Elias Dufort was the leader of the king's appointed hunters. The hunters had attempted to remove the plague of nightwalkers for centuries. While investigating a possible hiding place, Elias runs into somethign completely unexpected and it will change his life forever.

The Sweetheart Platoon

Next to You

The days before she died was all the time that I really knew the real Anna Renee Joel. She was very sweet; always helpful and polite to me and that kindness made me feel threatened because whenever she talked to me my guard would come down and I was pretty much hypnotized. She could read the directions for soup from the back of a can and it would have sounded like poetry in motion.

The Hero From Another World was overpowered, moving faster and with more strength than anyone in the world, in ways that trivialized combat with enemies... but that doesn't mean he understood how to navigate a foreign culture, much less change the systems within in it he disapproved of.

After gaining the enmity of his former ally Lady Wren, he complains to his rather dumb but kind slave girl Sasha that he'd like to switch places with her and live her comparatively easy life. To his surprise, she does just that-- and it turns out she's not as dumb or as kind as the former Hero thought.

Despite her betrayal and intermittent cruelty, the former Hero becomes convinced to work with her to end slavery as a whole, and becomes enmeshed with a power struggle that lies beneath the surface of the kingdom... even as they struggle with their own identity in their new body and role.

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Cover image created with Picrew’s “五百式立ち絵メーカー“!! https://picrew.me/share?cd=CSbCyez3YZ

“Yes. It was all Troy’s fault.” Molly’s glee was very evident. A sick smile had been on her face for a little while now. Her parents were helping with the story to the deputy, while the boys were huddled in a room together.

“We already have Amy. Why do we need another?” Molly’s mother asked.

Tracy has some dark times a-coming. But she is also going to have a fun time at the Happiest place on Earth.

The next morning, my wife woke up before me, full of energy. She got up, turned around and climbed on me, while I was still asleep. She gave be a hug, body touching body, her head on my shoulder.

I could smell her hair and feel her softness and warmth, like a blanket on a very cold morning.

"Mmmm", I woke up and yawned, hugging her back, tightly. I placed kisses along the side of her neck, stroking her hair with one hand.

The next morning, I woke up earlier than my wife. I had freshened up, put my hair in a messy high ponytail and then made us a pot of coffee. I sat on the couch, sipping from a cup. Waiting.

She eventually woke up and sauntered over to where I was sitting, "Last night was something magical. I didn't know we could do that"

"Mm-mmm, yes, it was great", I said, giving her a side ways glance. She was in her night wear, with bed head, hair tousled this way and that. She gave a yawn.

“Yes. Well, first of all, when the doctor got the results of Tracy’s blood test back, there was an issue. And her ultrasound thing.” Maggie said as she passed Shelly a baked potato, and took one for herself. She pushed the plate to her son. Tracy was serving Shelly a slice of meatloaf.

“Tracy.” Maggie stated.

Here's another Tracy. This one is a bit longer and we got some trouble brewing, hence the cautions.

The next day she teased me relentlessly.

I did not dignify her teasing my a reply, but the memory of last night bought an unexpected feeling of acceptance. It felt like for the first time I was in my body.

"Look at you squirm. Your face is all red. Looks like your face enjoyed it more than you did!", she teased.

I kept my focus on the coffee cup. It was an interesting cup. Plain, but interesting.

"You looked really feminine in pigtails. They suit you. You should wear pigtails more often than that boring ponytail"

"Did you like it last night?", she smilingly asked over a cup of coffee the next morning.

My face got red and I avoided catching her eye.

"Looks like your face liked it. You are so adorable with your face all flushed like that"

I lightly swatted her head and sneaked a quick kiss on her lips, "You snore"

"What's the use of your PP if you want to be penetrated?"

It was the next day, we were having breakfast prepared by me, poached eggs, hollandaise sauce and store brought muffins. It was delicious, I had prepared it with a focus that allowed me distractions from last night.

The silent treatment continued for two more weeks. During that time, I woke up on the couch, prepared and ate food alone, and went to work. She never saw me at mornings, never had food at home, came home after me and went straight to sleep. I kept expecting an intervention, possible divorce, career and home loss.

"Honey, I need to talk to you", I said to her with some trepidation. I did not know how she would react, but I needed to tell her the truth after these few years of our marriage.

This story is about an Indian couples' struggle as their marriage is tested and they try to navigate their way through the entirely new expectations and experiences of the husband's suppressed auto-gynephilia and trauma from abuse sexual/otherwise, against a backdrop of traditional patriarchal Indian society and an intensely segregated LGBT community.

“Have a good day!” Sonia calls after me as I leave our flat, on my way to start another day of school.

“Will do,” I reply, even though deep down, I'm almost certain that I won't.

It’s been a month since I started my new school, and while I'm sure I might give the impression of having settled into the school, on the inside, my head is still spinning from my new circumstances.

Authors Note: I did not realize I had not published this chapter before publishing chapter 5. I am sorry for any confusion and hope that you will enjoy this chapter.