“So… that,” Phaedra said softly, her eyes lowered. She felt exhausted and like she could sleep for days, but she knew she didn’t have time for that yet. Hopefully soon she could colpse back onto the pillows of her bed and just melt. She gnced over to Yroth, who was sitting on the bed beside her, in her smaller kobold form.

  “I… see,” Yroth said. “So they know that you’re a girl now.”

  “They… yes,” Phaedra said. “You believe me? I half expected you’d have thrown a fit and started breaking everything in my room. Or worse.”

  “I would be lying if I said the thought hasn’t crossed my mind,” Yroth said before reaching a hand out to her. Phaedra pulled back from it, making her stop. “Morgana?”

  “Don’t,” Phaedra said softly. “I don’t… deserve it. I know what you’re thinking. I…”

  “This isn’t your fault,” Yroth said in a soothing tone.

  “It’s certainly nobody else’s,” Phaedra said. “I was the one who failed to protect this world. Even if I didn’t have the power, I should have noticed. You always talked about how strong I was supposed to be.”

  “Yet you weren’t,” Yroth said. “We should have questioned it as well. We didn’t. We ignored the fact that something was certainly wrong. Now the damage is done.”

  “And now my old friends are going to be paying the cost,” Phaedra said. “That’s my duty, isn’t it? I need to… I need to save them. I…” She fell back and rolled onto her side, hugging a pillow to her chest. Despite her best efforts to suppress it, she felt her wool growing out. “What if I can’t protect them? What if I can’t stop any of this?”

  “What are your goals?” Yroth asked.

  “Save my friends,” Phaedra said. “Save the world, I guess. Try not to die to the wrong person so the name goes to them. Stop all this fighting. Uhhhhh…”

  “You can’t change this world,” Yroth said slowly.

  “Huh?”

  “This world,” Yroth said. “You may be able to win a battle, a war, but you cannot alter the world itself aside from destroying all things that would make a choice. If your goal is to stop all fighting, you will fail.”

  “What, so I shouldn’t try?” Phaedra asked bitterly.

  “No,” Yroth said. “But you should not expect yourself to do the impossible. Countless wars have transpired between all nations. The demons may be strongest now, but one day they will colpse. Then perhaps it will be the angels, or the elves, or who knows? If you desire to turn our world into one of peace, you will likely fail.”

  Phaedra hugged her pillow tighter. “Well, what if I just want to make it so MY people never have to fight? So people can come here and feel safe?”

  “That, at least, is a far more achievable desire,” Yroth said. “One that has been done. As for saving the world… we do not know if there is a threat worthy of having summoned you here to begin with. That will require time. But getting your name, your correct name, will be required. That ceremony won’t be easy. Once it happens the world will likely know. We also must uncover what we can about that… spell… so it can’t destroy that pilr. As for your friends… that will be difficult. But I believe we can do it. We may need to fight and kill many members of your family. Including your father.”

  Phaedra curled up a little tighter, hugging the pillow closer. “I… I know.”

  Yroth stared at her before slowly reaching a hand out. She pushed through the wool and gripped her shoulder. “Phaedra… what was your family like?”

  “W-what?” Phaedra asked. “They were nice, I guess. I mean, demons and all, so it’s not always easy, but they--”

  “No, when you were human,” Yroth said. “In the human world. What were they like?”

  Phaedra gave a whimper and hugged the pillow so tightly some of the stuffing broke out. “T-they were… fine.”

  “Morgana,” Yroth said harshly.

  “They were… my parents,” Phaedra said softly. “They fed me, gave me a home, raised me. What more can I ask for?”

  “What were they like?” Yroth asked.

  “Why does this matter?” Phaedra asked, trying to pull away from the hand on her shoulder, but Yroth refused to release her. “They’re not here. They’re probably long dead by now.”

  “What were they like?” Yroth asked again, pulling the demon over and into her p, despite the wool.

  “They were… them,” Phaedra finally said bitterly. “They… just were. They… I don’t know. They were around, I guess.”

  “Is the fact they existed all you can really say about them?” Yroth asked.

  “You shouldn’t speak ill of your family,” Phaedra said softly.

  “Who told you that? Them?” Yroth asked.

  “Maybe.”

  “What were they like?” Yroth asked.

  “They were… there,” Phaedra said before sighing. Slowly, she managed to retract the wool around herself and gazed up at the dragon. “That was really it. They didn’t really care. I existed, I was their kid. Their property. That was it. They told me to be quiet, to not make a fuss. To be… grateful for what I had. They didn’t really help me in most things, but they didn’t make it worse. Compared to a lot of people, I was pretty lucky.”

  Yroth just stared down at her, her wings slowly enveloping the sheep.

  “At least, until I started to… change,” Phaedra said softly. “Once I started trying to be me, well, they really didn’t like that. Sure, they gave token support. ‘Oh, we support you! But don’t change your name, don’t expect us to tell anyone, don’t expect us to ever call you a girl, or treat you like one, but know we definitely support you.’ Then whenever I ran into trouble at work they’d always just tell me ‘Oh, well, maybe if you’d just stop trying to fight all of this and pretend to be something you’re not then everyone would be happy.’ So fine, no. I’m not the biggest… fan of them, okay? I don’t… want them in my life. I don’t like thinking about them. I HATE thinking about them. These demons feel more like they’re my family than they EVER did and most of them would probably try to kill me if they could! But at least they’re HONEST about it, they won’t pretend to want me to be safe one moment and then stab me through the heart when they get a chance! Okay, some of them will but not all of them!” She knew she was yelling by the end, but she couldn’t help it. “All of you were more my family than they ever were and you all thought I was… well…”

  Yroth gently wrapped her in her arms, holding her close. “You love your family, don’t you? The demons? The Wolf?”

  “I-I’m sorry,” Phaedra said gently. “I-I know I shouldn’t. I know it’s wrong. But they… he always… he’s…. and mom was… they… I…”

  Yroth’s arms tightened around her. “They were good to you. You poor, poor little lost mb. When you were alone and desperate, they were caring and kind in a way none of us ever were.”

  “It’s not your fault,” Phaedra said gently, leaning into the hug.

  “It was as much my, our, fault as it was yours,” Yroth said gently. “I am sorry for what you had been put through. I am also sorry that you may need to face those you care for. But…”

  “It’s my duty, right?” Phaedra asked bitterly.

  “No,” Yroth said gently. “It is not. We… will try and find another way. A way to make up to you for the wrongs our world has inflicted upon you. If the Wolf is not the grand enemy we believed… perhaps we will not need to take another family from you.”

  “And if he is?” Phaedra asked. “If my destiny truly is to fight him?”

  Yroth was silent for a long, long moment. Merely staring at her. Finally, she spoke up. “In that event… I believe he would be proud to meet his end at the hands of his daughter.”

  Phaedra couldn’t help but smile at that. “Yeah. Yeah, he would. Your world really is so weird. Both scared of death, yet seeming to run at it, full tilt. I’ll never understand.”

  “No, I imagine you won’t,” Yroth said before, very gently, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against Phaedra’s.

  The sheep gave a startled bleat and pulled back, her wool poofing out defensively again. “W-what?”

  “I do not enjoy seeing you so mopey and whiny, little sheep,” Yroth said, her hand moving up to grip her chin. “I find you far more appealing when you are flushing and squirming.”

  “I-I don’t think that really—” Phaedra’s objections were silenced by another firm kiss.

  “Do you not find this… enjoyable?” Yroth asked.

  “Y-you know I do,” Phaedra said softly, unable to keep her tail from wagging.

  “Then cease your objections,” Yroth said before, once more, kissing her. Within moments, Phaedra found herself on the ground, pinned under the dragon and enveloped in her wings. Her wool was no longer expanding to protect her.

  “T-this isn’t fair,” Phaedra said weakly.

  “I am an Ascended Dragon,” Yroth said smugly. “By its nature, any confrontation between the two of us would never be ‘fair’.”

  “T-true,” Phaedra said before, slowly, she lifted her arms up to wrap around Yroth’s neck and kiss her back. “I guess it’s not all bad, then. I’ll do better this time. Promise.”

  “I know,” Yroth said before kissing her once more and sliding her tongue into her mouth.

  Phaedra knew it was going to happen, but despite herself she couldn’t stop it and she gagged and shoved the dragon off her when the tongue pushed back against her throat. “D-don’t do that!”

  “Why ever not?” Yroth asked with a smirk. “You make such cute faces when I do it.”

  Phaedra tried to argue, only making a few sputtering sounds before squeaking and looking away. “Y-you’re evil.”

  “I never said I wasn’t,” Yroth said before kissing her once more. “We will figure this out, little sheep. You… will not be abandoned again.”

  Phaedra blinked and stared up at her, shivering for reasons other than the forceful dragon’s kisses. As much as she enjoyed the physical affection from the dragon, she felt she might enjoy those words even more.

  Yroth might not fully understand her, what she wanted. What she needed. But Yroth DID care for her and about her. Phaedra may have failed once, but things would be different this time. Because this time, unlike before, she wouldn’t have to be something she didn’t want to be.

  Even if all she wanted to be was a little sheep demon.

  MelodyAvant