Dia breathed a sigh of relief as she felt the breeze on her face. The wind had that icy touch she loved so much. It had been a while since she visited the mountain lodge on Dinger Point-about a hundred and fifty years, give or take.

As her wings glided along the clouds, she wondered again why her dragon was nudging her human to make this trip. Dia wanted to stay with her dragon clan and lounge in the sun when she wasn't helping someone dig out a new cave with her sharp claws or teaching the youngsters how to hunt using only their sense of smell.

She hadn't shifted into her human body in nearly sixty years.

But her dragon felt compelled by an unknown source, so here she was.

In the distance, Dia could see the mountaintop that the humans liked to climb and guided herself towards it, knowing the magic surrounding her would allow none of them to see the enormous magenta-colored dragon soaring through the sky.

She had used her powers of telepathy to warn them of an incoming visitor and her need for lodging. Thank goodness their magic had changed as the humans evolved, and now they shifted with their clothes on.

Her dragon snickered a bit as her mind traveled to the last time she was in human form. She had gone to a human town to try a pastry the other dragons talked about. The bakery they'd bragged about was teaming with people and she wasn't a fan. She ended up leaving without the chocolatey goodness.

Once the lodge was in sight, Dia angled her wings, bringing her into a dive. With a few back wings, she landed beautifully in the designated area. A male shifter in human form came out of the wooden hand-carved gates to greet her.

"Welcome to Dinger Point Lodge. Can you shift, please?"

Dia stared at the newcomer for a moment before picturing herself as a human and allowing her magic to create the haze around her form as her human self appeared.

"I'm guessing it's been a while since you shifted," the man said as he stared at her attire.

Dia looked down at herself and realized the bell-bottom pants and fringed shirt were probably no longer in style.

"I guess it has been a while. Do you still have clothing shops here?"

"We do. My name is Thomas and I will be checking you in. May I have your name, please?"

Dia took a moment to gather her wits before answering.

"I am Dia of the Hiems Clan. I'm not sure why I'm here. My dragon was restless, and this was where she wanted to go," she said honestly.

"There is always a reason, Dia. How about I get you a room, and you can wander around the lodge for a bit?"

As the two left the landing pad, Thomas pointed out the different areas of enjoyment they had set up for the humans and dragons alike. There were hot springs and ski slopes set up for both. Some lawn games were set up just for humans, and they had hunting games for the dragons.

A ruckus on the other side of the lodge pulled their attention, and Thomas broke into a sprint. Dia decided to transform and fly around. Once the side facing the path on the mountain came into view, she could see a pack of four dragons attacking a gorgeous forest green dragon, who was fighting them off alone.

Dia felt her dragon completely take over, roaring as it dove towards the others. Within seconds, she released fire right into their faces and used those claws on their poorly guarded bellies. Her time and tested maneuvers severely wounded two of them. The other two took off when they realized someone was interfering in their fun.

When Thomas appeared and tried to approach the green dragon, Dia growled at him and wrapped herself around the victimized serpent without hesitation.

"It's okay, Dia. I just want to make sure Harry isn't hurt," Thomas said in a tone used to placate or calm others.

Dia did her best to send calming thoughts to her inner beast. After a few rubs of her snout against the dragon she now knew as Harry, she could take control and shift back to her human.

Harry took a turn at growling at Thomas before shifting himself. He was also dressed as a 60s hippie.

As Harry and Dia looked deep into each other's eyes, the same word left each of their mouths.

"Mate."

(Google word count - 763)

Edited by SeraDrake; provided banner also by SeraDrake.