Linda was stunning, as usual.
An off-shoulder boho gown draped her form, flowy and rich with the color of dark honey. She’d chosen a casual outfit this morning (at least, the most casual a queen could get away with), though it did precious little to contain her curves. An elaborate bead necklace caught in the hollow of her collarbone, in some attempt to pull away attention from the world’s biggest cleavage, and her dark hair tumbled in a loose braid along her shoulder.
Linda was also quite mortified. Her disastrously gorgeous body was sore head-to-toe, memories of last night still tingling throughout despite her best attempts at ignoring them.
Her new husband and royal secretary were both… Very, very good at keeping her occupied.
The morning rush of playing queen was a welcome escape. The new king was kind and attentive, but something about him and her wish pulled at Linda in a way she couldn’t quite control. Her MILFy body reacted to him like a lovestruck rabbit, unwilling and unable to keep its hands to herself no matter how hard she resisted.
Six hours. They fucked for six hours.
A deep breath. Right now, she was once again in the private garden patio, admiring the twisted view of her former home town. Beautiful but unrecognizable, with a sparkling ocean and warm sea breeze, vibrant architecture, and fantastical trees that erupted into the sky.
Part of her wondered if she had her own private beach. She shoved the thought aside.
Linda needed this talk with Jon. In part to figure out how to get the stone away from herself, but also to explain that she messed up a third time and found him a new dad. Seriously, how do you even admit that to someone?
Abruptly and awkwardly, she realized, when her son arrived with a well-styled half-bun of deep red hair. Same shade as her husband’s.
“Morning,” Jon said dully. He didn’t quite drop into the cushy chair as usual. One of Linda’s accidental wishes, she guessed—Jon’s princessly body glided with the same regal mannerisms as herself. He gestured to his hair. “Explain?”
“Morning to you too, kiddo,” Linda said. “I, uh, tried to fix Lake Point. Again.”
“Uh-huh. Why do I have red hair?”
“I messed up?” Nailed it, Linda.
“Mom,” Jon said, his features giving an absolutely enchanting pout. “I guessed that. Tell me why I have red hair. And, apparently, a dad now?”
Linda shared most of what happened. Jon buried his head in his hands.
“Mom.”
“I know.”
“Mom.”
“I know.”
“No, seriously!” he moaned. “I messed up with the first wish. I’ll admit it over and over again. But how are you even worse with the wishing stone than I am!?”
Linda almost shrank at that, though her body kept posing straight and proud. She opened her mouth to apologize—when the wrong set of words tumbled out instead. “You will speak to me with respect, child.”
Jon froze. Linda slammed a hand to her lips.
“...Sorry,” Jon finally said, meekly.
“No, no, I’m sorry kiddo,” said Linda. “I didn’t mean that. I’m still me on the inside, but…”
“It’s your wish to be a proper queen, right?” Jon asked. “A tiny impulse in the back of your mind, nitpicking every little thought that’s not ‘appropriate to your position?’ Slips out sometimes, before you can stop yourself?”
Linda nodded.
Jon grimaced apologetically. “Your wish that I act like a princess. I have it too.”
Well, that confirmed her suspicion.
“But why though?” Jon asked. “You only wished that I behave like a princess, not that I be or think like one.”
Linda shook her head. “I’m just thankful it’s not worse. How… How are you holding up?”
She knew the answer. Her son looked like an exhausted barbie doll, stuck in an outrageously female body and dragged through as bad of a schedule as her own. The politics of this kingdom were dizzying.
“Stressed. But it could be worse, I think,” Jon said. “I mean, I have to choke down the urge to call you ‘Your Majesty” instead of ‘mom,’ and this body’s a little more… Distracting than I’d ever expected. But you did technically wish for a way to overrule the stone, so I’ve been looking into that. How are you with the, uh, husband?”
Linda elected not to tell Jon how sore her body was. “Mortified. I should've learned my lesson with you, didn’t, and—damn, Jon, I don’t even know the guy’s name.”
Mortifying indeed, said the voice, somewhere in the back of her mind. We are royalty. We should be in control.
What we should do, said another. Is take the day off. Our darling hubby’s been sooo busy with his travels. Doesn't he deserve a reward?
A shiver, paired with a growing warmth between her legs. Linda downed a crystalline glass of ice tea. “Research. You did research.”
“Barely, with the whole fairy apocalypse yesterday.” Jon delicately reached for a muffin. “I confirmed magic’s a whole thing now, and us royalty are supposed to be, like, really good at it.”
“Yeah?”
“But here’s the problem.” He tried to bite the muffin, grimaced when his hands refused to bring it to his mouth, and settled with tearing off small pieces. “I have no idea how it works. Haven’t seen anyone use it yet, except for the fairies.”
Linda tried not to deflate. It was a start, at least. Better than anything she managed on her end.
“There’s… Something else.” Jon gave an awkward smile. Even on his pretty features, Linda recognized that please-don’t-freak-out look. “I found someone who remembers the old reality.”
Linda inhaled sharply. “That’s—that’s not how the wishing stone works, right?”
“Not technically—”
“Do they know about the wishing stone? That this all happened because of us?”
“Yes and maybe,” Jon said. “I downplayed the second thing. She was kinda really drunk, but she’s also a lot smarter than me, so I’m not sure where she falls on blaming us.”
“Who is it?” asked Linda.
Jon described his own evening.
“Athena DeVries…” Linda nodded slowly. Honestly, they could do a lot worse than Athena. Linda initially knew the girl as Zoe’s best friend in middle school, and regarded her as a sort of… Slightly eccentric, largely positive influence on her daughter. Somehow, Zoe became more personable and well-adjusted after she found an obsession with dark outfits and death metal. “Where is she?”
“She’s…” Jon lulled. “Well, honestly, she was supposed to come here with me. I may have lost her.”
“What.”
