Smut towards the end of the chapter!

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Hongjoong awoke in the middle of the night. Moonlight fell through the windows behind his bed to paint long stripes of bright light on the ground. Ever so gentle and calming, the ocean swayed the Grief beneath him. The rushing of waves created the best lullaby for him.

When something shifted behind him, Hongjoong blearily blinked his eyes around. His torso still throbbed with pain at every movement, but he felt the familiar wrapping of a tight bandage corseting his body.

A person sat on the other side of the bed, their face illuminated by the single candle dancing away to spend light. When he noticed Hongjoong shifting, Cabezon rose his eyes to him. They needed no words as their eyes observed each other.

"'Ow did ye find us out 'ere?"

Seonghwa pulled his boots off and set them neatly to the side. Too tired to scoff at his rigid cleanliness, Hongjoong just smirked.

"The caravans helped me out of the volcano. When I visited the city again to alert the local naval outpost, I was approached by a lady from the market. She told me the moon would shine the path to the owner of this bracelet. And it did." Seonghwa pulled up his sleeve to show Hongjoong the wristband with the moonstone. It wrapped around his arm prettily.

Hongjoong grinned with fascination.

"Do you want it back?" When Seonghwa moved to undo the laces Hongjoong shook his head.

"Keep it. It looks better on ye, anyway."

Agreeable in the silent night, Seonghwa shifted to join Hongjoong in bed. He stretched out his long limbs with a sigh. Hongjoong disliked the way his uniform pressed up against his naked body. For now, he kept his nagging to himself.

Seonghwa shifted to push his upper body up. He braced his hands left and right of Hongjoong's head, and looked down on him while his hip rested next to Hongjoong's. His care not to hurt the pirate was flattering.

"Why didn't you tell me the full truth? You left me in the dark even after several instances of it being so close. Was it to make me suffer?"

Hongjoong's fingers lazily fiddled with the useless tassels and cords on the front of Seonghwa's uniforms. He used them as a distraction not to look at Seonghwa's beautiful features. The man looked younger and far less grim when his face wasn't contorted in rage.

"I figured ye bein' brainwashed came with pain if ye remembered. At first, I did nay want to use that trauma against ye, but..."

It had been the only way to deter Seonghwa. And yet, he had returned.

"Do ye remember everythin'?" Hongjoong's eyes slid over the man's dark and sculpted brows. His locked jaw.

"I do. I remember it all. The beautiful boy I treated so roughly on the ground of the interview chamber." Seonghwa shifted his weight on one hand. The other one came to caress Hongjoong's cheek and jaw. His touch was like healing water on Hongjoong's skin. A sigh escaped his lips as his lashes fluttered.

"I had wanted to remember the fire in your eyes, but I couldn't. My yearning for men had me act out of order. I figured I would take you since I couldn't resist and keep it a secret from everybody. But guilt plagued me in my sleep."

Hongjoong heard Seonghwa swallow roughly. His eyes found the man again. Pain reflected in the man's gaze.

"I was the one to confess my crime to the priest. And I asked for punishment. They allowed me to forget and flee the truth. Since I thought you dead, it seemed like less of a cowardly act, but... you returned to hunt me."

"Ye punished yerself," Hongjoong summarised quietly. Seonghwa's weak nod conveyed his honest regret.

"I did. But it wasn't enough. Forgive me for forgetting such a heinous thing that tormented you so excessively."

Hongjoong's fingers idly played with the buttons on Seonghwa's collar. Opening two so the man's bobbing throat wouldn't be so constricted. Underneath, smooth skin greeted him.

"It be jolly. I forgave ye a while ago an' decided to view ye only as me beloved nemesis. Forcin' ye to remember an' leavin' ye with that guilt been me utmost revenge." His knuckles brushed over Seonghwa's skin. The man put his hand back down on the mattress.

"Thank ye fer savin' us today. Me an' me crew."

Too tender for their hateful relationship the air in the room filled with words of regard and care. The grin on Cabezon's face was neither triumphant nor snotty. It was a genuinely sunny smile.

"You are welcome, pirate."

A beat passed. Hongjoong was still weak.

"May I ask ye to scuttle me? So we can rid ourselves o' this cheesy tension?"

Seonghwa chuckled as he leaned over him. His nose slid over Hongjoong's neck, trailing a warm path on his skin. Willing, Hongjoong tilted his head to allow him more access.

"So we can return to being sworn enemies and kill each other on sight?"

Hongjoong's fingers undid more of the buttons. When Seonghwa kissed the spots his hot breath had encouraged, the pirate's fingers dropped to fiddle with the laces of his corset.

"Aye. As we should."

Seonghwa's fingers threaded into Hongjoong's hair as he pulled his head to the side. Ever so plush and inviting, his lips left little nips and sucks on Hongjoong's neck that undoubtedly would bloom into colourful marks. Pleased sighs tumbled from Hongjoong.

The laces of Seonghwa's corset came undone. He threw the item off, closely followed by his coat. Hongjoong watched him with lidded eyes when his shirt followed as well, leaving the commander's slender body exposed to him. Greedily, Hongjoong's fingers ran down his sides and mapped out his shape as he pulled him back in.

"How do I not hurt you during this?" Seonghwa cupped Hongjoong's chest with both hands. When his thumbs teasingly brushed over hardened nipples, the pirate shivered.

"I ain't made o' glass, Cabezon."

"Three of your ribs are broken." Fleeting like the touch of a feather, Seonghwa trailed his hand over his injured side. He reached to shift Hongjoong's legs apart. The touch near his middle had Hongjoong's tired body give an interested throb. One hand still played with his chest, and he arched into it just enough so he wouldn't hurt himself.

Seonghwa shifted his weight between Hongjoong's feet. His thighs propped up the pirate's knees, so Hongjoong made easy work wrapping them around Seonghwa's waist. Such a narrow waist. Hongjoong liked how it felt between his legs.

"Give me your hands," Seonghwa ordered. A frown had settled on his features as he considered the scenarios in his head. Empty and entirely unproductive, Hongjoong just handed his wrists over.

Seonghwa took both of them in one hand. When he leaned over Hongjoong to hold them down on the bed, his free palm shifted the pirate until he stretched out. Surprised by the sudden restraint, Hongjoong glanced at his hands that flattened against the bed.

The commander's gaze was dark. Lust pooled in them for the injured pirate that spread beneath him so helplessly.

"Comfortable?"

Hongjoong asked his body. Then, he nodded.

With a satisfied grin, Seonghwa hovered over him to kiss him. Their crotches aligned at this angle, pressing against each other full of want. Seonghwa ground down on Hongjoong dirtily as he slipped his tongue into the pirate's mouth.

Seonghwa's hand dropped from his wrists, trusting he would keep them there. His hand travelled over Hongjoong's side to grip onto his thigh. Using his leverage, he pressed their hips together harder. Hongjoong gasped into his mouth when heat pooled in his stomach. He could feel Seonghwa straining against him through his pants.

Seonghwa's mouth tasted of fruit. Chasing the delicious taste, Hongjoong's tongue explored his mouth, taking all the time in the world. They were in less of a hurry, both containing their passionate hatred for each other to spare Hongjoong of even more pain.

Nothing else.

On any other day, Hongjoong's fingers would have itched to do something. To pull Seonghwa close, or to wrestle him until neither couldn't fight their arousal anymore. Tonight, he was content letting Seonghwa's soft lips kiss all worries from him.

Hongjoong turned his head away from him to gasp when Seonghwa's fingers travelled deeper. They grabbed onto the curve of his behind, his fingers reaching out for the pirate's entrance.

"In the drawer be some oil. Works better than spit."

When Seonghwa pushed himself up to reach for the nightstand, his crotch pressed brusquely into Hongjoong's. A moan mixed into the background noise of waves and the ship's wood creaking beneath them. Hongjoong's fingers twitched.

"Will ye come inside me today? It been a pain to clean up last time." Swallowing, Hongjoong watched the man lather his delicate fingers in the slick liquid.

"Do you want me to?" Seonghwa put the jar down and lowered his hand to Hongjoong's behind. Two fingers slipped in effortlessly, massaging his walls. Heated, Hongjoong threw his head back.

"I do."

A chuckle came from Seonghwa as he wrapped his second hand around Hongjoong's straining arousal. His grip was too loose for Hongjoong's tastes, but he didn't complain. He wanted to drag this out.

Hongjoong rolled his hips into the thrusting motions. Every jab had Seonghwa's knuckles brush his sensitive nerve bundle. Impatient whines escaped his lips that he wouldn't have allowed himself usually. It irked him, just like the knowing smile on Seonghwa's lips.

"-Hwa, Seonghwa. Do it before I fall asleep."

Hongjoong got what he wanted because he was hurt and couldn't get it himself. A relieved sigh sounded when Seonghwa unlaced his pants. He chucked them off in no certain direction, too invested in Hongjoong to fold them. As he coated his length in oil, his eyes found Hongjoong again.

"Tell me if I hurt you."

As an answer, Hongjoong just tightened his legs around the man to pull him in. When Seonghwa followed the movement, the slide was slick and easy. He filled Hongjoong gradually and watched his face for pain all the way. Suffocated by desire, Hongjoong gasped for air.

It hurt and his heart beating against his ribcage hurt, too. But no way would he tell Seonghwa that. Not when the noble commander was about to scuttle him into the afterlife.

If Hongjoong wasn't careful, that joke would end too literal.

Once Seonghwa bottomed out, he leaned over the pirate again. He kissed some gasps from Hongjoong's unresponsive lips, then he targeted the man's neck again.

"All good?" Contrary to his caring words, Seonghwa rolled his hips into Hongjoong. The pirate clamped around him, feeling every centimetre rubbing against his insides hotly. Too slow for impatient Hongjoong. He wanted to be pounded into the sheets until he lost his sense of being.

"Stop askin' an' just-" Hongjoong dug his heels into the man's back sharply. It forced him closer in an actual thrust.

Seonghwa pursed his lips, but he listened. A first deep thrust came, then a second. They went straight to Hongjoong's core, throbbing painfully behind his ribs. Bliss took him over.

"Just like that, aye. Good, good mutt."

A punishing slam had him call out throatily. Then, giggles broke over his lips that stabbed him like a dozen knives.

"Be this ye likin' it, or 'atin' it?"

Instead of an answer, Seonghwa continued to pound into him. Sweat formed on his neck and loosened his hair from its neat style. Several loose strands dangled into those dark eyes. His gaze penetrated Hongjoong deep, sending pleasure throbbing into his hardness. As revenge, Seonghwa squeezed his hand still jerking the pirate off lazily.

"I feel ye would love leashes, but ye would want to put one on me, aight? What if I put one on ye? Would ye bite? Go feral on me?"

Increasingly frustrated by the nonsense Hongjoong spilt, Seonghwa balled his hand next to his head into a fist. His sweat dripped onto Hongjoong as his slick thrusts heated the room.

"Faster, mutt. 'Arder. I ain't goin' to break-"

"Does breathing hurt you?" Like a whip, Seonghwa's sharp voice cut the room. Hongjoong's insides throbbed when met with his angry eyes.

"If so, I know how to help you breathe less. Thank me later." His free hand grasped Hongjoong's neck. As he pressed his fingers into his throat, Hongjoong's head naturally dipped back with a grin. He was effectively shut up.

Indeed, it was easier to breathe only the shallow and quick breaths the restriction allowed him. The spice of danger thrown into the mix had Hongjoong push back against Seonghwa wantonly.

As they lost all rhythm and sense, Seonghwa's hand strengthened around Hongjoong's hardness. Quick and tight, he moved his hand until Hongjoong's eyes rolled back in his head. Warm semen splattered over his stomach. The grip on his throat eased so he could breathe enough, but regulated his gasps still so he wouldn't over-task his lungs immediately.

Seonghwa slammed in a few times more into the twitching heat of Hongjoong's tensed body. Then, he came inside, just like he had promised. His warmth overflowed and trickled down Hongjoong's skin.

Panting, they froze in their position for a moment. Then, Seonghwa pulled his hands off. He collapsed onto Hongjoong's side, instantly reaching for a rag nearby to clean them off. Hongjoong giggled into his ministrations. Then, he reached for the bottle of rum at his side to numb his pains. Every gulp burned in his throat, but he kept himself from coughing. It would be his end.

"Will ye go aft to yer ship tomorrow?" Hongjoong handed the bottle over to Seonghwa once his hands were free. The man nodded as he drowned a few sips.

"Yes, I have a lot to explain towards my superiors."

Hongjoong could imagine.

"Blame it all on me. Gets me bounty to the sky."

Seonghwa rolled his eyes as he pulled the blankets over them. Then, he blew out the dancing candles. Only the moonlight remained to watch them.

"Of course I will. All the fault of you horrible pirate."

Pleased and snuggled against Seonghwa's shoulder, Hongjoong went back to sleep.