Page 72 of Mage of the Dragon Prince
“We hope he has learned his lesson. If not, we shall have to get more creative with our punishment.”
“Hopefully, it won’t come to that,” Auslin told Tatsuki, mostly because he was fearful of the retribution Mitsuki might dish out to him in return.
Tatsuki waved his concerns away. “We are pleased your training is going well.”
The compliment brought color to Auslin’s cheeks. “With teachers as good as Kitaro and Uncle Jaega, it’s a lot easier to make progress.”
“Praise does not come easy from Jaega,” Tatsuki informed Auslin. “He says your powers are immense, even by shifter standards. We are still amazed you could heal his hand.”
“I’m doing my best to work hard.” Auslin respectfully bowed his head. “I don’t want to waste anyone’s time.”
“You are nothing if not considerate.” Tatsuki gave the human a fond smile. “It is rare we stand corrected in our first opinion of people.”
His words went a long way to reassuring Auslin. “I truly am grateful to you and everyone for all the care I’ve received here. It’s not something I take for granted. I don’t know how I can ever repay you for giving me a home here, but I’ll do anything I can.”
“There is no need to repay us for anything when you have become clan.”
“I must admit, I didn’t expect to enjoy myself as much as I have. I thought waiting until I could go back to my time would be agony, but it’s easy to be happy here with Kitaro and Kisano around.”
Tatsuki arched an eyebrow in surprise. “Kisano? What use could he possibly be to you?”
Auslin hesitated. He had already pushed his luckat dinner, but he felt he owed it to his friend to stand up for him. “He’s become a dear friend to me. I enjoy getting to talk with him in your amazing library. I would be much lonelier here if it weren’t for him.”
Tatsuki stroked his chin with a pensive expression. “It surprises us to hear such a thing.”
“He reminds me of my brother. I can only hope someday they may meet.”
“You are most unusual.” Tatsuki tilted his head as he studied the human with curiosity. “Not many would find anything to interest them about our bookish son.”
“With all due respect, then they’re foolish,” Auslin said with some heat in his voice. “With as many books as he’s read, he has a brilliant mind. He knows something about literally everything. He’d make an excellent advisor to anyone willing to listen.”
“Are you questioning our judgment on Kisano?” Tatsuki asked with a slight growl.
Auslin bowed his head deferentially. “No, I would never presume to do such a thing. I am merely saying Kisano makes for wonderful company. I’ve learned a lot from him already.”
“It seems you have learned many lessons. We were surprised the appearance of Kitaro’s dragon did not unsettle you.”
The human blushed at the memories. “It’s not the first time we’ve met. I know I have nothing to fear from him.”
“True, and you also are familiar with dragonshifters in your own time.” Tatsuki seemed to be trying to solve the human’s mystery. “You are a most unusual mage.”
“That’s the same thing they say about me at the temple,” Auslin joked. “There are many who disapprove of me traveling with someone who has shifter heritage.”
“You are referring to this halfling son of mine?”
“Yes.” Auslin was still uncomfortable giving too many details. He feared the consequences of changing the past and how it would impact things in the future.
Tatsuki looked up at the full moon with a faint smile. “His mother must be one hell of a woman for me to breed with a human.”
Since Auslin didn’t know much about Kio’s mother, he remained silent on the subject as Tatsuki let his imagination wander.
They sat in companionable silence, each lost in their own thoughts as they admired the view before them.
“We must admit, you are not unpleasant to converse with,” Tatsuki said after some time had passed. He sounded surprised. “We have enjoyed our talk this evening a great deal.”
The rare praise warmed Auslin’s heart. “Despite being scared out of my mind when I arrived, it’s been fun.”
Tatsuki nodded to himself. “We shall do this again sometime.”
