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My first realization upon awakening was that I had a severe headache, I winced and tried to sit up only to give up instantly. My head throbbed when I tried to move and my entire body felt completely wrung out, as if I had been working hard as a dog all day. The next thing I noticed was the blood red sky directly above me and that the sun was just falling out of sight behind the trees; I had to have been here for hours, it had been early morning when I had set out to work. I tried to remember exactly how I got to be laying unconscious on the ground, and for that matter why I wasn't freezing without my jacket. Suddenly the memories came rushing back and I sat bolt upright heedless of the pain it might cause and then instantly regretting it as a dagger turned in my skull. I groaned at the feeling and then jumped as I heard a soft snore at my side.

I turned my head to look, and seated on her knees beside me was the woman that seemed to be at the center of my odd day. Nothing much seemed to have changed in the interim from when I had first come across her other than her new position and the fact that she seemed to be sleeping rather than unconscious. There was one more thing though, I realized, she no longer seemed to be emanating that absurd amount of heat; instead I felt a pleasant warmth being in her presence. I leaned forward as I observed her sleeping form and my breath caught as her eyes fluttered open. The brilliance held within those emerald pools captivated me and I found myself speechless until she broke the silence.

"I was wondering when you'd wake up, Aran." While the comment was shyly stated, her voice seemed to me a soft, sultry melody. After hearing her I was sure that it was she who I had heard in my head just before I passed out, and again I wondered how she knew my name.

"How... do you know who I am and what... what the hell happened to me?"

"I'll explain it all in time. For now though, how are feeling? Are you hurt at all?" I was a little skeptical that she'd be able to explain everything that had happened today. However, the concern I heard in her voice when she asked if I was hurt seemed genuine enough and I found myself trusting her.

"I've got a pounding headache and my body feels like it's been put through a wringer, but it's nothing some aspirin and sleep won't cure." She seemed to think for a moment before taking my head in between her hands and placing her lips against my forehead. I held absolutely still, as if in the fear that the slightest movement might startle her from my side, until she pulled away.

"How's that?"

"Better... much better, thank you." I was a little in awe, my headache had suddenly faded to a dull throb and while still exhausted, I no longer felt utterly wrung out. "How--"

"I told you I'd explain everything, don't worry, you won't be in the dark for long. However," she gestured at the sky, it was obvious that the little light we had wouldn't last long, "if we don't leave here soon then it will be a dark walk."

I agreed with her and slowly stood up before offering my hand which she took with a smile as I helped her to her feet. My pulse quickened as she grasped my hand, her own was extremely soft and supple, and her smile set my blood ablaze. While at first glance it seemed just a smile, something about the quirk of her mouth or the glint in her eyes said more; the look seemed to contain countless promises and above all told me that it was a look reserved for me alone.

Stop imagining things, you've only just met her. You can't know the slightest thing about a girl who appeared out of nowhere, seemingly caused an isolated summer and has the ability to heal headaches and other minor ailments. I told myself all these things and yet I couldn't deny that, oddly enough, things seemed utterly right to me at that moment.

Now, standing, she didn't let go of my hand and told me to lead the way; I was glad since I had been enjoying the contact with her, however slight it may have been. Before setting out I voiced concerns about her walking back to the house barefoot, there was still a lot of snow on the ground on the trail back, but she smiled and told me not to worry about it. I shrugged taking her at her word and led her to the edge of the glade, grabbing and donning my jacket as we passed where it lay, I didn't think it likely that it'd be warm the whole way back home. Even in the failing day light it wasn't hard for me to find the path and then begin to follow it back home. I left the sled where it lay, I could always come back later to grab it and I would have to cut that firewood eventually; I did pause long enough, though, to use one of the tarps to cover it just in case there was snow.

We walked quickly, attempting to get out of the woods before the light completely failed but the sun had been nearly gone as we left the clearing and by the time we reached the creek all but the barest traces of light were gone. Slogging through the snow in the near complete darkness wasn't fun but the path was at least still easy to follow and it wasn't much longer before we emerged from the woods into what passed for my yard and my house came into sight. With it's darkened windows and smokeless chimney my little cabin looked lonely and abandoned in the night, I opened the door for the girl and let her in first before stomping the snow from my boots and following, closing the door behind me as I stepped inside.

To describe the inside of my house as 'simple' would be an understatement. It had a studio layout with only the bathroom being a separate enclosed room. Upon entering was the small kitchen to the right of the door, with hardwood floors and all the basic necessities for it to actually be called a kitchen. To the left was a small living area with TV, computer desk and the glass-fronted wood stove, beyond that my 'bedroom' with a dresser and queen sized bed and bedside table. A small storage loft overlooked the kitchen and a ladder leading to it was affixed to the outer side of the bathroom wall, the bathroom door faced the sleeping area.

I removed my boots and straightened up to see her looking around the place, an expression of curiosity in equal measure was on her face as she walked around examining even the simplest appliances.

"It's not much, but this is what I call home. Feel free to make yourself comfortable..." My voice trailed off as I watched her study herself intently in the blank TV screen. The way she was acting it was as if she hadn't ever seen any of these items before, and for all I knew she hadn't. After a moment more of staring at her reflection she turned and sort of pranced right up to me, I was surprised since she had seemed so shy initially when I had woken up.

"You have a very interesting home Aran." Up close I was again taken aback by her beauty and found myself speechless, she giggled. "No need to be shy." I cleared my throat slightly.

"I was just surprised at your sudden change in demeanor, anyways, since you seem to know my name already; what is yours? You can at least tell me that now that we're inside can't you?"

"Hmm... I suppose I can, it's Aiya. I know you have a lot more that you want to know but before I explain everything I'd really like to wash up, do you mind waiting?"

"Aiya, hmm? I like it, its simple but a beautiful name." For a beautiful girl. I finished the comment in my head. "I can't imagine that waiting any longer will change anything, so wait I can. The bathroom's over there." I motioned to the door and led her over. I showed her what to turn for hot or cold water and she looked delighted as the water sprayed out of the shower head. I retrieved a towel from my dresser and handed to her.

"Thank you, Aran."

"I'll leave you to it then. Take your time, you won't exactly have any problem finding me when you get out." I took my leave and closed the door behind me.

While I was waiting I went over to the furnace and opened it to reveal it's now cold inside, I should have kindled a small fire in the morning so that I would have had coals to build a new one one easily. As it was I shredded up some old news paper and made a nest from it, laid smaller bits of wood atop that for kindling and then place logs to each side and over the top of the pile. I struck a match and touched it to several places in the pile before adding it to the quickly building blaze and shutting the door. I opened the vents to allow air to flow until it really got going and then shut them back down somewhat so the fire didn't get too hot and burn out too quickly.

Satisfied that I wasn't going to have to babysit the flame any longer I rose and crossed over to my bed where I sat atop the coverings, leaning back against the headboard; resting while Aiya continued her shower. The sounds from the shower calmed me and moments later my head began to bob as sleep slowly claimed me, it wasn't long before I was dozing.

Before I even opened my eyes when I woke I noticed the silence, the sounds from the shower had ceased, and more than that was an odd yet familiar scent. It smelled somewhat metallic as well as of searing cinnamon and cloves as if from mulling cider, it was unusual but I found it pleasant and I inhaled deeply. When I did open them, my eyes widened instantly as I met Aiya's own emerald gaze. She was staring at me unwaveringly and I felt at that moment as if she could see the very essence of who I was. Perhaps she even did.

I'm not sure how long we each remained that way, gazes locked, but while my eyes remained mostly on hers I did take in other details. I could tell she was on her knees, straddling one of my legs with her hands on the headboard to either side of my head to support herself. Her raven hair, still damp from her shower, hung around her face causing shadows to flicker across her visage from the wavering light of fire in the wood stove.

"I'm glad that you found me." When she finally broke the silence her voice was full of emotion; happiness and worry, sincerity and uncertainty, all in equal parts formed a bittersweet mix. It seemed she really was happy that I found her, but at the same time apprehensive about finding out what I thought or felt about it. I thought for a moment, I really did know nothing about her, but I did know that nothing in my life had ever felt as utterly right as it had since I had woken in the glade with her at my side. I smiled and placed my hand lightly on the side of her face, cupping her cheek.

"I'm glad that I found you too, Aiya." Her eyes widened slightly at my softly spoken words before a relieved smile spread across her face. She leaned forward further and brought her lips to my own and we shared our first kiss. It was very brief but incredibly sweet, and I'd never forget it. At the same time I realized that I loved her, as unreasonable or sudden as it might be, I felt it with all my heart and soul. All too soon the kiss ended, though she remained inches away and I was sorely tempted to start again. That seemed to be what Aiya wanted as well since it seemed to be taking all she had to stay where she was. I knew she had things she needed to say, things she thought I needed to hear, and honestly I was curious. I gently placed my hands on her shoulders and pushed her back until she was sitting on her knees.

"Thank you." A grateful smile was on her face and for a moment it was all I could do not to again pull her close for another kiss. "As much as I wish that could have continued, I couldn't do that to you without first explaining many things. I'm also sure that those explanations will bring about even more questions, but you need to hear everything before anything can happen with us." I didn't think that anything she said would change how I felt about her but I nodded.

"I understand, tell me what you need to."

"It'd be easier to start if I showed you, do you mind closing your eyes for a moment?" I did, wondering what exactly she could have planned. A few seconds later I felt something, it was an odd sensation, as if my mind had undergone some change. It was hardly noticeable but afterward Aiya told me to open my eyes; when I did, the sight that greeted me held me in awe.

No longer did a raven haired girl sit in front of me, in her place sat a creature of great grace and beauty. It was obviously still a feminine figure as well as obviously still being Aiya, her green eyes still stared at me luminously from beneath a ridge of scales, with a single change; her pupils had become vertical slits. Her gown seemed to have disappeared, leaving her sleek, scaled body bare. She was mostly covered with overlapping scales that were as black and glossy as obsidian. Smaller scales seemed to fuse into a sort of skin in places that was a lighter, sooty matte black that appeared soft yet tough at the same time; it started above her breasts and continued down her torso to in between her thighs. Her hair was gone and instead, atop her head sat two crests of scales that rose into horns that looked to be about seven inches long that curved above her head; the tips of these appeared to be needle sharp. I noticed a serpentine movement beside her, upon looking closer I could see it was a tail, muscular yet sleek, which narrowed to a whip-like tip.

I was speechless as I took in her appearance, too stunned to know what to say at first. I wasn't sure what exactly I had been expecting her to show me, but I could safely say that this hadn't crossed my mind. Though there was no doubt in my mind that I still found her incredibly beautiful, perhaps even more so than I had before, I didn't know what to say. She started to fidget as she waited for me to say something; I could tell she seemed worried about what I was thinking and I struggled to find words to voice my thoughts, finally settling on the obvious.

"Aiya, forgive me for being speechless, I was a bit awestruck, seeing you like this is sort of like a dream become reality." I had always been rather fond of the idea of anthros, dragons in particular, so seeing her like this really was like a dream come true. As she listened to me she smiled, an interesting expression with her mouth now filled with razor sharp teeth, but still lovely.

"I'm happy you think so Aran." The relief in her voice was tangible. I hesitantly reached my arm out towards her, but stopped before touching her.

"Can I feel your scales?"

"Of course," she giggled, "just be sure to feel with the lay of them, not against, the edges are quite sharp."

I started from the top of her shoulder and traced lightly down along the outside of her arm. Her scales felt as glossy as they looked and were warm beneath my hand, they rippled beneath my touch and made a metallic tinkling sound, not dissimilar to some wind chimes. As my hand ran down her arm Aiya let out a sigh of what sounded like contentment and pleasure.

"Are you sensitive?"

"I am to you. To your touch. Even to your very presence."

"Is that so..." I mused softly as I ran my hand back up the inside of her arm, which was covered in the same skin as her breasts and navel; it felt incredibly soft and smooth while still being very resilient.

"Yes!" She gasped. "If you keep that up I'm not going to be able to explain anything because I won't be able to hold myself back any longer." A note of pleading had crept into her voice, so I reluctantly stopped and pulled my hand away, at which she sighed in relief. After she gave herself a minute to calm down she spoke again.

"Thank you." She cleared her throat. "My kind are known as Dra'kahn, humans have always referred to us as dragons although their depictions of us are only accurate insofar as showing the most ancient members of our race. Only Dra'kahn that have lived for many thousands of years grow to become what you call dragons. Our race was once a great civilization but not any longer."

"The Dra'kahn have fallen, the race thinned now from ancient wars and fewer births. Usually we mate only with other Dra'kahn, however there are rare occasions when a particular individual from outside the race is suitable as a mate for a particular Dra'kahn. When the two come in contact with each other a bond is forged between them, that's what happened when you touched me and passed out, it remakes you so that should you choose to, you can become a Dra'kahn. The bond also allows for a certain amount of empathy between the two, so each can feel some measure of what the other does; this includes emotions as well as physical sensations like pain, or pleasure." She paused before starting again, speaking slowly and sounding uncertain.

"Now Aran, you have a choice. You can leave the bond undeveloped and eventually it will fade, and I will leave to try and make my way in this world, or, you can choose to become a Dra'kahn and my mate." She trailed of slightly at the end and looked to me, waiting to hear my choice. I thought for a moment on what I would say, though I already knew my choice, after hearing her out it didn't even seem like a choice to me, I knew what I wanted.

"So basically you're saying either become something that has always fascinated me and be your... mate or ignore it all. Just forget about the most beautiful, fascinating woman that I've ever met and let her walk away into a world she obviously knows little about to try and make her own way after already deciding that I love her?" She had jumped when I said that I loved her and she now had tears of relief and joy welling in her eyes. "Do you even have to ask what my answer will be?"

"You.... love me?" she asked.

"I love you Aiya. I just met you and I love you, more than I ever thought would have been possible." I embraced her, being mindful of her sharp-edged scales and kissed her tenderly. The tears that had been welling in her eyes began to fall as she whispered back to me.

"I love you too, Aran." I swear I felt her feelings too, at first I thought I was imagining things but the feeling kept growing, and suddenly there was heat too. The feeling grew as did the heat until they were my entire existence. I was consumed, reborn and then there was darkness.