“Is that my shirt?” William to Horatio

“Do forgive me Mister Bush,” Horatio chattered, even as he hauled his lieutenant’s coat tighter around his shoulders, finding that the extra space afforded to the broader man gave the air too much opportunity to chill him. “I am afraid Doughty has my uniform at pr – at present,” Christ he was cold, but there had been nothing for it.

Someone needed to direct the carpenters and while there were men aboard who could swim, few could do so as well as Horatio and they all knew it. With how cold the water was, they couldn’t take a risk with a weak swimmer – Horatio could not in good conscience allow for it, so despite the fact he had known there would be nothing on deck for him to curl into when he got up again, he had done what he believed necessary.

“It’s my fault sir,” Matthews chimed in, owning the truth of it, “Figured you wouldn’t mind keeping the captain from catching a chill.” Horatio tilted his head, because in truth he had thought the man had asked, but there was little to be done about it now.

‘ look, what i’m more worried about is you. ’ | William to Horatio

{ Devotion Of Suspect X }

“Mister Bush – “ Horatio could do without coddling from this quarter, and was quite ready to make his opinion on the matter known before he noted the man’s expression. There was nothing in the older man’s features that indicated he meant offense – indeed, he seemed as earnest and loyal as ever, and Horatio even at the height of his melancholy found he could not bring himself to berate the man for attempting to alleviate it as best he could.

Returning his attentions to the paperwork upon his desk rather than continue to wither beneath his lieutenant’s concerned gaze, Horatio traced the line of their best passage north before remarking in a milder tone, “The cause of your concern shall pass as it ever does. It is merely the start of our voyage – shameful as it may be, I will acquire my sealegs in short order.”

His mood, admittedly, was mostly in relation to the fact that despite all his years in service to His Majesty’s Navy, he still had yet to defeat his greatest and most trying of adversaries.

Bloody seasickness.

👁 Wake my muse up during a nightmare | William to Andre!!!

{ Nonverbal Starters }

His eyes flared open the moment he was gripped by the shoulders so bracingly. Without thinking, he reached for the knife in his belt, breaths coming in shallowly as he prepared for a fight. Staring up into the gloom above, the world tipped to the left, bringing with it the swing of the lantern overhead and throwing Lieutenant Bush’s features into sharp relief.

Not long later, the world swayed back to where it had been before and his hand fell away from his side. He took a deep, steadying breath and managed to contain his alarm as he remarked, “This is a miserable way to live.” It was a wonder he had slept at all with the world rocking beneath him like so – but he could imagine easily why that sleep had been so rudely interrupted.

Thinning his lips, he debated whether or not to acknowledge it – but knowing as he did the gruelling nature of the man’s schedule, he found he could not ignore the poignant reality of having been a nuisance when he was meant to be unobtrusive.

“Forgive me,” Sitting up slowly, he gripped the sides of the cot as it wobbled despite his care, paling a bit as he waited for it to still, then, “I did not mean to trouble you.”

@tidefated

😊 Sit down next to my muse | William to Eveline

{ Nonverbal Starters }

Etienne eyed the Englishman quietly for a time, expression inscrutable as calculations were made to better determine his purpose for this visit. He did not appear confrontational – only tired, which could be as much due to the storm yesterday as it could with –

“Did my brother trouble you, lieutenant?” The query was mild, as though the answer did not affect matters either way, but in truth she was worried. Andre did not do well at sea, even when the wind was fair. She hoped her brother had not kept the man up all night with his distress over the storm!

@tidefated

This is a permanent starter call for Horatio Hornblower,

of Meridian Television’s 1998-2003 mini series,

Hornblower explicitly.

These calls give me a heads up on who is open to interacting with whom ( which is handy for those who have exclusives among my crew! ) and gives me an excuse to kick you starters whenever something crosses the mind, or blow up your inbox knowing who would be most wanted.

These calls also serve as a final tag dump – when this call is posted it indicates a character has been fully moved into the blog and is ready for action!

For other starter calls, check the tag HERE.