33. Auslin

Chapter 33

Auslin

A uslin's good mood instantly vanished when they walked into the dining hall to find Tatsuki and Mitsuki deep in discussion. It was unheard of to run into the father and son during dinner, so Auslin couldn't help but feel annoyed by having to share his meal with Mitsuki. He wasn't in the mood to get insulted.

Swallowing down his feelings, Auslin dutifully followed Kitaro to their seats. He did his best to ignore Mitsuki's death glare aimed his way.

Auslin was saved from a snide remark since Tatsuki was in the middle of a conversation. "We have let the situation with the snake shifters in Galinor last too long. Our patience is at an end. We will not tolerate it any longer."

"Any excuse to kill them is fine by me," Mitsuki said with a cruel smirk aimed at Auslin .

"We should be able to mobilize our forces within the next two weeks," Tatsuki predicted. "It should not take long to reach them and rid ourselves of their presence once and for all."

Auslin wondered if that meant Kitaro would be enlisted to help in the fight. He furrowed his eyebrows at the thought he might face battle.

The reaction drew Mitsuki's attention. He sneered, "Let me guess. The human worm wants us to talk it out instead of killing them."

Auslin bristled at the insult, which gave him the courage to stand his ground. "Since I assume the matter is past the point of diplomacy, it is what it is. But it would be foolish to attack them now."

"How cute. You really think you know more than us, who have been fighting wars for more centuries than you will ever live? According to you, are we supposed to lie back and let them take our lands?"

"No," Auslin shot back, "but it would be smarter to wait."

"Until what magical time?"

"A few more weeks until winter. Snake shifters are weak against the cold, so it would be easier to defeat them with fewer casualties that way."

Mitsuki rolled his eyes. "And why exactly should we spare them more deaths?"

"Because it's not about leniency toward your enemies," Auslin argued in a disapproving tone. "It's about sparing the loss of your own men. Why suffer needless casualties when you have a natural advantage by waiting a few more weeks?"

Mitsuki scoffed with arrogance. "We are strong enough that we do not need to wait for such things."

Tatsuki rubbed his chin as he mulled the issue over. "It is true," Tatsuki stated, causing Mitsuki to smirk at Auslin in an insulting manner. "However, we are not so foolish that we would ignore a natural advantage that would spare the lives of many of our men."

Mitsuki's smirk slid into an outraged expression as he stared in disbelief at his father. "You cannot possibly be serious!"

"You would rather have more of our soldiers die needlessly for the sake of our pride?" Tatsuki gave his eldest son a disapproving frown. "That is no way to lead an army."

"Neither is taking the coward's way out by such an underhanded method," Mitsuki shot back in anger. "They will grow more arrogant if we wait."

"Their arrogance only makes it easier to defeat them," Tatsuki countered. "Vanra is right. We shall delay until after the first frost to make our move."

"Why are you listening to this pathetic excuse for a man?" Mitsuki yelled at his father as he angrily pointed at Auslin. "What could a human mage possibly understand about shifter warfare? "

"Clearly, his familiarity with shifters has given him some keen insights. It is a lapse in our judgment to have not thought of such a thing ourselves."

Mitsuki stood up and gave Auslin a murderous glare. "I do not know what sorcery you have used to bewitch our clan, but I will put an end to it, human filth."

Kitaro growled at his oldest brother. "You will do no such thing, brother."

Mitsuki looked at him with disgust. "I will happily kill him over your dead body, if that is what it takes."

The threat had Kitaro on his feet, his magic summoned to his hand with his dragon in full control.

Tatsuki slammed his hands on the table, making Auslin jump. "That is enough, Mitsuki! Have you forgotten that Vanra is under our protection? Or do you intend to threaten us as well?"

Bristling in seething rage, Mitsuki gave Auslin one last glare. "This is far from over, human," he spat in disgust before angrily storming out of the room.

Kitaro's dragon was still tense with the need to fight.

"Calm yourself, Kitaro," Tatsuki told his youngest son. "Mitsuki was merely making idle threats out of embarrassment."

"We will not stand for it!" Kitaro's dragon exclaimed.

Tatsuki gestured for Kitaro to sit. "Be at peace. We will punish him later. You have our word. "

"It is not enough!" Kitaro's dragon snarled. "We wish to?—"

Auslin interrupted Kitaro's dragon by reaching out to squeeze his hand to calm him. "I'm fine, Kitaro. I'm okay."

His dragon looked down at Auslin in confusion. "How can we allow such unforgivable threats toward you?"

"I'm not asking you to forgive him," Auslin told Kitaro as he gently tugged on his hand to encourage him to sit. "I'm only asking you not to do anything you'll regret."

"The only thing we will regret is not doing something about this," Kitaro's dragon darkly stated.

"We will see to it, son. There is no need to involve yourself and make things even worse."

"Please," Auslin requested as he looked up beseechingly at Kitaro's dragon.

Auslin's pleading gaze made Kitaro's dragon recede. Kitaro was back in control when he said, "Mitsuki does not deserve your kindness of sparing him."

With the fight finally over, the servants brought over food for Auslin and Kitaro. Although Auslin was still shaken, he knew it was important to act unaffected and eat like everything was okay. Only then did Kitaro do the same as Tatsuki transitioned into talking about how Auslin's training was progressing.

L ater that night, Tatsuki summoned Auslin. The human's stomach churned with anxiety as he stood outside the door to the shifter monarch's room. He was convinced the king would punish him for speaking out, and he would have deserved it. He should have kept his opinions to himself, especially with Mitsuki there.

Although Tatsuki had been nothing but kind to him since that first night, Auslin still jumped at the sound of the shifter monarch's booming voice. "Enter!"

The door automatically slid open, leaving Auslin no choice but to step into the room. It was devoid of almost any furnishings, except for a small alcove with a flower arrangement. More puzzling was that Auslin didn't see Tatsuki anywhere in the relatively empty room.

"I'm out here," Tatsuki called out from the outside veranda. He was lounging on his balcony, looking out at the moon over the gardens. There was an impressive waterfall that emptied into a large pool that made Auslin want to go for a swim.

The darkness made Tatsuki's markings look like fire in the night. He gestured for Auslin to join him. "Please, sit. "

Auslin bowed, then gingerly sat down.

"You seem nervous," Tatsuki said. His expression was unreadable.

"Because I'm terrified I'm in trouble," Auslin admitted. His heart hammered with fear. It made him wish he had his scent-suppressing amulet. "I shouldn't have spoken out at dinner. It's not my place to say anything."

"You were not incorrect," Tatsuki told him. "Your logic was sound. Mitsuki was angry because he could not refute your tactic."

"I'm pretty sure he's angry with me for a lot more reasons than just that," Auslin replied with a bitter laugh. "I've known that since the first time I met him."

That drew a chuckle from the shifter monarch. "He is not subtle about his hatred. We were impressed you stood up to Mitsuki tonight."

"It was probably more stupidity than bravery." Auslin sighed. "I really shouldn't be giving him even more reasons to hate me."

"You have nothing to worry about. He has been dealt with accordingly."

Auslin blanched at the implication. "That sounds ominous."

"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 luck at 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 dragon shifters 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. "

"I'll look forward to it," Auslin replied with a bow of his head.

"We shall summon you later. For tonight, we believe it would be best if you were to return to Kitaro. He is surely anxious over the purpose of my summons. Go put his mind at ease."

"Thank you for taking the time to speak with me tonight." Auslin stood up and bowed once more. "I wish you a pleasant rest of the evening, Father."

Tatsuki remained on the veranda, looking deep in thought.

Auslin reflected on their conversation as he headed back to his room. Thus, it came as a surprise when he rounded a corner and ran into Mitsuki.

The shifter brushed his clothes off, as if the bump had dirtied them. "You dare to inflict your presence on me?"

Auslin bristled but kept his temper in check. The last thing he wanted to do was get into a fight without Kitaro there to protect him. He gave a formal bow. "My sincerest apologies, Prince Mitsuki. I will leave at once."

When Auslin tried to step around him, Mitsuki stopped him. He glared down at the mage with disgust. "So, now you are my father's whore as well? Is Kitaro not enough for you?"

"I know you can smell I haven't done anything with anyone," Auslin said with more bravery than he felt .

The shifter closed the distance between them, getting into Auslin's personal space. "That does not mean you do not want to."

Auslin stood his ground instead of stepping back like his instincts were screaming at him to do. "I have no intentions of becoming anyone's whore."

Mitsuki ran his claws up Auslin's neck, then tilted his chin up to force their gazes. "Then exactly what worth do you have?" He wrapped his fingers around Auslin's neck, smirking when it made the human gulp in fear. "What other reason do we have to keep you alive?"

"Your father's promise he would protect me as part of this clan."

"I will never recognize you as clan," Mitsuki hissed. He tightened his grip on Auslin's neck, causing him to gasp for air. "I would rather see you dead."

"I've done nothing to you!" Auslin protested in a strangled voice.

"You have brought embarrassment and shame upon this great family," Mitsuki snarled. He used his grip to slam Auslin hard against the wall. "Perhaps I should remind you of your place."

"What, under you?" Auslin sarcastically retorted.

Mitsuki leaned close enough that they were a mere breath away from kissing. "You should be so lucky, human worm."

Auslin made a scoffing noise that ended in a choke when Mitsuki once again tightened his grip. His nails dug into Auslin's neck, drawing blood.

Mitsuki watched the small rivulets of blood slowly dripping down Auslin's neck, his expression one of a predator about to devour its prey. Auslin's body went rigid with shock when Mitsuki leaned down to lick the blood off with a satisfied rumble. "Your fear tastes delicious," Mitsuki murmured with a dark laugh as Auslin's terror spiked. "Maybe there is some use for you, after all."

Auslin's heart hammered. "If I'm so disgusting, why would you want to touch me?" He knew he could break free of Mitsuki if he used his powers, but he was too terrified of the repercussions.

"I think I could endure it for the reward of ruining you. My little brother would be disgusted enough to put you out on the streets, where you belong with the rest of the scum of the earth." Mitsuki's grin was savage. "I would also derive immense pleasure from scarring you for life."

"Your father would never allow it! Neither would Kitaro."

"I would happily undergo any punishment for that." Mitsuki's expression turned sadistic. "If I will be punished for it, I may as well make it count."

Auslin didn't want to give Mitsuki the satisfaction of begging, but his self-preservation demanded it. "Please don't. "

"Oh, I will enjoy making you beg," Mitsuki purred.

The mage refused to give him the satisfaction of an answer. He'd rather use his powers than let Mitsuki put him in that kind of situation.

"I shall have to get creative in ways to torture you." Mitsuki's black eyes flashed gold as his dragon surfaced.

Auslin stoically said nothing, knowing it would deny Mitsuki what he wanted.

"I will break you," Mitsuki promised, caressing Auslin's throat. "And I will enjoy every single second."

"You will fail."

"We shall see about that." Mitsuki leaned in as if he intended to steal a kiss.

A servant appeared with a squeak of surprise. She fearfully cleared her throat to interrupt. "Forgive the intrusion. Prince Mitsuki, I have been sent by the king to find out why you are late for your meeting."

Mitsuki gave the servant a withering stare that made her wince. "Understood. I will attend to him now."

The servant bowed in acknowledgment, but remained where she was.

Mitsuki tossed Auslin aside onto the floor in disgust. "This is not over, human worm. Far from it."

With that said, Mitsuki turned on his heel and stormed off with the servant.

Auslin trembled on the floor, doing his best to catch his breath. It terrified him what Mitsuki might do to him in the future. As much as Auslin didn't want to use his powers against Mitsuki, he wouldn't have a choice if the shifter attacked him. He prayed Mitsuki wouldn't put either of them in that situation.

With a shuddering breath, Auslin got up and hurried back to the sanctuary of his room.