Finally, finally, the weekend had arrived and Kaz shed the feminine form of a Nixe with relish and, the moment he got home, he gave Jaybird a proper hug.
"I get that you're staying as a Nixe so much for school, but I prefer to hug you like this." Sitting on the couch, leaning against Kaz, Jaybird could feel the utter relief of being male again in Kaz's emotions. "You're meeting with another tutor tomorrow, right?"
"A dragon, yeah. I don't know if he'll teach me how to be a dragon or just how to serve a dragon. Could go either way." Pressing his nose to Jaybird's neck, he inhaled their scent and felt a shiver run through him.
The attention and accompanying arousal didn't go unobserved by Jaybird. Catching their breath, they leaned a little closer. It wasn't the first time they'd felt arousal, but it was the first time they felt the confidence and security to act on it.
Watching from the kitchen, Puff struggled with her excitement at seeing them connect more deeply than before. Buzzing with glee, she pulled her phone out and started typing.
> I can't believe it! My two housemates are finally hooking up! Oh gosh they looked so cute just cuddling, but seeing them acting with more focus and drive was just burning me up! I could barely keep back from chirping in excitement. I might go out and talk to Eisaku tonight.
Puff only spent a few minutes in the backyard before she decided to take to the air. Changing her form to a small blue-jay, she spread her wings and jumped into the night sky.
The bond Puff bore with Jaybird was enough that she knew that the pair had gotten up to quite a bit of fun, and it let her time her return so she didn't interrupt anything. Landing, she changed back into her harpy form and slipped into the house once again.
Gliding through the house, figuratively, Puff found her bedroom unoccupied. Slipping in, she curled up and closed her eyes for just a moment, or so it seemed, before she woke to the sensation of false dawn beginning.
An air spirit like her was always able to hear the words of everyone around them, but since Puff had bonded with Jaybird as their familiar, more information had started to seep in. It wasn't as intense as the touch-based emotive link that Jaybird had, but Puff could feel the warm lethargy of two people who had enjoyed the night immensely.
Smiling, Puff made her way to the kitchen and started working on preparing breakfast. Omelets were ninety percent preparation. She measured out three servings of eggs, toppings, and got it all set for when Kaz and Jaybird woke and would be no doubt hungry.
Once it was prepared, she sat down at the table to chat with her friends and fans online, send a few pictures, even one of the prep she'd done for breakfast.
When Kaz finally came out with Jaybird under his arm, Puff let out a tweet of excitement. "Sit down, both of you, and let me make some breakfast." Chirping softly to herself, Puff took pictures of herself making the first omelet, then quickly got the second done before the first had a chance to cool. Turning to the table, she set them down before Kaz and Jaybird. "You two enjoy."
Kaz paused for a moment with that characteristic twitch that Puff recognized as him speaking with Miaow. "Miaow says she feels like the luckiest cat in the world to have a girlfriend who cooks."
"Maybe I'll have to cook her something special? What's her favorite dish?" Puff didn't really have to ask, she knew basically anything with fish in it was going to get Miaow's full attention and appreciation.
"Fish pizza, she says, but I think she'd eat anything with fish in it."
Puff congratulated herself on guessing. "The only question is, what night? You have some stuff you're doing over the weekend, right?" When Kaz nodded, Puff hummed a little. "What about Monday night then?"
"She says Monday she would be free to ravish a pizza and a harpy." Kaz winked at Puff. "I'll make sure to have an early night."
Fluffing her feathers, Puff blushed a little in glee. Getting started on her own omelet, she tapped out a message to her fans:
> Girlfriend has promised me a special Monday evening if I cook her a yummy fish pizza. Guess I'm going shopping for anchovies.
Puff finished up cooking her own breakfast and sat at the table to eat with the others. "So, a dragon?"
Kaz nodded. "Yeah. I guess I normally wouldn't really want to have much to do with them, but I am having problems with other dragons, and he might be able to give me some insight. Also, why would I turn down free knowledge?"
"It's a good reason, I just wish I could spend more time with you today," Jaybird surprised themselves by saying.
Reaching his hand across the little gap between them, Kaz touched their arm with three fingers and stroked gently along it—just so they could feel his emotions on the subject. "I do too, but of all the dragons in my life, this is one I don't actually want to annoy."
Leaning closer, Jaybird darted in for a kiss on Kaz's cheek and almost giggled at how good it felt to be able to relax their boundaries with him. "Then I'll see you when you get home."
When Kaz kissed Jaybird back and stood up, Puff let out a giggly little tweet at how cute they were together. "Take care of yourself, Kaz, and you too Miaow."
᱿Kiss her cheek, please?᱿ Miaow asked.
As Kaz carried his plate and glass to the sink, he leaned over and kissed Puff's cheek. "Miaow sends her best." By the way Puff tweeted a little in excitement, Kaz knew he'd handled that just right. Drawing up his magic, he stepped toward the back door of the house and built a portal to his other home.
The moment he neared it, he felt his flesh bristling with fur. An adept shapeshifter, he quickly peeled off the shirt and shorts he was wearing, grabbed the messenger bag he'd prepared for this, and stepped through to Niflhel—on the outer edges of the goddess Hel's domain.
As he appeared, the cold never had a chance of reaching Kaz's flesh before he was wrapped fully in a thick wolf coat. Power, strength, and a desire to hunt and kill filled him almost in equal measure. Tilting his head up, he saw Skoll in the sky chasing a woman riding a chariot. With a deep breath, he howled his support for Skoll and felt the excitement of the hunt start to take hold.
That, however, was Spakr's doing. Kaz managed to pull his other side back from the urge to hunt the sky. "We hunt knowledge today." With that, and with the consensus of his other half, Kaz turned his nose to the wind and tried to remember the smell of Fafnir—of dragon.
Moving into a lope, he hunted through snow, rock, and hill until the scent of Fafnir was joined by that of sulfur and flames. A brief moment of terror struck him before the sound of the dragon's growl poured through his being.
"Spakr, you've returned for your lesson." Fafnir had smelled wolf approaching, but the clinginess of another dragon's scent still set his teeth on edge. He made a deliberate move of circling around Kaz and spreading his own scent on the ground. "Follow me."
Fafnir's scent was almost completely overwhelming. Kaz tried to shake his nose free of it but it just clung and, until he finally grew accustomed to it, was nose-blind to the world. "I'm having trouble dealing with that other dragon. I was hoping you might be able to give me some insight into how to get him to back off."
"Your best bet, Spakr, would be to kill it. Dragons respect strength. If you cannot best the dragon but still wish it to toe the line, you should kill it." Nearing the false home he'd been preparing for the meeting, Fafnir slid into the cul de sac where a valley edged by cliffs led to an active lava pool. Walking out onto the molten rock, Fafnir curled around and lazily lay upon it.
"This dragon has a mate who would attack if I did. I am not sure I could best the first dragon let alone both of them." Kaz shook his head and balked at the heat. "Don't you have somewhere safer to talk?"
"What is safer than curling up on lava. You are a pure shapeshifter, Spakr, like many of Loki's kin. Become a dragon and join me." It was more curiosity than actual ill-intent on Fafnir's part—he wanted to see if he could keep himself from immediately attacking Kaz should he become a dragon.
Looking at Fafnir, Kaz felt like a bunny in a snare with a wolf standing over it. This was a trap, he felt, but one that Fafnir wouldn't have set if there wasn't some way to step safely through it. "Just become a dragon?"
"Why not?"
"You'd kill me if I appeared as a dragon in your presence."
"Of course. Any dragon that doesn't offer a suitable greeting would die by my claws and my teeth."
That was the key Kaz had been thinking of, and he wondered if the plan he'd come up with before even leaving home was exactly the right method to pull it off. Shrugging out of the small bag that was around his neck, Kaz struggled with his paws and his nose to get the back open and lift out the contents.
"Fafnir, mighty dragon, sage, I wish to pay you to appear safely in your presence." Closing his mouth around the folded and tied cloth he'd pulled from the bag, Kaz tilted his head to the side and tossed it at Fafnir—while taking the image and essence of dragon and stepping into it.
The smell of a dragon caused Fafnir to see red. His claws carved furrows through the newly hardening rock under him, but something glinted in the air. The little bag Kaz had tossed split and five coins spilled and were lava-illuminated as they winged toward him.
Reaching out a talon, Fafnir caught the silver and gold coins before they got so hot they melted. His eyes lost the fury and gained something new—avarice was the core of Fafnir, and avarice was the correct emotion to appeal to if calming his fury was the intent. "Spakr, again your name is well-founded."
Kaz tried to keep focus on Fafnir, but the truth was he was just about in peak freak-out. He had lots of limbs, a tail, a sense of smell that surpassed his lupine one, and the entire world seemed to be made of twists and patterns of magic. Before him, an inferno of magic surrounded Fafnir as the much larger dragon looked down on him. "M-My payment is acceptable?"
"It is a good price to pay, Spakr, for such a small dragon to avoid my ire." Closing both his talons around the precious coins to keep them safe from the heat, Fafnir relaxed and studied Kaz's scent. Dragon, for sure, but there was a mix of other things about the young drake that had carried over from his wolf self. "If you are to kill this other dragon, first I must teach you to fight."
"I've been learning that a lot lately." Kaz looked at his talons. As a griffon he'd had an impressive set of claws and teeth, but he was sure a dragon would top that easily. "Two days ago I practiced fighting with a Redcap."
"Ah. A worthwhile opponent, though they lack a key ability that is what I plan to teach you. Any dragon can listen to their instincts and fight tooth and claw, but you need to know how to use magic properly." Fafnir gave a nod. "Close your eyes and tell me about the magic at play here."
The command ran counter to everything he'd learned at college so far. "But I won't be able to see—"
"Exactly. Dragons don't just breathe, we breathe magic. We don't just smell, we smell magic. You don't need sight to know magic is there, Spakr. Feel it."
Closing his eyes, if only to humor Fafnir, Kaz found himself completely surrounded by sensation. It was magic, but not wild or free. All the power he felt weaving itself over his scales, wings, and face—was coming from Fafnir. He turned his head just slightly and the smells of magic became so much stronger.
"You are starting to sense it. Watch—not with your eyes." Fafnir created a blunted strike with the magic that he breathed. When Kaz dodged it, he smiled a huge, fanged grin. "You saw what I did?"
"You tried to att—No, I know you didn't actually attack me, but you showed me an attack."
"Good. Now hit me with one of your own." The first efforts drew no anger from Fafnir, but he felt more than a little mirth as Kaz struggled to breathe correctly. He began a slow monologue of corrections.
"More magic."
"You need to filter and make it yours."
"More magic."
"Aim it, focus it."
Kaz felt wrung out. But, when he tried again, he instead heard a rumble of laughter from Fafnir. Opening his eyes, he saw the huge dragon smiling. "What—?"
"You finally figured it out. Go. Return to the world of humans. You will have time soon as a wolf, but don't forget this lesson. Return in a month and bring more payment." Fafnir, still clutching those few coins Kaz had paid him with, spread his wings and took to the sky.
----------------------------------------
Kaz had notified the school that he'd be absent for a few days, but he wondered if he should notify anyone about hunting the moon and what it would mean to the world if he caught it. It seemed such an easy concept in Skol and Hati's world, but the sun and moon for Earth seemed more like big things in space and less like prey.
A hole ripped its way between worlds, just as the sun was setting, and Hati stepped through it. Looking around and shaking the snow from his coat, Hati spotted Kaz and pounced on him. "Brother! You are too small for our hunt!"
"Wow. You're big!" Puff's senses warned her of a huge predator being in front of her, but she took Kaz's word that Hati wouldn't hunt her to heart.
"The moon rises in about an hour. I can already feel that the other side of me is getting stronger." Rolling out from under Hati, Kaz pressed his face into Hati's ruff and inhaled. "But I might just turn a bit earlier," he said, drowning himself in wolf.
"You might want to undress, Kaz, and I'm not saying that just because you're hot." Puff pulled her phone out and started videoing. "And don't forget to howl at the end for the camera."
Turning to look at Jaybird, Kaz spared them a smile and took his shirt and pants off. The transformation due to lycanthropy was so much slower than his normal style. "This feels so much slower than normal. I can feel my bones changing and—and it's weird."
With fur sprouting and his size growing, Jaybird walked over to Kaz and touched his shoulders. His emotions were boiling within him. Hunger was the big one, but not the hunger Jaybird was used to feeling in him.
When his face shifted—a muzzle full of teeth pushing forward—Kaz turned to Jaybird and gave them a lick from chin to brow. The slight taste of sweat only encouraged him to repeat the lick. He wanted to reassure Jaybird, to say how he would never hurt them, but his throat was already changing.
The change in his emotions when he licked Jaybird made them smile. "Aww. I like you a lot too, you silly wolf." The words came naturally. He was a wolf now, and even if Jaybird might have known he turned into one from time to time, actually seeing him become such a huge predator up close was new.
"You're his mate?" Hati asked.
The gravelly voice surprised Jaybird more for the words than hearing a wolf as tall as they were speaking. "Kinda. We just started dating."
"He is a good wolf." Hati leaned forward and sniffed at Jaybird. "And he has good taste. I promise no harm will come of our hunt—unless we catch Mani." Tilting his head up, Hati looked at where the moon would crest the horizon.
"Thanks. Good luck with the hunt." It felt odd to be called Kaz's mate, but Jaybird couldn't deny some aspects of it that had proved to be enjoyable—and did make them qualify as such.
Opening his mouth, Hati showed off far too many teeth in his own version of a smile. He turned toward Kaz—who was mostly done with his changes—and felt far more wolf in Kaz's seeming. "Are you ready, brother?"
Kaz felt weird and out of control. The more mentally adept parts of his mind subsided under the artificial curse of Shenlong. Flicking his tail as it lengthened, Kaz lifted his head and howled at the loss of himself—but also welcoming what he now was. Looking at both Puff (with her phone out) and Jaybird, Kaz felt only a mild stirring within him. They were family, but tonight was for hunting with his brother.
"Come. Mani hasn't taken to the sky here yet, but our prey is always just over the horizon!" Hati drew up his own magic and led Kaz into the sky—to hunt.
"Why are you filming that? You can't share it." Jaybird kept watching the pair streak into the twilight sky.
"You said I couldn't VLOG at all, that people would freak out and—Ooh, someone asked where they can get the werewolf juice." Sticking her tongue out at Jaybird, Puff started walking back to the house, still tapping away with her feathers. "Maybe we could sell water in little vials. How good are you at etching glass?"
Throwing their hands in the air, Jaybird followed Puff inside. "I don't know anything anymore. Half the people watching your stuff are using magi speak now. It's like there's this huge leak and all magic's secrets are being set loose, but it doesn't matter because everyone thinks it's some kind of game."
"ARG," Puff said.
"ARG?"
"Yeah. Alternate Reality Game. Basically like roleplaying and building a narrative with it. Tons of people just jump onboard with those things." Opening the door, Puff sent messages at light speed to her followers. "I'll figure out a way to make wolf transforming potion bottles."
"You can't sell transformation potions, Puff!"
"I won't be selling transformation potions. I'll sell little jars of water that say they're transformation potions." Puff alighted on the couch and started typing with a more furious intensity.
"You're going to sell fake potions?" Jaybird pulled out their own phone. "I'm ordering take-out. What do you want with your noodles?"
"The usual, vegetarian with lots of sesame seeds. And, yes, fake potions. People will pay for fake potions if I slap my brand on them."
"Now you're starting to sound like you're in business. How much are you making with all this, anyway?" Tapping away, Jaybird reached up and pulled their hood over their head.
Reaching out one wing, Puff settled it around Jaybird's shoulders. There was no skin-to-skin contact, but she knew her mage would still get enough of her emotions. "Enough that you'll have to file a tax return."
Soaking up the self-assuredness Puff put out, Jaybird finished up the order and turned a little before slumping back under Puff's wing. "Witches shouldn't have to do taxes. I'm not even entirely human."
"But you have a social security number, you have a fixed address, you have a boyfriend. You're all-American, Jay." Fluffing her wing plumage a little, Puff tucked Jaybird a little more firmly under her wing. "Hati was really something."
"Hati Hroovitnisson. First-born of Fenris' children. Definitely something, and yet was really nice. Definitely not like any of the stories about him."
"Except for wanting to devour the moon and start Ragnarok," Puff said.
"Then I wouldn't need to do taxes." When Puff stared at them, Jaybird stuck their tongue out. "I think Kaz said this isn't actually Midgard, so we might not even notice."
"But then you would have to do taxes."
"Nothing's perfect, Puff. Not in this world and not in wherever Midgard is."
----------------------------------------
It was the strangest dawn ever for Miaow. Kaz was nowhere to be found and she was awake—and a wolf. Looking at Hati, she felt only mild panic. "Where's Kaz?"
"Sleeping. We hunted well, but Mani is swift and tricky. You will take care of him until nightfall?" Hati could feel the feline nature of Miaow, but their bond with Kaz made Miaow smell just enough like a wolf for him to leave her be. "I will be back then."
"I don't remember what happened. When Kaz is a wolf, I don't get to follow much of what he does." Miaow felt awkward in the huge body and her mouth was no exception. "Thank you for taking care of him."
Pausing a moment before he ripped a hole between realities, Hati looked intently at Miaow and saw through the lupine flesh and feline mind to the strong bond with Kaz. "Take care of him during the day."
Straining against her current form, Miaow realized that she might be trapped as a huge wolf. "Yeah. Not like I can exactly go anywhere looking like this."
"I doubt any creature on this planet would challenge where you could and couldn't go—and if they did, you should deal with them." Feeling his duty done, Hati stepped through the rift and felt the snow and ice try to steal the warmth away.
"Oh, of course. I'll just walk out and demand everything in the world fight me for supremacy." Miaow walked to the back door of the house and tried to judge her chances of getting inside. The door, she quickly realized, was impossible to traverse with paws. "We are getting actual handles fitted to this door and the knob can go to hell."
"Kaz?" Jaybird asked as they opened the door. "What's wrong?"
"Not Kaz, he's sleeping, or doing whatever werewolves do when not hunting the moon. Can I come inside?" She hated how desperate she sounded, but Miaow was desperate—for the first time in over a year she felt alone.
Stepping back from the door, Jaybird could feel Miaow's annoyance now. "Sure, but only if you promise to let me pet you. You look so big and fluffy."
Miaow tried to roll her eyes but found that her current form didn't allow for it. "Alright, but you have to brush me, too." Following Jaybird inside, Miaow was flooded by the warm scents of home and family. It made her relax more than she could have realized was possible. Following Jaybird to the living room, she curled up in the middle—taking up most of the floor space. "In case you're wondering, I can't shapechange. Stupid werewolf body."
"It's not stupid, it's just extra fluffy." Jaybird snapped their fingers and summoned a hair brush. "This won't do, not with all that fur." Another snap and the brush became a big curry comb. "Much better."
"…" Miaow's attempt to complain about her situation died in her throat as the fingers of the brush started working through her fur. In the darkness of the recesses of her own mind, she could maybe—possibly—admit that there was an aspect of being a wolf that was nice.
Jaybird had hundreds of questions for Miaow, not the least of which being, "What did Kaz and Hati do up there? Was the moon really a god?"
"Mmmm. Don't know. When Kaz turned all fuzzy because of the moon—which I still think is a stupid trigger—I lost all focus. It was like being back in Hel's cave." Turning a little, Miaow offered her belly for brushing. "And right now I can't even tell where he is. Hati assured me he's safe."
"It should feel more weird. Hati and all this, I mean." Moving with Miaow as she rolled to her back, Jaybird tried their best to ignore all the naughty bits on show and just keep up brushing. "I did some research, and basically all of it points at Loki and his family being the bad guys."
"Kaz got pretty deep into it, even studying researchers' opinions on the works. Loki and his children were always cautionary tales. They did the things that ran counter to Norse ideals. Imagine how modern society would write about Bakeneko? Tricksters, users, monsters." Miaow closed her eyes and almost fell asleep. If she could have, she would have purred.
"The victors write the history books, I guess," Jaybird said.
If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.
"Exactly. Even elves are not known for their friendly ways."
"Unless you live at the North Pole."
Miaow couldn't help laughing at the joke. "Point, but look at all the modern reworking of Norse mythology that the media has partaken in. Marvel, for example."
"I imagine that would make Hati angry to see."
"Not," Puff said, walking into the room and stifling a yawn, "the new series. Loki is an anti-hero in it." She made her way to the couch and flopped down, tapping away on her phone with barely a glance at it.
"Still," Miaow said, "I doubt the real god would take any of the portrayals of him very well."
"Didn't Kaz say Hel was going to arrange a meeting between him and Loki?" Jaybird asked.
"Yes. I am not sure if I should be awed or terrified." Miaow lifted her head up and set it down on Puff's lap. "Perhaps I should just ride it out with both?"
"Both is good." Puff turned her attention away from her phone for a moment and started petting Miaow's head. "Would it be too much if I called you a good doggie?"
Jaybird rolled their eyes and sat back up on the couch now that the fluffy wolf tummy was no longer a viable brushing target. "I'm pretty sure Miaow would put up with it for petting."
"I would." Miaow closed her eyes as Puff's strong primary feathers ruffled at the fur on top of her head. "What are you doing?" The last she asked Puff, who was holding out her phone.
"Taking a picture. You're adorable no matter what form you're in." Lining up her phone just right, Puff turned on the romance filter that put rose petals and love hearts around Miaow's head. "Caption: Does your BFF get wild once a month?"
"'BFF'?" Miaow asked.
"It means best friend forever."
"I know what it means. Sharing a head with Kaz has helped me learn many new things. But I thought we were a little more than friends."
"We are, but they saw Kaz turn all fuzzy. Oh, and that's gotten nearly a million views since last night." Puff checked her analytics for the video and noticed the ad revenue. "Nice, it has made us some money, too."
"What?" Miaow lifted her head up and tried to look at the phone—but all she managed to do was stab the screen with her snout. "How much?"
Puff blinked at the amount. "Well, I guess I can pay for rent this month. Maybe next month too. Uh…"
Leaning across the couch, Jaybird looked at the screen. "Four and a half? That's a lot of money for a short video. Could we, uh, do some more of those when Kaz and Miaow aren't stuck as a wolf?"
"If we just fire off too many too fast, someone's going to start to suspect something. I figure we publish one a month, delay things sometimes for an extra week with complaints about render time. People will believe it." Puff waved a wing in the air dismissively. "It's all about making people believe we're actually doing a lot of work."
Turning sideways and laying down with their own head in Puff's lap, Jaybird let out a laugh. "So people will be convinced we're just doing computer animations?"
"Right. So then we start a merch store on the side to sell 'magic potions' and shirts and things." Puff put her phone down so she could pet Miaow and Jaybird.
"What are your plans for the day?" Jaybird asked.
"Me?" Miaow asked. "I'll be staying indoors mostly. I don't think it would be a good idea to be seen in public. It might ruin the illusion of Puff's video being smoke and mirrors."
"Good point. Do you want me to get you anything?"
"Lunch would be good. See if there's a butcher shop open and get Puff to pay." Miaow rolled one eye enough to look Puff in the face. "After all, this body paid for it."
----------------------------------------
Two days and three nights the curse lasted. By day Miaow did her best to sleep and not go stir crazy while at night Kaz chased the moon across the sky with Hati at his side. They didn't manage to catch it.
The first morning his ability to transform consciously was restored, however, had Kaz exhausted. "No. This is the perfect place for me." He waved a hand in Puff's direction.
"But they'll expect you back in school." Puff was only half-heartedly trying to stir Kaz from the couch.
"Fuck them." His swearing surprised even Kaz. He sat up and blinked a few times. "I'll call the school. They caused this—they can just deal with it."
᱿Mmm. Your personality is shifting. I'm not sure if it's my influence or having spent three nights trying to extinguish the moon as a giant wolf.᱿ Miaow uncoiled herself in Kaz's mind, spreading her feline personality out. ᱿Either way, it's nice to see.᱿
Realizing Puff was still looking at him, now with a knowing expression, Kaz sighed. "You're going to keep bugging me, aren't you?"
"You might be angry at them now, but think what kind of message it would send at the school if you turned up there looking ten times more vital than when you left on Friday?" Puff held up her phone to take a picture of Kaz.
Shifting his head back to a wolf-like visage, Kaz opted to go a step further and use draconic teeth. When he flashed a smile for the shot, he saw Puff gasp and then giggle. "You like?" he asked after she took the shot.
"I expected some teeth, but what was that?" Looking at the shot, Puff felt a shiver run down her back at the sharp teeth that had curved-back points on them.
"Dragon teeth. Fafnir might be a miserly dragon, but he's a good role model for interesting transformations." Kaz shook his head and turned it back human. "And, you're right. I should go to school today. I'll go have a shower and run to school, I think."
᱿Tell her I love her, please?᱿
"Miaow says she loves you." No amount of draconic, canine, or feline reflexes would have prepared Kaz for the tackle-hug from Puff. He barely kept from toppling over—barely. Kaz returned the hug, pulling Puff into a more sustainable (and less likely to topple him over) cuddle. "You're excitable today. What's up?"
"Fun as it is to have a huge wolf Miaow to cuddle and play with, I prefer having a more modest Miaow and my best friend." Pressing the tip of her beak to Kaz's cheek, she gave him a little rub with the side of it before pulling back. "But you'd better hurry if you're going to run to school. Didn't you say you were feeling out of energy?"
Kissing Puff's cheek in return, Kaz slipped out of the hug. "Yeah, but the best way to get more energy is to burn some up."
The shower was brief and Kaz slipped some elastic-waisted shorts and a loose shirt on. Grabbing his backpack and putting his shoes on, he walked back out into the living room and through to the kitchen where Puff was serving an omelet to Jaybird.
"Here he is." Puff slid the omelet down onto Jaybird's plate and asked, "Would you like one too, Kaz?"
"No thanks. Even though I hunted each night, I feel pretty well-fed. What happened during the two days?" Stretching and limbering up, Kaz caught a glance at Jaybird and felt a hint of excitement at the sight of them.
"Miaow demanded meat. Lots of meat. You have eaten nearly two hundred dollars worth over the last two days." Shrugging her wings, Puff sat down at the table to some toast with scrambled eggs on it.
Miaow purred into the stunned silence of Kaz's mind. ᱿Puff paid for it, too. Ask her how much money the video of you shape-changing has earned.᱿
"Oh, right, you videoed my change. Miaow says to ask how much money you made?" Kaz asked.
"The views are trending down now, but in the two days since I posted it, it has gotten us seven thousand dollars." Delivering the figure as casually as she could, Puff loved how Kaz almost fell over from it. "We can't do a lot of these. I looked around online and with a team of artists we could probably do one a month. So if you want to do another, we can use this to pay bills at least."
Standing up straight, Kaz stared at Puff for a few seconds before finally working out what he wanted to say. "Okay. First, wow. Second, it won't get too much attention, will it?"
"Nah. Half the comments are calling the videos fake and the rest are saying 'Well duh'. It's hilarious. I think the next one I post will be titled Fake Dragon Transformation or something. Oh, can you do a whole dragon?" Puff asked.
"Yeah, I can. But I'll be a small one. Turns out dragons are really tricky and very dense. Trying to become a large one would need incredible amounts of magic." Jogging in place, Kaz felt his heart rate start to rise and wanted to head off. "I'll catch you at school. Feel free to drive."
Jaybird and Puff were silent as Kaz left. The sound of the front door closing had both of them sighing.
"His butt…" Puff said.
Jaybird nodded. "It's been odd not having him around for a few days."
"You and Kaz can have the night together if you want. Miaow's been around every night, and I know you two were just starting to get a thing going." Puff cut her toast up and put a piece in her beak. "How is he?"
"I don't exactly have anyone to compare him to; he's my first, remember?" Jaybird let out a happy sigh. "But on a scale of one to ten, I think he's about an eight. Look, I know he's pretty good in bed, but there should be room for improvement, right?"
"You've overthought this, haven't you?" Puff asked. "No, don't answer that. Miaow is a lot of fun too. She's as far from inexperienced as I think you'll ever find, but she pays attention—even if she loves hearing herself purr."
"I overthink everything. That's part of the problem. Being with Kaz and letting his desire rush into me lets me stop overthinking." Jaybird started eating their omelet and left the conversation behind.
----------------------------------------
By the time Kaz reached school he'd worked up a good sweat. What he loved about running was he got to set the pace and, if he wanted to push himself hard, he could. Once he slipped in the front gate of the school, he stepped to the side and focused on his wolf-self.
No one in the school blinked twice to see a student growing a pelt of fur and stripping their clothes off. They barely even acknowledged the fact he stuffed the clothes into his backpack. When said wolf grew to the size of a horse, however, some started to adjust their walking to leave the huge predator alone.
᱿You're enjoying this too much. Who do you think will come to yell at you first?᱿ Miaow asked, her purrs bubbling with laughter.
᱿If anyone asks, we're still feeling wolfish. It's a compulsion.᱿ Loping along the path toward his first class, Kaz let his tongue loll out of his mouth in canine glee. The added advantage was he had stopped sweating.
"Kaz!"
Stopping in his tracks and looking around, Kaz saw Mal stalking toward him from the administration building. ᱿She looks angry. Maybe this was going too far?᱿
Stopping on what was quickly becoming a dead patch of grass, Mal tried to calm herself and at least not accidentally kill a student with the aura of death magic she was leaking. "Why are you in the form of a warg?"
"Just a wolf," Kaz said. "Did you check the moon over the last three days? I can kinda control it now, but I still have this urge to—"
"Turn human again this instant." Mal watched as Kaz slowly turned back, soon standing before her naked. "I am close to putting you on suspension right now. That form—If you cannot control yourself, do not come to school."
"Might have wanted to think about that before letting your staff curse someone with Norse ties into becoming a wolf. What did you think would happen, I'd become a jack russell?" Gesturing toward the building that held most of the transformation classes, Kaz let his voice rise. "You know I had to get one of my brothers to distract me each night?"
Mal's already icy blood in what was left of her body ran cold. "Brothers?"
Kaz flashed his teeth—human this time. "Hati Hroovitnisson. We hunted the moon."
Gone was the young man who had invited her to eat ice cream so they wouldn't get in a fight such as this. Mal saw what her own school had done to Kaz and got angry anew. "Follow me."
Ignoring the looks he got, Kaz followed in Mal's wake—feeling her deathly magic blaze a path and lick around his legs. Into administration and through to her office, he finally felt a little self-conscious of his nakedness when Mal walked to the hidden freezer and pulled out two tubs of ice cream. "Wha—?"
"Put some pants on and have a seat. You probably deserve more than this, but it's all I have." Mal circled around the desk and seated herself before pulling one of the tubs over. After her third spoon of the ice cream, Mal felt calm enough to talk. "I have reports you're recruiting an army, Kaz."
There wasn't a lot that could catch Kaz as off-balance as accusing him of starting a war. "What?"
Polishing her spoon clean again, Mal sighed. "I have a witness who saw you brawling with Robin—and given she didn't have a blade, that makes it akin to flirting. Then you come back from the Norse lands stinking of a dragon. Next you attempt to bring about the end of the world with one of Loki's children—that you call your brother." She attacked another spoonful, not looking at him yet. "What else am I meant to expect but you're recruiting allies to attack Shenlong?"
Kaz leaned back in the chair, spoon in his mouth, thinking on the plan. "Damn, that's a good plan." He freed his spoon and got another mouthful of ice cream and finally replied, "Wish I'd thought of it. It probably wouldn't have been that hard to get Fafnir to help. He was ready to kill me on sight just for having a hint of Shenlong's magic around me."
Mal's eyes, one dull and milky and the other relatively normal, narrowed. "Then what were you doing with all these creatures?"
"Learning. Protecting myself. Both. I met Robin while studying for my transformation class. I was spending time as a Nixe with Gisela and we met at Robin's bar. I came back because she was aching for someone to have a good scrap with and I wanted to learn how to fight as a Redcap. Fafnir was sort of the same, but I hadn't planned to spend time as a dragon. Still, learning how to manipulate raw magic with my will seems worth the few coins he takes in payment. And Hati—well, it seemed like the easiest option to keep a five-foot-tall wolf busy. He would have been hunting the moon anyway, so why not work off my needs with a good friend and brother." Kaz paused as he spoke, taking the time to eat small bits of ice cream from his spoon.
Looking into her tub of ice cream, Mal released some of the anger she'd built up regarding Kaz. "And why were you going to Shenlong's class as a warg?"
"To scare him. He messed with my head and my destiny. I might have found my wolf side eventually anyway, but he forced me down this path."
Sighing, Mal examined the container of ice cream as if it had grown tentacles. Caramel fudge just wasn't doing it for her today. "Of all the students in your year, you are not the most difficult, but you are the only one I spend this much effort to warn. I have already taken action upon two students for their behavior, Kaz. Keep your hands clean of blood on school campus and for school members and you won't join them. Attend your classes how you wish, but do not press Shenlong. He will be a powerful enemy—and even if you brought Fafnir, you would not prevail against him and his wife."
"Mal I—I know you're helping me. I don't know exactly why, though. Is it because of my aunt? My mom?" Kaz chased the ice cream around in the container with his spoon.
"You. There are very few students over the years I've seen come at magic and embrace it so much. I know you came here without a single clue about what it was. But you still came, you found your home here." Likewise, Mal was just staring at the tub of half-melted ice cream. "I'm angry that this life has treated you how it has. I hoped you had planned to attack Shenlong, if for no other reason that it would free me of this."
Standing abruptly, Kaz walked around Mal's desk and, even with her large throne-like chair, reached out to take her hand away from the spoon so he could dip his head down and kiss the skeletal fingers.
Shock held Mal from reacting to Kaz. She didn't fear him—she didn't fear anything—but she was lost at the moment.
"To think your heart could still beat so. I am sorry, darling Mal, but I am already spoken for." The more he spoke, the more Kaz started to giggle. When he was done, he could hear a scratchy cough from Mal.
"Get out of here you impudent whelp!" The gesture, one she realized was pure theatrics, had shattered the moment and her dark mood both. "Go! Get out! And don't make me drag your damn tail into this office for a month!"
Laughing, feeling Mal's deathly magic lash at him without any malice in it, Kaz grabbed his bag and ran to the door. Stopping, he turned to see Mal trying not to laugh herself into the grave (a second time) she was cackling so much. "Lady Mal, I promise, I'll see you—"
Watching Kaz blow a kiss was too much. Mal threw a chair at the door, telegraphing the attack well enough he could get out of the way in time. With the young man out of her office, Mal leaned back on her chair and kept laughing.
----------------------------------------
᱿Are you trying to avoid tweaking his tail?᱿ Miaow asked, observing Kaz changing back into his full clothes in a bathroom.
᱿Yeah. Mal's entirely too nice, and getting Shenlong's panties in a bunch means he complains to her. I don't want to keep having to explain to her why I'm doing this. I get more angry lately and need to control that better.᱿ Pulling his shirt back on, Kaz grabbed his bag and headed for the door. "And now I'm going to be late."
The walk to the classroom didn't take Kaz long, but he could see the doors were closed already and he knew that meant he was definitely late. Quiet as he could, he pushed one of the doors open and slipped inside.
"Ah, Kaz. So good of you to finally join us." Shenlong used the usual shaming tactic teachers had used since time immemorial to chide late students. "By all means, make up an excuse and take a seat."
᱿Oh screw him. He's really going to pull this?᱿ Kaz tried to ignore Miaow's purring and worked up a little anger to burn off. "Excuse? Oh! Yeah, sorry, but someone cursed me to be a werewolf and I was out late last night—hunting with my pack."
᱿Bingo, Kaz. He mustn't have realized last night was still the full moon. Look at him go pale.᱿ Miaow was a giggling ball of feline delight. ᱿When you sit down, try shifting your eyes to yellow mid-blink.᱿
Taking his seat, Kaz didn't change his eyes. He pulled out his notebook, some pens, and started taking notes for the class. ᱿Do you think he was the one giving the info about who I've been hanging out with to Mal?᱿
᱿Maybe, maybe not. I'm sure he's spinning some story for her, but don't underestimate how much she'd do her own dirty work. She's old as dirt and has more power than anyone in the city, but I don't think she's above scrying or sending people to check up on you.᱿ Miaow hated that she enjoyed the subject Shenlong taught—transforming objects. She'd much rather Kaz spend more time with Fafnir. ᱿That magic working Fafnir taught you, do you think you could teach it to me?᱿
᱿I could try, but you'd need to shift into a dragon form to use it. I tried a few times as other types but it just doesn't work.᱿ As he had his lightning-fast conversation with Miaow, Kaz's hand was active writing down the theory notes for using chemical potential to enhance the ability to turn smaller objects into larger ones.
᱿Fafnir did seem to have feline characteristics. It might work.᱿
Kaz had to fight not to laugh at that. The lecture was, thankfully, just interesting enough he didn't go to sleep, but the topic seemed far less interesting to him than working such magic on himself. ᱿Just don't tell Fafnir that. I don't think he'd like the comparison.᱿
᱿I can't interact with him anyway. Not unless he came to Earth.᱿
᱿Don't even think that. The last thing I'd want to do is see what would happen if Fafnir arrived, because you could bet he'd come to visit and Shenlong would be pointing his finger at us and forcing Mal to throw a literal book at us.᱿ The words might be flowing fast, but Kaz tried to delay his replies far longer than he needed to. It means he could spend plenty of time focusing on his class and still pass the time a little faster.
᱿Too late,᱿ Miaow said in Kaz's head. ᱿I'm already thinking it.᱿
Despite the almost boredom, Kaz could see where such tricks would be handy. The problem he saw, though, was that everything that was chemically excitable enough to be useful was also dangerous to keep around.
The bell sounded, and while some students got up and started leaving, Kaz wanted to finish his notes. By the time he was done, everyone had left—even Shenlong. Kaz sighed. "I wish he'd just back off. I know I should start, but every time he does these stupid things it makes me angry."
᱿You didn't get angry so much before all this, did you?᱿
Kaz shook his head as he stood up. "Nope."
Miaow couldn't stop from giggling a purr. ᱿Then you might want to start finding new outlets for your anger that don't involve picking a fight with a dragon.᱿
"Like what?"
᱿You're asking the wrong girl. You know who has a great way to unwind and work your anger out?᱿ Miaow kept up her purr. ᱿Robin.᱿
"Huh. I guess that is a good way to work out my anger. We can barely even hurt each other." Pulling his phone out of his backpack, Kaz put his things away while typing out a message to Robin.
> Want to do some more sparring this week?
With a period break before his next class, Kaz went to the cafeteria lounge to relax and go back over his notes. Slipping inside, he could see the little cliques that had formed among the student body in various places around the room, but spotted a spot where he could be by himself and have a beanbag chair.
Slumping down, Kaz barely landed on his rear when his phone beeped. Opening it, he saw a message from Robin.
> Pick a night. I'm free all week.
᱿Hrmm, I think we need to keep tonight and tomorrow night free for spending some time with Jaybird and Puff. What do you think?᱿ Kaz asked Miaow.
᱿I definitely want a night in with Puff. She said she had a new movie for us to snuggle up and watch.᱿ Relaxed now, she purred softly in the back of his head. ᱿I don't know what it is, but she seemed excited to watch it together.᱿
᱿Sounds like a nice evening. I was thinking of taking Jaybird out to a restaurant.᱿ Kaz started texting back.
> How does Thursday night sound?
Next he lifted out his notes and started to read over them. He got a page in before his phone beeped again.
> Thursday's good. See you there.
᱿Maybe make it a regular thing? It could be your pressure relief before going to see Fafnir again.᱿
᱿Or, we could swap places and you could spend all day getting irritated by people while I purr and sleep in the back of your head.᱿ Kaz was starting on the second page of his notes when a shadow fell over him. Looking up, he saw two students walking past him.
Holding his nose up so he didn't have to look at Kaz, the male student let loose a loud sigh. "I really don't know why they let in these human types. Mages shouldn't be weakling mortals."
"Ugh, I know. They should be strangled at birth," the female one said, though she did briefly glance at Kaz.
᱿Oooor I could turn into a Redcap right here and now and rip them both in half.᱿ Kaz didn't feel like doing it, truly, but it was still fun to imagine.
᱿You know we'd have to bail from school, right?᱿ Miaow asked. ᱿Mal would be pissed.᱿
Tapping his pen on the paper, Kaz waited until the two vampires were far enough away that he could make the excuse that he didn't expect them to hear him to say, "Next full moon, I might hunt something a bit easier—like vampires."
᱿You're going to get a reputation if you keep prodding people like that.᱿
᱿Maybe. Maybe I'll convince Mal to let me attend class as a wolf?᱿
----------------------------------------
"You took your girlfriend out on a date?" Robin asked, bracing her arms to block the heavy punch Kaz was throwing her way. She only barely managed to deflect some of the blow so that he didn't smash her bones to splinters—again.
"Jaybird is non-binary. They're my partner." Blocking one of Robin's kicks with his shin, Kaz felt the bone break and reform again before he even lowered it back to the ground. Being a Redcap was a lesson in pain of all sorts and how to just ignore it when he didn't need to know about it. "But, yeah, we had a date. It was awesome." He pushed past one of Robin's punches and headbutted her in the jaw—feeling the bone break.
The strike was so hard and fast that Robin saw stars for a moment, her head thrown to the side fast. Clutching to the edge of consciousness, she backed off and shook her head. "Hold up, that was a doozy."
It was the first time Robin had needed a time-out. She looked at Kaz and studied him. He looked far more eager to fight than their first time. "Something up, Kaz? You're a lot more focused on this."
"Yeah. I've just been more—more angry lately. Just a bit faster to get worked up and stuff." Kaz bounced on the balls of his feet like Robin had shown him at the start of the evening.
Spitting out the last of the blood in her mouth, Robin smirked at Kaz. "So what you're saying is I should treat this more like a fight so you can destress?"
"Is it going to hurt more?" The eagerness in his voice surprised Kaz a little, but he found himself liking the idea of having a reason to get angry.
"Step up and see." Robin's blood started to howl and she lifted her fist with a smile.
By the time they were both done letting off steam, there was a thick pool of blood in the gutter with a line of it trailing toward the storm drain. Kaz was panting to one side and Robin stood flooded with the blood from her cap that streamed down and over her.
"How're you feeling?" One of Robin's eyes was covered in blood and she didn't care. She felt amazing. She felt as light as a feather and solid as a brick. She was sweating and had bled many times—mixing her own blood with Kaz's.
"Feeling"—Kaz tilted his head back and looked up at the waxing moon above, and howled—"feeling amazing," he finally said when his howl had finished. Wiping the blood (his own) from his face, Kaz realized it wasn't his body that was worn out but his anger. He was done with fighting for the night and wanted to find somewhere warm to sleep.
Robin laughed and rolled her shoulders. "You want a drink or are you heading home?"
"Home." Kaz didn't have to think much to lock onto that. Pulling up a look the other way spell around him, he waved over his shoulder to Robin. "Same time next week?"
"Hell yeah. You make my blood boil with excitement. I wouldn't give this opportunity up for a year's income in my bar." Meaning every word, Robin let the blood pour from her cap without a hint of regret. "Oh, you needed some coins, you said?"
Having completely forgotten, Kaz nodded. "If you have some. I can swap US Dollars for them." Walking with Robin back to her bar, Kaz took a handful of silver and bronze coins from her. "How much?"
Glancing at the coins gave Robin the answer she needed right away. "Twenty will cover it. How're things with Gisela working out? You're done with her training?"
Pulling a twenty from his wallet, Kaz sighed. "Water magic like she uses is—different. I can't really get into it all the way, but I like the idea of connecting with the world and asking it to do things for you."
"Yeah, I never got any of that. These"—Robin held up one fist—"are all I ever got the kenning of. Have a good night, Kaz."
----------------------------------------
Free from another week of classes, Kaz gave Jaybird a kiss on the cheek. "I won't be too long. Fafnir doesn't like giving up his secrets."
Jaybird, wanting more than just a chaste kiss, tilted their head and pulled Kaz back against them. The fire in Jaybird's chest swelled along with Kaz's desire that they felt. It was the reason the kiss lasted as long as it did and Jaybird made a little whine when it ended. "Come back as soon as you can."
Biting his lower lip, Kaz felt his desire swell in his chest. "After a kiss like that I'm rethinking going at all."
Laughing, Jaybird turned Kaz around and shoved him out the door. "You'd regret it the whole time and Fafnir might not get you back for more training. Then where would you be?"
"Cozy, in bed, with you." Kaz stumbled out into the evening and channeled his magic through both arms at the same time to make a portal. "Love you," he said, stepping through the portal and binding his intent to his form.
As he came out the other side, Kaz flopped forward onto two new legs and stretched his wings. He was maybe half the physical mass that he'd be as a wolf, but the world was alive to his draconic senses as they wouldn't be to any other creature.
Spreading his wings, Kaz let instinct guide him as he launched into the sky. He barely got off the ground when another presence filled his perception. Magic, sound, vision—everything was clouded by Fafnir. Kaz relaxed and just flew in a slow circle until he heard the dragon's voice.
"Follow me, Spakr. It is too cold out here." Fafnir wheeled around and aimed back for the lava-bearing mountain he'd made during the first lesson Kaz had with him.
"I didn't think cold worried dragons?" Kaz asked as he followed Fafnir.
"Maybe not those associated with the wolves, but I prefer the heat of a forge or lava. You brought payment?" Turning his head, Fafnir looked at Kaz with hunger burning inside. A bigger hoard, no matter how incremental, was a net positive for him.
Enjoying the flight far more than he would have expected, Kaz nodded. "I wouldn't be so stupid as to come back without payment."
"That's why I picked that name for you, Spakr. Below, can you feel the heat?"
Kaz could. The air had changed from frigidly cold (something that felt comfortable to him) to almost searing heat. "You're right. I think I preferred the cold."
"You'd do well to work closer with magic basted in the cold of winter, then. Regardless, we will not be working with thermal mana at all today." Showing a complete disregard for physics, Fafnir crashed into the lava flow below them and splashed the liquid rock up in a wave before settling his sinuous form into the cooling pattern he'd made.
As he drew in to land just beyond the lava flow, Kaz realized that Fafnir had worked mana as he'd landed, modifying his landing spot in the lava to be just as he'd wanted it. Kaz wanted to mimic it, but he had no idea what the patterns even were. Just landing on the cooler rock nearby, he paced closer to the lava where Fafnir lay. Carefully reaching into his backpack, Kaz pulled out the coins he'd gotten from Robin. "Your payment."
As Fafnir took the coins from Kaz, he realized half were being held back. "What of the others?"
"Those are a bribe. Another wishes to learn from you, too. Miaow—the spirit who lives within me. My familiar." Kaz held his talon out again, palm up, the coins in it shining.
Fafnir scowled and shook his head. "If she wants to learn, have her give me the coins herself."
᱿I think he's calling you out, Miaow.᱿
Not purring, not making any movement at all, Miaow said, ᱿Then let me out. I want to learn and that means facing him as myself.᱿
Relaxing his thoughts and working to pass off control of his body, Kaz felt himself shrink and reshape into a curvy and feminine feline as Miaow took over.
Lacking clothing, Miaow just flexed her magic and expanded her coat to be fluffier. "Fafnir, I would like to learn channeling from you." She held out her paw with the coins in it and set them down into the extended talon of Fafnir's.
"I teach dragons," Fafnir said, taking the coin. "If you cannot take the form of a dragon, and cannot learn as you are, that is your problem."
"If I can't learn to use it in my natural form, it's not useful to me." Miaow smirked at Fafnir. "So teach me. If I can't learn it, I have at least tried."
Kaz paid close attention to how Miaow did. She struggled at first, but soon managed her own attempts at crafting the mana flows around her body. It wasn't exactly how Fafnir did it—and how Kaz had learned to do it—but it had a similar effect. Even if it didn't have the full effect of draconic mana weaving, she still seemed to gain some use.
"Okay, I don't think I can do anything else with this until I've spent some hours meditating on it," Miaow said and dipped her head to Fafnir. "You were true to your word, and though I haven't learned how a dragon would do this, I have gained some new skills."
"A respectful cat? Now I have seen it all." Despite dealing with Miaow, Fafnir felt relaxed. He normally disliked outsiders on general principle, but she was bound to Kaz and she showed him the respect he felt due. "Now, Spakr needs his next lesson."
"Good. I need a nap. Kaz…" Miaow focused and sent Kaz back to the fore. When he didn't immediately change out of her form, she giggled in his head. ᱿Kaz, you might want to become a dragon again.᱿
"Hang on, Miaow, I'm just enjoying this form for a moment." Kaz didn't care how it sounded, he liked exploring forms and Miaow's was built for comfort. But then, so was his draconic shape. Casting off Miaow's form, Kaz stretched and grew and was once more dealing with an extra set of limbs.
Fafnir drew his mana flow back from where it crowded Kaz, giving his student room to work. "Center yourself and take control of your mana. Today I will teach you how to block attacks without having to raise a claw."
By the time Kaz was done with the lesson he was exhausted. He knew for a fact that as a dragon he had more stamina than all the other forms he could take, but channeling large quantities of mana for a long period in exact motions had left his core aching. "Enough. I need to rest."
"And practice. Like your familiar, you will get better as you work with your mana." Fafnir would never admit it, but having company—even just a little—had eased the madness that'd been eating away at him. Though, he had to counter, it could have just been having fresh coins for his hoard.
Kaz took to the sky, acknowledging Fafnir with a roar of excitement, and flew back to where he always opened his portal back home. Landing, he channeled life and death magic into an arc big enough for his form to step into and, on the other side, step out as his normal self.
Available at: https://www.royalroad.com/profile/220350/fictions
This story is released under the Creative Commons BY-NC-SA license. If you are paying money to see this or the original creator, Damaged, is not credited, you are viewing a plagiarized copy of the story.