do! I just..." Jenny started to cry again. "I didn't ask for any of this! I didn't want my family to be killed, or Angelina to turn me into a girl, or to be ran out of Nashville, or..."

"Neither did we," said Lanie. "But just because it looks bad now, doesn't mean it'll be this way forever. If you give it time, then things might get better."

"No, it won't," Jenny sobbed. "Lanie, Rachel...you guys are amazing. You've been really nice to me, and really brave, and...I'm so glad you tried to help me. But I just don't think there's anything else I can do."

"Yes you can," said Rachel. "You just have to..."

"Goodbye, guys," said Jenny. And then she turned and left the room.

Rachel looked at Lanie for support. "What did I do?" she asked.

"Nothing," said Lanie. She looked at the dorm's door where Jenny had gone. She was getting a bad feeling. "Come on," she said.

Lanie and Rachel went out into the hallway and looked for Jenny. "There she is!" Rachel said, pointing. Lanie and Rachel took off down the hall after Jenny.

"Jenny, wait!" Lanie called. "Where are you going?"

Jenny ignored Lanie. She came to the building's ladder onto the roof at started climbing.

"What's she doing?" Rachel asked. "Is she going on the roof..."

Lanie and Rachel both froze in their tracks when they realized what Jenny was really doing. "NO!" Lanie cried. She and Rachel took off at a run for the ladder, where Jenny had already reached the top. "JENNY, NO!"

"I'm sorry," said Jenny. "I have no choice." She climbed up through the roof's trapdoor and onto the roof itself. She climbed up onto the edge of the roof and looked down below her. It was quite the sight to see-the street below her and the buildings and city blocks that went out as far as the eye could see. Jenny would never have thought this would be the last thing she ever saw, but it would have to suffice.

"Jenny, no, don't!" Lanie said as she scrambled up through the trapdoor and onto the roof. "Get down from there!"

Jenny turned to take one last look at Lanie and Rachel (who was just poking her head out the trapdoor). "Goodbye, friends," she said. And with that, Jenny jumped off the edge of the building.

Lanie's heart stopped. She'd done it! Jenny had actually jumped off the roof of the building! Lanie ran up to the edge and looked down below. She saw Jenny land hard onto the sidewalk below with a sickening crack! "Oh, shit..."

"She actually jumped," said Rachel.

"Get Mr. Ryan!" said Lanie. "We've gotta call 911!"

Lanie and Rachel rushed downstairs to the front office. "Mr. Ryan!" they said when they burst through the door. "Mr. Ryan, there's a-"

"Whoa, calm down!" Mr. Ryan said when he saw the two girls who'd barged into his office. "What's going on?"

"Jenny just jumped off the roof," said Lanie.

Mr. Ryan's eyes widened. "She jumped off the roof?"

"Yes! She landed on the sidewalk in front of the building!"

"Where'd she land?"

"Come on, we'll show you," said Lanie. She and Rachel took Mr. Ryan outside to where Jenny had landed spread-eagled. "See, there she is!"

Mr. Ryan ran up to Jenny, rolled her onto her back, and started performing CPR on her. "Come on, Jenny," he said. "Stay with us, please."

"Here, I'll call 911," said Rachel. She got out her phone and dialed the emergency hotline. "Hello...yes, we've got a girl who just jumped off a building...Orphanage For All Ages. It's an emergency. Yes, thank you so much." She hung up her phone and said "They're coming."

It only took ten minutes for the ambulance to show up, but it felt like much longer. Lanie and Rachel both watched tensely as Mr. Ryan kept trying to get Jenny's heart beating again and resuscitate her, but to no avail. When the ambulance and the EMT people did come, Mr. Ryan stepped aside to let them put Jenny onto a stretcher and load her into the ambulance.

"Will she be okay?" Lanie asked.

"I don't know," Mr. Ryan answered. "I don't know."

***

Lanie and Rachel stayed up for several hours waiting for an update from the hospital. They waited right outside Mr. Ryan's office, since they knew he'd be the one to get a call from the hospital.

The call finally came at 11:30. Lanie and Rachel listened in as hard as they could, but all they heard was indiscriminate conversation from inside the office. After a few minutes, Mr. Ryan came out with a solemn expression. "Well?" Lanie asked. "Is Jenny okay?"

Mr. Ryan shook his head. "I'm afraid not," he answered. "Jenny broke every bone in her body. She was pronounced dead just twenty minutes ago."

Lanie's heart sank. "I don't believe it," she said.

"Do either of you know?" Mr. Ryan asked. "What drove her to do this terrible thing?"

"Yes," Rachel answered. "Did she tell you about that boy Ben Snipes at her school?"

"Yes, she did," said Mr. Ryan. "I don't like that boy...what did he do?"

"He told Jenny no one would care if she was gone," said Rachel. "And that was the last straw. That was what made her want to kill herself."

"We tried to stop her," said Lanie. "But she wouldn't listen. She just went up to the roof and jumped off."

Mr. Ryan sighed. "Well, you did what you could," he said.

"What now?" Rachel asked. "Are we gonna have a funeral for her?"

"I'm afraid so," said Mr. Ryan.

***

The funeral service was held the very next day. It didn't take very long to arrange, since it was a small gathering of people who'd known Jenny. Mr. Ryan, Mrs. Sierra, and some of the other orphanage staff members were there, as were a couple of Jenny's teachers from school. Various kids from the orphanage were there, such as Aaron, Trevor, and Brianna. And, of course, Lanie and Rachel were there, too. They both helped carry Jenny's casket and watched as it was lowered into its grave in the cemetery.

Even after the rest of the funeral guests had gone, Lanie and Rachel stayed in the cemetery looking down on Jenny's grave. "I'm so sorry, Jenny," Lanie said, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I should never have dragged you into this. I...I shouldn't have made you come down into the Pretty And Pink bunker with me."

"It's not your fault," said Rachel. "It was Jenny's choice to commit suicide."

"I know," Lanie admitted. She turned to Rachel and said "We have to stop her."

"Who?"

"Angelina. All of this, everything that's happened-it can all be traced back to her. She turned us all into girls and set up that fake foster home. And she sent us into exile when we found out what she was really doing."

Rachel nodded slowly. "Yes," she said. "We'll find Angelina. And we'll make her pay for what she's done."

***

Angelina lay in her lounge chair at the Washington D. C. establishment of Pretty And Pink Foster Care-the original place where the organization had been founded. Her assistant Bea was hard at work, manicuring Angelina's feet while Angelina read a fashion magazine. It was one of Angelina's favorite activities-just hanging out and chilling while her non-witch servant worked for her.

"Angelina!" a voice called. Angelina looked up to see her fellow witch Anna coming into the room, followed by the other Pretty And Pink witch Elena. "We have some great news!"

"What news?" Angelina asked.

"We found this news article," said Anna. She opened something on her phone and handed it to Angelina. Angelina saw the headline "Orphan Girl Commits Suicide" and read the article with intrigue. The article told the story of a girl named Jenny Nunez who'd been living in the Orphanage For All Ages in Atlanta, Georgia and experienced bullying at school. It had all come to a head the night before when she went onto the top of her orphanage and jumped off in a successful suicide attempt.

"Wait a minute," said Angelina. "Jenny Nunez...that's the same girl we admitted to our Nashville location right before Lanie and her roommates went poking around in our bunker."

"Yes," said Elena. "And wait till you see who's in the article's picture."

Angelina scrolled back up to the top of the article, where it had a picture of a broken Jenny Nunez being loaded into the back of an ambulance. In the background of the picture, there were two teenage girls watching alongside the orphanage's owner. Angelina looked closer and saw that those girls were...could it be? Lanie Evans and Rachel Miller? The other two girls Angelina, Anna, and Elena had been spent the last several weeks looking for?

"This is it," Angelina said triumphantly. "We've found them."

"I knew we'd find them eventually," said Elena.

"Bea!" Angelina ordered. "Prepare my car. We've got to pay a visit to Atlanta, Georgia."

"Yes, my lady," Bea said reluctantly.

Angelina grinned wickedly. Those foolish girls, she thought. They thought they could hide from her, but they were wrong. Angelina would now get her hands on Lanie, and it would be game over.

To be continued...

The next day was Sunday. Lanie slept in late that morning, but when she woke up, she decided to just go ahead and take a shower. While she was soaping down, she heard Rachel come into the bathroom.

"Hey Lanie!" said Rachel. "Conner's here!"

"Oh, shit," said Lanie. "Tell him I'll be out in just a minute!"

"Okay."

Lanie finished showering as quickly as she could, then dried herself off and brushed her teeth and did all that other bathroom stuff. Then she threw on a bra, a pair of panties, a black skirt, and a dark red shirt. Once she was dressed, she opened her dorm's door to greet Conner. "Hey Conner," she said.

"Hi Lanie," said Conner. "Sorry I kind of came at a bad time-"

"No, it's okay," said Lanie.

"Want to go for a little walk in the park?"

"Sure."

"Rachel, you want to come too?" Conner asked.

"No thanks," Rachel answered. "I've got some homework to do right now."

"Alright," said Conner. "I guess we'll see you later."

***

Lanie went with Conner to the park just a couple blocks away from the orphanage. As they walked, they talked. "I heard about Jenny," said Conner. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay," Lanie replied, even though they both knew it wasn't okay. "It wasn't your fault."

"Why'd she do it? Did the bullying at school come to a head?"

"Yes," Lanie answered. "But I don't think it was just that. I think it all started when Angelina turned Jimmy into Jenny."

Conner nodded. "I'll bet," he said. "If some witch turned me into a girl and made me bunk with a bunch of other girls, I don't think I could handle it. I don't even know how you did. Or Rachel. Or those other girls at the foster home you told me about."

"It's not as bad as it seems," said Lanie.

"Not for you," said Conner. "You said Jenny didn't adjust very well."

"Well...to be fair, she didn't even stay at the Pretty And Pink foster home for a whole day," said Lanie. "Right after she was assigned to our room, me and Rachel and Melody took her out to lunch. That was where I told them my secret, and Jenny broke down, and Rachel and Melody admitted they used to be boys too. And then from there we decided to break into that underground bunker, and...well, I already told you what happened from there."

"Yeah, you did," said Conner. "But still, everything Jenny went through-that would be a whirlwind for anyone."

"You're right," said Lanie. "What happened with her at school-I think that was just the straw that broke the camel's back."

"And it all goes back to Angelina."

"Yes," Lanie said ruefully. "Last night at Jenny's funeral, Rachel and I vowed that we'd stop Angelina from turning every man into a woman."

"How are you gonna do that?"

"I don't know. But we know that Pretty And Pink's Nashville location got shut down because of what we did. That's a start."

"What are you going to do next? Go to the other locations and burn them down?"

"Maybe. But there's still the fact that Angelina's a witch. And there's more witches working for her."

"You did kill that one witch...what was her name? Ruth?"

"Yes. But we kind of got lucky on that one."

Conner shrugged. "Well, if you were lucky once, you might get lucky again."

"Let's hope so."

Lanie and Conner walked a few laps around the park's trail before they decided they'd had enough. But when the two of them started heading for the edge of the park, a black sedan came in and blocked their way. "Uh...excuse us?" said Lanie. "We're trying to leave, and..."

Lanie trailed off when the sedan's passenger-side door opened and an all-too-familiar woman stepped out. The sight of this woman made Lanie freeze with fear. She'd figured she'd come face-to-face with her again eventually, but she wouldn't have thought it would be right now. Even if she had been expecting it, those cruel, calculating eyes would still have frightened her.

"Having fun, Lanie?" Angelina asked.

Lanie's face went white faster than a light bulb. "What the-how did you-"

"Come on, girl," Angelina said tauntingly. "Did you really think you and Rachel could hide from me forever?"

Conner looked between Lanie and Angelina. "I'm gonna go out on a limb here," he said, "This is that Angelina lady who wants you dead, right?"

Angelina glared disapprovingly at Conner. "Oh, and of course you've got a boy with you," she said. "You've already tainted yourself with the stigma of the male gender."

"Answer the question!" Conner demanded.

"No, I do not want Lanie dead," said Angelina. "But what she and I are going to do together, well...that's not any of your business." She waved her hand, and an invisible force threw Conner backward onto the ground. When Conner landed, he did not get back up.

"Conner!" Lanie screamed.

"Don't worry, he'll live," said Angelina, "To see the new world you and I will build together."

"What is it that you want from me?" Lanie asked. "Why haven't you just killed me already?"

"You'll find out soon enough," said Angelina. She snapped her fingers, and thick ropes materialized out of nowhere and bound themselves around Lanie. Lanie struggled against the ropes, but it was no use. They were tied too tightly around her arms and legs. All she accomplished was losing her balance and falling over.

"Bea! I need your help!" said Angelina.

The car's driver-a thirty-something woman who looked like she'd rather be anywhere else-got out and looked at Lanie. "Let me guess-you want to put her in the trunk," she said.

"No," said Angelina. "Put her in the back seat."

"NO!" Lanie shrieked. "You can't do this! You won't get away with this!"

"Yes, I can," said Angelina. She and Bea both picked up Lanie and put her in the sedan's backseat. Lanie struggled harder than ever, but it was no use. She was powerless to stop Angelina from shutting her in the backseat and getting back up front with Bea.

"Let me go!" Lanie said as Bea shifted the car into gear and started driving. "We-we won't let you change everyone's gender! We'll stop you?"

"No, you won't," said Angelina. "You'll all learn to embrace the new all-female world we will create." She turned around to the backseat and waved her hand in front of Lanie's face. A wave of magic sparkles passed over Lanie's face, and she fell asleep.

"Yes, sleep, my little girl," said Angelina. "Soon we'll arrive at your new home..."

To be continued...

It took Rachel all day to finish her homework. Since yesterday was so busy with her and Lanie helping set up Jenny's funeral, she hadn't had time to work on her homework. But, after hours of hard work, she finally finished her assignments.

Rachel laid on her bed and sighed. What she really needed right now was a nice, warm bath to relax. Unfortunately, her dorm's bathroom didn't have a bathtub, so she couldn't exactly fulfill that need. Plus, she'd already taken a shower that morning, so she didn't really feel up for taking another one.

She was starting to wonder if she should go down to the orphanage's game room when she heard her phone buzzing. She looked at it and saw that she'd gotten a text from Lanie. "Oh that's right," she said. She'd been so wrapped up in her homework, she'd forgotten Lanie had gone off with Conner. But when she read the text message, her heart missed several beats. It read "Help! They found me! Washington D. C!"

"What in the..." Rachel didn't even have time to finish the thought. Right after she finished reading the text, she got an incoming call from none other than Conner Hawkins. She accepted the call and held her phone up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Rachel!" said Conner. He sounded panicked and out of breath. "Where are you?"

"I'm at my dorm at the orphanage. What's going on-"

"Oh, thank goodness," said Conner. "I thought they'd gotten you, too."

"Who?"

"That Angelina lady Lanie told me about."

Rachel was shocked down to her very core. "She found us?" she asked.

"Yeah. Me and Lanie were leaving the park when this black car came in our way, then Angelina came out of the car and knocked me unconscious. I just woke up, and Angelina and Lanie were gone."

This had to have occurred less than six hours ago. "Did they say where they were going?"

"No. If they did, it was after Angelina knocked me out."

"I just got a text from Lanie's phone," said Rachel. "It said they were going to Washington D. C."

"What?"

"Angelina must've hijacked Lanie's phone and texted me."

"So that's where they took Lanie."

"Yes," said Rachel. "And I've gotta find a way to get there."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Conner. "You're not gonna go by yourself, are you?"

"Well..."

"I'm going with you," said Conner. "You can't do this alone."

"Conner, you do know what we're up against, right? Real witches. Witches who hate boys like you. This isn't some video game. You can't just restart when you get hurt or killed."

"Well, neither can you," said Conner.

Rachel sighed. "You're right," she said. "I'll let you come with me."

"Okay. So how are we gonna get to Washington D. C?"

Rachel thought for a minute. "Diana," she said. "She's got a car. She can drive us."

"You think you can convince Diana to drive us all the way to Virginia?"

"I don't know. But I'll have to try."

"Alright," said Conner. "You do that. Let me know if she says yes."

"Okay. Talk to you soon." Rachel hung up and went into her Contacts. She pulled up Diana's number and called it. "Please, Diana, please pick up the phone, Rachel asked, pleaded, prayed.

To Rachel's dismay, nobody answered the phone. "No! Diana, please!" Rachel groaned. Where was Diana? She didn't go to church on Sundays, did she? No. It was afternoon. Surely any church sessions being held today would be over by now. Rachel's first thought was that Diana was off with Penelope and/or Nicole...but if she did, then surely she'd have her phone on her?

Rachel decided to try a different tactic. She opened the Internet app, went onto the Eastside High School website, and looked up Diana Jackson's address in the directory. To her relief, Diana's house was just a couple blocks away from the Orphanage For All Ages. It would only be a ten-minute walk, if that.

***

Rachel walked over to Diana's house, which was located at the end of a T-intersection. She knocked on the door and waited for a response. After a minute, the door was answered by Diana. She was wearing a red bikini, and her hair was wet like she'd just gotten out of the pool. "Hey Rachel," said Diana. "What's up?"

"Diana, I need your help," said Rachel. "Why weren't you answering your phone?"

"I had it charging while I went swimming in the backyard with my family," Diana answered. "What's wrong?"

"Lanie just got kidnapped."

Diana gasped. "She what?"

"Yeah. There's this crazy lady who's been stalking me and Lanie for a while, and...look, it's really complicated. But I need you to drive me and Conner to Washington D. C."

"Washington D. C?"

"That's where they took Lanie. We've gotta go there and save her."

"Why can't you just call the police?"

"It's complicated. The police can't help us." Rachel's patience was wearing thin, so she took a deep breath to calm herself down. "Look, can you drive us, or not?"

"Well, about that," said Diana, "My car actually got wrecked yesterday."

"WHAT?"

"I was driving my sister home from ballet, and then the guy in front of me suddenly stopped, and I crashed into him. I had to call a tow truck, and he said it would take a week to fix my car."

"What about the rest of your family? Do they have any other cars?"

"No," Diana answered. "My dad took our only other car when he went to his work conference in South Carolina. He won't be back till Wednesday."

Rachel groaned. "Great," she said.

"Rachel, I'm really sorry," said Diana. "I want to help you, but..."

"No, it's okay," said Rachel. "I'll let you know if we do find another driver."

"Alright," said Diana. "Good luck."

***

Rachel left Diana's house and went back to the Orphanage For All Ages. When she got there, she was surprised to see Conner waiting for her in the lobby. "Well?" Conner asked.

Rachel shook her head. "Diana can't drive us," she said. "She got in a car accident yesterday, so her car's out of commission."

"Oh," said Conner. "That's not good."

"I know," said Rachel. "And I don't know anyone else who has a car or a driver's license. Aaron doesn't have one, Trevor doesn't have one, and I don't think Penelope or Nicole do, either."

"Actually," said Conner, "I think I know someone else who can help us."

For the first time that day, Rachel felt a spark of hope. "You do?"

"Yes. He's a friend from church. He's about seven years older than me, but he still lives at home. And he has a car."

"Good," said Rachel. "Where does he live?"

"Just down the street from me," Conner answered. "Come on."

***

Conner led Rachel to the home of his friend from church, who he said was named Bryce Tynes. The house was just a fifteen-minute walk from the orphanage. Ordinarily, Rachel wouldn't have been bothered by how long the walk was, but time was of the essence. Angelina had Lanie bound and gagged in her car driving to Washington D. C. For all Rachel knew, they were halfway there by now. And Rachel didn't want to find out what Angelina was gonna do with Lanie.

When they got to Bryce Tynes' house, Conner knocked on the door. A moment later, Bryce answered the door. "Conner?" he asked.

"Hey Bryce," said Conner. "Could you come outside for a minute? We need to talk."

"Alright," said Bryce. He stepped out onto the front porch and closed the door behind him. "What do you want?"

"We need a ride. Me and Rachel here."

"A ride? To where?"

"Washington D. C."

"Whoa," said Bryce. "Why do you need to go there?"

"Remember my girlfriend Lanie? Who I took out to Starbucks last week?"

"Oh yeah, I remember her."

"She got kidnapped. And the kidnappers are taking her to Washington D. C."

"Whoa," said Bryce. "Well, I don't know if I..."

"I'll pay you to drive us there," said Conner. He pulled out a big wad of $20 bills from his pocket. "Two hundred bucks."

"Whoa," said Rachel. She silently chided herself for not thinking of offering payment to Diana. "Where'd you get all that money?"

"My car fund," Conner answered. "My parents have been helping me set aside money for when I buy my first car next year, but I think this is enough of an emergency to break out some of that money."

Bryce nodded. "Alright, that sounds good," he said. "How soon do you need to leave?"

"As soon as possible," Rachel answered.

"Okay, I'll start getting some stuff together," said Bryce. "But I'm probably gonna need someone else to help drive-"

"Diana," said Rachel. "She has her license. She can come with us."

"She's referring to Diana Jackson," said Conner. "My ex."

"Ah," said Bryce. "I don't know if-"

"It's okay!" Conner quickly amended. "Me and Diana are good now. I think."

"Well, okay then," said Bryce. "Where should I meet you guys?"

"How about Eastside High?" said Conner. "We'll all get our stuff and meet each other there."

"Deal," said Bryce. "See you in a bit."

***

Rachel and Conner both went their separate ways to go pack up the stuff they'd need. As they went, Rachel texted Diana to let her know the change in plans. Within a minute, Diana texted back saying that yes, she would be ready to go with them ASAP. Once that situation was taken care of, Rachel went back to her dorm in the Orphanage For All Ages and threw together some stuff for the road trip. She got a couple changes of clothes, her phone charger, her toothbrush, some toothpaste, and a book to read to pass the time. She emptied out her school backpack and stuffed all her road trip stuff into there.

Once Rachel was ready, she left the orphanage and walked over to Eastside High. There, she found that Diana had already shown up with her suitcase full of stuff. "Hey Rachel," Diana said when she saw her.

"Hey Diana," said Rachel. "Thanks so much for coming."

"Of course," said Diana. "I just hope it's not too dangerous..."

"Don't worry," said Rachel. "All you and Bryce have to do is get us to Washington D. C. Nothing else."

"I hope you're right," said Diana. "Where's Conner?"

"He's coming," Rachel answered. "I think."

A few minutes later, Conner came carrying a backpack of clothes and other personal items, but also a large black suitcase. "What's that for?" Rachel asked, pointing at the suitcase.

"This is some stuff I think will come in handy," Conner answered. In an undertone, he added "My dad's shotguns and hunting knives."

"Whoa," Diana said, her tone a little frightened. "You're not actually thinking of fighting whoever took Lanie, are you?"

"We'll explain everything on the way," Rachel promised, though she herself was also surprised that Conner had actually managed to scrounge some weapons.

After a few minutes, Bryce came with his dark blue Honda Civic. "Hey guys," he said. "You ready to go?"

"Ready as we'll ever be," Conner answered.

"Good," said Bryce. "Just load up your stuff, and we'll hit the road."

Rachel, Conner, and Diana loaded their stuff into the trunk before getting in the car. Conner sat down in the shotgun seat while the girls got in the back. "This is it," said Conner. "This is where the adventure really begins."

"Washington D. C, here we come," Bryce said as he shifted into Drive and started off down the road.

To be continued...

As they drove, Rachel and Conner gave Diana and Bryce an explanation about Angelina, and Pretty And Pink Foster Care, and their history with the "foster care" organization. Diana and Bryce turned out to be a pretty good audience-they listened intently, and they gasped in all the right places. When Rachel and Conner had finished their story, both Diana and Bryce were speechless.

"I don't believe it," Diana said, looking Rachel up and down. After hearing the truth about her, she was starting to see her friend in a different light. "I can't believe you and Lanie were boys."

"I know," said Rachel. "I've been female for so long, I can barely remember what it was like being male."

"But why's Angelina so fixated on Lanie?" Bryce asked. "It sounds like she was after Lanie even before you guys found out what was really going on."

"I don't know," said Rachel. "That's what we're trying to figure out."

"What I'm really wondering is why she didn't come after you," said Conner. "She wanted all three of you, didn't she? You, and Lanie, and Jenny."

"Maybe she didn't want to risk attacking the orphanage and having the police come after her," said Rachel. "So she sent me that text from Lanie's phone so I'd know where to go to find Lanie."

"But what if she's not really in Washington D. C?" Diana asked. "What if this is all just a trap?"

"Trap or not, it's the only thing we've got," Rachel replied. "We know that the main headquarters of Pretty And Pink is in Washington D. C, and Angelina sent me that message she was taking Lanie to Washington D. C. So even if Lanie isn't there, we'll probably at least find another lead."

"I hope you're right about this," said Bryce.

A couple hours later, the sun started to go down. "So where are we gonna stop for the night?" Bryce asked.

Neither Rachel nor Conner had thought of that. "I don't know," said Rachel.

"I don't think we should stop," said Conner. "If we do, then we might end up arriving too late to save Lanie."

"But we can't go driving all night, can we?" Rachel asked.

"Maybe we can," said Bryce. "That's why you brought Diana, right?"

"Right." Rachel turned to Diana and asked "Do you think you can take over driving for a while?"

"Maybe," Diana answered, "But I don't know if I can make it the whole night."

"Why don't you sleep in shifts?" Conner suggested. "Diana, you can drive for an hour or two, then wake up Bryce to drive while you take a rest."

"That sounds like a good idea," said Bryce.

"But I'm probably gonna need some snacks to keep myself awake," said Diana. "We should stop at a gas station."

"Not just for snacks," said Bryce. "I've gotta top off my gas, too."

"Alright," said Rachel. "I'm getting kind of hungry anyway."

So when they came across the next gas station, Bryce pulled over to pump gas while Rachel, Conner, and Diana went inside the convenience store. They bought light dinners for themselves and a bunch of snacks for Bryce and Diana to keep themselves energized throughout the night. When they were done, they went back out to the car where Bryce was waiting. This time, Diana got in the driver's seat with Bryce in shotgun, while Rachel and Conner got in the back. Rachel ate her hot dog while the car started moving.

"Diana," Rachel asked, "Are you scared?"

"Yes," Diana admitted. "I don't think I want to know what's waiting for us in Washington D. C."

"Well, I appreciate you coming with us," said Rachel. "I really do."

Diana smiled, but she said "Don't thank me yet. Save it for when we've survived."

***

When Rachel woke up the next morning, it was already 8:00. Bryce was in the driver's seat, munching on Doritos as he drove. Diana was fast asleep, as was Conner.

"Are we there yet?" Rachel asked.

"See for yourself," said Bryce. He indicated to the right, where they were passing right by the Washington Monument.

Rachel's heart leapt. "We're here!" she said. "We made it to Washington D. C!"

"Yep," said Bryce. "I don't know where Pretty And Pink is, but..."

"How about you pull over?" Rachel suggested. "Enter it into Google Maps."

It turned out pulling over was easier said than done. Washington D. C. was such a big, bustling city with so many cars and people clogging up the parking areas, it took Bryce half an hour to find a spot to park his car. When he did, Conner and Diana both woke up.

"What...are we there?" Conner asked groggily. "Are we stopping for gas again?"

"The first option," Bryce replied. "We're in Washington D. C."

Conner looked around. "Uh...where's the Pretty And Pink foster home?"

"We're not there yet," said Bryce. "I'm putting it into Google Maps." A minute later, Google Maps had mapped out a route to Pretty And Pink. "Okay, here we go," said Bryce. "Let's get going."

After twenty minutes of weaving through traffic, they came to the Washington D. C. establishment of Pretty And Pink Foster Care. This one was even larger than the building in Nashville had been, standing at five stories high. It had the Pretty And Pink logo plastered real big on the side of the building-and, of course, the walls were painted pink.

"Wow," Conner said when he saw Pretty And Pink for the first time. "That place really is pink."

"It's not pink, it's salmon," Bryce said in a mock defensive voice.

Rachel got out of the car and took a deep breath. This was it. This was where she'd be able to rescue her friend and "sister." And she'd probably figure out what Angelina's obsession with Lanie was, too. "Well, we're here, guys," she said.

"That's it?" Diana asked. "That's...actually a pretty nice foster home."

"I thought the same thing, when I saw the Nashville location," said Rachel.

"So now what do we do?" Bryce asked.

"That's not your problem," Conner replied. "You drove us here, just like we wanted. It's up to us now."

"But you're not gonna just run in by yourselves and get killed by those witches, are you?" Bryce asked.

Rachel and Conner looked at each other awkwardly. "Wow," said Rachel. "We didn't plan this out very well, did we?"

Conner stroked his chin. "I've got an idea," he said.

***

Okay, Diana said to herself as she walked up to the foster home's front doors. Just act natural. Your parents just died in a car accident, and you've been living on the streets for days. Just act like you're desperate for a new home.

Diana entered the front doors and came to the front desk. There, she found two thirty-something-year-old women sitting at the front desk. "Well hello, young lady," said one of the women. Her name tag identified her as Anna. "What brings you here?"

"I...well...I need somewhere to live," said Diana.

"Really?" the other woman, whose name was Elena, said. "What happened with you?"

"My parents died in a car accident," Diana answered. "And I heard this place takes in homeless girls and gives them a place to live, so..."

"Well, isn't that ironic!" said Elena. "Usually it's us who finds girls to bring in. It's not very often that girls show up on our doorstep asking us to take them in."

"Well?" Diana asked. "Can I stay here?"

Anna looked at her computer before saying "I suppose we can."

All right! The witches (?) fell for it! But there was still one more thing Diana had to find out. "Where's the manager?" she asked.

"What?"

"The manager. The person who runs the place. Is he here?"

"It's a she," Elena corrected. "And yes, she is here. She just arrived a couple hours ago."

"Why do you want to know?" Anna asked.

"Well..." Diana knew she couldn't say Angelina's name, or else she might blow the whole operation. "Does she have to be here, to authorize you guys letting me register with this foster home?"

"Our manager is unavailable at the moment," said Elena, "But we can register you ourselves."

"Good," said Diana. She sat and patiently waited while Anna and Elena went through some paperwork. It took quicker than Diana expected. All she had to do was give her name, age, reason for supposedly being an orphan, and that was it.

"Well, now you're registered," Anna said when the process was done. "Come on, I'll take you to your new room."

Diana went with Anna upstairs to a large dorm room. Inside, there were five more girls folding laundry, playing on their phones, and doing other stuff. "Hey girls," said Anna. "Here's your new roommate Diana."

Diana forced a smile. "Hey guys," she said. "I'm...Diana."

"My name's Taylor," said one of the girls. "And this is Alexis. And Sharon, and Heather, and Ella."

"Is there anything else you need?" Anna asked.

"No," Diana answered.

"Very well," said Anna. "Have fun with your new roommates."

Once Anna left, Diana approached the girl named Taylor who had spoken. "Listen, this is serious," she said. "Is Angelina here?"

"What-who?"

"Angelina Aguilar," said Diana. "The founder of this company."

All the rest of the girls exchanged glances. "How do you know about her?" the one named Heather asked.

"Answer the question!" Diana demanded. "Is she here or not?"

"Yes," said Alexis. "I saw her downstairs half an hour ago. She was talking to Anna and Elena."

"So she is here," said Diana. She sat down on a bed and got out her phone.

"Hey, that's my bed!" Alexis protested.

Diana ignored her and opened her Messager app. She started typing a text to Rachel, but she was interrupted when Taylor came up behind her. "Diana, that's Alexis' bed," said Taylor. "And you..." She trailed off when she saw Rachel Miller's name at the top of Diana's phone's screen. "Wait a minute," she said. "Is that...Rachel Miller?"

"Yes," Diana said as she furiously kept typing her text message.

"The Rachel Miller?" Taylor asked. "Long black hair, brown eyes, pale skin?"

For the first time, Diana turned to fully regard Taylor. "You know her?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Taylor. "Me and Alexis shared a room with her and Lanie Evans back at the Nashville location."

"Wow," said Diana.

"How do you know Rachel?" Alexis asked.

"It's a long story," Diana replied. "Listen, we're here to stop Angelina."

"Stop Angelina?"

"Stop her from turning boys and men into women."

Every girl in the room gasped. "What the-how did you-"

Diana looked between the other five girls. "So it's true," she said. "You really weren't supposed to tell each other you were boys."

"I don't...I thought I was the only one..." Taylor stammered.

"It's not important," said Diana. "What is important is that Angelina's here. And she's doing something with Lanie."

"What-you know Lanie, too?" Taylor asked.

"Yes. Angelina brought her back here, and we came to rescue her."

"A minute ago you said you were here to stop Angelina," said Alexis.

"That too," said Diana. She pressed the Send button, and her text went right to Rachel's phone.

***

"Yes!" Rachel exclaimed when she saw Diana's text. "Angelina is here!"

"Great," said Conner. "Let's get the weapons out."

Conner and Bryce both got shotguns out while Rachel got a hunting knife. She knew it wouldn't be as effective as a gun, but she didn't feel comfortable holding a gun. She wasn't sure if she trusted herself not to literally shoot herself in the foot. Plus, a knife had already proven effective against killing Ruth.

Rachel, Conner, and Bryce busted through the foster home's front doors and saw Anna and Elena sitting at the front desk. "What the-" Anna asked.

"Where's Lanie?" Rachel asked. "Tell us now!"

Elena squinted at Rachel and recognized her face. "You're her," she said. "You're Rachel. Angelina was right. You did find a way to come here."

"Yeah, I did," said Rachel. "What did you do with Lanie?"

"Angelina's taking care of her personal business with Lanie," said Anna. "But you, on the other hand..."

"What's Angelina doing with Lanie?" Conner asked. "What does she even want with her? She's just another boy she turned into a girl!"

"Oh no," said Anna. "Lanie is much more than that."

"What are you talking about?" Rachel asked.

"Girl, you are so ignorant," said Anna. "You have no idea who Lanie really is." And she told Rachel, Conner, and Bryce the truth about Lanie.

When Rachel heard what Anna said, she nearly dropped her knife. "But-but that's impossible!" she stuttered. "How could Lanie be-"

"Don't question what is and isn't possible, girl," said Elena. She stood up and floated a few feet off the ground. "Soon, Angelina and Lanie will achieve Angelina's lifelong goal of ruling an all-female world."

Elena conjured a fireball and threw it at Rachel. Conner grabbed Rachel and pulled her aside to prevent her from being hit. Bryce tried to shoot at Elena, but his aim was off by at least three feet. Elena rounded on Bryce, but Conner was ready. He took careful aim and shot her in the chest. Elena barely had time to gasp before her circulatory system collapsed, and she fell onto the floor dead.

"No!" Anna hissed. She climbed up onto the desk and snapped her fingers. In the blink of an eye, Conner's and Bryce's guns turned into thick black balloons.

"What the-hey!" said Conner. "These were my dad's shotguns!"

"Oh, come on now," said Anna. "You can still have some fun with those balloons." She floated down to Conner and grabbed him by the collar. "At least, you can if you live to see the day." She pinned him against the wall and placed her hand against his forehead. Conner screamed in pain, as if Anna was using her hand to burn his skin.

Rachel gritted her teeth. This was it. It was all on her now, just like when Ruth was threatening Lanie. She knew what it would mean to kill Anna, but the rational part of her knew there was no other choice. She came up behind Anna and stabbed her in the back. Like Ruth before her, Anna gasped and collapsed.

Conner let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Rachel," he said.

"You're welcome," said Rachel. She turned to see Diana running up to them, followed by...was that Taylor and Alexis?

"Whoa," Diana said when she saw the chaos in the foyer. "Did you just-"

"Yes, we took them out," said Conner.

"Rachel? What are you doing here?" Taylor asked.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked.

"Me and Alexis got transferred here after the Nashville location got shut down," Taylor answered. "Angelina said you, Lanie, and Jenny broke into an employees-only area and then escaped, so-"

"It's a long story," said Rachel. "Do you know if there's another underground bunker here?"

"As a matter of fact, there is," said Alexis. "I saw the entrance to it just a few days ago."

"Show us the way," said Rachel.

***

Of all the disturbing things Lanie had experienced lately, waking up naked was one of the weirder ones.

She woke on a cold metal bed in a dark underground room. She felt a breeze on her boobs and her vagina, and she realized she wasn't wearing any clothes. "What...what the..."

"Good, good," said the voice of Angelina Aguilar. "The Awakening was a success."

"What-Angelina!"

"Don't worry, you can put your clothes back on now," said Angelina. She indicated a pile of clothes that were Lanie's, lying on the floor beside her bed.

Angelina had undressed Angelina while she was asleep? That thought was sickening. Nonetheless, Lanie wasted no time in grabbing her panties and sliding them back on. "What's going on?" Lanie asked as she was wriggling her way into her bra. "What did you do to me?"

"I performed the Awakening on you," said Angelina. "The Awakening where I activated the magic inside of you."

"What...magic?"

"Lanie, I've been looking for you for years," said Angelina. "For a long time, I've wanted to remold the world in my image-a world where everyone is a woman, and there are no disgusting men to tarnish our image. But I knew I couldn't do it alone. I needed someone else to help me in my endeavors. And that someone was you."

"I don't understand," said Lanie. She had now put on her skirt and shirt again. "Why do you need me?"

"You're a witch, Lanie," Angelina answered.

Lanie's jaw dropped. "I'm a witch?"

"Yes, you are. Your magic has been dormant inside of you since you were born, but with the Awakening ritual, you are now able to use your magical abilities."

"What do you mean? I don't have magic powers!"

"Yes you do. Try doing something. Anything."

Lanie looked around and saw a chair on the other end of the room. She imagined the chair levitating off the ground, and to her shock, the chair rose. No hidden strings, no magnets-it just floated on its own, at Lanie's will.

"Yes," said Angelina, unable to keep the excitement out of her voice. "You're a witch, Lanie. Just like me. Together, you and I can do amazing things."

"But how? How am I a witch?"

"Because of your parentage. You had a magical parent, and you inherited that parent's magical DNA."

"Oh, please," said Lanie. "My dad was no magician."

"No, he wasn't," Angelina said with distaste. "He was an abusive asshole. You were right to murder him. Your mother, on the other hand..."

"My mother is gone!" said Lanie. "She left us when I was little, and she never came back!"

"Little do you know, your mother has been looking for you for a long time," said Angelina.

"What are you talking about?" Lanie asked. "How do you know..." She trailed off when she looked at Angelina again. Suddenly, she realized why Angelina had looked so familiar to her. Her facial features, her eyes, her hair, even her voice...it reminded Lanie of herself. A lot of herself. That could only mean...

"No," Lanie said, shaking her head. "No, it can't be!"

"Yes, Lanie," Angelina said wickedly. "I am your mother."

To be concluded...

Lanie gaped at Angelina. Deep down, she knew Angelina was telling the truth, but she still couldn't get herself to believe it. A horrible woman like Angelina...Lanie's mother? The idea sickened her to her very core. "But how?" Lanie asked. "How can you be my mother?"

"I hooked up with your father nearly seventeen years ago," Angelina answered.

"What?" Lanie asked. "I thought you hated men."

"I didn't always hate men as much as I do," Angelina replied. "I've always been a feminist, but I was open to settling down with a man and starting a family. But then Richard started drinking and beating you and I. Him abusive nature opened my eyes to how bad men really were. So I abandoned you and found three other witches to help me start the Pretty And Pink Foster Care as a front for turning young boys into girls."

"As for you, well," Angelina continued, "I didn't bother bringing you with me when I left, since I didn't want a son there to tarnish my image. But then I realized I had a lot of opportunities with an heir. If I turned you into a girl and told you of your true nature as a witch, then I could have someone to pass my legacy on to when I died. So I sent Ruth out to find you, and turn you into a girl so you could have some time to adjust to being female before joining me. I didn't expect things to happen the way they did, but the important thing is that you and I are reunited. Now that I have awakened your magical abilities, you and I can continue the quest to expunge the male gender from this world. Then we can rule as mother and daughter."

Lanie slowly shook her head. "You're insane," she said.

"Oh, Lanie, my girl," Angelina said with a creepy smile, "You'll find that I am perfectly sane."

"What makes you think that I'd join you?" Lanie demanded. "You killed Melody, you tried to kill Conner, you tried to kill Jenny, and you tried to kill Rachel! And you've turned hundreds of boys into girls against your will!"

"But not you," Angelina countered. "You agreed to let Ruth turn you into a girl, didn't you?"

"Yes, but-"

"And it was genuinely the right thing for you, was it not? It prevented you from being charged with the murder of your father."

"Yeah, but I'm a special case! What you and your witches are doing to all those other boys-it's wrong!"

"It's for the better," Angelina countered. "You will understand in due time. Long have I waited for you, my child, to come home. I never wanted you dead. It is your birthright to stand by my side...to help me exterminate the world's males."

Lanie ground her teeth. "No," she said. "I won't subscribe to your misandrist ideas." She faced Angelina and balled her fists. In that moment, she realized that now that she had magic powers, she could use them to attack Angelina the way Angelina and Ruth had attacked Lanie's friends. Lanie willed a fireball to appear around her fist and hurled it at Angelina.

Angelina dodged the fireball and glared at Lanie. "It's treason, then," she said. She thrust her hand forward and threw a bolt of green energy at Lanie. The bolt hit Lanie and sent her flying backward into the wall.

Luckily, Lanie recovered from the blow quickly. She willed herself to rise off the ground and hurled several more fireballs at Angelina. Angelina managed to block or dodge every single one of them. "You should know that it's hopeless for you," she jibed. "You have no friends, and the only family you have here is me."

"It doesn't matter," said Lanie. "Because I'll never join you! Never!"

"So be it, girl," said Angelina. She thrust out both her hands and shot bolts of green magical energy at Lanie. Lanie responded by firing her own bolts of energy back at Angelina. The bolts of energy met between the two witches in an explosion of sparks. Mother and daughter pushed against each other, their bolts of energy pulsing with green light. Eventually, Angelina managed to overpower Lanie and throw her backward. Lanie landed against the wall in a heap.

"I am very disappointed in you, Lanie," said Angelina. "I could've given you the world. Made you a queen. We would've been widely revered for bringing in the world's new all-female age. But instead, you chose to rebel against me." She advanced on Lanie with balls of magical fire forming in her hands.

"Hey!" said a new voice. "Get away from my girl!"

Angelina whirled and was shocked to see Conner charging down into the underground bunker. "What...a boy?" she said.

"Conner!" Lanie exclaimed.

Conner didn't even stop to quip. He threw the wrench he was carrying at Angelina and hit her square in the chest. Angelina doubled over and gasped. The blow hadn't killed her, but it had knocked the wind out of her for a few moments.

When Angelina had regained her breath, she looked up at Conner with fury. "Don't tell me my daughter actually found herself a boyfriend," she seethed.

"Wait," said Conner. "Lanie's your daughter?"

"Yes, she is," said Angelina. "But you, boy..."

"Don't you touch him!" Lanie barked. Just the thought of Angelina threatening Conner fueled her with enough rage to get back up. Lanie focused all her newfound magical energy into forming the biggest, most powerful fireball she'd created yet. Once the fireball had formed in her hands, Lanie hurled it at Angelina. Angelina barely had time to react before the fireball hit her. The fireball incinerated Angelina as easily as if she'd been doused in gasoline. The evil witch let out one last scream of agony before she crumbled into a pile of black ashes.

Conner stared at the pile of ashes that used to be Angelina Aguilar. "Did...did you just..."

"Yes," said Lanie. "Yes, I did."

"Whoa," said Rachel. Lanie hadn't noticed, but Rachel had come up behind Conner, along with...was that Diana Jackson behind her? "Lanie, you're...you're a witch!"

"I know," said Lanie. "I can't believe it either."

"Oh my god!" said yet another new voice. Lanie turned and saw someone coming out of a side door she hadn't noticed before. It was that lady Bea who'd been with Angelina when she came to kidnap Lanie. "You...you killed Angelina."

Lanie felt a jolt of dread. "I, uh..."

"Well done!" Bea exclaimed. "I've been dreaming of doing that for years!"

"Wait, what?"

"Do you have any idea what I've been through?" Bea asked. "Angelina hired me on as her assistant when she founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care, and I found I did not enjoy working for her at all. She treated me like a slave, forcing me to perform even the most mundane tasks for her. I was privy to her evil schemes, but she threatened me with death if I ever divulged her secrets. So I've been forced to live under her wicked thumb-until now."

"So now what?" Rachel asked. "If Angelina's dead, then...what's gonna happen to Pretty And Pink?"

Bea smiled. "I think I might be able to shut it down," she said. "But as for all the girls in our care, well..."

"What?"

"I think we'd better call an assembly for all the girls here," said Bea. "Immediately."

***

About fifteen minutes later, all the girls in the foster home were gathered in the building's auditorium-something that hadn't been present at Pretty And Pink's Nashville establishment. Bea stood on the stage with Lanie, Rachel, Conner, Diana, and Bryce at her side. "Greetings, young ladies," Bea said to the girls. "I have gathered you here with some great news. Angelina Aguilar, the witch responsible for turning you all into girls, has been defeated."

The assembled girls let out collective gasps. "What the...the rest of you were..." several of them said.

"Yes, you all have been gaslit," said Bea. "Angelina-and Ruth, and Anna, and Elena-they told each of you that you were the only boy-turned-girl at Pretty And Pink, and that you were not to divulge your little secret, but that was not the case. Angelina and her fellow witches harbored a hatred of the male gender and wished to turn all the world's men into women. But these kids have put an end to their schemes."

Lanie felt all the eyes in the room turn her way. "Yes, we did," said Lanie. "Me and Rachel here-we were bunkmates at the Nashville building. But then when a new girl was assigned to our room, and she broke down about how she used to be a boy too, it exposed Pretty And Pink for what it really was. Me and Rachel, and this new girl and one of our roommates-we broke into the Nashville building's secret underground bunker and caught Angelina's attention. We had to escape and hitch a ride on a train to Atlanta, Georgia. That's where we've been for the last month or so."

"That's where we met these guys," said Rachel. "Conner, and Diana, and Bryce. But when Angelina managed to track us down and kidnap Lanie, we came back here to rescue her. And we were able to kill Elena, and Anna, and now Angelina."

"That means we're all free," said Bea. "The witches' plans are no more, and Pretty And Pink Foster Care can be shut down."

"But what will happen to us?" Taylor asked. She and Alexis were both sitting in the auditorium's front row. "Will we be transferred to new foster homes?"

"Yes, but there is something else I can do for you," said Bea. "Since Angelina is now dead, I will have access to all of her magic formulas and potion recipes. I believe I can work from her gender-changing potion and reverse-engineer it to create a new elixir. When I have perfected it, I can turn you all back into boys if you so desire."

For a few seconds, the crowd of girls stared at Bea, not sure if they believed her. Then several of them started saying "Yes! Yes, please! I hate being a girl!"

Bea smiled. "I thought I might get that reaction," she said. She turned to Lanie and Rachel and said "And you two, I believe, were affected by those witches' magic."

"Yes, we were," said Lanie.

"And will you partake of my elixir once I have perfected it?"

"Wait...you mean...do we want to be boys again?"

"Yes."

Lanie hesitated. A month and a half ago, she would've said yes. Ever since Ruth turned Landon into Lanie, his/her life had turned completely upside down. But now, after everything that had happened...she just couldn't imagine going back. She'd been on this incredible journey, and she'd meet lots of great people-Diana, Jenny, Melody, Bryce, Taylor, Alexis, Aaron, Trevor, and most especially Rachel. As if that wasn't enough, she had a sweet, devoted boyfriend in Conner. She'd come to learn everything there was to know about being a girl. Wearing skirts and high heels, doing her hair, being a part of cliques at school...it all just felt right to her. It was as if becoming a girl had awakened something inside her that she didn't even know she wanted.

"No," said Lanie. "I'll stay a girl."

Bea looked surprised. "You will?"

"Yes," said Lanie. "I think life as a girl is what's right for me."

"Me too," said Rachel.

Bea shrugged. "Very well," she said. "As long as you're happy, then that's the main thing."

Lanie smiled. "It sure is," she said.

***

Before Lanie, Rachel, Conner, Diana, and Bryce left, they met with Taylor and Alexis again in the foster home's lobby. "Wow," said Taylor. "I can't believe you guys went through so much trouble."

"Neither can we," said Rachel. "And we weren't sure if we'd see you guys again."

"Well, it is a small world," said Alexis.

"Taylor I'm sorry that we kind of scared you," said Lanie. "When we were escaping the Nashville building, and we ran into you-"

"It's okay," said Taylor. "Now I know what was really going on that day."

"You're not gonna accept Bea's offer, are you?" Rachel asked. "Are you gonna let her turn you back into boys?"

Taylor and Alexis exchanged glances. "I think so, yes," said Taylor.

"So...you'll be Tyler and Alex?" Bryce asked.

"Yep," said Alexis.

"Ah," said Lanie. "Well...good luck, guys."

"We'll keep in touch," said Alexis. She and Taylor took turns hugging Lanie and Rachel-and even Conner, Diana, and Bryce.

After Taylor and Alexis left, the five friends started back toward the foster home's main doors. "Thank you guys so much for coming to rescue me," said Lanie.

"No problem," said Conner. "It's what friends do."

"No, you've all gone beyond the call of duty," said Lanie. "Diana, and Rachel, and Conner...and even you, Bryce."

"I know," said Bryce. "I never would've thought I'd end up driving up to save the life of a girl I saw Conner take out to the place where I work."

"Me either."

Rachel spoke up. "So Lanie...are you glad that you and I are gonna stay girls?"

"Of course!" said Lanie. "If I hadn't been turned into a girl, then I never would've met any of you!"

"Plus, if you were a guy, well...I've never been gay at all, so..." said Conner.

Lanie laughed. "Neither was I, when I was Landon," she said.

"Well, at least you're together now," said Diana. "And that's all that matters, right?"

"Right." Lanie and Conner both hugged each other deeply. After a minute of hugging, Rachel joined in, as did Diana. Even Bryce got in on the act. The five of them relished in their group hug as a celebration of everything they'd done, and everything they'd learned from their interactions with one another. They'd come to appreciate each other so much more after their adventure.

"So...now what?" Rachel asked when they'd all parted.

"We go back home," said Lanie. "To Utah."

"I'm driving," Diana said quickly.

"But it's my car!" said Bryce.

"You can take a turn driving later," Diana replied.

"I call shotgun," said Lanie.

And together, the five of them left Pretty And Pink to where their exciting new future awaited them.

***

Well, that's all, folks. It took me years to get around to writing this story, but now I've finally done it. I've had a lot of fun writing it, and I appreciate seeing all the views and Kudos that these chapters have received. But to those of you who've managed to make it this far, please feel free to leave a comment sharing your feedback. Proud of my work as I might be, I am interested to see what others think of it. Especially because many of the users on this site have written long TG stories of their own, and I always like hearing their different perspectives.

Fin

The whole enchilada...plus a bonus epilogue.

Chapter 01-The Murder

Landon Evans hated his life. He was fifteen years old and lived in Nashville, Tennessee. He was a social outcast at his high school, and his home life wasn't much better. His father Richard was an alcoholic who frequently got angry and hit Landon. The situation was so bad, Landon's mother had abandoned the family when Landon was only five. Landon had called the police several times about his abusive father, but whenever the police showed up, Richard acted very pleasant towards them and gave no impression of being a drunkard. Therefore, the police never believed Landon's stories.

It all came to a head one gloomy Thursday evening. Landon had spent the day helping his dad clean their apartment complex, and now he and Richard were eating their dinner. "You're still going to Leland's house tonight, yes?" Richard asked as he ate his Ramen noodles.

"Yes," Landon answered. Leland was one of the few friends he knew from school. Even though it was summer vacation, and school wouldn't start for a few more weeks, Landon went over to his house almost every evening. After dinner was the time when Richard got drunk and had a much shorter temper. Landon had learned a long time ago that he was better off getting out of the house when his father was drunk.

"Well, just make sure to do our dinner dishes before you go," said Richard.

"I will," said Landon. He finished eating his Ramen noodles and took his bowl over to the sink to start washing. He quickly scrubbed out his bowl and spoon, then did the same for his father's utensils. Once they were all sparkling clean, Landon set them down on a towel to dry and went to go get his shoes on.

"Bye, Dad!" Landon said as he was heading out the door. Richard didn't respond-not that Landon was expecting him to. His father often pretended to care about him, but it was obvious to Landon that that wasn't the case. Richard never asked Landon about his school life, or his friends, or anything else. When he wasn't yelling or thrashing at Landon, Richard only communicated with his son when he wanted him to do chores. If Landon was being honest with himself, he thought Richard had only had a kid so he could use said kid as a servant.

Landon and his father lived in an apartment on the third floor of a large apartment complex. When Landon left his apartment, he immediately made for the stairway that led down to the bottom level. But he'd only made it halfway there when his father came thundering out after him. "Where are you going?" Richard growled. "You were supposed to dust the living room!"

"What?" Landon asked. "No I wasn't!" This was a fairly common habit of Richard's-he'd make Landon do one chore, then berate him for not doing a completely unrelated chore. But right now, Landon could smell the alcohol on his father's breath.

"Yes you were!" Richard replied. "And you're gonna come right back in and dust our family room!"

"No!" said Landon.

"Yes you are!" Richard lunged forward and grabbed Landon's left arm. Landon tried to break free, but his dad had an iron grip. He held Landon by the arm and started to drag him back toward their apartment.

"Let go of me!" Landon growled. He balled his right fist and punched Richard across the face. His hit disoriented Richard just enough to make him loosen his grip, allowing Landon to yank his left arm free.

Unfortunately, it didn't take long for Richard to regain his senses. "Don't you punch me, you little shit!" He clenched his fists and rounded on Landon again. But this time, Landon was ready. He karate-kicked Richard in the chest with all his might. Richard stumbled backward and fell over the balcony's guardrail. He tumbled through the air and landed headfirst onto the concrete below.

"What the..." Landon looked over the edge of the balcony and saw his father lying on the ground below. There was a big spot of blood where his head had hit, and his body was motionless. That meant...

"Oh no..." Landon gasped. His adrenaline was wearing off, and he was starting to panic. He'd just killed his own father! But it was self-defense, right? Hadn't Richard been about to pound him? No, Landon thought. No one would believe him. He was a minor, and whenever he called the police to report domestic violence, they hadn't believed him. Why would anyone believe him now?

Landon turned and ran. He went down the stairs, ran past Richard's dead body, and went out onto the street. Where could he go? Leland's house? No, he couldn't get Leland or his family mixed up in all this. But there was nowhere else he could go. Landon would have to get out of the city. He took a deep breath and started running down the street.

After running for several city blocks, Landon finally stopped to catch his breath. He didn't hear any sirens coming his way, so that was good. But it was only a matter of time before someone discovered Richard's dead body and linked him to the crime. Landon had to keep moving. He started down the street again, but this time he walked. Running may have been a faster means of travel, but it also made him look guilty. Walking at a normal rate would draw a lot less attention.

Eventually, when Landon was rounding a corner, he heard a siren wailing. Uh-oh! Landon frantically looked around for a place to hide-a garbage can, a car, anything. But the only place he saw was an alleyway nearby. Landon ducked into the alleyway and held his breath. He heard the police car which the siren belonged to driving down the street past the alleyway, but the police car did not stop. It went right past where Landon was hiding and off down the street-presumably toward Landon's apartment complex.

Once he was certain that the police car was gone, Landon left the alleyway. But once he'd stepped back out onto the sidewalk, he bumped right into a woman walking down the street. "Oh-sorry about that!" said Landon.

"No, it's okay," said the woman. She was about thirty-five years old, with curly blonde hair, smooth tanned skin, and shiny painted fingernails. She wore a white tank top, a smooth black skirt, and high-heeled shoes. "Where'd you come from?"

"Well, uh..." Landon wasn't about to admit to murder, but his mind was going blank on excuses. "I'm...homeless."

The woman's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Homeless, you say?"

"Yeah."

"My, my, what a coincidence," said the woman. "I work at a foster home for kids like yourself."

"You do?"

"Yes. Would you like me to arrange to take you in?"

Landon thought for a moment. He'd heard a lot of bad things about foster homes from other kids his age. He didn't like the idea of moving into one himself. But right now, he couldn't really go back to his apartment. Maybe a foster home would be a good place to stay while he figured out what to do next.

"Sure."

"Excellent. What's your name?"

"Landon."

"Great. I'm Ruth Kayne, but you can just call me Ruth. If you come with me, I'll take you to my car."

Ruth's car wasn't anything special-just a black Ford Fusion. But when Landon got into the passenger's seat, he thought it felt pretty nice. Plus, the car had air conditioning, so that was a plus. "Are we gonna go right to the foster home?" Landon asked.

"Er, not quite yet," Ruth answered. "I'm gonna have to talk to my boss about letting you move in. But for tonight, you can stay at my house."

***

When they got to Ruth's house, Landon was pretty impressed with what he saw. It had a kitchen, a living room, a bedroom, a laundry room, and a garage-all of which were pretty spacious. Sure, the furniture didn't look particularly expensive, but it was better than anything at Landon's apartment.

"So what happened to you, young man?" Ruth asked. "What made you homeless?"

"Well...it was my dad," Landon answered.

"What did he do? Did he kick you out of the house?"

Landon hesitated. "You could say that."

Ruth nodded. "It sounds like he wasn't a very good father."

"Yeah, he was-he's a drunkard. And he always gets really mad and takes it out on me."

"That is unfortunate. Did you ever try calling the police?"

"Yes, but they didn't do anything."

Ruth shook her head. "Policemen," she scoffed. "You can never rely on them for protection."

"I know. That's why I had to get physical with my dad."

"What?"

Landon realized he'd said the wrong thing. "I, uh..." He wished he could take it back, but it was too late. "I was being assaulted by my dad, and I...well...I kicked him and knocked him over the edge of my apartment's balcony."

"You did what?"

"I didn't mean to! He was threatening me, and I was acting in self-defense! I ran away because I knew the cops wouldn't believe me if I told them what happened!"

For a few seconds, Ruth just stood there in shock. Then she unexpectedly hugged Landon. "Oh, Landon," she said. "That must be awful, knowing that you killed your own father."

"I know!" said Landon. "And I don't know how I'm gonna escape the police when they find out it was me who killed him! I don't have anywhere I can go, or anyone to-"

"You have me," said Ruth. "You're perfectly safe here for the night. I promise, we will figure all of this out in the morning."

Landon nodded. "Okay."

***

Since Ruth didn't have a guest room, she had Landon sleep on her living room's couch with a pillow and blanket. Once she'd helped him get to bed, and he'd nodded off, Ruth went into her bedroom to call her boss. She dialed her boss' number and waited a few seconds while the phone rang.

After a few seconds, there was a click, followed by a smooth, feminine voice. "Good evening, Ruth," said the voice.

"Hi Angelina," said Ruth. "I have some good news for you."

"Oh, you do?"

"Yes. I have found him. The boy you were looking for, Landon Evans-I've got him here at my house."

Angelina squealed in delight. "Finally!" she said. "I've been looking for him for years!"

"Do you want me to bring him right to you in the morning?"

"No, admit him to foster care at your building for now," said Angelina. "Give him some time to settle into his new life. Or, more accurately, her new life."

Chapter 02-Metamorphisis

The next morning, Landon woke up on the couch in Ruth's house. For a second, he wondered what on Earth he was doing there, but then he remembered the previous day's events. "Ugh," he groaned. He got up and went into the kitchen for a glass of water. To his surprise, Ruth was already in the kitchen.

"Well good morning, Landon!" said Ruth.

"Hey Ruth," said Landon. "Did you talk to your boss?"

Ruth hesitated. "We'll get to that in a minute," she said. "First, there's something I need to tell you about myself."

"What is it?"

"I'm a witch."

For a few seconds, Landon just stood there, wondering if this was some kind of joke. But then he realized Ruth was being serious. "What do you mean, you're a witch?" he asked.

"I mean, I have magical powers," said Ruth. To prove it, she waved her hand and caused a spoon to levitate off the counter.

"What the..."

"Yes, that's right." Ruth held out her hand and willed a bright blue flame to light itself in her palm. "I'm one of the few witches left in this world. There used to be a lot more of us, but we were hunted to near-extinction by the normal folk. So the witches that survived had to hide their powers and keep their identities secret."

"That's cool," said Landon. "But why are you telling me this?"

"Because I talked to my boss last night," Ruth answered. "She told me to admit you to my foster home. But there might be some...procedures we'll have to perform."

"What kind of procedures?"

"Well, the foster home I manage is an all-girls foster home, so-"

"All girls? Then why did you offer to put me there?"

"Landon, it's complicated," said Ruth. "You see, when we first started, our foster home was intended as an all-girls foster home. I've been trying to convince my boss for years to make it coed to allow ourselves to take in more kids, but she wouldn't go for it. That's why I took you in last night-because I thought I could convince my boss to change things. But I should've known better."

Landon sighed. "Then...I guess I'm not going to your foster home after all," he said.

"Actually," said Ruth, "I think you're going to have to." She snapped her fingers, and the TV in the family room behind Landon turned itself on and tuned into the news channel.

"Breaking news!" the news anchor declared. "The dead body of a local civilian named Richard Evans has been discovered on the floor of his own apartment complex. The authorities have witnesses who claim Richard's son Landon was the one who pushed him off the balcony. Landon Evans has not been found yet, but the police are mounting a search to find him and bring him in for questioning."

Landon's face went pale. "They're looking for me," he said.

"Yes, they are," said Ruth. "But I have a way for you to avoid the authorities."

"How?"

"I will enlist you into my foster home," Ruth explained. "And to do that, I'll have to turn you into a girl."

Landon's jaw dropped. Did he really just hear what he thought he'd heard? Was this witch going to morph him into the opposite gender? No. He couldn't do that. He'd been a boy all his life, and he saw no reason to change that. "No way," he said.

"There's no other choice," Ruth insisted. "If you lose your old identity and take on a new one, the police won't be able to link you to your father's murder. And in any case, my foster home is a very nice one. The rooms are neat and well-kept, and the girls there are very nice. You might even make some new friends there!"

"But...I can't be a girl! I can't braid my hair, or gossip, or spend every day clothes shopping, or..."

"You can learn all that," Ruth assured him. "Just so long as you open your mind."

Landon sighed. "I mean...I guess," he said. "If it's the only way to evade the police, then...sure."

"Excellent," said Ruth. "Now, for the procedure..."

"What kind of procedure?" Landon asked. "Can you not just wave your hand and turn me into a girl?"

"No, it's a little more complicated than that," Ruth answered. "I can either mix a gender-swapping potion, or I can put you through a magical trance that will change your body without you even knowing it."

"Which one do you recommend?"

"The potion transformation would take a lot shorter, but it will also be a lot more painful. But if you go through the trance, then you won't feel anything."

"Then...I guess I'll take the trance."

"Alright then," said Ruth. "Let us get ready."

***

For the gender-changing enchanted trance, Ruth had Landon lie down on a blanket on the living room floor. She also told Landon to clear his mind as best as he could, since that would make it easier for him to fall into the trance.

"Now, let your mind go blank," Ruth said soothingly. "Imagine nothing else in this world exists except you and I. Listen to my words and nothing else."

Landon fought down his anxiety. He took deep breaths, closed his eyes, and started to slip into a calmer state of mind.

"Picture yourself floating...free...flying through the clouds, free to do whatever you want. You can reshape yourself into whatever form you want...and you choose to take upon a feminine form." As she spoke, Ruth waved her hands. Magic sparkles started to envelop Landon as he entered a hypnosis-like state.

"Think of your new face...it's so beautiful, and soft. No pimples, no whiskers, no anything. Just a smooth, angelic face. Imagine big, kissable lips and cute, wide eyes. And imagine long, wavy hair flowing around it. You are the most beautiful girl anyone has ever known, with a stunning face, a perfect smile, and a musical voice."

"Imagine a perfect, delicate, hourglass figure. You gladly accept your new slimmer shoulders, smaller torso, and thinner arms. Most of all, you accept your new pair of breasts forming. These are what you've wanted your whole life...soft, squishy boobs you can squeeze. You have the best rack a girl like you could ever want."

"Now anticipate the biggest change of all. You gladly welcome your smaller waist, your wider hips, and your fatter thighs and ass. You love how much nicer your booty is now. But most of all, you relish the feeling of your penis shrinking away. You feel free down there as an extra hole opens up between your legs. This hole is your new vagina."

"Finally, feel your legs and your feet getting smaller and daintier. You feel so much lighter as you jump, skip, and dance your way through the clouds. You love your new female form. It's so smooth, and graceful, and beautiful. You cannot wait to wake up and feel it all for yourself..."

***

Landon didn't know how long he was out for. It could've been a minute, or an hour, or even longer. All he knew was that when he woke up, he felt a lot lighter than before. He sat up and looked up at Ruth.

"Well done, miss!" Ruth exclaimed. "You came out looking so beautiful!"

"I...did?" Landon realized that his voice was much higher now. He started to look down, but then his hair fell into his face and blocked his view. He swept the hair out of the way and saw two large lumps of fat inside his shirt. The sight of them made him start to hyperventilate.

"Oh my gosh," Landon gasped. "Did...did you..."

"The process was a success!" said Ruth. "You're a girl now!"

"I don't believe it," said Landon. But he felt an urge to reach down and find out if he was really female. He ran his hand over his crotch, hoping to feel his familiar penis and balls. But all he felt was a smooth area between his legs. It was...it was...

"Believe it," said Ruth. "You're a girl."

Landon looked back up at Ruth. "Can I go to the bathroom?" he asked. "To see myself in the mirror?"

"Of course."

Landon got up and went into Ruth's bathroom. He looked in the mirror and saw the reflection of his new self staring back at him. He was a couple inches shorter and about twenty pounds lighter. His brown hair was a lot longer now, reaching down to his mid-back. His face was smoother and more delicate, and his body was a lot curvier. His butt and hips stuck out, and his waist was a lot smaller. His new breasts weren't the biggest, but they were still very noticeable inside his shirt. And, of course, the bulge in his crotch was nonexistent now. There was no questioning it. Landon was now a girl.

"You like?" Ruth asked.

"Yes!" Landon answered. "I look pretty!"

"I agree, you're beautiful," said Ruth. "But you look a little ridiculous in boy clothes."

"Oh yeah..."

"Perhaps we should take you shopping for some new clothes before we take you to my foster home?"

"That would be a good idea," said Landon. The idea of clothes shopping didn't seem that much more exciting to her now, but she knew Ruth was right. She couldn't wear boy clothes anymore now that she was a girl.

"I thought you'd agree," said Ruth. "Oh, and we need a new name for you. Landon isn't a very feminine-sounding name now, is it?"

"No," Landon agreed, "But I don't know if there's a girl-name version of 'Landon.'"

Ruth thought for a moment. "How about Lanie? How does that sound?"

"That sounds...kind of good, actually?"

"You like it?"

"Sure I do."

"Then Lanie it is."

***

Landon, or now Lanie, went with Ruth in her car to the local shopping mall. The first thing they did was get some measurements for Lanie to figure out her clothing sizes. Once they'd gotten those, they started picking out some girl clothes for Lanie. Since Lanie didn't quite feel ready for skirts or tank tops yet, Ruth let her pick out basic pairs of jeans and T-shirts. But the one thing Lanie couldn't skip out on was the bras.

Looking through the racks of bras was overwhelming. There were so many different types of bras to choose from, and they all looked so similar and yet so different. Since Lanie wasn't sure what to choose, Ruth decided to take one of every kind of bra and let Lanie try them on in the fitting room.

The first time Lanie put on a bra, it was a rather...interesting experience. She'd known for years what purpose bras served, but to actually have one wrapped around her boobs...yeesh. It was so uncomfortable. But she found that once she'd fitted on the bra properly, her breasts stopped jiggling everywhere. That, she thought, was a pretty major draw.

After they'd gotten some bras and underwear, along with a swimsuit, Ruth took Lanie to get a purse. "A purse?" Lanie asked.

"Yes, a purse," said Ruth. "A lot of girls use purses to carry their stuff in."

Once again, Lanie didn't get anything too fancy-just a regular white purse with a strap. But putting it over her shoulder felt...different. It was like Lanie was a certified woman now.

"Well, I think that's everything we need," said Ruth. "Is there anything else you want?"

"Uh...no, I don't think so," Lanie answered.

"Then let's get you to our foster home."

Chapter 03-The Foster Home

After the were done shopping, Lanie and Ruth went to the foster home Ruth had been talking about. It was a large, four-story building that looked more like a school dorm building than an orphanage. The front of it had the name "Pretty And Pink Foster Care" written in dark pink paint.

"Pretty And Pink," Lanie said when she saw the foster home's name.

"Yes, that's right," said Ruth. "Now, before I take you to your new room, there are a few things I need to tell you. First, you're gonna be in a room with three bunk beds and four other roommates."

"Three bunk beds," Lanie repeated. "That would be enough for six people..."

"We do have a lot of vacancies here at Pretty And Pink Foster Care," said Ruth. "And sometimes girls get adopted, or transfer somewhere else. In any case, we have a cafeteria on the building's ground floor, where you can come for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. We also have a game room where you and your friends can get together to play board games. Each dorm is given a credit card for all its members to share when shopping, but it has a limit of two thousand dollars a month. So please be careful when shopping."

"I'll try to."

"And last, but most important," said Ruth. "You are not to tell anyone else at this foster home that I am a witch, or that you used to be a boy."

"What? Why?"

"Because, once again, us witches have to keep our identities secret," Ruth answered. "The only reason I told you was because my boss insisted I turn you into a girl to admit you to our foster home, and I felt you had a right to know the truth."

"You mean none of the other girls here used to be boys? So I'm a special case?"

"Yes, you are," said Ruth. "For years, I've been pleading with my boss to start accepting boys into our foster home, but she's refused. So it's just been all girls-until we found you. But then again, you are a girl now, just like the rest of the kids in our foster care."

"Yeah," Lanie said, though it still felt kind of weird to be called a girl. Just 24 hours ago, she'd still been Landon. She had no idea that witches existed, or that she'd be admitted into an all-girls foster home to avoid getting apprehended by the police.

"So are you ready to go?"

Lanie took a deep breath. "Yes, I'm ready," she said.

"Then let's go."

***

Ruth led Lanie up to the building's front doors and into the entry hall. In the entry hall, Lanie saw a large picture of a woman hanging on the wall. The woman in the picture looked like a retired Victoria's Secret model, with coppery tanned skin, a thick yet voluptuous body, perfect makeup, and a friendly, yet seductive look in her eyes. Her brown hair was swept to the side in a ponytail, and she wore a black skirt and low-cut top.

"Lanie?" Ruth asked. "What are you looking at?"

"Oh!" Lanie hadn't realized she'd stopped in her tracks. "Just-just this picture here."

"Oh yeah," said Ruth. "That's Angelina Aguilar. She's my boss."

"Is she?" Lanie asked. Something about this Angelina Aguilar person seemed familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. Had she seen her on TV at some point?

"Yes. She was the founder of Pretty And Pink Foster Care. It all started five years ago in Washington D. C, where Angelina opened the first Pretty And Pink Foster Care establishment. When the first location proved to be a success, she decided to franchise her company and open new locations in North Carolina, and here in Tennessee."

"That's cool," said Lanie. Tearing her eyes away from Angelina Aguilar's picture, she followed Ruth down the hall and towards the stairway to the second floor. Once they were on the second floor, Ruth led Lanie to Room #206.

"This is gonna be your room," said Ruth.

"Alright then," said Lanie. "Let's see it."

Ruth opened the door for Lanie, and she entered her new dorm room. It was fairly large, with three bunk beds, a soft, fluffy rug, a couple of dressers between the beds, and a sofa in front of a TV. Towards the back was a door leading into a bathroom area.

There were four other girls in the room. One was lying on the bottom bunk of a bed looking at her phone, one was reading a book on the sofa, one was making her bed, and one was in the bathroom doing her nails. "Good evening, everyone!" said Ruth. "This is your new roommate Lanie!"

The girl on the sofa looked up and smiled. She looked to be about Lanie's age, with black hair that went down to her butt and eyes the color of maple syrup. "Hi Lanie!" she said. "I'm Rachel."

"Hey Rachel."

The girl making her bed looked up and waved. "Hi," she said. "I'm Taylor. And this is Alexis."

"Hey," Alexis said without even looking up from her phone.

The last of the girls came out of the bathroom with her nails and makeup all finished. "And I'm Melody," she said, tossing a curl of blonde hair over her shoulder.

Lanie looked around her new roommates. "It's nice meeting all of you," she said.

Ruth nodded. "Is there anything else you need?" she asked.

"I might need somewhere to put my clothes..."

"You can use that dresser over there," Rachel said, pointing at one of the dressers. "Right by our bed."

"Our bed?"

"Yes. You're my new bunkmate."

"Wait, if each bunk bed can fit two people, and there are four of you..."

"My old bunkmate left a few weeks ago," said Rachel. "She got adopted by a new family."

"Oh, that's too bad."

"Yeah. But at least I have you now!"

Rachel directed Lanie over to the dresser beside their bunk bed. With a little help from her and Ruth, Lanie unloaded all her clothes into two of the dresser's drawers. "Well, it looks like you're all situated," Ruth said when they were done. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go down to my office. But if you need anything at all, you can come talk to me."

"Thank you so much, Ruth," said Lanie. "I really appreciate it."

After Ruth had left, Lanie turned to face her new bunkmate Rachel. "So...what do you guys do around here?"

"Well, we like to go shopping," Rachel answered. "And go to the local swimming pool."

"Oh, that sounds fun!" said Lanie.

"It is fun," said Rachel. "But we also like to just hang out here and watch TV."

"Oh."

Just then, Melody pulled out her phone and looked at the time. "Guys, it's 5:00," she said. "That means it's time for dinner."

"Ooh, Lanie, you're gonna love the food we have," said Rachel. "Pretty And Pink has the best cooks there are!"

"And tonight's enchilada night," Taylor added. "The enchiladas here are really good."

"Okay," said Lanie. "I'm getting kind of hungry anyway."

***

It turned out Taylor was right. The enchiladas were really good. Lanie's father had never been much of a cook, so she'd never had any really good meals. But it was great to have such good food prepared especially for her.

"So Lanie," Rachel said as she, Taylor, Melody, Alexis, and Lanie sat together at a table to eat their food, "How'd Ruth find you?"

"Well..." Lanie hesitated. She hadn't forgotten Ruth's warning about not telling anyone she used to be a boy, and she certainly didn't want to reveal that she'd murdered her own father. So she decided to tell a partial truth. "I ran away from home."

"You ran away? Why?"

"Well, I grew up with just my dad," Lanie explained. "My mom left when I was little because my dad, well...he was abusive. He drank a lot, and he'd get really angry at me and my mom. She left because she couldn't take it anymore."

"But why didn't she take you?" Melody asked.

"I have no idea," Lanie answered. "But just yesterday, I decided I'd had enough, so I just up and left my dad's apartment. Then Ruth found me, and I ended up here."

"You're not worried, are you?" Rachel asked. "That your dad might come looking for you?"

"Uh...he won't," said Lanie. "Because he's dead."

"What?"

Fuck. That had come out wrong. "I-I saw it on the news this morning," Lanie quickly amended. "He got drunk again and fell off our apartment's balcony."

"Huh," said Melody. "Sounds like it serves him right."

Lanie slowly nodded. "Yes," she said. "He was a really bad father."

"My dad died when I was only three," said Taylor. "I never knew him."

"My whole family died in a fire when I was twelve," said Rachel. "I was the only one who survived. I was living on the streets for a week and a half before Ruth found me and brought me here."

"I was always homeless," said Melody. "My parents were already living in poverty, but when I was born, they lost what little money they had left with child support and buying more food for me. So we ended up living on the streets."

"How'd you end up here?" Lanie asked.

"My parents both died," Melody answered. "My mom got hit by a truck, and my dad got sick and died. I was living on my own for three years before Ruth took me in."

"And you were..."

"Thirteen. I've been here for four years."

"I've been here for just one," said Alexis.

"Me and Rachel have been here for three years," said Taylor. "And Lanie, I guess you just got here today."

"Yeah," said Lanie. "But I'm glad Ruth brought me here. This definitely beats living with an abusive dad." As Lanie said it, she knew she really believed it. Ruth had been really nice to her, and her roommates seemed nice too. Plus, the Pretty And Pink Foster Care place offered some really nice living conditions-especially considering it was a foster home. But she still couldn't get over the fact that she was a girl now. Having her hair fall down in front of her face all the time, and dealing with the feeling of large boobs on her chest...and she hadn't even gotten into makeup, or hairstyling, or any of that other stuff yet.

No, Lanie would need a lot more time to adjust to her new life.

Chapter 04-New Friendships

Lanie woke up bright and early the following morning. When she awoke, she saw that Rachel and Melody were already up and getting some of their clothes out of their dressers. "Good morning, guys," said Lanie.

"Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "We're just getting ready to shower for the day."

"Nice," said Lanie. "I guess I should do that too."

"The showers are in the bathroom area," said Melody. "Just beyond the bathroom stalls."

"Okay." Lanie had used the bathroom a couple times last night, but she hadn't been to the shower area yet. She got up, got a fresh change of clothes from her dresser, and followed Rachel and Melody into the bathroom. But when they went past the bathroom stalls and around the corner, Lanie stopped dead. The "shower area" had no stalls or anything-just a line of shower nozzles and dials on the wall, and a drain in the middle of the floor. There was a bench full of towels at the end of the room.

"Uh, this is the shower area?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," Rachel answered.

"Why doesn't it have any stalls?"

"I don't know," said Melody. She was already taking off her shirt to reveal her skin-colored bra. "That's just how they designed the place."

"We all shower together here," said Rachel. "I know it feels pretty awkward, but you'll get used to it."

Lanie still hesitated. A week ago, the thought of being in a room with a bunch of naked girls would've been titillating. Now that she had different hormones coursing through her body, the thought did not arouse her. Even so, when she was Landon, he'd been taught that barging in on girls that were showering or changing their clothes was a HUGE no-no. But if he was a she now, then it was different...right? Of course, Lanie told herself. She was a girl now. This wouldn't be that much different from when he used to go to the public swimming pool, and all the people in the men's locker room stripped down right in front of everyone else.

Lanie took off her shirt, laid it on the bench, and reached back to unclip her bra. After sliding her bra off her arms, she took both her shorts and her panties and slid them off her body. Rachel and Melody did the same, and now the three of them were fully naked. Each of them went up to a shower nozzle and started washing themselves off. Lanie found that washing herself as a girl wasn't that much different from washing himself as a boy. Just take the soap and scrub down her torso, her armpits, and her limbs. The only complication was with her hair, which was much longer and thicker now. But even then, it wasn't a huge deal to wash it out with shampoo.

While Lanie, Rachel, and Melody were showering, Taylor came in to join them. "Hi guys," Taylor said as she pulled down her pants. "How'd you sleep?"

"Pretty well," Rachel answered. "What about you?"

"Not great," Taylor answered. "I woke up in the middle of the night because I had to pee."

"Oh."

"Yeah. But at least I got back to sleep okay."

"I'm guessing Alexis is still asleep?" Melody asked.

"Yes."

Melody nodded, unsurprised. "She'll probably be out till lunchtime," she said.

"So Lanie," Rachel said, wringing the shampoo suds out of her hair, "What do you want to do today?"

"Um..." Lanie thought for a minute. "Didn't you say there was a local swimming pool?"

"Yeah. You want to go there?"

"Sure!"

"Alright. Melody, Taylor, do you guys want to go too?"

"Of course!" said Melody.

"Me too," said Taylor. "Should we wait for Alexis to wake up?"

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. "Yeah," said Rachel.

"I guess it would be polite." Lanie had finished washing herself, so she turned off her nozzle's water. She stood and let herself drip for a minute before going over to get a towel. She was able to dry off her body with no problem, but she ran into a problem with her hair. "There's a hair dryer here, right?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," Rachel answered. "It's by the bathroom sink."

"Got it." Lanie took the towel and wrapped it around her naked body. She made sure the towel wrapped itself around her breasts while also concealing her butt and vagina. Once she'd set the towel, she walked back out to the bathroom sink and found the hair dryer. She set to work drying her hair, blowing the warm air onto her hair to make the water evaporate quicker.

While Lanie was drying her hair, Alexis walked into the bathroom. Her hair was a rat's nest, and her shirt...was that a drool stain? "Hey Lanie," Alexis said in a bored, drawling voice.

"Hi Alexis," said Lanie. "We're gonna go to the pool today. Wanna come?"

"No. I have a headache."

"Oh. Well, okay. Hope you get better."

***

Once all the girls (sans Alexis) had gotten dressed, they all set out to go to the local swimming pool. It was just a ten-minute walk away, and to Lanie's relief, the pool did not require a membership or anything to attend. So she and her friends were able to go into the pool with no problem. They found a picnic table under an awning and set their stuff down. Lanie and her friends immediately started taking off their clothes to reveal their swimsuits.

Even though Lanie had done some fitting with Ruth yesterday, it still felt odd to actually wear a bikini in public. For years, she'd been used to wearing a pair of swim trunks with nothing above the waist when he went swimming. Now she had to wear something around her chest to cover her boobs wherever she went. Then again, wearing a bikini wasn't that much different from wearing a bra and panties. The real question was why it was appropriate for girls to run around in public in a bikini, but not in their underwear.

Lanie, Rachel, Melody, and Taylor spent the next few hours swimming in the pool and doing tricks off the diving board. It was a pretty hot day, so it felt good to swim in cold water. But after a while, the girls got tired, so they took a break to get some lunch from the pool snack bar. Lanie and Rachel both got hot dogs and fries, Melody got a grilled cheese sandwich, and Taylor got a corn dog.

"Well, this is nice," Lanie said as she ate her hot dog.

"I know," said Rachel. "My old bunkmate and I used to come here all the time."

"What was your old bunkmate's name?" Lanie asked.

"Linda," Rachel answered. "She and I were really close."

"Have you heard from her at all?" Lanie asked. "Since she got adopted?"

"No," Rachel said sadly. "The family that adopted her moved to Australia, and I haven't been able to call or text her, so..."

"I'm sorry," said Lanie.

Rachel nodded slightly. "I miss her," she said. "But I'm glad I have you now."

Melody stood up. "Well, I'm gonna get back in the pool now," she said.

Lanie frowned. "Didn't you just finish eating?" she asked. "Aren't you supposed to wait for an hour before swimming again?"

"That's a myth," said Rachel. "I've gone swimming right after eating lots of times, and I'm okay." She stood up and added "I think I'm ready to get back in the pool, too."

Taylor swallowed a bite of her corn dog before saying "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Okay."

"Lanie, you want to come with me?"

"Oh..." Lanie had forgotten-going to the bathroom in pairs was another girl thing. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Thank you," said Taylor. She and Lanie both went into the women's bathroom together. Lanie waited while Taylor locked herself inside a stall. But after Taylor had sat down on the toilet and started doing her business, she let out a groan.

"What's wrong?" Lanie asked.

"I just got my period," Taylor answered. "Could you get me a tampon?"

"A tampon?"

"I think I've got a couple in my purse. Could you go back out and get one?"

"Sure." Lanie left the women's bathroom and went back over to her and her friends' picnic table. As she went, her head spun. She didn't even think of having to deal with periods every month. Would she be getting her period soon? She didn't know much about how menstruation cycles worked, but surely it had started after she morphed into a girl and gotten all the new female equipment? How long would it be before she hit that time of month? A week? Two weeks? The thought scared her. She may have had a decent handle on being a girl, but she wasn't sure she could handle periods.

When she got to the picnic table, Lanie bent over and started rifling through Taylor's purse. She soon found a cluster of tampons tucked in with Taylor's wallet and lipstick tube. But when she looked up, she saw a sight that made her freeze. A couple of teenage boys, no older than sixteen, were staring at her as she leaned over the picnic table. The boys' eyes were focused on Lanie's curvy abdomen and her plump booty. It was like they were admiring her as a sex object.

Trying to hide her embarrassment, Lanie stood up again and faced the boys. "Can-can I help you?" she asked.

"Oh, uh..." one of the boys stammered. "It's okay. We were just..."

"Checking you out," the other boy said. "You're really sexy." Even though he meant it as a compliment, his tone of voice really crept Lanie out.

Lanie glared at the boys. "Thank you, but I'm not interested," she said. Then she turned and went back into the bathroom to get Taylor her tampon.

***

For the rest of the day, Lanie kept stewing about those boys that had stared at her. As a boy, he'd never had anyone sexualize him like that, so this was a new experience for her. But the worst part was, Landon used to do that exact thing. He'd seen girls in bikinis at the beach and at swimming pools, and he'd "rubberneck" their hot, sexy bodies. Now that Lanie was on the other end of the stick, with boys ogling her body and likely getting hard in their pants...it made her feel really guilty. All those times he'd stared at girls' bodies, he'd never given a thought to how they'd feel about being objectified like that. It was a really shameful feeling, now that Lanie was the very thing she used to make fun of.

"Hey Lanie?" Rachel said when they'd gotten back to their dorm. "What's wrong?"

"At the pool today..." Lanie hesitated. "I caught a couple boys staring at me, in my swimsuit, leaning over our picnic table."

"Ooh," said Rachel. "That must've been embarrassing."

"Yeah." Lanie wanted to open up about how it reminded her of when she used to be a boy, but she didn't want to risk breaking the confidentiality rule. "I've never had that happen to me before, and now..."

"I know," Rachel said, putting her arm around Lanie's shoulder. "I've had that happen to me a lot. Sometimes I wish the boys would just stop staring at me like that."

"Me too," said Lanie. "It's like I'm some kind of..." She struggled to find the right word. "Object."

Rachel nodded solemnly. "I think we all feel that way when boys look at us like that," she said. "But my mom used to tell me when she was still alive: just remember you're still an awesome person on the inside."

Lanie smiled. "Thank you, Rachel," she said, hugging her bunkmate deeply. "Thank you so much."

Chapter 05-Unsatisfactory Answers

For the next week, Lanie continued to have fun with Rachel, Melody, Taylor, and on occasion Alexis. Aside from going to the swimming pool, they also went to the mall and played board games in the foster home's game room. Lanie also got to meet some of the girls from the other dorms, such as Vanessa, Amber, Lillian, and Rebecca. They were all really nice.

But one day, a week after Lanie had first came to the Pretty And Pink Foster Home, something big happened. Lanie and Rachel were just getting back from the mall when they ran into Ruth in the hallway. "Hello, Lanie!" said Ruth. "Hi Rachel."

"Hi Ruth," said Lanie.

"Are you guys coming in for dinner?"

"Yes, we are," Lanie answered.

"Good," said Ruth, "Because we have a special guest tonight."

"Who?"

"You'll see."

So Lanie and Rachel went to the foster home's cafeteria. They found Melody, Taylor, and Alexis sitting at their usual table with bowls of tomato soup. "Soup night?" Rachel asked.

"Yup," Alexis answered.

"Okay." Rachel and Lanie got some soup of their own, then sat down with their friends. While they were eating, Ruth came into the cafeteria.

"Good evening, everyone," Ruth said, causing all the girls to turn in her direction. "Please welcome the founder of Pretty And Pink Foster Care, Angelina Aguilar!"

Ruth stood aside to let Angelina come into the room. She looked just like in the picture Lanie had seen in the foster home's entry hall, except she looked even better in person. Angelina's hair hung loosely behind her, and her eyes were lined with enough black eyeliner to make an ancient Egyptian jealous. She was wearing a low-cut white dress with a seam in it that showed off her slender left leg.

"Hello, my lovely ladies!" Angelina said with a smile. "How are you all doing?"

"Angelina!" one of the girls, who Lanie recognized as Vanessa, exclaimed. She got up and ran over to give Angelina a big hug. "Oh, it's so good to see you again!"

"Wow," Lanie said to Rachel. "She must really like Angelina."

"She does," Rachel replied. "Vanessa was in an abusive foster home when Angelina found her and transferred her here. She's really grateful to Angelina for getting her out of that hell."

Just like with my dad, Lanie thought. But when she looked back at Angelina, she remembered the circumstances surrounding her transformation and admittance to the foster home. Why had Angelina been so insistent on turning him into a girl? She knew Ruth had been pushing to have boys at this foster home, but what was Angelina being so stubborn for?

Lanie felt her heart rate increase when Angelina approached her table. "Hello," said Angelina. "Lanie, isn't it?"

"Uh...yes." Lanie wanted so badly to start asking Angelina some questions, but she couldn't. Not with the other girls here.

"How are you liking your new home?"

"I like it," Lanie answered, which was true. She'd genuinely enjoyed the last week with Rachel, Melody, and the others.

"I heard about how you ended up homeless," said Angelina. "I'm very sorry."

Lanie nodded. "Yeah, it was...pretty rough."

"But that is the reason why I founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care in the first place," said Angelina, "To provide girls like you with better living conditions."

"Well, this is a lot better," said Lanie. "Thanks for letting me move in here."

"No problem," said Angelina. "No problem at all."

As Angelina was leaving, Melody said "She is such a nice lady."

"I know," said Rachel. "When I first got here, I was still feeling sad about losing my family, but Angelina and Ruth helped me deal with my loss. I still feel sad about it now, but I've mostly moved past it."

Lanie didn't listen to them. She was too busy thinking about how she'd get to Angelina with her questions...

***

Angelina sat at the desk in the foster home's office, sorting through the piles of paperwork. Ordinarily, this was Ruth's job, but since Angelina was the head of the organization, and she was visiting the Nashville establishment, she'd taken it upon herself to help out with the paperwork.

She was distracted from her work when she heard a knock on the office's door. "Enter," said Angelina.

Lanie walked into the office. "Hey Angelina," she said. "Can I call you Angelina? Or Ms. Aguilar, or-"

"Just Angelina is fine. What do you need?"

"To talk. Alone. In private."

"I believe we are already alone."

Lanie took a deep breath before asking "Why did you make Ruth turn me into a girl?"

Angelina blinked. "Excuse me?"

"Why did Ruth have to turn me into a girl?" Lanie asked.

Angelina gave Lanie a quizzical look. "I thought she already explained that to you," she said. "Because we were admitting you to an all-girls foster home, and we couldn't allow a boy to be with a bunch of girls."

"Then why did she even rescue me in the first place?"

"Because she wanted to trick me into letting a boy into my foster home."

"She said something about that-"

"This isn't the first time she's tried to convince me," said Angelina. "For quite some time, Ruth's been insisting we make our foster home coed so that we have less limitations on who we can accept. With you, Ruth thought she could convince me by saying she'd gotten a boy and that she'd already told him we'd give him a place to live. And I have to admit, it was a pretty good tactic on her part. I don't imagine it would've looked good to you if we accepted you into an all-girls foster home even though you were a boy, then kicked you out because you were a boy."

"Well...yes, but..."

"And in any case, I hear you murdered your own father. And by adopting a new identity, you were able to remain safe from the authorities."

Lanie said nothing. She knew Angelina was right.

"Lanie, my dear, I'm sorry that it had to begin this way. I really am. We've never had to do this with anyone else. But given the circumstances, we had no choice but to turn you into a girl. And you have been enjoying your new life here, haven't you?"

"I guess so."

"Great. Hopefully, we can put all of this behind us and forge a brighter future together."

"Well, thanks, Angelina," said Lanie. She felt disappointed that Angelina had basically just reiterated what Ruth had said, but she clearly wasn't going to get any more answers. "I guess I'll talk to you later."

"You too," said Angelina. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get to some private business downstairs." She indicated a door at the back of the office that Lanie hadn't noticed before. It had a small sign that said "Restricted Area! Authorized Personnel Only!"

"Okay," said Lanie. "Have a good night."

***

After Lanie had left, Angelina left her desk and went through the door at the back of the room. She made sure to lock it behind her before descending the stairs that led to the secret underground bunker beneath the foster home.

When Angelina got to the bunker, she found Ruth there waiting for her, mixing ingredients in a large black cauldron. "Have you found success?" Angelina asked.

"No," Ruth answered. "I've tried everything I can, but I can't seem to find a way to disguise our gender-swapping potion as regular water."

Angelina shook her head. "Well, hopefully we'll figure it out sooner or later," she said.

"I saw you talking to Lanie earlier," said Ruth.

"Yes, I did," said Angelina. "She seems to be enjoying her new life here with the other girls. But she did come to me in the office just now."

Ruth looked up from her potion. "Did she, now?"

"Yes. She wanted to know the truth about why I had you change her."

"What drove her to ask you?"

"I am not sure," said Angelina. "It seems that the rest of the young ladies in our care have toed the line and kept their little secrets. But it does appear that I quelled Lanie's suspicion."

Ruth sighed. Choosing her words carefully, she said "I am not saying I like males any more than you do. But this is the reason why I've been suggesting we let boys into our foster home. So that the ones like Landon who we decide to turn into girls won't get suspicious about what our organization really is."

"Ruth, when I founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care, I intended it to be a girls-only foster home," Angelina insisted. "You know that. And, in any case, Landon is no more. He is now Lanie."

"And did you tell her the real reason you sent me out to find him-I mean, her? That she's-"

"Lanie will know in time," Angelina answered, smiling evilly. "But the time has not come quite yet."

Chapter 06-The Witches Exposed

Lanie woke up really early the next morning. After leaving the office feeling dissatisfied and unhappy with what Angelina had said, Lanie had decided to just go to bed early. But she ended up waking up at 6:00 the following morning. She couldn't get back to sleep, so she decided to just get up and shower for the day.

After getting out a fresh change of clothes, Lanie went back into the shower area. She stripped down, left her dirty clothes on the bench, and turned on a shower nozzle. While she was soaping down, Rachel came in wearing only her bra and panties.

"Rachel?" Lanie asked.

"Hey Lanie," said Rachel. "I lost a game of Truth Or Dare with Taylor last night, so I had to sleep in my underwear."

"Ah," said Lanie.

"But it's morning now," Rachel said as she reached back and unclipped her bra. "So that means I can actually wear clothes again."

"That's good."

Rachel took off her panties and started showering at a nozzle opposite Lanie's. "Oh, and one other thing happened last night that I think you should know about," said Rachel.

"Oh?"

"One of the staff members came by our dorm after you went to bed. She said we'd be getting a new roommate today."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I don't know what her name is, but she's gonna be bunking with Melody."

Lanie nodded. "That's nice," she said. "It'll be fun to show her around the place."

"Yep, it will."

***

After breakfast, Lanie and Rachel waited in their dorm room with the rest of their roommates for their new roommate to show up. At around 10:45, there was a knock on their door. "Come in!" said Lanie.

The door was opened by none other than Angelina. "Good morning, ladies!" she said. "Welcome your new roommate Jenny!"

Angelina stepped aside to allow a new girl to enter the room. The girl looked significantly younger than Lanie or any of her roommates-no older than twelve or thirteen. She had strawberry blonde hair, dark brown eyes, and freckles all over her face. Her clothing wasn't anything fancy-just a plain white T-shirt and purple shorts. "Hi," the girl said awkwardly.

"Hi Jenny!" said Melody. She went up to Jenny to give her a welcoming hug, but she stopped herself when she saw how uncomfortable Jenny looked.

"She's a little nervous," said Angelina. "She just lost her parents and her sister to a burglar, and she's never been to a foster home before. But I told her you all would welcome and accept her, so-"

"Don't worry," said Rachel. "We'll help her get used to living in a foster home."

"Excellent," said Angelina. "That is exactly what I want to hear." She gave Jenny a hug and said "You'll be okay," before leaving.

When Angelina had gone, Jenny smiled awkwardly. "Well...hi guys," she said. "What are your names?"

"I'm Melody," Melody answered. "I'll be your new bunkmate."

"My name's Rachel," said Rachel.

"I'm Lanie."

"Taylor. And that's Alexis."

Jenny nodded. "It's nice to meet you all."

"Want to sit down?" Lanie asked.

"I guess."

Lanie and Rachel both sat down on the couch with Jenny, with Melody standing right beside them. "Sorry about your family," said Rachel. "The rest of us have all been orphaned, too."

"It's not just that," said Jenny. "It's..."

"What is it?"

Jenny hesitated. "I...don't want to talk about it?"

"Really, what?" Lanie asked. She was getting a bad feeling. "Go ahead and tell us. Get it off your chest."

"No, really, I don't want to," said Jenny. "I just don't."

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. It didn't look like this girl was gonna crack easily. But from the way Jenny was acting, and how she didn't want to talk about what was eating at her...could it really mean what Lanie thought it meant?

"How about we go get some lunch?" Lanie suggested.

"In the cafeteria?"

"No. There's a Subway just down the street. We can go there for lunch."

"Can we do that?"

"Of course! And besides, Subway is really good!"

"Well...okay, I guess," said Jenny.

Yes! Lanie thought. Her idea to get Jenny to crack just might work.

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody took Jenny with them as they went down the street to Subway. The four of them ordered sandwiches for themselves and sat down at a table while they waited for their food.

"Do you guys always go out to eat?" Jenny asked as they waited.

"No, not always," Rachel answered. "We usually get food from the cafeteria at the foster home."

"It's pretty good food," said Melody. "You'll love their pizza."

Lanie cleared her throat. She wasn't going to beat around the bush here. "Jenny, what is it that's bothering you?"

"Lanie!" Rachel scolded. "She said she didn't want to talk about it!"

"Rachel, this is serious," said Lanie. "Jenny, I promise you can tell us. We're not in the Pretty And Pink foster home. There aren't any security cameras watching us."

"Wait, they have security cameras at the foster home?"

"I...don't really know," Lanie admitted, "But I know they don't have them here."

"Lanie, what are you getting at?" Rachel asked. Rachel may have been a sweet girl, but she thought Lanie had stepped over the line. Hadn't Jenny said she didn't feel comfortable opening up to them? Did Lanie not have any respect for people's privacy?

But what Lanie said next shocked everyone at the table. "You were a boy, weren't you?" Lanie asked. "Angelina and Ruth turned you into a girl, didn't they?"

Jenny's jaw dropped, as did Rachel's and Melody's. Jenny tried to move her mouth, but no words came out. "What did you just say?" Rachel asked.

"I asked her if she used to be a he," said Lanie. "Well? Did you?"

"Yes," Jenny forced out. "How did you know?"

"Because..." Lanie hesitated. Over the last week, she'd built up a taboo around revealing that she used to be Landon. But spilling the beans now was the only way to earn Jenny's trust. "Ruth turned me into a girl, too."

"WHAT?" Rachel gasped. "You...you were a boy before you came to Pretty And Pink?"

"Yes," said Lanie. "My name was Landon. But Ruth talked me into letting her turn me into a girl."

"My name is-was Jimmy," said Jenny. "The lady who found me said this was a chance for me to start a new life, and to put my tragedy behind me."

"That's kind of what Ruth said to me," said Lanie. Suddenly, another thought occurred to her. She slowly turned to look at Rachel and asked "Rachel? You didn't..."

Rachel looked horrified, but she nodded. "Randy," she said. "That was my name."

"And I was Mel," said Melody.

Lanie buried her face in her hands. "I should've known!" she said. "How did I not see it? Ruth told me that all the other people at the foster home were girls. She and Angelina wanted me to think I was the only one who used to be a boy! Them and their cronies-they probably told that to the rest of you guys, too! And everyone else that they turned into girls!"

Rachel and Melody were both having emotional breakdowns. It was as if they'd been given red pills and realized they'd been plugged into the Matrix all their lives. "Lanie, I'm so sorry," said Rachel. "I had no idea. I thought Angelina was giving me a new life-a better life. But-"

"Rachel, it's not your fault," said Lanie. "It's Angelina's fault. She's the one who founded this whole operation."

"But why?" Jenny asked. "Why is she turning innocent boys into girls?"

Lanie looked up. "I think I know how we can find out," she said. "There's a secret door in the office. I saw it last night when I was talking to Angelina."

"I've seen that door, too," said Melody. "You think Angelina's got something hidden behind there?"

"She has to. There's no other explanation."

"But we can't break into there," said Rachel. "If it's a restricted area-"

"We're going to have to," said Lanie. "To try and get to the bottom of this. And I'm gonna need your help."

"What can we do?" Jenny asked. "Angelina and Ruth, and that lady who collected me-they're witches. They have magic."

"We'll have to create a distraction," said Lanie. "Tell Angelina there's something going on outside the office, so we can sneak in and see what's behind that secret door."

"I'll do it," said Melody. "I'll tell her that a girl jumped off the top of the building and killed herself."

Everyone stared at her. "You're going to tell her someone committed suicide?"

"If it'll get her distracted, then yes."

Lanie shook her head. "Whatever, as long as it works," she said. "Once Angelina's gone, we'll go into that secret room."

"What if Angelina comes back?" Jenny asked.

"We can have someone stay back and keep watch," said Lanie. "Jenny, you think you can handle that?"

"Yeah, I think so," Jenny answered.

"Okay," said Lanie. "Melody, you'll tell Angelina someone killed herself, and once she's gone, Jenny, you stay back at the office to stand guard." She turned to Rachel and asked "Rachel, are you with me?"

Rachel reluctantly nodded. "Yes," she said. "Bunkmates are supposed to have each other's backs, right?"

"Right," said Lanie. "Now let's hope we have some luck on our side."

***

The plan went well at first. Melody went to the office to find Angelina and tell her a girl had tried to kill herself, and Angelina fell for the lie. She left the office in a hurry and went off to find the suicidal girl. Once she was gone, Melody rendezvoused with Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny. Jenny took her position as door guard while Lanie, Rachel, and Melody went into the office and tried the secret door.

"It's locked," Rachel said when she tried to turn the doorknob.

Lanie frantically looked around. "There's gotta be a key somewhere," she said. She started rifling through the papers on Angelina's desk, hoping to find the key buried in there somewhere.

"I think I found it!" Melody exclaimed. She pointed at the bulletin board, where the key was hanging on a hook.

"Great going, Melody." Lanie took the key, inserted it into the door's lock, and unlocked it. She opened the door to reveal a set of stairs that led down into a dark basement.

"Uh-oh," said Rachel. "I think this might take longer than we thought."

"We'll close the door behind us," said Lanie. "Come on!"

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody went down the stairs. Since Melody was the last one down, she closed the door behind them. The trio followed the stairs for a good thirty feet before coming to a large underground bunker. Lanie flicked on a light switch that lit up the whole room. It was big enough to park several semi trailers in, filled with tables and boxes of potion ingredients and other magical equipment. There were also several cauldrons filled with different colored liquid.

"This is it," said Rachel. "The witch's lair."

"Are they making a bunch of potions?" Melody asked.

"Ruth did mention potions that could turn boys into girls," said Lanie. She went up to one of the tables and picked up a notebook. She flipped through the pages, hoping to find some information about what Angelina's plans might be. But all she found was different lists of potion ingredients and how to combine them.

"Uh, Lanie?" said Rachel. She picked up a notebook from another table and held it out for Lanie and Melody to see. "You might want to see this."

Lanie and Melody both gathered to see the notebook Rachel had found. The frontmost page had the words "Potion? Undetectable? Distribute Through Food?"

"I think I know what they're doing," said Rachel. "They're trying to brew a gender-changing potion and find a way to spike people's food with it to turn more boys into girls!"

"But that doesn't make sense," said Lanie. "How would they go to everybody's houses and put this potion into their food? People would just think they're weird!"

"Maybe they're thinking about sneaking into food manufacturing companies," Melody suggested. "So they can put this potion into food as it's being packaged so people can eat it without realizing it's got a potion inside."

Lanie shook her head. "I guess that's not much weirder than gathering homeless boys and turning them into girls so they can go to your all-girls foster home," she said.

Suddenly, they heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Lanie's heart missed several beats.

"Oh no," Rachel said in an undertone. "I knew they'd find us!"

"How do we..." Melody trailed off when the person coming down the stairs stepped into view. It was Jenny, looking more horrified than ever. "Jenny?"

"Yes, that's right," Angelina said as she and Ruth came up behind Jenny. Angelina looked livid at the sight of them down in her secret underground bunker. "And you four are in a real heap of trouble."

Chapter 07-Escape

Lanie, Rachel, and Melody stood there in horror. Now that Angelina and Ruth had caught them red-handed, their plan seemed a lot more stupid in hindsight.

"You want to tell us why you went poking around down here?" Angelina asked.

Rachel and Melody looked at Lanie, since she was the one who'd instigated the whole thing. Lanie looked Angelina right in the eye and said "We wanted to know."

"Wanted to know what?"

"We wanted to know why. Why you turned all of us boys into girls and put us in your foster home."

Angelina looked between the four girls. "So you disobeyed us," she said. "You told each other that you used to be boys!"

"We weren't going to," said Lanie. "But when Jenny got to our dorm, she was acting really strange. She seemed really insecure and uncomfortable. It reminded me of how I felt when Ruth turned me into a girl and sent me here, and I got suspicious. So me, Rachel, and Melody took Jenny out to Subway and got her to break down."

"And then we broke down, too," Rachel admitted. "Me and Melody-we hadn't suspected there was anyone else at the foster home besides us that used to be a boy. But then Lanie opened our eyes to the truth."

Ruth slapped her thigh. "Now do you see why I've been trying to convince you to make our foster home coed?" she asked. "It was to prevent something like THIS from happening!"

"Silence, Ruth!" Angelina barked. She shook her head at the girls and said "Well, it seems I made a mistake in assigning Jenny to a dorm with someone whose gender transition was still fresh in her mind. But, for your actions, you will still face consequences." She drew a knife and held it to Jenny's throat.

"Wait!" Lanie exclaimed. "Why are you even doing this? Why are you turning boys into girls? And why are you doing that..." She gestured at the notebook Rachel had found, "Potion...thing?"

"Because it is my life's goal to purge the world of its disgusting males," Angelina answered. "All my life, I've hated men and boys. They burp and fart in public, they constantly get in fights, and they disrespect women."

"Girls get in fights too!" said Rachel. "Don't you remember last year, when Amber got in a fight with that girl at school?"

"Males still get in many more fights than females," said Angelina. "And that's not the end of it. They abuse their wives, they cheat on them, and they still expect us to love them. Well, us women will not stand for it any longer. We will turn every male in this world into a female and make them see how bad they really were. Once they do, they'll all realize how much better it is to be female."

"You're crazy!" said Lanie. "There's no way you can go around and turn all three billion men in the world into women!" As she spoke, she slowly edged toward a thick metal spoon sitting on the table.

"I know it will take a long time," said Angelina. "That is why my fellow witches and I are working on more ways to turn unsuspecting men into women. We have several divisions of our Pretty And Pink organization, all of which we use to take in homeless boys and turn them into girls to start new lives. Our next plan is to create a gender-changing potion that looks just like regular water, then start distributing it to people via food, tap water, and other beverages."

"That's a stupid plan!" said Rachel. "What if the police end up figuring out that people's food and drinks were spiked with the potion and trace it back to you?"

"That's why we plan on devising on even more strategies," said Angelina. "But none of you will be there to see them." She started to draw her knife back, ready to stab Jenny.

"Yes we will!" Lanie grabbed the metal spoon, threw it at Angelina, and bull's-eye! The spoon hit Angelina square in the face, making her drop the knife and lose her grip on Jenny. Jenny broke out of Angelina's arms and ran over to Melody.

"Stop right there!" Ruth shouted. She dashed past Angelina and ran at Lanie, Rachel, Melody, and Jenny with her hands ablaze with magic sparkles. She hurled a blue fireball at the girls, forcing them to scatter. When Ruth rounded on Lanie, Lanie made a fist and punched at Ruth. Ruth dodged her strike and waved her hand. Lanie was suddenly frozen in place, unable to move a muscle.

"I almost didn't want to go after you," Ruth said as she readied another fireball. "But Angelina insisted on it. You were her most important target."

What are you talking about? Lanie wanted to scream. But Ruth's freezing spell didn't even let her talk.

"Ruth, no!" Angelina ordered. "Don't kill her!"

Ruth had been getting ready to throw her fireball, but Angelina's order made her falter. Neither of them noticed that Rachel had picked up a knife from the table and was coming up behind Ruth. Right as Ruth was turning to regard Angelina, Rachel thrust the knife forward and stabbed Ruth through the back. Ruth's eyes widened in shock, then rolled up inside her head. Ruth's spell broke as she fell dead onto the floor. Lanie gasped as she found herself able to move again.

"No!" Angelina gasped. "My servant...you miserable girl..."

Rachel looked down at her bloodied knife, like she was only just realizing what she'd done. "I...I..."

"You will die!" Angelina summoned a fireball even bigger than the one Ruth had created and hurled it at Rachel. Rachel stood rooted to the spot, too stunned to react. But Melody saw what was going on and jumped in front of Rachel. Melody's body took the brunt of the fireball, and she burned into a pile of ashes on the floor.

Jenny screamed. "Melody!"

"We've gotta get out of here," said Lanie.

"No," said Angelina. "Your pathetic friends will die, but you, Miss Lanie..." Her expression softened ever so slightly. "You and I have some special business to take care of."

"No, we don't," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny dashed past Angelina and ran for the stairs.

Angelina grabbed Lanie by the arm as she went by. "You can run," she warned, "But you can't escape me."

"We'll just see about that," said Lanie. She balled her fist and punched Angelina harder than even she would've thought possible. Angelina let go of Lanie's arm and flew backwards into the wall. Angelina crumpled onto the floor like a rag doll.

Lanie didn't know how badly she'd hurt Angelina, but she wasn't gonna stick around and find out. She, Rachel, and Jenny ran up the stairs and back into the office. They burst through the door and ran off down the hall. Right when they were nearing the foster home's front doors, they ran right into Taylor.

"Lanie? Rachel? Jenny?" Taylor asked. "What are you doing?"

Lanie stopped and looked Taylor dead in the eyes. "Trust me, Taylor," she said. "The less you know, the better." Then she turned and ran out the door with Rachel and Jenny.

Taylor stared, bewildered, at her roommates ran down the street. "I am so confused right now," she said to herself.

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny ran through the streets. They ran across crosswalks, avoided pedestrians and honking cars, but they didn't have any particular destination in mind-only away from the Pretty And Pink foster home.

The trio didn't stop to catch their breaths until they'd reached the edge of Nashville. All three of them panted heavily for almost a minute. When she'd regained her breath, Lanie asked "Is...is Angelina following us?"

"No," said Jenny. "I can't believe she's a witch!"

"We can't stop here," said Rachel. "We've got to find somewhere to hide!"

"But where are we gonna go?" Jenny asked.

"I don't know," Lanie answered. "I know we can't go to any of my old friends' houses, and-"

"We should call the police," said Jenny.

"No!" Lanie and Rachel said at the same time.

"Why not?"

"They wouldn't believe us," said Rachel. "Imagine a bunch of teenage girls coming in and telling them that there's a witch hunting them."

"We have to get out of Nashville," said Lanie.

"How? We can't keep walking and running forever!" said Jenny.

Lanie thought for a moment, then had a lightbulb go on over her head. "I have an idea," she said. "There's a train yard just a few blocks away from here. If we can stow away on a freight train, then we can ride somewhere far away from Nashville."

Rachel and Jenny exchanged glances. "Are you sure that's safe?" Jenny asked.

"Of course it is," said Lanie. "I've seen lots of homeless people hitch rides on freight trains. It's how they travel from city to city."

"I guess it's better than taking our chances with Angelina," Rachel mumbled. "Show us where to go, Lanie."

***

The train yard wasn't far from where the girls had stopped-just a ten-minute walk away. The metal wire fence didn't have any rings of barbed wire lining the top, for it was easy for Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny to climb over and start looking around. Much to their relief, there was a freight train just starting to depart the yard. The train was pulled by two locomotives and consisted of three tanker cars and about a dozen boxcars. Toward the back of the train was an empty boxcar with its side doors open.

"Wow, that's convenient," Rachel said when she saw this empty boxcar.

"I know," said Lanie. "Come on!"

The girls all ran after the train as it continued to chug along and pick up speed. Lanie was the first to reach the boxcar's open door and jump up onto the edge. She pulled herself into the boxcar and turned to see Rachel and Jenny coming. "Come on, guys!" Lanie urged.

Rachel put on an extra burst of speed and jumped up into the boxcar. Lanie helped pull Rachel into the boxcar.

"Come on, Jenny!" said Lanie. "You're almost there!"

"I can't do it!" said Jenny. She was running as fast as she could, but the train was picking up speed.

"Yes you can!" Lanie said as she and Rachel reached out their arms for Jenny to grab. Jenny put on an extra burst of speed and reached out for them, too. Soon, Jenny had managed to grab Lanie's and Rachel's hands. The two older girls pulled with all their might and heaved Jenny onto the boxcar's bed.

Now that all three of the girls were safely inside the boxcar, they shared a sigh of relief. "That could've been dangerous," said Rachel.

"I know," said Lanie. "But at least we made it."

"I can't believe we just did that," said Rachel. "I can't believe we just had to escape Pretty And Pink Foster Care."

"Me either," said Lanie.

"And..." Rachel hesitated. "And I can't believe I killed Ruth."

"You killed Ruth?" Jenny asked.

"Yes," Rachel said miserably. "She was threatening Lanie, and I stabbed her in the back."

"You saved my life," said Lanie. "I owe you for that."

"I know," said Rachel. "But still, the fact that I killed someone..."

"I know how you feel," said Lanie. She was hesitant about saying what she was thinking, but it felt like the right time to admit to what she'd been hiding. "Remember how my dad died right before Ruth found me?"

"Yes."

"It was me who killed him."

Rachel looked over at Lanie with shock. "You did?"

"It was in self-defense," Lanie explained. "He was threatening me, and then I kicked him and knocked him off the balcony. I knew my dad was kind of a bad person, but I still felt really horrible that I'd taken away a human being's life."

"But Angelina killed Melody," said Jenny. Her eyes were starting to well up with tears as she remembered the horrible scene in that underground bunker.

"I know," Lanie said, hugging Jenny. "Melody was a great person."

"Yes, she was," Rachel agreed. "She didn't deserve to die."

Lanie looked between Rachel and Jenny. "Guys, I'm very sorry," she said. "I didn't mean to drag you into this."

"You shouldn't be," said Rachel. "It's Angelina who should be sorry."

"Should we go back?" Jenny asked. "Tell the other girls what's really going on?"

"No," Lanie answered. "Showing our faces at that foster home again would be suicide."

"But what Angelina's doing to everyone is terrible!"

"I agree," said Lanie. "But I don't think there's anything we can do about it."

"Not right now, anyway," said Rachel. "I think all we can do is just..."

"What?"

Rachel hesitated, trying to put her thoughts into words. "Keep going," she finally said. "Get away from Nashville. Hope Angelina doesn't find us."

Neither Lanie nor Jenny argued with that. All they could really do now was ride the train and wonder where it would take them.

Chapter 08-Living On The Streets

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny rode the train for the rest of the day until it started to get dark out. The train kept going for a little while until it came to a train yard at the edge of a city.

"We should get out," Rachel said when the train was starting to slow down. "We can't let the train workers find us when they're unloading the train."

"You're right," said Lanie. "And I kind of have to pee."

"Me too," said Jenny.

"Get off first, find a bathroom later," said Rachel. "Now come on!" Rachel hopped out of the boxcar's door and landed on the ground. Lanie and Jenny both jumped down beside her. The three of them crept through the darkened train yard, hiding behind train cars and locomotives at every opportunity. Eventually, the three of them came to the metal wire fence at the end of the train yard. There was a city out beyond the fence-but it was at least five miles away.

"Great," Lanie groaned. "It'll take forever to get to that city!"

"Is there a bathroom here?" Jenny asked.

"There might be," said Rachel, "But I'm not sure if they'll let us use it."

"It won't hurt to ask."

So Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny climbed over the fence and went around to the front of the trainyard. They went up to the booth at the front entryway and got the worker's attention. "What are you young ladies doing out here?" the worker asked.

"We were...abandoned," Lanie answered. "We're trying to find our way back to the city."

"The city's that way," the worker said, pointing in the direction of the city the girls had seen.

"Thank you," said Lanie, "But do you have a bathroom we can use?"

The worker looked to his right. "Well, we do have a couple porta-potties over there," he said, pointing.

"Great, thank you!" said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny ran over to the two porta-potties that the worker had indicated. Jenny wasted no time in getting into one of the porta-potties and locking herself inside. Lanie tried the other porta-potty's door, but it was occupied.

"Oh, great," Lanie grumbled. She'd been holding in her pee all afternoon and evening. If she tried to hold it any longer, than she'd explode.

She furiously knocked on the porta-potty's door, but a gruff male voice from inside barked "Occupied!"

Lanie recoiled in alarm. "Oops," she said.

"I think you'll have to duck behind a bush," said Rachel.

"What?"

"Oh yeah," said Rachel. In an undertone, she added "You haven't gone to the bathroom in the great outdoors, have you?"

"Yeah," Lanie answered, "When I was a boy."

"Come on," said Rachel. "I'll help you out."

Lanie felt butterflies in her stomach as she followed Rachel into a cluster of nearby bushes. Up till now, she hadn't had any issues with using the bathroom as a girl. It had been easy to get used to having to pee sitting down. But now, in the wilderness, it would be a lot trickier now that she didn't have a penis anymore.

"Okay," Rachel said when she and Lanie were hidden in the bushes. "So it's kind of like when you're taking a shit. You just pull your pants down, squat, and let it loose."

"Right," said Lanie. She pulled her jeans and panties down around her legs, squatted down, and spread her feet as far apart as she could. She closed her eyes and tried to pretend she wasn't hiding in the bushes with only her best friend watching her. After a minute of concentration, Lanie succeeded. She felt herself peeing out of her vagina (or urethra hole, whatever) and heard a sprinkling noise two inches below her butt.

Once Lanie had relieved herself, she rose again and pulled her pants back up. "I guess that could've been worse," she said.

"Yeah," Rachel said, nodding understanding. "It's one of those things you have to just get used to."

Lanie nodded. "I just wish I'd told you sooner."

"What? That you're a boy-turned-girl?"

"Yeah. Then you would've been able to help me with this whole...transition."

Rachel put her arm around Lanie's shoulder. "I get it," she said. "It's hard. I remember when Angelina turned me into a girl."

"There's just all this stuff, like washing your hair, and brushing it and styling it, and wearing girly clothes, and having boys stare at you..."

"You're adjusting to it pretty well, though," said Rachel.

"Really?"

"Yeah. You've only been a girl for, like, a week, right?"

"Right."

"You seem pretty comfortable wearing girls' clothes, and swimsuits, and doing your hair."

"Well...I haven't really braided my hair yet," said Lanie. "And I haven't started wearing skirts or high heels yet."

"Still, you've adjusted pretty well," said Rachel. "It took me a few months to get really comfortable being a girl."

"Well, you said you were, like, twelve when you were transformed. Like Jenny."

"That's true." Rachel looked out towards the porta-potties. "Think she's out now?"

"We should probably go check."

Sure enough, Jenny was out of the porta-potty. "Lanie! Rachel!" Jenny exclaimed when she saw the two older girls coming. "Where'd you go?"

"Lanie really had to go," Rachel answered, "So we went into the bushes."

"You should probably use the porta-potty, too," said Lanie. "Just in case."

"You're right," said Rachel. She got into the porta-potty and locked herself inside.

While they were waiting, Lanie and Jenny looked out at the city. Even though it was night, they could still see the lights from the city. "What city is that?" Jenny asked.

"I don't know," Lanie answered. "I have no idea where we are."

"Is Angelina following us?"

"I hope not."

"What if she does find us?"

Preferring not to answer that question, Lanie said "We'll just have to keep running away. Hide somewhere she can't find us."

A minute later, Rachel came out of the porta-potty. "Okay," she said, "Now that we're all feeling better, what do we do now?"

"Are we gonna get on another train?" Jenny asked.

Lanie looked back at the city. "I say we go to that city," she said. "Find out just where we are."

Rachel and Jenny both nodded. "Good idea," she said. "Just so long as we keep a low profile in case Angelina's out there looking for us."

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny trudged through the thick, grassy fields all night long. By the time they reached the outskirts of the city, the three of them were exhausted. "Should...should we stop and rest for a bit?" Jenny asked.

"Sure," Lanie answered. She was trying her hardest to not fall asleep.

"How about those benches?" Jenny suggested, pointing at a line of three benches on the sidewalk.

"Looks good," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny each picked out a bench for themselves to lie down on. They were so tired, they fell asleep at once.

When they awoke the next morning, it was much brighter out. The sun had risen, and people were bustling about the streets once again. Lanie looked and saw that Rachel and Jenny were just waking up themselves.

Jenny felt her pockets and gasped. "Oh no!" she said. "I think I got pickpocketed!"

"What?" said Rachel. She patted down her own pockets and realized that her cell phone and wallet were missing. "Oh, fuck..."

"Me too!" said Lanie.

"Now what do we do?" Jenny asked. "How are we gonna call anyone, or buy anything, or-"

"Wait," Lanie said as a thought occurred to her. "Maybe it's a good thing."

"What?"

"If we use our phones to try to call someone, then Angelina might be able to trace those calls."

"That's true," said Rachel.

"But what do we do?" Jenny asked. "How are we gonna get something to eat?"

"We'll ask for directions," said Rachel.

Lanie and Rachel both approached a passing businessman. "Excuse me," Lanie said, trying to sound polite, "Do you know what city this is?"

"Atlanta," the businessman answered.

Wow! That train must've taken Lanie and her friends farther than they thought! "Is there a homeless shelter anywhere around here?" Lanie asked.

"Um..." The businessman looked around. "I think there's one just a few blocks that way." He pointed down the street to the north.

"Okay, thank you," said Lanie.

As the businessman left, Lanie and Rachel went back to Jenny. "We're in Atlanta," said Lanie. "Atlanta, Georgia."

"Oh my goodness," said Jenny. "Angelina will never find us here!"

"We can't be sure," said Rachel. "But that guy said there was a homeless shelter near here."

Jenny looked confused. "So...we're just gonna go live in a homeless shelter?"

"No," Rachel answered. "We're just gonna stop there to rest. Get some food and water. Formulate a new plan."

***

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny went down the street and found the homeless shelter on the corner. It wasn't very big-just one story high and covered about as many square feet as a laundromat. When Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny entered, they saw that it only consisted of one room. There were about thirty beds in the room, plus two tables of sandwiches and bottled water. Naturally, the girls went straight for the food table.

"Remind me never to take food for granted again," Jenny said as she took two turkey sandwiches and a bottle of water.

"Same," said Lanie. She and Rachel took sandwiches of their own and saw down on a bed together. "So...now what?"

Rachel took a bite of her sandwich before answering. "We should probably find a way to get even farther away from Nashville," she said. "Maybe go to Florida? Or Mexico?"

"Wait a minute," said Lanie. "Weren't there more Pretty And Pink foster homes beside the one in Nashville? Ruth said Angelina founded the first one in Washington D. C, but she hinted that there might be more."

"Yeah," said Rachel. "There's one in Philadelphia."

"That's in Pennsylvania, right?"

"Right."

"So Tennessee, Virginia, and Pennsylvania," said Lanie. "I think we should definitely stay out of those states."

"Me too," said Rachel.

Jenny swallowed her bite of sandwich and chimed in. "We should go to Australia," she said. "There's no way Angelina would find us there."

"Brilliant," said Lanie. "I'll go get our first-class plane tickets to Australia, and you can pay for our hotel."

Jenny wilted. "It was just an idea," she said.

"She's kind of right, though," said Rachel. "We don't have a car, or a bike, or even any money. It's going to be pretty hard to get to another state, let alone another country."

"We could ride on another train," said Jenny.

"Yeah, we could," said Rachel, "Except we can't be sure where the train will be going. We just got lucky with the one we stowed away on yesterday."

"Not to mention, it would take us forever to walk anywhere," said Lanie.

"So...what are we gonna do? Just stay here and hope Angelina doesn't find us?"

Lanie and Rachel exchanged glances. Neither of them wanted to say yes, but was there really anything else they could do?

Just then, the shelter's front doors opened to allow a man to enter. The man looked old enough to be Lanie's father, but he didn't look like he was homeless. He wore smooth black pants, a black suit coat, and a green striped tie. His face was clean shaven, and his hair was damp as if he'd just gotten out of the shower.

"Good morning, Mr. Ryan," said one of the homeless shelter workers.

"Good morning," the man, whose name was Mr. Ryan, said with a smile. "How's it going?"

"It's all going well. Harry and his wife left last night to go find somewhere else to live."

Mr. Ryan nodded. "Hopefully they will," he said. He looked at Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny and said "I see you have some new arrivals."

"Oh yeah," said the homeless shelter workers. "These three young ladies just came in a few minutes ago."

"Have they been in here before?"

"No, I don't think so."

Mr. Ryan approached Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny. "Hey girls," he said. "What are your names?"

Lanie didn't answer. After Ruth, she didn't trust people who came to take in homeless kids.

"Well?"

"I'm Jenny," said Jenny.

Mr. Ryan nodded. "Nice to meet you, Jenny," he said. "And you are?"

"I'm...Rachel," said Rachel. "And this is Lanie."

"We've kind of got Jenny in tow with us," said Lanie.

"Hm," said Mr. Ryan. "Just where might you three come from?"

"Somewhere else," Lanie said. She made sure not to mention Nashville in case this Mr. Ryan was secretly working for Angelina. "We ran away and ended up here in Atlanta."

"I'm guessing your parents are all dead," said Mr. Ryan.

"Unfortunately, yes," said Rachel. "That's why we're on our own now."

"That's too bad," said Mr. Ryan. "But, luckily for you, I run an orphanage not far from here. If you want a permanent place to live, I can find you a couple of rooms at my place."

Lanie's eyes narrowed with suspicion. "How do we know we can trust you?" she asked.

"You can trust him," said the homeless shelter worker. "He's taken in homeless kids who came to this shelter before."

Lanie looked at Rachel, then back at Mr. Ryan. "Could we have a moment?" she asked. "To decide?"

"Of course," said Mr. Ryan.

"Come on, Jenny," said Lanie. She, Rachel, and Jenny all went back to the corner of the room to huddle up and talk in private.

"I don't know if we can trust this guy," Lanie said in an undertone.

"You think he's working with Angelina?"

"He could be!" said Lanie.

"But remember what Angelina said yesterday?" said Rachel. "She was saying that she hated men, and that she wanted to rid the world of them. Why would she have a man working for her?"

"But what if Mr. Ryan's part of some new secret organization?" said Lanie. "What if he's gonna end up turning us into frogs or something?"

"You just think the worst of everyone, don't you?" said Jenny.

Lanie did her best to hold her temper. "Look, I know it looks good," she said, "But doesn't it sound a little too good to be true? We run away from Pretty And Pink, we end up homeless in Atlanta with no idea what to do or where to go, and then some random guy comes in and offers to take us in? Isn't that what happened with us, when Angelina lured us into her trap?"

"Well...yes," Rachel admitted. "I kind of agree with you. But that other man who works here at this shelter-he said he'd seen Mr. Ryan before. He said Mr. Ryan was legit."

Lanie sighed. "How about this?" she said. "We'll ask him if his orphanage is coed. If it is, we'll accept. If it isn't, we'll decline. How's that?"

"That sounds good," said Rachel.

"I agree," said Jenny.

"Okay," said Lanie. "Let's do this."

Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny went back to where Mr. Ryan was waiting. "One last question," said Lanie. "Is your orphanage all boys, or all girls, or does it have both?"

"It has both," Mr. Ryan answered. "I take in any homeless kid I meet, regardless of gender."

"Great," said Lanie. "Then we accept your offer."

"Excellent!" Mr. Ryan said with a smile. He looked genuinely happy that the girls had accepted his offer. "We'll all be happy to have you join us!"

"Is there anything we have to do?" Rachel asked.

"Don't worry, I'll walk you through the sign-up and registration stuff," said Mr. Ryan. "Just come with me."

Chapter 09-A New Home

When Lanie saw Mr. Ryan's orphanage, she knew things were about to get a whole lot better.

It was three stories high, and it was in much better shape than the homeless shelter. The walls were painted bright orange, the windows were nice and shiny, and it was all very neat and well-kept. It was just like the Pretty And Pink foster home, except without a heart of darkness under the surface (probably).

Mr. Ryan took Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny into the orphanage's registration room. There, they found a lady at the desk waiting for them. "Well hello!" she said when she saw the three girls Mr. Ryan had brought. "Welcome to the Orphanage For All Ages."

"Orphanage For All Ages?" Lanie asked.

"Yes, that's the name of my orphanage," said Mr. Ryan.

"And what's your name?" Lanie asked the lady at the desk.

"I'm Fiona Sierra," the lady answered. "And I see you've already met Bryan Ryan."

Mr. Ryan's full name was Bryan Ryan? No wonder he went by Mr. Ryan. "Who's the boss? You or him?"

"I am," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, about that registration..."

The registration didn't take as long as Lanie expected. All she, Rachel, and Jenny had to do was provide their names, ages, clothing sizes, and the reasons for them not having parents. Of course, Lanie left out the detail about her killing her own father. She'd been okay with confiding that to Rachel, but not to Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra. At least, not yet.

"Right then," Mr. Ryan said when they'd filled out the paperwork. "Now, Lanie and Rachel, you're both fifteen, and Jenny, you're twelve. Is that right?"

"Yes," said Lanie.

"Uh-huh," said Jenny.

"Jenny, I think we should find someone who's your age for you to bunk with."

"What do you mean?"

"Each of the rooms at our orphanage houses two people," Mrs. Sierra explained. "And we assign roommates based on ages. When we first started, we tried pairing kids up with no regards to their age gaps. But it proved pretty awkward when we had five-year-olds bunking with high school Juniors."

"Oh," said Jenny.

Mrs. Sierra looked at her computer and said "Lucky for you, we do have a vacancy on the girls' floor. There's a girl your age named Samantha whose roommate got adopted last month."

"Is Samantha nice?" Jenny asked.

"Yeah, she's pretty nice," Mrs. Sierra answered. "And she's been asking us for a new roommate ever since Paige left, so I'm sure she'll be happy to meet you."

"Okay," said Jenny. "I'll do it."

"And as for you two," Mr. Ryan said to Lanie and Rachel.

"We'll bunk together," Lanie said quickly, to which Rachel nodded agreement. Even before they'd met Mr. Ryan, they'd known it was a given that they'd end up bunking with one another. They'd been bunkmates at Pretty And Pink, and they'd developed a somewhat sisterly bond. Both of them knew they'd be more than happy to share a room at the Orphanage For All Ages.

"Excellent," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, if you'll come with me, I'll show you around the place. And I'll show you to your rooms."

***

Mr. Ryan's tour took them all throughout the ground floor of the orphanage. Just like at Pretty And Pink, there was a mess hall and a game room-except said game room was much bigger. There were two tables full of boards games and a TV with a couple game consoles and a whole cabinet of games to play on those consoles. In addition, there was a bookcase full of books next to a couple of armchairs where you could sit and read.

The two topmost floors were the dorm room floors. The second floor was for the boys, and the third floor was for the girls. Mr. Ryan took Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny to Jenny's new room first. Mr. Ryan opened the door to find a 12-year-old girl in the room folding her laundry. "Hey Samantha," said Mr. Ryan. "Look who's come to live with you."

Jenny forced a smile. "Hi," she said. "I'm Jenny."

"My name's Samantha," said Samantha. She had short brown hair and a pair of thick glasses.

"Jenny's gonna be your new roommate," said Mr. Ryan.

Samantha's face lit up. "Finally!" she said. "I've been asking for a new roommate for ages!"

"Which is why I found one for you," said Mr. Ryan. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to show our other two new additions to their room."

"We'll talk to you later," Rachel said to Jenny. Jenny nodded.

Mr. Ryan took Lanie and Rachel to another dorm room-one that was empty. This one was a bit smaller than the one they'd shared at the last foster home, but it was still reasonably spacious for two people. There was a dresser, a TV, and two beds. The dorm also had a bathroom with a shower.

"So this is your room," said Mr. Ryan. "We have cleaners come in once a week to tidy things up, but you can decorate it however you want."

"When are we gonna get our new clothes?" Lanie asked. "You said you'd get us some new clothes."

"We'll get them to you by the end of the day," Mr. Ryan answered. "But feel free to wash up in the meantime."

"We could also use some new cell phones," said Rachel. "If you can get us some."

"I'll look into that," said Mr. Ryan.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Ryan," said Lanie. "We really appreciate it."

"No problem," said Mr. Ryan. "I'll just leave you young ladies to yourselves for now."

When Mr. Ryan had gone, Lanie and Rachel looked at one another. "So...should we shower?" Lanie asked.

"Yeah, probably," Rachel answered.

So the two of them went into the bathroom and found there was only one sink, one toilet, and one shower. "Oh..." said Lanie.

"Want to shower first?" Rachel asked.

"No, you can do it," Lanie answered. "I'll wait."

So Lanie sat and waited on her bed while Rachel took a shower. When Rachel finished and started to dry off, Lanie got into the shower herself. She spent ten minutes washing all the caked-on dirt and sweat from her body and her hair. But when she'd finished, she realized she didn't have any clean clothes to change into. So she ended up just taking a towel and wrapping it around her naked body for the time being.

Lanie came out into the main dorm room and saw that Rachel was wearing nothing but a towel herself. "Hey," said Rachel. "Feeling cleaner?"

"Yep," Lanie replied.

"Still suspicious of Mr. Ryan?"

"Eh...not really."

"It doesn't seem like he's turning any boys into girls. Or girls into boys."

"I know," said Lanie. "And it doesn't seem like he has any connections to Angelina, so that's good."

Rachel nodded. "I think we should stay here for now."

"What do you mean?"

"We probably shouldn't leave this building," said Rachel. "Just in case Angelina comes to Atlanta looking for us."

"So you think we should quarantine? Like when the pandemic first started, and everyone had to shelter in place?"

Rachel shuddered. "I don't like it when you put it like that," she said, "But yeah. For now."

Lanie nodded. Suddenly, another thought occurred to her. "What about school?" she asked. "Mr. Ryan's probably gonna sign us up to go to school, so..."

"I think we'll have to cross that bridge when we come to it," said Rachel.

***

For the rest of the week, Lanie and Rachel opted to stay within the walls of the Orphanage For All Ages. Jenny didn't seem happy about complying with the regime, but she did so too. The girls spent their time reading the books in the rec room and playing games with the other orphanage kids. In the process, they got to meet some of the other kids at the orphanage-Aaron, Emilio, Trevor, Brianna, and a few others. All the names blended together in Lanie's head, but she figured she'd get to know everybody eventually.

During this time, Jenny spent a lot of time playing video games in the rec room. Apparently when she was Jimmy, she'd loved video games, and that hobby had carried over with her. She quickly grew so addicted to playing Rocket League, Mr. Ryan had to come in one day to tear her away from the screen.

It all came to a head on Friday evening after dinner. Lanie and Rachel had gone back to their room when someone came knocking on the door. Lanie answered the door to find Mrs. Sierra there. "Hi Lanie!" said Mrs. Sierra.

"Hi Mrs. Sierra. What's going on?"

"I just wanted to let you know that we're having an opening social tomorrow."

"Opening social?"

"Yes. We're holding it to commemorate the end of summer and the beginning of the school year. We're all gonna go to the lake and go swimming. There's gonna be a bunch of food there, too. If you want to come, all you have to do is show up tomorrow morning with your swimsuits."

"We'll think about it," said Lanie.

When Mrs. Sierra had left, Lanie turned to Rachel. "Think we should do it?"

"What-I thought we agreed not to leave this building."

"I know. But it does sound kind of fun, going to the lake for a little 'beach day.'"

Rachel shrugged. "I mean...if Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra will be there, then it might be okay," she said. "Plus, I am getting a little tired of sitting around the orphanage all day."

"Me too," said Lanie. "I think I'm gonna go."

***

The next morning, Lanie and Rachel donned their bikinis and put on shirts and shorts over them. They went out to the front of the orphanage where Mr. Ryan, Mrs. Sierra, and a few other chaperones were waiting with the rest of the kids that were going. Lanie looked for Jenny among the kids, but she was nowhere to be seen. Guess she'd rather do a few more rounds of Rocket League.

Mr. Ryan had rented a big bus to carry everyone to the lake. The bus ride was about half an hour, with a rather bumpy second half when they got to the dirt road. But when they got to the lake, it was a rather pretty sight. There was the lake with its smooth surface, a range of mountains in the distance, and a beach made of rough sand. At the edge of the lake was a large rock that the kids could jump off into the lake.

"Well, here we are," Mr. Ryan said when everyone had unloaded from the bus. "You guys can all start swimming while we set up the food tables!"

"I call first dive!" the boy named Aaron declared. He took off his shirt, threw it aside, and went up to the big "diving board" rock. He climbed to the top and stood at the edge of the rock. "Here we go," he said. He crouched down and dove into the lake.

"Dude," said Trevor, another boy Lanie had met at the orphanage. "Let me do a cannonball." He climbed onto the rock and did a cannonball into the lake.

"How about this one?" said a boy called TJ. He jumped off the rock and did a somersault in midair before splashing into the lake.

Rachel looked at Lanie. "Wanna jump together?" she asked.

"Sure," said Lanie.

Lanie and Rachel both climbed onto the rock and went up to the edge. Lanie and Rachel took each other's hands and jumped off the rock together. They landed in the water with a big splash, prompting a cheer from the onlookers.

"Whoo-ee!" Lanie said when she and Rachel had surfaced. "The water's so cold!"

"I know," said Rachel. "That's what makes it feel so good!"

Aaron was treading water nearby, and he heard what Lanie said. "Until you make it a little warmer," he said with a smirk.

"Uh..." Lanie stammered. From Aaron's tone of voice, and the look on his face, it was pretty obvious he was peeing in the lake. "I think I'm gonna get out of the water now."

Lanie swam back to shore and grabbed a towel. As she was drying off, she noticed that Mr. Ryan and Mrs. Sierra had set up a table full of hot dogs, chips, potato salad, and chocolate chip cookies. She decided to go and get herself a plate of food. Lanie filler her plate with a hot dog, a handful of Barbeque Lay's chips, and a scoop of potato salad. She decided to wait on getting a cookie for a little while.

When Lanie turned away from the food table, she ran smack into a boy she didn't recognize. "Oh-I'm sorry!" said Lanie.

"No, it's okay," the boy replied. He looked to be Lanie's age, with windblown brown hair, a clean shaven face, and pretty brown eyes. He was wearing only his black swim trunks, exposing his...rather nice chest. Wait. Did Lanie just have that thought? Did she think a boy's chest was...sexy?

"Who are you?" Lanie asked. "I don't think I've seen you at the orphanage."

"My name's Conner," the boy answered. "And I don't live at the orphanage."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"Mr. Ryan knows my family," Conner answered. "He invited me to come today, so I decided to come."

Lanie smiled. "Nice," she said.

"Are you going to Eastside High?"

"Eastside High?"

"It's the school where Mr. Ryan sends his high-school-aged kids," said Conner. "I go to that school too. I'm gonna be going into my Sophomore year."

"Really? I'm gonna be a Sophomore too!"

Conner smiled, which for some reason moved something inside Lanie. "Nice," he said. "Maybe we'll see each other then."

"Probably," said Lanie.

Conner nodded. "Well, it was nice meeting you..."

"Oh!" Lanie felt embarrassed that she hadn't introduced herself. "My name's Lanie!"

"Nice to meet you, Lanie," said Conner. "I'll see you around."

"You too!"

***

The rest of the lake day was pretty fun. Lanie and Rachel jumped off the diving rock a few more times, and they got to swim in the lake some more. Throughout the day, Lanie did see Conner a few more times, but she didn't get to talk to him again. All the same, that weird feeling he gave her...it was different. She'd never felt that way about a boy before. When Lanie had been Landon, he'd definitely had crushes on girls-but he'd never gotten any farther than a simple "Hi, my name's Landon, what's up?" But now...was Lanie feeling attraction to a boy? And the fact that she'd had an actual conversation with said boy...more than he'd ever had with a girl...it should've felt really weird. But for some reason, it didn't. Lanie kind of liked this weird attraction she was feeling toward Conner.

Even when the lake day was over, and they were all riding back to the orphanage in the bus, Lanie kept her feelings bottled up inside her. She wasn't ready to tell anyone-not even Rachel. Some dreams and ideas are just too absurd to share.

When Lanie and Rachel got back to their dorm, they both looked at each other. "Well," said Rachel, "I think that was worth it."

"Me too," said Lanie. "Do you want to go change first?" Since they'd moved into the Orphanage For All Ages, they'd started going into the bathroom to change clothes in privacy-unlike at Pretty And Pink, where everyone essentially showered and changed together.

"You know, we can just change out here," said Rachel. "It's not like we haven't seen each other naked before."

"I guess not," said Lanie. She reached back and undid her bikini top. She took it off and put it on her bed. She then slid off her bikini bottom and laid it next to her top. She got a clean pair of panties out of her dresser drawer and slid it on. She was just getting out a bra when she felt it: a wet spot forming on her panties. Looking down, she saw a small patch of red at the bottom of her crotch.

"Oh!" Lanie gasped.

"What?" Rachel asked.

"Rachel," Lanie half said, half laughed, "I think I just got my period!"

"You what?" Rachel looked at Lanie's panties, saw the red spot, and started to laugh herself. "No way!"

"I know, right?"

"No, it's not just that," said Rachel. "I started my period just this morning!"

"You did?"

"Yeah! I guess you and I were somehow synced up!"

"No way."

"Yes way," said Rachel. "Come on, I'll help you out."

Lanie went into the bathroom, pulled down her panties, and saw on the toilet. She waited while Rachel dug around in the bathroom drawer and got a maxi pad out. "You may want to use a pad first," said Rachel. "It's a little tricky to use a tampon."

"Right," said Lanie. With a little help from Rachel, she aligned the pad with the bottom of her panties and used its "wings" to fasten it in place. As a result, when Lanie pulled her panties back up, she didn't have to worry about them becoming a bloody mess.

Lanie couldn't believe it. She'd been doing her hair and wearing girls' clothes for some time now, but getting her period was taking it to a whole nother level. It felt different. Almost like she was a certified woman.

And you know what? She actually kind of liked it.

Chapter 10-Starting School

A week after the opening social was when school started. Mr. Ryan signed both Lanie and Rachel up for Eastside High School, much to Lanie's delight. Conner had said he'd be going there, so she was looking forward to potentially seeing him again.

The night before the first day of school, Mr. Ryan came up to Lanie's and Rachel's room with a surprise. "Hello, ladies," he said. "Guess what I've got for you?"

"What?" Lanie asked.

Mr. Ryan reached into his bag and pulled out two brand-new, unopened Samsung Galaxy phones. "We got new phones for you," he said.

"Oh my gosh!" Rachel exclaimed. "Thank you, Mr. Ryan! Thank you so much!"

"We thought they'd come in handy," said Mr. Ryan. "I'll bet you two are gonna start meeting a lot more people at school and wanting to keep in touch with them."

"Yeah, probably," said Lanie.

"Speaking of school, I'm also here to give you your schedules." Mr. Ryan handed Lanie and Rachel printed-out schedules of their classes for the school year.

"Thanks," said Lanie. "How far away from here is the school?"

"Just a few blocks," Mr. Ryan answered. "You guys can walk there."

"Alright," said Lanie. "Thanks again."

After Mr. Ryan left, Lanie looked at her schedule. It looked like it was a block schedule, with First, Second, and Third Periods on Mondays and Thursdays, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Periods on Tuesdays and Fridays, and all six periods on Wednesdays. Lanie's Periods were Geometry, English, P. E, US History, Chemistry, and Art, in that order. "Rachel, what have you got?" Lanie asked.

"I've got Photo Arts, Geometry, P. E, US History, Chemistry, and English," Rachel answered.

Lanie looked at Rachel's schedule and compared it to her own. "Looks like we have Third, Fourth, and Fifth Periods together," she said.

"Not bad," said Lanie.

"We'll just have to worry about getting a good spot at lunch," said Rachel.

"Oh yeah," said Lanie. "That'll definitely be a challenge."

***

The next day was Monday. Lanie and Rachel both woke up at 6:30 and started getting ready for school. They took turns showering, getting dressed, doing their hair, and packing their backpacks. Once they were ready, they left the orphanage and set out for Eastside High. As they went, they ran into a few of the other high school-aged kids from the orphanage, such as Aaron and Trevor. Aaron and Trevor told the girls that they'd been to Eastside High in years past, and they assured them that it was a good school. "You'll like it," said Aaron. "The teachers are nice, and they've got a lot of good clubs."

"Most of the kids are cool, too," Trevor added. "Just make sure you stay away from the weird kids."

When Lanie and Rachel reached the school's front gates, they both got out their schedules to remind themselves where their First Period classes would be. It turned out Lanie's Geometry class was in a separate building from Rachel's Photo Arts class. "Well, I guess this is where we split up," said Rachel.

"I'll see you at lunch," said Lanie. She turned and went in the direction of Mrs. Kirkland's Geometry classroom. She got there just a few minutes before the bell rang and entered the room. There were a handful of other kids already in there, as most of the class hadn't arrived yet. Since Lanie wasn't sure where to sit, she just took an empty desk near the back of the room.

A minute later, another girl came up and sat down in the desk next to Lanie. "Hey," the new girl said. "Are you new here?"

"Yeah, I am," Lanie answered.

"Nice," said the other girl. She looked to be a grade above Lanie, with wavy, mousy brown hair and smooth pale skin. She wore a white coat over a pink tank top and a light blue skirt. "What's your name?"

"I'm Lanie."

"My name's Diana," said the other girl. "Diana Jackson."

"Cool."

Diana looked Lanie up and down again. "You're not from around here, are you?" she asked.

"Oh no," Lanie answered. "I just moved to Atlanta a couple weeks ago. I'm originally from-" She stopped herself, remembering that she wasn't supposed to say she was from Nashville. "-Tennessee."

"Huh," said Diana. She and Lanie probably would've talked more, but then the bell rang, and Mrs. Kirkland stepped up to begin the first day's lesson. "Well, I guess we'll talk more later," Diana said quickly.

***

After Geometry was over, and Lanie had made it through Second Period English, it was time for lunch. As Lanie was making her way to the cafeteria, she ran right into Rachel in the hall. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How'd your first two classes go?"

"They were alright," Lanie answered. "I didn't see anyone I recognized from the orphanage, but-"

"Me either," said Rachel. "But remember that guy Conner Hawkins Mr. Ryan invited to the opening social?"

"Yeah."

"He was in my Geometry class."

Lanie's jaw dropped. "No way," she said.

"Yes, he was there," said Rachel. "He said he recognized me from the opening social, and I told him I was your roommate. He said he'd talked to you at the opening social."

"Yeah, we did talk," said Lanie. "Did he say what other classes he had?"

"No," Rachel answered. "But he did tell me he was gonna be the vice president of the school's board games club. And their first meeting's gonna be on Wednesday at lunch."

"Nice," said Lanie. "That should be fun."

Lanie and Rachel both got their lunches and went in search of somewhere to sit. Neither of them were sure where to go, until Lanie heard someone calling her name. "Lanie!" someone was saying.

Lanie turned and saw Diana sitting at a table with two of her friends. "Oh! Diana!"

Rachel looked confused. "You know her?" she asked.

"Yeah, she was in my First Period class," said Lanie.

"Want to sit with us?" Diana asked.

"Sure," said Lanie. She and Rachel both sat down at the table with Diana and her two friends.

"So what are your names?" Rachel asked.

"I'm Diana Jackson," said Diana. "This is Penelope Christensen."

Penelope smiled and waved. "Hi," she said. She had two flaming red pigtails and a low-cut T-shirt.

"And this is Nicole Collins."

Nicole was a dark-skinned girl with black hair and a leather jacket. "Hey," she said. "What are your guys' names?"

"I'm Lanie Evans," said Lanie.

"And I'm Rachel," said Rachel. "Rachel Miller."

Diana nodded. "It's nice to meet you," she said. "How long have you known each other?"

Lanie and Rachel looked at each other, unsure how to answer that question. "About a month," said Lanie.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, we're both orphans," said Rachel. "I was at a foster home when Lanie was admitted to the foster home, and she became my bunkmate. Then there was some..."

"Shenanigans," Lanie said, her tone clear that she didn't want to go into detail about what happened. "Me and Rachel-and another younger girl-ended up going to Atlanta and having Mr. Ryan take us into his orphanage. I assume you know about the Orphanage For All Ages?"

"Oh yes," said Penelope. "I've met a lot of people here that live at that orphanage."

"That's where we're living now," said Lanie.

"You're lucky," said Nicole. "I've heard Mr. Ryan's a really nice guy."

"He is," said Rachel. "He got us new cell phones just yesterday."

"No way!" Diana exclaimed.

"Yeah, I know," said Rachel. "I wasn't sure if an orphanage like that would have the right budget to give its kids their own cell phones, but..."

"Well, the Orphanage For All Ages is supposed to be one of the better orphanages out there," said Penelope.

"Have you made any other friends there?" Diana asked.

"A couple, yeah," Lanie answered. "And there was an opening social where we met a few other kids Mr. Ryan knew."

"Really?"

"Yeah. There was this guy named Conner Hawkins-"

Diana's smile faded. "No," she said.

"What?"

Diana shook her head. "Conner's my ex," she said. "He is off-limits."

Lanie felt a stab of annoyance. "What do you mean, 'off-limits?'"

"Diana used to date him last year," Penelope explained, "But then Conner dumped her, and she's been sore over it ever since."

"We don't talk about Conner," Nicole sang.

Ignoring her, Diana looked Lanie and Rachel square in the eyes. "Listen," she said, "If I'm going to let you hang out with me, then you can't go mixing with my exes. Comprende?"

Lanie sighed. "Comprende," she said begrudgingly.

"Great!" said Diana. Just like that, her friendly smile was back again. "Anyway, how was your other class?"

"Oh...it was alright," said Lanie. "It was English, with Mr. Hayden."

"I have him for Fifth Period," said Diana.

"Nice."

Lanie, Rachel, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole continued to talk about their classes and their past school experiences for the rest of the lunch period, until the bell rang. When the bell did ring, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways. "Well, it was nice meeting you," said Diana.

"You too," said Lanie. "See you tomorrow."

***

Since Lanie and Rachel both had P. E. together, they both went to the gym right after lunch. There wasn't anything really major in P. E. that day-just a few laps of walking around the track. The coach didn't even have them change into their P. E. clothes. Since it was only the first day of school, there really wasn't anything big planned for class. So the kids just got to walk around the track and socialize to their hearts' content.

When the final bell rang, Lanie and Rachel both started making their way through the halls to the front of the school. As they went, they ended up running into Conner Hawkins. "Hi Lanie!" Conner said when he saw them. "Hey Rachel!"

"Oh...hi Conner," said Lanie. Ordinarily she would've been happy to see someone she kind of had a crush on, but after her conversation with Diana earlier, she couldn't get excited. She didn't want to risk losing a friend before they'd even established a relationship.

"Did Rachel tell you about our board game club?" Conner asked.

"Yeah."

"Are you gonna come?"

"I don't know...I mean, I'd like to, but..."

"Is something wrong?"

"Well...you know Diana Jackson?"

Conner frowned. "Yeah. Why, did you have a run-in with her?"

"She invited us to sit with her and her friends at lunch," Lanie explained. "They seemed pretty nice, but Diana said we couldn't hang out with you, or else she wouldn't let us hang out with her..."

"Oh, don't listen to her," Conner scoffed. "She's not worth it."

"She said you were dating her last year, and then you dumped her," said Rachel.

"Yeah, I did," said Conner. "I didn't like how chatty and gossipy she was, and she just didn't feel like the right girl for me. So I broke up with her."

"It sounded like she was still mad about that," said Lanie.

"Yeah, I wouldn't hang around people like her," said Conner. "If they try to control what you do, then they're not your real friends."

Lanie wasn't sure; Diana, Penelope, and Nicole had seemed pretty nice, aside from the no-hanging-out-with-Conner rule. But Conner did have a point. "You're right," she said. "I think I'll go to that board game club of yours on...Wednesday, right?"

"Right," said Conner. "See you then."

***

Angelina angrily paced her underground bunker. After Lanie, Rachel, and Jenny had escaped the Nashville location, Angelina had gone back to the original Washington D. C. location of Pretty And Pink Foster Care to meet with some of the other witches that were helping run the operation.

"So you had four of our girls break into the Nashville building's secret bunker," one of the witches, whose name was Anna, said. "And three of them escaped."

"Yes," said Angelina. "I've searched all throughout Nashville and the surrounding area, but I haven't found hide nor hair of them! And I can't let them keep running amok and risk them exposing us to the authorities!"

"Why don't you get in touch with the authorities to help them find those girls?" another witch named Elena asked.

"Because if the authorities started looking into what we're really doing, then we'd be done for," Angelina answered. "No, we'll have to do this on our own."

"But what of those girls?" Anna asked. "Rachel, and Jenny, and Lanie-they could be anywhere by now. I know you're especially obsessed with finding Lanie..."

"Yes," said Angelina. "And I will find her. She and her pathetic friends can run and hide all they want, but they can't escape for good-especially Lanie. She may not realize it now, but she has an important destiny..."

Chapter 11-How To Flirt With A Boy

When Wednesday came, Lanie and Rachel both went to the board game club Conner had told them about. It was held in Mrs. Lin's classroom, with about a dozen kids gathered to play board games. The president was a Senior boy named Justin Kathy.

"Good afternoon, guys," Justin said when everyone had gathered. "Welcome to the first meeting of the board game club. And, well...I don't think there's really much to say for our first meeting. We've got chess, checkers, Monopoly, and Scrabble."

Conner looked at Lanie and Rachel. "Either of you want to play checkers?" he asked.

"I'll do it," Lanie answered.

"Alright then," said Conner. "Black or red?"

"Red."

"Okay, I'll be black then."

Unfortunately, Lanie's skills at checkers were rustier than she realized. She only managed to capture two of Conner's black checkers while he got all of hers. "Guess I win," Conner said when he'd jumped the last of Lanie's red checkers.

"Guess so," said Lanie. "Want another round?"

"Maybe see if Rachel wants to..." Conner trailed off when he saw that Rachel was deep into a Monopoly game with three other kids. "Okay, never mind."

Lanie and Conner played a few more rounds of checkers, all of which Conner won. "Wow, Conner," Lanie said when Conner had beaten her for the fourth time in a row. "You're really good at checkers."

"Yeah, I've had a lot of practice," said Conner. "My brothers really like checkers, so I've played a lot of games with them."

"You have brothers?"

"Yep. Two of them, and they're both younger. I'm guessing you don't have any siblings."

"Nope. I don't think Rachel counts."

"Did you have any siblings before?" Conner asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Before you went to the Orphanage For All Ages. What was your family like then?"

"Well, it's...kind of complicated," said Lanie. "I was born in Nashville, and I grew up there with just my dad. My mom left us when I was little."

"Really?"

"Yeah. My dad was an alcoholic, and he'd always get drunk and abuse my mom and I. So that's why my mom left."

"Why didn't she take you with her?"

"I don't know," said Lanie. The truth was, she didn't have a lot of memories of her mother, considering she (or, since that was while she'd been Landon, he) was only five when she left. She did remember one time when she overheard her mom saying that she wished she'd had a daughter instead of a son, but that was it.

Conner shrugged. "Maybe she just wanted to start a new life," he said. "Leave her failed family behind her."

"Maybe," said Lanie. "But then about a month ago, my dad was having another drunk fit, and he...he ended up falling off the balcony and dying."

Conner's eyes widened. "Wow," he said. "That's horrible."

"Yeah." Lanie deliberately left out the part about her being Richard's killer. She still had the hots for Conner, and she did not want to risk putting him off. "Then I got admitted to a foster home-where I met Rachel-but she and I and another girl ended up leaving. Then we ended up here in Atlanta, where Mr. Ryan found us and admitted us to his orphanage."

"How'd you get all the way from Nashville to Atlanta?"

Lanie shuddered. "I don't want to talk about it," she said.

"Well, at least you're safe now," said Conner.

I hope, Lanie thought. "What about you?" she asked. "What's your family like?"

"Well, my parents are both working," Conner answered. "My dad's an attorney, and my mom works at the zoo. I've got a ten-year-old brother named Melvin, and a seven-year-old brother named Kevin."

"Nice," said Lanie. "Do you guys get along?"

"Generally, yeah," Conner answered. "But sometimes I mess with them just for fun."

"Really?"

"Yep. That's what big brothers are for, right?" Conner said with a smirk.

"I guess," said Lanie.

"Didn't you say you had another girl with you?"

"What?"

"When you left that first foster home. You mentioned another girl that came with you to Atlanta."

"Oh yeah. Her name's Jenny, and she's in middle school."

"Oh," said Conner. "How's it going for her?"

"I don't know," Lanie replied. "I haven't gotten to see her since school started."

"Well, hopefully it's all going well for her."

Since Lanie was getting tired of losing to Conner at checkers, she and him decided to watch Rachel's game on Monopoly for the rest of the lunch period. At first, Lanie just watched, but then she ended up joining Rachel in managing her money and property cards. Rachel came pretty close to getting $2000 and winning the game, but before she could pass Go, Justin spoke up again. "The bell's about to ring," he said, "So it's time to start putting the games away."

"Aw," Rachel fumed. "I was so close!"

"At least you tried," said Lanie.

"And you had fun," said Conner, "Right?"

"Yeah, it was fun," said Rachel.

"Even if you kept beating me at checkers," said Lanie.

Conner chuckled. "Well, it you want a rematch, you can come back on Friday."

"I think I will," said Lanie.

***

After school that day, Lanie went down to the orphanage's game room. Since Jenny was so into video games, Lanie had a feeling she'd be in there. And sure enough, there Jenny was, playing Rocket League just like always.

"Hey Jenny," said Lanie.

Jenny paused her game and looked up at Lanie. "Hi Lanie," she said.

"Hey, I haven't gotten to talk to you for a few days," said Lanie. "How's school going?"

"Not great," Jenny said miserably. "No one talks to me, and nobody lets me sit with them. It's like I don't fit in with anyone."

"I'm sorry," said Lanie. "Are you sure there's no one at school you can talk to? Your roommate Samantha-she goes to the same school as you, right?"

"Right," said Jenny. "But I don't have any classes with her."

"That's too bad," said Lanie. "But just so you know, I'm still here for you. And Rachel is, too, if you need to talk to us."

"Thanks, Lanie," said Jenny.

Chapter 12-In With The Cool Kids

For the next couple weeks, Lanie and Rachel continued to go to the board game club and hang out with Conner, Justin, and the other guys there. Outside of the club, Lanie practiced playing checkers at the orphanage with Rachel, Aaron, Trevor, and some of the other kids at the orphanage. It took some time, but she was able to improve. And it got to a point where one day, in the game club, Lanie actually beat Conner in a game of checkers. She felt proud of her victory-but she didn't let it cloud her feelings for Conner.

In spite of her feelings, Lanie wasn't sure she was ready to admit she had a crush on Conner. Right now, they were only on "just friends" terms, and she didn't want to risk damaging that by coming on too hard. But she should've realized she wasn't being too subtle with her flirting.

One Thursday morning, after Lanie had gotten out of the shower and wrapped a towel around her body, she walked past Rachel braiding her long black hair at the bathroom sink. "Hey Lanie," said Rachel.

"Yeah?"

"Could I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Do you like Conner?"

Lanie paused at these words. "Uh...yeah," she said. "He's a nice guy, and he's-"

"No, I mean, do you like him, like, have a crush on him."

"Uh..."

"It's okay if you do!" said Rachel. "I won't tell anyone."

"No, you're right," Lanie admitted. "I do like Conner."

"I knew it!"

"How'd you know?"

"I've seen the way you look at him," Rachel answered. "And when you're talking to him, you always seem to be smiling. And you willingly ditched Diana's clique so you could hang out with Conner at the board game club."

Lanie should've felt relieved that she didn't have to keep her secret bottled up inside her anymore, but instead she felt embarrassed. She wished she'd been a little more subtle about her feelings for Conner. "I guess I-"

"Don't be embarrassed," said Rachel. "I've had crushes on guys before."

"You have?"

"Yeah. You and I are girls now, so it's not gay if we like guys."

"Huh." Lanie hadn't even considered that it might be "gay" for a guy to turn into a girl and then feel romantic attraction to another guy. But she knew Rachel was right: she was a girl now, so it wasn't homosexual.

"Well, if you want to try asking him out-"

"Rachel, you just said I'm a girl now!" said Lanie. "I can't ask a guy out!"

"Before you came to Pretty And Pink, I had a roommate who asked a guy out," said Rachel. "And Ruth kicked her out for it, but it's not like you have to worry about that happening to you."

"I mean...I don't know if I feel comfortable about doing that," said Lanie. "I've been hoping he'd ask me out, but I don't know if he..." She trailed off as an idea formed in her mind. "Hey, you have Second Period with him, right?"

"Right."

"Maybe you could talk to him? See if he might be interested in dating me?"

"I can try," said Rachel.

"Great," said Lanie. "Thank you so much."

***

When Rachel got to Second Period Geometry that day, she immediately started looking for Conner. Sure enough, there he was-at his table in the middle of the room with his tablemates Hugo, Joey, and David. But the four boys were deep in conversation with one another, and there was just a minute and a half before the bell rang, so Rachel knew now wasn't the time.

Fortunately, the time came halfway through the class when Mrs. Kirkland called a ten-minute break. This was something almost every teacher at Eastside High did-give their classes short breaks in the middle of their two-hour classes. Rachel suspected that the teachers did that because they understood teenagers.

Right when the break started, Rachel went over to Conner's table. "Hey Conner," she said, "Could we talk for a minute?"

"Ooh," said Hugo. "I think she likes you."

"Shut up, Hugo," said Conner. "She's just a friend." He got up and went with Rachel over to her table. "What's going on?"

Rachel was prepared. She'd rehearsed this conversation in her head for all of First Period. "You know Lanie?"

"Yeah, I do."

"You don't like her, do you?"

Conner wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Well...she is a nice girl," he said. "And she's kind of pretty, too."

"So you do like her?"

"What-I mean, she's a friend," said Conner, "But I don't, like, want to date her or anything."

"She told me she kind of likes you."

Conner's jaw dropped. "What?"

"Like, she wants to be more than friends."

For a few seconds, Conner wasn't sure what to say. "Wow," he said. "That's...that's surprising."

"Well? You wouldn't date her, would you?"

"If she wanted to, well..." Conner sighed. "I guess maybe I kind of like her, too."

"Great!" said Rachel. "Lanie's been hoping you'll ask her out, so if you do, then I think she'll say yes."

"Awesome," said Conner. "I'll have to do that."

***

"You're kidding me? It was that easy?" Lanie asked.

"Yes," said Rachel. "He said he kind of had the hots for you, too, so he'd be down for a date."

Lanie squealed in delight. "Thank you, Rachel, thank you!" she said, hugging Rachel deeply. "I owe you big-time for this!"

Rachel smiled and hugged Lanie back. "It's okay," she said. "It really wasn't any trouble for me to talk to Conner on your behalf."

"How about we go get lunch together? How's that sound?"

"Sounds good."

Lanie and Rachel both went down the school hallway toward the cafeteria. But when they rounded a corner, they ran into the three people they'd been trying to avoid: Diana Jackson, Penelope Christensen, and Nicole Collins. "Uh-oh," said Lanie. She and Rachel started to turn away, but it was too late. The other three girls had already seen them.

"Lanie! Rachel! There you are!" said Diana.

"Oh, fuck..." Lanie muttered.

"Where have you been?" Diana asked. "Why haven't you been hanging out with us at lunch?"

Lanie and Rachel were both at a loss for words. Neither of them wanted to admit that they'd been hanging around Cooper Hawkins, but they didn't have any good excuses.

"It's none of your business what we do at lunch," Rachel forced out.

"You've been hanging out with Conner Hawkins, haven't you?" Penelope asked.

"How did you know?" Lanie blurted out.

"Because I heard from someone who knew Justin Kathy, who told him you guys have been going to the board game club," Penelope replied. "Which Conner's a part of."

Lanie sighed. "You're right," she said. "We have been going to the board game club. And we haven't sat at your guys' lunch table because Diana said she wouldn't let us sit with you if we hung around her exes, so..."

"Yeah, I guess I did say that," Diana said, though she sounded more disappointed than angry.

For a few seconds, there was a silence between the five girls. It was broken when Lanie said "But if you want us to sit at your table, then we can-"

"Actually, that's not the real reason we were looking for you," said Diana.

"Oh?"

"You see, we had tickets for an Olivia Rodrigo concert tonight-me and Penelope and Nicole-and my cousins were supposed to go, but they had something come up at the last minute. So we thought maybe we could invite you guys to come with us?"

"Of course!" Rachel exclaimed. "I love Olivia Rodrigo!"

Diana nodded. "And you, Lanie?"

Lanie shrugged. "I guess," she said, "If you're offering."

"Great," said Diana. "The concert's at 7:00 tonight, so I'll come pick you up at 6:30."

"What-you have your own car?"

"Yes, I do," said Diana. "We'll get Penelope and Nicole, then go to the concert. How does that sound?"

"That sounds great," said Rachel.

"Alright," said Diana. "See you at 6:30."

***

It took Lanie half an hour to find the right clothes to wear to the Olivia Rodrigo concert. She thought it would be easy to pick out the right outfit, but then Lanie realized all she had were jeans, T-shirts, a couple long-sleeve shirts, and a jacket. Not a whole lot of options, which now seemed like a pretty serious flaw in her wardrobe. With help from Rachel, Lanie managed to settle on her nicest pair of jeans and the best shirt she could find. But she made a mental note to go shopping for some better clothes when she had the chance.

Diana showed up at the front of the orphanage at 6:30 in her gray Hyundai Sonata. She watched as Lanie and Rachel both came out and got in the backseat of her sedan. "Hi guys," said Diana. She was wearing a leather jacket and thick, dark blue jeans with her hair tied back in a ponytail. "You look nice."

"You look pretty good yourself," said Lanie.

"Thanks," said Diana.

After they'd picked up Penelope and Nicole, they drove to the big theater where the Olivia Rodrigo concert was being held. After parking the car, the five of them got in line to enter the theater.

"You guys excited?" Diana asked as they were waiting in line.

"Of course!" Rachel answered. "Olivia Rodrigo's, like, my favorite singer ever!"

"What about you?" Nicole asked Lanie.

"Yeah, I'm excited," said Lanie. The truth was, she'd never been much of an Olivia Rodrigo fan. Even though she liked her music fine enough, she'd never been the type to obsess over celebrities and track every move of their careers. But the prospect of going to a theater that had a big stage with huge speakers and lights and a real, actual singer performing songs live without any lip-syncing or anything was pretty exciting in and of itself.

The girls entered the theater right as Olivia Rodrigo was coming onto the stage and starting to belt out "good 4 u." Diana and Rachel cheered with the rest of the crowd and even sang along when Olivia Rodrigo got to the chorus. At first, Lanie wasn't really doing anything, but after a couple songs, she started to get into the groove of things. She started cheering and chanting with the rest of her friends, watching as Olivia Rodrigo danced and sang about the stage. The combined experience of seeing an artist perform their songs live, being in the theater with a legion of fans, and sharing in the fun with everybody present, was better than anything Lanie had experienced in her life. She was too overjoyed, too exhilarated to think about anything else besides the concert-not even Angelina.

The last song Olivia Rodrigo performed was "driver's license." At the end of the song, she thanked everybody for coming to the concert and wished them a good night, to which everybody cheered. And Lanie had to admit, she felt kind of sad to see Olivia Rodrigo walk off the stage and out of sight. It meant that the night-this phenomenal night-was coming to an end.

"Wow," Rachel said as they left the theater. All of the girls were exhilarated by the experience of the concert, but especially Rachel. "That was amazing!"

"I know!" said Diana. "I've been wanting to see Olivia Rodrigo perform live for, like, a year!"

"I just wish there was a meet-and-greet," said Rachel. "Then I could get her autograph."

"Maybe someday," said Nicole.

"But this was still really awesome," said Lanie.

"Oh yeah," Diana agreed. "Are you glad you came?"

"Of course!" Lanie answered. "I've never been to an actual concert before!"

"Well, there's a first time for everything," said Diana.

***

Diana took Penelope and Nicole home before dropping off Lanie and Rachel. When she pulled up in front of the Orphanage For All Ages, she paused before unlocking the car doors. "Guys, before you go, there's something I want to say to you," Diana said.

"What is it?"

Diana took a deep breath before saying "I'm sorry for saying you couldn't hang out with me if you hung out with Conner."

"Oh...that's okay," said Lanie.

"I was still feeling bitter about Conner breaking up with me," Diana went on, "I was just so mad, I didn't even want my friends getting involved with him. But then when I talked to you guys earlier today, I realized I'd kind of pushed you away..."

"It's alright," said Lanie. "If Conner dumped me, I'd probably be pretty sour, too."

"Really?"

"Yeah." Lanie hesitated before saying "I kind of have a crush on Conner."

"Oh, you do?" Diana asked in surprise.

"Yes."

"And I helped set them up earlier today," said Rachel.

"Wow!" said Diana. "Well, if you want to try dating Conner, then...go ahead!"

"What?"

"Yeah. You never know, it might work out between you!"

"Thank you," said Lanie. "And thanks for the concert, too."

"Anytime," said Diana. "Now you guys have a good night."

"You too."

Chapter 13-The Date

The next day was Friday. Lanie went to her Fourth and Fifth Period classes with Rachel, then went to Mrs. Lin's classroom for the board game club. Lanie was eager to see Conner, since she knew Rachel had let it slip to him that she wanted to date him. But as it turned out, she and Rachel got to the classroom early. The only other person there was Justin.

"Hey guys," Justin said when he saw Lanie and Rachel. "You're a little earlier than usual."

Lanie shrugged. "The early bird gets the worm," she said.

Right then, Conner came into the room. "Hi Lanie," he said.

Lanie's heart leapt with excitement. "Hi Conner!" she said with a smile.

Conner smiled back. "I heard you were interested in me," he said.

"Oh, really?" Lanie asked, though she knew perfectly well who had told Conner.

"Yeah," said Conner. "You want to go on a date, don't you?"

"Yes, of course!"

"How about tomorrow?" Conner asked. "Want to meet up at the mall and get dinner at Starbucks?"

"That sounds good," said Lanie.

"Do you need a ride there, or-"

"Yeah, probably," said Lanie. "I don't have a car or a bike or anything."

"I can probably get my dad to drive us," said Conner. "But I warn you, he can be kind of embarrassing."

"That's okay," said Lanie. "I think I can tolerate it."

***

After the board game club's meeting, Lanie and Rachel left Mrs. Lin's classroom to go to their Sixth Period classes. But on their way out, they ran into Diana, Penelope, and Nicole again. "Hey guys!" Diana said when she saw Lanie and Rachel.

"Hi Diana!" said Lanie.

"Did you guys dream of Olivia Rodrigo last night?" Diana asked with a smirk.

"Oh, I did," said Rachel.

"I'll bet."

"You want to go to the mall with us tomorrow?" Diana asked. "We're all gonna go shopping, and Penelope's gonna meet her boyfriend, and-"

"Oh, I've actually got a date at the mall tomorrow," said Lanie. "With Conner Hawkins."

"No way!" Nicole exclaimed. "He already asked you out?"

"Yes, he did. And I said yes."

"That's great!" said Diana. "What time are you going to the mall with him tomorrow?"

"Probably around 5:00. We're gonna get dinner at Starbucks."

"We can probably make that work," said Diana. "You can go shopping with the rest of us in the afternoon, then meet Conner for dinner."

Lanie thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yeah," she said. "That sounds good."

"Alright then," said Diana. "Let's plan on it."

***

The next day, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole all came to the Orphanage For All Ages to pick up Lanie and Rachel. The five girls then drove to the mall and started browsing. Diana and Penelope wanted to go to the bath and body wash store, so they started there. After getting some bath salts, the group then went to the makeup place. It wasn't until that moment that Lanie realized she hadn't really done makeup yet. Rachel had helped her figure out some basic hairstyling, but she hadn't tried using lipstick or mascara or anything like that. Lanie decided to get a lipstick tube for herself to try and figure out later.

But it wasn't until they went clothes shopping that Lanie really started to get "out there." She, Rachel, Diana, Penelope, and Nicole looked through racks of shirts, pants, and blouses to find something that they thought would look good on them. After some browsing, Lanie came across a nice-looking electric blue tank top. "Whoa," Penelope said when she saw the tank top Lanie was looking at. "That shirt looks really good."

"You think?"

"Yeah. You should try it on."

Lanie felt some of her early anxiety at being a girl rearing its head again. When Ruth had turned her into a girl, she'd felt overwhelmed with all the girly stuff she would have to adjust to. Clothes shopping with Ruth was especially uncomfortable, since she wasn't quite ready for the really girly clothes. Even now, she was hesitant about trying on a tank top. Wearing a bikini when swimming was one thing, but wearing revealing clothes in public places...

No. It was okay. Those awkward days were over. Lanie was hanging out with her girl friends now, so she had to be girly. "Alright, I'll try it," said Lanie. She took the tank top and went back into the changing room with her friends at her side. She changed into the blue tank top and came out for her friends to see.

"Whoa!" Rachel said when she saw Lanie in the tank top. "You look sexy!"

Lanie looked at herself in the mirror. The tank top's straps barely even covered her bra strips, and the neck was so low you could see her boobs. But somehow, that made it look even better. "Yeah," she said. "This thing looks really cool!"

"Want to try some more?" Diana asked.

"Sure!"

Lanie tried on some more tank tops, all of which felt just as good to wear as the first. She even tried on a couple skirts-which, to her surprise, felt great! When it came down to it, the skirts were just circles of fabric that wrapped around her pelvic area and his her panties. But, again, that was somehow what made them feel so good. They felt so unique, so stylish, so...girly.

In the end, Lanie ended up buying three tank tops and two skirts. She waited for everyone else to finish their shopping before they all left the clothing store. "You like those clothes you bought?" Rachel asked Lanie just out of earshot of the other girls.

"Of course!" said Lanie. "I can't believe I haven't tried out clothes like these before!"

"So where next?" Nicole asked.

"We've gotta meet my boyfriend," said Penelope. "He said he'd wait for me at Bluey's."

"Then let's go there," said Diana.

Lanie started to follow the rest of the girls, but she faltered when she remembered she was on her period. "You guys go ahead," she said. "I've gotta go to the bathroom."

"Alright," said Diana. "Don't take too long."

Lanie turned and went into the women's bathroom at the end of the hall. She locked herself in a stall, pulled her pants down, and sat on the toilet. This was the second period she'd experienced, and it had started just an hour before Diana came to pick her and Rachel up. For her first period, she'd only used pads, but when her second period started, she'd tried out a tampon to Rachel's suggestion. Now it was time to change her tampon. Lanie took the string and pulled the now-red tampon out of her vagina. Then she got a fresh tampon out of her bag.

Okay, Lanie thought to herself. Just relax and remember what Rachel showed you. She spread her vagina's "lips" apart and held the tampon applicator up to it. She pushed on the smaller tube and inserted the tampon into her vagina. With a little adjustment, she managed to settle it in there. Lanie let out a sigh of relief. She'd actually managed to do it! She'd successfully inserted a tampon by herself, with nobody's help!

Once Lanie had washed her hands, she left the bathroom and went out to Bluey's where she knew the other girls would be. But when she got there, she saw a horrible sight. Penelope was sitting at a table, crying her eyes out with Diana, Nicole, and Rachel standing around trying to comfort her.

"What happened?" Lanie asked. "Where's Penelope's boyfriend?"

"He told her he was breaking up with her," Diana answered.

"He's a jerk!" Penelope sobbed. "He-he told me he loved me, but then he told me he didn't want me around anymore. He..." Penelope couldn't talk anymore. She just broke down into a sobbing fit.

"I'm sorry," said Rachel. "That must really suck, having your boyfriend kick you to the curb like that."

Diana nodded, though she didn't say anything. She didn't want her history with Conner to ruin Lanie's date plans.

Nicole went up and bought an order of Bluey's Fries to try and cheer Penelope up, but it didn't have much effect. Penelope was just too upset at having her boyfriend break up with her. "Penelope," Diana said gently, "Do you want to leave now?"

Through her tears, Penelope nodded. "Yes, p-please," she said.

"But what about Lanie?" Rachel asked. "She still has to meet Conner in an hour."

"It's okay," said Lanie. "I can wait here by myself."

"You sure?"

"Of course." She wasn't really sure she could keep herself entertained, but she didn't want to complicate things for her friends.

"I'm guessing Conner's gonna give you a ride home?" Diana asked.

"His dad is, yes," said Lanie.

"Okay," said Diana.

"Have fun!" said Rachel.

"I will," said Lanie.

***

After the other girls left, Lanie spent the next hour walking about the mall. She went to the Disney store and the Apple store to look around, though she didn't buy anything. When the time was 4:45, Lanie knew it was almost time. She ducked into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. Yes, she looked good. Her hair wasn't too messy, and her face was pretty clean. But she still felt she had to look her best. She took a damp paper towel and wiped down her face, making it look nice and shiny, and made sure her teeth were pearly white. Once she was satisfied with her reflection in the mirror, Lanie left and went down to the mall's Starbucks.

To her delight, Conner was there waiting for her, clad in a green polo shirt and navy blue pants. "Hey Lanie," said Conner.

"Hi Conner!" Lanie said with a smile.

"You ready to get some dinner?"

"Sure!"

Lanie and Conner got in the Starbucks line and waited for a few minutes. While they waited, Lanie looked at the menu and decided she wanted an English muffin sandwich and a cup of hot chocolate. "Where's your dad?" she asked Conner.

"He went to the furniture place," Conner answered. "He's gonna poke around there while you and I hang out here."

"Nice," said Lanie. She felt relieved-not because she didn't want to meet Conner's dad, but because she would've preferred some time with just herself and Conner. No friends, no parents-no one there to awkwardly listen in on everything they talked about. Just Lanie and her new boyfriend.

When they got to the front of the line, they met the barista working the cashier. He looked old enough to be in grad school, with messy blonde hair, uneven stubble, and a piercing in his right ear. His name tag read "Bryce."

"Hey guys..." Bryce trailed off when he saw and recognized Conner. "Hey, Conner!"

"Hey Bryce," said Conner. "Long time no see."

Bryce looked at Lanie. "Well," he said, "You've got a cute girl."

"This is Lanie," said Conner. "I know her from school."

"I take it you know this guy?" Lanie asked.

"Yeah," said Conner. "This is Bryce. He and I go to the same church."

"I dropped out of college a year and a half ago," said Bryce. "Now I'm working here and trying to figure out a career path for myself."

"Nice," said Lanie.

"What can I get for you today?" Bryce asked.

"I'll get a hot chocolate and a scone," said Conner. "And you, Lanie?"

"I'll have hot chocolate too," said Lanie. "And a breakfast sandwich."

Bryce rang them up and said "That'll be $22."

Conner produced a handful of dollar bills from his wallet and paid for their food. "Here you go," he said.

"Thanks," said Bryce. "We'll get right to it."

Lanie and Conner took a seat near the back of Starbucks. "So how'd your shopping trip go?" Conner asked. "You said you'd be going shopping with Rachel and Diana before you met me here."

"I did," said Lanie, "But they all ended up going home early."

"Why?"

"Penelope met up with her boyfriend, and he gave her a breakup talk, and she was really upset. We didn't want that to ruin the rest of the day for us, so the others went home while I waited here for you."

Conner nodded slowly. "That sucks," he said. "I heard Diana was really mad at me when I broke up with her."

"That's what it sounded like to me too," said Lanie. "But I guess she had a change of heart about letting me date you."

"That's good," said Conner. "I'm glad we can all put that drama behind us."

"Conner!" Bryce called from the counter. "You order's ready!"

"I'll be right back," said Conner. He went off to get his and Lanie's orders, then came back with his scone, Lanie's breakfast sandwich, and the two cups of hot chocolate.

"Thank you so much," Lanie said as she took a bite of her breakfast sandwich.

Conner took a swig of his hot chocolate before saying "So what else is new?"

"Not much," said Lanie. "You know my friend Jenny-she's not doing so well at her school."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. She's getting bullied a lot by her classmates."

"Ooh," said Conner. "That's rough."

"It is," said Lanie. "I don't think Jenny's adjusting to Atlanta well. Me and Rachel are adjusting well, but Jenny isn't."

"Didn't you say the three of you were from Nashville?"

"Yeah. We met at a foster home there, but then...well..."

Conner looked around to make sure no one was eavesdropping, then craned in closer to Lanie. "Lanie, I have a feeling there's something else you're not telling me," he said. "About your old foster home."

"Well..." Lanie didn't know how to answer that. She wasn't sure if Conner would believe her secret, but if she was gonna be dating him, then he had a right to know...didn't he?

"This is going to sound really crazy," Lanie warned.

"How crazy?"

Lanie took a deep breath before saying "I used to be a boy."

For a few seconds, Conner just sat there, not sure what to make of Lanie's words. "What do you mean, you used to be a boy?" he said. "Are you trans?"

"No, I'm not trans," said Lanie. "Well, I mean, I guess I kind of am, since I basically had to transition to being a girl, but-"

"What are you talking about? Are you trans or not?"

"Like I said, it's gonna sound really crazy," said Lanie. She told Conner the whole story-how she was once Landon, his fight with his father Richard, Ruth finding him and taking him in, Landon's metamorphosis into Lanie, the Pretty And Pink foster home, meeting Rachel, Melody, and her other roommates, Jenny's arrival, the revelation that Pretty And Pink wasn't what it initially seemed, the fight with Angelina and Ruth, her, Rachel's, and Jenny's escape, and their arrival in Atlanta.

By the time Lanie finished her story, Conner was staring at her incredulously. "So you were turned into a girl by evil witches who hate men," he said.

"Yep."

"And those witches are looking for you."

"Yes-well, I think so," said Lanie. "Me and Rachel and Jenny haven't even heard from Angelina since we escaped Nashville, but somehow I don't think she'd just let us run amok."

"I...I can't believe you used to be a boy," said Conner. "You're just so...girly!"

"You really thought I was always a girl?"

"Yeah. You've never seemed tomboyish or anything like that. Everything you've said, and done-it just gives me the vibe of a normal girl."

Wow. Lanie must've settled into "girliness" even earlier and better than she thought. "Well, I'm glad you think that," she said.

"Are you still worried?" Conner asked. "That this Angelina lady might come back and try to...I don't know, kill you?"

"I think we all are," Lanie answered. "But it's been weeks and we haven't seen any sign of Angelina hunting us down, so...I just don't know."

"Well, hopefully you stay hidden for good," said Conner.

There was a short pause where neither of them spoke, and both Conner and Lanie took the chance to drink more of their hot chocolate. After a minute, Lanie asked "You're not gonna break up with me, are you?"

"What?"

"Well...do you not want to date me anymore? Now you know who I really am, and..."

"No, it's okay," said Conner. "You're a beautiful girl, Lanie. You're really smart, and fun, and easy to talk to. I don't know if you like being a girl, but I like you."

Lanie felt relieved. "Thank you, Conner," she said. "I'm glad you like me too."

A few minutes later, Conner's dad came into Starbucks. "Hey guys," he said. "How's your date going?"

"It's going great," Conner answered.

Lanie looked Conner's dad up and down. "You must be Mr. Hawkins," she said.

"Yep, I am," Conner's dad replied. He grinned at Lanie, then turned to Conner and said "What a cute girl, Conner. Well done."

"Dad," said Conner. He sounded a little embarrassed, but Lanie took their exchange as a compliment. Even Conner's father approved of her.

"Are you guys ready to go?"

"Are you ready, Lanie?"

Lanie nodded. "Yes," she said.

"Then let's go."

***

Conner's dad drove back to the Orphanage For All Ages and parked right in front of the building's front doors. Conner got out of the car and escorted Lanie to the front doors. "Well, thanks for the fun date," said Lanie.

"You're welcome," said Conner. "Want to do it again sometime?"

"Of course," Lanie answered. "I'll see you soon." She gave Conner one last hug before entering the orphanage. She went up the flights of stairs until she got to the girls' floor.

When Lanie came to her dorm, she opened the door to find Rachel changing into her pajamas. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How was your date?"

"It was great," Lanie answered. "Conner said he'd be willing to do it again soon."

"Wow!" said Rachel. She high-fived Lanie and said "You've officially got a boyfriend!"

"Yeah," Lanie said, grinning. "But I also told him the truth."

"What truth?"

"You know. That we used to be boys."

Rachel's smile faded. "You...told him?"

"Yeah. He seemed kind of suspicious that there was something I wasn't telling him, so I opened up and told him the truth about where you and I came from."

"Oh..."

"Sorry," said Lanie. "I guess I should've-"

"No, it's okay," said Rachel. "We probably needed to confide in someone besides each other."

"And I told him about Angelina, too. And how she was looking for us."

"Oh, that reminds me," said Rachel. "I looked up Pretty And Pink Foster Care earlier, and it looks like they're still operating."

"Wait, what?"

"Yeah. They're still taking in homeless girls and giving them a home."

"You mean homeless boys."

"The Internet doesn't know that."

Lanie shook her head. "This is horrible," she said. "Everything we did...it was for nothing."

"What do you mean? All we did was discover Angelina's true intentions and then escape with our lives."

"I guess."

"But you'll never believe this. The Nashville location shut down."

"What?"

"Yeah. There was a news article about a 'security breach' at Pretty And Pink's Nashville building, so they decided to shut it down and transfer the girls there to the Philadelphia and Washington D. C. locations."

"Wow," said Lanie. "You don't think that 'security breach' had anything to do with us?"

"The news article was dated two days after we escaped," said Rachel, "So I think it does."

In spite of herself, Lanie felt a rush of pride. "So that's one step in foiling Angelina's plans," she said. "We got one of her locations shut down."

"I know," said Rachel. "But there's still two more Pretty And Pink locations. And Angelina's a witch, so..."

"Yeah," Lanie sighed. "But at least Conner's in the know. I don't know if he'd be able to help us, but..."

"It's something," Rachel agreed. "Look, I'm feeling pretty tired now, so I'm gonna go to bed a little early tonight."

"Me too," said Lanie. "It's been quite a day."

A few minutes later, Lanie and Rachel were all ready for bed. They shut off the lights and got under their covers. But after fifteen minutes of lying in bed, Rachel spoke up. "Lanie?" she asked. "Are you still awake?"

"Yeah," Lanie answered. "What is it?"

Rachel hesitated. "I know Angelina's a witch and everything," she said, "But what if she's right?"

"Right about what?"

"Remember what she said, about how she wanted to turn all the world's men into women? What if she's right about that? What if that really would be better?"

"How would that be better?"

"Well, Angelina kind of had a point," said Rachel. "A lot of men do cheat, steal, and abuse their families. And they disrespect women, too."

"I mean...I know my dad was abusive, but-"

"And everyone at Pretty And Pink-you, and me, and Melody, and Taylor, and Alexis-we all adjusted pretty well to being girls, didn't we? I'm sure a lot of us were uncomfortable at first, but we all grew to like being female."

Lanie wasn't sure what to say to that. Rachel was right: Lanie had come to like being a girl. Everything about being female-the different clothes, being part of school cliques, flirting with boys...all of it felt right to Lanie. If anything, being a girl felt better for her than being a boy. But all the same...

"Pretty And Pink did turn out to all be a front though, didn't it?" said Lanie. "And pretty much all of the boys Angelina lured into her trap-they didn't want to be turned into girls."

"No, but still."

"Besides, Angelina tried to murder us. And she successfully killed Melody."

"You're right," Rachel admitted. After a moment's pause, she said "You won't tell anyone I said that, will you? Not Jenny, or Conner? Or Taylor or Alexis, if we ever see them again?"

"I won't," Lanie promised. But for a little while after that, she lay in bed awake, thinking, What if the Devil Woman was right?

Chapter 14-The Loss

From that point on, it seemed like all anyone could talk about at school was the fact that Conner Hawkins was now dating that girl Lanie Evans, who'd just came in out of nowhere and surprised everyone with her charm and her good looks. Heads in the hallways turned whenever they saw Conner and Lanie walking together. Both Conner and Lanie loved the attention and soaked it in. Neither of them had been particularly famous at school before, so it felt great to be treated like celebrities. Lanie had thought getting to hang out with Diana's clique felt great, but it was nothing compared to having a boyfriend. It was as if nothing could go wrong for her anymore.

Naturally, that meant something would end up going wrong for Lanie. It happened on Friday evening, just shy of a week after her first date with Conner. She was walking home from Conner's house, where she'd gone to have dinner and get to know the rest of his family. Conner's mom, and his two little brothers, and their cute little Chihuahua had all loved Lanie. They found Lanie to be very sweet and likeable. In turn, Lanie took great joy in meeting Conner's family. They were very hospitable to her, and they made a really tasty dinner of pasta and vegetables. It had been a great evening for Lanie, but it was about to get ruined big-time.

Lanie entered the Orphanage For All Ages and ran into Jenny in the foyer. "Hey Lanie," said Jenny. "Where have you been?"

"At Conner Hawkins' house," Lanie answered. "His family wanted to meet me, so I went over for dinner."

"That's great," said Jenny. "Where's Rachel?"

"I think she's still here. Why..." Lanie trailed off when she noticed that Jenny's eyes were red-rimmed, and there were tear marks on her cheeks. She'd just been crying.

"I need to talk to you and Rachel," said Jenny. "Somewhere private."

Lanie sensed there was trouble afoot. "Of course," she said. "Let's go up to our bedroom."

Lanie took Jenny upstairs to her and Rachel's bedroom. There, they found Rachel lying on her bed reading a book. "Hi Lanie!" said Rachel. "How was dinner with the Hawkinses?"

"It was great," said Lanie. "But Jenny said she needs to talk to us."

Rachel's smile faded when she saw how miserable Jenny was. "What's wrong?" she asked. "More trouble at school?"

Jenny nodded. "It's getting worse," she said. "You know that boy I told you about, Ben Snipes-he beat me up today at lunch. He called me bad names, and he...and he..."

"He did what?"

"He said no one would notice if I just disappeared tomorrow."

Lanie was dumbstruck. "That's horrible," she said.

"Have you talked to any teachers about this?" Rachel asked.

"I did," Jenny answered, "But then Ben Snipes called me a snitch."

"I've got to tell you, Jenny, I don't think you should keep going to that middle school," said Lanie. "You should talk to Mr. Ryan about transferring to another school."

"I can't," said Jenny. "Even if I did find some other middle school, it wouldn't be any different."

"You don't know that!" said Rachel.

"Yes I do! I just..." Jenny started to cry again. "I didn't ask for any of this! I didn't want my family to be killed, or Angelina to turn me into a girl, or to be ran out of Nashville, or..."

"Neither did we," said Lanie. "But just because it looks bad now, doesn't mean it'll be this way forever. If you give it time, then things might get better."

"No, it won't," Jenny sobbed. "Lanie, Rachel...you guys are amazing. You've been really nice to me, and really brave, and...I'm so glad you tried to help me. But I just don't think there's anything else I can do."

"Yes you can," said Rachel. "You just have to..."

"Goodbye, guys," said Jenny. And then she turned and left the room.

Rachel looked at Lanie for support. "What did I do?" she asked.

"Nothing," said Lanie. She looked at the dorm's door where Jenny had gone. She was getting a bad feeling. "Come on," she said.

Lanie and Rachel went out into the hallway and looked for Jenny. "There she is!" Rachel said, pointing. Lanie and Rachel took off down the hall after Jenny.

"Jenny, wait!" Lanie called. "Where are you going?"

Jenny ignored Lanie. She came to the building's ladder onto the roof at started climbing.

"What's she doing?" Rachel asked. "Is she going on the roof..."

Lanie and Rachel both froze in their tracks when they realized what Jenny was really doing. "NO!" Lanie cried. She and Rachel took off at a run for the ladder, where Jenny had already reached the top. "JENNY, NO!"

"I'm sorry," said Jenny. "I have no choice." She climbed up through the roof's trapdoor and onto the roof itself. She climbed up onto the edge of the roof and looked down below her. It was quite the sight to see-the street below her and the buildings and city blocks that went out as far as the eye could see. Jenny would never have thought this would be the last thing she ever saw, but it would have to suffice.

"Jenny, no, don't!" Lanie said as she scrambled up through the trapdoor and onto the roof. "Get down from there!"

Jenny turned to take one last look at Lanie and Rachel (who was just poking her head out the trapdoor). "Goodbye, friends," she said. And with that, Jenny jumped off the edge of the building.

Lanie's heart stopped. She'd done it! Jenny had actually jumped off the roof of the building! Lanie ran up to the edge and looked down below. She saw Jenny land hard onto the sidewalk below with a sickening crack! "Oh, shit..."

"She actually jumped," said Rachel.

"Get Mr. Ryan!" said Lanie. "We've gotta call 911!"

Lanie and Rachel rushed downstairs to the front office. "Mr. Ryan!" they said when they burst through the door. "Mr. Ryan, there's a-"

"Whoa, calm down!" Mr. Ryan said when he saw the two girls who'd barged into his office. "What's going on?"

"Jenny just jumped off the roof," said Lanie.

Mr. Ryan's eyes widened. "She jumped off the roof?"

"Yes! She landed on the sidewalk in front of the building!"

"Where'd she land?"

"Come on, we'll show you," said Lanie. She and Rachel took Mr. Ryan outside to where Jenny had landed spread-eagled. "See, there she is!"

Mr. Ryan ran up to Jenny, rolled her onto her back, and started performing CPR on her. "Come on, Jenny," he said. "Stay with us, please."

"Here, I'll call 911," said Rachel. She got out her phone and dialed the emergency hotline. "Hello...yes, we've got a girl who just jumped off a building...Orphanage For All Ages. It's an emergency. Yes, thank you so much." She hung up her phone and said "They're coming."

It only took ten minutes for the ambulance to show up, but it felt like much longer. Lanie and Rachel both watched tensely as Mr. Ryan kept trying to get Jenny's heart beating again and resuscitate her, but to no avail. When the ambulance and the EMT people did come, Mr. Ryan stepped aside to let them put Jenny onto a stretcher and load her into the ambulance.

"Will she be okay?" Lanie asked.

"I don't know," Mr. Ryan answered. "I don't know."

***

Lanie and Rachel stayed up for several hours waiting for an update from the hospital. They waited right outside Mr. Ryan's office, since they knew he'd be the one to get a call from the hospital.

The call finally came at 11:30. Lanie and Rachel listened in as hard as they could, but all they heard was indiscriminate conversation from inside the office. After a few minutes, Mr. Ryan came out with a solemn expression. "Well?" Lanie asked. "Is Jenny okay?"

Mr. Ryan shook his head. "I'm afraid not," he answered. "Jenny broke every bone in her body. She was pronounced dead just twenty minutes ago."

Lanie's heart sank. "I don't believe it," she said.

"Do either of you know?" Mr. Ryan asked. "What drove her to do this terrible thing?"

"Yes," Rachel answered. "Did she tell you about that boy Ben Snipes at her school?"

"Yes, she did," said Mr. Ryan. "I don't like that boy...what did he do?"

"He told Jenny no one would care if she was gone," said Rachel. "And that was the last straw. That was what made her want to kill herself."

"We tried to stop her," said Lanie. "But she wouldn't listen. She just went up to the roof and jumped off."

Mr. Ryan sighed. "Well, you did what you could," he said.

"What now?" Rachel asked. "Are we gonna have a funeral for her?"

"I'm afraid so," said Mr. Ryan.

***

The funeral service was held the very next day. It didn't take very long to arrange, since it was a small gathering of people who'd known Jenny. Mr. Ryan, Mrs. Sierra, and some of the other orphanage staff members were there, as were a couple of Jenny's teachers from school. Various kids from the orphanage were there, such as Aaron, Trevor, and Brianna. And, of course, Lanie and Rachel were there, too. They both helped carry Jenny's casket and watched as it was lowered into its grave in the cemetery.

Even after the rest of the funeral guests had gone, Lanie and Rachel stayed in the cemetery looking down on Jenny's grave. "I'm so sorry, Jenny," Lanie said, tears streaming down her cheeks. "I should never have dragged you into this. I...I shouldn't have made you come down into the Pretty And Pink bunker with me."

"It's not your fault," said Rachel. "It was Jenny's choice to commit suicide."

"I know," Lanie admitted. She turned to Rachel and said "We have to stop her."

"Who?"

"Angelina. All of this, everything that's happened-it can all be traced back to her. She turned us all into girls and set up that fake foster home. And she sent us into exile when we found out what she was really doing."

Rachel nodded slowly. "Yes," she said. "We'll find Angelina. And we'll make her pay for what she's done."

***

Angelina lay in her lounge chair at the Washington D. C. establishment of Pretty And Pink Foster Care-the original place where the organization had been founded. Her assistant Bea was hard at work, manicuring Angelina's feet while Angelina read a fashion magazine. It was one of Angelina's favorite activities-just hanging out and chilling while her non-witch servant worked for her.

"Angelina!" a voice called. Angelina looked up to see her fellow witch Anna coming into the room, followed by the other Pretty And Pink witch Elena. "We have some great news!"

"What news?" Angelina asked.

"We found this news article," said Anna. She opened something on her phone and handed it to Angelina. Angelina saw the headline "Orphan Girl Commits Suicide" and read the article with intrigue. The article told the story of a girl named Jenny Nunez who'd been living in the Orphanage For All Ages in Atlanta, Georgia and experienced bullying at school. It had all come to a head the night before when she went onto the top of her orphanage and jumped off in a successful suicide attempt.

"Wait a minute," said Angelina. "Jenny Nunez...that's the same girl we admitted to our Nashville location right before Lanie and her roommates went poking around in our bunker."

"Yes," said Elena. "And wait till you see who's in the article's picture."

Angelina scrolled back up to the top of the article, where it had a picture of a broken Jenny Nunez being loaded into the back of an ambulance. In the background of the picture, there were two teenage girls watching alongside the orphanage's owner. Angelina looked closer and saw that those girls were...could it be? Lanie Evans and Rachel Miller? The other two girls Angelina, Anna, and Elena had been spent the last several weeks looking for?

"This is it," Angelina said triumphantly. "We've found them."

"I knew we'd find them eventually," said Elena.

"Bea!" Angelina ordered. "Prepare my car. We've got to pay a visit to Atlanta, Georgia."

"Yes, my lady," Bea said reluctantly.

Angelina grinned wickedly. Those foolish girls, she thought. They thought they could hide from her, but they were wrong. Angelina would now get her hands on Lanie, and it would be game over.

Chapter 15-Kidnapped

The next day was Sunday. Lanie slept in late that morning, but when she woke up, she decided to just go ahead and take a shower. While she was soaping down, she heard Rachel come into the bathroom.

"Hey Lanie!" said Rachel. "Conner's here!"

"Oh, shit," said Lanie. "Tell him I'll be out in just a minute!"

"Okay."

Lanie finished showering as quickly as she could, then dried herself off and brushed her teeth and did all that other bathroom stuff. Then she threw on a bra, a pair of panties, a black skirt, and a dark red shirt. Once she was dressed, she opened her dorm's door to greet Conner. "Hey Conner," she said.

"Hi Lanie," said Conner. "Sorry I kind of came at a bad time-"

"No, it's okay," said Lanie.

"Want to go for a little walk in the park?"

"Sure."

"Rachel, you want to come too?" Conner asked.

"No thanks," Rachel answered. "I've got some homework to do right now."

"Alright," said Conner. "I guess we'll see you later."

***

Lanie went with Conner to the park just a couple blocks away from the orphanage. As they walked, they talked. "I heard about Jenny," said Conner. "I'm sorry about that."

"It's okay," Lanie replied, even though they both knew it wasn't okay. "It wasn't your fault."

"Why'd she do it? Did the bullying at school come to a head?"

"Yes," Lanie answered. "But I don't think it was just that. I think it all started when Angelina turned Jimmy into Jenny."

Conner nodded. "I'll bet," he said. "If some witch turned me into a girl and made me bunk with a bunch of other girls, I don't think I could handle it. I don't even know how you did. Or Rachel. Or those other girls at the foster home you told me about."

"It's not as bad as it seems," said Lanie.

"Not for you," said Conner. "You said Jenny didn't adjust very well."

"Well...to be fair, she didn't even stay at the Pretty And Pink foster home for a whole day," said Lanie. "Right after she was assigned to our room, me and Rachel and Melody took her out to lunch. That was where I told them my secret, and Jenny broke down, and Rachel and Melody admitted they used to be boys too. And then from there we decided to break into that underground bunker, and...well, I already told you what happened from there."

"Yeah, you did," said Conner. "But still, everything Jenny went through-that would be a whirlwind for anyone."

"You're right," said Lanie. "What happened with her at school-I think that was just the straw that broke the camel's back."

"And it all goes back to Angelina."

"Yes," Lanie said ruefully. "Last night at Jenny's funeral, Rachel and I vowed that we'd stop Angelina from turning every man into a woman."

"How are you gonna do that?"

"I don't know. But we know that Pretty And Pink's Nashville location got shut down because of what we did. That's a start."

"What are you going to do next? Go to the other locations and burn them down?"

"Maybe. But there's still the fact that Angelina's a witch. And there's more witches working for her."

"You did kill that one witch...what was her name? Ruth?"

"Yes. But we kind of got lucky on that one."

Conner shrugged. "Well, if you were lucky once, you might get lucky again."

"Let's hope so."

Lanie and Conner walked a few laps around the park's trail before they decided they'd had enough. But when the two of them started heading for the edge of the park, a black sedan came in and blocked their way. "Uh...excuse us?" said Lanie. "We're trying to leave, and..."

Lanie trailed off when the sedan's passenger-side door opened and an all-too-familiar woman stepped out. The sight of this woman made Lanie freeze with fear. She'd figured she'd come face-to-face with her again eventually, but she wouldn't have thought it would be right now. Even if she had been expecting it, those cruel, calculating eyes would still have frightened her.

"Having fun, Lanie?" Angelina asked.

Lanie's face went white faster than a light bulb. "What the-how did you-"

"Come on, girl," Angelina said tauntingly. "Did you really think you and Rachel could hide from me forever?"

Conner looked between Lanie and Angelina. "I'm gonna go out on a limb here," he said, "This is that Angelina lady who wants you dead, right?"

Angelina glared disapprovingly at Conner. "Oh, and of course you've got a boy with you," she said. "You've already tainted yourself with the stigma of the male gender."

"Answer the question!" Conner demanded.

"No, I do not want Lanie dead," said Angelina. "But what she and I are going to do together, well...that's not any of your business." She waved her hand, and an invisible force threw Conner backward onto the ground. When Conner landed, he did not get back up.

"Conner!" Lanie screamed.

"Don't worry, he'll live," said Angelina, "To see the new world you and I will build together."

"What is it that you want from me?" Lanie asked. "Why haven't you just killed me already?"

"You'll find out soon enough," said Angelina. She snapped her fingers, and thick ropes materialized out of nowhere and bound themselves around Lanie. Lanie struggled against the ropes, but it was no use. They were tied too tightly around her arms and legs. All she accomplished was losing her balance and falling over.

"Bea! I need your help!" said Angelina.

The car's driver-a thirty-something woman who looked like she'd rather be anywhere else-got out and looked at Lanie. "Let me guess-you want to put her in the trunk," she said.

"No," said Angelina. "Put her in the back seat."

"NO!" Lanie shrieked. "You can't do this! You won't get away with this!"

"Yes, I can," said Angelina. She and Bea both picked up Lanie and put her in the sedan's backseat. Lanie struggled harder than ever, but it was no use. She was powerless to stop Angelina from shutting her in the backseat and getting back up front with Bea.

"Let me go!" Lanie said as Bea shifted the car into gear and started driving. "We-we won't let you change everyone's gender! We'll stop you?"

"No, you won't," said Angelina. "You'll all learn to embrace the new all-female world we will create." She turned around to the backseat and waved her hand in front of Lanie's face. A wave of magic sparkles passed over Lanie's face, and she fell asleep.

"Yes, sleep, my little girl," said Angelina. "Soon we'll arrive at your new home..."

Chapter 16-Assembling The Team

It took Rachel all day to finish her homework. Since yesterday was so busy with her and Lanie helping set up Jenny's funeral, she hadn't had time to work on her homework. But, after hours of hard work, she finally finished her assignments.

Rachel laid on her bed and sighed. What she really needed right now was a nice, warm bath to relax. Unfortunately, her dorm's bathroom didn't have a bathtub, so she couldn't exactly fulfill that need. Plus, she'd already taken a shower that morning, so she didn't really feel up for taking another one.

She was starting to wonder if she should go down to the orphanage's game room when she heard her phone buzzing. She looked at it and saw that she'd gotten a text from Lanie. "Oh that's right," she said. She'd been so wrapped up in her homework, she'd forgotten Lanie had gone off with Conner. But when she read the text message, her heart missed several beats. It read "Help! They found me! Washington D. C!"

"What in the..." Rachel didn't even have time to finish the thought. Right after she finished reading the text, she got an incoming call from none other than Conner Hawkins. She accepted the call and held her phone up to her ear. "Hello?"

"Rachel!" said Conner. He sounded panicked and out of breath. "Where are you?"

"I'm at my dorm at the orphanage. What's going on-"

"Oh, thank goodness," said Conner. "I thought they'd gotten you, too."

"Who?"

"That Angelina lady Lanie told me about."

Rachel was shocked down to her very core. "She found us?" she asked.

"Yeah. Me and Lanie were leaving the park when this black car came in our way, then Angelina came out of the car and knocked me unconscious. I just woke up, and Angelina and Lanie were gone."

This had to have occurred less than six hours ago. "Did they say where they were going?"

"No. If they did, it was after Angelina knocked me out."

"I just got a text from Lanie's phone," said Rachel. "It said they were going to Washington D. C."

"What?"

"Angelina must've hijacked Lanie's phone and texted me."

"So that's where they took Lanie."

"Yes," said Rachel. "And I've gotta find a way to get there."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," said Conner. "You're not gonna go by yourself, are you?"

"Well..."

"I'm going with you," said Conner. "You can't do this alone."

"Conner, you do know what we're up against, right? Real witches. Witches who hate boys like you. This isn't some video game. You can't just restart when you get hurt or killed."

"Well, neither can you," said Conner.

Rachel sighed. "You're right," she said. "I'll let you come with me."

"Okay. So how are we gonna get to Washington D. C?"

Rachel thought for a minute. "Diana," she said. "She's got a car. She can drive us."

"You think you can convince Diana to drive us all the way to Virginia?"

"I don't know. But I'll have to try."

"Alright," said Conner. "You do that. Let me know if she says yes."

"Okay. Talk to you soon." Rachel hung up and went into her Contacts. She pulled up Diana's number and called it. "Please, Diana, please pick up the phone, Rachel asked, pleaded, prayed.

To Rachel's dismay, nobody answered the phone. "No! Diana, please!" Rachel groaned. Where was Diana? She didn't go to church on Sundays, did she? No. It was afternoon. Surely any church sessions being held today would be over by now. Rachel's first thought was that Diana was off with Penelope and/or Nicole...but if she did, then surely she'd have her phone on her?

Rachel decided to try a different tactic. She opened the Internet app, went onto the Eastside High School website, and looked up Diana Jackson's address in the directory. To her relief, Diana's house was just a couple blocks away from the Orphanage For All Ages. It would only be a ten-minute walk, if that.

***

Rachel walked over to Diana's house, which was located at the end of a T-intersection. She knocked on the door and waited for a response. After a minute, the door was answered by Diana. She was wearing a red bikini, and her hair was wet like she'd just gotten out of the pool. "Hey Rachel," said Diana. "What's up?"

"Diana, I need your help," said Rachel. "Why weren't you answering your phone?"

"I had it charging while I went swimming in the backyard with my family," Diana answered. "What's wrong?"

"Lanie just got kidnapped."

Diana gasped. "She what?"

"Yeah. There's this crazy lady who's been stalking me and Lanie for a while, and...look, it's really complicated. But I need you to drive me and Conner to Washington D. C."

"Washington D. C?"

"That's where they took Lanie. We've gotta go there and save her."

"Why can't you just call the police?"

"It's complicated. The police can't help us." Rachel's patience was wearing thin, so she took a deep breath to calm herself down. "Look, can you drive us, or not?"

"Well, about that," said Diana, "My car actually got wrecked yesterday."

"WHAT?"

"I was driving my sister home from ballet, and then the guy in front of me suddenly stopped, and I crashed into him. I had to call a tow truck, and he said it would take a week to fix my car."

"What about the rest of your family? Do they have any other cars?"

"No," Diana answered. "My dad took our only other car when he went to his work conference in South Carolina. He won't be back till Wednesday."

Rachel groaned. "Great," she said.

"Rachel, I'm really sorry," said Diana. "I want to help you, but..."

"No, it's okay," said Rachel. "I'll let you know if we do find another driver."

"Alright," said Diana. "Good luck."

***

Rachel left Diana's house and went back to the Orphanage For All Ages. When she got there, she was surprised to see Conner waiting for her in the lobby. "Well?" Conner asked.

Rachel shook her head. "Diana can't drive us," she said. "She got in a car accident yesterday, so her car's out of commission."

"Oh," said Conner. "That's not good."

"I know," said Rachel. "And I don't know anyone else who has a car or a driver's license. Aaron doesn't have one, Trevor doesn't have one, and I don't think Penelope or Nicole do, either."

"Actually," said Conner, "I think I know someone else who can help us."

For the first time that day, Rachel felt a spark of hope. "You do?"

"Yes. He's a friend from church. He's about seven years older than me, but he still lives at home. And he has a car."

"Good," said Rachel. "Where does he live?"

"Just down the street from me," Conner answered. "Come on."

***

Conner led Rachel to the home of his friend from church, who he said was named Bryce Tynes. The house was just a fifteen-minute walk from the orphanage. Ordinarily, Rachel wouldn't have been bothered by how long the walk was, but time was of the essence. Angelina had Lanie bound and gagged in her car driving to Washington D. C. For all Rachel knew, they were halfway there by now. And Rachel didn't want to find out what Angelina was gonna do with Lanie.

When they got to Bryce Tynes' house, Conner knocked on the door. A moment later, Bryce answered the door. "Conner?" he asked.

"Hey Bryce," said Conner. "Could you come outside for a minute? We need to talk."

"Alright," said Bryce. He stepped out onto the front porch and closed the door behind him. "What do you want?"

"We need a ride. Me and Rachel here."

"A ride? To where?"

"Washington D. C."

"Whoa," said Bryce. "Why do you need to go there?"

"Remember my girlfriend Lanie? Who I took out to Starbucks last week?"

"Oh yeah, I remember her."

"She got kidnapped. And the kidnappers are taking her to Washington D. C."

"Whoa," said Bryce. "Well, I don't know if I..."

"I'll pay you to drive us there," said Conner. He pulled out a big wad of $20 bills from his pocket. "Two hundred bucks."

"Whoa," said Rachel. She silently chided herself for not thinking of offering payment to Diana. "Where'd you get all that money?"

"My car fund," Conner answered. "My parents have been helping me set aside money for when I buy my first car next year, but I think this is enough of an emergency to break out some of that money."

Bryce nodded. "Alright, that sounds good," he said. "How soon do you need to leave?"

"As soon as possible," Rachel answered.

"Okay, I'll start getting some stuff together," said Bryce. "But I'm probably gonna need someone else to help drive-"

"Diana," said Rachel. "She has her license. She can come with us."

"She's referring to Diana Jackson," said Conner. "My ex."

"Ah," said Bryce. "I don't know if-"

"It's okay!" Conner quickly amended. "Me and Diana are good now. I think."

"Well, okay then," said Bryce. "Where should I meet you guys?"

"How about Eastside High?" said Conner. "We'll all get our stuff and meet each other there."

"Deal," said Bryce. "See you in a bit."

***

Rachel and Conner both went their separate ways to go pack up the stuff they'd need. As they went, Rachel texted Diana to let her know the change in plans. Within a minute, Diana texted back saying that yes, she would be ready to go with them ASAP. Once that situation was taken care of, Rachel went back to her dorm in the Orphanage For All Ages and threw together some stuff for the road trip. She got a couple changes of clothes, her phone charger, her toothbrush, some toothpaste, and a book to read to pass the time. She emptied out her school backpack and stuffed all her road trip stuff into there.

Once Rachel was ready, she left the orphanage and walked over to Eastside High. There, she found that Diana had already shown up with her suitcase full of stuff. "Hey Rachel," Diana said when she saw her.

"Hey Diana," said Rachel. "Thanks so much for coming."

"Of course," said Diana. "I just hope it's not too dangerous..."

"Don't worry," said Rachel. "All you and Bryce have to do is get us to Washington D. C. Nothing else."

"I hope you're right," said Diana. "Where's Conner?"

"He's coming," Rachel answered. "I think."

A few minutes later, Conner came carrying a backpack of clothes and other personal items, but also a large black suitcase. "What's that for?" Rachel asked, pointing at the suitcase.

"This is some stuff I think will come in handy," Conner answered. In an undertone, he added "My dad's shotguns and hunting knives."

"Whoa," Diana said, her tone a little frightened. "You're not actually thinking of fighting whoever took Lanie, are you?"

"We'll explain everything on the way," Rachel promised, though she herself was also surprised that Conner had actually managed to scrounge some weapons.

After a few minutes, Bryce came with his dark blue Honda Civic. "Hey guys," he said. "You ready to go?"

"Ready as we'll ever be," Conner answered.

"Good," said Bryce. "Just load up your stuff, and we'll hit the road."

Rachel, Conner, and Diana loaded their stuff into the trunk before getting in the car. Conner sat down in the shotgun seat while the girls got in the back. "This is it," said Conner. "This is where the adventure really begins."

"Washington D. C, here we come," Bryce said as he shifted into Drive and started off down the road.

Chapter 17-Battling The Witches

As they drove, Rachel and Conner gave Diana and Bryce an explanation about Angelina, and Pretty And Pink Foster Care, and their history with the "foster care" organization. Diana and Bryce turned out to be a pretty good audience-they listened intently, and they gasped in all the right places. When Rachel and Conner had finished their story, both Diana and Bryce were speechless.

"I don't believe it," Diana said, looking Rachel up and down. After hearing the truth about her, she was starting to see her friend in a different light. "I can't believe you and Lanie were boys."

"I know," said Rachel. "I've been female for so long, I can barely remember what it was like being male."

"But why's Angelina so fixated on Lanie?" Bryce asked. "It sounds like she was after Lanie even before you guys found out what was really going on."

"I don't know," said Rachel. "That's what we're trying to figure out."

"What I'm really wondering is why she didn't come after you," said Conner. "She wanted all three of you, didn't she? You, and Lanie, and Jenny."

"Maybe she didn't want to risk attacking the orphanage and having the police come after her," said Rachel. "So she sent me that text from Lanie's phone so I'd know where to go to find Lanie."

"But what if she's not really in Washington D. C?" Diana asked. "What if this is all just a trap?"

"Trap or not, it's the only thing we've got," Rachel replied. "We know that the main headquarters of Pretty And Pink is in Washington D. C, and Angelina sent me that message she was taking Lanie to Washington D. C. So even if Lanie isn't there, we'll probably at least find another lead."

"I hope you're right about this," said Bryce.

A couple hours later, the sun started to go down. "So where are we gonna stop for the night?" Bryce asked.

Neither Rachel nor Conner had thought of that. "I don't know," said Rachel.

"I don't think we should stop," said Conner. "If we do, then we might end up arriving too late to save Lanie."

"But we can't go driving all night, can we?" Rachel asked.

"Maybe we can," said Bryce. "That's why you brought Diana, right?"

"Right." Rachel turned to Diana and asked "Do you think you can take over driving for a while?"

"Maybe," Diana answered, "But I don't know if I can make it the whole night."

"Why don't you sleep in shifts?" Conner suggested. "Diana, you can drive for an hour or two, then wake up Bryce to drive while you take a rest."

"That sounds like a good idea," said Bryce.

"But I'm probably gonna need some snacks to keep myself awake," said Diana. "We should stop at a gas station."

"Not just for snacks," said Bryce. "I've gotta top off my gas, too."

"Alright," said Rachel. "I'm getting kind of hungry anyway."

So when they came across the next gas station, Bryce pulled over to pump gas while Rachel, Conner, and Diana went inside the convenience store. They bought light dinners for themselves and a bunch of snacks for Bryce and Diana to keep themselves energized throughout the night. When they were done, they went back out to the car where Bryce was waiting. This time, Diana got in the driver's seat with Bryce in shotgun, while Rachel and Conner got in the back. Rachel ate her hot dog while the car started moving.

"Diana," Rachel asked, "Are you scared?"

"Yes," Diana admitted. "I don't think I want to know what's waiting for us in Washington D. C."

"Well, I appreciate you coming with us," said Rachel. "I really do."

Diana smiled, but she said "Don't thank me yet. Save it for when we've survived."

***

When Rachel woke up the next morning, it was already 8:00. Bryce was in the driver's seat, munching on Doritos as he drove. Diana was fast asleep, as was Conner.

"Are we there yet?" Rachel asked.

"See for yourself," said Bryce. He indicated to the right, where they were passing right by the Washington Monument.

Rachel's heart leapt. "We're here!" she said. "We made it to Washington D. C!"

"Yep," said Bryce. "I don't know where Pretty And Pink is, but..."

"How about you pull over?" Rachel suggested. "Enter it into Google Maps."

It turned out pulling over was easier said than done. Washington D. C. was such a big, bustling city with so many cars and people clogging up the parking areas, it took Bryce half an hour to find a spot to park his car. When he did, Conner and Diana both woke up.

"What...are we there?" Conner asked groggily. "Are we stopping for gas again?"

"The first option," Bryce replied. "We're in Washington D. C."

Conner looked around. "Uh...where's the Pretty And Pink foster home?"

"We're not there yet," said Bryce. "I'm putting it into Google Maps." A minute later, Google Maps had mapped out a route to Pretty And Pink. "Okay, here we go," said Bryce. "Let's get going."

After twenty minutes of weaving through traffic, they came to the Washington D. C. establishment of Pretty And Pink Foster Care. This one was even larger than the building in Nashville had been, standing at five stories high. It had the Pretty And Pink logo plastered real big on the side of the building-and, of course, the walls were painted pink.

"Wow," Conner said when he saw Pretty And Pink for the first time. "That place really is pink."

"It's not pink, it's salmon," Bryce said in a mock defensive voice.

Rachel got out of the car and took a deep breath. This was it. This was where she'd be able to rescue her friend and "sister." And she'd probably figure out what Angelina's obsession with Lanie was, too. "Well, we're here, guys," she said.

"That's it?" Diana asked. "That's...actually a pretty nice foster home."

"I thought the same thing, when I saw the Nashville location," said Rachel.

"So now what do we do?" Bryce asked.

"That's not your problem," Conner replied. "You drove us here, just like we wanted. It's up to us now."

"But you're not gonna just run in by yourselves and get killed by those witches, are you?" Bryce asked.

Rachel and Conner looked at each other awkwardly. "Wow," said Rachel. "We didn't plan this out very well, did we?"

Conner stroked his chin. "I've got an idea," he said.

***

Okay, Diana said to herself as she walked up to the foster home's front doors. Just act natural. Your parents just died in a car accident, and you've been living on the streets for days. Just act like you're desperate for a new home.

Diana entered the front doors and came to the front desk. There, she found two thirty-something-year-old women sitting at the front desk. "Well hello, young lady," said one of the women. Her name tag identified her as Anna. "What brings you here?"

"I...well...I need somewhere to live," said Diana.

"Really?" the other woman, whose name was Elena, said. "What happened with you?"

"My parents died in a car accident," Diana answered. "And I heard this place takes in homeless girls and gives them a place to live, so..."

"Well, isn't that ironic!" said Elena. "Usually it's us who finds girls to bring in. It's not very often that girls show up on our doorstep asking us to take them in."

"Well?" Diana asked. "Can I stay here?"

Anna looked at her computer before saying "I suppose we can."

All right! The witches (?) fell for it! But there was still one more thing Diana had to find out. "Where's the manager?" she asked.

"What?"

"The manager. The person who runs the place. Is he here?"

"It's a she," Elena corrected. "And yes, she is here. She just arrived a couple hours ago."

"Why do you want to know?" Anna asked.

"Well..." Diana knew she couldn't say Angelina's name, or else she might blow the whole operation. "Does she have to be here, to authorize you guys letting me register with this foster home?"

"Our manager is unavailable at the moment," said Elena, "But we can register you ourselves."

"Good," said Diana. She sat and patiently waited while Anna and Elena went through some paperwork. It took quicker than Diana expected. All she had to do was give her name, age, reason for supposedly being an orphan, and that was it.

"Well, now you're registered," Anna said when the process was done. "Come on, I'll take you to your new room."

Diana went with Anna upstairs to a large dorm room. Inside, there were five more girls folding laundry, playing on their phones, and doing other stuff. "Hey girls," said Anna. "Here's your new roommate Diana."

Diana forced a smile. "Hey guys," she said. "I'm...Diana."

"My name's Taylor," said one of the girls. "And this is Alexis. And Sharon, and Heather, and Ella."

"Is there anything else you need?" Anna asked.

"No," Diana answered.

"Very well," said Anna. "Have fun with your new roommates."

Once Anna left, Diana approached the girl named Taylor who had spoken. "Listen, this is serious," she said. "Is Angelina here?"

"What-who?"

"Angelina Aguilar," said Diana. "The founder of this company."

All the rest of the girls exchanged glances. "How do you know about her?" the one named Heather asked.

"Answer the question!" Diana demanded. "Is she here or not?"

"Yes," said Alexis. "I saw her downstairs half an hour ago. She was talking to Anna and Elena."

"So she is here," said Diana. She sat down on a bed and got out her phone.

"Hey, that's my bed!" Alexis protested.

Diana ignored her and opened her Messager app. She started typing a text to Rachel, but she was interrupted when Taylor came up behind her. "Diana, that's Alexis' bed," said Taylor. "And you..." She trailed off when she saw Rachel Miller's name at the top of Diana's phone's screen. "Wait a minute," she said. "Is that...Rachel Miller?"

"Yes," Diana said as she furiously kept typing her text message.

"The Rachel Miller?" Taylor asked. "Long black hair, brown eyes, pale skin?"

For the first time, Diana turned to fully regard Taylor. "You know her?" she asked.

"Yeah," said Taylor. "Me and Alexis shared a room with her and Lanie Evans back at the Nashville location."

"Wow," said Diana.

"How do you know Rachel?" Alexis asked.

"It's a long story," Diana replied. "Listen, we're here to stop Angelina."

"Stop Angelina?"

"Stop her from turning boys and men into women."

Every girl in the room gasped. "What the-how did you-"

Diana looked between the other five girls. "So it's true," she said. "You really weren't supposed to tell each other you were boys."

"I don't...I thought I was the only one..." Taylor stammered.

"It's not important," said Diana. "What is important is that Angelina's here. And she's doing something with Lanie."

"What-you know Lanie, too?" Taylor asked.

"Yes. Angelina brought her back here, and we came to rescue her."

"A minute ago you said you were here to stop Angelina," said Alexis.

"That too," said Diana. She pressed the Send button, and her text went right to Rachel's phone.

***

"Yes!" Rachel exclaimed when she saw Diana's text. "Angelina is here!"

"Great," said Conner. "Let's get the weapons out."

Conner and Bryce both got shotguns out while Rachel got a hunting knife. She knew it wouldn't be as effective as a gun, but she didn't feel comfortable holding a gun. She wasn't sure if she trusted herself not to literally shoot herself in the foot. Plus, a knife had already proven effective against killing Ruth.

Rachel, Conner, and Bryce busted through the foster home's front doors and saw Anna and Elena sitting at the front desk. "What the-" Anna asked.

"Where's Lanie?" Rachel asked. "Tell us now!"

Elena squinted at Rachel and recognized her face. "You're her," she said. "You're Rachel. Angelina was right. You did find a way to come here."

"Yeah, I did," said Rachel. "What did you do with Lanie?"

"Angelina's taking care of her personal business with Lanie," said Anna. "But you, on the other hand..."

"What's Angelina doing with Lanie?" Conner asked. "What does she even want with her? She's just another boy she turned into a girl!"

"Oh no," said Anna. "Lanie is much more than that."

"What are you talking about?" Rachel asked.

"Girl, you are so ignorant," said Anna. "You have no idea who Lanie really is." And she told Rachel, Conner, and Bryce the truth about Lanie.

When Rachel heard what Anna said, she nearly dropped her knife. "But-but that's impossible!" she stuttered. "How could Lanie be-"

"Don't question what is and isn't possible, girl," said Elena. She stood up and floated a few feet off the ground. "Soon, Angelina and Lanie will achieve Angelina's lifelong goal of ruling an all-female world."

Elena conjured a fireball and threw it at Rachel. Conner grabbed Rachel and pulled her aside to prevent her from being hit. Bryce tried to shoot at Elena, but his aim was off by at least three feet. Elena rounded on Bryce, but Conner was ready. He took careful aim and shot her in the chest. Elena barely had time to gasp before her circulatory system collapsed, and she fell onto the floor dead.

"No!" Anna hissed. She climbed up onto the desk and snapped her fingers. In the blink of an eye, Conner's and Bryce's guns turned into thick black balloons.

"What the-hey!" said Conner. "These were my dad's shotguns!"

"Oh, come on now," said Anna. "You can still have some fun with those balloons." She floated down to Conner and grabbed him by the collar. "At least, you can if you live to see the day." She pinned him against the wall and placed her hand against his forehead. Conner screamed in pain, as if Anna was using her hand to burn his skin.

Rachel gritted her teeth. This was it. It was all on her now, just like when Ruth was threatening Lanie. She knew what it would mean to kill Anna, but the rational part of her knew there was no other choice. She came up behind Anna and stabbed her in the back. Like Ruth before her, Anna gasped and collapsed.

Conner let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Rachel," he said.

"You're welcome," said Rachel. She turned to see Diana running up to them, followed by...was that Taylor and Alexis?

"Whoa," Diana said when she saw the chaos in the foyer. "Did you just-"

"Yes, we took them out," said Conner.

"Rachel? What are you doing here?" Taylor asked.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked.

"Me and Alexis got transferred here after the Nashville location got shut down," Taylor answered. "Angelina said you, Lanie, and Jenny broke into an employees-only area and then escaped, so-"

"It's a long story," said Rachel. "Do you know if there's another underground bunker here?"

"As a matter of fact, there is," said Alexis. "I saw the entrance to it just a few days ago."

"Show us the way," said Rachel.

***

Of all the disturbing things Lanie had experienced lately, waking up naked was one of the weirder ones.

She woke on a cold metal bed in a dark underground room. She felt a breeze on her boobs and her vagina, and she realized she wasn't wearing any clothes. "What...what the..."

"Good, good," said the voice of Angelina Aguilar. "The Awakening was a success."

"What-Angelina!"

"Don't worry, you can put your clothes back on now," said Angelina. She indicated a pile of clothes that were Lanie's, lying on the floor beside her bed.

Angelina had undressed Angelina while she was asleep? That thought was sickening. Nonetheless, Lanie wasted no time in grabbing her panties and sliding them back on. "What's going on?" Lanie asked as she was wriggling her way into her bra. "What did you do to me?"

"I performed the Awakening on you," said Angelina. "The Awakening where I activated the magic inside of you."

"What...magic?"

"Lanie, I've been looking for you for years," said Angelina. "For a long time, I've wanted to remold the world in my image-a world where everyone is a woman, and there are no disgusting men to tarnish our image. But I knew I couldn't do it alone. I needed someone else to help me in my endeavors. And that someone was you."

"I don't understand," said Lanie. She had now put on her skirt and shirt again. "Why do you need me?"

"You're a witch, Lanie," Angelina answered.

Lanie's jaw dropped. "I'm a witch?"

"Yes, you are. Your magic has been dormant inside of you since you were born, but with the Awakening ritual, you are now able to use your magical abilities."

"What do you mean? I don't have magic powers!"

"Yes you do. Try doing something. Anything."

Lanie looked around and saw a chair on the other end of the room. She imagined the chair levitating off the ground, and to her shock, the chair rose. No hidden strings, no magnets-it just floated on its own, at Lanie's will.

"Yes," said Angelina, unable to keep the excitement out of her voice. "You're a witch, Lanie. Just like me. Together, you and I can do amazing things."

"But how? How am I a witch?"

"Because of your parentage. You had a magical parent, and you inherited that parent's magical DNA."

"Oh, please," said Lanie. "My dad was no magician."

"No, he wasn't," Angelina said with distaste. "He was an abusive asshole. You were right to murder him. Your mother, on the other hand..."

"My mother is gone!" said Lanie. "She left us when I was little, and she never came back!"

"Little do you know, your mother has been looking for you for a long time," said Angelina.

"What are you talking about?" Lanie asked. "How do you know..." She trailed off when she looked at Angelina again. Suddenly, she realized why Angelina had looked so familiar to her. Her facial features, her eyes, her hair, even her voice...it reminded Lanie of herself. A lot of herself. That could only mean...

"No," Lanie said, shaking her head. "No, it can't be!"

"Yes, Lanie," Angelina said wickedly. "I am your mother."

Chapter 18-The Finale

Lanie gaped at Angelina. Deep down, she knew Angelina was telling the truth, but she still couldn't get herself to believe it. A horrible woman like Angelina...Lanie's mother? The idea sickened her to her very core. "But how?" Lanie asked. "How can you be my mother?"

"I hooked up with your father nearly seventeen years ago," Angelina answered.

"What?" Lanie asked. "I thought you hated men."

"I didn't always hate men as much as I do," Angelina replied. "I've always been a feminist, but I was open to settling down with a man and starting a family. But then Richard started drinking and beating you and I. Him abusive nature opened my eyes to how bad men really were. So I abandoned you and found three other witches to help me start the Pretty And Pink Foster Care as a front for turning young boys into girls."

"As for you, well," Angelina continued, "I didn't bother bringing you with me when I left, since I didn't want a son there to tarnish my image. But then I realized I had a lot of opportunities with an heir. If I turned you into a girl and told you of your true nature as a witch, then I could have someone to pass my legacy on to when I died. So I sent Ruth out to find you, and turn you into a girl so you could have some time to adjust to being female before joining me. I didn't expect things to happen the way they did, but the important thing is that you and I are reunited. Now that I have awakened your magical abilities, you and I can continue the quest to expunge the male gender from this world. Then we can rule as mother and daughter."

Lanie slowly shook her head. "You're insane," she said.

"Oh, Lanie, my girl," Angelina said with a creepy smile, "You'll find that I am perfectly sane."

"What makes you think that I'd join you?" Lanie demanded. "You killed Melody, you tried to kill Conner, you tried to kill Jenny, and you tried to kill Rachel! And you've turned hundreds of boys into girls against your will!"

"But not you," Angelina countered. "You agreed to let Ruth turn you into a girl, didn't you?"

"Yes, but-"

"And it was genuinely the right thing for you, was it not? It prevented you from being charged with the murder of your father."

"Yeah, but I'm a special case! What you and your witches are doing to all those other boys-it's wrong!"

"It's for the better," Angelina countered. "You will understand in due time. Long have I waited for you, my child, to come home. I never wanted you dead. It is your birthright to stand by my side...to help me exterminate the world's males."

Lanie ground her teeth. "No," she said. "I won't subscribe to your misandrist ideas." She faced Angelina and balled her fists. In that moment, she realized that now that she had magic powers, she could use them to attack Angelina the way Angelina and Ruth had attacked Lanie's friends. Lanie willed a fireball to appear around her fist and hurled it at Angelina.

Angelina dodged the fireball and glared at Lanie. "It's treason, then," she said. She thrust her hand forward and threw a bolt of green energy at Lanie. The bolt hit Lanie and sent her flying backward into the wall.

Luckily, Lanie recovered from the blow quickly. She willed herself to rise off the ground and hurled several more fireballs at Angelina. Angelina managed to block or dodge every single one of them. "You should know that it's hopeless for you," she jibed. "You have no friends, and the only family you have here is me."

"It doesn't matter," said Lanie. "Because I'll never join you! Never!"

"So be it, girl," said Angelina. She thrust out both her hands and shot bolts of green magical energy at Lanie. Lanie responded by firing her own bolts of energy back at Angelina. The bolts of energy met between the two witches in an explosion of sparks. Mother and daughter pushed against each other, their bolts of energy pulsing with green light. Eventually, Angelina managed to overpower Lanie and throw her backward. Lanie landed against the wall in a heap.

"I am very disappointed in you, Lanie," said Angelina. "I could've given you the world. Made you a queen. We would've been widely revered for bringing in the world's new all-female age. But instead, you chose to rebel against me." She advanced on Lanie with balls of magical fire forming in her hands.

"Hey!" said a new voice. "Get away from my girl!"

Angelina whirled and was shocked to see Conner charging down into the underground bunker. "What...a boy?" she said.

"Conner!" Lanie exclaimed.

Conner didn't even stop to quip. He threw the wrench he was carrying at Angelina and hit her square in the chest. Angelina doubled over and gasped. The blow hadn't killed her, but it had knocked the wind out of her for a few moments.

When Angelina had regained her breath, she looked up at Conner with fury. "Don't tell me my daughter actually found herself a boyfriend," she seethed.

"Wait," said Conner. "Lanie's your daughter?"

"Yes, she is," said Angelina. "But you, boy..."

"Don't you touch him!" Lanie barked. Just the thought of Angelina threatening Conner fueled her with enough rage to get back up. Lanie focused all her newfound magical energy into forming the biggest, most powerful fireball she'd created yet. Once the fireball had formed in her hands, Lanie hurled it at Angelina. Angelina barely had time to react before the fireball hit her. The fireball incinerated Angelina as easily as if she'd been doused in gasoline. The evil witch let out one last scream of agony before she crumbled into a pile of black ashes.

Conner stared at the pile of ashes that used to be Angelina Aguilar. "Did...did you just..."

"Yes," said Lanie. "Yes, I did."

"Whoa," said Rachel. Lanie hadn't noticed, but Rachel had come up behind Conner, along with...was that Diana Jackson behind her? "Lanie, you're...you're a witch!"

"I know," said Lanie. "I can't believe it either."

"Oh my god!" said yet another new voice. Lanie turned and saw someone coming out of a side door she hadn't noticed before. It was that lady Bea who'd been with Angelina when she came to kidnap Lanie. "You...you killed Angelina."

Lanie felt a jolt of dread. "I, uh..."

"Well done!" Bea exclaimed. "I've been dreaming of doing that for years!"

"Wait, what?"

"Do you have any idea what I've been through?" Bea asked. "Angelina hired me on as her assistant when she founded Pretty And Pink Foster Care, and I found I did not enjoy working for her at all. She treated me like a slave, forcing me to perform even the most mundane tasks for her. I was privy to her evil schemes, but she threatened me with death if I ever divulged her secrets. So I've been forced to live under her wicked thumb-until now."

"So now what?" Rachel asked. "If Angelina's dead, then...what's gonna happen to Pretty And Pink?"

Bea smiled. "I think I might be able to shut it down," she said. "But as for all the girls in our care, well..."

"What?"

"I think we'd better call an assembly for all the girls here," said Bea. "Immediately."

***

About fifteen minutes later, all the girls in the foster home were gathered in the building's auditorium-something that hadn't been present at Pretty And Pink's Nashville establishment. Bea stood on the stage with Lanie, Rachel, Conner, Diana, and Bryce at her side. "Greetings, young ladies," Bea said to the girls. "I have gathered you here with some great news. Angelina Aguilar, the witch responsible for turning you all into girls, has been defeated."

The assembled girls let out collective gasps. "What the...the rest of you were..." several of them said.

"Yes, you all have been gaslit," said Bea. "Angelina-and Ruth, and Anna, and Elena-they told each of you that you were the only boy-turned-girl at Pretty And Pink, and that you were not to divulge your little secret, but that was not the case. Angelina and her fellow witches harbored a hatred of the male gender and wished to turn all the world's men into women. But these kids have put an end to their schemes."

Lanie felt all the eyes in the room turn her way. "Yes, we did," said Lanie. "Me and Rachel here-we were bunkmates at the Nashville building. But then when a new girl was assigned to our room, and she broke down about how she used to be a boy too, it exposed Pretty And Pink for what it really was. Me and Rachel, and this new girl and one of our roommates-we broke into the Nashville building's secret underground bunker and caught Angelina's attention. We had to escape and hitch a ride on a train to Atlanta, Georgia. That's where we've been for the last month or so."

"That's where we met these guys," said Rachel. "Conner, and Diana, and Bryce. But when Angelina managed to track us down and kidnap Lanie, we came back here to rescue her. And we were able to kill Elena, and Anna, and now Angelina."

"That means we're all free," said Bea. "The witches' plans are no more, and Pretty And Pink Foster Care can be shut down."

"But what will happen to us?" Taylor asked. She and Alexis were both sitting in the auditorium's front row. "Will we be transferred to new foster homes?"

"Yes, but there is something else I can do for you," said Bea. "Since Angelina is now dead, I will have access to all of her magic formulas and potion recipes. I believe I can work from her gender-changing potion and reverse-engineer it to create a new elixir. When I have perfected it, I can turn you all back into boys if you so desire."

For a few seconds, the crowd of girls stared at Bea, not sure if they believed her. Then several of them started saying "Yes! Yes, please! I hate being a girl!"

Bea smiled. "I thought I might get that reaction," she said. She turned to Lanie and Rachel and said "And you two, I believe, were affected by those witches' magic."

"Yes, we were," said Lanie.

"And will you partake of my elixir once I have perfected it?"

"Wait...you mean...do we want to be boys again?"

"Yes."

Lanie hesitated. A month and a half ago, she would've said yes. Ever since Ruth turned Landon into Lanie, his/her life had turned completely upside down. But now, after everything that had happened...she just couldn't imagine going back. She'd been on this incredible journey, and she'd meet lots of great people-Diana, Jenny, Melody, Bryce, Taylor, Alexis, Aaron, Trevor, and most especially Rachel. As if that wasn't enough, she had a sweet, devoted boyfriend in Conner. She'd come to learn everything there was to know about being a girl. Wearing skirts and high heels, doing her hair, being a part of cliques at school...it all just felt right to her. It was as if becoming a girl had awakened something inside her that she didn't even know she wanted.

"No," said Lanie. "I'll stay a girl."

Bea looked surprised. "You will?"

"Yes," said Lanie. "I think life as a girl is what's right for me."

"Me too," said Rachel.

Bea shrugged. "Very well," she said. "As long as you're happy, then that's the main thing."

Lanie smiled. "It sure is," she said.

***

Before Lanie, Rachel, Conner, Diana, and Bryce left, they met with Taylor and Alexis again in the foster home's lobby. "Wow," said Taylor. "I can't believe you guys went through so much trouble."

"Neither can we," said Rachel. "And we weren't sure if we'd see you guys again."

"Well, it is a small world," said Alexis.

"Taylor I'm sorry that we kind of scared you," said Lanie. "When we were escaping the Nashville building, and we ran into you-"

"It's okay," said Taylor. "Now I know what was really going on that day."

"You're not gonna accept Bea's offer, are you?" Rachel asked. "Are you gonna let her turn you back into boys?"

Taylor and Alexis exchanged glances. "I think so, yes," said Taylor.

"So...you'll be Tyler and Alex?" Bryce asked.

"Yep," said Alexis.

"Ah," said Lanie. "Well...good luck, guys."

"We'll keep in touch," said Alexis. She and Taylor took turns hugging Lanie and Rachel-and even Conner, Diana, and Bryce.

After Taylor and Alexis left, the five friends started back toward the foster home's main doors. "Thank you guys so much for coming to rescue me," said Lanie.

"No problem," said Conner. "It's what friends do."

"No, you've all gone beyond the call of duty," said Lanie. "Diana, and Rachel, and Conner...and even you, Bryce."

"I know," said Bryce. "I never would've thought I'd end up driving up to save the life of a girl I saw Conner take out to the place where I work."

"Me either."

Rachel spoke up. "So Lanie...are you glad that you and I are gonna stay girls?"

"Of course!" said Lanie. "If I hadn't been turned into a girl, then I never would've met any of you!"

"Plus, if you were a guy, well...I've never been gay at all, so..." said Conner.

Lanie laughed. "Neither was I, when I was Landon," she said.

"Well, at least you're together now," said Diana. "And that's all that matters, right?"

"Right." Lanie and Conner both hugged each other deeply. After a minute of hugging, Rachel joined in, as did Diana. Even Bryce got in on the act. The five of them relished in their group hug as a celebration of everything they'd done, and everything they'd learned from their interactions with one another. They'd come to appreciate each other so much more after their adventure.

"So...now what?" Rachel asked when they'd all parted.

"We go back home," said Lanie. "To Atlanta."

"I'm driving," Diana said quickly.

"But it's my car!" said Bryce.

"You can take a turn driving later," Diana replied.

"I call shotgun," said Lanie.

And together, the five of them left Pretty And Pink to where their exciting new future awaited them.

Epilogue-Eight Years Later...

Lanie sat in the hospital bed, wrapped in bedsheets and a hospital gown. Standing behind her was her husband Conner Hawkins. Both of them were looking down at the little bundle of joy in Lanie's lap: a beautiful baby boy that Lanie had birthed just twelve hours ago.

"Welcome to the world, little guy," Lanie said with a smile. Giving birth to her son had been exhausting and painful for her, but it was worth it to get to hold the baby she'd brought into this world.

"You ready?" Conner asked. "Ready to be a mom?"

"Of course," Lanie answered. "As long as you're ready to be a dad."

Conner looked up and smiled when he saw someone enter the room. "Lanie, I think we have a visitor," he said.

"Hi guys," said a familiar voice.

Lanie looked up and saw her best girl friend in the whole world standing at the foot of her bed. Rachel was beaming with joy at the sight of Lanie holding her new baby boy. "Rachel!" Lanie exclaimed.

"Hi Lanie," said Rachel. It was all she could do not to take the baby and hold him in her arms. "You're officially a mom now!"

"I know," Lanie said with a smile. "It's funny, I never would've thought I'd become a mom back when...you know..."

"Everything happened," Rachel said with understanding. "Can I hold him?"

"Sure," said Lanie. She watched as Rachel gently took the newborn baby out of Lanie's lap and held him in her arms.

Rachel smiled at the baby boy her friend and surrogate sister had birthed. "You're gonna grow up with great parents," she said, "And you're gonna have a great auntie, too."

"And he'll have a friend pretty soon, too," said Conner.

"Oh yeah," said Rachel. She looked down at her own belly, which was much rounder than normal. Rachel was pregnant with her own baby boy, and he was due in just a couple weeks. "I'll look forward to introducing our sons to one another."

"Of course," said Lanie. She held her arms out, and Rachel returned her son to her.

"So what are you gonna name him?" Rachel asked.

Lanie and Conner exchanged glances. "I think we'll name him Landon," said Lanie.

"Landon?" Rachel asked.

"Yes," said Lanie. "I think it's fitting for him."

Rachel slowly nodded. "Yeah, I think you're right," she said.

Lanie held her son Landon and made him face her. "Landon," she said, "That was my name, when I was a boy. I never got to live the rest of my life as a man, because I became a woman, and that turned out well for me. Maybe living my life as a man would've worked, maybe it wouldn't have. I have no way of knowing. But you, Landon Hawkins...I'm very proud of you. Because I'll get to see you grow up and live the life I could've had."

The end...

Oliver sat in the police office, awaiting his fate. A lot of things had happened in the past few days. Oliver had came home from a friend's house to find that his house had burned down. Oliver soon found out that his family had died in the fire. The firemen had done everything they could to save them, but they were not able to.

Oliver had spent the night at his friend's house while the police and firemen had cleared out the burned property and recovered what little they could from the ashes. But Oliver was only fifteen, and he would need to either live with a relative, in a foster home, or on the streets.

Which was why he was in the police station now. The police officer had told Oliver that a certain foster home had stepped in and expressed their desire to take him in. And Oliver was going to meet a representative from that foster home. He was waiting for the representative in the police station's waiting room.

Oliver's wait was up when a tall, blonde-haired woman entered the room. She was in her late thirties with a delicate face, straight, flowing hair, and a soft green eyes. She wore a black button-up shirt and black pants. "Hello, Oliver," she said. "My name is Miss Johnson. I am the chairwoman of the Y. F. F. H."

"What's the Y. F. F. H?" Oliver asked.

"It's short for Young Forever Foster Home," said Miss Johnson.

"That's a dumb name," said Oliver.

"Oh, but it has a sweet meaning," said Miss Johnson. "Everyone who lives at our foster home stays young forever."

"Um...okay," said Oliver. He assumed she meant it figuratively, that everyone who lived at the Y. F. F. H. felt like they were young because of how fun it was. "What's it like there?"

"It's the most fun place on Earth," said Miss Johnson. "We have TVs everywhere, and we have a swimming pool and hot tub. We even go on vacation every now and then. You'll live in a dorm room with three roommates, who will be your new best friends."

"It does sound cool," said Oliver.

"Well? Are you interested?" Miss Johnson asked.

"I don't know," said Oliver.

"I understand you're sad to lose your family," said Miss Johnson. "I really am. But I can give you a new family."

"I mean...I can give it a shot," said Oliver. "For a week or two."

Miss Johnson was silent for a few seconds before saying, "Okay. I'll take you to our hotel to stay in for tonight, while we find a dorm for you."

"You guys have a hotel?" Oliver asked.

"We do," said Miss Johnson. "We use it for guests who are visiting our foster home, or for people like you who are waiting for an open room."

"How long will I have to wait?" Oliver asked.

"It shouldn't take longer than a day," said Miss Johnson. "Let's get you to our hotel."

***

After going through some paperwork with the police, Miss Johnson drove Oliver to the Y. F. F. H. It was in a whole different city, several hours away from Oliver's hometown. And the Y. F. F. H. foster home was the biggest building Oliver had ever seen. It was comprised of five stories, with glass windows and balconies on the sides. There was a patio deck ringing around the base of the building.

"This looks awesome," said Oliver.

"I'm glad you like it," said Miss Johnson as she parked the car. "But we're going to our hotel for now."

The hotel was only about half the size of the main building, and nowhere near as nice. It had only two stories and was indistinguishable from the suburban homes Oliver had grown used to seeing back home.

Miss Johnson took Oliver into the hotel and led him to his room. "This is where you'll sleep tonight," said Miss Johnson. "Room service will bring you your dinner in an hour. You should shower before you go to bed tonight. There's already clothes for you in the dresser drawers."

"You got new clothes for me?" Oliver asked.

"Indeed we did," said Miss Johnson. "We can't have you just wear those clothes for the rest of your life, can we?"

"I guess not," said Oliver. "What am I gonna do for the rest of the night?"

"Play video games, watch TV, whatever you want," said Miss Johnson. "Just so long as you eat your dinner and take a shower before bed."

"I can do that," said Oliver. "Thank you, Miss Johnson."

"My pleasure," said Miss Johnson. "I will select a dorm for you. One of my employees will come in the morning to lead you to your room in the main building."

Miss Johnson left Oliver to his room, which had a bed, a dresser, a TV and video game console, and a bathroom with a shower. Oliver sat down on the bed and stared up at the ceiling. He couldn't believe how lucky he was. Just that morning, he had been a homeless orphan. And now he was going to be living in a five-star foster home. Wait...was that sentence just typed out? Oliver really was lucky!

Oliver got bored of sitting on his bed after merely five minutes. He went over to the game console and found that-lo and behold-it had Call of Duty: Black Ops 4! Oliver had been wanting that game ever since it had came out. It had only came out a month ago, but it felt like an eternity had passed. Oliver's mom had promised to get him the game for Christmas, but here it was now!

Oliver started up the game console-a PS4? That's where it's at!-and played the game for the next hour. He had to pause it when he heard a knock on his room's door. He opened it to see a waitress standing there with a tray of food. "Room service," said the waitress.

Oliver looked at the tray and saw that he had a double cheeseburger, French Fries, and a chocolate milkshake-all of his favorite foods! "Thank you," Oliver said as he took the tray and closed the door. He sat down on his bed again and ate his cheeseburger. It was the best one he'd had in a while. Usually, his family went with the generic, dimestore burgers you can find anywhere at McDonald's or Burger King or Wendy's. But this one...it tasted more like Five Guys or Fuddrucker's! The fries and shake were good as well.

After he was done eating, Oliver played Call of Duty for a little while longer, until he was starting to feel drowsy. He realized he had better take his shower soon, before going to bed. So he turned the PS4 off and went into the bathroom. He looked into the mirror and saw his reflection. Oliver was thin and wiry, with deep blue eyes and sleek black hair. He had a small scar on his forehead from when he had fell on a nail at the age of seven. And now that he saw his reflection in the mirror, Oliver realized how dirty he was. He hadn't showered since the day his house had burned down, which was, like, two days ago. He really did need a shower.

So Oliver took off all his clothes and put them in a bin clearly labeled as a hamper. He took his shower, relishing the warm water and the soft soap. But by the time he was rubbing in the shampoo, he started to get a strange feeling in his stomach. It was a very, very mild cramp. He'd had this feeling before, when he ate something that his stomach didn't agree with. Oliver quickly finished his shower and grabbed a towel from the bathroom counter. He dried himself off, wrapped the towel around his waist, and went back into the bedroom.

Oliver opened up the bottom dresser drawer, wondering what kind of clothes that Y. F. F. H. would provide. But when he pulled out a pair of underwear, he knew something was seriously wrong. It wasn't a pair of boxer shorts. It was a pair of panties.

"What the heck?" Oliver asked as he sifted through the underwear drawer. But all he found was even more panties. "This can't be right," he said. Oliver opened up all the other drawers, only to find short shorts, skirts, bras, and even pink shirts. "These are girl's clothes!"

Oliver almost left the room to find room service to get help, but then he realized he didn't have any clothes on. So he wrapped his towel around the waist and went over to the door. But to his surprise, it was locked.

"Great," Oliver grumbled. "I'm stuck in a girl's room." He took his towel off and lay down on his bed. By now, his stomach cramp was starting to increase. Oliver couldn't believe how weird this was. Tomorrow morning, he told himself, he would talk to Miss Johnson and tell her the mistake she had made. So Oliver hung his towel back up in the bathroom and went under his bedsheets. It felt weird, sleeping naked, but he tried to just shake off his stomach cramp and go to sleep.

To be continued...

The next morning, when Oliver woke up, he no longer had a cramp in his stomach. But he could feel a need to go to the bathroom, down from his bowel region. He groggily lifted his blankets and stood up. He walked over to the bathroom. As he walked, Oliver felt something brushing against his back, along with a strange sensation on his chest. All the while, he felt strangely light.

Oliver entered the bathroom and looked in the mirror. When he saw his reflection, he nearly screamed out loud. In the mirror was a naked fifteen-year-old girl with black eyes, a thin body frame, and jet-black hair that went down to her mid-back. When Oliver moved, the girl moved. When he opened his mouth, the girl opened her mouth.

"What the heck?" Oliver asked, realizing his voice was higher. He looked down at his chest, seeing his two large breasts. He felt them with his hands, realizing this was all real. He brushed his hair out of his face, feeling that his skin was softer now.

But he still had to go to the bathroom, so he sat on the toilet. While he was doing his business, he looked down between his legs to see that there was nothing there. Oliver was now a girl.

It felt a little different, having to pee sitting down. But Oliver found that it was much easier to pee as a girl. As a boy, he had had to master his...er, aiming skills. But now, all she had to do was sit on the toilet and let loose.

After Oliver was done in the bathroom, she went out to get into the dresser drawers again. Now that she was a girl, the clothes in the dresser would actually fit her. She put on a pair of panties first. To her surprise, the panties felt comfortable around her new bigger butt, hips, and vagina. She then picked out a pair of short shorts and put those on.

After that, Oliver pulled out a bra and tried to figure out how to put it on. She wriggled her arms and head up through the bra, setting it around her breasts. Oliver then put on a hot pink shirt. She looked in the mirror again, and saw that she looked really good in her new clothes.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. "Who is it?" Oliver asked.

"It's a Y. F. F. H. manager," said a female voice. "May I come in?"

"Yes, please do," Oliver answered, remembering who had brought her here.

The door opened, and a woman came into the room. She was holding a clipboard. "Hello, Olivia," she said. "Did you have a good night's rest?"

"What happened to me?" Oliver asked. "Why am I a girl? And why did you call me Olivia?"

"Because you're a girl now," said the woman. "We can't call you a boy name."

"Well, why am I a girl?" Olivia asked.

"Because only girls are allowed at the Y. F. F. H," said the woman. "Miss Johnson had already registered you to live here. We had no choice."

"Can you change me back? Can you un-register me?"

"We cannot," said the woman. "Everything we've done is permanent. And now I'm gonna take you to your dorm room."

Olivia put on some socks and shoes that were sitting by the dresser. She followed the woman out of the hotel and up toward the main building. The woman took Olivia past the front desk and up the stairs. As they went, they passed several other girls walking around the halls.

"All these girls here," Olivia asked. "Were they boys too?"

"No," said the woman. "And Rule Number One: you are NOT allowed to tell anyone you used to be a boy. You were always a girl. Got it?"

"Yeah," Olivia said, nodding.

"I'm serious." The woman looked Olivia square in the eye. "If you disclose this information, you will be terminated. Is that understood?"

"Yes," said Olivia. A lump formed in her throat at the "terminated" word. She didn't want to know what it meant.

"Excellent," said the woman. "Now here we are at your room." She came to a stop at Dorm Number 107. "Here's your key," said the woman, giving Olivia a key. "Your roommates will be happy to take you to the mall to get you some new clothes and a purse."

"Th-thanks," said Olivia.

"Enjoy your stay!" said the woman. She turned and went down the hall.

Olivia took a deep breath. Her new life was about to begin. She opened the apartment door and stepped into the room. The room was big enough to park a car in, with four dressers, a couch, a TV, and two bunk beds. There were three other girls in the room. One was in her bed, texting someone on her phone. One of them was on the couch, watching TV. And one was folding laundry on her bed.

"Hey there!" said the girl folding laundry. "Are you the new girl that was going to come in today?"

"Yes," said Olivia. "My name...is Olivia."

"Nice to meet you," said the laundry girl. She wore a sky-blue shirt, purple jeans, and white sneakers. She had beautiful red hair, which flowed past her shoulders. She had a round face with green eyes and a wide smile. "I'm Bailey."

"Hi Bailey," said Olivia, waving. "What's your name?" she asked the girl on the couch.

"Oh," said the girl, pausing the TV. She was rather pudgy, with coffee-brown skin and curly black hair. "I'm Piper."

"And I'm Valeria," said the girl on her phone. She had short brown hair and a permanent frown.

"So...I guess I'm your roommate now," said Olivia.

"Yep," said Bailey. "And you're bunking with me."

"Cool," said Olivia. "What are we gonna do?"

"Well, today we're all gonna go to the mall," said Valeria. "So we can get you some new clothes."

"Where is the mall?" Olivia asked.

"It's just a few blocks away from here," said Bailey. "I'll just finish folding my laundry and then we can go."

***

Olivia went with Bailey, Piper, and Valeria to the mall about a half hour later. They went into the clothing store first, to get some new shirts and jeans for Olivia.

To her surprise, Olivia was really fascinated with the racks of clothes. As a boy, she would've just glossed over it, but now, she found herself looking over every shirt hanging from the rack. It took her half an hour to pick out a few shirts she liked.

After she tried on some clothes in the fitting rooms, Olivia had settled on two T-shirts and three tank tops. She also got a few pairs of jeans and shorts. But when she went to the checkout counter, Olivia realized she didn't have any money.

"Don't worry," said Bailey. "We've got you covered." She pulled out a blue credit card.

"You guys have credit cards?" Olivia asked.

"Yes," said Bailey. "Miss Johnson gives them to us. You'll get yours soon enough."

After the girls had paid for Olivia's new clothes, they went and got a purse and new cell phone for her. Then they went back to the foster home. By the time they got back, it was almost lunch time. Olivia, feeling hungry, asked where they'd get food.

"We'll go to the cafeteria," said Piper. "They serve good food there."

"Sounds good," said Olivia. They went up to the foster home's cafeteria, where Olivia noticed that everyone was female. There were no men at all. Every employee was a woman.

"Why aren't there any men here?" Olivia asked as she, Bailey, Piper, and Valeria got in line to get lunch.

"Because this is an all-girls foster home," said Bailey. "And Miss Johnson doesn't want any men here to-"

"Miss Johnson," Olivia muttered as she saw Miss Johnson sitting at the staff table. She remembered how Miss Johnson had came to her at the police station yesterday and swayed her into coming here and being turned into a girl. That lying...

"Here's your sandwich," a voice said, snapping Olivia out of it.

"Sorry," said Olivia, taking a sandwich from the cafeteria lady. She sat down at a table with Bailey, Valeria, and Piper. Olivia looked up at her roommates, who were happily eating their sandwiches like nothing was wrong. "How...how did you guys get here?" she asked.

"Miss Johnson came to us," said Piper. "After our parents died."

"Did...did she..." Olivia hesitated. "How did..."

"Whenever a local girl gets orphaned, Miss Johnson finds them and takes them in here," said Valeria. "She promises them that they'll get to live here as long as they like."

"How long have you been here?" Olivia asked.

"Five years," said Bailey. "I first came here when I was ten."

"I've been here two years," said Valeria.

"Two and a half," Piper added.

Olivia looked at her roommates again. They all looked to be about her age. "Do you...do you ever...miss your families?"

"Of course," said Bailey. "But Miss Johnson's really rich. She gives us anything we want."

Olivia looked at the staff table again. Miss Johnson was gone. "Where'd she go?" Olivia asked. "I need to talk to her." Too late, she realized she had said it harshly.

"Is something wrong?" Bailey asked.

"I..." Olivia remembered what the woman had warned her about not telling anyone she used to be a boy. "I just..."

"Just give it a few days," said Valeria. "You'll get used to living here."

Olivia sighed. "Fine," she said.

***

Back in her dorm room, Olivia got a little more acquainted with the room and bathroom. She and Bailey agreed that Olivia would sleep on the bottom bunk of her bed, with Bailey on top. Olivia also got a chance to load all her new clothes into her dresser.

"You don't have to worry about soap, or toothpaste, or tampons, or anything about that," Bailey told Olivia. "They're always stocked up in the bathroom."

Around that time, Olivia had to go to the bathroom again, so she went inside their apartment's bathroom. There was a sink with a bunch of drawers, like in a hotel room. There was a line of toilet stalls, and a shower area behind a wall. After Olivia had used the bathroom, she went back out to the dorm room. "What are we going to do now?" Olivia asked.

"Well, we can watch Stranger Things," said Piper.

"Screw Stranger Things, I'd rather watch The Office," said Valeria.

They took a vote, and ended up watching The Office for the rest of the afternoon. They got dinner in the cafeteria again, then went back to their dorm to go to bed.

As Olivia lay in her bed, she thought of everything that had happened today. She still couldn't believe she was a girl. Just twenty-four hours ago, she had been a boy. Now here she was, in an all-girls foster home. And, most of all, she had no idea how she'd became a girl. Was there some kind of magic? Did Miss Johnson have some kind of surgery done on her while she was asleep? No, that didn't seem likely. All Olivia could do was tell herself it was all a dream. She'd wake up and find out that she was actually a boy, and that he was safe at home with his family. His family had never died in that fire.

But Olivia could not have been more wrong.

To be continued...

Olivia was the third person to wake up the next day. Piper was already up watching TV, and Bailey was going through her clothes. "Good morning, Olivia," Bailey said when she saw that Olivia was up.

"Good morning Bailey," said Olivia. "Piper." Olivia got out of her bed and put her clothes back on. She had slept wearing only her bra and panties, since she had been accustomed to sleeping in her underwear as a boy. Olivia put her shirt and shorts back on, went to the bathroom, and then went and got the new cell phone she had got at the mall yesterday. She set up her old Google account on her phone and downloaded some of the apps she had had on her old phone. But when she was going to download Instagram and Snapchat, she hesitated. If the Y. F. F. H. staff didn't want her to reveal that she used to be a boy, then that probably meant she couldn't use her old social media accounts. Could she? Olivia decided to play it safe and start up entirely new accounts.

"You gonna take a shower with me?" Bailey asked as she went into the bathroom.

"Uh, yeah," said Olivia. "I probably should take a shower today."

"Then get some clothes and come into the bathroom," said Bailey.

Olivia got a change of clothes and underwear out of her dresser and followed Bailey into the bathroom. They went past the bathroom stalls and into the shower area. Behind the wall was a bench and a line of shower nozzles on the wall. Below each nozzle was a shelf with soap bars and shampoo bottles.

"Wait, these are the showers?" Olivia asked.

"Yes," Bailey said as she took off her shirt. "We all shower together."

"Uh...okay," said Olivia. A week ago, she would've been happy to be in a room with a naked girl. But for some reason, the thought did not arouse her now.

"What's wrong?" Bailey asked as she unclipped her bra. "Are you self-conscious?"

"No, no," Olivia lied. She took off her own shirt and shorts, then put them on the bench. She slid her panties off her body, then fumbled off her bra. Bailey did the same, and now they were both fully naked. They showered together, scrubbing their bodies and washing their hair. Olivia felt a little weird, having to take a shower with another person doing the same right near her. But it was over within ten minutes. After she turned her shower nozzle off, Olivia got a towel off of the bench. She dried off her full body, but when she went to her hair, she found that it was quite different. Her wet hair flopped around like a wet rag, and there was no way she could cry it off just by wiping it with a towel.

"Do we have a hair dryer?" Olivia asked.

"Yes, we do," said Bailey. "It's in one of the drawers by the sink."

"Got it," Olivia said as she got a towel to wrap around her body. She knew she was going to have to wrap the towel around her whole body, instead of just tying it around her waist. She carefully wrapped the top of the towel around her so that it hid her breasts, while also concealing her butt and vagina. She walked out to the sink, opened a drawer, and got out the hair dryer.

While Olivia was drying her hair, Valeria walked into the bathroom. "Hey Olivia," said Valeria.

"Oh, hi there," said Olivia. "How'd you sleep?"

"Good," said Valeria. "I just got a text from Stephanie. She's having a pool party this evening."

"Who's Stephanie?" Olivia asked. "She a friend?"

"Yes," said Valeria. "She and her roommates are our friends. We often hang out with them, have sleepovers, go out to the mall. They're nice people."

"Huh," said Olivia. "When's the pool party?"

"This evening," said Valeria. "At the mansion's swimming pool."

Olivia put down her hair dryer. "Oh crap, I don't have a swimsuit. I just realized."

"That's okay," said Valeria. "We'll go out and get you one."

"We couldn't have got one when we went out yesterday," Olivia grumbled as she felt her hair. It felt pretty dry now. She went back to the shower area, took her towel off, and put on her clean clothes.

***

After breakfast, Olivia went with Bailey and Valeria to the mall to get a swimsuit. Olivia ended up getting a red one-piece swimsuit, despite Bailey's suggestion to get a bikini. Olivia knew her late mother would not approve of her wearing a skimpy swimsuit. When she had been a boy, his mom had only let him wear swim trunks, and never a Speedo. So she knew a bikini would not fly past her mom's radar if she were here.

That evening, Olivia went to the pool party with Bailey, Valeria, and Piper. The foster home's swimming pool was on the first floor, just down the hall from the cafeteria. The pool was as big as an average public swimming pool, with its shallowest point being four feet and its deepest point being thirteen feet. There was also a hot tub.

There were six other girls there when Olivia and her roommates got there. "Hey guys!" one girl said. She wore a black bikini and had gray eyes, a pointed chin, and short black hair. "Is this the new girl?"

"Yes," said Bailey. "Her name's Olivia."

"Hi Olivia," said the black-haired girl. "I'm Stephanie."

"Hi Stephanie," said Olivia. "So you're having this pool party?"

"Yes," said Stephanie. "We've got pizza, and soda, and chips. And, uh, yeah. Enjoy the pool party!"

Olivia got two pieces of cheese pizza and a cup of Sprite. She ate her food, then went for a dip in the pool. The water was so nice. It wasn't cold but it wasn't too hot either. It felt great.

"Hey Olivia, want to see a trick?" Bailey asked.

"Sure!" said Olivia. She watched Bailey get up on the diving board and walk up to the edge. Bailey jumped on the diving board a couple times, using it as a trampoline. On her fourth jump, Bailey went up in the air, tucked her arms and legs in, and cannonballed into the water.

"You think that's something?" Stephanie asked. "Just watch this." She got up onto the diving board, got a running start, and jumped off the edge. She somersaulted in the air before splashing into the water.

"Nice one," said Olivia.

After they did some more jumps off the diving board, Olivia went into the hot tub with Bailey, Stephanie, and one of the other girls, named Sarah. "So, are you liking it hear?" Stephanie asked Olivia.

"Yeah...yeah, I am," said Olivia. "It was a little strange, adjusting to this, but I like this place."

"It took me, like, a week to fully adjust," said Sarah. She was a dark-skinned girl. "But now I love it."

"I've been here for a year," said Stephanie.

"Do we have school here?" Olivia asked.

"Well, not right now, in July," said Bailey. "But yes, Miss Johnson signs us up for school in September."

Olivia laid her head back against the pool deck and felt the hot tub's jets going against her body. It felt so good. She had to admit, this really was a nice place. She still didn't know why and how she had turned into a girl, but she didn't care as much now. She had gotten used to her new body, and the other girls here were treating her well. She was starting to think being a girl wasn't so bad.

To be continued...

For the next week and a half, Olivia continued to live her life at the Y. F. F. H. with her newfound friends. They spent their days going to the mall, watching TV, having sleepovers, and swimming in the swimming pool. One evening, Olivia even went to the movies with Bailey and Stephanie.

But it all changed one day. Olivia had arranged to hang out with Valeria, Piper, Stephanie and Sarah at Stephanie's and Sarah's dorm. Bailey was supposed to go too, but she had to stay in her dorm because she had gotten the barfs earlier that day.

Olivia had stayed in the cafeteria a little longer than everyone else, since she was coming down with stomach cramps and wanted to give her dinner some time to settle in her stomach. When the cramps died down, she got up and left. She was leaving the cafeteria after dinner to go to Stephanie's dorm when she ran smack into Miss Johnson.

"Well hello Olivia!" said Miss Johnson. "I haven't got to see you since you first came here!"

"No, you haven't," Olivia said. All of a sudden, her mind was surging with questions that she had wanted to ask Miss Johnson.

"I hear you're liking it here," said Miss Johnson. "Is that true?"

"It is," said Olivia. "I'm enjoying myself. But...but how did you turn me into a girl?"

Miss Johnson just smiled. "Oh, I can't tell you that. You wouldn't understand it anyway."

"But-but I want to know," said Olivia. "I'm glad you gave me a new home, but-"

"It's really complicated," said Miss Johnson. "I cannot begin to explain it to you."

Olivia sighed. "Well, then-"

"But have you kept the secret?" Miss Johnson asked, now in an undertone. "That you were once a boy?"

"No," said Olivia. "That woman said I'd be terminated-"

"Excellent," said Miss Johnson. "But that doesn't mean you can't have friends here."

"Oh, yeah," Olivia said, remembering where she was going. "I gotta go meet some friends." She went down the hall to where she knew Stephanie's dorm was. But while she was walking by her apartment, she felt a wetness on the bottom of her pants. Olivia stopped in her tracks, wondering what was going on. Had she sat on a wet spot? Did she accidentally let loose some pee?

Olivia decided to investigate. She went into her dorm room and made a beeline for the bathroom. As she went, she walked past Bailey lying in the top bunk. "Olivia, what are you doing?" Bailey asked.

"Just-just checking myself," Olivia said as she went into the bathroom and locked herself in a stall. She pulled down her pants and underwear and sat on the toilet. But one look at her panties told her something was seriously wrong. There was a big spot of blood on the panties. Olivia doubled over to look inside the toilet, and she saw blood dripping from her butt.

"Bailey!" Olivia called, panicking. "Help me!"

"What is it?" Bailey asked from the bedroom.

"I-I think I got my period!" Olivia called as she unlocked the stall door. "Could you come get me a tampon?"

"Do you not have one?" Bailey asked as she came into the bathroom and went over to Olivia's stall.

"No," said Olivia. "I'm new to this whole period business!"

Bailey frowned. "Aren't you, like, fifteen?"

Olivia bit her lip. "Just-just get me a tampon! And a new pair of underwear!"

Bailey went and got a tampon from the sink's drawer, while Olivia slid her shorts and panties off her body. She kicked them aside as Bailey came back with a tampon. With a little help from Bailey, Olivia was able to insert the tampon into her vagina. It felt a little uncomfortable at first, but she was able to settle it in so that the blood stopped coming out. Then Olivia walked out of the bathroom and got a new, clean pair of panties from her dresser drawer.

"How are you feeling?" Olivia asked as she was pulling the panties up.

"Better," said Bailey. "I haven't thrown up for the past hour, but my stomach is still feeling icky."

"Hope you get better," Olivia said as she put on a pair of jeans.

"Have fun at Stephanie's place," Bailey said as Olivia left.

"I will," Olivia said as she left.

At Stephanie's dorm, Olivia hung out with Valeria, Piper, Stephanie, Sarah, Andrea, and Vanessa. Andrea and Vanessa were Stephanie's other dormmates. They played some party games, watched a few episodes of Stranger Things, and then decided they wanted some ice cream.

"We should go to Dairy Queen," said Piper.

"No, let's just go to the ice-cream counter at the cafeteria," said Vanessa.

"That ice cream's disgusting," said Stephanie. "We should just buy some ice cream sandwiches."

They took a vote and decided to go to the Walmart on the corner and buy ice cream sandwiches, then go eat them at the foster home's swimming pool. Valeria paid for the box of chocolate chip ice cream sandwiches, and then they went back to the foster home. Stephanie, Sarah, Valeria, and Andrea went back to their dorms to change into their swimsuits, but Olivia, Piper, and Vanessa went straight to the pool. Piper and Vanessa didn't feel like swimming, and Olivia was still feeling her period cramps, so she didn't think it would be a good idea to go swimming.

But while Olivia was eating an ice cream sandwich, dipping her feet in the water, she could feel the cramps going away. She was almost tempted to go back to her dorm and change into her swimsuit.

"You sure you guys don't want to swim with us?" Valeria asked as she lowered her body into the water.

"I mean, I guess I can go back to my dorm and get my swimsuit," said Olivia.

"Or you can just swim in your underwear," Andrea suggested. She was wearing a purple bikini and was about to go off the diving board.

"Can we do that?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah. You can," said Andrea.

Olivia hesitated. By now, she had gotten used to walking around her dorm only half or partially dressed. But outside the dorm, it felt different. There was less privacy, more...

No, Olivia told herself. It wouldn't be that different from wearing a swimsuit. After all, a bikini was, essentially, a bra and panties made out of swimsuit material. Besides, at least it was all girls here. If there was a boy in the room, it would be a whole different story.

So Olivia finished off her ice cream sandwich and stood up. She took off her shirt and shorts, revealing her underwear for everyone to see. She went up to the pool steps and descended into the water. She settled into it, swimming gracefully through the water. She went off the diving board a couple times before she decided to go join Valeria and Stephanie in the hot tub.

"Wow, Olivia," Valeria said as Olivia walked up to the hot tub. "You're soaked."

"I know," said Olivia. "I just got out of the pool."

"Yeah, but look at your bra," said Valeria. "I can totally see through it."

Olivia looked down and saw that her nipples were bulging out through the damp fabric of the bra. "Maybe I should've gotten my swimsuit after all," she said.

"It's okay," said Valeria. "It's nothing I haven't seen before." She winked.

"Something a boy would love to see," said Stephanie. "I should know," she added under her breath.

Olivia's heart missed a beat. "What did you just say?"

"I, uh..." Stephanie hesitated. "I-I meant that I know firsthand that a boy would like to see your nipples, because I was-"

But before she could finish her sentence, a loud alarm blared. Red lights flashed throughout the room, and everyone froze in their tracks. Miss Johnson burst into the room, followed by two women dressed in black. "What did I just hear?" Miss Johnson asked. For the first time, she did not have a friendly smile. Every line in Miss Johnson's face was full of fury. Her eyes were angry enough to make anyone want to crawl away and hide.

"What-I-nothing!" Stephanie cried.

"I heard you," Miss Johnson scolded. "You were divulging secrets to your dormmates and their friends."

"She didn't even finish her sentence," said Olivia.

"Well, we're going to make sure she doesn't," said Miss Johnson. "Stephanie, come with us. The rest of you, go back to your dorms."

"But we-"

"NOW!"

The girls knew this was not the time to argue. They quickly got out of the pool and left the room. They didn't even bother to retrieve their clothes, they just went back to their dorms in their swimsuits and (in Olivia's case) underwear. Meanwhile, Stephanie was escorted down the hall by Miss Johnson and the two dark women to...who knows where.

"What happened?" Bailey asked as Olivia, Piper, and Valeria came into their dorm.

"Stephanie started talking about something," said Valeria. "And Miss Johnson somehow heard her and came in."

"She took Stephanie," Olivia said as she peeled off her wet bra. "And she told us all to go back to our dorms."

"What did Stephanie talk about that made Miss Johnson so mad?" Bailey asked.

"Well, I had came out of the pool with my bra all wet," Olivia explained, pausing to let her breasts bounce. "And Stephanie said a boy would like to see my nipples through my bra."

"She said it like she knew firsthand," said Valeria. "I think she was going to say she used to be a guy."

"What is she, transgender?" Bailey asked.

"I don't think so," said Piper. "Miss Johnson doesn't allow trans kids at the Y. F. F. H."

"Maybe she was just joking?" Valeria suggested.

"No, Miss Johnson said she didn't want Stephanie to tell any secrets," said Valeria.

"But what was Stephanie going to say?" Piper asked.

"I don't know," Olivia said darkly. She had taken off her wet panties and put on some dry ones. Unknown to her dormmates, she knew what Stephanie was going to say. Judging by what had happened, Olivia suspected that Stephanie had been a boy before coming here, and Miss Johnson had turned him into a girl and told her to keep it secret. Olivia knew that Stephanie would likely be "terminated," as Olivia had warned she would be if she revealed that she used to be a boy.

But what did this mean? Was every girl here a boy originally? If so, did Miss Johnson want everyone to think all the other girls were already girls to begin with? She was going to have to find out.

To be continued...

Olivia slept in the next morning. When she finally woke up at around 8:00, she reached for the spot where she usually left her shirt and pants when she took them off before bed. But then she remembered that after the fiasco last light, she had simply put on a new bra and pair of panties to go to bed.

"Hey Olivia," Valeria said as she walked into the dorm room from the bathroom. She had a towel wrapped around her body. "You ready to go get breakfast?"

"Well, I should probably take a shower first," said Olivia. She got out of her bed and went into the bathroom. She went straight into the shower to see that Bailey and Piper were soaping down in there.

"Good morning, Olivia," said Bailey. "Did you have a good sleep?"

"I guess," said Olivia. "How about you?"

"Not great," said Piper. "I was pretty worried, with the security cameras everywhere."

"Security cameras?" Olivia asked as she wriggled out of her bra.

"Miss Johnson has security cameras everywhere in this building," said Piper. "That's how she caught Stephanie running her mouth last night."

Olivia slid off her panties and laid them on the bench with her bra. "How do you know that?"

"I was texting Sarah last night," said Piper. "She knows, somehow."

"Does she know what 'terminated' means?"

"No. No one does. This is the first time someone here has been terminated," said Piper. "And no one has seen or heard from Stephanie since last night." She rinsed the shampoo out of her hair, then turned off her shower nozzle. Then she picked up a towel off the bench and started to dry herself off.

"But what was she going to say?" Bailey asked. "I'm really curious..."

"It's probably just nothing," said Piper. She wrapped the towel around her waist, not even bothering to conceal her breasts. "Stephanie was just being stupid." She walked out of the shower area.

But Olivia knew it wasn't just nothing. She knew that Stephanie used to be a boy-Steven, maybe his name was?-and she had accidentally let her tongue loose. Olivia knew something was going on here, and she wanted to get to the bottom of it. But to do that, she'd need to tell someone her secret. And she couldn't do that in the foster home with Miss Johnson's security cameras all over the place. She'd have to have someone meet her outside of the foster home.

But who could Olivia trust? Stephanie? No, she was terminated. Sarah? Piper? Valeria? Andrea? No, Olivia wasn't sure she could trust them. But then she saw Bailey, scrubbing shampoo into her hair. Bailey...Bailey was Olivia's best friend here. Maybe she could trust her.

"Hey Bailey?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah?" said Bailey.

Olivia paused. She knew she had to be careful how she worded her question, since Miss Johnson was watching. "You want to go get lunch at Chipotle today? Like a sit-down meal?"

"Sure," said Bailey. "Should we invite Sarah, or Valeria, or-"

"No, just the two of us," said Olivia. "I'll pay for it."

"Okay then," said Bailey.

***

Later that day, Olivia and Bailey walked down the street to the Chipotle down the street. They got in line and ordered a couple of burritos to eat. Once they got their food, they sat down at a cubicle.

"Bailey, there's something I need to tell you," said Olivia. "It's about the Stephanie incident last night."

"Are we just going to keep dwelling on that?" Bailey asked.

"I know you're tired of hearing about that, but this is important," said Olivia. "I think I know what Stephanie was going to say."

"Well, then, let's hear it," said Bailey.

"She was going to say that she used to be a boy before she came here."

Bailey's eyebrows knit together as she looked at Olivia suspiciously. "Are you sure?"

"Yes, I am," said Olivia. "Trust me, I know. I was a boy before I came here."

Bailey was stunned. "I...I don't believe you."

"Trust me," said Olivia. "My name was Oliver. Miss Johnson found me and brought me to the hotel she has next to the foster home. I went to sleep there that night, and I woke up as a girl."

As Olivia expected, Bailey was looking at her all weird. "Are you..."

"Honest," said Olivia. "I'm getting scared now. At first I thought Miss Johnson was just changing me to fit in with an all-girl's foster home, but now I'm starting to think all the other girls used to be boys."

Bailey shook her head. "I've been a girl all my life. And so were the other girls that Miss Johnson took in when she first started her foster home."

Olivia had a new thought. "Are all those girls still here?"

"Yes," Bailey answered. "But Miss Johnson has got, like, a hundred more girls since then."

"When did she found the foster home?"

"Five years ago."

"Then...she's been turning lots of boys into girls!" said Olivia. "But how is she doing it? And why?"

Bailey sighed. "Even if you're right, that Miss Johnson can turn boys into girls, how do you know that every girl that she took in was originally a boy?"

"I didn't say that."

"Yes you did."

"Well, I think something's going on here," said Olivia. "And I needed to tell someone the truth. But I didn't want to get terminated. Bailey, please promise me not to tell anyone what I've told you. Please. Miss Johnson will terminate both of us."

Bailey nodded. "I promise," she said.

"Thank you," said Olivia. "Now let's go."

Olivia and Bailey left Chipotle and went back up to the foster home. But on the way back, Olivia saw a familiar black car. The black car parked in the parking lot in front of the hotel. "Hey," said Olivia. "That's the car Miss Johnson used to take me here."

"It is?" said Bailey.

"Yes," Olivia said as she watched Miss Johnson step out of the car. With her was a tall, muscular teenage boy with straw-colored hair and a thin mustache on his upper lip. He followed Miss Johnson toward the hotel.

"Oh boy," said Olivia. That boy was probably gonna be Sarah's, Andrea's, and Vanessa's new dormmate-as a girl! "See, Bailey! Miss Johnson's bringing a boy in right now! To the hotel!"

"You sure he's not just a guest visiting?" Bailey asked. "Miss Johnson says-"

"Have there ever been any guests at the Y. F. F. H?" Olivia asked. Bailey did not respond.

Once Miss Johnson and the boy had gone inside the hotel, Olivia ran toward the hotel front door. She ignored Bailey telling her to wait up and knocked on the door. "Enter," a voice from inside said.

Olivia opened the door and walked up to the hotel front desk. "Hello," she said. "Did someone just check in?" she asked the lady at the front desk.

"Yes," said the lady. "Miss Johnson just brought in a young man to stay the night."

"Oh," said Olivia. "Is he-"

Just then, Bailey came in. "Olivia, I really think we should-"

"What do you girls need?" the lady asked. "Are you looking for Miss Johnson?"

"Uh..."

"How about you go back up to the foster home," said the lady. "I'll tell Miss Johnson to meet you there."

"She's right," said Bailey. "We should go."

Olivia and Bailey went out the door and into the sunlight again. "C'mon, Olivia," said Bailey. "I know it's weird, but at least we'll have another friend."

"I'm not gonna give up that easily," said Olivia. "There's gotta be another entrance." Olivia and Bailey walked around the exterior of the hotel, hoping to find a back door. They were lucky, finding a metal beige door at the back end of the hotel building. Olivia pulled the handle, and to her surprise, it wasn't locked. The door opened to a dark hallway lit only by dim lights from the ceiling.

"I don't think we should go in there," said Bailey.

"Well, we have to, if we're going to get to the bottom of this," said Olivia. She entered the hallway, with Bailey right behind her. The two girls followed the hall all the way to a staircase that led down into a basement under the hotel. Olivia went down the stairs, wondering what she'd find down there. Would there be a secret science lab? A prison cell?

At the bottom of the stairs, Olivia came to another door. She opened it and found herself in an underground room full of tables and desks. There were tools and papers strewn about the desks. On one of the tables, there was a line of beakers and vials right next to a black cauldron that sat on top of a stove.

At the end of the room was a cylindrical glass pod tall enough for a human to stand in. In fact, there was a human inside. It was a teenage girl standing against the back of the pod. She was held in place by metal cuffs around her thighs, wrists, and neck. There were IVs in her right arm, belly button, and forehead. She had no clothes on, and her hair was tied up in a hair bun. Olivia recognized the girl, too.

"Stephanie?" she exclaimed.

"That is her!" Bailey gasped.

Olivia ran up to the glass pod and pressed her hands against the side. "What happened to you, Stephanie?" she asked.

"Maybe this is what Miss Johnson meant by being terminated?" Bailey suggested.

"It might be," said Olivia. "We've gotta get her out." Olivia looked at the pod, trying to find some kind of release clamp. She didn't find any on the sides, so she figured it might be on the top. Olivia tried to climb up the side of the pod, but then she heard footsteps from the door they had came in from. Olivia turned to see a familiar face standing in the doorway, her face livid.

"And just what," said Miss Johnson, "Do you think you're doing?"

To be...concluded?

Olivia was paralyzed with fear at the sight of Miss Johnson in the doorway of the lab. The woman was just as angry as she had been last night, when she had took Stephanie away. She was looking angrily between Olivia and Bailey. "Why are you two down here?"

"Olivia made me," said Bailey.

"And why did you stick your nose where it doesn't belong?" Miss Johnson asked.

"I-I wanted to know how you turn boys into girls," said Olivia.

Miss Johnson snorted. "Well, perhaps I should tell you, since you're gonna end up terminated anyway."

Miss Johnson waved her hand, and the doors slammed shut. Bailey tried to open them, but they were locked. "I turn boys into girls with magic," Miss Johnson explained. "It's my specialty, as a witch."

"I should've known that!" said Olivia. "You put a potion in my food that I ate at the hotel, didn't you?"

"Indeed I did," said Miss Johnson. "But to make that potion, I need a certain ingredient-the X chromosomes from a young girl. My potion takes that X chromosome and imbues it into a boy's DNA. The X chromosome overpowers the Y one, diminishing it to nothing, so there is only X chromosomes. That is what turns a boy into a girl."

"To get that X chromosome," Miss Johnson continued, "I need to harvest it from a girl. I usually take a random girl off the street, but when one of my girls is terminated, she comes here."

Olivia looked at Stephanie, strapped inside the medical pod. "So these pods suck the X chromosome out of her...how?"

"It goes through her blood and sifts through the DNA," said Miss Johnson. "Then it converts the chromosome into a liquid I can use in my potion."

Olivia looked at the IVs that were inserted into Stephanie's body. "Is she...dead?"

"Not yet," said Miss Johnson. "She will be when my machine has extracted all of the X chromosome it can."

Olivia felt sick to her stomach. "Are...are you..."

"Yes," said Miss Johnson. "You and Bailey are going to be harvested for X chromosome as well. Until it kills the both of you."

"No!" said Bailey. "I didn't want to come here!"

"Well, you should've thought of that before you followed Olivia's bad example," said Miss Johnson as she snapped her fingers. Two more medical pods, just like the one Stephanie was in, appeared out of thin air. "Take all your clothes off, now."

"But-"

"Strip. Now."

Olivia and Bailey reluctantly untied their shoes, pulled off their socks, and took off their shirts. "Why do you do this?" Olivia asked as she took off her shorts.

"To get rid of all the boys in this world," said Miss Johnson. "Boys are so messy, and arrogant, and rude. The only way to get rid of them is to replace them all with girls."

"I never did anything bad when I was a boy!" Olivia exclaimed. "I was good!"

"So you think," said Miss Johnson. "Every boy is a jerk, no matter what they think. And my whole family is aiming to turn them all into girls and make this world a better place."

"You're crazy!" Bailey said, pulling her panties down.

"No I'm not," said Miss Johnson. "But I'm not as smart as some of the other witches in my family. You should've seen what my niece Christine did. She got a bunch of jerks at her school, turned them into innocent cheerleaders, and altered their memories so they only remembered being girls. I should have done that, too. Then I wouldn't have had to terminate you, or Olivia, or Stephanie."

Olivia, now fully naked, stepped up to the nearest pod. "Does it...hurt?"

"See for yourself," Miss Johnson said as she shoved Olivia into the pod and slapped metal clamps around her neck, wrists, and thighs. Then she inserted a needle into Olivia's arm.

"Ow!" Olivia screamed right as she felt the needle nosing its way into her veins.

"I'm sorry, Olivia," Miss Johnson said as she closed the pod shut. "I'd rather have terminated Vanessa or Riley than you."

***

Olivia fell asleep after an hour of being strapped inside the pod. She felt for certain that she would die within hours of being trapped in the pod. She was certain the Stephanie would die any hour now.

Olivia felt so sorry for dragging Bailey into this. Bailey had been her best friend at the Y. F. F. H. She was never a boy. She didn't deserve to be terminated.

But after sleeping through the rest of the day, Olivia woke to a pounding outside her pod. Her eyelids fluttered open to see Valeria outside her pod. "Olivia!" said Valeria. "Are you still alive?"

"Yes," Olivia said, fighting against her bonds. "What are you doing here?"

"We'll get you out," said Valeria. She climbed up onto the top of the pod and found the release clamp. Valeria undid the clamp and opened up the pod. Valeria got down and pried open the clamps holding Olivia in place. Olivia collapsed down to the floor. "Get up," said Valeria. "We can't stay here for long."

"We? Who's we?" Olivia asked.

"Us," said a familiar voice. Olivia looked up to see Piper, Sarah, and Andrea standing there. They had already released Bailey and Stephanie from their pods. Bailey was wide awake, but Stephanie was unconscious.

"You came for me?" Olivia asked. "How did you know we were down here?"

"I saw you from our dorm's window," said Valeria. "You two went down into the hotel and didn't come out. I got worried when I didn't see you at dinner. So I came down here to investigate. And now we're here to get you out."

"But-where are we gonna go?" Olivia asked.

"And we can't go naked!" Bailey added.

Piper held up a bundle of clothes. "Put these on," she said.

"Oh, thank you so much," said Olivia as she snatched a shirt, a skirt, a bra, a pair of socks, a pair of panties, and a pair of shoes. "What about Stephanie?"

"You should take her with you," said Andrea. "If she's still alive."

"Stay with me, Stephanie," Sarah was saying. She was kneeling over Steffanie, poking anf prodding her face. "Please wake up. I don't want you to die."

Stephanie wearily opened her eyes. "Sarah...is that you?"

"Yes," said Sarah. "We're rescuing you. Olivia and Bailey are gonna take you to go somewhere else."

"Where?" Stephanie asked.

"Away from here," said Valeria. "Far away, so Miss Johnson doesn't find you."

"But what are we gonna do about Miss Johnson?" Olivia asked. "We can't have her keep turning boys into girls against their will!"

"Nothing we can do about it," said Bailey.

"We should-"

"-Stop arguing for right now," said Valeria. "Get some clothes on Stephanie and take her out of here. Get as far away from here as you can."

"But where will we live?" Olivia asked.

"You'll have to find somewhere," said Valeria. "But we'll miss you here."

Olivia put her shirt on and hugged Valeria, Piper, Sarah, and Andrea. "Thank you for saving us," she said.

"You're welcome," said Valeria. "Now go find a new life."

***

Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie left the Y. F. F. H. behind them and went all the way to the end of town. They hitched a ride on a bus that went all the way to Chicago, where the girls crashed for the next few weeks. Stephanie was still weak from spending a night in the pod, so they had to live on the Chicago streets without going anywhere. They were forced to bed passerby for money, steal food from garbage cans, and drink from public water fountains.

For several weeks, Olivia felt hopeless. She and her friends were homeless now. They would never find a home now. But everything changed after a month of homelessness. Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie were sitting in front of the Sears Tower, holding out their donation tin they had been using for the past week. One man who was walking by paused to talk to them.

"You young ladies homeless?" he asked.

"Yes, we are," said Olivia. "Could you help us?"

"Why yes, I could," said the man. "If you're looking for a home."

Olivia gasped. "You are?"

"Why yes," said the man. "I run an orphanage for street urchins. I'd be happy to take you girls in."

Olivia was suspicious of trusting foster home owners, after Miss Johnson, but this man was very friendly. And he showed no signs of lying.

"We'd love to live at your place," said Stephanie.

"Then come with me," said the man. "Call me Mr. Hart."

Mr. Hart led the girls down the street to a large, six-story building. They went inside and were brought before the front desk. "Hello there," said the man at the desk. "Are you new here?"

"They are," said Mr. Hart. "I've been seeing them on the streets for the past week. I figured it was time to take them in."

"What are your names?" the man at the desk asked.

"I'm Olivia," said Olivia. "This is Bailey, and Stephanie."

"Welcome to our orphanage," the man at the desk said with a smile.

***

From that day forward, Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie lived their lives at Mr. Hart's orphanage. Unlike the Y. F. F. H, it was coed, so that meant they were able to make some boy friends as well. The rooms housed only two people, so Olivia ended up bunking with Bailey again, while Stephanie ended up with another girl named Geraldine. The rooms, to Olivia's surprise, were even nicer than the ones at Miss Johnson's. The mattresses were softer, the walls had a better paint job, and there were minibars in the rooms. Olivia loved Mr. Hart's place even more than she loved the Y. F. F. H.

While Olivia felt bad that there was nothing she could do about Miss Johnson and her schemes, she was grateful she was at least able to escape. And she had found two lifelong friends in Bailey and Stephanie. That in itself made her life at Mr. Hart's orphanage even better. Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie were now an inseparable threesome. And they all lived happily ever after.

The End.

P. S. Please comment telling me what you thought of this story. I'd appreciate it. :)

[Note: This is a sequel to "Wrong Bathroom" and "New Home." I decided to write this after comments on both of those stories saying that I should continue them.]

After having her gender changed in the school bathroom, Saige went to her last class, which was Algebra. But when the teacher, Mrs. Gillmore, was taking role, she did not see Saige Johnson on the list. There was a Sage Johnson, yes, but no Saige Johnson. Saige tried to explain to Mrs. Gillmore that she was Sage, that the bathroom had changed her gender, but Mrs. Gillmore didn't believe her.

"Saige, I'm sorry, but you are not in this class. Sage is the one who is supposed to be sitting in that desk," said Mrs. Gillmore.

"I swear, I am Sage!" said Saige.

"No, you are not," said Mrs. Gillmore. "Now get out of my class."

Saige left the classroom and sat down in the hall. She should've known this would happen. She should've known that everyone would think she was just another girl, and Sage was still out there somewhere. But what could she do now?

Halfway through the period, Saige decided there was no point in sticking around. She got her backpack and left the school grounds. She walked the several blocks down the Chicago suburbs to her house. She knew her mom would not be home from work for a few more hours, so that would give Saige some time to figure out how to break the news to her.

Now, Saige's parents had divorced five years ago, and Saige had ended up living with her mother. Her mother worked as a greengrocer at a local supermarket. They lived in a normal-sized house in the suburbs of Chicago.

Saige went into her familiar bedroom, and she was surprised at how...boyish it was. Wait. Did she just think that? This was her room! She'd lived in here for years! And yet the Star Wars posters, football pennants, and Funko Pop superhero figurines didn't instill the same feeling they had before. Now that she was a girl, she just...didn't feel into those things as much as before.

Even worse, Saige still had her boy clothes in her closet and dresser. She was grateful that that magic bathroom (she assumed it was magic) had turned her boy clothes into girl clothes that fit her. If only it had changed the rest of the world around her. That way, she wouldn't have had to worry about whether her mom would believe her. Mrs. Gillmore would've let her in her Algebra class.

Luckily, Saige still had her TV in her room. She turned it on and surfed the channels. She ended up watching Disney Channel for the rest of the afternoon-something she might not have done as a boy. But as a girl, she found herself liking new things.

At 5:00, Saige went to sit at the kitchen table to wait for her mom. She knew she would be home within 15 minutes, and the kitchen table felt like as good a place as any to have a discussion about how Saige was now a girl. When the key turned in the lock, Saige felt her heart speeding up. This was it. This was where her mom would find out the truth.

"Sage, I'm home!" Saige's mom said as she entered her house.

"Hi, Mom," Saige said in a slightly uneasy voice. "It's me."

Saige's mom stared at the girl at her kitchen table. "Who...who are you?"

"I'm Saige. Your son," said Saige. "Or daughter now."

"What-what are you talking about?" Saige's mom asked.

"I went into the girl's bathroom by accident," said Saige. "And it turned me into a girl."

Saige's mom's jaw dropped. "You can't be serious," she said.

"I am," said Saige.

Saige's mom raised an eyebrow. "How long ago did Dad and I split up?"

"Five years ago," said Saige. "Because you and him kept getting in arguments. And because you had different ideas for what you wanted to do with your lives."

Saige's mom thought for a moment. Only her son-er, daughter-would know that. But she wanted further proof. "Okay, where did Dad keep his motorcycle when he lived with us?"

"He didn't even have a motorcycle," said Saige.

Her mom sat down next to her daughter. "Oh, Sage," she said. "Er, can I still call you Sage?"

"Yeah," said Saige. "Sage can be a girl's name, too. But with an 'i.'"

"Wow," said Saige's mom. "I finally have the daughter I never had."

"Don't-don't you like having a son?" Saige asked.

"I mean, I do," said Saige's mom. "But I always wanted a daughter."

"I dunno," Saige said uneasily. "I mean, I really liked being a boy."

"Being a girl isn't all bad," said Saige's mom. "I can teach you about womanhood. We'll get you some new clothes, sell your old ones."

Saige stared at her mother. "You're taking this way better than I thought you would."

"Well, I wouldn't want to freak out, would I?" Saige's mom asked. "I hardly think that would help anything."

"You're right," said Saige. "It wouldn't turn me back into a boy at all."

Saige's mom frowned. "Did you say the bathroom turned you into a girl? At school?"

"Yes," said Saige. "I wish I knew why it did that..."

To be continued...

[credit to jessicac119 and Beverly Taff for giving me the idea to continue those earlier stories]

Miss Johnson was angry and worried.

She was the chairwoman of the Y. F. F. H, which was a foster home for teenage girls. The Y. F. F. H's purpose was to take orphaned kids and give them a new home with a new family in their dormmates. But what only Miss Johnson knew was that she was a witch who despised boys. She viewed them as a disgrace to humanity and wanted women to take over. So whenever Miss Johnson found an orphaned boy, she would turn him into a girl before letting him move in to a dorm in her foster home. But the rule was that the new girl had to keep her previous male identity secret. Miss Johnson wanted every boy-turned-girl to think that they were the only one of their kind at the Y. F. F. H. She knew that if all the girls knew that all their dormmates and friends used to be boys, then there would be a rebellion that ended with Miss Johnson getting sued and possibly executed.

For the past few years, Miss Johnson's system had worked great. It had helped that a fair number of the kids she took in were already girls to begin with, so that made it easier. She established a rule that anyone who spilled their secret would be terminated-that is, they'd be locked up in Miss Johnson's lab to be used as a source for X chromosomes. X chromosomes were an ingredient in the potion Miss Johnson used to turn boys into girls. It needed heavy X chromosomes so as to overload the Y chromosome in a boy, making him female.

But it had all changed two and a half weeks ago. Miss Johnson had found a boy named Oliver, whose parents had died in a fire. She had turned Oliver into Olivia and had her move into a dorm with three other girls. For a week or two, things had worked out great. Olivia had bonded with her dormmates Bailey, Valeria, and Piper, as well as some of the other girls. But one evening, when Stephanie let it slip that she used to be a boy, Miss Johnson had been forced to terminate her. The very next day, Olivia had snuck into Miss Johnson's lab, bringing Bailey with her. Miss Johnson had locked all three of them up in her lab's pods, which would harvest X chromosomes from the girls until the girls lost their life force.

The day after that, Miss Johnson had gone down into her lab to find Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie gone. She went berserk once again. How had the girls escaped? Did they get magic powers of their own and break out themselves? Did someone rescue them? Miss Johnson regretted not having security cameras in her lab a long time ago.

But if Olivia and her friends had escaped, then where were they now? Were they homeless, living on the streets? But Miss Johnson had drove all through the town and not seen any sign of Olivia, Bailey, or Stephanie. She was really worried that they might have gone and told the authorities about what Miss Johnson really did to the boys she took in. If they did, then Miss Johnson would be screwed big-time.

For two weeks, nothing happened. Miss Johnson continued to bring in new girls to join her foster home, with no police asking questions. She stopped worrying that she would be called on it. Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie were either dead or in a new home, not telling anyone about what they had gone through.

But one day, Miss Johnson's fears came back to bite her. An inspector came to visit the Y. F. F. H, to check and make sure it was being run properly. The inspector was a man in a black suit and red tie. He came to meet Miss Johnson at the front desk, and Miss Johnson took him on a tour of the foster home. The inspector checked off all the boxes on his clipboard, meaning that the Y. F. F. H. met the government's standards for a proper foster home. After the tour, the inspector asked Miss Johnson to have a private conversation in the hotel next to the main building. Miss Johnson reluctantly agreed.

"Well, Miss Johnson," the inspector said when they were all alone. "Just recently, we put it on record that Oliver Walker had been adopted by your foster home. We also saw that many other young teenage boys were on file as living here. And yet I see no boys here. Only girls."

Miss Johnson's heart dropped like a stone. "What are you talking about? There are boys here. Just...just not on the floor I showed you around."

"Maybe so," the inspector grumbled. "Can you bring Oliver down here, so I can talk to him about how he likes it here?"

"I can't," said Miss Johnson. "He's off with his friends."

"What time will he be back?"

Miss Johnson bit her lip. In a situation like this, the best thing a witch could do was turn the inspector into a mouse or a lizard, so he wouldn't be of any more worry to her. But that would lead to a missing person case, and the cops would be all over Miss Johnson. So there was only one other course of action.

"You don't need to talk to Oliver," Miss Johnson said, placing her hand on the inspector's head. She focused all her magic into his brain, altering his memory. "He is living a great life here."

The inspector stared blankly into space for a few seconds before woozily saying, "I'm sorry, what was I saying?"

Miss Johnson smiled. "You were saying that I passed your test. My foster home meets your requirements."

The inspector nodded. "Yes, thank you," he said. "Sorry for the confusion."

"No worries," Miss Johnson said as the inspector left.

The moment he was gone, Miss Johnson started to panic. The authorities were on to them. From the way the inspector had been talking, Miss Johnson was sure he was suspicious about Oliver/Olivia. He had probably been tipped off by someone who knew the truth. Could that mean Olivia had told someone about Miss Johnson's true nature?

This was enough. Miss Johnson couldn't take anymore. She had to find Olivia, and Bailey and Stephanie, and get rid of them for good. The problem was, she had no leads on them. And she couldn't file a missing person report with the police, as they were under the impression that the girls were still at her foster home.

But wait a minute. What if the girls' dormmates had helped them escape?

Miss Johnson couldn't believe she hadn't thought of it before. The bond between girls at her foster home was a strong one. And, since Stephanie, Olivia, and Bailey were the first girls to be terminated, it made sense that the other girls would want to get to the bottom of things. Miss Johnson was furious with herself for not thinking of this before.

So, later that evening, after dinner, Miss Johnson had all the girls in the Y. F. F. H. gather in the cafeteria. Miss Johnson had them all line up in a straight line.

"Good evening," Miss Johnson said, pretending to be cheery and happy. "Now, you all remember Olivia, and Stephanie, and Bailey."

Some of the girls-especially Valeria, Piper, Sarah, and Andrea-shifted uncomfortably.

"In case you've forgotten, Stephanie was terminated a few weeks back, for telling a secret she was supposed to keep. And, shortly thereafter, Olivia and Bailey disappeared," Miss Johnson explained. She was the only one who knew that the latter two girls had found her lab. No one else knew that they had been terminated, then mysteriously vanished. "Now, today, an inspector came to visit our foster home. He was worried about our sisters' disappearance. I would ask anyone who knows anything to step forward."

No one stepped forward.

"Now, now," said Miss Johnson. "If you got anything, even a good-bye text, please tell me-"

"It was me!" Valeria blurted out, stepping forward. "I went into your lab. I broke them out!"

Miss Johnson's falsely happy smile melted. "You did what?"

"Yes," said Valeria. "I saw them go into the hotel. I went looking for them. I broke them out." Piper started to say something, but Valeria elbowed her. "I don't know where they are now, I swear."

Miss Johnson's eyes narrowed. "You've said enough," she said. "Now come with me." Miss Johnson took Valeria by the wrist and dragged her out of the cafeteria. "The rest of you are dismissed!" she told the other girls.

Miss Johnson led Valeria straight to her lab under the hotel. Once the two of them were inside, Miss Johnson faced Valeria. "Are you sure you don't know where your friends are?"

"I swear, on my life, and the creation of this world, I do not know!" said Valeria. "I haven't heard from Olivia, or Bailey, or Stephanie, since they left."

"Fair enough," said Miss Johnson. "But you're still terminated."

"But-"

"You heard me," said Miss Johnson. "Take all your clothes off. Now."

Valeria, having seen her friends terminated down here, knew what would become of her. She reluctantly took off her socks and shoes, then her shirt and bra. When she was sliding her shorts down, her cell phone fell out of her pocket.

Miss Johnson eyed the cell phone. Maybe...

"I'll take this," Miss Johnson said, picking up the cell phone.

"What-what are you going to do with it?" Valeria asked as she took off her panties.

"That's no concern of yours," Miss Johnson said, pocketing the cell phone. "Now, you know what happens down here. You've been here before."

Valeria didn't put up much of a fight as Miss Johnson locked her in a pod and inserted needles into her skin. She must have subjected herself to her fate and accepted her defeat.

After Valeria was shut in her pod, Miss Johnson took out Valeria's phone. It required a passcode to open, but that was no big deal. Miss Johnson simply waved her hand, and the passcode solved itself. Miss Johnson scrolled through the Contacts section on Valeria's phone, looking for Olivia. She struck gold almost at once, finding Olivia's phone number.

"I have you now," Miss Johnson said, smiling. She could only hope that Olivia still had her cell phone.

To be continued...

After their kitchen-table conversation, Saige and her mother went out to go clothes shopping. They first got dinner at Panda Express (Saige no longer felt a desire to go to McDonald's), then went to the mall.

Using the tags on Saige's current clothes, Saige and her mother were able to find underwear that fit her. Saige tried on a few sizes of shirts and pants, eventually finding the perfect size for her. Saige and her mother purchased ten shirts, three pairs of jeans, four pairs of shorts, a couple skirts, and a bikini swimsuit.

After they went and sold all of Saige's old boy clothes at a thrift store, Saige and her mother went home. On returning, Saige realized she needed to use the bathroom again.

"I take it you know how to use the bathroom as a girl?" Saige's mom asked.

"It should be easy enough," said Saige. "Just sit down on the toilet, let loose."

Saige's mom nodded. "Pretty much."

So Saige went into the bathroom, lifted up her dress' skirt and pulled down her panties. Like she expected, it was really easy to sit down on the toilet and let her pee loose. She was pretty relieved that she no longer had to aim with her penis. Her mom was always complaining about having to clean the floor around the toilet, and Sage had defended himself saying how hard it was to aim. But now, it was much easier for Saige to pee.

After she got out of the bathroom, Saige's mom asked her if she wanted to go swimming at the local swimming pool. Saige said yes, and her mom pulled out the bikini they had bought for her. Then Saige went into her bedroom to change.

"Hey, if you need any help with anything, just let me know," Saige's mom said from outside the door.

"I will," Saige said as she took off her dress. She faced herself in the mirror, now only in her bra and panties. She almost hesitated to take them off, not quite ready for a full view of herself as a female. But she knew she had to. So she reached up, felt around the back of her bra, and found a clip holding it together. After some fumbling, Saige undid the clip and was able to take off her bra much easier. Then she slid off her panties.

Saige looked in the mirror, seeing herself naked for the first time as a girl. Her hips were now smaller, making her body look like an hourglass. Her butt was big enough to get any boy's attention. She ran her hands over her breasts, feeling the harder and more erect nipples. Once she was done with that, her attention turned to her new vagina. Wow. Saige had been so used to seeing her junk hanging between her legs, but now there was nothing. Just a flat crotch with a crack in it, covered in curly blonde pubic hair.

"You okay in there?" Saige's mom asked from outside.

"Yeah, I'm good," Saige said as she took her bikini. She puller up the bottom and slid on the top. It took some fumbling to set her breasts inside the bikini top, but she managed. Saige walked out of her bedroom wearing only her bikini, where her mom was waiting.

"Wow, you look so good in that," said Saige's mom.

"I know," Saige said with a smile. "Let's go swim."

***

At the swimming pool, Saige found that swimming was as fun as ever. As a boy, she had been on the swim team for the summer. The season had ended last week, but it felt so good to be in the water again. Even though her hair got really wet and heavy, Saige didn't mind. She loved it so much.

After swimming for a little while, Saige had to go use the bathroom again. She wasn't a bit surprised to see that the girl's bathroom looked a lot like the boy's bathroom-except with an extra toilet stall where the urinal should be. After Saige was finished using said toilet stall, she came out and ran smack into Olivia.

"Oh! Hi Olivia," Saige said. She remembered how earlier that day, when she had came out of the bathroom stall after having her gender changed, Olivia had seen her and figured out what had happened. Saige was surprised to see Olivia here now.

"Hello, Sage," said Olivia. Apparently she recognized her. "Or should I say, Saige."

"Yeah, it's me," said Saige.

"You getting used to being a girl?" Olivia asked.

"Yeah," Saige said as she washed her hands. "My mom and I went to the store and bought a bunch of girl clothes. And when we get home from the pool tonight, my mom's gonna go onto the school website and have my identity changed to a girl."

"You mean on the school records?" Olivia asked.

"Yes," said Saige. "That way I can keep going to school like I used to."

"That's good," said Olivia. "What are you gonna tell your friends?"

"What?"

"Your...boy friends," said Olivia. "Like the ones you had when you were a boy."

Saige hadn't thought of that. Her only good boy friend had been Tony Carson. Would he believe her if she told him what had happened? Or would he just think she was another girl trying to hit on him?

"I guess I'll have to find out," said Saige.

To be continued...

The next morning, Saige woke up to her alarm blaring. She hit the Snooze bar and got up for the day. She went down to the kitchen, still wearing her pajamas. While she was making herself a bowl of cereal, Saige's mom came into the kitchen.

"Good morning, princess," Saige's mom said.

"Hey Mom," said Saige. "Hard to believe I was a boy 24 hours ago."

Her mom laughed. "I know. I have to leave in twenty minutes, so you should take a shower real soon."

"What?"

"A shower," said Saige's mom. "I think I should show you how to dry yourself and do your hair and nails."

"Okay," said Saige. She finished her cereal and went into the bathroom. She left the door unlocked as she took off all her clothes. She sat down on the toilet to pee before getting in the shower.

"Just let me know when you're done in the shower," Saige's mom told her, opening the door a crack.

"I will," said Saige.

Saige took a shower, which really wasn't that much different from showering as a boy. She still had to soap down her whole body, and she had a little more hair to shampoo. But overall, it wasn't any harder than before.

After Saige turned off the water, she called out to her mom. "I'm done now!"

"Okay," Saige's mom said. She came into the bathroom as Saige took a towel off the towel rack. "So I know you're used to wrapping a towel around your waist, but when you're a girl, you need to wrap it around your whole body."

"How do I do that?" Saige asked.

"Here, let me help you," her mom said. She took the towel and wrapped it around Saige's torso. Saige's mom made sure the towel covered Saige's breasts, while still being long enough to cover her vagina and butt. "You gotta make sure you hide your private parts."

"It feels nice," said Saige as she tightened the towel. She could still see her cleavage, but her nipples were hidden.

"Now you gotta wrap another towel around your hair," said Saige's mom. She helped her daughter wrap all her hair up in a towel, which sat on her head like an enormous hat.

"I look like a Muslim," Saige said, looking in the mirror.

Her mother laughed. "Don't worry, you can take it off in a little bit. Right now, let's do your nails."

Saige's mom helped her put pink nail polish on her fingernails and toenails. But when they were done, it was time for Saige's mom to go to work.

"So when you take off your towel, just make sure you use the hair dryer to finish drying your hair," Saige's mom said as she was getting her purse. "And then brush it so it doesn't get matted or tangled."

"Got it," said Saige. She went into her bedroom and got some clothes to put on. Her outfit for today was a gray tank top, blue jeans, and black sandals. Once she had her clothes on, she went back into the bathroom and took the towel off her head. She used the electric hair dryer to finish drying off her hair. When she was done, she took her mom's hairbrush and started brushing. At first it hurt, to pull the tangles out of her long hair. But when she was done, her hair looked great.

Half an hour later, it was time for Saige to go to her first full day of school as a girl. She got her backpack full of textbooks and notebooks, as well as her new purse with her cell phone, wallet, and other stuff. She went to her first class, which was English. To her surprise, Mrs. Netherton (the teacher) didn't bat an eye at Saige's gender change. The role call sheet had changed Sage to Saige. Some of Saige's classmates looked at her funny, but no questions were asked.

After English, Saige had P. E. She wasn't too worried about P. E, since the school's P. E. clothes were designed to fit both boys and girls. Unfortunately, Saige almost walked into the boy's locker room. At the last second, Saige realized what she was doing and turned away from the threshold. Lucky for her, no one saw that she almost went into the wrong locker room.

In the girl's locker room, Saige ran into Olivia once again. This time, Olivia's friends Bailey and Stephanie were with her. "Hey Saige," said Olivia.

"Oh, hi Olivia," said Saige. "How are you?"

"I'm doing well," Olivia said as she put on her P. E. shirt. "You?"

"I'm fine," said Saige. "But I almost went into the boy's locker room."

"Oh my," said Stephanie. "I'll bet that was awkward."

"It was," said Saige.

"We heard you used to be a boy," said Bailey. "Olivia told us."

"You did what?" Saige asked.

"It's okay, we know what it's like," said Stephanie. "We've dealt with this before."

"You have?" Saige asked. "When?"

"It's a long story," said Bailey. "We should probably tell you later. Maybe at lunch?"

"I guess so," said Saige. She had been planning on trying to talk to her old friend Tony Carson at lunch, to try and tell him she was a girl now, but she was relieved to put it off. She had no idea how she'd do it, and she wasn't even sure Tony would believe her.

***

At lunch, Saige went to the table where she knew Olivia hung out with Bailey and Stephanie. She sat down with them and said, "Okay guys. What's your story?"

"It's a long one," said Olivia. "You see, Stephanie and I used to be boys too."

"What?" said Saige. "Did you use that girl's bathroom here?"

"No, no," said Olivia. "We were turned into girls by a witch."

"I thought witches were a myth," said Saige.

"They aren't," said Olivia. "At least not this one."

"She's running a foster home in Evanston," said Bailey. "What she does is, she takes in orphaned kids to live in her foster home. If they're boys, which is most of the time, then she turns them into girls."

"Why does she do that?" Saige asked.

"She doesn't like boys," said Olivia. "She wants girls to take over, I guess."

"But we didn't know that at first," said Bailey. "Especially me. I was already a girl to begin with. But then a few weeks ago, when Olivia first showed up, Stephanie accidentally told us she used to be a guy."

"We're not allowed to do that," said Stephanie. "So Miss Johnson-she's the witch-she took me to be terminated."

"What does that mean?"

"She was going to use my X chromosomes in her potion that turned boys into girls, and then have me die," said Stephanie.

"Then Bailey and I found Miss Johnson's lab and then got terminated ourselves," said Olivia. "But our dormmates came and rescued us."

"Did they get terminated?" Saige asked.

"We don't know," said Olivia. "We were all able to escape. Miss Johnson didn't even know that Valeria and Piper and Sarah saved us."

"And then we came here and moved in to Mr. Hart's orphanage," said Bailey. "His place is coed. So we've got some boys living with us."

"But does Miss Johnson still do their thing?" Saige asked. "Like, does she still turn boys into girls against their will?"

"We don't know," said Olivia. "We've been trying to put the whole thing behind us."

"I'm curious," said Saige. She pulled out her phone and opened up Google. "What's her foster home called?"

"The Y. F. F. H," said Bailey. "Young Forever Foster Home."

Saige entered that into Google and looked at the search results. The Y. F. F. H. was a foster home in Evanston, Illinois. "Is this it?" Saige asked, showing it to Olivia.

"It is," said Olivia. "Is it still running?"

Saige scrolled through the News tab. "I think it is," she said. "I don't see any articles about Miss Johnson getting sued or anything."

"Well, she should be," Stephanie grumbled.

"Why didn't you guys do anything?" Saige asked. "Why didn't you tell the police about this?"

"Because they wouldn't believe us," said Olivia.

"You have witnesses!" said Saige. "Those girls that rescued you-they could be witnesses!"

"This is magic we're talking about," said Bailey. "The cops aren't going to believe anything about magic."

"Besides, we're only teenagers," said Olivia. "It would be our word against Miss Johnson's."

Saige sighed. "You're right," she said. "Some things are just beyond our power."

It was silent for the next few minutes at that lunch table. The silence was broken when Tony Carson came up to their table. "Hey Sage," he said. "I heard you're a girl now."

Saige looked up. "How did you know that?"

"Mrs. Whatcott told me," said Tony. "I was wondering where you've been since yesterday, so I went to the attendance office to see if you were here today. And Mrs. Whatcott told me your identity had been changed to Saige."

"And you believed her?" Saige asked, surprised.

"Not at first," said Tony. "She showed me your picture, and I've been looking for you ever since."

"So...you believe me?" Saige asked. "When I say I'm Sage?"

"I mean..." Tony tilted his head at Saige. He looked kind of cute, with his brown eyebrow raised, and his hair tousled to the side...did Saige just think that?

"Where did we first meet?" Tony asked.

"Third grade," said Saige. "Mr. Boyd's class."

Tony thought for a moment before saying, "What's my middle name?"

"Noah," said Saige. "And you hate it because it's your dad's middle name."

Tony nodded. "So you are Sage. Er, Saige with an 'i.'"

"Wanna sit with us?" Saige asked.

"Of course!" said Tony. He sat down next to Saige. For some reason, Saige felt a rush of pleasure at Tony sitting next to her. She was only now realizing how handsome Tony was.

Tony, Saige, Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie spent the rest of lunch chatting it up, until the bell rang. But they agreed to hang out at lunch again the next day.

For the rest of the week, Saige continued to hang out with Tony, Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie. During that time, Saige got fully acquainted with her new girl body. She could take a shower, change her clothes, and brush her hair without help from her mom or Olivia. She even got rid of all the boy stuff she used to have and bought some new things to satisfy her new, girly interests. Now her room was painted pink with a Justin Bieber poster hanging on the wall. Saige was surprised to find herself liking Justin Bieber now. As a boy, he had HATED Justin Bieber. But the day after Sage became Saige, she had felt a desire to listen to "Baby" again, and she did. She found herself listening to it again, and again, and again. Now she was hooked on Justin Bieber.

"It feels kind of weird," Saige told Olivia in the hallway at school."Like, I like something I hated before."

"It happened to me, too," Olivia said. "Ever since I became a girl, I've been a lot more into doing my makeup."

"Me too," said Saige. "And, uh, something else, too."

"What is it?" Olivia asked.

"You know Tony?"

"Of course I know him."

"I, uh..." Saige hesitated. Was it gay if she had known Tony when she was a boy, and had a crush on him now? No. Saige was a girl. Liking a guy was not gay at all. "I think I have a crush on Tony."

Olivia's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You do? Already?"

"I know, it's weird," said Saige. "But I just...I've known him for years, and now I see something in him I didn't see before."

"I know what you mean," said Olivia. "I've seen boys differently since I left the Y. F. F. H. I've felt more attracted to them."

"I'm wondering if I should ask Tony out," said Saige. "We can, like, go out to dinner, and see a movie or something."

"Yeah. Go for it."

"Not to be sexist, but isn't it usually the guy who asks out the girl?"

"I guess so," said Olivia, "But I don't think there's a rule against girls asking guys out."

"Alright then, I'll do it," said Saige.

Suddenly, Olivia's phone buzzed. She pulled it out, checked her Notifications, and gasped. "Valeria!" she exclaimed.

"What?" Saige asked.

"One of my dormmates from the Y. F. F. H," said Olivia. "She just texted me."

"Really?" Saige asked. "After, what, three weeks?"

"She probably didn't want to risk it, with Miss Johnson on the prowl," Olivia said as she read the text. "Hey Olivia," she read aloud. "Are you okay?"

"Why, yes I am," Olivia said as she sent those words back to Valeria via text message. "How about you?"

A minute later, Valeria texted back saying, "We're fine. Miss Johnson was pretty mad that you guys escaped. But she didn't know that I was behind it."

"They actually kept it a secret?" Saige asked.

"Apparently so," Olivia said as she texted Valeria thanking her for keeping things under wraps.

"You're welcome," was what Valeria's next text message read. "So where are you now?"

Olivia hesitated. "Should I tell her?"

"Sure," said Saige. "She's your friend. She should know."

"I dunno," said Olivia. "What if Miss Johnson's checking their phones?"

"Then she can just erase the texts," said Saige.

Olivia shrugged, then texted back, "Chicago. We were taken in by a new orphanage."

"Is the owner of the orphanage nice?" Valeria asked.

"Yes, he is," Olivia texted back. "He's this nice man named Mr. Hart. He has a coed orphanage. He enrolled us in a school, too."

"That's good," said Valeria's next text. "Well, I gotta go now. Tell Bailey and Stephanie I said hi!"

Olivia texted a smiley emoji to Valeria, then put her phone back in her purse. "Well, I'm glad they're still okay there," she said.

"Wouldn't it be nice if they could come up and visit?" Saige asked.

"Yes, it would be," said Olivia.

***

Miss Johnson smiled smugly as she put Valeria's phone down on the table. She was so lucky that Olivia had not gotten rid of her cell phone, and that she had been able to take Valeria's phone to text her.

"You just helped me out a lot," Miss Johnson said as she walked up to the pod where Valeria was being held. "With both my chromosome source, and by tracking down our little fugitive."

Valeria struggled against the clamps holding her in the pod. "You can't do this, you monster!" she screamed. She had seen the whole text stream between Miss Johnson and Olivia.

"Oh, yes I can," said Miss Johnson. "Really soon, Olivia's gonna be coming home to greet all her old friends."

"What are you gonna do to her?" Valeria asked.

"Something much worse than termination," said Miss Johnson.

To be continued...

Saige was nervous about asking Tony out, but she had to do it. She went up to him after Fourth Period and said, "Hi Tony."

"Hey Saige," Tony said back. "What's up?"

Saige managed to find the words, "Want to go out tomorrow night?"

Tony smiled. "Sure. Where did you have in mind?"

"Well, Olivia bought tickets for me and her to see Wreck-It Ralph 2," said Saige. "Maybe I could talk her into giving her ticket to you?"

"Yeah, sure," said Tony. "And we could go out to dinner at, I dunno, Red Lobster."

"Sounds great," said Saige. "Would you be okay with driving us?"

"Of course," said Tony. "Just talk to Olivia about the movie tickets."

Later on, after school, Olivia and Bailey came over to visit Saige's house. The three girls hung out, watched TV for a while, and relaxed on the back porch. While they were on the back porch, Saige asked Olivia about the movie tickets.

"No," said Olivia. "I bought them for you and me. I'm not giving mine to Tony."

"Then we could buy another movie ticket," said Saige.

"Can't," said Olivia. "Otherwise I would've had Bailey come with us, too."

"I still can't believe you got a ticket for Saige and not for me," Bailey grumbled.

"But Saige really wants to see Wreck-It Ralph 2!" Olivia protested.

"So do I," said Bailey.

"Are there even any other seats available?" Saige asked.

"Let me see," Olivia said, pulling out her phone and opening up Fandango. "There's one seat available."

"So me and Tony, and one of you, can go," said Saige.

Olivia and Bailey looked at one another. "I'm the one paying for two of those tickets, so I should go."

"You're right," Bailey sighed.

"Don't worry, we won't spoil anything for you," Olivia promised. "But Saige, you or Tony will have to pay for the third ticket."

"No problem," said Saige. "And if you don't mind, we're going to eat out at Red Lobster before the movie."

"Sounds like a plan to me," said Olivia.

"You don't mind being a third wheel, do you?" Saige asked.

"Not really," said Olivia.

***

So that Friday night, Tony came to get Saige and Olivia. Tony drove a silver Ford Fusion that his parents had got him for his birthday. Saige was happy to sit in the shotgun seat while Olivia sat in the back. As they drove to Red Lobster, Tony played calm, soothing music for Saige to enjoy.

The three of them ate a hearty meal at Red Lobster, all the while discussing Wreck-It Ralph 2 and what they were hoping to see from it. Though they had varying opinions on the characters, they all seemed to agree that the movie would probably do the characters justice and have a solid plot.

But after they were done eating, when they were waiting for the waiter to come back with the bill, Saige saw a strange woman watching them from outside the restaurant window. She was dressed in black and had her eyes on Olivia. Something about her seemed suspicious, almost...

"What?" Olivia asked.

"There's someone out there watching us," Saige said, pointing. But she blinked and the strange woman had gone.

"I don't see anyone there," Olivia said.

Saige shook her head. Maybe she'd been imagining things.

The waiter came back with the bill for the food, and it was pretty high. Luckily, Saige had borrowed the money from her mother, and she was going to do some extra chores over the weekend to earn the money back. Once the bill was paid, Tony, Saige, and Olivia got up and left the table. While they left, they went past a woman sitting in the waiting area. "Did you kids enjoy your meal?" the woman asked.

"Yeah," said Tony. "We did."

The woman stuck her leg out, blocking their way. With a chill, Saige realized it was the strange woman she'd seen before. "You enjoying your date, Olivia?" she asked.

Olivia actually screamed in fear. "Miss Johnson! How-how did you-"

"Let's just say your friend Valeria was really helpful," Miss Johnson said as she stood up.

"What did you do to her?" Olivia asked.

"You'll find out soon enough," said Miss Johnson.

"No! Don't take me!" Olivia demanded.

"Hey! What's going on here?" said a passing waiter. He-along with some of the restaurant guests-were looking up to see what was going on.

"Nothing that concerns you," Miss Johnson said. She waved her hand, and everyone else in the restaurant went back to whatever they had been doing. Miss Johnson turned back to Olivia. "You are coming with me."

"No! Don't take her!" Saige demanded. Olivia was indispensable to her. She, along with Saige's mother, had been a huge help in Saige transitioning to being a girl, and Saige still needed her. She knew she'd need more advice in the future.

"I'm sorry, but I have unfinished business with this young lady," Miss Johnson said as she took Olivia by the wrist.

"Let me go!" Olivia shouted, trying to fight against Miss Johnson's grip.

But it was no use. "Come with me now," Miss Johnson commanded, waving her hand over Olivia's face. Instantly, Olivia's eyes glazed over. She fell limply to the ground, put into a magical sleep.

"Don't take her!" Saige demanded.

"You have no say in the matter," said Miss Johnson. She waved her hand in front of Saige's face. Saige immediately felt her consciousness slip away. She fell to the floor and remembered nothing more.

To be continued...

"Saige, you okay, honey?"

Saige's eyes fluttered open. She found herself lying on her couch, with her mother standing over her. She looked around and realized she was in her house.

"Mom," said Saige. The events of the failed date last night were all coming back to her. "Where-where's Olivia? Where's Tony?"

"Calm down," said Saige's mom. "You're safe now."

"What happened?" Saige asked. "How did I get here?"

"The Red Lobster manager saw you and Tony lying on the floor," said Saige's mom. "He called the police, and they took you and him home."

"Where's Tony now?" Saige asked.

"He's at his house," said Saige's mom.

"Did-do the police know about Olivia?"

Saige's mom frowned. "Olivia?"

"Olivia was with us," said Saige. "Then this freaky woman came and took her. She put me and Tony to sleep."

"Now, now, calm down," said Saige's mother. "I talked to the police, and the witnesses from Red Lobster, and they said they didn't see any strange women come in and kidnap anyone."

Saige was starting to panic. "How long was I asleep?"

"A day," said Saige's mom. "It's Saturday now."

Saige's heart sank. Miss Johnson had probably taken Olivia back to Evanston by now. Saige didn't know exactly what Miss Johnson was going to do with her friend, but it couldn't be good.

"I-we gotta go after Miss Johnson!" Saige exclaimed. "She's probably-"

"Calm down, honey," said Saige's mom. "I have to go to work now, but you should stay here and get some rest. It seems like you got hit on the head."

So Saige's mom thought she was crazy. As soon as her mom went out the door, Saige stood up and went to the kitchen. She got a glass of water, trying to calm herself down. But it was no use. What could she do now? Was Miss Johnson going to put Olivia right back into the lab so she could keep harvesting X chromosomes out of her to turn more boys into girls? Saige knew she had to stop Miss Johnson...but she had no idea how.

***

Olivia struggled against her bonds. She was tied up with thick black ropes, with duck tape around her mouth. She was lying in the back seat of Miss Johnson's car while the dark woman Miss Johnson drove. "I'm so lucky I was able to find you," Miss Johnson was saying. "I was getting worried that you'd spill our little secret for the entire world to hear."

So Miss Johnson didn't know that Olivia had told Saige about her past. Olivia tried to scream through the duck tape over her mouth, demanding to know why Miss Johnson had taken her and not Bailey or Stephanie. But she could only say, "Mmmmfff hhhmmpphhhh!"

Somehow, Miss Johnson knew what Olivia was trying to say. "Oh, I wish I could take Bailey and Stephanie too. I went looking for you here in Chicago, once you texted Valeria's phone. Then I saw you with your friends in Red Lobster. And I did not want to waste any time in getting you back to the Y. F. F. H."

The Y. F. F. H. The place that had appeared wonderful at first, but turned out to not be so lovely. Olivia did not know what would become of her, but she knew it couldn't be good.

***

While she was heating up a breakfast sandwich, Saige heard a knock on her door. She answered it to see Bailey and Stephanie standing there. "Saige, thank goodness," Bailey said. "We came over as soon as we heard. What happened last night?"

"Miss Johnson ambushed us," said Saige. "She took Olivia."

"We knew it!" said Stephanie.

"Who told you?" Saige asked.

"Tony did," said Bailey. "This morning I saw that Olivia had not came back from the movie theater last night, so I texted Tony. And he told us what happened."

"And we don't know what to do!" Stephanie exclaimed. "Miss Johnson's probably gonna terminate Olivia all over again-or worse!"

"I know," said Saige. "And we've got to stop her. We can't let Miss Johnson turn any more innocent boys into girls."

"But what can we do?" Stephanie asked. "We can't call the police. We can't call the FBI. No one's gonna believe us."

"Then we'll have to go save Olivia ourselves," said Saige.

"How?" said Bailey. "We don't have a car."

"But Tony does," said Saige. "We can have him drive us to Evanston."

"Why not your mom?" Bailey asked.

"Because she didn't believe me about Miss Johnson," said Saige. "I tried to tell her what really happened. But I guess Miss Johnson did some magic and...well, the witnesses didn't see what they thought they saw."

"Well, what did they think they saw?" Bailey asked.

"Everyone thinks Tony and I just, I don't know, had seizures or something," said Saige. "I'm on my own here. I'm gonna have to go to save Olivia and shut down the Y. F. F. H. myself."

"I'm with you," said Bailey. "I...I'm with Olivia through and through."

"I'm not sure," Stephanie muttered. "It's gonna be really dangerous."

"You don't have to come," said Saige. "Bailey and Tony and I can probably do this on our own."

"No, I'll go," said Stephanie. "I wouldn't want to leave Olivia to die."

"Alright," said Saige. "Let's go to Tony's house."

Saige, Bailey, and Stephanie went straight from Saige's house to Tony's. Saige knocked on his door and prayed he was awake. Luckily, Tony answered his door. He was wearing a white bathrobe and was holding a mug of hot chocolate. "Hey Saige," he said. "You okay, after last night?"

"I am," said Saige. "But Olivia isn't." Saige, Bailey, and Stephanie gave Tony a quick run-down of the situation. "And we need you to drive us to Evanston," Saige finished.

"But-but what-"

"Just drive us there, and we'll take care of the rest," said Saige. "Please."

Tony sucked in one cheek. "Well, if you can-"

"We'll do anything," said Saige. "Anything. Just drive us to Evanston, pronto."

"Can't I just-"

"MISS JOHNSON IS TAKING OLIVIA THERE RIGHT NOW!" Saige shouted. "We don't have time to pack or get anything together or-"

"Sheesh, I didn't say that I needed to pack," said Tony. "I just think I should put some clothes on before I drive you to Evanston."

"Oh." Saige forgot Tony was wearing only a bathrobe. "Yeah, you should go get changed."

"But we're leaving right after," said Bailey.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," Tony said.

Five minutes later, Saige was sitting in the shotgun seat of Tony's car. Tony was driving, with Bailey and Stephanie in the back. "Would you mind giving me more details on the way?" Tony asked as he turned the keys in the ignition. "Not to mention an actual plan for when we get there?"

"Of course," said Saige. "Just get on the road."

So Tony pulled out of his driveway, then started driving. Saige may not have had an immediate plan, but she knew one thing. She would not rest until Miss Johnson was defeated.

To be continued...but for now, please tell me what you think so far.

Piper was lonely.

Several weeks ago, she had had a lovely family of dormmates at the Y. F. F. H. Bailey and Valeria had been nice to her, but when Olivia showed up, it had made their happy little family even happier. They had all had an awesome time living together, and doing things together. But all of a sudden, Olivia and Bailey had gone poking around in Miss Johnson's lab under the hotel next to the foster home building. Piper had gone with Valeria to save them. Olivia and Bailey, along with Stephanie, had escaped to an unknown fate.

For a little while, it was just Piper and Valeria in their dorm. But then Miss Johnson had gathered everyone in the foster home and asked them if they knew anything about the girls' escape and disappearance. Valeria had stepped up, confessed to helping them escape, and then got taken off to be terminated.

Of course, Miss Johnson didn't know that Valeria was taking the fall for herself, Piper, Sarah, and Andrea. The latter three girls got off scot-free. They thought about going to rescue Valeria, but they knew they would likely meet the same fate.

And now Piper was the only one in the dorm. She had the whole place to herself. She could watch anything she wanted on TV, turn the lights off when she wanted, and dance around naked. But it was all very lonely. What good was a four-person dorm if you didn't have other people to share it with?

One day, Miss Johnson called everyone to a meeting in the cafeteria. Piper was worried when she heard the news. The last time this had happened, it hadn't been good. So there was no reason to assume this meeting would be any better.

And Piper's worst fears were confirmed. In the cafeteria, Miss Johnson had a large, closet-sized something under a black blanket. Miss Johnson had all the girls sit down on the cafeteria tables for her little speech.

"Good morning, lovely ladies," Miss Johnson said. "Now, you all know our first rule here at the Y. F. F. H. You have to keep your little secrets to yourself."

Piper's stomach lurched. She knew exactly what Miss Johnson was talking about. She could still remember being Peter. Looking around, Piper could see that many of the other girls were exchanging shifty looks.

"Now, it is very important that you follow our rules," said Miss Johnson. "Unless you want to end up like, well..." She pulled the black blanket off of the thing under it. And all the girls gasped at the sight of what was under the blanket.

It was a human-sized glass case, like the kind museums use to display rare antiques. But inside the case was none other than Olivia. She was stark naked, with her body frozen and held up by some magic force. Her eyes were scrunched up in pain, and there was a fresh cut going across her shoulder.

"Olivia!" Piper gasped.

"Yes, this is her," said Miss Johnson. "She told her secret to other people here, and then tried to escape me to avoid punishment. Well, I have found her. And I am going to keep her here as an example for all you girls to follow. Know that this is what happens when you try to tell a secret, then try to get away with it."

"Is she still alive?" Piper asked.

"Yes, she is," said Miss Johnson. "This case is magic. It keeps her alive, even though she is not drinking any water or eating any food. She is constantly in pain, for that is her punishment."

***

After the big announcement, Piper was taking a shower. She could not believe what had happened. How had Miss Johnson found Olivia?

Piper had had enough. She knew it was time for rebellion against Miss Johnson. But how could she do it? Miss Johnson had security cameras everywhere.

The only way to deal with that problem was by taking out the security cameras. So for the rest of the day, Piper went around her dorm and found the cameras. Then she smashed them using a hammer she bought at the hardware store down the street. Once Piper was certain she had destroyed all of the security cameras, she invited Sarah, Andrea, and Vanessa to her dorm.

"What did you call us for?" Andrea asked upon arriving.

"I've destroyed my security cameras," said Piper. "So this is a private meeting. We're starting a rebellion against Miss Johnson."

"What kind of rebellion?" Vanessa asked.

"Well, you remember how Miss Johnson said we all have to keep our little secrets?" Piper asked.

"Yeah," said Sarah.

"Well, now we're going to tell each other our secrets," said Piper. "Before I came here, I was a boy named Peter. Miss Johnson turned me into Piper. What about you guys?"

Sarah, Andrea, and Vanessa exchanged glances. "I...I was Andrew," Andrea said uneasily.

"I was Vance," said Vanessa.

"And I was Samuel," said Sarah. "But why did Miss Johnson not want us to tell each other?"

"I think she wants to hide her secret," said Piper. "She's turning boys into girls against their will. And she's trying to have every one of them think they're the only boy-turned-girl here, so her secret doesn't get out."

"But how can we stop her?" Sarah asked.

There was an awkward silence. "I have no idea," said Piper.

Sarah sighed. "I knew it," she said.

"I-I'll think of something!" said Piper. "Then I'll call you back here."

***

Saige was nervous. This plan might not work. But it was a chance she had to take if she wanted to put an end to this.

She entered the front door of the Y. F. F. H. building and went up to the front desk. "Hello," she said.

"Good day, young lady," said the woman at the front desk. "How can I help you?"

"I'm here because..." Saige hesitated. "My parents just died yesterday. And I heard about this foster home and that it's really good, and..."

"So you want to move in here?" the woman asked.

"Yes, I do," said Saige.

"Well, luckily for you," the woman said, looking at her computer. "We have an open space."

"Good," said Saige. That would be essential to her plan.

"What's your name?" the woman asked.

"I'm Saige," said Saige.

"Well, Saige, Miss Johnson's not available right now to give you the tour, but I can show you to your room," said the woman.

"Please do," said Saige.

The woman got up from her desk and led Saige down the hall. They came to a dorm room that was towards the end of the hall. "Here you are," said the woman. "We've already got a stash of clothes in there for you. And there's toothpaste, and tampons, and everything you could need in the bathroom."

"That's good," Saige muttered. She hadn't had to use a tampon yet, but she knew she might soon.

"Enjoy your stay!" the woman told Saige as she entered her room.

Saige went in to see her dorm room. There were two bunk beds, a TV, a couch, and a few dressers. No one was in the bedroom, but she could hear the shower going from the bathroom. That meant someone was in there. Saige cautiously entered the bathroom, going past the toilet stalls and toward the shower area (which was hidden behind a wall). "Hey," Saige said. "You in there?"

"Yeah. You new here?" said a voice from behind the wall.

"I am," said Saige, walking past the wall. "And I wanted to-GAH!" Saige was surrpised to see that the shower area consisted of a line of shower nozzles on the wall, with shelves of soap and shampoo under the nozzles. On a nearby bench, there were towels and sets of clothes. And right there, in the open, there was a girl wearing no clothes, soaping down under a running nozzle.

"I'm so sorry," Saige said, averting her eyes.

"It's fine," said the girl. "We shower together here. So if you want to take a shower, then..."

Saige realized she hadn't showered that morning. She had just rushed to go to Tony's house to ask him to drive her, Bailey, and Stephanie to Evanston. She had not showered since the day before. "Yeah, I guess I'll take a shower," Saige said. She self-consciously took off her shirt and laid it on the bench. She removed her socks and shoes, then pulled down her shorts. She took off her bra, then slid her panties down her legs. Now in the nude, Saige went up to a shower nozzle and turned it on.

"I'm Piper, by the way," the other girl said.

"I'm Saige," said Saige.

"What was your boy name?"

Saige stared at Piper. "How did you know I used to be a boy!"

"Because that's what Miss Johnson does," said Piper. "She invites boys to stay here and turns them into girls. I used to be Peter. How about you?"

"I-I was just Sage, with no 'i,'" said Saige. "But Miss Johnson didn't turn me into a girl."

"Then who did?" Piper asked.

"I was at my school, and I went into the girl's bathroom by mistake," said Saige. "And the bathroom turned me into a girl."

"Huh," said Piper.

"But I'm not really an orphan, either," said Saige. "I came here to find Olivia."

"You what?" said Piper.

"Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie told me all about you," said Saige. "And we came to save Olivia when Miss Johnson found and captured her."

"So-so you're coming here as a spy?" Piper asked. "To scope things out?"

"Yes," said Saige. "Do you know where Olivia is?"

"I do," said Piper. "Miss Johnson has her on display in a glass case in the cafeteria. She's using Olivia as an example of what happens to people who try to break Miss Johnson's rules and then get away with it."

"Oh no," said Saige.

"But I've started a little rebellion here," said Piper. "I destroyed the security camera here in my room-"

"There are security cameras here?" Saige asked. She awkwardly covered her nipples and vagina.

"Yeah but I smashed them," said Piper. "You don't have to worry."

"Phew," said Saige. "But what are you going to do with your rebellion?"

"I have no idea," said Piper.

"Wait, I have an idea," said Saige. "What if everyone in this foster home told each other that they used to be boys, but keep it secret from Miss Johnson?" Saige suggested. "Then you can all start calling each other by your boy names."

"What would that do?" Piper asked.

"Well, Miss Johnson can't terminate everyone, can she?" Saige asked.

"I guess not," said Piper. "But how are we going to stop Miss Johnson from turning boys into girls?"

"We'll work that out later," said Saige. "Right now, we should just focus on having everyone share their former boy names with everyone."

"Sounds good," said Piper.

To be continued...

After Saige had finished with her shower, she put on some clean clothes and went out to the cafeteria. Just like Piper said, there was Olivia, locked in a glass case and on display for everyone to see. The moment she saw her friend, Saige ran up to the glass case and pressed her fingers against the glass. "Oh, Olivia," Saige whispered. "Look what they've done to you."

In spite of her pain, Olivia looked down and saw Saige outside her case. Olivia wanted to scream at Saige to get out of here, to save herself while she still could, but she could not.

"We'll save you, don't worry," Saige whispered. "And we'll put an end to Miss Johnson's schemes."

After she was done staring at Olivia in worry and pity, Saige left the building to rendezvous with Bailey, Stephanie, and Tony. The three of them had holed up in a hotel three blocks away, and Saige had texted Tony to meet them at Jimmy John's.

"Did you do it?" Bailey asked when Saige sat down with them.

"I did," said Saige. "I'm in a room with Piper."

"Oh, good," said Bailey. "I sure miss her and Valeria."

"And I found Olivia," said Saige. "She's on display for everyone to see."

Stephanie's eyes widened. "She's not-"

"She's still alive," said Saige. "But she's on display-naked-for everyone to see. Miss Johnson is using her as a reminder to the girls to not tell anyone they used to be boys."

"How long will it take for Piper to get everyone to tell everyone each other's boy names?" Tony asked. "We can't be here too long. Our parents back home will be worried."

"We don't even have parents," said Stephanie.

"You don't, but me and Saige do," said Tony.

"We'll deal with them later," said Bailey. "Right now, we need to figure out what to do next."

"We're gonna have to break Olivia out sooner or later," said Saige. "So you guys should get a crowbar or something."

"There's a jack in the back of my car," said Tony. "Will that work?"

"If it can break glass, yes," said Saige.

"And how are we going to kill Miss Johnson?" Tony asked.

"Who said anything about killing?" Stephanie asked.

"How else are we going to defeat her?" Tony asked. "We can't sue her. She'd just alter the memory of the judges or something."

"But...but that's murder," said Stephanie.

"Hear, hear," said Saige. "I'd rather lock Miss Johnson up in a prison or something."

"What prison did you have in mind?" Tony asked. He stared at Saige, waiting for an answer.

Bailey spoke up. "We could try putting her in those pods she uses to terminate girls," she suggested.

"But the pods eventually kill whoever is in them," Stephanie pointed out.

"Well, it's still better than shooting her," said Tony. "If we just leave her in there, and someone comes looking for her, it'll look like she just tried doing an experiment on herself, and the experiment failed."

"I...I think that might be our best option," said Saige. "But how are we going to get her down there?"

"We'll get some kind of bait," said Tony. "We could break Olivia out, and then have her run down into Miss Johnson's lab, and have a bunch of people waiting to ambush her there."

"That sounds like a plan," said Saige. "I hope Piper has a bunch of members in her rebellion by now."

***

Piper did have a good number of girls recruited to her cause. When Saige got back to her dorm in the Y. F. F. H, she found six more girls sitting with Piper. "Saige! You're back!" said Piper. "Just in time for these girls to tell me their boy names."

"Great," Saige said, sitting down on her bed. "What are your names?"

"I'm Amelia, who used to be Emilio," said one of the girls.

"I was Jules, but now I'm Julie," said another.

"I used to be Sam, before Miss Johnson turned me into Samantha," said a third.

"I'm Christina. But I used to be Christian," said the fourth.

"I was Kyle. Now I'm Kylie," said the fifth.

"And I'm Taylor, who used to be Tyler," said the last one.

"That's great," said Saige. "Piper, I have some great news."

"What is it?"

"I just met with Bailey and Stephanie," Saige started. "And we-"

"Wait. Bailey and Stephanie are here too?"

"No, they're not here!" said Saige. "If they showed their faces here, they'd meet the same fate as Olivia!"

"I meant, like, they came here with you."

"Yes, they did. But that's not the point."

"Well what is the point?" Amelia asked.

"The point is that we made a plan," said Saige. "We're going to lock Miss Johnson up in one of those pods in her lab, and then leave her there."

"Won't she get out?" Taylor asked.

"No," said Piper. "No one else is going to go down there. Miss Johnson is the only one allowed there."

"Besides, we can lock the door behind us," said Julie.

"And to get her down there, we're going to use Olivia as bait," said Saige. "We'll break her out, and then have her run down into Miss Johnson's lab. We'll have a trap waiting for Miss Johnson down there."

"I'm in," said Amelia.

"I'll get the handcuffs," said Kylie.

"Great," said Saige. "Are you all ready to do it later on today?"

"Sure," said Piper.

"Good," said Olivia. "Get as many people to help you as you can."

***

Olivia stayed suspended in her glass case, watching all the girls and staff members going about their day. She felt sad and embarrassed. Not because she was naked and her private parts were on display for everyone-though that was bad on its own. She knew she was a fool for thinking she could run from Miss Johnson. Even though she had tried her hardest, it was no use.

And now Olivia couldn't move a muscle, and she was in pain. Miss Johnson's magic was keeping her alive inside the glass case, but Olivia wished she could die. Her family was gone, killed in that fire. The few friends she had were all the way in Chicago. Even if she did escape, where would she go? She didn't see the point in living anymore.

Towards the end of the day, however, when the cafeteria was empty, Olivia saw three new people come in. She was surprised that it was Bailey, Stephanie, and Tony. What were they doing here?

Tony and Stephanie stood guard at the cafeteria doors, while Bailey came up to Olivia's glass case and placed a sheet of paper against it. Olivia, ignoring her constant pain, read over the paper. This is what it said:

Dear Olivia,

We are so sorry Miss Johnson caught up to you. But we are here to rescue you and stop Miss Johnson for good. And you have a role to play in our plan.

As you read this, Saige is upstairs, talking to Miss Johnson, as she is new here and wants a tour. Miss Johnson and Saige will go around the first floor, while Bailey breaks you out and Tony and Stephanie hide. Once Miss Johnson enters the cafeteria, you and Bailey will need to run as fast as you can to Miss Johnson's lab under the hotel. Lure her there. We have a trap set for her. She will be locked in one of her pods.

Signed,
Saige, Bailey, Tony, and Stephanie

Olivia didn't believe her eyes. Her friends had actually came back to save her! And they were going to finally defeat Miss Johnson! Olivia knew it would be hard. Since Miss Johnson was a witch, who knew what she'd have up her sleeve? But Olivia knew she could do it. So she looked Bailey in the eye and nodded understanding of the plan. Bailey folded up the piece of paper and put it in her pocket.

Bailey pulled out a car jack and started slamming it into the glass case. It took her several hits, but she managed to crack a hole in the side of the case. Once she had cracked the hole, Olivia could feel her pain subsiding. Bailey smashed her jack into the glass five more times, being careful not to poke Olivia. The more holes she created, the less pain Olivia felt.

Eventually, Bailey got careless, and she stabbed the car jack right through the glass and poked Olivia's breast. Olivia let out a squeal of pain.

"Sorry," Bailey said, trying to be more careful. Before long, Bailey had smashed open a hole big enough for Olivia to fall out of. As Olivia fell forward, Bailey caught her so she wouldn't fall on the pieces of broken glass.

"Thank you, Bailey," said Olivia.

"Thank Saige," said Bailey. "She's the one who got this ball rolling."

"Can you walk?" Tony asked.

"Let's see," Olivia said as she laid her feet on the floor. The pain from the magic glass case had gone now, and to her surprise, she was able to walk normally. But when she looked up and realized Tony was in the room, she wished she had some clothes on.

"Sorry," Tony said as he averted his eyes from Olivia.

"Yeah, we should've brought some clothes for Olivia to put on," Stephanie admitted.

Right then, Miss Johnson opened the cafeteria door. "And this, Saige, is the cafe-" She broke off when she saw Bailey standing on a floor of broken glass, holding the car jack, and Olivia standing there, out of the glass case.

That quickly, Olivia's heart rate went from zero to sixty. This was it. This was where she would come into play.

To be concluded...sorry for the cliffhanger. :(

Olivia pushed Miss Johnson aside and ran out of the cafeteria, with Bailey right on her heels. Yelling for vengeance, Miss Johnson followed right behind them. She chased Olivia and Bailey out of the front doors and towards the hotel.

Olivia had never ran harder in her life. Her arms were running like windmills, and her breasts were swinging around like mad. She wished she had a bra to give herself some support. But it hardly mattered. All that mattered was that Olivia and Bailey would lead Miss Johnson into their trap.

The two girls came to the back door behind the hotel and opened it up. Olivia and Bailey ran down the hall and toward the stairs. But halfway down the stairs, Olivia tripped on her own feet and fell to the floor below. She was able to stick her arms out to break her fall, but then Bailey ran right into her. The girls fell to the floor in a heap.

"I don't know why you two are running into my lab, but it sure makes my job easier," Miss Johnson seethed. "Because Bailey, you are going to be terminated once again."

"No!" Bailey cried as she got up and ran for the lab.

Olivia tried to get up, but Miss Johnson grabbed her ankle. "As for you..." Miss Johnson pinioned Olivia against the wall. "I think I should do something a little different to you."

"Like what?" Olivia asked as she struggled against Miss Johnson's grip.

"You have a very voluptuous body," Miss Johnson said, running her hand over Olivia's curvy hips. "The local boys would want a piece of your booty." Miss Johnson rubbed Olivia's butt.

"Get off of me!" Olivia growled. She kicked Miss Johnson in the chest, causing the older woman to lose her grip. Olivia took the chance to punch Miss Johnson in the face. Then she kicked her again, causing Miss Johnson to step backward, trip on the bottom stair, and fall on her butt.

"There she is!" Piper's voice cried. Olivia turned to see Piper, Sarah, Vanessa, and several other girls she didn't recognize running for Miss Johnson. They were carrying handcuffs, duck tape, and ropes. One brunette girl slammed the cuffs onto Miss Johnson's wrists, and another started unwrapping her rope.

"I don't think so," Miss Johnson said. She waved her hand, and waves of blue magic spiraled around one of the girls. When the waves had disappeared, a white mouse was where the girl had been standing.

"Get her!" Olivia commanded. The rest of the girls came at Miss Johnson, their duck tape at the ready. Andrea got turned into a mouse herself, but the other girls managed to wrap duck tape around Miss Johnson's eyes and mouth. Now that she couldn't see, she was no longer able to cast any magic.

Despite Miss Johnson's struggling, the girls still managed to tie her up. Then they went and carried her into her lab. They went straight for the pod that had held Olivia when she had been terminated. Piper and Sarah carefully took the handcuffs off, then quickly strapped Miss Johnson's hands to the clamps inside the pod. Then they did the same for her legs.

Once Miss Johnson was fully restrained, Olivia came up to her and took the duck tape off her mouth. "What have you girls done to me?" Miss Johnson said.

"Doing what you did to us," said Olivia. She took one the needles connected to the machine and jabbed it into Miss Johnson's arm. Miss Johnson cried in pain as Bailey flipped some switches on the side of the pod.

"Please!" Miss Johnson demanded. "Let me out. I can turn you back into boys!"

"What did you say?" said a voice. Every head turned to see Saige coming down into the lab.

***

Saige could not believe her ears. Was Miss Johnson really offering to turn the girls back into boys? Did that mean she could be Sage again? Could she go back to her old life and not have to worry about doing her hair or wearing a bra or looking nice for the boys. She could...

"What are you doing here, Saige?" Olivia asked.

"I-I wanted to come here and help you capture Miss Johnson," said Saige.

"Wait, are you that new girl?" Miss Johnson asked.

"I am," said Saige. "And did you say you could turn me into a boy?"

"I was talking to all the boys I had turned into girls," said Miss Johnson. "If they let me out and promise to forget this ever happened, then I'll turn them into boys again."

Evidently Miss Johnson didn't know the truth about Saige. But Saige looked around and saw all the girls in the lab-Olivia, Bailey, Piper, Sarah, Vanessa, Taylor, Amelia, and Kylie. They had all been good friends to her. And in return, Saige had saved them from Miss Johnson's evil foster home. Besides, Saige had gotten the hang of being a girl now. Sure, there were tough parts to being a girl, but she had had some practice. She was sure she could live the rest of her life as a girl.

"No," said Saige. "You're not going to be doing any more of your magic." She stepped up to the pod and slammed it shut.

"There, now we got her," said Bailey. "Now let's get out of here and lock Miss Johnson in here."

"Aren't you going to get me some clothes to wear?" Olivia asked.

"Oh...about that..." Piper stammered. "We forgot to bring you a change of clothes."

Olivia put her hands on her hips. "So I have to walk back up naked?"

"Hey, you ran down here naked," said Taylor. "We can find you some clothes in the bigger building."

***

Since Miss Johnson's demise was so recent, none of the other members of the Y. F. F. H. staff knew what had happened. But after all the excitement, the girls felt like they needed a dip in the swimming pool.

So once everyone had gotten back up to the main building, Saige, Olivia, Tony, Bailey, Stephanie, and Piper all got into their swimsuits and went down to the swimming pool. They relaxed in the hot tub while discussing their victory.

"So now what?" Bailey asked.

"We go back to Chicago," said Saige. "And go home."

"What about the rest of us?" Piper asked. "All the kids who live here?"

"Well, maybe the city's governers will find someone new to run this place," said Olivia. "Preferably someone who isn't a witch."

"Or maybe you could move to Mr. Hart's place in Chicago," Stephanie suggested.

"I'll consider it," said Piper.

Tony looked at Saige. "I heard Miss Johnson offered to turn you back into a boy," he said.

"Yeah, she did," said Saige. "But I said no. I like being a girl."

"Really?" said Tony.

"I do now," said Saige. "I might've said yes before, but, well..." she looked at Olivia. "My friend Olivia taught me that being a girl is actually pretty fun."

"I learned that myself," Olivia said, casting a warm grin at Bailey.

"Well, no matter what you do, I'll still be with you," said Tony. He slid his hand into Saige's.

***

On their return to Chicago the next day, Saige's and Tony's parents were very relieved to see their kids okay. They had been worried that Saige and Tony had vanished the day before, but they managed to sell them a story about how they had had a day out that had turned into a camping trip, and they forgot to text their parents.

As for the Y. F. F. H, the government did find a new chairwoman for it. The new chairwoman, Mrs. Reed, was a wonderful lady with a hardworking husband and a few kids of her own. She renamed the Y. F. F. H. the Orphanage For Lost Youngsters, or the O. F. L. Y. Best of all, she expanded the foster home to make it coed.

The Evanston police force, having been notified of Miss Johnson's disappearance, found Miss Johnson dead in her lab a week after she had been locked in there by the girls. Since they found no evidence of anyone locking her in there, no one was charged.

Back in Chicago, Saige continued to live her life as a girl with Olivia, Bailey, and Stephanie as her best friends. But she also started dating Tony. By now, she was starting to feel like she was in love with him. They had known each other for a long time, and now that Saige was female and had a mutual attraction, they could enjoy themselves as boyfriend and girlfriend.

(Cliche warning) And they all lived happily ever after...

The end. Now that the story is finished (for real this time), what do you think?

Okay, so my last serial on here didn't go over to well. In spite of my ambition to write a big crossover, I ended up getting far fewer reads than I expected-especially considering I was coming off the heels of Lanie's Journey and The Witch Hunt, both of which were well-received. And since almost nobody commented on my chapters, I don't even know what you thought of my story.

Since the crossover failed to pick up traction, I'm going to shift gears a bit. This time, I'm gonna write a prequel to Lanie's Journey centering around Rachel, and how she came to terms with her new life. Hopefully this one fares better.

***

"Mmmppphh...." Rachel murmured.

"Rachel? Are you okay?"

Rachel rose off her bed and rubbed her eyes. When she could see properly, she looked up and saw her roommate Lanie standing beside her bed. "Yeah, I'm fine," Rachel lied. "Why?"

"I just heard you talking in your sleep," said Lanie. "Were you having a bad dream?"

"Yeah," said Rachel. "What did you hear?"

"I'm not sure," Lanie admitted, "But it sounded like 'Jesse, don't leave me!'"

Rachel nodded slowly. "Yeah, that sounds about right," she said.

"Well? What were you dreaming about?"

"Just...my old life. Before Mr. Ryan's place, and before Pretty And Pink."

Lanie nodded understanding. "When you were a boy. Before Angelina found you."

"Yep. Back when I was Randy."

"Who is this Jesse?" Lanie asked. "Someone you knew?"

"Yeah," said Rachel. "I don't think I've told you about him yet, but..."

"Please do," said Lanie.

"Alright," said Rachel. "It all started three years ago..."

***

--The Year 2019--

Randy was strolling down the street with his older brother Freddie. The two of them had gone for a late-night walk in the park, but it was getting close to their curfew, and they had to get home soon. So that was where they were going.

"Do you really think Captain America's gonna die in Endgame?" Randy asked. The newest trailer for Avengers: Endgame had come out a few days earlier, and Randy and Freddie had spent the first part of their walk discussing it before inadvertently changing the subject. But now that they'd gone for a few minutes without talking, the hype for the upcoming movie was swimming to the front of Randy's mind.

"Of course," said Freddie. "Chris Evans has been talking about leaving the MCU for years now. If they kill him off, then that can be his excuse."

"I thought Robert Downey Jr. was the one who wanted out?"

"Him too. But I think it's more likely Captain America will die."

"I just hope Black Widow doesn't die," said Randy. He didn't like admitting it, but he kind of had a celebrity crush on Scarlett Johansson. She was one of the things that had drawn him into the MCU, and if her character was killed off...well, he didn't think he could bear it.

"Well, we'll find out soon..." Freddie trailed off. He and Randy had just rounded the corner of the street their house was located on. To both their shock, the house had been set ablaze. Flames roared all across the bottom floor, and they were quickly travelling up to the top floor.

"Oh no!" Randy gasped. "The house is on fire!"

"We've gotta call 911!" said Freddie. But when he got out his phone, he cursed. "Dammit! My phone's battery died!"

"The hose!" said Randy. "We can use the hose in our front yard!"

Freddie thought it was a stupid idea, but there was no time to argue. He took a deep breath and held it in as he ran across his front lawn to where the hose was coiled up beside the house. Freddie turned the hose's valve, then started spraying the house. At first, the walls just steamed when Freddie sprayed them, but then the flames started to die down.

"It's working!" Randy exclaimed.

"Don't celebrate yet," Freddie said as he continued spraying. Even with him spraying, the flames were still eating away at the house's walls. But after another minute, the hose's valve broke, and it stopped spraying water.

"No!" Freddie exclaimed. "No, no, no!"

"Get to the neighbors!" said Randy. "Get them to call 911!"

Just then, the boys heard a voice from above. They looked up at the second story of their house, where their mother was looking out the window and yelling "Boys! You have to get out of here!" Behind her, Randy and Freddie could see their dad, along with their sister Hailey.

"Oh no," said Freddie. He dropped the hose and ran for the front door.

"Freddie, what are you doing?" Randy asked.

"Mom and Dad-and Hailey-are in there," said Freddie. "Someone has to help." And with that, he threw the front door open and ran inside the burning building.

Randy just stood there, dumbstruck. Was his brother insane? He didn't have any breathing masks or fireproof clothing. He wouldn't last two seconds in there! But deep down, Randy knew Freddie was right. By the time the firemen got there, it would've been too late. His parents and sister would've died. For a second, Randy thought about rushing in to help Freddie. But then there was a loud cracking noise as the fire finally burned through the house's main support beams. The whole two-story house collapsed in on itself, setting off a small explosion in the process. The force of the explosion knocked Randy off his feet. When the smoke cleared, Randy looked up and saw that there was very little left of his house.

Randy knew his family could not have survived that explosion. He was now an orphaned, homeless 12-year-old boy.

To be continued...

Randy didn't know what to do. He'd lost his family and his house. He didn't have any immediate relatives he could live with, and as far as friends went...there was Jesse Pindle. He was Randy's best friend, and his family had always been very hospitable to Randy. But the Pindles were off on a cruise, and they wouldn't be home for another couple weeks. Randy wished very badly that he could stay with them, but they wouldn't be an option. All he could do was find a secluded alleyway and sleep in there for the night.

The following morning, Randy hoped the events of last night had been a bad dream-but it was not so. His house was still destroyed, and his family was dead. Randy couldn't even go to school, since all his books and binders had been burned in the fire. As Randy walked down the street, he realized that his worst fears were coming true. He was now a homeless 12-year-old kid.

Randy kept wandering the streets and begging strangers for food and water for over a week. Not everyone stopped to help him, but a fair number of passerby obliged. It wasn't until he was approached by a police officer that he finally got something beyond just getting fed.

"Hey kid," the policeman said, "What are you doing?"

"I'm homeless," Randy said miserably. "My house burned down last week, and my family died, too."

The policeman looked Randy up and down. "Hey, you're Randy Miller," he said. "We've been looking for you for a week!"

"You have?"

"Yes. The firemen found your family's corpses in the remains of the burned building, but you were nowhere to be found. And you look just like the pictures that my fellow police officers found of you!"

"So...what are you gonna do with me?"

"Hopefully, find you a new home," said the policeman. "Come with me."

***

At the police station, the cops identified Randy and determined that yes, he was the lost kid they'd been looking for. Unfortunately, finding a new home for him turned out to be a different matter altogether.

"Well, Mr. Miller, it looks like all the other foster homes have no vacancies," the police chief said to Randy. "Except for Pretty And Pink Foster Care."

"Pretty And Pink?" Randy asked.

"Yes, Pretty And Pink," said the police chief. "It appears that it's an all-girls foster home."

"It is," said Randy. "I know some people from school who live there."

"There are some vacancies there," said the police chief, "But you're not a girl."

"Like gender even matters in this day and age," Randy scoffed.

The police chief chuckled. "I suppose," he said. "But I doubt whether the Pretty And Pink foster workers will allow you there."

"Are you sure?" Randy asked. Truthfully, an all-girls foster home didn't seem very appealing to him, but he was getting desperate at this point. "Maybe they can make an exception for me?"

As if on cue, a woman in her early thirties, dressed in a nice-looking suit, came into the room. "Hello, Chief Hall," she said. "I hear you have a kid in need of a foster home?"

"Yes, Ms. Kayne," said the police chief. "But he identifies as a male, so he wouldn't fit within your all-girls foster home..."

The woman looked at Randy curiously. "What happened to him?"

"My family died in a fire," Randy answered. "And my house burned down, too. I've been living on the streets for a week and a half now, and I don't have anywhere else to go."

The woman stroked her chin. "You know," she said, "I think I can work something out with you."

"You mean you'll let me into your foster home?" Randy asked.

"Yes, of course," said the woman.

"Wow," said the police chief, clearly surprised. "Well then...I guess that clears up that matter!"

***

The woman, who introduced herself as Ruth Kayne, had to fill out some more paperwork with the police before she could take Randy with her. But an hour and a half after she'd met Randy, Ruth took him back to her house.

"Uh, this is your foster home?" Randy asked when he saw Ruth's house.

"No," said Ruth. "This is my house where I live. I brought you here because we have some...things to discuss."

Randy assumed she meant how he'd fit in at the all-girls foster home. "Okay," he said.

When the two of them entered Ruth's house, they found a bunch of shopping bags on the counter. "Oh, good!" said Ruth. "Caitlyn brought your new clothes!"

"What-you already got me new clothes?"

"Yes," said Ruth. "I texted Caitlyn-she's one of my workers-when we were getting started with the paperwork. I told her to go shopping for some new clothes and drop them off at my house."

"Well, that's good," said Randy. "What kind of..."

"Actually, we should sit down first," said Ruth. "There's something I have to tell you."

Randy sat down with Ruth. "What is it?"

"Randy, my foster home is an all-girls one."

"Yeah, I was wondering about that," said Randy. "I'm not a girl, so..."

"But you can become one."

For a second, Randy wasn't sure if he'd understood Ruth correctly. "What do you mean?"

"You need a home, do you not? But the only available spots are at my foster home, which only allows girls. Therefore, the only way to get a home there is to become a girl."

Randy was starting to regret accepting Ruth's offer. "How am I supposed to become a girl?"

"It's easy," said Ruth. "I have a potion that I created."

"You're a witch," Randy suddenly realized.

Ruth nodded. "I am indeed," she said.

"No," said Randy. "I'm sorry, but I can't do this. I can't be a girl."

"It's too late. I've already filled out the paperwork to adopt you into my foster home."

Randy was speechless.

"Randy, I'm sorry it had to begin this way. I really am. But I can promise you that Pretty And Pink Foster Care is one of the best foster homes in the business, and that you will live a very happy life there. Everyone you meet will corroborate to that."

"Is it really too late?"

"Sadly, it is. We've already reserved a bed for you, and gotten you some new clothes."

"Wait a minute." Randy got up and went over to the counter where the bags of clothes were. To his shock, the bags were full of girls' clothes-tank tops, tight jeans, skirts, and...bras. Real bras.

"Yes," said Ruth. "We're going to have to turn you female."

Randy's heart sank. It really was too late. "Alright," he said. "Where's that potion?"

"I'll get it for you," said Ruth. She got up and went up to her fridge. She got out a small bottle full of reddish-pink liquid. "You have to drink the whole bottle," she said. "But I warn you, it's a painful process."

"Let's just get it over with," said Randy. He took the bottle, unscrewed the cap, and took a deep breath. Here goes, he thought. These were his last moments as a male. He drank the potion-which tasted like a strawberry milkshake-and put the bottle down on the counter.

For a moment there, Randy felt nothing. But then his insides started heating up like they were on fire. "Ah!" Randy exclaimed. He could feel his whole body bubbling and distorting like hot wax, reshaping itself into a more feminine shape. His body fat melted away, his hair grew out, and his hips and butt swelled a little. The biggest pain came was when his penis and balls folded in on themselves, giving way to a soft, warm vagina.

The whole process lasted less than a minute, but it felt much longer to Randy. He was so distracted from the agony, he didn't even notice when it disappeared. But when it did, he felt a lot lighter.

"Well, princess," said Ruth. "You took it better than I thought."

"I did?" Randy asked. His voice sounded higher now. He hadn't quite hit the voice-changing part of puberty yet, but turning into a girl still seemed to have made his voice higher.

"Yes," said Ruth. "And I must say, you look rather pretty."

Randy looked his, or rather her, new body up and down. She was only twelve, so she wasn't particularly "hot" or "busty," but she still looked pretty cute. Her torso was on its way to forming a nice hourglass, and her hair went down to her lower back. "Wow," she said. "I do look really good for 12."

"Yes, you do," said Ruth. "But you mustn't tell anyone at Pretty And Pink that you were a boy."

"Why not?"

"Because they're all girls," said Ruth. "What I did with you was a very special circumstance. If word broke out about what really happened..." She shuddered. "I'd rather not think about that."

Randy wilted slightly. She couldn't even tell anybody? Not her new roommates, not her friends at school? That was...discouraging. "But what's my new name gonna be?"

Ruth thought for a moment. "What do you think of Rachel?" she asked.

Randy shrugged. "I guess," she said.

"Alright, Rachel," said Ruth. "Let's get you changed now. I think those boy clothes might be a little...uncomfortable on you now."

"Oh yeah." Rachel was only just realizing that her clothes didn't quite fit her anymore. Her boxer shorts were a lot looser on her crotch, and her shirt was itching her chest like crazy. Her now-flared-up nipples were extremely sensitive. "I could definitely use some new clothes."

To be continued...

Ruth took Rachel down to her foster home building, called Pretty And Pink Foster Care. Rachel had heard of the place before, but she'd never seen it in person. It was a lot bigger than she expected-four stories high. "This is your foster home?" Rachel asked.

"Well, it's not really 'my' foster home," said Ruth. "Pretty And Pink Foster Care has establishments in Virginia and Pennsylvania, too. The company is owned by Angelina Aguilar-our founder. But our Nashville location is the one that I'm in charge of managing."

"So what's it like?" Rachel asked. "Am I gonna get my own dorm, or will I share it with someone?"

"Yes, you will share it with someone," said Ruth. "I have set you up with three roommates in a dorm on the first floor. They're all around your age, so it should be easy for you to get along with them."

"Okay..."

"And there's one other thing," said Ruth. "I know you're still very sad about losing your family in that house fire. If you feel like you need some grief counseling, I can set it up for you."

Rachel thought for a moment. Ruth was right: the loss of her family was still eating at her. But she still wasn't sure if she trusted the Pretty And Pink people enough to do grief counseling with them. "I'll think about it," she said.

"Very well," said Ruth. "Let's get you to your room."

Ruth took Rachel inside the building and down the hall where the first floor's dorms were located. They stopped at Room #106 and knocked three times. "Come in!" said a female voice from inside.

Ruth opened the door to the dorm. Rachel entered and saw that the room had two bunk beds, a couch, and a TV. Two other girls her age were watching the TV, and another one was folding laundry. "This is Vanessa," Ruth said, pointing at the laundry girl. "She will be your bunkmate."

Vanessa turned and awkwardly smiled at Rachel. She had blue-rimmed braces, thick glasses, and blonde hair. "Hi," she said.

"And these," said Ruth, "Are Hattie and Maddie."

Rachel looked at the girls on the couch and gasped. She recognized them! They were Hattie and Maddie Dominguez-the two meanest girls at Randy's middle school! Hattie and Maddie were twins, and they ruled the school's hallways with iron fists. Wherever they went, the crowds parted for them. Anyone who crossed them was met with a mean look and a snarky insult. Randy had gotten on their bad side once, and he'd really come to regret it. And to think that Rachel would now be sharing a room with them...

"So you're the new kid," said Hattie. She and her sister both had flaming red hair, smooth facial features, and dark brown eyes. The only think that set them apart was that Hattie had pierced ears, and Maddie had a pierced nose.

"Uh...yeah," said Rachel.

"Welcome to Pretty And Pink," Maddie said, though she didn't sound particularly happy to see Rachel.

"What's your name?" Hattie asked.

"Oh...I'm Rachel," said Rachel. She was still getting used to using her new name.

"Well, now that you're introduced, I'll just let you mingle," said Ruth. And with that, she left the room.

The second Ruth had closed the door behind her, Maddie and Hattie both got up and stared down Rachel. "Listen up, Rachel," said Maddie. "In here, my sister and I are in charge. Just stay out of our way, don't try to 'borrow' any of our stuff, and we'll be good."

Rachel awkwardly nodded. "Okay," she said. "Can...can I just go take a shower?"

"Of course," said Hattie. "The showers are behind the bathroom."

Vanessa looked up from her laundry. "Want me to show you?" she asked.

"I guess," said Rachel.

Vanessa led Rachel into the bathroom area that was attached to the dorm. Once they were out of earshot of the other girls, Vanessa said "Don't worry about them. They're actually not that hard to live with."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah. You just have to avoid crossing them."

"Yeah, like that's gonna be easy."

"Well...yeah, Hattie and Maddie are pretty ruthless," said Vanessa. "I've learned not to start anything with them."

"Me too," said Rachel.

"What-you know them?"

Rachel bit her lip. She remembered what Ruth had said about not divulging her gender situation to anyone. "We've met," she said. "I just didn't think I'd end up having to live with them."

"Well, at least you're not alone in not liking them," said Vanessa. "C'mon, this is the shower area."

Rachel's jaw dropped when she saw that there were no stalls in the shower area. It was just a wall with a bunch of nozzles and a bench for clothes and towels. "Are you kidding me?" she asked. "Is there no privacy here?"

"No," Vanessa said sadly. "For some reason, the people who built this place left out stalls in the showers."

"This is stupid," said Rachel. "I'm not showering naked with a bunch of other people."

"Sorry, but you're going to have to."

"Can you stand guard outside? Make sure Maddie and Hattie don't come in?"

Vanessa let out an uneasy laugh. "I don't think I could stop them," she said, "But sure, I'll keep an eye out."

Once Vanessa had stepped out of view, Rachel gingerly started taking off her clothes. She put them down on the bench and started showering at one of the nozzles. After ten minutes of soaping down, she shut off the water and dried herself off. Then she put on a new set of clean clothes.

"You all done?" Vanessa asked.

"Yes."

"Good."

***

While Maddie and Hattie continued watching their TV show, Rachel lay down on her bed. She couldn't believe what she'd gotten herself into. She'd been turned into a girl and put into a dorm room with the two meanest girls she'd ever met. Worse yet, Pretty And Pink apparently had no respect for privacy. How could Rachel ever survive something like this?

Rachel missed her family deeply. She wished she could see her parents, and Freddie, and Hailey, again. Were they watching down on her from Heaven? Randy had never been overly religious, but he did believe in there being life after death. If there really was a Heaven, then surely the rest of the Millers had gone there when they died. Rachel wondered what they'd think of their son and brother turning into a girl. Sadly, she'd never find out what they thought, because they were dead. It was gone. It was all over. Rachel's old life was over. There was nobody she could go to.

Except...maybe...

Rachel thought of her best friend Jesse Pindle. Randy had met Jesse back in Third Grade, and they'd grown closer and closer as the years went by. Randy had thought about going to his house after his family died, but that hadn't been an option, as Jesse and his family were out of town. But he'd be back soon, and he'd surely hear about the Miller family. And if Hattie and Maddie were at Pretty And Pink, then could that mean Rachel would be able to go back to her old middle school? If that was the case, could she reconnect with her old friend? Could she reestablish a connection from her old life? It all seemed too much to hope for.

And yet, after everything that had happened, an old friend felt like the one thing Rachel needed.

To be continued...

For the next couple days, Rachel mostly just hung out at Pretty And Pink with Vanessa. Ruth still had to do some work to register Rachel to go to school, since she'd be going in as a new student. But it turned out Pretty And Pink was a nice place to be. The cafeteria served good food three times a day, and there was a game room where you could play board games or video games with your friends. The only thing Rachel had to keep in mind was to stay out of Maddie and Hattie's way.

By the time the following Monday rolled around, Ruth had managed to go through all the paperwork for Rachel to go back to school. Much to Rachel's surprise, it was at Old-Timey Middle School-the same school where she'd gone as Randy! So when Rachel got to school, she was excited. All her old friends and classmates would still be there, and...okay, no one would know she used to be Randy, but it would still be nice to see them, right?

The first person Rachel ran into was Otto Henderson. Otto was a guy Randy had known since elementary school, and had had several classes together over the years. "Hey Otto!" Rachel exclaimed.

Otto looked at Rachel with a puzzled expression. "Uh...do I know you?" he asked.

Rachel chided herself. What was she thinking? Nobody here would recognize her! "Maybe," she said.

"You do look kind of familiar..." said Otto.

"Well, I am new here," said Rachel.

None of this made sense to Otto, but he wasn't one to question it. "Well, welcome to the school..." he started.

"Oh-I'm Rachel."

"Rachel," Otto repeated.

After that, Rachel saw several more familiar faces, but she did not attempt to make conversation with anyone. Her exchange with Otto had left a disappointed taste in her mouth. It should've felt nice to see all her old friends again, but to have them not even recognize her just...it hurt. And as the day went by, the pain slowly increased. By lunch, Rachel felt like she had a big, sad hole inside her.

"Hey."

"What-hey me?"

"Yeah, you."

Rachel looked up to see Vanessa standing in front of her in the lunch line. "Oh. Hey...Vanessa." Seeing her bunkmate brought some comfort to Rachel. At least SOMEONE here acknowledged her.

"How's your first day here?"

"Oh, it..." Rachel wanted to say it was horrible, but she stopped herself. "It's great."

"Nice," said Vanessa. "Are your classes alright?"

"Yeah, except for Math..." Rachel trailed off when she saw someone enter the lunchroom. It was a boy her age with curly blonde hair, gray eyes, and a thin body frame. Rachel recognized him immediately. It was Jesse Pindle-her best friend from when she was a boy!

"Jesse!" Rachel exclaimed, completely forgetting her regime of not approaching anyone she recognized. She ran for Jesse and pulled him into a deep hug. She wasn't sure why she was hugging her guy-friend. Maybe it was a feminine instinct to hug people? Regardless, it felt so good to see him again. He was the last connection she had to her old life, perhaps the only one she could-

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Jesse said, shaking himself out of Rachel's hug. "Who the fuck are you?"

"Oh, Jesse, I'm so sorry," said Rachel. "I'm just...kind of excited."

"But...why?"

"Excuse me!" said a new voice. Rachel turned and saw the only two people that could ruin the moment: Hattie and Maddie. The twin girls clad in matching white shirts and black skirts were strutting toward Rachel and looking at her the way an FBI agent would look at a criminal.

"What-Maddie? Hattie?"

"Uh..." Jesse stammered.

"She's with us," said Maddie. "She's our new roommate at our foster home."

"Oh," said Jesse. "So she's another one of you."

"No!" Rachel protested. "I'm not like them, I-"

"Come with us," said Hattie. "We need to talk."

Rachel reluctantly left Jesse and went with Maddie and Hattie to the other side of the cafeteria. "How do you know him?" Maddie asked.

"What?"

"How do you know Jesse Pindle? We saw you run up and hug him. Clearly you know him."

For a few seconds, Rachel just stood there, trying to think of an answer. She couldn't tell Maddie and Hattie she was a boy and was friends with Jesse. But what other excuse could she use? Lots of different ideas bounced around in Rachel's head, each one dumber than the last. But when she saw Maddie and Hattie staring her down, waiting for a response, anger started to rise in her.

"It's none of your business," said Rachel.

"You're our roommate now," said Hattie. "It IS our business."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is."

"No it's not."

"Fine, be like that," said Maddie. "But you stay away from Jesse Pindle. He may not realize it yet, but he is ours."

"What do you..." Rachel trailed off when she realized what Maddie meant. "You guys...like him?"

"Yes," said Hattie.

"But...how are both of you going to have him?"

"That's not your concern," said Hattie. "Just don't try to hook up with Jesse. Capiche?"

Rachel scowled, but she said "Capiche."

"Great. That's all we want to say." And with that, Maddie and Hattie left Rachel.

***

For the next little while, Rachel was even more down in the dumps. She'd tried to reconnect with Jesse, only to get shot down by her roommates Maddie and Hattie. Jeez, Rachel hated those bitches. She'd never liked them before, but now it was ascending to a level that could only be called "hate." Rachel made a mental note to talk to Ruth about getting transferred to a different dorm at Pretty And Pink.

The last class Rachel had that day was Science. When she came in, she wasn't paying attention to her classmates' names or faces. But when the teacher sat her down at her table, Rachel was surprised to see that her lab partner was-

"Jesse?"

"Oh hey..." said Jesse. "You're that girl from lunch who..."

"Yeah," said Rachel. She was starting to feel embarrassed by that whole ordeal. "Sorry about that."

"I don't mean to be rude here, but who are you?" Jesse asked. "I don't think I've ever seen you before."

"I...thought you were someone else," Rachel lied.

This made no sense, but neither did anything else. "Whatever," said Jesse.

"Look, I'm sorry if I offended you or anything," said Rachel. "In fact, if you want to switch lab partners-"

"No, it's okay," said Jesse. "Everyone else is already taken anyway. And besides, I just lost my old lab partner, so I kind of needed a new one."

"Oh, you did?"

"Yeah," said Jesse. "His name was Randy, and he was my best friend. But he died in a fire while I was on a cruise last week."

Rachel didn't know what to think. This was her that Jesse was talking about, but he didn't know it! But what Jesse said about Randy dying with the rest of his family in the fire...was that the official story? Had the police/firemen/whoever concluded that Randy had gone into the burning house with Freddie and ended up dying? It hurt Rachel to hear that her best friend thought she was dead. And what hurt even more was that she couldn't tell him that she wasn't. Well, she would've liked to, but now didn't seem like the time.

"That's horrible," said Rachel. "I'm sorry about your friend."

"Thanks," said Jesse. "Those girls Maddie and Hattie said you were their new roommate at Pretty And Pink Foster Care. Did you lose your family, too?"

"Sadly, yes," said Rachel. "They died in a burning building."

"Wow, what a coincidence," said Jesse. "I'm sorry."

"Yeah, it sucks," said Rachel. "And now I'm stuck with Hattie and Maddie."

"I know," said Jesse. "I hate them so much."

"And the worst part? Both of them have a crush on you."

Jesse's jaw dropped. "They WHAT?"

"Yeah. That's why they pulled me aside at lunch. They told me not to move in on you."

Jesse looked like he'd just swallowed a live cockroach. "Those bitches are in love with me? Ugh. Just...just ugh."

"I know," said Rachel. She knew Maddie and Hattie would be furious at her if they found out she'd told Jesse their secret, but she didn't care. Those girls hade made lots of other people hurt, so now Rachel was gonna make them hurt.

"Well, I'm definitely not gonna date either of them," said Jesse. "Thanks for warning me, Rachel."

"Oh, no problem," said Rachel. "No problem at all..."

To be continued...

For the next few days, Rachel kept going to school and working with Jesse as her lab partner. It felt weird, since she knew him so well and he didn't know her (or so he thought), but their interactions were mostly good. There was one incident where Rachel felt like she'd slightly annoyed Jesse, but he seemed to have gotten over it by the end of class.

The next week, however, things were different. When Rachel got to her Science class, the teacher Mrs. McLain had an announcement. "Okay, everyone," she said, "Today's the first day of our Sex Ed unit. And you know what that means."

"Oh yeah," said Jesse. "We're all gonna be separated."

"That's right, Mr. Pindle," said Mrs. McLain. "All the boys are gonna go down to Mr. Blake's classroom, and the girls are gonna gather here."

A sex ed unit? Oh boy. Rachel had gotten "the talk" from her parents, but since she'd been male at that point, it was from a "boy" perspective. From a "girl" perspective, she wasn't sure what to expect. Well, she knew the basic stuff, but not a lot more than that.

As the boys were clearing out of Mrs. McLain's classroom, some more girls came in and sat in their seats. Once everyone had settled in, Mrs. McLain addressed the girls. "Hello, ladies," she said. "This is the first day of our sex ed unit. I would like to remind you that you are not to talk about anything you learn here with boys."

"Why not?" said a girl sitting diagonally across from Rachel. "Why do we have to be separated into two groups?"

"Because that is how the curriculum works," Mrs. McLain said simply.

"But what about trans kids?" Rachel asked. "Or...what if we already know about the 'boy' stuff?"

"We're just doing what the school board wants us to do," said Mrs. McLain. "And they also want us to show you this educational video about puberty." She hooked her computer up to the classroom's projector and started playing the sex ed video.

The video started with a title card reading "Girls' Big Changes" before fading into a blank blue screen. A white, animated cartoon character with a long cylindrical body, a smiley face, and spindly stick figure-like legs pranced onto the screen. "Hi!" the character said in a peppy, feminine voice. "I'm Tammy the Tampon! And I'm going to teach you all about menstruation!"

"Tammy the Tampon?" Rachel groaned. What were these people thinking? Were they just trying to turn her and her classmates off? Of course she knew what a tampon was, but a walking, talking cartoon one? It was too cringey for words.

Unfortunately, the anthropomorphic tampon was just the tip of the iceberg. The video talked a lot about breast development, PMS, menstruation, pubic hair, and-erp!-sex. All throughout the video, Rachel felt disgusted and uncomfortable. She'd barely gotten used to wearing a bra all the time, and the idea of having to wear pads in her underwear-or, worse yet, stick a tampon inside of her-was just too much to handle. She wished more than anything that she could go back to being a boy, where the worst she had to worry about was a wet dream every once in a while.

Rachel sighed in relief when the video was over. "Thank goodness," she said to herself.

"Well, I hope you all learned something," Mrs. McLain said as she turned off the projector. "Tomorrow we're gonna start looking at each aspect of puberty in more detail. But remember, you're not allowed to tell any of your boy friends about anything we talk about. And they're not allowed to tell you about what they learn, either."

***

The next day in Third Period, there was an assembly. Rachel went with her English class to the multi-use room where the school always held its assemblies. At first, she wasn't sure what the assembly was for. But when she entered the multi-use room, she had a nasty surprise. Hanging on the wall above the stage was a picture of her-or, more accurately, him. The picture showed Randy standing at the school's front gate with his backpack, looking really happy and excited about school. Rachel remembered that picture. He'd taken that picture for the yearbook at the start of the school year.

When everyone had taken their seat, the student body president Fiona Guzman came up onto the stage. "Good morning, everyone," she said gravely. "We are all here today to honor a classmate who died recently. Randy Miller was a sixth-grader at our school who had a lot of promise. He was very talented, and he was very outgoing. All of his teachers felt he was on the road that led to a successful future. But a couple weeks ago, he and his family died in a house fire."

Several of the kids surrounding Rachel were starting to cry. Rachel was crying, too-but for different reasons. This was her that Fiona was talking about. Fiona was spreading the story that Randy had died the same night as the rest of the Millers did. Rachel knew that wasn't true-she had survived, and been adopted by Ruth, and turned into a girl because Pretty And Pink didn't allow boys. But since nobody knew, the cover story was that she was dead. It hurt her to know that, even though she was there, everyone else thought she'd died.

"Randy's best friend, Jesse Pindle, has kindly volunteered to share some words," said Fiona.

Fiona stepped aside to allow Jesse to come onto the stage and stand before the crowd with a microphone. "Yeah, I knew Randy," said Jesse. "He and I met in Third Grade at Redhouse Elementary School. At the time, I didn't have many friends, but that changed when Randy invited me for a playdate. I went over to his house, and we had a lot of fun playing together. Many more playdates followed, and we grew closer. So much that after we graduated elementary school, I went with him and his family on a trip to the Caribbean."

Rachel remembered that. She and Jesse had shared a room in the rental house her family had rented out. The trip was probably one of the highlights of her life.

"He and I had several classes together here. Randy was even my lab partner in Science. But then, when I got back from my cruise last week, and I heard about the fire..." Jesse's voice cracked. "I couldn't believe what I heard. I went to Randy's house, hoping it wasn't true, but it was. The Millers' house was just a pile of ashes. The police even showed me Randy's death certificate."

Jesse tried his best to hold back his tears as he continued. "I miss Randy," he sobbed. "He...he was a good friend. Not just to me, but to everyone. Losing him has been a huge blow to all of us. But to everyone he knew, and touched...he will still live on in our hearts." Jesse bowed in sorrow and walked off the stage.

"Thank you, Jesse," said Fiona. "Thank you, everyone, for coming to remember our classmate and friend. Randy, if you're watching down on us from Heaven...we miss you."

"But I'm here," Rachel murmured to herself. It hurt so much to see her best friend grieving for her "death." She appreciated hearing the nice things Jesse said about her, but at the same time...Jesse was her best friend. Surely he had a right to know the truth.

As everyone was filing out of the multi-use room, Rachel looked to see if she could catch Jesse on her way out. She ended up running into him right as she was going back into the school's hallway. "Oh...hey Rachel," Jesse said, barely giving her a sideways glance.

For a few seconds, Rachel just stood there, unsure of how to react. "Hey Jesse!" she called.

Jesse turned her way. "What?"

"It's me!"

"What are you talking about?"

Rachel's face fell. She had not thought this through very well. "I was just...nothing."

"Whatever," said Jesse.

Rachel felt worse than she had at any point in the multi-use room. How was she going to tell Jesse the truth about herself?

To be continued...