Sonja moved toward the bedroom in the hopes of discovering the truth. Ashton saw that as her chance, and she quickly did her best to get everything back the way it had been before she began to snoop around. She managed to get the stuff back into the hidden cubby-hole and the computer desk back in place before the trio left Scott's bedroom.

Scott called out to her, which caused to her swirl around in a whirlwind of fluffiness. She gasped a little and fell back against the desk. Certain that she had been caught she looked at Scott nervously and offered a sheepish smile.

Noticing that she was acting funny, he looked to her then to his computer. It was not on the web page he last recalled, so he assumed she had been using it. "My browser history..."

"I didn't look!" she shook her head emphatically. Her ears rose up to a respectful point as she did her best to convince him that she had seen nothing of interest.

He offered her a look. It was an oddly piercing look that simultaneously made her skin crawl a little, but also had an odd side-effect. She suddenly felt a sincere urge to admit every terrible thing she had ever done in her life.

The moment passed, however. She waved one hand in front of her face and tried not to smile nervously. "I-I didn't!"

"Well.... be that as it may, or may not be..." Scott walked into the living room then motioned for her to come over.

Curious about his strangely commanding gesture, and eager not to be caught in the act of snooping, Ashton went over to meet him. Upon closer inspection she had to draw back a little. "Scott... you're."

He stretched his arms out to the side then twisted in place. His Dream and Earth Status were not one hundred percent in line, otherwise his appearance would have changed far more than it had. However, his hair that had taken on some of his dream world aspects before was not completely jet black save for the ends which were light red. His eyes had taken on a slightly golden hue that could be mistaken for hazel in most light settings, but were still a bit too bright for a normal man.

She noted his slightly claw-like fingernails and when he offered a smile, he had canines that were a little too sharp. He had also seemingly lost a little more weight, and gained even more muscle.

"Hey, your ears are a little odd...." she said at last.

"Are they?" Scott blinked then looked between her and then over to Sonja. "My ears look weird?"

"They look like ears, though also a bit pointed in some places," said Sonja simply.

Scott reached up and felt his ears. There was still a general human shape to them but they also had a slight point here and there reminiscent of the minor frill that acted as his ears in dragon form.

"I see... Either my human form is always going to reflect my dragon shape in some way, or I don't have the skill and experience to prevent those signs from showing," said Scott thoughtfully.

"You, uh... got bigger, too," said Ashton. She turned away from him slightly and coughed a little into her hand.

"Yeah. I do that," he agreed shamelessly.

Scott marched over to the couch then flopped down dramatically. In a strangely confident movement for him, he propped his arm up on the back of the couch and rested his chin against his fist. "Ladies, let me tell you. It's been an odd week for me."

Sonja already know the story, so she busied herself in the kitchen while Scott told the others what had happened. The various appliances still surprised her, triggering her warrior instincts, now and then. Even so, she did manage not to tear them apart for their insolence.

"So, you were out of work and unconscious because of a growth spurt?" asked Ashton.

After he nodded his head in agreement, she rubbed her chin. "It's too bad you can't just admit to what you are. It would make dealing with those missed days a lot easier, especially with the new work rules."

"New work rules?" Scott looked her in the eyes with more of that strange confidence that had overtaken him recently.

Unsettled, and more than a little intrigued by his mannerisms, Ashton bit her lip and took a breath to calm herself. Her heat cycle was ending. There was no reason to get so worked up by his presence. Nope. She eyed his somewhat less pudgy physique for a moment then took another breath.

Ashton nodded to him after she collected herself a bit. "Yeah. Since the weird fog business started happening and monsters began to pop up, people have not been coming into work at most businesses."

Scott leaned to the side then placed his other arm atop the couch. Fully exposed, it was easy to see that his chest was a bit larger and more defined than before even through his t-shirt. "So, how did corporate take it?"

Her fluffy fox tail wriggled slightly, but she managed to calm herself enough to continue the conversation. "At the moment they basically just want us to do the best we can with whoever shows up. Fewer guests are coming in as well. Everyone seems like they want to sleep for days."

"Makes sense." Scott nodded his head softly then waved his hand around a little. "The monsters showing up, even in small numbers, and weird stuff happening all over the place would probably have reminded a lot of people that this world is supposed to change within a year or so."

His slightly golden eyes looked into hers for a moment. "So, what happens now? I was gone for a while."

"Show up for work tomorrow, and it won't matter?" she asked him.

Scott took her words to heart. It wasn't like he needed the job for monetary purposes. At best it was a cover for his interdimensional money laundering. Though, he had only just started that business.

He looked at Ashton once more, his strange confidence seeming to roll off of him in waves. She fidgeted in her seat, uncertain of what to do.

"Do you actually like your job?" he asked her softly.

"What? Yes. I love it..." she said quickly.

Scott sighed loudly, and his eyes narrowed. "There's no need to lie about it."

She shook her head. "I'm not..."

"I see." Scott continued to look at her for a moment then said. "If I were to offer you a job that should soon pay far more than you earn, and would place you as a high-end executive would you be interested?"

"Scott, you can't be serious. I couldn't leave my job," she said quickly.

His smile returned as he continued to gaze at her confidently. "In other words, you're supremely interested in finding other employment, but you don't think you can any time soon."

"What? I didn't say that," she said.

His eyes seemingly began to glow. They even took on a slightly red tinge. "You should know that I am a little different than before."

"That much is obvious!" she said quickly.

Scott laughed casually then offered her another soft smile. "My mental state is certainly at odds with the results of my... upbringing. I'm not sure how long this odd well-spring of confidence will last."

He sat up then leaned forward a bit. "The thing is, that you know what I am now."

"A dragon? Right?" she said, slightly unnerved by his closeness.

"Right." Scott raised his a bit and pointed to the ceiling. "See, after I hit my growth spurt a new racial power surfaced."

"What... kind of power?" asked Ashton curiously.

"The Eyes of Judgment." He lightly tapped the side of his head. "Apparently it's an inherent ability that I can use regardless of the form that I take."

"What does it do?" asked Ashton.

"It lets me see the corruption in people's souls. I can tell when they are lying, or think they are lying at least. I can also see the fluctuations in their energy when they are hiding something, or feel a sense of guilt," he said. "Basically, I can tell in a general way whether someone is relatively decent, or a walking shit bag."

"Can you, really?" asked Ashton.

He offered her a crooked smile. "I can also exert myself and look deeper."

"How does it work, though?" she asked. That certainly sounded like an amazing ability to have.

"I'm not absolutely certain. All I know is that it is supposed to be equivalent to some divine technique that gods use called 'Veritas'."

Shara, silent and smiling brightly until that moment, suddenly froze in place. Her eyes widened, and her eyebrows shot toward the roof. Neither, Scott not the others saw her as they were each focused on something else. However, her expression was one of absolute surprise.

She looked at him briefly then looked away like she was a smile child who had been caught stealing from the cookie jar. Things were surely about to become more complicated!