Shit.

By some miracle Haru managed to keep from thrusting into Mako's sudden grip. Arousal was not an uncommon reaction to fury or fear, and the farther this game progressed the more willing he was to admit privately that he was concerned for his health. The question was no longer whether he was going to answer Makoto's questions, but which would be least damaging to his ultimate aim. If he played his cards right, and Mako certainly seemed susceptible, then he could be home shortly and all of this would be no more than an unfortunate memory.

If he guessed wrong there was far worse his captors could do than a little discomfort or intimidation. He would rather have been dealing with the captain. That would at least have been a straightforward negotiation between equals. With this one he could never be sure whether his reactions were correct or only digging his grave deeper. In either case, he wanted to conclude their banter as swiftly as possible but leave Mako with no suspicions regarding his intent. That could come later, when this crew of madmen were safely on the ocean floor.

"Have you been so long without a woman that anyone will do?"

Makoto laughed aloud, a genuine roar of mirth that set the bed to quaking, "A bold question, especially given your position. What if my answer was yes?"

Still he had not moved his hand. He had to know that Haru wanted nothing more than to move, but if he did it would only make him seem that much more desperate and Makoto would pounce on any vulnerability like a cat on a mouse.

Haruka had never been in the mouse's position before. It was not coming naturally to him.

"Resorting to rape? A ham-handed tactic, I expected better."

Mako sighed melodramatically, "That's what a few years at sea does, I suppose. Strips away all those manners you were at such pains to learn." His eyelids fluttered violently, and despite his words he jerked away as though burned.

Haruka wondered how much of that reaction was the doing of his snide remark and how much was merely his captor hoping to keep him off balance. He strongly suspected the latter, but almost regretted the impulse that had made him strike out verbally. It was plain Mako was dabbling with the captain, they had taken no pains to hide it. Would it divide them if Mako were found with another man? He might well have thrown away a strategic advantage because he didn't have the spine to take it.

Makoto still hadn't seen fit to free him from the last of the restraints; would he if this progressed any further? Haruka stretched his muscles again, feeling more limber now that his initial panic was beginning to recede. The answer could not possibly be so simple as a seduction; this could hardly be the first time a prisoner had tried their luck and Haru was painfully aware that under the best of circumstances it would prove difficult to carry off. Bound in makeshift restraints and testing his untried wiles against a former spymaster was hardly the best of circumstances.

Nevertheless, Mako had shown a marked interest in him. Evidently he was appealing, whether it was for his form or lack of variety hardly mattered.

Haruka allowed a challenging smile to twist his lips, gut churning with an acute mixture of trepidation and excitement; it was the peril that appealed to him he supposed. On the one hand, victory could only come with sacrifice, but on the other…

He was familiar with the practice. During his own days at sea it was an open secret that some of the crew turned to their mates for relief; brothels in ports were always careful to appeal to every taste, regardless of legality. He knew the gist, but wasn't certain he could bring himself to play this particular game. At least not against this opponent, and not with so little time to get used to the idea.

The scene flashed through his eyes, missing a detail here or there. He needed only the basic scope of the potential outcomes to make his decision.

If he could keep Mako occupied and simultaneously cause trouble between captain and first mate then his efforts would be rewarded. Miho would already be taking steps to ensure their own would be protected; much as he would rather keep this crew from their boat it would put him back ashore with more valuable resources at his command. It would give Miho a chance at rescue he knew she wouldn't pass up, and the selfish part of him wanted to give in and proceed with that plan in mind.

But.

If these sons of bitches stayed aboard ship it was only a matter of time before the imperial navy caught them up. Haruka was no more eager to deal with imperialists than the pirates but his treatment was sure to be superior and his avenues of escape more numerous than if he were under this man's care. And assuming they did escape by some miracle, the samenoe would have no choice but to put in to the nearest port for repairs regardless of their druthers. In these waters there were very few ports that welcomed corsairs; he could guess the island they would have to make for.

And wonder of wonders, but he had a friend or two there that might be willing to do him a favor in exchange for the same. This unfortunate circumstance would neatly conclude with his kin safe from harm, all for the price of a few baubles easily recuperated. Two birds struck neatly with one stone. The only question that remained was how far he would have to go to keep Makoto and his kind entertained long enough to guide them into the mouth of the trap.

Slowly, biting back a wince at the sharp ache, Haru drew his legs up enough to push himself into a sitting position. He entertained a brief fantasy of dislocating his shoulder and slipping the last of his bonds, but that would prove both excruciating and ineffective, even supposing he could muster the will to see it through. Mako took a step back, folding his arms at his chest and watching with mute appreciation while Haru squirmed and writhed into position.

As with any negotiation, the first man to speak would lose ground. He knew instinctively that Makoto would not breathe a word until he did.

"You're remarkably silent for a man that had so many questions."

"You were thinking. It would have been rude to interrupt." The unholy gleam in his eyes suggested he had divined at least something of Haruka's thoughts and was not prepared to yield easily.

"If you were considering that seduction might distract me, I assure you that is entirely correct." The words were light and teasing, the sudden tension in Mako's face bespoke a nervousness whose source Haruka couldn't begin to guess.

He knew so little of this man: once officer, once spymaster, once prostitute, but why and where and what else? He had killed all the right men for years, carried out his duties with a zealousness that disconcerted his peers and an enjoyment that even his infamous predecessor found repulsive. Then he had killed the wrong man. And now- what was Tachibana Makoto now?

Haruka hoped the years away had dulled his edge.

"I would rather be your prisoner than your whore." It was nothing less than the truth. Painful experience had taught him that when dealing with professionals the best lies began with a foundation of honesty.

"That answers one of my questions."

"Which one would that be?" Like they were having conversation over supper. Except that his hands were beginning to sting from lack of blood and his throat was parched after breathing so much salt air.

"I was considering the fastest way to convince you to answer my other, very reasonable questions. Your choice, then, is whether you will answer and remain solely a prisoner until such time as the Samezuka is no longer a threat or whether you would rather try your hand at whoring. Myself, I think you have the look of a natural."

Makoto's smile was almost as toothy as his captain's, and lacking in all the warmth that made Rin's even fractionally appealing.

Haru drew a final steadying breath. Makoto had taken the bait, and now it was on him to play it out.

"Fine."

!

!

The boy's reaction was unexpected to say the least. A stray breeze could have knocked Makoto down in his shock. After the scorn and contempt, the insolence that dripped from his every word and his insistence that no manner of coercion would make him speak, he was disappointed to find that this was the limit of Haruka's resolve.

Disappointed and profoundly suspicious. Rape was a threat most men found viscerally terrifying, and he had witnessed a range of reactions from immediate cooperation to violent rebellion, but for this one to resign himself so quickly, and without even the merest vestige of surprise or disgust-

Makoto could not bring himself to trust the easy compliance. For all that, he still posed the question most plaguing Rin's mind: "Do you have a seaworthy craft?"

Haruka's voice was flat, so devoid of rage it could only be a mask. "She's not built for deep water." A flick of the eyes and tightening of the chin said the words tasted bitter on his tongue. Likely truth then, at least in part.

It went without saying that his comrades would have taken care by now to secure the safety of their only seaworthy vessel. Assuming-

"Are there more?"

"No." Haruka sucked his teeth quietly, resentment still smoldering in his eyes.

Every instinct screamed at Mako to be wary but he could not see where the trap might be set. There was nothing in tone or body to give the man's intentions away and after his honest reaction of only a few minutes ago that in itself was disturbing.

"Was your ship provided by a merchanting guild? Are you allied with any-"

"No. We don't care to pay dues any more than the next man."

Mako sneered contemptuously, bitter amusement bleeding into his voice: "Then you are hardly any better than pirates yourselves. How many to your makeshift clan?"

"That I will not answer. But I will say that you have no chance of taking them off guard again, an attempt would not go well for you and yours." The fire rose in his gaze and Mako was comforted. He had found a boundary Haru still was not willing to cross. Perhaps it was only his mind, playing tricks and making him imagine the task had been too simple. He was interrogating a pearl diver, not a trained spy, really what could he have expected?

Except that for his eleventh hour protest, Haruka was still showing signs of uncertainty. Regretting his decision not to follow through with a play at seduction? That had been among his smarter choices since stepping foot aboard ship. As it was, Makoto was half-tempted to keep him for spite's sake. What benefit in joining freeloading corsairs if he could not indulge like one every now and again?

After all, Rin had promised him his very own dolphin not so long ago, and this was the closest he had found to actually keeping one. Haruka was a talented swimmer, and he had the body to show for it.

Anticipation prickled his skin, Mako barely kept from licking his lips with it. He had not said seduction was off the table merely for the sake of a few answers he would have extracted anyway. And simply because Haruka had decided not to try his hand at it did not mean he was bound by that decision.

Questions first, then indulgence. It was the hallmark of a professional and the last vestige of his training he still doggedly clung to. Besides which, delay always made the prize more delectable.

Of course, time was pressing and if he delayed there was no telling when or if the opportunity might present itself again. If the Samezuka caught them up this could well be his last chance. In a contest between professional pride and personal pleasure, he knew which was going to win out before he had even taken that small step forward, kneeling down to place them at eye level again and laying his palms flat against Haruka's thighs in a way that had his captive tensing to run.

Indulging with prisoners was something that had never appealed to him before. What fun could there be in seducing someone that was already subdued?

That was the draw of Haruka, he supposed. By all rights he should have been thoroughly cowed, but his defiance was more than a show of bravado- it was confidence and contempt, frustration, and animal rage that anyone would dare to think him tamed.

Such a pity about that last knot wound round his wrists. The one that kept him from lashing out with all that banked fury painted so becomingly on his face. Makoto's smile broadened into a grin that would have better suited his captain, all teeth and naked hunger.

"What made you change your mind about answering me?" He could see understanding in Haruka's eyes, and a blatant challenge to follow through. A nervous palsy set his body to trembling for a split second only to fall still. Makoto shivered in sympathy, startled to find that at some point his chest had begun to rise and fall in time with Haruka's own. Their breathing was shallow and choppy, bodies relaxed only because they each willed it so with a last shred of focus.

"It certainly wasn't your charm." Haruka scoffed, raising a brow while his bloodless lips stayed frozen in a smirk. His muscles leapt beneath Mako's fingers as they smoothed over the fabric down to the seam that ran up his leg… and up still a little more-

Haruka's mouth tightened with displeasure but he didn't protest or pull away, only locked eyes with Mako, telling him without words to carry through and suffer the consequences if he was reckless enough.

He was beautiful, Mako thought, but not in Rin's way: fire and passion with the merest whisper of softness beneath.

Sylvan. Otherwordly, his mind provided, still lingering over impossible eyes and a chin set tight with defiance. Haru's softness was all on the surface and Mako battled with an impulse to strip it away with fear and agony in order to bare the steel he could see just beneath, so perilously close to the surface it had his neck hair prickling with a keen awareness of their proximity. Haruka could attack him now. It was unlikely he would succeed in making his escape, but Mako would not put it past this man to lunge for his throat and tear out the artery with his teeth.

The image was vivid in his mind, and he noted only peripherally that he had swallowed in sympathy with his false shade, barely stifling an impulse to clamp a protective hand to his throat when Haruka's mouth opened.

"Are we through?" The words held the chill of winter's first breath, but Mako could feel heat through the thin cloth shielding Haruka's skin. Pale skin that would be quick to show bruises and where scars would only seem a lighter shade of moonlight. He could carve a map into this man's skin that would never fade, but in time would only be seen by its bearer as he moved beneath a high sun. Invisible except to the touch of fingers and a discerning eye.

"Where are you from?"

Haruka rocked back, probably trying one last time to eel out of his bonds before accepting the inevitable. "I'll tell you when I get to hell."

"I could send you there right now." Mako finally remembered the thin blade he had used to sever the rope. Almost of its own volition the blade rose to press against the dip just beneath Haru's chin. One hard jab, a vicious yank and he was dead. Mako blinked rapidly, pushing memories aside. It didn't escape his notice the way Haruka's gaze sharpened, eyes narrowed and intent.

He pressed, watching a thin welt rise. Their prisoner was dehydrated, any imprint left on him would linger. Distracted, Mako nearly winced when his blade pressed a little too deep, a thin line of blood welling. It had been years since he had made such a novice miscalculation, but he didn't immediately pull away, too busy watching Haruka lick his chapping lips nervously, only to bite down in a surge of determination. He never flinched, not so much as a hitch of breath to betray his fear. Just that thoughtless lick.

Knife steady, Mako closed the distance between them to press his lips to the blood. Rin claimed there were some who believed that taking a man's blood would give them life, that taking the heart could somehow confer bravery. At the time he had dismissed it for a tale used to send a stubborn child flying for the safety of his bed. He thought perhaps he could see the allure now.

!

!

Haruka froze at the first touch of lips against his flesh, hands clenching into fists as best they could. He had thought his life was over when Mako had pressed that knife to his throat; there was a glint of madness in his eyes that had not been there a moment ago. He wasn't sure if Mako was even seeing him anymore or a phantom from his past.

He couldn't have moved even if his life depended on it, and Haru was half-convinced it might depend on not moving, but he almost recoiled when he felt the rough lap of Mako's tongue along the cut. A vicious nip made him wince, toes curling to keep from even the smallest twitch. This he had not been prepared for. He had hoped Mako would make some sort of advance, maybe push him to the bed or leave a mark on him that could not come from torture.

That he could have exploited, showing it to the captain and the crew, sowing doubt and discord: if their first mate could be won in so short a time what manner of concessions might he have made for a favored prisoner? It was supposed to end there. With the Samezuka so close and his captain clamoring for answers, Mako was not supposed to have had time for dalliance.

Except that Haru could feel his calloused palms catching on the rough material of his trousers while they traced up the inside of his thigh, pushing his hips just a little farther apart. The knife was still clasped loosely in his left, the flat of the blade was cold even through his clothes. Mako's hands hesitated at the juncture of his thighs, there was no denying that he was hard, but both of them were painfully aware of it already.

Mako pulled away slightly and Haru was relieved to see a return to sanity in his face, but his hands still slid farther-

Behind Haru's back to the ropes binding his hands- was he going to free them? Haru struggled to keep his intentions from showing on his face. As soon as he was loose he would head-butt Mako, take the knife while he reeled in disbelief and bolt for the door. No use wasting his time fighting a dead man. He'd be in the water before they could raise the alarm and far enough way to evade capture by the time anyone was ready to come for him. Miho would already have put their defensive strategy into motion, he would secure the boat and wait.

If they did not come so much the better, and if they did he would be waiting with reinforcements.

"If you try any of it, I will castrate you, leave you here to die, and ask my captain's permission to stake your pretty companion out on the shore at high tide. He'll be delighted."

"You don't have the time."

Haru sucked in a breath as the ropes were freed, blood rushing to his fingertips so that they burned with unexpected pain. Mako pulled back just in time to catch the brunt of the head-butt with his mouth, while Haru recoiled, damn sure that his head would show the imprints of Mako's teeth for years to come. His only satisfaction came of watching Mako spit pink onto the deck and run his tongue along his teeth to check for any shaken loose. Evidently satisfied that none were in danger, he smiled.

"I suppose that was fair."

His answering grin was feral to say the least, made all the more so by the warm trickle of blood he could feel beginning just above his forehead. His arms still would not move, and he half-wished sensation hadn't returned to his fingers so he allowed the blood to fall unimpeded. Aching as it was, he dared not shake his head-

Mako's thumb smeared over the cut, leaving Haru to stare disbelievingly while he licked the blood from it. "Head wounds always bleed so much. You have to be careful of the hands too."

Haru's chuckle was not a sound of amusement by any stretch of the imagination. "I thought you were going to castrate me?" He wished he could call back the words the second they left his mouth. Not because he was worried Mako might make good on his threat, but because rather than answering, he began gathering up the length of rope, testing its roughness against his hand. Haruka knew what was coming before Mako even spoke.

"I think I've found another way to take my due." The knife thudded into the deck with enough force that Haru leapt, gazing wide-eyed at the way it stuck in the wood. The amount of strength required to embed the tip in the deck should have been more than such a slender man could muster.

He didn't resist when Mako took his hand, massaging it gently in a way that managed to be not at all reassuring. He didn't kick when Mako reached down to draw his ankle up, neither when he felt the rope begin to loop around foot and hand together, no longer so tight but every bit as inexorable. He knew what was coming, but hadn't expected it to be quite so methodical or so amicable after his assault.

"We'll have to be careful of your fingers. Nagisa nearly lost his once owing to a careless knot. By the bye, I don't suppose you want to tell me where your ship came from?"

His other hand, his other foot, Haru felt like nothing so much as a dressed pheasant until Mako began to push him back, spreading his legs as he pressed down on his shoulders.

"No, I didn't suppose so."

The retort Haru had planned stuck in his throat. His vision was hazy at the edges, and something gnawed at the back of his mind. Something important, dammit. A memory he knew he needed, but try as he might he couldn't wrest it to the surface. It was vital. His skin itched like bugs crawled beneath and his head was splitting with more pain than the head-butt should ever have caused and the damn ropes were chafing his skin but there was something here he was missing and it was as pressing as his next breath-

The next moment Makoto's lips were on his, and the memory was torn from his grasp and flung away like so much parchment.

!

!

Kissing him was like drowning.

Makoto froze, overcome by a moment of blind panic. His head was beneath the water and his throat was so tight, like someone had wrapped a noose about it. He couldn't draw a breath or the water would come rushing in, invading him with its coldness. Bells rang in his ears, and his own heartbeat gone wild-

He threw himself away from the man on the bed, gasping for breath and shaking with a terror he hadn't felt since his boyhood. Haruka appeared just as stunned as he, blue eyes wide with understanding, a knowledge he couldn't possibly have because only Rin knew what had happened that day. Makoto had killed the only other man he had told of it.

"You-" Haru's voice was unsteady, deeper than it had been a moment ago. There was a curious inflection to it Mako couldn't name, a tone he had never heard in all his years or any of his professions. Whatever it was it sent ice flowing through his veins and turned his legs to water.

"Who are you?"

He did not know if Haruka had asked the question or whether it was only an echo in his mind, but of all the questions he had sought answers for today that had suddenly become the most pressing.

With an effort he forced his legs to stop trembling, counting down until his breath evened out. The careless smirk that always came so easily to him refused to form so he settled for impassivity, a raised brow and questioning look when he wanted nothing more than to scramble outside and catch a breath of life-giving air to be sure he could.

Haruka mirrored his actions, and it was infuriating the way he could shrug off what had occurred so swiftly. In the space of a few seconds they were captor and prisoner again, but Mako knew he had lost ground. Haruka had seen a weakness, one he hadn't even been aware of, and he would not soon forget it.

Rage coiled in his gut when he saw that Haruka could muster a satisfied smile, one that said he was tied but in no way bound. Not any longer. What the hell happened?

He was half-afraid to touch Haruka again, but years of training forced him to close the distance between them. Mako pried the knife from the floorboard with a vicious jerk, drawing comfort from its reassuringly familiar weight. He had lost himself for only a moment, it wouldn't happen again.

Haru's hair was matted with dried salt after his night in the water, Mako twined his fingers in it, making sure he could not wrench himself up or away. He regretted the insanity that had made him take Haru's blood, and whatever had possessed him to steal that kiss, Mako banished it to the darkest corner of hell, but there was no lingering effect when he brushed against Haru's skin. No half-remembered impressions assaulted him.

"You should let me go." Haru's voice was utterly devoid of emotion. The cadence was all wrong, nothing like their spirited exchange. His eyes had changed too, no longer the dark blue Mako had admired on shore, but lighter now, lit with an unholy spark. The words sounded oddly prophetic, even uttered by a man still lying complacently on the bed.

It should have looked absurd, it should have been laughable, but Mako spoke in all seriousness when he answered. "Never."

The spell was broken as easily as that. He could almost feel himself shaking off the strange pall that had fallen over them. Haru shivered as he stretched, clenching his eyes shut and opening them again almost as though he was waking from a sleep. Mako didn't give him any more time to recover, knowing hands already prying at his shirt- wisteria. The surgeon.

His blade made short work of the fabric, hovering a mere breath above vulnerable skin. Haruka was still as any predator, nothing to betray him but the rising color in his cheeks, spreading down his neck and across the top of his chest. Mako quieted the voice of reason that insisted there was no time for this. So long as he did not think too deeply he could convince himself this was simply another aspect of his interrogation. Haruka would answer no more questions, he had yielded too much ground and for all he was a prisoner Haruka still had not accepted that he was not the arbiter of his fate.

But Mako's creeping, indefinite fear receded with every touch of warm skin against his own. His hands knew the path to follow, down Haruka's sides to his hips to linger there with unspoken threat and promise. He studied Haruka's still-light eyes, seeing the way his pupil was blown wide, the dedicated focus on every shift of his captor's expression, how his breathing grew quicker and deeper as he fought to control it. Neither of them were left unaffected by the interlude.

"Will you guide my captain to your craft?"

Haruka was surprised by the question, Mako could feel it in the tensing of his body and read it in the hitch of his lungs. "No."

Not so surprised as to surrender.

"Not without a concrete assurance of my people's safety."

Oh? Mako bridled. Rin would expect him to pursue this line of questioning; he should bargain and placate if those were the terms offered. All his years of training and experience screamed at him to kill the man and lie to his captain. Somehow this would be turned against them, he just couldn't figure out the how of it. His time aboard the Samenoe had done nothing to make him cautious, even as common sense railed against him he was rallying to the thought of a game between equal opponents.

Here he held every piece, but if he allowed Haruka to dictate to him in even this small manner the balance of power could shift ever so precariously. Enough even to put him and his erstwhile crew in jeopardy. Enough to give him a taste of what the bad old days had been like, when he had never been certain whether he would wake from his sleep and every day promised intrigue upon intrigue and his every choice decided who would live to see the end of it.

His tongue darted out to wet his lips. Hadn't his master warned him every man that drank to the dregs of power would never be rid of the thirst for it? He was as bad as any poppy addict, and this untried savage had just all-unknowingly tapped into the source of his discontent.

Rin would kill him if he took this gamble and lost. After so many seasons of plenty most of the crew had forgotten what Rin was capable of in the cold, biting months. There had been so few supplies for so many mouths, and it had been Rin that made sure no one's belly was too empty. In those days he had never threatened. In those days Mako had stalked at his heels like a loyal hound, snarling at everyone but never biting. That had been a privilege Rin reserved solely to himself.

Too many good years had made them both soft and complacent; uncertain where boldness was required, content when it was their starveling ambition that had brought them this far.

It was as plain as day what was required of him. He had promised to serve Rin faithfully but never blindly, and always at his own discretion. A betrayal of this magnitude would not be forgiven lightly, if at all.

Assuming Rin ever found out. In the end he would, sins had a way of making themselves known, but by then its purpose would be accomplished and they would all be the better for it.

Mako's fingers played over Haru's legs, watching for a protest. He saw curiosity, determination, annoyance and just the right degree of fear to make his own blood rise. "What manner of assurance would that be?"

The whispered words sounded as loudly as the report of Nagisa's pistols between them. Haruka startled beneath his touch, gritting his teeth. Mako gave in to the urge to move closer, sliding over taut muscle and surprisingly soft skin, pushing Haru's legs apart to cradle his own hips and sliding ever so gently against him. Just enough to deepen the ache that had seized hold of him the minute he had first seen those impossible eyes. Haru's breath hissed between his teeth, as much warning as acceptance in the sound.

Doubtless the islander's spirit rejected what his body welcomed, but so long as the denial did not cross his lips Mako intended to give them both what they craved. He checked the bindings again, noting the pinkening of Haru's fingertips. This would have to be rushed then; it would ruin his mood if the man were permanently damaged. He nearly leapt from his skin when, far from pulling away, Haru widened his stance of his own volition, sinking farther down and deliberately cradling Mako's hips.

"I will make shore first and speak with Miho. Then I will personally accompany you to our vessel and thence to whatever berth you choose. I will return within a specified number of days- along with our vessel- or you will find our island will cease to be neutral territory. We will yield it to imperial control; I am sure it will be a damn sight easier to pursue your ship once a permanent base is established there."

He was not bluffing, Mako knew it down to the marrow of his bones though he would have been hard pressed to say exactly how. It was a hefty sacrifice he was prepared to make, but great gains always required substantial risk. He too was counting on exactly that. And if he stood to lose so much, why not take a little?

"Understood, but… if I may?"

Haruka nodded unconsciously, stiffened again when one of Makoto's nimble hands slipped between them to investigate his already hard length. Poor thing, he was new to these games his opponent had mastered years ago. A languid arch reminded him the islander learned fast, and he was woefully out of practice after such a long stretch of fidelity. He thanked the fates anew he had had the foresight to keep those hands bound; it had been so long since had played with a clever novice he had forgotten how intoxicating it could be.

He leaned down to press his mouth to Haru's ear. Like Rin, he was sensitive there, from the corner of his eye he could see Haru's toes curl slightly in an effort to prevent any other reactions. "If I may… why not simply tell me as much when I asked the question, hm? Why does this suddenly seem so reasonable to you?"

"If I had answered then, we wouldn't be here, would we?"

An evasion if ever he had heard one. Haruka obviously did not expect him to believe it, and he did not, but half his enjoyment lay in knowing that treachery was inevitable and pursuing the same path anyway. The other half came chiefly of seeing his enemies suffer for their betrayal. With so many others counting on his judgment, it would be laughably simple to wound this one beyond recovery. He had to know it too. Mysteries within enigmas.

Mako nearly leapt away when he felt Haru's teeth latch unexpectedly in the flesh of his shoulder, piercing the skin until he felt the warmth of blood. The pain was manageable, even pleasant with the familiarity of so many years receiving exactly the same treatment from Rin. Fortunately they were in the infirmary, he could cleanse the wound himself without alerting the physician to it.

"Now I've taken your blood as well, I suppose that makes it a pact."

It would have if Mako were one of the superstitious sea-folk that normally crewed these ships. As it was he found it a damned nuisance that Haruka had not reacted quite so… violently as he had. Whatever that fit had been, it was unique to him. Mako chased away the tingle of fear with another kiss.

Mount again, his master had said the first time he was thrown from his horse. And the second, and the third. Fear was as difficult to excise as any disease once it had taken hold.

There was no drowning this time, no dizzying rush or seconds lost to teeth-chattering impressions of half-forgotten memories. He tasted the salt and iron of his own blood on chapped lips, felt the warmth of pliant flesh beneath him, heard the shift as Haru dared to turn his head, instinctively seeking a better angle. It was fury as much as lust, Mako knew. Even captive as he was, Haru was still attempting to exert control over his precarious situation, and Makoto was all too pleased to take advantage of it.

The shirt was gone in a second's time, the catch of his pants pulled away to make room for Mako's grasping fingers. He struggled to pull away, but Haru did not require the use of his hands to hold him motionless, questing teeth biting into the curve of his lip, mouth opening to invite his tongue, kissing with enough banked anger that Mako could almost pretend it was passion. Not that he was so inclined. This embrace did not wake any memories, this kiss was not familiar to him as Rin's own, it was sheer luck and long practice that allowed him to slip into a rhythm that had Haruka gasping against his mouth in a matter of seconds-

All of these were lies, but for the life of him Mako didn't know why. So he quieted the nagging whispers his ears could almost hear, refocused his thoughts so as not to 'see' whatever it was his mind sought to bring to the forefront and ignored the churning in his gut that warned him he had miscalculated. There was no logic to it, no reason, and he was above all a rational man not given to superstition.

He pulled away at the last moment to catch Haruka's eyes, wide open and caught on his own, still snapping with frustration and need as sharp as any knife. Mako knew the look, felt it reflected on his own face twofold.

Damn this man and whatever it was in him Mako could almost feel himself reaching to touch. Even when his own release finally took him, it provided no relief; he still lay face to face with Haruka, his thrice-damned enemy, wondering if this bone-deep sense of dread would ever leave him again or if he should accustom himself to it, both the fear and the want. Never had he moved quicker to right himself, releasing the bonds on Haruka's hands as though he wasn't still panting with need, as if both of them were not dazed at the enormity of what had happened.

It was nothing. Should have been nothing. Would have been nothing if he did not simultaneously feel the need to get the hell out of the infirmary and run his hands over every inch of bare flesh to seek out old scars and new injuries. He stepped away, putting a veritable gulf of distance between them. He would find Rin. Rin was his anchor, Rin could soothe him, make him forget the baseless anxiety of ignorance.

Find Rin, throw himself into preparations for the battle to come. Whatever business this was with Haruka he could sort out when the ship was safe. A word in Rin's ear and the man could easily be demoted from erstwhile ally to prisoner again. Mako had noted Rin's interest, and it would only be piqued if he found how skittish an hour alone in his company had made unshakable Mako.

Training made him seem calm. Training made him lean down to meet Haruka's eyes, twining a rough hand in his hair to tilt his head back. "I must speak with my captain, whether I truss you like a bird or only lock the door depends on whether you can convince me in the space of a breath that you will be here when I return."

Voice steady, breathing even, grip firm; his courage was returning by leaps and bounds and with it his sense of deviltry.

Haruka's voice, when he finally spoke after measuring his words for what seemed an eternity, hitched only slightly. "I will wait."

Truth. Mako released his grip, pointedly turning his back and striding from the room as nonchalantly as he could manage. He needed to find Rin and relay the news… and see about obtaining the captain's permission to keep a pet. Rin had promised him one, after all, though most were not so high maintenance.

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Haruka waited until the door had slammed to before allowing the shivering to take him. His teeth chattered uncontrollably but he wasn't remotely cold. His skin still felt too hot, stretched thin over something it wasn't meant to contain and what pitiful release that sadist had allowed him only left a hollow ache of twisting lust in his gut. He felt ill, feverish and dizzy, enough so that he was actually grateful to have been denied rations the night before. Had there been anything for his stomach to reject, Haru had no illusions he could have held it down.

This was wrong; he was off kilter. Anger had been replaced in an instant with a sharp curiosity, one that had goaded him into agreeing to stay when the merest minute before he could taste his freedom on his tongue. What was more, he wanted to. Had Mako actually attempted to release him, Haru was sure he would have turned violent. He wanted to unravel them, all of them. Take the skin from their bones and see what it was that had his skin prickling with unnatural awareness when Mako's lips had first touched his. He wanted to know if the captain's touch would provoke that same sense of… division. Of being something other than himself, a spectator to a macabre show. He wanted to make the surgeon weep for fear and the playful marksman fall silent for once.

Rage simmered in his veins, not at his plight because now he had chosen the path he was going to take and laid the snares along the way for his foes, but an absolute conviction that he would not be left without recourse again. Despair was swift to follow, leeching the spark from his eyes and leaving them once again the dark blue of the abyss. What he had to despair for when success was finally within his reach Haruka couldn't say, but he pressed the feeling aside for careful examination later, turning his attention to the infirmary and gleaning what he could of the surgeon from it.

To conquer, divide. Set them at each other's throats: the first mate against captain, healer against soldier, crew against their betters. By the time they reached Sanctuary it would be no haven at all. Then Haru could collect his broken pieces, the few that had caught his eye, and see what new use could be made of them.

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As you can see, plot ate my porn. I am an unintentional tease, forgive? It's coming, I promise. (Geez. It's frikkin' written, I just need to learn to stick with my darned outline.)

I'll be cleaning this chapter up later, but it is my beta's birthday (:D) and I wanted this to be a surprise so I kind of pulled a fly by night. (Shhhh. No telling)