Work Text:
The breeze that wafts across the deck up from the sea is a cold one, bitter and stinking of salt. Tavra pulls her coat tighter around her as she ascends the steps up onto the deck above, the sounds of merrymaking from below drowned out by the gentle sound of the waves. She grips the railing, standing steady at the top of the steps as she looks around. The darkness of the world around her is not absolute, beams of silver moonlight spilling across the planks of the deck, but it does not bring her comfort. Another wave of queasiness washes over the princess, and she squeezes her eyes shut, both hands on the top of the rail.
She was glad for Onica and Tae's invitation when it came, but she is not used to the ever present rocking of the sea. She's been nauseous all day, the (admittedly meagre) amount of wine that she had earlier in the evening not helping matters. This world is not hers, as much as she wishes that it were, and it makes her uneasy.
Abruptly, Tavra feels a lurch as the boat rocks, and it hits her straight in the gut. Rushing over to the edge of the deck, she leans over the railing. As she heaves the contents of her stomach, she is grateful that all of the other Gelfling aboard the ship are otherwise occupied below deck. It is embarrassing enough to be caught sick as a Vapra among Sifans, but it is even worse to be a seasick princess.
She takes in deep, shaky breaths, coughing and keeping her eyes squeezed shut as she tries to stop the spinning feeling that is making her so very dizzy. Her lower breasts dig into the rail, the wood cold and hard, and the feeling of it through the soft material of her shirt is somehow comforting. Her gut feels empty, and the nausea passes momentarily. Still she leans, inhaling and exhaling deep breaths, fingers gripping the rail. She needs to get something else to put in her stomach, to eat something to help cover her breath. Sighing, she opens her eyes and moves to lean back, releasing the railing - precisely at the moment that a wave rocks the boat, sending her lurching forward.
A jolt of shock and fear pulses through Tavra as she suddenly finds herself halfway out of the boat, clinging desperately to the railing. She is not quite falling, but she knows that she needs to right herself fast, before another wave unseats her and sends her crashing to the water below. She tries sliding back, her toes brushing the deck, when all of a sudden she feels a large hand on her back. Taloned fingers wrap around her waist, pulling her back onto the deck and holding her steady. Tavra gasps, looking up to find a large, beaked, scaly face smirking down at her.
SkekSa.
“Careful now, little Gelfling,” the Mariner says, pulling her further back from the railing before releasing her. “It wouldn't do to lose you out at sea.” Tavra flushes, bowing to the Skeksis.
“Thank you, my lord,” she says politely. “I am not sure what I would have done if you hadn't come along.” The Skeksis laughs, tilting her head back.
“I'm sure you would have figured it out, I just made it happen a little more quickly is all.” Tavra finds herself looking at skekSa curiously, taking in the massive shape of her. She realizes with a start that the Mariner is crouching, squatted down on the deck. She hadn't really gotten very close to her earlier in the evening, and as a result hadn't realized quite how tall the Skeksis is. Perhaps she should have realized, due to the fact that as skekSa had been drinking and laughing she had a constant rotation of at least four Gelfling on her lap at a time, but Tavra had been so occupied with Onica and Tae that she hadn’t really paid it any mind. In the close quarters that they’re in now, it makes her feel nervous and a bit excited - a feeling that mixes queasily with her already unsettled gut.
Tavra realizes too late that she must have made a face, because now skekSa is looking at her curiously, tilting her large head, her fur rustling in the breeze. “Still feeling sick, Princess?” she asks curiously, reaching out her hand again. Her fingers curl around Tavra's upper arm, holding her steady. She feels a jolt of heat, and averts her gaze.
“A little bit,” she says after a pause. “I will be fine though, it's just a passing sickness.” She does not see the way that skekSa smirks, staring down at the deck as she is.
“Don't have your sea legs, I see.” She looks back up at the Mariner as she hears the sound of rustling, and finds that she is digging through a pocket on the inside of her large coat with her free hand. Producing a small pouch from her pocket, skekSa releases Tavra and sets to work undoing the ties and opening the pouch. She watches closely as the skeksis digs a claw inside the pouch, and procures on the tip of it a small amount of shimmering… something . It looks to be the texture of damp sand, but she does not know exactly what that is.
“Open your mouth,” the Mariner says, drawing a surprised inhale from Tavra.
“My lord?” she says cautiously, glancing between the strange substance on the Skeksis' claw, and the Skeksis herself.
“Please, call me Captain,” skekSa says, placing a finger from her other hand under Tavra's chin. “Open. This will make you feel better.”
“What is it?” she asks, looking down at her claw again. It shimmers green and blue, a faint kind of glow to it as it reflects back the light of the Sisters.
“Ground pearlflower,” she says simply, claw stroking absently through the Gelfling’s neck fur, and Tavra looks into her eyes. “I give it to Gelfling all the time, particularly the ones that don't have their sea legs yet.” Sea legs. There's that term again. “It’s not good to have too much of it, but you’ll only be with us a short while and it will take the sickness away.” She feels strange at the Mariner's words, but she says nothing of it. It makes enough sense that she is not willing to fight a Lord of the Crystal over it, and she certainly is tired of feeling ill.
She opens her mouth.
SkekSa smirks, eyes narrowed. There is something in that look that makes Tavra think that perhaps she's made a mistake, but it's too late to protest because skekSa slides her claw into her mouth. She rubs the pearlflower into the meat of her cheek, and then up along her gums. It burns cold, and tastes strange to Tavra as she drools some of it onto her tongue. It's biting, a fresh taste, something icy about it even through the earthy flavor. As she stares at skekSa, she can see her becoming clearer in the dark, the nausea in her gut instantly fading away.
The Mariner pulls her claw free and ties the pouch back up before stowing it in her pocket once more. As Tavra watches her, a strange kind of fascination falls over her. She can see the colors of skekSa's coat better, a deep maroon that seems so dark in comparison to the shock of blue that makes up her fur. Warmth creeps up her neck, down her back until it reaches through her limbs. It’s fuzzy, pleasant. SkekSa’s silver jewelry glints brightly in the moonlight, but not as brightly as her lovely, lovely eyes. Tavra feels a different heat rise in her cheeks. Is this how Seladon feels when she looks upon the lords in the castle?
“Better?” skekSa purrs, gripping her gently by the arm once more. Tavra gasps at the contact, glancing down at where her hand rests on her bicep. Her hand is so massive compared to the Gelfling's body, and it sends that different kind of heat rushing through her abdomen. Swallowing, (that strange flavor of pearlflower burning down her throat) Tavra meets her gaze again, struck by how biting those eyes are.
“Much better,” she says, her voice soft. SkekSa hums in approval, looking out over the railing. Her face turns into the moonlight, the beams glinting off of her face in a way that makes her skin and scales so… beautiful. The Skeksis had always made Tavra a tad uneasy, and had never taken to them quite the way that her sisters had - but being this close to skekSa, seeing how casual and kind she is with Gelfling… It is easy to see why the Sifa adore her so. “It’s a beautiful night.” Her deep voice cuts through the sound of the waves again, and she turns to look back at Tavra, eyes hooded. The Gelfling swallows again, the fur on her neck sticking up as arousal creeps down her spine.
“It is certainly is, my lo-”
“ Captain. ” The way that skekSa purrs out the word rumbles straight through Tavra, and she shudders. She offers a small smile.
“Of course. Captain. ” She repeats the word back to her, and the Mariner smirks as slides her hand down to Tavra’s waist. The Gelfling gasps, arching her back into the touch as she pulls her closer. With her other hand, she grabs Tavra’s, her thumb stroking lightly over the tops of her fingers. Her hand is warm - far warmer than Tavra would have assumed. She had never touched a Skeksis, but the lords at the castle had always looked so cold. SkekSa’s skin nearly burned .
“You’re a beautiful girl,” the Mariner says, and Tavra raises her brows in surprise.
“Oh - thank you,” she says rather awkwardly, squeezing her hand around skekSa’s finger slightly. The Skeksis chuckles, claw idly scritching at Tavra’s waist.
“You don’t like compliments, do you?” she asks, and the Gelfling looks away. How candid should she be with this lord? She isn’t sure, but the fuzzy warmth in her body makes the truth flow too easily.
“I never know how to respond to them,” she says bluntly, fixing the railing with an undeservedly intense stare. SkekSa hums again, and then pulls her forward rather sharply. Tavra stumbles slightly as she jerks her head back to look her in the eyes. The way that skekSa stares at her is intense, cutting. She nearly wants to shrink back from it.
“Well,” she purrs, “You will have to get used to them if you are going to be spending so much time with my darlings and I.” The implications of skekSa’s words are strange, confusing to Tavra as the pearlflower dulls her thoughts, but it does not matter because she finds that she has a hard time thinking about much more than how nice those hands feel against her.
“I will try, Captain,” she says, her voice far quieter than she had intended. “Thank you.” SkekSa’s smile widens, and she nods in approval before pulling her hands back and releasing her. The cold suddenly bites through her clothes down to her skin, the absence of skekSa’s hand a strangely regrettable one.
“Come, let’s go back down below,” the Mariner says, standing up. As she rises, her form towering over Tavra, she’s once again struck by how large she is. “I am sure that your loves miss you.” She nods slowly, and tears her gaze away from her. She feels much less unsteady as she walks back to the steps this time, her feet much more sure with the taste of the pearlflower in her mouth. SkekSa follows, heavy boots thudding against the wood planks.
Tavra is swift in her descent down the steps, and as she glances back at the Skeksis behind her, her eyes meet a dark, menacing shadow, a darkness cast over her by the light of the Sisters. A cold feeling grips her at the sight, cutting down to her bones. It’s a cold like Ha’rar at the height of winter - and even more like the cold that finds her further south, when she is surrounded by dark, heavily robed forms in the Castle of the Crystal.
She tears her gaze away, and enters back into the cabin. That cold is not something she needs to worry about now, not when Tae and Onica are waiting for her with warm smiles and warmer kisses.
When the boat rocks again, Tavra does not stumble.