The narrator finally arrives in the City of Smoke and Lights, and she immediately observes that it is everything that she imagined it would be. She also notes that the city is full of trans women. The first friend she makes is a trans woman named Kimaya, who helps her when she disembarks the bus, looking lost and uncertain. Kimaya brings the narrator to the Street of Miracles, where most of the trans women in the City live and work. There she meets even more femmes, including Kimaya’s lover, Rapunzelle, the beautiful Lucretia, and the fierce Valaria. The narrator explains that, according to legend, the Street of Miracles first came into existence when a trans woman was killed by a cis man seeking sex, and her blood and bones provided the foundation for the street and neighborhood.

The narrator describes the warm, friendly, and welcoming smile of her new friend Kimaya—one of her most striking features. Although Kimaya’s smile is beautiful, the narrator notes that a few of her teeth are cracked, some because of violence she experienced from her ex-boyfriend. She also observes that Kimaya’s smile is genuinely friendly, and that