Kos-Api left right after I got in the shower. When I got out Troy had my bag with my clothes.

  “While you were busy doing the thing I went back down to the hotel to check out. I also returned the car.” he told me.

  “If I may be pardoned for interrupting?” said the voice again.

  “Sure. Bezalel, wasn’t it?” asked Troy. I was busy rooting around in my bag for a fresh pair of bloomers.

  “Kos-Api really couldn’t stay longer, but she asked me to pass along a message just now. She says “No close time until I talk to you two. Will call once I am free to use my telephone.” That is the whole message.

  “OK, hands off then, I guess.” Troy mused.

  “If I can’t have a life with cuddles, then I don’t want it.” I pouted.

  There was a pause before Bezalel responded.

  “Kos-Api laughed but said cuddles only.”

  “Good. As it should be.” I huffed.

  “There is some important information for you as well before you go back down to the planet.”

  “Oh, yeah. We’re in space. I totally forgot.” I smacked my head.

  “We talked about it while you were sleeping. We need a mass simulator to provide power for an enchantment, and we don’t want to chain you to one, so we came up with an alternate plan. We have an enchanted object in one of our cars. The enchantment looks within detection range specifically for an IUD identical to yours. Whoever has that IUD gets targeted for the gene therapy. Since your IUD is a unique custom piece, as long as you don’t get it removed then the enchantment will target you when you are within one hundred meters or so of the car. If you get farther away the enchantment stays powered since it is with the car and resumes once you get close again.”

  “I’m not licensed to drive!”

  “A solvable problem.”

  A bus was waiting for us when we were ready to go. On the way down the original voice that we heard in the first bus spoke up again.

  “I am told that the car will meet you at the hotel, so we will go straight there instead of the rental car agency you had a reservation at.”

  “There goes my deposit.” mumbled Troy.

  “But we get a car indefinitely for the price of your deposit.” I countered. The bus merged into traffic on a highway and pulled off at an exit like a normal ground vehicle. Several more twists and turns and we were stopping in front of the hotel.

  “Thank you for joining me today.” said the voice as we got off.

  “I never got your name.” I asked.

  “You can call me Advectio. And if you need to do so in the future there is a communication device much like a cellular phone in the car, which should arrive in about twenty minutes. As long as you have progress blocks to driving it yourself please let me know and I can move you around.”

  “Thank you… can I call you Viccie?” I asked.

  “Yes and take care to stand away from the bus as it moves away from the curb.” Viccie left with the bus, and I was left with Troy to face a hotel lobby again. I felt much more confident about it this time. It only took about ten minutes to get up to our room.

  When we walked in and dropped our bags I headed straight to the bathroom and threw off my clothes. I had to see what Kos-Api had done. Needless to say it was everything I had dreamed of.

  “Troy, you’ve got to see this!” I called out thoughtlessly. He stuck his head in the bathroom, saw me examining myself and promptly turned around.

  “I am not sure why I should have expected anything else.” He muttered to himself. “I obviously wasn’t thinking.”

  “Troy, if you think you aren’t going to be the first person I use this on after we talk to Kos-Api I am wondering about more than momentary lapses in critical thinking. Now get in here and tell me how it looks!”

  “Almighty save me from Pinoy girlfriends!” Troy muttered to himself as he came back in. “OK, look but no touch.”

  I hopped up on the counter next to the sink so I could get a better angle. I still had some stubble from the last time I had shaved, so Kos-Api had obviously left that part alone. I was glad. I was already small and flat, I didn’t want to come across as prepubescent.

  “Looks like it’s always been there.” remarked Troy after putting his hands firmly in his pockets.

  “I’ve obviously never had my hands on one before. Is it… is it a nice one?”

  “It suits you perfectly. Now if we could please change the subject because this is fucking weird.”

  “OK, fine. And thank you for being weird about it with me.” I turned on the counter so I could get a look in the mirror.

  “I’d like to go out and get lunch. Do you want to get dressed and go out or stay and genuflect on the magnificence of lady parts?

  “Food, obviously. But I’m not really going to be able to think about much else for the foreseeable future.”

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  While I was deciding what to wear I fetched my measuring tape and held it around my hips. Troy just gave me an exasperated look as I giggled about it. We headed down stairs and outside. Parked in a prominent spot in the front was the sexiest supercar I had ever laid eyes on. It was a lot bigger than you would expect to see with a Ferrari or Bugatti I suppose. Looking at those on TV always gave the impression of them getting tinier every year. This one had the air of “I’m going to fold you into a pretzel and then go fuck your dad while your mom watches.” And where did that thought come from?

  “Do you think that’s our ride?”

  “Yes, since it is the only one not touching the ground.”

  “I just remembered something.”

  “What?”

  “I have to stay within a hundred yards of this car as much as possible indefinitely.”

  “Oh, the horror.”

  The doors opened for us without keys and as I arranged my skirts in the seat Viccie’s voice came over the audio system.

  “You two look like you are ready for a day on the town. That is how they say it, yes?”

  “Hi Viccie. We are looking to get lunch.”

  “Do you have a place picked out or shall I recommend somewhere?”

  “Do you eat Earth food?” asked Troy.

  “No, all I have to go on are statistical modeling and social media reviews, if that’s alright?”

  “Sure, surprise us.” I said.

  “Mexican style food seems popular in that part of the country and there is a place that gets consistently high ratings. Please fasten your restraints according to local traffic law and I will get you there.”

  “I’m picturing you with a chauffeur uniform and sun glasses.”

  “I’ve never actually used a bipedal body yet, but that is a fun mental picture. Your car is mostly autonomous, but I am supervising from the Space Station. Soon we will start moving in transport hubs and I will move to one of those.”

  I finished buckling myself in.

  “Ready to go!”

  Lunch was great, but I was constantly distracted. I had to keep persistently in mind to keep my hands out of my lap. I couldn’t stop looking at Troy. What was going on with me?

  When we got back to the hotel Viccie reminded us about the space phone and then withdrew to mind other transports. By this time I was practically writhing from the itching in my middle. I really needed to talk to Kos-Api soon. It wasn’t until nearly four until Ashley brought her to the hotel.

  “Oh, thank God. Kos, something is wrong.” I leaned in so I could whisper in her ear. “I am itching everywhere and ah… leaking. A lot.”

  “Oh. Oh no.” Kos-Api pulled me over to the bed and pretty much picked me up and tossed me onto it. She pulled her staff and a book from nowhere and started chanting up magic circles. After several minutes and increasingly distressed looks on Kos-Api’s face she disgustedly waved away the magic into disintegrating motes of light and made her tools disappear with a throwing motion.

  “I have good bad news.” she spat. “Good news you medically fine.”

  “So why are you so upset?” asked Troy. Ashley just kept her mouth shut leaning up against a wall.

  Kos-Api started cursing in languages I didn't know.

  “I fuck up.”

  “How?” I asked with dread.

  “I train hard. I learn good. I know. I KNOW how to make cells and I make them how trained to. Cells textbook perfect. I not realize Earth human cells different from Other human cells. I use spell like on Other human to make parts.”

  “So what does that mean?”

  “It mean I learn why magic not work. New parts, vulva, vagina, uterus, ovaries… all generate mana.”

  I didn’t know how to feel about this.

  “You gave me a magic coochie?” I didn’t squeal. I was dignified. That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

  “Yes.” Kos-Api squeaked in embarrassment.

  “Oh my God! I’m a magical girl by way of my lady parts! Don’t you dare laugh at me!” I pointed to Troy who couldn’t keep his face on straight. Ashley was a professional through and through. I think she was biting hard on the inside of her mouth.

  “Gene enchantment to correct chromosomes make you all magic eventually.” Kos-Api mumbled.

  “That’s the bad news?”

  “No. Bad news is that you not used to magic power feeling, and it seem manifest same as power overload manifest to me. You be very thirsty girl until get used to it. Very.”

  “How do your people deal with it?” I asked.

  “Don’t have to. All living creatures at home generate magic from quickening of single cell. No overload event ever.”

  “So you made me into a slutty magic girl.” I tried not to be accusing with my words, but I think the bitter irony came out wrong.

  “No. Stop. Earth humans twist monogamy into bad wrong mindset. Genealogy important to small tribal communities, but nothing wrong with like getting hammer into bedmat like tent peg.” she giggled. “Orgasms really fun. Murenyan tradition that close time build camaraderie, but only declared person permit to allow make baby.”

  “Kos, your English is still slipping.” said Ashley from across the room.

  “Very upset at self still. Ego make sloppy.” She took a deep breath. “Do everything right still do wrong. Be thankful not hear what thinking.”

  “You are not upset you gave me magic power, are you?” I needed the clarification.

  “No, not outright. Upset at self for not even considering possible outcome. Concerned for you because be over decade learn what do with it. Full magic education not easy but suspect you do anyway.”

  “Damned straight! I’ve got tiaras and improbably short skirts in my future!”

  “So what did you want to talk to us about before this discovery?” asked Troy.

  “Was concerned new parts may take time to learn role in integrated body. Was recommend use external lubrication and much care.” she pointed at me. “Troy much bigger than you, easy hurt.”

  “I’m two inches taller than you and you were fine.” Was she having a go at me?

  “I practiced and experienced. You only not virgin because we broke hymen to put IUD.”

  That's… OK I can’t argue.”

  “I teach you how body work.” she looked over to Ashley. “Wait in hotel bar for us, unless you change mind about what like see?” Ashley quickly excused herself.

  It was well into dinner time before we were ready to meet up with Ashley again downstairs.

  “Everything OK?” she asked absentmindedly.

  “No words could do it justice, but if you are that interested I could make the attempt?” I taunted her.

  “No, I’m good.”

  We decided the hotel’s restaurant was sufficient for dinner and got a table. Kos-Api smacked herself in the face as we sat.

  “Just realized not need car for to power enchant now.”

  “You’re taking my car?”

  “No, that be mean. Fix enchant but not tell space people.”