by Christy Shorey and you

ARCHIVE: NOV. 30 edited for spelling and grammar

4352 words

Laurallynn looked at the members of the high council and the high dean of the school who looked anxiously at her. "All right, I'll do my best."

Pyter gave a sigh, and Baleish collapsed into her chair. "Thank you," he said.

"If you'll allow me a few moments to get ready?"

The group of men left her room, and she gave a sigh of her own. She changed into her most unassuming gray gown, and frowned at how it still clung to her form. Not ideal, but it would have to do. As she left her tower room, she thought through all the pleas and logical arguments she could to get Marcus to stop, to convince him to step down and let the governing body resume it's duties. A quarter of the way down she admitted these were likely to fail, and started focusing on spells that she could use to quickly incapacitate him.

When she arrived on the hill where Marcus had positioned himself, she knew immediately that he was waiting for her. Of course she was the logical choice, the only choice now that the council had failed to win him over. As she climbed the slope she took note of the trees that blocked the hilltop from the nearby region. The field he had set up further out had not escaped her attention either. He wanted to assure they weren't interrupted, or ambushed.

As she neared, Marcus smiled at her, the predatory smile that always put her on edge. Laurallynn chanted a quick calming spell, and told herself that he wouldn't have that power over her today. She could not afford to be drawn in to his ego, too many people, an entire way of life, were depending on her strength.

When she reached the top of the hill, Marcus simply stood there, looking at her, is grin spreading. She wouldn't give in. She would make him speak first. She had a spell ready in case he started casting, one that only had a single word needed to implement.

His eyes took her in, lingering on the spots where her dress clung to her. Laurallynn steadied herself, told herself to ignore the feeling of her skin crawling, and focus on getting eye contact. Finally his eyes made their way up to meet hers.

"No fun," he said, when he got no reaction from her, and his smile was gone, as easily as a removed hat. Marcus took a single step towards her, and Laurallynn had to fit the urge to retreat that was filling her mind. "So, they finally got around to sending you. I wondered when they would. I was getting bored."

He started pace, a slow circle that would take him behind her, his eyes dropping towards her hips. Laurallynn matched his speed, turning to keep him in sight. He chuckled, and the feeling of her skin crawling returned with vigor. "No fun at all," he said, stopping to face her.

"Well, here we are then," Marcus said, "And you already know the way to end it all, don't you Laurallynn. But you are going to be stubborn, I can tell."

Laurallynn gritted her teeth together, biting back the scathing comments. Her own ego would be a detriment to her as much as his was at this point, especially given the stakes.

"So beautiful, so powerful, and so stubborn," Marcus said with a sigh. "Am I really so horrible as all that, that you won't consider my proposal?"

Laurallynn couldn't hold back her reply. "Yes."

This surprised Marcus, and his eyebrows arched, "Really? That hurts, it really does."

Hoping that Marcus wouldn't cast while she spoke, she decided that the best chance was to try to negotiate with him, to make him see reason. "You have broken the rules of the university, the laws of the society, and are simply using your power to feed your already over-large ego."

"At least you didn't say I wasn't attractive."

"Oh, you may be physically pleasing, but underneath, you are a vile creature, and that seeps through. I, personally, abhor you."

Marcus tsked. "Why don't you tell me how you really feel, Laurallynn? No since in holding back at this point."

In anyone else, Laurallynn would believe that such a line was hiding a deeper hurt, but she simply couldn't believe her words would affect him like they would any sane person.

"There is your mistake," Marcus said, replying to her unspoken thought, "Assuming I'm like other people, when really, I am so much more."

Laurallynn was unnerved by his none-too-gentle reminder that he was different, that he had natural sources of power she couldn't even imagine. What she said was "So much more arrogant."

"Speak of arrogance," Marcus said, resuming his slow circle, and waving his hand. Something in the distance rumbled. Pre-cast spell, waiting for the final element. Laurallynn cursed. He really had been preparing. "You won't step down off your high and mighty horse and grant my one request. If you did, all this," another gesture, another explosion, "would end."

Laurallynn straightened her shoulders, stood tall. "You will not have the satisfaction. If I agreed now, you would always know it was fear that had driven my decision, not anything resembling free will."

Once again an eyebrow arched. "You say that like it's a bad thing."

"Bastard."

Marcus stopped. "You hurt me." He took a step closer to Laurallynn, lowered his voice. "But just think of if. I could rule this planet, with you by my side. You might even temper out some of the mean streak that I've developed."

Laurallynn narrowed her eyes. "Arrogance again. You don't mean we could rule."

Marcus once more looked surprised. He gave a small chortle, as if Laurallynn had just told a fantastic joke. "You always were clever for a human. That's why you were able to match me. But you are just a woman. You could never be fit to rule, though I promise if you join me, I would listen to your opinions, and consider them above anyone else's."

"Except your own."

"Of course. You can't expect that you would ever know better than me, really," he laughed again.

"You underestimate us, that is your flaw," Laurallynn said through gritted teeth, her chest tight with anger.

"I know the power of humans, I have seen it over many of your generations, and I admit some of you are formidable."

"Not humans, women."

Marcus laughed again, and lunged toward Laurallynn. She was ready, knowing her words would provoke him, but his movement was quick, faster than she expected. He had grabbed her arms by the time she had summoned a spell, and was pulling her close as it was cast. A flash of light speed the short distance from her hands into Marcus's chest, the force pushing him off of her, and sent Laurallynn sprawling back.

Anger had made her choose the spell, and she watched with grim satisfaction as Marcus curled up, clutching his stomach, and writhing in pain as it took effect.

It was over in a few seconds, and Laurallynn watched in satisfaction as Marcus regained his feet, anger twisting his transformed face. "You'll be week for a while, I aged you quite a bit, I think. Surely not enough to kill you, given your lifespan, but enough to make you think."

As Marcus stood, eyes drifted down over body, and Laurallynn's foe cried out, "What have you done, you harpy?"

Laurallynn let the remark roll off her, and tried to bite back a laugh. She found her calm center, and spoke from there. "I don't think I aged you that much, but I do want you to live the rest of your shortened life learning respect for what we are capable of."

Laurallynn turned around and started walking away. "I hope you learn to enjoy being a woman."

She heard the now-female Marcus cry out in rage, and allowed herself a smile. She wasn't expecting the spell that hit next, knocking her to unconsciousness.

****

Margot still stood in the hall, her eyes bright with anger, or maybe fear. The bell rang again, and Dresden moved to open it. Kyle was on the other side, in the company of the pilot Dresden had met and a brown haired fellow. Dresden noticed the woman looked wary, and the man had an expression that matched Margot's.

"Dresden, I found I have a sister," Kyle said, and pointed at Lacey. Before Dresden could reply, he heard Margot's steps behind him. The man on the front step went wide-eyed.

"It's you," he said, his breath suddenly growing ragged. Kyle's supposed sister turned to look at her companion, then back toward the house. By that time Margot was trying to get through the door, knocking Dresden and Kyle out of the way.

"You've come back to taunt me again. Come back to see how weak you made me. Well congratulations, you'll have your wish granted, you will finally get to see the end of me."

Against his better judgment, Dresden grabbed Margot as she passed him, shouting at the stranger. The man was standing on the step, but when Dresden looked up it looked like his focus was elsewhere. Lacey moved to his side, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Logan, Logan, snap out of it."

His eyes regained focus, and went dark. Suddenly he was lunging at the still-restrained Margot, and Lacey was the only barrier between them. The girl stood her own, however, shoving a shoulder into his chest, and planting her feet against the movement even as he shouted past her. "You did this to me, you were too much of a coward to meet me face on, you had to wait until my back was turned."

Margot was trying to wriggle free, but Dresden managed to keep his hold. "You were the one with the low handed trick that made me weaker."

"I thought you explained later, before my first life was over, that I only managed to make you more powerful by aging you! You rubbed it in my face until you left, and left me to find out what exactly you had done to me."

"That's not what I meant," Margot practically growled.

Logan stopped struggling, and shot a scathing glare. "You still haven't learned humility or respect, after all these years, I see. I see again, I should say."

There was a tense silence, and Dresden was leaning back to keep his weight into keeping Margot from pulling free.

Kyle spoke then, surprising everyone. "Um, maybe we should do the shouting inside?" Margot finally stopped struggling, though Dresden still kept a firm hold on her.

"Fine," she said, and turned, dragging Dresden with her, until he let go of her. She stormed off into the living room, with Kyle close behind. Dresden turned back to the pair on the doorstep, and dragged his hand through his hair.

"Um, I guess you should come in?"

Logan nodded, took a deep breath, and went in. Lacey turned and looked up at Dresden, then to retreating form of her companion and back again. She shrugged. "I'm not quite certain what's going on..." she said.

"I've got a fair idea about part of it, but I'm sure we'll find out the rest soon enough."

****

Lacey looked around the room. Dresden sat next to Margot on the couch. Margot had her arms folded over her chest, and was looking dour. Dresden looked tired. In the chair next to her Logan was slumped back, also with his arms crossed. Kyle entered the room and handed out lemonade to the silent group. Finally she Lacey took a breath to break the silence. She felt three pairs of eyes turn to her; Kyle was oblivious, still handing out drinks.

"So you," Lacey said, pointing to Margot, "were turned aged, and turned into a woman to teach you a lesson, and in your anger made him," she said, pointing at Logan, "doomed to live life over and over."

Logan gave a sigh. "That's the short version, yes."

"And you didn't tell me before because..."

"Because I didn't remember it all until I saw her."

Dresden turned to look at Margot, and Lacey thought he was going to echo the question, but decided better of it.

Lacey sighed. "So you don't like being a women, I take it?" Margot glared at her. "Fine. Why didn't you do something to change it?"

"You don't think I tried? I've been traveling through time and space trying to find an answer."

Lacey shook her head. They had been here for several hours, and both Margot and Logan insisted that Margot was a dragon, that magic was real, and they were doomed to always be together on the same planet and time thanks to the spell Margot, then Marcus, had cast on Logan, then Laurallynn. It was worse than the lies that she told, but coming from Logan and Margot it seemed the absolute truth, grudgingly revealed through questions. And if she believed Logan had memories of past lives, if she believed the device he build worked as it did to collect dreams, why shouldn't she believe the rest.

She could tell Dresden had similar doubts, when Logan explained how they finally tracked Margot down, by having stolen his dreams. Some wordless exchange happened at that point, and Dresden stopped asking.

"What about sex change operations? Those are pretty advanced these days," Dresden was saying.

Margot shook her head. Dresden sighed. "Will you please speak out loud?"

Margot narrowed her eyes, but then spoke. "I tried. Several guises ago, before the process was that advanced. But once I dropped my guise to rest, I was a female dragon, and when I put back on a human form, it was female, as well."

Lacey rubbed her face, suddenly very tired with the whole thing. "So, if you both managed to screw each other with this magic, or power or whatever you call it, can you undo it?"

"You don't think I've tried?" Margot snapped.

"I meant, you undo his and he undoes yours."

Logan's voice was quiet, the first time he'd spoken in over an hour. "I think that's why I kept looking for you. To get you to undo what you had done."

Margot snorted. "You're just figuring that out this time? Usually you come storming up to me demanding I drop the spell on you. You're a bit slow this time around."

Logan narrowed his eyes. "Forgive me for not remembering things from one life to the next. I only just remembered how Laurallynn figured out, as she was dying, what you had done, and set up a way for her future selves to be connected to remember things."

"Because you always were clever, weren't you," Margot's voice was bitter.

"SHUT UP!"

All eyes turned to Dresden, who was now standing, his hands in fists at his side. He looked between Logan and Margot, and Lacey didn't envy his decision seeing the disbelief and anger respectively.

"Margot, if this has happened over and over, why don't you drop the spell you put on him? Her?"

"Because," Margot said through gritted teeth, "Then I'd be stuck like this forever. Remember, only the person who casts a spell of this size can undo it."

Dresden turned to Logan, who blinked up at him. Lacey picked up on the reasoning, and turned to Logan, putting a hand on his arm. "So, have you told yourself why you never undo the spell you did?"

Logan rolled his eyes. "I remember that she is always this arrogant, even now, insisting she is better than me, than anyone." He turned to glare at Margot. "Just because I was human."

Margot's temper flared. "Because you were a woman."

"See, even now she won't let go of that. Arrogant."

"And you weren't?"

"I had every right to be confident, if I remember correctly."

"Are you sure that you do? You seem to have trouble with bits and pieces - I guess your contingency was as perfect as you'd hoped."

"And you're just pissed because you have to remember."

Dresden stomped his foot, and the pair grew silent again. "This is more than just what it seems, isn't it. More than just a power struggle."

Lacey sat forward, interested, even as Logan and Margot slumped back in their seats in annoyance.

"Why do you say that," Lacey said.

"Because in fairy tales it always is. There is some underlying reason behind everything." Dresden turned to Margot, and said. "Why? You were the one who was rampaging all those years ago, threatening the country and infrastructure. Don't tell me because you can, I don't believe it. And I already know you think you can control humans, it's clear you knew it then too, so no need to do so, to waste your time with creatures that paltry unless you had an underlying goal. Why did this all happen?"

  Lacey watched as Margot stared at Dresden, and felt her own sweat rising with the anger in her eyes. Finally the other woman turned her head, and apparently deigned to give Dresden an answer, albeit silently.

"WHAT? Are you...of course you're serious. All of these years of grief, all of the agony you've both gone through, all because he - she - he wouldn't go out with you?"

Lacey blinked in surprise, and turned to look at Logan. He was staring at the wall, refusing to make eye contact with anyone. She didn't have to ask, but realized that it was the truth.

Lacey gave a small laugh, and sat back in her seat, amazed at how long a grudge over a broken heart could last.

***

*I don't like it.*

"Of course you wouldn't," Logan said.

Dresden gave a sigh. "Common guys. Can't you stop arguing for just five minutes?"

It had taken Lacey and Dresden several days to get Logan and Margot to agree to help each other. During that time Margot had grown so weak that she had to spend long stretches of the day in dragon form. Dresden remembered the look on Lacey's face when Margot had first changed, as if everything they had been discussing had finally sunk in.

Dresden had offered to handle things, if Lacey needed to leave, given how her job would not be as lenient as his in allowing for time off. She shook her head, and said. "I'm not a pilot," and left it at that. Dresden called in a substitute for the week. Logan quit his job with a fatalistic air. "I never like it anyway. And if this doesn't work, well, I suspect this will be my last life, why waste it working."

Margot likewise quit her job, and lay in bed in pouting for several days, or rampaging around the house, breaking things.

Finally yesterday she had come into the dining room where the others were sitting, discussing what Dresden had found in his studies.

*I apologize. I see now, after centuries of being a woman, that women do have skills that are useful, and that just being born a female does not make one less capable than one born a man.*

If Logan had found her apology dry, or sarcastic, he didn't say anything. He merely nodded, and said, "I accept your apology."

They had waited, after that. In fairy tales, when the individual realized their fault, admitted it, they found the affect could be undone. To everyone's frustration, nothing happened. Dresden wasn't clear on what, exactly, they thought would happen, but Lacey had been animate that Logan's past selves would advise him on how to remove the curse he had placed, and that in return, when Margot was restored to her true gender and age, would have the power to end the vicious cycle of lives that was plaguing Logan.

But nothing happened.

Now Logan and Lacey had returned, with Lional carrying in an odd-looking night stand. Dresden's housemate had given him an odd look, but left when Lacey asked him to.

*We're not even sure this will work*

"It's better than any ideas I see you coming up with," Logan retorted.

"Guys!" Lacey was just as frustrated as Dresden at this point. "It'll work."

Logan nodded his head, and Margot gave a shrug.

Logan put on a necklace, and reached out a hand towards the small red dragon sitting on the floor glaring at him. "May I?"

*Do it now, before I change my mind*

Logan touched her briefly, and quickly pulled away. "And you say you dream memories when you are in this form?"

*Yes*

"Can you pick which ones?"

*I can try* Margot's thought voice was strained, and Dresden could tell the ordeal was wearing on her as well.

"Fine."

Lacey took the necklace from Logan and put it into the nightstand, fiddling with some controls on it. Logan lay down in Kyle's bed, then, grudgingly, Margot trudged off to her room to lie down.

Lacey finished with the controls, and looked up at Logan. "Now we wait."

****

The dream was more intense than any that Logan had experienced before. He wasn't experiencing a jumble of events put together by a sleeping brain; he was reliving the moment, an event that had played back from his own memories so powerfully in weeks past. But this time he was seeing everything from the perspective of his foe.

The events on the hilltop played out just as Laurallynn had remembered them, but the emotions there were Marcus's. Logan had to force himself to pay attention to the details of how it felt to cast magic, playing back the dream later would only afford a visual recall, and not the memories he needed. Lacey was unsure if they used Margot's dream if it would be captured, as Logan's memory had been, and inaccessible later, by either Margot or Logan.

Even as the events played out, Logan was more aware of himself, asleep, watching the events - he wasn't locked in with the dreamer, but was able to observe objectively.

He saw his past self through the eyes of Marcus, who had been her rival in school, and whom Laurallynn always knew as disingenuine and arrogant. He was surprised to see there was real love in Marcus, and was overwhelmed with the emotion as the real battle began.

*Pay attention Logan* filled his head, and he snapped to attention, watching the spell casting, most particularly that of Laurallynn, the memory of which was now denied him. As Marcus he immediately understood how the spell worked, the dismay it caused, and the pain and anger that shot through as he turned the spell on Laurallynn, on himself.

The dream ended, and Logan knew what he had to do.

***

Margot looked up at Logan. She was so tired now, she wanted to close her eyes and go back to sleep. More so, she knew that Logan had seen the events through her eyes. As Marcus saw them. She had forced Logan out of the dream, out of the memory, at the point that Laurallynn would have forgotten. She remembered the pain, she felt at hurting Laurallynn, even after what she had done, even after she had caused so much hurt herself. Because Margot knew that Laurallynn had been right. Even as she was waking, Margot let the edges of the memory, the tail ends of the dream replay in her mind, and it seemed that it was someone else, someone else who had stood over Laurallynn, broken hearted, someone else who had returned to dragon form and had sung a mournful song of loss and ache over her, standing guard until the council appeared. Someone else who had fled at the sight of the humans rushing to one of their own, chasing her away, and shouting praise for a fallen hero.

"You don't get off that easy."

Margot opened her eyes, and saw her room full of people. But wasn't she just on the hilltop? Hadn't Laurallynn just fallen at her own hand? What had she done?

A warm hand spread on her shoulder, above her wing. She heard a familiar voice asking, "Is she dying?"

The image of a blond boy caring for her flittered across her mind, but skittered away again. She realized the question was warranted, she was dying. She pushed down the question, the thought of her death. She wanted to remember Laurallynn, remember what she had done.

The warmth spread, and enveloped her body. A voice, deeper than it should be, but definitely belonging to Laurallynn said, "There you are. Don't give up just yet."

Margot wanted to listen to voice, wanted to open her eyes, to see Laurallynn one last time, to apologize for what she had done, but she was just too tired.

As she drifted into peaceful oblivion, she heard another male voice, familiar, "Now what?"

And Laurallynn answered. "Now we wait."

***

"But he was so mean to you, to Laurallynn. I watched it in the dream, both yours and his. How can you be certain that he'll undo your problem now that you have undone his?"

Lacey turned to look at Logan, and was irritated by the smile that crossed his face. Irritated by his soft reply. "I just know."

It had been three days since Logan had rediscovered the magic Laurallynn had, and had undone its affects. The dragon had lay back down to sleep, not looking much different, but Logan had assured that the process was done. "He's no longer aged, and I restored him to being, well, him," Logan had explained to Dresden.

They had left that night, returning to the townhouse, letting Dresden and Kyle take care of Marcus restored. There had been no more memories hounding Logan, and no more dreams for him either. They had left the entire device at Margot's, no Marcus's place. Lacey had protested that as well, but Logan had merely shrugged. "I found what I was looking for. What good is it now?"

There was a knock on the door, and Logan went to answer it. Lacey followed quickly behind him. "Let me get the door," she said, not caring if he thought she was being paranoid.

He nodded, and let her by. She looked out the peephole and saw a familiar face there. Dresden was running his hand through gray hair. He looked exhausted.

Lacey opened the door, and Dresden looked up. He gave a wan smile. "Well, he's recovered, though I liked him better as a girl." He looked beyond Lacey, to Logan standing in the hall. Lacey stood aside and allowed Logan to stand next to her, but still kept herself ready to close the door. It could be a trick, for all she knew.

Logan put a hand on her arm. "You see conspiracies everywhere, now-a-days," he said.

"Do you blame me?" Lacey said. Logan merely shrugged, and turned to Dresden.

"Mar- uhm, Marcus send me with a message," Dresden said, scuffing his shoes on the step.

"Yes?"

"He's not going to undo the spell."

Lacey cried out in outrage, anger flooding through her, but Logan put a hand on her shoulder again.

"I understand," Logan said, "Thank you."

Lacey shook his arm off. "No! No, that's unfair. He can't do that! Why should you have to live plagued with memories like that? He was the one who was in the wrong, He's a bastard!"

Dresden recoiled at the last which Lacey had directed at him, but Logan's hand found her arm again, and she noticed a sense of calm spreading from him.

Lacey turned to look at Logan, who merely shrugged. "I remember how to use the powers Laurallynn had," he said by way of explanation. "And I won't have the memories anymore - they were something Laurallynn did, something I added to the spell myself- Marcus wouldn't be able to remove them even if he tried."

Lacey narrowed her eyes at Logan, suddenly understanding. "So you'll just continue on, life after life for as long as Marcus lives?"

Logan nodded. Dresden gave a small cough "Um, last bit of the message?"

Both Logan and Lacey turned to face him. "Um, he says, well, he says he looks forward to, well, many years, and hopes that, um, well,"

Logan gave a laugh, "Tell him I'll work on forgiving him, and after I do, THEN we can discuss ways to ensure that I'm reborn as a woman."