Guest Story: We've always had two Daughters (A Grimalkin FF) (Patreon)

Here's a fan fiction story from our very own Dianna (Very active on the discord) I hope you enjoy her story, set in the Grimalkin capital of Vastin before it fell.

We've always had two daughters

I am running a few minutes late; my previous meeting is running over.I'm just back from the forge again. Thank the gods mom has practically no choice but to have me as her blacksmithing assistant. But I'm sure if she had things her way, I'd be in the mines like Dad. Though, to be fair, I have skill, and people outside my family actually like my work. Thus mom can't get rid of me or people could start complaining.

As I get inside, I notice my sister, the one my parents are actually proud of, just because she’s a girl… has left her maroon long-tail dress sitting on the side, unattended.A look to my left. A look to my right...and before I’ve even washed the black scale from my hands, I’ve grabbed it.

This won’t be the first time I’ve put on her clothes, just so I can pretend to be as strong as her and my mother, but it is the first time I’ve gotten black scale all over it without noticing. When I put it back, without anyone seeing, I didn’t notice all the paw prints I’d left all over it.

Seeing as my paws are the smallest in the family, I couldn’t lie my way out of this one.

“RAGNAR, come here, you little sod! You’ve been wearing my clothes again!” Avi, my sister, holds it out to me, and I’m caught red-handed or… scale-handed!

“You’re not a girl, Ragnar, and you never will be. If you were, perhaps you'd actually be helpful!” Avi shouts as she slashes at my paw with her claws

“OW… argh, freaking hell, that stings. Y-you don’t need to attack me over it, Avi!” Tears form in my eyes, dribbling down to my whiskers. “I-I’m just curious.”

I start backing away from her, a little scared because she’s bigger and stronger than I am, even though she’s two years younger. But I’m confused when she suddenly takes a small stumble and grabs at her stomach.

“Ugh, Ragnar, y-you’re stressing me out. I feel sick now, and it’s all your fault! No wonder Mom and Dad are so disappointed in you.”

“I'm sorry!! By the great tree in the sky, you're the absolute worst!” I shriek out, turning on my heel and storming off.

It’s not my fault I was born a boy! She’s just like every other girl in Vastin! Why in the world do I have to put up with this every single day?!

I storm out of the room, slamming the door.

I wish I were a girl… then maybe I'd actually get treated how I want…, but no, no… that's ridiculous. I'm a boy. That's how it'll always be. Whether I like it or not…

***

I head into the bathroom to try to wash the scale off my paws. As I do, I feel… Odd. The cut on the back of my paw, which I expected to sting as I washed away the scale, is… gone.

Hang on, were my paws always this big?

That's weird. In fact… That's not the only weird thing. Has my fur always looked like that?

Pretty sure it's naturally a bluish color.

But now it's… getting darker? My eyes too… They weren't always that shape… were they? And my whiskers… they're weirdly soft… like mom's…

“What is going on… am I losing my mind or… wait a second why do I sound like that!?”

I yelp. I sound so high-pitched! I sound like… Like… LIKE A GIRL!

I quickly dart out of the bathroom and find Mom downstairs!

“Ragnar? What's wrong? And why do you look like that? Did those nasty boys at the off-world pit throw you into the tailings again? Why can’t you be more like your sister and stand up for yourself?!” Mom asked, turning away from me like my existence is a hassle to her.

I'm always treated like this! Like I'm sort of an unwelcome houseguest! Can't she see I'm panicking?!

“What!? No! Something is happening to me!” I squeak before suddenly getting an intense sensation of vertigo… Ahhh… I think I'm going to… be sick.”

Mom just watches me, absolutely baffled by what's happening as I try to steady myself on the dining table. “Ragnar, stop being—”

I catch myself from falling, but everything feels so…wrong!  My vision begins to blur.

I catch sight of my paws. Somehow, they are definitely bigger, and my fur… It's turned dark red, and my clothes are tighter than before.

Just then, Dad comes in and spots me and Mom, who is now trying to keep me from falling over as the vertigo fades.

“Eh!? Milia, who is that person you're standing with?”

Mom still looks incredibly confused but manages to reply. “Errrr Harlow… This is our son.”

Dad's face becomes almost dumbfounded as he looks at me, then Mom. Then back at me.

“But- but he was just with you at the forge! How in the world could he end up like this?! He took the test, and we know he isn't a Formador. S-son Tell me. What were you doing before this?”

This is the most proper, genuine attention I've gotten in ages.

“Well, I got into an argument with Avi after I accidentally got black scale on her dress, and she slashed the back of my hand with her claws. After that I went to the bathroom to wash my paws, and that's when I started… to… Dad?”

I stopped talking as I watched a look of horror cover his face.  After a moment, dad took a shaky breath and sat down at the dining table.

“Avi!” he called out. “Could you please come here?”

Avi soon appeared, still clearly grumpy about her dress until she stopped in her tracks at the sight of me.

“Mom… Dad. Who is this?”

Of course, she asked that question…

“Avi… That's your brother,” Dad responded, somewhat coldly.

Avi looked at Dad like she just heard the worst joke ever.

“You're kidding. That's Ragnar? No, that's some random girl in our house. Ragnar has blue fur, not dark red. Is she why you called me down here?”

Dad replied in a firmer, more annoyed tone. “Yes, she is… Because that is your brother. Avi… You changed him. You're a Formador.”

Avi doesn't look so grumpy now. She tries to act annoyed by what Dad is telling her. But it comes off as More… Terrified.

“What… no… No No no no no… that can't be true! You're absolutely crazy. I…I… if I am, doesn't that mean… they'll take me away?! They'll take me away to the castle for… Well, whatever they'll do!?”

Mom is now trying to comfort her. “Hold on now, it's okay, it's okay… we're not going to let that happen.”

“We're lucky you avoided the test a few days ago. Can't believe I'm glad you got food poisoning, but… That's how it is.” Dad said, while closing the blinds and windows.

With all this happening… I'm completely left behind. What about me? The one who's now in a body that feels so… strange? The one who is currently standing there feeling like he's being ignored… once again. Is anything that I do or anything that happens to me… Ever going to be enough?

“We have to make sure that this never gets out, Harlow. I can't bear to think about Avi being forced to do whatever the Royalty wants. We might never see her again!” Mom says while Avi hugs her

“Yes, yes, you're right, honey. I'm trying to figure things out here. We'll have to make sure no one suspects anything. We'll just say we've always had two daughters. Ragnar will need a name change and new clothes…” Dad said while pacing up and down the hallway.  “Urgh, Ragnar, why did you have to be so stupid!”

Hearing that last part from Dad… I can feel my blood boil.

All I've ever done is give and give and give to them. And still… they don't care. I don't think they ever will. So why should I care either?

“EXCUSE ME!? ARE YOU JUST IGNORING THE FACT THAT I'M SUFFERING TOO?!” I shout, completely outraged, catching all their attention.

“Ragnar, quiet! This isn’t about you! Can’t you see that your sister is in danger?” Mom scolded, attempting to quiet me

“WHO GIVES A HELL ABOUT THAT!? ARE YOU EXPECTING ME TO JUST ACCEPT THIS!? WHY CAN'T SHE JUST CHANGE ME BACK?”

“Because she might lose more of her lifespan!” Dad said, standing between me and mom

“From what I understand and have been told, Formadors can only change others 8 times before they can't live for much longer. Avi has already lost some; we can't have her lose much more.”

“Ragnar will need to go to a new school. He can't be seen by anyone he knows, or they may start to question things,” Mom says.

“Yes, I know that, Milia. But I'm sure he can still help in the forge. I'll just tell people that the Ragnar they knew was a nephew of ours or something. Although perhaps he'll be better at it now that he's properly able to hold a hammer.”

“WHAT, SO I'M SUPPOSED TO JUST LIVE LIKE THIS!? LEAVE BEHIND ALL MY FRIENDS, AND JUST LIVE A LIE!?”

“It's not all bad! You can get more respect and connect with people better. That's an advantage we females have,” Mom says as she tries to calm me.

I can feel tears streaming down my face now. But who does that matter to?

“OH, SO NOW YOU ACTUALLY WANT TO TRY TO COMFORT ME! AFTER I CAME RUNNING TO YOU, MY OWN MOTHER, FOR HELP AND YOU TREATED ME LIKE A WASTE OF TIME! BUT WHEN AVI IS CRYING, THEN YOU SUDDENLY CARE!? AFTER SHE'S THE ONE THAT SCREWED UP!?”

“Ragnar, I'm sorry…” Avi says, looking up at me. She looks genuinely remorseful, but… also genuinely afraid of me. Not that I care. I only feel rage right now.

“OH, SHUT UP! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR A PEEP OUT OF YOU! DO YOU EVEN REALISE WHAT THIS IS LIKE?! YOU THINK A SORRY IS GOING TO MAKE ME FEEL BETTER!? FOR YEARS I HAVE BEEN BERATED, PUT DOWN, TOLD THAT I'M NOT GOOD ENOUGH BY, ALL OF YOU!!! AND EVEN WHEN I BECOME A GIRL, LIKE YOU ALWAYS WANTED, YOU STILL DON'T CARE!!! BUT I AM DONE TAKING IT!”

I screamed in response. Everyone is speechless. Maybe they've actually just realized what they've put me through. Or perhaps they're just shocked I'm actually standing up for myself. Not like it matters.

Either way, I'm all out when it comes to shouting. I feel physically exhausted. And frankly, I also feel good to finally let out all that I've bottled up after so long. After all that, I storm my way upstairs and into my room.

However…

“oh and by the way… If you're dead set on a new name for me, call me Reiði!” I yelled from my room. All I feel right now is anger and malice towards all of them.

“Now could you kindly… LEAVE ME THE HEL ALONE!!!”I shout before slamming my bedroom door shut.

Why of all people… Did I have to be the one stuck like this? With a family like THIS?!

I look around my room… at everything I have. It's just hand-me-downs. Half-hearted gifts given to me out of obligation. Nothing with actual love behind it. I can feel my anger rise even further .

If they care so little about me… why should I care about what happens to the things they've given me?

Using my new strength as a female, I start to smash, break, and tear apart everything in sight. The closet. My bed. My clothes. Till all that's left is an old mirror that was hidden behind my bedroom door.

Just one more thing to break

I look at myself and the extent of my new body. I'm taller, my tail is longer, my fur is a dark red, disheveled from my rampage in my room. I slam my paw against the glass, causing it to crack and nearly shatter.

I just stand there for a minute, surrounded by the destruction I've caused.

“… I need some air,” I muttered to myself

I open the window and climb out onto the roof.

I always came here when I needed space. Many people don't really climb on the roofs, because they think it's dangerous.

But it's weirdly like another world up here. You don't really notice it, but a lot of people build a little something up here. Like little overhangs to sit with others and chat.

Most people think there's some kind of underground full of bad people beneath us. Black markets and the like. But it's the opposite. Like another community entirely, up above. But mainly, I just sit and think about… everything, really.

I notice it's gotten dark out. It's quiet… really quiet. Time passed quicker than I thought.

I let a tired, frustrated scream out of my hands, trying to clear my head, before sitting down and looking up at the stars. But I'm not alone for long.

“Ragnar, is that you?” a voice asked from behind me.

I look over my shoulder and see someone with grey fur, a small patch around their face and nose being a darker shade of fur. It's just Fortuido. He's a member of the city Royal guard… well, WAS anyhow. He was never really put into action after an injury to his leg led to him being amputated and having to live with a prosthetic.

He told me he was confined to the castle for a while, until he eventually began sneaking out into the overhang community and bumped into me.

However, that wasn't the first time I met him. I actually forged his weapon after he personally asked one day at the forge, and Mom wasn't around.

The sword itself was basically a massive slab of iron that had been sharpened. Or to put it another way, it's a cross between a huge broadsword and an executioner's sword.

Although… I've not seen him in a while now.

“Yes… I'm here…” I mumble, feeling emotionally drained.

Fortuido gasps as he gets a proper look at me and hears my voice. “Are you alright? Why in the world do you sound and look like that?”

I contemplate telling him what's happened. I may be angry at Avi, but she doesn't deserve to be dragged to the castle. But at the same time… Fortuido is someone I genuinely trust.

“My… My Sister is a Formador… She's… sigh, accidentally turned me into a girl.” I reply as Fortuido sits down next to me.

“Really? Well, from what I can tell, you clearly aren't happy about it. I could hear you underneath me, you know. You sounded like you were about to break the whole house into pieces,” he says softly, with underlying sympathy in his voice.

He's honestly so different from other males. Apparently, he's an extremely, and I mean, extremely rare case of having similar proportions and features to female Grimalkins, which has led to him being a rather popular Person in the city. Practically everyone knows him, and likes him too.

I feel the tears bubbling up again…

“Safe for you to say… My family is just… The worst! They never wanted me. Everything is always about Avi. Even when I'm hurting, they just don't care. I'm worthless. A burden. A no-good, useless, unwanted-”

I'm cut off as Fortuido puts his hand to my face.

“Ragnar… Reiði… Whatever you wish to be called… You are none of that. And you are going to stop saying those things about yourself. You are something to me. You're a friend.

You're the first person outside of the Royal Guard I can actually call a friend. You have always been someone I can ACTUALLY talk to like a normal person. You mean something, TO ME. got it?” Fortuido said, looking serious.

How… How can someone like him exist? Oh, by the great tree in the sky, I can feel my eyes really welling up now. I don't think anyone has ever spoken to me like that.

“g-got it…” I replied, trying to hold back the flood… I fail to do so.

Now here I am… Bawling my eyes out to… my best friend, basically. And I couldn't ask for a better one.

“Come on,” Fortuido said softly, pulling me up. “Clearly you need time away from your family. I have a place up here in the overhangs. Somewhere where we can both hide for a while.”

I keep sobbing but manage to nod, and we begin walking.

Screw my family. One day, I'm going to be more than anything they could imagine. And I'm determined to be beside Fortuido when that day comes.

I guess now… Reiði is who I am. And I'll just have to prove myself.