/ Holiday Treats #3

Shifting Rites

by

A story about a trans girl getting the body she always wanted for Christmas.

— Skadia

 

“This is so cute, Taylor! I love it, thank you so much!”

I smiled at my girlfriend as she inspected the hand painted flowerpots I’d made for her, happy and relieved that she liked her Christmas present. To think that, only a week ago, I’d been convinced that our relationship was over, that she’d never want to be with someone like me once she knew the truth. And yet, here we were, sitting under the small Christmas tree we’d put together in our apartment, as if nothing had changed.

I was so worried because, exactly seven days ago, I made the mistake of falling asleep on the couch with my computer unlocked on the coffee table. While checking resources for trans people. What had to happen did, and my girlfriend came home and couldn’t help but notice what I’d been looking up, which had resulted in the most stressful conversation of my life.

I’d only suspected that I was trans for a month or so had that point and had mostly managed to convince myself that it was something I could ignore, that Grace didn’t deserve to be dragged through her boyfriend’s problems, and that it would all around be simpler for me to just not do anything about this. After all, I’d managed to be a boy for the first 24 years of my life just fine, so it’s not like I couldn’t just keep going like I had, right?

But Grace hadn’t liked that idea at all. To my surprise, she’d actually been very supportive and encouraged me to go see a therapist and explore my options. It had been a week since, and I was still reeling from the support she’d shown me.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang, and I saw a strange look pass over Grace’s face. I couldn’t be sure, because it had only lasted an instant, but I almost thought I’d seen apprehension in her eyes. I didn’t have time to dwell on it, because Grace then gingerly set down the flowerpots she was holding and stood up.

“Finally! I’ll be right back. Don’t move, okay?” She said, and hurried away.

What had she been waiting for? I felt really curious, but decided to listen to her, and patiently waited for her to come back. I could hear her talking to someone at the door, but couldn’t make out what they were saying. A few seconds later, I heard the door shut, and Grace came back with what looked to be a takeaway container.

“Come on, it’s my turn to give you your present,” she said, and pulled me towards the guest room.

I wasn’t surprised to see where we were going, as Grace had locked the door the previous day, stating that I wasn’t allowed to peek inside. Still, I wondered what kind of surprise would require an entire room, and what takeaway food had to do with all of it. The more I thought about it, the more confused I grew. But I trusted Grace, and so I followed her, figuring I’d get answers soon enough.

I heard the soft click of a key turning inside of the lock, and the door opened, revealing its pitch black interior. Grace had apparently closed the curtains, but I could still see that the sparse furniture had been pushed against the wall, leaving the wooden floor completely bare.

I’m not sure what I expected, but this definitely wasn’t it. In hindsight, it would have made sense for Grace to hide something that was too big to gift wrap in there, but I couldn’t see anything of the sort. The room was dark, the only light coming from the hallway behind us. Peering in the darkness, the room appeared to be empty, although… Were those candles on the floor?

As I followed Grace inside and got a closer look, I managed to confirm my suspicions. Old-looking candles were placed across the whole room, and, as Grace started lighting them, I started noticing that they were following a pattern. Red lines were painted across the floorboards, occasionally crossing each other, forming a shape that, with a sinking feeling in my gut, I started to discern.

A pentagram. And not just a simple one. It looked extremely intricate, with strange symbols that I didn’t recognize painted at regular intervals the whole of it contained within a circle of the same red color. I stood there, mute, as I contemplated the scene before me.

“Okay, babe, don’t freak out… oh, you’re already freaking out,” Grace said once she was done lighting the candles, and I caught her wincing from the corner of my eyes. I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the huge demonic symbol painted before me, standing there, slack jawed. Dimly, I wondered if this was going to cost us our deposit before I shook my head at the ridiculous thought, bringing me back to focus. Grace hadn’t noticed, apparently, and was still talking.

“-and it really isn’t what it looks like, or, at least, not in the way you think. Actually, I’m just going to do the ritual and you’ll see, okay? Just make sure to not interrupt me, or things might get a bit dangerous.”

Before I could even think to say anything to that, Grace set down the takeaway box in the middle of the pentagram and started chanting in a weird language that I didn’t recognize. It sounded harsh and melodic at the same time, and I swear I could feel some sort of power behind the words. Like the room had been filled with a strange energy.

Panicked, I took a half step forward before stopping myself. Some part of me was screaming in my mind, saying that I had to do something, anything. Yet, Grace had said that I shouldn’t interrupt, and, while I would have scoffed at the notion minutes earlier, I wasn’t so sure anymore.

As I stood there, paralyzed by indecision, the room grew even darker, the shadows deepening like a thick black mist slowly taking over everything around it. The candles shifted color, their flames turning an eerie deep blue and growing more imposing. The door, which had still been cracked open, slammed shut, and the red markings on the floor started glowing a dull red. A dull buzzing noise overtook the room, quickly rising in intensity, gusts of wind emanating from the center of the pentagram and hitting my face such that I had to shield my eyes. Grace’s chanting picked up in volume, rising and rising as such that she was almost shouting, until she abruptly stopped. Instantly, both buzzing and wind stopped with a dull tremor that made the walls tremble, and the room was quiet once more.

I could only hear Grace’s slightly winded breath, and cautiously uncovered my face, but couldn’t see anything. The candles, which had somehow resisted the powerful gusts of wind, had been put out, leaving the room pitch black.

A snap broke the silence, and the shutters flew open, blinding daylight flooding the room. That’s when I noticed the woman standing in the middle of the pentagram. The first thing that I noticed about her was the pair of horns on her head, curving backwards. Black straight hair framed her face, stopping below her shoulders. Her eyes were an unnatural purple, accentuating her aristocratic features. In contrast, she wore what seemed to be a plain black dress, which still managed to add to her elegant posture.

“Hello, Grace,” she said, a pleasant smile creasing her face. I stood there, looking between the two of them, and decided that I’d had enough of standing there, gaping like an idiot at the… demoness? Was that a word?

“Could somebody please explain what the hell is going on?” I asked, my voice sounding both strained and tired.

“Oh!” Grace said guiltily, as if she’d completely forgotten that I was there. “Sorry, Taylor. This is Zel, she’s a friend.”

I raised an eyebrow, waiting for more details, but it seemed like that was all I was going to get. I could see the demoness was finding this all very amusing, if the smirk on her face was any indication.

“I am a demoness,” she finally said, taking pity on me. “Grace has been summoning me regularly over the past few years, and today, I am here to grant her a favor.”

I nodded somewhat hesitantly, because this didn’t really explain anything, before something she said struck me. “regularly?” I asked, turning towards Grace.

You are reading story Santa’s Secret Transfic Anthology Vol. 2 at novel35.com

“Yeah,” she nodded, chipper. “So, a few years ago, I was bored on a Sunday, and decided to try to summon a Demon, right? Anyway, I’d gotten this old decrepit tome from a weird antique shop not long ago and figured this was the perfect time to use it. And boy was I surprised when it actually worked! Anyway, then we got to talking and we became friends,” she said, smiling at me like this all wasn’t completely insane.

“Indeed,” Zel said, and I did a double take when I noticed the takeaway box opened in her hands. “I was similarly surprised that same day when I felt the pull of a summoning, as it had been centuries since I’d last been called to your world. Her first offering was inadequate, but I decided to let it slide, in light of the circumstances.”

“I told you I was sorry about that,” Grace mock-pouted at her, before looking back my way. “It all worked out in the end anyway, since it turned out that Zel loves human food, so I summon her from time to time and we talk about stuff while she eats whatever new dish I can make or order. It’s really nice, and she’s got lots of really cool stories to tell.”

“And today, I finally get the opportunity to pay you back with something more substantial than old tales,” Zel said, examining a spring roll with intense curiosity. I didn’t know how she managed to remain so graceful while eating Chinese takeaway food from a polystyrene container, but I refrained from asking stupid questions. “Your companion wishes for a body that fits her better, doesn’t she, Grace?”

I froze, my brain going over that sentence again and again. Did I understand that right? I couldn’t bring myself to hope, turning the words in my head to try and find what I’d misunderstood.

Grace didn’t let me dwell for very long. “That’s it! You said you could do it, right?”

“That is within my power,” Zel agreed, and looked at me. “Let’s not make her wait any longer, shall we?”

“W-wait, a-are we doing it right now? I just-“ I didn’t get to finish my sentence before Zel snapped her fingers with a smirk on her face, the sound echoing across the room like a gunshot. Moments later, I was on all fours, my vision blurry and my thoughts jumbled. Long blonde hair was tumbling down in front of my face, and my whole body felt weird, like it had been suddenly reshaped.

“Oh my god!” I heard Grace say, before I felt her tackle me from the side, hugging me with all her strength. I was still feeling disoriented, but I did my best to return the hug, if only to prevent myself from falling onto the ground. I was a bit shaky from the shock, and so I clung to my girlfriend for support, who silently held me while I was putting my head back together.

We stayed like that for about a minute, until I felt stable enough to reluctantly break off the hug. Grace met my eyes, a glowing smile plastered on her face. I smiled back hesitantly as she pulled me to my feet. My pants almost fell down before I caught them and I was practically swimming in my sweater, yet I’d never felt more comfortable before in my life.

Lost in thought, I barely registered Grace pulling me along towards the furniture she’d stacked to the side, where she placed me in front of a full length mirror. A soft gasp escaped my lips when I saw myself. Even with the clothes hiding my body, I could make out curves underneath, but what really shocked me was my face.

Gone were all the masculine traits I’d agonized over in the mirror. Gone were the harsh lines, the square jaw, any feature I’d had the tiniest dislike over had been changed into something beautiful. This went way beyond “a body that fit me better”, it was absolutely perfect.

My sight went blurry again and I worried that I was going to fall down again, only to realize that tears were running down my cheeks. Grace was there in an instant, embracing me in her arms as if to shield me from the outside world, while I let my emotions pour out.

“I take it you approve of the results, then?”

I jumped. I’d almost forgotten that Zel was there. I tried to tell her how grateful I was, but my throat refused to obey me, so I opted for a very enthusiastic nod instead. It must have had the desired effect, as I could see Zel’s aristocratic features softening as she gave me a kind smile.

I let go of Grace and grabbed her hand instead, wiping the tears away with the sleeve of my sweater, which reminded me of something. “I’m going to need so many new clothes, I don’t think anything I have will fit me anymore” I said, laughing softly.

“I believe that is something I can also help with,” Zel said with an impish tone. I glanced at her and noticed that her sly smile was back in full force. She snapped her finger again, and I yelped as I felt my sweater and jeans moving, almost like they’d become liquid, before they stopped.

I blushed as I took stock of my new red Christmas dress, which revealed my bare shoulders and ended in a skirt right above my knees. I felt a thrill go through my body and felt my face becoming even redder. Grace wasn’t faring much better, as I caught her staring at my body, her face scarlet. I let out a mortified laugh and did my best to subtly hide myself behind her.

Zel’s laughter told me that I hadn’t been as subtle as I’d hoped. “There. Much better, isn’t it? I’ve also made sure to give you some more… casual options, if you so wish. I’ll let you go and take a look at your wardrobe later.”

I nodded and lightly shook Grace to try and snap her out of her daze. “I just… I don’t know what to say. I don’t know how I could ever repay you, thank you so much,”

“No repayment is needed, but I appreciate your thanks. Now, I believe I should take my leave and let the two of you celebrate,” Zel said with a last smile, walking back towards the pentagram.

An idea started taking form in my mind. “Wait!” I said. “Why don’t you stay with us for the day? It’s still early, and we were going to cook a big dinner this evening. You’re welcome to join us, if you want to.”

I bit my lip as the demoness pondered the idea. She glanced a Grace, who nodded enthusiastically, before she finally smiled. “I would love to,” she said.

I smiled back. This was going to be the best Christmas ever.

THE END

 

Thank you for reading, you can find all my other stuff on my profile and my !

— Skadia

 

/ Holiday Treats #3

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