Theo dumped the now-empty laundry basket inside the door of the laundry room and headed back to the kitchen to resume dish-washing duty.

She plunged both hands into the hot water with an odd sort of relief. For unknown but deeply worrying reasons, she kept finding her anxiety levels increasing to a degree that made it difficult to focus on anything; for equally mysterious reasons, when she was actually in the middle of wrestling with heavy wet laundry or busy with the dishes, it eased considerably.

I have a very bad feeling about this.

Max, love, I know you won't even blink over me being a girl, once you make sure I'm okay with it. And I guess I am. I was fine with being male by default, I guess if I hadn't been I would've looked for other alternatives but I never seriously did, but being female doesn't really change that much. Not so much of my fundamental identity is based on gender. Given our usual circles, I could come out as trans and mostly get shrugs and hugs. Although Kay is going to absolutely kill me for going from male to apparently fully-functional and ridiculously healthy and gorgeous female in a matter of minutes. But I bet we're going to have heaps of fun with me modelling for you, and both of us learning about me in bed.

I just hope to hell that whatever else I'm going to turn into is also something that you and Kay are going to be able to live with. Something I can live with, that isn't going to make it impossible for me to come back to you.

Are you even awake yet? Have you even realized that I never came home from the club? Are you thinking that I got distracted with someone and forgot to phone to tell you I was going somewhere else? I'm so sorry for all the times I've done that.

A tear, then a second, fell into the sink, instantly lost in the soapy water.

She pushed the desperate longing for her family away resolutely. If she fell apart, she was that much less likely to get home to them. And she was going to get home, somehow. The friends here with her were dear to her and always had been, but the thought of life without Max and Kayla, like the thought of Max and Kayla forced to live on never knowing what had happened to her, hurt unbearably.

Had she actually told them what they meant to her, the family of her heart rather than the family of her blood?

Erica, on her way past with a basin of freshly-picked vegetables that one of the outdoor trio must have brought to the door, laid a hand on her shoulder; Theo glanced up, and gave her a quick smile she hoped looked more reassuring than she felt. Judging by Erica's troubled expression, it didn't. She slipped an arm around Theo in a half-hug, before going on to the counter to spread out the bounty and see what was there.

Come on, Kay. I don't know if we're going to be able to get out of this from inside. While she's wearing that fucking cuff, we can't do anything to her directly that she can't stop with a thought. Wizards are men that are castrated, who are intelligent and strong-willed and self-disciplined and good at focusing on what they want. They can't always have done everything deliberately with words and gestures and things, someone has to have figured out that combination means some kind of power. If your surgery counts as castration, which it might depending on whether the goal is total sexlessness or not, then that describes you. And I know you'll do absolutely anything for the very few people you genuinely care about, and I know that I'm lucky enough to share the top of that list with Max. You're always there when I need you and I haven't ever needed you this badly before, I've never been this scared before. Please, please, find us!

Theo did her best to stay as busy as possible, even spent extra time scrubbing a few stains by hand—with wizards around, why couldn't they get stains and things out by some magical method that didn't involve her and JC having to handle highly distasteful laundry items? At least it distracted her, until twilight and time to go back to their own place.

She sat and fidgeted while Isabel checked that they had their full meal and then locked the door behind her. The room felt too warm, no, too dry, that was it, it wasn't the temperature, it was the dryness. Too dry to breathe, even, it felt like there wasn't enough oxygen in the parched air. Her skin was tight and hot, it was going to turn brittle and crack like drying mud, she was sure of it.

Water. She needed water.

She bolted for the bathroom with one of the clean mugs, ran the cold water and gulped two mugfulls hardly stopping for breath, but that wasn't enough. Still too dry...

She brushed past Des and JC, who had both come after her in obvious concern, into the shower room. Clothes were irrelevant, the more wet the better. She turned on one of the three shower-heads, turned the temperature down to moderately lukewarm, and planted her hands on the wall, head bowed, letting the water rush over as much of her as possible.

That helped. Her pounding heart slowed as she took a few deep breaths of droplet-laden air and her lungs stopped screaming at her; her skin stopped whimpering in discomfort and felt like its normal soft pliable self again.

*Theo?* Alison asked, her tone gentle but there was intense worry behind it. *What's going on?*

*Dunno. Dry. Need water.*

*Okay. We'll save you something to eat. Do you want company?*

*Go eat.* She dropped to sit cross-legged on the tiled floor, keeping as much of herself as possible under the spray. She turned her face upwards into the water, eyes closed. Her skin seemed aware of every drop and every trickle, of the flow and force of the water, and it was, she had to admit, a rather pleasant sensation.

Almost pleasant enough to drive out the fear of what was happening to her. Almost.

Water soaked into her long wavy hair, which she already knew could absorb a rather astonishing volume, and into her clothes, which would dry readily once she left the water. She had the odd feeling that her skin was absorbing water, too.

*Theo? You okay with company so the rest of us can get cleaned up? Or would you rather not?*

*Company's okay. I should probably eat, shouldn't I?* The thought of stepping out of the water made her stomach twist itself into knots and her heartbeat speed up again, but she pushed it aside, left the still-running spray, and wrung excess water out of her hair.

Erica handed her a ripe red tomato, a small cucumber, and a trio of radishes. The tomato she devoured in a few bites, relishing the juiciness of it, and the cucumber followed, but the first radish she choked on—it tasted dry as dust, flat as cardboard. She dropped two back into Erica's hand, spit out the bite she'd taken into her palm, and dumped it in the closest toilet.

Too far from the water, the air was too dry, she couldn't breathe.

She fled back to the shower room, and wriggled between Suzi and JC to get directly under the spray. It was warmer than felt right, but that mattered less than the simple fact that she was back in the water.

*Theo?* Alison said.

JC stepped around in front of her, cupped both hands around her face to make her look up at her; grey eyes searched hers, then JC wrapped both arms around her in a hug and didn't let go.

*This can't be good. If I'm away from the water, I feel like I can't breathe, like I'm going to dry out and die.*

*JC says, one of the kinds of fae mentioned repeatedly was water fae.*

*Yeah. I remember. What we don't know is whether water fae can survive on land at all. I'm really scared.* She buried her face in JC's shoulder, and realized that she was shaking and some of the wetness stinging her eyes wasn't from the shower.

*I really, really wish any of us knew enough to have anything comforting to say.*

*I know. You guys get cleaned up and go get some sleep. I'm staying right here.* She drew reluctantly away from JC, who released her with visible doubts about the idea. Her top, which had a wide low rounded neck and an oval cutout over each shoulder, was easy to skin out of, and her pants, with a similar row of ovals all the way down each outer leg to her ankles, just as simple. She helped JC and Suzi get clean and was helped in return. With only the one thing to wear, they'd gotten in the habit of rinsing clothes and putting them back on, unwilling to sleep naked while they dried.

The difference was that the other two shower-heads were turned off and her friends drifted out of the room.

She moved the shower-head again, pointing it as close to straight down as it would go, then braced her back against the smooth tiles and slid down so she could lean against the wall while still under the water. She crossed her arms over her raised knees and rested her forehead on them.

What was going to happen to her?

What was going to happen to all of them? If she was starting to change further, probably they all would soon.

How had her happy stable life turned into this ongoing nightmare?

Please, Kay...

Bodies settled against her on either side.

Startled, she raised her head.

JC slid an arm around Theo's shoulders, and drew her gently down to lean against one red-clad shoulder; Erica snuggled close on the other side.

*Ali, they need to sleep!*

*I'm sure not going to try to make them move,* Alison retorted. *They're right. We're in this together. Even if the only thing we can do for each other sometimes is a reminder about not being alone.*

Theo closed her eyes, felt like crying all over again, but this time in gratitude for her friends.

She let herself relax against JC, and tried to make her mind empty instead of spinning with chaotic emotions. It didn't really work, but it helped somewhat, and she thought she dozed off for a while.

At least island water cycling systems are magic-based, and we aren't going to run out of warm water...

At one point, JC and Erica both left her, but JC came back a moment later—opening the door for Erica and others to go out foraging, presumably. Theo cuddled against JC again, and felt the arm around her shoulders tighten briefly.

Erica returned to hand her a large juicy peach and, of all things, what must have been pretty much an entire small round watermelon in thick slices on a couple of large unfamiliar leaves. Someone must have slipped into the house long enough to borrow a knife. Both were things she could get down and did, hungrily, with Erica close beside and stroking her hair. JC devoured a more normal mix of veggies, then went with Zach to make the waste disappear. She came back, though.

Theo must have slept again, leaning on Erica this time, because the chime of the bell startled her. It couldn't be that late already?

Erica and JC traded glances, and JC got up, pausing to give Theo a kiss on one cheek. Erica, however, stayed there, only shaking her head when Theo gestured for her to go join the others.

*Ali, tell her to go! She can't stay here with me all day, and we don't need Isabel wondering why she's so concerned about me!*

*Nobody wants you alone.*

*I'm okay alone. Keeping her from doubting us is more important!*

Erica glanced at the outer room, then looked back at Theo, very obviously torn.

Theo hugged her tight and gave her a gentle push, shifting away from her as much as possible without leaving the water.

Unwillingly, Erica got up and left. She was still wet, as was JC, but with any luck Isabel would be too distracted to notice that detail, or would interpret it as a morning shower. Theo rearranged herself again so she had her back to the wall, arms across her knees and head resting on them, hoping it would look like she'd been there all alone all night.

Moments later, she heard Isabel in the outer room.

“This is hardly the time for a shower.”

Theo raised her head as Isabel came to the doorway and paused to evaluate.

“You've been here all night?”

Theo nodded.

“It's uncomfortable to leave the water?”

Uncomfortable doesn't begin to cover it. Theo nodded again.

“You've just reached your next phase. I think it's safe to conclude that you're some sort of water fae. You aren't going to stay healthy indefinitely on dry land, and that's probably what's keeping you from changing properly. We'll need to move you to the observation pond. Let's hope you're a freshwater fae, there's only one saltwater pond available and it's much farther from the house.”

I don't want to be away from the others! part of her screamed in sudden panic.

You can't sit here under the shower forever, countered another part, not so much rational as resigned. You can't stand being away from water. You're no use to anyone if you act like an idiot and kill yourself.

“Stay here,” Isabel said. “I'll be back once the others get started on the day.”

Theo nodded, and let her head drop forward again.

She heard Isabel in the outer room still, though. “You'll almost certainly all begin to change over the next day or two. It shouldn't be inherently dangerous, but some kinds of fae do have restricted conditions that are necessary, like staying in the water. If you start to feel uncomfortable, or you see one of the others showing any signs of distress, come find me immediately so I can make sure you have what you need. Otherwise, the faster you go get started on your usual jobs, the faster I can get our new water fae into a pond where she'll be much more comfortable and much safer and can finish changing.”

The outer door, and soft sounds of motion, and then she was alone.

Only physically. She was aware of Alison wordlessly checking on her frequently, and knew the others were listening for anything from Alison about any change, could feel their love and concern like a kind of background hum.

Isabel finally returned with Phrixos, as always in the same dull shades of beige that made Theo think the wizards just didn't care enough to put any effort into wardrobe. Theo wondered whether he'd even had breakfast yet—the wizards weren't particularly early risers.

“Definitely water fae,” she was saying as they came in. “I seriously doubt she'd survive walking to the observation pond unless you want to trigger a fairly heavy rain-shower between here and there.”

“Easier just to move it there,” Phrixos said. He had a dark glass vial in one hand, which turned out to hold a viscous inky liquid that clung together as he poured it out, forming a circle on the floor. “Are you going with it?”

“I'd better.”

“Inside the circle, then. Both of you. Come on, get up, you too. I'm not waiting all day.”

Theo obediently scrambled to her feet, leaving the water spray only with deep misgivings.

“You'll be back in the water in just a minute,” Isabel assured her, stepping into the circle with her.

Phrixos made a complex gesture that involved his hands and fingers, and muttered something under his breath.

The shower room blurred around them, melted disconcertingly into blankness briefly, which reformed itself into a spot outside next to a roughly circular pond maybe fifteen feet in diameter. Around it was a broad expanse of clean pale sand.

Around the outside of that was a ring of grass, and then a single rail fence no more than waist-height.

Theo had no doubt at all that it was much more of a barrier than it appeared to be. This was another kind of prison, that was all.

But it was one with water.

Already starting to feel the dryness, she waded into the pool. The bottom had a comfortable slope to it, though even in the very middle, she could still keep her head above water without floating.

Actually being immersed in it, rather than just under the shower, felt much better.

So much better that she ducked under completely, arched her back and kicked her way down to lay a hand against the bottom, and came back to the surface. Dismissing Isabel's presence entirely for the time being, she swam around at random in the restricted space, just revelling in the feel of the water flowing over her skin, the cool pressure of it around her, the taste of the humid air with every breath she took.

Something was happening, though, she still didn't feel right.

Her fingers itched abominably, to start with, and were catching more water than they should have been.

She planted her feet on the bottom, clawed tendrils of hair out of her eyes, and raised trembling hands to look at them.

Water slid off her skin, as smoothly as if she were coated in oil. The warm pale ivory was fading so rapidly she could watch it happen, turning to a cool white with a distinct pearly iridescence, a colour no human skin had ever been or ever could be.

Between her fingers stretched a transparent webbing, tinted faintly blue, and extremely sensitive to the touch when she ran a shaky fingertip over it. She raised an itchy foot to explore it, found similar webbing between her toes, which seemed willing to spread wider.

Okay, water fae with webbed hands and toes, that makes some sense, right? Most critters that live in the water or spend a lot of time in it have at least that much. The attempt at reasonable analysis didn't help as much as she'd have liked.

Her sides and hips itched, too; rather disconcertingly, as she scratched at them through her clothes, the fabric disintegrated under her hands, dissolving into... nothing? No, not nothing, just a length of soft lightweight translucent fabric, bright blue with watery ripple patterns in paler and deeper blue highlighted with glittery gold like sunlight, wrapped loosely around her. What possible sense did that make? It did make it easier to reach her hips to scratch them, though.

What she thought at first was rough skin, she realized quickly, wasn't. She hastily abandoned the sarong-like length of fabric and swam back to shallower water so she could stand up and see clearly.

Yes, from her lower ribs down the outer surface of her waist and hips almost to her knees, in a stripe varying from less than the width of her palm to as wide as her outspread fingers, the pearly skin became delicate pearly-blue scales. Rather pretty ones, she thought dazedly. They'd probably catch actual sunlight rather strikingly and create effects that would make Max reach for his camera. More formed a patch over her navel and trailed down to her now-blue pubic hair. They matched the colour of the webbing on her hands, and in fact now that she could see, matched the tint of her areolae, as well, all of which was only a paler version of the hue of her nails and lips and eyes—assuming lips and eyes hadn't changed, which seemed unlikely but she had no way to check that, or whether there was still rather dramatic blue and turquoise and sea-green shaded over her lids as well.

Definitely a theme here.

If her pubic hair was now blue, what about the rest?

The handful she seized to look at was no longer the rich deep auburn that she rather liked, but was the same deep sky blue as her nails with a pronounced pearly sheen to it. All over, her colouring had washed out to white and blue pearl.

All in all, though, other than the worry about how well she could survive out of water, not so extreme. Less than she'd feared would happen, if this was the extent of it.

Oh, I should've known better.

Her spine began to tingle, crawling with countless tiny feet up and down it. She shuddered and dropped to her knees as she writhed to scratch it, putting fae flexibility to the test to reach, but there was always another area. Gradually, it condensed, concentrating itself on her upper spine, and then at the top two or three vertebrae just below her neck. That made it much easier to scratch, but she had to ease up into rubbing when her nails sent pain shooting along her spine from the swelling that was growing along those vertebrae. Finally she had to stop altogether, the swelling now two separate bumps, one above the other, and both excruciatingly sensitive. She squirmed in place, desperately wanting to scratch, but not daring to no matter how bad that crawling itching feeling got. Now what?

Motion caught her peripheral vision; she glanced down and swallowed a yelp before the collar could shock her. Something long and snakelike and the usual vivid blue floated on the surface of the water next to her, wriggling gently. In sudden apprehension, she looked at the other side, and found another.

Oh, no no no, you've got to be kidding me...

She grabbed one; her hands told her she'd seized something smooth and resilient that was never entirely still. Messages also registered about being touched by cool fingers but her brain couldn't find anywhere on the map of her body to put those, which was a highly bizarre feeling. It squirmed in her hand, but she held it, used the other to follow it.

Right up to her upper spine, where the crawling itchy feeling was finally fading.

Tentacles. She had two tentacles, each half again longer than her arm, roundish instead of octopus-like and gently tapered at the end, not much larger in diameter at any point than her thumb, and as near as she could tell anchored at the uppermost spaces between her vertebrae without being on her neck.

Tentacles? What bloody part of my subconscious decided my life should become anime hentai?

Great, and I have no conscious control over them. I really hope that's just a matter of figuring out new motor controls.

At least the sarong-like length of blue cloth wouldn't interfere with them, which her top might have.

Speaking of which, it didn't appear to absorb water at all, drifting on the surface where she'd dropped it, though there was nothing plastic-like about it; if anything, it was more like well-worn cotton. She swam out to it, scooped it up, and tried to remember how Kayla tied sarongs into dresses when it was too warm or she didn't feel like anything more. Across her back, cross it over her front, and tie the ends together at the back of her neck, careful not to catch her tentacles or hair.

At least that made her feel a little less vulnerable.

If she was water fae, and had all these changes involving adaptation to water... could she breathe water?

It seemed likely.

Rather nervously, she took a deep breath and dove to the bottom again. Messages she figured were coming from her tentacles distracted her briefly, until she worked out that they'd coiled themselves against her upper back, under her hair and out of her way, which was a relief.

This time, she stayed there at the bottom, which turned out to be oddly easy.

I'm not floating towards the surface. Or, for that matter, sinking.

Neutrally buoyant? Well, that's convenient.

She opened her eyes cautiously, looked around, found that she could see easily with no discomfort or blurring at all.

When she began to feel the need to breathe, she exhaled and, praying that she wasn't about to drown herself, inhaled water.

Had she not known she was underwater and couldn't possibly have inhaled fresh cool humid air, she wouldn't have believed it was water she breathed in.

I can breathe water.

Can I still breathe air?

Suddenly fearful again, she surfaced. Her diaphragm gave an odd little spasm, something like a cough, and she found herself spitting out the water she'd inhaled a moment before. Other than that, the transition from breathing water to breathing air was effortless.

I'm amphibious.

I'm a bloody amphibious female water fae with webbed hands and scales and tentacles and impossible colouring.

This just cannot be for real. I'm at home in my bed and dreaming. Or hallucinating. Or I hit my head on the way home from the club and I'm in the hospital.

But every sense insisted that it was very real indeed.

“Interesting,” Isabel commented from the shore. “I believe I'm going to keep you here for observation for a day or two before moving you to one of the large ponds permanently. Obviously you no longer have chores to do. I'll bring you meals. Are you listening to me?”

Theo nodded, but had no real desire to listen any further, so she ducked underwater again.

Lalalala, can't hear you. Go away. Let me figure this out by myself.

Oh, god, Max, I hope you can put up with an aquatic wife instead of a human husband...

Just as soon as Kay finds us!