by P. S. Power
Krista shook her currently green head.
“Nope. Not only is he being a jerk about it, he lied to you. The correct thing to do would be to slap him in the face, possibly dumping a drink on him. That way he’ll learn to be more careful in the future. Carefully though, with the slapping. We need him to be alive in the morning.”
Avery nodded, since the advice seemed well meant. Turning then, barely touching his face with her palm, she slapped at him. She’d learned to be careful that way practicing at battle camp almost every morning. It didn’t even knock him down. Also, as he reeled back, glaring at her, she didn’t have a drink at all.
“Oh, excuse me, Mr. Holmstrum… I need to find a drink to toss on you. Would you come with me? I don’t know where we’re supposed to get them here.” The drunk man held his face on the left-hand side, but waved helpfully toward the place in the room where a group of dapper men and women were indeed getting beverages for others. Many of them were brightly colored, with streamers of things mixed in. Liquids of different densities. They were pretty, but looked like they might damage clothing. Her new companion was dressed too nicely for that kind of thing.
Walking over, holding the man by the arm, so he’d be on hand for his punishment, she waved to a lady behind the bar.
“Hello? Could I have something that’s clear and not too sticky? I need to toss a drink in this man’s face. Thank you.”
The blonde woman smiled, but got her some water in a small glass with a long stem.
“Will this do? I could mix something stronger for you.”
“No, thanks. This will do it, I think. He doesn’t seem like a bad man, but we need to follow the customs or he might not learn.” Without more warning she tossed the drink into his face, getting him to sputter. “There. You’ve learned not to do that to people now. Correct?”
The man, for some reason, laughed at her. She thought that was the case. His words were actually just a bit rueful.
“Okay, okay. You got me. Still, you’re damned sexy. High school girl, though. Hot, but probably not a place I need to be going right now. Sorry there, kid. You know, bad divorce, lost half of everything and had too much to drink. All that stuff.”
Krista moved in and patted him on the arm then.
“Good. I don’t know what would be worse, you sleeping with potential talent and getting caught at it, or you being eaten alive by a Dragon. The second one would allow you to get better press in the morning.”
Avery gasped, but that was all. It hurt, having that kind of thing said about her, but it was the truth. Eve groaned, which got her old friend to go wide eyed.
“What part got that reaction?”
No one said anything, for a while.
Finally, coached by some memories, she decided to be honest again. It worked at times.
“The eating people part. I was attacked about three years ago, in my full form. Some people died that way. It wasn’t a good thing.”
Alan moved in then, and glared at the others, including Eve. He literally stepped in front of Avery, ready to protect her from the perceived attack.
“It was self-defense. I looked it up. Flat out. No one even tried to claim it was anything else. No cover up or anything either.” He looked ready to start swinging, which would have been at the fat guy, thankfully. The squirrel could kill him after all.
Donald clapped a few times then.
“That… We can use that. Set it up as a sentimental piece. Girl is attacked, fights back and oh, just happens to be able to turn into a giant Dragon. You should do that here. That, or take your clothes off. You’re nearly there anyway. It won’t be that hard…”
Everyone else looked annoyed, but Avery simply moved to the bar, three feet away, and was instantly handed a new glass of water by the clever Human bar tender. That got thrown on the man again. Alan still seemed prepared to fight for her. Interestingly, Vince and Leslie both moved up behind the man. To attack him from behind, she was willing to guess.
Leslie was holding a nice glass statue at least. It looked heavy and like it could actually damage the man, if the cheerleader tried hard enough.
There was a voice from behind them then, which interestingly was Bey.
“Ah. Perhaps we should change the topic? I fear violence is about to start, if we do not. Miss Hall, is it not? So lovely to meet you at last. I am Bey, of the Vampire Council.”
There was a squeak then from the actress.
“Oh, my, god! The Bey! Squeeee!” That distracted people for a while, as Eve moved in to pull Avery to the side.
“That was fun. You should do it. Change here. That would be both impressive and show that you aren’t dangerous that way, if you don’t want to be. We can set that up in the back yard, if you want.”
She didn’t really, even if the need to do it was kind of pressing. Mainly because that was kind of a private thing for her. Mainly that was about how her first change had gone. The thoughts and feelings around being a Dragon for a girl raised like she was. It had been a set-up, from the start.
Her father, John, had to have known that there could be a child. One that he was leaving with an evil cult. One that would hate her the second she changed at twelve or thirteen.
“He meant for me to kill them all, didn’t he?”
Eve, or rather the cute squirrel head, stared at her closely. After a while she nodded.
“Your father? He nearly had to, given everything. Not that I know enough to say anything for certain. It could have been a mistake. Things can happen, after all.”
That was probably true.
“Right. I’ll… Go and do that. The changing thing. I can’t afford to hide from that part of myself anymore. I am a Dragon. It isn’t a bad thing, it’s just a different type of person. One that I was taught to hate so deeply that it’s hard to break from now.”
“Which you can only do by facing it, over and over again. Go say hi to everyone, first. I expect you to change back after an hour. You can do it faster than that. The Shifters couldn’t tell you that, but Dragons can do that. Even a few shifts inside a day. The rules are different for your kind.”
That wasn’t anything she’d been told about before, but Avery wasn’t calling a Greater Vampire a liar. After all, she might be right. In fact, looking at the ancient Dragon memories, she noticed that one was right there. It still took a while to shift, though it could be done faster than she normally did it. The honest truth was that, shifting aside, Dragons weren’t the same kind of beings at all as the others there. They’d just been accepted since they all changed form.
Which she’d been made aware of before. Zack had told her that, but not explained what it might mean. That wasn’t his job, of course.
“Okay. Well, I need to find Tyler then. That’s the last of the people I know here that I didn’t come in with.” Looking around, she saw the dark flux of energy, which was sucking death out of everyone in the room, leaving them cleaner and more alive. Heading that way she found him without a lot of trouble, given he was sitting at a keyboard, not playing, just chatting with a group of standing people.
He, unlike his friends, checked her out fairly closely.
“Avery! Nice costume.” He was dressed up as a cat, or so it seemed. Complete with fluffy ears that stood up, paws that he wore on his wrists that covered the back of his hands and a very tight pair of shorts, which left his pale body exposed otherwise. Well, except the tail in the back. On his feet were cat paw slippers. All of it in black and white.
“I like yours as well. Eve suggested I go and change into a Dragon in your back yard. I wanted to say hello first, so that you’d understand that I was just making a fool of myself, not getting ready to destroy your home.”
“Awesome. We need to get some cameras. You don’t mind being watched, do you?”
“Of course I do. I’m going to be naked. It’s either strip first or go home nude, after destroying my outfit. You know how shy I am that way. Still, I’m already mostly there. We should get Donald
a front row seat, since he mentioned wanting to see me bare several times already.”
Tyler winced.
“Ouch. He’s still alive? I know that things hadn’t been going well for him, but that’s a bit much for a relaxed party. At least this early. It isn’t even midnight yet. Then, well sure, asking for clothing to come off is fair enough. Not at seven-thirty at night though.”
She got to smile then.
“Of course he lives. How else could he watch me do this now? I should… I need to do this. Krista said she might want me for some kind of program, just to watch me change.”
That got a nod, then waving, with a cute cat paw which was over sized enough to leave him looking a bit like a bald kitten. It was, interestingly, a Vampire that saw him, moving over quickly. Avery had met her before, so waved and smiled.
“Hi, Ginger. Ambassador Harris. Um, I’m Avery Rome. We’ve met.”
That got a hug, which was interesting, given that the other person was dressed like a princess. That meant there was a lot of lace involved in things. She looked down as well, like Tyler had.
“I remember you. We’ve met six times after all. Though you do look a bit different. I almost did something similar, but that looks better on you. What’s up? Unless this is about going to a bedroom, in which case, I’m in. For either or both of you.”
Tyler smiled and shook his head.
“Video cameras? We’re about to have a full sized Dragon in the back yard. Lights, too. Let’s get that going. This will be fun. I bet you Finias, The Mind Taker doesn’t have a Dragon at his party.”
She’d been there earlier, but just looking like her regular self. That probably meant Tyler was right.
Before she could lose her nerve, she went to the back, well past the house that held a pool of water. Then she stripped down, moving her delicate clothing to the side, standing there naked as others slowly came out. Looking at her, and taking her picture. That was kind of a big deal. Worse, Donald actually did move to the front.
“See, I knew you were a player. Fine, if you blow me here, I’ll get you in. I promise.” There was a laugh from the man, then the crowd, as Eve came out, her head off. Showing that she was made up underneath, as a Manthori Vampire. That was really different, but apparently something that Rebekah understood, since she ran over and hugged her.
“I should have known. Damn, you’re even cute as one of us. That’s hard to pull off.” The woman rubbed at her face a bit, then worked her pale fingers together, sniffing them. When she spoke, it was in a whisper. “Um, Eve? You aren’t wearing makeup?”
That got a wink.
“Minor shape changing. I promise, it’s only the face. It wasn’t easy. Thankfully the eyes already do this, so it was mainly the skin, hair and teeth. I should have done the rest of the package, but didn’t have time. I had to work earlier.”
There was a strange look, and a slow nod.
Then Eve yelled at everyone.
“Stand back. Avery Rome, Dragon, is going to transform for us. On camera. This is one of the first times this has ever happened. Get a good spot, since you may not get to see this again in person. Anyone wanting kinky Dragon sex line up over here…”
She didn’t take that back or make it a joke, even though it was.
Trying to have sex with a giant Dragon was asking for death if you weren’t one yourself. It wouldn’t even be fun to try, which people would get soon.
The shift felt pleasant. Like foam expanding, forming and reshaping. She pushed, making it take place faster than ever before. Growing, stretching and reforming so fast that she wasn’t certain why it had always been so slow for her. Not that she could tell how long it took. It felt quick, which meant very little in her world.
People applauded, as she raised her head, looking down on the top of the palace there. Nothing was around her, but her horns, large and black, probably glinted in the bright lights being shone on her. Avery wanted to smile, but just laid down, heaving and causing the ground to make thunking noises. She did flap her wings a bit, since it felt nice to stretch them again.
Several people walked right up to her head, one of them, Leslie, waving at her.
“Neat! You said Dragon, but this is… Grand, seeing it now. Can I get you anything?”
That didn’t sound needful. Avery was starving, but unless there was a ton of food hidden there, she would have to change shape first, before taking care of that. Then she’d be starving again on the other side. At first only Eve, Leslie and Alan touched her, but then almost everyone at least came by to pat her paw. Bey and Maggie both did that.
The tiny scarecrow clapped several times. Gleefully.
“This is most wondrous, Miss Rome. Would it be allowed for me to show the pictures of this to the others on the Council?” He waited, as if she might be able to speak.
That wasn’t a thing that could happen in her current form.
So she nodded, with Tyler, who seemed to be a pure sphere of black, blue and a hundred colors that others couldn’t see, calling out.
“We can get that for you. Krista, you wanted this as well, to show your people?”
“Heck yeah! This is incredible. I’m not certain how to work this into the show, but… We can. Somehow.” She sounded sad about it, like it might not work.
So Avery, feeling bold, if not ready, shifted to her second form. That was smaller, but all black, with black Dragon slit eyes. She’d gotten to see that before, once. In the mirror of a destroyed car. Several people with cameras moved in, taking her picture.
Eve waved at her.
“Fly around. Show off. Then… Carefully hug Tyler?”
She took off, moving straight up, beating her wings slowly. Too much so to create lift. The wings were small, being as long as she was tall. That didn’t matter, because it was about magic. It always had been.
She didn’t understand it at first, but the new, magical memories came, explaining it.
Magic didn’t work on her, but it could inside of her. What was happening, probably, at the moment was that inside her skin, gravity was being blocked. That made her very light, so she could fly. Probably not well in high winds however. She’d honestly never tried. As fun as it was, her fear of being a Dragon had kept her to the ground all but a small handful of times.
Then she landed, and naked or not in her scaly Dracoid form, held Tyler Gartner for a few pictures, then did anyone else who wanted to try it. She was very careful, making two fists so that she didn’t tear them apart with her razor sharp claws, but other than that it was just friendly. All the kids from school posed with her. As a group even.
It felt very much like she was one of them, for a few moments.
After half an hour, she became Avery again.
That got Eve to seem pretty happy.
“Darned straight. Three changes in under an hour. Hard freaking core.”
Dressing again, she nodded.
After all, her friend was right. It was hard core.
Chapter seven
Avery was back in her pink and white outfit, her dark lady parts showing through it clearly under the lights inside the house. Those were standing up, perkily, which she didn’t really see as a problem. She didn’t react to heat or cold much, but that kind of thing took place randomly. Why, she didn’t know. At the moment however, her nipples standing up had Kaitlyn touching them. Rubbing in a way that was at least as forward as what Donald Holmstrum had been doing earlier.
She looked around for a drink of water first, but recalled that Kait, while her friend, or at least fellow line walker, was also an Alede and at a party. They did that kind of thing differently than Living Proof did, it seemed. There was no pile of writhing bodies for instance.
So instead of a cool glass of water for her coworker’s face, Avery took her hand gently, pulling it away from her right breast.
“Stop that?” She smiled about it, since it wasn’t a big deal to her. Which was the difficulty, in the end. Her body was, apparently, sending the righ
t signals to Kaitlyn, but her mind wasn’t really playing along correctly. At least half the memories in her new matrix of such things figured that she should be doing something given the case at hand. Most of the Greater Demon ones figured that enslaving the bitch would be adequate.
Thankfully, the Tarsus memories signaled something different for her, so she decided to go with that, distracting her.
Kait smiled, which was meant to be embarrassed, but came out as being darling and a bit sexual. Her nature was, in the end, what it was.
“Sorry. You just look so yummy. Not that it’s a good excuse to be pawing people.”
Holding her hand still, Avery walked over to a rather lonely seeming Don Holmstrum, who was a bit drunk, but not so much that he didn’t light up when he saw Avery coming. Even if he was ignoring the much better looking Alede behind her. Kait was wearing more clothing, having tight trousers on, with a shirt that showed some cleavage, but wasn’t see-through at all.
“Donald? This is Kaitlyn. She’s an Alede. You know, the ones that love sex? I’m almost certain that if you tell her she’s pretty she’ll do those things you were asking about from me earlier?” That was in the memories. As a rule, you had to be a giant, evil, horribly gross thing before one of that kind would say no to you. To anyone.
Kait smiled, lighting up then.
“That’s right! Kait Swanson, so nice to meet you, Donald. We should go and discuss that?”
The producer smiled back, too drunk to get that most people saying that would probably be intending to beat him for what he’d been going around doing for the whole party. It did help that Kait undid the fourth button on her shirt, proving that she didn’t need a bra to make her breasts float like they were.
Avery didn’t either, but hers were much smaller that way. Which was, over all, a good thing. Her life was more physically oriented than Kaitlyn’s, and large breasts wouldn’t help her that much.
