Chapter 12 First Flight #2
“Nobody has ever touched me like this in my dragon form,” he said slowly.
Oh wow.
But it made sense. He said he rarely shifted, and aside from his closest family, nobody knew.
I spread my hands and ran them over the sides of Ernest’s neck. He hummed again, the vibrations traveling up my spine. I stroked him for a while, marveling at the unique texture and pleasant heat.
“As much as I want you to pet me for hours, it’ll be dark soon,” Ernest said. “Secure the carabiners in the orange loops, and let’s go.”
My heart pounding louder than ever, I clipped both carabiners into the marked loops on Ernest’s harness. Ernest turned his head around to face me, and my helmet dangled from his muzzle. I took it and rammed it on my head, then popped the visor down.
“Hold on to the slings.”
I did as he said.
“Ready?” he asked.
“As ready as I’ll ever be,” I muttered.
“Lawrie, I would never do anything to endanger you. Do you trust me?”
Did I? Yes. With this, unequivocally. I nodded.
A freaky roar came out of his throat, and my stomach swooped as the massive body under me lifted.
I tightened my grip and bent forward, huddling close to Ernest’s neck.
The giant wings rose and bore down, sending masses of air under us, and suddenly, we were flying.
The trees sank to the ground, mountains rose around me, and the horizon opened in front of me.
I was sitting on a dragon’s back, flying.
Involuntarily, I let out a loud whoop. The rush of fear and exhilaration was overwhelming.
We gained altitude fast, faster than I’d expected, and soon, I could see the gleaming ribbon of Cross River below us.
Ernest continued to ascend along the mountain slopes, higher where the forest changed into scattered bushes and bare cliffs.
A group of elk ran for their lives when we swooshed above them.
As we rose, the landscape opened. Awed, I tried to take it all in.
The forest was now pitch-black. The rocks and cliffs sticking above the treetops glimmered silver in the moonlight.
Behind the three main mountain chains, the valley widened, small lights signaling the farms and communities below.
Far away in the distance, the city of Ardaine glowed orange, like a wildfire.
In the stark moonlight and with the horizon still light so soon after sunset, there weren’t that many stars, but still more than I’d ever see closer to the city.
All too soon, Ernest circled, slowing down. His back bowed under me, and with a surge of fear, I gripped the slings tighter, pulling myself closer to him. Even so, I got almost catapulted from his back when he landed on the ground.
“Shit!” I yelped.
“Oh, sorry, Lawrie. Are you okay?”
“Yes.”
“It seems I need to work on my landings.”
“I thought you knew what you were doing?” I asked mildly.
“Um. In my defense, it was my first flight with a rider.”
“What?” He was kidding, right? “I’m your guinea pig?”
“No. But it’s not like I’ve had a mate before.” He glanced back at me, his yellow eyes shining in the dark. It was so freaky how he could turn his head one-eighty degrees to face me while I still sat on his shoulders. “Come and look at the view.”
I unclipped the carabiners, removed my helmet, and slid down his back.
We were on a mountain top, one side a grassy field leading to the forests below, and the other side a steep rocky slope down to the Cross River Valley.
I followed Ernest’s huge body as he stomped closer to the ridge.
Considering the sheer size of him, I wondered how he didn’t leave craters instead of simple footprints in the grass. He paused and beckoned with his head.
“Come here.”
Almost stumbling over some scattered rocks, I made my way to the bank next to him.
Once I sat down, Ernest folded himself to the ground.
Something brushed my back, and I looked around to see his wing shielding me from the wind.
I must have been getting more comfortable because I caressed the stretched skin without thinking.
It felt even softer than his neck. When I touched it, the wing curled tighter around me, covering my back and side like a blanket.
I turned to face the view only to find a huge dragon head right in front of my face.
Ernest sniffed and hovered, and I realized what he wanted. Taking a deep breath, I reached out to skim his nose with my fingertips. His sigh sounded like thunder, and I had to laugh.
“Damn, you’re a beast.”
Closing his eyes, Ernest lowered his head even closer and bumped his nose into my hand. I stroked from the tip of his muzzle to his forehead and along the thorned ridge. Using both hands, I explored his terrifying face, and ever so slowly, he ceased to look so terrifying.
He was magnificent.
With infinite gentleness, he rested his head on my thighs, so I stroked and petted and scratched all over his neck and forehead, sliding my fingers between and alongside those thorns. I couldn’t get over how pleasant his skin felt.
Even though we sat on a mountain top on a windy night in January, I was perfectly warm, wrapped in his wing, leaning against his side, with his head in my lap.
I stared over the night landscape, only shades of dark blue, black, and silver, dotted with very few lights.
I marveled at how the hell I’d gotten all the way here.
Suddenly, a memory struck me, and I gasped.
“Ernest, I think I’ve seen you before.”
A big yellow eye opened and looked up at me. “Where?”
“Here. Before Christmas.”
Ernest lifted his head and faced me, his powerful gaze pinning me in place.
“How?” he growled. Was he upset? Why? A sliver of fear laced through my chest.
“I was hiking in the valley with Josh. He thought I was crazy, but I saw something above the forest, like a shadow over the night sky. Have I actually seen you?”
“People can’t see me in flight. Not without sunlight.”
“Well, I didn’t see you per se. Maybe I just felt you? Um. I know it sounds insane, but the forest grew quiet, and I simply knew something was out here. Were you here the last weekend before the holidays?”
He was silent for a few seconds, yellow eyes unblinking. “Yes. I circled the valley and noticed two hikers descending alongside the river in the evening. They were far away, so I figured I was safe.”
“That was me! Me and Josh.”
“You felt me?” He tilted his head to the side, and it seemed ludicrous to be thinking of a dragon’s facial expressions, but his gaze softened, the earlier tension disappearing.
I exhaled with relief. “Yeah. I thought I was getting delusional, but now it makes sense.”
He leaned closer, his nose just a few inches away from my face. “It does?”
“I was drawn to you. It was like a voice in my head telling me to go find you. Then you must have flown away because the urgency disappeared as fast as it came.”
“And how do you feel now, Lawrie?”
With both hands, I caressed the contours of his enormous head, stroking his cheeks and forehead.
“Awed. Fascinated.”
He hummed, and I hugged his head to my chest. His scent flooded my senses, making me smile. He smelled of the mountains, and now I knew why.
I’m petting a dragon.
We stayed for almost an hour, talking quietly, cuddling, until the night turned pitch-black with clouds obscuring the moon. Then I climbed back up on Ernest’s shoulders, and he flew us down to the valley. This time, the landing was smoother, not even jostling me.
“Good job,” I praised, and I thought he laughed, but it was hard to tell with the snarls and growls accompanying his voice.
As soon as I slid down his back, Ernest changed into his human form, startling me.
“Hey! I didn’t even say thank you and goodbye properly.”
“I’m the same person, Lawrie,” he said with a grin.
I pulled the helmet off and walked toward him, still in my harness and with carabiners dangling off me. After laying the helmet on the grass, I stretched on my tiptoes and hugged him around his neck. I kissed his cheek.
“Thank you, Ernest. It was amazing.” Then I patted his naked butt. “Maybe get dressed now?”
“But we can both get naked later?”
“Maybe,” I hedged even though I was already looking forward to feeling him against my body tonight.
After spending time with Ernest, the dragon, touching him and talking to him as if he weren’t a humungous terrifying beast, I felt more relaxed with him in his human form as well.
I watched with giddiness while he dressed and packed the harnesses in a seemingly overcomplicated way, wrapping them into the duffel.
“Can’t you just throw the stuff into the car?”
“Good luck untangling them next time.”
“Ah. That makes sense.”
“Impatient?”
“We still have to drive back for two hours.”
“I know. Sorry.”
“It was so worth it.”
“Was it?”
“It was incredible, Ernest. Thank you.”
The smile he gave me outshone the moon and the stars.
We ate a couple of sandwiches in the car. Then, even though I didn’t want to, I fell asleep before we reached the city limits.