Fix Me Up (Unknown Succubus Series book 2)

Flying High

As Jasper pulled me along down a series of large hallways the walk began to feel like a death march. Dread curled in my stomach with each step. I took a slow breath and waited for his grip to slacken. The second it did I stepped to the side and slipped away from his arm. I turned to dart back down the hallway when a band of muscle wrapped around my hips and yanked me backwards. A squeal wormed out of my mouth in panic. My fingers slid along a scaled tail as I attempted to pry myself free. "Oh no you don't." He said before I was back in his arms reach.
  "Let me go!" I snapped bitterly as Jasper began dragging me down the hallway again. My hands slipped across the smooth scaled surface of his tail as I tried to find purchase to rip it off of me. I failed miserably and instead went boneless. I expected the suddenness of my body turning into deadweight to phase Jasper. His tail was much stronger than I'd anticipated and he had no difficulty in pulling me along. Once outside I was finally released from the scaled death grip. "What is your problem?! You can't just drag people around like that!" I ground out between clenched teeth.
  "We had an agreement for this morning and your stubbornness isn't going to get in the way. You are not a dragon shifter so you will need to learn to ride in case of emergency. Luke will not fight fairly and you should be prepared for anything." Jasper grumbled back with a sharp glare.
"And I will gladly prepare for anything that doesn't include heights or holds a high risk of me falling thousands of feet to my death." My voice was a stubborn grumble but I was not going to budge on my stance. This Succubus was not going to fly. I'd been dragged to the depths of the ocean so I was all for skipping the part that included rising to the heavens. With my luck I'd fall to the ground and become a comatose pancake. Life was too cruel to let me die that easily.  A scorching wave of heat blew past me as an annoyed rumble grated against the soft breeze.
   "Oh fuck." The statement was a little too late but still warranted being said. Jasper had shifted into the magnificent winged frog that had taken me from Luke just days ago. His familiar tail plucked my frozen body from the ground. A panicked squeal wrenched from my chest as my feet hung limply in the air. Hornets swarmed inside of my stomach and lurched my organs around like a ping pong ball.
Stop wiggling around, Aspen. Jasper ordered as though his tail wasn't the only thing keeping me from adhering to the laws of gravity. Suddenly, he dropped me and I was frozen in midair for just a moment before I fell like a sack of potatoes. I landed in a sprawled mess of flailing limbs onto his back just below the spot where the scaled ridges that started atop his skull and trailed down to the base of his long neck. The unexpected smoothness caused me to begin to slide down his back. With a startled squeal I jerked up and my hands wrapped around the two ridges closest to me. My body twisted in an attempt to climb up and gain balance. I accidentally kicked the base of one of his wings and he nearly shook me off with the vibration of his irritated grumble. Somehow, I managed to straddle just above his shoulders. The place where his wings attached to his back rested against the back of my thighs and my hands held onto the ridges on his neck. It was similar to riding a very large and slippery horse.
"Oh. That wasn't too hard." As usual I had spoken far too soon. The second Jasper was sure I was securely seated on his back he flapped his powerful wings and gained elevation. My stomach lurched and I was close to loosing my breakfast with a sudden wave of motion sickness. The ground was suddenly very far away as the castle grew significantly smaller. I had a death grip on his neck with both my legs and my hands. "Why couldn't I have just been born human?!" I shouted into the whistling air that blew my hair into my face.
Aspen, you can let go now. Jasper's voice echoed inside of my skull loudly. At some point I'd squeezed my eyes shut and resorted to clenching every muscle inside of my body in order to maintain my vice like grip on the sides of his neck. His wings were no longer beating to gain height and instead we were soaring smoothly through the cloudy sky.
"You're joking, right? If I let go now I'm going to fall straight to an untimely death." I choked out nervously. My eyes slowly opened to see just how far I'd be falling. Shock caused the entirety of my body to go limp. Trees looked like tiny green dots beneath us. Stand up.
"Why would I do that?" I asked incredulously, dragons were absolutely insane. Standing on his scales would be a great way to slide right down his back and plummet to the ground. I'd probably end up impaled on a tree with my luck.
Standing will help with your center of balance. You will need to be able to maneuver atop a dragon quickly and easily. I want you to be comfortable enough to jump off without fear. He spoke as though I should have already known what he was saying. I certainly didn't remember agreeing to any of this.
"If I jump I'll die." I snapped back. To my own surprise I did stand up. I slowly walked down his back as though it were a tightrope. One misstep and I was a goner. Maybe he'd catch me with his tail, it was strong enough to toss me around like a rag doll so there was hope that I wasn't actually going to die today. A gust of wind pushed me forward and I found myself at the base of his tail. Carefully, I leaned over to look down. Jump Aspen. Jasper didn't give me time to back away to safety. He flapped his wings and the wind knocked me off balance. I tumbled off of his back and directly into a free fall. A startled scream ripped from my lungs seconds too late.
Pain bloomed from my back as I landed flat onto a wall of muscle. I sat up and braced my hands on dark navy scales the size of dinner plates. As I frantically looked around in panic I noticed the dragon I was on top of resembled Jasper in build. "Oh no." I mumbled as my forehead creased with concern.
Not bad for a beginner. My jaw dropped open as I recognized the voice. Cyrus was the dragon I had fallen onto. These assholes had planned this. "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?!" I yelled angrily.
This is a game that is usually used to teach children how to fly and change forms safely and quickly. Cyrus chirped smugly in response. I let out a string of curses in anger. How was jumping to possible death a fun game? My growing anger pushed away my fear and I found myself standing and moving across his back easily. A glance down showed me that Jasper was flying below Cyrus. I had a few choice words I wanted to scream at him so I jumped without hesitation. This time I manage to stick my landing and hit his back in a crouch.
   "This is a fucking game?!" I shouted as I stomped up his back like a toddler throwing a fit. What enabled my easy movements was a tear up the dress and absolute rage. Jasper had no problem craning his neck around to level me with an exasperated stare. Out of instinct I reached out and placed my hands on either side of his large snout. He could have easily pulled free from my grasp but he allowed me to keep my grip. "Try something like this again and I'll make sure your bloodline ends with you." I threatened darkly.
  Those large golden brown eyes narrowed at me but I refused to be scared of a damn gecko with wings. His snout pulled back in a suspicious smirk just seconds before he knocked me into my but with a sharp nudge to my chest. Suddenly, he dived in the air and we lost altitude quickly. Jasper dipped his right wing down and his body began turning in the air. I slid off his back with a startled scream. My plummeting fall lasted only seconds before I was submerged beneath water. My back stung from the impact with the surface and my legs tangled in my skirts as I struggle to swim up to break free of the water. My eyes were open in panic as everything around my was a swirl of bubbles from my jerky movements. I knew one of these dresses was going to get me killed.