Damon made doubly sure that the ship’s massive anchor was set before following Ria into the main cabin. He found it hard to keep his newborn suspicions in the fore of his mind as he entered the warm common room and was greeted by the familiar sight of his aesta prepping a pot over the stove in the ship’s kitchen.
Vel lounged on one of the couches, reading a book she’d apparently found in Avarice’s library. Lilian was at the table, sipping expensive-looking wine from an even more expensive-looking crystalline glass.
“We’re all set for tonight,” said Damon. “The ship is anchored, and I didn’t see anything resembling a storm cloud in the sky.”
“We should be good on food for another few days, at least,” called Malon. “Though, we should be on the lookout for somewhere to dock to resupply. It shouldn’t be hard — there’s no shortage of island city states in the near portion of the Endless Ocean.”
“Damon and I will take a look at the maps tomorrow and see what we can find,” said Vel.
“We have plenty of wine, at least.” Damon came up behind Lilian and snuck a sip from her glass.
She playfully elbowed him in the thigh from her seat. “More than enough for you to have a cup of your own, I’d think.”
He grinned and took a seat. “This place is nicer than any house I’ve ever lived in. I think once our journey reaches its conclusion, I’ll still be able to find a solid use for it.”
“It isn’t just yours, Damon.” Vel set her book down and joined them at the table. “We found it together. It belongs to all of us.”
“True enough,” he said. “Trust me, I would be more than happy to share it with all of you.”
He grabbed Vel’s chair and scooted her closer to him, pulling her in for a kiss. It was hard to keep his mind from running wild at the idea of living on the ship indefinitely, with Malon, Vel, Ria, and Lilian as his lovers. He knew he was getting ahead of himself, but the fantasy was still close enough to his current reality.
“We still haven’t named her yet,” said Vel.
“Does a ship need a name?” asked Ria.
“Of course, it does,” said Damon. He drummed his fingers on the table, trying to come up with something decent, to no avail. “The… Copper Cruiser?”
“No, that sounds a little too boyish,” said Lilian. “The ship should have a name that represents all of us.”
“The Reunion ,” said Malon, from the kitchen.
Damon saw the others nodding appreciatively and voiced his own approval. “It’s fitting and has a certain elegance to it. I’m in favor.”
“No objections here,” said Vel.
“The Reunion it is, then,” said Lilian.
Damon watched Malon as she continued prepping their dinner, wondering if she would have been able to come up with such a fitting suggestion while under Lascivious’s control. She glanced over her shoulder, catching his gaze and surprising him.
“Do you need something, solas?” she called.
“No, I was just…” He cleared his throat. “I thought I’d offer my help.”
“I could use it, if you are willing.” She flashed a familiar smile, one he’d seen so often over the course of his life. It was suddenly hard to take Ria’s concerns seriously, though he knew it was still too early to dismiss them.
Malon assigned him the task of slicing sausage into stew-sized chunks as she handled the vegetables. He found two exquisitely crafted crystalline glasses once he’d finished and stayed next to her at the counter, pouring them each a healthy measure of wine.
“I saw some fishing equipment in one of the storage closets,” said Malon.
“We don’t really eat much fish,” he said.
“More out of circumstance, than choice,” she said. “Trust me. If you catch a few fish, solas, I’ll make us a dinner that you won’t soon forget.”
“Deal.” He took a sip of his wine. She looked so pretty in front of the pot, slowly stirring, stopping to taste and season every now and then. He hugged her from behind and planted a rough kiss on her cheek.
“Easy,” she said. “I need to focus on dinner.”
“I’m distracting you, then?” He ran his hands up the front of her body, fingers teasing the sides of her breasts through her thin dress.
“If you don’t cool yourself down, I’m going to smack your nose with this spoon,” she said, grinning at him.
He gave her one last squeeze, one last kiss, and then joined the others at the table. Lilian and Ria were in the middle of a discussion about the lower decks, namely the training circle.
“It seems as though this ship was designed as much for extravagance as it was for practicality,” said Lilian. “Avarice could have easily housed his guards within the ship, with room for them to live and train if required for a longer journey.”
“Extravagance and warfare are two things which I would reluctantly trust Avarice’s judgment on,” said Ria, in a dark voice. “I was glad to see him die.”
“He’s already been reborn, out there somewhere,” said Damon. “He’s some random five-year-old, probably still oblivious to his true nature.”
“If we reach the Ocean Klykia and do whatever it is you want us to do… he’ll stay that way?” said Vel uncertainly. “That almost seems like a mercy to him.”
“A mercy to him, and the world,” agreed Ria.
“With that said, True Divine, the man had good taste in wine.” Damon drained his glass and refilled it. “I plan on getting stumbling drunk tonight.”
“Who admits to that?” asked Vel, with a chuckle. “Damon, you have no class whatsoever.”
He stuck his tongue out at her, and she deigned to stick hers out in return. They continued laughing and joking with one another until Malon began serving the food, and the conversation shifted toward compliments to the chef.
When the meal was finished, Damon was well on his way to keeping good to his plan for the night. It had been a long day, and Ria and Malon went straight to bed. Damon found himself walking behind Lilian, alternating between groping her and allowing her to help him walk without drunkenly tripping over himself.
“You could feed off me, if you wanted,” he said. “Here!”
He pushed his neck into her face, and she sighed and shook her head.
“You’re too drunk, Damon,” she said. “I’d feel bad about how it might affect you. Good chance you’d spend the rest of the night throwing up… not that you won’t already. Ask me again in the morning?”
She gave him a quick kiss and disappeared down the stairway leading below decks. Vel had stayed up and rose from where she’d been reading her book on the couch to serve as Damon’s new chaperone.
“Come on,” she said. “Let’s find a room for you downstairs, alright?”
“I don’t want to go to bed yet,” he mumbled.
“Bed is where you belong,” she said. “You can barely walk, Damon. You’re too drunk to do anything else.”
“Are you sure about that?”
She laughed and let out a sigh. “You’re also a lot smoother when you’re sober.”
She helped him find an open room and sat him down on the bed. It was incredibly soft, and Damon was in the middle of wondering if maybe he was too drunk when he caught sight of her undressing.
“I honestly am so excited for this journey,” she whispered. “Not just to be back with everyone, but also for the adventure. This is going to be so much fun.”
“Maybe,” he said. “Might encounter pirates.”
“Are they even a real thing? I thought they were just a fantasy like aesta’s other stories, seabound convicts searching for treasure.”
“For treasure… and for booty.” He palmed her ass, and Vel let out a sigh of forced patience.
“Really, Damon?” she said, rolling her eyes. “Next you’re going to…”
She trailed off, tensing as he worked a finger under the fabric of her girlshorts and along her slit.
“Vel,” he said. “I love you.”
He pulled her onto his bed with too much strength, resulting in him flying sideways and knocking his head against one of the bedposts. Vel laughed, though it shifted to a wince when she realized how hard of an impact it had been.
“You’re too drunk,” she said.
“Maybe. Ow…”
She sat down next to him and pulled his head into her lap, gently massaging around the rapidly forming lump on his head. Her thighs felt so soft, a step above any normal pillow, and within a minute he could feel his eyelids getting heavy.
“I’m glad you came back,” whispered Vel. “And I’m glad you brought us all back together.”
She leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips before returning to caressing his hair, and shortly after, he drifted off to sleep.