First day as Irene

The next day, I woke up feeling so refreshed. It had been a long while since I last felt that good. I stretched and let out a womanly moan, reminding me of my situation. I opened my eyes and looked around, observing the foreign yet familiar bedroom, and then focused on my borrowed, mature female body. Irene's skin.

"Yesterday's events were real, huh..." I muttered.

A lot happened, and I was still shaken by all the reveals of my past, as well as my mother's true nature. But spending time with Mother and Minh did help me cope with this to some extent, and I was now way more intrigued about the mysteries surrounding them and their coven they kept talking about. In a strange way, I was looking forward to this Friday evening.

"Well, I still have a whole week to live as Irene first... I should get ready for work."

I got up, swiftly removing my pajamas and getting dressed in the clothes I chose last night and applied my makeup. I admired myself in the mirror, enjoying my classy and elegant look, and then went to the kitchen. Irene's breakfast consisted of only coffee and a yogurt, she wasn't a big eater at all.

As I was eating, I was looking through Irene's memories to see what her job was like, and what she had planned for this week. As an architect, her job was to draw plans and design houses ordered by people, as well as supervise the construction to make sure everything was in order every step of the way. It wasn't a job I would have considered as my own self, but Irene liked it, and now so did I with her soul within me.

I was excited to experience a life so different than mine, as a mature woman, throughout this week.

Once done with my breakfast, I walked to my car, a Ford Explorer. I wondered why so many middle-aged women seemed to like SUVs so much. Irene got it for 'practicality', but there were other cars just as practical and less imposing than that.

Anyway, I drove towards my first clients of the day, a young couple in the process of building a small house for themselves. It was pretty much a routine inspection to check how much progress the construction company had done since Irene's last visit. I parked and met with the one supervising the crew, asking him some questions, observing, and taking notes as we walked around the still unfinished house. I let Irene's personality take the lead, guiding me through this day effortlessly, driving all around town visiting multiple clients and partners until five thirty in the afternoon.

I was starting to get used to deceiving people by now, since it was my fourth time being someone else, but my skinwalker side still loved it so much. None of the people I've interacted with today had any idea Irene was being worn with me at the helm, even some of Irene's long-time partners. Honestly, now that I fully accepted my nature, I could no longer deny it being a satisfying feeling.

I was relaxing in my car after this mundane but still enjoyable day as an architect, until I received a call from 'Yumi' on my phone.

"Hi Yumi."

"Hey Irene~ How was your day?" Minh asked, his tone jovial as usual.

I smiled. "It was a busy day, but overall quite good."

He chuckled. "Glad to hear you're enjoying it~ I'm at Liam's right now, mind coming to give us a hand? A second car would make this a lot easier."

I completely forgot about that...

"Oh right, sorry, it slipped my mind. I'll be there soon. Tell Liam I prepared the room like I said yesterday."

"I will. Thanks for your help. See you in a bit~" He replied.

"See you."

I hung up and started to drive towards the building Liam was residing in for the time being. I remembered it being fairly close to the college campus, making it easy to find. I parked and rang Yumi's phone again, so Minh could open the door.

I waited a few minutes and saw Liam and Minh walking out of the elevator, carrying heavy-looking boxes.

Liam seemed slightly uneasy as he opened the door to greet me. "G-good evening."

I smiled. "Good evening, Liam, Yumi. Would you like to store these in my car?"

"Y-yes, thank you."

As I unlocked the trunk and helped them, I spoke. "Is there anything wrong, Liam?"

"N-no, it's just... It's still trippy to know someone is wearing my mother's skin..."

It wasn't like I couldn't relate to that, considering yesterday's mind-blowing reveals.

I let out an awkward chuckle. "I get that, trust me... I won't be her for much longer, if it makes you feel any better. I'm leaving her this Friday."

He nodded. "Minh told me. I will be introduced to the coven as well, from what he said. I'm... pretty nervous, to be honest..."

Minh caressed Liam's hair. "It'll be fine, pumpkin, trust me. No one is going to hurt you, I give you my word."

"Y-yeah, I know... I just can't help it..." Liam replied with a sigh.

"Hey, I'm discovering the coven too, so we're in the same boat." I said, trying to help him relax a little. "I was quite sceptical at first, but after spending more time with Mother and Minh, I have the feeling it's going to be alright."

What I said seemed to have surprised Minh for a brief moment, but he then gave me a teasing grin. "Oh, I didn't expect you to feel this way so soon, Ed~ I'm sure Aga will be as pleased as I am to hear that~"

"It doesn't mean I fully trust you yet, though. I'm just... willing to give you a chance." I said, looking away.

"Sure, sure~ It's not like I don't get where you're coming from, trust needs to be earned in our world."

"Yeah." I simply replied.

Afterwards, we resumed loading the boxes into my and Minh's cars. Liam didn't own a lot of things, so one trip would be enough, thankfully. Among his belongings, I spotted a guitar. Liam sat next to me and I started to drive towards my temporary house.

"So, uhh..." Liam started, searching his words. "H-how long have you been a skinwalker?"

"About two months, now. But I spent most of my time since it happened trying to resist the curse's influence."

Liam tilted his head. "Influence?"

I was wondering what to say for a moment, before speaking. "When I became a skinwalker, I realised I... changed... I had new intoxicating desires I was afraid of... I never felt anything like that before, so I didn't want to accept them. I wanted to stay myself."

"What... What kind of desires?" He asked, clearly curious.

My cheeks reddened slightly. "Well... Being a woman, for example... I never expected to enjoy it so much, but I just... I just love being a woman... And it scared me. But yesterday's events made me understand that I shouldn't be afraid or ashamed... Even with these new desires, my core self is still the same."

"I-I haven't known you for long, but... you seem like a caring person, Edward." Liam said with a smile.

I smiled back. "Thanks. You're a good person too, Liam."

"What were you doing before becoming a skinwalker?" He then asked, more at ease.

"I was working as a bartender, in a town on the other side of the country. Wasn't the most fulfilling life, but it was enough for me." I then sighed. "And my sister was living with me after she fled from our bigoted tyrannical father. But now, I'm far from her again, unable to stay by her side anymore."

"I see. I'm sorry to hear."

"We're still in touch. I often call or text her, so it's fine for the time being. Tell me, how did you meet Minh?"

Liam smiled softly. "Well, he... he protected me. I'm out, so I sometimes get slurs thrown at me on the campus, but one guy went further than that, threatening me physically. Minh saw this and intervened, saving me."

"Oh, really?"

"The bully never bothered me again after that, probably due to Minh's ability, and Minh started to hang out with me. I only knew him as Yumi back then, and we got along well. She simply seemed to be a quirky bisexual girl, I never expected for her to reveal herself as a skinwalker."

"Interesting. I hope to know him better as well. He's an intriguing being." I admitted.

Liam nodded. "He is, yeah... You skinwalkers, you are... terrifying, but fascinating."

I chuckled. "I can't deny that. These abilities would have horrified me had I stayed human."

The rest of the drive was mostly just small talk to get to know each other better. I told Liam about my likes of sports, rock music, games, and comics, and we discovered we had a few similar hobbies, as he enjoyed similar things. It helped us connect more easily.

We arrived and started to unload the boxes to Liam's new room. He seemed relieved when he saw it, thanking me and Minh again for our help.

When done with the unloading, the three of us drove to a restaurant nearby to eat. It was a cozy Italian place Irene liked going to from time to time. We sat and ordered our food, Minh offering to pay for Liam's.

"So, I've been thinking." Minh started after the waiter walked away. "I need to talk about it with Aga, but why don't you become Ed's assistant, Liam?"

"Assistant?" Both Liam and I repeated in a confused tone.

"All seven of us skinwalkers have a human assistant, to serve as liaison between us should we be wearing a skin other than our main one. They're someone we can wear if we need to lay low, or simply to keep us company, as a friend or more~" Minh explained, his flirtatious grin back. We blushed at that, but Minh continued. "You two seem to get along well, and I know you have similar interests, so I believe it'd work out. What do you think?"

Liam and I exchanged glances. We were both surprised by what Minh said, and were clearly thinking about it. I honestly wouldn't mind having Liam as my assistant, he did seem like a nice guy, someone I could easily befriend. Although, I had no interest in wearing him, that I was sure of. Just the thought of wearing a male skin was making me uncomfortable, for some reason.

"I-I wouldn't mind." Liam said first. "I trust him."

I smiled. "Thanks. I'd like that, too."

"Then it's settled. I'll talk to Aga later, but it's a formality. She'd never refuse you something like that." Minh declared with a small laugh.

"Why?"

"Because she loves you. And after what you've been through, she wants you to be as comfortable as possible here, alongside us."

"I see... It's still hard for me to believe Mother acting like this..." I replied, looking down.

"Give it time. She can be really doting, almost overwhelmingly so at times." Minh said, giggling. "You can now see the real her."

The waiter arrived right after with our dishes, and we started to eat. Minh and Liam spoke about college, mainly about some of their upcoming exams. Again, I could feel this want deep down, this desire of being a college student again. I loved my time as Sarah, Carmen, and Rowana, I yearned for more, and for longer...

Minh apparently noticed my quietness, as he spoke. "I remember what we talked about yesterday, Ed. I've started to look for a life you might enjoy, based on what I know of you."

"Huh?"

"I've already singled out a few candidates I believe you'd love~" He announced with a proud smirk. "But we can talk about it better after the meeting."

"O-okay, thanks." I awkwardly replied, not knowing what to say.

The rest of dinner went by fast, I spent most of it wondering just what kind of lives Minh has 'singled-out' for me, as he said. I assumed he knew my likes from Mother and from having met me in the past, when I was still a teenager.

We left the restaurant and Minh stretched. "Well, I think I'll pay Aga a short visit and go hit the sack, I'm dead tired."

"You might need to work out more, then." I said.

"I prefer my physical exercises to be in bed~" He replied with his usual grin.

I chuckled softly. "I had an inkling you'd say that."

He shrugged and laughed. "I'm a simple person, I'm only trying to enjoy life to the fullest~"

"I can see that. Anyway, have a good evening, Minh."

Minh waved and started to walk towards his car. "See ya~ And I hope you'll enjoy your new home, Liam."

Liam waved back. "I will. Thank you, Minh."

We watched him drive away before returning home. Liam wished to unpack everything alone, so I wished him a good night and went to my room, taking a quick shower and laying on my bed.

Today had been quite eventful as well. I discovered Irene's daily life, helped Liam move to her house, got to know him better, and had him accept to be my assistant. The more I was learning about Minh, Mother, and the coven, the less anxious I was. I was starting to believe I might have the opportunity to live a good life here.

I sent a text to Claire, asking how she was doing, and reassuring her that I was fine, but the exhaustion from today caught up, and I quickly fell asleep afterwards, without waiting for her reply.