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He was recovering from the shock of learning that he had two daughters of whom he had previously been unaware. True he was already a father to he and Talea's son, but even before that he had sired a child, though only three beings alive knew anything about that. He didn't like keeping secrets, for they found ways of making themselves known. He was thankful that his wife had taken the knowledge with such good grace. The outcome could have been worse.

Still, he felt uncomfortable around the house right now. Talea noticed his discomfiture, but had no way of re-assuring him. Her opinion was that he needed to get out of the house and clear his head. An adventure would help take his mind off of it. But things were quiet as of late, boringly so. She needed something important to drop into her lap, something she could have him tackle. It was mildly alarming one day, when she was sitting under a tree, when an envelope did just that. She looked up and saw one of the messenger birds perched there quietly. "Good morning Raolo! What have you for me this morning?" The bird was often impolite, but for some reason, he was on best behavior today. "I's got a delivery from Godswind for your husband. Supposed to be all hoity-toity or sumpin. I's was told to wait until I's got an answer. Where's the worthless lout?" She cleared her throat. "That lout is my husband. And he's inside. I'll go get him!"

She found him playing his instrument, looking rather pensive. He looked up and smiled, though it faded when he saw the envelope in her hand. "Hi darling! What do you have there?" She handed it to him. "Special delivery from some place called Godswind. Ever heard of it?" His heart jumped into his throat. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, he thought. I do not need this right now. Whatever the letter has to say I do not want to try explaining it. "Yes I have. It's a mountaintop city not too far from Rockhaven." She pondered that for a moment. "When were you there? I only been to that valley once, a long time ago." That was easier to explain. "Old Clothahump sent me on an errand there a few years ago. I needed to transport medicine to help fight a plague." She scratched her ear, thinking. "You know, I believe I do remember hearing tales about something that happened over that way. Some kind of evil fog, or cloud or some such thing."

He was growing nervous. If she asked too many questions, he was going to feel committed to tell her the whole story.  He just stared at her, waiting for the other shoe to drop. She looked up at him and smiled. "You had better open it. Raolo is waiting to take back a reply." That was even worse. Feeling stuck for it, he slit the top and popped it open. There was no message; no letter. He reached in and pulled out a single golden feather. Talea squealed with delight. "Oooo! That's the loveliest feather I've ever seen. What's it for Jon-Tom?" He stood there, trying not to look like he felt, sick to his stomach. He handed it over to her. "I'm not certain, but something tells me it's important for me to find out. It may be nothing, but I would guess the owner of this didn't part with it lightly."

"You're right there, husband of mine. I'll tell you what. You go and find out all about it. Take your time. You haven't been quite right since discovering that you're more lecherous than Mudge!" He looked pained. Talea assured him with a passionate kiss. "I'm only kidding Jon-Tom. I told you before that you have no reason to be ashamed of your activities prior to our marriage. I'll have you know that you have excellent taste in females. I even like Roseroar too!" She started laughing at her joke, and he couldn't help but do the same. So it was settled. The messenger was given an answer and off he flew.

Jon-Tom gathered his traveling gear, gave his wife a kiss and his son a pat on the head. With that he sprang out the door and headed for Godswind. Once he was out of sight of his home, he pulled the duar around and went to work on the strings. He knew exactly where he needed to be, so any song by the Eagles should do. He was playing Hotel California when things got weird. He should have figured something would go wrong. The song itself was a bit messed up. Still, it took him directly to Godswind; right to the highest point on the tallest tower. And left him standing against the depression he had made in the mountain side with Mel-Aura.  He got his whits about him, reflecting for the moment on the full-body indentation he had left in the solid rock. He turned to the edge and looked out over the valley. Not a single flier could be seen as far to the extent his lesser vision would allow. Swallowing his fear, he stepped to the edge and looked down onto the city. Here and there he could see movement, but it seemed oddly quiet for the time of day.

His purpose had been to attract someone's attention. That person would then assist him down to the lower level. It seems that it wasn't going to happen today. He ran songs through his head, needing one that he could use, since each worked only once.  He thought of Bryan Adams' song Flying, but it had overtones that he did not relish. Still, it should work, as long as he kept his mind on the flying part, and not the other. His mind was quick to pick up on the fact that the song would have been better played when he was first here, some years ago.

He backed away from the edge and pressed himself against the wall, partially within his "mark". He didn't have Bryan's voice, but the duar had no trouble with the guitar part. In no time he was belting out the words, carefully trying not to stress some parts of the lyrics. He didn't need to be unfaithful to his wife, especially not now. The music careened off the rock walls and echoed down to th city below. He was curious what effect it was having, but decided it would be prudent to wait until he was done to look.

When he did, he was simply amazed. The streets, such as they were here, were a mass of black.  It was as if an oil tanker had ruptured and drained its entire load. But his eyes soon detected  individuals against the sea of ebony. They were all looking up to where he was, but none of them made any motion to help him. He found this rather odd. But that thought took a backseat to another, more pressing matter. The ledge under his foot gave way and he fell headlong towards the ground! He clutched his duar, trying to think of a song to save himself. He was slowed only by his cape, which fluttered wildly behind him, its clasp threatening to choke him before he could die by splattering himself against the ground.

He wished desperately that he could fly. His body tucked into a ball, including his cape which seemed to roll up and coat his body. In the next instant he was loose, his arms flailing out to the sides. The wind caught and he jerked suddenly upwards, no longer in free fall. He had no idea why, but didn't waste time worrying about it. Something was tugging his arms; perhaps his cape had gotten tangled. It was then that he noticed the cause. He was both relieved and alarmed. He was about to freak out when it dawned on him to wait until he landed, just in case.

The observers on the ground saw things a bit differently. Most had better eyes than humans, so it was not difficult to see him perched so far up. What he was doing there was the cause of much speculation. That he was the spell-singer seemed definite, considering the music flowing down from the spire, though why he chose a perch so high was beyond their knowledge. But when he jumped off and fell to earth, it was incomprehensible. He had no wings. Besides which, flying today had been banned by royal decree. Then his body seemed to curl up into a ball. The next instant it uncoiled into a small but perfect dragon, black with dark purple iridescent scales covering much of its body. Its wings found purchase on the air and not only stopped falling, but actually rose a few yards. It circled the city for a few minutes before coming in for a landing.

Most were awestruck by his display, not being granted the knowledge that his performance had been purely accidental and as much adrenaline fed as skill. A spot was cleared on the pavement, and he masterfully  negotiated to the spot, landing as light as a hummingbird. His heart was racing, not from any exertion, but from pure fright. He was so glad to be alive that he didn't even question the transformation. He simply said a thanks to what ever force had come to his aid. His eyes traveled the crowd, noticing that they all wore black. Unlike other animals who could change clothing readily enough, these avians had dyed their feathers. Whatever it was, it must be important. Black was rather ominous, though of course, his present form seemed to have adopted the colors of his clothing. Perhaps a magical compromise?

All eyes were on him, but he wasn't sure why. Was it because they knew who he was, or because he had turned into a dragon, or because, well; he really didn't know any other reason. A couple of eagles in palace uniform pushed through the gathering until they were face to face with him. "Who are you that dares defy the royal decree?" He spoke defiantly, but the fear in his eyes was easy to read. The spell singer wondered what rule he had broken. He debated a diplomatic answer, but opted for expediency. "By my mark, I am Jon-Tom the spell-singer, and I have been summoned here by Mel-Aura herself. I believe that supersedes any other royal decree. Am I right?" His voiced boomed out, but he made no other motion. The guard went from looking scared to relieved. Another stepped forward. "My apologies oh great wizard. We have not yet received word that you would come. The form you have chosen is not what we expected."

"You got that right," Jon-Tom murmured under his breath. A dragon was not something in his usual repertoire. Falezemar might be impressed, but then he was ten times bigger than his present self and probably hundreds of miles away. "If your  greatness would please follow me, I will escort you to the palace." Jon-Tom tucked his wings in, wondering why they were walking instead of flying. He was curious enough to ask, despite the fact that normally it wouldn't matter to him whatsoever. "Might I ask why we are walking?" "The decree is one of respect. The palace has asked all citizens to wear black and refrain from flying until the prince either recovers, or succumbs to the disease within him. All but one that is." That got his attention.  "There is only one person exempted from this?" The guard stopped and looked him in the eye. "I was told that the wizard Jon-Tom would arrive by magical means. Because the palace could not be sure what they might entail, you were given full freedom of the city."

Jon-Tom thought this over for a moment. "In that case, I'm wasting time on my feet." With that, he took off into the air, pumping his wings and shooting up over the rooftops. The palace was in view in a second, and in two more he was landing. More guards came running out, weapons drawn. Before they could fully come to bear, a voice cried out."Stop! It is he who has been called forth. Give him space to enter." As one the group slip to either side. At one end was Jon-Tom, at the other, a lovely eagle with feathers agleam." He walked up to her and gave a low bow. His dragon whiskers touched the ground. "Well Jon-Tom, you certainly picked an interesting mode of travel." He was about to explain how it happened, but she quieted him with  an upheld wing. "I have been waiting for you since I sent out my message. I knew the instant you were here. I was surprised you chose to arrive where you did. You aren't much for heights."

She was correct. He never had much of a head for high places. Funny how they didn't bother him as a dragon. But then, that made sense, at least for a flying dragon. "Yes, I tried hard to arrive in the palace proper, but I missed my mark." She gave him an odd look. "Seems to me, my old lover, that you found your "mark" quite well. Perhaps you needed to focus better. That fall could have proved dangerous, especially once you came in contact with the ground. Remember, it's hard to trip in the air!" He started to laugh at  her joke. She had said it once before when he had caught his leg in the forest. But something nagged him. "How did you know I fell? I got here before any of the crowd could have told you."

She extended a wing as an invitation. "Jon-Tom, follow me." Without looking back, she walked into the palace. He could but follow, wondering at her silence. The walked past more guards, all seemingly on edge. They came to a room he  remembered well, her private chambers. She spoke to one of the sentinels. "We are not to be disturbed except for news of our son." Jon-Ton followed her inside.  She turned  and pounced on him. "I don't know what I want to do with you right now! I have gone through more emotions since you left than I thought existed! You made me give up  my life debt to you and I thought that I would never see you again. I don't know which would give me more pleasure right now; sinking my beak into you or having you sink into me!"

"Whoa! Mel-Aura, I'm married now. I can't go around philandering in good conscience, even with someone I still love." "Are you lying to me?" "By my mark, I am not. Why are you acting so hostile right now? Have I done something wrong?" She was panting heavily, apparently in the throes of some great decision. It ended with her falling to the floor, crying. "Jon-Tom, you do still love me don't you?" He was beside her, offering an arm (well, a wing) up in support. "Yes. I've never stopped. You have no idea how many times I wanted to return. Of course, once I got here, I came pretty close to killing myself. I'm still not certain how I saved myself."

"Love lifts you up when the wind fails you. You need to have faith." He looked at her sharply, those words digging deep into his soul. A vague idea formed, brightened, and then lit up his mind like a torch. "It was you! You helped save me from the fall!" Her mood lightened. If she had had an expressive face, she might have smiled. "I believe so. I heard your song ringing deep within me. It stirred feelings and emotions I buried a long time ago. For some reason I now have the urge to mate. Why did you do that to me? It's unfair to tease me like this.  Especially now." "Mel-Aura, I know what happened and I apologize. I needed a song and I tried to downplay certain aspects of it. I guess I wasn't too successful." "Well lover, I guess it will work itself out. My heart went out to you when you fell. I could feel the fear overcome you heart. I wanted to rush to you, but was not close enough to help. I lost my soul for a moment and when it came back, I understood you were safe. You gave me a fright, Jon-Tom."

"How do you think I felt? But now what am I supposed to do?" He looked over as much of his body as he could  see. "This is pretty neat, but it seems to have combined my clothes, my duar, everything into one package. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to extricate myself from this anytime soon." Mel-Aura was sympathetic. "I'm sorry Jon-Tom, but you must understand that I had no idea what was going to happen. It all took place in a few seconds." He sighed, but then remembered that he had been summoned for a reason. His own problem could wait. "So your majesty," he said in a teasing tone, "how can I be of service to you? I caught wind of something about a sick prince?"

"Yes, Jon-Tom. The prince is either sick or under a spell. He is dying and no physician or wizard has been able to do a thing for him." The spell-singer raised his eyebrows. "Well, first off allow me to congratulate you on passing along the royal line. I will most certainly put forth all of my power to help him. But don't expect too much until I can change back. Without my duar I'm powerless." She gulped a few times before responding. "Jon-Tom, I don't know how much time he has left. I should have called for you sooner, but I wished not to interfere with your present life." He nudged her with his scaly chin. "Then please show me to him."

They were escorted into another spacious room, this one looking and smelling like a hospital ward. On a bed, covered in white sheets, lay a bird with gold and red feathers. He looked much like his mother except for the latter color, which was uniquely his. His eyes were sunken and his plumage, while colorful, had a dull weathered look to it.  There were stray feathers and a fine gray dust around him, despite the freshness of the sheets. Mel-Aura ran a wing across his forehead. "How are you doing dear?" He opened one eye, gazing from her to Jon-Tom. His eye opened wider, and his vision seemed to clear.  "I'm tired mother. But then I'm always tired anymore. Who is this?," he asked, indicating the dragon. "This is the spell-singer I told you about. I asked him to come in case his magic might help you in some way."

The young prince asked for assistance in sitting up in the bed. When he was in a comfortable position, he called Jon-Tom over. "Dearest sir, I have heard much about you. I am glad you have come. Though we will hardly have much time together, perhaps you can play your instrument for me before I pass from this world? I have heard it does marvelous magic." Jon-Tom extended a wing and did a bow. "I am sorry my prince. For the moment I am stuck in this form. Until I recover my natural one, I am presently powerless." The prince lay back against the pillows. "I had so hoped for a demonstration. Perhaps you might consent to sit with me and regale me with stories of your exploits. Mother has told me much about them, but I would love to hear them from your own mouth." "It would be my honor, young prince. I will come whenever you like." With a smile the prince eased back into slumber.

He and Mel-Aura returned to her room. "Jon-Tom, I don't want to lose him! Since you left he has been my only joy." She dropped to the floor in front of him, her eyes a pitiful sight. "I still feel that I owe you for saving my life, but now I must beg you to save his." "Mel-Aura, get up!" he said rather harshly. "I freed you from your life debt because it was the proper thing to do. If I can save your son, I will do so without cost." She looked relieved, but when she opened her mouth, only one word came out. "Our." He misheard. "Hour? I have no idea how long I'm going to stay like this. It could be an hour, a day, a week..." "No Jon-Tom, our. He is our son."

He froze. He had heirs in Colivra, but the answer to that riddle had been in a compatible transformation. He had a foal by the same process. But he and Mel-Aura had enjoyed a relationship free from any such possibilities. He had remained human and she had remained an eagle. Period. Finito. "Mel-Aura, I would love to claim him as my own, but we both know that it's impossible." She ruffled her feathers, obviously uncomfortable with what she had to say. "Jon-Tom, I would have been the first to agree. If I had known such a thing could happen I might have chosen another way of getting to know you. I don't regret any of it, even though this turned my view of the world upside down."

"Mel-Aura, the only way we could have produced offspring together was if you were human or I was an eagle. Since neither of us were in compatible bodies, I don't see how it's possible." She hopped up on a stool. "Jon-Tom, he has to be ours. I found out I was with egg well before I made any plans of looking for a mate and not long after you left. So unless he was created out of thin air, you are his father. Like you, I don't understand. I always wanted to tell you. But with his health failing, I determined I could wait no longer. It seems that magic brought him to me, and now its going to take him away. It's just not fair!"

He listened to everything she said, but his mind was reeling. Just what he needed; something else to explain to his wife. He was beginning to question every sexual partner he had since opening up to the possibilities with Roseroar. The only time he had purposely impregnated someone was Lorissa, though to be honest that had more to do with the unicorn spirit that occupied his body than with his own free will. True, the sex was pretty good, but still... But in each case the bodies had been the same. He couldn't imagine anything he had done that would have caused them to be able to produce a child. A child in an egg for that matter. But then, here he was in dragon form, talking to a golden eagle he had rescued after being thrown through to the future by an errant spell that nearly killed her. Why wasn't a child between them possible?

She started to say something, but he held up a wing to indicate he wanted quiet. He thought back to those days, with the disease running rampant, part of the forest destroyed, and her legacy in question. He had found that he had feelings for her, a painful realization, but one he came to accept. He had done his best to right the wrongs, the disease and the damage that had found its way into the valley. Somewhere in the back of his mind he heard an echo of his voice; "to fix the broken and to make compatible that which was not."  A groan escaped his lips. Mel-Arua had flown down into the forest after he had played the music that laid the spell. Moisture from the cloud had coated her wings, only later to be absorbed by her body. And they had been having sex regularly. The spell took a hold of their basic building blocks and rearranged them into something compatible. He really had to be more careful in the future. He slapped himself up side the head, a not very effective gesture in his present body, but it made him feel better.

Mel-Aura was unsure how to take his action. It was hard to read his features on a dragon's face. He saved her from wondering. "Well my dear princess, he is truly our son. It should never have happened and I blame the both of us, though there was no way of knowing at the time it would happen." "Jon-Tom, I already accept as fact that he belongs to both of us. If you have figured out how, I am at your complete disposal." He dropped to the floor, mentally tired but feeling rather proud. "My dear, the matter, as simply as I can put it, is this. You and I enjoyed each other's company for many weeks. But when I put the spell on the valley to heal it, I asked for more. Part of that was to fix the broken and to make compatible that which was not. What I had intended it to do was repair the damage between your city and Rockhaven. Apparently when you flew through the cloud that contained the magic I had called up, it latched on to you as well. And the only thing that was incompatible within you was my sperm and your egg. I don't understand magic all that well, but it apparently worked to produce an offspring."

She plopped down beside him. "And so it did. Are you upset by this?" "Of course not. But on the other hand, it has come as unexpected news. I should be frank with you. You know about Roseroar, and how I didn't stay with her because I felt that it would be counterproductive?" She acknowledged that she did. "Well the joke was on me. It turns out that one of her transformations was into a human, and that while in that form she became with child. So you see, I am father to two princesses of Colivra, and now a prince of Godswind. To further complicate matters, I am also the father of a young unicorn, the child of Lorissa of the clan Capell." She was too stunned to speak. He thought perhaps he had offended her. She finally found her tongue. "Jon-Tom, it seems that you owe me some stories while you are here.  You have been quite busy over the past years." As an afterthought she added, "A unicorn? Really?"

"Mel-Aura, you have no idea. But there will be time enough for stories. You need to tell me about our son. I must say that in the looks category, he takes after his mother. "Yes, thankfully (she was teasing him) he has feathers. He grew into a set of them as lovely as those you gave me, though he has his own twist. The red ones are unique to him. He looks like he is half eagle, half something else I can't quite put my wing on." Jon-Tom was going to refer to him by name, but it dawned on him that he had never been given it. "My dear, what is the prince's name? I would hardly feel like his father if I could not call him by it!"

He was sure there was a smile hidden by the stiffness of her beak. "I'm glad you asked. His name is Aerie." "Aerie! That is a fine, solid name for an eagle." "Yes, Jon-Tom it is. I gave him a second name, in honor of his father. His full name is Aerie Weather." She might not be able to smile, but he could, even as a dragon. " Aerie Weather - Merriweather. You said all promises made before my departure would be kept. You did name your firstborn after me, didn't you?" "I could do little else considering you are his father." "And seeing that I am, I believe it is time for me to visit with him again, and to figure out what is wrong and how to fix it."

"Do you think you can?" What could he say? "Mel-Aura, I didn't set out to have a child with you, but there is no way I am going to let you lose him if its within my power. If my magic could conjure him into being, then the least it can do is keep him alive." "But Jon-Tom, you don't have your duar? What are you going to do?" He paused. "I'm really don't know. But until I can ascertain what's wrong with him, it hardly matters. Shall we go?" She led the way back to the prince's room. She dismissed the staff, asking them to wait out in the hall. She called to her son. "Aerie? How are you feeling?" He stirred and opened his eyes. "Hello mother. I am no better and no worse." He looked past her to Jon-Tom. "Hello again! I am glad you have returned. Mother says that you would have some tales to tell me. I would love to hear them." "Son, I certainly have tales to tell, but to save time I will tell them to you both." The prince looked at his mother, his eyes questioning. "Yes dear, I told him. He deserves to know. I could not live with myself if you died without getting to meet one another."

The prince turned back to his father. "Mother named me after you. She told me of the wonderful things you did before you left, including producing me. She says it should have been impossible. My tutors agree that inter-species breeding is impossible. Since I am proof against that, might I ask how you did it?" His questions were direct. But then, as he was in failing health, he had nothing to lose, no embarrassment to suffer. "As a matter of fact, I just came to a conclusion on that matter. I will explain it later if you feel it wouldn't be impinging on your mother's privacy. Right now, I wish to see what I can do to save you. It is perhaps because of that magic that you are ailing"

He turned to Mel-Aura. "I would like to talk with the royal physicians, and whatever wizards you have had looking in on him." It was quickly done. In one corner of the room much discussion and animated gesturing took place. That Jon-Tom was presently a dragon seemed not to bother the group, seeing as they too had wings. Once in a while Jon-Tom would get irritated with this wizard, or that doctor, until he got angry with the lot of them. He went to bellow something. Instead, a thread of flame shot from his mouth, barely missing them. The conversation went cold. They were all looking at the burning remains of a tapestry on the wall. One of the guards ran and fetched a pail of water and extinguished it.

No one moved. "I'm sorry about that. I wasn't aware that dragons could actually breath fire. I would suggest that you all leave for now until I calm down. I don't wish to be responsible for incinerating anyone." They rather rapidly drained out of the room. The prince however, seemed delighted and intrigued. "Wow! That was cool! I wish I could breath fire! How did you do that?" The spell-singer smiled. "I'm not really sure. The hazard in having an unfamiliar body is not knowing its full potential." He stepped away for a private talk with Mel-Aura. "Your physicians and wizards haven't a clue what's wrong with him. The only things they could tell me in regards to his condition is that he has been running an extremely high temperature, and that he keeps shedding feathers and dark dander."

"Does this mean anything to you, Jon-Tom?" He was downcast. "I wish it did. There is something I'm sure I'm missing. His appearance gives me the impression that he is old beyond his years. I got the same sort of opinion from one of the doctors. But he isn't old. Another said that his body temperature should have killed him already, but that any attempts to lower it made him worse." She nodded. "Yes, that is true. We tried to bring it down early on, but he reacted badly to it. Jon-Tom, you should have seen him before this disease affected him. He was the fastest flier in Godswind and the most dashing male in the valley. He had females after him all the time. Now he just sits there, wasting away." She started crying again.

Jon-Tom would have consoled her, but his mind was working furiously. He was beginning to come up with an idea. It was crazy, but anything normal that had been tried had failed. He returned to the prince. "Son, I want to try something." He leaned over him and craned his neck around. He still retained some degree of healing ability ever since he had been a unicorn. He concentrated, forming a small spire on the dragon head of his serpentine body. This he touched it to his son, putting forth his full will towards restoring his health. The young bird glowed for a moment. But when the light faded he was still just as sorry-looking as before. But Jon-Tom stepped back with a look of wonder and understanding in his eyes.

Mel-Aura noticed and jumped to his side. "What is it Jon-Tom?" He smiled and looked at her. His whole body seemed aglow. "I can help him." He turned to the prince. "Aerie, I can fix your problem, but you will have to trust me implicitly." He turned to her and said the same. "You both must honor my every move without question. It will be hard to accept at first, but in the end it will set things right." They both agreed, though they knew not what they agreed to. Jon-Tom directed the prince to be removed from his bed and taken out to the courtyard. His mother made as if to protest, but remembered her promise and stepped aside. "Set him on the stones in the center of the square and assemble the lords and ladies there at once," he ordered. In no more than ten minutes the square was full.

The spell-singer directed the guards to keep everyone back a good distance. He then walked up to the prince and lay beside him. They had a private conversation. "Aerie, that from which you suffer is not a disease. I'm afraid if anyone is to blame it is me. But I can fix it if you trust me." "I trust you father. Mother says that you have great power. There has been no one else who has left his mark here quite like you. You saved her from death; I trust you to do the same for me." A good lad, he thought. "I appreciate the vote of confidence. But what I'm going to do might very well cause you great pain. It will be the only way of disrupting that which plagues your body." The prince gave a weak shrug. "I am sure I can handle anything at this point. What must I do?" Jon-Tom looked at him with pity in his eyes." "I'm sorry to say that the only way to save you is for you to die."

Aerie didn't look near as frightened as he suddenly felt. He was tired, and tired of being tired. Dying didn't distress him like it should have. "Father, I don't wish to argue with your wisdom, but could you explain it a bit better for me? I would rather not die without knowing why." The spell-singer laid it out for him, right down to the last details. Aerie's eyes grew wide. "Yes, that makes sense. But do you really think that it will happen?" Jon-Tom got up and walked in front of him. "I certainly hope so son. I'll feel terrible if I'm wrong."

The crowd was still murmuring about the dragon when he turned and approached Mel-Aura. "You will have to trust me on this. No matter what I do, no matter what happens, you cannot interfere. I have discussed it our son and he agrees with me." She could only bow in acquiescence. He walked over to a knot of guards. "You must keep her from interfering once I get started. It is all important. That goes for you as well. Any interruption could prove disastrous for those involved, including the prince."

It was now or never, he thought to himself. "Aerie, are you ready?" "Yes father. I'm curious to see if you are right. For that matter, I hope to the clouds above that you are." He closed his eyes and braced himself. Jon-Tom the dragon took in a lungful of air, held it, and exhaled a blast of fire. It engulfed the prince, who promptly caught fire. Mel-Aura screamed and lunged forward. The guards were vigilant and stopped her in her tracks. The prince stood up, but instead of screeching in pain, he flowed with the flames, becoming one with them. His feathers turned to glowing embers, with his body following in their wake. In seconds he was nothing more than a pile of ash.

Everyone was too stunned to speak or move. Jon-Tom alone moved forward to inspect the pile. He could hear Mel-Aura's sobs, but he was strangely unmoved by her despair. She only needed to wait a few moments; assuming he had been correct. The ash pile moved a little. He stepped aside and motioned to the guards to let her go. She raced forward, all anger and  rage. Right before she reached him he bellowed. "Stop!" The force of his voice knocked her over. He extended a wing. "My dearest Mel-Aura. Do you think that I simply solved the problem by destroying our son? Look!" She peered at the pile, seeing for the first time the tiny chick flailing around. As she watched, it grew larger and larger, gaining golden feathers, then red ones. It's tail grew to twice the length of hers. The only thing that remained unchanged was the prince's head. He shook off some stray ashes and looked around, bewildered. "So it would seem you were correct father. I must say, I feel much better like this!"

Mel-Arua was at a complete loss. Her son was dead, burned to a crisp by the man who helped bring him into this world. Yet here he was, fully restored. Restored? He was as restored as she was when he had brought her back to life all those years ago. "Aerie?" "Yes mother, it is me. I believe this is how I was supposed to be, but the magic did what it could when I was conceived. Father  and I talked it over. All I needed was a spark to ignite my inner self." She was stammering. "But son, you're not an eagle anymore. You're a, a, a..." "A phoenix?" There was no denying that. He retained much of his previous  appearance, but his form had shifted to more graceful lines."

Mel-Aura's gaze went from her son to her lover. "You could have warned me what you intended to do!" "You're right, I could have. But there was a chance I was wrong. It was a slim chance, but if you had any doubt about the efficacy of my magic, you would have forbidden me to do it. I gave that option to our son. He agreed with me that trying was better than his present condition. He chose well." She was still furious. "But he could have died!" "He did die! If he had died permanently, then I would have spared him months of agony. But it all made sense. His chronically high temperature, his dander, which was just his body trying to flame up. It was ash. And his affinity for fire. When I tried to heal him with my magic (he would explain the horn later) I found that he wasn't sick. He was trapped. His body wasn't yet fully phoenix, so he couldn't begin his rejuvenation phase. He needed a jump start, so to speak."

Aerie had been testing his wings. All at once he launched himself skyward. Jon-Tom looked over to Mel-Aura. "Want to join him? It may be the only chance I get to go flying with my son." Without waiting for an answer he too launched into the air. The guards looked to their leader. "Oh stay here. What the hell can happen that the three of us can't handle?" She spread her wings and headed for the sky. She soon caught up with them, now already high in the clouds. Jon-Tom was having a grand time, turning and spinning in the air. Aerie was matching him move for move. She was rather jealous. The two of them were now built for making better speed than she. The two moved in and each grabbed one of her wings. "Hold on!" They took off at break neck speed. The wind rushing through her feathers was unlike anything she herself could ever manage. She closed her eyes, trying her best to keep them from drying out from the wind blowing past them. She opened them when she sensed their speed decreasing.

The ground was nowhere to be seen. Even the clouds appeared far below. A bird was always comfortable in the air, but this even made her dizzy. They let go of her. She instinctively locked her wings in a gliding pattern. Her lover was on one side, and her son on the other. "Well Mother, what do you think of this? There were times I questioned that a human could have been my father, so I'm sorry for doubting you. But I still haven't seen his true form. Are you sure this isn't it? He takes to the air as gracefully as any experienced flier." Jon-Tom laughed, spitting fire into the sky with wild abandon. "My dear son, don't spoil this for me. I hope to be land-bound soon enough. In the meantime, I would like to enjoy the fact that I no longer have a fear of heights!" The three flew the length of the valley in no time, reaching Rockhaven. Jon-Tom had an idea.

He flew down towards the city, curious to see what would happen. He hadn't had a chance to inquire whether relations had been re-established between the two cities. His sharp eyes found the walls undefended, which answered it in part. He glided in for a landing in the street  in front of the wizard's guild.  The door opened and a dozen mages piled out, ready to do battle. He couldn't blame them. Dragons were as rare as unicorns and phoenix, and probably more unpredictable. Jon-Tom lowered himself into a submissive bow. "Might I inquire if the wizard Quash is present for a conversation?" A head poked out the door. It was the pine martin."I'm Quash. Who are you and what do you want?" "If you wish to know who I am, then quit hiding in the doorway and come forward. It is not a very polite way to greet another wizard." The martin stomped his feet nervously. "You're no wizard, you're a dragon. And dragons aren't to be trusted."

Jon-Tom was enjoying this way too much. "Is that so? Well I thought that wizards were trustworthy. I am familiar with one who told me about you. A young spell-singer who goes by the name Jon-Tom." Quash lit up at the name, but hunkered down again when he saw two shadows descending from the sky. He immediately recognized Mel-Aura, but his eyes nearly bugged out at the site of the prince. His eyes returned to Jon-Tom. "I see you travel in good company. Allow me to apologize for your poor reception. It is not everyday we are visited by a dragon (he bowed to Jon-Tom), the king of Godswind (he bowed to Mel-Aura), and a phoenix (he bowed one last time). The prince chuckled a bit, a golden, ringing sound. "Quash, you old fraud, it's me, Aerie!"

The wizard did a double take. "Young prince, what has happened to you. You look, well, wonderful, if not yourself." "You're wrong Quash. I truly look myself for the first time in my life. What you saw before was an incomplete me. With the help of my father I have found my true being!" The pine martin was unsure how to comment on that. "This is good, is it not? But who is your father? Until this moment, no mention has ever been made of him" Jon-Tom stepped in. "That would be me. You seem to have forgotten all about me; I'm disappointed." The wizard looked closer, but shook his head. "Sir, I would never forget someone like you. You are the first dragon I have ever encountered in my life."

The spell-singer took a few steps forward. "I may not look the same as I did then. But my colors remain as they were. Black leather pants, a purple lizard skin cape, a box of much needed powders..."

Quash ran forward and hugged the dragon. "Bless my soul, is that really you Jon-Tom? I never got to thank you for saving us from that plague. I mean, that was you wasn't it? Do you have any idea how much suffering you abated? I say, the way things improved around here after that cloud came in..." The poor thing was running amok at the mouth. Jon-Tom held up a wing. "Whoa! Slow down. Yes, I am aware what happened. Yes, I am to blame for the cloud that spread through the valley." "BLAME?!" cried the wizard. "I would hardly say blame sir. You did this entire region a lot of good. Everyone here owes you great thanks!"

Jon-Tom did his best bow. "I am glad to have been of service." The wizard was a bundle of excitement. "But why are you here now? And why are you a dragon? Oh wait, it must have something to do with the prince; am I correct?" "Yes, Quash it is. I was brought back to save my son. As you can see, I did an admirable job, don't you think?" The little wizard looked the prince up and down. "Yes, I would say you succeeded where we could not. I guess that might account for your present incarnation. But I personally..." The little martin suddenly went pale. "Did you say your son?" "Jon-Tom smiled, showing sharp white teeth. "Yes, I did." The martin looked from the dragon to the eagle to the phoenix. He bowed to Mel-Aura. "Your majesty, if this is some sort of joke, I'm afraid I fail to see the humor in it." She walked next to Jon-Tom and put a wing over his back. "There is no joke. He is the father of my child." "Bbbbut; tttthat's impossible!" stammered the wizard.

The spell-singer stepped up to the martin. "It's not impossible Quash, just very improbable. I'll tell you what. Make arrangements at the Havenhouse, and we'll discuss the matter. In fact, it might be a great time for me to regale my son with a tale or two." The wizard was about to set off when Jon-Tom halted him.  "Better yet, I'll make my own arrangements, but you had better come along to vouch for me. I might just give the old badger a heart attack." He turned to the prince and asked, "Son, will you do me a favor?" "Yes father, anything you ask." "Good. Here is what I want you to do." They held a short conference, where Jon-Tom laid out his plan. "Do you think you can find it?" "Yes father, I believe I can. When do you want me to leave?" "Give me time to make arrangements at the hotel, and then we'll leave together. You do your errands, and I'll do mine."

Mel-aura was bemused but sat quietly until they were done. "What exactly is going on you two? This is the first day that you've ever met and you're already acting like old conspirators!" Jon-Tom chuckled. "You hit the nail on the head. You see my dear, I'm in deep. Since I may be stuck as a dragon the rest of my life, it seems that I might as well keep digging the hole even deeper. Come with me and I will book a few rooms, unless you would prefer to go back to Godswind until we return." "I would prefer to known what's hidden beneath your feathers (meaning of course, what he had up his sleeve) and how it involves me." "My dearest Mel-Aura. What could I possibly do that would be worse than incinerating our son?" If she had not loved him, she would have sunk her claws into him right then and there!

After the proper arrangements had been made, father and son departed in a flash, awing a huge knot of curious onlookers that had gathered in the plaza of the hotel. Mel-Aura had decided to return the short flight to her city, to await word on when they had returned. Jon-Tom tore through the skies, hoping upon hope that his errand would prove fruitful. He covered great distance as a dragon, faster even then when he had been a unicorn. While his perspective had changed, the map in his mind kept him on course.  After a few hours a large city came into view. It dawned on him, rather belatedly, that his presence was going to cause a stir. He looked deep within his soul, calling out to Roseroar. He felt a pull, no more than a thread's worth, but it grew stronger the closer he flew towards the city. He took a chance and pointed his nose towards the palace.

His keen eyes spotted a tigress emerge from the front gate, doffing a robe in the process. In the next instant, she jump into the air, taking a form similar to his. Hers was bigger, and for some reason, white as snow. He had to fight an urge in this body that he recognized all to well. She met him in mid-air. "Jon-Tom!!!! What in the world have you done to yourself? Mind you, this body is wonderful but not something I would have ever considered trying." He grinned at her, feeling quite happy to be with her again. "Hello my love. I can find no words to tell you how glad I am to be here. How are the girls?" They flew in a slow circle around the palace, attracting shouts and stares. Jon-Tom indicated the commotion they were causing. "Perhaps we should either land or talk somewhere else. She agreed. "I have the feeling that there is a quite a story involved. Allow us to retire to my quarters"

She flew down first and transformed back into her normal body, directing the guards to lower their weapons. He landed in front of her. She turned and pounced on him, getting a near-stranglehold hug around his neck. "The girls are fine, and ready for taking the reins from me if the need arises. Tell me the needs arises!" He choked out a laugh, nearly spitting fire. "Yes, my dear sweet, svelte, striped love. The need does arise. Are you familiar with the city of Rockhaven?" That stumped her. "No, I can't say that I've ever heard of it. Is it a long ways off?" "If the trip was being undertaken by a couple of start struck lovers, I would say it would take months." She looked excited. He had to burst her bubble. "I'm sorry to say that this isn't going to be that kind of trip. As the dragon flies it is a matter of hours. And I am going to try keeping to the schedule I have set."

Roseroar was going to have none of it. "If it's that quick to where we're going, sugah, then I think we have time for a little fun." Jon-Tom waggled his head from side to side. "Roseroar, for one, I'm married and you know it. Second of all, I'm stuck in this body with no chance of getting out...I think." She looked at him with a look of skepticism on her face.  "I know you're married, you stupid human. That just might not stop me you know. Love is love, regardless. But are you serious about not being able to change? Where is your duar?" He sighed. He did a lot of that lately. "It's a long story which I promise to tell you over a meal." "Jon-Tom, what aren't you telling me?" "A lot Roseroar, a lot. It will have to wait. Can I assume that you are coming?" "Dahling, right now I would follow you anywhere you led me, even across the ocean again!" "Good. But I think you had better put a regent in your place. I want the girls to come along too." "Jon-Tom, what is it that..?" He stopped her. "Trust me. Things in my life have gotten really weird, and before I think the better of doing this,  humor me and grab the girls."

It wasn't that simple. There were a few complaints from the regent, but a little burst of fire from the mouth of a dragon quieted him down. Each girl would ride on the back of one of their parents. The extra weight would slow them down, but that would be negligible in the long run. Jon-Tom had two words of advice for them, "Hang on!" And with that they were off, propelled through the air on leathery wings. He was glad for the tough skin this body had, for he could feel Bastet's claws digging into his shoulders. There was no shame in being fearful, he thought. Until just a short while ago, he too had been rather intimidated by heights.

The trip went as smoothly as the wind and weather would allow. They stopped once to avoid a storm that cut across the landscape. He had recommended flying above it, but the girls nixed that idea. They landed instead. A half an hour later the storm passed, and two fairly dry tigresses came out from under Roseroar's wings. They mounted up and headed off again. He had them hit the valley at the lower end, largely so that they might get a good view of the land. They flew toward Godswind, with Jon-Tom breaking away and heading first. "They'll recognize me, even with the striped beauty on my back (here Bastet blushed) but you're a different story. Give me a couple of minutes and then come in for a landing."

He landed and allowed his daughter to dismount. He could feel the impressions her claws left in his shoulders, but they weren't serious. The guards eyed them suspiciously, recognizing him and therefore leaving him unmolested, but bristling at having a tiger in the city. Mel-Aura was out in a flash. "Jon-Tom!" Her gaze swung to the young tigress, who was standing in amazement at the sight of the golden eagle. Bastet did a little bow. "Your majesty." The eagle hopped over and addressed her. "We are of equal rank, I think, even if I believed in dwelling on such nonsense. Arise Roseroar!" Jon-Tom let out a hoot, and Bastet looked mildly mortified. "I am sorry your majesty, but I am the princess Bastet, daughter of Roseroar. My mother is presently awaiting word to land."

The eagle looked from the spell-singer, to the tigress, to the air. Sure enough, a huge white dragon, similar to Jon-Tom, was making its descent to the palace. On its back was a mirror image of the tigress standing in front of her. She looked to the spell-singer. "Uh, is there something that you've failed to tell me?" He bobbed his head. "Not failed to tell. I haven't had the time. The way things are right now, I thought it best to catch everyone up on pretty much everything, all together.  I can do that when we are all gathered at the Havenhouse."

Mel-Aura let out an exclamation when the white dragon suddenly turned into yet another tiger. Bastet introduced her, as well as her twin sister. "Your majesty, allow me to introduce you to my mother, Roseroar of Colivra, and Selif, my twin sister!" The eagle did a little courtesy, looking from one to another in confusion. She finally turned to Jon-Tom and asked, "Is this magic of your doing? It has every indication that it is." The spell-singer grinned rather sheepishly. "I would prefer to be modest, but yes, her ability is something that sprang forth from my magic. Just like your feathers and Aerie's form."

The tigresses were curious. "Who is Aerie?" As they we were gathered there in discussion, another flier came into view carrying something in its claws. It was the prince, and as he glided in for a landing he back peddled, allowing his load to drop to the ground safely. He landed lightly beside the newcomer. For her part, the human female looked bewildered and disheveled. She pulled out a brush and tried to untangle her glowing red locks. She was taking in the group when she caught sight of  Roseroar and her daughters. She ran to them. "What are you doing here? This is so very far from Colivra. And where is Jon-Tom? He said he was coming here to Godswind.." Roseroar interrupted. "Godswind? This is Godswind? He told me we were going to Rockhaven." She turned to look at the dragon.

"And we are. Why, do you have something against fliers?" She grimaced. "Jon-Tom dahling, you know me better than that. Godswind I've heard of. Tales have been told about the lost princess of this city, tales told to me by my father and his before him." Several things happened at once. Talea went slack-jawed and stammered, "Jon-Tom?" The dragon did a little bow. "Hello my lovely wife. I should take offense that you did not realize that it was me. But then, I don't think I would recognize myself at the moment." At the same time, Mel-Aura stepped forward. "The story spread as far away as your city? I am profoundly impressed." Roseroar left the spell-singer and his wife to talk, and came up to the eagle. "My dear, it is an honor to meet a descendant of that line. The stories tell of the king sparing no expense in searching for his daughter. It is truly a tragic tale."

Mel-Aura bobbed in respect to the tigress. "Yes, I have heard the tale only recently. It's ending is not near so tragic as you might think. I am she, the princess Mel-Aura!" Roseroar looked at her closely. She had not remarked before on the elaborate feather-work, thinking that it was some kind of  royal attire. But she  saw that it was indeed her own. That meant magic. And in this company, magic meant the spell-singer. Roseroar looked to him. "Jon-Tom sweetie, again I ask, what haven't you told me?" He looked up. "Funny you should ask, my wife just posed the same question. I've gathered everybody for just that purpose, the filling in of the details." He called to Aerie. "Son, did you find the others as I asked?" "Yes father I did. They were quite impressed and promised to join us in due course. "Talea and the tigress both did double takes. "Son?"  "Father?" The dragon nodded in agreement. "Yes, and yes." "Do me the favor of asking later. There are going to be a lot more questions before the next few days have elapsed and I would prefer to answer them only once."

The group was a little too distracted to organize into any kind of cohesive unit. Jon-Tom pulled them together with a  mild bellow, smoke drifting out of his nostrils. "Look, I know there are a lot of questions, but the sooner we head to Rockhaven and to our reserved quarters at the Havenhouse Hotel, then the sooner you all will get the answers you're presently hoping for." Roseroar took the lead and transformed back into a dragon, this time a much larger version with room for both of her daughters to sit. Talea climbed aboard Jon-Tom, leaving the two natural fliers to follow on their own. After they took off, the red-head leaned in and yelled above the wind. "I hope to hell you've got a good explanation for all of this Jon-Tom!" His voice carried back. "You have no idea what wonders will be revealed!"

The flight down the valley to Rockhaven was lovely, for they took their time, flying over the treetops rather than high up in the clouds. The city loomed up before them, sitting atop an outcrop of stone that was once called Gorol's Rock. They came in low, then pulled up, ascending towards the highest point; the penthouse rooms of the hotel. Jon-Tom had stayed in it once before, in the company of a very lovely eagle. His present reminiscence was starting to have telltale effect on his body, so he shut the memory down hard. He had enough to explain to his wife as it was. He landed on the balcony, finding that as instructed, the doors leading to the room were open. Talea climbed off and stepped inside. He followed, furling his wings to fit.

One by one they landed and entered. Roseroar had to transform before she could fit, but she was most comfortable as herself anyways. The room was prepared not only for rest and sleeping, but a large table complete with settings was situated to one side. Talea didn't miss much, noticing that there were place settings for nearly a dozen. "Are we expecting a few others to this little party of yours?" "Yes dear, I am. Not everyone has access to wings you know. I'm sure they will be along shortly." He was on the mark, for a few minutes later there was a knock on the door. Bastet opened it up, to find herself looking down on a suddenly frightened little hamster. He was kind of cute, she thought, with his little suit and all. He took her stare for something a bit more sinister and proceeded to wet himself. As it dawned on him that his pants were wet, he dashed down the hall, past a trio a few feet away.

The three headed towards the room. The tigress noted that they were human, though strangely enough, the two adults were without clothes. This was very odd behavior for many species, but especially so for humans who had nor fur to speak of. The little boy with them seemed familiar, though she was unable to figure out why. He alone had on clothes. The female walked up to Bastet and greeted her warmly. "We are here at the request of the wizard Jon-Tom. Has he arrived yet?" Bastet returned her greeting with one of her own. "Yes, he is here. Might I ask who you are?" "My name is Lorissa, and this is my son," indicting the adult male, "and this is Jon-Tom's son, Buncan." Bastet stood aside and welcomed them in.

Buncan espied his mother and ran to her. "Momma, I had the best ride ever!" Talea swept him up in her arms. "Little man, what are you doing here?" He hugged here and then squirmed out of her embrace. "They said papa wanted me here." She looked at the newcomers, her face expressing her dismay at their lack of clothing. "And who might you be?" The female made a bow. "You must be Talea. It is an honor to meet you. I am Lorissa, of the Clan Capell. And this is my son Rúndain." Buncan jumped in excitedly between them and shouted, " Rúndain is my brother!" Talea's jaw dropped.

When she got her whits about her she yelled one name. "JON-TOM!"

The dragon whipped his head around and recognized Lorissa. He therefore made the jump that the young man with her was their son. He came up to his wife, nudged her with his head apologetically. "This is going to take a lot of explaining, but in the end I hope it all makes sense." He spoke to his horse mate. "Hello Lorissa. Hello Rúndain. My you've grown up fast!" The nude female looked at the dragon, then around the room. Her gaze came back to the dragon. "Jon-Tom, is that really you? Don't get me wrong; you look good...for a dragon. But why are you wearing such a guise. You were much better as a unicorn." That raised eyebrows and set off an uproar of unparalleled proportions. The room grew so loud that they very nearly missed hearing the pounding coming from the door. By the time they noticed it had opened a crack. Quash stuck his head in, wondering if entering right then was a good idea.

The spell-singer pounced on him, literally if not actually. "Quash, it's good you could come. You're the last person I was waiting for. Please come in and I will see that the feast is served." The wait staff were notified, with additional instructions to bring up robes for two. In a short while, the servers came in, performing a complicated ballet as they carried in trays, plates and pots full of food.  There was cuisine for every palate, from fresh greens to roasted meats. The smells got to everyone, so for the time being they decided to abandon their discussions and feed their stomachs.

Buncan was a partial exception. The boy was hungry, but in between bites he was still yammering away to everyone there. His comedic antics drew smiles from the entire table, until the group had relaxed and was having a good time. Jon-Tom was having difficulty in eating, at least, eating in a manner that wasn't disgusting to the others. He tried following Mel-Aura's lead, for she had royal upbringing and lacked hands. But his mouth was bigger, and the food kept threatening to slip out.  But he bore it in good grace, especially since he was the only one so  inconvenienced.

By the time everyone was done, there was little food left to eat. The staff returned and retraced their steps, whisking away the dishes and settings. Even the tablecloth was replaced with a fresh clean one, and vases of flowers were set at intervals along its length. The hotel establishment had really outdone themselves, but he knew Gripsol was only trying to make for the saving of his daughter. The group had settled down to talking amongst themselves, but as host, it was Jon-Tom who would have to lead the conversation.

"You all know who I am, and I think that you have a good idea who each of you are in regards to one another. But let's make it formal." Pointing to each person in turn, he introduced them. "This is my wife Talea and my human son Buncan, this is Roseroar and my girls Bastet and Silef, and this is Mel-Aura and my son Aerie." Indicating the two humans, now comfortable in their robes, he said this. "This is my equine mate Lorissa and our son  Rúndain." There was a stir. Talea said tersely what they were all thinking. "Jon-Tom, they are as much horses as your are human right now." He took no offense. "You are absolutely, impeccably, correct. I, somewhere in this body, am a human. I presently cannot change. But they can." He nodded in their direction. They two stood up, dropped the robes and walked a few steps away from the table. In the next instant there stood two gorgeous unicorns, one a female in chestnut, and the other a huge black male.

The silence was deafening.  Rúndain took the quiet as a cue, and let out a whinny and flung his mane from side to side. He had found this effective back home. It was no less so here. Bastet and Silef both let out audible sighs. He spoke to the group. "I have no doubts that the wizard Jon-Tom is my father. Yet I know this only from my mother, and no other. I look around the room and I can see his good works, just as I see them in me. I think that we should share our stories, as father intended. We are a group unique on this world, and we should have that connection strengthen our bonds, not break them down."

It wasn't merely his words that had enthralled them. He had a voice like thunder; rich and deep; full of captivating promise. Probably a lot like he (Jon-Tom) had sounded when he was taken over by Merry Withers. It was no wonder everyone listened to him! Jon-Tom bobbed his head up. "Thank you son. I can do nothing but agree with your assessment. I would like to say I'm sorry for causing such a situation as this, but when I look around, all I feel is pride. Not in myself, but in all of you. This world would be in fine shape if there were a few more like you. But it's a big world!"

Talea piped in. "Well, my husband. What are the chances that there are more out there?" He got a huge grin on his face. "More than you would believe, though I would like to think that all of my offspring are gathered here under this roof." Roseroar added her input. "I gave up this human because I thought that we would never have children together. Once I found out that I was pregnant, I so wanted to have him back. But what he gave me was more precious than gold." That got him thinking of the words of her statue, and his gifts of gold. She had not meant them, but her girls! Sometimes he still managed to be stupid.

She continued. "I love him. He loves me. I think I know his heart as well as any.  I therefore believe that he has feelings for his other lovers in this room. It is the only thing that can account for such strong magic. You," pointing to Aerie, "are an excellent example. I can change to your form," which she did, getting the prince's full attention, "and then change back. But I will fundamentally remain as I was born. A tiger. My girls were conceived while I was human, but you were conceived between an eagle and a human. If this was possible, then why didn't he perform this magic before. As for the unicorn, I must ask the same question, for you see, I did not immediately recognize Lorissa in her human form. But she came to my city and we conversed. I even met her mate." Here she looked straight at Jon-Tom. "Her mate was a huge black stallion who had an awfully familiar name, Merry Withers. I thought at the time it was odd. Now I see why; it was you!"

Lorissa answered first. "Yes, your majesty. I am afraid it was my idea to visit. He didn't really want to." Roseroar gained an edge to her voice. "Is that so. And why not?" The mare shook her head sadly. "Because he wasn't certain that he could part with you again after seeing you in person. That was why he had tears in his eyes. And why he got a little excited during the ride. He was not too happy with me after that." Roseroar turned her gaze on Jon-Tom. "Does she speak the truth?" He was very quiet. "By my mark, she speaks the truth." The entire mountain behind the city rumbled to its very roots, sifting dust from the rafters and giving everyone in the room a scare, not to mention the entire city. Mel-Aura calmed them down and explained it. "She speaks nothing but the truth, as does he."

Roseroar ran over to him and put her arms around his scaly neck. "Oh I'm so sorry for feeling angry just now. If I had known it was you sugah I would have never let you go. But how did you manage to father two children outside your species? I know we figured it out between us, but an avian and an equestrian?" Mel-Aura took this opportunity to speak. "In our case, it was a spell he placed on the valley, one of healing and compatibility. He figured it out just a short while ago. He knew nothing of the prince until I called him here to try and save him. As you can see he did, for which I am ever so grateful. But he did so at the cost of his true form."

Lorissa stepped up. "My story, summed up briefly, is that Jon-Tom saved me from a spell that even his mentor could not undo. However, in trying to rid me of it, he called up the spirit of the ancestor of my clan, who inhabited his body, turning him from human to unicorn. This spirit dictated the course of events that eventually freed me and gave me my son. Even through all of that, I know that as a human, he has feelings for me." Mel-aura added, "And for me as well." Talea looked at Jon-Tom. "So, is there room left for me? Or am I your fourth choice?" He lowered his head with a look of pure anger. "None of you are any less or any more in my eyes. You cannot be compared, one to another. What I love in one is not the same thing that I love in another. And I have found that there is not a finite space for my love and my loves to fit into. With each one it seems to have grown. Otherwise, I would never be able to contain it all."

That set off a round of discussions that lasted well into the night. Luckily for Jon-Tom, his extended family took over the explanations involving their own situations, saving him his voice and his whits. He sat with Quash, who listened intently to snatches of conversation as he could. He finally looked at the dragon beside him and said, "That you ever so much for this. I have already learned two great things today." Jon-Tom cocked his head in question. "What did you learn, little wizard?" He was quick to answer. "I have learned that there is more possible with magic than I ever was taught in wizard's school. Secondly, I have confirmed that my choice of remaining unmarried is a wise one." The spell-singer nearly set fire to the ceiling in his fits of laughter.

Late that night, after everyone went to their own rooms, including a tired but excited Buncan, Talea joined Jon-Tom out on the balcony. He was silent, waiting for an explosion of anger. He felt a hand on his head, so he turned to look at her. Her face was expressionless, but her eyes said everything.

"You know husband, when I was a thief, I did my best to leave no evidence behind of my deeds. They weren't something to be proud of. There is little for me to look back on and feel anything more than disgrace in my actions. But not you. At first glance, you would seem no better than that dirty little fur-ball we both know so well. But now that I have seen everything that you have accomplished, no part of me can find fault in what you have done. I feel lucky that you held out for me. I see that there were several occasions when I could have lost you for good, and I shudder at not latching onto you sooner."

He bumped up into her hand. "There were times that I thought I would never have you. It was weird, taking that first step into looking at someone's worth, as opposed to what they looked like on the outside. My old prejudices melted away with Roseroar and opened up a whole realm of possibilities. Like you, I may not speak proudly of everything I did, but in the long run, many things have happened only because of my change of heart. I like to think the good has outweighed the bad. But I feel it's safe to say that there is no one in this world whose life has been quite as complicated as mine."

Talea patted him on the head. "Perhaps. Then again, anyone connected with you seems to get drawn in, so it seems more like a group effort. And its just as likely that it's going to take a group effort to get you out of this mess. I suppose I should thank Mel-Aura for keeping you from becoming a splat on the cobblestones, but you're not of much use to me like this." He let one side of his mouth curl up. "Is that so? You haven't even given it a chance, now have you." She looked at him, confusion clearly written across her face. His leer gave away his intent. She backed away in mock horror.  "Oh no you don't. If that thing is proportional to your body, there ain't no way this lady is trying the impossible!"

"I think I can coax this body's proportions to something compatible. Besides, when do you think you'll get a chance to do this again?" She rapped him on the head with her knuckles. "If you never change back, this is all I'll have a chance with for the rest of my life. I married a human, not some scaly reptilian excuse for a male!" He teasingly knocked her off of her feet with his tail, catching her in his wing. In a quick roll, he ended up on his back, with her plopped right down on his belly. He craned his neck and gave her his best dragon "come-hither" look. "Come on Talea, give it a try!"

She hesitated, but then thought that he was right. This was something she couldn't pass up. After all, it was her husband, who it seems was well versed in many species of females, so why not try him out as he was? She rolled off, stripped down naked and climbed back up. He got a hard-on right away, and it was rather large. But she watched as he shrank it down to something she could handle. It was still odd looking. It was deep red and knobbed on the end. She spread herself wide and pushed down over it. It was still a little large, but she said nothing. The feeling she was getting from trying to insert it was too good to lose right now. She grounded her hips in a circular motion, engrossed on the feelings it delivered. She was getting wet, and in a few minutes she was lubed enough to slide right over the tip and engulf the whole thing.

He let out a satisfied grunt, restraining himself from latching onto her and taking over. His present body was way to strong for those kind of shenanigans. All he did to participate was adjusting down a little more so that it would fit. The funny thing was, as far as she knew, his ability was tied to his present body. He had never bothered changing after they had gotten married, for she had found his normal size perfect and he wasn't about to mess with something perfect, especially in the line of sex.

She had never particularly divulged much about her sex life previous to their marriage, and he had never asked. With her former lifestyle, he could imagine most anything. But the fact was, she was nearly as xenophobic as he had been. He assumed that she was mostly against his friend Mudge, who would hit on nearly anything female. But in truth, she had been very selective in her partners, though none had been of the caliber he had managed to connect with. These new revelations made her rethink how she viewed her husband.

She had no complaints; not really. What she had said before had been how she had really felt. What happened before they were married was their own business. She had figured that if anyone was to suffer from their past, it would be her. Then again, he wasn't precisely suffering, though he was in quite a pickle at the moment. Speaking of pickles, figuratively, she was riding one right now. It had bumps in all the rights places. She hated to think it, but she liked this better than his human one, though there was nothing particularly wrong with it. This was just more pleasurable. If he could just turn back to himself, and keep this, she would be the happiest lady around.

It didn't take long for her to climax, and he followed right behind, filling her with more fluid than she thought was possible. But then again, his body was fairly large. She fell in a heap on top of him, gasping for breath. She couldn't help but notice that he was breathing normally. He had that annoying habit at home too. She could excuse it in this dragon body, but it was infuriating when he was human. It was like he could recover in a snap. Almost as if by magic... She slapped herself, mentally, and cursed. He was essentially a magician! There would be questions when they got home! But for now they both seemed satisfied and after a little clean up, she got under the covers and he curled up in front of the fireplace. He felt just like a cat.

Come morning he was awake early, just as the light came creeping into the valley. He stole quietly to the balcony and took off to stretch his wings. He was beginning to like this form, especially the flying part. The winds was coming down off of the mountain, so he had to flap to gain altitude. He was thinking that it would be nice to have company when he heard a noise behind him. He hovered in midair, watching in fascination as Roseroar jumped from the balcony as herself, only to turn into the gorgeous white dragon in the air. In a few wing strokes she was with him. "Well lover, care for a partner?" He couldn't have been happier. "As a matter of fact, I do." The sailed off down the valley, catching thermals as the sun warmed the earth. After a mere few minutes, they made it to the end of the valley and turned around.

"Jon-Tom?" "Yes dear?" he called back. "Are you certain you and your family won't come to Colivra? I do miss you so." He already knew his answer. "You know I can't. It's not that I don't want to, it's that it wouldn't be fair to Talea. She is already feeling second best, or fourth; either way she is rather insecure right now." The white dragon sighed, exhaling a thin stream of fire. "I thought you would still feel that way. She is very lucky you know. She is married to a king and a prince and indeed, quite the stallion. I still would give up my kingdom for you." A voice from nowhere said the same. "I would give up my kingdom too. But he has honor." They both looked up to see, for the first time, Mel-Aura. Roseroar was mildly miffed. "How long have you been there?" The eagle dropped lower. "Long enough. Give it up tiger. He is married and has a family of his own. Each of us lays claim to him, and rightly so. Perhaps your claim, coming first, is greater, but we must abide by his decision." Jon-Tom was glad for her intrusion.

"Thanks Mel-Aura. This situation is one of the most complicated I have ever had to deal with. I would like to do right by everyone, but I can't split myself up into four portions. Heck, right now, I have no idea how to transform myself from this form back to my old self. Until that happens, speculation of any sort is moot at best." They continued back to the hotel in silence. As they approached, Jon-Tom could see Talea standing on the balcony, shading her eyes from the sun. She stepped back as they approached, making room for them to land. "So husband, out for stroll?" He tucked in his wings and gave her a nod. "If that's what you want to call it. I felt the need to stretch my wings, and I was joined in my endeavor." She swatted his nose, gently, and exclaimed, "And you didn't think to ask me?" "Well, after last night I thought you needed your rest."

Roseroar and Mel-Aura both reacted the same way. "You made love to him like that? I'm envious of you!!" Talea took it as a compliment. Apparently they were till trying to get to him, but he was steadfastly sticking to her and their vows. He was a good man, despite his foibles. "Don't be too envious. I'm not walking real steady this morning." Turning to him, she said seductively. "I guess I got my ride in last night, didn't I?" He grinned sheepishly, a funny thing on a dragon's face. "There's more where that came from!" Roseroar and Mel-aura did their best to ignore their rather personal banter. The situation was saved briefly by the appearance of Buncan, who ran up to his mother, gave her a hug, and then pounced on is father. "Can I have a ride papa?" Jon-Tom was ready to comply when his son reached into his pocket and pulled out an envelope.

"Here papa! This came just before I left the house. I got so excited last night I forgot to give it to you." The boy extended his arm, letter in hand. "Uh son, you had better give it to your mother. I'm not quite equipped for holding something that small." Talea took it from the boy. The back was sealed in wax, with what looked like a paw print. She gingerly slit it open and withdrew the letter within. She had to read it three times before speaking it out loud. "To the Wizard Jon-Tom. Trouble in Desagi-End. Morrift. King and Queen in danger. Please help. Jollendu." She looked at her husband. "Who is Jolledu?"

He had an honest answer. "I've never heard of him. But I do have an idea what this is about. And it's not good. I thought that I had dealt with Morrift once and for all, but I guess I should have simply killed him when I had the chance." The gasps that echoed around the room, now filled with nearly everyone, was distinctly audible. "Jon-Tom, what are saying? You've never killed anyone!" That from Mel-Aura, who didn't know better. Roseroar and Talea disagreed, with the latter giving the details "That's not entirely true. He participated in the great war against the insects. He is well versed in killing. But he doesn't take a shine to it, preferring the higher road." Now she looked at him. "So if he says that he should have killed this person, I don't think we should take it lightly. Would you care to enlighten us, husband?"

He sighed. "This is a story I had hoped to keep under wraps. It's not that I'm embarrassed by it, but the consequences of it coming out could have severe repercussions. But now keeping quiet is moot. The fact is, I have to go. I'm not sure I can help, but I sure as hell am going to try. The message is already a day late in reaching me. I'm afraid that I don't have time right now to explain." He got up to head for the balcony, but a larger, white dragon blocked his way. "Look sugah, I don't know what's going on, but you have two choices. You can tell us now, or you can take us with you and we'll learn on the way. Which will it be?" Jon-Tom got angry. "This isn't your battle. And I don't have time to explain. And besides, I could end up telling you too much. So either get out of my way, or come with me and help!" He figured that the last part would deter them. He was still pretty stupid.

A chorus of "Done!" rang round the room. His heart fell. He didn't want to put them in danger. His wife spoke into his scaly ear. "It seems this little gathering may have been predestined. It looks like you're going to get our help whether you like it or not. Let's get to Desagi-End and find out what the trouble is. You can explain the problem once we get there." He was still reluctant to go. "What about Buncan?" "What about him? He can manage to cause his own mischief while we're gone. And besides, what is there out there this band of gallants can't handle?" He sighed again. "That's what we're about to find out."

He sat down and thought. As the dragon flies the distance was minor, but only he, Mel-Aura, Aerie, and Roseroar could possible fly, leaving his wife, the two tigresses, Lorissa and their son land bound. That would be a lot of weight between them. He was uncertain the eagle was up to the task. He said as much. Mel-Aura just glared at him. "Don't underestimate me lover. I know where the city is. If the unicorns change back to human form, I think we can all share the load." It was quickly agreed upon amongst themselves, leaving him out of it. Talea put her foot down. "I'll ride you, and no smart ass comments mister; and the rest will be divided up. We'll make it there in no time." He decided arguing was out of the question, so he lumbered to the balcony, told his wife to hang on and took off. Behind him was Mel-Aura with Lorissa and Aerie with Rúndain. He looked back in time to she the three tigresses jump off of the balcony. In the next second he was witness to the most amazing transformations ever. Roseroar turned into the largest flying dragon this world had ever seen.

Whether by chance or design, she was still white, but with dark stripes encircling her body. In each clawed foot was one of the girls. Her wing span allowed her to catch up in just a few beats. "Well sugah, what do you think of this? I bet I could carry the lot of you!" But she dropped back a little, knowing that he knew the direction to head, whereas, she did not. He was right. The distance wasn't far as the dragon (or phoenix) flies. The city came into view in no time. Jon-Tom was uncertain where to stop. If he headed straight to the palace, the group would likely come under attack, considering that there was a problem at the moment. He chose to  land outside the city.

They dropped into a field partially obscured from view by a grove of trees. Everyone who could transformed back to the normal bodies. "So husband, what do we do now?" He twisted his face up in a look of distaste. "I will need to send in someone to do some scouting for me." Bastet volunteered, but he dismissed her right away. "I'm sorry dear, but this would be best done by me. But since I can't I will need to send in either Rúndain or Aerie. Of the two, I think that  Rúndain will serve my need best."

The girls got up in his face until he explained. "I own a whorehouse here. The madame will know what is going on as well as anyone else. But she might not take kindly to a female showing up at her door. Of the three males,  Rúndain is the only one who might look like a potential customer."

The black unicorn shook his head in wonderment. "You own a what?" "Look, its a long story, and its connected with why we are here, though not directly. Its an awful lot to explain." Talea was standing with her hands on her hips. "You mean you have a house full of "girls" at your disposal?" He was getting a bit perturbed. "No, that does not mean I have a houseful of girls at my disposal. It means I needed to get rid of some money, so I bought the place and I haven't been back since. For all I know, it might have closed. But if anyone can help us right now, it's Vetish. So if you don't mind, lets get  move on it. I haven't the patience for continued explanations right now." He gave directions to his unicorn son, who trotted off to the city gate and disappeared inside.

They didn't have long to wait. When he came back out, someone was riding on his back. In time they two made their way to the field. Vetish looked older and wiser, but she was still bright in her eyes. "Which of you is Jon-Tom" The dragon moved forward. "Hello you old lady you! Taken on any young human males lately?" She ran up to him and threw here arms around him. "A dragon? You wizards are an inexplicable lot!" Talea agreed, under her breath. The honey badger looked around the grouping. "I must say, you continue in your habit of keeping high company. There is a story here, I'm certain, but I understand you are here for our present tragedy. I can get you to the palace. But I would suggest that only Jon-Tom comes for the moment. Everyone there is on edge, and a group like yourselves would provoke them into actions I'm sure they would come to regret."

Jon-Tom had her climb up, and he flew the short hop to the gate, where he landed and walked in, wings tucked against his sides. Vetish was full of questions. "Jon-Tom, why are you a dragon? And why haven't you collected your money due you?" He wasn't in the mood for her questions, but he needed her help, so he answered them as best he could. "I'm presently stuck in this form. As for the money, I have no need for it. You know I bought the place just so that you would take the money But that doesn't matter right now. What has happened at the palace?" She leaned down to talk directly into his ear. "Morrift returned with a vengeance. Out of the blue he appeared with a small army and stormed the palace, taking away the king and queen. The regent is in place for the moment, but Morrift has declared that unless he is made king, he will kill them and take the city by force. Since there is no one who can legitimately take over, there is no one to stop him."

A little smoke escaped from his lips. "That damn fennec is more trouble than he is worth. This means that I have to take over the kingdom. And I don't want to. And for that, among other things, he will pay a heavy price." They were within a few hundred yards of the palace grounds when they were spotted. Armed guards came pouring out, each holding a wicked pike. Vetish jumped down and ran interception. "Stop! This is the wizard Jon-Tom, whom Jollendu has asked for help!" The soldiers stopped, but kept a wary eye on the dragon. The leader sent a subordinate inside to get the regent, who came out rather timidly.  He approached Jon-Tom, but only while keeping a few guards between him and it.

"I was expecting a human. You are a dragon. Please explain." The spell-singer was out of patience. "No, I will not explain. You explain to me what is going on. I am getting tired of fixing everyone's problems, and having to fight them to do it. If Preala and Preasius have been abducted, then I need to get them back. And explaining myself to a little sniveling snot like yourself is only wasting valuable time." The regent got defensive. "I will not be spoken to like that, even by one like you. The only one here who has power over me is the king. So unless you are a king, I expect an apology." That gave Jon-Tom pause for thought. Technically he was king. But the evidence of it was in his cape, which was now magically part of his body. He turned to Vetish. "I may need your help." She readily agreed. He spoke the name with emphasis; Roseroar. He felt a rippling along his shoulders. It wasn't painful, but it felt weird. "Get up on my back and see if there is an opening."

She was confused, but did as he asked. She found it, a flap of skin separated from the rest of his body. "It's here? What do you want me to do?" "Reach inside and try and find a scroll and a box." He couldn't see her, which was just as well. She thought he was nuts. But then, he had done a few miracles in the past, so who was she to argue?" She gingerly stuck in her arm, half expecting to find blood and bone. Instead is was neutral, like placing her paw in lukewarm water. Fumbling around, her paws came across a variety of objects. She pulled out an apple, a blanket, a pillow. These she dropped to the ground. The guards looked on, fascinated. She founded a box and pulled it out. She swore she had seen it before. The scroll proved more elusive, put in time it too make itself known.

She went to hand them to Jon-Tom, but he directed that the scroll be given to the regent. He read it for ten minutes before turning white and dropping it." "This is not possible. I knew nothing of this. The old king never mentioned such a thing. But it is his signature. What does this mean?" "What it means, my little friend, is that until such time as conditions change around here, I'm happen to be your king." They entire group looked shocked. The leader of the guards questioned the regent. "What the hell does this scaly intruder think he is saying? There is only one king, and he has been taken." The regent shut him up. Looking at Jon-Tom and Vetish, he said, "Get into the palace. I will not have this nonsense bandied about in public."

They had to quicken their pace to keep up with him. The corridors were a little narrow for a dragon's stature, but they made it to the throne room. Jollendu locked the door and whipped around. "That document is the real thing. I don't know how you talked the king into such a thing, but your presence here will only compound matters. That is, unless you are the reason the royal couple were kidnapped!" Jon-Tom about had enough of this little, whatever he was. "Look, Jollendu, I came. I can go. But I'm not. I promised that in the case of an emergency I would take over the reigns. Therefore I am. As for my right to be king... here." He motioned for Vetish to hand over the box. The regent opened it, then got a troubled look on his face. Vetish knew what it could be, but  was uncertain as to how it had come into being. She pulled the darkened material from the box and sniffed it. Her eyes grew wide. "When did you do this? I remember her and you being at the house at the same time, but not this!"

The regent was perplexed. "What are you saying madame?" She eyed the dragon suspiciously. "It means that this dragon, in his normal human form, bedded the princess and that she lost her virginity to him. That makes him king by default." The regent choked. "That's not possible. She was checked before her wedding. Her maidenhead was intact." Vetish pulled up her dress, to the dismay of the regent. "Look you little twerp. I have a maidenhead. Every girl in my house had one for the longest time, all because this idiot spelled it on us. Only the new girls don't. Preala must have had sex with him, then grew it back. But why wouldn't I remember that?"

"Because I spelled that information out of everyone who knew it, except for myself and Preala. Even the king forgot, but only after he made up this document. Preala gave it to me. I had rather hoped never to have to use it. But here I am. So lets get things straightened out. The sooner I rescue the princess..." "You should say  the queen..." cried the regent. "and her husband, the sooner I can leave." The regent was aghast. "You mean you really don't want the position?" "Listen you, I have assumed many positions, but being a king isn't one I shine to. As it is, I am already the default king of Colivra, a prince of Godswind and a few other things I'm not bothering to bring up. So quit your fawning and lets figure out how to save the real king, shall we?" By this time both Vetish and Jollendu were speechless, staggered by Jon-Tom's audacity.

The regent was most put off. "You are either an amazing wizard or a grand liar. Would you care to back up your words with action?" The dragon leveled his head right at him. "That depends on what kind of proof you want. I can fry you where you stand, or I can bring in others who not only can back my claims, may prove to be integral in saving your kingdom. The choice is yours." The regent chose wisely. "If you have those who can back your claims, in support of the king's document and the other evidence, then I will indeed concede that you are now king." Jon-Tom blew off a little steam. "OK you little pipsqueak. I am calling for the others. Your job at present is to keep the guards from getting the crap kicked out of them if they try to interfere. 

The warning was heeded, and a good thing too, for his ire had been transmitted through his call to Roseroar and the others. She had felt it in their shared connection and nearly flew to the palace in dragon form. As it was, the three tigresses marching in step, followed by two unicorns, one flanked by a red-headed human was enough to draw out crowds into the street. The soldiers parted, their weapons held to their side, and silently watched them enter the palace. The regent nearly coughed up a lung. In a few seconds he was surrounded by the most menacing group he had ever seen. Even those who had attacked the palace and made off with the royal couple had not seemed this dangerous.

He had only two words for Jon-Tom. With a bow he said, "Your majesty." Roseroar looked down on the little animal with distaste. "Fossa. I don't trust them any further than I can throw them. I take that back. Considering how far I could throw him, I wouldn't trust him a third of that distance." Jon-Tom ran the name through his head. Fossa. Again with the weird animals. He wasn't worried about that right now, but his first lover's assessment did. "What do you mean Roseroar?" She was sniffing him, wrinkling her nose. "Fossa are sneaky little ingrates. You never put one in a position of power. I can't say anything about this one, but I wouldn't trust him at all. Is he this king you spoke of?"

"No, he's just the regent. And apparently the one who sent for me. Though maybe he was hoping for someone a little smaller and easier to deal with. Now that you mention it, this could be a trap, set in motion by Morrift." He turned on the fossa, who was already running for the door. Talea tackled him before his hand reached the knob. His call for help was cut short when her fist came down on the back of his head. "Damn that felt good! I have been wanting to punch something for a day now."

The others gathered around the limp body. "You didn't kill him, did you?" "Naw. I just put him to sleep for a while. He'll wake up with a splitting headache though. What do we do with him?" Roseroar had an idea. "We could always call the kitchen staff and have them dress him out." Her grin was to show she wasn't serious.

The tigress then turned a questioning stare on Jon-Tom. "What do you mean, you're king now?" One does not simply walk in and make that claim." He nodded to Vetish, who handed over the scroll. The tigress pondered it in silence, for the whole room was waiting to hear what it said. When she was done, she keep her answer succinct. "Apparently Jon-Tom is king." She turned on him in disgust. "You accept being king here, and not with me? I think you need to do some more explaining!" Smoke curled from his nostrils. "I'm not certain that I can devote that much time to it, but know this; due to circumstances not entirely within my control, I inadvertently deflowered the princess, which made me king. However, I found a suitable suitor for her which relieved me of those duties. No one remembers our, uh, indiscretion due to a spell I placed over everyone who was aware of it, even Vetish here. The only ones who remembered we me and Preala. An earlier spell I didn't mean to do made everyone in the whorehouse a virgin again...repeatedly. So there was no evidence to say otherwise. But the king made up this decree prior to the amnesia spell, so the only ones who knew about it were the two of us. So now I am king, leastwise until I can return the rightful rulers to their places."

Roseroar looked sour, but only until she sorted the matter out in her head. "You know lover, I think you have it in for royalty." He protested strongly. "I do not. I seem to get caught up in these things outside of my own will. I think that I have behaved admirably..." The tigress shut him up. "I'm sorry sugah; perhaps I should say that you have had "yours" in the royalty." The others broke out in muffled laughter, unsure how he would take the jibe. As it was, it was all he could to to keep from belching flame in his mirth. Only Talea remained sober. Mel-Aura patted her on the back. "What's wrong dear?" She looked from one to another of them. "You are all fine people and the point was well made. My husband could have made a life with any of you, but he chose me. I feel very small and insignificant right now."

Jon-Tom was to her side in a second. "But Talea, you have been my queen from the beginning. You know I was interested before I even knew the others existed. I said it before, and I will say it again, I love each of you for different reasons." She started crying. "But I'm not a queen; I'm not royalty. And I never will be. I'm just me!" Mel-Aura hopped over and spoke into her ear. "If he holds you in such esteem as to call you his queen, then he means it. But if that isn't enough for you, know this; as he is now officially king, you, as his wife, are automatically queen. So start acting like it." The tears stopped flowing. He eyes brightened. "That's right, I am!" All at once she lunged forward, caught the now wakened fossa, and clunked him on the head again.

They decided to tie him up to keep hm out of trouble. While he snored away, Jon-Tom had to make some decisions. For one, if he was expected to walk into a trap, it wasn't going to work now. Not only wasn't he human, but now the fossa who was to spring the trap was incapacitated. What he needed was a plan. Or a drink. Then again, he could just take over the throne and be done with it. The throne! Morrift knew nothing about him assuming the throne! Therefore, he was unaware that he had no chance at gaining it without somehow getting rid of him. What he needed now was to figure out some way of convincing the fossa to help. When he broached the idea with the others, Roseroar had two words, "Fat chance!"

Sure enough, when he awoke whining about his head, he offered no hope that he would be cooperative. Jon-Tom gave a few orders. "Unbind him and get him out of his cloths." The little tan colored animal stood naked in the room. "What are you going to do to me?" Jon-Tom snorted fire. "I'm hungry. And since you're no longer any use to me, I might as well eat you." The fossa stood his ground. "You would do no such thing!" For an answer he had to dodge a thread of flame that singed his feet. It was followed by another and another, until he was screaming around the room looking for an escape. But the group had every door and window blocked. In the end he fell to the ground panting, curls of smoke rising from his fur. "Please don't eat me! I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

Jon-Tom gave him the evil eye. "You know what, I don't believe you. And I am hungry. Since I can't seem to cook you, I guess I'll eat you raw." He lunged forward and grabbed him in his mouth. This caused more screaming. Jon-Tom dropped him on the floor. "I'm sorry Jollendu, were you saying something?" "I said that Morrift can be found at his summer house to the north of the city. He has the king and queen there. I was supposed to capture you and bring you to him. He said you were human. But you're the most inhuman person I have ever met!" Jon-Tom chuckled. "I love making a good first impression." He directed the former regent to be tied up again, sans clothes.

"Roseroar, how are you at turning into a fossa?" Wordlessly, she shrunk down to an near identical replica of Jollendu. But she was still female. He did a quick glance and found the differences to be minor. "If you wear his clothing, I think you will pass long enough for us to get inside." She changed back. "And then what dahling. He will be expecting a human, and you're not anywhere close to that for the moment." He agreed. "No I'm not. But then Morrift doesn't necessary know what I look like. I mean, we met briefly outside the whorehouse before the spell was placed on it, but I don't think he had any idea who I was. In fact, there was no reason for him to even realize I was a wizard. Therefore, I think that  Rúndain can go in my stead. As a unicorn, he has a certain amount of magic on his own."

Rúndain was quick to jump on the idea. "I would love a little adventure! But I will need some clothing before I would convince anyone I was you, father." "True. But then, what's the point in being a king if you can't exercise your power." But Vetish held him back. "Whether you are king or not, no one is going to accept you, not with the regent in the present condition he is in. You will need to proceed cautiously or else the kingdom may rise up against you. I would suggest you allow me to take him for clothing. You have plenty of money to spend, so why not on him?" He found the suggestion reasonable and sent them on their way. He pulled the regent's royal crest ring from the pile of cloths and handed to Vetish. "Show this to the guards when you leave and return. Tell them you're running an errand. And by all means, make it snappy!"

They left the palace, making their way to the best tailor in town. Jon-Tom was left still trying to formulate a plan. With Roseroar as a fossa, and Rúndain posing as him, that got those two inside, but not the rest, particularly himself. He was going to need help from the guards, for they at least were familiar with Morrift, and he with them. "Vetish, can you get the captain and bring him here?" She was non-committal. "I can try. I have no power here, only this little traitor does for the moment." But off she went. She did not disappoint. The guard entered, a bit warily perhaps, but he came. Vetish did Jon-Tom the favor of announcing him. "May I present to you, Krolleg, Captain of the Guard!" Jon-Tom walked right up to him. Normally he would have been a little intimidated by the cougar, but in his present form, he could tear him in two. The soldier was quick to assess that as well.

"Krolleg, whether you like it or not, I am presently your king. Jollendu is a traitor. So, if we are to get back the rightful king and queen, I will need your help. Please note that I am trying to give you a choice, but there really is none." The captain stood listening, then turned to were Jollendu was tied. He walked up to the whimpering animal. "This news would explain how a group of armed thugs could get past my men and into the castle proper. I have had my eye on him for some time, but he has been crafty enough to go undetected in his treacheries." He pulled out his sword and stuck the point right up to the fossa's throat.  He turned to the others without removing his weapon. "I will do everything to help, even lay down my life. It is my sworn oath, regardless of who is king. But when this is done, and if I survive, I want to be the first to thrust my blade into his flesh!"

Jon-Tom liked the idea, but weighed his decision on the side of caution. "I will leave that decision up to Preasius and Preala. But if they cannot be saved, I lay claim to that privilege." The captain did a bow and addressed his new king. "How may I be of service?" That was a bit better, but Jon-Tom hated the formality. But since it was necessary, he left it go. "I have a plan. It will involve you and a few guards. Can I count of you?" There was no hesitation. "Yes your majesty. Just say the word." The cougar was dismissed, and Jon-Tom went back to thinking. What he needed was to scout out the house. He drew on his mental map, ever so thankful that Clothahump had spelled it there, and went searching for the place.

It didn't take long. While not as big as his city dwelling, it was still constructed with all the amenities. But unlike the other, this one had a large wall constructed around it, and the top was lined with armed guards, all dressed alike but of different species. There were at least twenty of them on the wall. A few more were spread across the compound, and he counted only one or two inside. The made for around thirty. They could handle that many. He found Preasius and Preala. They looked worse for wear but otherwise intact. Morrift was in the room with them, looking ever bit like the mono-logging villain. But he was carrying a large knife, which he alternately stuck menacingly in the royal pairs ribs. Jon-Tom considered that. He would have to get the fennec out of the house before they could attack. Hopefully, he would do just that when "the spell-singer" was brought in, bound and gagged. The rest would be up to the fliers.

When Rúndain and Vetish returned, there was a little gasp from Jon-Tom's wife and lovers. Vetish had managed to find a tailor with just the right clothing. The leather pants were much fresher looking that his own, as was the lizard-skin cape. While he normally didn't wear a hat, Vetsih had thought it wise to shade his face, just in case someone would recognize that one was not the other. He had on a black shirt, open down to his sternum. He looked like the cover of a romance novel. "You look good son. But we don't have an instrument for you. I'm a spell-singer remember." Vetish pulled out an ordinary lute. "I think this will do. Since no one will be trying to perform magic with it, I think it will be sufficient. After all, he won't be carrying it, someone else will. Am I right?"

She caught on quickly. "That's right. Let's get our heads together and get this planned out. I hope to make this a surgical strike. I don't want to kill anyone unless it's absolutely necessary." That got him several dirty looks. "What then, do you call necessary?" "Hear me out. If all goes as planned, then we'll keep the death toll to a minimum." He laid out his plan, having to take time out to explain how he knew the layout of Morrift's country house. His plan was fairly simple, but not foolproof. One of the most important parts was going to be played by Roseroar. She understood what she had to do, but was a bit unwilling to do it under his directions. "If I have a chance, his head will roll!" They argued about it for half an hour before she relented, albeit with bad grace.

So the plan was put into action. Roseroar turned into a fossa, put on the regent's cloths and looked everything like him.  Rúndain was bounded with ropes, but not tightly. He had the end of the cord in his hand. With a delft jerk, his bonds would come undone. The guards formed a procession, leading the two out of town and towards the house. It took a half an hour walking, making the wait agonizing for the fliers. It was worse for Jon-Tom, for Talea had refused to be left out, and had been given a royal guardsman's outfit. But he knew she could take care of herself.

As the party reached the compound, the soldiers on the wall gathered to watch the incoming prisoner. It was what he had hoped for. If they were in one place, picking them off would be easier.  From their position far up in the sky, where no one would be looking, Jon-Tom gave the signal. He was waiting until the gate was closed and locked. As one the trio, Jon-Tom, Mel-Aura and Aerie swept down from the clouds. The latter two hit the men from the back, knocking many off in their first foray. Jon-Tom came in from the side, bellowing and breathing fire. The rest jumped for their lives, thankfully choosing the outside. Once they collected themselves, they found themselves locked out. That left only a few inside to deal with, including Morrift.

The dragon backpedaled and landed in the courtyard. Two guards were prone on the ground, their life slipping out from jagged wounds. He stopped by each and administered a little bit of healing, enough to keep them alive. He then moved to where Roseroar stood, holding the big-eared little fox in the air by his throat. She was particularly impressive looking for she stood there naked. The fossa's clothes had disintegrated upon her transformation. A quick look at Morrift found his eyes matched his ears, but whether from fear or the tigress' deadly grip he couldn't tell. They nearly bulged from his skull. "Roseroar! I told you, no killing if it could be helped!" She snarled at him. "I say it's necessary. You said yourself that you should have killed him when you had a chance. There's no time like the present.!"

He really didn't have time to argue. "Fine. Kill him. But his death will rest on your shoulders, not mine. If you spare him now, I have something better planned for him. But first I intend to rescue the king and queen. When I come out, I'll see what your decision turned out to be." Without another word he walked to the door, and using his head, bashed it down. No one came running out to attack him, meaning that all had been outside or someone was being cautious. Not wishing to be ambushed he filled up a lungful of smoke and blew it down the hallway. No coughing emanated anywhere in the house. Empty. He wound his way down until he reached the "dungeon." Like the front door, this one proved to be no match for his strength. It splintered into a thousand shards.

It was, however, narrower, and outside of his head, he could not get inside. It was just as well, for the two foxes looked horrified at his intrusion. It took a few seconds for his brain to register that he wasn't himself. He pulled his head back out and called inside. "I would rescue you, but I can't fit. You'll either have to wait for someone smaller or do it yourself." As an afterthought, he had the presence of mind to tell them, "By the way, I have been send by the wizard Jon-Tom!" Preala at least looked relieved, though the sight of his large snoot and large teeth still gave her the willies.

As it was, he had to wait until  Rúndain made it down the passage before they could be cut free from their bonds. Preala was first, and after giving a quick hug to her "savior", she walked in measured steps to the dragon. "Thank you, uh, sir, for coming to our rescue. Is Jon-Tom here?" He laughed inside. "Yes, he is here. As you must know, he is now king and none to happy about it. A group of us was sent to save you, which we have now done. If your majesty and the king would climb on my back, I think we can make exit of this prison and get you into the sunlight." Preasius had been listening to their conversation, but was loath to get on his back. "I think that I will just walk out with this fine fellow here," meaning Rúndain. Preala gave him a dirty look and scampered up on Jon-Tom's back.

He worked his way back, twisting through corners and up walkways. Preala leaned down, and in an undignified move, gave him a kiss on his back. "Thank you for your assistance. I will see that you are rewarded." She felt a rumble within his chest. "Was that a laugh, dear dragon?" He couldn't hold the truth any longer. "Look Preala, it's me, Jon-Tom. I didn't think you would believe me before, but you had better believe it now. Otherwise, as king, I may just have to throw you in the dungeon again!" She leaned down to look him in the face. He stopped a moment and returned the look. "If you are Jon-Tom, then what do you know that no one else knows about me." "That's too easy. I am the rightful king because I deflowered the princess, or rather she did it herself using me. And it happened at Madame Vetish's place."

She leaned in again, kissed him a little more resoundingly, and hugged his neck. "Oh thank you so much for coming! I was in trouble before Morrift showed up again...by the way, where is he? I'll teach that little rotten creep a thing or two..." They were moving again, making for the front door. It was barely hanging on its hinges, that is, what was left of it. Outside in the bright air, Jon-Tom made out that the severely injured mercenaries had apparently been healed, most likely by Lorissa. But Roseroar was still holding the fennec in a death grip. He wasn't dead, though he likely wished he was. When the tigress saw the spell-singer, she extended her arm and dropped him. "Here you go sugah! I thought you might still be hungry after eating that stringy little fossa. Fire away!" Preala jumped down and interposed herself between his fire and the fennec, not knowing the truth. "Jon-Tom, you will not kill him. His punishment is up to the king!"

He nudged her aside. "You forget that as of your kidnapping, I automatically became king. And this is my decision." Morrift audibly soiled himself right then and there. He fell to the ground whimpering. "Please don't kill me, please don't kill me!" Then part of his brain caught up to the conversation. "How could you be king? Only the princess was in line, and therefore her husband would be king. I should know." Jon-Tom shot a flame over his head, causing him to duck down again. His pants squished. "Look you little freak, what you see is not always what you get. I am Jon-Tom, the wizard. And it was I who emptied your pantry, your assets and replaced them with a pile of crap. But then, I think you figured that out. But what you didn't know was that the old king left a decree making me king if anything ever happened to Preasius and Preala. When you kidnapped them, you caused the decree to become active. And I happen to not like being king. So I would say your prayers, if you have god to pray to."

Preala jumped between them again. "I cannot allow you to kill him. Even after what he has done!" The dragon lowered his face, and stared right at her. Without a word,  he nudged her gently and winked. It quickly sunk in that this was a ruse, a fitting beginning to his punishment. Realizing that she had caught on, he blew smoke out his nostrils. "Look princess, if you have a better idea, than say it now. If not, quit interfering." By now, Morrift was crawling toward Preala, begging for mercy. She kicked him in the face. "You dare beg for mercy from me, after all you have done to make my life miserable? You have some nerve! The more I listen to you, the more likely it is I'm going to walk away and let him eat you!"

This little show was interrupted by the appearance of the rightful king. His gaze went from one to another, catching more than just the immediate surroundings. On the wall sat a truly regal eagle, and beside it a wonderful phoenix. As he turned to talk to  Rúndain, he was witness to his sudden transformation into a unicorn. Before he could react, yet another appeared from the gate, through which now marched a sad looking band of mercenaries held at bay by two savage looking tigers and a knot of palace guards. It was a bit much for him to absorb. "What is all this?" Preala gave him a punch. "It's our rescue party idiot," though she too noticed for the first time the eclectic mix of warriors. She turned to Jon-Tom. "I suppose there is an explanation for this?" "Yes there is. But as king, I have the right to keep that information to myself!"

Preasius let out an indignant yelp. "King? I am king!" Preala punched him again. "You were king dolt! Once we were taken prisoner, he became king. And so he remains king until such time as he relinquishes the throne. That was a little something father cooked up. Besides which, he has another claim, don't you sweetheart?" Preasius was getting more and more confused. "How do you even know this dragon? I've never heard you mention it before!" She punched him again. The spell-singer could see that there was some relationship problems going on. "This isn't a dragon you no-brain; this is the spell-singer!" The male fox looked him up and down. "If you are truly the spell-singer, how did we first meet?"  The dragon snorted. "In the shower room of a whorehouse. You smelled like shit." Preasius did a bow. "I am sorry for not recognizing you. I see your colors are the same, even it the body isn't. So you are now king? I can not say that I'm happy, but I offer my congratulations!"

"Oh no, you're not getting out of the job that easily. I came, I saw, I conquered; now I'm leaving!" Preala was up in his face. She spoke into his ear. "Oh no you don't. There are other things here that need fixing. I'll not allow you to to go until they are mended." He rolled his eyes. Smoke curled from his lips. "Preala, I'm not interested in fixing any more problems. I want to try and figure out my own problems, and see if I can fix them!" She stamped her feet. "No! You will stay, because your cannot leave by the decree which has made you king." She leaned in an whispered. "I have no child, and if I have no heir, you will remain king." This "simple" rescue just got a lot more complicated.

He could hardly whisper back, so he made no attempt to try. "If there is more that needs to be done, then we will see to it at the palace. By this time the rest of the palace guards had shown up to deal with the mercenaries, so the group made good time returning to the palace. Preasius made as if to sit on the thrown, but was cuffed again by his wife. "Until this mess gets sorted out, you are no more than a has-been, as am I. Jon-Tom, regardless of his form, will remain king until such time as I can produce an heir. Since you can't seem to give me one, I have few choices. It's too bad we couldn't produce one together!" Lorissa opened her mouth without thinking. "Why not. He did for me!" Jon-Tom glared at her. But the cat (and avian, and equine) was out of the bag.

It took a hour of explaining who they were and why they were together, and therefore why  they had all come to the rescue. She absorbed all of this information, giving in return an account of how she and Jon-Tom were connected. Preasius was familiar with some of it, but not all of it. He took umbrage when he learned he really wasn't king. "Why didn't you tell me everything? I feel you have deceived me." Jon-Tom gave him a withering look. "You're kind of whiny, you know that. I pulled you out of a cesspool, saved your life, and put you in the position to be king. And you were king, for I attended the ceremony. The mere technicalities don't really matter, but I am inclined to think that perhaps you weren't the best choice. I made the decision on the spur of the moment. Perhaps I was wrong." He now directed his anger at the princess. "If you think I am going to try and have a child with you, think again. For one I am married. And by that same reason, my wife is queen, and as I already have a son, that makes him a prince and heir to the throne."

That gave her pause for thought. He was right. He had no reason to help. But she knew he would, if for no other reason, he didn't want to be king. "Please Jon-Tom. Look at all of the good you did for these others. Won't you please help?" He started to say something, but Talea tapped him on the head. "Come now husband. You can surely help without breaking our vows, can't you?" He grumbled a bit, feeling more and more out of sorts. Sure he should help, and he might be able to help, but he could do nothing magically until he was back to normal. And his duar was incorporated into this body. He might as well sit up and play his chest. In a funk, he wordlessly left the throne room and found a balcony overlooking the city. Talea followed, but waved everyone else to stay behind.

"What's wrong Jon-Tom?" He breathed fire. "What's wrong? I'm stuck like this and people are still worried about themselves. What about me? I would say this has been fun, but nagging at the back of my mind is the possibility that I will never change back. Roseroar can pop back and forth at will, but not me. Lorissa and  Rúndain can become human. But not me. It's not fair!" He sat on his back legs and clawed at the air in frustration. As his claws came back down to his sides, he heard a noise, alien and yet somehow familiar. The vibration from it echoed in his bones. He took his left claw and ran it down his front. A series of notes floated across the courtyard below. Damn! He thought. Just like my cape, its been here all along.

Talea heard the notes and ran excitedly to his side, only to find no instrument. "What is Jon-Tom?" His anger evaporated. "My duar is part of my body. I couldn't see nor feel it, but it's here. My cape too. That means that I can at least try to spell myself back!" He repositioned himself as best he could, rested against his tail. He played around until he figured out the general position of the strings, and then tried to come up with a song. The problem was, no one wrote songs about dragons. Puff the Magic Dragon might get him to where he was now, but not back. For some reason his mind was blank. Then it dawned on him a possibility. It was in the name of a group, and the only song he could remember wasn't ideal. But it was better than not trying.

He began playing. Talea was used to strange songs, but this one was a bit odd, even to her ears. It was having an effect though, for the gneechees began appearing. In a flash, they lit up his body and vanished. So did he. She let out a screech that drew the others. When they found her, she was standing over a huge pile of scales, and nothing else. "What happened?" cried Roseroar. "I,I,I, don't know. He found that he could play his duar as part of his body, but something happened when he played. And now he's gone." She started sobbing uncontrollably." Roseroar reached down and pulled her up. "Feel inside you dear. I can feel that he is still alive, but for the life of me, I have no idea where he is." Talea did as she was told, and indeed knew in her heart he was fine.

Jon-Tom was patting himself down, relieved to be back to normal. A split second later he heard Talea let out a screech of terror that make him jump. She ran towards him and fell into the pile of scales that was all that remained of his former transformation. He tried to comfort her but his hands went right through her body. He looked sharply at them, and touched himself, feeling solid. But they passed right through her again. By this time the room was filling with folk. Roseroar was to the forefront, giving sage advice. He was only half-listening to their conversation. The other half was trying to pick up what had happened. For now he was out of the fire, but into the frying pan.

He had to think this one out. He knew the lyrics might get him, but not like this. The Human League had seemed his only choice, and the human part worked. But the song kept them from seeing him, and vice versa, a bit like in the song. Sigh. Oh well, one problem at a time. What he needed to know was why the couple had no heir. But like this, it was going to be difficult to ask her. She was now standing to the side. Preasius was trying to talk to her, but she was hushing him, finally stomping on his foot. Jon-Tom made as if to pluck a whisker in mock retaliation for her repeated abuse of her husband, but quite curiously found the stiff hair in his fingertips. At the same time she yelped in pain, and stuck her hands to her face. This was getting more and more curious.

The others turned to see what the problem was. Preala looked apologetic. "It felt like someone tore out a whisker." She pulled her paws away, and sure enough, one was missing. So, he could have variable influence over those in the room. He felt like a ghost, assuming there was such a thing on this world. Here, they were gneechees, so not quite the same thing. He needed to get Preala alone, or else with Preasius, so that he could coax the problem out into the open.

As it was, discussion began as who was next in line for ruler. There was much argument, but in the end it was decided that Talea, as queen, would take the throne, with the former rulers acting as advisers. It was hours later that that matter was settled. Talea was shown to a special room as her quarters, while the foxes returned to the royal bedroom. Jon-Tom followed. The moment the door closed, the two were at each others throats. Without going into too much detail, there were arguments concerning her connection with the spell-singer, his overall cowardice, their inability to have children. He listened, getting the gist of the problems. Tiring of their bickering he moved behind them and grabbed their tails, giving them each a hard pull.

They both jumped and turned. There was nothing there. "Did you...?" Her eyes were wide. "I felt it, just like before." They opted for the expedient action of running from the room, but a dresser mysteriously slid across the door. As they backed away, something caused them to trip. The looked wildly around the room. The only other thing out of place was a feather, a writing quill, which hovered above the writing desk, dipped itself into the ink, and scribbled across a parchment there. When neither of them dared to look, the paper floated down to them instead. This is what it said. "You are both a disgrace to the throne. How can you possibly rule a kingdom in peace when you cannot control yourselves?"

That started them arguing again. A sword came off the wall and made straight for them. The fight went cold. Again with the parchment. "You have a choice. Settle your differences or abdicate the throne. I will not allow my kingdom to falter because of you and your pettiness." Preala found her voice, though she kept it low. "This must be father, returned from the dead!" The paper returned to the desk. This time they were curious enough to stand up and watch as the words were written. "I approved of the human, because he had courage, strength and integrity. What I did not approve of was his inability to provide an heir. As of yet, you have done no better. I would like a reason for this." Preala stuttered a bit, as did Preasius. "I wish that I could, your majesty(?), but it has not been for a lack of trying. It is  indeed a sore spot between us." Preala elbowed him in the ribs.

So, thought the spell-singer. Here was the opposite of his cases. Here were two compatible beings unable to produce offspring. Since that was important for the royal line to continue, he could see where tempers might be getting a bit raw. But he hardly could interfere, leastwise not as she seemed to suggest earlier. Really, he might be able to change into a fox; after all, he had just been a dragon, but the heir had to come from her husband. So, if they weren't producing pups, one of them must be sterile. The question was which one? And then, once that was determined, how was he to fix it? He had stopped writing. Both foxes were fidgeting, waiting for more.

He put the pen to the paper. "You must put yourselves before the spell-singer. He will know what to do." Of course, he didn't really know what to do, but as no one could see him or find him, he had some time to think the situation over. Both former royals looked dismayed. "The wizard Jon-Tom has vanished. We believe him to still be alive, but we know not where he is!" The pen scribbled across the paper. "Be patient." With that the pen dropped, the dresser moved away, and the two sprang from the room, wisely snatching the parchment as evidence of what had happened.

The others were gathered again, and the meaning of the strange occurrence was discussed. The only one that wasn't perturbed was Roseroar. Since she knew her lover was alive, she had the feeling this was somehow his doing. If he said he could fix it, then she had faith in him. She waved everyone off to their separate chambers with the  words, "Like the paper says, be patient!" She returned to the guest quarters with her daughters. On the way there, she felt a tug on her tail. She didn't stop, but slowed down, allowing the girls to get ahead. She whispered to the air. "Jon-Tom sugah, is that you?" For an answer she felt lips on hers. She reached out and grabbed, but came away empty handed. Whispering again, she said, "If that's you Jon-Tom, this is not funny." A hand on her backside made her whip around. A barely discernible voice spoke into her ear. "Depends on which side of the magic you're on."

"Jon-Tom, it is you! What happened?" She had to strain to hear the reply. "I'm not certain. My magic again. Let Talea know that I'm fine, if inconvenienced. For now, I need to work on a plan to save the marriage of the two we just rescued. Seems that they can't have kids. I need to figure out why." Roseroar felt all warm inside. "Jon-Tom honey, you do what you need to do. We'll hold down the palace until you restore yourself to normal." She could sense his laughter. "Normal? My life hasn't been normal since I was brought to this world!" She felt his lips again. If he kept this up, she might just have to kidnap him herself. She knew a nice little place in the country...

They parted ways. He walked the corridors, thinking hard on the problem. He might be a magician, but he was no doctor. He couldn't fix what he didn't understand. He needed a song, but what song? He could come up with one, but what kind of lyrics did one write for this situation? After all he had been through, he would love to have a little peace and quiet of his own. He was beginning to understand that there was a heavy price to pay for all of his adventuring. Then it hit him. It might just work. He whipped the duar around and flung his finger's across the strings. "Eat your heart out Elvis Costello!" Peace, Love and Understanding flew off of his fingertips. Sure enough, he began to feel at ease, even finding a little love for Morrift. He shook his head. Those feelings were nice but he needed the third. And he got it. Information flooded into his brain at an astounding rate.

All he had to do was think about thinking something and he knew it. He was soon battling a flow of data that was overwhelming his senses. He forced most of it to the back, attempting to pull out that which he wanted. It was hard to do, a bit like trying to paddle a canoe up Niagara Falls. He struggled for some time until he instinctively yelled "Enough!" The flow stopped. Information leaked out of his skull and ran down on the floor, forming little puddles. But in this mess he found what he wanted. He went a little further and found a solution to the problem. All that remained was dealing with it.

He normally would have been stumped by the problem, since it proved to be medically related. Healing was one thing, but correcting a genetic malfunction was entirely another. But his brain was overflowing with information, so much in fact that keeping on subject was proving difficult. All he had to do was think a question and the answer appeared. That included information he really didn't want to know, like who his wife's first partner had been, who Roseroar' s had been, and so on. The worst part was he could actually see them in his mind. His brain was reeling from the overload. He finally managed to force it all down, leaving behind what he really wanted.

He walked to the room his wife was staying in. He played a few notes on his duar and waited. She didn't stir. He reached out and gently touched her, his fingers finding her flesh solid. He had to assume he was back to normal. He silently slipped into the bed and cuddled next to her. She unconsciously eased back into him. He fell asleep. He awoke in the morning to a sharp cry. "Jon-Tom!" He about fell out of bed. In fact he would have had his wife not had a death grip on him. "Husband, where the hell have you been?" He was still groggy. "I've been here all along." He was still trying to get his mind attuned to his present situation. She was not that easily satisfied. "One minute you were a dragon, and the next you were gone. Don't tell me you were here!"

He yawned and hugged her close. "I was here. Ask Roseroar. But I was invisible to everyone. It had to do with the song I sung to free myself from my dragon form. It switched me from one problem to another, but another song seems to have corrected all my present problems, and given me a whole lot more. She fiercely kissed him on the lips. "What problems could you have that we can't deal with?" He remained silent. "Jon-Tom, what is it?" He leaned forward and whispered in her ear. She looked at him with horror. "How did you know that?" He stretched. "I told you. I played a song to gain insight into the royal couple's problems. I got a lot more than I bargained for. You can ask me anything right now, and I'll have the answer for it."

She was debating on whether or not he was just baiting her. She decided he was not. "I'm sorry Jon-Tom. I didn't tell you because I figured it would cause nothing but problems. What are you going to do now?" He smiled. "The same thing I'm already doing; loving you as my wife and my queen. It was you who said that we shouldn't hold what we did prior to our marriage against one another. I don't intend to start now." She gave him a fierce kiss again. "Do you mean it?" "Of course I mean it. But when I'm done here, I'm spelling that information out of my mind!" She could only agree.

He climbed out of bed and got dressed. "Where are you going dear?" she called as he was leaving the room. "I'm king now. That means I have a lot of work to do. The first order of business is fixing the immediate problems. After that, I really don't know. Get dressed and come to the throne room after you've had some breakfast." That gave him pause for thought. He was ravenous, now that he mentioned food. "On second thought, lets get everyone gathered and eat first. While I can presently think on an empty stomach, my brain is suggesting that I eat first, act later.

So everyone was awakened. There was much rejoicing from his various loves-past at his re-appearance. The only one not seemingly surprised was the tigress. She still gave him a bone-crushing squeeze that lifted him off of the ground. The dining hall was laid out for the entire party. The palace staff was well trained at ignoring the activities that transpired within the walls of that place, but this grouping was decidedly unusual. They especially got worked up when they overheard that their king and queen were no longer in charge. Jon-Tom had purposely let the information get out as the best way of lubricating the way for the official news. The people needed to have an idea what had happened before he was announced as their new, if temporary king.

In between snatches of food, the conversation ran rampant around the room. Jon-Tom was too hungry to do more talking than was necessary. But amongst the problems that was mentioned was what to do with Morrift and his flunky. Jon-Tom pushed himself away from the table and stood. "The problem of dealing with those two has already been decided; by me. Their punishment will be placed upon them today. Therefore, it is no longer a matter for discussion." The room went quiet. They knew there had been some talk of executing them. Only the tigress looked happy. The spell-singer looked her in the eyes. "No dear, I'm not going to let you kill them. I have something planned that will be much more devious and subtle than that. I think that in the end, my plan will prove more to your liking than your own." She let out a snort of contempt. "We'll see dahling."

The group finished their repast and drifted out of the  dining hall and on to the throne room. Preala was the first to remark on his appearance. "Jon-Tom, I don't mean to be indelicate, but you are hardly dressed as a king." Preasius started to say something, but she cut him off. The spell-singer called her out on it. "Preala!" She whipped around. "You are the daughter of the king, but since your marriage, you are the queen and wife of the king. You need to start acting like it. Whether or not you love him, you will act your part. Therefore the first matter I intend to deal with is your present situation." Her eyes grew wide. She knew him well enough to know he wasn't bluffing.

"What do you intend to do?" He stood and towered over her. "I may do nothing. I'm not sure you deserve it. You see, the problem with you two not having children lies within you, not Preasius." Her eyes grew even wider. "How could you possibly know that?" He made a face. "I know more right now than I wish I did. The good news is that I also know how to fix the problem." Roseroar was curious. "So my old lover, what's wrong with this little ball of white fluff." Preala stuck her tongue out at the tigress. He ignored them both. "She lacks Fallopian tubes." Everyone in the room looked at him blankly. Talea spoke first. "I don't know what those are supposed to be, but they sound rather vulgar."

He drew in a deep breath. "If you had asked me about them yesterday, I would have no idea what you were talking about. But today is different. To explain them as briefly as possible, they carry the eggs from the ovaries to the uterus. Without them, the eggs get lost in the body and are reabsorbed. Therefore, no pregnancy can occur. Preala here has been blaming their infertility on Preasius, who is blameless. So is she for that matter, since it is a problem beyond her control. But she has been rather persistent in her blame, which has been misplaced. The result is a rather severe matter of matrimonial friction."

The former queen looked like she had just swallowed a pine cone backwards. But then, her pride was probably just as rough to take. She turned to her husband and got down on one knee. "I am so sorry Preasius. I should never have assumed." He smiled thinly and pulled her to her feet. "Apology accepted. But knowing the problem doesn't automatically fix it." He turn to the spell-singer. "If you know what the problem is, I assume that you know a way of correctly it. It is not something that they taught me in my wizard's training." Jon-Tom made a face. "There is a lot that they don't teach you, largely because they are old and ingrained into what can and can't be done. I on the other hand seem to be able to perform that which cannot be done. So to answer your question, yes, I can fix it. The better question is; why should I?"

There was an immediate round of indignant responses. He held up his hand. "I am presently king. I want to know what will happen should I correct the biological problem only to leave an emotional one that could wind up causing even greater strife in the future?" Both foxes looked abashed. Preasius spoke first. "You are indeed correct. Had we not been fighting between ourselves we might have noticed that we were being set up by Jollendu. I must ask what you propose we do to correct this difficulty?" Jon-Tom had plenty of retorts on his tongue, but all he said was this. "Go on a vacation." The two foxes looked at each other, then to him. "A vacation? What will that do to help?" The spell-singer was non-committal. "What you will get out of it depends on what you put into it. You will go right after I correct the remaining problems. You will not come back until you feel that you have matters straightened out between you. How long that takes is up to you alone."

He called for Morrift and Jollendu to be brought before him. At the same time he told the remaining males to vacate the room. He gave no explanation. The two criminals sat huddled together on the floor, tied back to back. Morrift narrowed his gaze to look squarely at Jon-Tom. "You! At the whorehouse. I talked to you on the street!" Jon-Tom nodded solemnly. "Yes you did. And if you haven't tried to warn me away, I would have continued on my search and left the city the next day. So you see, what has transpired is largely your fault. So now your fate is up to me to decide. But I have already made it." Without saying more, he turned to Preala. "I suppose there is no time like the present to fix your body. The sooner you two are gone, the better it will be in the long run." He pulled out his duar and began playing a song of his own creation, one that had both lovely music and powerful words.

When he was done, everyone in the room seemed no better and no worse for his playing. Preala patted herself down. "Did it work?" Jon-Tom got a crafty smile and turned to the prisoners. "Well Morrift, did my spell work?" The fennec went to say something, but his voice came out a octave higher than normal.  He choked and tried to speak again, to the same result. The spell-singer walked over to him, and kicked his legs apart. There, where a penis should be, was just the opposite. The fennec couldn't see, but he quickly got the idea of what had happened to him. He did the only logical thing and screamed before passing out. The fossa followed suit. Roseroar got the biggest grin he had ever seen on her face. "Jon-Tom dahling, you are one seriously disturbed fellow. What are you planning on doing with them now?"

He sat down on the throne. "I have absolutely no plans for them whatsoever. But I think I recall the captain of the guard being interested in sinking his sword into Morrift's flesh. He might want to reconsider using a different weapon, if you get my drift." He turned his attention to the fox. "Preala, you are restored to a condition such as you should have been. It is now up to you to correct the problems in your marriage. I want you to know something that you don't yet realize. Your husband is in love with you. It is the only reason he has taken the crap you keep dishing out. It's about time you figured out your own feelings." She looked both surprised and confused.

"Call in the captain and the other fellows now," Jon-Tom ordered. The cougar entered and eyed the two prisoners with distaste. "Yes your majesty," he said, speaking to Preasius. The male fox look embarrassed. "No Krolleg, for now you will address this human as king, for he is indeed a rightful heir to the throne. But if things work out as planned, I will be back to my throne and the kingdom will be better for it." Here he glanced at his wife. She managed a weak smile. The fearsome guard turned his attention to the new king. "So, your majesty, this is what you normally look like? I think I prefer the dragon; no offense meant, of course." A laugh rang down from the throne. "None taken Krolleg. I called you here for a specific reason. As you know, I have two prisoners that need to be dealt with. I though that you might take them to the barracks. When you're done with them, drop them off at Madame Vetish's place."

The captain was confused. He turned and stared hard at his charges, who were still unconscious. He started when he noticed the change in their...appearance. He turned to the spell-singer. "Is this a joke or something?" He was rewarded with a laugh. "No joke; simply a punishment I found fitting. Have fun! And one other thing. I don't want to ever hear of them or see them again. When they awaken, make sure they know if they are recognized outside of the whorehouse, their lives are forfeit! Oh, and captain?" The cougar turned to address his new king. "What is it sire?" "Krolleg, I want you to take the next two days off. You look like you could use some personal time." "But my lord, I don't need time away...oh, I see!" His eyes grew wide. "I will do as you say!" He picked up the prisoners and marched out.

Roseroar was gleeful. "I must say, King Jon-Tom, you handled that far more nastily than I ever would have. I think Morrift will wish that I had killed him when I had the chance!" "I'm hoping so. Of course, that will come soon enough once Krolleg gets out of his armor and into something more comfortable. Talea punched him in the arm. "That was a downright dirty trick to pull on those two. I wish I had thought of it!" Even Preala spoke up. "I think that there would be no punishment nearly as fitting as that which you have managed to spell up. But what of myself and my husband? Where should we go?"

He shook his head. "Go where you want. Do what you wish. For the time being you are merely a couple, out to explore and discover. Make sure its mostly about yourselves. Come back when two things have happened; you are on equal terms and you are expecting a child. Then I will step down and you may resume as the rightful rulers of Desagi-End." Preasius bowed but on standing asked. "But how shall we leave the city. We will be recognized." Jon-Tom grabbed his duar. "Stand close." They did, and by the end of his song they had vanished. No one dared to ask where he had sent them.

Roseroar looked instead from Jon-Tom to Talea. "You two are hardly dressed as rulers. And before you argue, remember that I am presently a king, so I am well versed in the proper apparel." The new king held up a restraining hand. "Roseroar, I was already decked out for this couple's wedding, and I have no intention of wearing white. I do have an idea for an outfit that suits me, and perhaps a similar one for the queen should my lovely wife approve." Talea gave him a questioning look. "You'll see," was all he would say. The tailor that Vetish had used before was brought in, and Jon-Tom walked away with him. When they returned the clothes maker looked like the king's request was crazy, but as it was for the new king, he would do his best.

His best was beyond compare. A week later King Jon-Tom was decked out in an outfit befitting a much more macho Elton John. It was entirely in black, covered completely in the scales of his former dragon self. Talea had a lovely dress trimmed in the same scales. Everyone had to admit, they were impressive looking ensembles. His extended family wished to stay longer, but they all had their own duties to attend to. Aerie had done the new royals the favor of picking up their son and bringing him to the palace. The little man was totally excited about his new rank. "Look mama, I'm a prince!" he burbled. As he was dancing about his mother scooped him up and declared, "You've always been my prince, my little troublemaker!" He giggled and slid out of her grasp.

The reign of King Jon-Tom, or as he became known, Merriweather the Wise, lasted only four months. It was early in the morning when two very tired and very happy looking arctic foxes asked for an audience with the king. He was more than happy to see them. Preala was obviously pregnant. Both of them were dirty and disheveled, but somehow they looked happier than ever. Their love was apparent from the way they touched one another. The spell-singer was glad. "Well, it looks like my work here is done. It's actually been more fun than I contemplated it would be. However, I will make the announcement tomorrow of the transfer of power. From there on out it will be up to you to handle matters as you see fit. Oh, and just in case you were thinking of excluding us, I expect an invitation to the christening of the new heir!'

It turns out the invitation was unnecessary. Preala gave birth a week later to two lovely white pups, a boy and a girl. There was to be a naming ceremony a few days later, once Preala was on her feet. The little pups were then shown from the balcony that extended towards the city, each parent proudly (and gently) holding them up for all to see. The spell-singer would have been surprised at their names, but by now he knew everything, even things that had not yet happened. Preasius spoke to his citizens. "Behold, your future ruler, Jonathon Thomas, and his sister Talea! May they rule like their namesakes!" Talea (the original one) started crying tears of happiness. Jon-Tom remained the unmoved, unemotional male. His wife kicked him. "Show a little joy husband! This is a happy occasion." She was right and he knew it, but his mind was filled with other things, part of which was...it was time to go home. He had a spell to sing, one in which he hoped to unremember many things, and especially to get this information out of his head. Being a know-it-all wasn't as fun as it sounded.