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*Title: An altered state of being... Author: Rocko Wallaby *

_The following story has been written in the Queen's own English, with a liberal splash of Australian colloquialism thrown in for good measure. _

While some of the characters resemble those used elsewhere in my stories, the backgrounds and history may be quite different. As such, consider their use independent to elsewhere. Another life, another world, perchance...

Of course, as always, all characters are of my own creation. I reserve the right to slap soundly anyone using them elsewhere without my permission, although I apologise in advance if I sound slightly excited at the thought of doing so...

Special thanks to Arune for all his assistance in Beta reading and proofing the story, and making sure the path stayed straight and narrow. It's a much better story thanks to his input.

Kevin woke from sleep to the sound of his alarm clock blaring from the cluttered side table beside his bed. Pressing his face into the pillow, he pulled the sides up over his ears to blanket out the sound, his head pounding from the onslaught. When the noise failed to diminish, he threw out an arm vaguely in the direction of the noise, sending magazines flying to the floor, until his groping fingers found the clock and fumbled with the snooze button.

Exactly eight minutes later, it went off again. Raising a red, bleary eye towards it, he gave it another clout to shut it up, before dropping his face back into the pillow with a sigh. Shit, he thought, bringing up a hand to rub his forehead. With a groan, he flipped onto his back before sitting up, muscles aching as he sat on the edge of the bed staring vacantly at the dull off-white walls of his bedroom as his thoughts tried to assemble.

Fat chance of that happening this early, he pondered, giving his eyes a rub and attempting to stand. With the ground obligingly staying steady beneath him, he stumbled to the bathroom, leaving the door open in his haste to relieve himself. So intent was he, that when the head of his housemate made an appearance around the doorframe with a cheery "Good morning", he barely had the energy to lift a steadying hand from the wall to flip him the bird.

"Fuggoff!" he muttered, "There's nothing fucking good about it!"

Drake moved into the opening, regarding his roommate with a wry grin. Leaning his wiry body against the door frame he chuckled at his housemate's discomfort, absently brushing long brown hair from his chiselled features. "Hey, just because you got totally tanked last night, doesn't mean the rest of us did. I did warn you that you'd be seriously hung over, but do you ever listen to me? Never!"

Lifting a second finger to join the first, Kevin waved his hand absently in his friend's direction before finishing up, pulling up his shorts and flushing the toilet. Turning to leave, he took one look at Drake's smirk before scowling at him darkly, pushing past him to stumble to the kitchenette and drop into a chair at the breakfast table.

"Let me remind you who it was who said "Oh, let's get pissed tonight now our exams are over!" he said snidely, as Drake chuckled, pouring himself a coffee and passing a second to Kevin. Not in the mood to be overly generous, he didn't bother to thank him, instead breathing in the heavy aroma of the Arabica beans within and trying to contain the pounding in his aching head.

Thank the Gods for simple pleasures, he sighed, taking a long pull of the scalding drink and wincing as the slightly bitter brew stung his sore throat.

Drake dropped into a seat opposite, a broad smile on his face as he reached out to ruffle Kevin's hair; a move resulting in him pulling back with a laugh at the mock punch thrown his way.

"Think of the positives, Mr. Grumpy", said Drake, "We've got the whole summer off before we need to hit the books again. Until then, it's party time!"

Kevin winced. "Yeah, once the party in my head stops and this headache settles; wonderful! Until then... would you kindly shut the fuck up and let me die in peace?"

Clapping his roommate on the arm as he got up to leave, Drake said "Yeah, well, don't forget we're meeting David and Kay tonight for that "special thing" they've planned for us. You need to be ready by six."

"Yeah, yeah" muttered Kevin, idly pondering whether his abused system could handle breakfast without decorating the bathroom with it afterwards. "Surprise evening, followed by more drinking, and a slow death by terminally ill liver. Sounds like a bucket of laughs."

"A bucket of something, but perhaps not laughs." said Drake, chuckling as he left the apartment. With a last wave he grabbed his keys, strolling down the hallway and slipping through the front door, the sound of it shutting loud in Kevin's ears.

Massaging his aching temples, he dropped his head to the counter with a clunk, groaning at his self-inflicted misery. Why couldn't he have inherited a roommate who had the decency to throw up every once in a while, he thought, before stumbling to the shower for a long, long soak.

The afternoon sun slanting through the windows shone in his eyes, waking him from the nap he'd taken on the lounge room couch. The television had turned itself off some time earlier, but Kevin had failed to notice. Groaning melodramatically, he contemplated another nap, but his eyes flew wide after fixating on the wall clock. 5pm! While the last thing he wanted to do was get up, he barely had enough time to get ready for the evening.

Struggling from the soft cushions, his arm slipped off the edge, sending him crashing into a heap on the cold timber floor. Wincing as he nursed new bruises, he untangled his legs and stumbled to the bathroom for a quick wash, running his face under the cold water in the sink. Staring up at his reflection in the mirror, bloodshot eyes with dark rings beneath met his brooding gaze. Jesus, I look like shit, he thought to himself wryly, scrubbing at his face with a clean towel. A quick, tentative tug at his hair with the brush, followed by some deodorant and after shave, improved the worst of his unkempt condition. Toothbrush stuck in his mouth, he scrubbed at his teeth while pulling on jeans and a clean T-shirt. While the evening wasn't supposed to be an overly formal affair, Kevin was never one for "dressing for the occasion", so he kept his wardrobe simple; blue jeans, black T-shirt, and some ratty black leather shoes he'd picked up from a market somewhere, which were comfortable, if ugly. He decided against spending the time putting his contact lenses in. While it didn't take that long to do, undoubtedly they'd end up in a pub somewhere by the end of the night, and the cigarette smoke played havoc with his eyes. Besides, he liked his retro specs; the thick black frame gave him that "Clark Kent" look, which his inner geek always chuckled at.

Within ten minutes, he was as ready as he ever would be. No Adonis, but better than most, he smirked to himself.

Refraining from admiring himself further in the mirror, he stuffed his wallet into the back pocket of his jeans after first checking he had some cash in it. Shit, he thought, fifty bucks won't go that far. Perhaps Drake would cover him till payday next week. Hell, he usually did.

Making his way downstairs, he sat on the couch in the lounge room, the old, dated leather recliner creaking as he laid back. Head resting against the neck pillow, he turned his head to the wall, checking the time. Drake was late, he thought, an unusual event in itself for Mr Punctuality. Kevin reached forward for the remote lying on the coffee table, ready to fill in some time watching the early news, when he paused as a key scraped in the front door lock, the noise echoing loudly down the corridor nearby.

Not sure why he didn't call out, Kevin listened in as Drake entered the apartment, the unusual note of angst in his voice quite out of character for the usually chipper student.

"...no! Things are perfectly fine, dad! I don't want to come home early, for the break or otherwise. I'm happy, honest! I have plans here, you know!"

Kevin froze, guilty at overhearing the conversation. Drake was open on many levels, sometimes to the point of pure embarrassment. Much of what even his friends considered taboo, Drake found fascinating to discuss. Particularly in regards to personal issues which found him in strife with strangers, who considered his occasional lack of tact uncomfortable. Over the years they'd been friends, Kevin had come to grips with the sometimes odd mannerisms of his roommate But if there was one subject Drake rarely discussed, it was his pre-university life, specifically in regards to his family. Overhearing what was clearly a private conversation with his father, regardless of the public nature of the location, was even more unusual; more so given that Drake was obviously unaware of his audience.

Kevin had always assumed Drake had overbearing parent issues; the lack of detail he'd given about his family history seemed a good indicator of someone who'd had an unpleasant childhood. But listening in, Kevin found himself reassessing that opinion. It wasn't that Drake's father was angry with him; more... concerned?

"DAD! Honest, I know what I'm doing! I keep a low profile, and no one suspects anything, alright? Jees, give me a break! I'm not a youngling anymore! Yeah, alright. I'll call you later in the week. Fine!"

The click as Drake flipped his phone shut ended the conversation, but opened up a whole host of new questions for Kevin.

What was Drake hiding?

And what the hell was a "youngling"?

_______________________

As the street lights highlighted his face, David gave Kay a searching look as they drove towards their friend's house, weaving their way through the peak hour traffic and leaving the university grounds through the campus common. When Kay gave him an annoyed glance back, David scowled, returning his gaze out the window and admiring the more curvaceous female students exercising in the park. Finally, sick of the stare of doom he was receiving, Kay pulled off the road into a vacant car park, turning to his friend with a bemused look and asked "What?"

David returned to glaring at him, gritting his teeth as he replied. "What do you mean what? End of semester, start of the summer break, and this lame-arse idea for a night out is the best you could come up with?"

Kay raised an eyebrow, before scowling "Hey! This guy is awesome! He's been on TV and everything! I thought he'd be great!"

Groaning, David gave himself a face palm, shaking his head in disgust. "Kay, this is not awesome. This is lame. Seriously lame. If it was any lamer, this idea would be hobbling down the street on fucking crutches, groaning in agony. What the hell were you thinking; a hypnotist? Seriously? With a nearby red light district full of strip clubs and pubs, you booked our end of semester fling at a fucking hypnotist?"

Looking hurt, Kay defended himself "Yeah, well perhaps all the strip clubs and hookers are getting boring! How much naked flesh can you ogle before it becomes tiring?"

David shook his head. "Is that a trick question, doofus? Just because you're off the naked chick flesh, doesn't mean we all are!"

Kay grumped, before slamming on the indicator and pulling back into the traffic with a squeal of tires. "Whatever, dude! It's booked, so stop your bitchin'! You lot always whine when we spend too much money going out on the piss, and they were practically giving these tickets away. You wanted a cheap night, and you got it! If the night sucks then you can whine all you like later, as I'm sure you will. Me, I can't wait!"

Rolling his eyes, David returned to the window. At least the view out there might be worth seeing!

______________________

Cramming the four of them into the Kombi was always a task, given the amount of shit Kay usually had loaded in the back. Over the years, he'd been berated by his friends to clean the fucking thing up, but shrugged off their whining. It was his car, and he did what he liked with it! So, it was a little messy? So was the car, and none of the others went out of their way to provide their own transport! Kay had wheels, so Kay provided them. If they didn't like it, they could walk!

Keeping the drapes to the rear compartment of the van firmly closed, to avoid being pulled over for unrestrained passengers in the vehicle, Kay tore through the early evening traffic towards the theatre district, his passengers hanging on for grim death as the vehicle swerved recklessly.

"Jesus, Kay! Slow the fuck down, would you? I'd rather get there in one piece!" said Kevin, reaching through the curtains to grab the rear of the driver's seat with whitened knuckles.

Kay put his foot down even harder, weaving erratically past slower vehicles, some of whom blared their horns at his reckless driving. "We're going to be late! You two were taking your own sweet time getting ready! Shit, Drake, how fucking long does it take to comb your hair? I know you're pretty, but hell!"

Drake's chuckle came from the back. "Not cracking on to me too, are you, Kay? I'm flattered, sure, even curious, but..."

Kay snorted. "Oh, princess, you wish! I like my men manly, not mega metro, thanks."

David and Kevin both laughed, as Drake pouted in mock anger. "I've seen you watching my arse, Kay. Don't say you're not interested!"

"Interested? Sure! When you mince around, your behind looks like two Volkswagen Beetles battling to the death. It's more exciting than "Robot Wars". Damn interesting!"

"Hah!" was the reply, as the Kombi swerved into a vacant park several hundred feet from the theatre. Sliding the side door open, Kevin and Drake stepped out, minding their heads on the low entry above. When their exit was accompanied by an avalanche of take away food wrappers and cups, Kevin winced, bending to toss as much of the crap back into the vehicle as possible.

"Kay, you are a grot!" he said, wiping his hands absently down his pants, mindless of the food stains he left there. Grinning, David locked the door, not that there was much inside to steal. They could only hope the van was broken into by some obsessive compulsive thief, who couldn't help but clean the thing before stealing the cassette deck. Being knee deep in discarded McDonalds wrappers may be fun to Kay, but it sure didn't smell that great to anyone else.

Kay locked his side and joined them, as the group began the short march up the sidewalk to the theatre entrance. As they arrived in front of the faded glazed doors, David looked up at the bulb lit entrance, shrouded in cobwebs and street grime, with some concern. Many of the bulbs had blown, leaving the awning area poorly lit, and the smell wafting from inside wasn't especially pleasant; musty cigarette smoke and stale sweat.

Drake, however, looked at the doorway with interest. Ever the optimist, he began marching through, followed by the less enthusiastic Kevin and David. Kay, bringing up the rear, whistled under his breath as he brought up the rear.

___________________

The Great Marvolo leaned back in his dressing room chair and sighed. Another pointless performance to do, he thought glumly, returning his gaze to the poorly reflected image in the mirror before him. Pale skin drawn over thin cheeks gave his gaunt image a slightly starved look; not that far from the truth really, he snorted dryly. At least you can barely see the patches sewn in the threadbare suit hanging limply from his bones. Shit, the suit was probably older than he was; a throwback left to him by his father, who would probably have been better being buried in it and saving the poor public having to view it further. Glancing keenly at the cuff, he groaned after spying yet another moth hole in the fabric. If the thing had been repaired any further, there'd be little left of the original fabric!

Grabbing his powder brush, he applied a little rouge to his cheekbones, the pale flesh taking on an almost healthy hue. Some eyeliner and mascara to his brows finished his preparations; Marvolo the Grim Reaper, he thought tiredly, tilting his head to stare at the cracked, water stained ceiling, where eons of smoke had stained the off white plaster a tepid sepia; matching both his mood and the state of his life in general.

His father had been a Magician of some renown, at least early on in his career. Callisto the Great was a B list celebrity of the time. Callisto had been born in Italy to a high class family, who had reacted in horror at his choice to pursue the theatrical arts rather than follow the family tradition in the financial sector. While the shock waves from his emancipation from both his family ties and their associated fortune had hit him hard, Callisto had snubbed his nose at the collective lot, immigrating to the United States and escaping their grasp. Under the tutelage of several master illusionists of note, he'd soon thrust his way into the glitter spotlight of the roaring sixties, amassing a small fortune and a reputation as one of the greats in the industry.

But with fame came his vices; gambling and drinking. Soon enough his fortune dwindled, taking with it the jaded respect of his peers and fans. By the time he hit his mid 40's, Callisto the Great had lost basically everything, scraping through during his brief sojourns to sobriety with the meagre pickings gained from even briefer performances.

Even when one of his favourites had fathered him a son, dumping the child on him in disgust before exiting in a cloud of stale perfume and broken dreams, Callisto had stayed on his path to self destruction. With the boy in tow, he continued the rounds of the theatres, as inebriation dragged his career further into the gutter along with his reputation. When fire eventually gutted a theatre in which he to perform, taking the drunk and unconscious magician with it to a better existence, his son could only look on the flames in despair as his life went up in ashes with him.

Why his father had given him the name Alfonso he had never understood. Ridiculed amongst even the other actor brats infesting the backstage areas, he had sworn to rise above the lot of them, secretly taking the name Marvolo and practicing diligently and endlessly to accomplish that which his father had thrown away; glorious fame and fortune.

But with the terrible tragic death of his father he had also inherited a reputation as something of a jinx amongst the superstitious theatre crowd. Few masters would take him on as an apprentice, and even fewer allowed him to stay for any period of time. In the end, what skills he managed to gain were a cobbled together hodgepodge of techniques, none of which were of any note. While his skills kept him from destitution, fame had continued to elude him. At least until that fateful day just before his 40th birthday, when a recruiter from a local reality TV show approached him, requesting he do an audition. Everything finally seemed to be improving in his life, as the show drew higher and higher ratings and his performances increased proportionately. When he was eventually announced as one of only four finalists, he'd finally thought he'd broken through to the big time. But like all his dreams, when he fumbled his finale during the show, sending his assistant crashing to the stage in a half naked tangle of flimsy fabrics, the jeering crowds became too much, and he left the show in disgrace, vowing never to return.

Rigged! He swore, shutting his eyes to block out the cursed ceiling. They had rigged his act to fail, just as his father had rigged his life to a similar fate. Curse the lot of them!

A sudden faint knock at the door drew his attention back to reality.

"Five minutes, Alfonso!" the muffled voice of the call boy penetrated the scarred wood.

Brows drawing together in anger, he shouted back "It's fucking Marvolo, you troglodyte!"

Further muffled words escaped his comprehension, but he knew they were laughing at him, just as they always did. His life was one big joke, and not an especially funny one at that.

But another show meant another hundred bucks. Barely enough to stave off eviction from his dump of a flat, let alone buy him enough food to prevent him from starving, but what else was there? The streets were cold, and the opportunities few for an out-of-work Magician. At least in this town.

Better the devil you knew, than the damnation you didn't.

___________________

Returning from the restroom, Drake climbed over Kevin to reach his seat, standing on his foot and causing a painful yelp of protest from his friend. "Hell's sake, watch your fucking feet, Drake! The place is empty! Just sit anywhere, for Christ's sake!"

Drake dropped into his chair, wincing as the sticky vinyl clung to his pants and shirt, and turned to his friend with a prim look. "We have seat numbers. I sit where I'm supposed to!"

Kevin cursed silently before spinning to accost David, who quickly turned his attention back to his popcorn. Swallowing a few, his grin turned to disgust as he spat the stale mess onto the floor, almost choking at the rank taste. "Shit, this stuff is foul! If it tasted any more rancid, even the rats wouldn't eat it!"

Kevin's mouth pinched shut as he surveyed the theatre around them. It probably would have been considered majestic once; after all that was its name. But the Majestic Theatre had clearly seen better decades, and the dimly lit interior still failed to mask the slow disintegration overwhelming it. The chairs were stained, leather long gone to rot, and their filling had collapsed, leaving him hunched in his seat. Staring around, the room itself wasn't fairing any better, with velvet curtains showing streaks of grime and mould along their lengths and a ceiling of moulded panels that once would have looked spectacular, and would do so now had so many not fallen from their fixtures. Dusty chandeliers spread dim light through the space, which failed to mask the ambience of decay beneath.

In all, it was a sad place from a long forgotten time. Just like this evening, Kevin snorted, leaning back with a sigh before wincing as a spring poked him somewhere tender.

With less than a few dozen people occupying seats, he wasn't about to hold his breath at the quality of the evening's entertainment. Damn Kay to the seventh hell for dragging us here, he cursed silently, kicking furiously at the seat in front. When the arm rest promptly fell off at his abuse he swore again, as his friends laughed at his dilemma.

When he spotted Kay returning from the toilets, a happy grin lighting his features, Kevin swore to get even for the wasted evening. Shoving a bucket of that rank popcorn up his arse might just do it, he thought, crossing his arms and sullenly watching the closed velvet curtains covering the stage.

This had better not turn out to be a complete waste of time!

Kay shuffled past Kevin, dropping between Drake and David while rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

"This place is awesome!" he said, beaming at his friends, who could only look at him askance. "Have you looked at the decor? So roarin' forties!"

"Yeah, awesome!" said David, rolling his eyes at Kevin. "Can't wait to see the show!"

_____________________

Taking his place at centre stage, Marvolo prepared himself for the performance, raising his shoulders and dropping a false smile, over his features. Regardless, the show must go on, he thought to himself, although a small part of him screamed silently its hatred of the jaded cliché.

From the wings, the stagehand shot him a casual thumbs up, ready to begin. He grasped the curtain ropes ready to commence the performance, while the lighting crew swung the main spotlight just in front of him. When the lights dimmed, the curtains began to rise as Marvolo stepped forward into the spotlight, arm raised in a salute to the audience.

His act always started off simply; a few basic "starter tricks" to get things rolling. Rabbit from the hat; pigeon from the trousers; ribbons from the jacket sleeve; all the usual plebe stuff to impress the gullible. Then, things evolved into more complicated and interesting routines, including his late father's piece de resistance; the simultaneous simulacra, which had wowed the audiences of the sixties, and made his early reputation. From the gallery, it looked as if he was both on stage and in the catwalks above simultaneously, conversing and interacting with the doppelganger. In reality, the use of clever audio recordings from a latex masked roadie achieved the feat, but to the uninitiated, it was a spectacular act, even in these modern times of CGI and movie trickery.

With each act, the audience became more enamoured with the performance, gasped breaths and rapt attention reminding Marvolo of better times. It was during these moments that he truly shone as an illusionist; the enthusiasm from the crowds overwhelming his jaded attitude, and bringing a true magic feel to his performance.

David turned to his friends, a broad smile present even on his dour face. While he almost hated to admit it, Kay was right, the guy was terrific! Sure, Copperfield may have the glitz and glamour, and there was no likelihood of a tiger eating anyone's face off to look forward to, but this guy really had something special!

Drake stared rapt at the stage, barely blinking to ensure he missed none of the performance, while Kevin sat with hand over mouth, eyes wide at the spectacle.

Kay bounced in his chair, huge grin on his face and just enjoying everything!

The acts continued to escalate in complexity, from his new twist on sawing his assistant in half, using real circular saws, to catching a bullet from his teeth.

With the audience now his to mould, his performance concluded with his greatest act; the one that had won him such acclaim on the nations television.

The one that had came crashing down around him, taking his dreams with him.

The Mesmer.

Striding to the front of the stage, bright spotlight following his every move, Marvolo shouted to the audience to still their applause for a moment, announcing his next act.

"For this trick, I will need a volunteer from the audience!!" he shouted, scanning the crowd for that one individual that needed to find the spotlight, even for a moment.

They were there, somewhere. They were always there.

Kay jumped to his feet, pointing frantically at Drake while waving his free arm towards the stage to gain the magician's attention, a huge maniacal grin across his brow!

"Pick him!! Go on, pick him!!" he shouted, as Drake grabbed his sleeve frantically in a vain attempt to shut him up.

"Stop it!" he hissed warningly, grabbing at Kay's arm while praying the performer had not spotted his friends antics. Attention is NOT what he wanted!

Marvolo squinted towards the dark shape trying to avoid his attention, a sly smile crossing his thin lips. There was always one sceptic, he mused, nodding to his crew to approach the now livid figure in the audience, who was trying to hide behind the back of the seat in front of him.

"Yes! You! The one making himself scarce! Come up to the front where we can all see you."

When a second spotlight swung to highlight Drake he froze, a look of real dread on his features. Kevin went to interject for his friend, but by that time it was too late; the roadies had grabbed Drake by the arms and were leading him up onto the stage, as Drake gave Kay a furious look, pale features wan in the spotlight now being focused on him.

Kevin gave Kay an almost nervous look, stunned at the livid look on his usually collected friends face. Shit, he was furious! Sure, he didn't like attention, but this was more than that!

Then he recalled the earlier conversation back at the flat, and groaned. I guess this isn't the sort of low profile lifestyle that Drake had in mind.

_________

With the reluctant young man now on centre stage, Marvolo raised an eye at his demeanour, before leaning closer with a smile and whispering "It's alright, son. I'll be gentle". Turning back to the audience, he spotted the young man's friends dimly in the audience, with the one who had called out still perched on the seat back in excitement, hands waving madly at them.

"Shit, there's always one" he thought wryly, before throwing back his cape theatrically, and turning back to the tall, pale kid beside him.

"So, what's your name?"

Drake paused, a rabbit in headlights, before replying "Drake. It's Drake!"

"Well, Drake! For this trick, I need something special from you. Something that transcends the boundaries of science!"

When he received no reply, Marvolo paused a moment, glancing at the stricken youth in surprise before whispering "Hell, Kid, relax! It's just a trick! Follow my lead, and relax!"

Receiving a brief, uncertain nod in reply, Marvolo reached for the folding chair hastily brought on stage by his assistant, and directed the youth to take a seat facing the crowd.

Looking at Drake sitting stiff as a board, Marvolo rolled his eyes at the audience, receiving a few chuckles in reply. "My new friend, Drake, come forward beside me here. For this, we need you totally relaxed. You know that happy place in your mind you always want to reach? The one with the swirly lights and happy rainbows? More relaxed than that!"

Circling the chair, Marvolo spoke to the audience "I am going to show you the true powers of the mind. Powers that surpass even that of the Gods!"

Waving his fingers in front of Drake's face, he began a rhythmic rocking of his hands, the rapt attention of the youth following the every move of his fingers incessantly.

"Listen to my voice now, Drake" he said in a smooth, low tone. "You cannot turn away from my voice. My voice is filling your every thought; overwhelming your awareness. You can hear nothing else; just my voice filling your mind and your consciousness."

Drake was mesmerised, unable to turn from the moving fingers waving before him "Yes, your voice..." he murmured, receiving a light laugh from the audience.

Briefly raising an eyebrow, Marvolo continued after a moment. "Yes, my voice is everything. And when I snap my fingers, everything my voice tells you to do, you will do. Everything I say, everything I speak, you will do. And you will continue to do this until I tell you otherwise. Do you understand?"

"I understand...."

"Excellent!" said Marvolo, giving his fingers a sudden click under Drake's nose. When the youth sat upright, eyes staring blankly ahead, Marvolo almost cursed, thinking the kid was taking the piss. But, suddenly, it came to him. Shit, this kid was really under! He'd never before encountered a subject with such a heightened response to suggestion!

Stepping back, he turned to the audience, a sudden gleam lighting his face for the first time during the performance. "Now, ladies and gentlemen, what do you think? How about we have Drake here live up to his name, and quack like a goose?"

The audience froze for a moment before breaking into laughter, as Drake began quacking frantically, jumping from his seat and flapping his arms. Kevin shot David a stunned glance, as their normally stoic friend began waddling across the stage like a huge bird. Kay wasn't so composed. Having dropped to his seat, he had his hands around his head, clutching his ears as tears of laughter began rolling down his cheeks!

Oh my God, thought Kevin. Kay was right; this is awesome! Why didn't I bring a fucking camera!

Marvolo looked at his quacking victim almost surreally. Shit, either this kid was a great actor, or he was seriously mesmerised.

Raising his arms, Marvolo roared "Enough!!!" and Drake froze, arms in mid flap as he stood rigidly under the spotlight.

Dropping his voice to a whisper, Marvolo gave his next command.

"Now, you are your best friend's mother! Tell him what he thinks of his sordid lifestyle!"

Drake drew himself up, chin raised and with a haughty grimace of distain crossing his features. In a high pitched voice, an uncanny replica of the uptight matron, he pointed a quavering finger unerringly at Kevin, who looked at the digit in sudden dread!

"Kevin James Sanderson" Drake shrieked in a high, falsetto voice that echoed off the auditorium ceiling, and causing even Marvolo to wince. "What sort of mess have you made of your life? Your father and I hoped you'd enter law, like your sister, but NO! YOU wanted to be an accountant. AN ACCOUNTANT!! What sort of miserable, low end profession is that for a Sanderson! Your grandfather would be turning in his grave if he were dead right now! And your hair! Is a wash occasionally out of the question? You could grow a bag of potatoes in those matted dreads you think are so pathetically trendy! And let's not even mention...."

But what he was about to mention was lost, as Marvolo shouted again "ENOUGH!!"

Kay had been staring the entire time at Kevin, hand crossing his mouth and eyes wide. David wasn't so subtle; a huge grin crept across his features as he sniggered uncontrollably at his friend's discomfort. Kevin shot him a dark look as Kay leaned closer, whispering into his ear brightly "Jesus, Kev. Your mum's a total bitch, huh!" which sent the pair into hysterics, David banging the seat back before him as tears ran down his cheeks.

Crossing his arms defensively, Kevin spat at the pair "Yeah, but at least mine isn't a whore! Now shut the hell up and let's see what happens next!"

The three turned back to the front, Kay continuing to eye Kevin clandestinely, a snigger creeping past his lips.

Marvolo stared at his subject in amazement. In his years of performing illusion, he'd never encountered such a responsive subject! Hell, he'd never encountered anyone even half this entertaining!

A real smile crossing his features for the first time in a decade, he stood dramatically, arms raised and shouted to the audience "For the finale! Drake, you are now the source of fear for countless humans across the ages. You are the scourge of the weak, reaper of souls and shredder of flesh; dreaded enemy of the knight's templar!" Throwing his cloak back, he swept his arms towards Drake, and shrieked "YOU ARE A DRAGON!"

For a long moment, nothing happened. A worried frown crossed Marvolo's forehead, as he cursed his stupidity for pushing his luck too hard. Damn, it was all going so well, too, he swore, wondering whether to drop his arms into the ensuing silence as a quiet snigger left the audience.

Then the lights dimmed, and all hell broke loose.

Drake groaned, back arched in apparent pain as his muscles writhed and convulsed in front of them. His face contorted in agony, gums curled from blooded lips where his teeth had bitten deep into the flesh. Legs spread, he shrieked, eyes wild as he gazed upwards, before his violent convulsions ceased as suddenly as they began, with his gaze fixated uncomfortably on Marvolo.

At the look, Marvolo took an unconscious step back, and then another, as Drake slowly cocked his head to one side, staring in unnatural attention at the magician.

"Oh fuck me!" Marvolo thought to himself, shuddering at the maniacally grinning expression on the youths face. "We got a crazy one here!"

The auditorium lights flickered further, before several shattered into fragments, raining electrical sparks and glass shards onto the audience below. One patron shrieked, as the theatre was plunged into sudden darkness, the tripping of the building's circuit breakers leaving only the "Emergency Exit" sign dimly lit to break the total blackness within. The audience murmur quickly turned panicked, as several patrons screamed, starting a mass exodus towards the exit. Kay had grabbed David by the arm ready to flee and was reaching for Kevin, when his grasp was shrugged off angrily.

"Fuck you, Kay! Drake's up there somewhere! We need to get to him!"

Eyes wide, Kay gave a hesitant nod before whipping out his mobile and hitting the flashlight key. The small LED did little to illuminate the huge space, apart from lighting their immediate environ into stark relief, their faces wan as they stared at each other in the minimal light. While the other audience members continued their mad race for the exit, the three cautiously threaded their way through the seats to the far aisle, before heading to the front of the theatre near the stage stairs.

Suddenly, the patrons froze as a deep, deep guttural growl swept the room, toned so low as to send shivers through even the stoutest person present. A growl that went on and on, dropping in pitch towards deeper subsonic, sending the hair on everyone's neck and arms rising in dread.

Kay stopped in his tracks, nearly dropping his phone as David collided with his back, as the three paused to exchange fearful glances, turning slowly towards the stage and the source of the sound. In the shrouded darkness, faint movement could be seen; of something large and hulking shifting in the darkness; darkness that was suddenly pierced by two huge ruby eyes staring out from the depths of the stage.

Blinded in the sudden darkness, the deep growl erupting so closely to him caused Marvolo to freeze in fright, before something... something big... moved restlessly before him. Not hesitating further, he spun and bolted towards the side stage staircase, almost tripping over his cape in his haste. Punting towards the rear exit, he almost collided with the trio who appeared in the dark before him. Eyes wide, he pushed past, hissing to them frantically "Get out of here, you fools! There's something up there!"

David reached out to grab him, failing to duck as a swung arm collected him across the ear, sending him crashing to the floor as the magician scrambled past them to stumble from the chamber. Cursing, Kevin dropped to David's aid, while Kay continued to stare at the stage, eyes huge as he raised a trembling finger to point at the two blood red orbs that had unerringly fixated upon them.

"Uh, guys? GUYS!!" he began to shriek, when the eyes suddenly blinked, opened wide and vanished, before the sound of crashing timber and masonry echoed throughout the room. For a long minute, the three stared mutely at the noise until, with a final rattle of falling bricks; the stage was once again swallowed in silence.

Kay and Kevin managed to help David to his feet, albeit somewhat unsteadily, before the trio winced as the theatre's emergency lighting suddenly kicked in. Squinting, they stood stunned at the sight of the wreckage left of the staging area, where a dark hole through the rear brick wall led out into the alley beyond. As the three slowly approached the stage, Kay stared at his friends for a moment, before asking in a subdued voice "But where's Drake?"

David looked to him mutely before he turned to Kevin, who could only shrug in confusion. Returning to stare at the rubble, Kevin said quietly to no one in particular "Yeah, good question, huh. Where is he?"

Eyes narrowed in concern, he turned back to his friends, and repeated...

"Where is Drake?"

________________________

While their first thought was to look for their lost friend, circumstances prevented them from doing so. Namely, the abrupt arrival of a large contingent of police and emergency crew, who cordoned off the entire area, preventing anyone's departure. The three were separated to give individual statements. On the record, it was to ensure accuracy, but none of the lads had any misconceptions; it was to prevent them colluding on a cover story.

That they were initially considered suspects was unpleasant, especially with Drake's continued absence, but the police's attention soon turned to their most suspicious subject; the mysteriously missing Marvolo.

Once they were checked over and cleared of any injuries, everyone was escorted to the local precinct station, where each was given an opportunity to detail their version of the events. Kevin kept his explanation to the bare basics, although he could just overhear Kay in an adjoining room animatedly describing the events to another officer. After a good twenty minutes grilling on his name, personal details and other aspects of his life, the detective questioning him let out a sigh and leaned back, closing her file and eyeing him intently.

"Want a drink, kid?" she asked suddenly, and he nodded mutely, mouth dry from the stress of the situation. Head turned to the officer near the door, she spoke to him in hushed words and he left the room, returning shortly with several bottles of diet Dr Pepper and some ice filled glasses. Grimacing at the choice, the detective eyed her colleague, who gave a shrug and apologized, stating that was all that was left in the machine.

Muttering under her breath, she slid a bottle and glass to Kevin before opening her own; the hissing of escaped gas echoing loudly throughout the room. Returning her gaze to him, she narrowed her eyes and leaned forward, eyeing him intently.

"OK, you're obviously not stupid. Nor are you a terrorist, psychopath or any of the other crazies we see regularly in here. What do you think happened? Really? I'm getting all sorts of bullshit reports of escaped animals and flaming eyes, which sounds like a whole lot of theatrical mumbo jumbo shit to me! So, tell me straight? What really went on?"

Kevin sighed, taking a long pull from the bottle while choosing to ignore the glass beside it. After wiping his lips on a sleeve, he returned her stare, placing the half empty container on the desk before him.

"I think something fucked up big time during the performance. But I don't think the Great Marvolo had anything to do with it. Before all the shit went down, he really seemed to be getting into it, and was waving his arms around all hyped up and set for the end piece. I just think what he ended up with was not what he expected, not by the way he looked as he tore past us. The guy was totally scared shitless. He had less idea what was going on than we did."

The detective eyed him curiously. "So, you don't think it was the Magician who set this up to go wrong?"

Kevin sighed again, and replied "Honestly, I have no idea. Things were going really well for him up until that point. But no, I don't think so..."

She regarded him a few seconds longer, before leaning back and rubbing her eyes tiredly. "Yeah, that what the others are saying, kid. The only other real lead we have is whether your friend was involved. Why'd he leave so suddenly and where'd he go?"

Kevin returned her look intently. "Hell, I've been Drake's best friend for 5 years, and I know him better than anyone, Ma'am. Drake hates being made the centre of attention, ever. If it wasn't for Kay trapping him into being the volunteer tonight, I can tell you he would have preferred being anywhere else but on that stage when this happened. He had nothing to do with that crap tonight; I'd swear on it! But I'm not surprised he bolted; he's a very private person at times, and all that mess would have freaked him out totally, especially if he really was under some sort of hypnotic spell. Waking up with all that crap going on around him probably sent him running scared. I dunno where we went, but I'm hoping back home to the apartment"

After a few seconds regarding him, she stood suddenly, shutting the folder with a snap and pushing her chair back under the table with a squeal. "OK kid, I believe you, for now. We're going to want to see your friend in person though. When you see him, tell him he needs to get his behind down here first thing tomorrow to give his own statement, or I'll be coming looking for him, understood?"

Kevin nodded, standing himself and moving to join her as she left the interview room. When they reached the main reception, David and Kay were waiting impatiently, ready to leave, and the three made their exit post haste.

As they left, the detective called out to them "Remember! Tomorrow morning first thing! Don't keep us waiting!"

Kevin nodded, cursing silently under his breath. While confused about many things, he had a sudden dread suspicion that making that appointment might be more difficult than she thought.

_______________

Kay and David dropped Kevin off at his apartment shortly after midnight. On the journey, they had debated whether to begin searching for Drake around the theatre immediately, but when the police came up with no trace of him, Kevin told the pair that the best thing was for him to check the apartment first before they started a fruitless search of the city without even knowing where to begin.

David offered to accompany him to his apartment, but something screamed at Kevin to end the night there. With a final wave, he left the pair to make their own way home, promising to call them immediately if Drake wasn't inside.

"You know what he's like! If he's there, he's going to be embarrassed as hell, and the last thing he needs is to have us remind him of it" Kevin suggested, cocking his head back and eyeing the darkened apartment from the sidewalk. As the pair left with a wave, Kombi blowing smoke into the night air, he tromped tiredly up the staircase to their level. Reaching into a pocket for his key he paused suddenly, eyes wide as he looked down at the shattered entry lock with dismay, a puncture mark through the key slot attesting to the force used to gain entry into the previously secure flat.

Shit! He thought, pushing on the door carefully and gaping at the wreckage that had been made of their apartment. The couch had been shredded; tipped onto its back as if something had stumbled across it in haste. Long rents marred the carpet, and the television had hit the floor hard, glass screen shattered into fragments. The trail of destruction headed across the open lounge towards Drake's bedroom door, which showed similar signs of abuse; long scrapes across the timber surrounding the handle marring the once pristine finish.

Kevin surveyed the carnage in dismay, as a trace of fear began its meandering way down his spine, sending tingles into his flesh.

This is not good.

Not good at all!

After a few moments he gritted his teeth and cautiously moved through the wreckage, approaching Drake's door and resting a hesitant hand on the handle. Leaning forward, as his ear contacted the door, he could barely make out a muffled noise coming from inside; the sound of deep, low sobs echoing through the intervening space, muted by the thick timber panels.

Kevin began turning the handle, the metal on metal scraping noise from the abused knob loud in the apartment. The sobbing noise stopped abruptly, replaced by further smashing noises as whomever was inside moved around frantically.

Pausing with the handle turned, Kevin called out "Drake? Hey Drake, it's just me. I'm coming in, OK?"

Further smashing was heard from within, until a deep, rumbling voice called out "NO!! No, Kevin! You can't.... Don't come in, OK!"

The voice may have been deeper than Drake's usual pitch, but Kevin could still recognize it immediately. Just as he could pick the tone of frantic panic in the reply, which he couldn't leave be.

Forcing the door firmly through the rubble behind it, he stepped into the darkened room, squinting at the large shadow huddled in the space normally occupied by the bed. In the dim light filtering in from outside, it was hard to make out exactly what was there, but Kevin slipped a hand up the wall next to the door frame, fumbling for the switch. When he found it he paused a moment, before throwing the room into brilliant light.

There was a dragon on the bed.

Or at least, on what was left of the bed.

At fifteen feet long and with scaled wings firmly pressed against its back, it straddled the shattered remains of the mattress, long black claws biting deep into the fabric as it rose suddenly before him. The huge head sported large, tufted ears and a pair of foot long, spiralled horns that arched gracefully down the contour of its neck. Deep chocolate scales covered its back, running to softer fawn across its chest plates and down its stomach. A long tail, shifting unceasingly through the rubble, froze in its movement as the dragon stopped trying to hide under the covers and lifted its scaly head towards him, red watery eyes regarding the intruder in almost panic before burying itself under the sheets again.

Kevin stared for a moment, taking in what he was seeing, mouth wide in amazement, before he recovered himself and stepped fully into the room. When the dragon's head partially re-emerged from the covers to gaze at him again, Kevin dropped to the floor beside the mattress, eyed the beast and groaned "Oh Drake!"

Clearly too much for it to handle, the dragon's eyes spread wide, pupils dilated before, with a sigh, they closed abruptly as the creature passed out amidst the wreckage, sending a further cloud of dust to envelope the room.

____________________

"So, you knew all along?" the dragon rumbled, shaking front paws fumbling with the extra large mug of coffee Kevin had passed him as he eyed his flatmate uncertainly.

Kevin grinned wryly, leaning back onto what remained of the living room couch and staring at his transformed roommate. Sipping a beer that had somehow miraculously escaped the devastation made of the refrigerator, he chuckled at his friend.

"Nope", he said, rolling the icy cold bottle through his palms. "A wild guess, totally off the plan, although as it turns out not as far off as I had originally thought"

Having woken Drake via the diligent application of a large mop bucket of cold water over his head, the spluttering dragon had risen in haste, smacking its head on the ceiling before dropping again with a grunt onto the shredded bedding while rubbing his injured skull with a wince. Seeing Kevin standing there peering at him with an empty bucket at hand, he gasped, staring down at himself and groaning miserably.

"Shit, it's not a bad dream, huh?" he moaned, watching Kevin shake his head mutely. When Kevin headed for the door, he paused at the exit, gesturing for his roommate to precede him. As the dragon meekly complied, he watched Drake intently as he squeezed his huge frame through the abused doorway. After looking guiltily at the destruction in the main room, Drake returned to watching Kevin nervously as he made his way to the kitchen, searching through the cupboards for the coffee bin. Filling the machine with fresh beans he set it to brew, as the bemused dragon sat on his haunches besides the remains of the TV, staring around the room in dismay. When Drake felt a light touch on his forearm he started, shoulders jerking before he looked down to see Kevin's fingers resting on his skin, and a large, hot drink being waved enticingly in front of his muzzle.

"I know you need this, so take it!" Kevin said. For a moment Drake hesitated, before reaching down with a clawed paw and grasping the mug tentatively.

Bringing the drink to his mouth he took a quick sip, long tongue curling out as the scalding liquid hit his thin lips. Given his current form wasn't especially designed with such mugs in mind he spilled some down his cheeks, looking up self consciously towards Kevin, who had been eyeing him the whole time with a smirk on his face.

Finally giving up on it, he opened his maw wide; dumping the mugs entire contents into his mouth and gasping as the hot liquid scalded his throat. Drake gave his housemate a tentative look, small grin hesitantly crossing his features. When Kevin didn't run screaming from the room, Drake put the mug down onto the kitchen bench with both paws, careful not to knock it over, and gave Kevin his full attention.

"You're taking this much better than I would have thought" rumbled the dragon, and Kevin blinked, dragging his attention back to Drake's face, rather than the rest of him.

Scratching his head with his free hand, Kevin took another pull from the beer and gave a belch. "Yeah, well, did you think I'd run away screaming? Hell, we've known each other too long for that, Drake. Although, this does explain a few things I had wondered..."

Raising an eye ridge, the dragon cocked his head and said "Oh? Like?"

Looking back down at the bottle in his hands, Kevin toyed with it absently. "Well, there was that day we went over to David's parents' place, and their dog took one look at you, shit itself literally right there on the carpet, and wouldn't come out from under their bed for a week!"

Wincing, Drake nodded. "Err, yeah" he said, "I'd almost forgotten about that."

Kevin thought further "Oh, and the fact you like your steak really rare. I mean, really, really! My second guess was that you were a vampire, but I don't think even you'd pull off that jaded cliché too readily. Besides, you're too keen on keeping a good tan for that!"

Drake nodded wordlessly, and Kevin continued "Oh, and earlier today, I overheard you talking to your old man. The whole "No one suspects" bit sort of makes sense now"

Drake cringed inwardly. "You heard that? I didn't know you were in the lounge when I came home. I thought you were in the bathroom getting ready! Why didn't you say something?"

Kevin shrugged. "Not my business, D. It seemed kind of private, and I didn't want to stress you about it."

Drake sat back, eyes wide as he let slip with an almost hysterical giggle before putting a paw over his mouth in surprise. "You didn't want to stress me over it? Seriously? What about now?"

Kevin eyed him, gave a sigh, and got up to approach the creature, resting a gentle hand on his chest. When Drake looked down at him mutely, he gave him a broad smile before replying "Definitely not now. As Kay would say, this is awesome!"

"You're not freaking?" said Drake worriedly.

"Nope," said Kevin, stroking his hand absently across the warm, soft scales until, with a flush of embarrassment, he withdrew his hand. "Err, sorry. I'm just kinda... well... kinda blown away. It's not every day you find your housemate can turn into a dragon"

Drake huffed, drawing himself up and pointing to his chest with a claw. "Hey, this is the real me. It's actually that I can turn myself into a human!"

Kevin leaned back on the counter and grinned. "Not doing a very good job of it at the moment now, are we?"

Drake dropped to his belly on the carpet, rubbing his ears with a paw. "Umm, no. I seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties, being sort of... stuck. I'm trying, but I can't... well... change back!"

When Kevin laughed, Drake gave his housemate an annoyed look, teeth bared in irritation. "Dude, this is serious! If anyone see's me like this, I'm toast!" he rumbled, before realizing Kevin had raised an eyebrow at him dryly. "OK, if anyone ELSE sees me, then! I'm just lucky you are taking this so well."

Kevin nodded, reaching forward to stroke the dragon on the forehead, ruffling his ears softly. When he received a droll look in response he grinned broadly, continuing to pat down Drake's neck. "Hey, how often does one get to pet a real dragon? Since I might never get another chance, I plan on making the most of it." When Drake unconsciously shut his eyes, leaning into the scratch, he laughed, continuing the attention before pausing, regarding his huge friend lying besides him. "Umm, not to spoil the moment here, but we still have a bit of a problem."

Sitting back as Kevin's fingers slid from his neck, Drake eyed himself in the glass reflection and grimaced. "Just a bit?"

Kevin nodded, before returning to the fridge for another beer. Waving one at the dragon absently, he passed it across when he nodded, watching curiously as Drake flicked the cap off with a claw. Opening his own, he took a long pull and continued.

"The cop. She wants you down there answering questions later today. She said "first thing", and it's already after 1am. Shit, we need to get you turned back somehow. Any idea what the problem is?"

Drake pondered, tipping the bottle into his mouth and scoffing the contents in one hit. After licking his lips, he nodded tentatively. "I think so. I never had a problem before tonight. I think it's that Marvolo guy who did it."

Kevin considered his answer. "You mean, when he said "You are a dragon", you changed back into one, and now are stuck there?"

Drake nodded, passing the empty bottle back to Kevin, who absently tossed it into the recycling bin. "Hmm" he mumbled, considering their choices. "So, we need to find this guy, and fast."

Drake looked depressed. "How the hell are we going to find some clapped out magician in a city this large, in just a few hours?"

Kevin came around the counter, giving his friend another pat to the shoulder. "Oh, that's easy. When the detective was interviewing me, she left the folder open on the desk. The Great Marvolo, or should I say Alfonzo Spratt, lives downtown only a few blocks from the Majestic Theatre. Perhaps we need to pay him a visit?"

Drake pointed at himself dubiously "We?" he rumbled, raising a brow questioningly.

Kevin chuckled evilly. "Oh, no stress! I know just the pair to do an early morning house call for us!"

__________________________

Ring....

Ring....

A grumpy voice spoke quietly down the phone line.

"I don't know who this is, but when I find you, I'm going to rip off your lips and stick them on my Mr. Potatohead!"

"David? Shut up and listen. We have a problem."

"Kevin? Do you have any fucking idea what time it is?"

"Yeah. Early. Get up, and get Kay up. We need you two!"

David sat up with a start, rubbing a hand across his bleary vision trying to bring the darkened room into focus.

"Jesus, is it Drake? Is he OK? I thought you told us you'd ring if he wasn't there!"

There was a pause on the other end, followed by a gruff voice he barely made out as Drake's muttering something incoherent in the background.

"Look, he's here and he's alright." After another brief pause, Kevin continued. "Well... sort of alright. He's having a problem, and we need you two to help us." The voice sighed, "Dave, this is really urgent. How long till you can get here?"

David laid back on the pillow, groaning as his eyes made out the time on the clock radio. 2am? Shit!

Sighing, he replied "Yeah, OK. We'll be there as soon as we can."

"Thanks Dave."

"This had better be important, Kev!"

"Oh, you have no idea. See you soon."

Click.

Sigh....

__________________

At 2.25am, a quiet knock announced the arrival of their two friends. Drake looked up suddenly from his resting place near the lounge and hurried to his room, squeezing his bulk through the tight opening and pulling the door closed behind him. Kevin made sure he wasn't visible before removing the chair he'd used to keep the front door secure, resting it besides the entry as he opened the door cautiously.

David and Kay stood outside. Kay had a bleary, half asleep look on his face; David just looked pissed.

Arms crossed, he glared at Kevin as he swung the door open, gesturing for the pair to enter. Giving the hallway a quick glance he shut the door swiftly, propping the chair back under the handle to secure the room.

Turning to his friends he almost slapped himself for his stupidity, seeing the suddenly alert looks that crossed their faces at they viewed the devastation within. Shit, why hadn't they clean up some, he muttered to himself, as Kay began badgering him with questions on who blew the place up!

Waving him to silence, he turned to David and said "OK, this is the deal. That Marvolo really did a number on Drake, and he's... well, not quite himself at the moment. We need to find Marvolo, and fast, so he can undo what he did to him!"

David gave Kevin a dry look. "And this couldn't wait until tomorrow why?"

Kevin sighed. "Because, alright! Just fucking trust me here!"

Kay gave a chuckle, and looked at Kevin with a broad, sly grin. "Is it because Drake turned into a dragon?"

Kevin shot him a stunned look, mouth agape, as David spun on Kay with a disgusted look. "Sweet zombie Jesus, fuck face! It's not even 3am. I'm tired and exhausted after spending a night at a cop station while they opened a can of verbal butt hurt on me, and now you're flying off with the fairies? What the hell are you on about?"

Kay shook his head and began ticking off his fingers. "Jesus yourself, Dave, you must be blind or something! One, the doorknob has a puncture in it, and there are claw marks right across the carpet to Drake's room. Two, they want us to look for Marvolo after all the dragon shit that went on tonight, cause Drake is having "problems", and three... well, I can see Drake's head sneaking a look through a crack in his bedroom door at us. So, unless you got a new pet alligator in there, I think I know why Drake has a problem!"

The door to Drake's room shut with a snap, before reopening slowly to reveal a guilty looking dragon staring out the opening at them.

Kay laughed and grinned broadly, running over to the bedroom door to stand underneath Drake's scaly head. Looking up at the dragon he gave it a pat on the neck before turning back to David and smirking, as his friend sat heavily on the floor, mouth agape.

"Seems I was right, huh, fuck face?" Kay said to him with a smirk, receiving a mute nod in reply, before turning back to Kevin. "This is awesome!"

Kevin looked at Drake, who was staring down at the friend happily rubbing his chest with a wry grin, and shrugged his shoulders at the dragon. "I told you he'd say that!"

Drake just nodded solemnly, before squeezing through the door frame to join the trio near the kitchen.

____________________

Kay swerved his Kombi around an early morning delivery truck, narrowly missing clipping it on the rear fender. The driver flashed his headlights irately, which Kay simply ignored, turning to David who sat pensive in the passenger's seat.

"Buck for your thoughts, dude?" he asked cheerily, yanking on the wheel again just in time to avoid a lycra coated cyclist.

David ignored his question until Kay gave him a light punch on the shoulder, receiving an angry glare in response.

"Come on, D. What's up?" Kay prompted.

David turned on him angrily. "Jesus, you don't have a fucking problem with this? Are you fucking mental?"

Kay sighed, and pulled to the side of the road. "Nope. Drake is Drake. Who gives a shit what he looks like?"

David stared at him incredulously. "What the...? He's a fucking huge lizard? That's a problem by definition, Kay!"

Kay shrugged nonchalantly. "Is it? Not for me it isn't, nor Kevin. The only person here making an issue of this is you. So, what's your bitch?"

David rolled down the window to spit angrily onto the pavement. "He's not who we thought he was. He's not even fucking human, for shits sake!"

Kay's eyes narrowed angrily as he leaned forward into David's face; the first time David had ever seen him lose his cool so completely. "You know, D? I'm starting to think you're not who I thought you were, either. Who gives a shit what he is? He's always been our friend, and I can remember dozens of times when he helped YOU out without ever asking for anything in return. And now, when he needs our help, you start acting like a complete asshole, and piss all that up against the wall? Fucks sake! Either you're his friend, or you're not. Same goes for Kevin and me. So, make a choice. Are you helping him or not, cause if you're not, you can fucking well get out right now, right here, and WALK home!"

David looked at him speechless for a moment, before sighing and winding the window back up. "Yeah, you're right. Sorry. It's just kind of a shock, you know?"

Kay turned the Kombi back onto the road and resumed his weaving route towards the theatre district, lips firmly together as he shook his head in disappointment. "You need to grow the fuck up some, D. Friends aren't just a convenience, especially when they've always been there for you and supported you when you needed it! Remember that."

David kept his eyes on the view outside as Kay drove on in silence.

He was right. He had an awful lot to think about.

_____________

Pulling up a few blocks down from Marvolo's home address, Kay and David were alarmed to see the flashing lights of a police car outside, the entire area having been cordoned off with police tape and barricades. Even at this early time of the morning, a considerable number of people stood idly around, gawking at the excitement. Kay turned to David, clearly still angry at his attitude, but relented when David gave a sigh and apologized.

"I'm sorry, Kay. You're right. We need to help Drake out of this, and you can rely on me."

Kay pursed his lips thoughtfully, before the ever-present smile made a tentative return to his face. "Yeah, well, let's forget that for now. Looks like we have a bigger problem out there."

David swore under his breath. "I doubt Marvolo is still floating around here, not with that lot tearing his place apart. Shit! Think! What would he be doing after all the crap that happened tonight?"

Turning to each other, they spoke in unison, a smile lighting their features. "Getting smashed!" they chorused, and Kay gave a chuckle as he pulled the Kombi around into a squealing U turn, heading towards the red light district.

_____________

It was nearly 6am before the pair managed to track down the Great Marvolo at a seedy looking strip joint at the far edge of the district. Framed by a rundown tattoo parlour on one side, and a dodgy looking adult book shop on the other, David eyed it suspiciously, while Kay tried for a more positive approach.

"Hey, we've checked six places already" he said, staring around the street absently. "At least we know where NOT to come for a drink in the future!"

When David gave him a disgusted look, Kay shrugged and said "Just sayin'! But this is the last place to check without crossing the river. We can only try"

David gave his friend a wry smirk. "Mind you, don't think I didn't see you eyeing up that Asian chick in that last bar, doing the karaoke."

Kay grinned back. "Hell, yeah. She was hot!"

David's grin became even wider. "You do know she was a guy, right?"

"What???"

Chuckling nastily, David opened his door and stepped onto the pavement. "I'm just sayin', is all..." he said glibly, grinning at the dumfounded look on Kay's face and turning to survey their latest target.

As they left the Kombi parked on the street, David looked back at it and chuckled wryly, eyeing the piles of refuse littering the sidewalk with distaste. "Least your car finally looks at home" he said, and Kay grinned, pushing through the saloon doors of the strip joint into the dimly lit interior, wincing as the reek of stale booze and cigarette smoke hit his nose.

Turning to David, he whispered "Shit, even my car would be disgusted in this place," just a little too loudly, receiving a dirty look from the bouncer standing menacingly nearby. Cracking his knuckles as he glared at the pair, they hurried past into the bar, avoiding the apparently sultry glances of the several overly buxom "waitresses" out to draw both their attention and their wallets.

David turned to Kay and whispered, this time more quietly "Hey, isn't that your mum?" only to receive a dirty look in return. Chuckling to himself, he took a seat on the cracked stools at the counter, as David signalled to the barkeep for a drink.

The bartender approached with a scowl, fat fingers absently polishing a dirty beer glass with an even dirtier towel, and glared at them from across the sticky bench top. "You want a drink?" he growled, and Kay nodded brightly, pointing at first himself, then David.

"I'm Ford; this is Arthur. Six pints of bitter, and quickly please. The world's about to end!"

The barman glared at him with piggy eyes sunk deeply in dark rolls of fat, and said, "What?"

Kay shrugged, and said "Well, I saw your towel, and thought... well... Just give us two Corona's"

Shaking his head, the barman moved to the far end of the counter, removing two bottles from a fridge and opening them on his apron. David turned to Kay giving him a dirty look and said "Not funny," as Kay chortled under his breath. At his return, after handing the man a tenner and telling him to keep the change, the slightly more cheerful bartender passed over their drinks and, as Kay took a sip, David took the opportunity to ask him "Umm, sir? We're looking for someone. Calls himself Marvolo. He's a magician. Don't suppose you...."

But whatever he was to suppose was lost as the bartender grunted, turned to the side and pointed down the bar to a darkened alcove against the far wall, where a shadowy, caped figure sat snoring over a table, face down in a pool of spilt beer.

Thanking the man, the pair got up and moved across the bar towards Marvolo. David slipped besides him from one side, while Kay took up position on the other, effectively boxing him in. Once seated, Kay gave the unconscious man a tap on the shoulder but received no response. When further such attempts failed, David gave him a hard slap across the back of the head, causing the drunken man to start awake, sitting back in shock while looking around wildly.

Gazing at the two with red, bleary eyes, he slowly fixated on the duo before his eyes widened, and he gasped "YOU!"

Kay nodded and wiggled his fingers at the magician, while David slipped closer, hissing, "Keep your voice down! You already have the cops looking for you! Don't make the bouncer throw you out of here, too!"

Receiving a confused look, Marvolo rubbed his aching head, glancing down at the now warm drink he'd continued to clutch before him, before bringing it to his lips with trembling fingers. "The cops?" he said, confusion clear across his features. "I haven't done anything! Why do the cops want me?"

David scowled, growling, "You mean, apart from the huge fucking hole you left in the theatre wall? Nothing!"

Kay gave him a quick shake of his head, halting his next heated comment, before turning to Marvolo again. "Dude, we don't care about that. It's our friend, Drake. You know him; the guy you used in your act earlier tonight? He needs your help, cause he's still acting funny"

Marvolo eyed him nervously. "Yeah, the tall, skinny kid. He took the suggestions real well; I remember him. But what do you mean by "funny"?"

Kay sighed, and said, "Well, you told him to be a dragon, and now he thinks he's a dragon."

"A dragon? What do you mean?"

David hissed, "He thinks he's a fucking dragon, running around the apartment naked and clawing the fucking furniture to bits! What part of that don't you get? Your suggestion hasn't worn off yet!"

"It hasn't?"

"No, it fucking hasn't! So, we need you to change him back!"

"From a dragon?" Marvolo said, his confusion clear to see.

Rolling his eyes, David yelled at him in frustration. "Yes, from a fucking dragon!" before pausing uncertainly, staring around the now silent bar as every eye in the place fixated on them. When the bouncer scowled their way, David waved an apology, sheepish smile on his face. "Sorry!" he called out, as the patrons returned to their drinks, muttering darkly at the interruption.

Marvolo shook his head vehemently. "No way, man! I don't want to go anywhere near that theatre again!"

Kay grinned at him, as David put his head in his hands in exasperation. "It's OK, dude. We have him at home. Help us out, and you can crash the night there, away from the cops."

Marvolo nodded, dropping the now empty glass to the table and getting unsteadily to his feet, while Kay and David grabbed his arms to steady him. Just as the trio stood, a commotion at the door drew their attention to the several policemen entering the bar, who brushed past the fuming bouncer on their way to the counter. Kay turned to David nervously, before hurrying the confused magician towards the nearby rear exit.

Reaching the doorway without being detected, David gave Kay a broad grin as they pushed through into the rear alley, shuffling past piles of rubbish as they led the confused Marvolo towards the street.

"When I agreed to come out tonight, the last thing I expected to end up doing was kidnapping an unconscious, drunk magician to turn a dragon back into a human", David chuckled, shrugging Marvolo's dead weight to a more comfortable position on his shoulder.

Kay chuckled, and said, "Well, I did tell you this was going to be an awesome evening."

Making the street undetected, they bundled their almost comatose companion into the back of the Kombi, where he collapsed amidst the junk on the floor, snoring loudly. Jumping into the driver's seat, Kay cautiously pulled out into the early morning traffic, avoiding bringing attention to themselves and their passenger. The pair breathed a huge sigh of relief when no one began following, and they weaved their cautious way through the early morning traffic back towards Kevin and Drake's apartment.

_________________

Kevin glanced over to where Drake was laying near the windows, staring out across the city lights somewhat pensively, his wings twitching slightly as his thoughts wandered. After cleaning up as much of the damage to the apartment as he could, Kevin had turned off the lounge room lights and threw back the curtains, returning to the kitchen to put on the kettle for some tea. While Drake shook his head mutely when offered a cup, Kevin approached his side and stood companionably by his head, sipping the hot brew absently as he kept him company.

After a time, Drake let out a sigh, rubbing his neck with a clawed hand as his ears drooped despondently. Kevin gave him a studied look, before stepping around him and dropping to his side, leaning his back against Drake's chest with a sigh as he regarded the darkened city through the large glazed windows.

Drake gave a chuckle, the rumble felt through Kevin's back as his chest moved, and said, "Comfortable, are we?"

Kevin grinned, looking up at the dragon, and said "Given some asshole trashed the couch, the least he could do is act as temporary cushioning until we get the stuff replaced."

Drake sighed again, staring out the window. "I don't want to leave, Kev," he whispered. "I like it here. I don't want to go back home."

Kevin took another sip, before replying with a shrug "So stay. Why leave?"

Drake looked down at him, shifting slightly to a more comfortable position and causing Kevin to steady his cup with both hands. "You don't know my father. When he finds out about this, he's going to go spastic! He'll have me dragged home before I get a chance to say anything!"

Kevin pondered a moment, kicking out his feet and stretching before cocking his head up at his friend. "So, don't tell him."

Drake craned his long neck to regard Kevin fully. "What?" he asked, confusion written clearly across his features.

Kevin shrugged. "Don't tell him. It's not a big deal. Only the four of us know, and we won't tell anyone else if you don't want us to. Why does he need to know?"

Drake looked away, shaking his head negatively, and growled. "He'll find out, Kevin! He always does! You have no idea how hard it was to get him to agree to let me come here in the first place! It took me years of cajoling him before he'd even discuss the idea, let alone agree to it, calling it half-baked and idiotic. He's so paranoid about our secrets being exposed, if there is even a slim chance of it getting out, he'd yank me home so fast my scales would be burnt from the air friction."

Kevin sighed, reaching up to lay a calming hand on the dragon's neck, feeling the warm scales give slightly under his touch. "Shit happens, mate. So we know your little secret. Big effin' deal! Hell, I know that David wet the bed till he was nine, and Kay jerks off every day at least five times, or he "gets antsy", as he puts it. We all have secrets, mate. Some are just... bigger than others!"

Drake looked away sadly and whispered, "David has a problem with it, Kev. I could see the fear in his eyes. He was scared of me; really scared. I hate that, having a friend terrified of me."

Dropping his head onto his folded forearms, Drake shut his eyes, leaning into the soft caressing fingers running along his neck.

Clenching his hand in response, Kevin spat, "Yeah, well fuck David. After all the things you've done for him over the years, if he doesn't like it, he can go fuck himself! Kay has no worries with it, and I'm sure he's dealing with David for us even now."

Outburst over, he returned to calming the dragon, hand scratching between his ears and eliciting a thrum of pleasure, causing Kevin to grin despite himself. Odd evening it may be, but even a night as surreal as this had its perks.

After a time something came to him, and he had to ask, unsure if he wanted to hear the answer.

"Drake, why didn't you tell me about this before? Didn't you trust me?" He looked down at the big head lying near him, as one ruby eye opened to regard him sadly.

Drake rumbled, "We've known each other for, what? Six years? At first, I couldn't. I didn't know you well enough. Then when I did, I didn't want to... scare you? Freak you out? Have you abandon me? Shit, I don't know...."

Kevin considered Drake's admission carefully. Stroking him between the eyes, he bent down over his head and whispered, "I wouldn't do that to you, Drake. Not now, not ever. OK?"

Drake nodded, and let a small smile play across his lips. "Yeah, I know. I won't keep any more secrets, Kev. I promise!"

As the pair went back to watching the view from outside, Kevin looked down at his friend and grinned suddenly. "So, this transforming thing...? Can you teach someone else to do it?"

Drake looked at him in surprise, before a huge grin split his muzzle. Rolling onto his back laughing hysterically, he dragged the surprised Kevin with him in his glee, sending his cup and saucer flying.

Now straddling his chest, Kevin gave him a thump on the scales with a clenched fist! "Hey!! I'm serious!!" he yelled, and the dragon doubled up laughing again.

"Bastard!"

___________________________

Kevin had just fallen asleep when his mobile rang, sending him lurching forward from his comfortable perch beside Drake to rummage frantically through his pockets. The dragon shifted beneath him uncertainly as he finally located the phone, flipping the cover and resting it against his ear.

"Kev?" David's voice answered down the phone, which he put on speaker for Drake's benefit. "We got him. Be there in 10 minutes."

Kevin broke into a smile, looking at the relieved Drake with a grin. "Good stuff, Dave. Bring him right up."

Drake rumbled, "Does he know anything?" and the line paused a moment, before David replied, "No, Drake. He's out cold in the back."

Raising an eyebrow at the dragon, Kevin paused. "You didn't knock him out did you, Dave?"

Snorting in amusement, David chuckled. "No, he's just pissed. He also smells worse thanks to flaking out in Kay's Kombi, so you owe me big time!"

When Drake gave a relieved sigh, David continued after a moment. "Umm, Drake? About earlier?"

"Hmm?"

"Yeah, well, I'm sorry. I was just a bit, you know, freaked out. But I'm here for you, man."

The dragon smiled, long teeth gleaming in the early morning light. Leaning down towards the handset, he said, "Yeah, thanks. See you soon then."

The relieved sounding voice on the line replied, "Yeah. See you then."

Flipping the phone closed to cut the connection, Kevin turned to Drake and said, "See? Everything works out. Now, how do we handle this?"

Drake sat back and pondered, paw at chin. "Well, I can't let him see me."

Kevin nodded thoughtfully, before a large smile broke out on his face. Moving to the linen cupboard, he rummaged through the clothes and dragged out his formal attire, stripping the cummerbund from his black dinner jacket and held it up triumphantly.

"How about a pleated blindfold?" he joked, and the grinning dragon nodded vigorously.

__________

"Yeah, well I don't know why I need to wear this thing!" Marvolo slurred at Kay, holding out the cummerbund doubtfully.

David groaned, and said, "We went through this! He won't wear clothes; he thinks he's a fucking dragon, for god's sake! Just put it on, before I choke you with it!"

Wrapping the black fabric around his face, they guided the still inebriated magician into the apartment, where they stood him before the squatting dragon. Marvolo twitched and reached for the eye cover, only to have his hands slapped down by Kay, who grinned at the surprised illusionist, saying "Nuh uh! No peeking!"

Marvolo grimaced, and asked "So, he's in front of me, right? Eye level?"

"Yup," said Kay.

Marvolo paused, "And you're sure he still thinks he's a dragon?"

The trio stared towards the large dragon towering over them, who rolled his eyes and said "Raaawr, growl, hiss!" in a rumbling voice, shrugging his shoulders and mouthing "What?" when they looked at him askance.

Marvolo, unaware of the exchange, simply nodded and said "OK, look at my hands. My fingers are drawing you in. Keep watching them as they dance before you..."

Drake stared at the human's fingers, eyelid twitching as his tongue lolled from his mouth.

"Alright, you're under my power. Err, again. When I count down from five, all thoughts of you being a dragon will vanish. You will be a human again. Do you understand?"

Drake rumbled, "Yes, I understand" in a deep voice, causing the magician to twitch again uncomfortably.

"OK, Five... you're changing back, turning back from being a dragon..."

Drake twitched, before a rippling began across his hide, causing him to shiver in discomfort.

"Four... You're getting smaller and smaller, as you keep changing back to being human."

On command, Drake began to shrink on himself, hide colour bleeding slowly from dark brown to pink, as the shift began spreading across him.

"Three... Your mind is returning, and your feral nature is retreating."

Dropping to his knees, Drake began shuddering uncontrollably, wings shrinking into his back as his dorsal spines shrunk into his flesh. A low growl escaped his clenched lips, causing the Magician to again reach for his blindfold before being stopped by a wide-eyed Kay, who stood mesmerized at the transformation before them.

"Uhh, two... You're nearly back; your mind is clearing as your body resumes its human form. You are a human. You want to be human. Everything about you is human."

Drake suddenly stretched out, his rapidly shortening tail whipping around the room, sending the startled David jumping for safety.

"One! You're back to your normal self! The suggestion has cleared, and you're you again. Congratulations!" said the magician, as he reached up suddenly and whipped off the blindfold, staring mutely at the naked human lying in foetal position before him.

Grunting, he turned to the stunned trio who stood in disbelief at what they had just witnessed, and said with a slur, "Yeah, that was exciting. I need a drink, then a bed. Make it happen!" before his eyes rolled upwards, and he passed out in a drunken stupor on the floor.

Kevin reached down, rolling the sweating Drake onto his back and grinned as his eyes fluttered open weakly.

"Did it work?" Drake asked nervously, bringing a hand to his face to regard the pink digits wiggling in front of him.

"Uh, yeah. You're naked again," said Kevin, helping his friend up, before the trio enveloped him in a hug as they all laughed at their success.

After a while, Kay said, "Umm, Drake, would you do me a favour?"

Drake nodded down at him and said "Sure, anything."

Kay smirked, grabbing him by the shoulder and ruffling his hair. "Well, next time you hug me, do it with pants on, would you? Having a dragon boner on me is a bit freaky, you know!" With that, Drake laughed, pulling free from their grip and slipping into his room for some clothes.

As he left the room, David looked down at the snoring Marvolo, and grimaced. "So, what about our friend here?" he said, nudging the magician with a toe and receiving a scowl from Kay in return.

"Hey! Leave him be. He came and sorted this out, so we owe him one. I think, given that all this shit isn't really his fault, we need to help him out of this mess, huh?"

David groaned, but helped Kay drag the comatose magician across the room, draping him across the remains of the couch, where he slept peacefully, a blissful smile across his face.

Kevin watched them move him, and pondered the situation. "OK, I think we should ring up the detective, and....."

As their plan was worked out, Kay grinned, punching Kevin on the shoulder, and saying "HAH! This is going to be awesome!"

_______________________

At 11am, Detective Suzanne Summers arrived at the their apartment with a pensive look, staring up the sides of the tall building as she pursed her lips and remote locked the squad car behind her. The phone call had come an hour ago from the kid she had interviewed, leaving a message with the front desk asking for her. When the constable on duty had eventually passed the message on to her, she considered it curiously before heading back upstairs to her office and picking up the phone to return the call.

Their exchange was brief; he had further information that could help with the investigation, but he couldn't bring it to the station. When she quizzed him further, he refused to expand the statement, just telling her it was crucial to talk to her, alone, and could she come down by eleven.

Agreeing with a sigh, she was about to hang up the phone, when he said one last comment that had her puzzled.

"Oh, and don't bring any guns or stuff. We don't want anyone hurt or anything"

She paused, considering the request. Not that she normally packed any weapons, but in a situation where she was on duty alone, protocol demanded she go armed.

Then again, the day she couldn't handle a few weedy kids by herself was the day she'd turn in her badge and retire.

Phone in its receiver, she leaned back in her desk chair with fingers cradled beneath her chin and considered; what were these kids up to?

______________

The knock on the door came right when expected, as David gave Kevin a nervous look as he removed the chair from under the handle, swinging the door wide to let the detective enter. She did so somewhat reluctantly, eyes darting about as she scanned the wreckage left of the apartment's interior, not to mention the occupants inside. Obviously, someone had done a job on the place, although none of the three students seemed particularly threatening, even if the one sporting the maniacal grin was somewhat disconcerting.

Finally, drawing her attention back to the youth she had interviewed, she stepped forward, eyeing him appraisingly. "Been doing a spot of redecorating, huh kid?" she asked, and he looked around sheepishly.

"Umm, yeah. This is one of the things we wanted to show you, Ma'am."

Pointing at the still unconscious body of the magician snoring loudly on the remains of the couch, she raised an eyebrow. "Is that who I think it is?"

He nodded again, and she strode over to him, staring down at the prone magician with a thoughtful look. "Doesn't seem especially threatening now, does he. We're still trying to determine exactly what happened. Forensics couldn't detect any trace of explosives, and the place was dilapidated, for sure, but not enough to simply fall down by itself."

Nudging Marvolo gently with a toe, she received a grunting mumbled complaint, before he rolled over to his side and continued snoring loudly.

"Nor is this one much of a threat, from what we can gather. His record is clean enough, and no one at the theatre thinks he had anything to do with it. So, tell me, kid, what's your explanation for what happened?"

Keeping her eye on the magician, she noted with casual interest the trio exchanged loaded glances, not suspecting she was watching them clandestinely in the window's reflection. When her subject stepped forward, she rounded on him slowly, giving him a loaded look as he stood straight, and began.

"Umm, Marvolo didn't do it. He was just in the middle of it. It was an accident, honestly."

Turning to survey the wrecked apartment again, she returned to regard him. "And your other friend? The one who was hypnotised?"

Kevin nodded, and continued. "That's part of why we asked you here, although again the whole thing wasn't intentional. Things went a bit haywire, you see..."

Leaning forward towards him, her eyes went cold and he winced, turning pleading looks to his friends, who were no longer smiling at his dilemma.

"No, I don't see. I don't see at all. I don't like being led around, kid. I want to know what you know!"

Raising her head, she scanned the room again. "Where's your other friend anyway?"

When Kevin pointed to the bedroom door, she headed towards it immediately, stopping and giving him a glare when he grabbed her arm preventing her from continuing.

He raised his hands, saying "Look, just marching in there won't help. I'll show you. Follow me."

Lips pressed together, she watched him move to the door, swinging it open into the darkened room beyond and gesturing her to precede him. She strode across the room, attempting to peer into the gloom, when he shut the door behind them. Whirling in readiness, she paused as a deep voice said from behind and above her "Calm down, Ma'am. Nothing will hurt you here. We just need to show you something. Err, someone. Me!"

Slowly spinning towards the voice, she demanded, "Well, show yourself!", disgusted at the slight quaver that had crept into her voice.

A rustle behind her alerted her to movement near the door, before the room was thrown into brilliant light...

_____________

Kay regarded David nervously as the pair watched the detective and Kevin enter the bedroom, door closing slowly behind them.

David grunted as Kay began pacing, eyeing him in irritation as he moved restlessly around the lounge area. When their wait extended into long minutes, he slipped into the kitchen and helped himself to a beer from the refrigerator.

The wall clock showed nearly a quarter hour had passed before the bedroom door again opened and a pale, although still determined looking, detective re-entered the room, Kevin trailing behind her.

Striding up to Kay, she stared down at him grimly, his normal cheerful demeanour melted under her glare.

"When did you find out about this, kid?" she demanded, and he replied in a shaky voice "Uh, about 8 hours ago, Sir! Umm, I mean, Ma'am!"

"And you had no idea before today?"

"Nnnnooo..."

The detective studied his response, before shaking her head and relaxing. "It's alright kid, I just needed to check." Turning to David, she eyed his drink and said "Does that thing have a buddy?" When he nodded and gestured to the fridge, she helped herself, tossing one to Kevin who fumbled with it in his haste to catch it in time.

Leaning back on the counter she studied the trio, before turning back to the bedroom door which had opened to release a very much human, not to mention nervous, Drake into the room.

Rubbing her forehead tiredly, she said in a weary voice. "OK, obviously there's some next level shit going down here, which I really, really don't think I want to know about. At least you've convinced me this was not your fault, nor intended. Nor do I now believe the magician was involved, apart from incidentally."

Taking a long pull, she studied the four kids intently. "How the hell I'm going to cover all this up at the station, I have no idea yet; but I will. For the time being, you're all off the hook. I don't want to hear from you about this, and I definitely don't want to know anything else about it! Jesus, I give this day an eleven out of ten on the weird shit-o-meter! Provided you keep out of trouble in the future, and don't involve me with any of this further, I think we're done here. Are we agreed?"

When the four nodded solemnly, she polished off the rest of the drink, dropping the empty bottle into the sink, before giving the kids a wry grin. Pointing to Marvolo, she chuckled and said, "Oh, and do me a favour? Dispose of that for me? I think it's going off!"

When Kay let a large grin plaster his face, she shook her head, turning to the door and leaving the apartment while pondering how the hell she was going to explain all this to her supervisors.

At least the situation had one thing going for it. She swore to herself that whatever happened, no matter how much heat they put her under, letting the truth out wouldn't be part of it!

Hell, the situation was career-ending enough without resorting to something that extreme!

_____________

When the apartment door closed, Kevin let out a whoosh of air in relief, leaning back against the wall. When Kay passed him another drink, he looked at it a moment before downing it in one hit.

"Well, that went well!" said Kay brightly, and the three turned incredulous looks at him.

Raising his eyes in confusion, Kay said "What? That went awesome!"

_____________

It was early evening before Marvolo woke in his own bed, head pounding from the prior night's onslaught. Vague recollections of his nocturnal activities kept distracting him as he staggered to the bathroom to vomit into the toilet noisily. Groping for the flush, he staggered into the tiny kitchenette, dropping into a worn timber chair and laying trembling hands on the table. When his fingers encountered paper, he looked down curiously to see the daily newspaper spread before him, with his picture blazoned across the front page. Leaning forward in sudden interest, nausea all but forgotten, he gasped at the full page spread of the theatre action, along with a huge bio on his life, his career, everything!

Grasping the pages suddenly, he realised what this meant.

Media attention! Any media attention!

Maybe just what his career needed!

Paper clutched to his chest protectively, he bolted to the toilet again, heaving up more of the night's entertainment, while considering whether to head to the lounge room and calling his agent.

Perhaps later, though. For the moment he was otherwise occupied.

But later, perhaps he could use this to get his life back together...

_____________

Epilogue:

2 months later:

With the holidays long over and semester study resumed, Kevin wearily trudged up the stairs to their apartment, having completed an exhausting twelve hour day filled with both study and tutorials. While he'd fielded several calls from Kay to head out for some drinks, given it was his 23rd birthday, the thought of more exercise, mental or otherwise, gave him creeping shivers. All he wanted was to drop on the couch, grab a drink, and collapse in peace. Even the thought of the complimentary VIP tickets to The Great Marvolo's comeback performance extravaganza they'd been sent for his birthday wasn't incentive enough to overcome his exhaustion, and head out for the evening.

Refurnishing the apartment had taken a bit of effort, but with Drake coughing up a surprising stash of funds he'd apparently "hoarded", the place looked better than ever. With new carpets laid and a comfortable leather lounge facing a real flat screen TV, as bachelor pads went, the place was amazing.

Not that the pair used the TV much. With the ice broken, and the dragon literally out of the bag, Drake and Kevin spent much of their leisure time sharing each other's company. "No more secrets!" Drake swore; hand over his chest as he regarded a sombre Kevin. In Drake, Kevin found someone who would be there, supportive as needed, and for Drake, he discovered a person with whom secrets did not matter. Between them, life was good.

However, over the past few weeks, things seemed to have cooled a bit, with Drake more distant than before. Kevin worried about him, but Drake had just shrugged off the concern with a falsetto laugh, simply returning to his moody behaviour when he thought Kevin wasn't watching.

With a shit week at Uni now over, coming home to more emotional stress was exhausting. Kevin had sworn to do something about the situation as soon as he was able, even if it meant accosting Drake to determine what the problem was.

Reaching the apartment, Kevin fumbled through his backpack for his keys, tipping a wad of paperwork from the bag to scatter on the mat. Cursing his luck, he began chucking the documents back together, dumping what he could haphazardly back in his pack. However, when he brushed against the apartment door, the timber gave, swinging partially opened at his touch.

Surprised, Kevin pressed further, revealing a darkened apartment illuminated by the glow of hundreds of candles covering every horizontal surface within. The multitudes of small flames flickered surreally against the walls and ceiling, reflected from the large glass windows to create an even deeper illusion of space.

Curious, not to mention somewhat concerned, Kevin walked slowly through the doorway, absently dumping his bag on the kitchen bench, releasing another cascade of documents. As he reached the lounge he slowed his pace, spinning on the rug to admire the effect within.

It was beautiful, actually. Somewhat weird and freaky, but still...

Approaching the bedroom doors, he heard a faint murmur within Drake's room, muffled through the crack in the partially opened door. More curious than concerned, he quietly approached, lightly tapping on the newly painted timber and calling quietly "Hey Drake?"

A rustling from within approached and the door opened to reveal Drake, in full dragon form, nervously staring at him from the intervening space.

A smile quirking his face, Kevin looked up at him questioningly. "Hey?" he said quietly, as Drake took a deep breath before staring into his blue eyes with gorgeous ruby ones of his own.

"Hey", the dragon said quietly, head dropping before Kevin as he regarded his flat mate uncomfortably.

"So, what's going on? Something special?" quipped Kevin, a smile across his face, which quickly was quashed as the dragon leaned forward unexpectedly, pressing warm lips to his own. Through startled eyes, he saw Drake shudder, before a gentle clawed hand reached around his back, pressing them together.

After long moments Drake pulled away, a nervous smile crossing his lips. Kevin looked at him a bit stunned, stammering "Umm, what was that for?"

Drake rubbed his paws together, shaking slightly in the candle light, before releasing his held breath and turning his full attention back to Kevin. Reaching out to grasp his shirt gently, he drew him against his chest before backing into the darkened bedroom.

"For everything." Drake whispered softly, closing the door behind them.

"Happy birthday, Kev."