Clyde said some of these old mines had become winter dens for cougars and grizzlies. He jacked a round of buckshot into the shotgun, released the safe...y, and started inside. The shotgun wouldn’t have the stopping power of a rifle, but the range would be point blank and he probably wouldn’t miss with the buckshot. Dave passed a broken, rusting pick leaning against a pile of rubble. His nose picked up the pungent odor of a skunk mixed with the cool, damp smell of the cavern. Faint footprints were. They told me they had some extra surgery performed on me and hopedI didnt mind. I felt scared and asked what had been done. They said theyhad had my face feminized, D cup breast implants put in, my vocal cordsshortened to give me a higher pitched voice.. I started crying, I hadntwanted all this done to me, not yet anyway, tho I had dreamed of it. Theysaid they were just fullfilling my dreams. After a week the Doctor camein and took all the bandages off. Pete gasped when he saw me, he said. I didn’t know if she could continue. I didn’t know if she had more to continue with.But she walked to the edge of the circle and walked the entire circle. She touched many along the way and many reached to her. I was in awe of what she was doing. This young woman who had been so introverted because she didn’t ‘fit in’. When she got to the members from her old village, she received hugs from each including the men. She returned to the center and I gave her a hug.But she did have more. “As my. .. an extra shot, too."The barista was a cute guy somewhere in his mid-twenties, with a nameplate that said 'Tom.' He told me the damage and then grinned. I could tell he thought I was cute, too.Instincts gone dormant in the post-salad days of marriage looked around sleepily, sniffed the air, and pushed my breasts farther out in front of me."First time in a coffee shop?" he asked teasingly as he flicked my credit card through his reader."Well, almost. I persuaded my husband to let me come ahead.