Alex woke up the next morning with a start. Disturbing thoughts of strange women in wild pces troubled his mind.

  Emerging from bed, Alex ventured outdoors seeking the invigorating embrace of fresh air. The sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon, casting a warm glow upon the ndscape. Inhaling deeply of the crisp dawn air, Alex felt a sense of rejuvenation wash over him. However, a twinge of nostalgia crept into his thoughts. "I miss the simple pleasures of waking up, taking a refreshing shower, and savoring a warm mug of coffee," he mented to himself.

  Suddenly, a voice startled Alex. "What are you doing talking to yourself so early in the morning?" Fufi inquired, having emerged from behind him.

  Caught off guard, Alex jumped in surprise and nearly lost his bance. "Oh, sorry, Fufi," he said sheepishly. "I had a strange dream."

  Fufu lowered her beak, "Again? Something is not right. Hmm, after breakfast I will fly around and see if I can find anything."

  Before visiting Martha and Bob's home, Alex paused at the well and drew a bucket of water. He refreshed his face with it and swished water around his mouth to clean his teeth. His cleaning skills could have expedited the process, but he relished the opportunity to use the new well. Merumeru joined him and mimicked his actions.

  "Aren't you adorable?" Alex watched the slime girl spsh around. He retrieved the bucket of water and carried it with him towards the house. Alex mented his struggles with carrying the bucket, contrasting it with his past ability to carry two five-gallon buckets, one in each hand. Through the shutters, Martha could be seen cooking. An enticing aroma wafted through the air, prompting Alex to wonder if she was preparing a special dish.

  At the door, Alex knocked and waited patiently.

  "Come in!" Martha's voice called out from inside.

  Opening the door, Alex stepped into the mudroom.

  "Good morning, dear," Martha greeted warmly. She opened the oven, releasing a delightful fruity aroma. "I hope you slept well."

  "Yes, thank you," Alex replied.

  "You're most welcome," Martha said, closing the oven and beginning to set the table.

  "How are you all doing?" Bob walked into the room and sat down at the table. Alex, Merumeru and Fufi took their spots at the table. “You sleep okay?”

  "Still waking up but having a chance to clean up was nice.. Couldn't help but use the well we built yesterday." Alex sniffed. “Something smells good.”

  Martha came in with some serving ptters of eggs, a pitcher of milk, and a tray of pastries that smelled like apples.

  At the breakfast table, Martha happily pced down the food, acknowledging Alex and his friends' successful settling in, despite the challenges they'd faced.

  Bob's eyes eagerly fixated on the warm pastries, their aroma filling the air. "What is that delightful smell, my dear? Did you bake something for breakfast?"

  "Yes, these are apple tarts," Martha replied with a warm smile. "I baked them to mark the occasion of having guests—a rare treat after so long."

  Bob promptly grabbed a tart and added a generous portion of eggs and milk to his pte. "What a wonderful discovery! We haven't had apples since our neighbor with the orchard stopped trading."

  Everyone loaded up their ptes simirly, savoring the delectable apple tarts. Alex indulged in twice as many as anyone else, thoroughly enjoying the homemade treats. “Mmhhm mm nom nom”

  "Impressive cooking, my dear," Bob complimented his wife, acknowledging her culinary skills as always.

  "Thank you, honey," Martha beamed, appreciating her husband's praise.

  After breakfast, Fufi stood up, feeling a bit restless. "I'm going to take a flight around the area and see if anything unusual catches my attention. Something's been off these past few days, but I can't quite pinpoint it. What are everyone else's pns for the day?"

  "You know me, yet another day of farm tasks." Bob said.

  "There are some herbs in the garden that are ripe." Martha added.

  "Well, if you are okay with it Bob I'd like to clean up that workshop that has the rope walk in it. It shouldn't take me long." Alex's voice cracked a bit, sounding high and feminine. The bck-haired androgynous boy made a face and forced his voice to its lower tone, "Sorry, my voice has been all over the pce tely. I hope I'm not getting sick."

  "Of course." Bob nodded, but hid a snicker.

  "Meru ruru ru Me," Merumeru helpfully added.

  "Okay then." Alex waved goodbye to the others and rushed to the workshop, energized by apple tarts.

  Fufi flew into the woods trailing Martha.

  Bob went out behind the house and started chopping wood on a stump.

  Alex looked at the rundown building and sighed. He pulled out his duster and started cleaning off the siding. It was in bad shape and needed to be repced. "So much rot in this wood. It must have been a nice building back in the day." Merumeru skipped off towards the well and grabbed a brick from her pile of bricks. She showed it to Alex.

  "Meru?" The slime girl asked with a hint of concern in her tone, sensing something amiss.

  Alex dusted away the remaining dirt on the building's exterior. While working on a window shutter, it unexpectedly fell off and nded in the dirt. With a sigh, Alex peered inside, noticing the interior was as grimy as the outside. "Let's get this pce cleaned up," she decred.

  Merumeru, eager to assist, dashed towards the entrance and grabbed a broom resting nearby.

  "Thanks, Merumeru," Alex worked tirelessly, dusting off cabinets, tables, and rusted objects, restoring their original luster.

  Merumeru, filled with joy, diligently swept the floor with the broom, her humming melodies filling the air.

  In the corner, Alex spotted a rge cloth draped over a sizable object, sparking curiosity. "What could be hidden beneath it?" he wondered. With a gentle pull, Alex removed the cloth, revealing an area thick with dust. Coughing from the disturbance, Alex waved his feather duster around, dispersing the cloud of dust.

  Approaching Alex, Merumeru let out a soft call of "Ru, ru."

  With the dirt wiped from his eyes, Alex realized he should have dusted first. Beneath the cloth, an antiquated wooden loom emerged. His eyes sparkled with intrigue. "Behold, a loom!" he excimed. "It's for weaving fabric!" Several swipes of the feather duster ter, the old loom appeared brand-new. An inexplicable urge to try it out surged within Alex, despite his ck of weaving experience.

  Merumeru's vocal mimicry, "Ru, ru, ru, me, me, ru, ru, ru, ru," mirrored Alex's excitement.

  Alex cpped a bit and danced a little bit giggling to the slime girl's little song. "I guess the loom will wait until after lunch. We’ll finish cleaning all the dust off and ask permission to try it out.”

  "Meru." Merumeru agreed and went back to sweeping. The boom was too big for her and she was just waving it back and forth getting dust everywhere. But the little girl was cute so Alex just let her do her thing. They cleaned the workshop for a couple hours until it looked about as nice as it was going to get.

  Alex went outside and saw Martha with a basket full of fresh apples. "Hey, Martha. I was wondering if I could use the loom?"

  "Certainly, dear. However, it requires repairs due to its age," Martha replied, presenting an apple to Alex and Merumeru.

  Alex accepted the apple with gratitude and took a bite. The apple was yummy.

  "Ru, Meruuuu." Merumeru snatched the apple and devoured it in a single gulp.

  Martha smiled warmly and replied, "I'm confident you'll do well, Alex. You've already impressed Bob and me with your eagerness to learn. Don't hesitate to ask if you need any assistance."

  Alex ventured into the workshop and examined the loom. He spotted a spool of gray wool yarn on a nearby shelf and pondered the best way to thread the warp. Selecting one of the threads on the loom's left side, he carefully threaded it through the shuttle, repeating the process with the remaining threads.

  "Meru, would you like to help me with the shuttle?" Alex invited, sitting down on a stool beside the loom.

  With a gentle lift, he pced Merumeru on his p, and together they began to push the shuttle across the warp, skillfully navigating it between the two rows of threads.

  "I guess we are learning to weave together. Though I think I am cheating a bit with one of my skills," Alex moved the shuttle back and forth with the slime girl.

  "Me me me me me." Merumeru hummed, pushing the shuttle.

  As the sun began its descent, Alex finished eating his apple. The pair had created a beautiful bolt of wool cloth. Standing up, Alex ran his fingers through his hair and felt a leaf caught in it. Confused, he wondered how the leaf had gotten there, considering they were indoors and had recently cleaned.

  Tugging at the leaf, he felt a sharp pain, as if he were ripping out a hair. "Ouch," he excimed, wondering if he had accidentally gotten glue or something sticky in his hair. Alex shook his head and left the workshop, spotting Fufi flying overhead.

  "Fufi, Merumeru and I can apparently weave, come take a look!" Alex decred to the pink bird nding before them.

  As Fufi nded in front of the door, she noticed Alex's hair had leaves in it. "You have some leaves in your hair," she said, but Alex shrugged the comment off, thinking it was just a joke.

  Merumeru beckoned Fufi inside, tugging gently at her wing. "Ru, ru," she said.

  Fufi looked at Alex strangely, inspecting the cloth in his hands. "That looks nice," she said. "What were you pnning on making with it?"

  "I'm not sure yet," Alex replied. "I was thinking maybe a dress for Martha. I have some experience making outfits for dolls."

  Fufi tilted her head, studying Alex carefully. "Alex, have you been practicing your magic?" she asked.

  "Oh, no, not really," Alex said. "Not since our st fight. Merumeru sang and I danced for her a little while we were cleaning. Does that count? Why do you ask?"

  "Well... I don't know," Fufi said. "You seem to be glowing with magic right now. When I was flying around, none of the birds seemed afraid of me. It makes me think they're familiar with fmingos, but I haven't seen another one around."

  Alex nodded. "I don't think I used any magic, but maybe I did? The dolls are in the cart, so I can't see them from here. I don't know if it counts."

  "You are," Fufi said. "It's a faint glow, though. If I wasn't familiar, I might have missed it. Anyway, let's go see what Bob and Martha are up to."

  "Okay," Alex said, and headed for the house, followed by Merumeru, who chirped, "Meru, Meru."

  At the kitchen, Martha greeted Alex and the group entering the room with a warm, "Hello, Alex!" "Bob is currently upstairs but should be joining us shortly. How is the cloth project coming along?"

  Alex attempted to respond but his voice unexpectedly pitched higher, making it sound strange. The mere thought of making dresses filled him with excitement for some inexplicable reason. "I was thinking of making a dress for you," he said.

  Martha beamed, "That would be wonderful! Dinner isn't quite ready yet, but here's a snack for you." She pced a basket brimming with apples on the table. Alex eagerly took one and began munching on it. The apple's delicious fvor prompted him to finish it quickly.

  Merumeru also reached into the basket for an apple with a chirp of "Meru, Ru, ru."

  As Alex reached for another apple, Fufi, pyful as ever, pecked at his hand.

  "Ouch! What was that for? These apples are delicious," Alex compined, pulling his hand back.

  Circling around, Fufi said, "Alex, your body is glowing with magic, and so is Martha's. I suspect someone is using magic on you both. Martha, where did you get these apples?"

  Martha sounded puzzled. "I picked them in the forest. Why do you ask?"

  "But where exactly in the forest? I don't see any apple trees around," Fufi questioned.

  Martha pointed out the window.

  "Alex, you love apples, right?" Martha said with a worried frown.

  "Martha, please answer as detailed as possible," Fufi repeated. "Where exactly in the woods did you find the apples, and how did you acquire them?"

  Martha expined, "I was walking through the forest when I came across a rge basket filled with apples. A girl with leaves in her hair offered them to me and suggested I share them. So, I took them back and offered them to everyone."

  "I wonder if it was the girl from my dreams," Alex wondered aloud. His stomach rumbled. He felt like he needed to use the bathroom right this moment. “Did she have leaves in her hair?”

  "Alex, are you alright?" Martha looked worried.

  "I think I need to use the restroom. I'll be back." Alex said and rushed out to the outhouse, his bowels making a churning noise.

  "Meru, Meru, ruuu," Merumeru followed Alex outside, echoing his strange noises.

  "Alex, what's the matter? You look a bit pale. And the magic is glowing even brighter. I can see it through the cracks in the outhouse walls," Fufi flew out and nded on top of the structure, her wings fluttering.

  "I think I may have eaten too much fruit today," Alex struggled to sit on the outhouse seat, his stomach churning.

  "Alex, I'm worried that girl in the forest did something to those apples," Fufi said, her voice ced with concern.

  "Can I have a moment, please? I really need to go," Alex grimaced, feeling the urgent need to relieve himself. The presence of a fmingo and a slime girl observing him from behind the gapped walls made the situation even more awkward.

  He squeezed but instead of pooping the straining went to his backside. His hips made cracking noises. For some reason leaves came down on his shoulders and face. He heard Fufi pecking on the outhouse but his eyes were closed tightly. He eventually was able to poop but his whole body was tingling. He knew something had happened to his whole body but wasn’t sure exactly what. He got up and wiped off his backside with some broad leaves that were in the outhouse for that reason and unlocked the door.

  "Alex! Alex! What happened?" Fufi flew circles around the outhouse.

  Alex took one step out of the outhouse and stumbled. His center gravity felt off. He nded on his butt. He rubbed his sore backside and saw that it filled a lot more of his hand. He blinked a few times and saw lots of leaves hanging in front of his face. He tried to pull them away but they were attached to his scalp. "Ouch, what in the world?" he said, though his voice was that of a girl. He put his hands on his neck and didn't feel an Adam's apple there.

  Alex's hands were small. They were like a teenage girl's hands. Panicking, Alex reached between his legs and paled. Nothing was swinging down there anymore. Suspiciously, he felt an unfamiliar weight hanging from his chest. He put his hands on the soft lumps that were not there before. Are these boobs?

  In a moment of astonishment, he withdrew his hands and was shocked to find his fingers long and slender.

  Fufi, nding beside him, excimed, "Alex,you're transforming into a girl, perhaps? And your hair, why is it all leaves? It is like that girl Martha mentioned."

  Suddenly, there was a sound resembling cracking wood. In a matter of seconds, a tree sprouted from the ground where the outhouse once stood. It toppled over the structure and grew twice the height of an average person, adorned with beautiful apple blossoms.

  "Alex, quickly check your status!" Fufi cried, fpping her wings in agitation.

  With haste, Alex took out his phone, which was at a critical 20% charge, and viewed his status.

  Name: Alex Parker

  Css: Magical Girl

  Level 2

  Sex: Female

  Race: Apple Nymph

  Strength: 10

  Constitution: 10

  Dexterity: 16

  Intelligence: 8 (note the +1 from leveling)

  Cuteness: 12 (note the +2 from leveling)

  melchi

  Skills:

  Cleaning: 2

  Cooking: 1

  Toymaking:1

  Sewing: 1

  Feats: Empower Doll

  Spells: Animate Doll

  Grow Pnts

  Lesser Charm Person

  Traits:

  Mental Resistance: 1

  melchi