Welland Revisited - Ch.6 - Distractions & Dinner (Patreon)

=::= Tally's PoV =::=

"Do we really need to do this now?" I asked nervously as I glanced around.

Ms. Watson replied, "You need more than one outfit Tally, and you'll need a few other necessities."

Me and Beth were in the back of the mini-van again. We just pulled into a parking space outside the Pen Centre, and there were lots of cars and people around outside.

A half hour ago I was at the Watson's house, asking Beth and her mom how Jenny magically transitioned two years before the world had any magic. Somehow they both decided I was in a good enough mood to go shopping for more clothes. I was pretty sure the whole expedition was meant to distract me from my questions about Jenny, and for the moment it was actually working.

The three of us emerged from the van, then we started walking towards the entrance. Ms. Watson led the way while Beth stayed next to me. 

My tail was hanging down as I remained anxious, and I was very aware of people staring and gawking at me. Even two years after magic came to the world, some folks still acted like they'd never seen a tail or animal ears on someone before.

"What kind of clothes do you want to try?" Beth asked. "Trendy? Hipster? Punk? Want to get some skirts? Or pants? We can get them altered here so you don't have to stick with just leggings. What's your style Tally?"

I blushed and replied quietly "Shouldn't we just go to the discount store? Get something inexpensive. Leggings are fine, tops like this one are fine."

Ms. Watson responded, "If that's what you really want Tally? I'd rather get you quality clothing that's not going to wear out in a month or two, but if leggings and tops are what you want then that's what we'll get you. But if you'd be more comfortable with something else, then please say so hon. And don't worry about the money Tally. I wouldn't be offering to do this if it was going to be a problem."

"So don't hold back," Beth added with a grin. "If there's something you want to try, go for it!"

I looked back and forth between my girlfriend and her mom, and my tail started slowly swishing back and forth. Once again my emotions were almost overwhelming, but mostly it was good. I couldn't believe how lucky I was that my girlfriend and her family were so kind and generous and understanding.

After a few moments I finally nodded, "Ok... Thanks Ms. Watson, and thanks Beth."

The next couple hours were a bit of a blur as the three of us visited at least a half dozen different stores and I tried on countless outfits. I ended up with two skirts and two pairs of tight jeans, plus two pairs of my own leggings. I also got four cute t-shirts and a couple nice tops. The jeans and skirts were left with a tailor who'd do the alterations so they fit my tail, then while that was happening the three of us pushed ahead with more shopping.

I got two pairs of shoes that fit properly, a half dozen pairs of cute socks, and a package of my own panties and three of my own bras, so I didn't have to borrow from Bethany. I even got a cute nightshirt. Almost all my clothes were in dark colours, to go with my black hair and fur. They all had highlights and accents though, so they weren't just black or dull. Last but not least, Ms. Watson got me a couple brushes for my hair and tail, a toothbrush, and a few other important things like that. 

We loaded everything into the minivan, but we had another hour to wait before we could pick up my clothes from the tailor. At that point it was past six o'clock, so the three of us went to a restaurant across the street from the mall for dinner. I felt bad that Jenny was left out, but she didn't want to come shopping with us. Ms. Watson texted her, and it was decided that we'd pick up dinner for Jenny when we were on the way home.

The people at the restaurant were really good about my tail, they didn't even try to put us in a booth. And their chairs had gaps at the back so I didn't have to turn mine sideways to be comfortable. We got seated off to one side, kind of in a corner but it meant there was nobody behind me to get annoyed by my tail, or to accidentally bang it or anything.

I hadn't even thought about that kind of thing before, but looking around I realized they had two other tables that were positioned the same way. One of them was occupied too, with a cat-kin couple sitting together. It helped me forget about the stares and gawking. Like yeah some people still freaked out about this stuff, but a lot of people didn't. Not anymore. 

It also helped me realize that despite all the stores we were in, all the clothes I tried on, not a single shop gave me a hard time. Nobody said I couldn't try on clothes because of my tail, none of the staff at the various stores even looked at me funny.

"Hey Tally?" Beth asked next to me. "Everything ok? You got really quiet there."

She was sitting to my right, Ms. Watson was across from us. The three of us had menus in front of us, but while they were looking at theirs I'd spaced out and got lost in thought.

"I'm ok," I replied with a grimace. "I was just thinking how nobody gave me a hard time at the mall? There were some stares, but not from any of the store employees. And here, they've even got stuff set up for folks with tails right?"

Ms. Watson responded, "It's been over two years Tally, most people have gotten used to the existence of demi-humans. There'll always be a vocal minority who'll make a fuss about anything different from themselves, and there'll always be the occasional ignorant or uninformed person. But by and large, society has already gotten used to it and moved on."

After a moment she added, "I'm not sure if this is part of the high-school curriculum yet, but you should probably know that last December the Charter of Human Rights was updated to specifically include demi-humans. And discrimination has always been illegal, but again since last December demi-humans are specifically mentioned as an at-risk group. It's no different from discriminating against someone for their skin colour or gender identity or sexuality. Any kind of discrimination carries very harsh penalties."

I nodded slowly as she spoke. I was vaguely aware of that stuff, I kind of remembered hearing about it in the winter. But back then I didn't think it applied to me, and I didn't really pay attention to it.

Then Beth leaned closer and nudged my shoulder. She was smiling wide as she announced proudly, "My mom helped with that! I bet we'll see her name in a textbook someday, when they talk about this stuff."

Ms. Watson blushed, "I didn't play that big a part Bethany. Katie Saunders is the one who spearheaded the whole thing. She did all the hard work, I just helped out here and there."

"I've heard that name before," I said with a frown. 

Beth grinned, "Katie's a tiny catgirl lady. Like tiny, as in she's smaller than me and you!"

"Right," I nodded. "I've seen her on TV, on the news or something."

"She was in the news a lot over the winter," Ms. Watson said. "Everyone wanted to interview her after the human rights legislation passed. And you'll probably be seeing more of her on the news again before long. I understand she's planning to run for office in the next election."

That impressed me. I hadn't heard of anyone who'd used that spell being elected anywhere, not that I paid much attention to political stuff. I knew it was still a big deal when someone openly gay or trans was involved though, so it'd be an even bigger deal if a catgirl was trying to get elected.

The waiter came around so we all ordered dinner. I didn't need to look at the menu anyways, I'd been here plenty of times with my family and I already knew what I wanted. 

After that I asked Beth's mom, "So how do you know that famous catgirl lady? Was she someone you met through QSAW?"

Ms. Watson smiled, "Sort of. Katie Saunders is Stacey's younger sister. I got to know her back when ID reform was the hot topic. Katie led the charge in BC while I helped here in Ontario. Katie took the cause all the way to Ottawa, but I mostly just assisted from behind the scenes. Same as with the human rights amendments."

"Wow," I didn't know what else to say. It was kind of cool though, knowing the fox lady I met this morning was big sister to that tiny catgirl I'd seen on the TV. 

That left me thinking too, like in the past you'd know or be able to guess when people were related because they looked similar. Like up till Sunday morning, I looked kind of like Dylan, and we both looked a little like dad. Except I couldn't begin to describe how happy I was to not look anything like either of them now. 

And the idea that sisters could be so different, like one was part red fox, the other was part cat. One was normal sized, the other was tiny. I knew my family would hate that kind of thing, like I could remember mom going on about how nice it was that me and my brother both looked like dad. But I thought it was neat.

The food arrived while were were all quiet, so everyone got started eating. Ms. Watson had a chicken and pasta dish, Beth got a personal-sized pizza which came as no surprise to anyone, and I got a burger and fries. And Beth was drinking cola, but me and her mom both had water.

Normally I could polish off the burger and fries here then want desert too. This time I got halfway through and I was stuffed. It was another reminder of how much I'd changed, how small I was now. And it made me happy in ways I couldn't even put in words for myself, let alone try to explain to other people.

Eventually Beth and her mom finished as well, then Ms. Watson paid the bill. Before we left the restaurant they both wanted to visit the washroom, and I had my first experience in a public ladies room. I was nervous and awkward but neither Beth or Ms. Watson made a big deal, and nobody else reacted either. It was all just kind of routine. Then finally the three of us headed back across the street to the mall. 

My skirts and pants were ready, Ms. Watson paid the bill while I took the bag from the guy. Then we all headed back to the mini-van. 

"Thanks again for everything," I told them as we pulled out from the mall parking lot. "I really appreciate all this, everything you've done for me."

Ms. Watson replied, "You're welcome Tally. I'm sorry your family haven't been supportive, but we'll help you out as long as you need it hon."

"Has your mom called or texted or anything since you spoke to her this morning?" Beth asked.

I shook my head, but I pulled my phone out to double check. "Nope, nothing."

Her mom suggested, "You should probably let your parents know you're staying with us, Tally. Send a text if you don't want to call. Or if you prefer, I can speak to them myself."

That topic started getting me anxious again, until I felt Beth's hands run the length of my tail. It was between us on the seat, and she must have seen my expression. The feeling didn't freak me out as much as it did the first couple times. Now it just sort of made me melt slightly, and I sank back in the seat as she gently petted and stroked the thick floofy fur.

My girlfriend continued petting my tail as she said, "Mom if you think that's important then you should take care of it. I don't think Tally wants to think about that stuff yet."

"All right," Ms. Watson replied. "Sorry if I got you anxious again Tally."

Beth added quietly, "I'm sorry too, I shouldn't have brought it up."

I just nodded slightly as I continued to melt while my girlfriend gently played with my tail. 

On the way home we stopped at a drive-thru and Ms. Watson got dinner for Jenny. At Beth's suggestion she got a few more things too, and when we pulled away I was handed a little ice-cream sundae covered in caramel, while Beth had one smothered in chocolate.

When we got to the house Beth helped me carry in all my new clothes while her mom took the hot food in for Jen. 

Finally, me and Beth settled down on the living-room sofa as we enjoyed our ice-cream. Jenny was sitting on the floor, she had a fast-food burger and fries and a large drink on the coffee table in front of her, and the three of us started watching something on TV. And Ms. Watson sat in one of the chairs across from us and began tapping out a message on her phone.

After a few quiet minutes I finally spoke up and asked, "So um, I was wondering about what Jenny said this afternoon? How could she get a magical transition two years before there was any magic?"

Beth winced and Ms. Watson gave Jenny a hard look, which made the tall blonde cringe.

Jen slowly turned to look back at me and grimaced, "Maybe it'd be best if you forgot I mentioned that?"

If Ms. Watson and Beth had both ignored what she said this afternoon I probably would have forgotten about it, but the way they kept acting like it was some big secret made me too curious to let it go.

"I just want to understand," I said to all three of them. "How could you have a magical transition four years ago? The spell's only been around for two years."

All three of them seemed sort of tense and uptight. Jenny turned to look at her mom for a second, then turned back towards me again.

She shrugged, "So obviously it's a secret, but mom's a witch. After I came out four years ago she used a transformation spell to turn me into a girl."

Then Jenny stuffed some fries in her mouth and went back to watching TV, while I was left staring wide-eyed at Ms. Watson.