Insanity Plea

[INSERT WITTY DISCLAIMER]

A/N: So first off I want to make it clear that this story while based in the Harry Potter world will NOT be based at Hogwarts nor directly involve any of the cannon characters, they will be mentioned and make appearances...eventually.

Secondly this fan fiction is more a fan fiction of a fan fiction. The idea is based off of Starlight Massacres story The Rise of the Dracken. She mentions a character in New Zealand and with her permission I've taken that idea and run with it. The New Zealand Submissive is my character and this story, while containing some of Mass's OMC's, does not necessarily run cannon to hers. The concept of the Dracken belong to Beautiful Kaos who at some point StarLight Mass actually names but for the life of me I can't find the Chapter it in. I will try to stay as true to her wonderful creations as possible and the cannon according to StarLight Mass :D.

Thirdly, for the random off chance any of my viewers have actually read Rise of the Dracken I will tell you now I cannot write smut so this story will lack all of Starlight's smutty-goodness that her reviewers love so much and, while it will have a Dracken harem, there will be little to no Slash. Sorry to disappoint so early.

Fourthly, I am writing this purely for my own enjoyment, so read at your own risk. I make no promises. If you're confused by something let me know, chances are it'll be revealed as part of the story progression, if not then I'll make sure to fill you in.

-Sixteenth Birthday-

Paige Willows woke early on the morning of her sixteenth birthday. She felt hot, but her breath puffed in the cold air of New Zealand winter. It was her hand resting on the pillow in front of her face that gave the first indication something was wrong. The moonlight from the window caused the patches on her hand to glint. She rolled over onto her back and brought her arms up for examination. Scales the almost the exact white of her skin swirled around her hands, circling her wrists and spiraling up her arms. She scratched at her arm, but the scales blended into her skin leavening no catchable ridge. She felt her face and could trace the smooth patter of scales there too across her nose and eyelids as well as banding on her forehead. Her exploring fingers found that her canines were extended, and sharper, poking out of her upper lip to rest gently on the top of her bottom lip. She bit down on her lip, the sharp pain told her this was not a dream.

She sat up and quietly made her way to the bathroom that connected the room she shared with three other girls to another room of girls. She locked both doors before switching on the light. The bathroom appeared in stark colors. She blinked, trying to clear her eyesight only to realize that her eyes were seeing everything clearer. She could see the miniscule cracks in the stone floor beneath her feet, as well as each shade of gray that composed them. She stood in front of the mirror and gaped. The creature before her was not the one she was used to seeing in the morning. Gone was the crisscross of scars on her caller bone and the freckles across her cheeks. Her flaming red hair tumbled down and around her shoulders, well past her hips and brushed the back of her knees. Her night shirt was stretched across her much fuller breasts. She lifted the hem and pressed her hand against her flat, almost concaved stomach. Her shorts like her shirt now stretched across her new, rounder hips and pert bum.

Not that a great body wasn't what every 16 year old wanted for her birthday but Paige felt panic rising in her. The bathroom seemed unbearably hot, or was that her? She stared at her reflection. This couldn't be permanent. There was no way this could be permanent, she couldn't hide this from the other girls or Matron Summers.

She turned on the tap and splashed water onto her face.

"Go away." she willed, "Please go away. It's not real. It can't be real."

She felt something shift. She looked back into the mirror. Her slate gray eyes stared at the face she was used to sans freckles. Her hair was its normal shoulder-length rod-strait red. She stared at her hands, felt her teeth, everything was normal. She tugged on her night cloths that still fit too tight, well almost everything.

A light tap on the door and her best friend's voice drifted quietly through.

"Are you okay Paige?"

"Yes, thank you Hannah." Paige unlocked and opened the door, "Right as rain." she grinned down at the twelve year old.

Hannah grinned back, "Good. You were pretty restless in your sleep. I was worried."

Paige tugged on one of Hannah's brown corkscrew curls, "Nope, just dandy."

Hannah smiled then turned to go back to bed. Paige switched off the light and did the same. Still too warm she lie on top of her blankets, her back to the rest of the room and stared out the window. Worry made sleep impossible. Was it just her imagination? Was she crazy? People didn't grow scales, or wake up with a perfect body. Were her parents not human?

She mentally snorted at that. Maybe it was a dream; she could have bitten her lip in her sleep. She closed her eyes. That had to be it, it was just a dream.

oVVVVVVVo

Paige woke later to Hannah bouncing on her bed.

"Happy Birthday! Happy Birthday!" she giggled.

Groans from the other occupants of their room said it was still too early to be up. She glanced at the watch on her wrist. It was 6:30am.

She opened one eye to glare balefully at Hannah. Hannah's warm brown eyes simply smiled back at her as she held out a gift wrapped in the Sunday comics section.

Paige sighed then sat up. She gave a jaw popping yawn while cat-stretching. She then took the gift shoved at her with a chuckle.

"Okay okay. I'll open it."

Hannah's gift was a home-made cardboard picture frame with a picture of the two of them from Hannah's birthday two months ago. The frame was decorated with a long snake like dragon and copious amounts of glitter.

"It's brilliant Hannah. I love it!"

Hannah bounced off the bed and picked up a shoe box from the floor.

"This was on your bed. It's got your name on it but I don't know who sent it."

Curious, Paige took the box from her friend. Before she could open it the door to their room burst open and Madam Summers stumbled in.

Madam Summers was a rosy cheeked, gray hair grandmotherly looking women. Paige often compared her to Mrs. Clause, but looks were as far as the softness in Madam Summers went. She was sharper than a knife and had very little patience for her charges, and was always drunk.

"Up up, out of bed you lazy lot."

Emma and Chloe groaned and stumbled out of their beds.

Madam Summers eyed Paige, "What are you still doing here?"

Paige felt a growl rumble in her chest as Summers tone.

"I'm waiting on the papers. Do you have them?"

"They're in my office. You can come collect them when you leave. You are leaving today. Another girl needs that bed."

"I'm leaving as soon as I get dressed."

"No!" Hannah wailed, "Can't you at least stay for breakfast?"

Paige shook her head but Summers replied for her.

"She's not getting another meal outta me. She's an heiress now, she can take care of her own self."

With finality Summers snapped the door shut. Hannah sniffled, "But-"

"No buts. You knew this was going to happen. I should get out of here soon so I don't get stuck in traffic on Highway 3."

Hannah burst into tears and ran from the room. Paige sighed and dug her suitcase out from under her bed. Hannah had been doing that for weeks now every time Paige's emanate departure was mention. Hannah thrived on theatrics.

Paige pulled out her cloths. She didn't actually have a lot to take. Her clothes had been delivered to her new home yesterday and all the important bits of furniture had come with the place. She put her dirty things in the outside zipper of her suitcase and changed into the jeans and jumper. She pulled her hair back into a messy bun. She sat on her bed to wait her turn in the loo and drew the shoe box into her lap. Hannah was right there was no indication of who sent it. She lifted the lid and set it aside. Inside a smaller black box rested on top of a stack of envelops and a small pocket sized leather book. She opened the second box first. Inside was a woven island necklace and bracelet, set with polished shells and stones she couldn't identify.

A funny smell drifted from them and she sneezed. She admired the multitude of colors the sun reflected off the stones, and then slipped them both on. She liked them and she didn't own any jewelry. Emma came out of the wash room then so Paige quickly put the box and picture frame in her suitcase then raced in before Chloe came back to use it. She washed her face and brushed her teeth quickly. She hadn't been lying to Hannah, she needed to beat rush hour if she was going to make it to work on time. She stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her dream from last night floated to mind. It had seemed so real. She tried to concentrate on the feeling she had in the dream, willing the shift to happen. She opened her eyes; her normal, unblemished face stared back at her. It was weird that her freckles seemed to disappear over night as well as her hips and chest to change, but she decided it had probably been more gradual and she was just now noticing it.

That done she did a quick scan of the room for anything she might have missed then grabbed her purse and suite case. The girl's home for orphans had been her home on and off for as long as she could remember. It was a large ranch style house situated on a farm outside Hawera on the North island of New Zealand. Her parents had left her on the door step with her name written on a note and until last week that was the only thing she knew about her family.

Last week a barrister had approached her at her job at the electronics store in town. She discovered that someone had left her a trust fund and a house. Any questions about who led to dead ends. It was very mysterious and at the same times a stroke of pure luck. Her emancipation had continued to be denied because of her 'lack of alternate residence' never mind that she needed to have emancipation papers to get an alternate residence. But with a source of monthly income and a house in her name the courts had quickly given her the emancipation in effect on her sixteenth birthday. Anything for one less orphan the state had to fork over money for.

She had a seven hour drive across the island to get there and still had to settle and unpack in her new home. She loaded her stuff into her car then went to find Madam Summers. It was 7:30, all the girls would be out doing farm chores. She found Summers in her office playing solitar on her computer.

"I've come for my papers." Paige announced.

Summers pointed to a thick manila envelope on the corner of her desk. Paige picked it up and pulled out the contents, double checking to make sure everything necessary was there. Her birth certificate, her emancipation papers, her vaccination records and even her school transcript where in there.

"Where's Hannah?" Paige asked.

Summers shrugged, not looking up from her game, "Doing her chores if she knows what's good for her."

Paige rolled her eyes, she had a pretty good idea where Hannah might be, and her chores weren't it. She left the office and headed out the back door. She rounded red barn and found Hanna at the top of the hay stacks.

"So...do I get a goodbye or anything?" she called up.

Hannah shook her head, "How can you just leave?"

"I'm not 'just leaving' I'm only a phone call away."

"But you're on the other side of the island!"

"Hannah...please." Paige called, "One day you'll be old enough to leave too. You only have the rest of the winter break to endure, and then you have the school year at that fancy school of yours. Besides that, you know you have a place with me when you turn sixteen."

"But that's four years away!"

Paige stood silently looking at the mop of brown hair that was all she could see of her friend.

"I'm leaving now." she said finally, "I'll miss you. I'll call you when I get there. Keep your cell phone on you and away from Mrs. Summers okay?"

Hannah's head bobbed and her quiet sobs reached Paige. Paige left without another word. Goodbye's sucked and both of them had had too many in their life time.

A/N: Reviews are welcome; Flames will be introduced to my fire salamander that will gladly eat them. :) Ta!

Juniper87