(This is my first published story, so please be gentle with your comments. I wish to thank Penny Lane for all her encouragement and her editing of this story. Any remaining errors or omissions are all mine. Thanks, Iona.)

The Last Sleepover

At a sleepover with his childhood best friends, Elliot hears them making fun of a transgender celebrity. Elliot has always felt different and an outsider. He works to discover his true identity and when he does it's hard to accept. Elliot struggles between staying silent and standing up for himself. Will he reveal his secret or pretend to be someone he’s not?

Cameron is slowly moving towards acceptance of her new fate, but not without a few bumps in that road. A new 'remembrance', hope they can effectively stand up to their hosts, and an unexpected presence reveals itself. What will happen to all she's come to accept in this reality she's been living?

Chapter 1: The Wish

The morning sunlight filtered into the small bedroom, casting a soft glow on Daniel’s face as he sat on the edge of his bed, staring at himself in the mirror. His hazel eyes looked tired, and his brown hair, always a bit unruly, stuck up in all directions. He sighed, pulling at the loose hem of his shirt.

Today was his fifteenth birthday, but he felt as invisible as ever.

The promised rain had finally caught up with me around two miles from home. The shower was heavy, so much for the forecast of just the odd light shower.

Hope's Light

Chapter 17

by Erisian

Book 6

Chapter Seventeen - Needles

Beliel’s Tears, the waters of Lethe. The stuff had many names and had spawned legends both in Hell and on Earth.

And had almost allowed a Chaos-infected jerk subsume and conquer the angelic princes of the damned.

Caelan grew up as an orphan in the shadow of Avaloria’s palace, scraping by on the streets and bound by the ruthless thieves’ guild that demanded his loyalty. He never felt right in his own skin, never found his purpose, only his friends kept him from despair: Eira, the beautiful thief he secretly loved and longed to be like; Thorne, the mercenary who pulled him out of crime; and Alric, a healer who gave hope to the hopeless.

When Caelan is wrongly accused of a crime and the palace guards begin hunting him and his friends, his world falls apart. With nowhere to turn, a mysterious stranger offers a way out; a dangerous mission to find the lost princess of Avaloria. With everything to gain and nothing left to lose, Caelan and his friends set off on a journey that will change them, and their kingdom, forever.

Author’s Note: This is a full-length novel of nearly 100,000 words. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I had writing it.

Blake Medical Recovery Center, Napa Valley, Northern California:
Cindy and Sara’s Office:
Dakota was sitting at a little table that Sara had bought for her to color and play on her tablet while she worked. Sara knew Dakota sometimes didn’t like being alone and felt better if she was nearby. She looked over towards Dakota and could tell she was happy.

Dido returned to John Proudfoot’s home after a week away. Right away, she noticed that he was frowning even more than usual.

Margaritas, Beaches, and Bikinis

Chapter Two
Belk's Department Store

A few days passed. And the writer's block still held its firm iron grip on me. I still felt like I'd abandon all of my writing projects and I felt like I owed my readership a reason why there had been no new Emily stories. Or any updates on her many misadventures. But every time I opened up a blank word document  and told myself that now I was going to work on her stories I found my mind going blank. Blank like the word document I was peering at.

After flubbing a powerful incantation, meant to give newly coronated Demon Queens the wisdom of their ancestors, Devilla Satanne awakens to memories of her past life as Jacob Divington, a human from Earth. Having gained a new perspective on life, she quickly comes to a rather horrifying conclusion: she's been a complete and utter brat! No wonder everyone hates her!

And then there's the fact that she's apparently been reincarnated as the villainess of Tower Conquest, a lesbian porn game with a surprisingly intricate plot. One in which the Heroine conquers Dimona Tower, turning Devilla's people against her in the process. In victory, the Heroine brings about a glorious age of peace between demons and humans for the first time in millennia. ...Which actually sounds pretty good for her people, come to think of it. Devilla knows her terrible behavior is beyond forgiveness, but maybe she can still make up for her past mistakes? She just needs to make sure the events of the game unfold correctly. Though there is one little detail she'd like to change - the part where Devilla herself is killed or enslaved!

The series cover was commissioned from https://twitter.com/HaizeUqei

The School Bully
A Vignette
By Maryanne Peters

It was the home of Jason Davis – the school bully. Jason’s mother answered the doorbell. Chrissy was still wearing the ridiculously short skirt, but had changed her top to something that better displayed her burgeoning breasts.

“Hello Mrs. Davis,” said Chrissy. “I am here to see Jason.”

“My God. It’s Christopher isn’t it?”

“Not for over a year now, but yes, it’s Chrissy now.”

“Come inside, Sweetie,” she said. “What a brave child you are. It must have been so difficult for you.”

The Other Side of Me – Part 34
by Lily Rasputin

Before that moment, I considered myself a fairly articulate person for the most part. I mean, I knew I wasn’t going to ever be a debate champion, but my grasp on the English language as a whole was pretty good.

Staring into Samantha’s eyes, still tasting her flavored lip gloss transferred to my mouth from that incredibly passionate kiss, left me feeling like an idiot. The wheels were turning but there was zero traction.

“Who … what … out?”

Yep, complete failure in coherent communication.

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The sad expression on Linda’s face did not fit how she should feel. Right now she should feel special, like a princess. Nancy and her friends were Linda’s ladies-in-waiting in getting her ready for her big night. That scarlett princess straight sweep train tulle dresses with appliques lace sequined corset should have made her feel regal. The job Linda and her friends, Gemma and Christina, did on Linda’s hair and for her makeup should added to the sense of regality.

“Fire! Fire!” I yelled as I ran through the house. After getting my sister's unconscious body out of the house, and seeing that my parents were beyond hope, I grabbed my two most important belongings: my college paperwork, and Frosty's hat.

CHAPTER 62
“Mister Rhodes?”

I raised a hand, feeling absurdly childish as I did so.

“Here”

The bald man smiled and waved towards a side door.

“I’m Simon Burns. Just in here, and we can see how this goes. It’s all set up. Can I assume you speak and read English?”

I was sitting in a bright room overlooking the sea. It was already warm, thought not yet hot. I felt confused, happy, sad, and a bit afraid. A knock on the door and a lady walked in. She came over to me, I stood up and we shook hands. She was somewhere between 35 and 40 , friendly, wearing a dark skirt, white blouse, medium heels and carrying a briefcase.

“Hi, I’m Helen, mind if I sit down?”

“Of course, sorry, please do sit.”

She sat in an armchair on my right. I turned towards her.

“What do I call you?

“Jim, Jasmine, as you prefer”.