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The rest of the morning passed that way. Serena inside with Luke and Lucy, Brian under the colorful tutelage of Kim, and Tom conversing with Thumper and Prometheus. All around them the scurrying soldiers doing this and that, and for the most part utterly ignored by the dragons of the clearing. Except for the single time Kim interrupted her education of Brian, to attend to a matter that continued to vex her.

Hours after she had hurled them into the woods, a group of six soldiers reappeared lugging the disassembled M2s. Approaching them, they stopped to look all the way up at her towering head. She looked at them, and then pointedly tilted her head to look at the ground. The befuddled soldiers had no idea quite what she wanted, and began to squirm with the heavy loads that they carried. Reaching out for them with one paw, they cut and ran, to watch what she would do next from a safe distance. Picking up each of the barrels she drove them completely into the ground like stakes, wrenched the tripods apart into several pieces, and then threw the receiver housings over her shoulder into the woods again. The soldiers slumped in resignation, and while Kim returned to Brian, they began to pick up the twisted remains of the tripods dejectedly.

Kim was finally satisfied with the progress Brian was making at around 3'o'clock. And with the two lovebirds still not having returned, Thumper began training the three of them on flight once more. By terraforming the lawn.

At one, unattended, end of their yard, the ground heaved itself upwards until a large hill stood above its surroundings. In front of this new hummock, several square pillars of stone shot from the ground to tower 30 meters in the air in a staggered row.

"Welcome, to your new obstacle course." Thumper said, while the spooked soldiers ran around with their rifles raised looking to shoot something that wasn't there.

"Tom, I would like you to attempt this first. Kim should watch, and Brian will injure himself acclimating to this new challenge."

"Aaaand what iss this challenge?"

"For now, I want you to climb that knoll, jump off it, and glide between these pillars."

"Hey, god damnit!"

With glittering irritation in his eye, Tom bent his head down to address the noisome intrusion of Captain Sparrow.

"What theee fuck do you want?"

"What are you doing? Who told you to do this? I want this yard back to the way it was. Now!"

"Yuu want? YOU WANT? Get the fuck away from meee. Your speaking privilegesss have been revoked. Go try exxxplaining yourself to Thumper. See if it gives aaah shit."

Sparrow was already reaching to unholster his M9, but stopped when dirt flew into his face as Kim's muscular tail impacted the ground. Gawping at the large appendage, he raised his darkening eyes to look up at the scathing glare projected at him. Her tail tip curled around, and before he could react, batted the handgun from his limp hold. He watched it go sailing before he started yelling at her in a mottled rage, trying to break through her insuperable façade. Tom ignored the exchange, with the justifiable belief that Kim would have it under control. Instead, he continued taking instruction behind her.

"Ssso, just like that? You want me to glide through aaah slalom course?

"No, for now what I want you to do is just glide down the middle of the corridor that these pillars form. At first you will fail, but not even Kim's unborn offspring will be harmed from this low altitude."

The strident yelling behind Kim swelled in volume until the sound of a couple of car engines began to penetrate the dense forest surrounding their home. As soon as he heard the same noise Captain Sparrow stopped yelling and said instead.

"It's about fucking time, we'll have this place sorted out now."

At the same time he said this, Serena's muffled yelling could be heard coming from inside the house.

"Kim! Kim! They're taking them! Get off of me you senseless Neanderthal! Don't touch them! They'll kill you! Get away from them! Kim! Get your damned hands off me!"

Looking down at the Captain, Tom said calmly. "Yuuu haveee fucked up now." The deadpan delivery making it all the more ominous.

Kim turned to race towards the house, as the length of her body trailed away, the very end of her tail wrapped around the captain. With a grunt as the wind was knocked out of him he was dragged along behind her helplessly. Tom was beside her, matching her stride for stride before diverging to greet whoever was coming up their driveway at that moment.

Tom leapt clean over the house with his wings extended for boost. As he touched down nimbly in the front yard he pushed forward to block the driveway at the tree line. With his immense body forming a barricade, the convoy of five vehicles approaching were forced to stop where they were hemmed in by the trees.

The doors of the first two vehicles swung open as four sheriff's deputies clambered out in alarm at the sudden appearance of so great a creature. They turned to argue with each other before a captain stepped forward. Two subordinates went to the third car to meet a woman getting out from behind the wheel and brought her forward to approach with the officer. Before they began to address the dragon blocking the driveway, Alex, rushing forward from the taxi at the rear, interposed himself between the two opposing parties.

"Wait, wait, stop. What is this? Tom, stop growling at them."

The rumbling sound abruptly cut itself off, followed by the ashamed curve his neck took on at the realization of what he'd been doing. Alex held a hand up to his brother, who lowered his head to nose at it in greeting. Turning back to the officers Alex repeated his question.

"I am Captain Anderson, and I am in charge of the department of juvenile affairs. This woman trying to hide behind me." She pointed her thumb over her shoulder. "Is Margaret Huckleberry, a representative from child protective services. We are here to investigate reports that there are children here in unsafe conditions and that require immediate removal. To whom I am speaking?" She looked at Alex, and then somewhat reluctantly raised her eyes to meet Tom's to include him in the question.

"I am the children's father, aaaand over my dead body." Tom heatedly declared, making the air shiver with the force of his words.

"Ah, I'm already beginning to see what the problem is here. And what is your name sir?"

"I am his elder brother, Alex Schwarzkopf."

"Well, we are here to determine the validity of the reports that we have received. Will you let us pass? I suppose it would do nothing to help our cause by pointing our weapons at... a.... dragon. But neither will it help your own in a court of law if you were to interfere with a police investigation. Now, how is this going to go from here?"

Alex looked at his brother, and walked to the far side of his body as Tom's head curled around to follow him. Out of sight of the officers a low conversation could be heard. The law enforcement present could only surmise the hushed conference was going in a direction that was inimical to Tom as his tail beat the ground with greater and greater severity. After a few minutes the seismic thumps of this appendage stilled, and Tom's head along with Alex reappeared.

They both moved to the side of the driveway where Tom flared a wing to point at his house. "Iiii have aaaah pretty good idea who called yuuu here. Why don't yuuuu ask him what legal authority heeee hassss to be directing yuuur actions?"

The sheriff's deputies glanced at each other uneasily, not liking that statement one bit. Getting back into their vehicles they resumed their slow roll up the dirt path and parked in a row in front of the home. Alex went to pay his fare but found the taxi had disappeared, leaving nothing more than a pair of tracks were it had spun its wheels in its rapid egress. Shrugging, Alex was glad that he didn't have to end up giving the terrified cabbie the large cash tip he had to promise him to induce him to drive to the well-known home of a dragon or three. Instead he walked up to the looming form of his brother who was watching the proceedings with narrow eyed suspicion.

Being led by Captain Anderson, they approached the door and knocked on it. No one answered, but they all jumped in surprise when, from behind them, Tom's irritated voice told them just to go in 'for fuck's sake'. Documenting assent to their body-cams they opened the door to enter as Alex followed along behind them. No sooner had they'd entered than Tom's head filled the entryway to peer inside with one eye. Moving further into the house, the contingent soon passed beyond his sight as a tumultuous noise could be heard. Spinning about, he thumped around the house, taking note of the curled form of his wife surrounded by angry insects in the yard, to shove his whole head inside through the destroyed sliding door.

He was able to rapidly take in what he saw before the officers ran into the room at the sound of the struggle that was playing out before them. Two soldiers were holding down a squirming Serena who was currently screaming at them to let her go while two more shouted back at her. The deputies grabbed the soldiers and dragged them off the scientist. Startled by their sudden accosters, the four soldiers whirled on them, and in a blink, firearms were raised and pointed. The officers froze at the sight of the assault rifle muzzles being pointed at them before Captain Anderson found her voice again. As she spoke, Alex grabbed Serena and followed Tom's withdrawing head outside.

"Drop your weapons soldiers, you are all under arrest."

The young MPs looked at each other "we have orders..."

"To point your weapons at domestic law enforcement officers? I think not, and if you do, your commander will be placed under arrest as well. Now drop your weapons before we call SWAT."

Still resisting, three of them kept their weapons pointed, while the fourth went to call for his commander. Not giving them a chance, Tom put an end to the stalemate by reaching in with his clawed hand and sweeping the four troopers into a jumble against the wall. Leaping forward, the deputies threw the weapons aside and began handcuffing, and zip tying, the dazed soldiers. Eruptions of radio chatter soon followed, as what was supposed to be a simple child welfare check turned into a nuclear potato.

"Dooo yuuu still think you see what is going on here?" Tom stuck his head into his home once more to ask the Sheriff Officer.

She ran her hand through her hair as she looked down on the subdued National Guard soldiers, then to the patches on their shoulders, before raising her head to glance at Tom's enormous eye.

"I think this is above my pay grade. Christ, the governor will have to get involved. Where are your children? And where is their commander?" She fished a notepad out of a pouch on her belt. "This... Major Ulysses. Where is he?"

"Goneee."

Alex made a startled noise but was silenced as Serena leaned in close and began to rapidly whisper in his ear. He looked up at her, Tom, and then out into backyard, where much yelling could be heard.

"Then who are these soldiers? Who do they answer to?" pressed Anderson.

"Follow meee. Just don't angerrrr my wife. I can't guaranteeee yur lives if you doooo, yuuu can already see that much more than yuuu think is going on. Sheeee may be touchy."

Snapping her fingers, Anderson got her troopers attention and gave them quick instruction. They holstered their service pieces and collected the M4s on the ground, each of them taking three magazines from the soldiers on the ground. One stayed behind to watch the arrestees, as the other two followed their captain into the backyard with their new armament. What they came upon, was likely far beyond anything they had ever trained for.

Circling Kim's huddled form, were sixty seven National Guardsmen with weapons ranging from M4s to M240s pointed at her. They would have been using their M2s but Kim saw to that threat earlier. Brian was pacing around her, his timid voice being heard over the shouting of all others as the 7000 kg scientist incongruously, and politely, asked the soldiers to please put their weapons down. In any event, the dismayed law enforcement had to do something to deescalate the situation. A course of action that wasn't going to happen on its own if left to its current path.

"Shoot her! That's an order soldiers!"

Drawing in a breath, Captain Anderson asserted the authority that she had a far greater right to bring to bear on the situation than a member of the National Guard.

"I am Captain Jessica Anderson of the Kootenai County Sheriff's department. You will ignore that order to open fire, and lay down your weapons immediately!"

The first sergeant looked over his shoulder at this new intrusion and swore silently to himself at seeing the uniformed law enforcement behind him. He cursed again when he saw the two flanking her had M4s that definitely did not look like standard issue for civilian law enforcement. He made a pretty quick educated guess at where they had gotten them, and only hoped that the soldiers hadn't done something stupid before they were taken from them. As he was shortly going to find out however, his hopes were not to be answered. He gestured for his soldiers to safe their weapons and lay them down.

"And you! Uh...dragon!" Dragon? Who the fuck is that? She whispered to herself, before continuing "Put that person down!"

Kim looked over her back at the struggling Captain Sparrow, and lifted her tail to a height she optimistically thought he would survive and released him, from about four meters. He lay on the ground gasping like a fish as a combat medic rushed forward to assess his injuries. She looked back to the Sheriff's officer.

"Whyyy are yuuu here?"

"That's assault!"

"Then what dooo you call sixty asssholes pointing automatic weapons at meee? I call it self-defense!"

Turning to look at her subordinate deputy, she asked how long before reinforcements arrived. Two to three minutes was her answer.

"You, all of you!" She pointed at the soldiers. "Leave your weapons on the ground and go over there!" She pointed a finger out by their tents. She spotted the safety spoons of a few grenades that she couldn't identify poking from pouches on their armor. "And leave your tactical vests as well! Don't touch those fucking grenades that I can see!"

The soldiers looked at their First Sergeant and he nodded his head. The sound of ripping Velcro filled the yard as dozens of armored vests were dropped to the ground, the lot of them then shuffled off to await what happened next. The lead NCO remained where he was to answer the questions that weren't long in coming, as his commander continued to wheeze on the ground nearby.

"What the fuck is this? Who has ordered your deployment here? Are you the ones that called us about endangered children? Where are they? And why are you pointing weapons at..." She waved her hand at Kim, not even knowing how to address her. Or for that matter, if it was a 'her'. "Start talking. I have four of your soldiers in handcuffs already for pointing their weapons at us."

1SG Thompson raised his hands in a placating gesture. "Captain, I suggest you contact your Governor's office. I am sure they will detail the legality of our presence here."

"I'll leave them to tell me that, and not yourself." She snapped at him. "Tell me why your soldiers were pointing their weapons at us!" Not even giving him a chance to make excuses she overrode his response. "It doesn't fucking matter. Now where are the children that we were called out here for to begin with, and since it was your group calling us out here, tell me why they are in danger?"

He waved a hand at Kim expressively.

"And what the fuck is waving your hand at... whoever that is, supposed to tell me?"

"We were ordered to come out here and establish a detention center to contain dangerous animals. Children do not have any place in such a facility."

"I don't suppose you are about to enlighten me as to why these peo... individuals deserve to be incarcerated and have their children taken from?"

"Well, our orde..."

"You fucking weasel."

"...rs give us permission to construct a place to hold those who present a national security risk."

"You fucking weasel. Where are these children?"

Once again, he waved his hand at Kim. She turned to look at the creature who still hadn't been identified to her in any useful manner.

"Well, he keeps flapping his hand at you like that is supposed to tell me something. So, who are you, and where are Luke and Lucy Schwarzkopf?

"I...am...their...mother! Just yuu take them from me! I fucking dare..." She stopped her ground shaking remarks when Tom approached her and placed his head against hers. She closed her eyes as he spoke to her in their recently instilled language. Brian sat his tail down on the ground next to them and looked apprehensively across the assembled personage. Instinctively, he stretched a wing across the pair as they conversed and shielded their heads from sight, much to the consternation of the law enforcement taking charge.

"Hey, I want eyes on you both! Where are the children we came out here for! Answer me!"

Tom snarled, while Kim looked sharply at Brian and nodded, he replied sheepishly. "Theyrrrre with Kim"

Turning half about, Cpt. Anderson saw her query and beckoned with her hand, the terrified social worker came forward and the officer murmured something in her ear. The quivering child welfare officer stammered her next words.

"I... am.... from the child's protective services and my name is Margaret Huckleberry. We are here.... to check on Luke and Lucy. Are they here? Can they answer me? Please don't eat me!" The CPS agent shrilled in horror.

"For Christ's sake." Anderson exclaimed. "Look.... Are you Kim?" Kim nodded "We got a call from someone claiming that they were 2nd Lieutenant Dunbar, and that they were reporting a pair of juveniles were in danger here. At the request of this individual, we responded in force. Do you think that I, in charge of an entire division, comes out on every call? I honestly don't give a rat's ass why there are National Guard soldiers here, that is above my pay grade. The only thing I care about is fact that four of them pointed their weapons at us. So, tell me again, why are we here, and for the last god damned time, where are the children?"

Kim resolutely paid absolutely no attention to these demands, and remained tightly coiled about herself.

Tom's head lay upon her back, and cast his eyes about with glittering anger held in their bi-colored irises. Brian, sitting next to them on his haunches, looked unsure. At last, Alex took the lead to provide a reasonable plan of action.

"Look, I am the brother of Tom, and the uncle of Luke and Lucy. If there is any question of their safety, and the input of the parents are not to be given weight. Then I will answer for their conditions."

"Fine, great, spectacular, as soon as we have seen the children, then, and only then, will we discuss their guardianship."

Alex pat Kim on her back near her hip soothingly and she reluctantly unwound the wraps of her body. Her sinuous length, after a great deal of slithering, at last opened enough to reveal her jealously guarded secret, her crying twin children. The first instinct of the CPS agent to rush forward and usher the children away was immediately checked when the looming head of Kim lowered into her path. Sliding to a stop on her ass, she crab-walked backwards in wild eyed alarm. In her retreat she backed into the legs of the deputy behind her, who reached down and yanked her to her feet.

Captain Anderson took in their condition, and location with a grim look on her face. Even then, after the confrontation was over, they huddled together and clung to their mother's foreleg in terror. She spun sharply to glare at the First Sergeant in a mottled rage.

"And what fucking excuse are you going to give me for pointing machine guns at a mother guarding her children?"

Cpt Sparrow answered instead, after having apparently gotten his wind back.

"She attacked me for lawfully having ordered her children's removal. I am instructing you to take these children from this detention facility immediately. I also demand that you release my handcuffed soldiers."

"You can get fucked. How about that? What breed of insanity has taken root in your head to order your soldiers to point their weapons at the children in which you claim to have their welfare in mind. And it gets even better! Your soldiers pointed their weapons at us. AT US! That's aggravated assault."

"We will see about that!"

Sirens blared as half a dozen SUVs and squad cars roared up the driveway on the far side of the house. Two of the vehicles bounced across the uneven ground and into the backyard where they slid to a halt, car doors were being flung open even before they had completely stopped.

"Yes, we will see about that."

Behind her, she was approached by a Commander who she quickly filled in. He spoke into his shoulder mike and three of his troopers went over to the discarded piles of gear and systematically began stripping ammunition from the weapons. When they got to the heavier weapons they fiddled with them uselessly for a moment before another more experienced officer came by to show them how to unload the automatic weapons. As they began to consolidate and catalog these items, and ignoring the shouted demands of Captain Sparrow, the interview of the frightened children began.

Crouching on her knees in front of them, Margaret questioned them about what was making them so afraid. Asking them if it was their mother or father that was causing them to cry. They shook their heads mutely and continued to cling to their mother's leg in fear, before pointing at the house and murmuring something about being taken. Serena's name was mentioned, as was the name of one of the soldiers that had been arrested earlier. The longer this conversation went on, the darker and angrier the look on all that heard it became. Not to mention the increasingly evident smell of ozone from the incensed parents. The scent of their anger caused more than a few eyes to look around for evidence of a fire in confusion.

After the conclusion of their account of the past hours, the Sheriff Deputies and CPS agent held a quick animated conference with each other. Captain Sparrow attempted to intervene to issue more demands, but the Sheriff Commander made an impatient shooing motion with his hand and an officer stepped forward to bodily shove the National Guard officer back.

This conversation continue for close to thirty minutes as Kim resettled her coils to (mostly) block her children from view. This time however, she left an opening for Margaret to talk quietly with the twins in between shooting terrified glances at Kim's stern glare. Tom spent the intervening time listening as well, while also keeping a jaundiced eye upon the National Guard soldiers. That group having been forbidden from leaving the sight of four law enforcement officers and retreating into their tents. Brian had settled onto his belly and over the course of the thirty minutes had placed his head on Kim's back and fallen asleep again. Alex and Serena were intermittently called forward to answer questions that arose, but for the most part listened in on the discussions while talking with Kim and Tom.

Coming to an agreement the officers turned towards the group that roused to attention upon seeing the conclusion of their convocation.

The Commander, who now identified himself as Commander Ramirez, began.

"First off, Kim Schwarzkopf, you are hereby being charged with simple assault and battery. Consider yourself lucky that it is not aggravated assault, I think most rational observers would classify your whole body as being a lethal weapon. As we cannot incarcerate you for obvious reasons, you will instead be detained in situ. Sergeant, read her her rights. Secondly..." He turned and glared at Captain Sparrow. "Specialist Jack Murray, 1st Lieutenant Lindsay Bonham, Private First Class Ryan Gilspee, and Sergeant John Hammond are under arrest for aggravated assault of a police officer."

Sparrow opened his mouth to contest the right of the officers to do any such thing, and was shut down by Commander Ramirez. "Shut the fuck up. As far as I am concerned the whole reason today's fiasco happened is due to you. Captain." He sneered. "All of your weapons are hereby confiscated. If you want to play Army, from now on you can do it with broom handles and tree branches."

"You can't..."

"Didn't I just tell you to shut the fuck up? I know your type, and right now you are powerless to make any demands. Instead, you will stand there, be silent, and take the ass chewing that you deserve."

"..."

"The Kootenai county Sheriff and the Coeur d'Alene Chief of Police are on the way to deal with this. And for the record, they are both sick of hearing the name Schwarzkopf come across their nets. In the past two months this is the fourth time events have spiraled out of control here."

Behind the cluster of people/dragons four troopers emerged from the house frog marching the above mentioned Guardsmen towards two different patrol cars. Sparrow saw this and pressed his lips together in silent rage but said nothing.

"Alex Schwarzkopf" Ramirez beckoned him forward, and looked him over, noting the bandage on his head and the cast on his arm, before continuing. "I take it you are now the primary care taker of the children behind you?"

"Hey!" Tom interjected. "There is not aaah damn reason why we cannot continue to take care of ourrrr children!"

"The courts have not ruled on that yet. Do you want us to take your children? Or are you going to allow me to finish and do you a favor by assigning their care to your brother?"

Kim spoke up for the first time. "Yuuuu arrre correct, that current law as worded only applies to humans. However, Iiii recall the case of Richards vs. The Department of Justice in which it wasss ruled that we are fundamentally no different than we werrrr before and entitled, at least for the time being, to those same rights and freedoms. It follows then, that as parents with the legal right to retain custody of our children before ourrrr change, we have it now. Or" she hastily clarified. "My husband retains that custody, asss I am now being charged for defending my family against trespassers."

"That is bullshit!" Sparrow exploded. "These animals are a grave threat to national security and I have orders to place them under the detention of the Federa..."

"How many time have I told you to shut...the...fuck...up?" Ramirez exploded right back at him. He looked up at Kim and hummed softly to himself for a minute. "Well, you are certainly well read on the matter, as I suppose you have every right to be considering you sport a tail just as Richards does." The noted tail currently had its tip raised and twitching back and forth in agitated thought. "And you are not wrong about the consequences of that case."

A large black SUV with subdued lights rolled into the back yard and two individuals climbed out of the back seat, with one clutching a satellite phone. The Sheriff and Chief had finally arrived.

The Chief, clutching the phone, spotted Captain Sparrow and stalked towards him to thrust the phone into his hands. "This is for you, it is Governor Little."

Sparrow took the phone with the smug expression of someone who thought they were about to have their actions vindicated. No sooner than he had stated his name that he jerked the phone away from his ear as a torrent of shouted words erupted from the speaker. The smugness on his face drained away along with the blood leaving him pale, and stunned.

"But, sir, I..." He stopped as another fusillade of castigations assailed him. "Yes sir, I am listening." After several more minutes of having his ears pinned back, Sparrow meekly handed the phone to the Chief.

"This is Chief Jones." He listened for a couple of minutes, and then handed it on to the Sheriff who identified himself as well before getting his own instructions. When he was finished, he closed the phone and collapsed the antenna, before turning his indignation on the much reduced Captain Sparrow.

"What a fucking mess you've made, eh? The Governor doesn't like being told how to run his own state and I can hardly blame him. I don't know what game DC is playing, but this is my swimming pool and I don't like the fact that you are pissing in it. Do you understand me?"

"Yes sir."

The Sheriff called all his troops over. "Collect all their ammunition, and don't forget those flash bangs. Leave the weapons." After his troops started their collections he looked up at Kim. "Kim, and Tom, how many times am I going to have to be out here? What'll it be next time? A nuclear fucking bomb? Let me know ahead of time, so I can at least stretch out on my lawn chair with a margarita before I'm flash fried." He didn't even give them a chance to respond before carrying on. "The charges against Kim Schwarzkopf are dismissed, effective immediately. The four that pointed their weapons at my troopers are coming with us to county lockup." He looked to the Police Chief who finished his own comments.

"Captain Sparrow, you have grossly exceeded the orders that have brought you here. You are allowed to remain here to continue observation. Observation and only observation of Kim and Tom. You were supposed to protect them as well, but you have lost that privilege. So now we have to pick up your slack. Neither are you to hamper their freedoms in any manner whatsoever. Nor..."

He stopped to look at Brian's sleeping head, wondering briefly who it was, before deciding he just didn't particularly care.

"...Anyone else, is that clear? I have already heard from Major Ulysses about you, and now I got to see the fucked operation you are running myself. If your name crosses my desk, or is spoken into my ear again, I will roll on you so hard that you'll wish you were clearing UXO fields in Mosul with a gravel rake. Is that clear?" He turned his head and held a hand up to his ear expectantly.

"Crystal."

"Gather your troops in front of your tents over there. The Sheriff and I have words for them as well. Ones that we don't trust you to convey with the gravity they deserve. Already you have four of the kids under your command facing charges due to your negligence. I will not have more. For the life of me I don't know why you haven't been relieved of command, but that is not in my lane." Both of the law enforcement commanders strode off to the tents and the soldiers milling around there with Sparrow following along behind. His shoulders may have been bowed, but looking down, Tom could see the smoldering anger in his eyes. His will to dominate them didn't look like it had been completely broken. He nudged his wife and tilted his head towards him, following his eye she saw what he had and bobbed her understanding.

Captain Anderson remained along with Margaret Huckleberry by the parent's sides. Margaret had produced a pair of jolly ranchers which both twins were busily sucking on as she continued to ask them questions. How their parents were treating them, what they thought about what happened to their parents, how they felt about being around their parents, in general a great deal of queries with regards to the scaly quadrupedal bodies the twin's parents had now. Asking them if they would like to be away from their parents caused them to retreat and hide behind their mother's foreleg while she made a tsking noise deep in her chest. The CSP agent blanched, and hid behind Anderson. As if, Kim thought, that would slow me down if I wanted to swat her across the yard like an insect.

Anderson had had enough. "The only thing wrong here with the welfare of these children is the presence of those soldiers over there. Hopefully, after Sparrow had his knuckles rapped, they will be a little more sensible. But I doubt it, I think that weasel will start acting up again the moment we leave. Weasels! All of 'em! Alex Schwarzkopf, I take it you will continue to assist Tom and Kim Schwarzkopf in raising these kids when they cannot given their....statures?" She looked up at the heads of the parents, which topped the roof of their home, and then to Alex with her eyebrow raised.

Alex gave her his assurance that there would be no problem.

"What happened to your hand?"

"Oh... I don't really remember... Something to do with a hamster, I think."

She stared at him blankly for a moment with her jaw hanging open before she snapped it closed.

"Whatever. I'm leaving now, Margaret you are free to stay and continue your interview or..." She stopped when Mrs. Huckleberry disappeared from her side and fled around the house. "...or you can do that." She sighed and rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand. "She better get used to seeing those like you, after all, this is our new reality isn't it? What will she think when one of you flaps in to bring your kids to school." Kim began laughing, the rolling tumult catching the Captain off guard.

"And what do you think about being the way that you are?" She asked, looking up at the mother.

"I can't say that thisss is something that I ever would have asked forrrr on my own. But it meant being there for my daughter when it was forced upon her. That fuckkkking alien says this is for the greater good, I say I'd like its head in my jaws. It fucking better be right about the future, that's all I'll say on that." She finished with a low guttural rumble.

"I guess..." The deputy said. "Do you miss being a woman?"

Kim shrugged her wings, "Yeah, Iii liked my hair, and my tits. Didn't like the monthly subscription though. But let me tell you about dragon wax! It shines, is easy to apply, and it smellsss good!" She finished, unabashedly seguing into a spiel for her latest fever dream.

Tom bent his head to whisper the truth to her. "We just took a can of carnauba wax out of the garage and mixed some moisturizer in with it. It does smell better to us than it did before though, and it really adds aaah shine to one's scales."

"Plusss check this out!" She turned her head to look at her back, and unfolded her arms, unfurling the thick membrane to tower above them and block the sun. As they reached their full extension, the light shining through them revealed the dense roadmap of veins running throughout. "I can fly! So, take that!"

As Kim resettled her sixth and seventh appendages, Anderson dubiously looked her over. "As long as you're adjusting, I don't know if I would be able to handle suddenly turning into something like you."

Kim shrugged her massive wing arms again, and shifted her sails with a rasp. "Iiii wouldn't call it an easy adjustment. What would you call it if half your body stuck out past your hips? Every time we turned around for the first week or two something new broke. And don't get meeee started on this thing sticking out of my face. Every time I want to read something, I have to get so close I can only look at it with one eye, while the other eye looks at nothing. We need bigger print! Fucking EeeeTttt back there." She point behind herself by flicking her wing. "Tells us that the plasticity of our minds is one of the reasons why we were chosen." She swelled her chest out proudly. "Sssaid we are better able to take the strain."

"Why hasn't the alien been helping you?"

"Alienssss" Kim stressed, much to the Captain's startlement. "If I ask it, it'll probably give me some shit about 'evaluating me', and I know that'll just piss me off. So I won't. I already have enough anger problems, it can't be good for my little ones."

Anderson glanced back along Kim's body, and then zeroed in on her lower belly and hindquarters. "That's right, I did hear that you were supposed to be pregnant as well. You are, aren't you? You're not making some reference to Luke and Lucy?"

"Knocked up, six waaaays from Sunday." Kim said, looking underneath herself, moving her tail and raising her leg, incidentally giving the Captain a full look at her anatomy, making her blush and avert her eyes from the pair of deep creases in her ventral scales.

She laughed at the rosy hue blooming on her cheeks. "Not much to seeee compared to what wasss there before is there? Not even on the males." She looked at Tom. "Tom, show her what happened to your dick."

"...What?"

She laughed at his incredulous remark and the even more incredulous twist in his snout. "Even now, with as little as there is to see, yuuu still look away. You better get used to it, since I can walk clean over you. For our part, one of the first things we noticed after our change was that modesty doesn't hold much sway over us anymore. As for your question, I was pregnant when Iiii changed, still am too. But I sure don't feel the same at almost four months as when I had my other children. Haven't even been getting thicker as far as I can tell, we're still growing however, so it's hard to tell one thing from the other. But I have been told time and again that there are four eggs baking in an oven somewhere back there. The only thing Iiii can tell you, is that I eat a lot more than the others, and they swear my scent makes them protective."

"Don't you hate the aliens for what they've done to you? To others? To your children?"

"It just goddamned well better beee worth it in the end." Kim snapped, with the ivory white of her teeth flashing in the sunlight. "If I ever find out that it has done this just to run some kind of experiment on us, I will go yank the reactor core out of Hanford and drop it on its fucking head. It might not do anything to it, but my glowing sense ooof satisfaction will outshine the mushroom cloud."

A terrified squeak made Kim's ears flare and she tilted her head to look down to see what had happened. In her anger she had snapped her jaws right in front of Anderson, who had fallen to the ground and frozen in an attempt to not provoke Kim further.

"Now Kim." Tom admonished her. "Yuuu know that's not how nuclear detonations work." He felt it unnecessary to remind her that the core would weigh thousands of tons.

"What about me?" A weak strangled voice could be heard beneath their heads. "She almost bit me!"

"More like she forgot that you were there. Maybe yuuuu should stop asking her questions like that. It doesn't take much to rile my wife up."

Tom pushed his foreleg forward with his claws curled. "Grab on, and up you get."

"I'm starting to reconsider how dangerous you are. Whether you mean to be or not." She said, as she grabbed the offered paw and was hoisted clean off the ground in what Tom no doubt thought was a gentle tug. Luckily for her, she was agile enough to land on her feet and jog off the unwanted momentum.

"I'm out of here. I don't want one of you to pat me on the back and skewer me like a shrimp. I also don't want to have to come back here. You take care of your kids, and remember, school starts again next week."

She started to walk back to her patrol car, and walked a little faster when Kim called out after her. "Wait! Come back! I'm not even hungry right now!"

"Stop messing with my guys." The sheriff rebuked Kim, as she shook the ground in her paw stamping mirth, while he and the Chief returned. Trailing behind them with an even more pissed off glimmer in his eyes was Sparrow. "And where is that alien that is supposed to be your minder? And lastly, who the fuck is that? I tried to ignore him/her/whatever but I can't let it go that there is another one of you, and bigger yet to boot." He pointed at the head of the drowsing Brian, who vaguely felt he was being discussed and cracked an eye open to reveal an amber iris that whirled to look at who had spoken.

"In our shelter, watching, not being helpful in aaah situation it by-and-large created, and this is Bryan Cyan."

"That guy from the university?"

Serena took over answering for this line of questioning as Brian's eye slid shut once more and his head returned to drooping over Kim's back.

"Yes, we're both from a university. One in Colorado actually. We..."

"Let me just stop you right there by telling you I don't care. Is he a danger to others?"

"Well, no, and no call to be rude."

The police chief was distracted as Kim began laughing again. "And why is she laughing at me?"

"She likelyfindssss it funny thatyouthink Iiiicould bedangerous." Rumbled from Bran's large maw. His rust colored eye was open sleepily and watching from the ridge of Kim's back.

"Now that you are awake you can tell me what happened to you. I know you were human not three days ago, so why are you like this now? Why are you the size of a tractor trailer rig and walking around on four legs?"

"Forrrrscience!"

"Is that so?" He placed his hands on hips and looked around challengingly. "What is going on here, why do more and more people around here seem to be turning into these egg children? Are all of you trying to crowd us humans out?"

"And now to crown all the other confusion that seems to radiate from your very existence. I have reports of three large flapping creatures being seen over Lake Coeur d'Alene. I look around and I don't see another black scaly pill bug, so tell me, where is your daughter, and who is she with? I also want you to tell me why they feel it necessary to roar back and forth at each other. I've had my 911 board locked up all day with an unceasing accounting of every single thing they've done today."

The surprised group looked to each other, no answers could be found there and they shrugged. "Irma left yesterday with her fiancée Jesse Pinkman. We don't know whooo this third one is."

The Police Chief wasn't impressed. "We knew about Jesse through the fire department. How are there more of you around and you did not know of it? Every time one of you gets spun up the noises you make can be heard for miles. I'm sure you don't care, but every time you get excited Kim, I get calls from the city center about your banshee screeches."

A patrolman behind the Police Chief held his shoulder microphone up to his ear, and whispered something in his commander's ear. He nodded and relayed what he'd been told. "We're about to find some of our answers. Three dragons are inbound, five miles from here."

Three, they couldn't help fixating on the number they kept hearing. Who was this third one? By any account they didn't seem to be able to find answers amongst themselves. Around them, activity in the area increased as Sparrow began ordering his troops to collect all their gear and place it under guard. Then to separate into groups of four all around the clearing.

Flapping could be heard coming from the south. The dragons of the clearing roused from their general heap attentively. Standing up on their hind legs to crane their heads above the trees they looked. Brian fell over with a despairing shriek, however Tom and Kim kept their towering lookout. Just as they'd been told, there were three silhouettes moving in their direction. As they approached, the pair on the ground marked the flight gaits of each of the three, unconsciously storing the pattern of their wingbeats. Memorizing characteristics of each individual in order to differentiate the remarkably uniform appearance of themselves.

Mom! Get everyone back from the middle, she needs room, she is shy!Irma called down in warning as she orbited above in lazy circles. The larger shape of Jesse hovered above her with the small stranger behind him casting her head about with quick darting movements. Apparently the situation on the ground passed her standards and drove her to give a loud honking cry while diving to the ground. She hit the ground on the run, scampering in flowing quickness to the house to look in the windows and thrust her head through the broken door. Pulling her head from the house the unknown character's nostrils flared as she held her nose aloft before turning to rush pell-mell towards Tom and Kim who bemusedly watched this tiny new dragon.

The female circled around Tom and Kim and then circled Bryan, stopping to nose at each of them briefly, caressing their snouts with her own. Having had her fill of familiarizing with the others of her ilk the undulating length of her body slunk to towards the shelter. Grabbing the curtain in her mouth she ran across the opening, closing it with Thumper and Prometheus, watching her idly, inside. That accomplished, she ducked beneath the curtain of the new living quarters, her long tail slithering inside behind her. After a few moments of rustling noise from behind the curtain, her head poked outwards, leaving the remainder of her body hidden. She bobbed her head energetically with dark green eyes opened wide, and then made a call of greeting.

"Hello! Iiiiwasgoing homefromschool, Iwanted tooooshow mommy the drawingImade! But then Ihadaaaatummy aaaache, andeverythinghurt!" She exclaimed, curling her neck guardedly as her eyes watered with memory of what was likely hellish pain. "And whenIwoke up Iwasinthesky! Iiii canfly!" She called this out loudly, even lifting her head to eagerly wag it back and forth victoriously in the air. But unexpectedly she drooped. "But I've beengonesooolong! Mommyanddaddy willbeeeangry withme." She withdrew her head into the shelter to hide from those outside, loud sniffling could be heard from within. Thrumming noises of sympathy and comfort where felt coming from the five dragons in the clearing, with no clear indication that they realized what they were doing. But they kept their place, and respected her desire for privacy.

The Chief, and Sheriff were on phones with their respective commands right away. Demanding to know of any reports of little girls being reported missing. Soon enough they were both given the same name: Angelina Holbrook, a six year old girl who had disappeared from her bus stop five weeks ago.

After much coaxing she timidly pushed her head back through the curtain. "My friendscallme Angie! Areyoumyfriends? Can yuuu helpmeeegethome?" Was the response they got when trying to confirm the young female's identity "My two friends I met at the lake told me you could! I shouldn't be talking to strangers, but I'mbigandscary! If youhurt meeeI'll biteyou!" The not so tiny girl said, causing the humans around her to look warily at the teeth that were displayed as she 'talked'. The promise of food lured her completely out of the shelter, and having finally become still, everyone was better able to assess her size. Her shoulders were likely equal to those of a Clydesdale's, and she was at least as long as a full size pick-up truck.

One curious thing they noticed was that her wings seemed to be disproportionately large upon her back. Bryan tilted his head to stare curiously and guessed at the use of their abnormal size. Later, Irma and Jesse would reveal that she was a great deal more agile than they were themselves, and had led them on a dizzying chase that they were hopeless to match. Serena hit on the idea that it might serve as a form of defense for the young. Instead of fighting, they were able to outfly any likely danger.

Alex went into the house and reemerged on the back patio with a couple of packages of bratwursts and began grilling them with some onions and peppers. Serena dragged a chair up to sit next to Angie, who put her head in her lap and looked up at her with innocent eyes. Serena being in the midst of praising her for being brave. Soon however, the smell of sizzling pork reached the young one's nose and her eyes transferred their fixation in the direction of the grill. Sensing her attention shift, and where it had gone, she rubbed her hand over the girl's head soothingly and asked when she'd last ate.

"I think I hadsomesquirrelstwooo daysago. I didn'twant to! But everythingwasfuzzy, and Iiiiwas so, sohungry! NowI'mhungry again! Itsmellsgood!" She eagerly assessed, and with her nose in the air her tongue flicked out to lick the end of her snout in anticipation.

Across the yard, the Sheriff was delegating the remaining details of Angie to his subordinate, Commander Ramirez. Next to him the Police Chief hung up his phone from having recalled the hapless CPS agent who had just fled. With a final round of instruction, they boarded their transport to go to the press conference they were now obligated to orchestrate for the recovery of Angelina. They left behind the Sheriff Deputies to coordinate getting the child back with her parents. Looking at her, Martinez fought off his first inclination to call medical. Mostly due to the fact that he had severe doubts on their ability to assess her, and also because she was obviously suffering from no physical pain if she was flitting around the way she was.

Margaret arrived in stark, pallid, and sweating in terror at the sight two more monstrosities than when she'd left. This was followed by her panicky response to being told that the horse sized dragon that was sitting up erectly next to the grill with dilated eyes fixed upon her simmering meal was Angelina Holbrook. Not knowing how (and not particularly eager to) comfort the recovered missing child, she tried approaching her from the side to make sure she was seen.

"Hello Angie. Do you mind if I call you Angie? I was told by Irma that that is what you like your friends to call you. Would you like to be my friend?"

"Uhuh." Angie replied absently, still focused on her cooking meal.

"When did you last eat Angie?"

"Two days ago, I caughtsquirrels! Theysmelled scaredwhenIcaught them, thenIate them. They werecrunchy, and hairy!" She swung her head around to the frozen aid worker and sniffed her over as she nudged her with her nose. "You smellscaredtoo! Don't beeeeafraid! I knowI'mbigand scarynow, but I won'thurtyou! Are you going to take me to mymommyanddaddy?"

"They are coming here to be with you Angie, they will be here soon. Angie, I need to tell you. Angie honey..." Margaret trailed off, not sure how to tell her the truth. "... Honey they are not going to recognize you. You are so big now Angie, you are going to have to help your parents."

To Margaret's perturbation she didn't take this well

"I know." She moaned and hung her head as tears rolled down the sides of her snout. She twisted her neck to look down at the welfare officer. "Didmommy get mypicture? I droppeditwhen everythinghurt!"

Margaret thought back to what she had been told. How the mother had screamed when she had been given the dropped painting and little Angie's backpack. The secret of finding Angie's blood splattered and burst clothing had been kept from her and the public. The only reason her disappearance hadn't been written off as an animal attack was the oddity of the tracks.

No animal tracks approached where hers had ended a few hundred meters into the woods along the road. At the site of the torn clothing there were her shoe prints, a large patch of freshly overturned earth were something had struggled, marks on larger trees were something had lashed at them, and innumerable plants crushed by something long and heavy. From this chaotic scene a lone trail of paw prints of an unknown, but large, quadruped with wickedly long claws and a jaw dropping breadth in stance leading away. The tracks led into an opening to the sky further into the forest where both prints and scent ceased all together, much to the bafflement of the SAR team tracking them.

Margaret looked at Angie's wings as they opened and closed in her famished restlessness and made a good guess as to why the trail vanished. She then glanced downward at the feet of the little girl, and saw paws that looked quite capable of making the track marks she'd seen in the file pictures.

"Yes little one, she got your picture. I'm sure she has it on your refrigerator just waiting for you to talk about it with her." She said encouragingly.

Angie's moss colored eyes brightened considerably as she came up with an idea. "Maybe that's howmommy and daddywillknow it'smeee! I cantellthem aboutthepainting I was goingtooogivethem!"

"That's a very good idea sweetie. After you eat, do you want to take a nap before they get here? Do you feel any booboos?"

"Noooo." She dissented. "I feel gooood! I'm ex-cit-ed my parents are coming, andImissedthem somuch!" She startled Margaret into a hasty retreat as she jumped into the air and darted back and forth over the house chirping incomprehensibly. Heads raised everywhere as Sparrow began yelling demands that were roundly ignored. It was only when Alex had finished his meal prep, and arranged the bratwurst links on a large turkey platter with a number of other vegetables were they able to get her to land. It had only been through trial and error to know what was palatable to their biology so that he knew what to add to the plate. With this enticement, Angie was at last coerced to stop her excited aerobatics.

Instead of making wild ruin of her meal as everyone had expected, she much more sedately licked parts of her meal up, making a long deliberate dinner out of it. Chomping a whole tomato, red juice ran between her teeth before she licked her chops clean. "If I eat slow it takeslonger formeeeeto behungryagain!" She responded to their wondering. Making them question, once more, the state of her nourishment. She didn't look underfed. However, the wiry muscle and scale did do a fairly good job of hiding just how emaciated they could be. As Tom, Kim, and Irma knew all too well. They currently still needing of a good bit of fleshing out when compared to the overall form of Bryan and Jesse. A handful of squirrels two days ago was not going to cut if for Angelina. She being a six hundred kilogram creature undertaking the huge energy expenditure of flight.

Angie's tail curled forward to tap Margaret on the shoulder, startling her badly. "Can I have somewaterpleeeease? I am thirsty! And then..." She stopped and sidled closer to whisper to the CSP agent: "I havetoooogo tothebathroom!" She bobbed her head and teetered from paw to paw somewhat shyly.

Jesse threw himself to his feet to lead the little female to a large rubber tub that was filled with clear, clean water. Angie plunged her head into the basin and drank deeply. Gulps of the water could be seen moving in regular bulges up her long neck. Pulling her head out, she flung water over her back, making a funny tittering noise at the ticklish sensation of water running between her scales and across her hide. Many of the law enforcement listening to Irma grumbled as they were doused by the spray but ceased their muttering when Kim turned a vitriolic glare upon them. Amidst this, Irma was busy relaying to them the encounter Jesse and herself had had with the youngling while they fixedly documented how, where, and when she was found.

Getting her fill of the water, Angie galloped into the trees. She twisted her head back to admonish the bemused Jesse as she went into forest. "Privacyplease! I can't use the pottyanymore, I'mtoobig!"

A few minutes later, she returned, with the air and the scent of mild embarrassment. "Am I bad forgoingoutside? Mommysaidit's bad!"

Margaret reassured her that she did everything she could to be respectful to those around her.

Twenty minutes later, the sound of yet another patrol car could be heard coming up the driveway.

Margaret gave one more quick instruction to Angie as she danced in place with anticipation. "Honey, remember your parents won't recognize you, so please don't run towards them."

"I won't! I don't want toooscaremommyanddaddy!"

Commander Martinez and another deputy hustled to the side of the house even at the sound of car doors being flung open. They intercepted the distraught and sobbing parents before they could reach the back yard and had a quick conversation with them as they screamed for their little girl.

Angie, laying on the ground next to Margaret whose hand caressed the side of her raised head, whimpered and drew her wings tightly against her body at the sound of her parent's shrill cries.

There was a moment of silence and then the sound of a body falling to the ground as the mother fainted. The deputy next to Martinez went to the front of the house and swiftly returned with a small first aid kit. Cracking open an ampule of smelling salts he roused the mother who then reached up to cling to her husband. He himself looked to be teetering on the edge of either vomiting or passing out. Both deputies pulled the parents to their feet to continue on, but Martinez gave one last bit of advice.

"I know this will be scary for you. But she is still your daughter. She knows she's changed but she's still only six years old, give her all the support that you can. You don't know how lucky you are to get her back in any way at all."

"How..." the mother began, before giving a broken sob. "...How will we even be able to recognize our baby? My little girl!"

"She's the little one lying next to the social worker. You'll know her when you see her, she's the only one back there that is not larger than a house. Now, go to your daughter."

They let go of the parents, who returned to running around the corner of the house. Spotting their daughter, who crouched low against the ground with her head held tightly to her chest, they hesitated only for a moment before flinging their arms open and rushing to her.

"Angie! Angie! Our little girl! We've missed you so much, honey! You've come back to us... We thought... We thought..." The both sobbed in relief at finally being able to hold their child in their arms again. Angie closed her eyes as her parents hugged her head to their chests, relishing the soothing feeling of their heartbeats.

"Mommy, daddy, I'm sorry I didn'tcomehome. AmIintrouble?"

They released their embrace to draw her head up on the end of its limber neck. Each of them looked into one of her eyes.

"No sweetie, of course you're not! How could you ever think we could be mad at someone who has been so brave! You must have been so scared honey! You have been gone for so long Angie, Angie... We got you back. We thought you were..." The father dissolved into fresh tears, unable to go on, Angie placed her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arms around her neck.

"Did you get my painting mommyanddaddy? I wanted toooshowyou, butIhurt! I hurtsoooomuch that Idroppedit! Ifeltsoooo hot, andeverything hurt! WhenIhurt, I feltfunny, I couldn'tstandup anymore likeaaahbiggirl! And Igrew sobig, biggerthanyou! And ithurt! Ithurt! Then everythingwasfuzzy, and it didn'thurtanymore! But Icouldn'trememberyou! I wasscaredand everythingwasfuzzy! UntilI metmy friendstoday! Theychased me! But whenthey talkedto meIcould remembermynameagain! It'sAngelina! I couldn'tremember myname whenitwasfuzzy!"

Her mother, whose name was Helen, was reminded of the picture they had had framed. Framed to be displayed at their daughter's funeral. At that reminder, she buried her tear streaked face against her daughter's much larger head. They had been told gently that after so long, even if she hadn't been attacked, that the likelihood of finding her alive was gone. They had pointed out the number of freezing nights, the lack of food, of clean water, of shelter. They were going to bury their little girl, their little girl that was now safe in their arms once more! She howled at herself in her head for losing faith that they'd ever find Angelina again, for her own weakness. It would take many years for the two parents to forgive themselves for having given up on their little girl's survival.

The deputies, having turned away to give the family their privacy, still made their implacable notes as more was coaxed out of the little girl by the presence of her parents. The smell of burning metal was saturating the air once more, causing the humans to look again for the source of fire. The dragons, knowing the source of the smell, turned their heads to look at Tom, quivering with suppressed anger. Spinning, he ignored the outraged squawk from Bryan as his tail crashed into his neck, and darted through the curtain of their shelter. No sound came from within, but Tom reemerged with Thumper dangling limply in his jaws. Marching back over, he threw the tiny alien to the ground and then stomped down on it with one paw. Forcing the alien to watch what it had caused.

How does this make you feel? How does it feel to watch what you have done? What is that little girl going to do in the future, that makes what she and her parents have been through, worth it? Thumper! You will fucking answer me!

Tom snarled savagely when the computer refused to answer him. He whipped his head towards Commander Martinez. "Tell those two that this is the source of what happened to their little girl. Tell them, that this creature is responsible for making their child one of us. Tell them, that this is the creature that put their daughter through hell!"

But, of course, there was no need for Martinez to tell them any of that. When a creature that weighs four thousand kilograms roars, there is no more ignoring it than there is ignoring a tornado. The parents had heard every word.

In fact, the father, George, was already scrambling to his feet to charge at Thumper. An attempted act of retribution that would have been as pointless as it was unhelpful.

But even before a deputy could stop his charge, he was halted by the wrap of his daughter's wing. Which had unfurled as soon as she felt her father's body heat disappear from her scales. Not able to resist the new strength of his daughter he was bundled back up against her body, and was soon joined by his wife as Angie's other wing drew her in close as well.

"Pleasedon'tleave me mommyanddaddy, I'm scaredifyou leave I'll forgetwho youareagain! I don't want tofeelfuzzyanymore! I don't wanttoforgetyou!" They whispered reassurances to her and both began rubbing her neck soothingly even as they turned their heads to stare coldly at the creature beneath Tom's paw.

Tom's claws dug through the ground as he picked up Thumper, and a good chunk of his yard, to hold up to his wrathful eye.

"In thirty years she will be..." Was as far as Thumper got, before Tom slammed the computer into the ground five times and held it up to his eye again.

She is six years old! Try justifying this again! I fucking dare you!

Thumper shifted tactics to catch Tom and the rest of the dragons staring at it with anger emanating from their bodies off guard. The computer began to chirp shrilly in the wild alarm of a hatchling in danger.

Help! Help! I hurt! I hurt! Danger! I hurt! I hurt! Help! Help!

Help! Help! I hurt! I hurt! Danger! I hurt! I hurt! Help! Help!

Every dragon turned their head, against their own volition, to look at Tom with narrowed eyes and lifted scales. Tom's own hackles raised at the disgust of his actions, and before his conscious mind was even able to argue that the vile alien was playing off their instincts, set Thumper down and hurriedly backed away from its alarm call and the powerful effect it was having upon him. Kim, and Bryan, both blocked Thumper from Tom with their wings flared and their teeth bared. Jesse and Irma approached him from the sides with their forequarters brought low and rumps raised into the air for a forward leap with tails lashing savagely behind them. Even far behind Kim and Bryan, Angie, not much more than a hatchling herself, had raised her head and much to the distress of her parents had begun to hiss violently in Tom's direction.

Prometheus came out from the shelter to stand tall on his hind legs with his vast wings outstretched and bellowed.

"ENOUGH!"

As the enormous sound of his cry rolled over the clearing, an incredibly loud burst of static erupted from all the radios in the clearing causing the law enforcement to shout in pain. Whatever caused the static seemed to have an effect on Thumper as its form momentarily wavered and blinked. Prometheus turned his implacable gaze down upon the computer and, much to everyone's amazement, it cowered against the ground and averted its eyes.

Prometheus dropped to all fours with a seismic thud and swung his head back and forth to make sure everyone had calmed from Thumper's instigation. Beneath him blood erupted from his wounds, the black fluid painting the ground as everyone recoiled from the sound of bone grinding upon bone coming from his injured leg.

"If you want to blame someone for Angelina Holbrook, you can blame me."

He turned his head to point in the direction of Holbrook family.

"We... I am the source of what was done to your daughter. I am the reason why she is a child of the egg. I am the one that caused you to think your daughter dead. I am the one that choose her for a duty that still lies in the distant future. If you need something to hold accountable for your and your daughter's torment, you need not look any further than I!"

"Change her back!" Angie's mother and father shouted at him. "We want our little girl back!" Angie whimpered at what her parents yelled.

"But I'mrighthere." She said in a voice so quite that her parents, right next to her, barely heard. But heard it they did, and were beside themselves at what they had implied.

"Angelina, we..." With a honking wail Angie released the tight hold on her parents with her wings and instead brought them over her head as she collapsed to the ground. From beneath their cover she emitted heaving sobs as her body convulsed.

"Mommy! Daddy! I'msorry I'mnotthesame! I couldn'tstopit! It hurt, ithurtsoooomuch! I couldn't stopit! I couldn'tstayyouuurlittle girl! I don'twanttooobeeeebig! I want tooobeeeeAngie!" The tiny female cried brokenly, as the hearts of her parents shattered in their chests. Helen and George slumped to the ground next to their daughter with lost, hopeless, looks on their faces. With one hand they each covered their eyes, and the other they placed on their daughter's shivering wings. Margaret Huckleberry sat down heavily next to them, not even knowing what to say to the family. Instead, she buried her head in her hands and wept silently.

Not one creature, no matter the species, that counted themselves a parent, was able to look at the pile of misery before them without tears spilling down their cheeks. Many of the deputies were on their phones, just to hear the voices of their loved ones. The National Guard soldiers were equally distraught. Only Sparrow remained impassive, staring icily at the two aliens. Tom and Kim desolately curled around their twin children, and snuffled at them until their minds filled with the comfort of their presences. Alex stood next to his brother's head, absently rubbing his brow and lost in thought. Irma crept over and crooned piteously, until they opened a space for her to place her head next to her siblings as well. She raised her wing for Jesse and he pushed himself closely against her warmth with a melancholic look in his eyes. Serena had turned away and was hugging tightly to Bryan's chest as her tears rolled down his scales and he hummed to comfort her.

Bryan raised his head to look at Prometheus and Thumper both before begging them.

Can you not see what you have done to this world? You speak to us of light, but your actions are nothing but darkness! Hundreds of thousands across the planet are suffering in a torment that you have forced upon them. Millions more must stand by and watch their loved ones torn apart! Tens or hundreds of millions will die! Please, save them all. Please...

Prometheus answered for both of them.

"We are sorry, however there is no going back from the path we have set you on. This is your test. To earn the right to fly. You must learn what it means to fall."