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It was yet another day of Taylor and I moping around in the warehouse, laying on the couch; when Taylor began to speak.
"Amy?" She asked me, out of idle interest, which was noteworthy in and of itself since she
"Yeah, Taylor?" I responded, curious as to what she had to say.
"How did you start making money?" She asked me. "I know, I know;" Taylor started "you charge for healing and you can't betray client-patient confidentiality, but what made you going from well, homeless; to being somewhat rich?"
I chuckle, much to Taylor's surprise. "Oh, that's easy! Do you know how much money people'll pay to get around the Empire's chokehold on the bay? Or how many there are?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about, Amy."
"Trans people, Taylor!" I exclaim, ignoring my partner-in-crime's… ignorance. "Do you know how many trans people there are, Taylor? A lot! And I make it so that they can transition easier than they would've otherwise!"
Disbelief enters Taylor's voice. "And they just… trust you?"
My chuckling fills the air for a brief second before I stop to continue.
"Of course, I'm a free ticket to the end of much self-hatred and I help fight Nazis in my own way! What's not to love?" I ask my friend/partner in drugmaking.
"I dunno, the Empire finding out and killing us?" My friend assumes, to which I respond with a glare.
"They get teleported in and out of our lair, how would they find out?"
That look of curiousity on Taylor's face was the only thing that made me give up the whole story. "Fine. Get a bottle of beer or something, it's a doozy."
"Miss Lavere," Quinn began. "I have a particularly risky business venture for you, one that could result in your loss of life."
Where was once instinctive boredom learned from Quinn's calls was now intrigued curiousity. "Tell me more…" I said.
"With Empire sympathizers in Brockton's medical and pharmaceutical industries, there exists a certain minority of people who are more at-risk to suicide than others due to hormonal imbalances. To get their proper hormones, they have to head to other cities; but given the costs involved, it's more practical to move there and stay. However, not everyone in this group can afford to do so. That's where you come in. You rework their bodies from the ground up, so that they live their lives as their truest selves with mininal financial risk."
"Or in other words, you want me to give out gender reassignment surgeries with my power under the nose of the Empire for a steady client base and profit."
"That is what I just said, yes." Quinn smiled, almost shark-like. "What do you say?"
"Give me time to think about it, I'm too drunk right now to make crazy decisions like that."
"Call me when it has been made, and I'll handle the foundations."
"You got it."
"Hey Quinn," I said when he finally picked up the ringing phone. "Count me in on the trans people thing. It sounds like fun."
"I'm sure the clients I've gathered will be delighted to hear that," Quinn responded. "When would be the best time for the first appointment? It's just three clients right now."
I look at the walls, forgetting the lack of a clock of them; before checking the one on my phone. "How's Friday 2 PM?"
"That fits with all of their schedules, thankfully." Quinn stated. "They'll see you then, miss Lavere."
"Great, I'll see the lot of you later!" I cheerfully exclaim, before hanging up.
The days passed, and finally, at Friday 2 PM on the dot; the familar crackle of the teleportation thingamabob came and went. What was once an empty patch of space was now filled with three women who looked like they needed a facelift and a boob job.
"These them?" I asked, lying down on the couch.
"They are, yes." Quinn's cool reply reassured me. "While they do not have much in disposable income, they do promise they will pay you a fair price and make sure to tell those in the community what happened to them. It's nowhere near as much money as your usual clientele…" He ended leadingly.
"But it's a stable flow of cash." I finished, before looking at them. "Alright, which one of you three am I doing first?"
One of them stood up from the couch they were sitting at. "I'd rather go first, since I live the furthest from you. What do I have to do?"
"Just let me touch you, and I'll do it quickly." At her blank stare, I sigh; realizing what I have to do. "My power changed a few months ago, it gives me more options." To myself, I didn't say; but the message went through and she gives me her hand.
With that touch, I began my work. First, I got rid of the hair fociles on her lower face and neck; then I did the same on her legs. Next, I turned her testes into an ovary, and similarly shifted her other reproductive organs into their female counterparts. Finally, I resculpted her face and vocal cords to be more feminine before I removed my hand from her.
"And done!" I declared. "Just make sure you eat plenty, so your body can grow boobs properly. Lemme grab a mirror, so you know how you look now."
"There's no need," she said. "I trust in you to do a good job."
"That's a first," I muttered under my breath; before looking up. "Alright, are we continuing or not?" My untreated clients came closer, and I smiled. Who knew that "healing" could fuck over the Empire?
"So yeah, that's basically it." I concluded my tale with another swig of beer. "Every two weeks or so, I give people me-assisted gender reassignment surgeries and make a small but steady cash flow with it."
A scowl briefly forms on my face. "If she let me do it, I might not've be in this mess in the first place."
"Hey, hey." Taylor said. "Don't beat yourself over what-ifs, they don't solve anything. Trust me, I know."
"Yeah," I sigh. "Still, I need to distract myself from thinking about her. Want to smoke joints?"
"I'm down." Taylor stated. "Let's go find some."