This is the conclusion to Shimmy. Laura and Ricki get to talk to their dad. They meet their Mom in New York and say goodbye to their Dad.

Shimmy

by

Paula Dillon

Chapter 32

Sunday, Ricki got up early and took a nice long bubble bath, before getting dressed and fixing everybody’s breakfast. Susan came down wearing a robe and began helping. She and Ricki had been sleeping together (all they were doing was sleeping together) every night, since the attempted rape. They could hear the other girls moving around from the kitchen.

Susan was just setting the table, when the condo’s phone rang. Ricki was nearest, so she answered it.

“Hello,” Ricki said.

“Hello, Ricki how are you doing?” The voice said.

“MOM!!! Is that you!?!”

“Yes sweety it is me. Is your sister there?”

“LAURA! Laura, come quick. Susan put us on the speaker phone,” Ricki said shouting.

Susan went to the living room and hit the speaker-phone button. Ricki hung up her phone.

Laura and Cindy came running down the stairs. Laura was dressed in a towel, wrapped around her chest, dripping water all over the place, looking for the fire.

“What is it!?!” Laura asked.

“It’s Mom, Laura. Say hi Mom.”

“Laura is there. That is great, hi Laura.”

Laura excitement and dread showed in her face. “Hi Mom, how are ya’ll doing?”

“We are doing great, right now. Dad is here and he is going to talk to both of you.”

Ricki and Laura were so excited, they could barley contain themselves.

“Hi kiddos, how are you two?” Their dad asked.

“We are doing great.” Laura said, and Ricki confirmed it.

“We’ll, your mother has already told you what is happening, I am told.”

“I am mad at you Dad. How could you run off and not give me and Ricki the chance to say goodbye to you,” Laura said.

“I am sorry, I knew what was in store for me and I didn’t want you to remember me as I am now,” Alan said, coughing in pain, as if to add an exclamation to what he said. “I don’t have long now. I wasn’t going to call, but your Mom has been harping on me to call for two weeks now.”

“Go get him Mom, and give him a hug for us,” Ricki said crying.

Susan was holding Ricki close to her and Cindy was comforting Laura.

“Mom, Dad I want you to say hello to my fiancée, Susan Cartwright.”

“Hellooo Susan,” Madeline said, the surprise dripping from her voice.

After a few more coughs, “Hello Susan,” Alan said. “I wish we could have met under better circumstances. Still I am happy for you two.”

“Hello Mom and Dad,” Susan said. “I can’t tell you two how much Ricki means to me. I will try to make her, I mean him happy.”

“It’s alright, Susan. Madeline and I know about Ricki. Your sister told, their Mom and sent us pictures. While I can’t say I understand, I want all of you to know, we LOVE, Ricki and Laura. I can’t believe how beautiful you both are.” Alan coughed several times more. “I can’t say much more, it is getting painful, but I will be listening,” he said coughing.

“Dad we love you,” the Davis sisters said.

The girls and their mother talked for about twenty minutes, about things. She asked how Ricki learned to belly dance and how she got to look so pretty. Ricki also had to explain how she and Laura were working as magician assistants.

“Well Laura and Ricki, your Dad is sleeping now. I have told you all I can. I can’t wait to see you all. We love you all. You too Susan, we love you too. I believe I will be seeing all of you soon.”

“We love you Mom,” Ricki and Laura said.

“I love you too Mom,” Susan added.

The four of them cried together for twenty or thirty minutes, who keeps time in such instances. The girls dried their tears and went on with life. Laura and Cindy got dressed and Ricki and Susan set a cold breakfast on the table.

The girls still went to their job at the dinner theater. Susan went along and was allowed to watch from back stage. Laura had told Mr. Dawson about their Dad. He offered to let them go visit him, but quickly understood why that was impossible.

“I really like you two kids, especially you Ricki. When your father passes, call me and take as much time as you need. I want you two back, whenever you can make it,” Mr. Dawson said.

Ricki and Laura were able to smile and perform to the best of their abilities, this night. Susan watched them proudly from her vantage point. Even from backstage, she couldn’t see how the illusions were done.

Ricki got the chance to do the battle of the barrels, from inside one of the barrels

At home, Laura and Susan discussed whether or not they would attend the second summer semester. They decided to talk to their student advisors tomorrow and probably take fewer and easier courses, for the second summer semester.

Monday, Ricki went to campus with her sisters. Laura and Susan headed to their advisors to talk about their courses and course loads. They switched courses and dropped courses, and wound up with an easier workload that they would begin tomorrow.

Laura then took Ricki to Mr. Dawson’s to rehearse. Ricki did her dexterity exercises with Mr. Dawson and then went over several illusions that they would use this weekend. They were both instructed on how to assist, on the rest of the show.

They left Mr. Dawson’s and then went to Mrs. Lively’s place. They took their bags and changed into their workout outfits.

“Today girls, we are going to watch the performance we had on the Fourth, I think our girls did a marvelous job. We have two of the girls who were in the performance, here,” Sarah said, as she turned the VCR on.

After the tape finished, the girls gave a round of applause. Ricki and Laura curtsied to the class. Mrs. Lively then took Ricki aside and started working with her. She pointed out areas that Ricki needed to work on, from their performance. Ricki was surprised by Mrs. Lively corrections. She liked the portions that were adlibbed and most of the routine she had done with her sister. Her timing was off a little, in the opening routine, so they worked on that. The timing issues had to do with her not being as fast as the other girls. So she would wind up being half a step off or so and her trying to get her hips in position to take a step.

Ricki told Mrs. Lively about their Dad, and that they may be gone for however long it took them to get things sorted out. Ricki explained that she might not be back this summer, depending on what their mother wanted to do. Ricki did this while following Mrs. Livley’s leads. Ricki was beginning to be able to multitask.

Chapter 33

Tuesday found Ricki on the USC campus. She met Candace in the student center, along with Dr. Whitlock. She had kind of expected that. Dr. Whitlock wanted to walk and talk, so they headed out on a walkabout.

“Candace tells me you were nearly raped.”

“Yes, I guess I was, although I don’t remember a thing.”

Tom started asking Ricki all sorts of questions and Ricki started relating what she had been told had happened. Ricki cried a bit, as she told him about how the pervert had stalked her and her sisters and how she hadn’t been the first victim.

“You know that you are a victim too don’t you,” Tom asked.

“I guess, but I just don’t feel like a victim. I was more afraid for my sister, Susan and Cindy, than for myself.”

“I guarantee that it will hit you, Ricki. I would be willing to bet my salary on it. Right now you are in denial.”

“I don’t know… it just feels so surreal right now.”

Ricki went on to tell Dr. Whitlock about, what was happening with her father.

“Well, at least you got a chance to say goodbye. People don’t realize just how important that is. Balance that with the rape and your gender problems, it is easy to see you have a lot on your plate. You are pretty balanced right now, but I look at it like you are trying to juggle fifteen balls, while balancing a plate on your head and one foot. At some point, things will start to crash. Promise me you will take time to grieve over all of these things.”

Dr. Whitlock went on to tell Ricki what to look out for and how she should deal with grief. The main thing he told her, was to find someone with whom she could talk to and confide in, when things began to hit her.

Ricki’s phone began to play Devil in a Blue Dress and she answered her sister’s call. Laura and Susan were out of class for the day. Ricki said goodbye to Dr. Whitlock and headed out to meet her sister.

They got their bags out of the car and headed to the school pool for an hour. Ricki changed into her competition swimsuit; she was more comfortable in it than her bikini or tankini. Laura had to help Ricki put her now significantly longer hair into a bun and in her swimming cap.

She took eight laps to warm up; she hadn’t really swum any since before the Fourth. She then got up on the blocks and at some arbitrary sound, launched herself into the pool. She swam her hardest for four laps. As she swam, she felt the tension drain from her. It felt good to her, as her muscles began to burn from lactic acid buildup. The last twenty-five meters she had swum, as hard as the first fifty.

When she touched after the last lap, she just hung on to the edge of the pool. She looked around, half expecting to see somebody who had kept up with her swim, while there were other people around; nobody seemed to pay her any heed. She rested for a few minutes before she set off and finished her two thousand meters.

Whenever Ricki swam, she lost her self in swimming. It was just her, against her chosen environment. She knew she was alive. The only resistance she felt, was the water that flowed by her as she stroked her way on. Laura and Susan swam just to have fun; Ricki swam to be herself. Swimming at half pace, she still swam faster than many of the others in the pool. She didn’t notice them; she just knew what lap this was.

The girls showered and changed in the locker room. Ricki took time to shampoo and condition her hair. She sat in front of Susan dressed in her bra and panties, as Susan combed out and blow dried her hair.

Coach Adams watched Ricki from her office, as a girl she didn’t know, worked on Ricki’s hair. She didn’t see any masculine traits in Ricki and she wasn’t about to subject Ricki to any embarrassment.

Vanessa was lost in thought for several minutes. She had learned a lot about people like Ricki, since she had first met her. She had even gone to a bar, where the local transgendered girls, hung out. A lot of the girls there would never pass muster in her locker room. Vanessa still smiled at them and treated them as well as she wished to be treated. There were quite a few though, that Vanessa couldn’t figure out. Some might have been born a female like her or had become a female by choice, it was hard to tell.

One lady she hadn’t been sure about had asked Vanessa if she could sit at Vanessa’s table. The place was crowded so she had said sure. She had a great time just sitting and talking with the lady. Francis Caruthers was good; no make that very good, but after two hours of talking and laughing together Vanessa knew. Vanessa just let her have her dignity and kept her suspicions to herself.

Francis also knew that Vanessa was a genetic girl, and loved the way the lady treated her. It was refreshing to be treated as an equal by a GG for a change. Most people treated the transgendered as if they had some serious communicable disease at best, the worst she didn’t want to even think about. She had lost several sisters to violence over the years. Francis just couldn’t help herself but to give the lady she was with, a kiss.

Before they had to go, they had traded phone numbers and promised to call each other. Francis was going to wait to see if Vanessa was going to call. She didn’t have to wait all that long. The next afternoon Vanessa called and invited her to dinner Friday.

“Is this fast food, dress up or classy?” Francis asked.

Vanessa said, “Dress up classy; I have reservations for a dinner theater.”

“Oohh, I have this nice pretty full length, blue cheongsam dress, I have been waiting to wear out.”

“What color of blue, I don’t want to clash with you?”

“Oh, it is a royal blue, with a vine and flower design embroidered throughout it.”

“I can’t wait to see it. I have this forest green formal I haven’t been able to wear anywhere lately, Francis. Why don’t you come by my place about six then, on Friday,” Vanessa said, giving Francis directions to her home.

“Ok, I will see ya.”

As Vanessa was snapped out of her thoughts, she looked and Ricki was gone. She realized that she had to shower now; she could smell her own arousal. It wouldn’t do to have a women’s swimming coach smell of arousal, in a girl’s locker room.

Laura, Ricki and Susan stopped at a burger joint on the way home. They wanted to eat and rest before Laura and Ricki went to their dance class tonight.

Ricki dressed in tights, trunks, coin bra and belt that night. She danced with the class for the first time in a while.

Swimming was for her soul, but dancing, that was for her heart. She loved belly dancing. Everything about belly dancing appealed to her, she loved the costumes, the jewelry and the noise she was making. It showed on her face. Even if she hadn’t done the boobs and bits for Susan, she might have done them for the dance, she thought.

Ricki spent Wednesday and Thursday on campus and she swam when her sisters got out of class. After dinner they went to Mrs. Lively’s to dance, at night. Friday Ricki spent the day with Mr. Dawson. She had practiced the dexterity lessons every day this past week and she had gotten better, but she was far from a prestidigitator. They then spent several hours going over the illusions for the show tonight. Early in the afternoon, Mr. Dawson showed the girls an idea he was developing for his costume. He liked the Arabic looks the girls had; he came up with some blousy pants, curled toe shoes, a vest and a turban for him. He showed them the pictures he came up with.

“I like your pictures Mr. Dawson, but Donotello sounds Italian, not Arabic,” Ricky said. “Changing names wouldn’t be good for you either. How long have you been the Great Donotello?”

“Long enough, eighteen years now,” Mr. Dawson said. “Maybe you are right, let me think it over.

Chapter 34

At five fifty five, a nervous Francis got out of her car at the address she was given. The house was a nice two-story house, in a quiet suburb of LA. She walked up to the door and knocked. Vanessa opened the door, mostly ready, but she was still fiddling with her appearance.

“Hi Francis, come on in.”

“This is a lovely home, Vanessa. What do you do for a living?”

“I am a coach at USC. I coach swimming and fitness,” Vanessa said, putting on her lipstick.

“You look great Vanessa.”

“Thank you, but next to you, I need all the help I can get. That dress is wonderful. That is a silk satin dress isn’t it,” Vanessa said, smiling and taking a closer look at her friend.

Francis wore a royal blue cheongsam dress that went down to the top of her foot. It was slit on both sides to about four inches above the knee for mobility. The dress fit her like a glove in all the right places; she also had a handbag covered in the same material and four inch blue heels. “Yes it is, it, I got it in Hong Kong, my Dad was a business representative. He went to Hong Kong a lot to negotiate manufacturing deals. I went with him on one and had this custom made for me.”

“Well it is simply delicious, Francis,” Vanessa said. She hadn’t meant to use such a suggestive adverb, but the description fit it.

Francis smiled so much, she glowed, “Thank you, Vanessa.”

Vanessa got her bag and said, “Let’s head on out, we have a long drive.”

Laura and Ricki came out on stage and opened the show. Frank watched them from back stage and smiled. The audience loved the girls and it showed.

Vanessa’s eyes arched and her mouth hung open as she saw Ricki and Laura come out on stage.

“What’s wrong Vanessa,” Francis asked.

“I know those two girls,” Vanessa said. She debated telling her friend about Ricki, but decided it wasn’t her place to out her. “The one on the right is Laura Davis. The other one is Ricki her high school age sister.”

“Wow, they are both so beautiful.”

“Yes they are, I am trying to recruit Ricki for my swim team, but she hasn’t made up her mind yet.”

Vanessa waved at the girls, but they couldn’t see her, because of the bright lights in their eyes.

After the girls warmed up the crowd for four minutes, the Great Donotello came out on stage to do his number. Laura took his top hat, cape and gloves and Ricki made his wand appear and handed it to him. He did a dozen illusions that were part of his staple stable of magic. Donotello played to the crowd and had their rapt attention. One illusion required Ricki to go out in the crowd and select a volunteer. Ricki was nervous about this. She came out into the crowd and saw Vanessa sitting with another woman. She selected Francis. Francis tried to object, but the crowd figuratively pushed her on.

Vanessa was excited to see her friend led up to the stage. She and the rest of the audience gave her a hearty round of applause.

Francis was worried at first, but the great Donotello put her at ease. She was up on the stage for two illusions, a card trick and a coin trick. She jumped as Donotello made coins appear where she didn’t have coins. There were lots and lots of coins. She then selected a card and showed the crowd. Francis then shuffled the deck. Donotello had her fan the cards and look for her card. She couldn’t find it, and then he made the card pop out of Ricki’s coin bra, without her or Donotello touching the deck.

Francis was giggling like a schoolgirl when she got back to her friend.

“Did you tell Ricki to do this?” Francis asked, as she sat by her friend.

“I didn’t know Ricki would be here and I certainly didn’t know she was a magician’s assistant.”

“The only reason I believe you, is the way you looked at her when she came out on stage. Anyway that was fun.”

On stage two trunks were brought out. One box was locked and suspended ten feet above the ground. In the view of the audience; Ricki was chained and bound, then locked in a trunk, which was then bound in chains. Laura and Donotello raised a circle curtain around the trunk. There was a flash of light, smoke and the sound of a small explosion. Laura dropped the curtain. Donotello was gone.

Laura then unchained the trunk, unlocked the padlocks and opened the hooks, before raising the lid. Donotello appeared, restrained as Ricki had been. Laura then unbound the magician. Then Donotello took his wand and pointed it at the trunk that had been suspended. There was another explosion and the padlock fell and the lid opened revealing an unfettered Ricki.

The crowd went wild.

Francis and Vanessa were happy, as they drove to Vanessa’s place. They talked a lot about the show and wondered how the tricks were done. They just seemed impossible to the ladies.

At her home Vanessa turned to Francis, “Would you like to spend the night here?”

“You do know…”

“I don’t care, dear. I want you too, that is if you would like too.”

The two of them walked arm in arm into her home.

Vanessa found that Francis was a pre-op transsexual, who after years of hormone replacement therapy couldn’t perform, but the two of them found many ways to entertain and amuse each other.

They held each other tightly and cried themselves to a contented sleep.

Ricki and Laura were excited too. They had had fun with that illusion, Ricki knew how it was done, and Laura, although she was dying to know, didn’t ask. That was between Ricki and Freddy.

Chapter 35

The Saturday and Sunday performances were equally well received. When the girls got home on Sunday, they found Cindy in tears and they knew. Cindy gave Laura a telephone number and she called it.

“Mom, its Laura,” she said, when the phone was answered.

“Daddy is gone girls; he passed quietly in his sleep.”

Laura started crying, which started Ricki and Susan crying too.

“I figured as much when we got the message to call. How are you doing, Mom?”

“I am hurting, but I will survive. We will be landing in Athens tomorrow and I have made arrangements to have your father cremated there. That is the only way that they will let me bring him home.”

“When will you be coming home, Mom?”

“I will be in New York, JFK, on Friday, at six pm. I want to dump your father’s ashes off the Maid of the Mist, on Sunday.”

“We will be there Mom. I will drive your car and we will pick you up. We can drive to Niagara Falls on Saturday. We love you a whole lot. Ricki and Susan want to talk to you.”

Ricki and Susan each took their turn, giving Madeline soothing words of encouragement, as Laura cried on Cindy’s shoulder.

Before they all went to bed, Laura and Susan got on the internet and got airline reservations for three, for Thursday, at one o’clock, to LaGuardia.

“Why three?” Ricki asked.

“I am going with my fiancée. I am not going to let you face this alone.”

“How are you going Ricki, male or female?” Laura asked.

“Mom wants to meet her other daughter, Laura.”

“Good, we have got to take you shopping then tomorrow,” Laura stated.

“What for?”

“A black dress for funerals,” Susan said.

“But I don’t think there is going to be a memorial service.”

“No, but we will wear them when we pick up Mom and Dad’s ashes, out of respect squirt.”

“Well, jeans and some kind of top, will be the dress for Sunday,” Ricki said.

“Why is that?” Susan asked.

“We will be going on the Maid of the Mist, Susan.”

“Yeah, good thinking squirt. The Maid of the Mist is a boat at Niagara Falls, Susan. We will get very wet. Even with the foul weather gear they will provide us.”

“Ok, why on the Maid of the Mist?”

“They got married on that boat, twenty six years ago.”

“Oh, wow, that is a wonderful sentimental idea. I have to call my Mom tomorrow too.”

“Why?” asked Ricki.

“I have to let her know I am engaged, that my fiancée’s father died; and that I am going to New York, to be with him. You have to be here too. I am sure she will want to talk to you.”

“What are you going to tell her about me?” Ricki asked, worriedly. She hadn’t thought about others having to know.

“Don’t worry about it, Ricki, she will be cool. When Dad was still alive, he use to dress up for Mom. I used to dress up my brother Adam too. That was a laugh. 6’ 2”, two twenty, all muscle, in a little black dress. He did it to humor me.”

“I didn’t know your Dad was dead.”

“He passed away when I was eight.”

“You dressed up your brother too?”

“Yes, it was when I was ten and he was twenty. I had him go trick or treating with me. All the silicone, wigs and makeup in San Francisco wouldn’t have made him look like a girl.”

“How did you get him in a dress?”

Susan tugged on Ricki’s arm, adopted a sad puppy dog look, let her lip tremble a little and cried a tear. “I really needed some one who could go trick or treating with me, Mom wouldn’t let me go alone. He didn’t have a costume and Mom stepped in. He still laughs about it and I still blackmail him with the photos.”

“Laura help me,” Ricki said giggling.

“Nope, you got yourself into this; no way are we letting you out of it. I am on her side,” Laura said snickering. “You two will be good for each other, I think.”

They all had one last hug and then Susan and Ricki headed for her bed.

The next four days dragged and at the same time, passed too quickly. They called Mr. Dawson and informed him of their father’s death, and that Laura wouldn’t be there Friday and Ricki might not be back at all.

Ricki was then taken to find some suitable clothes for mourning. Susan and Laura looked at a dozen or so, short sleeved, black dresses, before finding the right one. They also found her a black hat with some netting that could be pulled down to obscure the eyes slightly, some black panties, bra, pumps with three inch heels and purse.

Monday after they got home from shopping, Susan called home. She talked to her Mom for a half hour before handing Ricki on the phone.

Talking to Georgia Cartwright was a trip. Ricki thought Mrs. Cartwright was going to be skin her alive, for corrupting her daughter, when she first started talking to her. She didn’t see Susan and Laura giggling behind her. After she had Ricki shaking in her heels, Georgia broke off the act, laughing and told Ricki, that it was all just an act and that they would welcome her, or him, into their family.

Monday night, Ricki and Laura talked to Mrs. Lively before class. Ricki didn’t know if she would be returning or not. Ricki would be able to attend class on Tuesday, but Wednesday, they would need to pack and that they would fly out on Thursday.

Wednesday afternoon, all of Laura’s sisters that were in town, came by for dinner. They shared their comfort and support, along with their hopes to see Ricki again, soon. There were two girls with Laura Susan and Ricki, making sure that they packed everything that they needed. Ricki made sure she was taking her laptop with the belly dancing DVD’s and Mr. Dawson’s DVD’s. One girl even went to her own apartment and got her own makeup case to loan Ricki, as that was one thing she didn’t have.

Thursday Stacy took the three girls to the airport in her SUV. She could only drop them off at the curb, due to security. The girls got their boarding passes, checked their luggage and went to their gate. They dressed for comfort for their flight, they each wore shorts, loose blouses and cross trainers.

When they arrived in New York, they found that they had an airport limousine waiting to pick them up and deliver them to the Davis home. Georgia had called ahead and made arrangements.

The driver took them to a three-story brownstone, on the upper east side of New York. Ricki unlocked the door and opened up the house. She didn’t have any fear of being seen. She looked so different from when she left, almost seven weeks ago.

There had been Davis’s in that home, for a hundred years. Even as old as that home was, it had been constantly renovated and was in better condition than many homes only twenty years old. The house had a kind of majesty Susan thought, as she looked at it.

Chapter 36

The next morning the girls rose late. They had to go out for breakfast because the fridge had been emptied of perishables. They ate at one of those twenty-four hour breakfast restaurants.

On the way home, they did some shopping and stopped at a florist to get some flowers for Mom and a wreath for their father.

At home, Laura pulled out the family album and went through the pictures.

“Wow Ricki, you really do look a lot like your father,” Susan said. “He is so short and thin, standing next to your Mom.”

“I tried to tell you, Susan.”

“And Laura, you are so like your Mom. You look just like her when she was a young girl.”

Laura dug into another album and found a picture of their grandfather on their father’s side. “This is Grandfather Robert Davis; he was even smaller than that our dad was.”

“He is so petite Laura, but he and your dad are so handsome in their own right.”

Laura found a picture of Robert at age eight. He was dressed not too differently from his sister, their great Aunt. “This is a picture of Robert and his sister Abigail, taken in 1906.”

“Which is which Laura, they look so much a like?”

“The one on the right is Abigail, she was born on January 1, 1900. Robert was born in August 5, 1898.”

“They are the same height, and have the same long hair. When we get married Ricki, I want to make copies of all these pictures.”

At one, each of them took a long bubble bath and made sure that their legs and armpits were hairless. They then dressed in their black undies, pantyhose and heels, before doing their makeup. Laura came in to do Ricki’s hair and makeup; she put Ricki’s hair up in a twist. Ricki was surprised that she was able to get all that hair up on the back of her head. Laura then used a little darker eyeshadow than normal and used waterproof mascara. She then placed the black hat on her hair and adjusted the netting a bit. Lastly, Laura went to her Mom’s room and retrieved a single strand of pearls and some pearl earrings for Ricki. Ricki only added her sorority pin to her dress.

Ricki retrieved the keys for the Lincoln Town Car, from the lock box and handed them to her sister. They left their home and drove to JFK. Traffic was as horrible as it always was at this time of day. They didn’t get to the arrivals gate till thirty minutes before their Mom’s scheduled arrival. They had to wait till another hour before their Mom cleared customs.

She appeared carrying a lone box, that held an urn with her husband’s ashes, and pulling a cart that held her luggage. Laura and Ricki ran to her and hugged her as soon as she stepped past the security gate. Susan stood a respectful distance behind Ricki. After they had a short cry, Madeline waved Susan over and hugged her.

“I see my son has good taste in girls,” Madeline said.

“He didn’t have a chance, Momma. He was swept off his feet by her,” Ricki said.

Ricki went to pull the cart, as they began to move towards the exit. Susan brushed him off and took the cart herself. Laura had taken the box with the urn, so their Mom could hold on to both of her children.

Madeline then took a good look at each of the girls, “You are all so lovely. Laura and Ricki, I can’t believe how much you two have grown since I last saw each of you,” she said, giving them a wink and a smile. “You must have grown several cup sizes in the last two months, Ricki.”

Ricki blushed, as she looked down at her bust. “It kinda just happened overnight, Mom,” she said, giggling a bit. “You’re not upset about it?”

“Heavens no, why should that upset me Ricki. You are as you appear, a lovely young lady. I could never be upset with you. Your Dad was so proud of you and your sister. He bragged about you kids all the time, even onboard the ship we were on.”

The kids loaded all of the luggage in the Lincoln, “Surely this isn’t all of the luggage you took, Mom,” Laura said.

“No, I could only take these with me on the plane. The shipping line will deliver the rest when we they get back to the states, in late August. They will deliver your Dad’s things too.”

Laura drove them home, with Susan sitting next to her. Ricki sat in the back with their Mom. During the two-hour drive, they had to tell their Mom everything that had happened. Ricki blushed, as she recounted how she had wound up in skirts.

“I agree to what you girls did to Ricky, and I am proud of the way that you took it, Ricki. You showed a lot of dignity and honor in accepting your punishment. So tell me, is this you now?”

Ricki opened her heart to her Mother. She told her that she didn’t know where she was headed, but she and Susan would find that out together.

“What about babies?” Madeline asked, “I want lots of babies from you and Laura.”

“Susan?” Ricki asked.

“I would be happy to have all of Ricki’s babies, Mom,” Susan said.

That brought a smile on Ricki’s and Madeline’s face.

“I called Bridgett Logan, an associate of your Dad’s. She is setting up an informal wake for your Dad, from ten to three tomorrow. Ricki did you choose a middle name?”

“Yes Mom, Annette.”

“Good, then you will be Annette Cartwright, Susan’s sister tomorrow and Ricky Davis was stuck on a cruise ship, to and from Hawaii. That is if it is alright with you, Susan? It will be easier than explaining Ricki to all those old fogies your Dad hung around with.”

“That will be fine,” Susan said, “I kind of like the sound of Annette Cartwright.”

Ricki knew that that would be better than exposing his apparent sex change to all of her dad’s friends.

At home, all three girls gave Madeline her flowers. She proudly put them in vases in the living room and set the urn, with Alan’s ashes, on the mantle. With the wreath the girls bought, in front and to the side of it.

Madeline made Ricki show her how her great figure had been accomplished. She felt very embarrassed as she disrobed down to her bra and panties in front of her Mom. Susan pointed out the bits of silicone she wore.

“You mean she can’t…”

“No she can’t, at lest till we take some solvent to free her,” Susan said.

“Then you two haven’t…”

“I will be honest with you, Mom,” Susan said. “We have slept in the same bed quite a bit. But we haven’t done the deed yet. It has been close and we have wanted too do it so badly, but…”

“Do your Mom and Dad know Susan?”

“Just my Mom, my Dad passed away when I was eight, and my brother is thirty. Mom probably told him as well. She was elated to find out we are engaged. She doesn’t care how Ricki looks, or is equipped.”

“How did you get your waist down so small Ricki?” Madeline asked, “Did you corset train?”

“No Mom, I have always had a narrow waist. I have lost an inch and a half since I started belly dancing too.”

“Shoot I may have to take that up too,” She said.

Everyone got up the next morning at five thirty and began getting ready. They dressed up in all in black again. Madeline insisted that Ricki wear her pearls, again. She thought they looked so lovely on her daughter.

Food and flowers started arriving at eight thirty, and other people who came to help, at nine thirty. Annette and Laura helped everyone with the food and drinks. Susan became an impromptu bar tender and made everyone’s drinks. Irish whiskey flowed, even at this early hour; Irish coffee was popular with the women, who had come.

Forty people had come to say goodbye to their dear old friend. By three thirty, it took a line of taxi’s to haul all the mourners home. The girls quickly cleaned up after the last friend left and an hour later, they had packed up and left for Niagara Falls. They talked as they drove.

“Ricki, do you want to continue school as a male, or a female?” Madeline asked.

“I would like to continue as a female, if it is possible, but I can’t go back to my old school like this.”

“I agree you can’t, the world isn’t ready for someone like you,” Madeline said. “How would you like to make a fresh start in LA?”

“I would love to Mom, but what about you. I want to be near you too.”

“I am going to sell my home here her in New York and find one in LA. I don’t know if I can live in this house anymore. I need to be close to my children, if that is ok, Laura?”

“I would love to live near you again, Mom. I have missed you so much since I have been gone,” Laura said.

Everyone in the car brightened up at that suggestion. Susan wouldn’t be so far away from her lover. Ricki would be close enough to Susan, her belly dancing and her job. Laura would have her Sister and her Mom near her.

“So tell me Ricki, how did you get a sorority pin?”

Ricki and the girls explained that the sisters loved Ricki so much, they made her a sister. They want her no matter what, Laura told her Mom.

“Mom, you just won’t believe how easily Ricki makes friends.”

“I use to worry about him when he went to school here,” Madeline said. “He had some friends, but most just wanted to use him. How were things in LA?”

“Ricki is so effervescent, people flock to her,” Laura said, “Tell Mom how you met Li Ming and Belinda, Ricki.”

Ricki began her tale about walking alone on campus and being assimilated by a group of freshmen. She told her how she had been latched on to, by Chen Li Ming and Belinda Andrews; and what happened later.

Laura had gotten two adjoining rooms, at a hotel in Niagara Falls. She and Susan started to go into one. Madeline stopped her daughter and said, “Let Annette and Susan take that room dear.”

“Too bad I don’t have any solvent with me, Ricki?” Susan said, giggling.

“Or not so bad, Susan. I don’t want to be a grandmother till after you two get married,” Madeline whispered.

Once in their rooms, Susan and Laura opened the connecting doors and they dressed for a late dinner. The girls dressed in blouses, heels and miniskirts. Laura had even gotten her Mom in one of her miniskirts. It rode higher up on her Mom’s hip and made the skirt outrageously short, but with one of their tight belly dancing belts, Laura got it to fit her Mom. Madeline looked so good. The skirt came to just three inches below her rounded tush. At forty-eight she still had some great looking legs, that seemed to go up forever. She just had to be a lot more careful than usual, about how she sat, or she would give everyone a show. Laura also redid her Mom’s makeup and hair, despite her protests.

Laura, Ricki and Susan had silly grins on their faces, as they looked at Madeline. She looked like an older sister, next to Laura. Ok, a lot older sister, maybe thirty to thirty-five or so, but considering her age, she was a dish.

“I don’t know how you talked me into this Laura,” Madeline complained. “And what is with all these jangles?”

“Oh hush, we can all see the smile on your face,” Laura retorted, “That is my belly dancing belt. I brought it home for you to see. Without it, we would have to hike that skirt up a little higher.” She teased.

“Yeah, I can see that happening, I would be arrested as a hooker.”

The four of them looked like girls on the prowl.

Madeline led them all into the hotel restaurant. They all drew looks from boys ten to ninety, and probably caused a few cardiac events among some of the older males there. The waiters were fighting to see who got to seat them. Madeline squirmed as she tried to adjust the skirt for maximum coverage, when she was seated. All of them had to cross their legs for modesty.

Madeline ordered a bottle of 96 Dom Pérignon and four glasses, when they got their menus.

“I haven’t seen a bottle of 96 in years,” Madeline said. “It is one of the best young champagne’s to come out in years.”

Together, they mourned the death of their father and celebrated the engagement.

Chapter 37

After everyone dressed, Madeline got up and broke the seal on the urn to reserve a small portion of the ashes to keep in the urn. They then headed to the dock where the Maid of the Mist was located. They got there early and told the Captain what they wanted to do.

He suggested that they do it about a quarter mile away from falls, the falling water creates a spray and causes the air currents near the falls that can be quite unpredictable and he didn’t want the ashes to be blown back on the rest of the sightseers. They might think that was a bit morbid. He promised to have an officer to tell them when to cast the ashes to the water.

They were handed rain gear to put on. The three of them took the urn and wreath with them to the stern of the boat and took up station there.

They were soon underway and noticed the incredible roar, a long way from the falls. The first mate came back and gave them the high sign. They all said a little prayer and their Mom cast the ashes to the wind. A few seconds later Ricki, Laura and Susan cast the wreath into the water.

“Goodbye Daddy,” Ricki and Laura said.

Madeline cried as she wished her lover, confidant and husband, a happy journey.

They all began to shed some tears, but they were disguised by the mists falling from the falls. The Captain had been right; the mist was swirling all around and worked its way into the raincoats they were wearing.

Madeline was glad it was over now. She needed to either get on with life, or die herself. Madeline’s life was dying at the same rate that the one she most loved, wasted away. She felt all the pain that she had been holding back for so long. A person can only be strong for a period of time before they had to let it all go, or to waste away themselves. The presence of her children, including Susan, gave her a reason to live. The beauty of the falls gave her hope, that there was love here, even as she said goodbye. She hugged her oldest child to her, to both give her strength and to draw strength from her.

Susan smiled as she looked at the falls. She had never thought about coming here, being a California girl, but the beauty and majesty of the falls stole her heart. Being here with the one she loved, only made this experience better. She drew an awestruck Ricki to her side.

Ricki’s heart was broken, as she helped cast the wreath off. She would never get to see her Dad again. She wouldn’t be able to see his smile, or hear his laughter anymore. As the boat made its turn, she was struck by the awesome power of the falls and knowing that this place was special to her Dad, lifted her spirit. She felt Susan’s arm encircle her waist and drew her close. Ricki drew strength from the person she loved.

Laura was sad and hurt, she hadn’t had the opportunity to see her Dad in over a year. He had in fact encouraged her to take classes throughout the summer, probably with this in mind. Her Mom’s arm around her shoulder, showed that she was loved and cared for. She turned towards her and held her in a tight embrace, which was joined by Susan and Ricki.

Chapter 38

When they got off the boat, they decided to head straight back to New York City. They wanted to turn the page and start a new chapter of life. They left their pain for a time, at Niagara Falls and headed off to the comfort of home.

“Laura and Susan, I would like you two to head on back to LA, on Tuesday and get back to your studies. I know you want to spend time with me and I want to spend time with both of you,” Madeline said. “Tomorrow we will pack up what you want to save from your room, Laura.”

“But Mom, we need to be together,” Laura said.

“I promise you this daughter; you will be sick of having me around in LA, before I will leave you. I don’t want you to lose credit for the classes you are taking and I need to get to know my other daughter. I don’t know how long we will be apart, but I won’t stay away too long.”

“You promise, Mom,” Laura said crying.

“Yes, I promise, Laura. Susan, I promise you that I won’t keep your fiancée away from you too long either. Also, I would like both you and Laura to find a good high school for Ricki to attend and a good neighborhood for me to live in.”

“I will miss you sorely, Ricki. We have spent so much time together, that I don’t know what I am going to do with all the time, while you are gone.”

“Believe me I will miss you too. I can’t tell you what it has meant to me to wake up seeing your smiling face. It won’t be the same without you.”

Things settled for now, if not exactly to the pleasure of Laura and Susan. The girls chatted about what they needed to do on Monday.

They arrived back home while it was still Sunday, just barely. Tired, everyone headed off to bed. Susan went with Ricki, and Laura went with her Mom.

Ricki and Susan were the first up the next day. After they took a bath together and dressed in T’s and jeans, Ricki got the keys to the Lincoln and they left early to get something for breakfast. Susan had to drive since Ricki had yet to get a license. NYC is a strange city, where mass transit is more important to the city, than being able to drive yourself around. There are times though, when not being able to drive can be a pain.

Laura wondered where Susan and Ricki were, when she got up. Ricki’s door was open and their purses were gone. She found a note from Ricki and smiled. She had taken over making sure that her and her sisters were fed, that was one thing she would miss. Laura did start a pot of coffee, set the table and then made travel arrangements for her and Susan. They would leave NY a little after one, in the afternoon.

Susan and Ricki returned with enough food for several days. Everyone pitched in and prepared, or put up the food. Susan got to see Madeline’s skills in the kitchen. Instead of preparing a simple breakfast, she went all out and began preparing Eggs Benedict with Hollandaise sauce, cream cheese blitzes and fruit bowls.

While Madeline was cooking, Susan, Laura and Ricki hit Laura’s Room. Laura systematically went from section to section, identifying what she wanted to keep. Susan and Ricki would move the items to a corner of the room, in a keeper pile and give away pile. The girls made short work of Laura’s room.

Madeline had called some professional movers, while Susan and Ricki were away. They arrived after lunch, bringing boxes and a truck. Madeline decided that she would call a furniture broker, rather than move all the furniture to where ever they were moving. Madeline went into her room and decided what to keep.

Susan, Ricki and Laura then hit Ricki’s room. She kept a lot of memorabilia and mementos, but got rid of all of his clothes. She would rather wear her wardrobe that was in LA, than any of Ricky’s things.

The girls then helped Mom. Her room took the longest; almost all of Dad’s things, except his jewelry, went. Ricki and Laura picked out a few of Dad’s things they wanted.

As a group, they boxed up the home office, taking all the important papers they might need in the future. The last area they hit, was the kitchen. Madeline wanted all her good kitchen utensils and tableware packed.

The movers did all the hard work. The Davis’s just had to identify what went and what stayed. They wrapped, packed and boxed everything up for the family. Clearly marking on the boxes, what was in the box and who it belonged to. They had three secure boxes that contained the more valuable items. Madeline padlocked these, placed tamper-proof seals on the boxes and kept the keys.

The movers and the Davis’s went room by room, for a final check that they had everything they wanted to keep boxed up and loaded on the truck. The movers also took the items for Goodwill delivery as a free service. The truck pulled away, well after sunset.

They all set in the living room, looking at a house that use to be their home. It had a different feel to it. It was almost alien to them now.

Tuesday morning, Susan and Laura dressed comfortably and packed their bags before coming down to breakfast. Madeline and Ricki took that time to create a breakfast feast to surpass the previous breakfast. Everyone was a bit somber, as they sat and ate.

Madeline drove a quiet car to LaGuardia. Ricki and Susan sat in the back seat and snuggled close to each other. At the airport, Susan and Laura got their last hugs for a while, from Madeline and Ricki.

Back in LA, Laura and Susan picked up where they left off. They had only missed two days of school and their professors understood their reason. They easily made up the missed class work. Susan went to her belly dancing classes on Wednesday and Friday. Laura went to her Thursday belly dancing class and went back to work for Mr. Donotello. Both of them found that doing something, was better than just sitting around doing nothing,

Ricki and Madeline did call and talked for an hour. This was the highlight of the girls’ week. For the next month, they called LA three times a week. What frustrated Laura and Susan, was the fact that Ricki and Madeline were rather vague about where they were and what they were doing. They were even vague about why they were being vague. But being able to talk to Ricki and their Mom, helped bring smiles to their faces and helped raise their spirits. Things began to normalize in LA.

Laura did call a real estate agent and talked about her Mom’s requirements, and about high schools. The agent had tons of good information, which Laura and Susan were able to check out. They put all that information into an email and sent it to their Mom’s online account and talked about it a little, on the phone.

Madeline told the girls that she already had a contract on her house. They had listed the home at 2.5 million and hoped to negotiate for at least 2.2 million. A man who worked in Manhattan and was desperate for a home there, instead of having to travel a hundred and twenty miles a day, put a bid on their home of 2.7 million as is. He stipulated that the transaction be expedited and that he could lease the home till the paperwork cleared. He even made a bid on all the furniture that was there. He had placed half of the bid price in escrow, the balance of the 2.7 million would be paid on closure. He wanted this home, because it was just a short subway ride away from where he worked. Madeline’s broker estimated that they would close by the end of August.

A couple of the times that Ricki called, Laura thought she might have been experiencing a bit of pain, her voice seemed a bit strained, but she didn’t seem too bad. Susan was simply overjoyed to be speaking to her. Susan would get so lovey dovey, sickly sweet, that Laura told Susan to take it into another room. Laura had to giggle to herself, there was not doubt about it, Susan had it bad.

Chapter 39

Tuesday, the last week of this summer semester, Rebecca was sitting in the student center, having lunch with Candace. They were talking about the boys they were stalking, in a dating sense. Rebecca’s phone began to play “Black Magic Woman”.

“Ricki!” was all that Rebecca said, as she began digging through her purse. She then flipped the phone open and nearly shouted, “Ricki is that really you,” Rebecca shouted into her phone, before she even got it to her ear.

“You don’t have to shout, Rebecca; I can hear you just fine.” Ricki said. “Come on get real, “Black Magic Woman”, hand the phone to Candace.”

Rebecca instinctively reached out to Candace and then she stopped, “How did you…” She looked around and saw Ricki nearly doubling over with laughter. “You witch, get your pretty fanny over here,” She said, closing her phone.

Ricki was standing there in a Navy blue skirt suit, white chiffon blouse, and four inch navy pumps. Her sorority pin was prominently displayed on her navy jacket. Rebecca jumped up and closed the last few feet and threw her arms around her sister. Candace arrived at a more sedate pace and gave Ricki a hug.

Rebecca stepped back and looked Ricki up and down, “You look fantastic girl. Have you called your sister and Susan yet? Let me please.”

“No and promise me that you won’t tell them yet. I have a plan.”

Ricki waved at a woman who walked over to them. “Rebecca, Candace, this is my Mom, Madeline Davis. Mom this is Rebecca Kittrich and Candace McIntyre.

The four of them sat down and talked for a while. Ricki then began to layout her plan.

Friday, Rebecca had gotten reservations for the late show at the dinner theater that Laura was working at, for herself, Susan, Candace, Stacy, Cindy, Karen, Amanda and Brenda. They had almost the whole front section near the stage. The girls couldn’t believe just how magnanimous Rebecca was being, she had told everyone not to worry, that she was picking up the tab.

Laura came out on the stage and did a five minute belly dancing routine. This was well received by the crowd. The stage opened to show a packing crate on a Lucite pedestal with the front and back open to show there was nothing there. She spun the crate around so the audience could see all the sides. She closed up the back of the crate and then the front. Two seconds later after a flash of light and smoke, the crate fell apart to reveal The Great Donotello. The show went on for forty minutes more as the magician amazed and thrilled the crowd.

“Now for my last illusion of the night I need the assistance of a member of the audience.”

Laura looked to Freddy; she hadn’t rehearsed any illusion that had required audience participation, this week. She just smiled.

“I know a young lady out in the audience. A Susan Cartwright is out there is she not?”

The spotlights panned the crowd and stopped on Susan. She looked crossly at Rebecca for a second; she then stood and walked up on the stage.

“Now for this illusion, I will make three people simultaneously appear on stage.”

The curtains opened and revealed three tall boxes on Lucite pedestals. Laura and Susan were tasked to show that the boxes were indeed empty for the crowd.

Freddy then closed up each box. Four pyro pots at the front of the stage went off. Freddy then had Susan open the box she was standing next to.

Susan opened the door to reveal her Mom. She shrieked and jumped into her mom’s arms. Freddy then had Laura open the box she was standing next to. Laura opened the door to reveal her Mom.

“Momma!” Laura shouted. She hurried into her Mom’s arms.

Susan seeing Madeline standing there all but shoved Freddy out of the way.

“Ricki! Get your pretty little butt out here and give me a hug.”

The door to the third box opened and Ricki danced out, dressed in her cardinal/gold belly dancing costume that Mrs. Lively had given her and that Rebecca had snitched for her. Smiling she danced her way to Susan and gave her a sedate kiss to the cheek and a big hug.

Susan was joined in the hug by Laura and her sorority sisters, who had rushed up on the stage.

The crowd may not have known what had just occurred but they understood that this was some kind of reunion for the girls. They gave a round of heartwarming applause as things played out.

The curtains came down and Freddy bowed to the crowd. He then stepped behind the curtain normally to join the girls.

The girls were all in a group around the three arrivals, firing questions at Ricki left and right. Ricki put off answering any questions till they all got back to the condo.

Ricki and Laura changed in separate dressing rooms and they all headed to Laura’s condo. Ricki and Susan rode with Madeline and Georgia in her new Lincoln. They were necking all the way home, just keeping things decent enough not to get arrested.

When they all had arrived at the condo, they assembled together in the living room.

“First thing we need to do, I guess, is introductions. Girls, this is my Mom,” Laura said, and then she introduced the rest of the girls to her Mom. “Let us look at you two. You both are so gorgeous.” Laura said, taking a closer look at her Mom and her sister. It looked to her that her Mom had gotten a facelift and maybe had some liposuction done, but Ricki deffinately had a lot if changes made.

The girls then looked Madeline and Ricki over. Madeline wore a pale blue, skirted suit and a white blouse, with three inch blue pumps on. Ricki was in a off white skirted suit, a black, deep V necked, black silk blouse and four inch black pumps, her sorority pin displayed on her lapel. Susan let go of Ricki long enough for her to turn around for the girls, then she reattached herself.

Laura confronted Rebecca, “Don’t you ever pull something like this again Rebecca,” Laura said, with mock sternness. Her smile betrayed her heart though to her friend, who just smiled back.

“Don’t get mad at me, this was Ricki’s idea. They have been in town, for over a week,” Rebecca said, in her own defense.

“You have been here for a week and didn’t say anything to me,” Susan said, rounding on Ricki. Ricki was almost afraid that Susan was going to slap her.

“Don’t get mad at her Susan. I wouldn’t let her,” Madeline said. “We needed to get some business taken care of first.”

“She is still getting a spanking out of this Mom,” Susan said, sticking her tongue out at Ricki.

“You stick it out, you got to share it,” Ricki said.

“Later, lover,” Susan replied.

“Let’s all take a seat,” Laura said.

They all sat down in the living room. “Now tell us, what have you two been up to for a month and what have you done to yourself Ricki, you look a little different?” Laura asked.

“We are all girls here right?” Ricki asked, looking at Madeline and Georgia.

They just nodded to Ricki.

Ricki disentangled herself from Susan’s grasp and stood.

“Mom and I have been a little busy,” Ricki said, she unbuttoned her jacket and handed it to Susan. “And you’re right, I do look different.” She then unbuttoned her skirt and let it fall. Ricki steeped out of the skirt and Susan picked it up. Ricki stood there in her heels, black, sheer to the waist, pantyhose and a black, French cut, silk bodysuit. “We went to a clinic in Cancun, where I had lip implants, cheek implants, a nose job.” She said, reaching in between her legs to unsnap the bodysuit. She then pulled the body suit off and her nipples stiffened erect, at the cool air of the room.

“A boob job!” Susan shouted, as she saw her nipples.

“Yes, I got a breast augmentation along with,” Ricki then pulled the pantyhose down a bit and stuck her tush towards Susan.

Susan eyes bulged and she slapped Ricki’s rump.

Ricki winced a bit. “Hip and butt implants,” Ricki said. “But please don’t slap them too hard right now, Susan. I need another two months of healing, for my breasts and my rump.”

Ricki then pulled up her pantyhose and dressed in the bodysuit again, before sitting back down next to Susan. “I still have a little silicone left though. I have a small flap that I can glue in place, to keep a certain body part hidden.” Rick said.

Susan was smiling broadly and said, “I was wondering about that, Ricki. You’re still functional then.”

“Maybe not as well right now, as I will. I am on low doses of estrogen and finasteride, for the next forty-five days. Long enough to make a few changes, but not long enough to damage my testis. I will be on estrogen and finasteride for three months, of every year. Three months off and one month on, as long as I stay fertile.”

“That was a good start, but we want to know everything,” Laura said.

All of the girls there were smiling and agreed with Laura.

Ricki looked to her Mom, Madeline said, “It’s your story baby. Go ahead and tell them if you want.

“Ok, here is what happened,” Ricki said.

Chapter 40

(What follows is an extended recollection by Ricki, as she thought about what to tell the girls there. She related a lot of what happened, but not in as much detail.)

Tuesday, Ricki got up at about six and began fixing breakfast for her Mom. Madeline came down stairs and watched Ricki work in the kitchen.

“Laura said that you are really becoming quite a cook and a maid.”

“Yeah, I tried to help out where I could. Laura, Cindy and Susan were taking some pretty heavy weight courses, the first summer semester.”

“Hmm, you make a pretty good cup of coffee.”

“I drink the stuff too Mom, I like my coffee a certain way. So what is on the menu for today, Mom?”

“Well I am going to see our family attorney to begin getting some matters taken care of. Dad did a lot of it before we left on vacation. Like all the cars and the home, are already solely in my name. I do need to give the attorney the Grecian death certificate, the autopsy report and the statement from the attending Physician on the ship. He set up trusts for you and Laura, before he died; I need to check on them. He also had some assets that he couldn’t convert as easily, as the house and car,so I will need to file his will.”

“Can I go with you?”

“I need you to stay here, Ricki. I have a friend I went to school with, a Dr. Karen Jones, that I want you to talk too. She is a Psychiatrist. I want to know what she thinks about you. Don’t worry, she won’t make you change if you don’t want to, and she is not going to cut your balls off, although, I did hear her threaten to do that to one amorous guy at college. You might hate her, or you might like her, or both. She is that kind of person.”

“What if I don’t want to talk to her?”

“Then don’t, but I would like for you to give her a chance. She will be here about ten o’clock.”

Ricki didn’t know if she was going to talk to the Doc, but she said she would give the lady a try.

Madeline and Ricki took their baths after breakfast and dressed as smartly as they could.

Madeline left, dressed for business, at about nine, with a stuffed briefcase and her purse. She gave Ricki a big hug, as she went out the door. Ricki watched her head on down the block, toward the subway terminal nearby.

Ricki had dressed in a black mini, a dark shiny blue cowl neck blouse, off black pantyhose and her black sandals, with a three inch heel. She had worked hard on her face, to give her a more mature look, and put her hair up in a French twist.

She sat and nervously waited for Dr. Jones. She used this time to roll a coin back and forth across her knuckles and to shuffle, fan and manipulate a deck of cards she had. She liked the idea of going back to work for Mr. Dawson.

At about nine fifty, the doorbell rang and Ricki got up and answered it.

“Hi, I am Karen Jones,” a casually dressed lady said.

Karen Jones stood in the doorway, dressed in a pair of tight fitting jeans and a Yankee T-shirt. She appeared to be in her mid to late thirties. She had shoulder length blonde hair and some strikingly, brilliantly blue eyes. She didn’t appear to have any makeup on, but Ricki saw that, that was just an illusion.

“Hi Dr. Jones, come on in PLEASE.” Ricki said.

“Oh, I see that my fame has preceded me,” she said, as entered the house.

“Yeah, Mom said she wanted me to talk with you.”

They went into the living room and sat down, with a coffee table between them.

“Yes, she called me last week from Athens, just after Allan had died. I tried to help her deal with the stress of his death. How are you dealing with it, Ricki?”

“I am fine, right now. At first, I was mad as hell at Dad, for rigging it to where I couldn’t say goodbye to him. Laura and I didn’t know he was dying till late June. We suspected something was wrong, but…” Ricki said, stopping to cry.

“I know Ricki, I tried to talk your Dad out of it, but he was insistent about what he was doing.”

“It isn’t fair, I was so mad. Didn’t Dad know that it was a bad idea? Laura hadn’t seen Dad in over a year; she was crushed when she found out. At least Mom got him to call us before...”

“The way he went wasn’t pretty Ricki. The last weeks he really wasted away and was in a lot of pain. He wanted to save you and your sister the pain, he and your Mom were going through. And before we go any further, promise me one thing. Your Mom has been so strong for so long. She is going to need somebody to lean on. Are you ready for that!”

“I am ready to help my Mom do whatever she needs me to do.”

Karen began to tell Ricki what Madeline was going to have to face and the importance that she, Ricki and Laura, needed to grieve.

“Grief can be postponed, ignored and belittled, but one way or another, it is going to happen. The sooner one grieves, is usually the better. You can both take the next few days to grieve and talk Ricki.”

“You sound just like Dr. Whitlock, Dr. Jones.” Ricki said, whishing she had kept her mouth shut.

“Who is Dr. Whitlock?” Karen asked. She knew she hit a sore spot, when Ricki’s face colored.

“He is a guy I met in LA.”

“A psychiatrist?”

“No, a psydoc. I think is what he is called.”

“In relation to.”

“Well ah… I ah…”

“Look Ricki, either tell me or not. It is up to you.”

Ricki then bit her lip and told Karen what had happened.

“Your mother never told me that.” Karen said. Clearly disturbed by what Ricki said.

“I ah … haven’t told her about that. I was passed out and although I was bothered that he tried to take advantage. He didn’t and I didn’t know about it. My friends told me what had happened.”

“You will tell your Mom when she gets home, Ricki. I won’t say a thing about it. You will have to tell her.”

“She has enough on her plate, right now. I wasn’t hurt, no harm, no foul.”

“Poppy cock, there is no such thing as no harm, no foul, when it comes to rape.”

“I am just glad it was me, he was stalking my sisters too.”

“Nonsense, he violated you. You already said it bothered you. Yes it was good that the other girls weren’t raped. Yes you weren’t hurt as bad as you could have been, but just think what would have happened without your sisters’ timely intervention. It was good that he was caught, but you need to work through what happened. Also, he gave you an unknown dose of a dangerous drug. It could have killed you just as easily.”

Karen and Ricki talked about that for about an hour. She still wasn’t satisfied that Ricki understood, what she was getting at.

“It is good I came here today. We haven’t even gotten to what Madeline wanted, and I have already opened two cans of worms.”

“You came to talk about this,” Ricki said, indicating the way she looked.

“Yes, but we will be hitting the other things too.” Karen said. “Tell me about how you feel right now, dressed as a very attractive young lady. Tell me, when was the first time you dressed?”

“June 3rd this year. Oh and once or twice before the age of ten.”

Ricki then began to tell Karen about the circumstances of her present condition and what she had done since her first day. She left very little out of her story and none intentionally. Her eyes glowed as she talked about her belly dancing, and her work as a magician’s assistant. She smiled as she described her costume that Mrs. Lively had given her and their performance on the Fourth of July. She pulled out her laptop and showed Karen the pictures and video.

They had been talking for about three hours when Ricki’s stomach growled. “Would you like to have lunch with me Dr. Jones. We can talk while I prepare.”

She was hungry too, so she agreed, as long as Ricki kept talking.

Ricki began to heat up some New England clam chowder, boil some eggs and selected some vegetables and nuts, to chop up for a tuna fish salad. She continued to talk, as she began to work.

Karen watched and listened to Ricki. She saw that Ricki was very good at multi-tasking. Everything she was doing, seemed to be timed, so that everything came together at the right time.

Ricki was telling Karen about what she had done to help the girls, back in LA. She felt it was her responsibility to help them, so they could get on with their studies.

Ricki was far more mature than almost all the seventeen-year old males she knew and even more mature than many of the girls she knew too.

As they ate, Karen asked Ricki to start at the beginning, about how she met, or knew of Sam Dresden.

Ricki told her about him hitting on her at the student union, about him living a few doors down from them. She then told Karen about what Det. Mary Post had told her about him and what they had found in his apartment.

“He didn’t have the right to do what he did,” Ricki said, finally crying.

“No he didn’t, guys like him are into it for the power rush they get.”

“But why me? I wasn’t interested in him and I didn’t do anything to him.”

“No you didn’t, it is hard to say why he picked you out. You fit his needs. That was the only criteria that you needed to fit.”

Karen helped Ricki clean up the kitchen and watched as Ricki repaired her face after her cry.

Karen asked Ricki about how she felt when she wasn’t all, girled up.

Ricki told her about when she had to take the breastforms and faux vagina off to clean the skin beneath and allow the skin to breath. She then explained how good she felt, when she could get dressed again. She shared about her talks with Candace and then later Dr. Whitlock.

“So, Dr. Whitlock wasn’t referred to you because of the rape.”

“No, I figured my sister Rebecca had her friend Candace just talk to me at first. I don’t think Candace knew I was a boy, dressed as a girl, but she figured it out. Then she introduced me to her Professor. She might have told him. Candace is working on a masters in psychology.”

“Ok, I see. Tell me more about your conversations with these two.”

Ricki then began telling Karen in as much detail as she could about their conversations. It was hard remembering all the details.

“I need a break,” Ricki said. She called Candace, on her cell phone and handed it to Karen, after she talked to Candace for a few minutes.

Ricki then laid down and took a nap, while Karen talked to first Candace and Dr. Whitlock.

Chapter 41

Madeline came in and saw Ricki sleeping and found Karen in the kitchen.

“How is she Karen?”

“She is quite a remarkable person, Madeline. I think she will live.” Karen said, giving her friend a smile.

“You’re not going to tell me?”

“What and betray a trust, never.”

Karen then started in on her friend and how she was dealing with her loss. She was as hard on Madeline, as she had been on Ricki. They talked for about an hour, only stopping when they heard Ricki stirring.

Ricki went into the kitchen, she smiled when she saw her Mom and gave her a big hug.

Ricki and Madeline then began to work together to fix dinner. Karen saw how well they worked together, preparing the meal. Ricki almost seemed to be telepathic. She anticipated what her Mom seemed to need; the same could be said for Madeline.

They all made small talk, but even during small talk, a trained observer can glean data from them. Ricki seemed very comfortable in her assumed role. She was very feminine in everything she said or did.

Without prompting, Ricki then began to tell her Mom about the attempted rape. Madeline was outraged, and Ricki cried some more, as she went into details.

“Why didn’t you call me and tell me.”

“Mom, face it. You were ten thousand miles away and you had your own worries. What could you have done? Drop everything and leave Dad to die alone? Of course not! I was ok, I am having to deal with it, but I am ok.”

“You could have told me when I got home.”

“No, I couldn’t. You had things you had to do. We all did. We had to say goodbye to dad.”

“Then why tell me now.”

“Because, I needed too, because now is the right time.”

Ricki didn’t tell Madeline everything she had told to Karen, but she did tell her about the fact that Sam Dresden had been stalking Laura, Susan and Cindy, prior to Ricky getting to LA.

Madeline suddenly felt very old.

Ricki then hugged her Mom and said, “Mom, I am going to be needing you for a very long time. I know all this has been a shock to you, but together, it won’t be a problem.”

Karen just smiled and listened. She loved it when people worked things out, with only minimal assistance from her. She got a wonderful lunch and was anticipating a delightful dinner, as she watched them work.

Karen began to set the table, she wondered where all her fine things were and asked.

“Oh those things, I had them packed up. I am moving to California, to be closer to my children. They just left enough things for me to work with, while we are here.”

So they had veal, with a mushroom sauce, grilled asparagus, a Caesar’s salad and chocolate mousse, on melamine tableware, and drank a bottle of 1969 Baron Philippe de Rothschild, Mouton Cadet Rouge Bordeaux, from breakfast tumblers. A very good year.

Over dinner, the trio talked about various topics, from food, to the weather and such. Karen then said, “Ricki, the reason your Mom asked me to talk to you, was that she felt you would be more comfortable without the silicone. She said that if you wanted to be a girl, or even what is sometimes referred to as a she-male, that maybe you might be more comfortable doing so, with your own curves, so to speak. Do you understand?”

“You mean breast implants.”

“Yes and more. She wants to take you to a clinic, to get your breasts, hips, buttocks and some facial surgery. I told her how I felt about it, I was against it. Still am. But she insisted that if it is what you feel is right, and then to quote her ‘to hell with them.’ She would find someone to make you feel whole. Tell us what you think.”

“I am not ever going back to being Richard. I feel so right being Richelle. I will love having my own breasts, and hips and such. I don’t think I will ever go all the way though. I want kids, Susan wants kids and grandma will love our kids.”

“I can’t say I agree with Madeline. These steps she is talking about, are usually restricted to eighteen year old, or older. I did tell her that if she insisted and you agreed, to give her a letter to approve the surgeries, excluding SRS surgery. SRS surgery is where they change the genitals. They use the penis to create a vagina and the scrotum to create the labia. Do you want the rest of the surgery?”

Ricki thought about it for a few minutes and said, “Yes I do.”

“Then lets talk some more. Madeline, go watch some TV.”

“I can’t, no TV, but I will make myself scarce.”

Ricki and Karen did talk again, Karen seemed more adversarial in her approach and Ricki found herself getting more frustrated. At times she was close to tears as they spoke. It almost felt like she was verbally wrestling with the woman.

Karen confused her, at times she seemed like a nice lady and other times, Ricki felt the woman was a B****. She never doubted how she felt about herself, just how other people perceived her to be. She began to see how hard the life she had chosen for herself, would be. People would reject her, treat her badly, hate her and maybe even try to take her life, if they discovered who she had been. She understood that there was hate and prejudice in the world, against those who they deemed to be different and inferior.

Finally Ricki did begin to break down and cry. She was surprised to find herself being wrapped up in the other woman’s arms and having her hair stroked by that lady.

“I am sorry dear that I hurt you. You just needed to realize just what you were up against. I have no doubt that there beats the heart of a woman inside your body, dear, I just had to make sure. I still say you should wait till you turn eighteen, before you get any surgery, but I will sign a consent form for you.”

Ricki cried on Karen’s shoulder and drew strength from her, “Thank you Karen.”

Chapter 42

Madeline and Ricki only spent two more days in New York City. They contacted a real estate broker and put their home up on the market. They then met with a lawyer and then went to court, to legally change Ricki’s name to Richelle Annette Davis.

The next day, Madeline took her younger daughter shopping. Ricki added a lot of clothes to her wardrobe; most of the clothes would have to be sent by freight to LA. They bought a lot of clothes that befit a girl her age, some elegant eveningwear, and not a few sharp looking suits.

Early Thursday, a car service picked them up and delivered them to JFK for their flight to Cancun. Madeline had found a very reputable clinic that would do the surgery for Ricki.

They drove to the clinic on Friday and Ricki was given a complete physical. They then had the opportunity to sit down with the plastic surgeon. They talked about what Ricki wanted to accomplish and what results she hoped for.

Ricki then had to stand naked in front of the surgeon, as he checked her hips, buttocks and chest out. She then was able to dress and he checked out her face. All the time he took pictures and made copious notes, but she hadn’t detected any prurient interest in her.

The Surgeon then told them that the first of her surgeries would take place on in two days. The first surgery would be the hip and buttock implants. That surgery would take place on Sunday. Ricki would check into the clinic Saturday evening. He wanted to do this, so that Ricki would be able to sleep on her stomach for a week, before they would do the breast implants and facial surgery next Sunday. After that, Ricki would need to sleep upright in a chair, if possible, or on her back for at least a week.

The surgeon told them, Ricki would likely be just a little smaller through the hips and bust, than she was with her padding on, but later, if she wanted the extra size, she could come back and they could finish the job.

Madeline then talked to the Doc about getting some work done for herself. She wanted her face to look younger and to have some flab taken off her waist and possibly a fanny lift.

Ricki left the room, to let the Doc examine her Mom.

Madeline and Ricki went out and celebrated that evening. Ricki was only allowed to put her breastforms in her bra and to slip the faux vagina on, without gluing them down. Madeline let Ricki have one glass of wine, with their meal.

Ricki was nervous the next day, as they both checked into the clinic. They didn’t allow either of them any food that night and only a small amount of liquid, till ten that night, then nothing. Ricki had to suffer the indignity of having her bowels emptied by several enemas. Madeline stayed the night with her daughter.

They woke Ricki and her Mom, at about four thirty and gave her some pills and a shot. The nurse then had to give Ricki a Foley catheter. They then had her lie on her stomach on a gurney. She soon fell back asleep, till she awoke late in the afternoon, lying on her stomach, back in her room.

Madeline also had her facial surgery done the same day. Her facelift surgery was done on an outpatient basis. They tightened up her face a bit and gave her small cheek implants, to make her look younger. They will do the fanny lift and Lipo, the next week for her.

Ricki wasn’t allowed to get up for any reason, for two days and was fed only by a catheter, in one of her arms. She got solace for her condition, by calling Susan. On Wednesday, they started her on a breakfast of oatmeal and a lunch of jello, plus some equally disgusting mush. They also let her go to the restroom, with assistance.

Her butt and hips felt positively huge, as her Mom helped her to the restroom. Part of that, she was told, was swelling from the surgery. She sat gently on the toilet and did her business. Her first real meal had passed rapidly through her system.

Thursday, she felt a lot better, she got to sit in bed, instead of lying on her stomach and was allowed more solid food. Friday was even better for her. The swelling was minimal at this point and sitting became more bearable.

Saturday was good for Ricki, she felt chipper again, at least till after she called Susan. Ricki and Madeline were denied a dinner again and no liquids after ten that night. Both of them were again wakened around five, given another round of shots and pills. Ricki and Madeline then headed off to different surgical suites.

Ricki woke up feeling strange, her lips felt thick; her face and nose were heavily bandaged; as well as her chest. She was allowed a soft diet. It was hard getting the food into her mouth; her lips seemed to get in the way. Her Mom was laying on her stomach, in the bed next to her.

Monday, the call to Susan was a bit of a chore. It was hard to mask the little bit of pain, as she talked and she was very nasal due to the gauze in her nose, but she just had to talk to Susan and Laura.

Tuesday, they were both allowed to check out and recover in her Mom’s hotel room. That lifted Ricki’s spirits, she had taken the nurses advice to wait, before she looked at herself. She laughed a bit, seeing her Mom walking gingerly. She imagined all the swelling and bruising they both must have. Ricki hadn’t really even checked out her hips and butt yet. The damn surgical bra was heavy and uncomfortable. The skin of her chest felt as taught as a drum. She knew she was big in the chest, but she wouldn’t know how big, till the swelling from the surgery went down.

Friday, she went back to the doctor, who was very pleased with everything. All the bandages came off and she was cleared for travel. She just had to check with a doctor back home, for the next two weeks. She took a good look at all the work that had been done that night. She looked ugly from the bruising and such, but she smiled as she saw her potential.

Her face would definitely be cuter and all her curves would be hers.
The skin of her chest was still taught, but not as taught as it had been. She still had to wear the surgical bra for another week, though. Her hips and butt were smaller, than with the silicone, but she now had a good figure.

They both would look pretty wonderful, when they were finally healed up, she thought. She could already tell that her Mom’s face was looking nicer.

Madeline had gotten a call from her realtor and they had to make a hurried dash back to New York, on Saturday. Ricki would have like to have taken a day or two more, to recuperate, but she bore on.

In New York, at JFK, she had a bit of a time going through customs. Her Mom had to show all her paperwork and letter of transition, to get through, but they were only delayed for half an hour. They hurried to the realtor’s office, rather than home. They found out that someone wanted their home desperately and was willing to lease it, till the deal went through, and he would buy all the furniture they didn’t want to take with them.

Madeline agreed to let the home go on Monday. She and Ricki would take one last walk through, on Sunday and check into a hotel, on Monday. They hurried home from the realtor and packed the last of their things. By Sunday evening, there was nothing left in their home that they weren’t selling. They left their Upper East Side home for the last time on Monday at eight am.

Ricki took a referral to a physician on Tuesday, who checked the healing and scaring of the surgery. He was very pleased with how she was doing.

Their last stop before leaving New York, was a shop that Madeline had found. Ricki now had a harder time hiding what she had between her legs. Madeline found a prosthetic supply, that did custom jobs. They entered the shop and Madeline explained what Ricki needed. The woman who ran the shop said, she had just the thing. She had a flap of silicone, which could be adhered to the pubis. It had a sheath that encased the penis and then adhered in the back. It wouldn’t fool people, if she sat spread eagle for all the world to see. But she would be ok in a girl’s locker room. Ricki would also have to be as fastidious about keeping herself clean, as a girl down there, just as she had been with the faux vagina. The woman made three of them for Ricki.

Madeline made reservations for a month, at a residence type hotel, in LA. She arranged to have all their clothes, that didn’t fit into two suit cases, shipped to there, on a three day delivery.

Chapter 43

They flew into LA on Thursday and rented a car. Madeline used the cars GPS system, to take them to the hotel. Madeline and Ricki relaxed the rest of the day.

Friday, Madeline then took Ricki to DMV, to take her written driving test and to change her own license to the address of the Condo Laura lived in. Ricki passed the test. She had studied to take it in New York and the test covered most of the same basic information, she just never took the test.

They then drove to an auto dealership. Madeline got another Lincoln Town Car. Ricki was looking around, while her mother did business and found a car she fell in love with, a Mustang convertible. The Salesman was so happy to sell two cars; he drove the Lincoln behind Madeline, as she returned the rental. Then back to the dealership, where Ricki drove the mustang, with Madeline riding shotgun. The salesman followed Ricki to the hotel.

Madeline then got a wild Idea. Ricki had Georgia Cartwright’s phone number on her cell phone. Susan had put it there after she had proposed to Ricki. She told Ricki her plan, as she called Georgia on the cell phone. Georgia loved Madeline’s idea and took the first plane out of San Francisco.

Under Madeline’s instruction, Ricki did her makeup a little heavier, to hide the fading scars of her facial surgery. She wasn’t able to hide it all, but she was able to mitigate it’s detraction a bit. She wore jeans and a cowl neck, sleeveless tank top, with her 3 inch black heels.

Madeline had Ricki drive them to the airport, to pick up Georgia. For never having driven anything other than go carts, motorbikes and bicycles, Ricki did very well.

They stood in arrivals, holding a sign up for Georgia. Ricki had a profound sense of déjá  vu. Susan had sent pictures of Ricki to her via email, so Georgia recognized the girl, as soon as she saw her. She didn’t need the sign they were holding.

“You must be Ricki, and you are Madeline.”

“That is us,” Madeline said.

Ricki was kind of nonplussed, as the woman gave her a huge bear hug, which picked her off the floor and squeezed the air out of her lungs.

Georgia whispered in Ricki’s ear, “I am so glad to finally meet the person who stole my daughter’s heart. You are a sweet thing.” Then to louder to both of them, “Let’s blow this joint. I got me a room in the same hotel as you do.”

Ricki tried to resolve this woman with the descriptions Susan gave her. Georgia seemed to be a barrel of fun, a fun loving person, but quiet, dignified and reserved. No way.

The only thing worse than having a back seat driver, is having two back seat drivers, Madeline made Ricki drive back to the motel. Ricki really didn’t need directions, she had the GPS unit in the dash and she had paid attention, when she drove to the airport. Still she received plenty of instructions from her two charges. At one point, when she was on an open section of road, she controlled the steering wheel with her knee. She turned, threw her hands up and said, “If either of you two want to drive, just say so.”

Georgia and Madeline nearly went apoplexic. The two women were a little quieter after that. Ricki was doing a good job, after all.

Ricki recognized the area they were in and took an unscheduled turn saying, “Moms, I want to drop by my bosses place for a few minutes, if that is OK.”

“Oh you mean Mr. Dawson, that magician right?” Georgia asked.

“Yes, I want to introduce you to him and see if he still wants me.”

Ricki drove for about five more miles. She stopped before taking a right turn, as she saw Laura drive away.

“That was close, Mom. Laura just left his warehouse,” Ricki said. “She must still be working for him.”

“How much was he paying you two?” Madeline asked.

“We each made a thousand a week.” Ricki said.

“I can see why she is still working for him,” Georgia exclaimed.

Ricki caught Mr. Dawson just coming to the door.

“Ricki, it is great seeing you. Your sister didn’t say anything about you being in town yet.”

“She doesn’t know yet. We are planning to surprise her. Mr. Dawson, I would like to introduce my Mom, Madeline Davis, and my future mother-in-law, Georgia Cartwright. Mom, Georgia this is Freddy Dawson, the Great Donotello.”

“Please come in, Ricki take them to the office, if you will.”

Freddy locked the front door and checked his appearance before heading back to the office. It was too soon for Madeline to be interested, but if Georgia was available, he was too.

Mr. Dawson met the ladies in his office. He stopped and looked Ricki over. “You have had surgery, haven’t you Ricki.”

“Yes sir, how did you know?”

“I can see a trace of bruising underneath your makeup. Your proportions are different. Your gate is different, like you are being careful how you walk. I would say that you have had your nose cheeks, lips, hips, and breasts worked on. I like you better this way.”

“You’re very sharp Mr. Dawson,” Madeline said.

“So how far are you going to take this surgery, Ricki?”

Ricki’s mouth just hung open.

“Part of magic, is observation. Yes you were very convincing Ricki and even more so now.”

“I have gone as far as I am going, for a long while at least, I think Mr. Dawson. I came back to see if you still wanted me to work for you.”

“Damn straight I want you back, when can you start?”

“Not this weekend, but next. I am still healing up a bit.”

“Don’t come back too soon, but you and Laura have made me a real hit. The restaurant was going crazy, not having you there. They were glad when Laura came back. The patrons buy more to eat and drink when you two are together. They like Laura, but they love you. Show me your work, Ricki.” Freddy said, as he tossed her a coin.

Ricki caught it on the back of her hand and rolled it back and forth across her knuckles. She flipped it with her pinkie and caught it on the back of her other fingers and rolled it back and forth. Freddy was amazed.

He then tossed her a deck of cards. She opened and shuffled the cards, fanned the deck, turned the top card and dealt five poker hands out. It was hard to see the second dealing, but the upright card remained on the top. Freddy then turned over five pat hands, a flush, a straight, a full house and four of a kind. Ricki then tuned over her straight flush.

“I see you have been practicing. Remind me not to play poker anymore, with you.”

“It gets kind of boring being laid up in the hospital.”

“Gee, I just thought you were fidgeting, Ricki,” Madeline said.

“No Mom, I was working on my manual dexterity.”

Ricki then showed them both sides of her hands; she reached behind Georgia’s head and pulled a coin from behind her ear.

“I can’t palm silver dollars like you can, Mr. Dawson, but I can do alright with the Susan B’s.”

“What do you mean Ricki?” Georgia asked.

“Stand up Ricki,” Mr. Dawson said. He went and got a bucket. He showed the ladies his hands then set the bucket on the floor. He grabbed a silk hanky, and held it up to Ricki’s nose. He then pumped her right arm like a well pump and coins fell from Ricki’s nose in time to his pumping. Thirty or forty coins fell nosily into the bucket.

Ricki couldn’t hold her laughter in, as Freddy worked. When he finished, Ricki began popping Susan B’s right and left. She wasn’t as good as Freddy, but he could see that she was doing pretty good, considering how long she has been working on it.

“Ok, let’s work on getting you back in the show, the weekend after next then.” Freddy said. “Your sister comes in after one, can you be here from nine to twelve. Wait, I just had a brilliant idea for how you can make your grand reappearance, Can you and Georgia come here with Ricki, Madeline.”

Ricki looked to her Mom’s who nodded. “Yes sir, we can be here then.”

“Great, then, I look forward to having you back in the show, Ricki.”

Ricki then drove the mom’s straight to the hotel.

The next few days, Ricki drove Madeline and Georgia sightseeing. Ricki saw more of LA over the next week, than she had previously seen.

On Monday, Madeline and Ricki went to a high school, near the condo, to register. Ricki’s transcripts had preceded her by three days. They still gave her a battery of tests and asked her to come back on Thursday. Ricki would start school the next Tuesday.

Tuesday, she took her driving test and passed it, with a 95%. Ricki was ecstatic at passing; the clerk at the DMV made a mistake and typed what she knew, rather than what was on the form. Ricki didn’t know it, but she was now a she, according to California DMV. Ricki walked out with her temporary regular license. They would mail her, her license to the Condo.

She drove her Mom to the campus and then met Rebecca for lunch.

Chapter 44

It was almost eleven thirty when Ricki finished telling her tale. She couldn’t ever remember talking for so long. Everybody was hanging on to the edge of their seats, as she finished.

“Susan, do you trust me?” Ricki asked.

“Of course I trust you, Ricki.”

Ricki got her purse and pulled out a document, with a blue cover. She only unfolded the bottom section of the document, then handed it and a pen to Susan. “Then sign this for me,” Ricki said.

Susan kissed Ricki and then signed it. She then unfolded the document and read the first few lines. Her face lit up and she wore a big smile on her face, “Oh my gosh,” She threw her arms around Ricki’s neck and pulled her in for a big kiss.

“Susan!” Georgia said, getting her daughter’s attention.

“Yes, Mom.”

“I will only agree to this, if I get a real wedding, with one or both of you in dresses,” Georgia said, “Before one of you get too big around the waist.”

“Yes, Mom.”

“Hey, what is this all about?” Laura asked. “Don’t keep us in the dark.”

Susan continued kissing Ricki and just handed Laura the document. Laura took it and began reading it out loud.

“Declaration of Common Law Marriage,” was all she got out before Ricki and Susan found them selves surrounded.

Georgia handed Susan another ring and Madeline handed Ricki one of her grandmothers sets. They then exchanged ring sets.

“Where are you going to Live Ricki,” Laura asked.

“I was hoping to stay here, so I can go to the High school, Mom and I have chosen.”

“We’re going to bed,” Susan said, pulling Ricki behind her, “We have some catching up to do.”

“Dang it, nobody is going to get any sleep, around here tonight!” Cindy exclaimed giggling.

“Just be careful with her Susan,” Madeline said, as the figures disappeared up the stairs. “She is still healing.”

“Don’t worry Momma, we will be careful,” Susan said, as they entered Ricki’s room.

Madeline had the girls there, sign the document as witnesses. They only needed Madeline’s signature and two others, but all the girls insisted that they sign it too.

Susan and Ricki were up by seven the next morning. They started breakfast for themselves and Laura and Cindy, who had awoken to the smell bacon cooking and coffee brewing.

Sleepily Laura asked them if they had finally done ‘IT’. The only answer she got were the silly smiles on Ricki and Susan’s faces.

“I can’t believe we slept through it. What did you do Ricki, did you gag her.”

“I will never tell.”

“Well I hope that you two enjoyed yourselves.”

Ricki and Susan both giggled.

Ricki made her come back debut with the Great Donotello. She was a roaring success, at the diner theater. She had to miss the Labor Day show with Mrs. Lively; she found it a little painful to try shimmy.

At the high school, they met with a counselor there. With all the AP courses Ricki took, they gave her credit for her junior year course work. She would start the year as a senior, taking courses specific to California; history and government. Ricki having a job, would go to school from seven thirty to noon and then report to her job. She would receive high school credit for her job.

School started for everyone in the condo, Ricki couldn’t take care of the girls now, as she had to hurry out the door, even before her sisters. Georgia stayed in town long enough, to help Madeline find a five bedroom home, about ten miles from her daughters place.

Three weeks after Ricki’s return, Susan had to call her Mom. She told her that they would have to have a December Wedding, Ricki’s little swimmers were doing just fine.

Ricki got back to belly dancing in October. It took her about three weeks to get up to speed.

The sisters adopted Madeline and often used her bigger place, for some of their get togethers. Laura, Ricki and Susan spent a lot of time over there.

Madeline went to work at the dinner theater, in the kitchen. The female chef was a whole lot easier to get along with. She went in early and did the prep work for the chefs, coming in to cook in the afternoon.

Sam Dresden pled guilty to seven counts of rape and seven counts of aggravated assault by poisoning. Instead of facing a life sentence, he received a twenty-five year sentence.

Ricki and Susan had their wedding in the Garden, at Georgia’s home. Ricki wore a very tailored tuxedo, which did nothing to hide her charms. Susan, a little thicker around the waist, was resplendent in white. Other than Freddie, Ricki had no male friends. Her sisters stood in as her groomsmen. They all looked cute in their tuxedos. Rebecca was Ricki’s best man, with Candace, Li Ming and Belinda. Laura was Susan’s Maid of honor with Stacy, Carrie and Cindy. Laura had been horrified at the dresses that Susan originally shown them, as bride’s maids dresses, but then Susan showed them what she really wanted them to wear. She had selected a gorgeous red Egyptian belly dancing dresses, with a shear red midriff panel. They were almost as beautiful as Susan’s dress. Adam Cartwright was tasked to give his sister, Susan away.

A magician, who was also a Methodist Preacher, by the name of Roy Carson, married them. His congregation was made up with several girls like Ricki, along with several gay and lesbian couples. They were a very enlightened congregation. Roy raised an eyebrow at Ricki, as he saw how beautiful she was, and just smiled.

With Freddy, Roy and Ricki together, they had a misdirection of Magicians on stage. (That is what a group of magicians are called, ‘a misdirection of magicians’.)

The crowd was entertained by Mrs. Lively’s troupe for fifteen minutes as the rest of the sorority sisters acting as ushers, escorted the guests to their seats.

The four groomsmen came out on the stage and stood in their places and with a flash, Ricki appeared in her place. Roy then appeared in a flash of light and smoke, before them. Then the bride’s maids started up the aisle, followed by Adam and Susan, sans bouquet. Freddy made a bouquet appear for her. The preacher made a dove appear and set it on a perch, between Susan and Ricki. He then made his minister’s handbook appear out of thin air and began his spiel. When he asked the crowd about objections, Freddy and Adam got up and pointed Super Soakers at the crowd, ready to blast the offender.

The two then said their vows. Roy asked for the rings. Ricki made Susan’s ring appear from behind Rebecca’s ear, while Laura pulled yard after yard after yard of silk scarves from out of her mouth. The ring was attached to the last scarf. She took it and handed it to Susan. Susan and Ricki handed the rings to the Preacher, who blessed them. The two of them then exchanged rings. Roy had Ricki and Susan, turn towards the crowd and hold hands. He covered the couple’s hands with a white silk scarf for a couple of seconds. With a flash, he removed the scarf from Ricki and Susan’s hands, they found themselves handcuffed together. After Mr. and Mrs. Ricki Davis were presented to the crowd, Freddy made a hundred snow white doves appear, out of an empty crate.

The End