"So what was it you wanted to talk about?" Emma asked once the waiter headed away again after delivering our drinks.
I grimaced slightly, "Was I really that obvious?"
My coworker gave me a sympathetic look as she nodded, "Yes Theresa, you really were. I can only assume it's something serious, and something you didn't want to risk Bev or Rosa overhearing. Otherwise you wouldn't have invited me out and offered to treat me."
"Right," I sighed. "When you put it like that..."
She had a sip of her water then asked, "So what's going on? Did something happen over the long weekend?"
"Yeah," I grimaced. "A lot of things happened, and I really need to talk to someone about it."
After the surprises Saturday night and the stuff Amy told me Sunday morning, I was sort of in shock for the rest of Sunday and even into Monday. Then yesterday things were all back to a kind of normal. Amy returned to college again, but she let me keep the car since she could just teleport to class and back.
Now it was Wednesday and I was still having some trouble getting my head around everything that happened, and the offer Amy made me.
Emma asked, "So what happened?"
"Before I begin I need to warn you," I stated quietly. "This stuff isn't the sort of thing I could share with just anyone? That's why I'm not out looking for an impartial therapist of my own. It involves the supernatural, and I'm sorry Emma but you're the only friend I have who's not really connected to all the other stuff going on in my life? But you already know about the supernatural, which means I don't have to try and explain that part of it. And I know your experiences with the supernatural weren't good, but..."
Emma slowly shook her head, "Some very bad things happened to me and around me Tess, and those left me with some mental and emotional scars. I suppose I haven't made this clear before, but not all my experiences with the supernatural were negative. Things got better. I think I told you a demon did some terrible things to me once, but another demon saved me? I still won't go into details, but things have been getting better since then. I'm not sure I can claim to be neutral or impartial on the subject, but I can certainly try."
"Anyways that's enough about me," she added. "Please go on."
I had a gulp of my cola then warned her, "Obviously a lot of what I need to discuss is secret, and some of it is sensitive? I'm not going to ask you to make any promises or swear you to secrecy, I'm just letting you know in advance."
Emma nodded, "I understand Tess."
"Ok..." I took a deep breath then began, "So Saturday night Amy and I went out on a double-date, she wanted to introduce me to some new goddess she'd met recently. She was talking about maybe working with this person, helping more trans and queer people together? Only it turned out the other goddess we were meeting was one of my patients. The plural one you've been helping me with? And her girlfriend is a tiny three-tailed foxgirl, a supernatural being known as a kitsune."
I could see her eyes widening in surprise as I continued quietly, "So things started out incredibly awkward, but my client's goddess alter was fronting and took it all in stride. The little kitsune was very open and friendly too, and talkative. Then Amy got called away in the middle of dinner, she teleported off to save one of her worshippers from some transmisic parents? Only she was sloppy and got herself killed."
Emma looked shocked at that point, she opened her mouth to respond but I kept on going.
"Amy restored herself," I explained, "But the experience changed her slightly. Her old body was mortal, the new one isn't. She won't age or change, can't get sick, can't get hurt, that sort of thing. It doesn't make a big difference right now, but it will down the road. I'll keep aging while she remains twenty-two forever. And with that in mind, she offered to make my body immortal too? And I don't know whether or not to go for it."
"I also don't know what to do about my client," I added. "Now that I know she's a literal goddess, and it looks like we're going to be seeing each other socially since she and Amethyst are talking about forming a divine partnership and working together. Or maybe the term is pantheon? I'm not sure."
My coworker's expression shifted through several emotions before settling on surprise as she mumbled, "Holy shit Tess, you weren't kidding! No wonder you needed to talk to someone about all this. Amy died?! How does... But she... And you..."
She finally shook her head and sighed, then flagged down the waiter. When he came over Emma ordered us a bottle of wine, which probably wasn't a great idea considering we had to get back to work after lunch. But I certainly wasn't going to complain.
"Sorry," she added as the waiter went to get the wine. "Water just isn't going to cut it for this conversation."
Then she frowned, "Wait so your plural client is an actual literal goddess, and one of her alters identifies as that goddess? That's the same as Amy right, you suspected Amethyst was an alter of hers?"
I grimaced, "Yeah that's what I thought? I asked about that on Sunday, after Amy told me about getting killed and resurrecting herself. It's... I'm sorry Emma, there's a few details I can't share. The short version is I asked if Amy and Amethyst merged or fused after they died and came back, but Amy admitted the whole thing was an act all along."
"She and I actually made those plans back when she decided to start helping trans people?" I added. "To try and keep her identity secret, she'd claim she was 'channelling Amethyst' while she was just ordinary Amy. I guess she's a better actress than I gave her credit for, because she kept that up with me and I bought it. She wasn't trying to pretend to be plural, she didn't mean to trick me into thinking that? She was just acting like Amethyst was a separate entity since that's what she and I and her angel all agreed she should do."
This time Emma's response was cut off by the waiter returning with our wine. And we'd only just enjoyed a few sips before he was back again with our food. Emma had a bowl of pasta in a white sauce with chicken and vegetables, while I had a chicken parmesan sandwich and a side of fries. The food was acceptable, and the wine was all right too. Mostly though it was just an excuse, to get us away from the clinic so we could talk in relative privacy.
After a gulp of wine and a forkful of pasta Emma finally focused on me again and asked, "So your girlfriend's not plural, but she is a goddess. She wasn't immortal before, but then she died and resurrected herself and now she is? And one of your clients who is plural just revealed herself to be a goddess as well, now she's going to be working with your girlfriend? And finally you've been offered the chance to become immortal as well."
She frowned as she paused briefly, "That's more than a lot, especially to have happen all in a single weekend. I'm not surprised you needed to talk to someone about it."
I washed down a bite of my sandwich with some wine, then nodded "Yeah. All that was basically in less than a day? From dinner Saturday night to brunch Sunday morning. And it's been on my mind ever since."
Emma nodded slowly as she thought it all through again, while the two of us continued to enjoy our lunch. It took another minute or two before she came up with another question.
"So are you going to take her offer?" she asked. "About becoming immortal?"
I sighed, "That's the big question. I really don't know yet? I want to, it sounds kind of amazing? But it's obviously a big decision, and I don't want to jump into it without giving it enough thought."
"It's probably the biggest decision you could ever make," she stated quietly. "Considering the results could potentially last forever."
"Not quite forever," I shook my head. "The way Amy explained it, it's more functional immortality than true immortality? I don't think even gods are truly immortal, although I'm sure they're very hard to kill. Anyways it would mean I wouldn't have to worry about mundane things, I'd probably be able to walk away from car crashes and even plane crashes. I'd be immune to all sickness and disease, and would never age. But I'm sure other gods could kill me, maybe even other supernaturals if they were strong enough?"
There was another thoughtful look on Emma's face as she absorbed all of that. She finally nodded, "That sounds a lot like what I've learned about demons. Which leads me to my next question. Would you still be human? Or would you become some kind of supernatural yourself? An angel or whatever the divine equivalent is to a demon maybe?"
I frowned, "Actually I don't know? I assumed I'd still be human. Like basically an immortal human? I'll have to ask Amy about that."
"I think it would be a good idea to find out before-hand," Emma agreed.
Then after another forkful of her pasta she asked, "So have you thought about how this would affect your future? I mean from the mundane side of things? For instance with your career, you'll probably want to open your own clinic at some point but you'll still look fresh out of college. How would you get around that? Either folks will be questioning your experience or they'll question your age."
"And what about family?" she added. "This might not be a concern right now, but at some point you might want to have children. Would that even be possible if your body didn't age or change? And if you did have kids, how would they handle having parents who never aged? For that matter how would you handle it with friends, knowing you'll outlive them all?"
I ended up draining my wine glass while she was talking. Then I sighed, "Those are all really good questions Emma. If or when Amy and I decide to start a family, odds are our child's going to be a goddess or demi-goddess anyways? So she's probably going to be immortal too. As for the other stuff..."
That led to another sigh as I shook my head, "I don't really know. Maybe the answer is to start making friends with other supernaturals? Like Cass and Cassandra, and her girlfriend Kaylee? I'm already friends with another goddess, and Amy's angel."
"And I have no idea how things will pan out with my career," I added with a shrug. "I suppose I don't have to worry about that right away though. Maybe in a decade, when people start to notice my age seems off. Assuming I take Amy's offer, that is."
Emma picked up the wine bottle and split the rest of it between our glasses. She set it aside and had a sip of her drink, then smiled as if an amusing thought just occurred to her.
"Maybe you could open a clinic that specialized in supernatural clients?" she suggested in a sort of 'maybe joking maybe not' tone. "I'm sure those clients wouldn't care or question your age, if it was clear you were supernatural yourself."
Her smile faded as she added, "Except you'd still have to deal with government regulators. You'd probably have more annoying inspectors snooping around, like that Ministry of Health guy from a couple weeks ago?"
I made a face, "He wasn't from the government. He was from some creepy secret society called the Council. Apparently they try and suppress supernatural stuff, to keep it out of the public eye?"
"Oh damn," Emma looked surprised at that. "I've never heard of that, but I guess it makes sense? I've wondered more than once how come some of the strange stuff I've seen or heard about never made the six o'clock news. Even the miracle you performed didn't seem to get any coverage."
Since she didn't know about the council I doubted she'd heard of the status quo either, so I decided not to mention that. Instead I just agreed, "Yeah. That's probably their doing. According to Amy and Raven they have the resources, and they have access to magic themselves."
She had a thoughtful look on her face as she nodded slowly. Then the two of us focused on our meals again for another couple minutes. We both finished the last of the wine, then I switched back to my cola to try and get any smell of alcohol off my breath just in case.
Once we'd both finished eating Emma looked over at me and asked, "So what do you think Tess? Are you going to take Amy's offer? Or are you still thinking about it?"
I grimaced, "I don't know yet? What do you think I should do? Or what would you do if you were in my position?"
She looked thoughtful again as she drank some of her water. It took her another half minute to finally respond, "You're engaged to her, you were already planning to spend a lifetime together right? So what does your heart tell you, Tess? Are you truly in love with her?"
"Yeah," I couldn't help smiling. "I am. And that's a good way to look at it. Thanks Emma."
She smiled back, "Sometimes we get caught up overcomplicating things. It's helpful to take a step back and simplify now and then, look at the big picture."
My smile faded after a couple seconds, "I'm still not sure what I'm going to do. There's a few questions I need to ask, but I think you've helped me get past some of the bigger mental roadblocks."
Emma replied, "I'm glad I could help. And I'm glad you're going to ask more questions before making a decision. I don't think it's the sort of thing you want to rush into."
"Definitely not rushing into anything," I agreed. "On the other hand, the full moon's in two days. Or actually it's Saturday morning, but Amy and I will be celebrating Friday night and I'd like to have my mind made up by then. She prefers to do this sort of thing at the full moon, so if not on Friday it'll be another month until the next one."
She replied, "Well good luck if you decide to go for it. Whatever happens, let me know next week ok?"
"Of course," I nodded.
By that point it was nearly time to head back to the clinic, but when the waiter brought the bill over both of us reached for it.
"I said this was my treat," I reminded her.
She protested, "But I ordered the wine, that probably doubled the cost of the meal."
I smiled, "It's ok Emma, I've got it."
"I can afford it though," she argued. She lowered her voice as she added, "Money's not an issue for me."
I responded just as softly, "Same. I'm engaged to a goddess remember? She just waves her hand and the credit card bills go away."
The two of us stared at each other for another second or two, before she laughed. "Ok you win this round Theresa. But next time, lunch is on me!"
That made me laugh as well, "I can live with those terms."
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"So what was it you wanted to talk about?" Emma asked once the waiter headed away again after delivering our drinks.
I grimaced slightly, "Was I really that obvious?"
My coworker gave me a sympathetic look as she nodded, "Yes Theresa, you really were. I can only assume it's something serious, and something you didn't want to risk Bev or Rosa overhearing. Otherwise you wouldn't have invited me out and offered to treat me."
"Right," I sighed. "When you put it like that..."
She had a sip of her water then asked, "So what's going on? Did something happen over the long weekend?"
"Yeah," I grimaced. "A lot of things happened, and I really need to talk to someone about it."
After the surprises Saturday night and the stuff Amy told me Sunday morning, I was sort of in shock for the rest of Sunday and even into Monday. Then yesterday things were all back to a kind of normal. Amy returned to college again, but she let me keep the car since she could just teleport to class and back.
Now it was Wednesday and I was still having some trouble getting my head around everything that happened, and the offer Amy made me.
Emma asked, "So what happened?"
"Before I begin I need to warn you," I stated quietly. "This stuff isn't the sort of thing I could share with just anyone? That's why I'm not out looking for an impartial therapist of my own. It involves the supernatural, and I'm sorry Emma but you're the only friend I have who's not really connected to all the other stuff going on in my life? But you already know about the supernatural, which means I don't have to try and explain that part of it. And I know your experiences with the supernatural weren't good, but..."
Emma slowly shook her head, "Some very bad things happened to me and around me Tess, and those left me with some mental and emotional scars. I suppose I haven't made this clear before, but not all my experiences with the supernatural were negative. Things got better. I think I told you a demon did some terrible things to me once, but another demon saved me? I still won't go into details, but things have been getting better since then. I'm not sure I can claim to be neutral or impartial on the subject, but I can certainly try."
"Anyways that's enough about me," she added. "Please go on."
I had a gulp of my cola then warned her, "Obviously a lot of what I need to discuss is secret, and some of it is sensitive? I'm not going to ask you to make any promises or swear you to secrecy, I'm just letting you know in advance."
Emma nodded, "I understand Tess."
"Ok..." I took a deep breath then began, "So Saturday night Amy and I went out on a double-date, she wanted to introduce me to some new goddess she'd met recently. She was talking about maybe working with this person, helping more trans and queer people together? Only it turned out the other goddess we were meeting was one of my patients. The plural one you've been helping me with? And her girlfriend is a tiny three-tailed foxgirl, a supernatural being known as a kitsune."
I could see her eyes widening in surprise as I continued quietly, "So things started out incredibly awkward, but my client's goddess alter was fronting and took it all in stride. The little kitsune was very open and friendly too, and talkative. Then Amy got called away in the middle of dinner, she teleported off to save one of her worshippers from some transmisic parents? Only she was sloppy and got herself killed."
Emma looked shocked at that point, she opened her mouth to respond but I kept on going.
"Amy restored herself," I explained, "But the experience changed her slightly. Her old body was mortal, the new one isn't. She won't age or change, can't get sick, can't get hurt, that sort of thing. It doesn't make a big difference right now, but it will down the road. I'll keep aging while she remains twenty-two forever. And with that in mind, she offered to make my body immortal too? And I don't know whether or not to go for it."
"I also don't know what to do about my client," I added. "Now that I know she's a literal goddess, and it looks like we're going to be seeing each other socially since she and Amethyst are talking about forming a divine partnership and working together. Or maybe the term is pantheon? I'm not sure."
My coworker's expression shifted through several emotions before settling on surprise as she mumbled, "Holy shit Tess, you weren't kidding! No wonder you needed to talk to someone about all this. Amy died?! How does... But she... And you..."
She finally shook her head and sighed, then flagged down the waiter. When he came over Emma ordered us a bottle of wine, which probably wasn't a great idea considering we had to get back to work after lunch. But I certainly wasn't going to complain.
"Sorry," she added as the waiter went to get the wine. "Water just isn't going to cut it for this conversation."
Then she frowned, "Wait so your plural client is an actual literal goddess, and one of her alters identifies as that goddess? That's the same as Amy right, you suspected Amethyst was an alter of hers?"
I grimaced, "Yeah that's what I thought? I asked about that on Sunday, after Amy told me about getting killed and resurrecting herself. It's... I'm sorry Emma, there's a few details I can't share. The short version is I asked if Amy and Amethyst merged or fused after they died and came back, but Amy admitted the whole thing was an act all along."
"She and I actually made those plans back when she decided to start helping trans people?" I added. "To try and keep her identity secret, she'd claim she was 'channelling Amethyst' while she was just ordinary Amy. I guess she's a better actress than I gave her credit for, because she kept that up with me and I bought it. She wasn't trying to pretend to be plural, she didn't mean to trick me into thinking that? She was just acting like Amethyst was a separate entity since that's what she and I and her angel all agreed she should do."
This time Emma's response was cut off by the waiter returning with our wine. And we'd only just enjoyed a few sips before he was back again with our food. Emma had a bowl of pasta in a white sauce with chicken and vegetables, while I had a chicken parmesan sandwich and a side of fries. The food was acceptable, and the wine was all right too. Mostly though it was just an excuse, to get us away from the clinic so we could talk in relative privacy.
After a gulp of wine and a forkful of pasta Emma finally focused on me again and asked, "So your girlfriend's not plural, but she is a goddess. She wasn't immortal before, but then she died and resurrected herself and now she is? And one of your clients who is plural just revealed herself to be a goddess as well, now she's going to be working with your girlfriend? And finally you've been offered the chance to become immortal as well."
She frowned as she paused briefly, "That's more than a lot, especially to have happen all in a single weekend. I'm not surprised you needed to talk to someone about it."
I washed down a bite of my sandwich with some wine, then nodded "Yeah. All that was basically in less than a day? From dinner Saturday night to brunch Sunday morning. And it's been on my mind ever since."
Emma nodded slowly as she thought it all through again, while the two of us continued to enjoy our lunch. It took another minute or two before she came up with another question.
"So are you going to take her offer?" she asked. "About becoming immortal?"
I sighed, "That's the big question. I really don't know yet? I want to, it sounds kind of amazing? But it's obviously a big decision, and I don't want to jump into it without giving it enough thought."
"It's probably the biggest decision you could ever make," she stated quietly. "Considering the results could potentially last forever."
"Not quite forever," I shook my head. "The way Amy explained it, it's more functional immortality than true immortality? I don't think even gods are truly immortal, although I'm sure they're very hard to kill. Anyways it would mean I wouldn't have to worry about mundane things, I'd probably be able to walk away from car crashes and even plane crashes. I'd be immune to all sickness and disease, and would never age. But I'm sure other gods could kill me, maybe even other supernaturals if they were strong enough?"
There was another thoughtful look on Emma's face as she absorbed all of that. She finally nodded, "That sounds a lot like what I've learned about demons. Which leads me to my next question. Would you still be human? Or would you become some kind of supernatural yourself? An angel or whatever the divine equivalent is to a demon maybe?"
I frowned, "Actually I don't know? I assumed I'd still be human. Like basically an immortal human? I'll have to ask Amy about that."
"I think it would be a good idea to find out before-hand," Emma agreed.
Then after another forkful of her pasta she asked, "So have you thought about how this would affect your future? I mean from the mundane side of things? For instance with your career, you'll probably want to open your own clinic at some point but you'll still look fresh out of college. How would you get around that? Either folks will be questioning your experience or they'll question your age."
"And what about family?" she added. "This might not be a concern right now, but at some point you might want to have children. Would that even be possible if your body didn't age or change? And if you did have kids, how would they handle having parents who never aged? For that matter how would you handle it with friends, knowing you'll outlive them all?"
I ended up draining my wine glass while she was talking. Then I sighed, "Those are all really good questions Emma. If or when Amy and I decide to start a family, odds are our child's going to be a goddess or demi-goddess anyways? So she's probably going to be immortal too. As for the other stuff..."
That led to another sigh as I shook my head, "I don't really know. Maybe the answer is to start making friends with other supernaturals? Like Cass and Cassandra, and her girlfriend Kaylee? I'm already friends with another goddess, and Amy's angel."
"And I have no idea how things will pan out with my career," I added with a shrug. "I suppose I don't have to worry about that right away though. Maybe in a decade, when people start to notice my age seems off. Assuming I take Amy's offer, that is."
Emma picked up the wine bottle and split the rest of it between our glasses. She set it aside and had a sip of her drink, then smiled as if an amusing thought just occurred to her.
"Maybe you could open a clinic that specialized in supernatural clients?" she suggested in a sort of 'maybe joking maybe not' tone. "I'm sure those clients wouldn't care or question your age, if it was clear you were supernatural yourself."
Her smile faded as she added, "Except you'd still have to deal with government regulators. You'd probably have more annoying inspectors snooping around, like that Ministry of Health guy from a couple weeks ago?"
I made a face, "He wasn't from the government. He was from some creepy secret society called the Council. Apparently they try and suppress supernatural stuff, to keep it out of the public eye?"
"Oh damn," Emma looked surprised at that. "I've never heard of that, but I guess it makes sense? I've wondered more than once how come some of the strange stuff I've seen or heard about never made the six o'clock news. Even the miracle you performed didn't seem to get any coverage."
Since she didn't know about the council I doubted she'd heard of the status quo either, so I decided not to mention that. Instead I just agreed, "Yeah. That's probably their doing. According to Amy and Raven they have the resources, and they have access to magic themselves."
She had a thoughtful look on her face as she nodded slowly. Then the two of us focused on our meals again for another couple minutes. We both finished the last of the wine, then I switched back to my cola to try and get any smell of alcohol off my breath just in case.
Once we'd both finished eating Emma looked over at me and asked, "So what do you think Tess? Are you going to take Amy's offer? Or are you still thinking about it?"
I grimaced, "I don't know yet? What do you think I should do? Or what would you do if you were in my position?"
She looked thoughtful again as she drank some of her water. It took her another half minute to finally respond, "You're engaged to her, you were already planning to spend a lifetime together right? So what does your heart tell you, Tess? Are you truly in love with her?"
"Yeah," I couldn't help smiling. "I am. And that's a good way to look at it. Thanks Emma."
She smiled back, "Sometimes we get caught up overcomplicating things. It's helpful to take a step back and simplify now and then, look at the big picture."
My smile faded after a couple seconds, "I'm still not sure what I'm going to do. There's a few questions I need to ask, but I think you've helped me get past some of the bigger mental roadblocks."
Emma replied, "I'm glad I could help. And I'm glad you're going to ask more questions before making a decision. I don't think it's the sort of thing you want to rush into."
"Definitely not rushing into anything," I agreed. "On the other hand, the full moon's in two days. Or actually it's Saturday morning, but Amy and I will be celebrating Friday night and I'd like to have my mind made up by then. She prefers to do this sort of thing at the full moon, so if not on Friday it'll be another month until the next one."
She replied, "Well good luck if you decide to go for it. Whatever happens, let me know next week ok?"
"Of course," I nodded.
By that point it was nearly time to head back to the clinic, but when the waiter brought the bill over both of us reached for it.
"I said this was my treat," I reminded her.
She protested, "But I ordered the wine, that probably doubled the cost of the meal."
I smiled, "It's ok Emma, I've got it."
"I can afford it though," she argued. She lowered her voice as she added, "Money's not an issue for me."
I responded just as softly, "Same. I'm engaged to a goddess remember? She just waves her hand and the credit card bills go away."
The two of us stared at each other for another second or two, before she laughed. "Ok you win this round Theresa. But next time, lunch is on me!"
That made me laugh as well, "I can live with those terms."
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