Class was dismissed promptly afterwards, with Webs nodding distractedly at his students when the gong rang. His snout was buried into the dusty scroll, muttering to himself as he tried to activate the spell. Boto ignored him, claws tingling as he put the single cracked earring back into the mahogany box. Quickly he slid the lid back on, relaxing as he heard the gentle click of the latch sealing the lonely moonstone away. The haunting image of milky white on black velvet hovered at the edge of his consciousness, carrying with it dangerous memories.

His claws reflexively flinched to the spot where he had once kept his finest knives even as he stomped down the sharp recollection of an obsidian blade set in the luxurious ivory hilt. Some dragons daydreamed of home, but he dreamed of the day when it would be safe to return to the desert – and his weapons. Not that he had loved killing – far from it – but there was something so infinitely satisfying about the balanced weight of a weapon in your hand. His scales itched with the sudden urge to return, but sense held him back. Well, sense and the sudden call of:

"Boto!" Doomsayer ran over to him, tail lashing as she asked, "Where did you find it?" She looked worried.

He blinked once, twice, clearing the fog of memory from his vision as he turned on his most charming smile. "Find what, Doomsayer?" She seemed to falter a bit, and Boto expected her to bounce back with a sharp reply like she usually did.

Instead her eyes became slightly unfocused, as if she was staring at something far, far, away, and she remained silent. The mountain shuddered, and Boto flinched, his mind instantly asking, Is that another power she has?

"I have to tell him," she said to nobody, eyes still sightless.

Is she okay? Boto stepped closer, looking into her ice blue eyes as he gently nudged her with his wingtip. He waved his talons before her nose, and asked, "Are you all right?" She remained motionless, and he looked around them, noticing Webs still standing nearby, nose in the scroll. Not good. Gently, as he would with a small dragonet – not that he'd had much experience with that – he guided Doomsayer into a small nook between two bookshelves, carefully keeping her from knocking anything down. "C'mon Doom, I'd settle for mostly right, or even partially right, right now."

Is it some sort of Nightwing fit? Is there anything I can do? Is there anything anyone can do? He shook her shoulders, not noticing as his scales turned a panicked sickly green. DOOMSAYER!!

"Where did you find it?" Her voice was the same, yet totally different, the inflections of speech alien and wrong.

Boto shook his head, wings quivering and fangs bared as he stared at the impersonator in Doom's body. The venom sacs in his fangs pulsed angrily, and all his instincts were shouting to attack. His claws once again instinctively flinched towards a place where knives had once lived, and he fought the urge to fight.

He didn't want to hurt Doom, wherever she was.

"Where did you find it?" Doom screamed, ending in a snarl as she stepped closer. She opened her mouth and inhaled, the smell of fire-to-come filling the air. Boto stepped backwards, narrowly dodging the swing of razor sharp talons as he retreated into the maze of scrolls.

He led Doom – or whoever it was – through the increasingly narrow shelves, until he came to a dead end. Boto stopped, gasping for breath as he asked, "Why do you want to know?"

The dragon stopped mere inches from him, shoulders squared threateningly while its eyes were still the same familiar, terrified blue. "Because it is mine!"

Boto shook his head, mustering up a bravado he certainly didn't feel. "Nope. It's mine. Finders keepers and all that." He looked closely at the dragon, as if he could see something other than the familiar shape of his friend. "Who are you, anyway?"

The dragon snorted with disbelief, standing taller – if that was possible – until it seemed to tower over Boto even though he knew that he and Doomsayer were much the same height. "You know who I am, silly dragonet. You know quite well." The dragon lowered its head a fraction of an inch until they were staring eye to eye. Boto could see the fear in those eyes, and knew Doom was still there. Then eyes flashed black, and he knew that she was losing the battle for her mind.

"My name is Darkstalker." The dragon paused for a half second, letting what she said sink in before darting her tail forwards to wrap around his neck. "Tell me where you found the earring!" she said, venomous as a viper. "Tell me or you die." Darkstalker looked down at the stolen body she wore and then grinned, a wicked grin that chilled the lump of iron Boto called a heart. "Tell me or you'll never see Doomsayer again."

A/N:

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One: how do you pronoun the possessed body of a female dragon when inhabited by a male being? The last few paragraphs were painful to write for that matter alone.

Two: Darkstalker, I tried to write a fanfiction where you aren't crazy evil. I thought I was doing all right. And then you do this!!! Why?!?! 

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Hope you guys liked it :D

~ GingerFlame