John heard slow clapping from the corner of the room by the door and jumped in shock. Brian's ears flicked at the sound. Both of them turned to stare.
A satyr -- no, _the_ satyr -- stepped out of the darkness into the pool of light from the bedside lamp, still applauding sardonically. John recovered from his surprise first.
"You!" he yelled. "Who are you? What the hell are you doing here?"
The satyr put a hand across his chest, affecting shock. "What, you don't remember me?"
"I saw you in a dream. At least, I think..."
"Astonishing," said the satyr. "You really don't remember me. The charm doesn't usually last this long; you must be exceptionally weak-minded."
"OK," said Brian, his deep voice filling the room. "Who the fuck is this guy, and how did he get in here?"
"This is getting tiresome," said the satyr, rolling its eyes. It gestured towards John with one hand. "Do you remember now?"
The memories crashed on him like a wave. That night at the bowling alley. The glory hole in the bathroom stall. How he had inexplicably wanted to suck the occupant's cock, and how he'd been repulsed to find out afterwards that it was a satyr. The curse, making him forget. But most of all, the creature's two pronouncements: first, that any human touched by his seed would become a new man-beast; second, that he had the power to break the enchantment.
The satyr smirked at his expression. "Ah. I see you do."
"Babe? What's he talking about?"
"Oh God, it was you..." John trailed off then shook his head. "Brian, this is the thing that did this to me. To us. Then he put some magic on me, made me forget, so I'd go through it confused and alone. Bastard."
The satyr nodded his head, his curved horns casting weird shadows. "Close enough, though your lover leaves off how the charm was punishment for his insolence. I left him to become this beast. I am more intrigued, however, by you."
"Fuck you, goat. You destroy our lives because someone hurt your feelings? I ain't got a thing to say to you."
"Oh, but that's the thing that intrigues me, O bull. I gave my seed to him, not you. I am not responsible for your transformation."
"Same difference. You did him and kept him from knowing he was infectious." Brian stabbed a thick finger towards the satyr for emphasis.
"You begin to vex me. My seed is not some mundane disease, passed on by grubbing around. The change is a blessing, fired by my will -- and I did not change you."
"So what the fuck happened?"
"I do not the fuck know, and I am ceasing the fuck to care." He turned pointedly to John. "Tell me, orc, do you still wish to be rid of this form?"
"God, I don't know. I need to think." He looked down at himself, then over to his boyfriend. "What about Brian? I mean, the minotaur. Would he turn back too? Wait, and would we still love each other? We weren't, you know, compatible before. Brian, what should we do?"
John felt Brian's thick, three-fingered hand slip around his own. It felt comforting now, not the least bit strange.
The satyr looked down at them with disgust. "So it is true, then. You really are in love."
John rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes, welcome to the twenty-first century. Two men in love. Now answer my question -- what would happen to us?"
The satyr shrugged. "It matters not. You have completed the change. No power on this earth can break the enchantment now."
"What the fuck? But you just said you could!"
"No, I asked if you wished to be rid of that form. I made no offer."
"OK, fuck this," said Brian, pushing himself up. "I don't care who this guy is, I'm going to knock his block off."
"I think not," said the satyr and gestured again. Brian's limbs went limp and he fell back to the mattress, flopping uselessly, tossing his head from side to side in frustration.
"God!" shouted John. "Will you stop-- OK, fine. Fine. You can't break the enchantment. You could have earlier, but that would have been too helpful. Can you at least tell us how to control the transformations? I thought it was sex, but," he continued, gesturing to his minotaur boyfriend and his own orcish form, "apparently not."
The satyr tilted its head. "What transformations?"
"Don't play dumb. I went to orc and back at least three times, including-- Shit, that was you again at the bowling alley, wasn't it? You saw it. My cock changed in your fucking mouth. So don't you dare toy with me."
"I witnessed you complete your change, aye. But that was all."
"I changed back, you slippery cocksucker! How does it work?"
The satyr stared at him, stroking its chin. "There is no such magic; even I cannot turn human. Do you try to trick a trickster?" it mused. "Yet I do not smell a lie on you, and there is the matter of your minotaur. No. I do not know what you are, orc, but I do not like it."
"That's your big answer? That's the best you can do? I'll kill you, you bastard!" shouted John and threw himself towards the creature. It gestured irritatedly, then again more urgently when John didn't so much as break his stride. John grinned with vicious joy, baring his tusks, as its eyes widened and he ploughed into it, knocking it to the floor and crashing down on top of it.
"What _are_ you?" it asked, shocked.
"Pissed," said John, forcing a meaty hand over its face and slamming its head to the ground again before it could react. He felt its nose crunch and blood ran between his fingers.
He lifted his hand to pound it again, but before the blow landed it spat out a word in a strange language that seemed to shake the room. There was a pop and John fell to the floor, dropping through the space where the satyr had been a moment before. He looked around but it was nowhere to be seen.
There was a thud from the other side of the room as Brian fell out of the bed, and then two more thuds as he got to his hooves unsteadily.
"Babe?" called the minotaur. "You OK?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," he replied, surprised by the snarl in his voice. "He got away, though."
"So, uh, what was all that about?"
"Hell if I know," said John. "I don't think he knew either. Still no clue how to turn back, or even if we can. Are you OK?"
"Fine now," Brian said, offering him a hand. John clasped it and hauled himself to his feet, then pulled the minotaur into a tight hug.
"Love you, babe," Brian rumbled.
"I love you too, you big lump."
Brian squeezed him tight. "I know."