X Change

Kelly sat down and said "I need to talk to Alana or my mother. There's been..."

Zara shook her head and said "That's out of the question."

"But why?" said Kelly.

"Your mother and Alana have been summoned to give evidence. They are not allowed to talk to anyone, not even each other, before the investigation tomorrow."

"But there's been some horrible misunderstanding," said Kelly. "I've got to talk to them!"

"Impossible" said Zara. "As I have explained it would be illegal."

Kelly was crest-fallen as his last hope for clearing up this mess quickly vanished. Slumping forward he put his head on the table for a few minutes before looking up.

"What's happening?" he said finally. "Is this a joke? Otherwise there has to be some mistake..."

"No mistake, and it's definitely no joke," said Zara. You've been charged with violation of FCL 487a, 1101b, and 1201c or in common terms: fleeing a crime scene, assault, and lewdness. These are all very serious crimes with severe penalties. This is no trifling matter."

The blood drained from Kelly's face and he became very pale and he started to shake. This simply couldn't be happening he thought. He had done nothing wrong and certainly not the things he had been charged with. After a few moments he recovered enough to say "I don't understand."

"Your mother, Helen, and Alana have both made preliminary statements to the Judicial Investigator, Zhi Ruo Jones. Their stories are in agreement and they corroborate all the charges.

Kelly looked at her astonished. It seemed impossible, but yet here he was. Feelings of betrayal and disbelief flooded his mind and Kelly had to force himself to focus as Zara continued.

"The FPF search of your quarters produced 3 pairs of women's panties, two belonging to your sister Brynn and the other to Alana. A fourth pair was taken off your person during your intake and later identified as belonging to your mother, Helen."

Kelly blushed and stared at her in disbelief. Three pairs of panties. There could only be two. And one of the mysterious three was Alana's...it was not possible. "That's impossible!" said Kelly. "I can explain Brynn's...but ...but I never took Alanas's..."

But Zara cut him off again with a wave of her hand. "I'm sure" she said with a hit of disgust in her voice "but that is not the point."

"Not the point" echoed Kelly, perplexed.

The panties were clearly taken without permission according to the victims and as such, a charge of theft has been added to the other charges.

"Theft!" exclaimed Kelly. "But..."

"In addition, analysis of the recovered items showed all were soiled with seamen, which was matched to you" continued Zara.

Kelly blushed with embarrassment. "I admit to taking the panties" he said "but how is this theft...and...what does this have to do with assault and lewdness? I didn't hurt anyone. I just borrowed some clothing."

"Can you prove that?" said Zara. "And as for the rest, Alana says differently."

"Prove what?" asked Kelly. "And she is lying. I never assaulted her!"

"Prove that you borrowed the garments in question," said Zara. "And Alana claims differently. She was quite upset and the FPS officers will verify that fact."

As for the panties" said Kelly "they belonged to my mother and sisters. I just borrowed them...for a while. I was going to return them...soon. And I don't understand this assault charge. Alana kissed me, not the other way around."

Zara shook her head again. "You will need to do better than that. Everyone is saying you stole them. But that is the least of your problems. It's the assault charge that is the most serious here. So, let's start with that, shall we."

"OK" said Kelly. "But like I said I never hurt her. She was the one who kissed me."

"That's not what she says," said Zara.

But...but...I never did anything she did not initiate!" protested Kelly.

"Let's be clear here," said Zara. "For assault on a person, all you need to do is to threaten or make physical contact or worse threaten violence. Fortunately for you, Alana is only claiming the former, not the latter."

"What?" said Kelly.

"If Alana were claiming physical violence, you would be looking at death. Physical contact carries the much less severe penalty of gender reassignment."

"But...but I never threaten her" protested Kelly again.

Zara sighed and said "But you did touch her and by doing so you traumatized her and that is a crime."

"That's ridiculous!" said Kelly. "It's her word against mine! I never threatened her!"

"It may be her word against yours" said Zara "but who do you think the Judicial Investigator is going to believe? A panty stealing sissy or an engineering graduate student with the highest marks?"

The word 'sissy' hit Kelly like a bucket of cold water poured over his head. As a male, an effeminate male, his credibility would be in doubt, especially against that of an accomplished woman like Alana. As a male he was a second-class citizen. If he was a woman, things might be different...." What if my mother were to..."

But Zara shook her head. "It's true that as your guardian and a woman of good standing, her voice would carry serious weight. In that case, it would be her word against Alana's and you would stand an even chance, even better than even since the burden of proof would be on Alana."

Kelly brightened at this and said "So..."

Again, Zara held up her hand. "However, not only was your guardian not there when the alleged incident occurred, she is actively corroborating Alana's story, at least to the extent possible."

Kelly slumped in his seat; his hopes dashed. "So, its hopeless" he said.

"Before we talk about that" said Zara "let's discuss the panties."

Kelly blushed and said "Like I said, I just borrowed them."

"Yes, but do you have proof that they were borrowed?" said Zara.

"Proof?" said Kelly "Like...what do you mean by 'proof'?"

"A receipt from your sisters, for example. Documentation of transfer or a recording of their assent to lend them to you."

Kelly shook his head and said "No. Nothing like that."

"Then I'm afraid it's your word against theirs again," said Zara.

"But surely even if I did steal them, taking a few pairs of panties can't be that serious of a crime."

"It's not," said Zara. "However, it's what you did with them that is. Using them to...well, using them like you did is considered malicious and criminally lewd behavior. Those are the serious charges. In addition, how do you explain having Alana's panties?"

"But how? Why?" said Kelly flabbergasted, then added "I never took her panties!"

"Then how did they get into your room?"

"I..I...don't know," said Kelly.

"What you did is considered virtual sexual assault. Defiling or violating a woman's property is considered de facto assault on her person. The sexual nature of the defilement makes it lewd. In short, what you are accused of is commensurate with publicly slandering the women whose undergarments you took."

"I can't believe this" said Kelly, astonished and deeply embarrassed.

"The law is based on a long and sorted history of unpunished violence by males against women. In the past there were far too many instances of males harassing, raping, and assaulting women and getting away with the crime. Chiefly by claiming that the woman in question "couldn't take a joke" or "asked for it" or "liked it rough" or that she was "sexually promiscuous" or "that she dressed provocatively". When the Federation wrote the current penal code, these 'excuses' were specifically addressed and the law tightened to criminalize harassing and threatening behavior."

"But all I did..." protested Kelly.

"Was steal the panties of several women and masturbate in them. Worse, combined with the assault on Alana a clear pattern of escalating threatening behavior against women is quite apparent."

"This is ridiculous," said Kelly. "I did nothing..."

But Zara silenced him with a wave of her hand. "Denying it will only make matters worse."

Kelly fell silent, his mind racing. This was a nightmare. Worse. He could never have dreamed that such a thing could happen. Why was Alana and his mother saying all these things about him? What was going on? Confused and dejected, Kelly finally said "So what can I do?"

Zara frowned and said "Given that you admit taking the panties and that it's your seaman in them and that Alana has been traumatized by what happened and her story is corroborated by your guardian, your only realistic course of action is to plead guilty and ask for mercy."

Kelly's mouth fell open. Pleading guilty was his best option? Still, after Zara's harsh, but critical assessment of the situation, he was reluctantly forced to agree. "What do you think they will do?" he asked.

"Hard to say," said Zara. "If Helen and Alana were to plead for leniency, then perhaps Helen's guardianship could be restored and you could be sent home, albeit in permanent or semi-permanent chastity along with total confinement to your residence. That would be the best outcome."

"And the worst?" asked Kelly.

"Gender reassignment followed by a lifetime of servitude would be the worst but most likely outcome," said Zara.

Kelly gulped and turned pale. "And if I don't plead guilty?"

"You will almost certainly be found guilty and sentenced to the harshest punishment possible," said Zara.

Stunned, Kelly sat in silence, his mind racing. He was damned no matter what he did. Still, why would Alana and his mother do this to him? It made no sense. Not being able to talk with them severely limited his ability to understand the situation which further constrained his options. Anxious and defeated he said "Seems I have no choice. I'll plead guilty."

"Very well" said Zara standing. "I'll see you tomorrow at the Judicial Investigation."

"Yes" said Kelly turning pale again.

***

Back in his quarters Kelly paced the small room, anxious and frustrated. How could this be happening? The thing that upset him the most was Alana's seeming betrayal. Why had she turned against him? They had been on good enough terms albeit as best as could be expected given his station. They had been life-long acquaintances and Kelly felt that she liked him as well as could be expected. What had changed? It just couldn't be!

Even his mother siding against him seemed out of character. She was a strict and harsh disciplinarian but she was also fair. Sure, she had threatened to punish him when he had broken one of her rules, but Kelly never believed that she would actually betray him. The entire situation seemed fantastic, like a dream. Kelly sincerely wished it was a dream and that he would soon wake up in his room at his mother's residence. Nothing made any sense!

However, one thing was certain, tomorrow he would plead guilty and plead for leniency. If his mother and Alana did not speak up on his behalf he would be in serious trouble. Just thinking about the consequences sent shivers down is spine! The thought of being...Kelly shuddered. He couldn't think about it. It was just too horrible.

Kelly stopped pacing and swallowed. Suddenly he felt pressure on his penis. He wanted to get hard but the chastity was preventing it from swelling. Thinking about the consequences had made him excited! This had also been the case when the FPF officer had made him undress in front of her, exposing his cum soiled panties and his body. He had been so hard despite the humiliation of being caught in his mother's panties. What was wrong with him? Perhaps the entire insane situation was making him crazy. Was he losing his mind as well?

Sitting on the bed Kelly desperately tried to reason out what was happening to him and why. At some point the redheaded officer showed up with food and drink, but Kelly left the meal untouched on the table. His mind raced over all the possibilities, but try as he might, Kelly always came full circle and back to the one question he could not answer: why was Alana and his mother doing this to him?

After several hours of futile effort, Kelly lay down on the small bed and closed his eyes. The oblivion of sleep however would not come and he tossed and turned, his mind ping-ponging between Alana and her motivations to his conversation with Zara to what it would be like to stand before a Judicial Investigation in the morning. At some point, Kelly did fall asleep but his dreams were tortured and confused and when he woke the next morning, he felt exhausted and muddled.

However, Kelly had little time to recover or to renew contemplating his situation. No sooner had he finished washing his face in the small sink than the redheaded officer opened the door to his quarters.

"Time to go" she announced.

"Already?" said Kelly.

"Yes" said the redhead. "And you better get moving. Nothing irritates a Judicial Investigator like a tardy defendant!"

Kelly had hoped for more time and perhaps a chance to speak with Zara again, but clearly that was not to be. One thing was certain, he did not want to anger the Judicial Investigator! She would decide his fate and he needed to make the best impression possible on her. With this thought, Kelly quickly followed the redhead along the corridor to his fate.

As Kelly hurried behind the FPF officer he felt the chastity tugging on his penis. He had been aware of it ever since the redhead had put it on him. However, he found walking quickly with it on difficult. His penis and balls seemed to sway unnaturally as they were dragged down by the extra weight surrounding them. The chastity was annoying and uncomfortable. Peeing had been an ordeal. He had been forced to sit and urine had splattered all over his backside, forcing him to clean up every time he went. And of course, he could not get hard or touch himself, although that had not been a problem so far. Now the chastity reminded him of what awaited him with every hurried step he took. I guess I should get used to it, thought Kelly since the best possible out-come of today's investigation would have him wearing one for a very long time at a minimum. Kelly dared not contemplate the other alternatives.

After what seemed like an hour, but was actually about ten minutes, they arrived at a large room filled with a conference table surrounded by chairs. Zara was waiting for him at the door. Inside, Kelly saw his mother, his two sisters, and Alana seated together on one side of the table. They looked at him without much expression. His mother was stoned faced and Alana gave him a faint smile, which lifted Kelly's spirits. Brynn and Nicole both shook their heads and smiled mischievously at him.

Zara said "Let me explain the proceeding to you before Zhi Ruo arrives."

Kelly nodded. From school he knew that a Judicial Investigation was a search for the facts in a criminal case. Unlike the trials of times past, a Judicial Investigation was not adversarial but rather cooperative. No accusations, beyond the charges were allowed or tolerated. Everyone was required to answer whatever questions were asked. The accused could not be compelled to answer questions, but failure to do so was not viewed favorably. All questions needed to be directly related to the case and have a basis in fact. After the facts had been presented the Judicial Investigator would decide the case along with any other Investigators (typically two) participating in the investigation. Beyond this basic knowledge of the Federation's legal system, Kelly had no direct experience with an actual investigation. This was typical for both males and females, as crime was a relatively rare phenomenon.

Zara said "I know you are aware of the basics from school. However, since you are pleading guilty, the only investigator will be Zhi Ruo. No questions will be asked. Zhi Ruo will give Helen, Alana, Brynn, and Nicole a chance to make a statement. I will then speak in your behalf. Zhi Ruo will then make her decision and pronounce judgement."

Although allowing his sisters to speak did not appeal to Kelly, he hoped Alana and his mother would plead for leniency. All he could do then was hope for the best. Before Kelly could ask a question Zhi Ruo walked into the room and sat at the head of the table. Kelly, ushered by Zara, quickly sat down at the far end, on the opposite side of the table from Alana and his mother.

Zhi Ruo was tall and thin with long jet-black hair that hung halfway down her back. Her features were angular and sharp, her nose was pointed and slightly upturned. Her mouth was small and her lips tight. Arching and almost pointed eyebrows and a widow's peak accented the sharp angles of her face and jaw. She looked mean and almost angry to Kelly who felt his heart sinking.

Cruel black eyes looked at him for a moment and then to Zara she said "I understand you wish to enter a plea".

"Yes" said Zara. "We wish to plead guilty to all charges."

Kelly thought he saw a flicker of excitement in Zhi Ruo's eyes but it passed too quickly for him to be sure. "Very well" she said. Then turning to Helen, she said "Do you wish to make a statement?"

"Yes" said Helen. "I am deeply ashamed and disappointed in Kelly. He was raised to know better and he deserves to be severely punished."

Kelly could not believe his ears. His own mother...

"Alana?" said Zhi Ruo.

"I feel the same way: deeply disappointed. I've known Kelly all my life and I am astounded that he is capable of such atrocious behavior! I fear for the safety of other women. He needs to be punished!"

"Alana!" said Kelly, but Zara grabbed him by the arm and said "Please be quiet, Kelly! You don't want to make Zhi Ruo angry!"

Zhi Ruo looked at him, a scowl of disapproval on her face. Kelly immediately closed his mouth and lowered his head. He was doomed.

"Brynn?" said Zhi Rou.

"I feel violated," said Brynn. "He took my panties and...and masturbated in them. I am told he had done this repeatedly. I haven't slept or ate since. I agree that he should be punished and severely!"

"Nicole?" said Zhi Rou.

"I feel exactly the same way. He needs to be severely punished! What if he does this to someone else?"

Finally, Zhi Rou turned to Zara and said "Advocate?"

"Kelly has pleaded guilty and admits to doing wrong. He is sorry and takes full responsibility for what he did. As such he asks for leniency."

And that was it. The entire investigation was over in less than five minutes. No facts had been presented, contested or debated. Neither Alana nor his mother had spoken in his behalf and even Zara's request for leniency seemed half-hearted to Kelly. Perhaps he had been too hasty when he agreed to plead guilty...

Zhi Rou looked at Kelly her eyes malevolent and said "Kelly Williams you have pleaded guilty to violating FCL 487a, 1101b, 1201c, and 1370a. These are all serious crimes and carry severe penalties. Your victims have all said that they feel violated and have requested that you be punished accordingly and as such you are sentenced to gender reassignment followed by a life-term of servitude. The latter to be performed in a state-sponsored brothel, or if approved by your transition coordinator, marriage. In addition, you will be required to confess and apologize under supervision to Alana, your mother, and your sisters. This sentence to be carried out immediately."

Kelly was stunned and sat frozen in his chair. Zhi Rou's words echoed in his ears and he did not so much hear them as feel them, like a loud vibration that rattled his mind. Before he could recover two large FPF officers flanked him, one on either side of his chair.

Zara said "Unfortunately Zhi Rou was not inclined to accept your request for leniency. However, she did leave open the possibility of marriage which will at least spare you a life-term in a brothel."

Kelly had still not processed the full implications of his sentence and stared at Zara as if she were crazy. However, the FPF officers flanking him left him no time to respond. Grabbing his arms, they lifted him to his feet and ushered him to the door. Zhi Rou had left and Alana and his mother sat quietly talking in their seats. Brynn and Nicole were standing and smiling with satisfaction.