NOVEL NEXT PART SIX: Revisions to Substance
The third week, they started to worry about money.
Jamie had savings from the time she’d worked as a probationary firefighter, but they’d burned through some of it. Worse still, the security guards at Alexandra’s dorm were starting to get grouchy about Jamie’s constant presence. She was beautiful, friendly, and increasingly familiar—but her photo identification didn’t look anything like the girl she’d become.
Both girls fantasized, silently and aloud, about finding their own place to move into together, decorate and make their own. Jamie, used to working for a living, immediately began considering other job possibilities, but her lack of identification was a problem there too. If she claimed to be her old self, questions would come up about her incredible change in appearance.
“Can’t you just say you’re like Gail?” asked Alexandra. “Someone who transitioned you know… normally?” After all, she reasoned that Gail might have also looked quite different before coming out as trans.
Jamie, confident in the way of the recently learned, rattled off all the complications with that idea. “I don’t have a paper trail,” she explained. “No documentation from any kind of medical professional means no gender marker change on my driver’s license, or my social security card. No permanent mailing address means I can’t legally change my name either.”
“Hmm,” Alexandra considered carefully. “But couldn’t you get a new ID photo and just… deal with people seeing your old name and gender marker on the ID? Explain to them?” Jamie's face looked as if someone had decided to steamroll her tombstone.
"Even if I wanted to deal with that kind of expsure, they'd still ask questions about my situation. I don't have any documentation of why I look the way I do, and I know you don't want to get reported for using the Burin, right?"
That was the real clincher; Alexandra wanted to hold onto the Burin of Destiny until she'd accomplished whatever it was she was destined to do; that was supposedly the moment it would pass on to the next wielder. However, they were both sure it would be classified as a dangerous magical artifact if any official bodies found out about it. Even in their own imaginings, it was far too easy to come up with various things a supervillain, or even a run-of-the-mill revenge seeker, could do with it.
Despite all that power, it didn't seem feasible for the Burin to change Jamie’s government records or create convincing fake identification that wouldn't be spotted as a forgery. So Jamie started looking for work that didn't require any kind of documentation. She figured it must be possible to find something; it was New York City, after all.
***
As the job search went on, only a few partial opportunities presented themselves. "Shrike works at that used bookstore near Union Square, but the only openings are part-time and barely pay anything," was one idea, followed by Jamie asking "Do you think I'd be any good at making coffee for an artisanal espresso cafe?" She had never even tried a cup.
Their thoughts inevitably turned to the Burin again. Alexandra tried changing a one-dollar bill into a hundred, but Jamie pronounced it an obvious forgery. Next, Alex drew a diamond ring, based on magazine photographs of vintage jewelry; when Jamie took it to be appraised, it turned out to be glass.
"It's almost as if the Burin has built-in logic that looks for the simplest way to create something," Alexandra pouted. "Do you think if I draw a gold bar, it'll turn out to be pyrite, or plastic? I'm pretty sure I can draw something that looks like it's not plastic..."
"Maybe you'd better try something that doesn't look like it's been stolen from Fort Knox?" suggested Jamie. "Earrings, or a plain wedding band..." Surprisingly, her suggestion did work, and they pawned some of the resulting gold jewelry—albeit with a guilty feeling that the items would soon disappear from the pawn shop's display cases. Due to that limitation, they couldn't even return to the same pawn shop; savvy business owners were increasingly aware of the existence of magical methods to defraud them.
"What if we asked around about whether there are other trans girls—or hell, trans guys too—who want their bodies redrawn?" Alexandra was pacing the tiny living room, thinking. "I'm sure there have to be some well-off trans people in this city who'd pay for that kind of service! Tech employees? Or wait... I could make old Upper East Side ladies look young again! I'll change my name to Dorinne Grey, in an homage to Wilde!"
Jamie giggled, admiring her girlfriend's over-the-top chutzpah, but shook her head. "I thought we agreed that we'd find out whether I have any adverse health effects before you try that on anyone else."
Alexandra let out an exasperated sigh. "You seem to be doing fine! And we could find out if your body is healthy, but you won't go to the doctor, because then they'd force you to register with the Office of Supernatural Affairs. I really don't want the Burin seized, but maybe it's worth... I don't know, lying about that part? So you can simply go to the doctor, like you ought to?"
Jamie nodded, sitting down glumly on the floor, her long legs crossed. "I'm sure you're right. Gail keeps telling me horror stories about girls who had something go wrong with a magical shifting potion, or a goddess blessing, or who knows what else. I'm just scared of... I don't know what I'm scared of. All sorts of stuff."
Alexandra came over to put her arms around Jamie. "Maybe just make an appointment at the low-income gender clinic? I hear it takes weeks to get in there, but in the meantime..." She shrugged. "You might run into some kind of money-making opportunity!"
Jamie hesitated, looking as if she was about to say something. "There is... one possibility I haven't really thought much about."
"What is it?" Alexandra prompted.
Jamie sighed and rubbed her forehead with a hand; she looked worn, like she needed to lie down or take a nap but a thought was clearly stressing her out. Finally, she dug into her messenger bag and handed Alexandra a postcard that looked as if it had been bent several times.
Alexandra read it out loud. "NOXX Gentlemen's Revue. For the discerning connoisseur of the exotic and supernatural. Over twenty-five erotic performers of all kinds. The party starts at 10, three dollar drink specials until 11. 21+ only, please drink responsibly. Holy shit... Jamie, is this a strip club?"
Jamie nodded mutely. "Um... would it bother you if I tried out? I got this from a guy at that party last week. Gail knows him."
Alexandra twisted her lips. "Gail knows everybody, which when it comes to vouching for people is the same as not knowing anyone at all, if you ask me. But... are you sure? God knows you have the bod for it, but it's an awful lot of... exposure? What kind of dancing would you be doing?"
"I'm not sure, really. I guess they have… all kinds? And I qualify as a supernatural type, apparently, thanks to you?" Jamie shifted uncomfortably.
"Don't get me wrong, okay?" Alexandra put her arms around Jamie again. "If you want to do this, I support you a million percent. I'm not like, some jealous guy who won't be able to stand other dudes looking at you. It's just that... you've always been so shy. I'm worried about you."
Jamie balled her fists. "I guess that's part of it? Maybe I don't want to be the shy girl anymore... maybe I don't have to be a wallflower? I don't know. It's not like I have a strong chance at this anyway... I think that guy gave me the flyer when they saw I was willing to get up and dance mostly naked, but I was pretty wasted.” She began to pace the small room. “It's not as if I actually know how to dance! I can't even really walk on heels."
Alexandra took a breath quickly. "Actually... I think you might be able to."
Jamie stopped pacing and looked over at her. "What do you mean?"
"I might have..." She stopped. "Okay, I'm not sure yet. But we can try an experiment to find out. Have those big blue platform heels disappeared yet? Oh wait, nope! They're here by my bed... maybe just too flamboyant to forget about." Alexandra fished out the shoes in question, which she hadn't felt the nerve to wear either. They were six inches total, although two were part of the platform.
“I’m not sure I get what you’re saying,” Jamie said with a frown. “When I tried to walk in heels a few inches lower than this the other day, I was tottering. You think my body’s adjusted, or something?”
“Just humor me and try it! I’ll stand right next to you in case you lose your balance.”
Despite her doubts, Jamie sat on the floor and strapped the enormous heels on. “I don’t even think I can get to my feet in these,” she started, but eased herself up onto the couch, and then stood up. To her amazement, she balanced in the heels naturally, resting her weight on the long, thin spike in back and the larger wedge of the platform in front.
Alexandra’s eyes sparkled. “Now try walking.” Jamie started, tentatively at first, but found right away that she had no problem. She strode into the kitchen, balancing on her toes and letting the heel rest gently when she came to a stop, then turned and walked back, her hips swaying. Her expression was astonished.
Alexandra noticed she was putting each foot directly in front of the other and made a mental note of it. “I can’t believe how good those make your ass look,” she said. “Seriously, you’ve got a bubble butt… although you’re also what, six foot four in those? Giantessss..."
"Whoa, girl! Your eyes are glazing over with lust." Jamie bent over and leaned close to Alexandra, who was turning red. "You want me to pick you up and hold you against the wall, or something? Or just step on you?"
Alexandra fanned herself dramatically. "Uh... maybe later? Yes? But first, I owe you an explanation. Take those off, I want to try something else."
Jamie sat down easily and pulled the shoes off as Alexandra continued. She was holding a brown sphere in one hand. "All right, see this rubber ball? I drew it." She threw it at the floor; it ricocheted, and Alexandra caught it again.
"Wow, a sphere! Your art teachers must be so proud. Did you have to shade it and everything?" Alexandra made a droll face at Jamie's sarcastic comment.
"You laugh! But how did this ball know how to bounce? It didn’t, not at first. Maybe it's because it was colored a nice neutral shade, but it acted like it was made of hard plastic. I had to teach it to bounce.”
Jamie looked as if she was about to ask a question, but Alexandra held up a finger. "I'm getting to the interesting part, don't worry! After I had the ball, I drew some more sketches of it bouncing. I mean, that's how you know something is bouncy in a comic book or an illustration, right? Bounce lines all, that... you show it in context, bouncing. So, then I tried drawing with the Burin around the object, as if it was in a scene."
"Didn't that... create a background?" asked Jamie. "Like... a brand new wall for it to bounce off of?"
Alexandra shook her head. "Not really. I was sketching it, drawing with light—it's a little hard to explain, sorry. I don't have to finish any tangible object for this to work. I just had to use this ball, in an imagined situation where I was proposing 'Hey ball! In this scene, you're a bouncy ball! The Burin of Destiny says your nature is to bounce!' And it worked."
Jamie wrinkled her perfect forehead. "Are you saying that you drew me to change my nature... into someone who could walk in high heels? What even does that mean?"
Alexandra leaned forwards. "I was thinking, after we went out dancing, and looking at the heels you had trouble with before. So... while you were sleeping, I drew around your legs in a few different poses. With heels, walking. And dancing."
Jamie looked even more disturbed. "Posing me in my sleep? Okay... I wish you had asked first. It’s a little weird. But I guess I don't mind... that much? But did this magic change my legs, or my brain? I didn't notice it at all!"
Alexandra shrugged. "I suppose it might just be muscle memory? I drew you walking in heels of a few different heights, but that set of drawings were only around your legs."
"That set? Is there something else I should know about?" Jamie was pacing around the room, and stopped to look at Alexandra, her hands on her hips.
Alexandra looked a little guilty but managed a smile. "I wanted to see if it would work with dance moves?"
Jamie looked surprised. "You mean... I might be a better dancer now?" She looked at her arms and legs wonderingly.
"Well, you might know one dance move, at least... let me see if I can find it." She pulled up a video of a woman spinning around, one leg bent and with an arm twirling in the air, in time to a syncopated dance beat. "OK, watch this once, and see if you can do it."
Jamie looked puzzled, then did as she was asked, asked Alexandra to play it again. "I mean... I think I get it, but I don't ever remember doing this before." She stood up and performed the move flawlessly, popping her hip out at the end and performing the same flourish with her hand that the dancer in the video had. "Oh! I guess that was it. Are you serious though? You drew me in all these poses?"
"A few of them," said Alexandra. "It's not like I have to animate every frame of a ball bouncing to tell it to be bouncy, either. I just wanted to make you into more of a dancer."
Jamie's heart was pounding. "The potential of this kind of thing is a little... overwhelming? You can teach people skills? I mean, maybe not brain surgery, but what if you drew me... I don't know, picking up a car? Would I get superpowers?"
Alexandra hummed thoughtfully. "I assume you wouldn't want that to come with herculean, bulging muscles? Really... I don't know. There seems to be some resistance that has to do with the existing fabric of destiny. I can feel it pushing back against me sometimes. But we could try it?"
Jamie sat down next to Alexandra. "Maybe it's better to stick to dancing. I mean... I think you already know this about me. Maybe it’s part of why you did what you did. But dancing has always been a bit of a dream for me. I tried to learn dance moves when I was a teenager but didn't get much support from my family.... and it's not exactly easy when your body doesn't even feel like your own."
Alexandra gave her a long kiss. "Let's make the most of the Burin, then. I don't think I could make you a brain surgeon, but I know anatomy and I can draw movements from reference, so I'll draw you into a dancer! Any style you want."
Jamie picked up the flyer again. "I guess we should start with... exotic dance? Maybe some floorwork? But I'll choose the moves, if I may. No more posing me while I'm asleep, promise? Especially if I'm so trashed that I don't wake up!"
Alexandra nods. "I promise. And I'm sorry." Jamie put her arm around her and squeezed her close.
***
Gail met Jamie down the block from the club, at a diner that looked like it hadn't been remodeled since the 20th century. The area they were in, not far from a huge bus terminal and a convention center, was home to multiple sex shops and strip clubs.
NOXX was close to the river, but Jamie had seen pictures of it online; it was a newer establishment, with the four letters of its name in a tasteful sign—neon, but modern in design and not seedy, Alexandra had opined—and a painted motto below saying "Home of New York's Most Beautiful and Unusual Female Dancers." Well, Jamie thought, I guess I fit the bill.
"Keep in mind, girl... you're not exactly what they're looking for." Jamie looked concerned, but Gail held up her hand, continuing. "It's not that you're not gorgeous. I hope you realize by now that you are! And since you keep insisting that you don't want to register as a supernaturally-affected person, it's not a bad bet. They have all sorts of under-the-table work going on here, what with all the portal immigrants in the area."
She settled her chin on her hands. Gail wasn't wearing the long acrylic nails Jamie was used to seeing her in. She was still dressed to the nines, in expensive-looking sunglasses, a tight black dress with an asymmetrical hemline and long sleeves; her hair was pulled back into a chignon with numerous hair. Not to mention, her makeup is perfect, Jamie thought. I have to get Alexandra to teach me makeup, or at least draw me into someone who always has amazing makeup...
Gail snapped her fingers in front of Jamie's face. "Wake up, sis! I know I'm gorgeous, but have you been following what I'm saying? Carlo tends to hire any supernatural hottie he can find. Almost all girls, and with the right look, of course. You're fine there, but he'd be way more interested if you had a snake tail, or you were a vampire... hmm, I think he has a vampire, actually... or had some kind of curse that’s visible on your body. You don't have anything like that going on, do you?"
Jamie shook her head with a blank expression. "Aha, but you do!" Gail continued. "And I'll tell you what it is. You were cursed.... to turn into a woman! The horrors!"
"Uh... I like being a woman. I am a woman." Jamie pointed out.
Gail laughed. "Babe, I know. Are you sure you and Alexandra are one hundred percent monogamous? I mean, my polycule could seriously use a six-foot thirsty ditz like in the mix. No offense."
"None taken," smiled Jamie, taking a sip of orange juice and licking her lips. "So, are you saying I should pretend that someone turned me into a woman… against my will?"
Gail nodded. "For instance: your vengeful ex-girlfriend, or a witch whose house you trespassed in, a family curse, a magic mirror that reflected another world... something like that! See, they have to announce you somehow, when it's your turn to dance. Wait... I know you can't have that much experience dancing as a girl at this point... but you've at least been to a strip club, right?"
Jamie shook her head. "We watched Showgirls and Flashdance last night... I mean, I know that's not the same!" Gail was rolling her eyes. "But I do have a routine prepared, like I said in my text!"
Gail lowered her sunglasses. "Wow. Well, no time like the present to learn. And at least there won't be anyone there now, since it's morning. C'mon, I must get back to work in an hour!"
As Gail led Jamie out of the diner by the hand, Jamie found herself wondering where Gail worked. She seemed to know everything about everything: a party promoter? A talent agent of some kind? Gail turned back and winked at her. “I have a good feeling about this, kid. Do me proud.”
