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The Fated Five Chapter 4 (The Water Dragon's Breath) Written by Trickster_D and Leo_Todrius Commissioned by Wolfboyx9

The moment had been like a precious piece of crystal, frozen in an instant before it came shattering apart. There was almost an eerie silence hanging in the air of the quad. There were no birds in the trees, no shouts from the frat boys running across the field in the distance. In that moment it was Song and the mysterious stranger, exposed in the cold air. It seemed almost inevitable. So much had changed in such a short time, it would have been impossible to keep it a secret forever... but now the secret was out there, revealed.

The mysterious figure grabbed the hat and the scarf, and in the moment before he pulled them away to reveal his identity, Song felt a long shiver of impotent despair running down his back and through his long tail, his mind imagining scenarios that were progressively worse and worse...

The reveal, however, was quite underwhelming: the mysterious stranger was actually a boy his age, probably a year older. The cold light of the winter sun shone over his carefully shaved head and his skin the color of milk chocolate. He wasn't exactly beautiful in a conventional sense, but there was a definite charm in his features that betrayed a rich and variegated genealogy; his most striking feature were definitely his eyes, of a very pale shade of blue that contrasted with the dark tone of his skin. The pair of irises was almost mystical and for some weird reason made Song feel uncomfortable: it was as if the mysterious guy could see right through him, as if he could read directly into his mind and know every secret... something that apparently wasn't that far away from the truth.

"I'm Jay, by the way," the tone of the stranger was amiable enough, but the smile on his face was enigmatic and could basically mean everything.

"I'm..." Song shrugged.

"Song Wei," Jay interrupted him. "I know. I've done my research." The mysterious young man crossed his arms on his chest; even though he was wearing unflattering clothes, he seemed to have a very fit body. "So? How much do you want to use your magic on me?"

The monkey king scratched the side of his head. "I'm not sure I know what you mean."

"Oh, please, I'm not dumb," Jay replied with a frown. "I'm not a hundred percent sure, of course, but I'm still convinced you were the one who created that satyr and that demon. Well, I want to change too. As I said, name your price."

Song's tail wrapped around one of his legs. He felt quite uncomfortable under the implacable stare of the mysterious guy. "I'm... not doing it for money," he said, his voice trembling a bit.

"For what, then?" Jay took a step forward. "Sex?" Another step forward, then a third. "My ex-boyfriend always told me I was the best cocksucker in the world..." He whispered in one of Song's ears. The monkey boy yelped and jumped back a bit as Jay grinned at him. "Oh, come on, I'm just kidding! Aren't you supposed to be a trickster or something?"

"Song." The voice was deep, resolute, strong and cut through the icy air like butter. Satoshi was standing at the top of the steps, eyebrow arched, looking at the newcomer. It took him only a moment to start his descent, moving toward his boyfriend. In that moment it was as if the rest of the campus started to come to life again as people moved out from buildings, trudging toward their next destinations. Song's tail started swishing into the air again, and wrapped gently around the Oni's hand as soon as he was close enough.

"This is... this is Jay," he said to the Japanese guy. "He can see us. I mean, he can really see us."

"Satoshi Kato, right?" the mysterious guy said in a smooth tone. "Nice to meet you face to face."

"Are you some sort of seer? An augur?" Satoshi questioned, looking Jay over curiously. It was as direct and to the point as ever. Jay cocked his head towards his shoulder.

"I'm in the swim team," he replied with a cheeky little grin.

"So... this is the first time you've seen something, well... like us?" Song asked tentatively. Jay nodded.

"Yeah. At first I was freaked out, then intrigued. I mean, you both look, well... incredibly cool. It's only natural to feel drawn towards you," he said in an honest tone.

"Something that we've had to learn the hard way is discretion... Maybe you should come with us while we talk somewhere more privately, and discover if there was anything we failed to do to keep ourselves anonymous." Satoshi said. Jay gave him another undecipherable smile.

"Yeah, I wouldn't mind... talking with you guys," he said. "My room or yours?"

"My room is a bit... crowded at the moment," Song replied. "Satoshi?"

"We could go to the forge, or... maybe we could find somewhere even more private. The forest at the edge of campus?" Satoshi asked uncertainly. Song nodded at that.

"Yeah, it's probably the best place to go." He was sure he would feel much more at ease surrounded by trees and plants... Wood was his element, after all.

Jay shrugged. "Sure, I have no objections."

"Alright. Let's head out then. Jay, why don't you tell us about yourself on the way." Satoshi said, looping his arm in Song's.

****

There was a distinct smell to the forest, especially after a good snow. The boughs and branches of the trees had caught much of the falling white frost, leaving many of the fall leaves to congregate and gather in pathways and dunes around the sloping terrain. It was always a quiet place, but especially so with the added insulation of the fresh powder. It made the entry of the three wary travelers all the more audible as they pressed on, pushing away from campus as much as they dared. Despite the fact that the weather wasn't exactly warm, Song was feeling so much better while surrounded by trees, caressing the hard bark with his hands and with his tail as he walked alongside Satoshi and Jay.

"I've always been able to see, well... more stuff than other people did, as far as I can remember," the mysterious new guy was explaining, his weird eyes darting around as he spoke. "For the most part it was just very minor things. You know, weird reflections in mirrors, the occasional wrong face in the crowd... other times it was more intense, though. I've never been able to enjoy Halloween, for example... I was scared shitless by all the stuff I saw around, and I'm not talking about people in costumes. Even though Walpurgis Night was even worse." The boy gulped down and stopped talking for a couple of seconds, as if he was revisiting pretty traumatic memories. "But, you know, it's not like I've ever tried to approach one of those weird things... until I met you guys, that is."

Song nodded. "I think that makes you a medium of sorts. Some kind of spiritual beacon for supernatural creatures. My grandfather talked me a bit about people who were gifted enough to see beyond the veil of reality, but at the time I simply thought he was talking about old folklore. It was way before I inherited my powers from him."

"So after a lifetime of standing outside, looking in... You came to us, to become like us?" Satoshi asked curiously, wondering if it was some sort of tertiary deviance to help cope with the strange world around him.

Jay shrugged. "It was a shot in the dark. But I saw you before your change, Kato... I mean, I'm sure you were human once. And you pretty much confirmed the same was true for you, Wei... even though I can't say I remember seeing you before you became a monkey boy," he added with a smirk.

"Yeah... I didn't exactly stand out," Song conceded with a nervous laugh.

"So, yeah, I know you have changed somehow. And since I've never found anyone who could explain to me what I saw... well, what I've seen for my entire existence, it was only natural to become curious," Jay briefly explained.

"How would you try to live your life? What aim would you direct your abilities towards?" Satoshi asked, though it was clear he was being a little too strict. Song detected the sternness in his boyfriend's tone and frowned.

"Satoshi, this isn't a job interview. I don't think we should put that much pressure on him right from the start," he said with a vague smile. Satoshi pursed his lips a bit before he nodded in acceptance. "I'm sorry, Jay. Satoshi is very proud, but also very upright, and his fire burns brighter than anyone else... but he's a nice guy." Song grinned and kissed his boyfriend on the cheek. "See? Don't let his Oni face fool you."

"Well, if we aren't going to interview him, what should we do next?" Satoshi asked softly, "How do we go about this knowing what we know?"

"I think it's only fair to do to him what he did to us," Song replied. "We are going to observe you, Jay. There's four... well, five of us, and even though you have a second sight, I have a few tricks up my sleeve if I want to be invisible, believe me. We'll keep a close eye on you, and if we deem you worthy, well... I'll put some magic in you, so to speak."

Jay shrugged. "Sounds fair to me," he said nonchalantly. "And if I'm not worthy?"

"Then we'll do what we need to do." Satoshi said ominously before smiling a little.

"Which of course means we won't do nothing," Song added. "I mean, it's not like someone is going to believe you, right?" He flashed Jay a huge grin as his tail swished behind him. "And just to make sure you'll behave..." The monkey king took a step forward, pulled a surprised Jay closed and placed a soft kiss on his lips. He wanted to be a hundred percent sure that the mysterious boy had a spark within him - which he had, shining the same color of his eyes - but it was also a token of appreciation, so to speak.

"Mmmh, nice..." Jay licked his lips after the kiss, before his eyes locked with Satoshi's. "Aren't you going to kiss me too, Kato?"

"If you prove yourself worthy and honest, you cannot yet imagine the pleasures I will inflict upon you." Satoshi said with the same dangerous grin. Jay grinned back and managed to withstand the Oni's fiery stare.

"You certainly know how to talk to another man," he replied. "Well, I guess our ways will have to part... at least for now. I guess I'll see you around, huh? Or not... It boils down on how good you are at hiding, monkey boy." Jay winked at Song, before turning around and walking away without ever looking back, whistling a random tune as he disappeared among the trees.

"Perplexing." Satoshi considered, leaning his chin on Song's shoulder.

"But interesting," the monkey king added. "I'm quite curious, you know. His spark is... unlike ours. It's more similar to Malik's. I wonder what beautiful creature is hiding inside him."

"Something mischievous, powerful... He wasn't scared of me." Satoshi said, sounding almost disappointed.

"Guess it's because he can see past your scary face," Song joked before turning his head and kissing his boyfriend's cheek again. "I mean, he doesn't seem a bad guy, but... why the secrecy? He basically stalked us. And before you say anything, I know I stalked you, but that was different: I was feeling incredibly powerful back then, as if the entire world was my play garden. But Jay... he's scared by his own powers, isn't he?" Song sighed. "Maybe that's why he was so reluctant. Maybe he's scared of us." Satoshi groaned gently.

"You're probably right, and if we're too scared to help others, then what are we doing with our powers anyhow." Satoshi sighed. Song nodded.

"Yeah. I want to help him, you know. I think..." his eyes embraced the whole forest around him for a moment. "I think I'd like to help everyone, just like my grandpa did. I don't know if it's the monkey spirit talking of if it's genuinely something I desire, but... yeah. I want to be of service. To help the rest of humanity. I mean, right now we pretty much used our powers to have awesome sex, but there's so much more we can do with them!"

"Truer words were never spoken." The voice was calm, reassuring, and most certainly not Satoshi's. Sitting on a branch a short distance away Song caught sight of a monkey tail swinging back and forth slowly and leisurely. The young Wukong's eyes went wide as he turned around.

"G-grandpa...?" he murmured in an incredulous voice. How... how could that be possible?!

"Song, are you okay?" Satoshi asked, eyes going wide. From the tree there was a deep chuckle. Song looked at the oni with the same crazed expression.

"Did you hear him? That voice?" he asked with urgency.

"Which voice? Jay's voice?" Satoshi asked.

"Don't worry Song, our conversation won't take much time." Bohei said, dropping down from the tree upside down, hanging from his feet. His tail suspended a bowl of rice from which he was picking at with chop sticks. Song looked like he was going to start screaming any second now.

"You can't be here!" he said at the sudden apparition. "You are not supposed to be here! This isn't even possible!" An incredibly complicated mixture of emotions stirred in his chest, so many and overlapping so much he wasn't sure at all about how he should've felt about suddenly being face to face with his dead grandfather.

"Is this much different than when we spoke in dreams? Why are you so concerned now that we have an opportunity to talk? Is it your boyfriend? Are you embarrassed by your grandfather?" Bohei chuckled softly, setting the rice bowl down before he dropped out of the tree right side up.

"Don't be an idiot..." Song sniffed. His amber eyes were full of tears now. "T-the dream... that was different. I knew it was a dream. But this... If you can be here, like that... It's just too cruel, grandpa." The tears started streaming down your face. "Because then you'll have to go away I don't want to lose you again. I... I simply can't."

"My dear one... I'll never truly be gone from you." Bohei said softly, moving over, "Not completely... We are connected with this power we share, and everything I taught you, everything we did is right there in your chest and in your skull." Bohei murmured, "Even now you are still growing in your powers. It's why... I can reach out to you now... And why this moment has paused around us." Bohei said. Sure enough, Satoshi was still where he was standing, a few stray flakes of snow suspended around his head, falling from the branches above.

"Well... at least we have this moment," Song tried his best to smile. "C-can I... touch you? Are you tangible?"

"I should be, mostly." Bohei said, reaching out, resting his hand on Song's chest above his heart. Song, however, surprised his grandfather by jumping forward and hugging his larger frame, burying his face in his chest. It was a weird sensation that made his heart pang in sorrow and at the same time left him relaxed and serene. His grandpa's fur was as soft as his own, and even smelled the same.

"I'm so glad I can do this... at least once more," he murmured in a soft voice.

"My Happy Song... Do not dwell on this moment, or worse, the moments not yet to come. I am so proud of how much you've grown in such a short time... and I know that the journey you are about to embark on is a challenge you are capable of accepting." Bohei said, smiling to his grandson.

**** The gentle sound of water, the pungent smell of chlorine making his nose prickle a bit, the rough surface of the bleachers under his hands... even with his beautiful eyes closed, Jay could still see the pool and its surroundings with perfect clarity in his mind. A small, resigned sigh escaped from his lips: usually he always felt better just by the virtue of being there, but today... today was different. Too much unbalance inside him. Keeping it cool in front of Bohei and Kato had been quite taxing, even though he had never broken character: the two beings were powerful, attractive and mesmerizing, unlike anything he had ever seen in his life... and thanks to his unwanted gift, he had seen quite the handful of weird stuff.

"So they are going to test me, huh?" Jay opened his eyes and asked the water in front of him, the same shade of light blue of his irises. "I wonder what exactly do they have in mind... well, at least it should be a fun diversion." Of course the water didn't reply, it never did... but sometimes, if he looked close enough and long enough, Jay could see things in its depths, entities long forgotten whose shadows still survived at the outskirts of reality.

As he watched the water, it took a moment to realize something was off, different. The way the water moved, the way it shifted. It only took one more sniff to realize, the water was warmer than it should have been. The reason why soon became apparent as Satoshi emerged from the locker rooms on the far side of the pool, wearing black and red shorts and nothing else. He looked at the water, remembering a little regretfully what had happened at the rink before he moved around the edge and toward the bleachers.

"Here you are..." Satoshi said with a soft smile. Jay replied with another smile, though his own looked more like a grin. He too was only wearing shorts, blue and silver, that left his tight abs and nicely shaped pectorals for the whole world to admire... or at least for Satoshi, since nobody else was there.

"Are you here to observe me, Kato?" he asked, patting the bleachers right next to it. "Or do you want to spend some time together?"

"As Professor Marpool would say, you can't observe and be part of the experiment... So I just want to spend some time together." Satoshi said, climbing up the bleachers to sit next to Jay, "I want to know you better." he added. Jay gave him another grin and nonchalantly placed his left hand on the Oni's muscled leg.

"Yeah, wouldn't mind knowing you too, Kato," the swimmer joked. "But I wonder what would your boyfriend think..."

"I meant what I said before, but at the same time..." Satoshi leaned back, "This is all very new for us. We don't fully understand it ourselves. But here you are, able to see it all before you've even changed? That has to mean something." Jay slowly nodded at that, as he moved the hand a bit higher, gently caressing Satoshi's abs with his fingers.

"Well, why don't we play a game together, Kato? You want to know about me, and I want to know about you guys... so why don't we take turns asking each other stuff?"

"That seems most fair. Who goes first?" Satoshi asked curiously.

"You can start... but only if you kiss me first. Otherwise I'll start." Jay's grin widened. "How about that?"

"What is your first question?" Satoshi smiled. Jay raised his eyes at the ceiling.

"Heh, I knew it." His gaze focused as he pondered on what to ask. "How was it? The change. What did you feel?"

"I felt... heat - beyond anything I'd ever felt before. My heart was pumping so hard I could feel it in my brain. My muscles felt stiff, but not in a bad way, just like that there was a power behind them... And there was this wellspring of confidence that pushed up from nowhere. I'm not sure it's the same for everyone though." Satoshi replied contemplatively.

"Mmmh..." Jay sounded a bit disappointed. "Well, I guess it's your turn, now."

"What was the first time you saw something otherworldly?" Satoshi questioned.

"The first time I can remember? Mmh, let's see..." Jay scratched his head with his free hand, as the other kept caressing Satoshi's chest and abs. "I was... three or four, I think? We lived in a very old house at the time, and there was a huge walk-in closet in my room... and I could see the shadow of a man with a twitching head floating against one of the walls of the closet. It never tried to hurt me, hell, it never even acknowledged my presence, but it still scared the living crap out of me, so much so that in the end my father had to board the closet door shut. Years later, I discovered one of the previous owners had hanged himself in that very closet, seventy or so years ago... and the spiritual energy left by his death still lingered around like some putrid stench only I could smell." Jay gave Satoshi another big smirk. "So yeah, as you can imagine I don't exactly consider myself blessed."

"That's... terrible. I can't imagine having to carry that burden." Satoshi said softly. He hadn't exactly fought off Jay's fondling of his chest until that point, but he reached out and put a hand on the other man's shoulder in solidarity. Jay looked down at the hand and stopped the not-exactly unwanted caressing for a bit.

"Um... thanks, Kato." The swimmer sighed. "I've never told stuff like this to anyone, at least not face to face... so it's nice to have someone who doesn't think I'm completely insane just because I tell them I can see ghosts and strange creatures. Though I guess that's because you are one of those creatures yourself." Jay started tugging at Satoshi's nipple piercing playfully. "Okay, my next question is... how do you feel right now? I don't mean with me, mind you, more like... now that you have changed, are you a different person from who you were before? Or are you still you?"

"I'm me that isn't as afraid of myself, but is more afraid of the world." Satoshi said, "I know I can do so much more, and I can be who I want to be, and be with those that I want to be with... but I don't know what's out there." Satoshi said sadly.

"You certainly are a man of few words, huh?" Jay teased him. "And I guess you are being very cryptic on purpose."

"I guess it's more of a defense mechanism. I was very quiet at home, and so I was very economical with my words. When I first got to college, people didn't really get what I was talking about so I didn't talk much either. I think I've spoken more since meeting Song than I did in the last three years combined." Satoshi cracked a grin. Jay smiled back, and this time the expression felt pretty genuine.

"Well, it's time for your question now," he told the Oni. As he said that he pulled him a bit closed and rested his head on Satoshi's shoulder, basking in the warmth that emanated from his dark skin. Satoshi looked at Jay and then took a breath, pulling him in tighter as if to cuddle with him.

"What was the best thing you saw? What made you want to pursue this rather than hide from it?" Satoshi whispered. Jay gulped at that, and it took him a while to reply.

"You," he finally said. "You guys, without a doubt. Seriously, when I saw Wei the first time it was like... witnessing to the birth of a star, or seeing a rainbow appearing in the sky. I couldn't even describe how awestruck I felt. Usually I just see confused shadows or downright creepy or horrible stuff, but him... and you... wow. It took me a while to gather enough courage to approach you, but I couldn't waste the chance I had at hand, I just couldn't."

"After a lifetime of scary shadows, you saw some people embracing it." Satoshi considered before nodding, "I think I like you Jay." Satoshi said, "You didn't hold back even after everything that came before." The other young man let out a contented sigh as he brushed his head against Satoshi's neck.

"I'm so glad I found you, Kato. You are so beautiful... and just by staying here with you I feel more at peace than ever in my life," he murmured. "I can't even begin to explain how I'm feeling, honestly." A long moment of silence. "Oh, right, it's time for my question, mh? Well... Can I be your friend, Kato? Even if I don't pass that test Wei told me about... can I still hang out with you guys?"

"Well, that was my next question. Wanna come back to our place and meet the guys officially?" Satoshi asked, "I think we could be friends." Satoshi said with reassurance. His aura itself felt protecting, just by being in it. Jay nodded, and his eyes felt a bit watery.

"Of course," he replied. "But first you need to ask me a question. You know, just to be fair, since I anticipated you."

"Okay." Satoshi said, considering for a long moment, "What do you want most out of life?" Jay's expression turned sour as he let out a short, broken chuckle.

"Oh, that's easy. I want my father to be proud of who I am... but I'm afraid that is never going to happen," he replied, a hard lump stuck in his throat.

"What's the biggest obstacle to that? Is he one of those impossible to please people?" Satoshi asked gently, knowing it was a touchy subject.

"He... man, this may sound horribly cliched, but... he never accepted the fact that I am gay. Since I came out to my family, he has become cold and distant... it was never the same as before."

"Do you have any siblings, or are you the only child?" Satoshi asked, trying to dig into the psychology. Jay shrugged.

"I see where you are going with that. Yeah, I am an only child. I was his proud and joy until... well, until that."

"I know it wouldn't be an easy road, but there are ways around that... Ways to convince most fathers. At the same time, I hope you know that his opinion doesn't restrict who you are as a person." Satoshi said softly. Jay nodded, turning his head around and gently kissing Satoshi's cheek.

"I know, Kato... thanks." The agile swimmer jumped back on his feet. "Well, how about we go to Wei's room? I'm kinda curious to meet the other guys..."

"Probably a good idea. I don't want to boil off all the water in the pool just because I'm anxious." Satoshi said, standing up before pulling Jay to his feet.

****

The moment the door of Song's room opened, the monkey king wasn't particularly surprised in seeing that Satoshi had come back with Jay. In a way, he was expecting that. Sure, the mysterious swimmer was a bit unsettling and disconcerting, and didn't really fit in the still new and nebulous view on the world he had developed after inheriting his powers, but there was something charming in him, like sunlight being reflected by a glacier and creating iridescent light all around him.

"Hey!" he exclaimed, waving his hand in a friendly gesture. "Welcome."

"U-um..." Jay looked decidedly more timid and sheepish than before, his mesmerizing eyes darting around, probably trying to find any magical disturbance around. It seemed the small dorm room was jam packed with them in the form of Wade and Sven. Satoshi was a bit relieved that Malik was not immediately present, making it a bit less overwhelming. Wade was wearing a pair of shorts, but to any supernatural eye he was very clearly a satyr with wooly legs and cloven hooves. Sven's large size was even more intimidating with his fine winter coat of fur. The scent of the men in the room was almost overwhelming.

"Jay, this is Sven and Wade, the rest of our group." Satoshi introduced officially.

"Nice to meet you." Wade said, more out of habit than anything else.

"Malik went back to his hotel room, by the way," Song explained to Satoshi. "He said to be quiet and not to do anything he wouldn't do," he added with a tiny grin. "Malik is our... mentor of sorts, I think?" Song then explained for Jay's benefit. "He was one of my grandpa's companions when he was the Wukong. Basically he's the Satoshi of the previous generation." He winked playfully in his boyfriend's direction in saying that. Satoshi rolled his eyes.

"Just because we're both fire types..." Satoshi smirked.

"So you have the spark too, huh Jay?" Wade asked, hopping off the bed and moving over, looking at the newcomer.

"I think he does, yes," Sven added, raising to his paws. He looked even bigger and more towering now, but his lupine features showed nothing but gentle tranquillity.

"Come on, Jay, come inside," Song said, tilting his head towards his room. "It's a bit cramped, but..."

The swimmer took a couple steps into the dorm room, looking at the satyr and the Fenrir with wide eyes. "Wow, you look... incredible." He seemed particularly impressed by Sven, probably since it was the very first time he had seen him after his change. "Can I touch you?"

The Scandinavian giant looked a bit surprised, but nodded in return. "Sure," he said with a toothy smile.

"I love touching him, he's so fuzzy and warm and cuddly." Wade murmured, "But now I can control myself and appreciate the boundaries of true friends." he amended.

Sven, as Jay stroked the fur of his big meaty arm, raised his bronze eyes towards Song and Satoshi. "He can see us. How?" he asked.

The monkey king shrugged as he closed the door behind his back with his prehensile tail. "He's born this way, apparently. I'm sure he'll explain his power in due time. Right now, he's just here because, well... he wants to be our friend."

"Well, if Satoshi didn't kill him, I guess he can't be bad, right?" Wade grinned wide. Satoshi grunted at that and moved over to start making hot cocoa for them all in paper cups with the hot water pot.

"The only one Satoshi tried to kill was me," Song joked, his tail swaying behind his back. "And look what happened!" The monkey boy sat on the carpet in front of his bed, his legs bent in the lotus position, before patting his hand on the floor next to him. "Come on, guys, sit down here. The bed is not big enough for all of us anyway." Sven immediately sat down, and Song leaned his head to rest on his soft, warm fur. Satoshi set cups down around the circle, made sure the door was locked and sat himself down, leaving room for Jay.

"So, read any good books lately?" Satoshi asked. Wade's jaw dropped.

"That's how you try to stimulate a conversation?" Wade asked.

"He wants to be our friend, don't we find common ground?" Satoshi questioned.

Jay sat down slowly, keeping some distance between him and the group. "Um, let's see..." A vague smile appeared on his lips. "Well, I did read the Journey to the West, after seeing our resident Wukong for the first time. The campus library actually has a copy of that." Jay took a long sip of hot cocoa and gave a nod at Satoshi. "I'm sure all you guys are familiar with it... I mean, you are all pretty much living it."

"What is that?" Wade asked, looking at Jay and then Song. The swimmer's aqua eyes got wider in surprise.

"You never explained it to him?" he said, staring at Song and Satoshi. "Well, the Journey to the West is a classical Chinese novel about the adventures of Sun Wukong, a monkey trickster, and his travelling companions: Xuanzang the holy monk, Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing, two demons, and Yulong, the son of the sea dragon. Since your powers are hereditary, Song, maybe the Wukong from Journey to the West was one of your ancestors?"

Song shrugged. "Maybe? I should ask my grandpa's spirit next time I see him, I'm sure he knows the answer," he added with a weird chuckle.

"Well, Wade and I both have horns... Does that make us the two demons?" Satoshi asked, looking at his fuzzy compatriot.

Jay nodded. "Sha Wujing is very calm, collected and focused, and Zhu Bajie... well, he likes sex. A lot. No offense, Wade," he grinned at the satyr.

"Wait, that's like a real thing? It's in there? You aren't just making it up?" Wade asked suspiciously.

"So Sven, you are our holy monk? Our Friar Tuck?" Satoshi grinned.

"I guess so," the wolfman conceded with a serene smile. "Seems like the most fitting analogy, at least." Satoshi leaned back and looked at the circle for a very long moment.

"Then one thing is clear... Our swimmer here is likely a dragon... And if he is, this is more than heredity. Supernatural history is repeating itself, and there is some sort of journey before us." Satoshi mused.

"W-wait." Jay looked at the Oni, dumbfounded. "Me? The dragon?"

Song scratched the side of his head, right above his large ear.

"Well, yes? I honestly thought that's exactly where you were going in the first place." One of his hands caressed Jay's arm, enticingly. "I think we are all together for a reason... but if you still aren't sure, I can put some magic into you and see what happens to your body."

"It's really nice, I mean, it feels fantastic." Wade grinned.

"I thought you were better centered..." Satoshi crossed his arms. Wade grinned.

"Even before I became this, I loved sex... Now I'm just back in control of my own urges." Wade stated. Sven put one of his huge arms around the satyr's shoulder and pulled him closer, gently.

"Do not worry, Satoshi, yes?" he said. "I can keep this boy in check if it's necessary." Sven lowered his muzzle and placed a gentle kiss on Wade's lips. "And apparently he loves cuddles."

Song smiled at Jay. "There's no pressure, Jay. You wanted this, right? That's why you approached us."

"W-well... that's when I thought I had no chance of actually getting to know all of you. But now... It's a bit scary, I have to admit," the swimmer admitted, lowering his head in something akin to shame.

"It's wiser to walk with caution than to leap headlong in, at least most of the time. There's nothing wrong about being curious. After living your life able to see the things you've seen... Outside, looking in, I know this is pretty huge." Satoshi said comfortingly. Jay sighed at that.

"It's just that... you are all so beautiful, all of you. But what if I turn out like... well, like all those other things I've seen?"

"What else did you see?" Wade asked, looking a bit more startled. Jay gulped, his hand reaching Sven's fur for comfort. The wolfman gently pulled him closer, making him rest against his chest.

"Some horrible stuff. Ghosts, spirits, apparitions... most of them psychic shadows left by those who were no longer in this world."

"And do you see them now?" Sven asked, in a simple voice. Jay looked at him, a sudden realization in his eyes.

"Um... no, I... I don't. You are right, I don't."

"When did it stop?" Satoshi asked, "When you started focusing on us, or... did you learn some sort of control?" he asked as gently as he could. Jay nodded.

"It's just like I told you at the swimming pool, I felt drawn towards you guys... and I guess that dispelled all those horrible shadows," he explained.

"I think the problem this group had at the start was that we weren't... mindful of what we were doing, but as we trained ourselves and focused on our goals, everything fell into place." Satoshi said with a soft smile.

"In other words, we needed to achieve balance, basically," Song added. "Just like the five Chinese elements... I'm wood, you are fire, Wade is earth, Sven is iron... and Jay, here, is water. Makes perfect sense now!"

"We just don't know what our Journey is... But if it's anything like our awakenings, it'll come to us." Satoshi said.

"And in the meantime, we can have fun getting to know one another." Wade grinned, looking at Jay. Sven nuzzled the boy with his big muzzle, eliciting a small moan of surprise.

"So, what do you say, Jay? We'll take this at whatever speed and direction you feel comfortable with." Satoshi said.

"Oh, I know that one from math class... Velocity. Speed and direction." Wade beamed. Satoshi shook his head at the comment.

"Sounds good," Jay said with a smile. Song moved closer to him and wrapped his nimble limbs around the boy's toned body.

"I think a bonding session is what we need right now, don't you think, guys?" he said with a cute smirk, his tail caressing the back of Jay's neck, eliciting a series of pleasant shivers.

**** The motion sensing lights snapped on at an hour most unexpected, illuminating the dull yellow metal lockers and brown wood benches that lined the bathroom connected to the pool complex. For Jay it was like home away from home, but it had taken a bit of ingenuity to get into the building after hours. The biggest relief was how remote and windowless it was, affording the group absolute privacy in the middle of the night.

"Well, at least there is much more space than your bedroom, yes?" Sven said, looking at the ample space in front of him as he walked into the shower room. "Definitely less comfortable, though."

"I'm afraid we had no other choice," Song replied, jumping on one of the benches, his long toes wrapping around the wood. "If Jay decides to let me change him, something water-related might happen, and I certainly don't want my room to get flooded."

"Our track record is certainly suspect. Thankfully Sven and Wade had more relaxed ones." Satoshi considered, moving to jam something into the hydraulic lever mounted at the top of one of the doors, keeping it from opening.

"Well, we should thank the fact that Sven's personality is so calm and peaceful. Otherwise all those swords could've turned us into shredded cheese," Song joked.

"Wait, swords?" Jay murmured.

"Long story..." the monkey king replied. "So? How do you feel? Want to give it a try?"

Jay shrugged. "Just so that I know... it's a one-way thing, right? I can't go back at being human if I don't like it."

Song grinned. "Don't be silly, Jay. You won't stop being human, you'll just become something else too. What you are, who you are... that will not change. I'm still the boy I was before I got these powers from my grandpa, and Satoshi, Wade and Sven... they are the same they were, even though they are also an Oni, a satyr and a wolfman."

The swimmer brought a hand to his mouth, looking deep into his thoughts. "Okay," he said with a small sigh. "I... hell, I want to do it."

"We're all here for you, to support you." Satoshi said, moving to rub Jay's back. Sven walked behind him and placed a big paw on his head, rubbing the leathery pads against his close-cropped hair.

"We will help you, don't be afraid." Sven said with a comforting tone. As Jay closed his eyes, he could feel their hands moving across his skin. There were so many different kinds; paws, hands, clawed digits, but they were all tender and gentle. The stress and general fatigue had left his muscles sore and tight, but beneath the onslaught of massaging hands he was relaxing by the second. Song took a step forward, positioning himself right in front of the swimmer, and placed a hand over his chest, right over his heart: he could feel the muscle pumping blood through Jay's body, and nestled somewhere close, but much deeper, was his spark, shining silvery and with all the colors of the ocean. With a knowing smile, the Monkey King unleashed a small torrent of magical energy, hitting that light and making it explode like a tiny star.

Satoshi watched it all unfolding, focusing on Jay, feeling his eyes shift as dark black spread across them entirely. What had been mere focus before had become something more. As they all worked in tandem, Satoshi could see deeper. He could see Jay's organs, his circulation, his health, as well as the spark that Song had ignited. It was radiating out from his lungs and heart, moving through his body, reaching out in tiny tendrils towards the coaxing hands that were working his body... and then it happened, the first furtive change. Beneath Sven's leathery paw pads, bumps formed. The pressure climbed, the skin grew tight, and then it pulled back as two ivory horn nubs pushed through the skin. Jay let out a small moan, but didn't open his eyes; his body leaned against Sven's larger frame, his mouth slightly open, his full lips trembling due to his fast breathing.

"You're doing really well, dude. Let it flow through you, let it fill you." Wade whispered, nuzzling Jay's neck in an affectionate way. Satoshi's hands worked lower, feeling the flesh and muscle shifting beneath his touch. Jay's experience swimming was only enhancing it. His hips rounded a bit, his thighs thickened with muscle, his shoulders broadened, and there was a toughness taking to the skin, making it more resilient beneath their touch.

"I wonder what creature is inside you, you know?" Song grinned, caressing the side of Jay's face with his dexterous fingers. "Can't wait until I see it emerge in all its glory." The monkey boy got even closer, his lips touching Jay's mouth in a small, tender kiss. The transforming young man shivered in weird pleasure, trying to form words but finding himself to be unable to: his tongue felt weird, as if it was filling his mouth more than it used to. Instinctively, Jay pushed his tongue into Song's mouth, turning the simple gesture of affection in a full-blown French kiss. The Wukong pressed his body against Jay's, grinding a bit as he felt the swimmer's musculature getting bigger and bigger with every passing second.

Satoshi murmured in appreciation, seeing how well Jay's body was working from the inside out, but something perplexed him. Even his lungs were changing, becoming more complex... But the Oni had to blink, his vision returning to normal. His ability was a muscle he had not flexed yet and it was easily fatigued. He closed his eyes to rest them and leaned in, stroking Jay's chest between the kiss he shared with Wukong, feeling the skin change as a brilliant aquamarine hue spread over his pectorals and nipples, dropping down his abs. The skin glistened with a metallic glint and lustre to it.

As the changes manifested, they began building off one another. Jay felt a stirring in his loins as blood rushed to his member, encouraging it to stretch and grow, though the flesh around the base had grown tender and sensitive. His horn nubs grew out from his forehead, curving back just a little, reminiscent of a young deer. Most profound of all, though, was the way his ass cheeks pushed apart, leaving a gap between them as his tailbone started to stretch and wriggle its way out from his pelvis under its own power. One of Sven's meaty paws went down to passage the end of Jay's back, a big grin on his wolfish muzzle.

"Try to push a bit," he said. "I remember when I sprout my own tail, it feels so weird, yes? But don't worry, I'm here. We are all here."

"O-okay..." Jay replied, breaking the kiss. His tongue lolled out of his mouth for a moment: red no more, it was now blue and oddly elongated, like an upside-down teardrop. His brow furrowed as his shifting face assumed a concentrated expression; once again, he shivered, but this time the trembling of his limbs was much more accentuated. "D-damn, I feel so cold all of a sudden..."

"We'll warm you up, we're good at that." Satoshi reassured him, his hands starting to massage Jay deeper, spreading a tingling warmth into his flesh, trying to keep him comfortable. The cause for the cool was wider spread though, reaching from Jay's core to his outer extremities as his fingernails throbbed and pulsed, pushing outward, sinking deeper into his fingers, becoming tipped with definitive talons. Jay's mouth was slightly open, revealing a set of teeth that were becoming pointier and more triangular in shape with every passing second.

"It's like... I have a river inside of me," he murmured. Blue and aqua green scales enveloped his fingers, traveling slowly but surely upwards towards his hands and arms. The pattern of the change didn't follow a straight line, but traced elegant spirals on his skin. "It feels... good, though." Sven's big canine tongue licked Jay's head playfully.

"It does, yes? Focus on that energy you feel. Focus on the river," the Fenrir suggested. Wade leaned up and nuzzled Jay's neck affectionately, finding the difference in the swimmer's changing skin most appealing.

"Where does the river lead? Where does it flow?" Satoshi asked softly.

"It flows... outwards..." Jay whispered in a dreamy tone. "It's like I'm its spring, in a way..."

Song's fingers snapped. "It's your power!" he exclaimed, his tail wrapped around one of Jay's toned, mutating legs. "You are finally perceiving your own ability, that's awesome!" The monkey king leaned over and kissed Jay one more time, as the patterns of scales enveloped his biceps like mystical tattoos.

"All you have to do now is let it out, let it engulf you and set you free!" Wade whispered, his hand massaging the forming scales with awe and envy. Satoshi watched Jay, feeling a change around them. The humidity in the room was being affected drastically. It seemed they had made the right choice in choosing their location.

"Let it... out? More?" Jay murmured after the kiss was broken. "I..." His eyes shone, setting on a bright aqua tone as his pupils elongated, turning from circles into thin slits. "I..." A large, fat tear appeared in the corner of his right eye. "I... don't..." Another tear, this time next to his left eye. "I'm..."

"We'll protect you, you are safe with us... You no longer have anything to hide from." Wade said, reaching up to wipe away the tear, giving Jay a reassuring smile.

The swimmer's face was now slightly elongated, his nostrils flared. He blinked a couple of times, sniffling under his breath. "I'm... so sorry..." Twin torrents of tears began to stream down his face; Jay was letting the river flow out, in more ways than one. The level of humidity in the room skyrocketed, and the other four otherworldly creatures raised their heads in hearing a weird rumble coming from the ceiling: all the shower heads in the room had started trembling and shaking, as if a violent earthquake was taking place... except they were literally the only thing that seemed affected by whatever was happening.

Wade watched in wonder as the shower heads shook, but even guessing what was coming, he wasn't prepared as they all burst forth. Cascades of water erupted with high intensity all around them, hitting the floor and spreading out in a growing puddle. It was too much water for the drains to take in, but it was something more. The water was circling around Jay's feet, glimmering like electric silk jolting through the fluid as it touched him.

Dancing from water droplet to droplet, the energy arced up Jay's body, cementing the changes. His legs were powerful, coated in dark scales. His toes spread out and thickened, tipped with claws as his heel widened to support his stance. His thighs became more powerful, the inner edge taking on a lighter scale color almost like the sand that hid beneath the surf. The changes climbed up his body like a rising tide and an immense tingling hit as it reached Jay's groin. His large testicles began pulling back, held tighter and more protected against his body, making his shaft look even bigger, but it wasn't just an illusion.

With each heart beat, more blood pushed into his member, making it engorge and grow. It had taken on a bright green sheen, almost metallic in its lustre. His veins had disappeared beneath its tougher surface, but new ridges took their place as two segmented rubbery lines ran down to the thick, plump head. A wave of a strange orgasmic like pleasure ripped through Jay's lower body before a gush of milky like fluid erupted from the slit at the base of his cock, ready to hide his member when not in use... and then came his tail.

The long, muscled, ribbed appendage jutted out of his backside, growing longer and longer, whipping around powerfully. Satoshi nearly stumbled but grabbed onto Jay's shoulder for support, eyes wide with astonishment. Wade continued to grin, watching the scales fill in every gap on his stomach, ribs, and back, spiraling up his torso before his shoulders were coated and they began their work completing his amazing, well sculpted arms.

Jay closed his beautiful eyes as the tears kept dripping. He felt so sad and vulnerable, more sad and vulnerable he had ever been in his life, even more than the time when his father had told him he hadn't raised his only son to be a fag. And yet, at the same time, he felt a weird, calming sense of serenity in his chest, as if he already knew that everything was going to be alright. His eyes still shut, he could feel his face pulling forward, his features distorted but somehow still recognizable; his cheekbones got higher, his jaw and mandible extended, his eye sockets got bigger but narrower. With a long shiver, he felt his ears enlarge and be drastically reshaped, becoming something not unlike a pair of ridged fins.

With one last pang of pressure, his horns finished growing in, emerging all the way from his skull. He stood in the midst of the water storm a new creature, sublime and powerful while vulnerable at the same time. He was a draconic hero, tall and muscled, broad shouldered, nearly bigger than everyone in the group except Sven... and as drastically as the water eruption had started, the shower heads snapped back off, the water from the air fell, leaving an inch and a half of standing water across the locker room.

Jay opened his eyes, still shining in quiet power. First, he looked at himself, staring in amazement at the changes his body had gone through, taking everything in... then he looked at the mess in the locker room, and his stare was lost in the water flooding the place.

"U-um..." he said, scratching the back of one of his hands with the other, his claws sliding over his smooth scales. "S-sorry about this. I didn't want to make, well... this mess." Song gave him a huge grin.

"Ah, don't worry about that! It was much worse when I changed Satoshi, this one is trivial in comparison!" the monkey boy exclaimed.

"The school newspaper still hasn't figured out how someone stole all the ice from the ice rink." Satoshi smirked, "Besides, this'll drain in a bit. We should probably head back to rest up once we teach you about your glamor though." Satoshi commented.

****

There was a tang in the air, the smell of soap and wet towels. The hamper had been filled with them as Wade tried to dry off the fur on his legs, though Satoshi had simply evaporated the excess from his body. They had returned to Song's room and each had a cup of hot tea. Song and Satoshi had taken the only chairs in the room, leaving the more spacious beds to Sven and Jay, though Wade had been torn by who to cuddle with. He had opted to snuggle close to Jay and make him feel more at home.

Every once in awhile they would catch sight of their reflection on one of the laptop screens, showing the image of five young men that were each rather handsome in their own way... Their glamors betrayed nothing of their new supernatural existence.

"Everything okay, Jay?" Song asked after taking another small sip of his tea. "I know it's weird, especially at first. Do you feel cold?"

The dragon gulped down, as one of his clawed hands caressed his other arm, tracing the contours of the colorful swirls of his scales. "Yeah, it's... I mean, of course it's something I've never felt before. It's like being underwater, in a way... like being surrounded by a sphere of water." He shivered a bit, as he pressed against a quite delighted Wade. "I guess it takes some time to get used to, well, all of this."

"I can try to warm you up, but... are you sure you're okay?" Wade asked softly, "I didn't think the change would make you uncomfortable." the satyr murmured, bringing a blanket over to the dragon. Jay smiled at him, showing his set of deadly fangs, and accepted the offer with a nod.

"Yeah, that would be great! And I'm not uncomfortable, more like... not used to what I'm feeling. Maybe it's just because I had some kind of power inside of me all my life, and now it was changed drastically by whatever Song did." The monkey king grinned.

"Seems like a logical explanation. And seriously, if you need to get warmer, I'm sure we'd all be willing to help!"

"I don't think there'd be a problem there." Satoshi nodded, "The question is, where we go from here?"

"I want to call my dad," Jay said, his aquamarine eyes staring at the distance. "I want to make amends. Well, I want him to apologize, first things first. But I also want to try and understand him, and I hope he'll understand who I am in return." The dragon shook his snout. "Um, sorry, you were probably asking about what we should do as a team, right?"

"I guess we should listen to what Malik has to say," Song considered. "I mean, he has been there before, with my grandpa. He can probably help us figuring out what is our purpose."

"Jay, I think you have the right idea... and Song, that probably is a good next step. We should brace ourselves for whatever is coming next. If fate brought us together, it has to be for a reason bigger than just how amazing we will be together." Satoshi smiled.

"I mean, are we sure we have something to do, yes?" Sven asked, his wolfish ears twitching. "That we are together for a reason." Song nodded at that.

"Yes, I think so. Actually, I'm pretty sure about it." The monkey boy got back on his feet. "We should talk with Malik..." He shivered, suddenly feeling a bit unpleasant. "Weird... the fur on my tail is all messed up," he said, petting his long, slender appendage. The door opened up and Malik stepped into the room, his eyes wide and his muscles stiff.

"We have to get ready to go... The campus isn't safe any longer." Malik warned.

****

One of the good things about the university buildings was that even in the midst of night, there was ample lighting. The cement guard wall around the edge of the University Center had embedded lights at ankle height, and the building itself had some higher up at regular intervals. They were usually steady beacons in the darkness, but as a strange sweet wind blew across campus they started to glow brighter and brighter, well beyond their rated capacity.

Alaunus stepped out across the cold cement roof, his gauzy white garb blowing in the breeze he was himself producing. The spirit practically seemed to glow like the moon, refracting stored up sunlight from the day... at least to those with the eyes capable of seeing the supernatural. He came to the corner of the building and held out his hands, his eyes shut for a long moment before he opened them.

In the antlered spirit's vision he saw a growing web of energy, lines of confluence and magic darting between buildings and spreading out into the natural world. He felt where it had left its strongest imprints, from the arboretum dome to the hockey rink to the pool and more. It was concentrating here, but it had not yet reached its zenith. Alaunus serene face twisted up a bit.

"You haven't found it yet, have you... Your journey is not yet complete Wukong. It'll be a dangerous game, keeping ahead of the sun, but you will lead me right to it - and my rightful destiny." Alaunus whispered before he disappeared in a flash, the lights on the roof of the University Center sparking and burning out, plunging the building into darkness.