(Branching from a previous chapter.)
Andy yawned and rolled over in bed, stretching as the morning light hit her eyes. Despite her recently-acquired breasts, she was still a belly sleeper, and she was grateful that they were modest enough to not be too uncomfortable underneath her. Actually, she was grateful for that generally - it was more than enough to have become petite, without having her figure be an even more obvious reminder of her new sex. She walked over to the dresser, smiling as she recalled last night. Sue was...mmm, Sue was getting pretty good at this. Of course, judging by his reactions, so was she.
What a strange place to be in: she enjoyed and desired intimacy with her husband, she was attracted to men in general, and she wasn't uncomfortable in her new body, generally. Yet at the same time, she didn't quite think of herself as a woman, and she did get a little freaked out by her change if she stopped and thought about it. She looked into the mirror at the young rabbit-woman standing there, naked, breasts hanging free in the cool morning air, and her mind reeled a little as she pondered the idea that this was really her (as she often did.) She took in the face, round but not childish, the soft brown hair, the gray fur on her ears - this was her, she was essentially aware of that, and she didn't feel uncomfortable with it, but it was still a bit overwhelming, a bit alien.
Would that ever change? Would she, at some point, just identify as a woman, end of discussion? Would she stop having these moments of cognitive dissonance where she looked into the mirror and was stunned to see her new self there? Would she begin to feel differently? Act differently? She didn't know. She supposed that like most matters of constant exposure in life, she would eventually get used to it, but it was still a bit bizarre to consider. And the question of whether she would begin to act like a woman...that was a bit unnerving.
Like most married men, Andy had long been convinced, based on her own observations, that there were in fact substantive differences between the behavior of men and women; she could definitely tell which of Sue's behaviors were Sue's personal quirks and which were socially "female" behaviors of their own time and country, and, she thought, could discern some that might be more universal...? If she were of a more rigorous, scientific mindset, she supposed this would be the perfect opportunity to find out whether they truly were inherent or not, but her concern was more immediately personal. The idea that she might possibly find her own behavior changing, whether she wanted it or not, was a little scary.
On the other hand...on the other hand, would it be so terrible? Even if she did take on these characteristics, it wasn't like they were things that made her disrespect Sue. Well, okay, there were good and bad alike, but she figured that she had probably had her own male quirks that Sue felt the same way about. Maybe they'd just trade straight-across...anyway, it would hardly be the worst thing in the world. Still, though...it felt like the unease stemmed from the idea of changing, and not so much the question of what she would be like at the end of it. That she couldn't do much about; how could she know whether anything like that would happen or not, unless she experienced it, or went long enough without it that she could discount the possibility?
She fumbled a bit with getting her bra on, then got the rest of her dressed. And even if it did happen, even if it was something unpleasant...well, considering this change, and how it had brought her this much closer to being truly free of her addiction, the role it had played in helping her keep from destroying their marriage...that would be worth Hell. Andy really hoped that she'd remain pretty much as she was, but...if she did find her behavior changing...well, she could deal with it, she thought.
Sarah was still in a bit of a mood when she arrived at school that morning. The thoughts of her boyfriend had come on so suddenly...she hadn't really thought so much about him for so long, first because she was a harpy from day one, and he was still human, and she was afraid to imagine what his reaction to her might be, and then because he had suddenly become a little girl, and she didn't know how to feel about that or how she should treat him, and it just felt so awkward...
But she did miss him - and despite what her self-doubt said, it wasn't just because she missed the idea of him, the idea of being attached to a star football player in public, where everyone could see. She missed Biff...
She was interrupted from her thoughts when a small child rounded the corner at high speed and ran right into her. Sarah wasn't sure if she actually had hollow bones now, but she did seem to be lighter than she had been before her change, and she was knocked back with more force than she'd have expected from a kid that size; she only managed to stay upright by quickly spreading her wings and air-braking with them - it left her a little wobbly until she regained her footing, but at least she was standing. She glanced around, feeling startled and irritated, and then her eyes settled on the child.
"O-oh," she said, feeling awkward and not really certain how to react. Speak of the devil...but she was wanting her boyfriend, not...not...oh, now she felt bad for thinking that way, but...what was she supposed to be feeling?
Becca looked up at the girl she'd run into, then did a bit of a double-take when she recognized Sarah. She'd seen her now and again, but she wasn't really used to thinking of Sarah as being a harpy...or as being bigger than her. And she wasn't wearing anything, either; some of the other kids had said that, but they said a lot of things. And she hadn't actually talked to Sarah since the day she changed...it felt like forever ago, but it couldn't have been more than a couple weeks...
"H-hi, Sarah," she said, folding her hands nervously, feeling a little self-conscious at her little-girl voice. "Um, sorry for runnin' into you."
"Th-that's okay," Sarah replied. They both stood there for a minute, neither quite sure how to react to the other. Eventually, Sarah just sat down on a nearby bench, trying to think, and Becca sat next to her, staring at the floor and kicking her legs. "S...so," Sarah said, finally, "...how are you doing?"
Becca thought for a moment, biting her lip, then shrugged. "Okay, I guess," she said. "It's all kinda confusing, but...I guess I'm okay." She looked up at the harpy. "How 'bout you?"
Sarah sighed. "I...I'm okay, mostly." She hesitated, wondering if she should even be bringing this up, but the words came out regardless. "I...I miss you." She cringed and blushed, looking around and wondering if anyone had overheard. This must look so wrong to other people...or would it? Surely other people had their own awkward moments with some of these changes...and hadn't she decided to stop caring what other people thought of her? She was so preoccupied with this that she almost missed the response.
"Me too," Becca said, after a pause. Sarah turned and stared at her. "Y-you do?"
The little girl nodded, her powder-blue pigtails bobbing. "I..." She sighed a light, soft sigh. "I dunno, when I think about you 'n me, I get this feeling like...like there's somethin' missing inside, that I used to feel...I guess it's one a' the things I don't understand anymore...but I know I miss bein' with you, Sarah. I missed you before, too."
Sarah felt a little choked-up. The more she watched this girl, the more she could see echoes of Biff's mannerisms coming across in her expressions, in her body language, but all filtered through this new body...it was so strange, but so familiar... "I...I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't come to see you because...I was afraid you would hate me...think I was a monster..."
Becca stared at her and shook her head emphatically. "Nuh-uh!" she said. "Sarah, you're really pretty like that! I wouldn'ta hated you!"
She nodded. "I...I know. I'm sorry I thought that you would, I was just afraid..."
Becca put a small hand on her wing, squeezing gently. Sarah gasped slightly at the unfamiliar touch, and felt herself starting to tear up again - only this time, she wasn't sure they were bad tears. On impulse, she half-scooped the girl onto her lap and folded her wings around her, wrapping her warm and safe in a wall of brightly-colored feathers. Becca hugged her underneath her wings, and they stayed like that for some time. Sarah had no idea how things would work out from here, what their relationship to each other could possibly be, or how she felt about any of the possibilities, but right now, she was just glad to be together again.
