The night saw the Chimera far from the coast of Cyprus. The entire crew breathed a sigh of relief when it finally vanished into the distance. Dimitri's was probably the most fervent of them all. It wasn't that he hadn't encountered the arcane before – it was kind of hard to deny when it had chased them all of the way to Paris – but this was something else entirely. He'd lost his chance to get back home, and for what? He looked towards the back of the ship, confusion warring with depression inside of him.

Sinbad watched from up the quarter deck while the rest of the crew packed up their things for the night. Rat had lit the ship's lanterns, swooping around from the ropes like a bird in flight. Now the entire ship glowed with a rich orange light. It glimmered off of the choppy water. Clearly they weren't worried about being spotted tonight.

"Why are we leaving the lanterns lit tonight?" Dimitri asked kale as he walked by with a coil of rope.

Kale jerked his head up towards where Sinbad stood. "Sinbad's made quite a name for himself in this area. We're the only ones with sails this color. If any ship spots us in the night, they'll know that it's Sinbad and keep away. It's the best way to assure a restful night." He dropped the coil or rope down at the base of one of the sails. Rat instantly descended onto it and hauled it off to parts unknown.

"So," said Kale. "You want to tell me what happened in that room?" He leaned against the side of the ship and smoothed his hand across his shaven head.

Dimitri blew out a breath through puffed up cheeks. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you," he said with a dry chuckle.

Kale shrugged. "Try me."

He was going to enjoy seeing the look on Kale's face after this retelling. "Alright, if you insist." He pulled the little statue out of his vest pocket and held it up. It glowed orange from the lamplight dangling just above them.

"You see this thing here? Apparently there was a djinn living inside it and I freed him. So he gave me three wishes, which I used to get you all out of danger. And then he disappeared right before all of you tried to blow up the door." He looked at Kale expectantly. "Well, what do you think? Too far-fetched?"

Kale gave him a flat look, but his pecs had started to shake. He was doing a very bad job of not laughing. "Maybe somebody will hire you as a story teller once you finally get yourself fired."

"Hey, aren't you all supposed to believe in magic and superstitions and whatnot? This is nearing the Dark Ages, isn't it?" Dimitri slipped the statue back into his vest pocket. "Even I've encountered some supernatural things back in my time."

Seeing that Kale wasn't even trying to contain his laughter now, he pursed his lips. "The djinn showed me an image of the crew tied up and about to be carried off by Cyclopes," he said, "And then I saved you again when their monstrous queen was about to devour you." His brow furrowed as he thought of the next few scenes Balashi had shown him. "He showed me my home, too. He gave me the choice to go back… I could have taken it but I don't know why I didn't."

"Hm. Well, if that true then it sounds you have a lot to think about." Kale looked up as his name was called from below deck. "Just remember," he added, clapping Dimitri on the shoulder as he walked past, "if you found one way to get home, there's probably another somewhere else."

Dimitri wished he could be as optimistic as Kale. He leaned against the ship's railing and watched the last of the sun descend beneath the horizon. Had he gone back home, he would be gazing at the Parisian nightlife instead. His heart clenched at the thought of Anya left in danger from an unknown assailant. With the amount of times he had saved her, there had to have been one instance in which he failed. He was only human, after all.

He ran a hand over his weary face; had he gone back, he would have felt the same twisting guilt over leaving Sinbad at the mercy of that djinn. Why had he jumped to Sinbad's rescue so quickly? Here he was, leaving the woman he supposedly loved in danger and saving a selfish pirate instead. A selfish pirate who had turned tail the moment he had gone missing and threatened to blow up an old ruined building just to get him back.

Nothing made sense anymore in Dimitri's mind. He hung his head and closed his eyes, hoping to stave off the headache blooming at the back of his skull.

"Vlad, I wish you were here," he whispered to the waves below him. "You'd steer me back on the right path like you always do."

It didn't take long for the crew to seek out their bunks. It had been both a mentally and physically exhausting day for all of them. The lantern light seeped through the portholes, bathing the crew's quarters in its faint orange light. The sails flapped quietly in the wind the carried them ever closer to Cairo.

Everyone else may have gone to bed, but Dimitri had other plans. He and Sinbad hadn't really spoken since they had gotten back on the ship, and despite the pirate's complaints about his incessant need to talk, he was too stubborn to relent.

He crept above deck after having thrown his blanket over Rat's face to muffle his snoring and made his way to the captain's cabin. He didn't even know why he was sneaking about; it wasn't like every single person on the ship wasn't aware of this strange liaison of theirs, but it made Dimitri feel better if he at least tried to be discreet.

To his surprise, he found Sinbad still awake and dressed when he cracked open the captain's door. He was digging through a chest, tossing books and bags of coin aside as he looked for something. He didn't appear to have heard Dimitri sneak in.

"Ahem," Dimitri stopped right behind him, arms crossed. "Did you lose something?"

Sinbad jumped and cracked his head on the lid of the trunk. A waterfall of obscenities spilled out of his mouth as he clutched at his head and sat down hard.

Dimitri snorted and quickly covered his mouth to stop more laughter from spilling out. When he was certain he was in control of his mirth, he spoke again. "You're really off your game if you didn't hear me coming in at all."

"I heard you come in, asshole." Sinbad gave his head one last rub and picked up his hat. "But since you're the only one who ever bothers to try to sneak, I knew it was you." He walked over to his desk. "What do you want anyway?"

"Of course you did." He circled around Sinbad leisurely. "So, you were ready to blow up a door just to get to me, huh?" His head gave a short sideway nod. "I can't say I was expecting that."

Sinbad's lip curled. "Don't get a fat head. You're easy to replace after all. I just didn't feel like taking a Cyclops as my new cabin boy until we get to Cairo."

"Of course," Dimitri said, examining his knuckles. Sinbad could play cocky until the end of time; he would never get that image in the mirror out of his head. The ferocity with which he had thrown himself at the door was what had made Dimitri hesitate upon his final wish. He glanced up at Sinbad, wondering how a man could so infuriate and yet captivate him.

"And if I told you that I could have gone home right before you blew up that door, what would you say?"

"I'd say that you probably would have enjoyed living in that closet." He kicked his feet up onto the desk and knocked off a couple of scrolls. He pulled his hat down over his eyes and folded his hands on his stomach, giving every appearance of being done listening.

Dimitri slid next to him, fingers aching to reach out and grab him by the shirt. "If you weren't so pigheaded I might expect a thank you for saving your life. Twice," he added as an afterthought. He flicked Sinbad's hat off his head. "You're not hurt anywhere, are you?"

Sinbad's eyes snapped open when his hat fell off and he glared at Dimitri. "No, I'm not. Go back to your hammock."

"Since when do I ever listen?" He pulled Sinbad up from the front of his shirt and crashed their lips together. He stopped thinking of Anya, of the djinn, of everything else. He surprised himself at how relieved he was that the man before him was unharmed. All of the fear and anxiety of the day surged up and he pressed himself closer to Sinbad, never breaking the kiss.

Sinbad didn't respond for a long moment. Then his hands curled into the front of Dimitri's shirt, pulling down the taller man with surprising force to deepen the kiss. His tongue thrust into his mouth, their breaths mingling.

"Get. In the bed," he growled.