When Soren woke up, there was a hazy moment of confusion, where he was sure that everything from the day before had been a dream. It didn't make much sense otherwise.

But then slowly realized that the weight on his left arm didn't feel like Ara. Ara fit himself beside Soren, the same way Journey seemed to melt onto his lap. Ara didn't throw an arm over Soren's chest, or slip a knee between his legs, as if he was trying to climb on top of Soren. Only Tanden did that.

Soren laughed. Delight and surprise and a bit of denial coming out of him all at once.

A heartbeat later, Tanden groaned. "Shh. Stop."

That only made Soren laugh again. "Stop?" He repeated between chuckles. "I love you. I never thought I'd get to say it to you again."

Tanden huffed and rolled onto his back, his head still resting on Soren's left arm. "You're the one who was burned. You should have known I would be all right. I always am."

Soren shifted onto his side. It hurt to stretch out his right arm, but he did so gingerly, and ran his finger down the dots on Tanden's face. "What's this?"

Tanden sighed. He caught Soren's hand and laced their fingers together, before resting their bound hands on his chest. "That's the end of the story. We should probably start at the beginning. And the beginning—" His eyes darted to meet Soren's, "—was you and the Wanderlust."

Thinking about the fire didn't bother Soren as much anymore. Toliver's burning ship had replaced those feelings. So it was with ease that Soren replied, simply, "He cuffed me to the bed."

It took a moment, Tanden's brow furrowed and then his expression lightened. "You were wearing the key."

Soren smiled. "Aye. Still am."

"Sort of useless now, isn't it?" Tanden awkwardly reached across to hook the cord around Soren's neck and pull it free from his tunic. He cupped the key on his hand. "So, this saved your life."

"When the mizzenmast came down, it ripped a hole through the stern," Soren continued. "I grabbed Journey and jumped out. Ara found me on the beach the next day." He paused. The next part of the story bothered him more than the fire did, now, because he still wasn't sure he had done right by their crewmates. "I tried to properly send Povic, Starios and Folti on. You would have known exactly what to do."

"No." Tanden protested, his voice soft and uncharacteristically unsure. "No. Jale told me to say the proper words for you, and I wasn't even sure what they were. I just made it up. I don't know Crelan funerary rites. I'm sorry."

Tanden's cultural expertise had always been oddly lacking in Crelan beliefs. Soren had long ago come to the understanding that because Tanden had immersed himself in Crelan culture so young, he had never approached it as a new culture to study in the same way he had everything since. They had never performed a Crelan funeral on the Wanderlust, either, so when would Tanden have learned? It made sense that he didn't know.

Soren squeezed their bound hands. "It's alright. I'll teach you."

Tanden laughed weakly. "And I'll hope that I never have to use that knowledge." He paused, then, "Jale saved me. Toliver had her thrown overboard and I jumped after her, so I saved her, but afterwards... I felt... I wasn't myself. I still don't feel like myself. She took care of me, but she also needed me, and I think without her I would have given up."

He seemed so despondent. Tanden had spent his adult life on the move. An unstoppable, unflappable, captain. Someone who always knew what to do next. Soren had seen through the act ages ago, but he still understood how hard it was for Tanden to admit that he had struggled.

Soren wanted to say exactly the right thing. He could imagine, if their roles had been reversed, Tanden making a joke. But Soren doubted that was what he wanted to hear. Finally, carefully, he said, "I'm glad you and Jale had each other. You're the smartest people I know. It's hard to imagine anything stopping you."

"If the only thing we had to contend with was the jungle, yes," Tanden agreed. "But it got more complicated than that, and I felt like the world was collapsing around me. And the only thing that mattered to me was getting Jale safe, and hunting down Toliver. Your turn."

"My—oh." Soren tried to shift again, and Tanden obligingly propped himself up just enough for Soren to adjust his left arm. But he didn't pull it out from under Tanden. Instead, he slid a bit closer, to free his elbow, so he could curl his arm over Tanden's shoulder. Once they were settled again, Soren picked up his story.

"The Waterborne was unharmed, just floating lashed beside the Wanderlust. I thought for sure that everybody was on the pirate ships, so Ara and I sailed after them. The way you needed Jale, I think I needed Ara. I needed him to slow me down," Soren admitted. "Taking care of him meant I had to take care of myself. I needed that. We were pretty lucky when we caught up to one of the ships—this ship—and found some of the men in an auction house. We—" Soren knew Tanden would want all the details, even if he preferred ignoring some of them. "We sort of had to use Ara as bait. But we got the men out and commandeered the ship. Ivern, Roan and the others all thought you, Jale and Jerios were on one of the other ships, so we kept chasing them west. It wasn't until we found Elorie that we heard that you were... well, she thought you were dead. She had Jerios, though. And she said she hated Rico and Toliver, so I got her to help us. I let her go, yesterday."

"I'd assumed as much."

"She wants to be a merchant."

"Hmm."

Tanden either didn't want to talk about Elorie, or had nothing to add, so Soren moved on. "From that point, it really just became a hunt. We chased them north along the coast. And we made the flags to help us get past Xaoto. We found a Navirian wreck just a few days ago, so we knew we were getting close. Your turn, now. Are you going to tell me about that boy?"

"I haven't done anything."

Soren rolled his eyes. "Don't reckon I asked that."

"No, but... There's a country in the mountains. We were trying to get around Avi Bay, I thought maybe if we reached the coast of Cray Shia there might be a town we could ask for help, but we were captured and taken up a long river. It opened onto a huge lake, and there was this city. It was... You remember Zoataxali? It was like that. It looked just as old, but alive. It was incredible. A huge pyramid looming over an old city. A whole country nobody's ever heard of. There are probably more of them, spread all through the mountains. I wonder how far North they go..."

Soren loved the curious excitement in Tanden's voice. Without giving it any thought, he shuffled closer to kiss Tanden's cheek.

"What?" Tanden nudged him back. "Why are you grinning like that?"

Soren felt his grin widen. "Only you would get marooned, captured, and then find an unknown country in the process."

"Well, Jale did, as well, if you want to get specific." But Tanden was smiling too, and his eyes were bright. "If they hadn't tried to cut off my head, I'd—"

Soren's grin vanished instantly. "What?"

"Oh, it was nothing. Well... I can speak some of the language now, so I think we'd get along a bit better. Oh, you were wondering about Kuiva?"

"Now, I'm wondering about them trying to cut off your head."

"They underestimated my swordwork, as most people do," Tanden said it so simply, as if beheading was a common thing he faced. "But Kuiva—his name is Kuiavadox, really—he offered himself as a hostage and we ended up taking him. I meant to let him go, but we needed him along the river. We'll have to get him home eventually. I'd like to improve my Xalish, first. That's what I'm calling the language, because he called the city Zaxali. But anyway, we travelled along a river and almost made it without trouble, but we ran into some very unfriendly men in Staedin who were not willing to listen to reason."

"And then?"

"They underestimated my swordwork," Tanden repeated. "It was about a week later that I fell over the Attinabi waterfall and nearly died. Hence the tattoos. Queb said they represent a blessing from Attinabi. A gift of life. He said giving me the tattoos was what kept me alive after falling. I don't hate the idea. Or the tattoos. What do—"

"They were a surprise." Soren anticipated the question. "But now that I'm used to it, I think they suit you. All part of your roguish charm, aye?"

Relief flashed across Tanden's face. "Well said. So... that's my story, and your story. What comes next?"

"Navire. The reward money."

"You know what I meant. You've always seen through me. Or are you out of practice?"

Of course Soren had understood. "You're my Captain, that hasn't changed."

Tanden awkwardly rolled onto his side. They were face to face, nearly close enough to kiss. But instead of closing the gap, Tanden spoke softly. "I appreciate that. But I don't think... I'm not ready for that. All of this took a toll. I think you need to be the Captain, for now. You're the one they need."

Soren blinked. He wanted Tanden to take over, but he had had similar thoughts about Tanden's state. Still, it felt wrong not to protest. "But—"

"Oh, I'll handle everything in Navire. But for now, you're the Captain."

Tanden was grinning, and it was a touch too mischievous to really be comforting. Soren groaned good-naturedly. "You're going to be insufferable, aren't you?"

"Oh. I intend to be."

Then, Tanden finally closed the gap.

***

But he wasn't, really.

As they sailed to Navire, Tanden mostly stayed out of the way. He had always been thoughtful and observant, but instead of showing off, he was content to sit back and watch.

The dynamic on the ship was different with Soren as the captain. Tanden enjoyed watching Soren lead, just as much as he enjoyed seeing how the crewmembers he had known for years responded. Soren had grown up lower-class, and worked for years as a sailor alongside these men. It was clear in the way he captained. There was a dependable steadiness about him that had made him a very good first mate. The men connected to him in a way they never had with Tanden, which made Soren the perfect person to bridge the gap between crew and captain. The relationships he had built with the crew hadn't changed with his new title. Tanden watched their close friends joke with Soren as easily as they obeyed him. He was respected because he was one of them.

Tanden stayed out of his way. Jale had cheerfully joined the crew again to help, which was good because they were sorely under crewed, but Tanden couldn't quite bring himself to join in. He blamed the injury, but he also truly needed time. Mostly he spent time alone, looking through the watertight Crelan sea chest Soren had rescued.  When he wanted company, he stayed on the quarterdeck with Kuiva and Ara. Practicing Xalish actually became easier with Ara around. He was good at picking up language, and having him there to work out phrases with helped. Kuiva was still fairly nervous around anyone who wasn't Tanden or Jale, but he warmed up to Ara quickly.

Tanden also made a point to get to know the new Alvarian member of the crew. Kija had chosen to stay with them instead of leaving with Elorie. When Tanden sought him out one afternoon, the young man eyed him warily as he approached. His expression didn't change when Tanden spoke in Alvarian.

"You weren't interested in going with Elorie?"

Kija's eyes were bright against his dark skin. His gaze darted sideways. Tanden couldn't tell what he was looking for, but he realized something.

"You couldn't have stopped it. I hope you didn't choose to stay in an attempt to make anything up to us. You're not to blame for what your captain decides to do."

Kija's attention shifted back to Tanden, although he didn't quite meet his gaze. "It is foolish, maybe, to believe in toxo. But I have no other explanation for what happened. To the Captain, or to you. At least I know that if you are toxo, you are good ones."

Tanden wasn't very familiar with the belief. Elorie had neglected to tell him much about the Alvarian religion. But Tanden thought he understood what Kija was implying. "You're safe with us."

"Thank you."

Tanden flashed him a friendly smile, before turning to head back to the quarterdeck. At the top of the stairs, be paused beside Jerios. "I really am sorry that I had to leave you with them."

"Not nearly as sorry as I was, when I thought I was the last person to see you and Jale alive," Jerios replied. "You didn't have a choice. I know that." Before Tanden could reply, Jerios spoke again, nodding forward. "He's doing well."

Tanden followed his gaze. Soren was near the bow, hauling a line. He looked very at ease working with the men. "He's fantastic," he agreed, just as Soren looked up and noticed he was being watched. He shrugged, a questioning gesture that Tanden simply returned with a wave.

"Captain?" Jerios spoke up, then caught himself. "I mean—"

"No, it's fine," Tanden said. "What?"

"Well, with this limp, I can't do much more than be the helmsman," Jerios said. "And—"

"We're not going to dismiss—"

Jerios spoke over him. "When we need to moor in Navire, can you take over? I'm not sure if I can handle her in the tight quarters."

"Oh. Yes," Tanden agreed. "Just let me know when I need to take over." Leaving it at that, he returned to the back of the quarterdeck to rejoin Ara and Kuiva. There were always new words to practice.