The faint glow of the moon outdoors illuminated the ambience within, soft breeze whirling inside through the open spaces, the door and windows, making the room seem pleasant. The ship was now moving at a quite subtle rate and hence, the motion was not too obvious.

Hongjoong walked inside, gently closing the door behind him. The sudden intervention of the gentle noise of the wooden door being closed alerted the person upon the bed. Hongjoong turned to look at him, and in the infusion of darkness and light within his chamber, he could see a face looking at him with intended curiosity. The pirate had no intentions of scaring the anonymous human on their first conversation, and hence, he chose to draw closer to him carefully, small steps at a time, his own mind brimmed with a million questions and plausible theories.

Hongjoong could finally see him clearly, now that he stood a yard away from him. Soft tufts of brown hair covered his head, and the aphrodisiac beauty that shone upon his visage left Hongjoong speechless. He could see his eyes now, big and bright, a mixture of blue and turquoise, just as mesmerizing as the waters of the ocean.

His plush pink lips were slightly parted, facial expressions in wonder and awe. His body was bare, tinted as if with the pearls of the ocean, moonlight glistening upon the fair skin. The boy had pulled the fishnets surrounding him closer to himself, covering his lower regions and legs and hence, there was currently a mess of dark nets enveloping the bed all over.

Hongjoong couldn't help but continue to stare at the striking beauty in astonishment, completely immobile at his place. The other was no exception, as he too was deeply invested in taking in the descriptions of the pirate, turquoise gaze fixated upon the other's presence.

Hongjoong soon made another discovery. A thin string around the boy's neck, a narrow brown chord made with several narrow threads twisted together. A small shell dangled at the centre, seemingly white, it's shape like a tiny hand fan. The pirate was curious at the strange jewelry and yet, he found it attractive across his pale skin. For a moment, his gaze lingered upon the shell, until he heard a slight sniffle and raised his sight to look at the boy's face.

He was visibly shivering, slightly but quite obvious. His slim hands were now around his body, crossing at his chest, slender fingers wrapping his arms and sliding them up and down upon the surface. His lips looked redder and they were quivering and all these series of actions convinced the owner of the room that he was feeling cold.

Hongjoong quickly put his books down upon the table and pulled out a heavy cloak that lay upon a chair nearby. He edged closer to the boy with the attire in his hand. When he was almost close to him as in he could reach out and touch, he extended his hand forward with the cloth in it.

The pirate noticed him scooting away from it, looking up at him in slight horror, an unwavering glint of fear glistening upon his big doe eyes. Hongjoong didn't find it peculiar, as he knew how intimidating his demeanor was, and moreover, he had the profession of the sea devil. The other lad must have some knowledge of it.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you," Hongjoong spoke softly, putting the cloak forward. He noticed the boy was not convinced yet, as he was still eyeing the cloth and him with curiosity and doubt, his gaze constantly switching between the cloak and him. Hongjoong didn't loose patience, as he continued standing in front of him with the attire in his hand, eyes scanning around the lithe figure of the unknown beauty. What seemed to be an eternity later to him, he felt a soft tug against the cloth. He looked up to see the boy gripping the free end of the cloak and trying to pull it towards himself. Hongjoong smiled.

He let go of the cloak and watched the boy fumbling with the huge attire, clearly not able to make out how to wear it. The boy looked up at the other again, his eyes now begging for help, lips tugged under the grip of his teeth, continuously nibbling upon it. Hongjoong couldn't help but let out a chuckle.

"Never wore a cloak ye?" he spoke, smiling at the boy, "Just wrap it around yourself. It'll do."

The boy did so, wrapping the cloth piece around his body, almost covering him till his thighs. Hongjoong still couldn't stifle a guffaw at the slight foolishness, and continued to laugh away much to the other's confusion. He then placed his hands upon the fishnet around and started taking them off the bed, when suddenly, he heard a loud audible gasp.

"Don't want to sleep with this mess around, do you?" spoke Hongjoong, as he noticed the other tugging at the nets in order to cover his lower parts, "The cloak is big enough to cover you," he continued, "Use it."

Hongjoong waited for a bit more as the lad covered himself to his satisfaction and then worked upon removing the heavy nets that tangled around upon the bed. He threw them all upon the floor and made up a mind to ask the others to drag them out of his room the next day. Heaving a sigh, he turned to the boy upon his bed, the latter watching him with a subtle interest, hands clutching the cloak that was now wrapped around his gentle form.

Hongjoong turned to a big trunk that was placed at one corner of the room, the cover of it being opened. He pulled out a thick rug from within, a little dirty with patches all over, but still hadn't lost it capability of a promising warmth on cold nights. He then walked up and placed it upon the bed and looked at the boy.

"Cover yourself with this, as the night is cold," he said nonchalantly, yet a slight tinge of genuine care audible in his voice, "Sleep well. Tomorrow, we shall see whether you are worthy of being a part of us or not."

With that, he opened the door and left, leaving behind a confused human, head flooded with so many doubts and many more questions.

* * *

"Cap'n, where's the fish? Was it big? Was it heavy? Was it-"

"Shut up, Wooyoung," snapped a tall boy beside him, hitting the other one lightly on his head, "Good morning, Cap'n. Did you sleep well?"

Hongjoong's gaze was lost amidst the sweet blue of the splashing waters around, the soft hue instantly reminding him of someone's eyes. He smiled, unconsciously. Events from the previous night swirled back into his head, the sweetness, the coy hesitancy, the subtle clumsiness- Hongjoong's smile grew wider. A cool breeze brushed against his face and he felt rejuvenated, like being born again. The face was etched upon his mind's eye, and everytime those large luminous eyes brimmed with curiosity and questions flashed across him, his smile immediately stretched from ear to ear.

"Why is he smiling?" the taller whispered, crouching down a bit so that the shorter could hear.

"Dunno," the reply was instant, "I don't think a fish could make him-"

"What's the fuss about?" the captain intervened, his voice strict and serious. The sudden call immediately drew attention of the other two as they straightened themselves up and looked at the captain. Hongjoong paused for a moment and then continued, "Gather everyone in the Commons' chamber when the Sun is right above our heads. I have an announcement to make and opinions to take."

"About what, Cap'n?" the tall boy asked, curiosity clouding his thoughts.

"About- About the 'fish' you two caught yesterday," came the reply, "I've got to make speeches about that."

Yunho and Wooyoung remained silent, as Hongjoong walked away from the space towards the door of his room, the smile hadn't smudged one jot.

"Never saw him being so attached to his room," Yunho pointed out, "What's so special in there presently?"

"The fish, of course," Wooyoung seemed careless, pricking at his nails while judging their shapes and later, biting upon them with his teeth.

Yunho stared back at him, speechless.

------------------------

Surprises to come later~

Any predictions?

Lemme know!