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A Day Later - After the Town Meeting.

Rebecca quickly shuts the door to the manor, having tried her best to recover after her outburst. Her anger shook everyone, most especially the reporter who had started hounding Courtney, trying to get some kind of story from the maid, but came dangerously close to drawing attention to her transformation instead.

Rebecca's outrage drew all attention back to her, and in the process cut the meeting short, despite most of the town agreeing with Rebecca that the tabloid reporter had pushed too far. No one figured out the real reason for Rebecca's outburst, but now that everyone has left, her attention turns to Courtney.

"Oh gods, I didn't mean to shout like that. But everyone was turning to look at you... Are you alright?"

Courtney is shuddering in the doorway towards the more private parts of the manor, leaning against a side table. She looks up at Rebecca: "I... I..." She swallows and whispers: "You s-scared me, b-but thank you."

Rebecca frowns, lowering her head to the ground in shame, "I especially didn't mean to scare you. I'm sorry."

Courtney shudders fiercely, shaking her head. "I-it's okay. Just... loud." She manages a shaky smile: "Y-you know you can be p-pretty intense when you want to."

Rebecca looks away, "I don't want to! But I felt like I had to do something before anyone saw your... well... you know." She glances behind Courtney at the extra appendage, "Your tail."

Courtney winces a bit, then adds softly. "...well, it was still convenient. You saved me from who knows what if they'd seen... this." She looks at her tail and to her own surprise, gives it the slightest of waggles. "Oh."

Rebecca nods, her voice lowering slightly, "I thought we'd managed to hide it, but it almost seems longer than yesterday?"

Courtney nods slowly as she stares at the tail... and slightly wags it again. "Seems so. Wow." She looks up at Rebecca with a slightly disbelieving smile: "...guess that was my last public appearance, then, until this runs its' course. C-can't say I honestly mind that much."

Rebecca chuckles faintly, "Guess at least there's one upside, then. No dealing with sleazy reporters and all the pointless petitioners... though... it does make me worry about what would have happened if anyone had noticed..."

Courtney closes her eyes and and takes a deep breath. "I don't know, and I don't want to know."

Rebecca reaches out to stroke Courtney's cheek, "I... I know... this was a rough night, but I just worry it could have been a lot rougher."

Courtney nods, opening her eyes to look at Rebecca: "I-I know. And it really could have... we're safe, a-at least for now."

Rebecca hums, "For now..." She pulls her hand back, sitting on her rear and pulling her head upwards. "Maybe... we should tell... someone. I don't know? I'm just thinking now, that if all of this had crashed... it would have crashed in on everyone... including our families..."

Courtney sighs and looks at her scaled arm, before touching Rebecca's hand: "M-maybe... who though? My family would freak out."

Rebecca swallows, "Well... mine. My parents, my uncle... they might be able to support us, at least in keeping us out of the public eye."

Courtney hesitates for a moment, thinking back to the huge dragon that did her initial interview. "Can we... can we trust them... I mean, not that t-there's a reason not to, I just..." She trails off, obviously afraid of the idea.

Rebecca sighs, "You can trust them not to do anything to embarrass the family or cost it any money. So at least there's that..."

Courtney winces: "...but will they have any reason to think I am the cause of this?"

Rebecca frowns, "I won't let them think that. This will be all because of me." She glances down at Courtney, lowering her head again, "I won't do it if you're not comfortable with it."

Courtney hesitates again: "I... m-maybe." She touches both her hands at Rebecca's neck: "I... well, really I don't know what to do now."

Rebecca nuzzles against Courtney and lets her hug closer. "I don't either... I really don't... I keep saying to hold on and we'll find a cure but... if it does take longer than we hope it will, if we can't fix this on our own... we need to do something..."

Courtney nods into the nuzzle: "Y-yeah, I..." She then blinks and lets out an awkward chuckle.

Rebecca blinks, "Hmm? What is it?"

Courtney glances at her tail even as she leans onto Rebecca. "I... I d-don't think I'm gonna go for that art school anytime soon." Her laugh is a bit broken, clearly amused by way of disbelief more than anything else.

Rebecca, on the other hand, feels her heart break at that statement. All the adrenaline and anger she was feeling from the meeting is gone, and all that sorrow hits her at once, her face dropping as she begins to tear up. "N-no, you... I... I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry..."

Courtney looks at the dragon, uncertain what to do. "Rebecca, I..." She trails off. "Well, um..." She starts, then stops again. In the end she just stays close to the dragon.

Rebecca sobs, having been trying so hard to stay positive despite everything, to be there to support Courtney through it all. Her fear and anger tonight is all crashing down into this moment, and hearing Courtney seemingly abandon her dream has pushed the Dragon over the edge of the emotions she was trying so hard to keep in check for Courtney's sake.

She cries loudly, a rather ugly sobbing cry that she can't seem to pull back from as she lets everything out, occasionally getting a word out between her ragged breaths, but it's never more than another broken 'Sorry'

Courtney holds Rebecca as close as she is able to, swallowing as her face does not stay dry either. She holds her girlfriend for a long while as the two cry. Cry for a dream perhaps lost, for the emotions that ran today, for the very blurred tomorrow.

Eventually, Courtney manages to choke out a whisper. "Rebecca, I... i-it is what it is. I'll f-find some way..."

Rebecca slowly calms down, still crying, and still feeling so helpless as she fights the feeling of giving up, "I- I've taken so much from you. It's not fair! It's... not fair... A-and I want to keep hoping but... wh-what if this is it..."

Courtney sighs a bit: "I don't think... fair has anything to do with it."

Rebecca sniffles, pressing her face against Courtney, "Y-you deserve better... y-you deserve so much..."

Courtney smiles despite her tears: "M-maybe. But this is my part, it seems." Her voice manages to keep somewhat steady as she speaks.

Rebecca sighs through her own tears, "I don't want to give up hope... but... I don't know what else to do... I love you, but feel like I've failed you."

Courtney considers, then touches Rebecca on the cheek: "I think... You would have failed me if you had gone with pushing me away because you were scared. Yet, here we are."

Rebecca considers her girlfriend, blinking away the last of the water in her eyes for the moment, "But... what if things really are hopeless?"

Courtney sniffs, then looks up at the dragon with a smile: "Are they?"

Rebecca watches Courtney, and slowly returns the smile, "I... no. No, I guess not... I'm just... it all hit me, now." She wipes a claw over her face, "Some dragon I am, hm?"

Courtney smiles a bit more warmly: "The best dragon if you ask me. Although I might be somewhat biased."

Rebecca glances her head away shly, but keeps an eye on Courtney, "You might be... I just don't feel like I deserve it, sometimes."

Courtney shrugs: "What does deserving have to do with any of this? I'm pretty positive I don't have scales and a tail cause I 'deserve' em."

Rebecca shakes her head, "You don't... you're right. Which means you're right about me too..."

Courtney looks at Rebecca with a warm expression: "Jury's still out on that. But the way I see it, unless a cure comes out of the woodwork... I can either curl up and cry some more, or try to embrace this new thing I've been given in life."

Rebecca sighs, reaching out to caress Courtney gently, "We just... we started talking because of your art. Because of me snooping through your sketchbook. I... I don't want you giving up on your art because of this."

Courtney sighs. "I'm not. I'll find some online thing... or something. And regardless unless I lose my hands or something drastic like that, I will keep drawing."

Rebecca lets out a breath and nods, "Thank you... I know it's silly... but, I knew I'd never do any of that... I sorta... wanted to live those dreams through you. I love your art... I love you more, though."

Courtney smiles, once again brushing at the dragon's cheek. "You know, nothing's still stopping you. I can teach you what I know and we can see if you can't art some too." She looks at her other hand - for the moment still human, although she has a pretty good hunch that's not going to stay. "I get the feeling I will need to relearn some myself."

Rebecca purrs at the touch, "I... I'd like that." She glances down at Courtney's hands, then up to her face, the growing sadness in her that those bits of her girlfriend may be the last bits that are 'human'. She smiles sadly, "I admit... I'm curious what you'll look like at the end of this... you're so beautiful, and I can't imagine any change that would make you less so to me."

Courtney nods, sighing a bit: "I'm... well of course I'm intensely curious and a bit afraid too. But..." She smiles regardless: "Guess we'll find out together."

Rebecca smiles, "So far, you seem to have taken after me? It's... definitely part of why I worry I might be some sort of cause to all of this... but the blue scales..."

Courtney looks at her arm, admiring the scales: "Yeah... they do look like your scales, except a lot more tiny." She looks at Rebecca, considering. "I wonder if I'll get any of that... kinda pretty gold-tinted ridge you have along your back. I certainly have more scales and bumps on my back now..."

Rebecca gently slides a finger of her paw along Courtney's back to feel the ridges through her dress, "I guess the transformation really has progressed more than I'd last seen..." She'd been politely trying not to see her girlfriend in her underwear again...

Courtney glances around, then sighs. "I want to see. Go up to your room, see what I look like on the big mirrors?" She then looks up at Rebecca with a small smile: "And yeah, I want you there too of course."

Rebecca smiles softly, nodding, "Alright... want to ride in? Since we're both going that way?"

Courtney blinks, then smiles. "Yeah. I think I do." She makes her way next to the dragon.

Rebecca lowers herself down to allow Courtney better climbing. "I really should look into a harness or saddle... If you ever wanted to actually go out for a flight."

Courtney looks at her hands, then at Rebecca's back as she climbs. She gives a low chuckle: "I... Maybe. It might be just a hunch, but... If I get any claws at all, that might not be a problem. At least, this part."

Rebecca stands back up once Courtney is atop her and has gotten comfy. She then turns to head out of the hallway towards her private room. It's not a long walk to be honest, but Rebecca seems to be taking her time. "Hmmm. I suppose that might be a bit of help. I don't know what things were like for Dragons back home, but here humans have made all sorts of rules around flying. I have to get a license and make sure I know airplane routes if I want to do anything faster than I can walk. But it's still fun, when I get the chance."

Courtney blinks, then giggles softly. "I guess that's true. But I'm almost certain there are no rules for you carrying me... We might be the first couple ever to do that..." The thought admittedly excites her.

Rebecca chuckles, "I feel like we're probably going to be the first to do a lot of things... That... Sounded more romantic in my head..." She lowers her head in embarrassment, definitely not now thinking of those nebulous other things.

Courtney blushes, definitely not because of any place her mind just went to. "Oh. Yeah. For sure." She swallows: "So uh, since it looks like no one knows how to stop this, and yet it doesn't hurt... Where do you imagine I'll end up, physically speaking?"

Rebecca frowns as she reaches the door to her room, "You mean... where will it stop? I don't know... we've been guessing 'kobold', and that probably means claws... scales on your head... sharp teeth, snout like mine... but that's just what we've been calling it because of all the myths and stories. Maybe you'll be more dragon still? Maybe wings?"

Courtney considers, then smiles: "If I have to go down this path, wings certainly would be a unique consolation prize. The rest... Yeah, guess we will see." She leans on Rebecca's back a bit: "... Is it too strange of me if I am at least as curious as I am scared?"

Rebecca shakes her head, "You read some of my stories... I know I would be curious..."

Courtney blinks: "Oh. Yeah, you're right." She taps at Rebecca's neck: "Either way, I guess 'taking cues from how you look' is not the worst thing. And um... I really don't want that to sound creepy but I guess it kinda does. Sorry."

Rebecca heads into her room, walking up to her bed and leaning back down for Courtney. "It seems sweet to me... I mean, you think about it, you already know what color makeup and shines look good with your scales...?"

Courtney blinks as she starts getting down. "Huh. Yeah." She makes her way to the bed, considers for a second, then just shrugs and starts taking her dress off.

"I guess worrying about you seeing me in my underwear is not really worth being embarrassed about anymore."

Rebecca blinks, "W-well... if you're sure... I guess you see me naked all the time, right?" She laughs nervously, but is clearly a little nervous as she watches Courtney undress, trying not to be creepy about it.

Courtney makes her way most of the way out, until the mostly decorative bindings on the back of it get caught on her newly formed scaly spines, rising a good two inches at highest from her the small of her back. "Er, um. Rebecca? A little help?"

Rebecca stammers for a moment, then nods, "Oh! Oh of course!" She slips closer, bringing her claws in very carefully to under bindings and help get Courtney free of the dress. "That... should... do it! Ah! There...!"

Courtney sighs in relief from somewhere inside the dress before she gets it completely off. "Thank you."

Once the dress is off and she is just in her underwear, it's obvious the changes have continued. Almost her entire back from tail to shoulders now have a tint of blue to it, with clear scales and a row of small spines covering the middle of it. The scales on her arms are likewise spread upwards almost to link at her shoulders, while her legs have continued their way to noticeably more digitigrade form.

What is perhaps stranger from earlier that besides scales, she's also started to grow fur, everywhere where the blue scales and spines are not dominant, like the sides of her back and the underside of her tail. The fur is slightly more tinted towards turquoise in color, enough to notice after a moment.

Rebecca blinks, letting out a surprised "Ooooo" as she looks at the fur, staring at it. "...so... not exactly like me..."

Courtney looks over her shoulder at Rebecca: "What do you mean?"

Rebecca reaches a finger down to gently stroke one of the slightly fluffier tufts of fur growing in, "It's soft... Ah! S-sorry! I uh, you've got... fur. Scales and spines but... fur too."

Courtney startles a bit at the touch, then twists around in her sitting position to see her side: "Oh. Um... Wow. Did not expect that." She traces her hand down her side and tail, swallowing: "That um... That doesn't feel... That bad..." She's tearing up again as every time they have discovered new changes, but this time there's this hint of wonder in the goth's voice.

Rebecca glances up, seeing the tears in Courtney's eyes and pulling her hand back, "Oh! S-sorry! I should have been more sensitive about it... it's just... it's pretty. It caught me off guard, considering we were just talking about you taking after my looks."

Courtney blinks, turning to look at the dragon: "O-oh. Um, I... I guess I don't mind, actually." She considers, even with her emotions welling up inside her. "It um... F-feels like it helps my body and brain to adjust."

Rebecca moves her hand back slowly to poke at the fluff again, running a finger of her paw along Courtney's tail. "Well um... if it helps, then of course!"

Courtney blushes: "Okay, it also feels pretty nice." She continues looking herself over.

Her arms are now well on their way to being covered, with scales on the overside and it slowly trading into soft fur underneath. She stares at the back of her hand for a moment, realizing the subtle signs that it's about to change soon as well. "I wonder how much claws I will get", she idly muses.

Rebecca giggles, "It feels nice to touch too." She continues touching Courtney, and slowly brings her head down to nuzzle against her side, "Well, claws on your hand will probably be about the same as your feet? Maybe a little smaller?"

Courtney shifts her legs from under her to front. They're definitely now shaped for toe walking, something she had to start doing few days ago. Her toe claws have gotten bigger on her three first toes.. and the last two have shrunk to almost nothing.

"A-and actually, this makes me wonder if I'll get to keep all my fingers." Instinctively she glances at Rebecca's paw.

Rebecca's hands are basically a long scaly palm with three slender clawed fingers and a 'thumb', the latter being a long spur claw long enough to come alongside the other fingers. Her back legs are thicker of course, more muscular and less dexterous, with feet that are much more pawlike.

"Most Dragons say that our hands are just as useful as humans even without the extra finger. But I guess we can't say for sure what form you'll take anymore."

Courtney nods slowly. "Yeah... I guess I really don't use my pinkie much for drawing..." She looks up at the dragon: "I need to see myself in the mirror. I haven't in few days."

Rebecca pulls her hand back from the attention she's been paying to Courtney and directs her over towards the back of the room, where a large very ornate mirror covers one wall. It is partially obscured by shelves of books and a tall silk screen room divider that Rebecca set up, just so that the mirror doesn't completely dominate the room's features.

She pulls the screen aside to let Courtney see herself, with Rebecca staying back a little bit to give her some space. "Here... just... take a deep breath, love."

Courtney swallows at first, then takes the deep breath. "Hokay... H-here goes nothing..." She steps in front of the mirror and gasps.

Her neck is now growing a tuft of fur leading down to her cleavage, where the tuft gets a bit bigger. Around the sides of her neck, small scales go upwards to her cheeks, coming up roughly where her cheekbones currently are. She lifts her hair to reveal that her ear has gotten ever so slightly more pointed and blue.

What really catches her attention though is her hair. Her previously raven black hair has started to take a slight turquoise tint at the roots, heralding a change to come she's not sure she's ready for.

Rebecca takes a deep breath too, watching Courtney take in her body and the changes, both the big ones and the subtle ones. Rebecca isn't too far from her own breakdown, and is ready to hold Courtney and help her throw whatever she needs in turn.

After a long pause, she raises her voice "You alright?"

Courtney shivers a bit, but then nods. "I'm not... I mean, I am, but..." She turns to her girlfriend, touching her hand to the dragon's neck. "Just... I'm really going... Off the deep end now."

Rebecca lowers her head and neck down closer to Courtney's touch, "Yes but... You're still you. Safe to say we're both stressed and worried about all of this..." She sighs, "I've been denying that this will affect us any more than a bad cold might... But it's more than that. You're still yourself, though. And I'm still here for you."

Courtney swallows. "Yeah... I am still me." She gives a wavering smile: "Just... May have to rethink what 'me' means I guess."

Rebecca nods. "Moreso than most. I'm still holding onto hope that we'll find something or someone that understands this and can help you. I'll never give up searching, I owe you that much."

Courtney leans onto the dragon with her arms, sighing. "Yeah, me too, but... I don't know if it's the change speaking, but it doesn't feel like my life is ending with this."

Rebecca hums, nuzzling against Courtney. "It won't. We'll find a way to make things work for you so you don't have to give up on your dreams. I can promise that too."

Courtney smiles, hesitantly but warmly: "I g-guess... I should not worry that much. It's not like I'm changing and having to fend for myself." As her hand wavers on Rebecca's neck, she blinks as a thought occurs to her.

"... Have I gotten shorter?"

Rebecca blinks, "Is it just the way your legs... Or... Oh. I... think you might be..."

Courtney looks at herself, her legs, then at Rebecca. "I think... Y-yeah. My legs have changed shape b-but I'm otherwise shorter... Oh dear..." She leans on the dragon, willing herself to not cry again and just barely succeeding.

Rebecca brings a hand around to comfort Courtney, pulling her into a hug. "Not too much smaller... Still a good huggable size to me."

Courtney giggles: "Well, when you put it like that..." She leans up to kiss Rebecca's cheek.

Rebecca smiles at the kiss, "Just trying to look at the bright side as best I can."

Courtney hums: "I guess that's one of out better weapons for this. Just... Work with it."

Rebecca pats Courtney as she hugs her, "Guess it might be the best we can do. But damn it I'm going to try all the same. I-" her voice breaks a little as her hug tightens, "I love you. Any shape or form, Courtney."

Courtney smiles, closing her eyes. "Love you too, beautiful~"

Rebecca sighs, holding Courtney close, "It's been a long day for us both... What do you want to do to relax? To just try and forget about everything and... We can figuresomething out tomorrow?"

Courtney hums, considering. "Is... Is it weird to ask to lie on your belly as you lie on your back?"

Rebecca blinks, "Is... No... Courtney, I don't think anything you ask me could get 'too weird' at this point." She giggles, then carefully lets Courtney go and makes her way back from the mirror to her bed.

Courtney follows, smiling. "I guess I kinda know that, but I want to ask anyway." She idly touches the dragon's tail as she walks: "You are such a beautiful dragon..."

Rebecca dips her head shyly, "I'm no-I... Thank you, love." She gets onto the bed, which is really just a very thick mattress with lots of pillows set just above the floor, and lies down, rolling as she winds herself into a circle, her belly facing upwards, with the lighter colored and slightly thinner scales exposed. "Let me know if you need help getting up."

Courtney smirks, getting a bit excited: "Honestly I wanna consider this a slight challenge, if you don't mind." She starts climbing from near Rebecca's tail, grinning a bit. "If I'm getting all this... I guess I can consider this a perk of sorts."

Rebecca giggles, tail squirming a little beneath Courtney as she climbs, "Oh? I'm the perk? I can live with that~."

Courtney blushes as she makes her way to on top of Rebecca's chest. "I didn't mean it like... Well, okay, maybe I did kinda mean it like that." She carefully lies on the dragon's belly, knowing she's in an incredibly unique position few humans have ever reached. She lies her head on Rebecca's chest, just listening.

Rebecca wiggles a little more to get cozy once Courtney is in position, then lets out a satisfied hum as she just rests in her bed.

Courtney can hear Rebecca breathing, her belly rising and falling with it, and her heartbeat is strong and rhythmic, and the scales on her belly are warmer than those on her back. Somewhat softer too.

Rebecca smiles from her pillow, "You feel nice up there..."

Courtney smiles tiredly: "And you feel nice... Well, up here." She hums. "A bit rough, maybe, but... I guess that's not going to be a problem for long."

Her back of mind, the part that is bound and gagged, is screaming about accepting all this too fast.

Rebecca giggles quietly, "We should do this more often... though, I guess there's no reason we can't..."

Courtney giggles softly. "I guess if there's a good side to this..." Her hand wanders around Rebecca's chest: "... this might qualify."

Rebecca hums, "Would it be um... okay, not weird, I know, I know, but I get why you ask. ...can I hug you like this?" She lifts an arm from her side, threatening to snug Courtney.

Courtney blinks, thinks about it for a second... then nods with a smile. "Y-yeah. I guess I'd like that too."

Rebecca lets her arm drape across Courtney's back, hugging her somewhat loosely, just wanting to have her hand touching her girlfriend. "...thank you..."

Courtney giggles at the movement, finding herself enjoying the closeness. "T-thank you too...!" She leans into the hug, grinning.

Rebecca giggles along, "Have... you um, considered sleeping with a dragon?" She blinks, "Ah! N-not like that! Like... just... sharing a bed... this closeness, together, all night?"

Courtney starts to answer, then pauses into a blush as Rebecca continues. "I um... Well. I won't say 'no', but..." She looks at Rebecca, considering: "... How much do you move in your sleep?"

Rebecca glances away, "N-not much... I think... is this too silly? I just... it'd be nice to have you so close to me... all night."

Courtney blinks: "I uh, no... I mean, I don't mind at all, but... Just wanna be sure you don't accidentally hurt me if you move, is all."

Rebecca nods quickly, "O-oh right... I mean... I shouldn't? If you'd prefer to just sleep nearby and see... or, I mean, your own room too of course. Obviously you shouldn't feel obligated to do any of this."

Courtney blushes, looking at the door: "No, I..." She looks at Rebecca: "I want to. Just..." She trails off, considering.

"... If you lie on your belly, do you usually wake up like that too? Cause I could probably sleep next to your neck and head just fine, if nothing else."

Rebecca: "Yeah... I don't think I ever really wake up any differently than how I go to sleep. Usually not on my back like this though. Usually I just curl up in a loose ball... Sorta imagined you sleeping in the center, leaning against me..." Courtney can hear Rebecca's heartbeat quicken at all of this talk.

Courtney swallows: "Well, um..." She smiles: "Sure, why not. If we can both sleep like that, I... I want to try."

Rebecca is a bit giddy, rocking beneath Courtney before she stops herself, "Oh! Oh, sorry! I just... well, I'm not going to lie, I've kind of been wanting to ask for awhile but just wasn't sure if it was ever a good time..."

Courtney giggles at the movement: "Well, now certainly works. If I can't really go outside, I will certainly happily spend my time with you~"

Rebecca grins wide, "Well... once we're both ready to sleep, then we can just... get cozy and see how it goes?" Her hand gently rubs Courtney's back.

Courtney laughs, her changing state forgotten for the moment. "We can definitely do that~." She hums: "Shall we get dinner served for ourselves first, though?"

Rebecca hums, "Hmmm... maybe... Maybe. But it's really hard to want to get up with you sitting atop me~"

Courtney laughs softly. "Mmm, it's a mystery." Her hands wander around Rebecca's chest. "A scaly and warm mystery."

Rebecca purrs as Courtney's hands roam, "Mmm~ I like it~. Well, when you want dinner, we'll get dinner... you're in charge, love~"

Courtney enjoys the dragon's rumble under her. "Mmm yes. Eventually. You're so comfy..."

Rebecca giggles, "Eventually... no rush at all." She closes her eyes, just relaxing with Courtney on top of her.

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