Authors Note: this was the result of me really liking things like nagas and alraune and other monsters. As well as me kind of curious about what would happen if someone was transformed (as often happens in these stories) but carried on as normal. Basically asking the question of 'what happens if they're not embarrassed about what they've become?'.

Fair Warning though, this was done with very little planning or prep on my part, i just banged this out without setting up a plot at all. So fair warning.

Enjoy.

Mark Simms was a rather typical teenage boy, with a mop of red hair, a freckled face, a mind full of skateboards and video games. He loved Star Wars, hated Star Trek and played some Dungeons and Dragons in secret (though he would never, ever admit it to anyone) and didn't have any clue how to talk to girls.

He liked cheeseburgers more than pizza, but wouldn't turn either down, especially if it had a large Dr.Pepper to go with it, and some fries.

He wore his clothes until the stains made them stiff, or until they were soaked from rain, and worried little about his future, more worried about his place on the Call of Duty leader boards and how sick his kick flips were.

Mark's family also held a little secret...his sister, mother and grandmother were all witches, powerful ones at that, and his little sister, now only ten to Mark's fifteen, would wield great power when she came of age.

And Mark couldn't be more proud of them...nor more indifferent, unlike his father. Upon discovering the magic in his sister's blood, their dad had split. His name was Sam, and a spell was currently on him to prevent him from telling anyone what he saw, and good riddance to him; Mark didn't miss him at all!

Magic was definitely 'a thing' in his life, but the wonder and awe of it all had worn off, due to very strict rules in the house about the usage of magic.

Magic was not to be used for anything frivolous, a rule that had been ingrained into his mother by his grandmother, and now his sister was having it beaten into her head as well.

His little sister was named Katie, and was a redhead like her brother, though lacking in the freckle department: but Mark was certain they would grow in.

So Mark was ALMOST a typical teenage boy.

It was a Friday evening in the end of April when 'almost typical' stopped being an adequate description.

Mark was laying on his bed, staring at his phone, where a text from Stacey Charles; his girlfriend waited. Downstairs he could smell pizza, home-made pizza, being cooked by his mom: extra cheese and pepperoni. It should be finished soon, but first he had to deal with this text from Stacey.

"Hey, Mark we on for this weekend?" the message read.

Mark sighed and frowned at the message; Stacey was portrait pretty. Blonde hair, blue eyes, lithe and being given gifts by puberty hand over fist, when she finished filling out she would be a real beauty.

However beauty was only skin deep and Stacey was less shallow than a puddle on a sunny day. Mark had learned that she was dating a basketball player at the school AND Mark as well. The only thing was, the basket baller had learned that Stacey was two-timing him and had dropped her, so she had just stuck with Mark. She had been saying that the guy had taken some swings at her.

Weird thing was, Mark hadn't seen the guy since then...and Stacey was giving him some creepy vibes. The police were checking things out and Mark had found himself interrogated by the police, but couldn't offer them any advice.

Trevor had been missing for a week now, and the investigation was still ongoing.

After turning the entire mess over in his mind a few times, he tapped a response into the keypad.

"Hey Stace, you remember what's his name...Trevor Alves? Yeah I figured out you were dating us both. So no, we're not."

satisfied he waited and sure enough, a text came back.

"WHAT? No, Mark that's a lie, who told you that!?"

Mark frowned and stabbed the keypad

"Like, everyone. I'm not as stupid as you think I am. Don't message me again; it's over." he had barely even pressed send before a vicious, biting response erupted onto the screen.

"YOU BASTARD! YOU SHOULD BE FUCKING GRATEFUL I EVEN LOOK AT YOU! YOU'RE GOING TO REGRET THIS!"

"pff," he rolled his eyes and tapped the block button, "Whatever. Fuck off."

Dropping the phone on his bedside table, he laid on his back, feeling relieved; as if an enormous weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

"MARK!" the redhead heard his mother call, "Dinner!"

Mark grinned and swung his feet off the bed, but as he stood a terrible pain exploded into both ankles, and the boy collapsed, air rushing from his lungs.

The redhead tried desperately to scream, to rise and call for help, but the pain was paralyzing, a numb, molten burning feeling in both feet and ankles, and it was slowly creeping up.

Looking down, trying to understand anything that was happening, Mark's eyes witnessed his socks simply burn away, revealing an amalgamated mass of flesh, no toes or ankles: just a roiling mass of skin, with a tiny ring of scales starting to appear.

The poor redhead's pants tore, revealing that his legs were starting to fuse together, as the scales moved up in the wake of the horrifying crushing, twisting of his body. He tried to shriek, to scream, tears running down his face...but all the poor redhead could manage was painful, shallow breathing.

Then the door cracked, opening to reveal a godsend...Katie his little sister, looking bored. "Hey, Mark Mom wants you to-" Katie froze as she saw her brother mutating and writhing in pain.

Writhing, twisting in pain, his flesh warping and mutating, the poor boy looked up at his sister and managed a bare whisper: "K-Katie...help"

Katie managed a nice, proper scream, before Mark's vision went mercifully black.

He awoke to thankful numbness, resting on the ugly purple couch and the sound of his mother yelling angrily into the phone while Katie gently stroked his forehead with a cool cloth.

The terrible burning had thankfully passed, and though he had no idea what had happened, the redhead was too exhausted to care at the moment, bathing in the relief, and the cool air that trickled across his sweat-soaked skin. He idly noted he should be more concerned about laying naked in front of his sister...but the gratitude he felt towards her, for soaking his head with that cloth and for calling for mom was overwhelming his modesty.

His mom slammed the phone and let out an enraged huff, making Katie jump in surprise while Mark glanced at her in a drunken way, wearing a weary expression. Gloria wore a look of frustration that melted into pity as she studied her eldest, sprawled out on the couch in a haphazard fashion.

"That was Stacey" Gloria, his mother, spat the word like an insult, "She says she'll never change you back"

Mark slowly pulled himself up, until he felt an alien sagging on his chest, but failed to feel his feet touching down on the carpet.

"Change me...," mark's eyes traced down his form...to a large pair of breasts that sat heavy on his...umm...her chest, and beyond that, a long red...snake...tail?

Mark's breath sped as his eyes struggled to comprehend what they were seeing: two heavy, large breasts sitting on his chest, and exploding out from his hips was a thick, long, red-scaled serpent tail, spilling off of the end of the couch. It felt incredibly powerful, and responded in a fashion somewhat similar to how his legs would have.

Mark struggled, reaching up to the top of the couch to pull himself upwards, but a new alien sensation battered the transformed boy's senses, as he felt a second left hand gripping the top of the couch, located just beneath the first one.

Not wanting to, but knowing he had to, Mark glanced up and saw his fears confirmed: a second arm emerging from beneath the first one, and a quick inspection to the right concluded that in addition to a snake tail, he was also now adorned with an extra set of limbs.

His eyes squeezed shut as he tried to settle his breathing.

"Mark-" Gloria whispered taking a step forward, but was halted when her former son's upper right arm lifted; index finger raised in the universal sign of 'one moment'.

Gloria was always very proud of her son's ability to adapt to new situations. When her husband discovered that she had magic, he hadn't taken it well as it flew in the face of his strong religious views, but Mark's birth had served as a salve, tacking on a few years as he had been given a normal, non-magical child. However Katie's birth five years later had broken it, as the girl showed a powerful aptitude for spell casting. Sam had insisted that Gloria give her up for adoption, as it rattled him; a magical child that he was in part responsible for.

Unable to reconcile, Sam had tried to take Mark with him, but the brave little boy had refused to be separated from his sister. The spell Gloria cast on her ex was an unfortunate necessity, preventing him from telling the world about her magical powers, and dragging their son away. Mark had been firm and strong, especially for his age as his father walked out of his life and never blamed his sister or mother for it.

However would this be too much? Even Mark's adaptability had its limitations.

Mark's eyes opened again, and though the redhead currently see it, Gloria could see her beautiful child's once blue eyes had become solid green with a black serpentine slit in the middle, and his normally short red hair was now luscious waves of deep scarlet, spilling down past his shoulders. Once more, he glanced at the four arms, then down at the long, red tail before swinging himself up into a sitting position.

A less dramatic change was that the transformation had left mark with a very feminine, curvaceous and human backside, and a quick glance downwards revealed no genitalia...though whatever was down there was likely hidden behind a curtain of scales, giving the new serpent-person a limited amount of natural modesty.

"...okay," she said

after a moment's pause in her new voice, one that was like honey to listen to, it made the half-snake wince she continued, "Explain."

"I'll...I'll get you a shirt." Katie offered quickly, "You gotta be cold. Right?"

Mark glanced at his sibling, and her worried, anxious look. Katie so desperately wanted to help, but had no idea how to help. A shirt was her way of trying to do that.

So, Mark gave her a little smile and nodded

"Yeah, that'd be great Kates." her voice just oozed sex, a natural sensuousness that made Mark shudder slightly, but fortunately Katie missed it and eagerly ran upstairs.

Turning back, Mark regarded his mother with an even and understanding look. Mom didn't cause this, but he still needed answers. He gave a gesture with his lower right arm.

"Go ahead"

Gloria collected her thoughts and controlled her anger,

"I found Stacey's bitchy message, " she explained with a voice flavoured with anger, "She wanted to turn you into a snake, i don't know why-"

"We're studying snakes in school," mumbled Mark weakly, "That's probably why..."

"It was the first thing she was thinking of" the transformed boy's mother nodded in agreement, "I was able to halt the change by casting another spell on you. I was trying to make you turn back into human, brute forcing her magic off of you"

Mark shook his head, not entirely understanding.

"I don't...I don't get it...why not block the spell? Or- Or undo it?"

"Because, it had already taken hold of you, and only someone who is exceptionally powerful could have undone her spell. She is powerful, gifted and I'm not, I'm just...average." Gloria's face twisted in anger and she glared at her hands, as if silently cursing some unseen weakness, "Dammit I knew I shouldn't have trusted that little bitch."

It is very difficult to sense magic in any real way, the only reliable fashion is to see it cast, which is why most spell casters kept to their families, or to be already very powerful. Some, according to his mom, would try to add blood or body parts from magical creatures in an attempt to increase their magical strength and grant themselves the ability to sense magic in others. Results varied.

"So...why four arms?" Mark asked keenly aware of his mother's sense of helplessness, and wanted to keep her distracted.

"It's...well it's because the two spells fought and tried to come out to an acceptable compromise. The 'human' spell knows that humans have four limbs, and the snake spell wanted to ensure at least part of you was snake...so this satisfied both ends of the spell: a human part with four limbs and a snake lower part."

In spite of himself, Mark gave a weak chuckle.

"So magic isn't very smart is it? However..why a girl?" He gestured with all four limbs to his full, perky cups.

"I couldn't turn you into a boy, you already were one...I didn't know what would happen if I tried to change you into a human boy since you were still mostly one...and I didn't know what else to do. I just wanted to try to stop it. Mark I-" her eyes filled with tears as anger gave way to despair, "I'm so sorry. I'm sorry, I wasn't strong enough, I-"

The four-armed half-snake engulfed her mother in a tight hug, as Gloria broke down, sobbing into the shoulder of her transformed child. She felt so helpless, angry and frustrated: her own magic unable to stand up to an especially gifted (and shallow) teenager's. It was humiliating! And she wasn't able to protect her son who had done everything a mother could be proud of, the best she could do was twist him into this...parody of humanity. Neither an animal, nor a human.

Mark wanted to scream, he wanted to smash and hit things. He wanted to beat Stacey into a bloody pulp, he wanted to...he wanted to cry, and could feel wetness in his eyes. However he refused to, not while his mom was here...she needed him to be strong, for her.

"Hey..."

It was an uncertain Katie, looking up at the pair with a worried look and holding up a white t-shirt for her transformed brother. It wasn't the largest shirt, but right now nothing would probably fit right. Just one more thing that Stacey had done, one more petty hurt.

Katie was trying to help, wanting to help...he had to show her that she had helped, that they could get through this, that he wouldn't let it tear him down. Breaking the embrace, the chesty serpent graciously accepted the offered shirt.

"Thanks kiddo," and Mark examined it momentarily, "Alright I'll just..." and he slipped it over his head, shifting underneath until his head popped out the top.

"There, now I'll just..." Mark's words trailed off as he saw his shirt somewhat...shimmer, and then grow, the tight squeezing that his new breasts were causing relaxed as the shirt billowed outwards, forming a second set of sleeves beneath the first, before the shirt came to rest where his new hips were located.

"M-Mom?" stammered the upset snake girl, while his flustered mother stared at the shirt for several moments.

"Mark...honey...I think you have magic."

To his credit, Mark didn't faint, not this time.

"I..." the smell of the pizza reached his nostrils, and with some awkward wiggling, he managed to point himself in the direction of the kitchen.

"...I'll have a freak out later, I need food first"

It was mid afternoon the following day, and the still female, still snake, Mark sat in his room, staring out the window.

Her room.

Mark was struggling to accept the fact...her...she...female.

Dinner had come before anything else that evening, but Mom's delicious extra cheese and pepperoni pizza certainly helped lift his...lift her spirits, and though she was now a four-armed snake girl, at least she wasn't a hungry four-armed snake girl.

She had devoured nearly the entire pizza herself, though fortunately Mom had made two, and between the three of them, they devoured both of them, plus desert and a few sandwiches.

Spell casters always have bigger appetites, but Mark was now a spell caster with a new massive body, one that demanded immense amounts of food. Even now...she felt a gnawing in her belly.

Following that, Gloria had tried to undo the spells now woven through Mark's being...but it was impossible.

The magic used to create her new body was chaotic, and Gloria couldn't tell where her spells began and that bitch's Stacey's ended. They were so tangled and wound up together, that it would take years to undo, if it was even at all possible.

When Mark had asked if it was possible, Gloria had responded with an optimistic 'maybe' with an expression that said 'no'. Mark didn't call her on her lie...Gloria was only trying to spare Mark that bombshell until she could handle it.

The spells that had crafted Mark's body had a second issue; when Gloria's spell had impacted Mark's new body, the magic already present broke the spell down, releasing the raw magic into Mark's body.

A few further experiments with various low-level spells; from transformation to one weak fireball (with plenty of buckets of water, and one very nervous sister nearby as safety precautions) confirmed that mark now had some kind of weak shield that could rapidly break down magic thrown at it. Perhaps with some training, Mark would learn to empower it to create a very powerful shield.

The irony was not lost on the new snake girl; Stacey's very attempt to destroy her life had been a key component in creating a protection against future attempts.

After that, the family was too exhausted, emotionally and physically, to continue, and so they retired to bed.

Climbing the stairs had been a novel experience, as the muscle memory for walking served the same basic function for slithering, but Mark found that her hips now gave an exaggerated sway with each fluid movement.

Mark hadn't even cared that her bed was too small for her new body and had flopped into it. Soon enough, the entire bed had trembled and sparkled, and swelled into a strange, large round-shaped bed, more than large enough to accommodate her massive frame.

This morning had been unique, awakening buried in heavy blankets, she had stared at the ceiling listening to the rapid thumping of her heart before she realized that there was something off about it. Some examination had determined that her lower body now had a second heart...which made sense due to her size.

That made Mark wonder how many other backup organs she had: extra lungs? Extra stomach? Extra kidneys?

Out of reflex, she had flopped out of bed and slowly slithered to her wardrobe, retrieving a pair of pants before she knew what she was doing, but the magic that was adapting her surroundings to her body kicked in quickly, shrinking and changing the pants into a denim skirt, long enough to offer her some modesty, but not long enough to interfere with...umm...slithering.

Curious by this change, Mark had started to experiment; grabbing different articles of clothing to see what would happen.

Pants became skirts, shirts gained extra arm holes, while underwear became bras...very large bras that her back was now very thankful for. Shoes and Socks however did not change at all, suggesting that her new body had no use for them at all which made sense; she had no legs or feet anymore.

The bra's as opposed to any sort of panty made sense too: she had no real use for underwear as her body provided the necessary coverings, though Mark had thus far been too shy to experiment beyond confirming the existence of a kind of scale veil that hid a very human-looking vagina. Mark was no expert...but it all looked in order.

"...are you okay?" asked Katie softly, entering into the room and sitting next to her sibling. The transformed girl glanced at her sibling and managed a pained smile. Her eyes, the redhead had discovered, had also changed: now a brilliant emerald with a slitted pupil and her mouth now sported a pair of fangs that poked down slightly from her top lip, which took a bit of practice to get used to.

"yeah I'm okay kiddo, just...a lot to take in."

she nodded and hugged her new very big sister tightly

"what are you gonna do?"

Mark looked at her sister for a moment then back out the window,

"I dunno kid. I really don't know."

she frowned and cuddled her sister closer, Mark responded by wrapping one of her lower arms around the ten year old protectively

"You gonna go ask that mean girl to turn you back?"

Mark shot a glance at her sister then looked out her window.

Could she? As far as Stacey knew, Mark was just some talking snake now...and would probably make this as humiliating, demeaning and dehumanizing as possible. Even then she probably wouldn't change her back and...oh no, what about Trevor? He had disappeared after his breakup with that witch and...

Mark felt anger welling up in her heart, a blistering burning anger. Stacey was expecting defeat, humiliation and shame, she would likely still never change her back! She was probably laughing her ass off over this, expecting Mark to stay hidden away forever in disgrace, regret and shame.

"...Hell no. I'm going to go to school." she nodded her head firmly, "I'm going to school."

Katie sat back in surprise, looking up at her elder sister.

"You heard me: I'm going to school, if she expects me to stay here hiding or go crawling to her, she's in for a rude surprise." Stated Mark with more muster than she actually felt, but it was blistered by angry...a lot of anger.

"Are you sure?" asked Gloria from the door, and the snake girl turned to face her mom, who stood at the doorway wearing a worried expression, an apron over top of her work clothes.

Gloria worked as a lawyer, not an easy job for a single mom with two kids, but she managed it with grace and style.

"People will stare, they'll ask questions."

Mark nodded uncertainly, but there was bravery in her eyes...more bravery than most would have in this bizarre situation. Once more Gloria felt pride in her eldest; facing this strange and frightening situation head-on, but she hoped that bravery wasn't being bolstered by bullheadedness.

"Yeah I know, and I'll tell 'em the truth: Stacey turned me into a naga with her magic." The newly-minted 'naga' declared. Katie gave her sibling a confused frown, wrinkling her nose as she asked: "naga?"

"Yeah, naga." The girl slithered across the room to a bookshelf that had to be moved to the far wall, due to the new sprawling size of Mark's bed.

It was loaded with geeky books: Harry Potter, Warcraft, and multiple shelves of Dungeons and Dragons, from core books to monster manuals. It was one of these manuals that mark selected, flipping through it until she found what she was looking for, and presented it to her mother and sister to study.

On the page was a snarling, green-skinned snake man, with hate-filled eyes, holding a sword and a knife.

"They don't' look very nice..." mumbled Katie, and Gloria agreed, quickly glancing at the rest of the text-filled page.

"It says here that they're evil, are you sure Mark?"

The transformed girl gave a shrug,

"I am what I am, y'know? I can't say I'm a human; 'cause I'm not. I can't say that I'm a snake 'cause I'm not really that either. I'm somewhere in between...a naga" she gestured to the book with both right arms.

"Besides, just 'cause that guys evil, doesn't mean I am. I mean look," and she held up all her arms, "I have four hands! That's gotta count for something."

Katie giggled but Gloria still looked apprehensive.

"What about your arms, or the magic...what if they ask if Katie has magic, or me?"

The tip of Mark's tail tapped against the ground as she rolled the questions around in her head, looking for a good answer.

"Well...I'll say that when she changed me, my own weird magic kicked in...yeah...it stopped her from makin' me into a snake totally, then I'll use your explanation. I'll say that the magic was all weird and confused and left me with four arms." the snake girl looked to her mother,

"They already think I'm a weirdo, so adding magic won't be that off. And if anyone asks if Katie or you have magic, I'll just say no."

Gloria looked unconvinced,

"What if they go to check?"

To respond, Mark slammed two of her fists into her open palm, resulting in a loud 'crack' that made Katie yelp and jump in surprise quickly.

"Mark..." Gloria admonished while the snake girl cuddled her sister, who had calmed from the uncharacteristic show of violence,

"I don't think that's a good idea. It's dangerous, you could get hurt or worse, taken away by some lab to be studied."

Mark looked exasperated and rounded on her mother,

"Well what do you expect me to do," she demanded in frustration, "Hide out here for the rest of my life," the redheaded naga slumped, "I can't do that mom...I can't. I won't, I won't let her scare me."

A mischievous grin parted her lips,

"Besides, I think that this will scare her more than me; if people find out she's been transforming people then we may find out what happened to Trevor."

There was an undeniable logic to that; so many witches and wizards and the like relied on a combination of clever spell casting, public skepticism and shame to keep their punishments under wraps.

However something like this would blow the lid off of magic in a huge way, it would certainly expose Stacey as a witch, but...

Did she have the right to tear the blindfold off the eyes of the public? Did the innocent magic users of the world deserve to have their tenuous shield of anonymity stolen from them?

"I...I need to call your Grandma. I'm sorry Mark, I can't make this decision on my own"

"However Mom!" the snake girl lunged forward desperately, only to be met by her mother's harsh frown.

"It's not just your life here Mark, it's not even just mine and Katie's either. There is a whole community of magic users you're endangering out there. This may be a simple question to you, but it's not for me."

Gloria saw the frustrated look on her child's face and felt a stab of pity.

"Mark...I know it's not easy I-"

"Just go!" the naga spat angrily, whipping about and leaning against the windowsill, "Get out"

"Mark," pleaded Gloria, "Please-"

"GO!"

Gloria recognized that this battle was lost, and gently took Katie's hand, but the little girl touched her big sister's upper arm.

"I'd be okay with it Mark..." and in spite of her anger, the red-scaled snake girl gave a thin smile.

"Thanks Kiddo..."

then the pair then left the room, leaving one frustrated and depressed naga

Downstairs, Katie looked at her mother, who picked up the phone and nervously stared at it.

"...Mark's right" the little girl stated softly, "She can't stay here..."

So young, and yet so insightful...of course Gloria knew that both of her children were absolutely right, and that's what made her hate Stacey Charles even more.

that blonde haired bitch had stolen any chance of a normal life away from her son, stripping him of his humanity, his gender! Gloria's own attempts to protect that had only been successful by the most liberal definition.

Now, her son...her newest daughter, had only two choices. Either hide away in shame, as if she was some sort of family shame or freak, and protect the magic users of the world...including the vile Stacey Charles.

Or.

Go out, and blow the cover of every wizard and witch in the world, reveal that magic is real and cause history itself to be questioned...but also reveal Stacey's wickedness to the world.

However how many innocent spell casters would suffer? Their home would become a media circus, Katie would be harassed at school, Gloria could lose her job...they could lose the house and be out on the street, all because of the actions of one petty witch.

There was no good answer, and for that, Gloria resented Stacey Charles, resented her for stealing that away from her family.

"It's...complicated honey" even as she said it, the words sounded weak and lame to Gloria, an excuse. However it was the truth, no matter how cruel or cold that was, the weight of her own child and that child's happiness against the secrecy that had bound and protected witches and wizards for centuries!

However to a ten year old, it was the simplest question in the world; should her new sister stay hidden away or actually go out in live, in spite of the dangers? Well the answer was obvious. How Gloria envied that simplistic view.

"I can't...I have to call grandma, I need to talk to her before I make a decision" then Gloria turned away to make the call.

Katie, frustrated, turned and ran back upstairs, red hair bouncing and eyes firm, at the very least, she would show solidarity with her new, and very brave, sister.

Gloria heard the other end of the line pick up, and the aged sound of her mother, Ashley Simms. Ashley had been a teacher, of magic mostly but also in school: fourth grade, and in spite of that she was beloved by her students. She managed to turn the harshest bullies into angels...all without a single spell, well...none that altered their personalities at least.

The elderly Miss Simms was a firm believer that magic was a gift, not a crutch and it was a belief she had instilled in her daughter and was attempting to do the same in her grand daughter.

"Hello?" came that ever pleasant and slightly curious chirp, the sound alone was enough to make Gloria feel slightly at ease.

"Mom...it's me." Gloria sat at the dinner table, fidgeting with her fingers,

"Gloria?" came the surprised and pleased response, "How are you doing girl? How is Mark and Katie?" Unlike many other spell casters, Ashley Simms never looked down on her non-magical grand children, they were equally precious to her and always got the same love and affection, the same spoiling and same rules. It was she who had stepped in when Sam had abandoned Gloria and the kids due to their magic.

It was the eldest Miss Simms who had helped instill a sense of bravery and honor into Mark, she taught him to be Katie's knight, her protector. When the divorce between two parents threatened to split their children apart, Ashley had used magic and the lack thereof to bring the two together. Her wisdom and experience had seen Gloria through many stormy nights, and now more than ever...Gloria needed the sage wisdom of her mother.

"It's about Mark actually....something terrible has happened."

In her mind's eye, Gloria pictured her mother sitting up in her recliner, and turning down the weather channel, eyes looking out the glass patio window, and mouth turning into an uncharacteristic frown.

"Tell me, what's happened Gloria?"

That jovial tone turned serious, not threatening but acknowledging the gravity of the situation, her complete and total attention now devoted to her only daughter.

"There's a witch, named Stacey Charles. She's very powerful and...Mark was dating her"

On the other end of the line, Ashley Simms lips thinned into a hard line as she studied the chipmunks outside, scurrying up and down the tree in her back yard, harassing the birds that came for the feeders.

"I worry that I know where this is going Gloria..."

The witch in question rubbed her forehead in stress, nodding though her mother could not see it.

"It is. Mark broke up with her and...God, she tried to turn Mark into a snake."

Ashley held a pregnant pause, digesting that piece of information, and setting it and her emotions aside.

"You said 'tried', I'm assuming there is at least some level of failure involved then?"

Gloria gave a quick nod, staring at the white table top, while drumming her fingers against the wood.

"Yes. I was able to partially stop it, i panicked and...and I cast a 'turn into girl' spell on him. It was the only thing I could think of. Stacey is so powerful in the craft and I-"

"Shh" soothed the Simms family Matriarch, "In that situation you did the right thing, don't worry girl, I may have very well done the same in your situation"

Ashley let that information sink in to her daughter, that compliment and validation would go far in calming her obviously frustrated and understandably upset child.

"Go on, I'm assuming that there have been some sort of complication?"

the elderly witch had to keep her daughter on task, focused on the story and not her own feelings of anxiety.

"Yes, the spells mixed. I wasn't strong enough...I.." a cracking sob escaped Gloria, tears cutting molten trails down her cheeks, "Mom I wasn't strong enough to save him. He's...He's this four-armed half woman, half snake thing!"

Ashley processed that, while her daughter sobbed on the phone, tears pool on the table as the younger witch hung her head in grief and sorrow. Ashley allowed her to cry for several minutes, to get some of her stress out, so they could have a proper conversation.

"Gloria," Ashley scolded, "You did fine. It is a fair step up from being a snake," the elder woman paused to gather her thoughts,

"How is Mark taking it?"

Gloria wiped her tears away, taking a broken, stuttering breath.

"As well as can be expected, considering the situation." she swallowed another sob; crying now would not help the situation, at all.

"She also has magic...I tried to cast a spell to undo what I could, but her own magic came out and it-it..ATE the spell!"

That caused the Simms family matriarch to pause, that much magic was impressive. Though there could be any number of reasons for it, the grandmother wouldn't know exactly what was causing this until she had a chance to examine her new granddaughter.

"That is impressive...the transformation must have unlocked some latent magical powers. I will help her be trained Gloria, don't worry but...wow, that's quite something"

Gloria's mother was taking this in stride, with a strange calm, rationality that reminded Gloria so much of Mark. However if only that was the biggest bombshell she had to drop....

"However...he, I mean, she wants to go to school."

There, she had said it, the problem and all the issues surrounding it, yet Ashley's response was not quite what Gloria had expected.

"I see, nice to see her head is still working then, a good education will serve her well, especially with her magical potential. Though she won't be doing much track and field," noted the elder Simms woman, "Well...then again, maybe long distance running or sprinting. Snakes are usually pretty good at that sort of thing."

Gloria was stunned, staring at the table where her earlier tears had made a small pool. Did she hear that right? Ashley wasn't taking this at all seriously! Didn't she understand the gravity of this situation? The weight?

"Mom!" protested the young mother, "Don't' you get it? Mark wants to go to school! That would blow magic out into the open, nobody who practices it would be safe! Katie...me, you! Everyone would be exposed!" Gloria all but shrieked.

"Calm down dearie," scolded the older witch, "I heard you quite fine. The fact of the matter is that the great masquerade has done more harm to us than good. Sure it was helpful at the beginning, in times of superstition and when religion had a stronger hold. However times are changing, and now the great masquerade has done little but hurt the victims of wicked magical practitioners.

However the masquerade couldn't hold forever anyways, not with the internet and cellphones...it gets harder and harder to hold it every year, while each new generation of spell casters become more flippant. This Stacey girl? The one who transformed Mark? She is a perfect example, she probably doesn't think Mark would ever be so bold as to just go back to school."

The aging witch leaned forward, not that Gloria could see, but she felt the subconscious need to do so, to drive home her point.

"Gloria, Mark is a very brave young man...woman, whatever. She's brave and smart, and you should be proud of her flexibility and strength in handling this."

Gloria rubbed her forehead in frustration.

"I know, I am but-"

"Ah ah ah!" interrupted Ashley, "You listen to me, alright? You have the perfect opportunity hear to tear the masquerade apart and leave this Stacey character vulnerable and exposed, while showing the world that good and bad witches and wizards exist. Stacey has voluntarily cast herself as the villain in this little drama...but then there is you, and Katie. You saved your child with your magic, the act of a good witch. This is exactly what the world needs to see."

Ashley's old wooden chair creaked as the elderly witch sat back, crossing one arm under the other,

"Besides...if this Stacey isn't stopped, then she'll just keep doing what she's doing"

Gloria chewed her lip; there was definitely truth to that, what with the disappearance of Trevor. It was likely that Stacey transformed him into something else too.

"Gloria...you're strong, and you've raised strong children," reminded Ashley, "You know that you can't keep Mark locked up, that's not even a sustainable plan. Let her go to school, I'll come down if you need and stay for a while to help everything transition smoothly.

However you must let her live. She's strong, she's smart...there will be bumps in the road, but she'll overcome them; she always has."

Gloria heard her children laugh from upstairs, and in spite of herself; smiled.

"You're right..thanks Mom. When will you be able to come down?"

"This evening, i just need to pack a few things before I head out."

Gloria gave a nod.

"Alright, I'll set up the guest room. Thanks again Mom...I don't know what I'd do without you."

the elderly witch laughed

"You'd do the right thing of course, as you always do. Now, I'll talk to you when I get there, alright?"

the younger witch smiled and nodded

"Alright...alright, I'll see you when you get here. Bye."

After hanging up, there was a strange sense of calm and certainty...she could do this. Her kids could do this...it wouldn't be easy, not by any stretch of the imagination,

However she had raised them both to be smart and strong...and they would be. She had already seen how quickly they were adapting to this new and unusual situation...no, they would be strong.

Now, she had to talk to Mark, and by the sounds of it; Katie had calmed her down, though the redheaded mother knew she'd have to apologize to her new serpentine child, and explain the situation.

Mm...Mark wasn't a good name for a girl...if they were going to do this, Mark would need a new name, something that was more appropriate. Maybe Sandy? Or Lisa or Carla or..hmm...

The mother wondered to herself as she climbed the stairs.

"Amanda?" chirped Katie from the doorway, "Time to get up!" and was rewarded with a muffled groan from the mass of covers that made up the naga's bed.

It was Monday morning, early Monday morning: roughly 6 AM. The Simms kids were overjoyed when their grandmother had shown up Saturday evening.

Ashley had proven nothing but supportive of her new grand daughter, banishing Mark's fears away with a tight hug and a meal that only grandmother's can make.

She was supportive of Mark's decision, but expressed concern over the redhead's name, a topic that the naga had been very careful not to broach, since she had no idea what to call herself!

"Amanda" Gloria had suggested, as the family of magic users (and one half-snake) dug into a delicious selection of pies and ice creams, "Amanda Catherine Simms", it was the name that Mark would have received had he been born a girl. The name felt...alien on the tongue, but it was more appropriate now than 'Mark', (and way more appropriate than Katie's suggestion of 'Kaa').

Afterwords, the newly dubbed 'Amanda' was taken through a series of tests by Ashley, as she was a more powerful and experienced spellcaster than her daughter. She confirmed that Amanda's new body was almost certainly here to stay.

The magics that now encompassed her were powerful but more than that: tightly wound, and were the only things holding her body together. The Simms family matriarch probed the red-scaled naga's new magical defenses: concluding that the shield was a natural response to the conflicting spells that now bound Amanda's body together.

The shield used ambient magic in the air around Amanda to construct a natural barrier to attempt to defend against any spell that would undo the transformation and thereby potentially kill the new snake girl.

When Amanda asked why undoing the spell would kill her, Ashley had explained that it would cause her body to separate where the serpent half met the human half, killing both parts of her in a matter of minutes.

"Magic," Ashley reminded her grand daughter, "Is like a football player: powerful but stupid." In spite of the seriousness of the situation, Amanda laughed at the metaphor.

The nature of the shield, in that it broke down a segment of the spell hurled at it into raw magic for Amanda to use, made gauging the new witch's power very difficult. There was no doubt that she did have magic now, but measuring the strength of which would be difficult, due to the shield siphoning magic for Amanda's use.

For now, the shield was probably enough to protect the red haired naga against most low and mid level magic spells, and Ashley promised to come up with a proper curriculum once she had a better grasp of Amanda's power levels.

They broke for lunch, naturally a big one, and once more the grandmother marveled at just how much food the red haired serpent girl could pack away: attacking every meal like a woman starved, eating as much as a whole family would in a single sitting.

Seeing this, the grandmother made a mental note to start sending her daughter a regular food allowance, the family already spent a lot on food and even Gloria's income as a lawyer wasn't going to be able to handle the fresh burden of the growing naga.

Afterwords, came a fresh set of tests, but these weren't magical...but rather physical, though the Simms family was limited in what they could test, due to the fact that all the tests had to be performed indoors for privacy reasons. First was examining the scales with increasingly more punishing strikes, starting with a slap and moving onwards. The result was...impressive: the scales were tough and even a very nervous Gloria smacking the tail with a hammer did little more than dirty them. Amanda confirmed that she knew something was hitting her tail, but it didn't hurt.

It was a relief for the family, as it meant that day-to-day wear and tear posed no threat to their new daughter and sister, and that anyone seeking to punish Amanda for the crime of looking different would have to go the extra mile to do any real damage.

However.

The human half of the snake girl had no special defenses, she was somewhat tougher but not much more than an average human, meaning that the red scaled tail would have to be used as a shield. Fortunately, Amanda's reflexes had taken a jump out of the human range, though just how fast she the naga had become was difficult to ascertain without proper equipment.

"These results are far from scientific" Lamented Ashley, watching Amanda and Katie watch tv: the younger sister sitting neatly in the elder's coils, "We will need to find both a vet and a doctor who would be willing to examine her and run a proper series of tests."

Gloria fidgeted nervously, stressed at the idea though realizing that her mother was entirely correct: this was an entirely new life form after all, and she had no way to know if and when Amanda would get sick and what it would look like.

"How should I go about that? I'm not comfortable with dragging Amanda to just any old doctor"

Ashley just smiled a mischievous grin, one eye sparkling.

"Let me worry about that dearie, you just worry about the kids. Get them ready for school tomorrow, alright?"

Understandably, Gloria looked apprehensive, shooting a glance at her children, watching My Little Pony on netflix.

"Are you sure it's a good idea? Amanda would be in so much danger I-"

"Shhh," urged the elder woman, "Amanda cannot live all cooped up in here, it would kill her slowly and surely. She needs to live, to flourish and if you try keeping her here, she'll just end up resenting you. This is for the good of everyone involved...even that horrid Stacey character. She'll learn that actions have consequences, a lesson she seems sorely lacking."

Dinner was massive, with lasagna as the main course. Amanda seemed to be gravitating towards meat and dairy, and away from vegetables, though she was able to eat them: the serpent girl was clearly favouring meat over her greens.

Nobody commented on it, though the reasoning was obvious: snakes were exclusive carnivores, and humans were omnivores...so naturally, Amanda would lean more towards meats as that's what her body now required.

Gloria made a mental note regarding this for their lunches tomorrow.

The children then headed to bed, with Ashley marveling at the changes that had already gripped the Simms home to accommodate Amanda's new body: theorizing that it was the shield again acting to ensure its host's safety, of course that was only a theory but it was a good one and the only one they had at the moment.

Then the two adults retired to the living room to discuss what to do next.

Now it was morning, with Katie calling for her new sister...who reluctantly dragged herself out of bed and slithered towards the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Breakfast was sizeable: cereal, pancakes, bacon and eggs and orange juice, with two large lunches packed for the pair: naturally Amanda's was slightly larger and heavier on meat in the three sandwiches, plus some chicken and a few sugary snacks.

"I've put a protective spell on Katie, should she get in trouble it will alert us," explained Ashley as they piled into the car.

Her size and length meant that Amanda would ride in the back seat, her tail taking up the entire floor, perhaps it was time for Ashely to invest in a van...

"I've also given her a bracelet with a recall enchantment on it, and I marked your house as the return point. If she gets in very serious trouble, she can trigger the bracelet and be safely tugged back home"

Gloria looked relieved at that, but Katie rolled her young eyes,

"You're both going overboard on this!" the young girl scolded, "I'm going to be fine! I'm more worried about you, 'Manda..."

The naga gave a fanged grin,

"I'll be fine! I'm big, scary and strong! Plus I have that shield and Mom and Grandma will be with me for a bit too"

Katie gave a hesitant nod, worried about her elder sister...but there wasn't much that could be done now.

"You're gonna be the coolest kid around!" boasted the redhead loudly, "You get a snake for a sister! How cool is that! You can take me in for show and tell and threaten anyone that bullies you that I'll eat you!"

That seemed to cheer Katie up a bit, and the pair chatted happily all the way to Katie's school.

"hey...remember," grinned Amanda as her sister unbuckled, "You got the coolest sister, so don't worry about me, alright?"

Katie smiled, and then planted a sweet little kiss on the naga's cheek,

"Thanks 'Manda...you're the best" before dashing out to join her friends in the yard.

Amanda looked...touched, smiling in an introspective way as she stroked her cheek, though her and Katie had always been close, Katie had never done anything like that before. It was...nice.

That floating feeling remained, until they pulled into Amanda's high school, and the four-armed naga felt fear fluttering in her chest.

"The first step is always the hardest," Grandma Simms stated softly, looking back at her new granddaughter.

"It's even harder when you don't have legs" Amanda responded meekly.

"You know...this wasn't a good idea, let's go." Gloria went to turn the ignition, but was stopped by a stern protest from the young serpent.

"No, if I run away now, I'll never stop running...I-I gotta do this" Amanda stated with as much bravery as she could muster.

Ashley opened her door, and walked around to Amanda's door, opening it, then reached in and offered her scaled grandchild a hand.

"Come on, we'll be with you every step of the way."

Amanda took a breath, and slithered out from the car, and into the light of morning and the surprised gaze of her school.

She could hear the confusion and whispers as the three made their way over the concrete and towards the front doors of her school. The concrete didn't bother her scales at all as she slithered, making the transformed girl relieved that she wouldn't have to come up with any sort of shoe replacement to prevent wear and tear on her scales.

As they reached the door, Ashley opened it for her grand daughter, though they had practiced going through doors at home. Due to her length, it required a bit of ceremony: holding the door open as her tail passed through and coiled on the other side, before releasing and slithering on wards, this made doors a wee bit of a hassle, but it was just one more new challenge presented by Amanda's new body.

As the trio entered the office, they spied the secretary putting a phone back into its cradle, while looking in worry and confusion at the four-armed naga, with the fangs poking out from beneath her top lip and the long slithering tail, the middle aged woman looked positively spooked.

"Hi," Gloria greeted in her friendliest voice, "I'm here to change some details about my son? Mark Anthony Simms, due to a magical incident he's been changed into this young lady here: Amanda Catherine Simms, now we-"

That's when the wail of police sirens filtered in through the open window, and the colour flushed from Amanda's face.

"Oh...shit"

Kamlai was missing.

It had been two years since A-Wut was forced by his father and the school into hormones, and so had begun a quiet downwards spiral. Kanya had heard that the unwilling kathoey had been called to Miss Karawek's office many times, and had either refused to go, or had left after less than two or three minutes of being there.

Dr.Mongkut had discovered that he had no tools left to control his daughter, as her behavior became more and more worrisome, and his wife had even less control, despite her best attempts to form a relationship with Kamlai, their family had been badly shaken by the actions of A-Wut.
She broke with Sunan and their group within three months and though her father struggled to try and control her, and show her that he still loved her, and her mother tried to rebond with their new kathoey daughter, but it was useless. Kamlai was filled with anger and betrayal, and no longer held her parents in any sort of regard.

After six months, markings started to show up on her body, noticed on her neck, back, chest and legs. Heavy, painful-looking bruises. She would sneer at the teachers and sit with her legs spread, and no warnings or attempts to embarrass her turned the girl away from her path.
But it was the bruises that worried both Miss Karawek and Dr.Mongkut: they recognized the signs from other kathoey; the marks left by rough customers...by those who paid kathoey for sex.

But what did Kamlai need money for? She wasn't so bad off, and she had the very thing that many kathoey sold themselves for. She didn't need to do it, the bruises and injuries upset Miss Karawek and angered Dr.Mongkut.

The Mongkut's had a tearful intervention with his daughter, along with Miss Karawek and Kanya, in the family's house. But it clearly didn't reach the girl. The beautiful young girl just sneered at them,

"What's wrong, 'Daddy'?" she spat venomously, "I am exactly what you made me! Men shackle me, just like my name, then they FUCK me!" her words bit into her father's heart and cut Miss Karawek.

How could they teach Kamlai that this isn't what they wanted? How could they reach her.

Dr.Mongkut grabbed her by the arms...then wrapped his around his daughter.
"I love you Kamlai," he whispered, "Please...don't do this. To yourself, to us. I love you...you are a beautiful young girl, you have such a future ahead of yourself. Don't do this to yourself"

"That's the problem" she hissed into his ear, "I am just fake girl." then she shoved away.

"No, Kamlai" Miss Karawek intervened, "You're not 'just a fake girl'. You're as real a girl as any, and if you choose this path, it will destroy you. You will hurt so many people around you, yes even Sunan and me. I worry about you Kamlai...and you will destroy your father and mother. Please...let us help you"

"Kamlai..." her mother cut in, "Why? Why would you do this? You are better than this, you're worth more than this. Please...we love you"

Kamlai's laugh was like scraping metal.

Kanya bit her lip, she had seen Kamlai's anger, and seen it grow and was scared for the unwilling girl. She was scared that Kamlai's anger was at the body she was growing into, that she abused it to hurt those around her...to hurt herself, to defy them.
"Kamlai..." said the young model, "I promised you I would help you, that there were good things about being a kathoey. But this isn't good for you, for anyone...especially not you. You're going to get yourself hurt."

Kanya pitied the girl, A-Wut's anger had only been transferred to Kamlai, who was now lashing out, trying to break free of the shackle placed on her.
"You need to let us help you, let me show you how you can be happy...be at peace"

"You've helped me enough!" and she ran out of the house, amidst the calls of her name. The group raced out to try and find her, but lost her on the busy Thailand streets, another face in the crowd.

That was a year ago.

Kanya felt like she had failed Dr.Mongkut and Kamlai, the doctor had entrusted Kamlai to her and she wasn't able to bring the girl any kind of peace.
Miss Karawek was wracked with guilt, and Dr.Mongkut threw himself into his work, praying every night for the safe return of his daughter. But she was just a kathoey in Thailand and not a high priority for the police.

Now, for the first time Dr.Mongkut regretted his anger-driven treatment of his child. He had assumed she would eventually grow used to her new gender, he never thought she would use it as a weapon against him!

The bruises haunted him, each injury etched into his mind.

As the kathoey came to his clinic, he would treat them with love and care and kindness...and always ask if they had seen her, a girl named 'kamlai'.
Kanya, Sunan and others had promised to keep an eye out for her, but with no luck; Thailand was big and it was easy for Kamlai to disappear into it, and the police were not overly motivated to find her, missing children were just too common in Thailand and the sex trade was rampant.
Kanya had spent time with Dr.Mongkut to try and fill the hole in his life left by the angry departure of Kamlai, and he had begun to cling ot her like a lifeline. They were at his clinic, with Kanya playing nurse and companion to the various kathoey when suddenly...Kamlai walked through the door.

"K-KAMLAI!" yelled Dr.Mongkut and bounded across the room, embracing the girl tightly, tears flowing down his cheek

"Oh gods Kamlai!" The doctor was so stricken by emotion that he didn't notice Kamlai's stiff, unresponsive body, and the shadow that a second
figure cast across them as he kissed his wayward daughter's head.
Kanya felt a palpable sense of relief, until she looked at the woman whose eyes were like cold steel.

"Let. Me. Go."

Kamlai's words cut through Dr.Mongkut's joy, and he pulled back.
"Kamlai?"

She slapped him, stunning her father who shook in shock, allowing the unwilling kathoey to break free of his grip step back, next to the woman who had followed her in.

The woman had brown hair and sharp, steel-blue eyes.
"My name is Catherine DeWinters, we should talk"

Gathering himself, Dr.Mongkut stood, and finally took stock of the situation, his joy melting into an unexplainable dread as he looked at Kamlai, who shielded herself slightly behind this DeWinters lady...the sight broke his heart.
"Y-Yes...um-"

"There is a," the woman opened a briefcase and shifted through some papers, "A...Miss Karawek that should be called, along with your wife. We wouldn't want any major players left out at the end of this drama"

Her tone and words sent a shiver up Kanya's spine, and the young kathoey wanted nothing more than to hide from her.
"I have patients-"

"Who I'm sure will be willing to reschedule, considering the gravity of the situation. Or, I can just take Kamlai and we can leave"
Dr.Mongkut's eyes widened

"You can't! She's my daughter!"

Miss Dewinter's smile didn't reach her eyes, which only grew colder. Winters was a good name for her.
"We have this discussion now, or not at all, Doctor. And then I go to the police about your medical malpractice"

Dr.Mongkut gaped, surely she couldn't be serious? What malpractice When had he ever-
His eyes traced to Kamlai, and the pieces began to fall into place.
"...I'll call my wife and Dr.Karawek, Kanya you can leave."

'Oh no, she should stay. She has a rather major role in this too..."

Kanya swallowed heavily and looked up at Dr.Mongkut.
"It's okay...I'll stay"

Miss DeWinters sat next to Kamlai while Dr.Mongkut looked longingly at his daughter,
"Kamlai...why did you leave?"

"Because I hate you" Kamlai responded viciously, "How could I ever trust you?" she demanded angrily, "I hate you!"

Just then, Miss Karawek and Miss Mongkut entered.

"I found her in a hospital, she had been attacked by one of her johns-'

"Kamlai!" Miss Mongkut rushed forward but was stopped when Miss DeWinters stepped between them,

"Sit." Stated DeWinters.

"That is my daughter" snarled Miss Mongkut with the savagery of a lioness, but was cut off by a cruel smile from Miss DeWinters.

"Not anymore"

Miss Karawek was apprehensive but at those words she and Miss Mongkut stared at the good doctor for some kind of explanation.

"What do you mean!?" Dr.Mongkut demanded, but Miss DeWinters only pointed at the chairs arranged.

"Sit"

reluctantly, Miss Karawek and Miss Mongkut sat, with Kanya moving closer to her auntie.

"So...the major players are all here." Smiled Miss DeWinters, "For the newcomers, my name is Catherine DeWinters, I own a number of hotels in Thailand and a hospital. I found Kamlai here quite by accident, I was touring a hospital when she was brought in. I asked her who she was and she told me...well...everything. Quite the story, maybe they'll make it a tv drama"

Kamlai smirked slightly at her words but nobody else seemed to find the humor in it.

"Needless to say, I am quite displeased with what I learned." her smile soured in a snarl, "What the HELL kind of father and mother mutilates their own child!"

"Kamlai hurt me!" spat Kanya, "He bullied me and forced me to become a kathoey. The number of people he hurt and bullied chose what would happen to him."

"I'm not talking to you" DeWinters snapped at Kanya, "I'm talking to the mother and to the Doctor who should know the very definition of medical malpractice!"

"I did what I thought was right," countered Dr.Mongkut, "A-Wut did despicable acts, he needed to be punished"

"So you did a despicable act right back, and saddled her with a name to represent a shackle. That her life was a punishment?"

When put that way, it certainly made what the Mongkut's had done to their daughter a bit difficult to defend.

"I love my daughter, regardless of what you think. I did what was best for everyone involved" challenged Dr.Mongkut, "INCLUDING Kamlai"

"EXCEPT for Kamlai. You chemically castrated her, and I have no doubts that you would have drugged her one night and medically castrated her"

"Absolutely not!" Dr.Mongkut fired back, "That would have been her decision!"

"Really?" DeWinters demanded, "And why should I believe that? You took every other decision from her, why should either of us believe you? What proof do you have?"

"ENOUGH!" Miss Karawek yelled,

She looked at them, then at Kamlai who did not look happy to be here, and as always, her first thoughts were for the kathoey.

"what is it Kamlai?" she knew that Kamlai hated her as well, but regardless she would put the girl first.

Kamlai was looked distressed and frustrated, and reached up; taking Miss DeWinters hand.

"I want Miss DeWinters to be my mom" she stated quietly, "I don't want THEM to be my parents anymore"

the Mongkut's pain was written on their face

"NEVER!" her father snarled, "NEVER! You're my daughter Kamlai! I love you, if you would just come home i could-"

"NO!" she yelled, "NO! YOU DID THIS TO ME! YOU MADE MY NAME A HORRIBLE, HORRIBLE NAME! YOU HURT ME! YOU'RE NOT MY FATHER!" tears filled her eyes and Dr.Mongkut sat back slightly.

"I only want what's best for you," he countered, his own eyes wet, "I love you. That will never change Kamlai. I. Love. You."

"If you want what's best for her, maybe you need to accept that it isn't you" Catherine DeWinters looked at the parents,

"You have hurt her. You abused your position as her parents, as her doctor, to make life-altering decisions without her consent. You may think that's acceptable as her parents, but you had NO right to do so as a doctor. You see kathoey who struggle with their bodies EVERY SINGLE DAY!" the business woman took a calming breath.

"Every single day, Doctor Mongkut, you should know what would happen when you did the same thing to your son. How could he ever trust you, any of you, again?"

The room was smothered in silence as the weight of Miss DeWinters words sank in, while the business woman opened her briefcase and removed a small stack of papers.

"You WILL sign this" she stated in a tone that brokered no arguments, "They turn over guardianship of Kamlai to me until she is eighteen. After that what she does is her decision, but you will sign these papers. If you refuse, I will bring a lawsuit down on all those here responsible, for allowing this farce to continue. Yes, Kamlai will get in a bit of trouble, but I promise that Miss Karawek, her school, this clinic and you Mister and Miss Mongkut will be across every newspaper in the country. Your students, your patients will all be in the public eye. You will lose your medical license, doctor. And you, Miss Karawek will be brought up on review."

The parents stared at the pages, Miss DeWinters had them over a barrel and everyone knew it, too many lives would be hurt if they refused to sign.

"...You punished A-Wut for his decisions that hurt people, now you must face your own punishment"

"...please, don't make us do this" said Miss Mongkut, "Please, we may have made a mistake but we love Kamlai and want what's best for her"
But Miss DeWinters was merciless

"No, you don't. You wanted revenge, that's what everyone here wanted. Miss Karawek wanted to inflict the same humiliation and shame on Kamlai for all the precious kathoey that A-Wut had hurt, but news flash Miss Karawek: you can't be the good guy and the bad guy. If you try, you just end up being the bad guy."

She then rounded on Kanya, who up until now had been silent, and now felt very small under the harsh gaze of the business lady.
"You wanted revenge, you wanted payback and to inflict as much suffering on Kamlai as possible, but to be clean. You didn't want the moral burden of your actions, and were content to allow others to make the decision while you enjoyed the outcome. Some 'sister' you are."

Kanya flinched and her eyes watered as she looked at her feet.

"And you two...so eager to inflict payback on your own child. You're no better than A-Wut was, and now I can see where his behavior came from. You two are despicable, not deserving to be called 'parents'. You gave her a name that would ensure it meant 'shackle' to her, a punishment for the rest of her life and then you dumped the responsibility of making her at peace with it on Kanya's head. On a little girl with own problems. That's indefensible."

Miss DeWinters took a breath after her tirade.

"A-Wut deserved to be punished, but not like that, not like that at all. If you really want to help Kamlai, you will sign those papers and ensure I can get her the help she needs, in an environment where she feels safe. Not with YOU."

"...we just thought we were doing what was right" Miss Mongkut protested weakly.

"Well, you were wrong" snapped Miss DeWinters.

"Now sign the damn papers. If you really care about her...sign them."

"why is this so important to you?" Miss Karawek asked, as she cradled the sniffling Kanya into her chest

"...because I am also a kathoey" that revelation startled all those present, who looked at the tall women a little closer.
There were signs: the husky voice, the broad shoulders and tall stature.

"My parents didn't accept me, they did everything they could to make me a man, and it wasn't until my late twenties that I was albe to do something about it. They abused me because they couldn't accept me, so yes; I'm passionate about this."

"Please" Kamlai's voice spoke through the quiet, heavy air, "Sign the papers...I just...please"

Mister and Miss Mongkut stared at their child for a long time, for the first time seeing the pain and despair and anger that they were not able to manage, the child that only got more and more out of control, more resentful of them.

And they signed.

"And now this drama draws to a conclusion" Miss DeWinters stated softly, "I will not stop Kamlai from contacting you if she wishes, but I will bear responsibility for her until she turns eighteen.

As for the rest of you," she turned to look at Kanya and Miss Karawek, cuddling together on a single chair,

"I hope this satisfies you. You wanted your revenge...well you got it. I hope that you'll stop your teachers from hurting Kamlai further, let her find out who she is for herself. She will be returning to your school Miss Karawek, but if I find her treatment there unacceptable I will remove her from your care. "

Miss Karawek nodded, feeling emotionally drained and unable to look at the kathoey she had failed.

"...we still love you Kamlai" promised Miss Mongkut while the doctor struggled to find words.

Kamlai could only look at them, then reached up and took Miss DeWinters hand and the pair left the clinic and the broken family behind.

Kanya's little heart was in turmoil, as she knew there was some truth to Miss DeWinters words...she had wanted revenge, and she had been happy about seeing Kamlai miserable...but felt resolve filling her.

That didn't mean that it had to be true forever...she would be a better sister to Kamlai in the future, and try to repair the Mongkut family, she wanted to prove Miss DeWinters wrong.

Miss Karawek had a lot of soul searching ahead of herself, trying to see if she truly had Kamlai's best interest at heart...she thought she did but now she wasn't so sure. Kamlai wouldn't be allowed to run rampant, but would be given more leeway than other kathoey's, she had been through a lot.

The Mongkut's would enter family counseling and slowly over time, be allowed limited visits with their daughter.

But the future was uncertain, and no matter what; the Mongkut's would never be as close to the girl whose name and body was chosen to be a punishment. All would learn a lesson this day...and hopefully, would come out better.

Eventually.

With sincere apologies to the talented Ellie Dauber. The characters used are from her stories Slow Justice and Triple Play

This story comes from my own odd sense of justice. While I believe wrongdoers should be punished, I also believe that they should as a general rule be given a chance to be rehabilitated. Punishment should reflect the crime, but over-punishing or cruelty...bothers me. It always has, I guess I am just a bleeding heart.

The character I personally introduce to this story is someone I've been working on for years in various RP's, MMO's and even my own little stories, but it was Randalynn's "Stark" that inspired me to finally bring her out into the open.

Once again, I apologies to Ellie Dauber, this is mostly for me and my own sense of justice.

Rose Walsh stared at the ceiling, hearing the dull, disinterested chatter outside of her hospital room. The sterile smell was nauseating, along with that odd feeling of being just a bit too cold that seemed to accompany every Hospital in the world.
That slight discomfort synchronized well with her aches, the shooting pain passing up her crotch, the blackened eye, the bruises and scratches on her arms and thighs, and her bloody nose and split lip.

Max Snyder...

She had tried to go out to a movie, just...just to feel better about herself, to have something pleasant to try and remove the feeling of violation of being dirty and...worthless. She hadn't quite enough money to get home after the movie and it was after nine at night, but she thought she would be alright.
Max had been calling and texting her, trying to 'meet up' with her, but she had always ignored him, ever since the dance.

He hadn't liked that.

Not.

One.

Bit.

He felt humiliated, as she had stood him up to his friends who now didn't believe that he had gotten lucky with her. Angry, he had spotted her go to the movies, and followed her back.

As she cut across the park, he had attacked her; punching her in the face and throwing her to the ground, then forcing himself on her: ripping her clothes off and hitting her in the face again when she screamed.
He had used her...repeatedly, snarling like an animal...and some sick part of her had enjoyed it, as part of Chloe's insidious curse.
Then he had run off, warning her that if she turned him down again that it would be worse!
Rose had laid on her back, staring at the sky feeling his semen running out of her, pain throbbing through her body, and blood trickling down her face.
She felt numb, empty and could feel Chloe's cruelty behind this latest attack; in fact she was almost certain she heard the fate shaper's cruel laughter as Max attacked her...raped her.

Again.

Instinctively, Rose knew that there would be no point in pressing charges; Chloe would ensure her tormentor got off scott free just to further torture the former male. Hadn't she suffered enough? Clearly not.

Rose had been found by an early morning jogger who thought she was dead at first, and called the police, where she was rushed to the hospital. Her parents had not yet come in, but Rose dreaded their arrival...what would they say? What would they do?

She heard the door open and she glanced up, and felt a shock of confusion.

It was a woman, probably in her early 30's, dressed in a dark green 3 piece suit, with a white blouse and black tie beneath. She had shoulder-length black hair that hung free, and carried a black briefcase in green leather-gloved hands.
But most striking was her piercing jade eyes behind a pair of black wife-frame glasses that seemed to cut through the room with a confidant authority.

This strange woman shut the door behind her and turned to face Rose, offering a sympathetic smile.

"Rose Walsh?"

Rose nodded hesitantly,

"Yes, who are you?"

The woman placed her briefcase down on a table next to the hospital bed.

"My name is Miss Laufey, I'm a lawyer, I'm here to help."

Rose's face fell and she turned back to staring at the ceiling.
"I told the police that I didn't see who attacked me."

"Even if you didn't see him," responded Miss Laufey, "I'm pretty sure you would recognize Max Snyder's voice."
Rose's head whipped about to stare at the emerald-clad Lawyer, jaw hanging ajar.

"Wha? M-Max? He's my boyfriend," She protested weakly, "He wouldn't hurt me."
The woman's eyes turned sad and she shook her head.

"Chloe and her ilk got you bad."

Rose began to shake in terror at the very thought of the Weaver siblings,

"A-Are you with them? Are you here to p-punish me?" stammered Rose, tears welling in her eyes then running down her cheeks.

"oh no no no...here," Miss Laufey pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed at Rose's eyes, "no, I'm most certainly not. Quite the opposite in fact. If you let me...i can protect you from them."

Rose gasped, and for the first time she felt a tiny spark of hope fill her.
"Keep the handkerchief, I have more" Miss Laufey sat down at a guest chair, and allowed Rose a few minutes to process what she had said.

"Y-You can change me back?" Rose blurted out, her breathing quickening as she felt the end of this hell nearing.

"no...No i can't do that, shh shh...no no don't look at me like that" pleaded Miss Laufey as the despair returned to Rose's eyes.

"Their magic is far too powerful, there isn't anything I can do to change what they have inflicted upon you. I said I can protect you from them, and give you a chance a real chance at a proper life away from Max."

The darkness of depression swirled around Rose who stared at her feet, barely registering what Miss Laufey was saying.

"Rose...Rose" she gently took the despondent girl's hands, and Rose once more glanced at the lawyer.

"Rose. Chloe and her sisters want you to suffer for the rest of your life. They want you to live in misery, humiliation and pain. They want to take all happiness from you, that's why they stacked the deck against you, to torment and hurt you for the rest of your very long life. If you give up then they win. I can't undo what they did...but I can help you deny them the satisfaction of seeing you live as Max Snyder's sex slave."

Rose searched the woman's eyes, but saw no hint of a lie; only honesty.
"How?" she asked with a cracked voice.

"With these." Miss Laufey turned back to her briefcase and twisted the numbered tumblers until the locks popped, and then she reached in and removed a stack of pages and a black fountain pen.
Placing them down in front of the hospitalized girl, the dark-haired lawyer looked awfully pleased with herself, while Rose looked nonplussed.

"What are these?" demanded the tired and wounded girl.

"Contracts!" grinned the lawyer roguishly, "Special contracts."

Rose gave a skeptic, unamused look at the lawyer who frowned.

"Now now, don't look at me like that; I wouldn't offer you these unless I knew they worked. I already used them three times on three other victims of Chloe and her sisters. Granted they weren't quite as poorly off as you were...but the worry that Chloe would interfere with them again motivated them to protect if not just themselves than their families from Chloe's cruelty."

Rose felt a cautious hope return.

"But...why? Why would you do this?"

Miss Laufey leaned back slightly.

"It's not purely out of the goodness of my heart, I'm a spiteful creature and spiting things like Chloe Weaver and her sisters gives me great pleasure, not to mention that you would be working for me."

Rose looked alarmed, but the lawyer waved it away,

"No, nothing terrible. You would be working to helping people like yourself; individuals who were punished with no real chance of self improvement. Of which there is a dizzying number, both dizzying and disappointing. There are also a great number of people who abuse their magical powers and gods being petty and cruel, you will help me right a lot of wrongs which is frankly put, a lot more productive than struggling through life fighting your body's desire's."

Rose looked back at the stack of pages dubiously.

"How do they work? The contracts I mean. How would they keep Chloe from hurting me more?"

Laufey nodded; a reasonable question.

"Celestial bureaucracy. You've heard of making a deal with the devil? Signing your soul away? This is sort of similar. You see, I cannot remove anything she's done to you, that would be breaking a lot of rules and frankly I don't have that power. But...I can add things.

For example, one of the girls I helped was made into a bimbo, something you're familiar with. I can't make her smarter..but I can make her stronger."
Laufey looked back at Rose, laying bruised and injured in her bed, before she felt a tingling; the hair on her neck standing on end.

"If you sign that top document, then you will be my responsibility; you and any of your descendants. You will all be shielded from Chloe Weaver and her sister's manipulations."

Rose looked over the pages once more then touched the fountain pen, but yelped as a sharp pain shot through her thumb: a tiny needle protruding from the side.

"Signed in blood" explained the lawyer, "Thus it is binding and completely unbreakable." She then began to stand, her expression turning serious.

"I know I ask much of you and I haven't given you a whole lot of reason to trust me. But you will have to make this decision quickly."

Rose looked alarmed, glancing at the lawyer and her intense expression,

"Why?"

"Because we're about to have company."

It was strange watching it happen, truly odd...one second she wasn't there, and then the next she was.

Chloe Weaver, wearing a look that sent shivers down Rose's spine.

"Rose," the eldest Weaver said the name with contempt and acid, before looking at the lawyer. If possible, her face became even darker...angrier.

"You!"

"Yes, me." the lawyer gave a smile that didn't reach her eyes, "All me. Hello Clotho, oh...sorry, you're going by Chloe these days aren't you? I apologize."

Chloe growled in her throat,

"Why are you here?" demanded the Weaver sibling, her attention focused on the uncaring Miss Laufey.

"Conducting business; I'm on the clock right now afterall. The bigger question is, what are you doing here, Chloe Weaver? This doesn't involve you; your role in this little tragedy is long over."

Chloe pointed at Rose, making the poor girl begin to shake.

"I'm stopping her from making a big mistake!"

"What?" Rose blinked, now thoroughly confused.

"Rose," Chloe looked at the girl, hospitalized and wounded, "If you sign that damn contract you're doing more than you think. It will bind you to this bitch forever! Your soul will never go to an afterlife, you will be reincarnated forever and always in her service! Your family, your children will never know the peace an afterlife; Just eternal servitude to this trickster!"

Rose looked at Miss Laufey in surprise,

"Is that true?"

The lawyer smiled but without malice.

"Yes. That is true. If you sign that contract then your soul cannot be harvested nor reborn into a new thread to be woven, measured and cut by the Weaver sisters. IF you sign that contract, your life thread may be cut once and only once...and then you will live exactly that long every time you are reincarnated, as a girl every time and every time you will make your way back to me. But Rose..."

The emerald-clad lawyer faced the tired and hurt Rose,

"Do not think for one second that Chloe is being altruistic in any way." Miss Laufey sneered at the scowling Chloe,

"Because she's not. She doesn't give one shit about you. This little 'test' she's made for you? She doesn't care what the ending is, she has absolutely no interest in it. It's more of a game for her to play against you, and she's playing with a stacked deck. She's no justice god, she's a weaver of fate playing pretend Justice Goddess. But she has no idea what it means to be 'just'."

Miss Laufey's shadow loomed behind the lawyer, growing until it filled half the roof in a way entirely contrary to the light of the room. It looked like some
kind of villain's shadow, with a cape and what appeared to be horns.

"You see, Justice Gods don't live as normal people. They spend occasional periods as criminals to see if what they're delivering is truly justice or if it's

merely revenge. To ensure that they are always being 'just'. But you don't do that, do you Chloe Weaver?"

Chloe seethed, and Rose felt trapped; watching these two confusing and powerful figures face each other down.

"You live amongst mortals, but you've never had to live AS one. Then you take your toy morality and beat others over the head with it, as if you are some kind of unyeilding force of good and justice.

But you don't give one single solitary shit about the fates of those punish, you aren't interested nor invested in their fates. You give them no tools to further themselves, to better themselves. You just craft your little scenario's and then sit back and laugh as they run about. THAT is why Jaimie, Mandi and Patty agreed to sign the contracts in spite of what it cost them. Because the alternative, the frightening possibility that you could dip into the lives of their children was too much to bear. "

The lawyer looked back to Rose, now thoroughly terrified by what she was seeing, it was if the two were about to break out into open battle, and if they did she would never survive it!

"Rose," Miss Laufey looked at the girl, paralyzed by fear of the two powerful entities before her,

"Neither of us can make you sign that contract. We can give you advice, warnings and suggestions. But if Chloe could force you to stop, she would've. The truth is that you have limited freedom. So now you have to choose.

If you choose me, you will be siding with an unknown entity, along with your children and all those of your line. But, you and yours will be shielded from her interference. Chloe will be unable to twist your life thread, unable to influence or manipulate your children and your line. Guaranteed and total protection."

"And if you side with that bitch," snarled Chloe, "Then you will never be reincarnated as a boy ever again. You will never again be male! You will be stuck as her servant for eternity. You may not like me, but if you don't sign that contract, then I guarantee your next life will be male."

Rose's eyes shot between the two; the unknown factor and Chloe who had done nothing but torment her. But then her eyes moved past them, to the wall behind them and her ears stopped hearing the exchange between the Lawyer and the Fate Weaver, to the bustle of the hospital outside.
She felt the mild discomfort of the cool hospital air, and the throbbing ache through her body from the injuries inflicted by Max Snyder.

"...you had me raped...you made me like it." Rose said, "You let Max...and I couldn't stop him." she said quietly, and Chloe's jaw hardened.

"The second rape was unforseen, but i had no role in it" Chloe promised,

"You still made me like it." retorted Rose softly, "And every time i have sex i will never be able to know if it's because I am happy...or if it's because your curse on me. You took that away from me...how do I know that you won't do it in my next life?"

"Don't give me cause to" Chloe responded evenly, "And I won't."

Rose looked back down at the complicated contract before her.

Rose Walsh she signed, in blood red ink.

Chloe closed her eyes and breathed out a ragged breath.

"Rose, you've made a very serious mistake. Now you will never have freedom, you will be bound to her service for eternity."

"I never had freedom anyways," countered the young girl quietly, "And she promised me she'd help me. You just mocked me...you let Max rape me, twice. You enjoyed him raping me. You would never help me...never. So no, I made no mistake."

"Don't worry about Max,' Miss Laufey smiled in relief, "He wont' be raping anyone anymore."

Chloe rounded on the Lawyer once more.

"What have you done, trickster?" demanded the weaver of fate, to which The Lawyer smiled pleasantly.

"I killed him, shortly before coming in. He will be found in that same park that Rose was found, shot three times in the chest by a high caliber pistol.

The forensics will lead to a confusing conclusion and ultimately there will be no conclusion; a cold case."

"you had no right!" snarled Chloe, "He had a life! He had-"

"I had every right!" fired back Miss Laufey, "If you have the right to change and warp someone's life as punishment, then I have a right to end a life. For punishment. So take your pretend ethics somewhere else. Speaking of which, why are you even here? Rose signed the contract...you have no purpose here anymore."

Chloe seethed, but it was true...Rose was no longer her responsibility.

"You will regret this" she warned Rose, who simply shook her head.

"no...I won't."

Chloe vanished and Miss Laufey breathed a sigh of relief.

"...well that could've been worse."

Rose squirmed and looked up at the woman,

"What will you do with me?" only now was the weight of her decision coming down on her shoulders.

"Nothing nefarious. I cannot live your life for you Rose, I cannot make these choices for you. But I can give you the tools that Chloe didn't. Which includes a therapist for dealing with your rape, a martial arts instructor to build confidence and self esteem, and friends who know what it's like to have
Chloe twist your life around. But Rose..."

The lawyer gave her a serious look, as she took the pen and contract,

"You did deserve to be punished...you know that, right?"

Rose looked down at her hands and nodded, tears once more beading in her eyes.

"I know, I...I wasn't a good person."

Miss Laufey gave a small smile and nodded.

"No, you weren't. But Chloe didn't give you much of a chance to prove you were better than what you were. She only gave you a life-long punishment with little chance to escape her cruelty. You deserved to be punished, but you also deserved a chance to prove that you could change, a chance she denied you and others.

Now rest up...your parents will be here soon. If they give you any shit then you call me, don't worry; you'll know the number."

Then she gathered up her brief case and turned to leave,

"Miss Laufey?" Rose called, and the Lawyer glanced over her shoulder

"Yes child?"

"umm...Chloe seemed to know you...she called you 'trickster'. Why?"

A true smile lit up The Lawyer's face.

"That's because my first name is Loki. Good night Rose."

then she stepped out and passed Rose's parents as they rushed in to greet the gobsmacked Rose.

I strongly believe that people need a chance to prove that they have or have not learned and grown from their experiences. But those who deny others this chance could be considered just as bad as those they've punished.

I feel that Rose, Mandi, Patty and Jaimie were never given the chance to become better. They were punished sure, but I don't feel like they had a chance to learn from it and grow and prove they had changed. They only had a limited choice of lives to live in and that felt like an injustice to me.
Some may disagree with me, and you are welcome to, but this was written so I could feel like those injustices could be corrected while trying to remain respectful to the source material and the original author.

I may use Loki Laufey; attorney at law more, as she has quite the story. But for now, I think this is a good introduction for her.
Lastly: Remember that there is a difference between what Rose believes that Chloe would do and what Chloe would actually do, as well as personal opinion expressed by the various characters.

Thank you everyone for reading and once more: I apologize to Ellie Dauber.

A little follow up to Anon Allsop's The Coven Please be aware that I explore some ideas in here that may upset some readers, so please keep that in mind.

Edit: updated with input from Elrodw

The Coven, as they enjoyed calling themselves, watched the lives of Heather and Chad, and at first things were predictable, even boring. Heather, beautiful and naive was also very reserved and withdrawn. She did little to draw attention to herself and seemd unexpectedly uncomfortable with the approaches of others, be they male or female.

Even the four themselves, though they made few attempts to engage the new girl, found that she would make excuses not to talk to them. She was skittish, quiet and very timid. Jen had enjoyed being pushy with the girl, until Chad had stepped in to stop them.

Chad was different as well. He seemed aggressive and grumpy, and ignored interactions from others, refusing to talk to his team mates or even his friends.

Then, one day both missed a day of school, then two and three: stretching on into weeks. It was clear then that the pair were not coming back, and rumors floating around the school were about them being pulled out of school due to the demands of Heather's extremely conservative parents.

This puzzled the coven, as her family was supposed to be nice but responsible, not conservative. There were also rumors that Chad had been kicked out of his house. Jen confirmed this to be true, as she had gone to see Chad but was shocked at what she had found.

Chad had a good family, his father had been supportive of him and his mother had managed to balance work and her family.

But when Jen had arrived at the house, it was a very different and confusing scene: a very small home with a very angry and embittered father. When she had asked about Chad he had gone into a swearing rant about his son being a good-for-nothing and 'just like his mother', and had slammed the door in her face.

Jen was too shocked to be insulted, and lost as to what had happened. She had tried to find Heather, but her home was inhabited by strangers, which meant that Heather's family now lived elsewhere.

The coven were not exactly worried, more confused and uncertain. But still, their spell was in place and the future was now set.

"Excuse me, girls?" they turned to see the aging principal Wilson. Balding and slightly portly, his better days were behind him.

"Yes Mr.Wilson?" asked Tara, uncertain why the principal would want to see them.

"Follow me please" he turned and began to walk away.

The coven looked at each other with confusion, but followed, a strange ball of anxiety building in their guts as they wracked their brains to try and guess what they may have done to anger the principal.

"Mr.Wilson, what's this about?" probed Shawna hopefully, in her cutest and sweetest voice.

"Do not ask questions. Follow." the words were laced with magic and the girls felt it tighten around them, silencing their mouths and pulling them
forward.

All of a sudden, the four felt very real fear, for they had never before been ensnared in a foreign spell, held helpless and captive, they couldn't even look at each other for support!

They were lead out to the parking lot where a large black 1950's cadillac was waiting, with shining chrome covering it and an angel hood ornament, and leaning against it was a woman dressed in a dark green three-piece suit and prescription glasses, with her pitch-coloured hair pulled back into a ponytail.

Oddly, instead of having 'cadillac' written along the side in silver, the word 'Charon' was written instead.

She opened the door without a word and the four piled into the back seat, buckling themselves up before sitting silent and still, staring straight forward. The coven could hear their principal and this strange woman talking but they were unable to make out the words, only the tone gave the indication that neither were pleased with the four witches.

The woman then walked around in front of the car and entered on the driver's side, buckled herself up and started the car, pulling out of the parking lot and down the street.

The ride was agonizing, the paralyzing spell along with the eerie silence made for a potent brew of fear, they couldn't even speak to their kidnapper to learn what was going on, they could only sit and stare straight forward, hands folded in their laps as buildings passed them by.

The woman didn't even spare them a glance in her rear view mirror, she only watched the road, not even turning on the radio to provide some ambience. The silent ride felt like they were being taken to the electric chair, condemned of some crime they didn't even know.

The car pulled onto a side road and entered a tunnel that had no lights, and the woman waited an agonizingly long time to turn on her headlights, but as they exited the tunnel, the four saw a highway that had certainly not been there before, and it was night out!

Or at least it looked like night, with the pitch black skies, and the street lights illuminating the four lanes of traffic, four unused lanes save for this single car. There was however, no moon or stars, creating and unnerving and confusing lack of time.

"...the spell is withdrawn you can move now." the woman spoke to them for the first time in over an hour.

the four felt the stiffness in their bodies flee and slumped, before launching into a confusing mess of questions, demands and pleads. It was verbal madness and yet the woman acknowledged none of it for almost a full minute before suddenly slamming on the brakes.

The girls screamed as the car ground to a halt, before heaving and staring at the driver in terror.

"Do I have your attention?" she asked after they had collected themselves, "Good. Because I can't answer a thousand questions at once. One girl and one question at a time please."

She then again began her car and started driving.

The four looked at each other before Tara, the de-facto leader spoke up.

"Who are you? Where are we going?"

"My name," the woman in green cut the eldest of the coven off before it could continue, "Is Miss Loki Laufey, attorney at law. As for where you are going, and why; you girls are going to see a group of people in charge of magic around the world. Think of it as the magical government. As to why, it's because you have been unbelievably reckless and malicious in your use of magic. I am to represent you when we get there, and try to prevent you four from having any particularly nasty fate bestowed upon you"

The four were stunned by this revelation, a magical government? They were in trouble with the magical government?

"What did we do?" asked Jen quietly, now quite afraid.

"You have abused your magic" explained Miss Loki, "many, many times. But this incident with Heath and Chad was the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Not just in your abuse of your spells, but your blindness to the consequences of it"

Jen's fear melted into rage.

"HE RAPED ME!" she screamed, "HE FUCKING DESERVED IT!"

"No." Loki responded calmly, "He didn't. He definitely deserved to be punished, that I won't debate. But you girls went far and beyond simple punishment into cruel revenge that impacted tens of thousands of lives."

The car turned onto an off ramp, and onto a road with a tunnel at the end.

"I will speak no more of this, but I will give you some advice. The people I work for are not to be trifled with. They are extremely powerful magical users, so do not assume you can lecture them. Remember your place and remember that these people have power to make what you did to to Heath and Chad seem tame by comparison, and are very displeased with you four."

the car burst out of the tunnel and onto some non-descript street with a large and imposing building at the end. There were randomly placed trees on either side of the street, but no buildings and only a few street lights illuminating to an empty parking lot next to the large government-styled building.

Loki shut off her car and picked up her briefcase.

"Remember; be respectful" she reminded then unlocked the car doors, and the girls filed out after her.
They walked silently into the building, where a large black woman in a security guard's uniform sat behind a mahogany desk.

"Miss Laufey" she smiled, "Welcome back," then she nodded to The Coven, "These them?"
Loki smiled back and nodded, "Yes, these are them. Are The Guardians ready to see us?"

The woman stood and gestured to several chairs in the waiting area,

"I'll go check, how about you wait here?"

Loki gestured and the coven sat while loki stood, waiting patiently.
"...He raped me" Jen broke the silence with a testy growl, "he deserved what he got! How can you say he didn't?"

Loki looked at Jen with a displeased frown.

"He raped you, and if you had gone to the police he would have been arrested. More girls would have come for and after a lengthy investigation, he would have been found guilty and sentenced to juvie then prison," she explained, "Justice would have been done. You would have given birth to your daughter and then had the option to give her up for adoption or keep her.

But that's not what you did." Loki turned to face the four.

"I say you abused your powers because you cast a series of reality-altering spells without any appreciation for the damage you caused. You girls have powerful magic and the potential to become very potent witches with proper training, but you're all young and you use your powers to punish anyone you see as wronging you or yours with a disturbing pettiness. You are comparable to an angry teenager going into his school and shooting it up, but unlike a school shooter, you can't be caught or stopped by conventional means"

the four witches were enraged and jumped to their feet, shouting accusations, insulted that this 'Loki' would compare them to a disgrunteld, murderous teen!

"AHEM!" the security guard broke up the argument, and the group glanced at her.

"They are ready to see you"

The court room where these 'Guardians' sat was unnerving and had that tone of strangeness.

Rows of seats where the public gallery would have sat were empty, as was the jury box, with only one desk for defendants and a row of chains behind it. Oddly, no desk for plaintiffs were present.

Ahead of them was a towering and imposing semi-circle where multiple judges could sit, peering down at the defendants from all angles. They were not yet present however.

"One last thing," Miss Laufey glanced at the girls passed her glasses, "in spite of what you may think, I'm not here to hurt you. I want to help you girls and believe me I can understand being raped. I can understand the longing for revenge, trust me I know. Some people think I'm the devil or some
kind of malicious, sadistic monster who torments the innocent"

the four looked alarmed, was that even potentially true!?

"I'm not" she dismissed, "I can do malicious acts at times, but my aim is always to help people, even if I am unorthodox about it. But the judges? They only know you from your reputation, so please; listen to them. Really listen, because they have a lot of experience with magical crime and misuse. I don't think you girls are criminals-"

A door behind the judges bench opened and eight ominous figures dressed in large flowing robes entered, only illuminated by the light from the room they had exited, which provided no clear view of their features.

"I think you're just a few girls with a lot of power and no oversight" Loki finished quickly, "So please let me help you"

the eight judges sat at their respective places, and turned on small lamps before them, illuminating the bottom of their faces and enough to give a rough estimate of their genders and age, but it was impossible to see the features that defined them individually.

"Miss Laufey" began the Judge directly ahead, he was clearly aged with wrinkled hands and yet his voice was strong, authoritative.

"You found the girls in question, did they offer any trouble?"

Loki stood from her chair and opened the briefcase she had brought with her.

"No your honor, they were understandably confused and frightened but they didn't give me any trouble"

He grunted and there was a shuffling of pages as the eight judges produced folders and sifted through them.

There were four men and four women probably middle aged, but the presence of magic made telling their precise ages near impossible, though it was curious that these eight would elect the form of older men and women rather than younger and good looking.

"There is no need for you girls to try and explain yourselves," the aged man with thinning hair began, "We already know your reasoning"

"I don't think you do!" Jen fired angrily, "I don't think you understand at all! I WAS RAPED!" the sophomore shrieked, "THEY DESERVED THEIR PUNISHMENT!"

Loki rubbed the bridge of her nose.

"...Are you quite done?" asked a woman, whose hair reminded the four vaguely of Judge Judy. The fact that she had a similar voice and mannerisms didn't help.

"Wha-?" Jen had expected the males to be indifferent but not such a stern-sounding lady.

"They are not on trial here, you have already seen to that. Miss Loki, could you please explain to these young women The Butterfly Effect?"
Loki gave a smooth smile and a slight nod, before addressing the girls.

"The Butterfly Effect suggests that the soft beating of a butterfly's wings could create a tornado somewhere else. More to the point, it means that the smallest changes in one place can have overwhelming changes in others."

The four witches glanced at each other in uncertainty,

"So what does that have to do with us?" Tara asked with diplomatic curiosity.

"Everything." Loki's tone was slightly strained, "You girls made very dramatic changes to the past of a single person...but you cannot do that without changing others around them to facilitate the future desired result.

Heath's family was very supportive, liberal-minded and proud of their son. Heather's family is not, because of the changes needed to create the future you're attempting to form."

"Indeed" A thin male judge on the far left interjected. He sort of reminded the defendants of Bill Nye.

"Heath's parents would not pressure their child to keep a pregnancy if it was not good for them. But Heather's family is very religious, conservative and judgemental. They demanded that she drop out of school and that she WILL keep the child. Her own desires, her own hopes and dreams do not matter, only the shame she has brought upon the family. "

A heavyset woman on the far right with an Asian accent took over.

"Heather was raped, at a very young age by a youth pastor."

The four defendants were stunned. Raped!?

"We never said she was supposed to be raped!" Kathy protested, "That wasn't supposed to happen!"

"That's because you didn't think!" The Asian judge yelled, causing the four to back up slightly, "You never specified that she wasn't supposed to be either. Her childhood rape caused embarrassment in the family, who accepted monetary compensation in exchange for staying quiet and moved across the country. Heather was kept sheltered but was looked upon as being damaged by her family. They protected her for their good as much as hers, which left her starved for affection.

As a result she had no social skills, she wasn't allowed friends nor allowed to engage in social activities. When she met Chad she was so starved for affection that she would do anything to please him. Her parents were enraged when she was found to be pregnant, and refuse to support her educational needs.

Instead, she will be forced to live in an apartment at the back of their property, and get a job, and this is just ONE of many lives altered and changed by your irresponsible and shorted-sighed magic use!"

The girls reeled under the verbal assault, they had never expected that one spell could have such serious and far reaching consequences.
"And in case you think it was justified, your spell destroyed the happy marriage of Chad's family, to create the right environment to force Chad into having to live with his girlfriend, under the requirement that he support the child and get a job. " This was spoken by the third female judge, a woman with a distinct English accent.

"So the situation you girls have created is a sexual assault victim, multiple lives altered in minor or dramatic ways, a ruined marriage, two ruined parental relationships and two youths with no high school education raising a child...no excuse me," she checked her papers, "Multiple children. As you said they would 'shower their daughter with siblings', in poverty."

"So," the Billy Nye judge cut in, "Now we come to the part where you girls get to speak and explain what all those people did to deserve their lives altered so dramatically and why you feel the need to punish multiple unborn children"

The silence was deafening, as the teenage witch coven gaped, glancing at each other. They didn't realize that their spell had affected so many.
"...I don't care" Jen stated after a moment, "They fucking deserved it. They DESERVE to feel raped and trapped. They deserve to have their fucking lives ruined!"

Loki squeezed her eyes shut and looked at the girls.

"This is what I meant, you four are too emotional to have access to this much power and not enough respect for the consequences of using your magic" she then addressed the judges.

"Your honors...they're not evil. They're unbelievably reckless, and even cruel...but they're teenagers. Most teenagers don't understand the impact of their actions, and all four are too emotionally linked to this to truly appreciate the devastation."

The eight magical justices seemed to look at each other before the one with thinning hair gestured to the lawyer.

"And your suggestion?"

"Well," the emerald-clad Loki smiled, "I would suggest that their powers be sealed temporarily,"

"WHAT!?" the four began to protest but Loki shot them a filthy look that silenced the coven,

"As I said...temporarily, while they attend classes on magical use, responsibility and history. To understand the danger they carry. Their multiple victims should have their cases reviewed and altered or cancelled as need be.

Heath should remain changed but the rapist will be someone from their school who was already suspected of sexual assault."

The fourth female judge, with a Hispanic accent nodded.

"Yes, the art teacher."

Loki nodded in response

"Yes, he's also a friend of Chad's family. Due to this, Chad will be pressured to not assist Heather, though the choice will ultimately be his whether or not he does. As for Heather, she will be pregnant but whether or not she chooses to give birth or abort or put the child up for adoption is entirely her call"

The coven looked ready to protest, as all four were devoutly pro-life, but had sense enough not to mention their personal views on the matter.

"Heather's family will be returned as close to Heath's as reasonably possible, given the situation. Heather and Chad will be aware of the magical changes, but will onyl be able to speak about it to the defendants...should they wish to, or each other. "
Loki then turned to face the four fuming witches, who thought that Heather and Chad were getting off light for their crimes.

"Chad's crime in this was one of sticking with his friend but not one that could be prosecuted as he was not present and any information he could have offered the police would be little help as it wouldn't be a witness statement and little more than heresay. To that end, his punishment is to be forced into a position of being torn between his family and his friend. This is not a situation with a good answer for him, no matter what he does. Either way, he's likely going to lose an important relationship."

The four were slightly more satisfied with that.

"And it will follow him for the rest of his life, few things are worse than regret and living with what if's.

As for Heather, she will be stricken with the loss of her identity, and severe gender dysphoria she cannot act upon. Over time our spells will ease her more comfortably into her life, but the sense of loss and wrongness will stay from her memories, unless she chooses to give up her previous identity and memory entirely...in essence killing herself.

She will be tortured enough, struggling with her own sense of violation...rape, and in no position to raise a child. What she does with that child is her own decision as it should be; it IS her body"

Loki fired a heated glance at Jen who had shame enough to look bashful,

"so trust me they both will have enough to wrestle with. But you girls will as well...you four were well on your way to becoming the kind of person I hunt down and exterminate."

"Exterminate?" Tara squeaked then glanced at the judges for some kind of contradiction...but was met with only silence and stern consternation.

"Indeed...exterminate. Not everyone can or wants to be helped, and sometimes it's just better to put down a rabid dog then have its disease spread."

The lawyer's face softened.

"I've been where you girls have been, anyone with magic has," the eight judges nodded in silent agreement, "But what you need to learn is that the greatest lesson with magic is learning when not to use it. Mundanes live their every day without magic and do so with general happiness."

She then turned back to face the judges.

"Is my proposal acceptable?"

The balding judge seemed to look to the assembled teens,

"Do the defendants agree to the terms? Failure would mean an alternate sentence. Such as loss of your powers permanently."
The teenagers looked at each other once more...there was a choice, but not a real choice.

"We agree" responded Tara with a quiet timidness.

"Then the court finds no issue with the sentence. The changes will already be underway when the girls return to their school, and we will review others affected by their magic in the coming weeks. Case adjourned."

He banged his gavel and the eight shut off their lamps, and shuffled out of the court room.

"Let go" Loki lead the coven out, and into her car in the parking lot.

"...He deserves more" Jen protested quietly, as they drove down the empty highway.

"Who? Heather? No, she doesn't. She's going to be living in her own personal hell. But...if you want to make her situation more difficult and please the judges at the same time, then help her."

"How do you figure?" the twins demanded, and Loki smiled slightly into the rear-view mirror.

"By helping her, you will show Heather the kind of good people you are...and her guilt over her actions will grow. Guilt she has to live with for the rest of her life, while you four end up looking good."

The witches sat in contemplation as Loki's eyes turned back towards the road,

"Just a thought."

The black Cadillac pulled up to the school and Loki looked back into the mirror at the four.

"Listen...your lives are made up of what you do. You four have amazing power, but you surrounded yourself with revenge and payback, instead of helping and enriching the lives of others. How do you think that would have looked in five, ten years? You would find yourselves alone, angry and trying to fill the emptiness in your life with more revenge and punishment, believe me I know. I've been there...it's not a nice place to be"

Jen, the youngest and most effected by the events, looked up at the lawyer,

"Why are you doing this?"

Loki sighed slightly.

"Because I don't want you girls to become like me or the countless other embittered, angry and jaded spellcasters out there. There is a waterpark run by a woman who once was letting her magic get away from her because she'd been struggling with the dark side of magic. Even now, having touched it once, the dark side still tries to tempt her. The stories she could tell..." Loki got a far off look in her eyes for a moment,

"The point is, you girls still have a chance to escape that easy trap and live lives surrounded by those who are blessed by your presence as opposed to those burdened by it. Take this chance, and become something to aspire to, alright?"

The four nodded and started to exit, while the lawyer gave them a smile. She was glad she caught them so early, they still had a chance to turn their lives around...that was good to see.

Then with a heavy sigh, she opened her briefcase and scanned her case files...ah...there was a note in here. Something about a goddess who had turned an abusive father into a succubus for...eternity?

Loki lifted one sculpted eyebrow then shook her head and gunned the engine before leaving the parking lot.
Meanwhile, the coven looked at each other uncertainly, their eyes had been opened by that strange meeting.

Yet in spite of how long it took, it seemed that people were only starting to arrive at school! It was humbling how many magic users were around them, and how many were more powerful.

Jen's eye however caught heather, quietly making her way towards the school...and she took a deep breath, before walking towards the new girl.

Authors Note This story was partially inspired by how irked I get that some stories seem to handwave changing someone's entire history wouldn't have drastic changes on their lives and the lives of those around us. Changing someone's gender (in my opinion) would have a domino effect through their lives, altering everything about them and their experiences, creating a different person at the end. I find it very difficult to believe that someone could be transformed and their lives being exactly the same.

Craius flinched as the noon-day sun moved across his face. As much as he wanted to roll away from the brightness and wait for his head to stop pounding, he knew that he would have to push himself to get moving. He was surprised that one of the household staff had not wakened him earlier. After all, there was a celebration tonight for tomorrow's announcement that he would be his father's successor to the throne.

He lay on his back for a few more moments, letting his headache settle, and just looked up at the stone ceiling above him. He reflected that he had not really looked at his room in some time and noticed it. Things like how each massive stone was relatively smooth and how well each one fit in with the stones around it. His walls were covered in colorful woven tapestries designed to keep the rock from pulling the heat out of the room.

In the corner stood a partition and his chamber pot. One of the household staff must empty it each day. He didn't know about that. It was always full in the morning when he left the room but empty and clean when he returned at night or the early morning, depending upon what he and his friends were doing.

He didn't feel like dealing with one of his servants trying to dress him today and he stumbled over to the closet. Opening one of the cabinet's doors, he drew out the soft linen shirt and pants that he wanted to wear. He tossed them on the bed before going over to the chamber pot and doing his business. He was glad that he didn't have to clean up this mess. It was good to have servants; that was their job…to clean up after him.

He strode down the corridor to the family dining room. He passed a couple of maids sweeping the floors and spreading rugs. He ignored their cheery wishes of good morning, passing them as if they did not exist. The boy cut a handsome figure these days and he had been told by more than one of his friends that he could have his pick of any girl around. He missed the looks the two women exchanged behind him, expressions that were part sadness and part disgust at his behavior.

The dining room was a cozy place, with a large dining table at one end and chairs around a fireplace at the other. He squinted in the bright sunlight that lit the room. He saw his elder sister, Selene, seated in a pillowed chair by one of the windows, studying a book of some sort. Once he informed the servant who hurried over to him what he wanted to eat, he walked over to where Selene sat.

"Are you reading Selene or just looking at the pictures?"

Even though they were the royal family, they owned only a handful of books. Of course, most people in the kingdom had not time to read, let along the knowledge. Life revolved more around survival. Their father was working hard to help the citizenry to improve their way of life. Other kingdoms had instituted new farming methods and ways to accomplish work more easily. Craius had not paid much attention to that though.

Selene looked up at her brother, an annoyed look on her face. It seemed that he liked to find ways to bother her. They were only about three years apart in age, but they seemed to be decades apart in maturity. She would be celebrating her nineteenth birthday in the coming week, but she usually conducted herself as if she was ten years older than that. Craius seemed to act like a child most of the time.

"No Craius. I'm reading about our family history. Brother Falk brought the book down from their mountain monastery. It was just finished."

Craius looked into her lap where the large volume lay open. He could see the flowery script that seemed to be in every book in the library, surrounded by the illustrations that went with the script. He knew how to read as well as Selene could, he just was not interested. He preferred to be riding or hunting with his friends. The young nobles who were his friends liked to hunt as well, so his days were usually filled with hunting stag or boars.

At the end of the day, he could be found in one of the taverns in town. He was careful with the money he was given from the treasury, but he seldom had to spend it. His friends were often the ones who were buying the rounds of drink.

Selene dearly wished that she could believe her brother was merely a passive bystander to the antics of Harolde and his companions but word had reached the princess that the young prince was just as active as the rest: causing misery, mischief and throwing his title around like a bludgeon; beating others about the head with it to win his way.

The contrast was that these stories came from many who who already believed young Princes Crauis to be a lout, a brat and a thug. An unfortunate set of titles that were not entirely undeserved.

Crauis certainly was spoiled and selfish; offering the serving staff no recognition unless he required something. However, Selene had never seen her brother raise a hand to punish one. Usually it was a glare or gasp of exasperation.

In the same breath, Harolde and his little gang of nobles were very aggressive. They abused the servants shamelessly, and Crauis did not lift a finger to stop it, though he took no part himself.

Seeing that Crauis was indeed the crown prince, many of the servants blamed him and titled him a cruel creature...when the truth of the matter was more that he was indifferent.

Craius just shook his head at his sister's hobby and went back to the table to eat his meal that had been set out for him. Selene watched him as he walked away. He might be annoying, but he was her brother. She had tried to help him grow up properly because their parents always seemed to be gone to meet with the rulers of other kingdoms or visiting with some noble. That meant that they had been left in the care of minders who were often over-awed by the status of their charges.

She remembered when they had been good friends, but she had gained responsibilities as she became an adult and had been inflicted with the duty of meeting every eligible male nobleman for hundreds of miles around. She and her brother had drifted apart in the past months. He listened more to the ill-mannered sons of nobles in the town than he did to her these days.

Craius never did anything really wrong, so that she could correct him. But he seemed to get worse as the weeks went by. The advisor their father had appointed seemed to let him get away with things as well. She had not tried to talk to her parents about Craius as yet. Even though she was the eldest, Craius was first in line to the throne because he was the first male heir.

Selene was afraid that anything she said about her brother might be taken as an attempt to undermine his position as the next king. All she could do was accept her brother's disdainful comments and superior attitude. And hope that he would grow out of this phase of his life.

* * * * *

Tradition had it that there was a reception the night before the king's heir was announced. It was usually a foregone conclusion as to who the heir apparent would be, so there was really no problem with having a party.

King Walter and Queen Diana were present at the beginning to welcome the guests, which filled the reception hall. To feed everyone would have been very expensive, so the king and queen provided chickens, turkeys, and breads to go with watered wine which passed as a punch. Walden was not a poor kingdom, they had mines that provided precious metals and fertile farmlands. This all allowed the kingdom to export much of what they produced. At the same time, they did not have surpluses that would allow excesses in waste.

The king and queen stayed at the celebration for about an hour in order to greet their equals who were present for the presentation the next day. Then most adults decided to take their leave and go to bed. Most of the guards had been dismissed as being unnecessary. After all, the guests had been vetted in advance and only friends of the royal family had been invited. Everyone in the kingdom would be present in the courtyard for the king's announcement tomorrow.

The party continued for several hours with just the younger generation present. Things remained calm for an hour or two as people would get tired or bored and leave for their beds. Selene tried to stay to keep an eye on her brother and to safeguard him, but she finally had to give up and leave herself.

At some point, one of Craius' so-called friends produced drinks that were more potent than the watered down wine. The inevitable happened when alcohol was mixed with teen-aged hormones.

Craius' group of just rowdy friends gradually became a gang of hoodlums. Sadly, the men who had elected to remain as chaperones were less than stellar role models themselves and did nothing to reign in their behavior. What young ladies who had stayed late at the party were wise enough to leave before things could get out of hand and then find themselves in trouble.

The same could not be said for the girls who were present to serve refreshments and help clean up. Out of sight of their chaperones and the few guards who remained, one of the girls was grabbed by an older boy. Harolde was really more man than boy, being at that point where he was not old enough to be included with the men as yet. He was also one of the bigger youths present. He stood over six feet tall and was broad of shoulder. Everyone could see that he would be a prime candidate to be a field officer in the military.

A small crowd of boys quickly formed in the alcove where Harolde was holding the girl, Muriel. A couple of boys were appointed as roving lookouts, moving about near the alcove so as not to draw attention to the number of boys casually disappearing behind the drapes. Another boy was sent to fetch Craius who had consumed just enough wine and brandy to be feeling no pain.

He was seated at one of the tables, trying to carry on a conversation with one of the few chaperones who were still left. The messenger bent close to Craius' ear to whisper that Harolde had a present for him. His response was to nod jerkily and he managed to make his way over to the indicated alcove. Meanwhile, the boy who had delivered the message slipped into the vacated chair and engaged the man with a question in order to distract him, almost as if it had been planned.

In the alcove, Muriel was terrified. She was new to the palace, having been hired for general housekeeping only a couple of weeks ago. She had thought that it was a great honor to be helping with the party, after all Prince Craius was a handsome man and he looked like a nice person. She was surrounded by leering teenagers not much younger than herself. The big one held both of her wrists in one hand while he covered her mouth with the other. Her cries of protest were muffled to a point that they could not even carry to the drapes. All she could hope for was that one of her co-workers would notice her absence and rescue her.

The curtains parted and the other boys made way as Craius stepped in. There were several candles on the walls, set into sconces, so the lighting was not too bad. Still, Craius had to squint to see what was going on. Of course, the squinting did not improve the lighting but did help his bleary eyes to focus.

He saw Harolde and one of the maids standing in the back. In his state, he could not see that the girl was a prisoner and frightened for her life.

"Hey Craius," Harolde drawled. "I got you a present for your big day."

Craius frowned. He did not understand what the boy was talking about. Nothing was said about gifts and he didn't know what Harolde was getting at.

"Huh?" was his highly intelligent response. Some of the more sober boys snickered under their breath.

"I got you a woman," Harolde explained. "Now you can man up." Muriel tried to struggle when she heard what he said. Prince Craius was a handsome boy, but her choice of partners was hers.

Harolde's intent finally worked its way through Craius' addled mind and he grasped what he was talking about. He dimly recalled admitting to his friends that he was still a virgin. The reason was not because the girls weren't interested, after all, most girls would want to attach themselves to the future king, but because he was afraid that was the only reason that a girl would want to be with him.

"No, thank you, Harolde," Craius answered. He had enough common sense left to know that ravaging the girl would be wrong. "I have to keep in mind the woman who will be my wife when the marriage is arranged." His reasoning and speech sounded fine to him, but came across more like the rambling of a drunkard. This time, there were several outright laughs at his expense.

Harolde had been holding Muriel close for several minutes and her scent and softness were arousing. When Craius declined to take advantage of the situation that was fine with him.

"Do you mind if I have her then?" Harolde asked.

If he had been sober, Craius' response would have been totally different and Muriel would have been saved. Instead, the boy said, "I don't care. She is a maid. That is what she is here for."

His statement was like the stab of a knife for Muriel. She had only seen him a couple of times, but she thought that Craius was a pleasant, good-looking boy who just needed a bit more maturity. But he had just revealed himself to be thoughtless and uncaring for her well-being. Tears coursed down her cheeks as she slumped in Harolde's grip. There was no hope for her and she did not know how she could face her mother after this.

Everything changed in an instant though. The lookouts that had been posted turned out to be less than reliable as they threw themselves through the drapes to bring a warning only a moment or two in advance of the four guards who followed closely behind.

Realizing that they had been caught, the ten or so boys made a break for it, only to run into all eight of the guards who had been left to watch over everyone. It appeared that the adults were content to leave the teenagers to their own amusement unless their fun became dangerous. The men were experienced with this behavior, possible even having had participated in it themselves at some point in their lives.

"All of you line up against the wall!" the squad commander barked. Most of the boys obeyed without an argument, but there was the inevitable one or two who tried to stand their ground and overawe a low level soldier with their royal rank.

"Do you know who I am?" a proud-looking youth said, walking up to the commander. The squad leader kept his expression calm as he looked the young man over. In any other situation, he would be saluting the boy and according him the respect his family commanded, but the boy was now a suspect in some form of assault, in the palace no less. While he would not be treated like a peasant in a tavern, the young man would not be walking away from this. The king did not countenance this kind of behavior among the peasantry and he had made it clear in the past that he would not accept it from the nobility either.

The commander already knew that Prince Craius was involved and he had sent a runner for his captain and for the king. Responsibility for policing the prince's conduct needed to be bumped up the chain of command as quickly as possible.

The guards quickly had all of the boys out of the small room and lined up against one wall of the banquet hall. Everyone that was not involved had been herded to one side of the hall or made themselves scarce when it became clear that something was going on. There had been a few tense moments when Harolde found himself alone in front of hard-faced guards, with his arm around Muriel's throat. They might be trained fighters, but they considered noncombatants to be off limits when it came to violence. Their silence and stern expressions told Harolde that he would not be allowed to leave with Muriel and that his health and safety was directly tied to hers.

After a few moments of hesitation, he pushed the girl forward and stepped back with his hands raised. One of the men gently pulled a weeping Muriel over to a chair and stood beside her with a hand on her shoulder. While Harolde and everyone involved were being lined up, Craius was taken back into the alcove and put in a chair as well. Craius sat staring down at the table, not really focusing on anything because of his dizziness. Muriel sat across from him, weeping. Craius did not notice that she did not look at him even once.

The captain of the guards arrived quickly. His men often wondered if the man ever slept. He assessed the situation quickly and saw that the services of a witch might be necessary to ensure that justice was done. He knew that he might be overstepping his authority, but he sent a runner for Lady Margery.

The king and queen showed up about an hour later, knowing that the captain and his men needed time to interview witnesses and to take statements from anyone who might be directly involved. Everyone rose to their feet when they were announced. They had received updates from the banquet hall and they were fully aware of everything the captain knew. Captain Benet reported privately to the king regarding his summoning of the witch, Margery, and he was assured that it was a wise course of action.

By the time Walter and Diana had taken their seats, Margery had arrived at the palace and was quickly escorted to the banquet hall. It was a rather grim tableau that confronted her. The royals were seated at one end of the hall and all of the boys that had been taken from the alcove were seated tables that had been pulled into place. The feeling was of a makeshift courtroom, rather than an audience with the king.

As Margery was announced and she stepped forward, she curtseyed before Walter and Diana in a sign of respect. In response, they rose and bowed to her. They were all accorded the respect or obedience of the people because they did not place themselves above their citizens.

"Lady Margery," Walter said in greeting. "We need your assistance to ensure that justice is done." He gestured to the group of scared boys at the tables. It was apparent that they understood the trouble they were in. Even Harolde had the awareness that he was in serious trouble.

Only a couple of generations ago, the events of the evening would have been considered normal. People with power at all levels thought of it as their right to take what they wanted or use people in any way they saw fit.

From the corruption and decadence of those years, it seemed as if people across the land had matured. While greed and graft were still common in the land, it was regarded as unacceptable and the king and queen agreed. Justice was expected to be fair and impartial, meted out quickly without regard for political influence.

"Yes, your Majesty," Margery replied. The messenger who had come to get her had been able to give her a quick sketch of what she faced and she came prepared to read the truth from everyone. It was not in her purview to punish the guilty, only to assist in determining who was telling the truth or what they believed was the truth.

"I was told what the situation was on my way here," she continued. "Would you like me to perform an examination of everyone?"

"Yes please, if you would. I don't know what the burden on you might entail however."

Margery smiled at the king's deference to her. "I believe that I can perform a quick scan which will tell you which boys would bear further attention. There will be no cost to me to scan them." Magic was not as simple as brewing a potion or invoking a spell. Some acts of magic took a physical toll upon both the spell caster and the target. But the reading of minds was something that would not tax her or the person she was reading.

"Thank you," Walter replied. He omitted the use of an honorific as he never knew exactly how to speak to someone of Margery's station on a casual level.

Over the next hour, Walter and Diana presided over an impromptu court acting as the judges while Margery acted as the prosecutor, defense, and chief investigator. After she had spoken to Muriel and sat quietly with her for several minutes, she met with each boy and Captain Benet to read what they might know of the night's activities and how it compared to the statements they had given. In the end, Margery succeeded in extracting the story from each participant as they wanted everyone to believe it, as they actually perceived it, and as how it was seen by everyone else.

This placed a great deal of responsibility and authority in Margery's hands. A corrupt magic-user could manipulate situations such as this to their own ends. However, both Walter and Margery trusted each other. More importantly, everyone in town and the surrounding countryside trusted her as well.

Thus, Walter did not question Margery's narrative when he, Diana, Margery, and Captain Benet met together in one of the alcoves.

"Your Majesties," Margery began. "All of the younger boys were witnesses only and were drawn in out of curiosity only. They had no idea of what was planned and no time to call for help. None of them thought that they could do anything to help the maid." She pointed to three names on the list and said, "These three boys were knowledgeable about everything." She went on to explain how the plan had been to use the brandy to get the younger boys drunk and watch how they behaved. They would have been collateral damage, so to speak, as the real intent had been to assault a maid. Harolde had actually thought that involving Craius would somehow protect him from a serious punishment.

With the exception of Craius, all of the other boys were taken to detention cells. Those who were only guilty of being present would be released later on in the coming day to their parents with a warning to be more careful. The boys who had assisted Harolde would have judgment passed on them the next day as would Harolde himself. His case would merit special consideration and might even mean a year in the infantry as a regular soldier. A rather sad comment on a promising career.

At Margery's suggestion, Muriel was given a draught of wine with some herbs mixed in. She was told that it would help her to relax. The girl was definitely high-strung at the moment and had broken down in tears multiple times. The girl was asleep within moments of draining the cup. Once she was out, Margery stood behind Muriel and placed a hand on either side of the girl's head. It was the work of only a few minutes for Margery to change Muriel's memories of assault and a near rape to only a dark dream. Captain Benet summoned another maid who helped him transport Muriel back to her room.

This finally left Margery standing with two parents in the alcove looking down at an unconscious Craius. Without looking at Walter, she said, "Your Majesty, some of the things I picked out of Muriel's memory are of some concern and you should know of them." She proceeded to relate how Craius had been quite intoxicated when he had callously told Harolde that he could have his way with the maid.

Walter nodded in acknowledgment. He had frowned during Margery's recitation of everything she had gleaned with her powers. He and his wife had not intended to raise their children to be like this. As much as he wanted to deny that his son had grown up with attitudes that were commonplace almost a century ago, he could not. He had seen signs of this, but he had closed his eyes to it.

He looked at his wife. "There cannot be a declaration of succession tomorrow. Craius is not ready to be king. He may never be." Diana could only nod in agreement, tears in her eyes.

Margery understood their grief. She had seen how parents in the past had been confronted with the same thing. It was hard to raise children with good values. Walter and Diana had fallen into the trap of believing that their duties as rulers of the kingdom took precedence over their responsibilities to their children. Thus, Selene and Craius had been relegated to second place, being raised and educated by a variety of care givers.

"Sir, I could offer you a way to show your son the error of his ways and give him a closer appreciation of his future subjects. Even though he was not awake, I did get a sense that he is not a bad man at heart." Margery spoke softly, almost against her better judgment. She did not want to offer hope for something that might not succeed, but she wanted to offer what help she could to save Craius as her future king.

Walter looked up at the woman, his heart full of hope. Margery was an older woman, one who wore her years of experience upon her face. The witch dressed in a plain dress, fastened at the waist by a leather belt, and greying hair tied into a bun.

In some ways, Margery was the very image of a witch from tales, but lacked the warts and typical garb that storytellers described.

"What plan do you have?" The aged King Walter probed, "A spell of some kind?" The moment the words left Walter's mouth, the ruler knew that he had spoken foolishly and knew the witch's scolding words even before they were spoken.

"Magic is not a cure, it is a guide. It can aid in solving a problem but cannot solve it by itself." This had been a sore point between the King and Queen, and the witch for a long time; they didn't understand the limitations of magic, and Margery did a poor job of explaining said rules.

"Alright," Diana stated, trying to soothe the annoyed witch, "What do you suggest?" The witch glanced at the boy, passed out from the night's excitement and excessively powerful alcohol his system was otherwise unaccustomed to.

"I can craft a spell, one that will change the boy into a young woman," Margery held a hand to forestall any protests or questions, "As a woman he would be treated as a maid, no better but no worse. During this time, he would learn the plight of those born without privilege"

Walter mulled the offered solution over; it certainly had merit, however...

"There would have to be a way to keep him from talking to others, if only so he wasn't seen as insane."

Diana nodded in agreement with her husband and looked back to the greying witch, "Is there any way to prevent him from speaking of it?"

Margery frowned deeply in thought, they asked for much and while it may be possible, it wouldn't be in quite the way they believed it to be. Like many, they did not realize that magic had great limitations.

Making the boy to be unable to speak of his plight was possible but could not be accomplished in the time they had; it had too many variables to consider.

"I could," The witch suggested after a long pause, "Alter his speech and writing. That he can understand words but cannot write them, and while he can understand spoken tongue he cannot speak it. His attempts would result in a garbled tongue most would assume to be a foreign language."

"But, what if he was in danger..." Of course a mother would consider such a thing and indeed it was the first thought that came to Diana.

"I could alter the spell to break if he was ever placed in serious danger" the witch suggested, impressed by the Queen's insight.

"Which brings me to my second point. All men are born of the sun, women the moon," began Margery, looking to the royal couple, "The act of altering a man to a woman is one that comes with danger."

Now she had both royals attention, as she assumed she would.

"The body is not meant to be changed, as its form is decided at birth. A temporary change will tax his body and leave him weakened. However...should the moon go through a full phase and the new woman have a feminine cycle...then the changes will be permanent and irreversible. Any attempts to reverse the spell will kill The Prince after that time."

The royals looked horrified, "Isn't there a way to do make it a timed spell? Like you're doing with the speech spell."

Of course, the father was concerned with his dynasty even if his question was a legitimate one.

"No King Walter, there is not. The difference between the speech spell and the gender spell is the difference between a hole and a catapult. To stop a man from walking, the hole simply needs to be there and he falls into it. Similarly, the trigger for the speech spell only turns it off. However, just as the catapult needs to be loaded to be fired, the gender spell cannot be undone but rather must be reversed. Do you understand?"

The royals were slightly perplexed by the chosen metaphor however they seemed to have some grasp of what the witch was trying to warn them of.

The prince groaned and shifted slightly.

"Whatever your decision majesty's we must hurry, if the prince were to hear of the plan he would realize that his punishment has an expiration date and would make no attempt to change his behavior."

King Walter and Queen Diana shared a look, as they contemplated the most important decision of their young son's life. However, they could not know how far reaching the effects of this choice would be, else they may have made a different choice...or maybe not.

"Yes, do it Lady Margery" The Queen confirmed.

The witch gave a nod and moved to the Prince's side, tearing off a segment of her sleeve and stuffing it into his mouth.

"Now hold his limbs."

The two Royals looked alarmed at her instruction, to which Margery explained, "This is not a gentle spell." Also, her thought was that they should be part of what was about to be wrought upon the boy. It would not be pleasant for any of them.

Out of options, they gripped their son's arms and legs and watched in growing anxiety as the woman placed her hand on the young prince Craius' head.

"I have put a spell of sleeping upon him, that he will not awaken during the change...but he will remember the pain. Even asleep...he'll remember," The witch warned gravely then bowed her head, closed her eyes and placed both hands upon the chest of the young Prince Craius.

A sound like a branch being snapped filled the hall and the prince released a strangled moan from his sleep.

His face looked as if two giant, invisible hands were squeezing it, molding it and forcing it into a new shape, terrible cracking noise accompanying it.

His throat compressed with a loud, though temporary gagging noise from the prince, as the changes rippled down his unwilling body.

The arms and legs compressed inwards with jerky and loud snapping sounds, his fingers curling as they were changed and thinned to the hands and arms of a young woman.

The prince's shoulders buckled three times in rapid succession his ribs popping as two mounds drove themselves upwards beneath his shirt.

Prince Craius let out a strangled wail as his hips drove upwards then crashed to the table beneath, a stain spreading across his thighs and growing into puddle as the most awful noise of bones breaking and popping filled the air.

Then finally, after five full minutes, he went still...she went still, her breathing coming in rapid, shallow, agonized gasps.

The King wore an expression of being silently stunned while Queen Diana looked horrified, sinking into a chair to stare at the girl before them, and struggling with her part of the transformation. She had not truly understood what she was agreeing to.

Craius had changed into a beautiful young woman, with angular features and shoulder-length black hair. She looked so delicate laying on the table, so...vulnerable and helpless: quivering like a terrified, wounded kitten.

Margery was rather tired from the forces she had manipulated to cause this change, but she felt that more was needed. "Please King Walter, pick up the girl...I wish to give her fresh clothing before you retire her to her quarters...It's a small mercy I can afford."

The King was too shaken by what he had beheld to argue, and carefully picked up the petite form of his...daughter.

Witch Margery removed the gag from the now female Crauis' mouth then waved her palm over the young woman.

The clothes rippled and changed in an almost boring fashion, melting into the simple dress and blouse of a palace servant.

"She will be exhausted and confused come the morning and probably in a great deal of pain...I advise you make the most of this opportunity to help your son majesties, I do not believe you will have a second chance."

Judging by their expressions, Margery surmised that both royals had a lot to consider and come to terms with, staying here any longer would be worthless.

"By your leave, my daughter needs me and I grow weary: I have spent a lot of power this night." After waiting several moments, Margery realized they were not listening, too consumed in the actions of the night, and quietly left.

It was a long time before King Walter, feeling every second of his age, carried his now female son to the servant's quarters. Muriel, the king realized, slept without a roommate and so there should be an empty bed.

Muriel was a kind soul and perhaps the two of them would be good for each other.

Entering into Muriel's room he found it strange to see...so spartan and small. Void of any personalization or real comforts that they as royalty had come to rely upon.

Muriel herself awoke, the mousey brunette looking terrified at first, then confused and alarmed at the King and his package.

"She needs a place to sleep, and you have an empty bed."

Muriel nodded in understanding and watched the strange looking maid be put in the bed opposite her.

"She will need lots of sleep...she is not to be disturbed until she awakens naturally, am I understood?"

Muriel nodded quickly. Seeing the King carrying a young girl around, followed by the Queen, confused her. She was not sure of the time of day, but she assumed that the girl was a new hire, like her, and the King must have been present when she arrived. She knew that the King was a good person and had probably decided not to awaken someone to welcome the new girl.

His heart tight in his chest, the King longed to stay and comfort the transformed child...but it would be a fruitless and suspicious act, so he turned and left, shutting the door quietly before taking his leave to comfort his shocked and soon-to-be-crying wife. It was all he could do for his son right now.