We were still on the roof, having been talking for the last few hours. Cheryl, Master, and I. Cheryl, to her credit, struggled to believe all the wild things she was hearing, but being told them by someone she saw use magic and an actual dragon helped make them less impossible. “Okay, so, just to make sure I understood all that correctly. Tola, you’re FROM Earth, but then you wound up in Terra because of those Unmaker Storms. You met Princess, who is… also from Earth? But she used to be a human? I heard that right?”

I blushed a little, flicking my tail. “Yeah, I was human, I got caught… Well, okay, I sought out a storm out of depression. I got turned into a dragon on Terra, and that’s when I met Master.”

She was looking at me with a puzzled expression. “So how come you turned into a dragon and Tola didn’t?”

“Um, because the mad wizard Elimaio turned me into one. He captured me, turned me into a dragon as part of his… well, torture, basically. I’d been there for a few months when Tola arrived, and that’s how we met. He escaped–”

Master cut in. “You helped me escape. That was the first time you saved my life.”

I blushed deeper. It was so hard to feel like that counted as anything special. “Okay, I helped him escape, but he came back to rescue me. There was a fight, and… and I ended up… killing Elimaio. It was… messy.” My head hung lower each time I pushed through hesitation in recounting that day.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to give me details if you’re not comfortable.” She definitely had a posture that indicated she really, really wanted details.

“Thanks, I appreciate it. But yeah, that led to me becoming his pet, and then him studying magic, and everything else.”

Tola cleared his throat softly. “It is a little strange to think how much my life changed that day, even after finding myself in a completely different world. Coming back was the best decision I ever made.”

“You were almost killed! You were swinging a broken table leg at an insane wizard!”

“Best decision I ever made.” He put a hand on my head and rubbed as he repeated himself. “I wouldn’t trade you for anything, I consider you the best thing to ever happen in my life.”

I couldn’t help but let out a squeak, a choked whimper as I fought the urge to pull away and instead simply blushed so deep that my scales darkened. “I don’t… I mean… I’m not… It’s hard for me to… feel like that could be true, I guess… You have so many problems you wouldn’t have, if not for me.”

His hand moved to scritch just under my horn at the base, right at the Good Spot. He knew all my weaknesses, after all. “There’s a very good chance that, if I hadn’t come back to rescue you, I’d have died elsewhere. You saved my life from Elimaio twice, you saved me from the highwayman that waylaid me just outside Hammerfell, I forgot about him until you mentioned the day you asked to become my pet for real instead of for show, you saved me from the bandits on the way to the Mage’s Guild, you saved me from the gryphon–”

“You saved me from… I mean, we were all fighting, I don’t think that one counts…” While I was talking, Cheryl looked like she wanted to burst with questions about the gryphon, now that it was brought up again.

“If you had your way, none of them would count, for one reason or another. Too bad, I’m counting it, because I’m grateful to you. And when I got sent back to Earth, the first thing you did was jump into a portal even though it was such a risk, because you wanted to save me again.”

I huffed softly. “I couldn’t just leave you here on Earth, it’s so horrible here…”

“It was for you, but I didn’t mind Earth that much, before Terra. Though, I have to admit, having to give up magic entirely or keep it a secret, now that I know about it… I don’t think I could do it. I don’t think I could be happy here, and I definitely couldn’t be happy without you, no matter what I was trying to tell myself earlier. Every single day I’ve been thinking of you and hoping you were doing well, comforting myself with the thought that Dweli would take good care of you. Of course, then I find out you’re out here, of all places, getting your wing blown off with a shotgun?” His voice had the tone of voice of a gentle chiding, an amused note to make sure he knew I was kidding, but it still felt harsh to me. But then, everything felt harsh right now.

“Yeah, it… made sense at the time, distracting him… It was my fault, if I hadn’t threatened him, he’d never have gone crazy like that. I’ve been doing a lot of things impulsively, just… jumping without looking, without thinking. Reacting… When you disappeared, it was like my heart got ripped out of my chest. All I could think of was how miserable Earth was, and what if you got hurt, or killed, and I’d never even know!” I was starting to sniffle again, shaking a little.

When Tola scooted in to hug my neck again and pull me close, Cheryl spoke up. “So he can touch you, but I can’t? I kinda thought maybe you were telling me not to because I’d get hurt or something.”

“No, it’s just… The illusion spell, you would’ve put your hand right through fur and felt scales. And then I’d have to explain it, or show you, and… and I was still scared.” I pushed in to nuzzle against Master’s chest, taking deep breaths to get myself to calm down again.

“So… Can I pet you now? As a friend?” She clearly wasn’t used to asking someone to pet them, I was still in a strange half-way place between “person” and “animal” to her. Well, to be honest, I was in that place with everyone, wasn’t I? Even myself.

I opened an eye to look at her, seeing her eager posture. “All right. It’s only fair, you’ve been such a great friend this past… what, week? A little over a week? I haven’t kept good track of the days.”

She eagerly scooted over, reaching out carefully to pet along my back. “Oh my gosh, you’re… warm! But you’re a reptile?”

I huffed a little. “I also have innate fire magic that keeps me warm. I can control my body temperature to a pretty wide range, enough to heat a small room like a radiator. I’m pretty much immune to heat and fire, as far as I can tell. Otherwise, breathing fire would be incredibly dangerous to me.”

She looked at Tola, as if to get confirmation. He simply nodded. “It’s true. I don’t have a thermometer on Terra, but she’s able to reach close to boiling, maybe higher. Maybe I’ll try to see if I can actually cook on her some day.”

I giggled a little, both at the mental image of bacon and eggs sizzling on my scales, and the wide eyes Cheryl had.

We were interrupted by the ringing of a phone. Tola winced, as it was an intrusive reminder of the world outside the rooftop, as he retrieved his phone from his bag and checked it. “Oh, crap.” Answering it, he put on his most apologetic tone. “Elsie! Hey, so, I’m so sorry I had to close the store, I had a bit of an emergency come up… Yes, a big one. I thought my dog exploded.” He winced, and I heard the shout from here. “Yeah, it turns out she’s fine, it just gave me a scare is all. Yeah, I had to–What? Police?” I tilted my head up at Master, but didn’t want to say anything to interrupt. “No, I don’t… Well, maybe. Oh boy. Okay, I’ll be there shortly. Yeah. I can talk more when I get there.” He hung up and put the phone away again. “Well, I better deal with this… Cheryl, will you be able to give us a ride back to the store?”

I flicked my tail. “Us? I don’t have my collar anymore, that… that’s gonna be a problem.”

“I can cast the illusion myself, until we can get a new collar on you. I don’t suppose you have any at the clinic…?”

Cheryl shook her head. “No, we don’t sell them or anything. There’s a PetSmart pretty close to the bookstore, we can go there when you’re done apologizing to Miss Brown.”

“That would be excellent, thank you.” Pulling out his spellbook, he flipped the pages to where he had written the spell that had been imbued into my collar. The illusion part was contained within the frameworks of imbuement and translating my own energy to power it, but since he had come up with the modular approach to enchanting, he could refer to it to cast just the illusion part. Once again, the motes of light twinkled into being and settled in on top of me, tugging at the “magic sense” but without that slight strain sensation from when it was drawing on my own energy.

I was laying in the back seat of the car, with Cheryl driving and Master in the passenger seat, when we arrived. An older woman I assumed to be Miss Brown and a police officer were standing outside the store, and I stayed in the car as the other two got out. With the window down, I could hear the conversation.

“Hello. I am James Smith, I understand you’re wanting to talk to me?” Master approached but kept his distance. I wished I could be out there to protect him, but Cheryl leaned against the car and gave me a look.

I did my best to whisper. “You’ll open the door if anything bad happens, right?” She nodded and I relaxed a little.

“Are you familiar with the Community Housing Center, James?” He wasn’t being overtly threatening, but I was still wary.

“I am. I’ve been staying there since I arrived in town, trying to get on my feet as it were.” Master had a pose that said he knew exactly what this was about, but wouldn’t say anything.

“And you’re familiar with a man named Fred who works there? He says you assaulted him earlier today?” The woman’s eyes went wide, but she didn’t say anything.

“Did he tell you I caught him stealing my property because he thought it was jewelry he could sell? Or that he pulled a knife on me? Or did he only tell you this claim of his?” His hands were on his hips, his expression darkening, but he tried to keep his tone even.

“Let’s not worry about what he said, I’d like to get your side of the story, if you would.” The officer pulled out a small notepad and a pencil.

“I returned to the housing center to change clothes, and found my room emptied. I was told it was ‘laundry day’ and that my clothes had been collected to be washed. The girl at the counter, Lily I think her name is, helped me by letting me into the laundry area so I could retrieve them. On doing so, I found this badge–” He tapped the badge on his chest. “--was missing. The employee doing the laundry had removed and pocketed it. I would say that looking into pawn stores to see what he’s sold them would be worth checking, though if they’re implicit they might not have kept records. Either way, when I confronted him about it, he pulled a knife and threatened me.”

“Sorry to interrupt, but just so I’m clear, what is that badge?”

“Oh, it’s a part of the outfit, it’s a costume badge for… Heh, it’s a little embarrassing, but are you familiar with LARPing? Live-Action Role Play? It’s a game I used to play, but it still has a lot of sentimental value to me.”

The officer looked exactly like he would have if Master had suddenly started speaking French, or maybe Greek.

“Anyway, in the game, my character was a mage, so this shows me as a member of the Mage’s Guild, in the game. I think Fred thought it to be gold, but it’s not. It’s just a decoration, but it means a lot to me, so I demanded it back. That’s when he drew the knife.”

“He says you also had some kind of blade? And that you cut his arm?”

“I don’t have any blade, no. I threatened to call the police over the theft and the threat, and I guess he backed down because that’s when he threw the badge at me and left.”

The officer raised an eyebrow. “Uh, huh. You managed to talk him down, just like that?”

“It was a pretty tense moment, but I think he realized he was about to cross a pretty serious line. Or I thought he did, but I guess he had another idea for a way to get back at me. By claiming I assaulted him somehow.”

The officer went back to writing in his notepad. “Hm. And do you know how his arm got cut?” I got the feeling he had been testing Master.

“No, I didn’t even know his arm was cut. But he did have a knife, he could have done that himself and blamed me, or it could’ve happened before the encounter entirely.”

“I see. Well, I did talk to Lily. Do you know what she said?” He looked up from his notepad with a stern expression.

“I have no way of knowing. She was there, but I don’t know how much she saw.”

“She said mostly the same thing. Thank you for talking with me. Just in case I need to get a hold of you, though, will you be staying at the Center?”

“I’m not… sure if I will. Even if I’m allowed, having someone like Fred there…” He glanced over at Cheryl.

“He can stay with me for a few days. I’m sure Sierra is okay with it, given the circumstances.”

“If not, I should be able to get a motel room or something.” Master nodded. “I can also give you my phone number, if you like?”

“Go ahead.” Would it kill this guy to be even just a little friendly?

“One moment.” Master had to navigate a phone menu to reach it. “It’s 712-555-7281. It’s a new phone, I don’t have the number memorized yet.”

“All right, thank you. Here is my card, in case you have anything more to report.” The officer handed over a slip of paper that Master slipped into a pocket of his bag. With that, he left.

Master breathed a sigh of relief, with one threat dealt with, but there was still another to go. “I’m so sorry, Elsie. It’s been a crazy day.”

“I’ll say! Goodness gracious, I came to stop by and found the place closed up? And there’s police looking around, asking about you? And what’s this about your dog… exploding? You got some explaining to do, mister.”

I gave what I hoped was a convincing bark from the window of Cheryl’s car. It worked to get her to look at me.

“Elsie, this is Princess. You remember me talking about her? Somehow she was able to follow me here to Ida Grove, isn’t that amazing?”

She gave me a suspicious glare, then turned back to Tola. “How do you even know it’s her?”

“Trust me, it’s her. But her collar got cut off and I had to chase after her.” He brought out the cut collar from a pocket, showing the bell and the burned runework on the inside. “I made–well, customized this collar myself, there’s no other like it on Earth. I didn’t know what happened at first, the customer who saw it was… probably not reliable. Turns out, she was not exploded.”

“And the police?”

“Well, you heard. One of the people at the Center was stealing from residents and didn’t like being confronted about it. I guess he held more of a grudge than I thought.”

“Hmph. Well, I’m gonna have to dock your hours, for the time you were gone, don’tcha know?” Her arms were still crossed, but she was softening.

“I would have insisted on it myself even if you hadn’t caught me. I just didn’t get a chance to tell you first. Is it all right if I run an errand before I come back, though? I’m going to need to buy a replacement collar, I don’t want anyone thinking she’s a stray and trying to harm her…”

“Well, all right. But be careful about dog hair, I’m allergic.” With that, she started to unlock the door and go inside.

“Oh, don’t worry, Princess is… is fine. You won’t have any trouble with allergies with her.”

Cheryl stifled a giggle, but just barely.

Back at the store, I now had a pink nylon collar around my neck. Master transferred the bell from my old collar, but this time it was also joined by a tag bearing my name. The store also had one of those “Engrave a Tag” machines, and they had one shaped like a gemstone. Like a diamond with the top cut off. Master said it seemed fitting for a dragon, and I couldn’t help but giggle as he showed it off to me. It felt a little odd against my scales, but it was nice to have something around my neck again.

Cheryl, however, had not yet been able to get permission to have us at her friend’s home. It seemed Sierra wasn’t answering her texts, but Cheryl said it was probably because she was still at work. That left me in an awkward position, and so Tola had to bring me inside the bookstore. Cheryl followed along, not having anything else to do right now.

“Elsie, I need a favor… I don’t have anywhere else I can let Princess stay right now…”

“I just told you, I’m allergic to dogs!”

“Yes, but Princess is… actually a special breed of dog. Hypoallergenic, people with allergies don’t have a reaction. See for yourself.”

I sat in place and did my best to give my biggest, saddest eyes.

“That sounds like a lie. …Why does she have snake eyes?” Oops, there was a slight flaw in my approach.

“Oh, those aren’t snake eyes, those are…”

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Cheryl chimed in. “Those are fox eyes. They’ve started crossbreeding them in Europe, it was an attempt to breed domesticated foxes but it also resulted in dogs with some fox traits, which is why you don’t have to worry about allergies. Unless you’re allergic to foxes too?”

Elsie’s gaze moved to Cheryl. “It still sounds like you’re lying, but… I hadn’t heard of it, but you work at that vet clinic, don’t you? I remember Lucille saying something about that?”

“Ida Grove Emergency Veterinary Clinic, yes. I’m a vet tech there, I’m still studying to be a veterinarian myself.”

Miss Brown finally let out a long sigh. “Oh, all right. If you two are lying to me and I start sneezing up a storm, I’m going to be very cross with both of you.”

We all relaxed as she went back to the counter and sat down. Master joined her, and Cheryl browsed the shelves. I padded over and curled up around the stool he sat on, nuzzling his leg gently.

After a while, Miss Brown got up, giving an odd look between Master and Cheryl, and started heading towards the door. “Well, I wasn’t intending to be here all day anyway, I’ll leave you two alone.” With a wink, she headed out the door, stopping at the last moment. “No more exploding dogs making you close my shop, I hope.”

Master called out, “I certainly hope not!” but it was hard to tell if she had heard him. He moved behind the counter and I followed

That freed up a spot for Cheryl to sit. “So, your boss thinks we’re dating or something?”

Master looked up as he started to set a leather-bound tome from under the counter up for reading. “That’s weird. Why would she think that?”

“Don’t know, but that was why she left, I’m pretty sure.” She looked towards the door, like Miss Brown would come back at any moment.

Tola shrugged. “Hmph. Who knows. No offense meant, but I only just met you.”

Cheryl let out a soft chuckle. “Yeah, it’s pretty clear where your heart belongs.”

If anything, that made Tola even more perplexed. “Where my heart belongs?”

“You and Princess. I mean, it’s pretty obvious…” She gave a gesture to the two of us.

I sat up at that. “H-hey, we’re just… partners, is all! I mean, I’m not even human!” I gave a huff, my tail thumping lightly against the floor, the sound coming from the part that was invisible.

Master looked similarly flustered, blushing deeply. “Yeah, no, we’re not… I mean, yeah, I love her, but not like that! She’s my pet!

I continued, still huffing and embarrassed. “Yeah! I can’t believe you’d accuse Master of… of… being inappropriate!”

Cheryl looked like she was about to burst in laughter. “I didn’t even mean anything like THAT. Why, what are you two hiding?”

My scales turned a deep purple, and it felt like the air around me was shimmering from the heat.

Master chuckled. “Princess has a bit of a crush on me, as much as she denies it.”

“Wha–! N-no! That’s…! I can’t…! Ugh!” I stammered similarly for a bit as Master started laughing.

“Look, it’s understandable. And if you were human, maybe… But even without that kind of relationship, we still have a deep bond, don’t we? Don’t worry about it, I’m not offended, girl.” He leaned down to scritch behind my horns, and I huffed but leaned in, my protests falling silent.

“Why do I have to be human…? Why don’t you become a dragon?”

“You know I can’t do that, Princess. It wouldn’t be permanent, I wouldn’t have the soul of a dragon. We’d still be different. Even if I could do so permanently, what would we do then? We’d lose the tower, at least.”

I only grumbled softly, but Cheryl caught on to something. “Wait, why wouldn’t it be permanent?”

Tola slipped into Lecture Voice, like a professor explaining something. Maybe he’d been at the Guild too long. “Transformation magic cannot affect the soul. The soul will always wear down the spell used, breaking it down and reasserting the subject’s true form. I could spend some time in the form of a dragon, but it would only be a week, maybe. And without the soul of a dragon, I wouldn’t be able to use the magic innate to dragons, like breathing fire or flying. Or anything else that requires a dragon soul.” He didn’t say exactly what that was, but I knew what he meant. He wouldn’t be able to sire a clutch of eggs. I blushed deeper, hoping Cheryl wouldn’t pick up on that part. “I would be merely an imitation of a dragon, at best.”

Cheryl listened, nodding. “But she was turned into a dragon permanently? So it’s possible?”

Tola grimaced slightly. “Ah, well, yes. We aren’t… exactly sure how that happened, but somehow her soul changed to match her form. It’s possible she had some sort of affinity for it? It’s never happened before, as far as the books on the subject state.”

“Until now? She’s the first recorded instance? And this guild hasn’t been able to figure out how it happened?”

Tola grimaced more. “Well, we haven’t exactly told them… One of the professors figured it out, because she knew Elimaio from before he went crazy, but we’ve kept it secret. So, according to the books, it’s still never happened.”

Cheryl seemed to think for a moment. “…So what if it did, and nobody’s ever recorded it, for the same reasons? They kept it a secret, and it never made it in? Or if they were alone, and didn’t have a way to tell anyone?”

That caught us both by surprise. “You know, I had never considered that. Maybe you’re not as impossible as we thought, Princess.”

“I gotta be honest, I’m not really sure what to think of that. I don’t know if that would be a good thing or a bad thing…”

“Well, it would be what it is, I guess. Nothing more, nothing less. Still, something to keep in mind. I have no idea how we’d find out more, maybe once I’m higher rank, there will be some sort of sealed records to look at.” Master seemed lost in thought at the idea.

I simply settled in to rest some more, when something in the corner of my eye caught my attention. It was gone when I went to look, but then there was another one. A twinkling mote of light. And another, and another. Lifting up and winking out, coming off my body. “Uhh, Master…? The illusion…”

He looked down and let out a frustrated expletive. “Why is it wearing off already? Are you fighting it somehow? It’s not affecting your body, you shouldn’t be able to, I thought.”

“How should I know? You’re the expert on this stuff!” The illusion broke apart faster, and I moved behind the counter so I could be hidden from view, before we went into the back room of the store. Before long, my blue scaly self was revealed once more, Master rubbing his chin and concentrating, while Cheryl just watched without enough knowledge to be able to say anything.

“Well, I suppose we should be grateful there wasn’t anyone around to see that. You didn’t have any problems with the illusion before?”

“Not when I was using my collar. I mean, near the end, it started to feel like a strain that was really bugging me, but I didn’t even realize it until I dispelled it for a bit.”

“A strain… Hm. Like, on your magical energy?”

I just gave a blank stare. “I have no idea, I can’t cast spells. Though… I mean, it might’ve been like when I’ve been using my fire too much, raising my temperature? There’s more strain than that when I’m using it, but… Maybe? I’m not the expert…”

“I noticed it earlier, a spell I tested ran out of energy much faster than usual. Maybe it’s because it’s Earth… Oh, I wish I had… I don’t know, some kind of equipment to test this…? But I don’t even know how, or what equipment that would be. If I could just ask the professors, this could be an amazing discovery!”

Cheryl looked at me. “Is he like this a lot?”

I looked back. “Only when he discovers something new. And since he’s still learning magic, yes, a lot.”

“Still learning? I thought he already knew it?”

Tola cleared his throat. “Ahem. I’ve been studying for less than a year, after all. Though, it normally takes years of study and practice to reach the level of full Mage.”

Cheryl raised an eyebrow. “How come it hasn’t for you?”

“I’m not sure, my guess is having an outside perspective allowed me to recognize things more quickly than others who followed the more ‘traditional’ route? Though, that still seems like it shouldn’t give me that much of an advantage… Hm, I really don’t know.” He shrugged. “I’ve just been studying books left behind by Elimaio, maybe I skipped more steps than I thought. That’s actually a little worrying, I should ask about that when I get back.”

“Well, maybe don’t practice magic in Sierra’s place unless she says it’s okay.”

“I think I’d rather not reveal it to her, so I guess magic is on hold until I can get a home of my own. I have no idea how long it will take, after all.”

The rest of the day passed fairly uneventfully, though I stayed in the back room rather than risk another illusion that could wear off. It gave me time to get some rest, I still felt like I had been put through a wringer after the day I’ve been through.

Rest would evade me. I had a variety of unspecific and ill-formed nightmares that I couldn’t even remember moments after I woke up. I think one of them was about being stuck as a dog, and seeing Master disgusted with me for it…

Here I was, surrounded by books, but there was no way to read them myself. Stupid lack of thumbs. Well, I guess I was more surrounded by cleaning supplies and boxes, in the back room of the store. But either way, it left me with nothing to do while I waited for the hours to tick by. The room didn’t even have windows, so it was a timeless smear that I was trapped in, occasionally hearing sounds from the front when a customer wandered in, or Cheryl and Master talked. Between customers, Master would come in to check on me, which was nice of him. Finally, the day was over.

“Once I get the sweeping done, I can lock up and we can head out.” I had dozed off, I guess, as the voice woke me up, causing me to lift my head and the bell on my collar to jingle.

I blinked for a moment, then nodded. “Are we going to use the illusion again?”

“Yes, but I need to get your new collar enchanted as soon as possible. It’s risky to keep doing it myself, with how it wore off so fast.” Grabbing a push broom, he ducked out to get the closing chores done, Cheryl helping how she could.

Locking up the door, we started getting into Cheryl’s car. As she put her seatbelt on, she looked over at the two of us. “Do we need to stop at the Community place or something?”

“Everything I own on Earth, I have with me. If I did leave anything behind, it’s nothing I care about.” Master patted his satchel for effect, the messenger style bag he usually had with him. He looked only a little out of place in his Terra clothes, in the seat of a car.

We arrived at a small but nice-looking house, waiting outside while Cheryl went in to get Sierra, who stepped out to see the “friend” and “dog” who were looking to stay for a time.

The new girl looked us over for a moment. “So this is the friend you were talking about? The one with the weird dog? Like, why are you dressed like that?”

“Ah, yes, I’m James, though friends call me Tola. Long story. Pleased to meet you.” Master extended his hand in greeting, and I swayed my tail slowly though I kept my distance.

Sierra took a moment before actually shaking the hand. “Sorry for the questions, I’m Sierra. You must really like that ren faire junk, huh? I went to one once, it was pretty fun, if a bit of a drive.”

“Yes, it is, isn’t it? Surprised there isn’t one here, with all the castles.”

“So, Cheryl says you’re, like, homeless and junk?”

“I’ve had a bit of a rough turn of events the past few weeks. I was backpacking in Europe, but when I got back, I found myself homeless. Locks changed, stuff gone, my friends moved out and didn’t tell me anything. I wandered a bit, and ended up here, and I was staying at the Community Housing Center until I could get back on my feet. I’m working at the Reading Is Magic bookstore right now.”

“Oh, wow, Europe, huh? That’s like, way cool. Sucks that you got backstabbed, though, some friends. I’ve known Cheryl for years, but, like, she’s a super huge softy, especially for animals. But if she says you’re cool, then I’m gonna trust you. Just don’t be another Chad, got it? Wild, how he went crazy like that, huh?”

Master chuckled softly, both at the description of Cheryl and wondering how close Chad and Elimaio were in personality. “Trust me, I’ve had my share of run-ins with some pretty crazy people, I have no intention of ending up like them.”

Cheryl cleared her throat. “Yeah, life’s been pretty crazy all around, it feels like. I’ve been calling about places, but I’m still waiting to hear back on them. Thank you so much, Sierra, it means so much for you to let us all stay with you!”

“Yeah yeah, just, like, don’t make me regret it, okay? …That dog is housebroken, right?”

I did my best to not look offended at the comment, and Master nodded. “Princess is a total sweetheart, though a little wary of new people. It’s best to not try to pet her until she comes to you. Trust me, she won’t make a mess, or any noise. You’ll barely know either of us are here.”

“We’ll see. At least she’s a cute one, not one of those little yappy dogs.”

With that, we were led inside the house and shown a guest bedroom we could use. The air was stale, like it’d been left unused for much too long, but it was a place with a bed, so it would do. Master sat down and started looking at his phone, while Cheryl and Sierra went into other parts of the house.

“Charming girl. ‘That, like, dog is like, housebroken and junk, like, right?’” I exaggerated her… Not quite an accent, I guess more of a speech pattern? Reminded me of the antagonist in a teen girl movie from the 80s.

“Hey, she’s doing us a huge favor. It only makes sense she’d want to make sure. She doesn’t know us at all.” He kept scrolling through his phone.

“I guess.” I placed my chin on his leg. “What’cha up to?”

“I’m trying to find a place nearby that might sell crystals we can use to get your collar enchanted. If this Sierra was wary of a dog, I can only imagine her reaction to a dragon.”

I winced a little, sighing. “Yeah… I’m sorry I made such a mess of things, ruining my collar. Though, can you imagine if one of the professors had been able to come through to find you? Korrigan, demanding respect as a master magician? Elwarn, being mocked for being so prim and proper? Dweli, being Dweli?”

He chuckled a little, one hand reaching down to rub underneath my horn through the illusion. “Yes, you really are the best option, even if you hadn’t been the only option. I’m glad you’re here. And as for the collar, well, stuff happens, we’ll just have to take care of it.”

The next day, with Sierra at work, we stood in the empty garage. The illusion had worn off during the night, so I was appearing as myself. Master was looking at the smooth concrete floor and nodding. “I know you said no magic, but we really do need that collar imbued with an illusion spell. I’ve done it before, so it’s not like it’s risky, so… But if you say no, we won’t do it here. I just don’t know where else we can go. I need to draw a chalk circle, and that needs an area just like this.”

“I wish I could ask Sierra about it, but… I mean, if she even believed us, I still don’t know if she’d understand, and this is… I mean… All right, let’s do it. Besides, I want to see it.”

“Thank you. Okay, next, I’m going to need some supplies… I was trying to look online, but I couldn’t find any stores in town that sold things like… gemstones? Large ones, not like ones in rings or other jewelry. They don’t have to be that precious, something like quartz or amethyst could work.”

Cheryl made a face, wincing a little, thinking. “Um, I don’t know… There might be a store like that in a bigger town, like Sioux City or Omaha or Des Moines or something…? But that’s hours away. Can’t you order it online?”

“Even if I was willing to wait the days it would take to get here, even if I could use your card to place the order, I wouldn’t be able to inspect them myself to make sure I’m getting ones I can use. I can’t exactly go to RealMagicSuppliesForRealMagesDoingActualMagic.com or something and be sure I’m getting the right stuff. We need to get this done yesterday, every day is a risk that Sierra finds out the hard way.” He crossed his arms, staring at an imagined chalk circle, and sighed.

“I’ve got work tonight, I don’t know if I can make the trip right now.”

“And we can’t bring Princess with us and risk the illusion wearing off, and we can’t really leave Princess here alone, and I can’t exactly go by myself… I really didn’t want to have to do this, but… There does exist a way around needing the crystals. But I’ve never used it before.”

Cheryl crossed her arms. “I said okay because it wasn’t anything risky…”

“Yes, and if I had the proper materials, it wouldn’t be. But without them, I’m going to have to resort to Blood Magic.”

Both Cheryl and I looked at Master, eyes wide. “Woah, what? That’s a thing? I never heard you talk about it before.”

He sighed again. “I read about it, I understand it, but it’s… Very unpleasant. I’m basically using my own blood, burning myself to supply the necessary power. It’s possible to do, but it carries risks and drawbacks… But it’s vital we have you reliably disguised, girl. A set of small glass bowls should be easier to come by, at least. I have everything else I need if I’m going this route.”

Cheryl looked a little squeamish. “I’m not sure I want to see this anymore. But yeah, it could be days before we have a good chance to go somewhere, and no guarantee we’d find what we need. You’re the expert on this, but if you blow up the house, Sierra’s gonna kill both of us.”

“The only thing I’m risking blowing up is myself.” He remarked grimly, as he got out his spellbook and chalk, and started drawing the runes.

Cheryl came back out with a set of glass ramekin bowls, the little tiny ones like they used on cooking shows to portion out all the different ingredients and lay them out. Master nodded. “I’ll need a knife as well. That should be it.”

Once the circle was done, he set a bowl where each of the crystals had gone last time, before taking off my collar and setting it in the center. “Before I actually do the blood part, let’s test to make sure it’s right. It won’t be enough power to get it done, but you should be able to tell me if it stops flowing.”

I nodded, watching as he placed his hands on the edge of the circle, sending power into it. Energy flowed through the runes, though a bit of it seemed to sort of lift off into the air, like steam from a bowl of stew. Not a whole lot, but something to bring up later. When it seemed to start reaching the collar, I nodded. “I think that does it.”

He looked grimly at the setup, taking a deep breath and letting it out. “All right. No getting around it, I suppose.” Walking around the edges, he took the knife from Cheryl, who watched nervously. Deliberately, he cut his palm and squeezed his hand into a fist, letting drops of blood gather into one of the bowls. Going between bowls, he bled into each one, not a whole lot, but just enough to cover the bottoms of each one. Finally, coming back to his starting point, he set the knife aside, used his other hand to touch the bloodied palm, and then placed his fingers onto the spots to start enchanting.

Cheryl gasped softly as the runes began to glow, and I watched with worry. The pale blue light started to turn a deep crimson, as more energy flowed into the collar, making glowing runes appear on the inside of the band one by one. Red mist rose from each bowl, and Master’s expression became increasingly pained as he continued to chant the spell. Cheryl looked at me as if seeking confirmation that this was normal, and I only let out a soft whine, unsure what to do to help.

Finally, it was done, Master falling backwards and laying on the cool pavement, the glow fading from the circle, the bowls having a layer of burned blood in them. I carefully licked Master’s cheek and nudged him, making sure he was breathing. It took what little strength he had left to raise his hand and pet me. “I’m… I’m… Well, I will be okay. Just… Ow. Holy crap, everything hurts so bad right now, heh.”

Cheryl knelt down on his other side. “Can I tend to the hand now, then? I brought a first aid kit. I’ve got some supplies in my car, too, if you need stitches.”

“That might be good, yeah.” He offered his cut palm, and Cheryl went to work tending to it with the kit. Stitches, it seemed, wouldn’t be required, so at least that was a good thing.

After a short rest, we got to work cleaning up the garage, soaking the bowls in the sink to be able to clean them, and testing the collar’s imbued spell. Thankfully, it seemed to work just like the old one, so that was a huge relief for all of us. Master sat in a chair at the table, and just the strain of that had him nearly trembling.

“Are you sure you’re going to be all right? I’ve never seen you this… drained.” I pushed my head into his hand, worried.

He stroked my head gently. “I’m sure. It’s just… Well, draining is a good word. Normally, I would place energy into the crystals over a day or two, and then use that energy during the spell. But without that, I had to supply all the energy at once, using my blood to give the magic more… places, I guess, to tap into my energy. Or for me to tap into the spell. It’s hard to explain. But it allowed me to put more energy than I can usually channel into the spell. Doing that is… incredibly tiring. Like running a marathon, except having to run five steps for every step so I can do it in a fifth of the time. It feels like I’ve burned out my body, almost. Like I gripped two ends of live wires and pretended to be a fuse. Even just thinking about using magic makes me hurt right now.”

I gave his non-bandaged hand a gentle lick. “Well, don’t worry about it. That’s the nice thing about Earth, I guess. Nobody’s going to ask you to do any magic. Well, Cheryl might, but I’m sure she can wait until you’re better. Too bad you didn’t have one of those healing potions.”

Master shook his head. “No, those wouldn’t work. I already burned the vitality they’d draw on to close the wound. There’s nothing left right now for them to work with, the only thing I can do is heal naturally. I’ll be fine in a few days, but you see why I didn’t want to do it if I could avoid it. Why I never used it before.”

“Yeah. Well, I’m glad it worked, but I hope you never have to do that again.”

Cheryl nodded. “Yeah, that was… crazy, to watch. It actually all glowed and everything. But it’s all done, you can just rest for now, okay?”

Master leaned back in the chair and let out a sigh. “Yeah, rest sounds like the best thing ever, right now.”