The sudden shock caused them to shout. Involuntary, they swallowed water. They came to the surface sputtering and coughing. Their heavy coats sucked u...p the water, the increased weight drawing them downward. They struggled to stay at the surface.Impassively, Peter stood there watching them thrashing around in panic.Stephen Augustus Stapleton, the Third managed to turn to see Peter. He knew the man had set this up by waiting at river’s edge for them to approach him. The look he gave Peter was. Too many doctors had asked that question. "Besides, look at me! I'm fifty! I'm fat and balding and big-boned. I could never pass successfully as a woman." "You'd be surprised," stated Blackjack flatly. "But you *are* rich. Surely you could have started years ago." "I'm rich *now*. My father kept a tight hand on the money until he passed away three years ago, and if he'd had any idea his only son really wanted to be his daughter, he'd have disinherited me in a flash. Since I. The bright light was excruciating and Kadesh closed his eyes again pretty rapidly and with a curse. The pounding in his head reminded him that he had managed to get himself royally drunk and now he was paying the price.Several deep breaths later he tried to open his eyes again, this time shielding them a little by raising his hands to the sides of his face. A minute or so of rapid blinking helped him adjust and focus and he found himself looking at the inside of what could only be the emergency. At first, I thought this had helped relieve the strain I hadn’t realized I was under. Exposing myself to those feelings had somehow made me feel better, and it gave me a whole new perspective in understanding my classmates who are unable or unwilling to resist such emotions. But all weekend long, I struggled internally against the primitive feelings this awakened inside me, and I could feel what I now call my animal self growing stronger as the weekend progressed.Today the degradation of my.