After everything that had happened—after years of quiet change and growing up—Kris Dreemurr stood in the doorway of their old family home and felt something finally settle into place. The house was theirs now. Purchased again after their mother passed away naturally, it no longer felt weighed down by the past. Instead, it felt open. Familiar. Steady, there was no more SOUL controlling their actions.

Life hadn’t suddenly become perfect, but it had become genuine.

Kris had opened up to Susie, to Noelle, and to the people closest to them about their struggles with identity and self-understanding. Taking things one day at a time helped. As did routine and therapy. Working shifts at the local diner in Hometown brought simple comforts—the hum of conversation, the clink of dishes, the warmth of regular customers who greeted them with easy smiles. They also had a change of pace in their life too, their little bundle of joy, a child of their own, named Dot, a seven-year-old human, bright-eyed and endlessly curious. Kris had taken Dot in when they were only one year old, and had chosen to care for them every day since. Dot reminded Kris of themself as a child—quiet but thoughtful, imaginative, stubborn in gentle ways. Watching Dot grow felt like something delicate and hopeful, a reminder that the future could be shaped with patience and care.

Today on a Saturday afternoon it was one of those peaceful days where only friends could make it a little chaotic, Kris was sat curled up on the couch, watching the old television glow softly in the dim living room. Noelle leaned against the armrest, calm and attentive as always, while Susie sprawled across the cushions without a care, plus Berdly who had unironically barged in unannounced, promptly nicknamed the TV “Tenna,” insisting it was clearly sentient and severely underappreciated. No one bothered arguing with him. It was simpler to let him talk. Laughter filled the room, voices overlapping in a comfortable, familiar rhythm.

Outside, in the front yard, Dot was completely absorbed in play. Nicholas and Jasper Holiday ran around them, Susie and Noelle’s kids laughing loudly as the three of them made up rules on the spot. The grass beneath their feet was worn thin from use, the afternoon air filled with easy joy.

For a moment, everything felt just right.