Ordinary

"James," she whispered back. "We are the same person from opposite sides of this veil. I suffer the same as you do. I hate this body. I have always felt like a stranger in it. I will be happy to be rid of it."

"If you're sure?"

"James, look up at me."

James looked up and met Jamie's eyes. "I have made my decision," they said together. They nodded at each other. "So, we just touch?" They nodded at each other. They stepped forward, lifted a hand, and slowly reached out for one another. As their hands touched, the blazing heat that had been growing in their chests grew hotter, nearing painful but always just a little less. There was a twisting sensation, odd but again, not painful. It started at their fingertips and worked down their arms, across shoulders and chest. It moved down their torsos, hips, and genitals. Moving down their thighs, knees, calves, and ankles, the twisting sensation ended at their toes.

With a small jolt, like a static discharge, they were nudged back from each other. Jamie looked up at the male reflection of herself. Now that she could see it from an outside perspective, she supposed that it wasn't such a bad body. James really was good looking, she thought.

Jamie looked down at herself. Leaning forward, she looked past her breasts at the ground under her boots. The clothes she wore were the same as before, just sized to fit. That was a relief. She didn't relish the idea of needing to hike out of the mountains in clothes that were too large.

Looking back up, she made eye contact with James. "Thank you," they said together. "This is much better already." Jamie noticed that James' reflection was getting dimmer, and the edges of the magic mirror were shrinking inward at a visible rate. "It appears that this is irreversible," they said. "I'll come back here someday, and I'll think of you. Thank you, James/Jamie. I love you."

They watched the reflection of their opposites slowly fade away, each with a smile on their face. Jamie turned away, and moved over to her pack. She reached down without thinking, and grabbed a strap with her left hand. "Huh, I guess I'm left handed now, too." She hefted the pack to an upright position, surprised at how much more difficult it was. This was going to be an interesting hike, she thought. She got the pack up onto her back with a little difficulty and started making her way back up out of the canyon and back toward home.

The journey back toward the car was longer than the journey away from it had been. Her legs were significantly shorter, and she wasn't as strong. She needed to take more breaks, but she didn't really mind. Jamie had found something that she had always been looking for, everything else was just gravy on top.

As she walked, she evaluated how her body felt. Her steps were short, and her hips seemed to sway all on their own. She felt her backside move with each step, not jiggling but definitely moving. Her breasts were squished together by the straps of her back pack, but they still swayed around freely enough. She didn't have a bra to hold them in place. Soon, her nipples started to chafe on the rough material of her shirt. Her abdominal muscles were taught, and strong, relatively speaking. Her back felt the strain of the backpack and her breasts, slowly tightening up as the day wore on.

As the light started to fade, she found a clear spot and quickly set up her tent. Doing things with her left hand felt weird at first, but she just shrugged it off. If this was the price to pay for finally being in the body that she belonged in, then so be it. She made a small fire and cooked her dinner. She made the normal portion that she would have before the switch. She ate about half of it and sat looking at the remainder, a little disconcerted. "I guess I don't have to eat as much anymore," she told the leftovers. She buried the remaining food along with the still hot coals of her campfire.

Jamie crawled into her tent, laid out her sleeping bag, and stripped off her dirty, smelly clothes. She had not felt the same revulsion for the dirty clothes before the switch as she did now. Maybe, she just cared about her body more now. She wondered what other things she had done because of her former dysphoria.

Sitting on her sleeping bag, she explored her body. Moving her hands slowly over her arms, she noticed how soft her skin was, how fine the hairs were. She ran her palms along the sides of her breasts, cupping them both, feeling the weight of them. She dropped them, feeling the movement. She smiled and did it again. She had always liked the boob drop videos, now she thought about making some of her own.

Jamie brushed her nipples with her finger tips, and gasped. They were much more sensitive than they had been before, but they were also chafed and a little raw. No nipple play for me, she thought. She ran her hands down her stomach feeling the light hairs move under her fingers and palms. Her hands moved over her hips and down onto her thighs. She brought one hand lightly to her sex, gasping at the intense sensation from just brushing the sensitive organ.

The musky smell of aroused vagina filled the small tent as Jamie explored herself. She sent one finger questing lower, gently pushing past her labia and into her moist hole. Gasping slightly, she felt the sensation like an electric shock up her spine. It hit her mind and bounced back, resting just below her belly button. She moved her finger in and out, reveling in the feeling. Slowly, she fucked herself with one finger, then she added another.

Her other hand cupped one breast, gently massaging it, careful of her over-sensitive nipples. She fell back, her breasts spilling over the sides of her chest, her knees up. She kept her hand on and in her vagina while she bucked and rolled her hips against it. She felt a building pressure under her belly button, and started rubbing her clit with her other hand, abandoning her breast for more interesting places.

The pressure built and built, growing slowly outward, until it reached a breaking point and flooded out to all parts of her body. Wave after wave of orgasmic pleasure rocked her body. She spasmed against her hand, her fingers still rubbing furiously at her clit. She rode the orgasm, letting it carry her away.

When it had finally passed, she lay on her rumpled sleeping bag, sweating and panting from her exertions. As the high from the endorphins passed, Jamie realized that her butt was wet and cold. She sat up slowly, a little dizzy, and looked down between her legs. Her pubic hair was wet and glistening, and there was a wet spot on her sleeping bag. She shrugged. "I guess there's a price for everything."

Jamie cleaned herself up as well as she could, and curled up in her sleeping bag, trying to stay away from the cold, wet spot. It was some time before she was able to fall asleep. She was enjoying this. Not just the masturbation, but the fact that the pain of being in the wrong body was finally gone. She would need to be careful that her relief didn't cause her to do things she would eventually regret.

Finally, sleep came.

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The following days passed easily, hiking at a leisurely pace, knowing she had all the time in the world. She thought back on the quest that Mark had given her. To find a fire within, a passion, something that will make her better. Jamie carried the spark of warmth that she had followed into the mountains in her heart still. She hadn't realized it at first, but waking up one morning, she found that her little spark was still there, keeping her warm on the inside.

Jamie considered what effects her change would have on her personal and professional life. She worked in a simple office, doing various data management tasks, so she figured that wouldn't be an issue. She just needed to convince Mark that she was who she said she was. She would need to do a change of gender on her license and birth certificate. She didn't know how she could prove who she was, but she knew she wasn't going to live as a fugitive.

Her personal life was a different story. She didn't really have any friends to speak of, so there was nothing to explain. But she was lonely, she could admit that to herself now. She didn't want to be alone anymore. She wanted to be with people, share experiences, laugh, love, live. Jamie smacked herself in the forehead when she thought that. I guess I'm pretty basic, she thought with a small laugh.

Bottom line, she didn't know what to expect, or really how to proceed. What she did know was she would not be living the same bland, gray existence that she had before. Back when she had been James. It felt like so long ago that she had left her car parked in the parking lot of a scenic overlook, and followed the little spark of passion to the magic mirror. She knew it wasn't, but it felt like it had been a long time.

Hiking up the final incline back up to the overlook seemed to take forever. She was sweating freely, and dust covered her from head to toe. She desperately wanted a shower, or better yet, a nice long bath. And a shave. Her legs, under arms, and crotch were prickly with new hair growth. That sounded so nice, but she would need to make it somewhere with a bathtub for that. It might be a while.

She whimpered a little at the thought. She was tired. As fit as she was, moving over such a long distance with a heavy backpack was a hard task for such a little woman. She squared her shoulders. She might be small, and delicate, and feminine, but she was still mighty. On the inside, anyway. And that was where it really mattered, right? She thought.

Finally making it back to her old car, the shit-box beater that had carried her wherever she asked it to, was sitting faithfully right where she had left it. There were a few other cars in the overlook, with some people walking to and from various vantage points. She smiled a polite greeting at those she made eye contact with as she put down her pack. Retrieving the keys from on top of the drivers side wheel, she opened the trunk and hucked the pack inside. She slammed the lid down hard, trying to get the ancient latch to close. She jumped up and put her whole body weight into it, slamming it down again.

After several attempts, it remained closed. She leaned back against the bumper of her car, and fanned her button up shirt a few times to move some air across her sweaty chest. She felt the sweat pool uncomfortably under her breasts. Looking around, she thought there were too many people for her to try to swab the sweat out. It was an inconvenience, but a minor one.

She climbed into the driver's seat, and had to scootch the seat forward a long way in order to reach the pedals. She let out a relieved sigh. She truly enjoyed hiking, even in her new smaller body, but that surely didn't mean that it was easy. She cranked the manual window down, reached over and rolled the passenger side down as well. She inserted the key, depressed the clutch and cranked the engine over. It caught immediately, faithful and true as ever, and rumbled to life. She had always taken good care of her old shit-box. It was the only car she had ever had.

Jamie shifted the car into reverse and backed out of the parking spot she had pulled into two weeks earlier as a lifeless husk of a man. Now she pulled out as a vibrant young woman with a spark of passion glowing in her chest. She pulled carefully out onto the highway, shifting gears smoothly, and headed back toward home.

With the wind blowing in through the open windows, her hair whipped around her face. Reluctantly, she rolled the drivers window up most of the way, and immediately started sweating again. She looked around at the sparsely populated highway and shrugged. She unbuttoned her shirt and let the wind hit her bare skin. That was much better.

She needed to stop at the nearest truck stop for a shower, and the nearest department store for some new clothes. That was going to be an interesting adventure.

Cruising down the highway, the wind blowing air across her chest, whipping her hair around, Jamie felt a freedom that she had never known, a lightness in her spirit that buoyed her up and carried her forward. She didn't know what was coming next in her life, but she knew she would finally face it as her self.

Jamie laughed out loud when she realized she hadn't stopped smiling since getting on the highway.

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Climbing out of the car, Jamie stretched her back. She lifted her arms up over her head and arched her back. She caught one of the truckers pumping gas staring at her. She quickly lowered her arms and turned away. It felt nice to be admired, but she didn't want to encourage strangers to stare at her. They might want to do more than just look.

She hipped the door closed and headed into the truck stop. It was noticeably warmer inside. The cool mountain air was very nice, but with just the button up shirt she had, the wind had dried her sweat and cooled her off after a while, pebbling her skin. Now she shivered with pleasure at the temperature change. Letting her eyes adjust to the light inside, she waited by the door, getting her bearings. She immediately headed over to the clothes they had to offer.

There were the typical truck stop printed tee shirts, and trucker hats, some jeans, and safety gear in high visibility colors. There were souvenirs, of course, some cheesy skulls and skeleton coffee mugs, novelty knives. They had whatever a person with too much money and not a very firm grasp on what they actually needed could want.

Back in a little out of the way corner, there was a small rack of boho style clothes. There were colorful blouses and long skirts, along with some patchwork looking purses. There were colorful bandanas and flip-flops, too. Jamie went to that rack immediately. Flipping through the various colors, she found a light blue and pink tie-dye blouse that was probably way too big, but that she absolutely adored. Next she needed something to wear over her bottom. There were several skirts to choose from, but she found one that she just had to have.

The skirt she chose was a handkerchief hem midi skirt that was several shades of brown and green. It had an elastic waist with a drawstring, thankfully. She had no real idea what size clothes she actually wore. She was thankful that elastic existed.

Jamie looked around for underwear or bras, but the truck stop didn't stock anything like that. They had some boxers and tall socks for men who wore boots, but nothing that would fit her much smaller body. She would have to find a department store to raid if she wanted to wear underwear, which she very much did.

She went to the counter and paid for her purchases with her bank card that said James on it. She was glad they didn't ask for ID when using bank cards anymore. She didn't have any cash, which she realized would make future purchases easier and less stressful. She added stopping at an ATM to her growing to-do list. She purchased her time in one of the truck stop showers, as well as some soap and shampoo, and accepted the towel from the attendant as she went in.

Stripping out of her filthy hiking clothes, she felt better immediately. She stepped into the small shower stall and turned the water on. It was very hot. Almost too hot, but the heat seemed to work out some of the tension that had built up in her shoulders and back. Knowing her time was limited, she struggled to wash her long red hair, unfamiliar with the length of it. She did the best she could with it and rinsed it out. Anything was better than nothing, she thought. She quickly washed her body and rinsed the soap and grime off in the scalding hot water.

Just as she was finishing rinsing off, the water cut off. Jamie stepped out and dried herself with the rough truck stop towel. She felt like a new woman, which she realized she was. Laughing, she toweled off her wet hair and tried to shake some life into it. I need a hair brush, she thought. She stepped into the skirt and pulled it up over her hips, relishing the feel of the soft material on her soft skin. The skirt was too big, but she tied the drawstring tight and was confident that she would not bare her assets to the world at an inopportune moment. She pulled the gauzy peasant blouse over her head and tugged it gently down over her breasts. The thin material clung to her slightly damp skin, outlining her breasts and nipples.

Jamie looked at herself in the mirror. She looked a little bedraggled with her damp unbrushed hair, and clothes that were clinging to her, but she liked the look. She made kissy faces at the mirror, and laughed at herself. She really was enjoying liking the way she looked.

She opened the door to the shower room, deposited her towel in the provided hamper, and walked out into the truckstop. She loved the way the skirt swirled around her calves. She moved around the truckstop grocery section and picked out some snackish food that she could eat while she drove. She got to the register and put down her choices. The clerk looked up from her phone and took in Jamie's appearance. Her eyes rested briefly on Jamie's chest then darted up to her eyes.

"Will that be all for you, miss?" she asked with a smile.

"Yes, ma'am. It sure will," Jamie replied, smiling in return.

The clerk, Stephanie according to her name tag, rang up Jamie's items. "Where are you headed?" She asked.

"I'm not real sure," Jamie told her. "I will be heading home, but I don't know where I'm going from there."

"Really? So you're just going to wander?"

"No, probably not," Jamie laughed. "I wish I could, honestly. I have a job to get back to."

"Just a job? Huh. I would wander if that was all I had. Nothing could stop me. Why can't you do it? What's stopping you?"

Jamie paused as she collected her bag of items. "Now, that is a really great question. Thank you."

"You're quite welcome, miss. Have a great day."

Jamie smiled at her, turned and headed back to her shit-box. Climbing in behind the wheel, Jamie tossed her stuff on the passenger seat. She started up the engine, but paused. Where could I actually go? She wondered. If she only had to take care of herself, then what was holding her back from going and doing all of the traveling that she had always wanted to do? It was definitely something that she needed to think about.

She put the car in gear and headed back out onto the highway. She munched her snacks as she drove, pondering the direction she wanted her life to take.

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Jamie woke up slowly. She had slept amazingly well on her own bed, after she had gotten home late the night before. She had been bone weary, but knew she wouldn't be able to sleep feeling as crusty as she did. She stripped off her boho clothes, letting them drop to the floor on her way to the bathroom. She stepped in and cranked the heat up on the water, letting it soak into her and wash away the accumulated dirt and grime from traveling.

She had toweled off and sat down on her bed, with the towel wrapped around her breasts and her damp hair hanging down her back. It felt nice to be home. She didn't know what to wear to sleep as all of the clothes she had were men's clothes and all too large. She flopped back on the bed, letting her breasts wobble from the sudden movement. Giggling a little, she rolled over onto her side and immediately fell back to sleep.

Waking up in the morning, she had discarded the towel at some point and crawled under the comforter. The fabric felt amazing on her sensitive skin, brushing over every inch of her body. She smiled at the pure pleasure of it. Stretching luxuriously, she rolled out of bed, shuffled toward the bathroom and took care of her body's needs.

Standing in front of the bathroom mirror, she brushed her teeth, watching her breasts wiggle. She liked the way it felt, and the way it looked, but she knew that she was going to need some kind of bra eventually. She couldn't go through every social situation like that. Jamie washed her face and examined herself.