Mary held her head up off the patio table with the barest remnants of her remaining willpower. It figures, she thought, I get a storm of possibly good news and maybe even some super parent progress with my delinquent son. Her head turned on its long neck to glance across the table at Bobby, who was chomping away boredly at a hamburger, only to have it stricken away by these boobs.
Mary's contemplation referred to the news of Luna in her dream the night before. Despite how momentous it had seemed to her at the time, it had been largely forgotten in the wake of more recent events. Still, she desperately wished to be in bed with Stan right then, who was sound asleep from his work the night before. The urge to speak with Luna again was driving, after all, the strange creature had left abruptly, and true to what she had suspected, a million questions had formed during the course of the day.
Mary sighed and took another bite from her salad-laden fork, only to barely avoid snapping when a series of giggling teehees came from next to her.
Sitting beside Mary, after ever so much begrudging hesitation on her own part, was Marge. The middle aged woman hadn't so much as taken her eyes off of Mary since first seeing her. A loud clatter came from over by the barbecue next, the sound of a drunk Dan tipsily taking steaks from the grill and placing them on a plate while chatting with Herbert.
"So we're clear then, right Marge?" Mary once again picked up the conversation that always seemed to derail at the other woman's behest. "You can't tell or show anyone anything to do with me." She stared solidly at the pair of eyes glued to hers, fully aware they were probably miles away again thinking about prancing in a field of flying with 'pegacorns' or whatever she had called them. Her hooves clopped together loudly right in front of Marge's face. "Marge! Hey, did you hear me?" She could feel her tail lashing behind herself despite how hard she tried to make it stop. "You. Can't. Tell. Anyone."
"Anypony," Marge said reflexively, then looked to Mary's side to stare at her tail. "Well alright if you insist, I won't tell anypony." She entered another fit of laughter, still staring at every part of Mary without shame. "So what's your cutie mark, I can't see it under that outfit. Oh, and you should definitely watch the show if you-"
Mary groaned and let her head hit the table, clunking it hard enough that Bobby and Anna let out complaints of surprise. The act also interrupted Marge successfully. "Marge, the less you know, the better. As for the show thing, we'll get to it I promise, if nothing else it's something else to look into, I guess. I'm not watching it with you though." The other women let out an immature aw of disappointment, causing Mary to glare over at her friend. The stare was hard enough to finally quiet the older woman. "This isn't just me we're talking about, this is my family, please take this seriously."
Marge coughed and leaned back in her chair from the equine, taking a sip of lemonade. "Oh you're right and I would never do anything to endanger you like that, Mary." She held a hand up to her mouth and let an expression of wonder build on her face again, contrasting from the look of pure excitement she had worn all day. "It's just incredible, I guess I should apologize actually."
Mary's ears twitched, again despite trying to hold herself still, and stood up. "Apologize, what for?" She pulled her mane back behind her shoulder, taken aback by Marge's sudden coherence and seriousness.
"Well, for just walking in like that, I was just so curious after nearly a month of you... beating around the bush so to speak." Marge shrugged and smiled at back Mary. "I can certainly see now why you turned to me for help." She let out a couple more chuckles of laughter and managed to reach out and poke Mary's hoof. "This is definitely out of my league, but if you ever need help with anything please feel free to ask. It's just like before really, but now you don't have to worry about me finding out that you're not feeling quite yourself."
Despite Marge's added snickers, Mary still found the sentiment to be refreshing.
"Who wants brauts?" Agnes strolled over and lowered the plate onto the table, to which everyone mumbled some acknowledgement or another, except Mary, who felt her stomach turn at the sight of the things.
"Uggh," Mary leaned away from the sausages. "I'll stay inside for a bit I think, Mom." Her hooves clunked onto the wooden porch noisily as she clopped her way towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Marge and Agnes asked at the same time, Agnes turned to frown down at the other woman, who made a nervous smile back.
Mary called back out the door, "I need to do some searching for... something, on the internet," Then closed the door behind herself.
I can't believe I didn't find anything useful. Actually, no, I definitely can. Mary grumbled and kicked back at Stan under the covers of the bed. He was still dressed from work, having conked out as soon as he reached the bed it seemed. She thought he was sound asleep, just hogging the bed on instinct. But a muffled outcry from him proved her wrong.
"Hey, ouch," Stan protested in his deep voice, then pinched back at his wife. "Not with the hooves. Those things are dangerous."
Mary peeked over at him from over a pillow. "Oh, you're awake? Well, knock off with the bed-hoggery, then. I'm trying to fall asleep. So hush..."
Stan had been asleep for most of the day after his marathon at work, while Mary was eager to fall asleep as soon as she could to see Luna. Her search of the purple unicorns on the internet had—as she had been afraid it would—been fruitless. Although thinking it over, she supposed that could be a good thing. If this 'Twilight Sparkle' was in the spotlight to the degree of being in the news... that could be bad. Or, maybe... she would completely revolutionize humanity's view of the world and usher in an unprecedented era of peace and good will towards everyone's fellow man!... Yeah, fat chance of that. Uggh, but where the hay do I look for a little horse on a planet where she could be anywhere!?
Stan chuckled at her while he got out of bed, ready to spend some time up and awake now that it was nearly evening, which promised that his sleep schedule would be skewed until work the next day. His voice flattened while he spoke over his shoulder, hesitating on the bed's edge. "So Marge left? Good, I'm worried about her knowing, how did Dan get home?"
Mary answered without opening her eyes. "He seemed well off enough to drive, he only just left. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little worried too, but they're okay people. I'm safe." She cracked an eye open and rested it on her husband's broad back. "Hey Stan, you don't think of me any differently, right? You kind of... give me more attention than you have in recent time. I don't mind it at all, but you don't need to."
Stan nodded to the floor and hummed his response.
The room kept silent while Stan kept to himself in thought, and Mary waited.
"Wait, what?" Stan turned around and met his wife's emerald shaded eyes.
Mary watched him back, not picking her head up from the pillow, hoping she wouldn't have to repeat the questions. Part of that hope was because she was sure she would say 'never mind' instead.
"...I just don't want you to feel like this mattered at all to me, Mar." Stan would have rested a comforting hand on his wife's hoof, but sitting turned around as he was made it an awkward position. "I love you, whether we can get you changed back or not." He managed a weak, reassuring smile that he hoped looked happier than it felt.
"Hmm..." Mary hummed and closed her eyes again. "Alright, I was just starting to get suspicious you liked me more this way was all, farm boy." She barely kept a roguish grin that might give her away from forming.
Stan blinked, confusion painting his face, before a smile bloomed in its place. "Ooh, I see," he slid off the bed and walked around the end. "Well lass, that fear's not unfounded, after all, what man could resist a flank," his hand came down hard on his wife's tush, "as lush as this, eh?"
Mary gasped and sat up on the bed in an instant, face blooming red. She rounded on and glared at her husband's uncharacteristic grin. She felt her own angry look shift to match his jovial one. "Jerk."
"Ach, 'tis a lie, ah'm the gentlest of gentlemen. Especially to my lady love Mary." Stan folded one hairy arm across his front and gave her a slight bow.
When his head came close enough, Mary swatted a hoof in his direction and managed to barely nick him.
"Hey." Stan winced but chuckled again, putting a hand on his scalp to rub at the pain. "What'd I say about those hooves?"
Mary laid back down and raised an eyebrow at him, her tail swishing unfavorably. "All's fair in love and war, love." A satisfied smirk curved her short muzzle up at one end. "All right, you're off the hook. I was just teasing you." She sighed and let her head fall to the pillows with a thud, still staring up at Stan. "Just pointing out that I noticed it I guess, I like it too." Just before he answered her, she added. "Maybe you could keep it up when I'm normal again, hm?"
Stan bit back what he had been about to say, then smiled and answered his wife. "Aye, ah can do that." He knelt down and cupped her slight chin in his hand, stealing a kiss skillfully. His face sobered up as he pulled away, taking in the details of Mary's contented expression and strange new looks. One of her ears flicked, something he still hadn't been able to figure out the meaning of. "I'll let you get to sleep then."
Mary snagged him by his pants.
"...Maybe you could stay until I fall asleep." Her tone didn't exactly leave room for it to sound like a suggestion.
It hadn't taken very long for Mary to find sleep in Stan's embrace. When the fogginess of drifting to sleep disappeared in a rush and she opened her eyes to full awareness, she knew that it had worked.
Mary looked around and was quickly brought to a total loss for words or thoughts.
The plane which stretched forever in every direction was flat and white without definition. In fact, if it weren't for her standing as though the ground were completely flat and smooth, she would not have been able to tell if there were a floor.
Mary turned her head in every direction, large eyes blinking, then called out to her surroundings. "Luna? Uhm, Ms. pony princess? Hello?" She looked up, down, around, tossing her blue and tan mane in every direction while trying to spot the strange horse she had come looking for to continue her quest for answers. The ground didn't make any sound while her hooves walked over its surface, she thought that it probably should be making a loud clip clop like a normal ground.
When the sound of Mary's hooves making noise jumped at her without warning, the rest of her did the same. She gasped, then landed after hopping up and scurried back to where she'd been. A tense breath escaped her while trying to calm down. "Okay, that was weird, but I guess it makes sense." This place goes way beyond the definition of weird, after all. "Luna!? Is this your idea of a joke?"
Mary's frowned, turning in a three sixty as if chasing her tail, then scoffed at the nothing angrily. Her hooves kicked up into a gallop and she sped off towards the horizon, impatience and nervousness building. "LUNA!?" There was nothing to tell if she was even moving really, which made her brow furrow while she the rest of her became increasingly distraught. Worse, she had to deal with the annoying racket that her hooves were... no longer making. Upon wishing away the noise her pony body made on the strange ground, it vanished.
Mary slid to a halt, frowning at the ground while she did so, then sat on the ground hard. A defeated look replaced the flabbergasted one, and she looked up at the blank sky. "Okay, this is creepy." I wonder if I should try and wake up. The worried thought hung in her mind, while her tail swished behind her, adding as it always did to her irritation. Well this sucks.
The terrain remained the same while Mary began to feel a little more at ease with each passing second, if a little annoyed that the princess wasn't showing up. "Okay, so I'm in the 'Matrix' now instead of the 'Dreamscape' thing maybe?" She asked aloud to herself, then looked around again a tenth time to be sure nothing changed. "Tank, I need instructions for how to salvage my life, stat." No answer came.
A short laugh escaped Mary while she stood up and began to try and think things through. Alright well, this is definitely the same kind of I'm awake but not awake thing I was in before. Maybe without Luna it's just blank like this? She sighed and stopped walking, realizing it was pointless with no frame of reference.
"I kinda miss the clouds." Mary sat again and decided to begin trying to wake up... and double-taked at the ground.
The immediate area around Mary had become the fluffy white cotton balls that a child would have imagined clouds would be like from the night before. She stared at them in disbelief, before dipping a hoof into them. Sure enough, they held the same jello-like consistency as before.
"This is so weird." Mary continued to stare at the ground, until an idea came to her.
A moment later, and a juke box popped into reality just off to the side, just a few feet away.
"Hah!" Mary grinned as much as she could and trotted over to the old-timey music device her grandfather had owned. "I take it back, this is so amazing." While a bit of music from an older era came on from her hooves navigating the buttons, an idea popped into her head. I control things here... I thought that Luna was the one controlling things. Is it because this is my dream? Her pony head turned on her long pony neck to look back at the patch of clouds. Can I just do anything, then?
A stand mirror appeared before Mary at her whim, and suddenly she was herself.
Mary's face was expressionless while she looked over her old, human body, staring back at her.
"That's a bit anti-climactic actually." Mary frowned and turned in the mirror, just looking at herself and failing to feel fulfilled after getting just what she wanted, sort of. This couldn't change me back home, could it? The hopeful thought was a last ditch effort to try and coax some emotion or happiness out of seeing her old self again. It didn't quite work.
Mary's hands were what captivated her the most, she had missed the simple pleasure of just flexing them, feeling what they were capable of. "It's funny," she intoned, content to study the lines in her finger's prints, "you fail to really appreciate the things you have until they're gone." A heavy sigh escaped the middle aged woman, and she fell back onto the cloudy cushions to stare at the sky. It transformed into a starry night after a thought from her.
"Lunaaa, I made cookies, come out." Mary called to the princess halfheartedly, but a plate of cookies did appear much to her surprise. She stared at the plate that had simply materialized by her head. Don't eat strange dream cookies Mary, you don't know where they've been. Despite the thought, she picked one up in her hand, admiring the rough texture, then took a bite.
Surprisingly, it was pretty tasty.
Mary began to toy more with things, such as admiring how pretty she could get the stars to be. With some practice, she was even able to design some funny constellations. All the while, the silence stretched on as she tried to figure things out and wait for Luna.
After time continued to stretch, an odd feeling crept in; at least, it was odd in Mary's eyes given that she was already asleep.
A yawn cracked her jaw from an intense feeling of tiredness. Uggh, "uggh," she thought and spoke simultaneously.
Mary hopped down from the back of the black horse she had brought to life and stared across at the various things she'd made. The horse nickered and tossed its head at her.
"What?" Mary smirked. "I don't know either, buddy. Nobody tells me anything." She laughed and patted its neck, while another yawn forced its way out of her mouth. "I think I need to go, though. It looks like Loony Luna's a no-show for some reason or another." She said she would answer me if I called her, too. A frown creased her face, while she poofed more of the various items away.
A Ferrari; three penguins; a couch which she had tried to make the most comfortable thing in existence, to name a few. The couch had been a failure, she decided. While comfy, it hadn't exactly felt otherworldly to her, as hoped for. Likewise, the animals didn't really seem... real. She gave the things one last look, until just her cloud patch and the night sky remained.
Mary felt her eyes close, the tiredness getting stronger, her body fighting to lay down on the soft ground. Well... this... has been... waste of time... Her thoughts became sluggish while the rest of her drifted unconscious.
Most of the lights were turned down low for the evening, while oddly enough the upstairs was uncharacteristically quieter than usual without music pouring from Bobby's room. The company present in the downstairs of the home included Mary, and Stan, both sitting at one end of the dining table facing each other.
Mary turned up the glass that Stan had poured for her, gulping down a healthy swig before lowering it back to the table. I can't believe I was asleep for almost a day. A tired, throaty sigh escaped her while she stared at the table, enjoying the reassuring squeeze of her husband's hand around her unwelcome hoof.
"And you're sure you're alright?" Stan asked warily. He had been about to try and wake her up himself, for dinner no less and a little after he had gotten back from work.
"Oh yes, just surprised is all, but it makes sense I pittled away so much time there waiting for Luna. It didn't quite feel like an entire day, though..." Mary paused, thinking over the time spent in the dream thing. "Oh well." She leaned her head on one upturned hoof and stared across the table at Stan.
"...I'm still sort of having trouble believing all of this." Stan muttered, he looked up to meet Mary's stare. "I do believe you, of course. It's no less incredible than anything else, after all." A grunt escaped him while he leaned back and folded his arms, a compromising look of thought ruling his expression. "Dreams... Any clue why she didn't show up?" He didn't exactly know what to think of Mary's explanation for things, so he merely helped by sticking to the sensical side of things, speaking as though it were just your run of the mill missed appointment.
"None, I'll try again tonight, I think." Mary replied, when Stan gave her a look, she added, "I'll just look for her this time, Stan." She smirked back at him, "It was nice seeing myself though, my old self I mean." Her hoof turned up in front of her while she brought up the tale again. "I have so many questions to ask her about all of this, I need more explanations, so she had better show up..."
Stan relaxed hesitantly, deciding to trust Mary with things, then hummed and took a sip from his own glass. What else can I do but just be supportive? He thought, it seemed like things were involving him less and less. "You trust it though, this... pony princess thing?" He said the phrase with as little credibility as he could, reflecting his thoughts about it. It sounded ridiculous in general conversation.
"She's not a thing, Stan, she's real. I'm pretty sure, anyway. And yeah," Mary sighed again and slid out of her chair to pace the floor. "I trust her, sort of, as much as you can trust a stranger anyway. She seemed pretty nice, all things considered." She suppressed a twinge of embarrassment from how badly she realized she had been treating someone else. That wasn't my fault, how would I know what's real and what isn't, and in a dream of all places?
Stan watched his wife pace across the dining room floor. "Alright, good luck getting a hold of her tonight, love. Let me know if there's anything I can do to help."
Mary stopped pacing and smiled up at him. "Oh I will, but you've done more than enough for now." She glanced in the direction of the kitchen, then stood up on her hind legs and leaned on the table whilst smiling. "Took the kids to school, picked them both back up," Her head tilted to its side slightly while she listed things. "Had dinner ready, are helping your cursed wife deal with her cursed life and a dream horse princess." She smirked and rested her head on her front hooves again, this time staring up at him. "And after working two jobs for ages too, you should get father of the year."
Stan smirked back before replying quickly, "One job."
Mary blinked from where she was on the table.
"I didn't continue my contract with the military, things are heating up again, and well... I'd be fine of course, but I can't chance leaving anymore, can I?" Stan's expression was seriousness mixed with the continence of a rock. "I'll be sticking around on a permanent basis, Mar. A little less money won't be the end of us, or I could do something else local, maybe. In any case, we'll just have to be better about keeping the lights off." He frowned and ran a hand over his mouth. "Sorry for not telling you. Didn't want you to try and talk me out of it." His eyes studied her, flicking up and down. "Are you mad?"
Mary slid off the table and walked around the table, then hopped up and wrapped her forelegs around Stan's chest. "Like hell I'm upset. Congratulations, dear." She leaned back and grinned up at him. "When will you be done?"
"Next month." Stan nodded pleasantly to her.
"Hm," Mary frowned slightly. "Well, that's too late in the year to make any fun use of the extra time off while it's nice out. Which is a shame, we could have had that vacation or camping trip after all if it was sooner."
Stan smirked, but also raised an eyebrow and patted Mary's shoulder. "I dunno, Mar, I think the flight attendant and airline would have something to say, that or they'd want to put you down with luggage." He couldn't resist putting on a satisfied toothy grin with the joke, chuckling. "Camping might have been possible, though."
Mary blinked, then looked down at herself and ugghed aloud. "Right, darnit I always forget." She pushed herself off Stan and trotted a few steps away. "You just had to spoil my good mood with your teasing." Her voice coyly remarked behind herself, tail flicking back at him. The tail thing wasn't on purpose.
"Is that was I was doing...?" Stan replied, then leaned over to support his head on one hand. His eyes locked onto the length of blue and tan tail hanging out of the back of her clothes. "So does that mean it's upset at me?" he asked, referring to the movement.
Mary stopped just before walking into the living room and looked back at her accursed appendage. "Huh? Oh, harhar. I guess it does, and I'm about to join it for real now that you've reminded me of its existence a second time."
Stan began laughing outright. "Does that mean I'm to be relegated to the dog house tonight, or is it the stable?" He slapped a hand to his knee and began coughing from laughing to hard.
Mary harrumphed and sat down by the doorway. "More like the couch if you keep it up. That's so mean Stan." She pouted her bottom lip and saddened her face, looking back at him.
"Oh geez," Stan clutched a hand to his heart. "Don't do that Mar, it- it's overpoweringly... adorable!" He coughed and fell forward out of his chair to thump onto the floor. "No, stop, too much!" The smile and chuckling he entertained gave him away though, as well as his leaning on one knee and while reaching up to the ceiling.
Mary walked over and pushed him over with one hoof. "You're lucky I love you. It's hard to think I was dumb enough to believe you were mysterious because you're so quiet all of the time. Now I can see you're just as bad as your father when it comes right down to things."
"Ouch, harsh." Stan replied, staring up at her from where he'd stayed on the floor.
"You guys have weird conversations," Bobby's voice said absently from somewhere nearby.
The two adults turned to face the doorway to the living room.
Anna's voice joined in next. "Yeah, it's no fun to eels drop if you guys are just going to be confusing and not talk about something fun, you should talk about us going to Disney World again!" She peeked around the corner, before pulling back again, her giggling giving away that she'd stayed.
"They never said anything about Disney World, and it's eaves drop, not eels."
"What's an eaves?"
Mary traded a brief look with Stan, then made to look around the corner of the doorway at her kids. "How long have you two been sitting there?" She quickly ran back through her conversation in her mind, double checking that nothing compromising had been said.
"Too long." Bobby glanced over and droned, he was busy leaning against the wall.
"Hah, that's what she said!" Anna exclaimed loudly.
Bobby made a disgusted look, "You don't even know what that means, shutup."
Anna jumped to the bottom of the stairs and turned around. "Do too!" She shot back.
"Bobby, be nice to Anna, and both of you stop sneaking around." Mary heaved a sigh and walked back into the dining room in time to see Stan pick himself up up off the ground. She tuned out the sound of her children's bickering while stepping into the kitchen for her breakfast. A relieved stray thought crossed her mind while she pulled out the leftovers from the fridge with her mouth. At least things ended up staying the same; where it matters, anyway. In some ways, things have gotten better. She set the container on the counter and peered out of the kitchen, listening to Stan yell at Bobby and Anna. In some, anyway.
Almost Two Months Later
December 22nd 2023, Friday
Mary Morris' Bedroom
Mary groaned and rolled over, the alarm clock blaring loudly beside her bed. Morning, already? Nooo, I don't want to go to work. She buried her head deep beneath her pillows and slammed a hoof over onto the alarm clock. "Shaddup," she muttered sleepily. Her throat felt scratchy and dry, and gave her voice a quality that made her sound as if she smoked two packs a day.
The warm bed and comfortable sheets around Mary began lulling the mare back to sleep while she put off doing what she told herself everyday to do. It wasn't going to work though, saying that had been instinct. What she was putting off was far more frightening than being near random customers while stuck in a pony body while hiding.
"Mar, are you awake?" Stan's voice came from nearby, possibly outside the bedroom.
Mary answered him with a muffled, random bout of garbled words and mutters. She didn't want to get up.
Stan chuckled. "Does that mean you want to sleep in today?"
Mary peaked up for a fraction of a second. "Yes, but I need to call... her."
Stan frowned and let a short pause ensue. "...It's alright if you want me to talk to her, Mar. You don't need to go through with this you know." His hand rested on the lump under the bed's covers that was his wife. "Just tell her we can't make it..."
Mary's blue, orange and tan head popped up out of the pile of fabric and craned over slowly to look at her husband. Her large eyes were just barely cracked open, and beneath them hung the bags of someone who had missed sleep consistently for some time.
Stan watched his waking wife calmly. "No luck last night I take it?" He asked, changing the subject. He was referring to word of Luna, who hadn't spoken to or been seen by Mary again for nearly two months.
"No," Mary's voice croaked out. Her head fell back against the pillow a moment after.
"Ah, shame." Stan sat at the foot of the bed slowly and heaved a deep voiced sigh. He believed his wife completely about the outlandish claims she made about spirits and dreams, even if he couldn't see them. "So, are you getting up to do this? Did you get enough normal sleep last night?"
"Hmm..." Mary answered, then thought over things.
It was strange, it seemed as soon as the winter in Idaho had set in, she had gained weight. That was just the beginning of her problems that had sustained themselves and started over the last few months.
For starters, Luna had yet to reappear, lending a significant amount of tiredness to Mary's sleep schedule. It seemed whenever she tried to seek out Luna using whatever the freaky pony powers were that she had, it made her tired as if the sleep no longer counted. There had also yet to be any sign of the unicorn, as Luna had called her. After a little digging, though, they had found libraries upon archives of videos and fan related works that had to do with the strange pony show that somehow tied everything together.
Beyond that, Marge had been beyond intolerable and unhelpful. Even after watching the entire show with her, twice, and the movies, the woman seemed to just get more enthused over ponies in general. Worse, Anna had taken to loving the entire thing as well; like a fish took to water. Somehow, from someone, she had gotten a giant stuffed animal that looked like one of the ponies from the show, too.
Mary had a sneaking suspicion it had been Herbert... Christmas wasn't for another few days, but that hadn't stopped Stan's father from getting presents and handing them out before that. Other news included Bobby, who was doing better in school; a lot better actually, considering he had been only just getting by with his grades before.
Finished with dwelling, Mary decided to just get up, even if she was still tired. I can't hide forever. The covers flew off of her as she abruptly sat up in the bed and stretched. "Yeah, I had better." She replied to Stan, then set about starting her day. Her hooves thudded on the wood floor loudly while she got out of bed.
"Alright," Stan said in his usual, gravelly tone. "I'll put some breakfast on." After a moment of studying his wife's strange form, he added, "What would you like?"
Mary stood up in front of her stand mirror and inspected her apparent winter layer of warmth which she had somehow grown. She grimaced at herself, regretting eating so much more since her change. "Just some toast... I'm not hungry." She listened absently to her husband's footsteps while he acknowledged her and left.
First, she decided, a shower, then she would eat breakfast, and right away after that... she would follow through with what she had been putting off for weeks; calling her parents. Not Herbert and Agnes, Stan's parents, but her birth parents. She typically visited them in Canada for Christmas along with the rest of her family.
Amidst worriedly considering how exactly she might tell her mom that she had grown a tail, Mary gave her middle another disapproving poke, then turned from the mirror. "And after that, the tread mill again."
Mary sighed and trotted towards the bathroom, already trying to decide for the thousandth time if she should tell her mom before, or after she arrived for the rapidly approaching holiday... Or if she should just call it off and avoid her. The latter was starting to sound more and more appealing.