Lisa and Ty conversed quietly, reclining on patio chaise lounges. The sun was going down, and there was a pleasant breeze. Ty concentrated for a moment. "I've soundproofed the patio temporarily for our privacy," he told Lisa.
"Your family seems very nice," said Lisa. "It's been a pleasure meeting them."
"Oh, they've been on their best behavior," said Ty. "This was _nothing_ like our typical evening. They're obviously trying to keep me happy, and they know doing that requires making a good impression on you. Still, it was nice having a pleasant dinner with them for once, whatever the reason."
Lisa asked, "Do you think they'll get over the fear any time soon?"
"I've been thinking about that a lot. They've mostly experienced my freezing them, and forcing them on a 'vacatiom', but they haven't really seen me use my powers in a positive way. I mean, they saw that I could do my chores instantly, but at the point when I did it, the confrontation were going badly, so I don't think anyone really considered that to be positive.
"I'm conflicted about how to deal with the issue. On the one hand, never using my power in any way they might notice, or ever talking about it, might help things go back to normal. But I don't actually think they'll forget, only gradually become less fearful.
"On the other hand, if I gradually introduce small uses of my powers for positive things, especially things that benefit them, that might do more to take the fear subside.
"Perhaps you noticed how polite and considerate Dustin was. He has basically _never_ been nice to me before. If he was just afraid, I think he's try to just stay out of my notice as much as possible, but it seems like he's actually been trying to ingratiate himself to me, so I think he might be working toward asking me to do some favor for him. And if that's the case, I'll gladly use my power to do something for him, as long as it's reasonable."
Lisa thought for a moment. "You obviously know them better than I do. I have no idea which approach would work best."
"I'll keep thinking about it. Since I haven't yet had any good ideas about how I might use my power to do favors for them, it might get them thinking about it if I make small but visible uses of my power for my own benefit. For instance, they haven't let me have a cell phone yet, saying that I'm not old enough, and that they can't afford it. Dustin has had one for three years, so age isn't the real issue, though the cost may be a legitimate concern. If I asked them for a cell phone now, they'd probably be afraid to say no, but if they agree, instead of letting them buy me one, I could conjure it up in front of them."
"Hmmm. I could see that going either way," Lisa said.
"Right?" Ty agreed. "I'm not getting anywhere continuing to think about it. Maybe I should just do it.
"Or," Ty said, as a sudden realization hit him. "When you first met me, I had already transformed myself quite a bit. You almost immediately noticed that I was, ummm, 'excessively endowed'. When I transformed us back, did you notice that I'm actually rather underdeveloped?"
"I wasn't going to say anything " Lisa said. "You weren't underdeveloped when it mattered to me."
Ty smiled. "My being underdeveloped was one of the things Dustin taunted me about continually. My first use of my power was wishing he knew what it felt like, and I told you how that went. Anyhow, in the big family discussion, June said that they'd been concerned about my development, and apologized for not having done anything. I suppose she meant not taking me to a doctor. Anyhow, I said that they didn't need to do anything, we could discuss it later, and it wasn't urgent. Of course, I had in mind that I could fix the problem myself, using my power to change my bodily development to that of a typical 15 year old boy. I should probably do that, and perhaps just happen to mention to them that it's done.
"On a different subject, would you think it too forward of me, when I take you home in a little while, to ask that you take me to your bedroom briefly? If that won't freak out your parents, that is."
"Ty, we're way beyond the point where I might consider anything you asked for to be 'too forward'. My parents won't have any issue with that, and I'll be happy to show you my room, but because it's a school night, I can't invite you in for long enough to 'do' anything."
"I've got some ideas about the issue of having time when we want it," Ty said, "but for now, I mostly just would like to see your room. Oh, I expect we'll actually 'do' something, but not in the sense you were thinking."
Lisa blushed a bit. "Well, now you've certainly piqued my curiosity!"
"You'll find out soon." Ty smiled. "Is there anything you want to discuss before going home?"
"I've been wondering how we're going to get enough 'alone time'," Lisa said. "My parents said in The Talk that they don't expect me to be abstinent, but I'm not sure how they feel about my being non-abstinent in their house. I'm guessing that you probably have similar concerns."
"My parents and I haven't had The Talk. They know I've taken Health Ed class in school. I think they've had The Talk with Dustin. He's brought dates to the house occasionally, but I doubt that they've done it in his room. Anyhow, under the present circumstances they probably won't refuse anything I ask, but I think they'll be happier if I don't rub their noses in it, so I think that if we do anything in my room, we'd better be pretty circumspect about it.
"I'm more concerned," he continued, "about whether your parents will be OK with you spending a lot of time with me, and whether we'll need to make up excuses for spending time together."
"I'm pretty sure it won't be an issue," Lisa assured him, "and while I obviously won't give them any details about our 'play time', I don't think they'll have any concerns about what we're doing. They were mostly concerned that I pick 'nice boys', and not get pregnant. I'm sure after they get to know you, they'll be satisfied that you're z 'nice boy'." She suddenly grinned. "Even if I know otherwise."
"Sounds good," said Ty. "Shall we be going?"
She nodded, and they went back into the house.