The following Sun, Gerald woke up from the lovemaking next to his new mate. His head wasn’t in the usual fog that existed upon his waking, but was instead clouded in bliss. Despite it being a side of himself he never knew existed, Arcaena had always known he had it in him, and always knew exactly how to bring it out of him. Her head rested on his bare chest while she slept.
	His first reaction was one of shock, but he was far too content to care and simply stretched out and snuggled into to her warm embrace. He didn’t find his clothes beside him but was suddenly unable to care about where they were, knowing that once she woke up, he wouldn’t want either of them to be wearing any. A sigh of contentment, and also regret escaped him. He was content at that very moment, but knew it was not a feeling that would last.
	He leaned his head against the large tree behind him and closed his eyes. But right before he could escape to sleep again, he heard the crunch of dry leaves; someone was coming.
	“Brother? Where are you?” He heard, and instantly knew it was his big brother Norwald.
	“Over here.” He said without opening his eyes.
	The sound of footsteps soon got louder then suddenly came to a stop. “Ah, there you are. Did you sleep well?” He asked, crossing his arms.
	“Oh yes. Best sleep I’ve had in a long, long time.” Gerald asked, moving his partner over him a bit to cover him up more.
	Norwald simply took several more staggering steps toward his brother as a grin forced its way onto his face. It was only now that Gerald noticed his brother’s sparing use of clothing, wearing only a badly scratched up pair of pants. “How about you? How’d you sleep?” Gerald asked, returning the grin his brother showed him.
	“I can honestly say it was some of the best sleep I’ve ever had.” Norwald answered, rubbing at his lower back.
	Gerald nodded a few times then said, “Where are your clothes?”
	“Ripped to shreds. Where are yours?” His brother answered then asked in return.
	Gerald blushed bright red. “You’ll have to ask her.” He said and pointed at Arcaena.
	“Oh, I nearly forgot, congratulations are in order.” Norwald answered.
	Gerald tilted his head to the side and said, “For what?”
	Norwald’s eyes widened in shock and he said, “Oh. You didn’t know?”
	“Know what?” Gerald asked, sounding somewhat irritated now.
	“Let me just say: congratulations, you’re officially a newlywed!” Norwald told him with a grin then turned around to walk away.
	His brother sat up with a startle. “What? I’m not…married.”
	“Actually, you are.” Norwald explained.
	“What?! How?? When?” Gerald asked, looking a bit worried.
	“According to what I read a while ago, it is Shifter custom for a female to present her intended to the populace. If they approve, the populace gives cheers of joy. And for the two to be joined in wedlock, their two fleshes must first be joined and become one.” Norwald told him, and saw his brother’s eyes enlarge in horror.
	“Congratulations, I wish you two many children, and many happy Turns together!” He then said, almost mockingly.
	Gerald’s head sunk at the realization that he was now mated to the Queen of the Therians. But it wasn’t out of fear or anger, only surprise. After all, it wasn’t as though he didn’t want to be with her; he did, he just didn’t think he wanted to so soon after seeing her for the first time in almost a Turn. Then, he felt his bride move around a bit, before she opened her eyes and gave a big yawn.
	“Good morning, my love.” She said, opening her eyes and locking them to her husband’s.
	“Why didn’t you tell me?” Gerald demanded.
	“Tell you what?” She asked.
	“Why didn’t you tell me that by bringing me in front of your people, you were asking me to marry you?” Gerald demanded once again.
	She blinked several times, and then said, with a frown, “I thought you knew…”
	“Well, I do now.” Gerald said, slowly sliding his arms around her and pulling her even closer to him in a gesture more of excitement than of frustration.
	“I am sorry. It is just that—’’ she said, causing Gerald to suddenly look down at her.
	“I could not lose you again. I had to make sure we would not be separated again.” Arcaena said as a tear slid down her cheek.
	Gerald gently lifted her head and wiped away the tear with a finger. “Don’t worry, I will always love you.” He said, stroking her cheek.
	Norwald looked away, then interrupted the two of them by clearing his throat and then saying, “I’ll leave you two alone since you appear to…have things to discuss.” then bowed, and left the two of them to talk as he walked away with a limp and stagger.
	Gerald’s attention was stolen from his Shifter wife to his brother when he saw him walking awkwardly. “Brother? Are you all right?
	“I’m fine.” Norwald answered.
	“Then why are you walking like that?” Gerald asked, tilting his head to the side.
	Norwald blushed and said, “During the ceremony where you two became a mated pair, a very large male Shifter grabbed me and had me be his partner for the ritual. Needless to say, he was NOT a gentle lover.”
	“Did he hurt you?” Gerald asked in concern.
	“It hurt quite a bit at first. But shortly after that, it stopped being painful and felt better than anything else I’ve experienced.” Norwald said, cheeks blushing red from the memory brought on by thinking about it. The two of them knew that Norwald had never known the pleasures of a female. But if he had, Gerald strongly suspected he would have enjoyed it more than the pleasures of a male.
	“Anyways,” Norwald said, abruptly breaking his train of thought, “I’ll leave you two alone.” and left.
	Arcaena waited a moment for Gerald to remember she was there. Their eyes locked and she licked her lips a bit as a nimble finger traced its way up his body. Though it started at his thighs, it quickly came up to his chest and, when it found the elevated draconic marking on one arm, came to a stop.
	“What is this?” She asked, gently gliding a finger over it.
	“It is the mark of a Skyrider. One must be chosen by a dragon to become one and the marking indicates that one has chosen you.” Gerald explained, closing his eyes.
	“How exactly is one chosen by a dragon?” She inquired.
	“Well…I’m not entirely sure. You’re supposed to spend time around the dragon you want to choose you, usually before they even hatch. But the room it may have happened to me in was a dragon pen where the Riders’ dragons rested when not on patrol. They told me to leave and begged me not to reveal that one of their own was pregnant. I had to, for I knew they would likely not let me leave if I were to put one of their own in danger.” He said, ponderously.
	“Why would that put them in danger?” Arcaena asked, sounding somewhat worried.
	“The Riders’ dragons all come from eggs donated by wild dragons in The Dragonlands which is the one place in the realm they still roam free. While it is rare for a dragon hatched by a human to lay eggs, it’s not impossible; and the dragon is required to surrender the eggs to the Maldorans and, needless to say, the dragon in that pen wasn’t willing to part with her clutch.” Gerald told her, running his fingers through her long, silky hair.
	She simply nodded a few times and said, “Fascinating. What does this one mean?” and touched the marking on his other arm.
	Gerald frowned and looked away before he said, “It is the mark of a Shifter.”
	“Darling? What’s wrong?” She asked, tilting his head down until they made eye contact again.
	“No one, not even the Shifter Captain training potential Shifters, knew what animal I bonded with or even how I bonded with one in the first place. You see, Shifters—well, our, Shifters, at least, must first engage an animal in unarmed combat and force it to submit before they can bond with their spirit and take on their form. I did no such thing, I simply fell unconscious and when I woke up, both markings were on me when I was neither chosen by a dragon nor bonded with the spirit of an animal.” Gerald said, closing his eyes to not only avoid locking eyes with her, but also to prevent tears from falling out of his eyes.
	“Gerald…there’s something you do not understand.” She said, looking away from him.
	That was enough to make Gerald open his eyes and regard her closely. “What do you mean?” He asked.
	“Our kind does not fight with animals in order to bond with them.” She said, blinking.
	“How do they bond with their spirit, then?” Gerald asked, now feeling that he had to know.
	“They spend time around them and earn their trust. The animal lives through the process and not only does one gain their form, but they also have a lifelong companion as well.” She informed.
	“Do you think that happened to me?” Gerald asked her.
	“I cannot be certain. But based on what you told me about how it happened, I see no other possibility.”
	Gerald frowned at her and said, “That still leaves the question of what kind of animal I bonded with, especially since I haven’t been able to successfully shift into my other form.”
	She looked at him and lifted his gaze until leveled with hers. “The problem you describe is not as rare as you think. In fact, for those who bond at an early age, it is quite common. The solution to this is usually having another assist you in changing forms.”
	Then it was Gerald who focused his gaze on hers with shock on his face. “You can do that?”
	“Of course. You see, among our kind, one is not truly an adult until they master their shape changing abilities. One cannot be a high ranking official until they are a full fledged Shifter. If and when you master your abilities, you can become my king and rule the Shifters at my side, if that is what you wish.” She told him.
	“Would you help me turn into my other form? I’ve been wondering what animal I will turn into.” He asked anxiously.
	“If you want.” She said.
	“Yes, do it.” Gerald said impatiently.
	“Are you sure this is what you want?” She asked gravely.
	“I am.” Gerald said after a pause and took an unnoticeable gulp.
	She sighed then said, “Very well. Close your eyes and relax. Clear all thoughts, focus only on my voice.”
	Gerald quickly closed his eyes and shifted underneath her until he got into a more comfortable position. Arcaena said nothing, only hummed a low, soothing tune that coaxed his mind into a deep relaxation. She also rubbed his chest with her swift, nimble fingers, tricking his sore muscles into abandoning their uneasiness and joining his mind in total relaxation.
	“All right, this next part is more difficult.” She said after easing every muscle on his body.
	“What do I do now?” He asked but felt a finger pressed to his lips.
	“Think of me. Let your inner animal take hold. Surrender to your instincts.” She said, and even made it easier for him by gently pressing against him with a kiss.
	The exact moment they touched at the lips, Gerald felt something stir inside him. It started small, no larger than a spark, but the more he tried to resist it, the more it grew. Soon, it became a fire equivalent in size to what one would use to cook with. Then, it grew into a blazing inferno. Gerald forced himself to pull away from the kiss as his heart beat became more and more rapid.
	“There we go. Now, all you need to do is let it take a hold of you.” Arcaena told him.
	“How do I do that?!” Gerald asked frantically over his very loud pulse that throbbed and rang in his ears.
	“Let go. Stop fighting it.” She said in a voice no louder than a whisper.
	She watched her lover strain back and forth in a futile attempt to fight it, but soon, he was forced to cease his struggles when it left him too mentally exhausted to continue. She cradled him in her arms right before he began screaming in pain. The change began with his arms. 
While already very intimidating, his thick muscles doubled and then tripled in size. His veins rose to the top of his skin to the point where one could see his heartbeat. His fingers twisted then bent with a cringing crack as huge black nails forced their way out of the end of every finger. The digits curled inward then drew in on themselves until they were half their original size.
With the added nails—no, that wasn’t the right term. With the added talons, his fingers remained roughly the same size despite shrinking. His pupils went from round and oval shaped to thin and slit shaped as his irises became as yellow as amber and his eyeballs were replaced with polished jewels. The hair on his head was seemingly absorbed into his scalp, and long, thick, spiral horns sprouted out of his forehead.
He gasped as he lost his breath from something stealing it before a choked inhale replaced it and made his every breath audible and raspy. A sharp pain erupted from his lower back before suddenly ceasing and a long, white scaled tail burst out. His face cracked and crunched as it pushed forward and sent his screams of agony into the air. His teeth stabbed through his gums and blood trickled out of his mouth as his teeth extended into pointy and very sharp and curved daggers.
His bare feet no longer felt the cold soil beneath them and became covered with layers of additional skin and the nails grew into long sharpened grasping talons that left scars on the earth wherever he chose to walk. A sharp, numb pain erupted from his heels before vanishing without a trace as a single talon sprouted out of each of his heels. With all these bodily modifications completed, his skin lost what little complexion he had already and turned white as a pearl. It was only then that every hair on his body vanished and was replaced by tough, white, and overlapping scales.
Agony burst from his shoulder blades as something pushed its way out. After only a few seconds, two long, powerful wings burst out and spread the full length of their impressive wingspan. With the last part of his human body gone, Gerald stood erect with his more than ten feet tall form, his heavy breathing marked by smoke emanating from his nostrils, and he tilted his head to the sky, and let out a cheer that came out as a mighty roar.
His long, powerful tail swept across the forest floor and cleared it of all manner of debris. Both hands grasped a tree on either side which he held for balance but bent from his weight until he finally let go of them to prevent breaking them. He landed on all fours with a thunderous thud and his gaze swept back and forth until they lay upon his bride.
The jewel-like eyes blinked as Gerald only saw a bright, almost blinding color over dark surroundings. The only bright color was the vaguely recognizable form of his mate. When he blinked, his vision divided in two halves, one vertical, and one horizontal as he now had double skinned eyelids. His vision blurred and his eyes fogged until he squinted and his vision began to focus.
His breathing became deep and nasally, and every breath felt hot enough to boil water. Gerald then grit his teeth together and breathed in through his nose. Unlike moments ago, he inhaled almost normally, and without the burning sensation that scorched his lungs. Several moments later, his breathing became regular and unlabored and Gerald’s posture relaxed; greatly reducing his height.
“Gerald?” Arcaena said, slowly approaching him with careful, silent steps as she looked upon his alternate form of a dragon.