Shedding Skins

This week I started writing a new story for my series Tales from the Library (The Invisible Library fandom). One of the main characters is a shapeshifter. Kai appears human, but he's a dragon—complete with scales, horns, tail, and wings. He can shed his human appearance at will, and is even able to sustain a transitional stage where his eyes turn red and his skin develops a fern-like pattern hinting of scales. Sometimes the transformation occurs involuntarily. For instance, given sufficient provocation, he can become so angry his dragon characteristics involuntarily rise to the surface. Thinking about Kai's nature, I was reminded of Neal, Peter, and Henry's situation in The Musicians. They're also shedding their skins, but for them, the transformation is a mental one.

Peter is the novice in the group. He's gone undercover in the past, but this is the longest, sustained con he's ever run. It helps that Elizabeth is a partner in the deception. She reinforces the supposed changes in his character. They want their foes to believe that Peter has become corrupted and cynical. He's appropriated recovered artworks for his private collection and is willing to betray the Bureau. Will Peter's rookie status lead him to commit errors?

Henry's role in the sting is less well-defined. Since he's not a primary target of Ydrus, Henry believes he has the freedom to act as a free agent. He's chosen Python, the head of Ydrus, as his mark. Henry's an experienced con artist who prefers to work alone. He's preparing to fly to England in the hopes of meeting Python at a snake workshop. Henry sees it as an opportunity to unmask her. He's confident in his ability to devise an appropriate response on the fly based on whatever circumstances he encounters. Henry's targeting of Python reminds Peter of the way Henry went after Vincent Adler. He still suffers from lingering heartburn over that near disaster. If Henry confronts Python on his own, who's more likely to wind up with snake eyes?

Neal sets the gold standard for shapeshifting. He's been conning the Mansfelds ever since Los Angeles. In The Musicians, he enters an even more dangerous phase. His weakness is not his ability to assume a different personality. No one is concerned that he'll be able to fool his opponents with fake symptoms of PTSD and schizophrenia. The concern for Neal is that he will become so immersed in the con that it affects his own identity. The nature of the con makes him especially vulnerable. Neal blows off concerns of lingering effects from the virtual psychological manipulation he was subjected to, but Doc Jacob knows better. He has Neal's medical record, and Noelle has also consulted with the doctor about the problems that arose from abuse during Neal's childhood. There's no escaping from the fact that Neal's previous issues make him more susceptible to recurrences.

Back at White Collar, Tricia has devised a supplemental type of shapeshifting which Kai would surely endorse. In the past, both Rolf and Klaus have on occasion disguised their appearance. She hopes to use the same strategy to defeat them.

Kai might argue that the physical nature of his shapeshifting requires just as much discipline as Neal's mental shapeshifting. If Kai slips out of his human character, his draconic attributes provide an instant signal of his state of mind. His mentor Irene is a much more adept con artist. I have no plans to write a crossover of the two series, but Irene would gladly send Kai to any boot camp Neal cares to offer on the art of concealing one's emotions.

The Musicians on Archive of Our Own
The Musicians on FanFiction