Montrose Residence, that afternoon...

As Ian Levine was getting ready for his new life as a gay man and moving in with his father and stepfather, Tremaine McLaren was getting settled into his bedroom after a restful night's sleep that was required after a spell of jet lag. The incoming  college freshman was welcomed by Asha and her parents after he was kicked out of his home in Forsyth for being queer.

And at the moment, Tremaine was finishing up with unpacking his belongings just as his cousin Asha was at the door. "It's so good to see you after all this time away," she gushed. "I promise you that you're going to have a ball here in Los Angeles."

"I look forward to it," Tremaine replied, setting his now-empty suitcases on his bed before ushering Asha into his room. "It'll be good for me since I was mainly fit to be tied back in Georgia with waiting on A'Nia and Ra'Nira hand and foot while babysitting their kids. If it wasn't for the acceptance letter from USC, I'd be stuck in Georgia with playing fetch-and-carry for everyone while attending college at Gordon State."

"Nothing wrong with being an in-state kid," Asha commented.

"Well, it's even worse when I had to hide my sexuality for the longest and dealing with everyone asking me when I would find a girl to marry."

Asha's face grew cloudy, remembering Antoine's conversation they shared before Tremaine arrived. "I'm sorry that you got kicked out," she said quietly. "How are you holding up?"

Tremaine shrugged. "Better than I thought. Aunt Natalie was kind enough for me to stay with her until the time came to come here and stay with you. But Mom and my sisters made it clear that I wasn't welcome unless I married a woman or ended up in a body bag. In short, there's no love lost between me and my home life in Georgia."

"That's their loss," Asha said as she came up to Tremaine and wrapped him in a hug. "But at least you get to live a great life here in California. And you get to be a mentor for someone."

"About that, what is it about this guy that used to be a girl?" Tremaine asked, a look of confusion on his face. "I mean, I know enough about Levine and the homophobic and anti-male comments that were made. What I don't understand is how it came to be like this?"

Asha sighed, giving her cousin a wan smile. "Antoine placed a powerful and irreversible curse on my ex-friend when he was a she and spilled coffee on Antoine after insulting his manhood and sexuality," she explained. "Antoine got so pissed off as did Aunt Kaneva and...well, let's just say that Ivy Levine's gone but Ian Levine's now alive."

"And as for the TikTok vids and blogs?"

"All shut down. What's more is that he can't change his gender or anything. Not only that, he cursed all doctors with death if they were foolish enough to fulfill his requests. And you already know the power of a voodoo witch. Their words are law and no one, not even themselves, can revoke it."

"Damn," Tremaine hissed, shaking his head. "So, what's going to happen now?"

"For the most part, Ian's moving in with his dad and his husband in Downey and they'll teach him the art of being a man: grooming, hygiene, how to act, being the GM- the gay man. Basically, they're giving him a crash course for Ian's life. Of course, you being here as his guide is going to help wonders."

"I dunno," Tremaine said uneasily as he zipped up the empty suitcases before placing them in the walk-in closet. "I can't work with anyone who acts like a total asshole. If this guy is going to be worse than his old female version, then I-"

"There's no need to fear about that," Asha interrupted. "Antoine's added some failsafes to make sure that Levine's treating you with respect with the power to amplify the curse if he thinks about going  sour on you. One wrong move, and all bets will be off. No one messes with a Deveraux or a Montrose and gets away with it. You're family, and that makes you one of us."

Tremaine nodded. "I guess I can get with that," he replied. "So, what's the move for today?"

"Well, you and I are joining Antoine as we're set to have dinner with Ian and his family. It's going to be semi-formal for the most part. You'll also meet Ian as well and you'll get to lay down the rules that Antoine will magically bind to Ian so he'll follow without any hesitation."

"That does sound awesome. And I guess he could use a guide who's around his age to help him understand life as a gay man."

"That's the spirit," Asha cheered. "I promise you that Ian will be on his best behavior and Antoine will make sure of it. I'll help you pick out a good outfit to wear tonight."

"Cool," Tremaine replied, smiling faintly. "Just make sure that he remains on a tight leash."

Asha let out a laugh. "Boy, you goin' to make Levine's life interesting as hell."

"I'll bet."

*****************

The Levine-Ericsson Residence, later that evening...

Ian huffed a deep breath as he finished getting dressed in a pastel-themed Ralph Lauren outfit that was delivered to him by Lorelei. "Well, bro, there's no point in beating around the bush," he muttered to himself as he fretted with the collar of his dress shirt. "Antoine Deveraux is as bad as his word and made you into a gay man, something that you'd hate when you were Ivy Levine. With this curse unbreakable and you soon to be bound to the rules that your guide will lay on you, you gotta take this all in with a heaping spoonful of salt. And since no one's going to help you break this curse, you gotta adapt to the rules and accept the consequences."

Gentle reader, Ian's first few hours at his new home with his father and stepfather were full of ominous tension despite the older men making sure that Ian would have a good time. From a men's only shopping spree to a late lunch, the young man knew that anything that he'd say or did in a negative matter would come back to haunt him with a vengeance. And with Antoine Deveraux and his family set to arrive for dinner alongside his designated "gay guru" and Ian's mother and sisters; he knew that he would have to be on his best behavior if he was to have his new journey easier than it was.

"No going back now," Ian continue to motivate himself as he fussed with the dress collar and pendant. "No going back."

Downstairs, the doorbell rang twice. "Ian, they're here," Joseph's voice rang from downstairs. "Time to greet our guests."

"Coming," Ian hollered as he grabbed his diner jacket. To himself, "Let the good times roll."

It was time for dinner, gentle reader. As one would say when it came to the unexpected, anything can and will happen. For Ian Levine, he and his mentor would meet at last. Turn to the next chapter and see what I mean.

Don't even think about getting comfortable, folks, because Ian and Tremaine will meet at last with more magic, snide comments, and pop culture references in full play! That's coming up in the next chapter, so don't you dare miss out!

Dedicating this out to Nablai and goncalobooks.

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