Question Sted 1 - Pegasus

Pegasus (version 4)
by Xaltatun of Acheron
All Rights Reserved, except those ceded to the Whateley Authors Group.

This is fan fiction for the Whateley Academy series. It may or may not match the timeline, characters, and continuity, but since it's fan fiction, who cares?

This is the first story about Sted “Ponygirl” Lancaster. The entire series, at least at the present time, is:

*Pegasus (v4)
*Welcome to Whitman
*Fragment from It's A Bird!
*To Train a Ponygirl (up to, but not including, the scenes with Fubar)
*Aftermath
*Ponyglrl’s Combat Final (game to come)
*What I did on my Christmas Vacation (second edition)
*Lizards (in preparation)
*Fashion Note
*Aspidistra
*Wine Dark Sea

Out of continuity:

*Pegasus (deleted scenes)
*Welcome to Whitman (deleted scene)
*Roommates


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Sted stretched in his bed and turned to look at the clock. 5:30, the same as it was every day when he woke up. The 14 year old boy slid out of bed and sat momentarily on the edge as he silently repeated the morning prayer of thankfulness for being given a new day.

This morning he tried to put the actual feeling of thankfulness in place as he repeated the words. He had discovered that trick a few months earlier, and it did indeed seem to brighten his day a bit. Maybe it was all in his mind, but then, what wasn’t?

He slid out of his pajamas, leaving them lying neatly on the bed, and then walked quietly into the bathroom. He looked in the mirror over the sink and silently admired his body. It was heavily built for fourteen going on fifteen year old boy and solidly muscled. What it wasn’t was very masculine looking, or rather very teenage looking. His voice hadn’t broken yet, and the rest of puberty seemed to be taking its own sweet time as well.

He frowned at his close cropped brown hair as he took stock. It had not been behaving. Normally it stood up, but for the last week or so it seemed like it wanted to lie down flat against his skull except for an inch or so wide strip in the exact center of his brow line and running all the way back to the other end. And it might not stop there where the rest of his hair did. He’d noticed a roughness to his skin along his spine for the last few days.

He shrugged and stepped into the shower. A few minutes later he stepped out and dried himself off, wincing slightly at the tender spot that had occurred at the base of his spine. It seemed to have happened at the same time as his hair started misbehaving, and also at the same time as something really odd seemed to be happening to his feet.

It never occurred to him to tell his parents. “Life,” his father was fond of repeating, “has its painful times. Be a man and just bear up under them.” The spot at the end of his tailbone wasn’t painful unless he hit it, and normally nothing touched it, even when he sat.

Unfortunately, some of the kids at school had noticed the change in his hair style. He grimaced at the memory, and wished that it would go back to looking the same as it had. A moment later, he felt a sudden twisting sensation, and the hair on the image in the mirror seemed to stand up straight again. He ran a hand through it and stepped back. It certainly didn’t feel straight!

Whatever had happened, the hair on the image in the mirror was now back flat, the way it had been before the twisting sensation. He took a deep breath and then ordered his hair to look right. Its image obediently stood up, but it still didn’t feel like it was standing. He told the image to lay back down, and it did.

He thought a moment. What if he wanted long, golden blond hair? His image obediently changed, but the result was hardly flattering. It looked patchy, like pieces were missing and other pieces shifted at impossible angles. Well, angles that were impossible for a self-respecting head of hair, anyway. He experimented for a minute, finally getting the image in the mirror to behave the way hair ought to behave. He frowned a moment. Had he discovered a new method of deluding himself, or would anyone else see the illusion?

After a moment’s thought, he dashed back to get a digital camera, and took a picture of the image in the mirror. The camera dutifully showed the same image.

He dismissed the image and then replaced it with his hair standing up as it always had. He might as well see how long it would last. Then he headed back into his bedroom to get dressed for the day and start collecting his schoolwork.

As he sat at his desk, he finally let the word he had been trying not to think of into his mind. Mutant. It wasn’t impossible; mutants were supposed to show up at puberty, and he was definitely due, possibly overdue. What scared him was what his family, church, friends and schoolmates would think.

“You are,” the remembered voice of his father thundered in his head, “as God made you. Be a man. Deal with it.” He knew how far he’d get throwing that back in the old man’s face.

His church? Pastor Snell had preached one of the ten sermons on the terrors of Hell that his denomination required each year, with reference to the evils of mutants, just the last week.

His friends? The kids at school? Forget it. The school counselor? He frowned. Maybe.

An hour later the family sat down to breakfast. As usual his father, Ben, said a short blessing over the food. Ben frowned at him in thought.

“You seem to be distressed over something,” he finally said.

Oh, shit! Sted took a deep breath into his barrel chest. It never paid to lie to his father, and in any case it would come out sooner or later. “Uh, I think I might be becoming a mutant.”

The way everyone froze in place was almost comical. The only reason you couldn’t have heard a pin drop was because the pin wouldn’t have dared. Sted tried to avoid squirming as he watched the expressions chase themselves across his father’s face.

“I take it that your hair style isn’t exactly what you would want,” he finally said.

Sted let out his breath. “No, it isn’t. It’s that and ... other things.”

“Act in haste, repent at leisure,” Ben finally pronounced. “We will say absolutely nothing to anyone about this until I have had time to think it over and find out some things.” He fixed Sted’s younger sister, Sadie, with his eyes as he said it.

She gulped. “My lips are sealed.”

“Shouldn’t we send him to the doctor?” Sted’s mother, Marge, asked.

“That’s an idea,” Ben said slowly. “Not our regular doctor though. He’s connected to the church, and I don’t want anyone from the church to know until we’ve figured out what to do.” Sted breathed another sigh of relief at that pronouncement. “I’ll see if I can find a specialist with a reputation for keeping his mouth shut.”


The doctor spent all morning examining Sted. Afterwards, Ben, Marge and Sted walked into the doctor’s office and sat down in front of the desk, waiting for him. A minute later, he came in from the back door, still frowning at a stack of printout.

They introduced themselves with a bit of reserve.

“Well,” the doctor, whose name was Frank, said, “I’m not sure whether to describe this as good news or bad news, so let’s get to it. First, Sted is definitely a mutant. There are two sets of physical changes, plus several mutant abilities.

“The first set of changes seems to involve his hair, ears, tailbone and feet. They seem to be progressing quite slowly as such things go, so you’ve got some time to adjust before things get too far from normal.

“First, his hair has definitely changed to a mane. That’s finished; all that’s needed is to wait for the mane part to grow out. That seems to be happening at the normal rate for hair, so it might be a year or more before it reaches its full length.

“Second, something is definitely happening to his ears. It’s a bit too soon to tell exactly what, except that they’re growing longer and pointier. How big they’ll finish up is anyone’s guess.

“Third, the mass on his tailbone is definitely the stub of a tail. Again, there’s no way of telling yet what it’s going to look like.

“Finally, his feet are definitely reshaping themselves into hooves that belong somewhere in the eqquus family: that is, horses, zebras and donkeys. That’s not exactly common, but it happens often enough that we’ve got the process mapped, and it’s about 10% along.”

“Cloven hooves?” Ben asked a bit shakily.

“No, that’s a completely different family. Horse’s hooves have an essentially unbroken nail around the front: his big toe is growing together with the rest of the toes, not separately as with a cloven hoof.” Ben relaxed in relief.

“Since mutations seem to be consistent, I think we can reasonably expect a horse’s tail and horse’s ears when his body is done with the changes. Although it’s still early and there might be other surprises.”

He paused for comments. When he didn’t get any, he continued.

“Now, that’s the fairly obvious part. The next part is going to be more of a shock. The blood work and a number of smaller changes indicate you’re going to lose a son and gain a daughter.”

“You’re kidding,” Marge said incredulously.

“In a way, I wish I was. A very small number of mutants undergo a sex change, and it’s never an easy experience, especially on top of the rest of what’s happening. The blood work shows that puberty has begun, and it definitely isn’t a normal male puberty. It also isn’t a normal female puberty either. I wasn’t able to find a good match in a quick search. The physical changes are subtle, but they’re definitely female. What the whole picture looks like? I really can’t say at this point, other than that it would be prudent to begin introducing him to the way the other half lives.”

Ben drew a deep breath. “I can’t say it makes a whole lot of difference. He’s not going to be able to stay with us once his appearance changes too much, so if he switches sex, well, we’ll simply have to roll with it.”

“Which brings us to powers,” the doctor continued. “He’s definitely got some level of illusion, he’s quite a bit stronger and faster than he should be for his age, and he’s gotten a bit smarter. There are some indications that he may have some magic user talents, and he may also have some gadgeteer talents. Beyond that it’s something for the specialists, especially since he’s still developing.”

All three of them nodded.

“None of that is particularly dangerous except possibly the magic user, and for that you can see a local wizard. There are several that take new magic users under their wing for their first few lessons.”

“Good,” Ben said. “I’ll want a referral list.”

The doctor reached into a file and pulled out a sheet of paper. He checked it and then slid it across the desk.

“Finally, that brings us to further education and training for Sted here. It’s good you’ve already decided that he can’t continue his education here. There are a number of prep schools that specialize in mutants.”

“Hogwarts?” Marge asked.

The doctor chuckled. “Hogwarts doesn’t exist, although it’s a useful bit of fiction to keep the public away from the very real prep schools. We have six prep schools here in North America that specialize in mutants, however we can rule five of them out right away.”

“Oh?” Ben asked.

“Well, all six have similar, and quite good, academics, but three of them are associated with other country's governments: Karedonia, Mexico and Quebec. The other two say they specialize in baselines who are studying magic or psychic powers. In fact about half their student body is mutants, but they only allow relatively normal looking mutants whose powers are either relatively low level or fairly unobtrusive. It lets them keep a low profile, and it provides good learning environments for the majority of mutants that do look relatively normal and have relatively low level powers.”

“I see. Sted isn’t going to look at all normal.”

“Exactly. He’s probably also an Exemplar 3, although maybe only 2. In addition, four of the five aren’t set up to handle transsexuals.”

“I take it the other one is in the San Francisco Bay area,” Ben said dryly.

“Actually, it’s near Boy’s Town in Chicago. However, it’s ruled out for the other reasons. The remaining candidate is the Whateley Academy in New Hampshire.”

“I don’t remember hearing anything about it,” Ben said as the other two simply looked puzzled.

“Well, they do try to keep a low profile.”

“Quite understandable.”

“The basic thing is that they’re ‘all else,’ and that covers a lot of territory. They’re expensive, but about half of the student body is on some kind of financial assistance. There’s also no way of making the experience safe, as much as they try.”

“The only safety in the world is that which you make for yourself,” Ben quoted as Marge looked troubled. “Even so...”

“True. However, there aren’t any alternatives. So the next step is to apply to Whateley, and that brings up the question of what to do in the meantime.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well, you’re a bit late for spring term, and the time to the next fall term will take long enough that his appearance will no longer be viable wherever he’s going to school. I don’t suppose it would be possible to home school him until school lets out for the summer?”

Marge brightened. “Actually, it would. We decided I should stay home with the kids as long as they were in school. We’ve never considered home schooling because, well, we’ve got good schools where we are.”

Ben asked: “You mentioned illusion? I know I’ve seen him change his appearance.”

“I doubt if he could hold it all day at this point in his development. He still needs to concentrate to keep it up, and in any case it’s not good to try to use that for extended periods until he’s got a lot more practice. Too much risk of burnout.”

Ben frowned a moment. “How sure are you about the sex change?”

“At the moment, I’d have to say moderately. Neither the blood tests nor the physical changes are absolutely conclusive yet. Come back in two weeks, and I’ll be able to say more.”

“Well,” Ben said slowly, “I’ve never believed in hitting a situation cold if I could prepare for it. Well begun is half done, and all that. Staying home will give a chance to practice with just him and Marge.” He nodded decisively. “We’ll have to look into it.”

“Good,” the doctor said. “Now, I’d suggest another exam in two weeks to see how things are progressing. I’d also like to suggest you make daily measurements; while things are progressing slowly now, that’s a bit unusual and there’s no reason to think it’ll keep to a leisurely pace.”

Ben nodded. “Excellent idea. The more we know, the better.”

“Now, I’d also like you to see a specialist for a powers evaluation. That’s not absolutely mandatory; Whateley will do their own evaluation when he arrives. However, a specialist can help for between now and then, and it’ll give Whateley a better idea of what to prepare for.”

“What about a specialist for the sex change?”

“Well, I hadn’t considered it because most specialists that deal with sex changes deal with transsexuals; that is, people who are deliberately changing their sex because their current sex feels wrong to a crippling degree. That’s a well-trodden path, and Sted simply isn’t on it. You might be better off with a regular therapist that deals with sexual adjustment issues. In any case, that might not be necessary.”

“Oh?” Ben said.

“Well, besides the fact that we’re not exactly sure that’s what’s going on,” the doctor said as Sted looked relieved, “people’s reactions to undergoing this kind of forced sex change vary quite a bit. They range from total resistance and outright denial to stoic acceptance. A few even see it as a bit of an adventure. It mostly depends on Sted’s reactions and how much mentoring your wife can give in the time available.”

The doctor looked at Sted.

“Well,” he said hesitantly, “as dad said, soonest begun and all that. Besides, what you prepare for never happens.” I hope, he muttered under his breath. His father frowned and then obviously decided to ignore the side comment.

The next week was a whirlwind of activity as they prepared to withdraw Sted from school. The process hit a few bumps; bureaucrats tend to want reasons to do what they are required to do anyway. However, Ben simply plowed right on over the bumps, leaving a few bruised egos behind.

By the next Monday, everything was ready. Ben left for work and Sadie left for school.

“Well,” Marge told her son after she stacked the breakfast dishes in the sink, “it’s time to start.”

“I guess,” he mumbled. Then he straightened up with an effort. “Yes, it is. What do you have?”

She laughed at his discomfiture. “Oh, nothing that quite justifies a death march. Let’s go upstairs and get started.”

He walked to the stairs, stepping carefully.

“Those shoes don’t fit any more, do they?” his mother said, observing his progress.

“Uh, not really.”

“I thought they might be getting a bit awkward about now. Take them off and go barefoot for a while.”

“But Mom,” he said, shocked.

“In the house. I know, a well brought up boy doesn’t go barefoot. Well, you might be turning into a well brought up ponygirl, and I really haven’t figured out whether she’s going to go barefoot or have to get shod. And if you do eventually get shod, I don’t know what we’re going to do about the floors. What I do know is that those shoes aren’t going to stay on your feet much longer. We’ll deal with the rest when it happens.”

Sted sat on the stair and slid them off of his feet. “It does feel better. I keep wanting to flex my toes, and I don’t have toes any more.” He shook his head and then carried the shoes up the stairs to his room, the nail around the growing hooves clicking on the steps.

A minute later his mother walked in, carrying an armful of clothes and a folder. “Get undressed and let’s see what we’ve got,” she said as she put the folder down on his desk and spread the clothes out on the bed. “I think we’ll start out simple. A training bra, panties, skirt and blouse.”

He slid out of his clothes with a grimace, and stood looking at the items of clothing. He picked up the panties and slid them on. Marge looked at the way they fit and shook her head.

“No, that will not do. They’re the right size, but...” She hurried out and came back with another garment. “Here. Try this.” It was a pair of tight fitting shorts.

He put them on.

“Good. We’ll have to deal with the bulge later. Now the training bra.”

“Mother!” he responded as she held the garment up in front of him.

She fixed her son with a look. “Hold still.” She reached out and massaged one breast. He flinched slightly.

“I thought they looked a bit puffy. Your breasts are beginning to come in.” She held the garment out to him again. He sighed and then took it and looked at it, turning it around in his hands a bit. Then he slid his arms into the straps and fastened the snaps behind him with an almost unconscious gesture.

“What?” she said, frowning. “I expected... Oh! Right.”

“Huh?”

“The doctor said you’re a gadgeteer. I was expecting you to fumble the snaps the first time, but you wouldn’t, would you? That might be useful,...” she trailed off in obvious thought.

“What?”

“Oh, I was just thinking about your hooves. I found a number of leatherwork patterns for boots to go over hooves to avoid damaging the floors. I’ve never learned leatherwork, but you might be able to pick it up quickly. Now let’s get the blouse on. See if you like the pattern.”

He turned the garment over in his hands, puzzled.

“It buttons in back.”

He slid his arms into it and buttoned it, frowning again as he recognized the plunging neckline in the back.

“Now let’s see,” she said as she touched his shoulder to turn him around. “Good. The V comes just above the bra strap and just below where your mane is going to end.” She ran a finger down the line of his mane, and nodded as she felt the bristles. “I’m not sure, but it does look like it might come in red. That would be a pretty color.”

She nodded. “Now the skirt, and we’re done.”

Sted picked up the skirt and looked at it, and then stepped into it, leaving the zipper at the back. He looked in the mirror and frowned at the way his blouse looked, and then lifted the skirt and pulled his blouse until it was straight.

“Good,” his mother told him.

“I thought so,” he grinned back at her. “I was puzzled until I remembered dad telling Sadie that how you dressed was a tool to impress people the way you wanted them to see you. Then I guess the gadgeteer thing kicked in, and I knew how to straighten it out.”

“And that’s right. The thing is, a lot of people don’t get it. Girls usually get it when they become teenagers and then forget; guys usually don’t get it at all.”

“So how’s this?” he asked as he put on the blond illusion.

“Wow!”

A few minutes later they were downstairs in the kitchen. “Do the dishes,” Marge told her strange daughter, and stepped back to see how she would do at the task.

Sted walked up to the sink and looked at it, almost automatically classifying the available tools. He nodded and then filled the sink, giving it a squirt of detergent. A few minutes later all of the breakfast dishes were sparkling clean and neatly arranged in the drainer.

“So, how was your day?” Ben asked Sted at dinner.

Sted took a quick look at Sadie, and then answered. “A lot better than I expected. Housework is mostly tools, and my gadgeteer talent seems to make it rather easy to know what to do. Schoolwork is definitely different without a teacher! I’m getting the hang of moving around in a skirt. I guess the hardest part is my hooves; they haven’t finished adapting yet.”

“You aren’t having any embarrassment about dressing like a girl?”

“I’d better not! Actually, it finally sunk in that I’m never going to look normal no matter how I dress, so I either dress for comfort, or I dress to create an impression.”

Ben nodded thoughtfully. “The more confidence you project, the easier it is to carry anything off. You carry yourself like a princess, you can dress like a princess. Dress like a princess and carry yourself like a scullery maid, they’ll wonder where you stole the clothes.”

“I see. I don’t think I’ll have all that much problem there,” he grinned.

“You’ve got a confidence boost?”

“I seems like it. Might be the Exemplar 3.”

Ben nodded again. “Makes sense. Do you think you’ll be ready to go out in public for the doctor’s appointment this weekend?”

“For an hour or so at a time. That’s how long I can hold an illusion. Like this.” His hair suddenly shifted to the long blond tresses that tumbled over his shoulders in an artless disarray.

Sadie whistled. “Kewl!”

“The problem is going to be shoes. Mom says she found some leatherwork patterns for hooves, and if we can find the tools I’ll try to make some.”


The wizard, Babushka, looked like a little old grandmother from the old country; flowing ankle length dress and brightly colored shawl included.

“So you’re Sted,” she exclaimed as she saw him. “That’s a nice illusion you’re projecting. It really fits your personality. Let’s get you inside where I can see what you’ve got to work with.” She bustled around for a few minutes getting everyone comfortable with coffee and, in Sted’s case, a cup of hot chocolate.

“Now let’s see,” she said as she sat in a comfortable chair next to a stand with a crystal ball in a holder occupying the place of honor. “You’ve got,” she picked up the ball and held it up between them.

“Oh, my. The doctor’s right, but there’s another real surprise waiting for you. Let’s leave that for later, though. Right now, let’s see you light that candle.” She waved at a wax candle in a candle holder that would have graced an 18th century mansion.

“How?” Sted asked, brow furrowed.

“Well, everyone does it a bit differently. Since you’re also a gadgeteer, I’d think you’d want some idea of how it would work. Warm up the wick to draw up the wax, bring it to the ignition point, something like that.”

“Oh.” Sted said a bit blankly, and then the candle lit with a soft whoosh.

“Great!” Babushka said. “So how did that work for you?”

“Like you said,” Sted answered. “I looked at it, and then I knew what had to be done. But I’m not sure where the energy came to get it started?”

“Well, that’s what being a wizard is all about. That energy came from you, and that’ll be a major limitation until you learn to tap the other sources of energy around you. That’ll come or it won’t. I rather think it will come, but it may take a while, and I really think it’s better if you take the time to learn a bit before you can put a whole lot of energy behind it.” She nodded vigorously.

“A mighty house requires a good foundation,” Ben put in.

“Well said,” the wizard replied.

“Now for the surprise. Have you ever seen the Tenchi movies?”

“That’s the one with the space pirate? Ryoko? Yes, they’re fun!”

“I was thinking more of the little animal that turns into a space ship and seems to like the princess. What’s it called?”

“A cabbit. A cat rabbit.”

“Right. See if you can change into one.”

“Huh?” Sted looked doubtful, and then the space around him twisted, and suddenly there was a little furry creature sitting in his chair. The cabbit hopped off of the chair and into the wizard“s grandmotherly lap as Ben and Marge looked on in astonishment.

“That’s great!” she said as the animal landed in her lap with a soft plop. She picked it up and scratched it behind its ears while looking at it intently. Then she bent over and put it on the floor.

“Time to turn back,” she pronounced.

A moment later, the space above the cabbit twisted and Sted stood there, looking more than a bit scared about the whole thing.

“What,” Ben asked, “was that about?”

“Well,” the wizard answered slowly, “Sted seems to have four forms, but I’m not going to have either a centaur or a winged horse in the living room!”

“Understandable.”

“We may find some place private and outdoors later to practice those transformations and see what abilities she has in those forms. That little animal seems to be pretty much invulnerable, as well as having some kind of flying ability. I can’t really tell what abilities the other two forms have, although they’re not exactly the same as Sted’s normal form. She’s going to be an interesting puzzle.”

Originally, this had a section to get Sted to Whateley, but stuff intervened. I’ve put the next section with the deleted scenes. This may get plumped out with something else later, but right now the muse is saying “eh.” Sted arrives at Whateley in the next story, “Welcome to Whitman.”