pirate king (pirate!au) ➵ ateez ✔️

tension

Yunho shakes his head as he plops next to you, grabbing a rag from his belt and wiping most of the dirt and grime from his face. "Aish, I really want a bath. No, Tortuga is a pirate stronghold, actually. The Royal Navy has little to no power there, so we should be safe... If we pay the town enough money, that is."

You snort at his last sentence as you lie back on the deck again. The sun is turning the entire sky a beautiful shade of pink-orange, and you turn to see Yunho's face bathed in the same lovely colour.

He grins at you. "So, who's going to kill you?"

At that, you shrink into yourself, a little sheepish. You thought you'd distracted him, but it evidently hadn't worked. "Ah... Well, I was supposed to get to the sickbay during the fight yesterday but I got thrown to the midship area... and Jongho-hyung rescued me."

Yunho nods proudly, a wide grin curving on his lips as he takes a seat beside you. "Of course he did. He's a great fighter and he has strong protective instincts. You're probably safer with him than in the sickbay."

You wince. "Yeah... But during the battle, I accidentally misfired the musket and killed a soldier fighting with Jongho-hyung-"

The lookout's eyes go wide with surprise. "So you saved Jongho? That's amazing!"

"No no no-" You try to protest, but then someone coughs politely behind the two of you.

Both you and Yunho sit up to look at your visitor, only to see the ship's resident healer standing there.

"Master!" You greet him cheerfully and he nods, studying you carefully for a second.

"Don't you have work to get to, Yunho-ah?" San says over his shoulder as he checks your complexion and your pulse point for any erratic beating. The lookout pouts adorably, but can't keep the grin off his face for long.

"Killjoy." He laughs, before turning back to the foremast. "Catch you later, stowaway."

San snorts as he watches Yunho go, scaling the rigging easily like a spider does its web. "And not a kind word to me." Then he turns to you, expression blank as usual but you can read the care in his eyes. "You seem better now, apprentice. I want you to come with me to check an injury for a moment."

"Ok." You agree immediately, trailing after him to the sickbay. After the fight yesterday, you've realised that you need to acquire as many useful skills as you possibly can so you won't be a burden to your ship mates during battles. And honestly, healing seems to be the most useful thing you could do for now.

San's nimble fingers open the latch with ease and the two of you descend to the sickbay. Then you see who it is sitting at the table and you want to run for your life.

It's Jongho.

You do a complete turn and make to escape before the young battlemaster can notice you, but San grabs you by the arm and hauls you into the room after him. Your master sits himself at the table, and you hover awkwardly next to him, unsure where to look at. Jongho's eyes immediately pin you to the ground where you stand.

"I want him to learn how to treat a gunshot wound, that's why he's here with me." San explains to Jongho as he pulls out several clean rags, a pair of bronze tweezers and a roll of bandage. The young battlemaster sighs, clearly unwilling, but he nods anyway.

"Whatever you say, hyung."

San sets to pulling out a spool of thread and a thin needle, from his satchel. "Apprentice, fetch me the lamp and get me the bottle of rum from the shelf."

You give your master a concerned look as you move towards the shelf hesitantly. "Master, this really isn't the time to be drinking-"

"I'm using it to clean the wound, idiot. I'm out of marigold. And I abhor the taste of alcohol." San tuts as he unwraps a sloppily done bandage around Jongho's upper arm. The wound is a laceration from your stray musket bullet, and from what you can see, it's still bleeding even though it's been a few hours since the injury. "Jongho-ah, you know you shouldn't be helping with the clearing up if you're injured."

"They needed someone to move the wreckage from the mizzenmast." The maknae grunts in way of explanation. You swallow the guilt building up in your throat and move to get the lantern hanging from the low ceiling.

"How did you get this, though?" San continues, tossing the bloodied bandage to the ground. "You usually escape most fights unscathed, or most of your wounds are from close range combat. It's rare to see you with a musket wound."

You freeze. You can literally feel Jongho eyeballing the back of your head. But when he finally answers, he simply mutters, "Got sloppy for a moment."

San coughs. Your master obviously doesn't believe him but refrains from pressing him, taking the bottle of rum from you and wiping his arms down with them.

"So, apprentice, I'm cleaning my hands with alcohol. It helps to get rid of harmful organisms living on the surface of our bodies." San works quickly, eyebrows furrowing into concentration as he slides into his 'healing zone', where nothing matters to him except the patient, him and occasionally maybe you. "Before you start treating a wound, make sure you clean everything you're using thoroughly or the wound might get infected."

"Yes, Master." You move closer to watch him at his craft. San's motions are practiced and methodical, as if he's done it for years, over and over again. When he's satisfied that everything is spotless, he moves to Jongho's arm.

"Cloth." He speaks, and you pass him the clean rags on the table. San soaks them in rum with a pair of tweezers while you cough at the powerful smell of alcohol. You still don't understand how the rest of your shipmates can just down bottles of it without dying from alcohol poisoning.

Your master ignores you and leans forward, gently dabbing at Jongho's wound. Apart from a flinch and a muttered curse, the younger battlemaster doesn't seem to be in much discomfort, even as blood continues to stain the rags red.

"Help me hold down a cloth on his arm." San instructs firmly as he disposes the last of the dirty rags in a basket. You stare at your master in horror.

"What?"

"You're not deaf, apprentice. Put pressure on the wound and help me slow the bleeding while I heat the needle." The healer shoves a cloth into your hands and moves to the lamp, leaving you in awkward silence with Jongho.

You gulp and move towards the maknae, trying not to touch him, but it's impossible. Laying the cloth over his wound, you press down on it lightly, not wanting to hurt him and trying desperately to ignore his face right next to yours.

"That's not going to do anything." Jongho snorts in your ear and you squeak, almost dropping the rag. His large hand covers yours and presses down on it firmly, the warmth of his skin seeping into yours.

You freeze completely, but the frantic pounds of your heart are otherwise.

"Move to the side, apprentice. I want you to watch this carefully." San returns with a sterilized and threaded needle, seating himself before Jongho and thankfully sparing you the close contact with the battlemaster. "I'm going to start suturing the wound."

You breathe in and out quickly, trying to calm your racing heart as you move to make space for your master. Your hand slips from the maknae's grasp. The slim man crouches in front of Jongho, eyes narrowed in intense focus. With quick, deft movements, he holds the needle with the tweezers and pulls the needle through Jongho's skin, leaving a row of neat stitches in its wake.

"Doesn't it hurt?" The words slip out of your mouth worriedly as you glance at Jongho. The battlemaster merely turns away.

San replies in his place as he continues stitching the wound. "I usually put a painkiller made of lavender on the area before I start, but Jongho's a tough boy, so it's no problem for him."

"I am a man. I'm nineteen already." Jongho grunts in exasperation, but the healer ignores him.

"You're going to be nineteen." San corrects him with a grin, finishing of the stitches and snipping the thread with a pair of scissors. The maknae gives him an irritated glare.

"I hate you, hyung." He grumbles. But before San can reply with another wiseass comment, the sound of Mingi's voice comes echoing into the sickbay.

"We've arrived at Tortuga!"