”I’ll take the tray to the galley and then I’ll come back here.”
Cole stacked the trays on each other and took them from the desk.
He got no reply and turned to meet Tan’s gaze.
Tan nodded, but it was obvious he had more to say.
Cole raised his eyebrows at him.
Tan shifted nervously.
“Would you stay the night?”
Cole smiled.
“Sure. I just need to grab the soft pants that I normally sleep in from my cabin. I won’t be long.”
Tan relaxed with a smile and gave him a nod.

Vock looked up from the stove when Cole walked in to the galley.
“Took your sweet time eating that dinner.”
“Sorry. I can help you with the dishes if you’d like. You don’t have to stay up for that.”
Vock tilted his head when Cole came closer.
“I don’t know what you two have been doing, but it looks like it got ruff.”
Cole gave Vock a confused look before he realized what Vock was looking at.
“Oh. That… Tan showed me some collections and I leaned in without him realizing. He turned his head. That’s it.”
Vock nodded.
“I see. For a moment I thought you two had got in to some rough play or something.”
Cole shrugged, even if he felt his cheeks get warmer.
“Should I help you with the dishes?”
Vock shook his head.
“No. It’s fine. I think the captain wants you back in his bed as soon as possible any way.”
Vock gave him a knowing look when he took the trays.
Cole didn’t have an answer, so he just gave Vock a nod and walked away.

Tan was standing by his desk when Cole stepped in to the cabin. He gave Cole a smile and put down the device he had been looking at.
“The bed might be a bit small for two, but I think we’ll manage.“
“Sure. I’ve never shared a bed before, but if I roll over you or anything, just push me back or something.”
Tan smiled.
“There are many things I would do if you rolled over me, and pushing you back isn’t one of them”, he teased.
Cole chuckled and shook his head.
“As you wish.”

Tan’s bed was a bit bigger than Cole’s, which Cole was grateful for when they crawled in to it together.
Tan was quick to pull Cole close and wrap his arms around him. To avoid Tan’s horns, Cole leaned his head against Tan’s chest.
In the silence that followed, they could hear the ocean outside the hull and the low creaks and hums from the ship. Cole could also hear the steady beat of Tan’s heart, with the deep breaths causing slow movements in his torso.
It was quite peaceful to just lie there.

Tan fell asleep pretty soon. Cole could hear the slow shift in his breathing and felt his body relax.
With the quiet darkness came the thoughts. He felt something strongly for Tan and wondered if it was love. He didn’t know much about it. What surprised him the most was that the feeling actually scared him. He was afraid to attach such a strong emotion to one person, not knowing what it would lead to. The mere thought of losing Tan dug a cold hole in his stomach.
Was that love? To live in constant fear of losing the person you were attached to?

Cole slowly moved his head to glance at Tan’s face. He could barely see him in the dark, but the sight still sent a surge of emotions through him. He wanted to scoop Tan up and hold him in a strong embrace so that nothing ever could hurt him.

It had to be love.
Either that or he was losing his mind…

Cole lifted his hand and gently touched Tan’s horn. He followed the curve pass the ear up to the head.
It surprised him how warm they were. Half the horns were cool, but the part close to his head was quite hot.

Cole leaned his head on Tan’s chest again and closed his eyes. He sighed deeply and focused on the sound of Tan’s heartbeat. After a while, he managed to keep his mind calm for long enough to fall asleep.

Cole woke up when Tan turned around and flopped over him.
Tan’s chin leaned against Cole’s head while his arm wrapped around Cole’s shoulders.
Cole realized he needed to bring his own pillow if they were going to make it work. He needed to sleep further down in the bed, so Tan could move his head without the risk of hitting him. Cole would get more than a black eye if they tried to share a pillow.

He glanced up at the porthole to see the golden light of dawn shining in like a thick ray.
Maybe he would try to sleep a few more minutes. His morning routine involved Tan anyway, and as long as Tan slept, he didn’t need to get up.

A soft kiss touched his lips.
Cole groggily opened his eyes to meet Tan’s gaze.
Tan smiled and came closer.
“Morning, sleepy head.”
Cole grunted in response and put his arm around Tan’s waist.
Tan chuckled and pressed his body against Cole’s.
“Happy to see me?” he asked teasingly.
“It’s morning, but yeah. Take it as a compliment if you like.”
Tan chuckled again and kissed Cole a few times.
“Would you like to use the opportunity?”
Tan’s soft whisper tickled against Cole’s cheek.
Cole smiled.
“Sure. Won’t take long anyway.”
Cole could feel Tan’s smile in the kisses he received.
Things got a bit more serious after that, but also a bit less nervous than the day before.

Cole had to tilt his head a bit to rest his chin against Tan’s shoulder. Under him, Tan was breathing just as heavy as he was.
Tan took an extra deep breath to gather himself.
“You won’t stop to amaze me in a lifetime.”
Cole smiled at the words before he lifted his head to meat Tan’s gaze.
“Well, you can’t accuse me of dragging on for too long at least.”
Tan chuckled.
“I don’t mind. You take me to see the stars anyway, and leaving me dazed with the experience.”
He lifted his head to give Cole a kiss.
“But now, if you don’t mind, I really need to use the head”, he added and started to get up.
Cole rolled off him to let him leave the bed.
“Don’t take too long. I would rather not use the bathroom down in the galley after Ezur.”
He heard Tan chuckle before he closed the door to the bathroom.
Cole sighed with a lingering smile on his face as he got out of bed to get his clothes.

Cole came up from the galley after leaving the morning dishes to Vock. He shared a smile with Tan before he looked around to find Track close to the bow. It looked like he was oiling some wooden things that were placed like pins in holes on the gunwale. Those pins were made to hang coils of rope on and could be found in numerous locations around the ship.

Cole casually walked over to lean on the gunwale a few feet away from him.
“I have a question.”
Track gave him a look.
“Sure. Go ahead.”
Cole sighed while he tried to find the best way to ask.
“Is it disrespectful to grab someone’s horns?”
Track met his gaze again.
“In what way?”
Cole shrugged.
“In general, I guess.”
Track tilted his head while he continued his work.
“That is a hard question to answer. You basically grab some one’s head and most would find it weird, but there are occasions where it would be acceptable… I guess you could say it’s like grabbing some one’s hair. If you’re close to the person and being playful, it could be fine or even appreciated, but I wouldn’t do it to a stranger.”
Cole nodded.
“Right. Makes sense.”
Track shot a look at Tan before he glanced at Cole.
“If you ask me, I think Tan probably would like it, being dominant and playful at the same time. Give it a try and see what happens. You’ll know if it’s appreciated.”
Cole nodded and let his gaze wander to the open sea.
Tan probably would like it…

“Is that the reason for your black eye?”
Track’s question snapped him back from his thoughts.
“No. Tan simply turned his head and accidentally hit me.”
“Huh… I thought you two were going at it by now, considering the sparks between you.”
“We are, but that has nothing to do with my black eye.”
Track raised an eyebrow and gave Cole an amused look.
“Good to know.”
They both held back a smile while turning to previous occupations.

Cole stood next to Tan by the wheel as they tied up to the docks in Eldow.
“Anything you need?” Tan asked as he kept an eye on things.
“Not that I can think of, but it would be nice to see something else and stretch my legs for a while.”
Tan smiled and nodded.
“We could run some errands and check if someone needs some shipping. A job would be nice. It gives the traveling more of a purpose.”
Cole nodded.
He spotted Track leaving the ship in a hurry.
“Where is he going?”
Tan gave Track a look.
“Many harbors expect you to report your arrival and sign the books when you visit. A way of keeping a log of all the ships coming and going in the city. Track normally takes care of that.”
Cole nodded before following Tan down to the lower deck.

Track came back in a short while with a tense expression on his face.
Tan barely took a breath to ask about it when Track spoke first.
“We need to leave.”
Tan furrowed his brows.
“What?”
Track gave him a paper he had in his hand.
With a confused look, Tan looked at the paper. Cole gave it a glance over Tan’s shoulder and stiffened. His own face looked back at him, sketched in black ink. It was a missing person poster.
“Last seen on The Valkyrie, heading north from Nara”, Track pointed on the paper.
Tan stared at it for a moment before he quickly rolled the paper as if anyone could see it.
“Cast of. We leave at once”, he said shortly.
Track gave him a nod before looking at the others.
“Alright. Let’s get going.”
He made a big gesture and they got to work instantly.

Cole stood next to Tan and glanced over his shoulder at Eldow. He would have liked to see the city, but it seemed like he was a wanted man now.
His stomach felt cold when he realized he had put the whole crew at risk. They were all wanted. It was just a matter of time before prize hunters came after them.
His father was not going to let him go.

Cole looked up when heavy footsteps walked up to him and Tan.
“Meeting”, Ezur grunted and offered to take the wheel.
Tan let him take over and gestured at Cole to follow.
Cole walked behind him down to the others standing by the main mast. Even Vock had joined them to discuss the situation.
Cole stood slightly behind Tan when they stopped at the gathering.
“So. Prince of Orison. That’s new.”
Track didn’t look angry, but his crossed arms didn’t make him look friendly either. His gaze turned to Tan.
“I assume you knew?”
Tan nodded.
“Yeah. I figured it out quite soon.”
“So what do we do now?” Vu asked.
Tan sighed.
“I’d say we start with Middvatter. No one will search for us there.”
“We can’t stay there forever.”
Tan nodded with a deep sigh.
“I know…”
He then tensed up a bit as if he just realized something and met Cole’s gaze.
He had most definitely realized something.
“Keep going back to Middvatter. I need to talk to Cole for a moment.”
Tan grabbed Coles arm and pulled him along towards the captain’s cabin. Cole followed him swiftly and hoped he had a good plan, even if he couldn’t see why they would not talk about it in front of the others.