Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 129584 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 648(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129584 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 648(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
“Dragons live to be a very old age,” Alric returned, eyes twinkling. “Surely you remember that from your history books in school?”
“I don’t remember them telling me that.” Slomka looked in danger of falling out of the chair altogether, but she kept calm enough to continue. “But please, go on. You realized that the world thought you all dead, and then…?”
“After such a great toll—both physical and emotional—we thought it was best to leave the world ignorant. I speak not only for myself, but for the Ice Dragon Clan as well. This was a joint decision.”
“But this has obviously changed, as I’m interviewing you now. You were the one that requested this, in fact. What’s changed?”
“Us.”
The camera switched to the Asian man, and when it did, a caption at the bottom of the screen read, Cameron Burkhard, Consort. His smile was broad, and there was a twinkle in his eyes behind his glasses, as if he was secretly laughing at some bit of knowledge the audience didn’t have.
“Hoo,” Sora cried out softly in surprise, lips pursed in a soundless whistle.
The dragon king had taken a male consort? Well, the outside world would definitely have mixed feelings about that. Sora’s family wouldn’t blink an eye, though.
Cameron continued. “We mages burst on scene and kicked up the dust. I think the dragon clans were resigned to mages having died out with the Dragon Wars; I was the first they found in modern times. And we’ve been finding more mages ever since.”
His royal husband had a soft look in his eye as he grasped Cameron’s hand, holding it on his thigh. The consort’s returning smile was just as tender.
“The old stories are true,” King Alric said, picking up the thread smoothly. “Dragons can mate only with mages. My dragons have been without even the possibility of finding the other half of their hearts for far too long. Centuries. With mages once again being discovered, our hope is restored. We’ve decided to step back out into the world, to reveal ourselves, so that other mages might know where to find us. So that we can once again live as we did.”
This time, Sora did whistle. “Wow. Talk about a public coming out.”
His mother smacked him on the arm. “You’re not funny.”
“I’m hilarious, and it’s true; they’re both coming out—as a mage and a dragon, respectively—and establishing themselves as a gay couple. All in one shot. Takes nerves, that.”
He looked sideways at his mother, who was sitting on the couch with him. She’d lost her formal clothes at some point, wearing joggers and an oversized sweater she’d probably snitched from his father’s wardrobe, but her makeup was still on, hair in a tidy bun at the top of her head. She looked aggravated with him, but that was likely more because of the huge step the dragon clans had just taken. She did not like surprises, and this one was enormous.
His father coughed slightly, then rumbled from the other side of the couch, “This does say something about how the world has changed. If both Fire and Ice Clans are willing to step back into the light, then things have changed a great deal. More than we had ever believed.”
“They’re revealing that all of the other mage clans still exist, too, Ryu!” his mother protested, high color spotting her cheeks.
Shaking his head, he disagreed with his wife. “No, Yuki, they’re saying that magic is still real. That dragons are. That mages are still out there. They’ve very carefully not said anything about magic clans. Which is wise of them. The modern world has forgotten a great deal of how the dragon and mage clans of old operated. I don’t think anyone will put that together quickly.”
That was likely true. Sora pondered it all for a moment, his eyes still on the screen. The dragon king and his consort looked happy but cautious, as if they were set on a certain script and not telling any more. The consort sidetracked a question with the story of how he was discovered, how the Fire Dragon Clan made him realize he was a mage. It was an interesting story and not at all an answer to what the journalist had asked him. Yes, they were being very careful with information right now. Sora approved of their caution.
His mother’s expression morphed from peeved to thoughtful. “I suppose this was inevitable. Modern times makes it so much more difficult to hide, what with cameras on every cell phone, and social media. It’s not at all like a hundred years ago. They’re wise to step out and say something on their own terms instead of being forced into the spotlight.”
“They are,” his father murmured. He lifted one hand into the air as if physically weighing a thought. “Although that leaves the question, do we introduce ourselves to them or not? I don’t know much about them, personally.”