Warning: Book Return

A full belly from his mother’s steaks made Jorseph feel sleepy. The lecture about his behavior problems through the meal didn’t help. he'd crunched more bones than usual because of it. Luckily a call from her job saved him from a longer scolding.

He’d already cleaned up and changed into a pair of striped gold pajamas printed with gold coins that felt airy against his scales. The wooden crate with Jorseph’s Horde Golds went in the closet on a low shelf. He wanted to wear them brand new on the first day back to school. He backed up from the open closet and flopped on his bed. His body curled around the mattress.

Cool, dry, night air blew from the bedroom window. It cooled the round bed supported by a round stone paneled platform at the center of the room. A pile of blankets printed with gold doubloons covered a lumpy rock shaped mattress.

This was the first time in a while that his video game system remained neglected after dinner. Claw flicked the light switch. The room became illuminated only by street lamps glaring through the window. Jorseph’s head felt so heavy his whiskers pulled him down. Claws sunk into the simulated pile of doubloons. He switched to ectothermic mode to keep cool while resting. A relaxed stream of air puffed from his snout as he slept with one eye open.

The room faded around him. His surroundings felt oddly restless. Usually, he dreamed of caves filled with gold or of flying through thunderstorms. This time, it was a busy forest of monkeys that filled his sleepy imagination. He couldn’t fly. Dragons had lost their ability to fly ages ago, but in his dreams, he’d never had this problem. Now, the canopy of the forest refused to let him soar.

Jorseph wandered through the forest walking upright as any usual modern dragon. His claws smacked away the vines and branches. Why would he dream of a forest? It wasn’t a place that dragons valued. The monkeys in the high branches screeched at him loudly.

He came upon a clearing, but remained hidden behind the bordering trees. A figure danced in the center. She was unlike anything he’d ever seen. She had two arms, two legs, and more pronounced curves than most dragon woman. Gradually, clothes formed on this shadow. It looked like a school uniform, but small, a bit frail for a dragon body, and without enough sleeves for more than two arms. A black dress skirt swayed over her lower body. He’d seen dresses before; it didn’t look much different from a standard dragon school uniform dress of really small size.

Heart pulsed with a beat that reverberated his core. Claws retracted into boney fingers. Tough flesh softened around them as they flattened. Fingers straightened. This skin made odd dimples. The outline of veins appeared on the back of his hand. Soft palms flattened out. Fingers moved with a dexterity he hadn’t appreciated before.

He approached the figure as she continued to dance. Her hands rose in the air before she twirled on her toes. The retraction of arms against his shrinking body tickled. His feet flattened, then the curves of the arch formed. He looked down and saw toes. They looked bulbous to him, too round, too smooth, too harmless.

“What even is this?”

The silhouette became clearer. He could see her pale scaleless skin. Her long black hair brushed against her back. Her face was still shadow, but it was flat. Where was her snout? Her soft index finger pressed against his snout. The pressure almost made him sneeze. His face flattened and teeth shrunk. Lips budded where once scales reigned. Whiskers shriveled into the skin. All that remained of his glorious maw was a fleshy protrusion.

“What are you doing to me? Stop it!”

Lilly leaned into him with a gentle embrace. Her arms wrapped under his shoulders as his purple hair grew down from where his mane used to be. She looked up at him. He finally saw her face. It was far too soft and vulnerable to be any of the intelligent mammals he could recognize. As she continued to embrace him, his remaining scales smoothed into reddening skin. He tried to gently move her arms away, but she refused to let go.

Her brown eyes were soft. Her skin was smooth and warm. Her nostrils were so tiny he wondered how she could even breathe. Her clothes were light and airy. Her lips were thin but pink, and they looked soft. His lips were now soft too, more red. He pushed himself away from a strange thought, away from Lilly.

“What are you? What are we?” he asked.

“I think you’re human. You didn’t think that weak potion was going to break my spell for long, did you? I’m sorry Jorseph, but I’ve decided that you are going to be my owner whether you like it or not.”

“Are you sure this is what-”

Lilly jumped against him. Instinctively, he opened his arms to catch her. They felt each other’s endothermic warmth. Since when did he switch to an endothermic stage while sleeping? But he didn’t care. He wanted to embrace her.

Why did she suddenly feel so small? Her warmth faded away and melded into his. In the middle of the forest clearing Jorseph stood alone hugging a book.

His body, now unsuited for the bed, rolled off the pile of tough blankets. Back struck the floor as empty sleeves of oversized pajamas flopped. Jorseph sat up suddenly gasping for air. Sweat beaded on his forehead. It dampened his pajamas. Palms wiped at his flat forehead. Hair pushed aside. He felt his nose with smooth fingers lacking claws. Trim nails could barely scratch his skin.

Shag carpet scratched at the back of his feet. Toes wiggled as cooler night air from the open window flowed between them. The spell book laid on the floor in front of the window. The ruby glinted a reflection of the street lights. Jorseph crawled to it.

“You came back!”

Lilly said nothing as Jorseph pulled it into his lap. He fell supine while holding the book up with the ruby facing him. His bedroom felt too hot for his body even though the digital clock registered far too early in the morning to be awake. He trudged to his feet with the large book under his left shoulder and opened another window.

The room felt stuffy like heat and moisture built up around him far too easily. This body felt heavy despite being smaller, as if gravity itself was more oppressive. He lifted the book as the breeze cooled his oven-like little body somewhat. Though where the skin had dampened with sweat it felt too cold.

Jorseph wasn’t sure if his mom was home yet, so he whispered, “You turned me into this thing again! My mom is going to destroy me if she even recognizes me! What even am I?”

The ruby glinted slightly before his eyes, “Human…” it said with a deep exhaustion in the feminine voice, “Now let me sleep a little. I’m so tired.”

“Lilly, this is not going to work. I can’t help you at all like this! You have to change me back. Please?”

No further response came from the book. Jorseph opened a panel he’d loosened to slide at the side of his bed. It opened into a pocket where he kept the magazines he didn’t want anyone to find. He put Lilly on top of them and closed it. Then he curled into a ball while tugging at his hair. The bed, the carpet, it was all too hot and uncomfortable to sleep on now.

Jorseph moaned as his full stomach ached and grumbled with indigestion, but he was afraid to sneak out of his room, “Not again! What am I going to do?”

He felt like prey waiting for something bigger to come devour him.