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Virgil was not happy to see the cluster of preps standing in front of his college apartment.

“Do you mind?” he grumbled. The students chuckled but let him through.

“Tell Romeo we're ready to party ok?” one called after him before Virgil shut the door. “Charmless. Your dumb rich friends are at the door! In ten minutes they better be someone else’s problem or I’ll be a problem to them!” he called out to his roommate as he started unpacking the groceries. They’d been stuck together for two years now and honestly, it wasn’t all bad. They’d figured out each other’s boundaries and for the most part both parties didn’t get in each other’s way. Roman could take his cue when Virgil was overwhelmed and couldn’t handle loud singing and Virgil knew when Roman was nervous and didn’t need him to get on his nerves. Things like that. Virgil would go as far as to say he liked having the confident theatre star as a roommate. On certain days he preferred his company over anyone else’s. Some of his friends though… He could do without. “Tell them I changed my mind! I’m not going out tonight!” Roman called back from the bathroom. Virgil paused. Roman’s voice sounded off. “You sure? You know I’ll have to bring out the mean face to get those stuck ups to leave?” he reminded him. “Yes! Do whatever! I can’t leave right now!” Okay that sounded kind of close to panicky. That wasn’t just Virgil overthinking. And so Virgil put down the margarin, picked up his water gun filled with red water paint and opened the door, hiding the weapon out of view. “He’s not feeling well,” he said. The prepies whined and made a move to enter anyway. Virgil picked up his prep deterrent. “I said, he is not feeling well. Some other time.” And just like that they were gone. He had made good on his threats in the past when they’d been too loud in the living room while he was trying to study. Roman had been at the center of his wrath at the time. He closed the door and put the water gun back in its spot. “They’re gone!” he announced as he walked back to the kitchen to continue with the groceries. “As predicted they didn’t listen until their precious designer clothes were under threat,” he added. “It’s not the clothes It’s the damn spots that stick to your skin for weeks,” Roman grumbled, still hiding in the bathroom. Had he manifested acne again? Good thing Virgil had remembered to get a refill of that glamor cream. Roman was a very talented performer. Singing and acting were his passions. The later caused his magic to manifest how he viewed himself on any given day, which was a hassle to deal with when he was insecure about a date and stuff like that. When Virgil first learned his roommate was a singer, he’d immediately invested in noise canceling headphones. He did not want Roman to accidently charm him while singing in the shower. Virgil didn’t blame him for the occasions when it did happen. Passion spells were often unintentional. Virgil regularly conjured while sketching or transmuted while doing stage make up. And apparently he had unintentionally altered the paint in his watergun somehow. It was kid safe paint. It should wash off easily. “What do you mean?” he called as he closed the fridge and scratched his familiar Zoë, who’d risen from the shadow between the fridge and the cupboard, behind her ear, making the ink black cat purr. “Anywhere that paint of yours touched my skin, even trough my clothes, I had scarlet spots for weeks! Not until we talked it out did they disappear. Do you know how exhausting it was to consciously glamor myself 24/7 all that time?” Roman complained dramatically, followed by a low frustrated curse. “Dang. Sorry about that man. I didn’t know,” Virgil said, genuinely feeling bad. “I know scare amor,” Roman sighed. “I got a new pot of that glamour cream. You might be able to catch up with your friends,” he offered picking up the pot in question and heading to the bathroom. “No!” Roman shouted so hard that Virgil jumped and Zoë hissed. Virgil nearly dropped the pot. “Sorry,” Roman said, his voice coming from right behind the door. “It’s just… I don’t think it’ll help this time,” he explained more quietly. Virgil frowned. “Well… Whatever it is I might be able to do something with my brushes?” he

offered. “You… You don’t ever cast passion spells on purpose,” Roman pointed out. It was true. When your passions are art related, casting a spell intentionally meant being vulnerable. And Virgil hated being vulnerable. But Roman had seen him cry while watching Lilo and Stitch and had seen some of his more personal artwork, the ones that came to life. “Well, sure. But I’m not going to deal with you moping about all night if I can do something about it,” he explained awkwardly. “I… You don’t have to. I’ll figure it out,” Roman reassured him. Virgil could hear a displeased humming. “Ow! Zim! Cut it out!” Roman complained. Virgil looked down to Zoë who looked displeased. She glanced up at him and meowed and Virgil felt her message through their bond. Something was seriously wrong with Roman. “Roman… Let me help,” he pleaded. A moment of silence passed. Then a sigh. “I suppose I have little other choice… Okay. But on one condition,” he said, nerves clear in his voice. “I won’t laugh,” Virgil promised. “Not that… It’s… I need you to roll with it and not ask questions. Okay?” Roman pleaded. Virgil was a bit taken aback by that. Fine. He’d play detective if needed. He just needed to see what it was that had Roman so upset. It couldn’t be his usual overdramatic self. Zim sounded upset, and Zoë seemed to think it was serious too.

“I promise,” he said. A moment passed before the door opened. Virgil immediately spotted the problem. Though he had to admit, his hands were itching to create something that awesome. “You can say it. I look hideous,” Roman said. His hazel eyes, now with slitted pupils, looked miserable as there appeared even more scarlet and gold scales around his eyes. Each glistening like small jewels in the soft deep blue glow given off by Zim. Roman touched the new scales and let out a defeated sigh. “Actually I think it looks really cool. But I assume you haven’t been letting another make up artist practice on you…” Virgil frowned. “If I find out who did this to you, I’ll kick their ass though,” he vowed. There were only two ways this could’ve happened that couldn’t be solved with Roman’s usual remedy. Either someone got into his head and made him cast an exceptional strong glamor on himself. Or someone cursed him. Virgil suspected the latter. Something felt different about Roman. When you share an apartment with someone and see him practice songs and lines, you get acquainted with their magic. The way you get to know their voice and stuff. Someone else’s magic was on Roman. And judging by his mood, he was not okay with it. “Come on and sit down. I’ll get some stuff,” he said as he led Roman to the couch. Roman, surprisingly, kept quiet as Virgil hurried to his room. Zoë already sat on his bed with the charm necklace he needed in her mouth. “Thanks,” Virgil said as he took the old piece of jewelry from her mouth, giving her a scratch behind the ear which she happily accepted. He heard a distressed humming at his ear. “Yes, Zim. I’m hurrying up,” he muttered as he collected not his makeup bag but his sketch bag and his old rune book just in case he needed to double check his work. Which he probably would anyway. Zim was a darling really. Playful and always cheery. But, as familiars tended to be, they took the health and wellbeing of Roman very serious. In their relationship that usually meant getting Roman to take care of himself, a task Zim often managed to get Virgil involved in somehow. The artist thought that maybe Zim and Zoë were teaming up on the matter. Forcing both Roman and Virgil to take breaks by making them help each other out. Devious little monsters. Zoë would never admit to it though, and Roman was too soft on Zim to seriously try to get the truth out of them.

Virgil headed to the living room, avoiding the fairy light like trail left in Zim’s wake. It was something he did out of politeness. He was not entirely sure if it would actually hurt Zim’s feelings if he’d walk through them, but he felt like they appreciated the effort regardless. “Alright,” he sighed as he sat with Roman and put down his bag. “Let’s see.” He offered the necklace to Roman who took it with a confused frown. The stone on the necklace immediately started glowing a light almost yellow green. “Transmutation,” Virgil muttered. “I’d really hoped for illusion. I don’t expect that to be news to you. You probably feel those changes,” he told Roman as he took back the charm. “That means this thing is legit then,” he concluded. He shook off that thought. “Anyway. More importantly. This means that you are cursed, as I suspected. And that means that this won’t blow over overnight. So, rather than a quick fix, I’ll try for a more long term solution. I can’t undo the curse, I don’t known nearly enough about it. But,” he retrieved his sketchbook. “I can hide it from the world. Or try at least,” he offered with a shrug as he started sketching a ring from different perspectives. He’d never tried to conjure something through his drawings before, but he knew the theory and now was as good a chance as any to give it a shot. “… I don’t understand,” Roman stated. “What exactly Princey?” Virgil wondered as he checked over the guidelines. It looked right. Good. Now he could focus on the actual design. He’d have to observe Roman more before he even began worrying about the rune inscriptions. “Anything. Why are you helping me like this?” he demanded. Virgil looked up at Roman’s frustrated tone, just in time to see his eyes widen in horror as more scales appeared. “No! Why does this keep happening!?” Roman exclaimed, causing even more scales to form. It was like he was wearing a scaled mask, going from eyebrow to cheekbone from temple to temple. His nose flattened to just two diagonal-ish slits. Virgil studied the scales forming. Those were no ordinary scales. “Those are dragon scales… I wonder if it worsens every time you show traits associated with the ancient dragons of old. You know before the peace pact, back when they were all about conquering and stuff,” Virgil noted. “Like what?” Roman sighed. Virgil wondered how much Roman knew but was unable to tell. Considering it was super illegal to curse someone, like you could get your magic bound away if you got caught, curses that were cast usually included a little clause that kept the victim from revealing any information concerning the curse or the caster.

This caster was very thorough considering Roman was worried about even hearing a question about his condition. “Pride, Vanity, Temper, Greed,” Virgil listed from memory. Dragons had cooled down a lot over the centuries. Though witness reports stated that while they weren’t as volatile as in the past, they were still quickly insulted and easily flattered.

“So… I can’t be proud of any of my work ever again? I can’t get upset at anything? I’m not allowed to be put off by how this affects how I look?” Roman surmised miserably. Virgil frowned. “There’s got to be a way to fix this. I’m going to make sure you can still get to classes and hang with your friends. And we can research together and stuff to see if there is a way to reverse it,” Virgil promised while focusing back on the drawing. “And, as for why I’m helping you. Of course I am. I know filing a complaint through official channels is probably not an option to you. It would be a stain on your reputation for the rest of your life. We might not get along all the time, but I guess you got me to warm up to you somehow charming,” he said teasingly, feeling his sincere care and wish to help his roommate seep into his drawing. Good. “Virgil… Thank you,” Roman said, sounding moved. Virgil looked up to give a teasing remark but faltered in surprise as he saw several layers of scales fade. Roman blinked in shock as well. “Wha… How?” he wondered. Virgil shrugged. “Maybe because… I don’t know. Maybe being the opposite of the stuff that causes the scales makes them go away. You were sort of humble when you thanked me. Not sure though.” Roman frowned. “So if I lose my temper, I grow scales. If I keep my calm, I’ll lose them?” he reasoned. “Seems right,” Virgil nodded as he went back to sketching. “Now if you want there to be some actual magic in this… Here’s your chance to get me talking about myself,” he pointed out. “You did say there were more questions,” he recalled. “Um… Yes… You don’t have to answer though. It’s probably none of my business… Hey that helped too!” Virgil chuckled. Roman was such a child, so unapologetic in his excitement. He envied that sometimes. “Anyway. Um… So that necklace that told you what was going on with me… That’s expensive stuff,” Roman pointed out. Virgil halted for but a moment. He knew there’d come a day when Roman would put it together and asked. And he never planned to lie when he did. He’d just secretly hoped it would never come up. “And I saw you get in a limo when you went home for break a few times. And you are here. In the gated apartments of a prestigious college in the same building as kids of dignitaries and politicians and all kinds of rich and famous people. But you… You are so against all of that. You hate my ‘preppy’ friends. And you talk like someone who’s never had the money to buy a nice designer bag,” he listed. It kind of sounded like he’d put all these pieces together for a long while now. He’d just been respectful of Virgil’s privacy. The curiosity finally got to him it seemed.

Virgil sighed.

“It’s fine if you don’t want to… how does that help?” Roman wondered sounding surprised. Virgil looked up and indeed. Roman’s scales now formed raccoon like markings around his eyes.

“Thank heavens. I never appreciated having a nose until now. Don’t know how Voldemort put up with it,” Roman breathed in relief. “Why did that work though?” he wondered confused. Virgil thought about that for a moment. “You want the answers, but you don’t demand them. The person who cursed you doesn’t know you very well. It’s like they based the entire thing on a surface level impression of you. To be fair, it took me a few days to see there was more to you than I initially thought. Mostly thanks to Zoë and Zim who decided we’d be cool with each other once we gave it a chance,” he smiled fondly as he watched Zoë distract Zim by playing tag with him. Roman’d had a heart attack the first time he’d seen that. It had caused something of a fight. But it had been Roman who’d come to apologize once he’d heard from Zim that it had all been in good fun. After that, things had started to go better. People always assumed that the two couldn’t stand each other. Their familiars couldn’t be more opposite. A shadow traveling cat and a luminescent hummingbird? Seemed to spell trouble. But Virgil had noted, that day when they were both making an effort to be nicer for the first time, that they were both creatures who were stubborn enough to just figure out a way to get what they want. Be it flying upside down and hovering to get nectar or bending in weird ways to sit in the spot they wanted. Somehow that had sparked a fun but heated debate and hours later they were somehow sitting in the couch watching a Disney movie together and arguing and laughing. It was time he let his roommate know more about him. He had to. It was the best way to lower his guard and let his emotions flow so he could actually pull this whole conjuring thing off. “My parents are good people. Hardworking. They had a decent house just big enough to house three, but it was ours,” he smiled as he recalled those early memories. The lines on his paper glimmered with his magic pouring in. “But then dad got sick. And there were a few bad investments, scams really… It got bad. They would feed me before themselves. I’ll never truly know how much they denied themselves to spare me. But bills had to be paid and… Zoë made the decision my parents knew had to be made soon,” he cleared his throat to keep tears from blocking his voice. “I was seven when I entered the system. A few months later… Zoë was so pushy about me keeping my chin up and venting through drawing. That was when my drawings first came to life. It got people’s attention. Usually a seven and a half year old doesn’t have so much to deal with that they can pour it in a crayon drawing… Anyway I didn’t like any of them and Zoë made it very clear that she would make life a living hell for anyone who took me against my will. But then there was Mr. Storm.” Roman let out a soft gasp. “Famous multibillionaire, CEO of GreenStream energy productions, sponsor of some of the greatest artists of this time and generous donor to all the genuine charities in existence, Storm?” he verified. “Yep…” Virgil nodded. Remembering the man sitting down with him in simple, worn clothes and asking about what he was working on and what he liked to do. Zoë appearing from the shadow of his bag and him chuckling once he recovered from his fright. No yelling, no anger or offence. He was glad he came around. “He’s… He’s my foster dad. My parents are kind of getting there again. But they just manage to make ends meet and they won’t accept support other than the stuff they are legally entitled to. You know, since they pay taxes and all. And Mr. Storm is kind of like an extra dad. Sort off. So he still makes sure I get wherever I want to be in life. Sometimes, I feel bad accepting his money and stuff. He takes me to benefits and stuff sometimes to show me off, cause he’s like legit proud and stuff. It’s this joke where we’ll leave and he’ll ask if I still feel bad for accepting his money cause we both know I hate those gatherings but come along because I wanna do something back plus I always meet someone worth meeting… So yeah. I went to a preparatory

school like all of you. But I hate people who act like that. I don’t like how you act when you’re around those stuck ups either.” There. That must be sufficient soul bearing nonsense right? The drawing looked good. He just needed to inscribe the runes and will it to life and they were done. He paged through his rune book, he was pretty sure which runes he needed but he had to get them exactly right so he rather have references at the ready.

“You… You probably weren’t too wrong about who I was when we met,” Roman admitted after a moment of silence. Virgil glanced up in surprise. Roman wasn’t looking at him. Just touching the remaining scales, staring at his lap. “Back then… I was so used to people liking me and wanting me to like them the moment they learned my name. And then there was you. You weren’t impressed and you called me out on my crap. That one thing you said, about making my parents my whole identity… That really stuck with me. So when meeting my theatre group I approached things differently. And it got me friends there I honestly like to hang out with a lot more than my ‘preppy’ friends. I really appreciate you checking me on my BS,” he told him. Virgil felt his face flush. “Yeah, likewise I guess. You weren’t wrong when you called me out on being too guarded. I literally made most of my friends here out of spite,” he chuckled, marking the pages he needed and started on the inscription. “I’m glad I got stuck with you of all people here Princey,” he added as he perfected a line. “I really like that one. You only call me that when you are impressed with something I did, or when you are being nice… When you are being sincere. It makes me feel like we’re friends,” Roman confessed softly. It seemed his roommate wanted to return Virgil’s vulnerability in kind. Virgil looked up with a quirked brow. “We are friends dummy,” he pointed out. Roman’s smile was so… God damn it this idiot. Making him all mushy… “I’ll deny I ever said that. But. I mean, we have movie nights and like, when life crushes us with lemons we help each other up. I think that makes us more than roommates,” he shrugged focusing on the drawing again. “I guess you are right…” Roman agreed. A moment of comfortable silence settled over them as Virgil finished his work. “Okay. Let’s do this,” he said as he closed his eyes and focused. “Virgil! It’s gorgeous!” Roman exclaimed. Virgil opened his eyes and saw that the golden ring with a ruby red stone nestled in rosepettals at it’s center had come to life. The runes were so small they’d be barely noticed by someone who didn’t know to look for them. “Well, it had to look like something you’d wear. Tell people it was a present from an admirer,” Virgil suggested. He saw Roman hesitate. “It’s not a lie,” Virgil assured him awkwardly. Roman’s eyes widened at that but he didn’t push for more. “Go ahead, put it on,” Virgil insisted. Roman nodded and the moment the ring settled his eyes seemingly went back to normal and the last of the scales seemed to vanish. Roman shot up and ran to the bathroom mirror. “By the stars!!!” he exclaimed. Virgil was getting up, collecting his things when he was scooped up and spun around. “Virgil you magnificent mage! I’ve never looked this good!” Roman exclaimed. “Roman, breath, personal space,” Virgil grunted, though he couldn’t help a smile. Glad to have his excited friend back. “Glad you approve,” he said. “Guess that talking about your qualities and stuff made the spell show you your best or something. I don’t know,” he shrugged. The runes were supposed to create a glamor based on how Virgil saw Roman. But since he was thinking of the things he liked and that he cared about him and stuff like that while inscribing the runes, that base image might have been embellished a bit. As he was put down he studied the result more closely. Maybe the color of his hair was a bit more vibrant? There was a glow to his skin and his eyes were shining with emotion. But that was just Roman. “We still need to figure out a way to break the curse. But for now this might do,” he said. Roman nodded. “Absolutely. Thank you Virgil. I can’t begin to tell you what this means to me,” he said. Virgil shrugged. “You’d do the same for me,” he stated. Not doubting that for a second. Roman was a good guy like that.

“I swear,” Roman vowed seriously. Then his expression went back to excited. “So. How about we watch some movies?” he suggested. Virgil frowned. “Don’t you want to catch up to your friends? It’s only been an hour. You can still make it to whatever party you were going to and have fun,” he pointed out. Roman shrugged. “I could… But I think watching movies with you is a better use of my time than partying with them,” he stated. Virgil nodded thoughtfully. “Sure. Let’s go.” They got a lot closer over the next few months. Roman picked up his social life again, but he was more selective with who he spent his time with. When Virgil asked Roman pointed out that the curse did bring to the surface who was bringing out the worst in him and curse or not, he rather not associate with people who made him act like that. This meant that Roman was in the apartment a lot more. Allowing them to spend more time together and soon, Virgil would say that Roman was his closest friend. He’d been far more open with him than with any of his other friends that’s for sure. Virgil had contacted a friend of Mr. Storm who specialized in curses and didn’t ask questions. They’d provided the curse detecting charm when Virgil first learned about curses and got worried about encountering them without his knowledge. The only cure they could provide right away, was what they’d already learned. Humility, generocity, temperance ect. Without studying the curse up close that was the best they could say. They were at the other side of the world and wouldn’t be back for a few months. Knowing that they had it under control for now and that the curse didn’t seem damaging, they couldn’t abandon their current good will project.

So they’d have to wait and see, and hopefully stumble into the cure on accident. Roman seemed to have it under control though. The curse barely bothering him anymore with the glamor in place. Virgil was still worried though. He felt a bit bad every time he went out to hang with his friends on nights where Roman had no plans of his own. What if something happened? He wasn’t stupid. He could see that there was another reason for him to want to be close to that loud, obnoxious, charming, handsome, kind… Yeah. He’d always been attracted to him. Roman was stupidly handsome. But now there were real actual feelings and Virgil could not indulge in a stupid crush and risk losing the first person his age he’d really been open about himself with since he was eight. Still he felt bad for running away from his feelings and leaving Roman behind in the process. Roman assured him that he didn’t want his condition to put a damper on either of their junior years. Which helped a little… He was a lot less convincing about that when Virgil started going out with someone he met in the library, looking for books on protective and healing magic. Their name was Janus. They were charming and there was something about them that triggered Virgil’s senses in a pleasant way. The safe kind of dangerous. Intriguing enough to make his fledgling crush on Roman move to the very back of his mind. Roman was a bit protective of Virgil’s well being too nowadays it would seem. He’d stay up when they went out, often clearly exhausted when Virgil came back home. This led to Virgil trying to come home at a decent hour, which Roman insisted was unnecessary. Which brings us to Janus’ car around midnight after a nice date at the movies. Virgil and Janus were laughing at some dumb mushy scene. “That was great,” Virgil concluded. Janus grinned. “It certainly was. Was it good enough for a kiss?” they wondered coyly. Virgil chuckled and leaned in. Very soon they were making out on the front seats. And then a sharp insistent meow interrupted them. Zoë was not okay with Virgil kissing Janus, that was made clear every time they got a bit too carried away. Which was kind of the main reason Virgil hadn’t made it official yet. He trusted Zoë and until Jay came clean about why the feline was so suspicious of them, he couldn’t take that next step, no matter how much he’d come to like them. A hiss came from Jay’s shoulder. Bud, Jay’s snake familiar was not happy when Zoë ruined things for his master. “It’s okay Bud,” Janus sighed, though he was clearly a bit put off. As usual. Never enough to make him give up on Virgil though. He must really enjoy what interaction Zoë did allow. Zoë looked at Virgil and let out a sad meow. Virgil frowned. Something was wrong. “Jay, I gotta go. I think Roman might be more sick than he admitted to earlier,” Virgil said, getting out, without another word. Jay had picked him up at the apartment a few hours ago, meeting Roman for the first time. It was an awkward conversation, Roman trying to soothe a protective Zim. Roman’d been having a rough day today and Virgil had almost canceled the date a few times. Roman had nearly pushed him outside insisting he was fine. Virgil had known it was a lie then, and now he wished he had stayed. “I’ll call you later!” He shouted over his shoulder as he hurried inside, praying Zoë just wanted him out of the car. He took the stairs, not patient enough to wait for the elevator. Soon he came at his apartment, gasping for air. Zoë appeared from his shadow sniffing at the door and looking up, hairs slightly raised, body guarded. That was not good. Virgil was as quiet as possible when he unlocked the door. Just in case Roman was sleeping. When the door opened he felt a cold draft. Like it was the middle of a new York winter and they’d left all the windows open. Thing was, this was Miami. Even in the dead of winter it didn’t get that cold here. Virgil stepped inside and his mouth fell open. Their apartment looked like the inside of a cave. It was damp and cold and echoey and everything! He felt Zoe nestle in the shadow

of his jacket pocket, just solid enough to be a comforting weight. Virgil walked in slowly, trying not to make any noise. The cave has the general shape of their apartment. Sort off. Virgil finds himself in what used to be the living room, now a dark damp cave with the floors littered with gold. Glowing crystals providing some light. He could hear streaming water on his right. No doubt their bathroom was turned into a river or a pond with a waterfall or something else you might see in a cave. He felt a warm wind from the left, the kitchen… If that was a lava pool now, he did not want to know.

What he was most worried about were the two spaces ahead of him. Their rooms. Roman was likely in his own, the center of the dragon lair clearly. Figuring that ignorance was bliss and his room would be back to normal once he got to the bottom of this anyway he walked to the narrow passageway that was once a door and… Nothing. Heaps of treasures of course. Scrolls and jewels and stuff like that. But no Roman. Did… Did that mean. He saw something flicker in his peripheral. He turned around and saw a trail of light leading out of the room. Virgil followed it to the room next door, his room. He carefully glanced around the corner. This room was filled with glowing purple crystals and gorgeous art. Most, but not all, by his hand. He’d never framed his works though. Instead of his bed there was a massive bed sized cushion of indigo velvet. A figure laid on it, curled up under a black silk blanket. A lighttrail circled around it and then led up to a crystal where Zim was perched. Virgil was about to call out but then his phone buzzed. He took it out of his pocket. Janus. He picked up. “Jay I can’t talk right now,” he whispered as he approached what used to be his bed. “I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Bud got restless when you left,” Janus explained. Bud might have sensed just how worried Zoë was. “I’m fine. Roman’s just really under the weather. I really gotta go,” he said. Then his foot hit something. He looked down. Oh no. What was the ring doing on the ground? Virgil picked it up and kept moving forwards.

“You don’t need to talk. Just… Just stay on the line please,” Janus insisted. “Why?” Virgil wondered as he finally reached the bed, kneeling down and reaching for the blanket. “Because…” Virgil was only half listening as he pulled the blanket away. Oh, this looked bad. Roman’s entire face was scaled up. His ears were pointy, his hair turned to spikes. He even had horns and a muzzle. Virgil gently nudged Roman. His roommate insisted his mere presence was humbling enough to chase away the curse. Which honestly got Virgil blushing and feel some butterflies kick up a storm in his stomach. But more importantly it meant that Roman needed him right now. “Ro,” he whispered. Roman’s reptilian eye snapped open and his face turned to Virgil attentively. “Because I cursed him,” Janus confessed. This barely registered to Virgil as Roman let out a screech and tackled Virgil to the ground. “Holly frick!” Virgil exclaimed as he dropped his phone and was pushed to land on his back, the draconic face of his roommate so close Virgil could see his reflection in Roman’s eyes. Roman let out another screech. This time Virgil could swear it sounded vaguely like ‘home’. “Uh, yes bud. I’m home,” he agreed gently. Roman screeched again and Virgil heard something move… He looked to the side… Roman had a tail… And wings, and claws. Oh and by the way, the tail was wagging. “Uh, happy to see you too Ro. Can, can you get off now?” Virgil asked tentatively. Roman had other ideas though and started sniffing him. Growling lowly at what he found. Virgil’s mind raced. He hadn’t switched any of his soaps and stuff up or anything. He felt Zoë nuzzle his cheek and let out a soft sound. And Virgil was grateful for the familiar bond that allowed him to understand her intention exactly. “Oh. You don’t like that I smell off Jay…” Roman growled harder. “Not saying their name. Got it…” Man, Roman really didn’t… Oh god. “Jay cursed you,” Virgil breathed as Janus’ last words on the phone finally registered. “Roman, I’m so sorry,” Virgil breathed. His thoughts spinning out of control. Had Janus just been using him to get close to Roman? To hurt him more? “I’m never seeing him again Ro. Or just once to make him pay for this. I promise I’m through with him. I never would have started anything if I’d known. I’m so sorry,” he whispered softly. Roman crooned softly as Virgil gently stroked the scales under his eyes. Then he suddenly perked up. His ears twitching and his muzzle moving to a snarl. He dashed forwards, towards the living room. Virgil got to his feet as fast as possible and followed him. Roman stood in the living room growling at the front door where none other than Janus stood, hands raised, shocked at the sight in front of him. He looked around and relaxed as he saw Virgil appear. “You’re okay,” he breathed, moving to approach for a moment before Roman’s growl stopped him. Roman’s posture was defensive. It was heartbreaking to watch him on all fours, the clothes he’d been wearing torn due to the transformation. He was roughly the same size he had been. Just European Dragon shaped. “A lot better off than you’ll be when I’m done with you,” Virgil growled, Janus’ face fell. “Babe…” “You don’t get to call me that anymore!” Virgil snapped. “You lift the curse you put on Roman and you get out of our lives if you know what’s good for you. Next time I’ll see you I’ll make you regret toying with us like that!” Virgil exclaimed, unable to hold off the tears in his voice. He heard Roman whine worriedly as Zoë circled around Virgil’s legs in comfort. “If Roman wasn’t between us right now…” he said not sure what he’d do. “Virgil. Please… It’s not what you think,” Janus pleaded. “Then what is it! Not that I’ll believe you at this point!” Janus flinched back at Virgil’s harsh tone. “I… Roman and I met in highschool. He taught me the ropes of acting… He thought I wanted to join theatre… He thought I was into him. I was… But when he realized I used what he taught me to make myself out to be likable to others he was appalled. He assumed everything I’d ever told him was a lie

too. Shortly after that I switched schools since word got around that I was basically a conartist. A master illusionist… You caught my eye a year ago and I was trying to figure out a way to introduce myself, get off on the right foot before I showed the rougher edges… But Roman caught me while I was doing research…” Roman hissed.

“He’d have me call it spying, but I was merely inquiring others about you and observing you while you worked make up… I was in disguise those times because I was not ready for a meeting yet and if you saw me and talked to me as me before I was ready… In any case he didn’t know who I was interested in but he wasn’t going to let me do it my way,” Janus explained. “I got upset. I believe I said something about him not being a saint himself and that I could prove it. I cursed him. I knew he was your roommate, just my luck, and I figured that this way, he couldn’t talk to you about me. And he would likely avoid you and stay out of my way in general so I could work myself up to meeting you and well… You’ve lived through the rest,” Janus sighed. “Drop. The. Curse,” Virgil said through gritted teeth. “I did,” Janus sighed as he showed him a broken charm. From Virgil’s research he’d learned that like with most long lasting spells, when they got broken by the castor or otherwise, the object containing it broke. “Then…” “Roman’s an actor. He’s too deep in his role. I didn’t think… I didn’t know us being together would affect him that much. The curse barely seemed to affect him in general,” Janus argued. “It seemed that way yeah. Cause I made him a glamor charm,” Virgil bit. Showing the ring. Then he turned his attention to Roman. “Roman?” he said softly. The dragon turned to him, his eyes nervous. “I’m not afraid from you buddy. Don’t worry. I know you wouldn’t harm me. Things must’ve been so hard for you the past months. But you didn’t complain. You made sure I was looking after myself. You were so selfless and brave. You know that?” Virgil swore he heard Roman purr at that. “I was sure he’d attack you for coming into his lair… But if he doesn’t see you as an intruder… Of course. That explains why he reacted so strongly tonight. You’re his crown jewel,” Janus realized. Virgil stiffened. He’d researched dragons since the curse expert warned that if Roman got a bad day so to speak he might express more dragon like behavior until he managed to lessen his symptoms. Dragons tended to have a favorite treasure. Their crown jewel. They’d give it a special place and even now, anyone who even looked to closely at that particular treasure, would evoke the dragon’s wrath. “He has feelings for you,” Janus pointed out. Virgil flushed bright red. “Ro… Is that true? Did you really endure me dating someone while you had a crush on me?” he asked tentatively. Roman’s ears fell back against his skull and he looked away. Looking about as embarrassed as a dragon could. “Ro… That’s ridiculously selfless Princey. I don’t know if I could’ve handled that,” Virgil said softly as he knelt down and stroked Roman’s muzzle. Roman purred again and nudged the side of Virgil’s face gently with his nose. “I’ve got you. I know you are scared right now. But I won’t abandon you. I promise,” Virgil swore before, in a moment of complete madness and selfish excitement, placing a kiss on Roman’s nose. And just like that Roman lit up in a blinding way and when Virgil’s eyes adjusted they were in the living room. Both human. “Hi,” Roman said blushing bright red. “Hey,” Virgil replied a bit awkwardly. Then his head snapped to Janus. “I know… I deserve it,” Janus sighed as he raised his hands in surrender. “I hope you’ll find happiness Virgil. And that someday, you’ll believe that I really did like you,” he said in a sad voice before heading out. Closing the door. Virgil relaxed. That was a mess and a half. “Virgil I’m so…” “No need. You couldn’t tell me if you tried. And you are more important than whatever I had with him,” Virgil insisted, though it still hurt.

“Movies?” Roman suggested. Virgil chuckled. It was late and he probably should go to bed. But if he did right now then his mind was going to drive him nuts. “Sure,” he said. He wasn’t ready to talk to Roman about feelings either of them may or may not have. And when he was ready for that conversation he might not be ready to start dating right away. He wasn’t sure about a lot of things. But he did know that Roman would likely be a part of the rest of his life. As a friend or a partner? Only time would tell.