Tales of the Meridian Society! (TheCorsair, Madame Mim)

The kiss was electric. And unexpected. Colin figured he'd be at this little game for hours, enjoying the spectacle of watching Kieran flutter closer and then pull away, closer and then away. But no, now the pirate was taking the initiative and kissing him, and without any hesitation or reservation.

Colin's arms wrapped around Kieran as he opened his mouth, allowing the man's tongue entrance. He made a noise that was half sigh, half contented murmur as he did, enjoying the musky taste of the Irishman and the feel of hard muscle against his chest and under his hands. He grinned as they broke for air. "Not to anything English?" he questioned, voice teasing. "Not at all?"

This time, he initiated the kiss. His hands cradled Kieran's face, gently pushing his back against the bench as he pressed forward. His tongue probed Kieran's lips, parting them and pressing between them.
 
It was amazing! All of it. The taste of Colin, his smell, the feel of his arms around him...it all just felt so right. More right than anything he'd ever experienced before. Colin pulled back and Kieran was disappointed, but his eyes twinkled and he smirked when asked whether he'd ever submit at all. Gently he leaned his forehead against the Englishman's.

"Never," he swore. "Not at all. Mm!"

A second kiss caught the pirate off-guard. He couldn't help but smile into it a little before he felt himself being gently pushed back against the bench. Kieran's hands found Colin's waist, resting there gently just above his hips as he felt his mouth explored by a bold tongue. Finally! Things were right!

This is wrong.

Kieran's heart skipped a beat. Within the span of roughly one second everything had flashed through his mind that was sufficient enough to push him from enjoyment into panic, though he did very nearly successfully hide the latter. His mother; Hell; Leviticus; his mother; those men in Arabia he'd once seen stoned to death; his mother. Very suddenly--from outside the confines of his own mind, at least--Kieran pulled away and put his hands on Colin's chest.

"Geroff me!" the pirate mumbled, shoving him away roughly before abruptly standing and storming off back toward the house. His mind was buzzing; how the hell was he supposed to sort all this out?
 
Colin blinked in confusion and surprise as Kieran shoved him away, mouth open to ask what was wrong. But the question died in his throat as the pirate lurched to his feet and blindly headed back towards the house. Of course. He should have realized that this could happen. From what little he'd said, Kieran's life experiences were vastly different. The English Aristocracy were tolerant of 'the love that dare not speak it's name', even though it was still illegal, as long as it was the 'discrete love that dare not speak it's name'.

Somehow, he doubted that the Irish poor and middle class were as accepting. The English weren't, after all.

For a moment he considered chasing after Kieran. He even rose to his feet, before making himself sit back down. Not now. If he pursued now, it would most likely reinforce whatever feelings of shame or guilt Kieran had - and it would cause him to transfer those feelings to himself. No, he'd let the man sort his emotions and reactions out, and then talk to him.

Shaking his head, he rose and started back towards the house at a walk.
 
He wanted Colin to follow him. No he didn't. But...wouldn't he follow if he cared? Did he even want him to care? Of course he did! No...his mother was rolling in her grave. But Colin...he was so...and that kiss! It was...and he felt...

For the first time since he was a very small child, for the first time since his father had died, Kieran's throat tightened and he pushed back the frustration. He stopped a servant and managed a clumsy exchange in which he was led to Madame LaMonte's apartments. He paced outside, sometimes going for the door, sometimes reaching for the handle then backing away. For nearly twenty minutes he alternated pacing and sitting against the wall, staring at the door. He didn't know where else to go, who to turn to. Well, he supposed Colin might...but that would just make things worse. Finally he took a deep breath and made a decision.

~

"Our parents are always that little voice in our mind, whether we like it or not." Anne Marie ran her fingers through thick, dark hair as a tear ran over her breast down to her ribs. "But that doesn't mean they're always right. Our parents come from a different time. Look at all the changes in the world, at everything that's different from when it was even ten years ago." Her only answer was a sniffle.

Kieran laid alongside Anne Marie, legs tangled together beneath the covers. There was no afterglow, no massage as she sometimes did, no tough love as he often needed. Their lovemaking had been desperate and tender and full of longing for affirmation. It was only after years upon years of building a trust in her that Kieran knew he was in a safe place here and now he clung to her as though she were the only thing tethering him to the mortal coil. His shoulders shook gently and Anne Marie shushed him gently, stroking his hair as he tried to work through all of the conflicting thoughts and feelings.

"Do you like him?" the heiress asked quietly once the sobs had reached another dwindling point. There was another sniffle and a nod. Then he shook his head. Then he nodded. "Listen to yourself," she reminded him gently, "not your mother."

"But...she..."

"Chere, listen to me. Just because you follow your own heart doesn't mean you love her any less; it means you are an adult man who is capable of making his own decisions." Anne Marie looked down at the head resting across her breasts. "So about Colin...do you think you could care for him?"

"I...yes, maybe." Kieran sniffed again, trying to regain his composure after what had quite frankly been incredibly cathartic.

"Well, since it is a 'maybe' the only way to find out would be to let it happen," she said, wiping a stray tear away from his cheek. "You must be open and honest with him about how you feel, about these fears, about what you are going through. Let him in the way you've let me in."

Kieran chuckled a little. "Oh aye, and that took just a week or two right? Not, y'know...almost a decade."

Anne Marie smiled back. "Well, I wasn't what you were looking for. I knew that and I knew I never would be. Colin...could be a good match. Or maybe not. But he's a start and it's a step in the right direction. So come." Kieran's head fell into her lap as she sat up in bed and she pulled him into a sitting position. "Dry your eyes, wash your face, fix your hair, and go find yourself a good man."

Kieran rubbed his face as though clearing it of cobwebs and gave her a weak smile. With a final kiss he slid out of bed and redressed before wandering back through the house. After his very long talk with Anne Marie, one of the harder truths of the immediate future would be facing Colin after storming off the way he had.
 
Colin had, at first, contemplated speaking with Anne Marie. She and Kieran were close, after all, and he considered it likely that she would be able to give him some insight into the pirate's thoughts. But he had hesitated, uncertain if he should reveal the man's secret even to a close friend. And then, once he had come to a decision, he had been informed that Madame LaMonte was indisposed.

Had there been other guests, even Ysabel or that brash Russian anarchist, he might have then attempted to arrange a game of tennis. There was a ckurt, after all, and it was a beautiful day. But he and Kieran were Madame LaMonte's only guests at the moment. And so, with a little sigh, he visited the library. Not that he had anything against books, mind you. Reading was a passion of his. But, after the moments of shared passion in the gardens, he had a desire tobe active.

Still, a good book could be quite distracting. Particularly since he'd located a copy of Doctor Verne's treatise on theoretical submersible aeronaval vessels, bound with the novel he'd used to popularize the idea. And so, an hour later he was sitting on a comfortable chair on a balcony overlooking the gardens, smoking a fine cigar and not thinking of Kieran.

Not at all.

No sir, the taste of the man's lips and the roll of his smooth muscles beneath his skin weren't on his mind at all. Not that, nor the feel of the man's fingers in his hair. Nor the little sound of surprised pkeasure he'd made when...

Damnit.

Who was he kidding? He'd read the same page ten times now, distracted by his thoughts. Where on earth had the pirate gone?
 
"Thought I might find you here." Kieran leaned against the frame of the french doors opening onto the balcony. He folded his arms across his chest as he watched Colin. "Okay, so I managed to ask a few servants with sign language and stuff. Alright, less sign language, more wild arm flailing."

He pushed off of the jam and sat in the chair next to Colin. "Jules Verne, hm?" He read the cover of the book. "Never read much, really."

"Sorry about eh...earlier." He looked down at his hands, not sure what else to say. "I ah, I'm still y'know working through some things. It's a lot of new territory for me and I just...you know..." Kieran sighed and hung his head briefly. "God do I really have to say it? It's not something you really talk about, you know? I mean maybe in your high-society and shit, but not me. Not anyone I know."
 
Colin looked up as Kieran spoke, startled from his reverie, and smiled. Then he laughed, as the pirate described his attempts at communication. "Well, wild arm flailing seems to have succeeded," he observed.

He pushed off of the jam and sat in the chair next to Colin. "Jules Verne, hm?" He read the cover of the book. "Never read much, really."

"It's a habit worth pursuing," Colin assured him. "Some things, after all, are difficult to learn through doing." A hesitation. "Speaking of which... are you feeling better?"

"Sorry about eh...earlier." He looked down at his hands, not sure what else to say. "I ah, I'm still y'know working through some things. It's a lot of new territory for me and I just...you know..." Kieran sighed and hung his head briefly. "God do I really have to say it? It's not something you really talk about, you know? I mean maybe in your high-society and shit, but not me. Not anyone I know."

Marking his place, Colin set the book aside. "It's not something the aristocracy talks about, either. It's... tolerated. As long as you're discrete. As long as you don't get caught, and shame your family." He looked out into the gardens. "It's something you can go to jail for, after all. I probably had it easier than you, but not by much."

Glancing back, he flashed a quick grin. "Although you do learn from an early age how to be... discrete, in the aristocracy. Both my parents had lovers, after all."

The grin faded. "But... I fear I may have pushed you. And... I'm sorry. I didn't intend that."
 
Not by much? The old sense of extreme dislike roared back into being at those three small words. He had no idea what sort of life the pirate had led, how difficult it had been--! Not by much? While Colin had been eating caviar with his silver spoon, his family of six had barely been scraping by and he thought anything he'd gone through had been 'not by much'?? Kieran took a slow, deep breath to calm the rage that little phrase had incited in him before speaking. They'd never get anywhere if he kept raging and storming.

"Don't think it was you, mostly," the pirate said with a shrug. "But don't ever presume to know what sort of a life I've dealt with, yeah?"

Kieran looked down at his hands again, unsure what to say. Should he ask questions? Should he just kiss the man like he had earlier? Or he could go with the most obvious option: "So...what happens next?" he asked his hands. "Where do we go from here?"
 
"Don't think it was you, mostly," the pirate said with a shrug. "But don't ever presume to know what sort of a life I've dealt with, yeah?"

There was a world of bitterness in those words, and Colin mentally kicked himself for a fool. "This seems to be my day for apologies," he observed. "I didn't mean to, well... to imply that I fully understood what your life has been." Turning his head, he looked back at the garden once more. I merely meant..."

He let his words die, then started again. "I'll probably just say it wrong again. So, for now, why don't I just let it go?"

They sat for several minutes in an awkward silence. Kieran looked at his hands, then looked up, then back at his hands. Colin made a show of inspecting the sleeve of his coat, brushing away a speck of largely-imagined lint. Finally, it was Kieran that broke the silence. "So...what happens next?" he asked his hands. "Where do we go from here?"

It was right on the tip of Colin's tongue to answer 'bed?', but this was no time for bad jokes. "I... well, where do you want to go?" Then and idea struck him. "Actually, why don't we go to dinner? Dinner can be as innocuous as two colleagues chatting about work, or as intimate and personal as desired. And then we can see where you and I both want to go from here, as the evening winds on."

He grinned wickedly.

"I'm sure we can even find you a potato. And a silver spoon to stuff in my mouth."
 
"I'll probably just say it wrong again. So, for now, why don't I just let it go?"

"I think that's a very good idea," he affirmed icily before falling into silence. Kieran looked down at his hands again, unsure what to say. Should he ask questions? Should he just kiss the man like he had earlier? Or he could go with the most obvious option: "So...what happens next?" he asked his hands. "Where do we go from here?"

When Colin asked him where he wanted to go, the pirate opened and closed his mouth a few times. That's why he'd asked him! He didn't know where to go! This was an absolute disaster. It was a terrible idea and he should have never listened to Anne Marie. If only he could go back in time...

Then he suggested dinner. Kieran looked up, wondering why he hadn't thought of it. That's what he'd normally do in this situation if Colin were a woman, wouldn't he? "Dinner...sounds like a good starting point," he admitted with a small smile. "But if I ever eat another potato again it'll be too soon. The only usefulness for a potato is in liquid form." He nodded firmly before returning the wicked grin. "Oh it's a spoon you want stuffed in your mouth, is it?"

As the afternoon wore on Kieran began feeling much his usual self again. It didn't have to be weird. He found that if he treated Colin much the same way he tended to treat women--albeit much more attractive--he felt much more at ease. It felt so...normal. He had thought that, were he to embrace his true sexuality, it would be something depraved and perverted, something unnatural. Instead he found spending time with Colin similar to spending time with a woman he thought he was attracted to...only much more enjoyable. Late in the afternoon a clock somewhere struck four.

"So dinner...Did you have any ideas?" the pirate asked. "It'll be that time soon."
 
"I'm sure we can even find you a potato. And a silver spoon to stuff in my mouth."

He was glad to see that Kieran had brightened up at the suggestion of something as mundane as a date. Or, well, not precisely as formal as that even. Just an evening out that could, if they both so chose, go further.

"Dinner...sounds like a good starting point," he admitted with a small smile. "But if I ever eat another potato again it'll be too soon. The only usefulness for a potato is in liquid form."

"Vodka," Colin agreed. "Perhaps the only reason that springs to mind when trying to understand why God created Russia." A brief smile. "And the only worthwhile thing to come out of that dreadful nation." A pause, and a small smile. "Overly amorous anarchists included."

He nodded firmly before returning the wicked grin. "Oh it's a spoon you want stuffed in your mouth, is it?"

"For now," Colin answered lazily. "And it will, you must agree, be a nice change of pace from the foot I've been stuffing in there today."

The rest of the evening passed slowly, with Colin finding himself more and more excited (and nervous) about the evening. Examined rationally, of course, that excitement made no sense whatsoever. He and Kieran had little enough in common, save work and airships. Good God, they'd barely even gotten along until now, and even now that was being sorely tested. And yet...

And yet...

There was something about the man. Something that drew him far more than the men and women he'd courted in the past. A fire, and a spirit...

Or was he just justifying it to himself? Was it just that he found the 'bad boy' image of the pirate sexy as hell? He thought about it, then shrugged. Perhaps. Perhaps not. Well, he did. But, was that the only reason?

Somewhere in the distance, a clock struck four. "So dinner...Did you have any ideas?" the pirate asked. "It'll be that time soon."

"Lapérouse," Colin answered without missing a beat. "I dined there twice, in 1917. It is, I believe, one of the finest restaurants in the city." He glanced at the pirate, then smiled. "We'll both need to dress for the occasion."
 
"Sounds stuffy," Kieran answered suspiciously, raising an eyebrow. "We're about the same size. Think you've got anything that fits, or will we have to pull a Sam and Anne Marie?" He silently begged Colin to have something appropriate that would fit. He loathed shopping, and he didn't want to waste time on something as silly as clothes when they both knew all they wanted to do was take them--

No, he reminded himself firmly. Walk before you run. That's how you cocked things up earlier. It's just dinner.

But God how he wanted to! The pirate couldn't help but imagine the feel of buttons pulling free from their thread as he ripped Colin's shirt off, or what he must feel like...how thick his cock must be... No! Dinner. He needed to focus on dinner for now. Even if Colin didn't have anything for the occasion, Kieran figured he might as well start by shaving thoroughly. While Colin looked through his closet, Kieran went from bearded and scruffy to clean-shaven and morally-upright-looking. He scoffed as he looked in the mirror. He looked like a child without his facial hair! He hated it! But he had to dress for dinner and this was part of it. Besides, maybe Colin would like it better, who knew?

Once clothes were figured out and they had both dressed and politely declined Madame LaMonte's invitation to dinner, the pirate waited nervously at the bottom of the grand staircase. When Collin came down, however, he did a double-take. He'd seen the officer dressed nicely but this was...meticulous, spectacular...incredible, and only made him want him more. He smiled--somewhat nervously--when Colin had made it to the last step.

"You look fantastic," he said quietly. Out of habit more than anything, Kieran offered his arm to his date. He realized after approximately half a second what he'd done, but this was supposed to be an attempt at a proper date. This is what he'd have done if he were on a proper date with a woman, and so he left his arm where it was to see whether or not Colin would accept it before they walked out to the car.
 
"Sounds stuffy," Kieran answered suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

"Not dreadfully so, no," Colin answered. "Perhaps for a pirate, but it actually resembles a cafe more than anything else. You'll need to wear a nicer suit, though."

"We're about the same size. Think you've got anything that fits, or will we have to pull a Sam and Anne Marie?"

Colin thought about that for a moment. "I think," he finally said, "that the simple fact that we're talking in a civil manner constitutes pulling a 'Sam and Anne Marie', as you put it. After all, nobody ever predicted those two getting along well." A pause. "Or at all, really. But I digress - I believe I have a suit you could wear. You'll need to return it, of course, but we shan't worry about that now."

Rising, he gestured towards the hallway. "Shall we?"



Dressed for dinner, wearing a bow tie and black tails and clean-shaven, Kieran was nearly unrecognizable. Colin eyed him critically as he descended the stairs, trying to decide if he liked the change. He decided he did, although if pressed he would have admitted that he appreciated Kieran's scruffy, roguish look more. Still, he met the pirate's nervous-looking smile with a small smile of his own, and inclined his head in acknowledgement of Kieran's compliment.

"As do you," he remarked, eying Kieran's arm with a degree of surprise. Then, with a broader smile, he took it. "I have to say, though, that I believe I prefer the beard. It gives you a certain sinister charm that suits you." He paused, opening the door and holding it for the other man. "But you are still quite handsome, even without it."

Making his way down the stairs, he eyed the car suspiciously. Stopping in front of the vehicle, he glanced at the man on his arm. "Will you be offended if I hold the door for you?"
 
"Sinister charm. I like it." Kieran smiled, deciding he did indeed like such a descriptor. "I like the beard better, too. Just thought I ought to, you know...clean up a bit." He flushed a little but smiled when Colin called him handsome. He could think of a number of descriptors for him, amongst the least of which was 'handsome.'

The went down the front steps to the waiting car and Colin seemed to hesitate. They looked at each other and Kieran smirked at the question. "Only if you think that means I'm ever letting you be in charge," he replied, letting Colin get the door. "I'm not a damn woman, you know."

He slid in and waited for Colin to join him. What were they supposed to talk about during the car ride? The confined space seemed to get even smaller and all of a sudden very hot. Clearing his throat, Kieran searched for a topic. Any topic.

"So...planning on getting me drunk, are you?" he joked nervously. Any topic but that one! His fingers slowly crept toward Colin's and eventually he laid his pinky over the officer's. "What sort of food do they serve, anyway?"
 
Stopping in front of the vehicle, he glanced at the man on his arm. "Will you be offended if I hold the door for you?"

Kieran smirked at the question. "Only if you think that means I'm ever letting you be in charge," he replied, letting Colin get the door. "I'm not a damn woman, you know."

"Oh, I never once thought you'd let me be in charge," Colin answered cheerily. "But, bear in mind that I'm an officer of His Majesty's Royal Aeronavy. I'm accustomed to command." Slipping in afterwards and closing the door, he winked at Kieran. "Of course, I rather suspect you'll say the same. For only slightly different reasons."

The driver glanced backwards, then eased the car out into traffic. Colin sat silently, suddenly acutely aware of the quiet and the presence of his fellow passenger. "So...planning on getting me drunk, are you?" Kieran asked with a nervous chuckle.

"I'd thought about it," Colin answered. "I've heard claims - wild and unfounded, I'm sure - that pirates can hold their liquor better than Royal sailors." A quick grin. "Perhaps we should put that to the test?"

He let that hang there for a moment, then held up a hand. "Only joking. Well, only joking right now. It is something I still believe we should test. You know, for science."

Kieran's fingers touched his. "What sort of food do they serve, anyway?"

"French." He let that word hang there as well, then laughed. "The menu tends to be small, and varies with the whims of the chef. I had fois gras there once, and the royal crab a second time. Both were excellent." He slid his fingers a little further beneath Kieran's hand. "And they are discrete. The French are, I believe, far more accepting than our own nations. And, if it is not asking too much... however did you come to practice your particular profession?"
 
Kieran glanced sideways at his companion's mention of being used to command. "I'm quite accustomed to giving orders, if that's what you mean," he replied airily, "and I fully expect them to be followed without question." He let that hang in the air between them as the silence grew almost out of control. His throat was dry as he searched for a topic. Any topic. "So...planning on getting me drunk, are you?" he joked nervously before mentally kicking himself.

He was surprised when Colin answered in the affirmative. He smiled, however, when Colin suggested that they try to out-drink one another some time in an attempt to settle that old rivalry. "Science is a very noble pursuit," Kieran agreed. "I think it's worth trying some time. What sort of food do they serve, anyway?" His pinky slowly crept over Colin's. The pirate crinkled his nose but laughed along. He supposed it made sense that a French restaurant would serve French food. As much as he typically disliked the French, however, it was a comfort to know that they tended to be a bit more accepting of people like...well, like Colin. He smiled when the officer asked how he'd gotten into piracy. It was a question he'd been expecting for several years.

"Started out in a rebel group," he said with a shrug. "They call it the IRA now. We fought English soldiers, and when we weren't fighting them we were taunting them. Then we started fighting English sailors. One thing led to another and after me mum died I found myself on an aeroship. Worked my way up from there." He glanced over at Colin. "Why? How'd you come to join the Royal Aeronavy? Family business, I suppose?"
 
Colin nodded as he listened, somehow not surprised to hear that Kieran had started out as a revolutionary. After the Martians, England had experienced several decades of rebuilding, and had focused inwards on the effort. The ties of empire had become tenuous, particularly closer to home. It had been an odd truth to discover that keeping India had proved easier than keeping Ireland. Technically, the island was still part of the Empire.

Technically.

"Family business?" Colin echoed, chuckling. "Something like that. There... really aren't a whole lot of options for an aristocrat. Even a poor one. I'm third in line, making it unlikely I'll inherit, so marrying me off to a rich American isn't a strong option. And my second brother went into the clergy, making it unseemly for me to follow."

He flashed Kieran a wolfish grin. "Not that I'd make a very good bishop, really. But, I digress. My options were, really, either a career in the military or a career as a fop, layabout, and general embarrassment to the family. And my father made it quite clear that the second option was no option at all. And so..." He shrugged. "After four years at Oxford, he purchased me a commission in the Royal Navy. He was a bit disappointed when I transferred to the aeronaval forces, but that faded when I received command of the Gryphon. Particularly when the prize money started coming in."

Shifting a little, he squeezed Kieran's hand without even thinking about it. "The fact that I never managed to run your ship down should, I think, be taken far more as a testament to your skills than an indictment of mine. I've captured ten naval vessels and six aeronaval - and only four of the total were German during the war. So, even after helping my family pay off some debts, I've been able to fund a series of lucrative investments and live quite comfortably."

Colin watched Kieran's face for a moment, then glanced to one side. "And, I believe we're nearly there. Last minute check - how do I look? It would be unseemly, after all, for an officer of the King's Aeronavy to dine out with lint on his collar."
 
Kieran curled his fingers around the edge of Colin's hand as he listened attentively. He was a bit surprised, really, that he wasn't some sort of pride and joy of his family. A decorated officer, after all, was certainly nothing to sneeze at. It seemed almost as though Colin were average by his family's standards, and that didn't sit well with him at all. The pirate was surprised when his hand was squeezed, but he squeezed gently back and smiled.

"Well, I'll take that as the highest compliment then," Kieran said, sitting a little straighter as Colin listed all of the vessels he'd captured. "Investments are for Oxford-educated ponces like you, though. Know what I call a good investment? Holding up a few rich merchant vessels and not paying taxes." He smiled cheekily, knowing Colin wouldn't approve...but approval of his line of work hadn't really come into play during recent developments, had it?

"You look perfect," Kieran insisted gently before hardening his look. "Bloody woman." He grinned and winked before sliding out of the car and waiting for Colin. Although Kieran didn't like taking orders, he would follow Colin's lead in an environment where he was completely out of place.
 
"You look perfect," Kieran insisted gently before hardening his look. "Bloody woman."

Colin grinned as he took Kieran's arm. "Oh, come now," he teased. "We haven't even figured out what - if any - kind of relationship we have. And you're already trying to arrange a menage a trois? Well, quand à Paris..." Chuckling, he led Kieran to the door of the restaurant. The headwaiter eyed them suspiciously, and Colin gave him a winning smile. "Drake, party of two," he announced. "We have reservations for the corner table by the window..?"

The headwaiter made a show of examining his book. "Ah, oui Monseur. Please, follow me." The two men were escorted to a small table set for two, where Colin hesitated before deciding that pulling Kieran's chair out for him would not be well received. Instead, he settled for seating himself.

"Tonight's special is fillet of roast beef, served with mushroom risotto and gravy," the headwaiter announced. "And your waiter will be with you shortly." With a small bow, he departed.
 
"A menage a--?" Kieran fixed him with a scowl. "No. Not of that sort, anyway. I think we've well established that that isn't exactly what does it for me. I was calling you a bloody woman. Next you'll be asking me if a cummerbund makes yer arse look fat or some shite like that."

Kieran noticed the suspicious look the maitre d' fixed them with. Instead of replying with a smile similar to Colin's, he chose to glower quietly at the man while letting the officer take care of the particulars. Silently he followed and watched as Colin hesitated at the table. With a slight nod of approval he sat in his own chair, pleased that he'd known better than to try to pull it out for him. He was not a woman, after all, nor would he be the woman in this relationship. If there was a relationship to be had.

Once the headwaiter departed Kieran looked around. "It's a nice place," he said quietly, feeling like he had to whisper or murmur in such a place. "I can't read the bloody menu, though, and the special sounded good. So the special it is. Dunno what the hell risotto is, though." He shrugged and sat back in his chair. "So...what are we supposed to talk about then?"
 
"Risotto is... hmmm..." Colin peered at the menu, then shrugged. "Some sort of rice dish. When it comes to cooking, I can just about manage to brew tea without ruining it."

Kieran's other question was a good one, though. Colin considered it for a moment. "Clearly not work. Well, I mean, we could. But it seems to defeat the point." He considered it further. "The last time I was out with a gentleman for the evening, we talked cricket. Sadly, it ended poorly. He had a profile like a Greek marble, but there were irreconcilable differences." A chuckle. "He supported Australia in the Ashes."

Then, without changing his expression, he brushed his foot against Kieran's calf. "Fortunately," he continued, "I'm not out with a gentleman. Am I? So... what sort of things do you do for fun? Sports? Hunting? Perhaps the soul of a poet lurks beneath that roguish exterior?"
 
Kieran wrinkled his nose. "Australia?" he shook his head. "He's daft. Most of those types are, really."

The pirate tried not to react as he felt a foot against his calf. Subtly he checked to make sure the tablecloth was hiding their legs before gently hooking his ankle around the back of Colin's calf. Though he tried to play it down, he couldn't quite help how very red his face flushed. It was a rather odd thing to have happen with another man, certainly, but it felt so much more...right. He raised his eyebrows and sat back in his chair, though, when Colin inquired to his hobbies.

"Oh I'm not a gentleman am I? I see how it is." He folded his arms across his chest momentarily before smirking that smouldering smile and leaning his elbows back on the table. "There's not a whole lot of room for hunting or sports on the deck of an aeroship, as well you know, and unlike you I've got a reputation to maintain. I do consider myself a rather accomplished musician, though. Well, accomplished for being self-taught anyway. Fiddle, guitar, flute...piano when I can get my hands on one but that's a bit more difficult." He shrugged. "Apart from that, though I don't read much fiction I do enjoy historicals."
 
Colin considered making a joke about "playing the flote", but allowed it to die unspoken. Not that he thought the pirate would be offended by crass humor in general, but because it might feel too much like pushing. Instead, he leaned forward just a bit. "I play the piano myself, and I agree: they're fiendishly difficult to get on a warship. So I taught myself to play the accordion and the ukulele - perhaps not the most dignified of instruments, but far more portable."

He sipped at his water. "Perhaps we should start a band? The Meridian Orchestra, with you on fiddle and me on accordion, and... Sam on harmonica. Professor Swift on drums." He drummed his fingers on the table top in a one-two-three-four, one-two-three-four rhythm. "That nervous tick of his, you know? Shou,d granslate to percussion. And I'll be shocked beyond words if Anne Marie doesn't play an instrument or two."

The waitrr arrived shortly. Colin glanced over the menu and selected the special, tnen ordered a bottle of red wine to accompany it. "Can't say that I enjoy historicals," he said as the waiter departed, "but I adore histories. Herodotus is fascinating, particularly if you can read it in the original Greek." He chuckled. "And I'll deny this if you reveal it, but I've developed a taste for the pulp magazines being printed in the Americas."
 
"The ukulele?" Kieran sniggered behind his hand before clearing his throat. It probably wasn't the wisest idea to make so much fun of his date. His date! His first date! At his age it was laughable, but here it was.

"Oh but we can't let Heinz-Schmidt feel left out!" he protested, smiling at the idea of the six of them forming a band. "We could force him into some lederhosen and give him a tuba!" The pirate laughed at the mental image before imitating the slow, steady, clumsy-sounding beat of a tuba in an oom-pa-pa band. He chuckled and shook his head. "Anne Marie might be game but I have a feeling the rest of them would kill us. Maybe some time we can play together. I'll teach you a rebel song, yeah?" Again he smouldered before winking at his companion.

When the waiter arrived Kieran looked at his menu and clumsily sounded out the special. The waiter looked displeased, but apparently it was enough to convey what he wanted because no further questions were asked. "Well I don't know Greek, so that's out of the question," Kieran admitted with a shrug. His lack of linguistic talent was one he didn't regret, though he supposed it would be useful to know more than English, Gaelic, and a smattering of Welsh.

"Pulp magazines?" He frowned. "Never heard of them. Do you mean like, pin-ups and whatnot?" That was the only sort of magazine Kieran had ever bothered to familiarize himself with in an effort to further push away the part of him he'd always tried to hide from himself.
 
"Sure," Colin answered, purely straight-faced. "I'll learn your rebel song, and you learn God Save The King, and we'll confuse everyone."

He ordered dinner, and managed to not jump in and correct Kieran's pronunciation when the man stumbled through his order, and resumed the discussion of hobbies and entertainment. The pirate seemed... mystified by some of his choices. "Pulp magazines?" He frowned. "Never heard of them. Do you mean like, pin-ups and whatnot?"

"No," Colin laughed. "Not that... I mean, I certainly appreciate the female form as well. But, no. Stories about detectives, and cowboys, and men flying to the Moon and the like." He chuckled again. "Many of them are rubbish, of course, but a few authors are diamonds in a field of gravel. If you like historicals, you might like Oriental Tales - they've got a series of short stories set during the Crusades that are quite good."

Pausing to sip some water, he watched Kieran in the ruddy light of the candles that illuminated their table. The restaurant had electric lights, of course, but rarely turned them on. It would spoil the ambiance. "I... that is..." He smiled a little. "If I tell you that you are beautiful, will you take it as a compliment?"
 
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