"Is that all that was bothering you?" She nodded back up at him. "So, ah, us together doesn't bother you?" Yes, it bothers me," she said and almost la...ghed again when she saw his face fall. "It bothers me because I never thought I'd ever feel like a real woman and now I do. The problem is now I want to feel like that all the time. That's no way for a shield to be: wanting to jump on your charge all the time." It's only fair," he said with a shrug. "I've wanted to do that to my shield-maid for. A very special guest, as it happens, but I'll come to that later.“I shared my room with my best friend Carol; we'd always been close, in a best-friend kind of way, but nothing had ever happened between us, if you get my drift. I don't know why not, really. I had kissed and petted other girls at school, but somehow Carol and I just hadn't done that. Not that I wouldn't have done it if I thought she was interested; I did have a bit of a crush on her as she was tall and slim with long blonde hair. I convinced them the best wayto alleiviate those concerns was a training exercise of the sort Ibelieve the military refers to as a 'live fire' one." People could have been killed!" said Abigail."People *were* killed," Virginia pointed out."Yes, but only criminals; not anybody society will miss." And if any of my girls had been killed? What then?" Then that would have been sad but a price worth paying. The age ofmagic is returning, which means the human race is facing an existentialthreat. The. I was sat in one of Jane's satin gowns, just long enough to cover my ass as she applied my makeup and styled my hair again. I looked in the mirror and was shocked. I looked stunning, Jane had done me proud, my makeup emphasising the feminine qualities of my otherwise masculine face. My hair again styled fashionably to sweep across my forhead."Jane," I ask nervously, "Is it ok if I get dressed in my own room so you can see me when I'm fully ready?" Oh course it is Dannii, whatever you want to.