“Sir?” Horatio had barely managed more inquiry than this before he found himself forcibly hauled up from where he sat and captured in an embrace that stole his breath away. ( Partly due to how tight it was, all truth told! )
Coughing slightly to mask his confusion, he returned the act automatically, though in truth his own grip was markedly less fierce. He wasn’t certain what had prompted this, though he was quite glad of the fact he had been awaiting the man in his cabin as commanded as he could only imagine what the men might think of such a sight!
The embrace did not immediately let up – and the longer it went on, the more Horatio found himself relaxing into it almost on sheer reflex. It wasn’t as though he had any fear of his captain, so much as it was altogether unexpected. And – if he were completely honest with himself – after the stress of all that had taken place on that damnable island, it was a comfort he sorely needed. He had, in fact, only just pulled himself together, and he did fear he might start crying again if this didn’t let up soon.Â
Barely refraining from pressing his forehead into the man’s shoulder and taking this support for what it was, Horatio found himself asking quietly, “Are you alright?” As though it were not he who needed this – for surely, something had to have driven Pellew to take such a drastic measure in the first place, and it wasn’t as though he had seen Horatio crying! ( Thank heaven for small mercies. )Â
Ocean Archive 