PART 10

By Lizard

Horatio spent much of that evening within Captain Pellew's cabin, discussing arrangements concerning his new post as lieutenant. Though the privileges bestowed upon him were enough to make anyone thrilled, his heart only began its accelerated beating when he thought about a certain blond-haired friend of his and what had happened in the little-used storeroom only a few hours ago.

*God* that kiss had felt good, he thought to himself as he feigned attentiveness to whatever Pellew was saying to him. Though there still remained a slight twinge of unease whenever he remembered that Archie was a man, it was soon swamped by a sudden remembrance of the feel of that hot mouth, his exquisite taste, hands pressing on his chest... It was all he could do to keep a straight face and stare impassively at the wall beyond Pellew's shoulder. But alas, Pellew noticed his inattention and, harrumphing indignantly, he briskly told him to get down to the mess room to have some dinner, hoping it would bring back Horatio's presently absent wits.

Horatio retained an aura of decorum as he walked out of the Captain's cabin towards the mess room. Once inside the stuffy, rowdy room, he involuntarily swept the present company with his eyes, finally resting upon the back of Archie's head that was turned towards the man on his right. He surreptitiously straightened his jacket and walked at a steady pace, forcing himself not to run to gain the empty seat next to his friend. But Fortune seemed to have a grudge against him, for the seat was taken by a surly Scottish midshipman who had but recently joined their midst.

Cursing under his breath, then cursing himself for being so silly, he continued round the table to the seat facing Archie. He looked up to watch his friend chatter cheerfully away, seemingly unconcerned that the surly Scottish man was becoming surlier and quieter by the minute. Muttering a thank you as Styles plonked a platter of stew and bread before him, he resumed staring at his friend, waiting to be acknowledged. After what seemed an inordinately long time, Archie finally glanced at Horatio across the table, halting his conversation just slightly to grin cheekily at him.

Horatio began to smile in return, but it was too late, Archie had already turned away. Feeling disgruntled, Horatio finally looked down at his meal and, gripping his spoon with more force than necessary, he began to eat. His bad mood must have communicated itself to his neighbours, for neither of the men sitting either side of him attempted to engage him in conversation. From time to time, Horatio would quickly look up at Archie, then look down again at his plate with a flush suffusing his face when Archie caught his eye. Only when this had happened several times did Horatio suddenly feel embarrassed at his decidedly ludicrous behaviour. He was a full-grown man of twenty-five, for god's sake, and here he was blushing like a school girl when the object of his desire deigned to look at him.

Horatio paused at the thought. Object of his desire. Archie was indeed fine to look at, but still there was that pang of discomfiture at the thought of being sexually attracted to him. Such an idea had always been taboo for him, even among the company of rowdy and boisterous men as made up the crew on this ship. He was not so naive to believe that he was a freak of human nature, he had heard of men being involved in such a manner before. But he had never thought that *he* could be one of them. Even now the realisation made him cringe inwardly. He could not relate to those people in any way - he was a respectable man born of a respected physician; he did not frequent those filthy molly houses at port towns, or immerse himself within the dregs of the theatre, sleeping with anything that came his way. He was not like...like...

Like Archie, whispered a cruel voice in his head. Archie's home is Drury Lane, remember? What do you know about his life before you joined him on the Justinian? What if you are merely another conquest among many for him? Goodness knows, Archie was handsome enough to be sought after by all who saw him, male and female. He has the pick of the crop. What makes you think you are so special to him? Suddenly the food Horatio had been chewing in his mouth becomes unpleasant and heavy, and he swallows it with difficulty. Pushing away his platter in disgust, he leans his elbows upon the table, clasps his hands together and rests his chin upon them, closing his eyes momentarily and sighing quietly in dismay.

From the corner of his eye, Archie noticed Horatio moving his plate and turned to look at him curiously. Observing with a start the glum expression upon his friend's face, he wondered what on earth could have caused him such misery. Feeling a little guilty for deliberately ignoring him throughout his meal, he turned away from the man on his right to face Horatio. He picked up his tankard of ale and waited for his friend to look up at him. As soon as he did so, Archie brought the tankard to his lips, sipping slowly before placing it back on the table. Never taking his eyes off Horatio. Deciding to crank up the tension, he licked his lips quickly for good measure. He was pleased to see that Horatio had indeed perceived what he was doing, if his sudden inhalation and slightly widening eyes were anything to go by. That's my Horatio, thought Archie mischievously. All wide innocent eyes and flaring nostrils. He definitely needs lightening up. Let's see what I can do.

Pushing aside the reasoning that he might have had a little too much to drink, and deciding not to check his actions, Archie stretched his leg out and kicked Horatio under the table. He hurriedly slapped his hand against his mouth to prevent from laughing at the shocked expression on Horatio's face. Finding it too tempting to resist, Archie kicked again, this time a little higher up on Horatio's leg. The shocked look appeared again, but it was soon replaced by a curious mixture of disapproval, amusement and pleased surprise. Archie grinned at him before picking up his spoon and resuming eating the remainder of his food, deciding to prolong this most enjoyable affair at the dinner table - it was the most fun he had had in a long time. A slightly strained appearance settled on Horatio's face every time Archie put his spoon into his mouth, and Archie being the impish creature that he was, milked it for all its' worth.

Soon, most of the men had left the mess room to return to their duties up on deck. Both Horatio and Archie remained at their table, welcoming the quieter atmosphere, but neither man felt inclined to initiate a conversation between them. The electricity in the air between them was so strong as to be touchable, and they didn't want to start talking lest the delightful tension be broken. At last, with a meaningful look towards the door, Archie slowly stood up and finally spoke to him for the first time during the course of their meal.

"I believe you are due to be on watch this evening, Horatio." The complete incomprehension on Horatio's face was priceless. "So I will be unable to continue our discussion until tomorrow." The incomprehension was replaced with a disgruntled look, much like the one a little boy might have when denied a treat. Archie fought to keep his face completely impassive. "But if you wish to talk to me after your watch, you will most likely find me where we were last. Be sure to bring a candle, we don't want you losing your way, now, do we?" His throat hurting from keeping down the bubble of laughter threatening to burst from him, Archie nonchalantly bid his friend farewell before turning towards the stairs leading up to the deck. Only when he was sure that Horatio could not see him anymore did Archie allow his mirth to spill from him, clapping his hand to his mouth to prevent others from hearing him.

After a few minutes of hilarity, Archie finally gained control of himself and, clearing his throat to try and resume an impression of decorum, he went about his duties, eagerly awaiting sundown.

~~~~####~~~~####~~~~####~~~~

A/N: Ahaha! The torture! Sorry about that, folks, but I felt that Archie deserved a little fun after Horatio turned him down *twice*. Now, I wonder what our Indy boys will get up to in Part 11? *g*