No sooner had Makoto's feet touched the deck than Nitori was chivying them toward the galley, tutting at the state of their clothes as though they weren't all staring death in the face. He couldn't speak for the rest of them, but Mako's legs were barely able to support him; without Rin's steadying weight, he knew he would have fallen.
It was hard to say whether the tremors were owed more to the biting cold or sheer relief. He and Rin would have to talk about the importance of secondary plans and not tossing his crew into treacherous waters without so much as a by-your-leave. Most of all Makoto wanted to seek the warmth and comfort of Rin's bed and not stir from it until the ice in his veins had thawed.
He very nearly tripped down the stairs, prevented from doing so only by Rin's firm grip on his arm; Makoto felt a small stab of resentment that these men should see him so weak. Rin and he would discuss that later too.
Steam rose from their garments at the sudden heat of the galley fire, roaring in the small pit Rin had constructed precisely for that use. Makoto had heard the justification for it many times and reviewed Rin's work himself to ensure its soundness but nothing would ever accustom him to the idea of an open fire aboard ship; tonight he was grateful for it.
Nitori's agile fingers began to peel the shirt from Nagisa's back, his low voice hissing a command to be still; Nagisa obeyed without protest for once, helping Nitori with the work as much as his stiff limbs would allow.
"All of you, clothes off. Pile them at your feet and move to the fire." Nitori glanced to Haruka, gesturing to the man's frayed outfit. "Including you."
Not one of them hesitated to obey; modesty had never been a failing aboard this ship, and evidently the islander took a healthy view of survival as well.
Rei stumbled in just then, a self-congratulatory smile firmly in place, "Captain, I dispatched the i-" His eyes widened impossibly, cheeks flaming red with embarrassment, "That is… I-"
"Fetch blankets from anywhere you can find them. As many as you can carry." Nitori's voice was calm and professional, exactly the tone required to spur Rei into swift action. He was gone almost as soon as he had come, sprinting across the deck for the make-shift infirmary and the clean sheets Nitori so prided himself on.
"He's as modest as my maiden-aunt." Rin chattered, trying to smile but finding his facial muscles would not obey. "How the hell do you manage with him, Nagisa? Or is he still a blushing virgin?"
"No more a virgin than your aunt." Nagisa winked lewdly despite his twitching cheeks, "Not a maiden any more, I can tell you."
The two of them wheezed with companionable laughter, sinking to the warm floorboards and entirely ignoring their too-silent captive. Haruka had not stopped taking a catalog of everything to hand since they had stepped foot on deck. This one was going to be trouble. Makoto thought perhaps he had better suggest to Rin they toss him overboard as soon as they were far enough from shore. He would swim back to his own and they could be on their way without fear of the natives attacking them.
Rin crouched before the fire, drawing his knees up to his chest and glancing back to him with guilt written plainly in his bright eyes. That was part of Rin's charm, that he showed his emotions so plainly for anyone to read if they had even half a mind to.
Tonight Makoto found it vexed him. Could the man not see he was openly displaying a vulnerability to a crew that depended on him to have none? Not that any would dare to exploit it, not while Mako still held the position of first mate, but voluntary weakness was something he had personally never tolerated in his subordinates, and Rin's casual attitude toward it was plucking at his last nerve.
"What are we to do with you, Nanase Haruka?" Rin murmured, half to himself.
"I thought the object was to keep me until my crew was well away from your ship." Haruka winced as he bit down on his tongue, swallowing roughly.
He wanted to stay. Makoto could read it in the gentle shifting of his weight and that small frown that didn't have a chance to settle on his features before it vanished again. This one was more subtle than Rin, but the cold had addled his wits and left him little better off.
"I daresay your crew is away from our ship. We could toss you overboard now and never bother about you again." Rin glanced to Mako for confirmation, received it in a short nod. "But out of the goodness of our hearts, we'll let you warm yourself a bit first. I wouldn't want it said we don't know the keeping of hostages."
Crashing footsteps heralded Rei's return, brandishing scratchy woolen blankets that might as well have been silk for how eagerly they were seized by grasping fingers.
"Wrap them about your chests." Nitori ordered, "The heart is the seat of man's fire, you must keep it warm."
Well enough, he was the doctor and it was as plausible an explanation as Makoto had ever heard. He bundled the blanket about him and sank down before the fire, curling in on himself to stop the minute tremors still wracking him.
Rei swatted Nagisa's hands away gently, seeing to the task himself and draping his own coat over the smaller man's shoulders for extra measure. Nitori smiled to himself as though he had expected nothing less, and swiping a cleaning towel from the counter top began to dry Rin's hair.
"You're going to get grease all through my hair." Rin ground out, clenching his teeth to keep them from chattering any longer.
"Yes, and you will thank me for it when your body begins to warm itself again. Allow your teeth to chatter, it will make you warmer."
"I begin to think you must have been banished because you were a back-alley hack." Nevertheless, Rin allowed his teeth to chatter and made no more fuss over the vigorous toweling he was receiving.
Makoto waited his turn patiently, wincing at the rancid smell. As soon as Nitori said it was permitted, he was going to draw up a hot bath and cleanse this foulness. If he could bring himself to submerge in water ever again after tonight.
It was a soothing balm though, watching Nitori towel dry their captive's hair. Haruka visibly recoiled when Nitori glided behind him, tensing for flight when he felt the first touch of the cloth. Something in the quality of Nitori's touch evidently alerted him that if he ran it would be his last act as a living man; Makoto was willing to bet every last coin to his name Nitori still had a scalpel tucked somewhere on his person. His body shouted confidence and ease from the proud tilt of his chin to the set of his shoulders.
Nagisa was the first to recover, bearing Nitori's attentions with uncharacteristic patience before shrugging out of Rei's jacket and tossing his blanket to Rin. "It's hot as hell's furnace in here, and it smells about as pleasant. I'm heading to my bunk." Nagisa waited a beat, glancing to Rin for an objection that never came, "Is Rei off duty?"
"Hm?" Rin blinked several times, pulling his eyes from their captive with effort. Interesting. "Oh. Oh yes, send someone up to cover for you, Rei. Get some rest."
Nitori cut in, tilting his head deferentially to his captain. "I would prefer it if Nagisa spent the night under my care. The crew's quarters are significantly cooler than a cabin."
Panic flickered across Nagisa's expression; blind, animal, panic that sent a bolt of amusement through Makoto. After months of torturing the surgeon pitilessly he had at last learned what it meant to fear. Tonight there was no cause for it; Nitori's face betrayed no intentions beyond the professional, and his posture was one of earnest entreaty, hardly the mark of a man bent on vengeance.
"Captain, I'd gladly go with him." Rei offered, no trace of nervousness in tone or face, but then he had nothing to fear. Rei had never been one for taunting others, and in return few ever bothered to target him. The few aberrations had soon found themselves at Nagisa's mercy, and he had precious little to spare.
Rin shook off his lethargy, imbuing his voice and posture with its customary air of command. "Nagisa, do as our surgeon says. Rei, you may accompany him. Makoto and I will arrange our own quarters." As though Makoto had ever set foot in the first mate's quarters to begin with… now there was an idea.
"Captain, there is another matter that requires your attention-"
Rin's smile encompassed all the many reasons Mako had first come to love him: a perfect devil-may-care smirk tinged with wicked cunning. "Haruka will take your quarters of course, Makoto. As our honored prisoner, we could do no less."
Clever man. There were times Rin could be a victim of his passions, not given to reflection. And there were times Makoto was convinced they dwelt in each other's thoughts. Seeing the open shock, not unmixed with disappointment that settled on Haruka's face, Makoto knew they had made the right choice.
His estimation of the man rose a notch when none of that consternation bled into his voice as he spoke, "I had thought I would be confined to the brig. My thanks." Accompanied by a dip of the head that hid his clenched jaw.
Makoto nearly chortled with pleasure; the man was beyond frustrated, hoping against hope that his fragile reminder would serve to tip the scales and land him in a cell. Rin was no simpleton; he would not be played like a fiddle by some blue-eyed, freshly-caught upstart .
"You should be." Rin murmured, drifting in and out of consciousness as his body soaked in the warmth of their surroundings. Much as he loved the water and waves, Rin was very much a creature of fire and sunlight. It might well have been true what he had said that first day they had met, that saltwater ran in his veins, but it was fire that burned in his soul-
Makoto blinked dark spots of fatigue away, damned but he was waxing poetic in this false domestic scene. Time to cut this rest short before he ended up betraying as much of his state of mind as his shipmates were wont to do.
"I am warm enough, I think. Captain, if you would care to accompany me, I will keep you warm." Makoto allowed his voice to dip to a silky purr, watching Rin's eyes widen with interest. Haruka had noted the change as well and glanced between them in consternation, soon replaced with calculation. Oh, this would be a challenge- one that Makoto was not up for tonight. Better to rest, take stock of the situation in the morning light.
Until then, Rin's body was warm as the Southern waters and his body pliant and graceful with fatigue. A siren's call if ever there was one.
As Makoto helped him to his feet, he tipped a wink to Haruka. Rin woke up just long enough to give his final orders of the evening, "Rei, stay here until I send someone for our guest. Keep Nitori company."
"Aye, sir."
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Rin couldn't help his paranoid glances all around the deck as he and Makoto made their swift way back to his cabin. His crew had seen him in dishabille before of course but strutting around in no more than a thin blanket did seem to be pushing the boundaries of taste a little far.
Makoto was perfectly shameless. In fact, Rin could swear he caught the beginnings of an amused smile tugging at those wind-chapped lips the one time he dared to look at Mako's face. He studiously avoided looking again, at least until they had both slipped into his cabin and pulled the door to behind them.
Considerably more at ease, Rin shrugged out of his garment, tossing it carelessly to the floor and chucking at Makoto's moue of distaste. Makoto was very much a cat; every bit as fastidious and determined that everything should be kept in its proper place… unless he intended to play with it or maim it beyond recognition. Add to that his distaste for open water and-
Oh. They had not discussed that yet. The faint tendrils of good humor vanished as quickly as they had come. "Mako, I'm sorry. I didn't expect the dinghy to-"
"That is on both our heads. I do not think the islanders made off with it; it's probably drifting on the current even now."
"Even so, I am sorry."
"That was my one provision for boarding this vessel, Rin, that you not throw me to the sea-" He gestured Rin to silence when it appeared he might protest. "But it wasn't your fault. That was just Dame Fortune showing her fickle colors again. We ought to be used to it by now."
Despite the reassuring words Rin could see the unnatural pallor of Makoto's normally warm amber skin. Not all of that came from the cool night air, and even as he thought of the trial his fingers jumped and flexed uncertainly. Rin watched as he delicately snuffed the lantern, leaving the room in a pitch darkness only they two could navigate.
There was no celebratory wine tonight, no further discussion of the events that had transpired. When Rin tried to raise the subject again, tucked neatly in their comforting bed, legs twined with each other's for the added warmth, Mako hushed him and turned away. Certainly a captain could order his first mate to respond, and perhaps in the light of day he might have done so, but between the darkness and the silence he couldn't bring himself to order his lover to speak and so he allowed dreams to take him.
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Warm water lapped at his back and his waist, tugging at him gently as he floated atop the waves. It was a familiar dream, one Rin had often enjoyed since childhood. The sun was high on the horizon and he could feel the warmth of it soaking into his bones. There was no land in sight, but there never was, and it had never concerned him; he knew better than to trust the sea's caprices, but if anyone was entitled to its benevolence it was he.
Tingling pleasure spread through him and he tipped his head back, allowing the water to play through the strands of his hair. It was the silence that nagged at him though; shouldn't there be gulls cawing or the vague lapping of the waves against his skin? Certainly, but all he heard echoing back to him was silence; tonight in particular it bothered him-
Until he heard a shrill, all too familiar scream and started awake, panting and gasping, hands reaching out blindly in the darkness for Makoto's familiar weight.
"Nightmare, you're fine." Ragged fingernails trailed along his sides, inciting already high-strung nerves, doubtless exactly what Makoto had intended. The man could manage nothing that was not calculated to his ends, and tonight of all nights Rin decided it purely annoyed the hell out of him.
"Damn straight it was a nightmare but I'll decide when I'm fine." Rin snapped, shoving Makoto away with uncustomary roughness. Makoto only sighed his understanding, catching Rin before he could separate them entirely.
"I was expecting to be the one sleeping lightly tonight; what is troubling you?"
"Can't remember." It was barely there at all, only the echo of a scream; no other impressions remained, but he could not forget that scream.
"Did someone shout out on deck?"
"All quiet above deck. Not so much as a mouse. I'd put that down to Grimmaulkin but that he's a lazy scamp." The old ship's cat was the butt of many a joke, but there wasn't a man aboard that would have willingly tossed him out. He wasn't much of a mouser, but the ship had never capsized while he was aboard- surely that meant he was a lucky one.
Rin could name many a ship without the benefit of a gnarled, old tomcat that sailed just fine, but damned if that little bastard didn't seek him out and curl up at his feet every time he considered replacing him with a younger mouser. Nagisa was just as useless and they still fed him, after all.
Slowly, Rin began to relax, focusing on the light stimulus of Makoto's fingers on his chilled flesh rather than the last tendrils of the dream. As his eyes finally began to drift closed once more, he felt the caresses take a more intimate turn, dipping farther beneath the cover and farther still until Rin caught his breath in expectation.
"Remember to breathe." Makoto whispered, amusement lacing his tone.
Rin reached out to him, but his hands were firmly batted away despite his drowsy protests, "Rest. Allow me." Which Rin recognized for the admission of unease that it was. Some men drowned their fear in drink, some in faith, still others chose to forget in a lovely woman's arms… Makoto had always had an eye for a well-built man, and he had never seen a reason to deny himself.
Those touches turned feather-light once more until Rin drifted somewhere between sleep and wakefulness, his body heavy with fatigue and a steadily building ache that Makoto soothed and incited by turns. Rin's breath stuttered out of him when Makoto sank unforgiving teeth into the skin of his hip, the sharp sensation barely enough to make him twitch, exhausted as he was. Makoto hummed with contentment, licking the sting away with a thorough tongue.
"You still taste of salt." Rin could hear the smile in his voice, and murmured vaguely in protest when Makoto's attentions suddenly stopped, stillness falling once more.
"Patience."
Rin's eyes dragged themselves open when he heard the sound of the bolted box beneath their bed being opened, the shuffling sound that indicated Makoto was making his way through it by touch alone. Then silence, and a steadily growing anticipation just beneath his skin.
The first touch of cool oil had him hissing softly between his teeth, soon prevented by Makoto's open-mouthed kiss. He gasped when he felt a singled finger slip into him easily. With an ease borne of practice Makoto sought out that spot that always made Rin writhe, but tonight he couldn't muster more than a small start, even when Mako pushed another slender finger into him, twisting provocatively.
"God, Mako, I'm tired-"
"Then sleep." Definitely laughter now. Smug bastard, Rin thought fondly, crying out in surprise when Mako pushed into him with no more warning. Loose-limbed and pliant with weariness, his body hardly resisted, and he rocked up lazily into Makoto's weight.
It was maddening, the way consciousness persisted in eluding him despite his best efforts, but eventually Rin gave up the battle for lost, allowing his abused muscles to go entirely limp, shocked when he felt an answering flutter and the sweet beginning of release. Rin slipped easily into sleep, Makoto finding his own in his willing body a moment later.
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With the captain and the first mate gone to their quarters, it was left to Nitori to neaten the galley, always taking care to ensure he never came within reaching distance of the dark islander. The floor was soaked and slippery, making it a trial simply to cross the room without breaking his neck. Rei stood guard, Nagisa long since departed to find someone to take over his shift and stand guard at Haruka's quarters.
An interesting choice that, though Nitori wasn't sure it was terribly wise. This way they would be granting the man quarters that could be locked from the inside, with no way of securing the door without. But he would be closer to the captain's quarters, and presumably more visible to the crew at large than if he had been consigned to the brig.
"How long do you suppose your captain intends to keep me?" Nitori started at the rich voice, and caught the man's eyes fixed on him when he turned to assist Rei.
"I'm not sure, but-" Rei began, he cut off at a sharp gesture from Nitori. Whatever their captain intended, Nitori was sure informing a prisoner of the length of his stay was not it.
"Then I will be kept in those quarters indefinitely?" Nitori remarked the interested posture, the way he leaned forward and his head tilted as though listening for a meaning just beneath Rei's words.
"Indefinitely is as good a time as any other for your release." Nitori added mildly. Let the captive refocus his attention on a source that would not do him half so much good as a well-intentioned Rei.
As expected, Haruka's attention turned back to him immediately. "How long have you been here, surgeon? I can't think you were a volunteer; there is no profit in tending to pirates-"
"I wondered if your island had any system resembling an economy. A communal approach would be more efficient given your small number."
Haruka's face darkened slightly, vexed at the implied criticism. He really was much too sensitive; the first mate would eat him alive if their captain didn't get to him first. Of course, Nitori was determined to have his say as well.
"Did you assume we sprung up from the ground fully formed? Most of us had homes elsewhere."
Rei broke in, face betraying honest curiosity, "Then where is your vessel? It should have been visible as we approached if it existed at all."
Haruka held his silence, treating them both to an unblinking stare- a vote in favor of silence.
Nitori turned the thought over in his head as he worked, methodically cleaning every wet patch from the floor while Rei stood guard, rapier displayed to best advantage at his hip. He was nervous else it would have been tucked neatly into the folds of his coat as per usual. Nitori could hardly fault him, being filled with nervous energy himself.
Rei was right, had there been a vessel of any significant size they should have seen it as they approached the island. But that was assuming the ship was still on the water, if it were dry-docked there was no guarantee they would have seen it and with all the timber in that forest it would have been no trouble to construct a platform if the crew knew how.
Meaning the Samenoe could well find itself fending off an attack from two directions. That was not a thought he cared to dwell on too long, particularly when one of those ships was an imperial patrol.
Had his likeness been distributed among the captains or had his crimes been pardoned by simple virtue of his disappearance? Another soul lost at sea never to be recovered? Nitori could feel the sand slipping through the hour glass and knew in a way his books could never explain that his good fortune was coming to an end. He would not surrender gracefully though. It was one ship and one crew; now he had one of his own that had every bit as much a need for his services.
Nagisa's footsteps drew him out of his increasingly dark thoughts, the fatigue heard plainly in his voice as he gave his orders. "Take him below and leave him in the cabin. You two can take first watch and I'll send someone to relieve you once we know what the captain intends to do with him. Try not to damage him unless he gets out, then gut him." He finished cheerfully, beaming widely at a glowering Haruka.
The opening maneuvers had begun.
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Haruka allowed himself to be led docilely to his new quarters though it was only through a marked effort of will that he kept from grinding his teeth in frustration. This was about the farthest point from where he wanted to be, and he could swear the crew knew it. Was he so transparent or had natural deceivers simply recognized one of their own? A question for later, far less important than what he intended to make of his circumstances.
The stocky gent to his side threw the sturdy door open once they arrived, and Haruka hurried into the room before he could be hurled bodily into it. As far as ship's quarters went, it was luxurious. The bed in the corner was small and those sheets looked yellowed from dust and disuse, but there was a bed.
He would take the hammock in the far corner until he could see to cleaning those sheets, provided he remained that long.
As the door slammed behind him he took stock of his surroundings: there were no furnishings save the bed and hammock- no desk to explore or end-table, but a single brazier tucked in the corner that glowed with coal. The room was too cramped for much else, but there was a thick rug on the floor that Haruka thought would make a cleaner blanket than anything on that bed-
He nearly jumped out of his skin when the door opened again to admit the surgeon, carrying a leftover blanket and what looked like a shirt. "I am sure the captain will see to the rest of your needs tomorrow, but you will need the blankets tonight."
"Thank you." Manners cost him nothing, and perhaps it would impress upon the healer that he was no longer in the rough company he'd grown accustomed to keeping. He thought he caught a faint glimmer of amusement before the surgeon ducked out of the room as quickly as he had arrived, shutting the door firmly behind him.
With two guards posted to the door and heaven knew how many crewmen still milling about the deck at this hour he could not afford to leave the room. That did not mean his work was finished for the night.
Haru prowled the room as the hours stretched on, examining the hinges on the door, the joinings of the floorboards and seeking out even stray splinters beneath the bed. By the time dawn had begun to lighten the sky he had a plan. It was risky, and carried with it the possibility of serious recriminations beyond what he hoped but it was all that had come to him in the past hours despite his best efforts.
The corner of the rug was an adequate shield for his hands as he nimbly rescued a few burning coals from the brazier. It was hardly an honorable war effort, taking advantage of his enemy's hospitality, but they had given him the weapon. It would be rude if he did not oblige them.
Casting the coal across the deck, he hurriedly pulled on the thin covering of the shirt and mussed his hair as though caught sleeping. He dropped to his knees and blew until that small ember roared to crackling life, holding the edge of the rough blanket above it until the fuzz caught the flame and it began to spread.
All that was left was to return to his bed and…
"Fire! Fire below decks!" He screamed, not entirely counterfeiting the fear in his voice. Fire was a tricksome element, prone to blazing out of control with little provocation.
Then the door banged open, his guards rushing in to douse the flames and encountering thick smoke as the smoldering second coal burned on. Neither one of them could be bothered to give a damn when he pushed past them, sprinting up the stairs to the main deck.
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"Gou."
It was no trouble to pull the blanket farther over her head, yanking the pillow over her ear and turning her back on the source of that voice.
"Gou, wake up."
A thread of annoyance, quickly smothered. Still, that was Sei's Captain Voice, the one that said she ignored it at her peril. She debated a second too long and found the blanket yanked unceremoniously from her body, the pillow tossed aside until she had no choice but to face Sei, beaming with disgustingingly good cheer at this unholy hour.
"You'll want to take your bath before you begin your chores. The water will get cold otherwise."
Refocusing her eyes she could see now that his hair was wet, though drying quickly. A clean towel dangled in his other hand, held tauntingly before her.
"You used the water before me? That is not conduct becoming an officer." She sniffed, snatching the towel from his hand before he could reconsider the generous offer.
"On the contrary, it is captain's privilege. Normally a cabin boy wouldn't see fresh water again until the ship made port. Count yourself fortunate." Didn't he sound every kind of smug today?
"But since you are so insistent the ship ahead must belong to your brother I thought you might like to tidy up. If the wind holds we should catch them up later in the evening."
"Why the devil didn't you say so?" Gou shrieked excitedly, jumping from the cot with no sign of her earlier lethargy.
"I think your mother will not thank me when you return spouting phrases like that. You should keep a watch on your mouth, miss, for your own sake."
An impudent tongue was all the answer he received; hardly unexpected, he had received the same answer every time he criticized her conduct and usually a saucy remark to the effect of him being her captain not her governess. Well enough, it was little concern of his if she could strip the lacquer from wood and curdle milk at a dozen paces, so long as her work was done by the end of each day.
Truth be told, it could be quite comical when she thought she had guessed the meaning of a word and used it entirely the wrong manner. Suzuki had nearly fallen overboard with shock when she had called him a 'fuck-eating lackwit.'
Sei had felt honor-bound to correct her on that score, if only to save her face among the crew.
"Where's the tub?" The unabashed excitement in her voice was enough to bring an answering smile to his face as he gestured out the door.
"In the galley, nearest the hot water. Bar the door behind you." It would do no one any good if some hungry crewman stumbled into the galley and got an eyeful. They knew she was a girl, no need to remind them of the fact and recall to mind the gossip that had spread about the ship in those early days after her discovery.
A quick "Will do!" floated back to him below.
At least he had her word for it, and a solid half hour alone to catch up on his log before she returned, he estimated.
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A.N.
Chapter title comes from "I'm Burning for You" by the Blue Oyster Cult for obvious reasons, and also because I was watching waay too much Supernatural when I wrote this.
For : tbh it feels really weird not replying to reviews after using AO3 for this long, but it also feels really weird to use the PM, so I think I'll just go old school and use this space for replies. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
That said, next chapter should be up by Monday because I'm going into Midterm Mode.
Much luck to anyone else in my boat!
That said,