Prince Emmet has longed to see the world and have an adventure since he was little, but with an arranged marriage looming over his head, it's looking like he'll never get that chance. When pirates raid his home city of Bricksport, he might get that...
They'd only made it a few steps past Sirius' office when a white blur came barreling toward them and collided with the captains, latching onto them immediately and warbling in distress. Their parents weren't far behind him. "Told you," Sirius murmured as they wrapped their arms around their younger brother.
"We're alright," Cary crooned to him.
"B-but your wings..."
"We'll live, Kee'. May thinks she might be able to help with that anyway."
"I hope so."
"Us too," Cary sighed.
"Come on, boys," Pa spoke up. "Let's see if we can't at least get you back into human shape. I finished a batch of something that should numb the pain pretty well just this morning."
Sirius chuckled at the look on Alastar's face. "We'll finish catching up later then," he said. "I'm off to find my son." Alastar barely managed a wave goodbye before they were being pushed along by their family.
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It had been a couple hours since the former pirates had been let loose in the city, and Benny was having the time of his life. Everywhere he turned there were colored lanterns, food vendors, games, musicians, and nearby he could hear excited chatter about the fireworks that would be set off once it was dark enough. This was a party.
He blinked in surprise when he spotted a familiar face in the crowd, decidedly shorter than the last time he saw them, and elbowed his way through the sea of bodies to get closer to them. "Callaghan!" he called to get their attention.
Cary turned at the shout and crooked an eyebrow at him as he bounded up to them with unbridled enthusiasm, grinning ear to ear and with a bit of powdered sugar from some fried pastry he'd eaten still dusting one corner of his mouth. "You look human again! How'd you manage that?"
"Not without some help," Cary said. "And a lot of painkillers." Benny laughed, then eyed them up and down. They were back in their uniform, with no sign of their wings. Benny guessed they had them tucked inside their shirt and under their jacket to protect them. He smiled widely.
"I'll give you one thing, you Octans really know how to throw a party."
"I'm glad you're enjoying yourself." Unable to help himself, Cary reached out, gently swiping away the bit of powdered sugar. Benny jerked back in surprise, staring at him with wide eyes. His face turned an interesting shade of red as Cary licked the sweet substance off his thumb, expression contemplative as he considered the flavor of it. "You had a bit of sugar here," he explained at the look Benny was giving him, tapping the corner of his own mouth.
"You could have just said so."
"Where's the fun in that?"
Benny stared at him in surprise for a moment, then started laughing again. "Man, they must have you on the good stuff. 'Playful' is a whole new side to you."
"We're perfectly sober, Ben," Cary said, giving a good-natured huff. "We're home, we're safe, and we're off duty. There's no need to act stern right now."
"Then why are you in uniform?"
Cary offered an arm to him. "Thought you might enjoy having a man in uniform on your arm."
Benny's eyes lit up and he grinned, accepting the offered arm. "You do look good in it," he agreed. "So uh... Does this mean we're actually doing this?"
The siren paused, looking him in the eye. "Ben."
"Aye?"
"May I court you?"
Benny's breath caught in his throat. "Absolutely," he managed to get out after a moment. His heart fluttered at the smile Cary gave him. They wandered the streets arm in arm for a while, silent as Benny struggled to think of something to talk about. "Um. So. Where might a prospective shipwright set up shop around here?"
He almost wanted to kick himself for that being the only thing he could think of.
The captain actually seemed to be considering his question though, giving it careful thought. "I might know a place," he finally said, and gave Benny's arm a gentle tug as he changed direction. They wove their way through the streets and around revelers. Benny tried to pay close attention to where they were going, but had a feeling he'd be hopelessly lost once the streets cleared out again.
"Oh," Benny gasped as Cary led him to an empty brick building. It was large enough to not only set up an office and designing room, but to also live in, if he so chose.
"It's been sitting empty for a while. Another shipwright used to live and work here, but he retired years ago, and moved in with his son when this place got to be too much for him to keep up with on his own. I'd say you could probably get it for a good price, but I wouldn't be surprised if Prince Emmet just gave it to you. Would you like to see inside?"
"Oh, please!" Benny bounced eagerly, barely waiting for him to push open the door. He was in awe as he wandered through each room, the captain trailing along behind him. The place was perfect. "...You knew the shipwright that used to live here?"
Cary nodded. "He designed our ship."
"Explains how you're familiar with the place." He finished his tour and approached the captain again, staring up at him.
"...What is it?"
"...You're-" Benny hesitated for a moment. "I guess... I'm still waiting to wake up and find out this is all just a dream. It's too good to be true. You're too good to be true. I mean... Even after our years of fighting, you still convinced your king to pardon our crimes and take us in, you helped me find the perfect place to settle down, you... you got hurt saving my life..."
He held his breath as Cary closed the distance between them, and slowly exhaled as the siren leaned in to press their lips together, grabbing his shirt collar to pull him closer. He broke the kiss to gasp in surprise as Cary pressed him back against a wall with a low growl, and snickered. Stars, he moves fast... "Eager, are we?" he teased. He hummed with content as the captain kissed him again. "Mm- you know, I'm all for this, but I'd kind of like to own the place before we christen it." That was enough to get Cary to release him, snorting in amusement. "What do you say, wanna take this elsewhere?" He shivered in delight at the look Cary gave him.
