Darkness cloaked the volcanic mountainside. No moon tonight, only the stars twinkled over the sky-high trees. I'd stared at those silhouettes for hours, between rolls onto my side, their rhythmic snores penetrating the stillness.

Fatigue steeped in my muscles, melting tension away. But anxiety riled the back of my mind. It's such a long journey back to the tribe. I must sleep. Otherwise, I'll be tired and hold the others up. Sleep. Sleep now.

Time ticked on. Painful awareness burned in my mind, knowledge of the many hours of sleep I lost.

Try counting sheep again.

My eyelids drifted shut. A green meadow painted across my mind's eye, a white-washed fence in the center. One fluffy sheep bounded toward it, tiny legs stretching as it leapt into the air.

One sheep. Two sheep. Three sheep. Four sheep.

My eyes flew open. It wasn't working. No matter how many sheep I counted, no matter how much I tried to relax, I just couldn't sleep. A slew of questions lived in my mind and refused to leave me alone.

How am I going to get home? Am I doomed to being a dragon forever? What about Lani and my family? What about College? What about my life?

Min said he would transform me back in a few years. But I couldn't show up to my family after three years and say, "Hey, I'm back! I would have written home, but I've been living on an Island as a dragon for the past few years. Hope you didn't miss me too much."

I rolled my eyes at the thought. It was absurd. They'd have sold all my stuff to pay for a funeral and put my College money into their retirement fund. My head throbbed from all the circles it spun in. This was getting nowhere. I had to figure out a way to get the Gemini to turn me back into a human.

There must be a way! There just must be!

I closed my eyes, forcing myself to calm down. Crisp air filled my lungs, five seconds in, seven seconds out. My headache dulled as my mind relaxed, worries shoved into a locked box.

Maybe I can force the Gemini to help me. We have Dranesh and the other warriors. They can threaten Min into compliance with their spears.

Stupid. They'll just vanish into thin air, like they did last time. Then they really won't help me, now or in years to come. They might even kill me.

I heaved my hefty body over in a failed attempt to get comfortable. I doubted I'd feel comfort until I was back in a human's body.

Min wants me to assert myself more. Maybe if I go in there and demand that they help me, he'll see that I have learned the dragon's lesson and will change me back. I have somewhat learned to be assertive. At least, I am considering it more than previously...I think.

Ha! I knew I'd win in the end! the dragon exclaimed.

I shushed him. Shut up! Now's not the time!

It's always the time if I say it's the time, the dragon declared.

Go away right now!

Ha, see? I told you I'd win in the end, the dragon chuckled. You're doing it right now.

Doing what?

Being more demanding with what you want. The dragon oozed with smugness.

Out! Or I will scream in my brain.

Since you put it that way... The dragon sulked away.

My breath slowly released. I loathed the dragon because even though it was a nuisance, it was right. I bent too easily to others, mainly since I didn't know what I wanted. It was simpler for other's emotions to sweep me away. Perhaps I needed to be more sure of myself, but I wasn't there yet. I wasn't the "girls run the world" type, I was more of a "girl who runs away from the world" type. Developing my own opinions and the confidence to stand by them would take time, just like Min said.

And that's what I was afraid of. What if Min saw past my facade? I wasn't an actress like Lani, bold enough to sell any part. He'd notice the slightest bend under scrutiny. My plan had to be secure, something that would guarantee success.

I lay in a state between sleep and wake. Darkness engulfed my mind's eye, my body stagnant. But my thoughts zoomed through ideas and practiced conversations. Appeal to their sympathy or generosity? Appeal to their rapport with the Islanders? If only I knew someone who was a Gemini. Maybe then they'd be more likely to help me out due to a special connection with "their own," as Pisces put it. Mom and Dad certainly didn't fit.

Wait...is Lani a Gemini? Her birthday is July ninth...maybe I have my answer!

Tingles shimmied down my spine. Had I finally figured out what to do?

My brief elation crashed as recollection settled in.

No wait, she's not. The Gemini's is in June, not July.

Why does this have to be so difficult? There has to be a way. There just has to be!

Something floated from the very depths of my mind. A gift, long forgotten. A full-proof solution to my dilemma.

An elixir I should've remembered sooner.

My eyes snapped open, claws grasping for my belt. Trembling, I tore open one of the pouches.

It was still there. The key had been with me all along.

"It will only work once," she had said. "Employ it wisely."

I knew this was a wise choice. It was the only choice. I was going to change Min's mind.

***

The glowing door to the Gemini's lair illuminated Abido's worried face. "Are you sure this is going to work?" His question reverberated through the volcano for the tenth time.

"Trust me." My grin stretched so wide, my cheeks hurt. I knew this would work. Unless...

No! I trusted Kallais to give me a functioning present. Deep down, I knew this would work. There was no reason for my plan to fail. And tomorrow, I'd set off on my journey home.

"Alright," Abido sighed. It didn't matter that he doubted me. I'd prove him wrong.

This time, I was the confident one strolling through the miniature doorway, my chin lifted the slightest bit. Today, I would be the largest one in the room. I would show them that I did have gumption—when I wanted to.

But as the light's intensity faded from my eyes, I realized that the thrones in the center of the room were empty. My shoulders slumped, courage evaporated. They weren't here. I should've known better than to assume nothing would go wrong. The mere thought probably jinxed things. Now, they might not even come when summoned. Dumb Kiara.

"Gem, Min?" Abido called. "I want to talk to you."

Abido's voice echoed through empty passages and caverns. My paws gravitated to my belt, flipping a pouch open and snapping it shut with my talon's tips. They will come. They have to.

Seconds ticked into minutes. Still no reply. Abido and I shared a helpless glance. If only I had remembered the elixir yesterday, I would be on my way home by now.

"H-hey, Gem? Min?" Abido called again. The metamorphic walls repeated the words aimlessly.

Tears brimmed in my eyes. The Gemini wasn't coming. They were purposefully avoiding Abido, even though he was highly favored by them. Had I destroyed the bond between Abido and the star constellation? Had I ruined the entire tribe's rapport? I'd made a mess of things, and it was too late to fix anything. If I had just stayed put in the tunnels under Virgo's Island, none of this would have happened. I opened my taut jaw, willing myself to speak to Abido. I'm sorry, I wanted to say. I never wanted this to happen. But I never got the words out.

"You summoned us?"

My head shot up as two men materialized on the thrones. A tsunami of relief swept through me. It was Gem and Min.

"Yes!" Abido exclaimed. He exhaled a heavy breath.

Both Gem and Min's eyes fixated on me. They must have known I was the reason for their beckoning. No one spoke for a tense minute until I realized they were waiting for me to explain the reason for our return.

"Y-yes," I said. My head suddenly felt light, nerves vibrating under my scales. Stage fright. Darned stage fright. I was always so bad at public speaking, or any type of communication with people in dominant positions, like teachers, coaches, and sentient stars.

Kiara! the dragon yelled. Kiara, you got this!

Go away, I told the dragon. I didn't need to add irritation to my anxiety.

Not this time, kid.

I'm eighteen, you know.

Come on, you've gotten this far. Just use the potion, the dragon urged. You're so close.

I took a deep breath. Why did the dragon have to be right?

"I want to be made a human again," I declared.

Gem's eyes shifted to his brother, but Min didn't waver in his gaze.

"No, Kiara," Min said. "I already said no. Now please, let us finish our sleep."

It was the answer I expected, but I was prepared. My talon flicked the cork off the vial of the change-of-mind elixir. All of the pink solution spilled over my paw. Min will want to make me a human. Change his mind.

Min's body went rigid. His pupils dilated, so huge they seemed to hold his unblinking eyelids open. A chill ran down my spine. What just happened?

I cleared my throat. "P-please transform me back into who I once was, a human."

Slowly, Min's head bobbed up and down. Then, his eyelids shut for a fraction of a second. His stiffness thawed into relaxation, and his eyes opened, pupils shrunk to their normal size.

A smile spread across his lips. "Gem, why don't we turn this young dragon into a human again."

The air in my lungs streamed out. It worked. Words can not express the elation I felt.

Gem cocked his head to the surprise. He looked between Min and me before shaking himself out of his confusion. "S-sure thing, Min."

In unison, they said:

"Kiara Vatelle,

Shed the scale,

Away with the tail,

Restore what was taken,

Let the human awaken."

Tingles erupted on every inch of my scales, like needles pricking my nerves. My eyes squeezed shut. Happy thoughts. Think of the ocean, playing in the waves. Think of Lani and her lemonade.

Pain seared my muscles as they folded over each other. My bones crushed together under elephantine pressure. The ground left my paws; only air circulated underneath. Air lashed against me in a vortex. I spun faster and faster, acid slithering up my throat, head lightening until I couldn't think. I felt heavy, exhausted. My body fell slack, no resistance to the wind as it whipped me around.

The funnel unwound. At first, I lowered slowly in the air. But then all resistance ripped from under me, and I hurtled downward. My hands shot out to break my fall, and pain sprung in my wrists.

My hands. Hands!

The two small appendages greeted my opening eyes. My swirling head stabilized as I looked down at my petite body. Pale skin displaced red dragon scales. I brushed my auburn hair over my shoulder to see that it still touched my waist. Wings no longer burdened my back. No more claws or paws. I had nails and stood on two legs, two feet. A laugh chirped from my chest. Finally, I was human again.

My eyes dropped to the floor, on a complete set of dragon scales. A bolt of remorse coursed through me. In an odd sort of way, the dragon had been helpful. He had taught me confidence, even if his brash definition of it conflicted with my own. He cheered me on, got me to do stuff I'd have never done. If it weren't for him, I might not have addressed the Gemini. I might not be human.

I'm sorry it had to be this way, I thought. But I need to go home.

Ha! I knew you'd come around! the dragon declared.

My eyes popped open.

What are you doing here? I demanded.

Kiara, did you seriously believe you'd get rid of me that easily? Dragon brain lingers three to five weeks after the transformation. Whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me until then.

I rolled my eyes, but for some reason, I was okay with it. Sure, he could be extremely annoying. But he meant well...most of the time.

My gaze turned to the Gemini, white teeth gleaming from their thrones. "Thank you so much. I—I don't know what I would've done without your help."

"We're always happy to help a friend of Abido," Min said. Gem, Abido, and I looked at each other, amusement sparkling in our eyes.

Min frowned. "What? Is there something in my teeth?"

We couldn't help it. The room burst into laughter. The echo resounded throughout the tunnels until the entire volcano seemed to chortle with us. Min just stared at us like we were crazy.

Gradually, the chiming sound petered out. I sucked air into my lungs, cheeks cemented in a grin. It was so good to laugh, something I needed for a long time. I felt lighter, and not because I wasn't a nine-foot dragon. The anxiety plaguing me lifted with one simple fact—I could finally return home.

Gem's finger wiped a tear from his eye. "Well, Kiara, I think it's time for you to get home."

Min crossed his arms. "Well, if you're not going to tell me the joke, then I'll go." He paused, eyes catching on me. He couldn't suppress the smile that overtook his pout. "Goodbye Kiara, and good luck!" The twin's form became one with the air.

"I'm so glad you thought of the elixir," Gem whispered. "Where did you get it?"

"Kallais, the Nereid," I said.

"Ah, Kallais. Of course. Well, good luck on your journey home. If you ever need me in the future, I'm happy to help." With a wave, he faded, too.

I turned around to see Dranesh's deadpan face and the warriors' gaping mouths.

"What?" I asked.

"Oh, nothing," Abido said. "I don't think they fully believed you were a human. But they do now." He winked.

My lips upturned, though they shrunk back quickly. The initial rush of the transformation shrunk, ousted by an ache for Lani. I really had been gone far too long.

"I think I'm ready to head home," I murmured.

"Of course," Abido said, voice laced with understanding. "Let's go."