“Holy shit,” Florian whispered to himself. His body seemed impossibly long, and he remembered how uncomfortable it was just shifting into a wolf for the first time. How much worse was this going to be?
He took a few steps back as Koji’s form solidified, looking up into the face of the deep green dragon that was now standing in his place. He must have been at least ten feet long from head to hind legs, and beyond that, his tail extended like a whip for another ten feet. His face had several long whiskers that trailed down and moved even in the still air, and his mane was a vivid yellow in stark contrast to the emerald shine of his scales.
Koji made a soft sound, somewhere between a huff and a growl, and lowered his head so he was within Florian’s reach. When Florian reached up, he realized his hands were shaking. How could he become something so much bigger than himself? But Koji had transformed as easily as any of the wolf shifters he’d seen. Surely his own ability would be the same.
His hand came to rest on Koji’s broad snout; his face was strangely canine, now that Florian was looking closely at him. Koji’s eyes had changed to a vivid neon yellow, even brighter than the yellow of his mane. He looked just like a classic painting of a Japanese dragon, different from the guard dragon they’d seen up close Earthside—that one had been more mottled in color. Florian wondered if there was some meaning behind it, but the question would have to wait.
Koji’s scales against his palm were cool to the touch, but Florian could feel magic thrumming like a pulse beneath them.
He took in a deep breath, then stepped back, creating distance between him and the dragon.
“You’ve got this,” Kade said softly, just loud enough that Florian could hear him. He stood at the edge of the clearing, giving them both plenty of space now that he could see just how large Koji’s draconic form was.
“Yeah,” Florian affirmed, nodding. He closed his eyes and thought about the dragon, building up magic within him the way he would when he shifted into his wolf form. He focused on its long body and floating whiskers and cool reptilian scales, then pushed the magic through his body.
Pain exploded through his whole body, making him gasp and recoil. He felt his bones stretching and morphing, burning hot through his nerves; but the magic was already surging through him, and all he could do was wait for the process to end. His center of balance shifted abruptly, and he fell onto all fours as his spine stretched and stretched until the space between his arms and legs was unfathomably far. Florian ground his teeth, waiting for the wave of pain and nausea to wash over him.
New senses flared to life as his draconic form settled, even with his eyes still squeezed shut. Something was tickling between his nose and his mouth—his own whiskers, he realized, shifting slightly with the faintest movements in the air. He could feel the small unmoving shape of Kade still standing a distance away, then something big behind him, absolutely overflowing with magic—
Instinct overtook him as his eyes snapped open, and he lunged, sharp teeth flashing as he snarled and bit at the dragon behind him.
Stop!The command came clear into his mind, but his movements felt out of control, his heart beating rapidly down, down in his chest. God, it felt so far away—his reactions were half fear and half rage, but still he couldn’t stop himself from slashing at the green dragon now in his view with his three-taloned claws. He stumbled, clumsy with his new height and the strange configuration of his body, and that was when the green dragon—Koji, he told himself, it was Koji—coiled himself around Florian and spoke again into his mind.
I will not harm you,Florian heard, which only sparked more confusion. Wolf shifters could communicate, but it was rudimentary and instinctual—these words were clear in his mind. His claws tightened where they were pressed against Koji’s body, the sharp claws breaking through his scales.We are not enemies. We are friends. Relax. You are safe.
No, the words weren’t clear, now that Florian was focusing on them; it felt more like emotions being projected directly into his mind. It was something in between the instinctive knowing when he was in his wolf form and the spoken communication they would share when they weren’t shifted.
The problem, though, was that he wasn’t sure how to communicate back. He closed his eyes again, struggling against the panic bucking in the pit of his stomach. The first shift was always the hardest, he reminded himself. He could do this. He was in control.
It took a moment, but then he forcibly relaxed his grip and turned away from Koji, keeping his eyes closed. He felt Koji’s coiled grip around him loosen, as the other dragon drifted away cautiously—and he was flying too, Florian realized with a lurch. So much had happened without his conscious awareness, without him even needing to try. Maybe he could communicate that way, too.
Sorry,he tried to project, letting his eyes slip open so he could peek at the other dragon. This time, the sight of him didn’t spark the same instinctual panic. They were friends. It was alright.Sorry. Sorry.
Now Florian could see the smile in Koji’s eyes, though the dragon’s face remained as regal and impassive as ever. Like his wolf form, reading the expressions of other shifters was far easier when he was shifted himself.
All is forgiven,Koji answered.We are safe. Come down now.
The air felt different around him, Florian realized. It almost felt like he was swimming through it as he tried moving in a slow, tight spiral downwards until his feet touched the earth again. His tail was the same length as the rest of his body, so he could catch sight of himself as he descended; his scales were jet black as his wolf form had been, but his mane was a burnished gold.
“All good up there?” he heard a voice call distantly, and he looked to see Kade cautiously walking from the far end of the clearing toward where they both stood.
He cannot hear us,Koji told him. Carefully, Florian nodded, first at Koji, then to Kade. The wolf shifter smirked in amusement at the gesture. When he was close enough, Florian lowered his head to press his snout against Kade’s chest. He smelled warm and earthy, like a snowy forest, and a chuckle rumbled deep in his chest as his hand came up to gently pat Florian’s forehead.
“You did pretty good,” he said softly. “Better than you did with me, I think. You’re getting the hang of this.”
Florian wanted to smile, but his face wouldn’t move the right way. Instead, he felt a slight warmth radiating from his forehead—that was how he was projecting his thoughts, how he and Koji were communicating. It was all strange, and he still felt clumsy and uncoordinated, but the worst of it was over.
Come fly,Koji invited him, lifting up into the air. Florian looked up at him, then back down at Kade, wondering if his question was obvious to the other man.
Kade glanced between them, then nodded. “Yeah, you should do some practice runs. Don’t go too far, though. I’ll stay here. Alright?”
Florian nodded, then pushed himself off the ground as if he were swimming. While the air wasn’t any thicker than it normally was, somehow in this form he could move through it as if it were water, an unfamiliar buoyancy lifting him up off the ground. Koji floated ahead of him, looking back and gesturing for Florian to follow as he drifted between the trees. They stayed under the cover of the forest—Koji had said that the clearing wasn’t in view of any tower guards, but Florian was sure that if they rose above the treetops, they would be spotted immediately. So he remained low to the ground as they snaked through the woods, Koji moving as fluidly as if he had been born in the air, and Florian following behind rather more clumsily. But the longer they went, the more he figured out how to move his body through the air, how to keep up with Koji while dodging trees and branches, how to rise higher and drop lower.
Careful,Koji called to him, giving a wide berth to another, smaller clearing. This one must have been in view of the guard towers. Florian drew closer to him, hovering so his head was just a bit above Koji’s tail to follow his exact path.
Getting easier?Koji asked him as they moved away from the clearing and began circling back around. When Florian focused, he could still sense the vibrations of Kade’s breathing and heartbeat with his whiskers even from this distance, along with the wildlife hidden in the trees and the brush. The sensation of it was strange and alien, utterly unlike any of his senses as a fae or even in his wolf form—but somehow he could understand.
It was all strange when he thought too hard about it, but overall Florian felt he was getting the hang of it. His movements weren’t as elegant and effortless as Koji’s, of course, but he was flying at a respectable speed and hadn’t crashed into anything yet.
