✅ The Last New Start [NaNoWriMo2021]

86. Acceptance

This chapter is dedicated to Alex, with thanks for supporting me on Patreon. Thank you! And I hope that all my followers thank you too, for giving me the motivation to finish this chapter today. Thank you!

Dinner turned out to be something like porridge made from beans, with pieces of roast ham in it, served with turnip and beetroot chips. It was something she'd never encountered before, although it was somewhat similar to Greek fava. Gabby introduced it as a family tradition; and Tess was left wondering if her dad had ever come across it, or if this was from the other side of Gabby's family. But after she'd started eating, she knew that this meal was filling and surprisingly warming; something she would be happy to try again.

Ffrances didn't say anything about Tess's accident, for which she was grateful. Gabby didn't say anything either; it was just a little easier for Tess to think about it when she told herself that her cousin would never know. All the conversation was small talk; there was nothing big left to say. Tess found that she kept glancing towards the door, wondering when the rest of her luggage would be delivered; but she had everything she really needed already. She was sure that it would show up sooner or later.

"Looking forward to tomorrow?" Gabby asked. "Opening all your Christmas presents?"

"Yeah," Tess said, and nodded. She'd seen them earlier; boxes wrapped in glittering paper under the tree in the lounge. She was curious to see what they had got for her, as well as nervous that she might be getting in over her head again. It still seemed a bit weird, but she was getting used to the idea that this was something that some people were into. Even if she wasn't one of them, she wasn't going to judge anyone else for what they liked. Last time they'd done a whole age regression hypnosis thing, she had gone along with it because Gabby wanted to. Now she knew that Gabby hadn't been entirely honest about what she wanted, Tess wasn't sure if she should regret going along with it. But this time she was doing it to help Ffrances, and that was a choice she had made herself. That made a world of difference.

"Yeah," she repeated. "It should be fun." And as she said that, Tess was surprised to find that she really meant it. Even if being a little kid wasn't her interest, she could enjoy the experience of being changed. She could learn more about how this kind of thing worked, and come to understand it better. Maybe it would be the first step towards exploring other roles that could be achieved using hypnosis; although she was sure that most of the ideas in her mind would be best left until both she and Spike were adults in the eyes of the law. Childish headspace would be a place she could experiment for now; wholesome and innocent, even if it was embarrassing. And she could learn so much; easily enough to make it worth trying.

"Would you like to try being little tonight? If you're a child overnight, you'll be so excited when you wake up in the morning."

"I have to work, babe," Ffrances pointed out. "Don't think I'd be so good at my job if I was a little kid."

"I meant Tess," Gabby said, apparently missing the point. She really didn't seem to understand how much her girlfriend wanted to be a child, and just ignored any comments that didn't fit in neatly with her expectations. "You don't have to join her all the time. She could start relaxing, winding down after all a long day having to do grown-up things. It would be good for her, and then she could wake up tomorrow already feeling little. Start off in the right mood so it's easier to feel it."

"I don't know," Tess mumbled, but she wasn't really sure what she should say. She knew that Gabby was just looking for an opportunity to explore her own 'Mommy' fantasies without oversight from Ffrances; but they had been very careful with the latest batch of new suggestions. Tess was sure that she could stop it at any time if it got too much. And waking up Christmas morning feeling like a kid – even if it wasn't the usual date – sounded like it would be an interesting experience. Would it be worth trying?