Taken

Chapter Nine:

Harry growled as Draco smirked at him from across the deck, before turning his back on the pirate. They had yet to speak properly to one another since the incident, despite having to share a bed. Harry very much doubted he would ever speak to the man again after the stunt he had pulled.

Nobody touched his ears! It was a rule he and James had enforced vehemently when a young breeder had been cornered and teased in their village. How dare that pirate, that human, manhandle him in a such a manner! Him! An Allura! He should have drowned the blonde in his sleep.

And yet, he couldn't.

He couldn't because, whether it had been an occurrence of events or enforced by Draco's ruthlessness, the pirate had still touched his ears. Now, more than ever before, Harry was aware of the blonde as a potential mate.

It shouldn't have happened. It shouldn't have been possible. He should have retained his innocence and his ignorance to such things for at least another year. The blasted pirate had all but forced maturity onto him. The Allura were a sensitive species, their bodies far too eager to adapt to an atmosphere presented to them.

And now, Harry had not only his return home to worry about, but also, his approaching Heat.

"You're brooding again."

Harry jumped, startled from his thoughts by a dark voice. He glanced up through his eyelashes briefly, noting Severus' raven locks and stoic mask, before he looked down once more. The older pirate sighed and took a seat beside the boy, a glass of some alcohol or another in his ink-stained hand. The sombre pirate forever seemed to have ink on his hands. It was a feature Harry couldn't help but notice.

"He's not so bad." Harry felt his lip lift in a sneer in reply, knowing well who the man was referring to. "He's an animal." the green-eyed boy hissed, dodging the swipe Severus aimed at his head. He smirked, Snape was getting predictable.

The pirate sighed, rubbing a hand over his face wearily. "By Gods, lad, you're something else. Draco's only flaw is that he believes he is in charge. Deliberately provoking him by disobeying orders will make you miserable, I assure you. Why not try simply helping out. The response you receive might even be pleasant."

Harry scowled at the man as Severus rose to leave. He sat in his thoughts for some time, one hand absently trailing over his arm. He missed the feel of his scales. He missed the chaotic patterns they made as they trailed up his limbs and torso. He missed the sensation of his fins flared fully, trailing through water.

He looked up sullenly, his eyes drifting to Draco where the blonde wa aiding crew members to mend a crack in one of the finer lengths of stick that held up the sails. The pirate stretched, his shirt open to display the pale, smooth expanse of his torso as he wiped sweat from his brow.

Harry heard his breath shake as he expelled it slowly, eyes lifting to see that Draco was staring at him. The blonde grinned ferally before yelling: "Fetch me something to drink Harry?"

Were it not for the obvious question of his tone and Severus' recent words ringing in his ears, Harry would have offered only an obscene gesture in reply, one Ron had taught him. As it was, he clenched his fists and rose with a growl to the bucket of fresh water. He dipped a nearby mug inside, avoiding skin contact with the fluid and stood to give it to Draco.

That was, until he noticed the self-achieving smirk the blonde aimed at the older men. Harry snarled and threw the water over the taller man, drenching him.

For a moment, Draco stood still as the men around hollered in amusement. His shock was short-lived, however, and it took only seconds to react. Harry felt his wrist being pulled and yelped as he abruptly found himself on his stomach over the pirate's knee.

Then, in a move Harry had only seen happen to bold children, Draco raised a hand and slapped his backside.

###

Hermione sighed as she watched the scene from the kitchen window.

Harry shrieked in outrage, arms flailing as he tried to escape while Draco, with a furious glare, only continued to deliver his punishment.

"They make a lovely couple." Luna said happily by her side, eyes bright as she twirled a dish cloth in one hand. Hermione snorted as she watched Lucius and Severus intervene and send both males in opposite directions. "They are most definitely not a couple, Luna."

The blonde girl chuckled. "Of course they are. They're destined for one another. Draco needs Harry's spirit, while Harry needs Draco's discipline. They need each other."

Hermione pondered the younger woman's words, her hand tracing circles over her abdomen idly.

"We'll have company soon, won't we?" Luna's voice was soft, curious. Hermione nodded. "Not for long, they won't be boarding our ship. Lucius always supplies Jean Paul on these waters. They belong to him, it would not do to have Jean Paul as an enemy."

"Why?"

Hermione glanced at the blonde. For all the wisdom and surety she so often seemed to exude, Luna was a child, constantly curious. "Jean Paul has a creature aboard his ship. A magnificent creature that stays by his side and is loyal only to him. It is easily angered and painfully whimsical. It is a creature that will force you to walk to a watery grave in complete and utter bliss."

###

When Harry entered his room that night, it was to the sounds of Draco throwing water around in the bathroom. The Allura rolled his emerald eyes and fell onto the bed.

It had been worth the degrading public punishment to see Draco's imitation of a fish. Harry chuckled evilly and pulled on a night shirt, his eyes wandering over the near-invisible openings on his limbs.

The slit-like openings were sensitive, travelling from each elbow to each wrist on his arms, and from each knee to each ankle on his legs. He hummed unhappily as he pressed a finger to one pale slit, running the pad of the digit under the skin to touch the silky texture of the fin hidden below. He was unhappy in this form for too long, and it had been far too long.

The lock clicked on the bathroom door and Harry twisted to level a glare at the pirate. He froze, eyes wide as they landed on Draco. He had not expected the blonde to emerge wearing only a towel. Draco sneered at him. "What are you doing here already?"

Harry's response died in his throat as the pirate proceeded to unwind the towel and use it to dry his platinum hair. He produced only a breathless squeak, his cheeks flooding crimson as his eyes fixed on the new body part he had just been presented with.

He panicked as his heart rate slowed and his skin grew hot, uncomfortably so.

Not now, oh please, not now.

Draco had noticed his staring. He quirked an eyebrow at the smaller male, striding closer to the bed. As he leaned down to Harry's level, the Allura breathed in deeply, his eyes lidding as the smell of wood and burning leaves enveloped him. Draco smelled divine.

"Either you despise me, or you do not Harry. Which is it?"

That question doused Harry's senses and broke through his haze. He leaped up to sprint from the room, forcing the inevitable Heat away, if only for the moment.

Which was it?