The next day at the hospital
"how are you feeling Catarina, are you feeling better" asks Emelia
"Juliet and Sarah were promised a quick exam and test and that they'd be home that night and they're still here, whatever is going on I need to know" says Cat
"Juliet is good enough to be released but as Sarah isn't doing so well, her and Maria stayed, besides I'm treating Sarah's brain inflammation that's causing her speech issues" says Emelia
"you're telling me all this time it's been brain inflammation, it could have been treated" asks Cat furious
"when she lived with her aunt her health was stable enough she didn't need emergency medical attention, the worst she had was a bad cold, that doesn't warrant blood tests nor extensive treatment, when she was sick enough she had no health insurance because they were homeless, Jessica struggled with the hospital bill she was given as it was, I couldn't justify another six grand on top of the four she already got for Sarah's hospital stay, besides Sarah was doing fine" says Emelia
"how's Josh" asks Cat changing the subject
"not as bad as was assumed, he was assumed to be a ten like his uncle Garth, however after a little 1persuasion he came clean, he's a seven and a half, still bad but no immediate risk to Maria" says Emelia
"I don't believe that and neither does Maria" says Cat
"he is pervy but has no interest in Maria, neither sexually or romantically, he's worried about her safety, which is WHY he checks up on her no matter what she's doing and at a moments notice, he may be like Garth in many ways in regards to being perverted but unlike Garth, Josh draws the line at family, to Josh friends are an option, family isn't, he will be going to therapy to correct his world view about rape however he's just protective of Maria, people had the same concerns about Kyle by the way, he's always checking up on you, whether you're changing or not but Kyle was just being protective, few people understood that, people made pervert assumptions about Kyle" says Emelia
"you're sure Josh won't lay a hand on Maria, her 'dad' is a Valentine so she is family legally speaking and she's almost as physically defenseless as Sarah so I need assurances" says Cat
"you've never mentioned the family connection before, I'm not saying Josh won't push or shove her if it comes to it but he prefers darker skinned girls, not African American dark but about equal between Tori and Andre" says Emelia
"so he likes girls like Leah, she's terrified of him but she did have a crush on him before she knew about his perversions" says Cat
"he mentioned her in passing, the problem is he fell into the trap because people at school called him ugly almost every day and Garth said ugly people have no choice but to force themselves onto people or they'll die lonely" says Emelia
"would the therapy help him resist because as long as he's falling victim to it with no ability to resist to tell her or anyone that he needs to be restrained or held back she won't risk getting anywhere near him, especially since she's a model now and very successful" says Cat
"here's the thing he can't practice the toolset the therapist will give him by himself, it literally requires someone be with him to practice, he asked me to ask her to help him" says Emelia
"I can ask but I don't guarantee that she will help" says Cat
"oh by the way Josh isn't Josh, She's Megan, she's only the way she is because Garth told her people see her as an ugly human being, without Leah's help she feels that therapy will be a waste of time because dating Leah is her goal, Leah is the whole reason she agreed to therapy to begin with" says Emelia
"how long has She felt like an alien in her own body, Leah is a supporter of the community and prefers girls herself but she'll want details" says Cat
"two years ago she faked prostate cancer in an attempt to get a surgeon to cut it off and faked a prescription for hormone replacement meds four years ago but Maria turned her in and she spent a year in juvie but she's never ever felt right, she tried growing her hair out in elementary school only for the principal to cut it all off once it got to her shoulders, she's faked being a boy ever since just to fit in, which is how Garth got to her, he changed how Megan saw the world to turn her bitter to it, to make her his pawn because he failed to get access to Maria" says Emelia
"Leah is coming to see me in an hour, I'll see what I can do but again I make no promises" says Cat as she throws up into a bucket provided by the hospital
1 hour later as Leah arrives
"how are you feeling Cat, I should have known the restaurant had issues with meal prep, I'm very sorry" says Leah
"we need to talk about you and Josh" says Cat
"what's there to talk about, as long as he's being pervy I won't go near him" says Leah
"both of us misunderstood her situation and yes I mean her situation not his, Megan has never EVER felt right as Josh, the same uncle that groped Maria used her insecurity to manipulate her, to sour her view of society, calling her an 'ugly man that must TAKE what he wants by force because no smart, beautiful girl will give him a real chance', after a few years Megan began believing it, you ARE her type, her therapist will give her tools to help reverse the programming, it will take at least two years and even when she has the toolset to help her, she can't do it alone, she will need help consistently until the therapy toolset becomes her default behavior" says Cat
"I'm not convinced they're trans" says Leah
"two years ago she tried faking prostate cancer so a surgeon could cut it off and four years ago she faked a prescription for hormone replacement meds, Maria in her infinite wisdom turned her in, which unfortunately only solidified Garth's created worldview that he imposed on Megan, her year in juvie only made her hate society more" says Cat
"that does sound like something they'd do, ok fine I'll help her but she has to apologize to my family for creeping on my little sister before I will consider dating her, my little sister is physically disabled, she's stuck in a wheelchair and when Megan creeped on her, well let's just say she hasn't left our parents house since, she's that terrified, it doesn't even matter if we as a family go out to an event together as a group, she won't exit the front door, the only time she goes outside is to use the backyard pool and the system our parents installed to easily transfer her to and from her wheelchair into and out of the pool added a side door to the house" says Leah
"apologies are a part of the therapy, however unless a written apology is enough, it won't sound sincere, she needs confidence in herself first, she needs to find her real voice, she'll sound too ignorant otherwise, though my opinion is she was hoping you'd confront her and she could come clean about what Garth did and how he changed her, I honestly don't see any other reason why she'd target your little sister" says Cat
"I'm going to go see her now, I'll let you know how it goes, I hope the food poisoning isn't too bad, my dad's not exactly a fan of yours and he recommended the restaurant" says Leah as she heads to see Megan
30 minutes later
"why the long process, I just want to see my girl" says Leah
"she's trying to distance herself from her past, she was talking with her trans mother this morning then went for a nap, she hasn't been sleeping well so we've been letting her sleep as much as she could, she only just woke up" says Nurse Halti
"so Jaren IS her mom, I knew it, they look too much alike" says Leah
"you must understand Serena and Diane are directly blood related, it wasn't a choice they made, their terminally ill father who was already nuts before the cancer got a gun and forced them to have sex because he wanted grandchildren before he died, at one point he put the gun in Diane's mouth after she resisted his demands, Serena also resisted and was hit with the gun, it went off and destroyed their TV, they didn't have a choice but to obey him" says Emelia
"so that's why it's a secret, is that why Megan is Megan and not Josh, because she doesn't want biological kids" asks Leah
"no, the situation involving their conception has nothing to do with it, her genetics may be messed up because of it but her being trans has nothing to do with how she came to be" says Emelia
"may I ask what Megan's intentions are with me" asks Leah
"her intentions or her hopes, because those are two different things with two different goals" says Nurse Halti
"let's start with intentions" asks Leah
"she wants to get better, she only agreed to therapy in hopes that she'd get better to the point where you become friends with her again, unfortunately you're also the only person she believes will be blunt enough with her and successfully lead her to recovery" says Emelia
"does her hospital stint have anything to do with the fact that Garth was arrested and has a trial date set" asks Leah
"we have no actual way of knowing if the two events are linked, all we know is chief Moore asked us to evaluate her to see if she was a risk to Maria, we expected a fight but she practically begged us to evaluate her, she came with us willingly, honestly aside from the fact that Garth groomed her to hate society and feel like she had to act a certain way, she hasn't given us much information about how she actually views the whole thing, for all we know she's hated Garth this entire time but because she's weaker gave in, we honestly don't know much, she only gives us as much information as we legally need to determine if she's a threat to Maria" says Emelia
"she's never been a threat to Maria, well maybe the shrine Megan has dedicated to Maria is concerning but as Megan sees it, having a full albino sister thrive is a sign from God that any sins her parents committed are forgiven, as Megan sees it Maria is a literal God given angel" says Leah
"we thought that might have been because of Garth" says Nurse Halti
"no, ironically it's the one part about her that never changed after Garth got a hold of her, she's always been religious, she's always believed in signs from God, Maria's albinism has never been fully explained to anyone because her eyes aren't affected nearly as much as they should be given how strongly the rest of her body is affected by it" says Leah
"she needed a cane the moment she entered the hospital, both the blind and elderly type" says Nurse Halti
"it's the harshness of the lights, she broke her nose jumping from a swing when she was little, it required several hours of surgery and a skin graft for the bridge of her nose, the skin doesn't act like normal skin, its shiny, usually she puts makeup on it to dull it, she's usually nearsighted, maximum fifteen feet" says Leah
"has she always run cool, it's a concern of ours, we feel that her recovery is being hampered by it" asks Nurse Halti
"she needs heat to heal from just about everything besides a cough, her backyard has a self heating sand pad that air is run through so she can sink down, it only covers her legs and torso, her arms and head never sink below, when she's sick her dad does twenty minute runs for Maria in it every half hour outside of meals, it's never failed to get her better alongside medical treatments, her running cool was a problem when they had to repair her nose and the surgeon was definitely not the top of his class, he left the bone partially out of place and as it healed it partially obstructed her nasal airway, which only adds to her thermal problems" says Leah
"you feel that the botched surgery made her internal temperature worse" asks Nurse Halti
"the hospital admitted as much after they did an xray, it's only three quarters the size it should be, her parents sued and the hospital settled out of court, paying for Maria's medical bills and then some, the settlement is where her mom gets the extra money so Maria could go on 'play dates' with Sarah, mostly to vent about Megan as well as just out of home meals in general, that surgeon was also fired and the medical board put him under review for malicious intent as they believed he botched the surgery because Maria's albinism is as prominent as it is and intended for her to suffer, he did admit to botching the surgery on purpose but maintained that it had nothing to do with Maria being an albino human, he was eventually charged and is serving a fifty year sentence for surgical malpractice involving young girls" says Leah
"ok you may go see her now, if you get any relevant medical information out of her please let us know but don't push her, her hope is that you will see her actions creeping out girls like your little sister were forced and agree to a date, she has both good dreams AND nightmares about you in this kind of situation, her nightmares involve you killing her in revenge, her dreams are where you accept her and eventually marry her" says Emelia
"I'd never kill her, that's the fear speaking thanks to Garth, all I personally require for her to be back on my good side is to make a good faith effort at working with the therapist, if that means I have to be there so be it, my sister however requires an apology, both written and verbal, she's physically disabled and in a wheelchair, Megan gave her quite the scare, she won't leave the house now, not even with the whole family" says Leah
"how do you expect her to apologize if it's obvious your sister is terrified of her, it seems obvious that it is not going to be possible" says Emelia
"The missing factor is me, if I'm there to block Megan if something happens it won't be an issue, I'm not usually around, I have a ton of modelling gigs to attend as well as award shows, I can't protect her most of the time as a result and her girlfriend wouldn't let me anyway, she believes that my sister needs to face these things alone, anyway if I get anything I'll let you know" says Leah as she enters Megan's room
"not that I'm not happy you're here Leah but I admit that I am a bit surprised, besides I'm sure you don't agree with me being trans, I know my dad will lose his mind" says Megan
"Meg I've always suspected that you were a girl inside, I only had a problem with you because of how you'd changed, how creepy you'd become, you need therapy and I need a girlfriend for an event tomorrow" says Leah
"so you helping me with my therapy is a transaction to you" asks Megan offended
"on its face sure but its not like I don't have girls willing to kill to be my plus one to an event, I'm choosing you for a reason, it would also be a test to see if we could work long long term" says Leah
"Cat told you didn't she, I swear I told her to keep that a secret" says Megan
"it's not a secret that you have feelings for me, I've always known, boy or girl you'd have always been my first choice" says Leah
"so this event, is it a date thing" asks Megan
"no, I need you to start your therapy first and show me you're committed to getting better before I'll feel comfortable enough to go on a date, aside from that, Lexie requires an apology from you, both written and verbal, even if I was comfortable dating you this instant, my parents would make a scene, Lexie may be my little sister but if my parents continue to get sicker it will be MY job to raise her, I can't put myself first, she's defenseless, she may have a girlfriend now but her wellbeing is my first priority, you don't have to do the verbal apology right away but it will be needed at some point, Lexie is so terrified that she won't leave the house at all, with family or otherwise" says Leah
"honestly I don't remember what happened, all I remember is that the cop tazed me three times, one moment I was talking to her about drawings, the next the cop was tazing me" says Megan
"you really don't remember trying to force your hand down her skirt" asks Leah
"no, though Garth had a strange control over me, an ability to make me do things, something laced in the pop he'd give me, all I know is that I'm back in full control now" says Megan
"wait so every incident wasn't actually you, it was whatever Garth gave you making you do it" asks Leah
"yes, I do mentally compliment girls with your skin tone but whatever drug it is turns it from a mental compliment to a physically violating action, never in a million years would I ever do what that drug makes me do to them without their consent, I admire them, I'm not physically attracted to them, I'm attracted strongly to you, though I'm sure that's completely off the table" says Megan
"Meg, I'm OPEN to a relationship but you need therapy first and I need to physically see that you're committed and open to the therapy and the things the therapist says, good or bad, my family won't let us be officially together until my little sister gets an apology, that doesn't mean I can't publicly bring you around" says Leah
"aside from accompanying me to therapy so I feel secure and safe enough to take in the advice, I don't think you should openly associate with me until my name gets cleared, your career could come crashing down if you show me off too early" says Megan
"there's the thoughtful girl I fell in love with, however I still need that plus one for tomorrow, I can get you a dress and everything" says Leah
"but it's probably a public event" says Megan
"that's what makeup is for, trust me you won't look like Josh, people won't know the difference and I'll never leave your side" says Leah
"oh ok, I think I'm going to nap" says Megan as she calls asleep and Leah goes to talk to Emelia
"did she say anything medically relevant" asks Emelia
"she admires girls with my skin tone, she's never intentionally violated them, my sister included, she remembered talking to my sister about her drawings then the next moment she remembers is when the police officer was tazing her, she doesn't remember anything in between, she says Garth laced her pop with something that turned her admiration thoughts into perverted actions" says Leah
"the same drugs used on Sarah and Juliet at a different concentration mix can have that effect, it can turn people aggressive" says Nurse Halti
"did she make any verbalizations about being in control" asks Emelia
"she said so proudly, however I need her for an event tomorrow afternoon, I'm receiving a reward and a plus one is required, I have a dress she can wear and my makeup artist can doll her up, nobody will know" says Leah
"the problem is we need a sworn statement from her now that we know she was drugged and had no power against their effects" says Emelia
"you'll get it but you need to know she won't associate with me as herself until her name is cleared, she's terrified openly associating with me before her name is cleared, oh and you should know it was my friend who informed the chief about Garth's whereabouts, her and I were celebrating getting awards, her dad was there too because he heard about restaurants being targets for rape date dosed drinks, he wasn't taking any chances, Garth dosed my drink, my friend's dad is active military, he is the one who cornered Garth, Garth is very strong, few people could successfully defend themselves against him, FBI agents or active military officers being the few exceptions, if my friends dad hadn't been there Officer Vega would have been out cold before he could call for backup, do you know Ryder Daniels" says Leah
"Ryder is a piece of work but he's nothing like Garth" says Nurse Halti
"I never said he was, Garth is about the same size and demeanor aside from Garth's anger problem, they're the same weight and height, there's no way Megan could have safely told Garth no and survived without being harmed, nobody could, when he was released last time he got scarier, that's why all the LAPD have are reports of him dosing drinks, nobody is willing to risk their lives standing up to him, usually the drinks get replaced, he thrives off the public running around the police do when they get a report he got another victim, he thrives off panic, making the trial play on television will only make him chuckle and keep him calm because he knows he can instil great fear into those watching, if they want a fair trial it needs to be hidden from the general public, all he'll do is make a horror show out of it if you do air it live, make sure everyone who has a say in his prosecution knows that" says Leah
"you're not sticking around here are you, I feel Megan may need you to boost her sense of security right now, she doesn't feel safe" says Nurse Halti
"I don't feel safe in a hospital, the last time I was in one for an extended period of time I was nearly raped" says Leah
"then maybe take her with you, we don't need her here to get the information and a list of things that caused the actions, the chief and the prosecutor who's in charge of Garth's case cleared her, however you have to make sure that she takes her medication every day, she already had her first hormone replacement dose today but she has to be consistent, in a year as long as she's been consistent she can get the reassignment surgery" says Emelia
"she won't want to go home because her 'dad' doesn't know and I doubt Serena does either and my parents won't let her stay over unless she apologizes and conflict resolution has never been her strong point" says Leah
"her vitals stabilized the moment you entered, she needs you around, if your parents have an issue then send them my way, as for your sister, she just has to ask nicely and Megan will apologize as well as explain what happened" says Emelia
"is she really stable enough to leave" asks Leah
"she's not unstable enough to stay and we can't keep her here against her will, not once the chief and prosecutor cleared her, they accepted the premise that Grant used Megan being trans to control her, the addition of being trigger drugged only strengthens her case, since she'll be leaving with you here are her release papers, all up to date with her new name, we took care of that with the government, she still has to file paperwork but they're allowing her medical records to use her preferred name" says Emelia as Leah signs the papers and goes to get Megan
"looks like you're coming home with me babe" says Leah
"but not as your girlfriend" says Megan
"a formality right now but it opens the door for a long term relationship with me, just keep your distance from my sister when we get home, I'll deal with your dad, get dressed" says Leah turning around
"you embarrassed to see me get changed or something" asks Megan as she changes
"no, it's just your body, it doesn't align with you your brain says you are, you're on hormones to become the woman you've long felt you should have been, it feels wrong to me to acknowledge the existence of the wrong body parts, just wait till you meet my makeup artist and the dress I chose, you'll feel right at home" says Leah as Megan finishes getting dressed and hugs her
"my 'dad' will go nuts when he finds out, no doubt I'll never be allowed back home, any chance we could swing by and see Maria before we leave, I need to apologize" says Megan
"absolutely, hey nurse, Halti is Maria still here, Megan wants to apologize to her" says Leah
"she's in the cafeteria, Sarah's sleeping for the first time since she was admitted, she's been terrified that she'd never wake up" says Nurse Halti
"thanks, I hope Sarah pulls through, that concoction won't respond to recovery meds the way you think it would, she needs fluids and lots of carrots" says Megan
"may I ask why carrots specifically" asks Nurse Halti
"I don't know the specifics, I just know he wanted me to replace him if he ever got charged and sent to jail, he told me what to keep away from victims, Sarah in particular has an issue holding nutrients that Carrots are high in, she also doesn't like them much" says Megan
"how do you know so much about Sarah" asks Leah nervous
"he knows a lot about his victims, it's very scary, he wanted me to make Sarah my slave so he taught me everything he knew about her, down to her food preferences and her schedule" says Megan
"her throat is weak, she can't swallow" says Emelia
"it doesn't matter how the nutrients get into her body so long as they do, she'll need a higher dose than you'd normally give someone her size, about twenty percent more, the deficiencies are why she has thermal issues" says Megan
"ok we'll work on it, you go apologize to Maria" says Emelia giving Megan a hug
In the cafeteria 20 minutes later
"I'm not talking to you Josh" says Maria
"I knew this was a bad idea" says Megan as she starts to turn to leave
"there are things you don't understand Maria, Josh isn't Josh, she's Megan and Garth used that knowledge to control her AND drug her" says Leah
"that still doesn't explain why she'd peep on me, it's creepy" says Maria
"she was afraid Garth was raping you, she'd read online that rape victims tend to cut, that's the evidence she was looking for, when she didn't see any cuts she felt relieved but felt it was her duty to keep checking" says Leah
"she could have asked me" says Maria
"I wasn't sure you'd tell me the truth, we've never been close, even less so after Garth got his grip on me, he told me that he'd kill you, mom and Daren if I didn't do everything he said, I told him I'd only do what he said if he left you alone entirely, he agreed but I felt like he was lying, that's why I'd peep on you, not because I wanted a look at you possibly naked, I take no pride in that I did see you partially naked, I was only trying to look out for you, I felt that if you knew that you and Darren would confront him and end up dead" says Megan as Maria sighs
"I guess from that perspective it makes sense, so you really feel more comfortable as a girl" says Maria
"yes and I know dad's going to go insane ad banish me, Serena on the other hand hopefully is more accepting of me" says Megan
"she's pretty busy, she has debts to pay back, you'll find we aren't a priority for her, we may get an hour or two a day of her attention if it's a slow day, just because someone is genetically tied to us doesn't mean we are suddenly more important Megan" says Maria as Cat shows up
"actually everything she's done since you two were born was in fact to your benefit, your mothers don't get along because of the original traumatic experience in which you two were created, if Megan wants to live with her nobody is stopping her, Greg however would absolutely disown Megan in a second and will do so when he finds out" says Cat
"dad isn't evil, he would never" says Maria
"he's technically a Valentine, once removed but still legally a Valentine, he may be miles better than Garth and a way better father to be around than Garth but Greg vastly misunderstands the transgender community and when you vastly misunderstand something you can fall victim to misinformation, in this case that trans people are groomed by trans people to groom more trans kids, a small selection of cases does not make all trans people criminals, that'd be like saying that Greg should be arrested for mob or gang ties simply because he's three quarters Italian, one simply does not justify the other, another metaphor could be that because you're a girl you just expect things to be handed to you because you're hot and in a multitude of cases high school girls who are hot and popular expect to be handed things all the time, Sarah needs time to heal, you might as well go home, I told Emelia to call you if Sarah's situation gets worse so in this case no news is good news" says Cat
"you expect me to stand up for Megan, I can certainly try but I'm terrible at negotiating with him the last time I tried negotiating with him last year for a free ice-cream cone on my birthday I couldn't hold my ground and ended up agreeing to pay for everyone's ice-cream cones, six months allowance down the drain" says Maria
"I'll do my best Megan, for now enjoy your new life in peace" says Maria as she hugs Megan
"I don't know peace, I've never known peace, not since uncle Garth groped you and I sacrificed myself to protect you, I don't know if I can enjoy peace but I can try" says Megan
"is there anything from home you want immediately" asks Maria
"my books mostly, the rest is tied to my past following Garth's orders" says Megan as Maria nods