Author's Note: Kudos to djkauf for betaing this for me.

There's a story after this, a follow-up, that is also finished. It's almost like a series of stories for three of the main character of focus. However considering the minute amount of comments I'm receiving I really don't know if I should waste my time writing more on the subject. I'm not like the people that claim they're writing for themselves (rolls eyes, whatever) I write for fans and for comments, either good or bad. Otherwise there is no growth to my writing and I cannot improve. It's not so I can pat myself on the back. No, I won't hold my stories hostage until I get comments, that's stupid. I'll just post what I've written and then move on. This is free material that's taken hours and days out of my life for your entertainment. I don't think a single sentence from you (fifteen seconds of your life) is asking for too much in return. I've noticed it with the other authors as well. Appreciate your authors, or they stop writing for you. It's pretty much that simple. And if you're thinking I'm being arrogant in writing this, then you've completely lost the meaning behind the paragraph above; try reading it again.

Chapter 3

Sunday went on like any other. I mowed around the house and Dad was putting the finishing touches on the third bedroom. He’d gone out that morning and purchased a four-poster princess style bed and went whole-hog on the girlie decorations taking advice from the ladies that sold it to him.

Truthfully, I was I felt kind of surprised about the whole thing.

When the afternoon came, Susan called and cancelled, apologizing profusely. It seemed that Terry still hadn’t shown up or been found and she was starting to really get worried.

The guilt played on me. I knew Dormammu’s demon had shredded him and ate the remains, but I couldn’t tell her that. Even if I could, I didn’t know that I would. You see stories on TV about people that needed closure about a missing loved one, that just knowing they were dead was enough to let them move on. I thought that may be true in most cases, but would you want to know that your psycho son or brother was in the midst of attacking someone only to have the tables turned the worst possible way?

No, not me. I’d rather live in the fantasy world.

That night I turned into Darcy again as expected. I dressed in some comfy pajamas and joined Dad on the couch to watch some TV. Eventually I snuggled up and just enjoyed the evening like a real daughter.

~O~

Monday morning came and I had to turn into a guy earlier than sunrise in order to get ready for school. I’d have to make sure to give DC some extra time that night to keep things even, but I was starting to get used to it. Even after only a couple of days, I’d gotten into a routine. It made me think that DC was doing something to ease the experience for me. Whatever it was, I was grateful. Being angsty about the way my life turned out wasn’t really appealing to me in the least.

School turned out to be more eventful than normal.

Susan and I had different lunches and we didn’t share one class together so I wouldn’t be able to see her for any length of time until after school let out, so I wound up eating alone.

I was so incredibly lucky — notice the sarcasm here? — to see Perry was in just about every one of my classes and lunch, even gym.

The nasty looks I’d been sending his way hadn’t gone unnoticed. In gym class was when he confronted me. Of course he did it in true jerk fashion, while I was changing.

“Where’s he at?”

It didn’t take an Einstein to figure out who he was talking about. “You were seeing things, Perry. You really shouldn’t call the cops on someone when you’ve been drinking.”

His muscles flexed, and I stood there not being intimidated. He may have been the quarterback, but he was nowhere near as big as Terry was and I’m not exactly the puny nerd.

“I know what I saw. He went in and didn’t come out.”

Slipping on my shorts, I buttoned them up. “Then why didn’t the Sheriff’s Deputy find him down there or any evidence that there was some sort of fight? I’ll tell you why, because he never came down.”

“You’re lying!” He pushed me up against the lockers and I flinched at where one of the latches dug in my back.

“Fuck you, Perry. Why were you looking at my place anyway? Were you perving? Did you want to fuck me? Just because I shave my legs doesn’t mean I like it up the ass, fag.”

Someone snickered in the back and that was all it took. He took a swing at me and I dodged out of the way at the last second while Perry slammed his hand into the lockers. He screamed and clutched it to his stomach.

“What the hell’s going on in here?” the coach yelled.

I pointed up at Perry. “Stodghill is perving on me and I told him I’m not gay then he tried to hit me. He missed.”

“Coach,” Perry said through the pain. “He did something with Terry. I know he did.”

The coach looked annoyed, and pointed at Perry. “You, nurse’s office, and you, my office.” That last one was pointed at me, in case you’re wondering.

I grabbed my shirt, socks, and shoes before securing my locker and making the trip.

“Close the door behind you.”

Doing as he said, I sat down on the chair in front of his desk.

“I don’t take kindly to new kids starting fights in my locker room,” he said with as much intimidation as was possible.

“Well, then I suggest you get a rein on your insane football jocks and their hallucinations. Have you thought about random drug testing?”

He leaned back on his chair and studied me this time. “So, you’re a wiseass.”

“Coach, you didn’t see what went on in there, so why am I the one that’s singled out? I’m not the one that probably broke his hand on some lockers. Does that tell you who threw the first and only punch?”

“It still takes two to start a fight.”

I shook my head. “No, it takes a retard to stand there and be hit. I’m not a retard. Are we done? I’m going to be late for my next class.”

He pointed his meaty finger at me. “You better be praying that his hand isn’t broken. This school has been number one in District going on ten years.”

Why is it my destiny to deal with idiots at every turn?

“I hope he crushed his hand and he has to switch to left-handed jerking off. That’s how much I care about your football team.”

The coach smiled. “We’ll see.”

Oooh crap. Sometimes I just don’t know when to shut up.

There was only one more class after that and I made it through without flapping my smart mouth anymore. I know I have a problem with back-talking. I’ve got nobody to blame but myself in that regard. Growing up in a city school, you learn to defend yourself with your mouth. Raising your hand against another student was considered zero tolerance and they kicked your butt out with very few second chances.

The incident that I just walked away from was the perfect example. My old principal would have taken a look at me then looked at Perry. There’s a little bit of a size difference there. Taking into account the damage his hand was in and me with nothing at all, it didn’t take a brain surgeon to figure out what happened.

Perry would have been kicked to the curb for violence during school, football player or not.

Of course the school I was at was known for its academic excellence and its role as coming in last place every football season, so there wasn’t much call to pamper those that played, but still. It was obvious that there was going to be some pissed off people, if the coach was any indication.

Lucky me, I happen to find a few on the way home.

As you already know, Dad’s a trial lawyer. He makes some pretty sweet money, but he also believes in not flaunting his success. The clothes he wears are top notch, because that’s what’s expected. The same goes with the car. Everything else is middle of the road, good and reliable, but not over the top.

All of this means when I turned sixteen I didn’t get a new car to go with my new driver’s license. I did get a pretty nice mountain bike, of course I live in the Mississippi countryside without any mountains in a thousand mile radius, but it was the thought that counted. The only thing it was good for was durability, and considering some of the unpaved roads in the area, it was probably the best choice.

That didn’t mean other families held back from spoiling their kids. Everybody had a truck, well everybody that didn’t live in town which was a good majority of the student body.

I lived about three miles away. On a bike that isn’t any big deal. I could have taken the bus to school, but seriously who takes the bus anymore? I think they provided three to service the entire county.

So there I was, pedaling home, cutting through empty lots, and avoiding potholes when I noticed I was being followed from a distance. Maybe you’ve forgotten what it’s like to ride a bike. You can hear a car from pretty far off and you have to keep an ear out so you can get out of the way, because frankly nobody cares if they force you off the road and into a ditch because you weren’t paying attention.

Thanks, but I like to keep my balls hanging between my legs and not smashed against that metal bar between the seat and the handlebars.

So you’ll understand why I was getting annoyed with the rusted out piece of shit Ford F-150 produced sometime in the seventies. It trailed about a hundred yards behind me and was moving along at a crawl.

When I turned off the road and cut through an empty lot where a convenience store or the equivalent once stood — I guessed because a sign still stood at the corner, but no building was evident. Hurricanes are a bitch, yeah? — I wound up on a dirt road that eventually led to the one that my house sat on.

I got about a third of the way along and that’s when I heard wheels spinning on dirt. Looking back, I caught the same truck fishtailing around the corner and increasing in speed.

“Shit. It’s the welcome wagon.”

Ordinarily I’d take advantage of being able to ride a bike and cut through places cars couldn’t go, but the road I was on was bordered by the national forest on both sides, and contrary to the movies, there aren’t convenient trails every five feet. Instead there are boatloads of yaupon trees that block every conceivable route into the woods.

Just in case you don’t know, yaupons are in the holly family. It’s not exactly pleasant to brush up against. So I had the road, the ditch, or the bloodletting trees to deal with.

The good thing about the ditch was that it dipped down about three feet on either side, so the truck couldn’t follow without wrecking.

I heard the engine rev about a hundred feet behind so I took the first available opportunity to lift up on the handlebars and make a jump directly into the center of the ditch. There wasn’t that much of a loss of momentum, but the landing was a little jarring.

After I hit the brakes I pulled out my cell phone and hit the picture key on the side. By this time the truck passed me up and I clicked a pic of the rear of it. I just hoped that there wasn’t too much dust in the air.

The driver hit the brakes, while I kept on clicking pictures as it switched gears and started reversing. Once I’d made one of the people sitting on the passenger side, I forwarded everything to Dad.

When the truck stopped I waved the cell at them. “I got pictures of you running me off the road and sent them to my lawyer.”

For giggles, I took another pic of the look on the passenger’s face and then held the phone up to get one of the driver and anyone else inside.

“Aaannd I’ve got pictures of all the rest of you.” With another two buttons pressed those were off as well. “I’d suggest fucking off now.”

I heard one of the other say, “Man, he ain’t got no lawyer. He’s bullshittin’ you.”

“His Dad’s a lawyer. My cousin Joey said so.”

I smiled. “Cousin Joey… thanks for a name to add to all this. Man, you guys are really helpful.”

The guy at the passenger side turned a nice shade of puce. “Let’s get out of here.”

Then my phone rang. “That’ll be my lawyer. It’s been nice, guys.”

“Ari, why do I have pictures of a truck and… someone that looks constipated being sent to me?” asked Dad.

I had to wait for the truck to leave and to quit spraying me with dirt and rocks. After spitting the dust out of my mouth I answered. “They just ran me off the road. I thought you might want evidence of who did it if I wound up in the hospital.”

“You’re kidding.”

“I’m not kidding, Dad. Do you know someone up here with the name Joey? He knows you’re a lawyer and told the driver about you.”

“They told you that?”

“They’re founts of useful information. If you can get the license plate off the truck that might help.”

I could hear him start on a slow boil. “Get home, Ari and call me when you arrive, so I’ll know you’re safe. I’m giving the Sheriff a call and we’ll see if we can put an end to all this.”

“Thanks Dad. Uh, you might want to know that Perry Stodghill took a swing at me in gym today.”

“Ari…” He sounded tired.

“I just stepped out of the way. I didn’t fight him. But he slammed his hand into the locker and might have broke it. He’s the quarterback of the football team and Terry was the running back. People are starting to get pissed at me ‘cause Perry is telling everyone that’ll listen that I did something to Terry.”

Dad sighed. “Is there anything else I need to know?”

“Um… the coach said I’d better pray that Perry’s hand isn’t broken and something about being first place in district for ten years.”

“A teacher said this?”

I nodded even though he couldn’t see me. “With a smile, and it wasn’t a friendly one.”

When I’d hung up, it took me a couple of minutes to make my heart stop slamming into my chest. I hauled my bike out of the ditch and started back to the house keeping my cell in my hand and switching over to video mode for the next encounter if it ever came.

It didn’t.

~O~

It wasn’t an hour later when Susan sent me a text.

Units >:-( Perry >:-( WTF kal mi

For those of you that don’t speak Text it said that Susan’s parents were in a high state of emotional distress about something Perry told them while he was a bit miffed, and did I know what was causing their major mental malfunction and to contact her forthwith and without further ado.

Hey, it’s the short hand of the new millennia.

Our conversation was short because it was quickly interrupted by her mother telling her to hang up. As a backup, I logged on to my computer and sent her an instant message.

Perry thinks he saw Terry go into my cellar and not come out. You already know this. He’s telling everyone that I did something. If you want to take a break until they find out what’s really going on, I’ll understand.

Right when I hit Enter, my phone rang.

“Hey, Dad.”

“The Sherriff is coming out to talk to you and get your statement.”

“What?”

“Joey is Deputy Harris from yesterday. My agreement with the Sherriff was for that Deputy to be taken off the case and to stay away from you. In return, I wouldn’t file a complaint. He recognized the truck and the driver as his cousin.”

I rubbed my eyes at all the melodrama. “So you’ll be filing that complaint now?”

“Yeah. When the Sheriff gets there call me and put it on speakerphone. I’ll walk you through the process. Tell the truth and don’t embellish; keep it to just the facts.”

Thinking about what school was going to be like the next day was a nightmare. “Is it possible for me to be homeschooled, or maybe just to go ahead and take my GED?”

I was only half-kidding.

“I know you’re not going to be popular at school because of this. At least until the Coomes boy is found.”

The snort that came out of my mouth described what I thought of that statement. “Dad, it’s not about popularity right now. It’s about not acquiring a gaping head wound. The school doesn’t hold them back like they did at home. If Perry connected, he would have broken my jaw, not to mention nearly being run over by a 2500 pound truck.”

He didn’t miss a beat. “I’ll see about get a restraining order put on him. Were there any witnesses?”

I chuckled. “Yeah, about twenty, but do you really think they’re going to back the new kid?”

The sound of him covering his phone came over the line and then he returned a few moments later. “You’ll stay home tomorrow. Let me figure a few things out and we’ll talk tonight.”

The interview with the Sheriff went about how I thought it would. After I gave my statement and told him about Perry and the truck, Dad went on an all-out offensive spouting words like Assault, Premeditation, Proxy Murder, Murder, Civil Case, Responsibility, Restraining Orders, D.A.’s Office, and so forth. I flinched and looked scared at the appropriate places.

At the end, Dad had me walk the Sheriff out to the cellar and look toward Perry’s house. I nearly laughed out loud in shock. In between the two places was an enormous oak tree in full bloom. I’m talking about a tree so big that branches wider than my waist nearly touched the ground. There was no possible way for him to have seen anything. So, in short, Perry was full of shit and the Sheriff saw it.

“Now,” Dad said, “I fully expect the attention of this case be taken off my son and put on the one person who we know for a fact is lying. I think you might even find the motive his role on the football team.”

The Sheriff turned around while I was holding the phone up. “How do you figure?”

“I took a look at his statistics and injury list from last season. Perry is wearing down. His arm is shot. I think he knew that and didn’t want to be looked down upon as the one who was responsible for the upcoming season’s loss.”

I blinked at what dad was saying.

“He needed to shift the blame and our arrival gave him the perfect opportunity. Invite the new kid and pair him off with Terry’s sister insuring Terry would go into a rage. When the time was right, he took care of him in one way or another and shifted all the attention on the new kid by reporting a bogus sighting at our house. Then he turned his popularity into a tool of deception, telling all his friends about Ari’s involvement.”

The Sheriff looked taken aback, but held it together. “That’s an interesting theory there, Mr. Chylde.”

Dad’s voice came back stronger than ever. “It makes a heck of a lot more sense than a boy half Terry’s size facing off with him and not have a single bruise or blemish on his body as a result. You know how this county thinks of its football stars, Sheriff. Do we need to talk about cheerleader mothers that have done more for less reason?”

The Sheriff frowned.

“I’ll expect Perry Stodghill to be questioned if nothing else and I’ll be alerting the D.A. about the case and how it’s progressed thus far this afternoon. So, I would suggest you CYA, Sheriff and bring the boy in.”

If I hadn’t heard it with my own ears I wouldn’t have thought it was possible. Dad totally put the blame squarely on Perry’s shoulders. I swallowed at the implications. I knew who killed Terry and it wasn’t him. The question I had for myself was, would I let someone innocent take the fall for a demon that used me to enter this dimension?

Even though Perry was an asshole, I didn’t think he deserved that, but I wasn’t going to say anything right away; not until I figured out how to work my way around this latest twist.

The Sheriff talked to Dad for a few more minutes and then he took off, curiously, about five acres to the east. I pulled up a chair on the front porch which had a nice view of Perry’s house and nearly laughed when I saw him being led out in handcuffs and a nice sized cast on his right hand.

“How’d he get the cuffs around the cast?”

Pulling up my Text Messaging on my phone, I sent Dad and Susan a quick one.

Perry Arrested re: Terry

My phone rang fifteen seconds later.

“Are you serious,” Susan said.

“Uh-huh. Saw it myself.”

“I’m putting you on speaker. Tell my parents.”

I went over the whole thing with them, giving them the scenario that my dad laid out for the Sheriff. The clincher was when I told them about not being able to see anything in the back of the house, so it was obvious he was lying and setting me up in the process.

“Ariel…” Susan’s dad said, somberly. “I apologize for what we thought and said about you when he approached us this afternoon. They’ve always been the best of friends.”

Again, I was feeling the guilt, but I resolved to wait until later to say anything, if for no other reason than to let everyone at school find out that Perry was a liar and a possible murderer, even if I knew different.

“I’d probably do the same sir. Perry might not be involved in it at all, but thought I’d be the best person to blame. We just have to let the legal system do its job. The truth will come out in the end. That’s what my dad always says. If he did something, they’ll find out; if not then they’ll find that out too.”

At the end, Susan thanked me for calling and said that she’d see me later.

Finally!

I thought everything should be back to normal soon enough. A day off from school, everyone gets the lowdown, and I’m off the hook.

~O~

Darkchylde was pissed.

She rose from the bed and donned a pair of black jeans, flat sandals, and a halter top that I bought to go with a jacket. I had no intention to ever wear it by itself, because it showed way too much skin.

She took her time and make up her face before doing that teleport thing she did the previous night, except it wasn’t the cellar that she went to this time.

I didn’t recognize the house that she approached until she looked in the window.

“Sorry about this Ariel, but the dragon and I cannot allow you to be threatened in this way. Without you she can’t grow stronger. It’s still too early for her to be released. Him would find her easily enough and subjugate her again and me… well, if you die, I die. I can’t let that happen either.”

After saying the Incantation of Making, I watched as a guy, a teenager, rose from his bed and put on a pair of shorts and a tank top before opening the window and blankly looking at Darkchylde.

“Write a note to your parents confessing what you did today and your true intentions, what you really wished you could have done to Ariel Chylde. Do it now.”

He turned, moved to a desk, and began scribbling on a piece of paper.

“DC, what are you doing?” I said, knowing she couldn’t hear me.

Darkchylde waited patiently outside the window. “In case you’re wondering, Ariel, this is the driver that tried to run you over today.”

I looked through the window, but it was too dark and I couldn’t make out his face very well.

“You’re getting a confession out of him? Then why were you apologizing? That’s cool!” I said.

Peering back at her, I didn’t expect an answer, which was annoying. I didn’t like not being able to communicate with her.

Another five minutes went by. When he finished, he brought the sheet to Darkchylde and held it out as we both read it, me from over her shoulder. It was a lot more explicit than I really wanted to know about. He really wanted me dead and he described it in vivid detail. I didn’t know what to believe.

In the past, I’ve had dark thoughts; who hasn’t? You know what I’m talking about: you’d wish someone ill that’s done you wrong, bullied you, teased you. We’ve all done it, and very few people actually go through with it.

While I didn’t have any illusions about his intent earlier that day, I didn’t think it would go beyond a beating of some type. But the systematic dismemberment and disposal of my body was a little over the top.

Darkchylde smiled. “Very good. Now go to your bureau and remove your hunting knife from its sheath and stick it all the way in your neck. Then you can go back to sleep.”

My eyes widened. “What? No! What are you doing? Stop him.”

I got right in front of her face as she watched him and I screamed in her face. “Stop him!”

DC’s eyes flickered to mine and her lips thinned. “Stop.”

Her eyes moved to me again. “I’m impressed. You shouldn’t be able to force yourself into my consciousness from your sub-conscious so soon. You know why this has to happen, Ariel. If I don’t do it then the dragon will and you really don’t want her taking vengeance. Things tend to burn a lot when that happens.”

I didn’t break eye contact with her, something told me I’d lose the connection if I did. “Let the law handle him, DC. Have him mail a letter to the Sherriff’s office. Have the others do it too. That will take them out of harm’s way. They can’t hurt me if they aren’t around to do it.”

She crossed her arms and considered my proposal, I hoped.

“I’ll do it on one condition.”

“What is it?”

“Allow me to control your actions when you are in danger. I could have helped you today and shifted you out of there, but you are too strong for me to assert myself. I asked you to call upon me when you are in danger, but you failed to do so. In times like these I have to take drastic measures to make sure you come to no harm.”

She was right in a way. “I’m sorry, I forgot. I’m not used to relying on you. If it happens again, I’ll call for help.”

“Very well.” She looked up at the teen again. “Return the knife to the bureau. After mailing that letter to the Sherriff’s office in the morning I want you to mention to everyone you see how much you love bread pudding. From this day on, you will write poems about it, stories about it, songs about it, draw pictures about it; it’s all you will think about.”

“Bread pudding? Where the hell did that come from?”

She looked back at me. “He will be punished by me in some form. Perhaps in a few years I’ll release him, but until then he has something else to think about other than you.”

~O~

She went from house to house having the other two people that were in the truck confess, before giving them obsessive tasks to perform. The Sherriff’s Deputy was last. His was a lighter sentence. DC made him renounce his prejudice and dislike of me, and be my champion during his duties.

Perry was still in county lockup. She said she’d deal with him later.

When we returned to the house, DC changed and got under the covers before the scene switched to the green glade once again where I immediately set in on her.

“You can’t get up and do these sorts of things without talking to me first, DC.”

I really wish she’d wear clothes or something to cover her body while we were in that place. Watching her was distracting as hell.

“Your protection is paramount. It will be some time before the dragon has recuperated enough to be on her own. You’re lucky she didn’t take form at the time and eat them, truck and all.”

My eyes bugged. “She can do that?”

DC Shrugged. “It’s a possibility, but there is anonymity to consider as well. If it happened at night the odds would have been much higher.”

I sighed and scratched my head as it hung. “Look, can you teach me how to do some of the things that I’ve seen you do? It would have been helpful to know that mind control whammy thing you did tonight.”

She smiled at me. “Of course I’ll teach you, Ariel. Come, sit before me and we’ll start right now.”

~O~

The next morning I found myself in bed dressed in a simple… uh, what do you call those silky minidress things that girls wear to bed? They’ve got really thin straps and are slit up the sides so they show a hint of what’s underneath, anyway, one of those.

I knew I was alone. Dad didn’t bang on the door as he left. Being almost mangled twice in one day was obviously enough to get him to show some sympathy. It was my second full night being in Darkchylde’s form and even though it was really strange, I didn’t hop out of bed and change right away.

Why? I had to admit, girls had some advantages in certain ways. The night clothes felt really nice and since the air-conditioning was pumping full and strong at the moment, I had a sense of being warm, soft, and snuggly under the covers. That led to a little exploring with my hands and eventually more than a little exploring after that.

As a boy I masturbated a lot. If given the opportunity, three times a day. They were usually quick and frenzied, drawn up by a fantasy or an available picture, or even seeing a really hot girl.

This time it was a more sensual feeling. I already felt really good under the covers, as I told you before. So I just went with that feeling and increased it.

I know I’m making no sense. Let me try to explain the difference between doing it as a guy and a girl. I felt more. The buildup and release for a guy would be akin to being tremendously thirsty and pouring a fountain coke. You know how you have to wait for the fizz to go down or you wind up inhaling it and choking? That’s what male masturbation is like. You’re waiting in expectation for that moment when you can take a long full drink and finally get relief. That’s also how the end is; the long satisfying drink. Then it’s over. Your thirst is quenched.

Girls are totally different. They’re more like building a banana split that you’ve been craving all day. It’s an intricate process that takes time to do right. Three scoops of different flavored ice cream go in the center. You would get a little on your fingers and have to lick it off, so you wind up teasing your senses along the way with mini delights. You slice the banana in half and border the scoops.

The hot fudge comes next, pouring just enough to taste and decorate, but not to overwhelm the rest. Naturally, you make a slight mess and have to lick that up, reveling in the texture and sweetness as it coats the tongue and slides down your throat. Then the whipped cream… whoops too much, you have to use your fingers now to scoop some off. Fingers are so useful aren’t they?

A sprinkle of chopped nuts and a cherry that you have to tongue the juices off of finishes the delight.

At that point you get to actually eat it and satisfy that wonderful day-long craving that has been driving you near insanity. That first taste explodes over your tongue and you squirm with happiness only for the next taste to come moments later, building and building, every bite is something different and satisfying, until at last you are sated.

The final part is finishing off the dessert, a lengthy process that isn’t over in a span of seconds, but over in minutes as you have to come down easy or the experience is ruined.

Of course, there’s the guilt of indulgence afterward that was the same. That’s the part that’s still hanging on me. I remember looking at the time when I woke up. It was almost eight o’clock. By the time I’d finished it was eight-forty-five, and I enjoyed it way too much.

The room smelled like sex and the sheets were wet. Girls are really messy. It wasn’t like I could clean up with a couple of tissues or anything.

“Oh, man, I can’t believe I did that.”

I immediately threw the covers off and hopped out of bed. The cold air rushed across my already sensitive skin as I determinedly walked to the bathroom and turned the shower on. The nightgown flew off and slithered across the counter and into the skink. My panties were already gone and probably lost in my sheets.

The water was sublime. I’d never experienced a shower like that before, enjoying the feel of the soap as it moved over my body and washed away with the evidence of my morning transgressions. Yeah, I really really liked it, so much that I made a vow right then that I’d shower as a girl from there on out.

My legs were still smooth, even after… what was it, four days I think?

I guessed that initial burn that first day had probably torched my hairs down to their roots.

The hair was another problem altogether.

I’m sure you’re asking yourself why I’ve waited this long to shift back to my guy self. The truth is I didn’t really have an answer. It was a bunch of different reasons I think.

Being alone in a house for the day left me with the opportunity to experiment. I didn’t have anything to do, no responsibilities, no current drama, and nobody to talk to. Plus… well, I mean seriously, wouldn’t you want to know what it was like to just be someone else for a day? Even if it was just the girl-side of you?

That’s why I said, what the hell, why not?

The hair took about thirty minutes to dry properly. Since I wasn’t a pro with taking care of something so long, I stopped at the end and stared in the mirror.

“DC can you give me a hand?”

I pushed that question inward and thought of giving her control when she surged up and I internally stepped aside. The expression my body showed in the mirror changed to a delighted smile.

“I thought you’d never ask. You’re going to have so much fun today,” she said.

DC showed me where to stand and watch everything she did. All I really wanted her to do was to style the hair properly, but she took it further, showing me all sorts of things I could do. Eventually she set it and went to the bedroom to get dressed. Since we were lounging, she grabbed a pair of boy shorts style panties and a matching bra, and then slipped on some denim shorts and a half tank.

The makeup was next. DC went through excruciating detail with everything. She didn’t make it too thick, just some eyeliner, mascara, a little eyebrow pencil and lipstick. Our complexion was virtually perfect anyway. I’d never had a problem with acne or oily skin as a guy. Sure the occasional pimple would appear out of nowhere for some reason, but that only happened if I overindulged in refined sugar. Glazed donuts were the bane of my existence.

The last thing DC did was apply some lipstick and blot her lips. “There, what do you think?”

A rush between us occurred again and I was back in control. “Wow, you look… we look great. Thanks DC.”

Damn, we really did look great.

I was never disappointed in how I looked as a guy. The stereotypical handsome man wasn’t in my future, but I was good looking. As Darcy I was a knockout. I’d stack her up against Susan any day of the week and it would be a really hard decision to make. Luckily, I didn’t have to choose between the two.

Finding the sandals DC wore last night, I slipped them on and headed out to grab some breakfast. Imagine my surprise to find Dad on his recliner reading the morning paper and drinking a glass of juice.

I froze at the entrance to the living room when he looked up. His mouth opened and he blinked while I gave him an unsure smile.

“Ariel?”

My voice stopped and started more than a few times, but I finally found it and explained. “I thought I’d try out being a girl for part of the day?”

He quickly folded his paper and set it aside. “I thought you had to change back at sunrise?”

I shrugged and picked at the back of the couch in nervousness. I couldn’t believe I was busted this quick.

“It’s a time-share thing. As long as I spend as much time as a girl as I do in guy mode then I can switch between them whenever.”

Dad seemed to grasp the concept fairly quicky. It was obvious that he was trying his best to be understanding considering the circumstances, but even he wasn’t talented enough to hide his uncertainty.

“Well, that’s… good. If you have to be one or the other at certain times you won’t be under any restrictions.”

I nodded in agreement. “So, what do you think?”

It was then that he really took me in: the hair, the makeup, the clothes, the uncovered skin.

“I think you look like a very beautiful sixteen year old girl, and I also think that I’m going to have a difficult time dealing with that.”

“How do you think I feel?” I said with just a touch of sarcasm.

“You seem to be dealing with it very well, from my point of view. You’re very feminine.” Realizing what he just said, he clarified. “I mean your gestures. You’re not acting like a male.”

Inwardly I viewed everything that I’d done over the last hour and a half that it took to get ready. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. That’s a good thing, I think.”

Dad shuffled a little in his chair. “I was planning on taking you out for breakfast.” There was a pause. “Did you want to go as… as a girl?”

I nodded without thinking. “That’d be cool.”

He closed his eyes for a second to process, I think. “Well then, get your purse, or whatever you’ll need. This is so strange.”

I giggled and spun around heading back to my room.

~O~

“We need to come up with a story about your appearance, if people ask questions,” Dad said as we pulled up to the restaurant.

“Oh, I already figured it out. I’m your niece on Mom’s side of the family. I have like a billion cousins on that side anyway. Nobody would be able to figure out exactly who I was without a flow chart and a slide rule.”

“True,” he replied.

“My name is Darcy Dahl.” Dahl was mom’s maiden name, in case you haven’t figured that one out yet. My height, blonde hair, and fair skin came from her Swedish background.

“Darcy?”

“Uh, yeah. I came up with it that first night. Is that okay?”

He nodded, thinking it over. “It’s pretty.”

“Thanks.”

I reached for the door to the restaurant, but Dad beat me to it and I froze, forgetting that I was a girl for a second and guys were supposed to do that sort of thing.

“Thanks, again.”

The restaurant was freezing, or it could have been because I was showing ninety percent of my skin. I’m going with the former. After we ordered, I sipped at my orange juice and waited for Dad to bring up whatever was on his mind.

“What were your plans for today?”

I shrugged. “I was just going to hang out, play some games, whatever.”

“You made yourself up to hang out in the house?”

Okay, he had a point. “Not really. I did that for the practice. If I’m going to be living half my life as a…” I left it hanging because there were too many ears around, but Dad got the idea. “Then I thought I needed to know the particulars.”

He rubbed his mouth thoughtfully before lowering his voice. “Have you given any thought to medical issues?”

I was struck dumb, not because I thought he said something profound, but because I didn’t have a clue as to what he was talking about. “Huh?”

Leaning into the table, I met him halfway where he whispered again. “Girls and boys have different needs from the medical field; Gynecological issues, if you take my meaning.”

“Oh.”

“Some of my questions would be if you needed to go on the pill, and if you did what would that do to your male body?”

About half-way through his sentence my eyes bugged and I started gaping. “No, no way.” I looked to the side and then back at him. “I’m into girls, Dad, even as a girl I’m into girls.”

“Oh… okay, good, I guess.”

This had to be the single most confusing conversation I’d ever had with my dad. There was a reason, granted, but still. What father talks to his son about taking the pill?

“We also need to talk about legality, like what are you going to do about Identification?”

I blinked. “I’m not. I can transform anywhere at any time. I won’t need to be anything but a guy in the eyes of the… whatever.”

Dad breathed out one of those I know more than you do sighs. “So if you get pulled over for speeding, you’ll just transform for the nice police officer and they’ll understand?”

I sniffed. “Well, being your son and daughter, I wouldn’t be speeding in the first place.” The look on his face told me he didn’t believe a word I was saying. “However, for the sake of argument let’s say the accelerator got stuck about ten miles over the legal limit… hypothetically. Yeah, I could just change.”

“And what if you’re wearing a dress at the time, Ariel?”

“Darcy… and, okay, you have a point. I’ll think about it.”

The frigid temperature was making me need to go pee. “I gotta go.”

He grabbed my hand before I could get completely up. “Make sure you pick the right restroom.”

My face flushed as I grabbed my purse and headed to the girl’s restroom.

Thankfully it was empty. There were only three stalls and they were all open and unoccupied. Looking in the mirror, I concentrated and called Darkchylde forward. She took it from there, including the peeing and cleanup portion.

“You’re going to have to tell him about the magic. With that I can swap clothes in a virtual instant. You don’t have to worry about getting pregnant or any other female issue. With the dragon present she will keep your body from harm. You won’t even experience a mild cold much less any of the more yucky problems like yeast infections or the like.”

I could have done without thinking about that before having food delivered.

“And lastly, we can use magic to get us out of any situation where we would be recognized lest you forget last night’s foray into the minds of jock central. Before you go all, we can’t do that, it’s not right, think about what could happen if we were found out? Right now you’re just a talentless meta that can switch his gender at will. It’s pretty low key on the meta scale. We don’t need anyone thinking that we can do anything more. So keep that talent to yourself, not even your dad or Susan should know.”

I snapped back to the body leaning over the counter with my pinky extended, touching up my lips.

An older girl came in at that point and stalled when she saw me before moving to a stall and closing it. I shrugged and grabbed my purse.

“Everything come out okay?”

I gave my dad a look of annoyance then dug in to my pancakes. Our food had been delivered while I was away. It was a six-stack that I slathered in butter and syrup before I put it away without any thought, just like I always do. Needless to say Dad was impressed to see a girl eat like a guy.

The waitress returned to refill Dad’s coffee and her eyes widened at my empty plate. She looked at me and my very trim waist. “Honey, where do you put that? If I had even one of those I would have gained five pounds.”

I grinned weakly. “High metabolism.”

She sighed. “I used to have one of those. Then I had two sons and a little girl. Enjoy it while you can.”

After she left the check, I looked at Dad. “No way in the world that’s happening, so get it out of your head.”

Visions of me pregnant as a male swam in the back of my mind. Guh.

~O~

When we got home, I excused myself and went upstairs, stripped down and changed back to a guy. I make it sound like it was a simple step, but it was still a painful process, though not nearly as painful as before. Hopefully, in time, that would fade away as well.

I stood and felt my chest, letting my hands trail down to my hips. All was recognizably male, and ordinary. Maybe it was the novelty of being in another body that I missed. I wasn’t sure.

Shorts and a tank, unsurprisingly the male version of what I picked out at the beginning of the day, was what I chose to wear.

The remainder of the morning was spent transferring my girl clothes over to the room Dad set up for Darcy, along with my makeup and incidentals.

The rest of the time I spent down in the cellar waiting for school to let out so I could contact Susan and maybe get to see her.

Using the meditation method Darkchylde showed me in the previous night’s lesson, I was able to talk to her directly instead of having to give her reign over my body.

Instead of the glade returning there was just the black of having my eyes closed, but I could still hear her like she was right next to me.

“You make a good girl, Ariel.”

“Thanks, I think.”

She giggled. “It was a compliment. Too bad you like being a boy so much. It would make things much easier if you stayed a girl all the time.”

“Easier?”

“Uh-huh. Well, you wouldn’t have to worry about clothes for one, and shifting back and forth for another. Susan seems to like us in either form, though admittedly I think she likes your cock the most.”

I rolled my eyes.

“I’m kind of attached to it as well, so don’t do anything permanent, okay? Besides, don’t we both have to spend time in this body or lose ourselves or whatever…? I’m still kind of unclear how that works.”

Her voice shifted from one ear to the other like she was moving around behind me. “You’ve spent the better part of seventeen years as a male, Ariel. Your personality, ego, Id, whatever you’d like to call it, is cemented on this plane. You’ll never have to worry about losing your masculinity. Now me… it’ll take years for me to do the same because I only get to come out every now and then. So, the more time you spend as a girl, the more of a hold I have on this plane.”

“Okay. So then where did the twelve hour thing come from?” I asked.

“That’s the minimum I need to survive. You could spend a week or a year as a girl, night and day, and it would help anchor me a lot quicker, and still not have to worry about your ability to shift back to your male form.”

“Don’t plan on that happening, DC. I like being a guy.”

“Hmm,” she said kind of smugly. “It didn’t sound or look like that this morning.”

I felt my face flush again. “You were watching?”

A throaty laugh followed. “I don’t sleep, Ariel. Not really anyway. I’m always watching over you… even when you’re being naughty. Besides, there’s nothing wrong with what you did. You were experiencing life from my side. I want you to enjoy yourself.”

That kind of shocked me. “You want me to masturbate more often?”

She spluttered a laugh. “Well, whenever I guess, but you and Susan can have fun or you can bring someone else into your life to let you experience what it would be like with a male.”

I quickly interrupted her. “No thanks.”

“Like I said, whatever. I may be biased here, but being a girl is so much more fun than being a guy. Yeah, they both have their downsides, but I think they’re less for girls. You’re missing out.”

“Why are you trying to talk me into staying as a girl?”

Her voice changed to recognition. “Oh, sorry. Um, consider the subject dropped. I don’t want you to think I’m pushing you or anything. I’m just proud of my gender is all. Go Girls! and all that stuff, you know?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Gheeze, Ariel, it’s not like I’m plotting or anything. Be a boy… whatever.”

That last part sounded like she was a little hurt by my implication. “Sorry, I’m just… I mean this has been a seriously suck-ass year for me.”

I felt a warmth encircle me, like DC was hugging my body from behind. “I’m sorry too. I don’t think much past the moment I came into being. You miss your mom.”

I nodded. “And with Perry and the cops… it feels like everything is closing in on me and I’m not safe.”

“You’re not. Don’t forget about, Him.”

“I haven’t. Speaking of which, we better get on to the next lesson. We have to make sure he can’t hurt anyone else.”

~O~

Darkchylde and I spent a good four hours on magic and learning the intricacies of nuance. It sounds more complicated than it was. Basically you have the Incantation of Making and a few other things. The incantation is for big magic that needs focus and proper inflection at the proper point to work properly. Breaking that down into more simple terms, if I needed to do that mental whammy thing DC did the previous night I’d have to know exactly how to say the incantation and focus on making that specific spell work the way it was supposed to.

That’s why I didn’t set off fifty different spells in my attempt to figure out the right pronunciation when I originally fried myself and wound up in Him-land.

There was no easy way to learn. DC couldn’t magic the information into my head or anything, so I wound up making stupid mnemonics so as to remember the proper ways of doing each spell, and I was now up to a total of three, count them three, magic spells!

After four hours of hard work, color me disappointed.

The first of my three spells was Obfuscation, which allowed me to cloud men’s minds. I make it sound better than it really is. Basically it’s a confusion cloak. If I throw it up then whenever someone tries to look at me they immediately want to look somewhere else. It also made electronic surveillance go muddy. No cameras would be able to see me. That was a new add-on according to DC. Since cameras weren’t exactly around six thousand years ago or whenever Atlantis was still a continent and not housing marine life.

Warding was the second. It’s pretty much what you’d expect. Once I set it up, in the cellar for instance, nobody can cross the boundaries of the ward. Doors, windows, chimneys, pipes, you name it; nothing can get through that means me harm, and if they’re in the room already then they would wind up being expelled, violently.

The last one of the day was Protection. It was similar to the Warding spell, but specifically protected me from the magic of others.

I asked why I’d needed that one. It wasn’t like there were other people that could use magic knocking down my door or anything. DC told me it was for safety reasons, which was the whole point of the lesson. Talk about boring. I was hoping to have something to kick some butt with, but she said this was more important to learn first.

At the very end, I got a setup lesson for minor magics, those that didn’t need the Incantation of Making that I would learn the next time. All they required was intent and concentration. That’s how I’d be able to change clothes in the blink of an eye, or move things around with my mind. I’m not talking about cars or tanks or anything, but if I needed a pencil or a candle then I would be able to call them to me.

That was for next time.

Susan didn’t bother to call, she came by instead.

“You should have been at school today,” she said after kissing me hello.

“What happened?”

“It was like Bizzaro-world. I spread the word that Perry was arrested and it took about two hours to make it around the entire school. People were totally freaking out. Then word came in that three guys off the football team went psycho. They caught Robby Prince at the supermarket trying to steal all of their cucumbers. I mean all of them. Do you know how many cucumbers there are in that place?”

I chuckled. “A lot?”

“He was shoving them down his pants and in his shirt, at least that’s what Brenda Watts said and she was there when it happened.”

She stopped and looked over to the forest that bordered our land. Her demeanor tempered. “The Sheriff wants to gather up a search party and go through the woods. Would you mine helping?”

I nodded. “Of course I’ll help.” Thinking about something else I added, “Would you mind doing me a favor first?”

He gaze came back up to me. “What?”

“Come down in the cellar and look around. Tap on walls, check everything out. I don’t want there to be a doubt in your mind or your parents that Terry was ever here.”

She looked at me kind of surprised. “Ariel, we already know Perry was lying…”

I held up my hands. “I know, but still. It would make me feel better and you can tell your parents I had nothing to hide. I’m sure they would feel better knowing that too.”

She frowned. “You’re being stupid, but if it means that much to you, I’ll do it.”

I gave her a thankful nod and opened the door.

Susan made a big show of knocking on the cinderblock walls until her knuckles started hurting. I knocked for her afterward. She checked the hideaway, the trashcan, and the mini-fridge.

“Okay, this is seriously stupid,” she declared.

“I know. I just want you to see that there weren’t any hidden rooms or a sub-cellar below this one, or sharks with laser beams attached to their heads down here.”

She edged up and grabbed my shirt, kind of sexily. “I know that Ariel. We had sex down here a few days ago, remember? I think I would have noticed a shark pool, not to mention the laser beams. Have you forgotten about the sex already?”

I grinned. “Not likely.”

Susan didn’t seem convinced. “I think you need a reminder, like right now.”

“My dad’s home.”

“Damn. I don’t know if I can keep my hands off of you for that long.”

That brought a big smile from me. I don’t think I’d ever met anyone quite like Susan. She was the hottest girl in school, not that I was actually looking for any others, and she chose me.

“I could change into Darcy if you think it would help.”

Her mouth popped open and her face flushed. “Uh… that probably wouldn’t be a good idea.”

“Why not?”

She shook her head and grabbed my hand to lead me back up to the outside.

“Susan, what’s up?”

She stopped and turned around on the stairs. It was nice to have her eye to eye with me. She wasn’t short; I was just tall compared to her.

“The other night, after shopping…” She sighed. “When you were… down there and you looked up at me.”

I looked at her curiously. “What?”

“I wanted you, probably just as much as I want you right now. I can’t see her while I’m around your dad, he’ll know that I go both ways.”

I tried not to laugh. “Susan, it’s not like it’s taboo anymore. We used to see that sort of stuff all the time back home.”

“Well, it’s taboo here. There are all of three girls out of the closet in school and their only friends are themselves. I don’t want it getting around until I’m out of this backward town.”

She grabbed my shirt again and got real close to my face. “Can we keep this a secret, please?”

“Well it’s not like she’s the one going to school here. I guess it wouldn’t be a big deal.”

Susan giggled. “That would be worse, me dating you and Darcy. But I still want to have that threesome, both ways.”

I cringed and she laughed at me. “Didn’t know what you were getting yourself in for when you hooked up with me did you?”

Somewhere in my head, I could almost hear Darkchylde laughing at me.

TBC...