https://www.sofurry.com/view/985252

Dragons...there was a time when they were the rulers of the planet. Unparalleled in both strength and presence. They were titans to be both feared and admired.
But...they started to become arrogant, thinking themselves as gods and all other forms beneath them. Eventually the citizens had enough and the great dragon war saw them all banished. Reviving long forbidden magic, the dragons were eventually pushed back to a dimension where they would be trapped for ever through an ancient dimensional gateway before it was destroyed.

But, not all dragons felt the same for power and conquest, some wanted to live with the humanoids, even be like them as they saw a grace and practicality they lacked.
However, one dragoness took it further. Her name was Sariah Drakine, once one of the most powerful of her species known as the Ancient Dragons.

During the purge of her kind, she wanted to show the humanoids she wanted peace, so sought out a spell, long buried and forbidden by her kind, to alter her form to a humanoid shape.
However, upon finding the ruins and recreating the spell with her own inherent magic power, she found only afterwards that it made her body too frail for the magic she possessed any more, and slowly lost the gift of magic.
But, she managed to store some of what she had in the form of a set of specially crafted armour she found at the site of the ruins, hidden in a wooden chest.

Only once she came back to civilisation did she find out she was too late.
Her kind...was all gone. And she was seen as a demon, with her horns and red scaled skin, and was forced to live life alone, in the most covered and quiet places she could find.

*

Another hot day looked upon the steaming, wild Uruta jungle, called after the tribes panther god.
A delicate, red scaled figure bearing a purple velvet cloak travelled the jungle floor. Her head uncovered to let her almost bleach white horns show, curling from the back of her head and ending at the side of her frills, unafraid of the tribes that lived around here. She had scared them first from trying to skewer her by breathing a gout of flame and a few simple tricks.
Relatively safe, she made her home in an ancient oak tree, but she was not a bird and instead hollowed it out, leaving just enough for the tree to live on and built her lair on the inside.

Reaching a clear spot where the trees cleared, she let her cloak spill around her shoulders.
Eventually it spilled round her waist, letting a pair of pale cream wings erupt from the confines of the garment, the same colour as the front of her lithe body that ran the length of her body, covering her temptingly large breasts and ending at her thighs. The rest of her was covered in silky smooth red scales, not that they were much use like she was now for protection, but it added to her allure.
“Ahhh, that's better," she moaned in her deep, husky tone, flexing them before rolling her shoulders in small circles, helping warm her muscles up for the rare flight she made to the market ten miles away, bordering the edge of the jungle.

She glanced up at the sky in longing, wishing she could fly when and where she chose, being in a thickly covered Jungle didn't offer much flying opportunities for someone her size. And among the public… “not worth the risk," she sighed, remembering when she had approached them for the first time and almost ended up decorating someone's wall with her head.
Rubbing the back of her neck where a scar could just be seen, she remembered the pain as the blade passed through, almost reaching her newly made spine. She had just enough magic to mask her escape and painfully healed her neck, but never fully.

Tying her cloak around her waist firmly, she bent at the knees and launched herself from the ground and into the, as usual, burning blue sky.
Beating her wings hard to gain altitude, she winced in pain as her largely unused wing muscles stung in protest.

Soaring over the tall green trees, she winged her way to where they began to thin, the ground slowly giving way to more arid, dry ground where the sun scorched the earth before a small village surrounded by exotic, hardy fruit trees grew and sparse crops on what ground was well enough for the growth of produce.
Every half a year the travelling gypsy caravans would stop on by here to rest up from travelling in the tiring heat and would trade with whatever was left over for shelter and goods.
Sariah Drakine was also dependent on the travelling group, for her scales in this heat needed oiling with a special oil called Palm oil that wasn't available for a hundred miles as well as essential equipment, food and ingredients.

What did she have to offer for products? Why, she was a well known potion brewer; and as long as she could get her hands on the ingredients she could make a potion for just about anything. An illness, a different colour of fur, even a slight change of appearance or increase in size of body...or parts.

Landing a good bit away from the village, she untied her robe and hooded herself once more.
With her slender tail and only her muzzle protruding, she could easily be taken for a slender, tall lizard lady.

Making her way to the dusty, almost invisible path to the small village that bordered no-mans land, greeted by the odd arriving gypsy passing her by on lathered ponies pulling their carts, the gypsies themselves looking bedraggled and ready for a few nights rest among the shady hardy trees that grew around.

Walking up to the village, the less hardier of the gypsies had flaked out under the few dessert going trees but those more hardened had set their stalls up, erecting the overhead flaps for some shelter.
Those who knew her as the brewer greeted her which she replied with a small smile and wave.
Picking her spot, she opened her cloak up slightly before extracting her bottles and vials with self made labels on them and sat with her back to the wall of a dwelling, relishing in the cool stone against her aching covered wings.

“Good day brewer, regular as clock work I see," a reedy voice rasped from her side before a garbed cat sat down in front of her.

“Ahh, Sonus. Its good to see you too," she smile a gentle smile to the elderly feline, her head tilting up to look at the cat.
What little of him was exposed showed grey fur, turning white with age, his broad face nearly all lost under his large sombrero with just his eyes glinting and whiskers showing. “How goes the trade of late?" she said in way of conversation.

“Dismal, trade is becoming more scarce as the times move on. Very few believe in the magic of old and charms any more," he said with a weary sigh. “But...what ones work have pleasing results brewer. We always make a good penny on the return trip with your potions in hand..." he said, seeming to pause before leaning forward and whispered, “how do you do it. You know...these miracle brews? No one has seen the like in centuries," he said, an eagerness to his eyes he rarely showed as he hungered for her secret.

“That my dear feline is something I will have to take to the grave with me. It is knowledge best kept hidden," she said, feeling a pang of guilt, knowing it would mean so much and help to revitalise the trade.
But she knew, the secrets to magic and potions must die with her, she had seen too much of what such power could do and the lasting harm during the war.

“Ahh well, can't blame an old cat for trying eh?" he chuckled, his rancid breath making her wrinkle her nose.
She caught him looking closely at her muzzle, his keen eyes looking as though they were trying to glean something from her beautiful white and red muzzle as she tiled her head down.

“Shy as always I see my dear, well don't leave too soon. We will be interested in buying any of your special potions left at the end of the day," he rasped, chuckling as he stood up to pitch shop.

She had always been suspicious of him, he was always trying to see just who she was under her cloak it seemed and she wished he would croak already.
Shaking her head, she settled back for the few patrons with enough money to come her way that day.

*

The end of the day, and with it came a slight relief from the scorching heat.
Sariah packed up her goods she had procured that day inside her cloak when a panther cub bumped into her passing her by, knocking her on her rump and her hood falling backwards, exposing her head including her white, elegant horns on her head.
“Crap," she muttered, hastilly pulling her hood back up before anyone got a look as the cub stared at her wide eyed.

“Miss, y-your, you. I-I," he stuttered before she placed a taloned finger to his muzzle, silencing him.

“You saw nothing okay dear?" she said in a gentle voice, but the cub picked up the edge in her tone that implied he should stay quiet with what he saw and gave a trembling nod.

Unknown to Sariah though, someone else had caught the brief incident as eyes glittered from round the corner of a dwelling.

Giving a quick glance around the area, Sariah made her speedy way out of the village before slipping behind the cover of a large, bleach white rock and took flight under the cover of the shadows cast by the setting sun.

*

Swooping on in low, her eyes roved over her landing spot in the clearing, her keen sight would be able to pick out anything there from 30 meters away before seeing all was clear as she came in to land.
“Well...that was a disaster, I can only hope that little cub keeps his muzzle shut about what he saw. With any luck he won't understand what he saw was a dragon and just some unfortunate hybrid..." she muttered softly to herself softly before cloaking herself again and made her way through the thick foliage, enjoying the calming sounds of nature away from the chaos of the civilised world.

She felt the softness of the grass beneath her claws and the crisp crinkle of the leaves was music to her ears after being with the humanoids with their trading, calling loud to be heard and the sounds of their mounts groaning and bellowing all day long.
Just as she was relaxing though, a sudden thundering caught her ears before she could feel the vibrations in the ground.
Jumping to one side, having no choice but to use her wings, she just avoided one of the largest warthogs she had ever seen come thundering past with a screaming cheetah holding on for dear life as he gripped the spear still embedded into its thick hide.

Wincing as the warthog collided with a tree, the wounded animal in a fit of rage bucked hard and sent the young tribal warrior flying off its back making Sariah wince as she heard him crack against a thick tree before landing on the ground, unmoving.
Red eyed, the animal reared around, spying her as a threat and thundered towards her direction before she threw her hands outwards, the runes on her armour showing through the material of the cloak as she drew on the power left in them and willed the beasts mind to be still and calm.

Lowering her arms to her side, Sariah felt the drain on her body as usual when she used the stored magic, the warthog slumped to the floor.
With its rage quenched it hadn't the strength to go on as it bled out, staining the dirt a brick-red colour.

Turning around, the dragoness looked on as a tribeswoman, an ocelot, crouched beside the unmoving cheetah on the ground, sobbing and clutching at him.
Turning her head back round, she closed her eyes in sympathy, but this was the way of the wild and what came from living with it.
She was in the process of covering herself back up and leaving before more attention could be drawn to her but a sudden tug on her cloak as she took a quiet step forward almost had her completely unveiled.

Whipping her head round on reflex, she let out a short burst of flame, nearly setting the poor feline on fire, sending her streaking for the cover of a cedar tree.
Poking her head out from round the trunk, she talked in her guttural tongue.
With much shaky pointing and gesturing Sariah got that she wanted her to save its mate.
“I'm sorry, but I can't. I don't want to attract any attention, understand?"

With a sudden defiant leap at her Sariah made ready for a defensive spell that would throw the feline off her before with a widening of her eyes, the ocelot grabbed around her covered legs and looked up to her, wailing that tongue again she didn't understand, the teary eyed look and strong grip told her more than words. That she would do anything to save her mate.

With a sigh, she managed to pry her away from her legs and fished a vial out that had a skull on it but lacked the crossbones, she labelled her potions in accordance to what their effects were.
This for example revived someone if they still had even the faintest pulse before with a fluid motion, she walked over to the still form, checked for any pulse and after feeling the dying beats, quickly administered the contents into his open muzzle and stroked her slender finger down his throat to try and get the potion into him.

The female ocelot quietly crept up to her mate, looking on hopefully before with a hack and a groan, the cheetah started breathing raggedly.
She only hoped his spine was still intact, the potion could revive but not heal wounds.
As the female tribeswoman helped him sit up, he looked to be in a lot of pain but alive.
“Dulu, nohah," the ocelot said, pointing to Sariah before putting her hand on her heart then head which she took as a thank you and she would keep her secret safe.

Leaving the scene before the male could see her, or any other unwanted company showed up, she fled as quietly as a ghost to her home, vowing to hit up on the books to see if she could learn the savages language in case such a situation arose again.

*

The large oak tree Sariah made her home was a sight to see. Over three hundred years old and seven meters in diameter, reaching a quarter of a mile high into the sky, protruding above the rest of the trees of the jungle.
Most of the tree was hollowed out, but the core was kept intact, keeping the tree alive. The entrance was hidden via a charm she had crafted with a bit of her remaining magic to make it look like a moss covered area and deter interest.

The inside at the base was devoid of much, leaving little to chance the dragoness had decided it best to have the floors accessible via flying up a bit before she would reach a flight of carved out stairs that led upwards.
The first floor was just like the rest of the tree being all wooden remains.
But the sides were lined with wooden shelves filled with all manner of vials and shelves of dried out ingredients for potion making along with spheres of softly glowing light for illumination inside. It was a smell that most would be repelled by, but she had become so used to the scent she failed to notice it for long on her rare ventures out.

However, the slender dragoness lounged on the hidden second floor in a slightly smaller chamber as the trunk thinned further up the top.
There she laid among a number of piled up colourful cushions on the floor, a book in her hands as she poured through a text of loose translations of the local tribe.
“Well...this is more confusing than enlightening," she sighed softly before putting the book down. “I'm not surprised though, rare is it the outside world encounters the Uruta tribe," she sighed again as she reached for her head, massaging the scaled scalp to ease the impending headache that came with hours of studying.

Inside her den she wore only her magic armour, sometimes not even that for it was the one freedom she could relish in.
In here, her tree, she could be herself and worry about no one and nothing.

Closing her red eyes shut, she sighed softly as she let her mind unwind from the marathon of studying.
She realised vaguely that she had lost count of the days she had spent looking through the few books she had on exotic languages; when she lost herself in her studies she could go days, even weeks before she realised she was hungry and needed to get some fresh air.

Just as she was summoning the energy to move from her spot, a high scream caught her attention, her ear frills fanning to better focus on the source of the sound.
She was going to dismiss it as another tribe member biting off more than they could chew and block it but then a loud cry for help in clear English caught her attention.
“A boy, what is a boy from the village doing way out here?!" She cried in alarm to herself as she passed through the floor that was not a floor but an illusion to fool. Heading to her stairwell she grabbed her cloak and fanned her wings to land lightly at the bottom, donning her cloak before emerging from her hideout.

Emerging into the daylight she was confronted by the scene of a young male panther, curled and cowering against the roots of a tree whilst three huntsmen closed in on him with spears levelled.
“No!" Sariah cried softly to herself.
She needed to stop them, but she needed to do so without giving away her presence.
Of course she knew of a few deadly spells, but in this proximity she might also hurt the frightened cub. She could cast a cloak of invisibility but it would shatter as soon as she took action.

She glanced up at the tree and smiled to herself, with her hood up she would blend in well with the shadows of the leaves and seem like an angered tree spirit.
Cloaking herself with a quiet spell, she silently flew over to the tree, causing the briefest of rustles like the wind would.

“Onood Tee Shaak!" A tribesman said in his guttural tongue, levelling his spear at the cowering cub.

“P-please, I don't mean any harm. Please just let me. N-NO" He cried out as the other two forced his limbs apart, spreading him for the spear to find his heart.

A sudden growl above their heads stopped them from plunging the spear in, and as all four looked up a pair of dark red eyes glowed back, seemingly from the shadows as her purple hood made her form nearly invisible.
“Tusu Kunah?" A leopard said, lifting his head up to stare into the glowing orbs before the three bowed.

But then he whipped out a ceremonial knife and made to plunge forth, in sacrifice to this tree god looking over them.
Realising what was happening, she breathed out a gout of fire, singing the three felines heads and sending them fleeing, their cries of alarm sounding through the jungle before being swallowed up by the thick foliage.

Startled by where the fire had come from, the young panther looked up at the tree, seeing only a pair of glowing dark red eyes before rapidly turning over and scrambling to his feet, just to trip with a loud mew and end up on his front, trembling in fear.
“P-please demon, I mean no harm. I-ah!" He cried, his foot at an odd angle as he laid sprawled on the soft mossy ground.

“I am not a demon," a soft, husky voice floated to him, completely catching him off guard before he recognised where he had heard it, “and I would appreciate you not calling me that again."

Dropping gently from the tree, bending at the knees, Sariah straightened herself and strode over to the cub, staring at her with wide eyes, seeming to forget his pain.
“Y-you're the dra," he found his words cut off as she placed a slender finger to his muzzle, just like before.

“I would appreciate you keeping quiet for now, troublesome one. We are not safe, not when one is careful to keep their presence a ghost. Come," she said, gently picking him off the ground and cradled him to her bountiful chest causing the poor cub to blush horribly.

As she carried him to a seemingly normal oak tree he pointed and made to talk, but thought better of it and just kept his muzzle shut.
Closing his eyes as they seemed about to walk into a solid piece of tree, he opened his eyes when he felt her keep moving seemingly past the tree.

Opening his amber coloured eyes in curiosity, his eyes widened as he saw they were actually inside the great oak tree, the trunk seeming to go on for ever as it vanished into darkness.
“Hold on troublesome one, I have not flown carrying a passenger before," she said, fanning her wings out from its coverings before holding him tight to her and with a powerful leap that defied her build, sprang up the tree beating her wings hard, the tips just about touching the walls of the tree.

What seemed like a long time when it really was just a few seconds, they touched down on something solid.
Opening his eyes again, he saw a stairwell built from the tree leading up and below...a deathly drop to the sun lit floor.

Squirming and clinging tight, she gave a soft growl of annoyance.
“I am tired and would thank you to not kill us both. Flying this far up has taken it out of me quite a bit with your added weight you troublesome cub," she scolded much in the way a mother would berate her young.

“H-hey, I do have a name you know?" he growled back, well tried but was more of a squeak with his young age.
“My name is Keerka," he said before wincing in pain as she began her ascent up, his twisted leg bouncing painfully with each step.

As they neared the floor, an increasingly powerful smell began to assault his senses until he felt like he would throw up from the overwhelming combination of various potions as they came to the first floor of her den.

Using his tail to cover his muzzle, he looked around in wonder at the culmination of clean and dirty vials, at the walls that held the odd glowing orb of light. Real magic!
And then to the floor where a number of exotic cushions were scattered about where she laid him down.
“Okay troublesome...Keerka; this will taste bad but it will help your leg," Sariah said, passing a vial with a solution that looked like bile inside the glass container.

As he eyed it suspiciously, he decided chugging it down would be a lot easier if it tasted bad.
As he did so, Sariah undressed from her cloak, letting her full, revealing form come into view.

Part from the taste and part from the shock of seeing an actual real dragon with such a revealing form, Keerka made to spit the potion out if not for Sariah wrapping her tail around his muzzle.
“Swallow," she instructed before he nodded and with tears in his eyes from the extended taste, he swallowed.

Releasing his muzzle, he spat and wiped his muzzle to try and expel the taste.
“Blech, that was a-awful," he groaned before a numbing sensation could be felt in his injured leg.

Moving it experimentally, his eyes lit up as he found it was healed and stood up experimentally.
“Hey, its better," he giggled like a girl, jumping slightly to test it, finding it gave a bit but held him up.
“Thank you so very, eep!" He cried as she picked him up by his arm and looked at him right in his eyes.

“Why did you follow me here, and how did you find me?" she said in a soft growl. “Was I not clear before about acting like you saw nothing?"

Under her glare, the young cub trembled with images of her setting him on fire.
“N-no, I mean yes, you did." he squeaked in panic. “But I have read tales of dragons possessing miracles and w-wanted to find you to seek your help," he said in a very high voice, bordering a little girls. “As for finding you um. I...just wondered around until I got in trouble and you rescued me. Purely luck I swear."

“Huh, cats and their curiosity," she huffed, a plume of smoke coming from her nostrils before gently dropping the cub back on the floor.
“And just what miracle is it you was hoping to acquire?" Her tone bordered snide. If there was one thing she hated it was involving herself with others. She had learned the dangers the hard way.

“Um well you know how um, well I mean are you familiar with some who feel they were born in the...wrong body?" He said, twiddling his tail in his paws and looking at the floor.

“If you want a potion to change species then it will be very costly and I doubt looking at your grubby clothes you have the money," Sariah said, crossing her arms under her scantly clad chest.

“No no um, I'm quite happy with my species. I mean as I am. Well, not as I am but, umm,"

“Just spit it out already," Sariah said with a growl, becoming quite annoyed with a crack of her tail.
Seeing Keerka cower under her glare and growl though, she caught herself and sighed, shaking her head. She really had become socially isolated.

Bending down to his huddled form, she felt guilt wash over her. Whatever had drove this little one to run away after her must be quite big and quite difficult, and her towering seven foot form would only frighten him without her being a bitch.
Seeing him curl tighter in fear of being struck, she gently stroked a hand over his brow, “Hey I'm sorry...I know this must be scary for you. I'll listen to what it is you want but I can't promise anything. Okay?" she said in a much gentler tone.

She repeated her motions, slowly calming the little cub down before the little black form slowly relaxed before raising his head to look her in the eyes.
Despite the demonic like appearance of the dark red orbs, he saw reassurance in those eyes.
“Okay...well...promise you won't laugh okay?" he said in a quiet voice, only just above a whisper.
Nodding for him to go on, she waited for him to get comfy and prepare himself before taking a deep breath.
“I...want to be female," he said, his voice almost squeaking before her quiet laugh made him look at her, tears of anger shining in his amber eyes.

“Oh I'm sorry my dear. Just...you're so young to even think about things like that," she said, making to ruffle his head before he swatted her hand away and looked at the ground.

“You say that...but I have felt in the wrong body ever since I could talk. The times my dad caught me in my sisters clothing and would thrash me, or playing with my mums stuff. But I know, I have known since ever what I want to be," he said, his voice low, something that could have been a cubs growl in his tone. “And for your information I am 12," he huffed before standing up and walking to the stairwell.
“Fine, then there is no more point in me going on. My father kicked me out and disowned me and my mum left for some gypsy," he said before letting himself fall forward to his death.

Much to his relief, the dragoness caught him by the tail, halting him from tipping to his doom, though her low growl sent shivers of dread down him at the sound.
“You think I would just watch you, one so young throw his life away?" she growled, her gaze looking challenging which the young cub meekly looked away from.
With a painful yank onto his rump, she stood over him; arms folded and a scowl on her face.
“Did you actually intend on ending your life, or did you just use it in the hopes of pushing me into doing what you wanted?"

“Uhm..." Keerka faltered under her burning gaze, “m-maybe a...little of both?" he said meekly before to his relief he didn't seem about to become a burning fireball as she seemed to relax her stern expression.

“Okay fine...yes I do have a potion I have been...toying with that should do what you want. But," she lifted a finger up in warning, “it will probably also age you a few years in the process. Knowing that, will you still want this?" at her question, the young cub didn't seem to take long before nodding.
Nodding in return to herself she answered, “Good. The other question is, what can you offer me in return because I need to get something out of it. Charity is good and all but it doesn't get the giver anywhere I have learned in life."

Seeming to take a while to think, Keerka came to an idea.
“Well...I have no where to be any more. I also have nothing to really aim for in life other than surviving the next day. Maybe I could become your apprentice and help you in your alchemy?"

“Hmm, well I suppose I could teach you all I can in what limited time you humanoids have. What I will teach will take your lifetime to fully master, but the basics will take just months to learn and help me. Fine, you have a deal Keerka," she smiled, holding a hand out for him to shake.

Tentatively, with a trembling paw he reached out to shake her taloned hand before speaking up, “I do have one question. Why do you keep calling us humanoids, aren't you one too?"

Sighing softly to herself, she put an arm round him and guided him to her hidden bed chambers. “Little one, it will take some explaining."