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Applying Restraint (2011.12.28)
Xen learns to restrain adolescents.

Hierarchy of Need (2011.12.16)
Xen figures out what happens when his needs are met.

To Red Hook (2011.12.15)
Xen feels pulled between lives.

Measuring in Standard Ambers (2011.12.07)
Amber and Xen select an apartment.

Floating Aloft (2011.12.02)
Amber and Xen attend Kelley's memorial service.

Eulogy for Kelley (2011.11.25)
Kelley kills himself.

How the Dragon Got a New Lair (2011.11.20)
Xen is offered a job and will live with Amber. Also, he is a dragon.

Of Authors and Uncles (2011.11.13)
Xen has a good weekend with Amber, which results in meeting her uncle.

Instead of Throwing Heads (2011.11.05)
Xen and Amber have a lackluster Halloween owing to the snow.

Hand of Fate (2011.10.29)
Xen met Amber when he could.

Know By Heart (2011.10.18)
Xen ceases being infatuated with Amber.

The Wrong Color (2011.10.01)
Xen particularly opposes discrimination when it is used to keep him out of a job.

Which a Minute Will Reverse (2011.09.21)
Xen deals with Amber's indecision by accepting that it is his reaction that is a problem, not her.

Traveling Companions (2011.09.06)
Xen encounters Emily and Melanie, so he contemplates being a 900 year old alien.

There Will Come Hard Rains (2011.08.30)
Amber and Xen are intentionally trapped in Hurricane Irene.

To Hull and Back (2011.08.28)
Amber, Xen, and his family go on a vacation to Hull, Massachusetts.

Outside the Cave (2011.08.21)
Xen goes to a cave poetry reading and gets soaked.

Book Signing (2011.08.13)
Xen has his first book signing.

Ivan the Marriageable (2011.07.31)
Jacki's friend Ivan gets married in the City.

The Spirit of My Mother (2011.07.27)
Xen's mother isn't much for ritual.

Embers of the Divine (2011.07.16)
Xen loves Amber because she is constant and chants in ritual.

The Faces That You Meet (2011.07.15)
Xen meets Amber's friends and sister.

Head Over Feet (2011.07.10)
Xen rejoices in his first morning with Amber and introduces her to Suzie and Dan P., after proving himself a philistine at an art museum.

Zack and Kari Make a Wedding (2011.07.09)
Zack and Kari get hitched and then take off until Spaceballs II: The Search for More Money. Xen comes to a decision about Amber.

The Rest of You (2011.07.05)
Xen wants to know Amber by having books juggled.

I Would Never (2011.07.04)
Xen needs to explain that "friend" means "person who I will never kiss, so don't try".

Quite So New (2011.07.01)
Xen has a second date with Amber and likes her only more.

Amber Begins (2011.06.30)
Xen has a first date, no matter how he fights it. He can't resist Amber.

Same Party Twice (2011.06.25)
Xen crashes a party and does not belongs.

What It Is To Belong (2011.06.24)
Xen crashes a party and belongs.

Dance Anthem of the Under 21 (2011.06.23)
Xen is annoyed by larvae.

Peace Breaks Out (2011.06.21)
Xen attends a peace drumming as the sole male.

No Soulmate Stone (2011.06.19)
Xen attends a solstice ritual and finds no soulmate.

When You Would Rather Be Engulfed (2011.06.18)
Xen and Daniel like lesbians, but not in the porntastic way.

Love in the Wings (2011.06.14)
Xen lusts for a passionate moment and needs to learn to love longitudinally.

One Wedding and a Funeral (Mention) (2011.06.12)
Angela and Mario get married.

Night of the Fungible Cellar Door (2011.06.11)
Xen meets up with an old friend and has an amazing night by crashing a party.

Pride March (2011.06.05)
Xen goes to a gay pride march to pick up women.

On the Bound (2011.06.02)
Xen refuses to be Melanie's pit stop to [Miss X] and sets other boundaries.

New Moon Rising (2011.06.01)
Xen attends a new moon ritual to reconnect.

The Tango (2011.05.26)
Xen sees Melanie, not for the last time.

Already Met You (2011.05.24)
Xen realizes how similar this breakup and his last are.

I Was Made to Love You (2011.05.23)
He is, but not yet. He's got a lot going on.

Singledom (2011.05.22)
Xen dislikes being singledom, but would dislike being with the wrong person even more.

The Picture of Thomm Q (2011.05.21)
Xen is having waves of profound sadness, but he isn't retreating into a story to cope.

Swing Dating (2011.05.20)
Xen goes dancing in hopes of seeing her.

Making Treaties (2011.05.19)
Xen and Melanie cobble out a friendship.

Of What Colour It Please God (2011.05.18)
Xen enumerates what he needs in his next lover.

Post-Mortem (2011.05.17)
Xen examines the remains of the relationship that has passed so he will be better the next time he attempts love.

Cake Faerii (2011.05.16)
Xen goes to the Cupcake Festival with new friends.

Angels and Demons (2011.05.14)
Melanie reaches the anger stage of grief and Xen refrains from pretending she is anything more or less than Melanie.

Partial Eclipse (2011.05.12)
Xen goes swing dancing and feels like the Fates are leading him somewhere.

New Romantic: Wednesday (2011.05.11)
Melanie leaves Xen for the potential of flings, immediately with a girl named [Miss X].

New Romantic: Tuesday (2011.05.10)
Melanie leaves Xen for the potential of flings, immediately with a girl named [Miss X].

New Romantic: Monday (2011.05.09)
Melanie leaves Xen for the potential of flings, immediately with a girl named [Miss X].

New Romantic: Sunday (2011.05.08)
Melanie leaves Xen for the potential of flings, immediately with a girl named [Miss X].

New Romantic: Saturday (2011.05.07)
Melanie leaves Xen for the potential of flings, immediately with a girl named [Miss X].

September and Beyond (2011.04.22)
Xen and Melanie will have to deal with loving long distance for a bit.

White Elephants (2011.04.13)
Xen's brain is a bit wonky.

Vampires, Vinegar, and Vaccines (2011.03.31)
Xen is trying not to let his anxiety get to him.

When I Grow Up (2011.03.21)
Xen would like to teach your children now, if you don't mind. Or you can offer him a comparable job with a steady salary.

Anti-Social Network (2011.02.27)
Melanie leaves Facebook for sanity and Xen hides people who are not crucial.

Talented Youth (2011.02.10)
Where are the former wunderkinds now?

Controlled Myopia (2011.01.24)
Xen needs to focus on what is in front of him.

Encoding Kairos (2011.01.04)
Xen is awash in language but it isn't enough to move the stars to pity.

The Microcosm of One Night (2011.01.01)
Xen considers New Year's Eve.

Thomm Quackenbush is an author and teacher in the Hudson Valley. He has published four novels in his Night's Dream series (We Shadows, Danse Macabre, Artificial Gods, and Flies to Wanton Boys). He has sold jewelry in Victorian England, confused children as a mad scientist, filed away more books than anyone has ever read, and tried to inspire the learning disabled and gifted. He is capable of crossing one eye, raising one eyebrow, and once accidentally groped a ghost. When not writing, he can be found biking, hiking the Adirondacks, grazing on snacks at art openings, and keeping a straight face when listening to people tell him they are in touch with 164 species of interstellar beings. He likes when you comment.