Author's Note: Kudos to djkauf for betaing this for me. Pic Credit: Alice xz.

Chapter 3

After lunch, the storm let up and the sun started peeking through the clouds at times. That pretty much ended our vacation from reality. Ariel, in boy form, carried our luggage down to the Mercedes after I called Jennifer and let her know that we were taking off soon. She still sounded positive and I hoped that held though to that night. Otherwise I’d have to kill the bitch.

Okay, that was a little of Dick Grayson peeking through the shades there.

I dragged my magazines and books along. I swear it seems as if I’m a weak kitten now that I’m a girl. I can’t do half the things I used to do, but I suppose having a strong guy around helps with things like that.

“Got everything?” he asked and I nodded.

I was in a yellow sundress and flats since I was driving. Ariel was in shorts and a tank, both boy-style. I still loved the legs on both of them. Maybe it’s because they were both smooth and hairless. It gives the appearance of femininity even in the face of masculinity. It reminded me of his prettier side.

He held out his hand and I looked at it. “What?”

“Keys, to drive.”

My eyes lit up with mirth. “You’re not driving my baby. Get your own car.”

Before Ariel had a chance to say any more, I ran to the driver’s side and jumped in. This was one female stereotype that was going to burn a quick death. I could drive just fine and he’d just have to accept that.

I waited for him to get himself situated with the seatbelt fastened before I turned in the seat and crawled up and halfway over the console. My right hand went to the back of his head and I threaded my fingers through his hair.

“Thanks for not being a typical guy, Ariel.”

With that said, I leaned in and in the bright light of day, knowing exactly what I was doing, I kissed him, full and thoroughly. His arms came up and pulled me the rest of the way over without any resistance from my part.

I kicked my feet and giggled when we had to readjust our kiss midstream, and in moments Ariel’s hand was on my breast and I was pushing up against it wanting more.

All of this led to an impromptu make out session in the front seat of the Mercedes and I was glad I had heavily tinted windows.

Getting back to the driver’s side wearing a sundress was ridiculously difficult, but eventually I’d made it. I brushed my hair out of my face and fixed my lipstick as Ariel watched me. His gaze was heated and out of the corner of my eye I caught the tent he was making under the front of his shorts.

That scared me a little, knowing that if we kept this up then one day that thing would be inside me. It was then that I realized what a lot of teen girls probably did. Sex was scary. The lead up to it was full of passion and energy, love and connection, but when it came down to the final act would I have the courage to complete it without letting him down?

From the way my body was responding, I’d say yes. My breasts almost ached for his hands or her hands… hell, my hands, and there was a warmth between my legs that wanted to be heated even more.

“You know, you don’t have to keep reapplying lipstick or wear makeup at all. You’re beautiful enough as it is.”

I capped off the applicator and smiled at him. “I want to be pretty for you, and I like doing it.”

Ariel’s lips pressed together like he was considering something. “If it makes you happy then I’m happy.”

“It makes me happy,” I said. “And it’s always a plus to see you having to wipe off my lipstick after we make out.”

His hand came up and rubbed at his lips self-consciously while I giggled, inserted the key into the ignition, and hit the start button on the console.

~O~

Most of the trip over was free of heavy traffic, but there was debris in the road here and there. Those were the times I took my hand off of Ariel’s smooth and firm thigh to steer with two hands.

The closer we got to Houston the heavier the atmosphere became. Tension started to ramp up and I finally had to break it because God knows when Ariel would.

“What’s wrong?”

He glanced at me for a moment. “I’m trying to think of all the different ways to approach Jennifer about what needs to be done.”

That set my mind in motion. “I’m not clear on the whole making her not insane scenario.”

“DC told me that magic is kind of like an energy drink. Well, she didn’t use those words, but I’m dumbing it down for me and you so I can put it in terms I can understand better.”

I smirked but gave him an encouraging look.

“While you’re using it, you can experience a rush of sorts and then afterward you crash. Kind of like the sugar and caffeine rush.”

Being a student in high school I was well familiar with energy drink crashes. “Uh-huh.”

“That’s average magic. Now equate other types of magic to harder drugs than caffeine.”

Something clicked in my head and I shot Ariel a look. “Are you saying that Jennifer’s using magic like heroin?”

He shook his head. “No, at least I don’t think so. She spends a lot of time meditating which is how a sorcerer or sorceress connects with magic and equalizes the amount that they have inside themselves. But there are more drugs out there that aren’t as hardcore as heroin but still have dangerous side-effects.”

I made the connection easy enough. “My grandmother, before she died, was on some serious medication to help with her MS. It was supposed to affect her muscles, but she started accusing everyone of trying to kill her. When I went to see her I was ten I think. She even accused me of being in some conspiracy. Is that what you’re talking about?”

“That’s it exactly. DC thinks that Jennifer’s used some type of magic that isn’t agreeing with her. That’s saying something too, because she wanted Jennifer dead after what she did to me.”

My foot came off the accelerator and I looked over at Ariel. “What’d she do?”

He was silent for a few moments before answering. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is we get her clean and clear of whatever is making her act like she has multiple personality disorder. She’s too powerful to lock up and from what DC and I found in our scrying, she’s done a lot for this world without anyone knowing and without any thanks.”

We entered the city limits and zipped along the freeway. “It sounds like you feel sorry for her.”

Ariel shrugged. “I guess I do in a way. Even though she’s been a major league a-hole, at one time she was a hero. She deserves a chance to be that person again. It’s the least the world owes her.”

~O~

As I pulled into the parking garage underneath the Bank of America building and into my assigned space, I hit the off button and looked over at Ariel. “How do you want to play this?”

Yes, I was the girl asking for the guy to take the lead, but I was only ordinary person here. My boyfriend had the power.

That thought made my face flush. I have a boyfriend and a girlfriend. How insane is that?

“Let’s meet up with her and see how it goes. I’ll put on my best positive attitude and try damn hard not to argue with her, and you do whatever it was before you left. Don’t let her think that anything has changed.”

I winced and was immediately filled with dread. “That’s going to be… ugh. I was the perfect little daughter and…”

He squeezed my hand. “I have faith in you, Richelle. I’m not going to think anything less if you act completely different. I know why you were doing it and you were smart to do so.”

An urge to hug him came over me, but we were still belted in.

“On that thought,” he said. “You haven’t seen acting until you see this.”

Ariel’s eyes closed and there his body shifted into his female form. It was still an amazing sight to see. When the transformation was finished, she curled her middle and pink finger up and ran them from the top of her head to her feet. My mouth dropped open as her hair styled itself, makeup applied itself, and her shorts and tank morphed into a stylish summer dress that complimented mine.

When she was finished she turned to me. “Tada!”

My eyes narrowed at the hour and half it takes me to get ready and the thirty seconds it took her to not only look like a drop dead girl, but to do it in perfect style.

“I hate you now.”

She leaned over and kissed me before popping her belt. “You love me.”

I couldn’t help myself; I kissed her back. “I still hate you, but I guess I deal with it because you’re mine.”

“And you’re mine.”

~O~

Jennifer was waiting for us when the elevator door opened. I plastered on a fake excited smile, dropped my bags, and jumped in her arms for a hug.

“Mom! I missed you so much!”

Gag!

She squeezed me back. “I missed you too honey.”

Jennifer pulled back first and looked at me with a pleasant appraising eye then it drifted to the other occupant of the elevator.

“Hello Ariel,” she said rather stiffly.

“Hello Jennifer.”

I watched as they faced off neither giving an inch until Ariel broke her gaze away. “I’m sorry about what I said.”

Jennifer breathed evenly, but it was obvious she was holding something back. “Accepted. Let’s forget about it, okay?”

Her fingers whipped out and all the bags rose off the floor, zipping down the hall to our rooms. “There, you two are all unpacked. Would you like to freshen up? I’ve made some snacks to hold us over until dinner.”

I nodded eagerly. “I’d love a nice bubble bath. I think I smell like the inside of a car. I don’t know how guys stand it.”

Ariel’s eyebrows rose at my blatant over-the-top girlishness. “Um, me too.”

Jennifer smiled approvingly. “Well, we can’t have you two smelling like boys. Try not to be too long though. I don’t want you to spoil your dinners.”

Reaching over, I kissed her on the cheek and grabbed Ariel’s hand. “Come on. I have to show you my room! It’s pink! Can you believe it? It’s perfect!”

I kept the banter running until we were inside and I heard the ding of the elevator signaling Jennifer’s exit from the floor.

“Oh my God,” Ariel said. “It’s like pre-teen hell. I feel like a Telletubbie is going to jump out from the shadows and smother me.”

“Tell me about it.” I grabbed her arm and swiveled in front of her. “First opportunity, I’m moving into your room.”

She chuckled and kissed me lightly. “I don’t know if Jennifer will go for that. Go take your bath. I’m going to see what’s left of my room and maybe change.”

~O~

My bath rid me of the frustration I’d been feeling ever since the male Ariel took me in his arms in Austin. I’m not telling you how it helped me; you’ll have to figure that out on your own.

When I got to my closet I noticed there were little notes on everything hanging there telling exactly what it was. I guessed Jennifer was helping with my knowledge of women’s clothes. There were so many different styles and makes and designers, I was lost. However I can tell you I chose a Frenchi Challis Skirt and a Rubbish Easy Fit Cotton Shirt. How’s that for detail?
What it looked like to me was a white button down shirt with little pockets over my breasts and these little buttoned tied up things on the short sleeves very odd. That, and a black skirt that made it to mid-thigh, barely. It had a stretchy waist and sat high on my waist.

The shoes that went with it were ridiculous. What the heck is a Ballet Flat? It was a slipper with a little black bow above the toes. It didn’t feel like I was wearing anything. Again I felt all cutesy, but just as long as Ariel liked it then I was okay with the whole thing.

I struggled through the makeup again. It seemed like I was getting worse every time I tried. Twenty minutes it took me to fix what I kept screwing up. I felt hopeless and inexperienced.

Knocking on Ariel’s door didn’t produce any results, so I walked down the hall until I came to another room which turned out to contain two very uncomfortable women inside staring at their drinks.

“Don’t you look adorable,” Jennifer said as she looked up. “Come, sit here, sweetie.”

I glanced at Ariel and she was looking me over. The heat was back in her eyes and I felt a jolt of pleasure at being the cause of that look on her face.

“Doesn’t Richelle look every bit the young lady, Ariel?”

My smile dropped off at Jennifer’s slight dig.

“Yes she does. She’s breathtaking.”

“Thank you.” I pulled out the chair next to Jennifer and smoothed my skirt out before sitting and crossing my legs almost without thought.

She poured tea for me and set a small saucer with three cookies in front of me.

Looking Ariel over I saw that she was wearing a denim miniskirt and a cami on top with simple thong style sandals on her feet. Jennifer must have been so disappointed.

“You look very cute, Ariel.” It was the first time I’d seen her in a skirt and I really liked it.

“Thank you. I’m glad you like it. It’s a little drafty though.”

I giggled. “I don’t know about you, but I enjoy the feeling of air between my legs. Give me a skirt or a dress any day.”

Jennifer smiled and took my hand. “Now that we’re all here I want to talk about Ariel’s ritual tonight.”

My eyes widened in alarm. “Mom… we need to talk about something first.”

She squeezed my hand. “Of course, Richelle. What’s the matter?”

I glanced at Ariel and then back at her. “Would you mind very much… I mean, is it possible…”

Jennifer’s eyes sparkled. “Honey, what’s wrong? You look all flushed.”

Taking a deep breath I set my other hand on top of hers. “Mom, I’m a lesbian. I like girls.”

She blinked for a second. “That’s quite alright. I’m bisexual myself. I understand the allure girls can have and they are so much nicer than boys, but I always wind up going back to men on occasion for other things.”

I really didn’t need to hear all of that. Gag! The thought of old people having sex just squicked me out.

“Good, thanks. I’m so happy that you understand.” My eyes darted back at Ariel for a moment hoping to gather some more courage. “The thing is…”

Jennifer finally caught on. “Oh… you two…”

Her face shifted in emotion like twelve different times. It was seriously freaky.

I silently nodded.

“Well,” Jennifer said as she stood and straightened out her skirt. “I suppose that answers a lot of questions I had about how you talked her into coming back. I did say to use any means necessary. I should have set some restrictions.”

My mouth opened at her disapproval. “It’s not like that.”

She looked at me for the first time, her eyes fierce. “Are you saying you didn’t sleep together?”

“I…” The image of waking up in Ariel’s arms flashed in my head and I knew I couldn’t deny it. I wouldn’t deny what Ariel and I did.

“All we did was sleep, Jennifer. We’ve kissed as well. Nothing was done that Richelle should feel ashamed about. She’s still innocent.”

Jennifer spun on Ariel. “Says the betrayer. What does my true daughter have to say? I want to hear it out of your mouth, Richelle Jennifer Kale. Are you still a virgin?”

I flinched away from her accusing glare. “Yes,” I whispered.

“Has the betrayer pawed at your breasts and had his hand up your skirt? Was he a male when he did this?”

True fear was starting to well up inside me. I had no defense against what she could do to me. That was proven time and again.

“Enough!” Ariel slammed her hand down on the table. “You sent Richelle to find me. She did. You had her bring me back her. She did. You ruined a young man’s life and kidnapped him from his true father to turn him into your daughter and she agreed. Now you want to punish her for following your every order, Jennifer Kale. I will not stand for it.”

Pushing away from the table I needed to escape, but I saw Jennifer bring her hands up, both of them in spell casting positions. Instead of running out of the room I dove for Ariel.

“No!” I screamed.

Something that sounded like lightning cracked in the room and I slammed against Ariel knocking her down. My back felt like it was on fire. The smell of burned fabric rent the air and my eyes locked on Ariel’s before fading slightly.

“Richelle!” screamed Jennifer.

Ariel’s face whitened and then I swear her eyes turned black. I sucked in a harsh breath and whimpered in pain.

Her eyes tracked back up to what could only be Jennifer behind me and her hand lashed out. Static electricity filled the air before the pain became too much for me.

~O~

“Please baby, wake up. Richelle, please, please. Oh God. DC do something.”

Words were spoken at the edge of my consciousness, and I felt my back stretch which made me groan with pain. Again the words were spoken and at the end I heard, “Duchess Astaroth come forth and heal this innocent girl.”

My back strained again and then I swear I could hear the flesh tear as I screamed out.

~O~

The thumpthumpthump of someone running alerted me that I was actually awake, awake and in a comfortable bed that wasn’t the one I was used to in my room at home and it wasn’t the pink nightmare of my room at Jennifer’s.

“Jennifer… oh God… Ariel!”

The door burst open and there she was.

“Richelle, you’re awake!”

In the span of two seconds she was by my side, leaning over and hugging me without the actual hugging with arms part. It was more of a squeeze.

“What happened?” My mouth was so dry my voice cracked.

“Let me get you some water. Hold on.”

Ariel got up and ran to the bathroom returning a few seconds later with a small cup. I sat up a little. My back was seriously stiff.

“Oww.”

“Try not to move too much. You’re still healing. Here.”

She held the cup to my lips and I greedily drank the whole thing.

“Ariel, what happened?”

After she set the cup aside she looked at me with tear-filled eyes. “Jennifer tried to kill me and hit you instead, because for some insane reason you jumped in front of her spell. She was so pissed and horrified that she missed and hit you that she lowered her guard and I knocked the crap out of her with a spell of my own.”

“You killed her?” I was of mixed feelings about that.

“No, just knocked her across the room, broke her arm and shoulder, and then bound her so she couldn’t use any magic.”

I sighed and dropped back onto the pillows. “You couldn’t have done that when we first arrived?”

She shook her head. “I would have never had the chance to touch her. She’s that aware of her surroundings.

“When I got back to you, I saw that you were still alive and wearing the Amulet of Agamotto. That’s the only thing that saved your life. DC patched you up and I had to call on a Demoness to make sure you’d have the use of the muscles in your back. You got tore up pretty bad.”

I felt as weak as a kitten. “Is that why it hurts so much?”

Her eyes widened. “You’re in pain?” She paused. “Oh.”

“What?”

“DC just told me something that makes sense, but I...” she sighed. “I did something that I don’t know if you’re going to like or not.”

“What? It sounds like you saved my life, or made sure I wasn’t a cripple or something. Just tell me.”

Her face firmed with regret. “Come on. There’s no room in here. We’ll have to go upstairs.”

I chuckled wryly. “I don’t think I can make it.”

In the span of a few seconds Ariel changed to her guy form. “I’ll carry you. Trust me this will help with the pain.”

I grinned at the sight of him wearing a pair of red bike shorts and a sports bra. “Nice outfit.”

Receiving a smirk back, he pulled the covers away. “I’ll change back to my female form when we get upstairs.”

With a little help I sat back up again and Ariel lifted me into her arms, but not in the traditional way. I had my legs wrapped around his waist and his hands were firmly on my butt.

“I feel like I’m three. Do you have to carry me this way?”

He chuckled. “Two reasons. Less strain on your back for one. And as for two, you have a nice butt and I like touching it.”

That made me squeeze him tighter and bury my face on his neck. The melon scent that I associated with him and her was present and it soothed my senses as we took the elevator to the level above.

When we got to the middle of the room he set me down on my feet and told me not to let go of him because I had to stand for this part.

“You know those wing tattoos I have?”

I nodded on his neck. “They’re pretty.” My brain caught up and I sucked in a breath. “You mean…”

“Like I said before, if I didn’t do anything, your back muscles would have been shredded and healed like that. I had to call one of the demons. The trouble with that is they manifest differently with me. I can call certain portions of them into my body, like the wings only.”

“Uh-huh,” I said with a fearful quality to my voice.

“With you… with you I had to insert her into your body. She healed you, and you’ll be fine after some rest, but the amount of time spent inside left some…”

“What?”

“She left some things behind.”

I squeezed my eyes shut. “I’m horrible looking. Is that what you’re saying?”

“No!” Ariel almost shouted. “You’re just as beautiful as before. Nothing’s changed. But you have a tattoo of her wings on your back, and your nails, they’re black. That’s it. You can paint your nails, baby. Nobody will ever know.”

With a nod, I agreed then sighed. “That’s a small price to pay, I know. I’m not going to freak out.”

She was silent for longer than was natural. “That’s not all is it?”

“No,” Ariel whispered.

“Do I have a tail or something?”

There was no answer. “Release your wings, Richelle. That’s why your back hurts. I had to force you to revert so you could sleep in the bed.”

My breath caught again. “They’re real wings?”

“Just let them go and take a look for yourself.”

“What do I do? Just…” There was a sensation along the entirety of my back and butt as well then I heard a loud Whoomp!

Energy filled me, enough to where I could stand on my own. Taking a step back, I looked at my fingers. They were at least twice as long with wicked looking four or five inch talons extended beyond that. My feet were the same, and I had an additional talon out the back of my heel.

“Oh God… of God…” Looking back, I saw that the wings I had were nothing like Ariel’s black feathers, but more like…

“A dragon. The demoness normally holds a dragon form, she passed all of what you see to you, and your eyes as well.”

Looking around the room, I spotted mirror and started to walk over until I heard the clicking of the talons on the floor. Trying to hold myself together was becoming increasing more difficult with all the changes. I felt like a freak of nature. It became worse when I saw my eyes. The whites had entirely disappeared and cornea took up its place instead. My pupils were thin vertical slits.

I looked like a monster and I felt like crying. What else could I do?

“How do I get rid of it,” my voice turned panicky. “Make it go away!”

Ariel was right there. “Just think of pulling it all back in.”

When I did all the energy that I had when the demon parts were present left me. Ariel scooped me up and led me to the elevator. My bed was cold when she set me down and I shivered until I was covered up.

Even though I held it together for the most part, I chose that time to break down.

~O~

Angst, angst, angst. Can I be any more of a teenage girl supernatural romance model character? Bella from Twilight has nothing on me at the moment. She doesn’t have a boyfriend and a girlfriend that can switch genders at the drop of a hat. She wasn’t kidnapped and given the zappy into a new gender. And she definitely wasn’t some freaky half human half demon-dragon hybrid with an unimaginable toenail problem.

Screw Bella and her pouty lip biting bit. I gots da real angst right here.

Spending the better part of the day in bed with Ariel talking me down from taking a diver off the roof top exhausted me. She told me that with practice I could call on only the manifestations that I wanted and not all of them at once like I did upstairs. So I practiced in bed.

After knocking the bedside lamp over three times with my wings, I figured out how to keep those hideous talons on my feet from popping out. The ones on my hands were a different matter. They wanted to come out whenever anything was activated.

By midafternoon I felt decent enough to get out of bed and shuffle around. My back was much better, but I still lacked energy, so I stayed in a cami set that Ariel dressed me in so I wouldn’t rip anything apart when I did the wing thing. The air was cold which was why I donned a silk robe Jennifer purchased.

That was one thing I was happy about. Jennifer had been beaten down.

Speaking of which, I needed to find out what happened to her. Surely Ariel wouldn’t just keep her locked up in a closet or something. There was supposed to be some sort of magical enema Ariel was supposed to perform to flush out the dark magic Jennifer messed with. That was her hope, a flush and Jennifer would be back to normal or as close to normal as a Sorceress could get.

I still didn’t know if I could deal with her. I had a lot of anger built up where she was concerned and it needed an outlet. My life had been destroyed due to her magic and every day seemed to bring on something else that I wound up being the brunt of.

Richelle Kale, the world’s butt monkey.

I cringed at my name. Maybe I could go back to being a Grayson at the very least. I guessed that depended on Dad and his reaction to finding out I wasn’t even genetically related to him anymore.

Again, speaking of which, I needed to get back to my house. There was no telling if he’s back early because I never answered the phone during my abduction time.

With pink bunny slippers on my feet — don’t ask — I shuffled down the hall to the kitchen so I could put something in my stomach and hopefully it involved caffeine of some sort.

I made it as far as the door when I heard a guy saying something.

“When are you going to talk to her about me?”

Ariel’s voice came next. “When she is up and about on her own strength. Richelle doesn’t need any more drama in her life. It kills me that so much has happened to her. She didn’t deserve this.”

“Do you think she’ll hate me for doing this?”

Ariel scoffed. “I know I would, wouldn’t you? But I can’t see any other way for it to work out without bringing the police into this mess.”

“I’m so sorry, Ariel. God, I’ve made such a mess of things. I don’t even know where to start making amends.”

From the topic of conversation I would swear that the guy was Jennifer, but why was she a guy now?

“Hopefully this is a start. I want Richelle to know that her father will be taken care of so he won’t have to worry.”

Those were the words that grabbed me more than that others and I had to have answers right away.

Stepping into the room I spotted Ariel right away, which brought a smile to my face. She was back in her skinny and ripped jeans that I thought were so attractive on her. Then I looked to who she was talking to and I thought I was going to throw up.

“Richelle,” said Ariel. “Let me explain first before you say anything.”

Sitting at a chair leaning over, looking severely depressed was… me, Dick Grayson.

“Wha… who… Jennifer?”

The boy retreated further in his chair looking like he was preparing to be yelled at. Ariel closed in on me and I took a step back.

“Your parents came back Sunday and we didn’t want your father finding an empty house. Jennifer volunteered to take your place until we could figure out a way to reverse what was done to you.”

I blinked at her for a second and let what she said register in my brain. “You can reverse it? I can be Dick again?”

She looked back at Jennifer in my male body, and then returned to gaze on me. “We don’t know but Jennifer is researching everything she has to find a way. She barely sleeps…”

Lifting my hand, I stopped her. “Hold on… what day is it?”

“Wednesday. You’ve been out of it for a while now.”

The energy I had seemed to leave my body again because I staggered and Ariel had to catch me before leading me to a chair at the table Jennifer was sitting at.

Annoyance dug at me. “Can you stop looking like me, please?”

“It’s a long term spell,” said Ariel. “She took it on as punishment to herself. If you have to be a girl then she has to be a boy, has to go to school, and be grounded for skipping so many days, not to mention not being at home when your dad called on Saturday. Oh, and for messing around in their closet or something.”

Jennifer ducked his head and covered his face. “I can’t begin to express how sorry I am, Richelle.”

Sitting down must have evened everything out, because I felt my anger coming back up again. “Well, you can start now and end somewhere near the end of the universe. Then I might think of forgiving you.”

Ariel squeezed my hand, but I wasn’t having any of it at the moment.

“Is she even safe to be around? Is she going to snap and turn my parents into animals or something for her jollies? Shouldn’t she be in witch jail or whatever they have for psychotic magic users?”

Jennifer got up and nearly sprinted out of the room. I heard his footfalls trailing down the hall until they were gone.

“Was that necessary?”

My head snapped around. “Are you kidding me?”

“Will you think of something for me?”

“What?” I said with a short temper.

“Let’s say you are at your house with your parents. Someone breaks in and is threatening their lives. You’re in your dad’s room and see his gun. Would you shoot the person knowing that if you don’t then your parents would die?”

I made an exasperated noise with my mouth. “What kind of question is that? Yeah, of course I would.”

She gave me a single nod. “That’s what Jennifer did three months ago. Dormammu has these creatures called the Mindless Ones he keeps locked up and uses when it suits his fancy. He sent them into this dimension and she had to use dark magic in order to turn them back on him. It affected her so slightly that she didn’t notice until it was too late. She was already nuts.”

My anger started seeping away. “It wasn’t because she was screwing around in something she shouldn’t have been?”

Ariel shook her head with sadness. “No. It’s been slowly building up over time. The more aggressive magic she used the more unbalanced she became. She unknowingly sacrificed her sanity to save the Earth. DC purged the darkness from her mind and she’s been a basket case since.”

“Fuck.” I dropped my face in my hands and felt tears fall. “I can’t even hate her now.”

“Once she figured out everything she’d done, she’s been trying to fix it all. I’m kind of a special case. There’s really nothing that can be done about my situation, but you… Richelle, she’s seriously torn up about it. When she knew that she couldn’t simply give you back your body she performed a ritual that turned her into Dick Grayson and she swore that she wouldn’t turn back until she made restitution to you.”

“I don’t want her money. I want my life back.”

“That’s what I meant,” she said. “You know what she thinks about guys. That’s still her attitude. She’s an á¼ber-feminist. Being a guy is literally torture for her.”

I sniffed and then snorted at the thought.

“That’s why I called it a punishment.”

The thought of Jennifer standing at a urinal at school flashed into my head. “Is she making me look like an idiot at school? She’s not shaving my legs or wearing dresses is she?”

“No. She has some magic that lets her read people’s expectations of her and acts accordingly. I’ve been keeping an eye out when I can. Though it’s pretty funny watching her flirt with the girls in your class, and get summarily shot down time and again.”

I nodded in remembrance. Even though I was a fairly good looking guy, I had no luck with women until I met Ariel. Of course I had to become a woman first for that to happen, so it didn’t really count. The thought that she was me… Dick, was horrible and satisfying at the same time.

With an exaggerated breath I started to get up only to feel weak again. Ariel was on her feet in a second.

“What do you need? I’ll get it for you.”

I closed my eyes and did what I knew was right instead of what I wanted to do. “I need to talk to her… him… whatever, and tell him I understand.”

“Look at me.”

When I opened my eyes, Ariel was right there in front of my face, smiling at me. “You’re a good person, Richelle. That’s one of the many reasons I think I’m falling for you.”

All the anger I’d been feeling left me at what she said and I kind of slumped into her arms. When I pulled back a moment later, she gave me a kiss that made my toes curl.

“Mmmm,” she said. “I’ve missed that over the last few days.”

It brought a teasing smile to my face. “Help me get my energy back and I’ll make sure to catch you up.”

Ariel grinned as she stood. “You think I’m not going to do my best to try. You’re wrong. Just in case you’re wondering, I’ve been sleeping right beside you every night. Your scent is driving me crazy, and reading your books isn’t helping matters.”

My eyes widened at that then my breasts started to ache as I remembered the effect her hands on them had on me. A second later she was gone and I was horny and tired; two feelings that should never be experienced together.

It took the better part of ten minutes for her to come back with Jennifer in tow. The whole time I had been eyeing the refrigerator because my stomach was growling in protest of sitting at the breakfast table with nothing to eat.

Fear and exhaustion looked horrible on my male face. The eyes were red and puffy from crying. I don’t remember the last time I cried as a boy. He sat down across from the table with his hands in his lap.

“I’ll fix you something light to eat, Richelle. Do you want some juice?”

I nodded thankfully to Ariel before starting in on Jennifer.

“Ariel told me about what’s going on… the thing you did with Dormammu’s minions and what happened after.”

He was looking at the table and I watched as his lips pressed together, moving slightly at everything I said.

“She also told me about what you’ve been doing since you got your mind back. Impersonating me, trying to find a way for me to come back, and not sleeping right until you do.”

A tear dropped down his cheek and I felt a lump forming in my throat in response. “You need to stop that.”

He looked up at me. His eyes were very glassy and I watched as another tear silently fell. When he spoke, I finally recognized my own voice. It wasn’t anything like I thought it should sound like.

“What?”

“Quit pushing yourself so hard. If you wind up in rehab because my dad thinks you’re on drugs you’re not going to do me any good. I need you clear-headed and focused. If that means I have to spend another week or another month as a girl then I’ll deal with it and you’ll deal with being me, being Dick.”

She shook her head. “You don’t understand. I haven’t found anything in any of my books, and I have the best and most thorough collection in existence. I’ve consulted with DC and there’s nothing in the Book of Zhered-Na that can help. There might not be a way to…”

Ever since DC had told me I’d be stuck in the female form of Jennifer’s body, I’d come to terms with it. It didn’t mean that I had accepted the idea, but I was dealing with what it meant. In a way, I’d already given up any hope of ever returning.

“Here’s the deal. You go on being Dick Grayson as you’ve decided to do, but you aren’t going to do it for the rest of your life. Do it until…”

I tried to think of a good time. “How about until the end of high school. That’s another nine months. You let my dad see you graduate and then you leave home and pretend to move to Europe or something… somewhere he would have no chance of having regular contact with Dick Grayson. That way you can go back to your regular body and we can get on with our lives.”

His lips parted. I think he was genuinely surprised at my suggestion. “Just nine months?”

I sighed and looked at him. “I might ask you to call him every now and then to let him know I’m alive, but yes. I won’t be the cause of someone living their life as a lie.”

Jennifer flinched when I said that.

“And you have to quit being all touchy. It wasn’t you that made me who I am today. It was evil-Jennifer. You’re good-Jennifer, I hope… or rather you’re good-Dick Grayson for nine more months. Try not to join the circus or anything too crazy. I still want my reputation to be untarnished. Well, no more tarnished than it already is.”

She smiled slightly at my small joke. “What about you?”

“Hmm?”

“You. Your status.”

“Oh.” I looked over at Ariel and grinned at her as she was cooking at the stove. She was so domesticated and sure of herself. “Well, keep looking for some way to fix my problem, but chill out. Killing yourself via exhaustion isn’t the answer. Besides, I’m Richelle Jennifer Kale. Consider me your illegitimate daughter that your ex-lover dropped off on your doorstep or something.”

She cringed at that. “You don’t want to change your name? That was incredibly egotistical of me to do without even asking.”

“I’ll think about it. The way I’m looking at things right now, I’m heir to the Kale name, fortune, and power. There are worse families to belong to.”

We sat there for a few minutes with nothing else being said, until Ariel brought over my breakfast and I started in. After swallowing my first bite I looked at Dick. Yeah, I’m going to think of him that way until Jennifer gets her body back.

“Richelle.”

I continued to look at him while he tried be consiliatory. “What.”

“I can make an amulet that will set a glamour over you. It would be an illusion only, but you can look like your male self again… I mean if you want to be with your dad.”

My eyebrows rose in doubt. “What’s the catch?”

She frowned. “You couldn’t wear it for any extended period of time… a couple of hours at the most.”

Maybe I was still bitter about the whole mess. Sorry, I’m just human. “So, I can basically torture myself seeing my dad, knowing I wouldn’t be able to be in his presence past that time. No thanks. I’m not into self-flogging.”

“That wasn’t what I meant… I meant… I’m sorry.”

Ariel brought my breakfast over and I felt guilty about making Jennifer feel guilty. Instead of harping on the negative again, I tried changing subjects as drastically as I could.

“So, who are you thinking of asking to the prom?”

~O~

Was I giving up on my masculinity without even a fight? Not quite. What was I supposed to do, throw myself on the floor kicking and screaming until I got my way? No. I was going to learn the family business and help Jenni… Dick find a way. He was the world’s most powerful Sorceress or Sorcerer, whatever.

In the meantime I was going to enjoy my time with Ariel.

We were still young. I didn’t have any preconceived notions that our love would span time and space, or next week for that matter. What I did know was that I had fallen for her and I’d do my best to hold on for as long as possible.

She took me flying a week after the whole hubbub was over. Remind me to wear tights or something next time. Flying in a dress was kind of cold even in the September heat.

We spoke about becoming superheroes considering our attributes. She even had names for us. She was Darkchylde, of course, and for me she chose Nightwing. I told her I wasn’t going to be just a sidekick.

That’s for the future. The world has enough superheroes. We’re too busy learning magic. Dormammu still has to be contained because he’s a threat to Ariel and Dick, not to mention the rest of the world. Once Jennifer returns he’ll have three hot Sorceress type chicks to face.

He doesn’t stand a chance.

End

Follow this arc to the next story in the series, "Witches: Coven you have found a better name for this?"

Author's not: Yeah, I'm not happy with that title either, but it'll definitely start off with "Witches."