Josh dreams of dragons.
He thinks it's just a welcome escape from everyday life. Until one morning, he wakes up with scales, wings, and a tail.
Josh faces a harsh new reality: he has become something that shouldn't exist outside the pages of his fan...
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I opened my eyes at the sound of a knock on the door. Scuffling to my feet in a sleepy haze, I managed to avoid the woodpiles as I approached the door of the shed and cracked it open.
"Yeah?" I yawned.
"Mornin', Josh," Wes chirped. "Mommy's got French toast for you, so come on in when you're ready."
"Okay, thanks. Gimme a minute, and I'll be right in."
As the boy skipped back to the house, I shook my head vigorously to clear the sleep. The eager sounds of the forest filtered in as I did some stretching. It was an incredibly bright, sunny day when I stepped outside. I shielded my eyes with a forepaw and squinted as I made my way across the backyard.
Wes sat at the table as I walked through to the kitchen, smelling the sweet sizzle of breakfast. Jackie's pale skin glowed as the daylight illuminated her through the kitchen window. She smiled at me, then went back to flipping toast, the spatula moving deftly in her hand.
"I didn't know you could do that," Wes remarked. "Is that, like, a new thing you learned?"
"What?" I asked, confused.
The kid just stared at me. "It's pretty cool."
"Okay, Josh," Jackie said from across the kitchen, a tinge of concern in her voice. "Not in the house, please."
"What are you talking about?"
"Please put it out, Josh." Her voice was quick with worry now.
Still baffled, I glanced down and saw what they were talking about: my paws were on fire. I yelped, though I couldn't feel a thing, and my tail thumped the wall as I jumped in surprise. Waving my forelegs wildly, I tried to smother the flames that only seemed to engulf my limbs with increasing vehemence. Jackie said something in a loud voice that was lost in my frantic movements.
"I can't," I sputtered, noticing the flames now covered both my forelegs. I was starting to panic now. "Please! I-I don't know how..."
"Josh," Wes pleaded. "I'm scared!"
Something happened just then. A feeling of terrifying power welled up inside me. Standing right there in the kitchen, I saw everything explode in a red-orange haze as the inferno swept over my entire body, flames shooting uncontrollably in all directions. Wes screamed a long, terrified scream.
It seemed like my very soul had caught fire. Powerful heat surged through my blood, ignited my bones; my only thoughts were of fiery destruction. "This world is mine, and it has to burn!"
My wings flew open wide as I spewed fire from my open maw. In the blinding, white light, I almost couldn't make out the boy falling before the flames, his mother so close, trying to shield him. I felt nothing but the sheer bliss of my devastating might. My body grew large, and my wings and tail splintered and charred the house around me as I reared up straight through the roof, roaring in triumph.
