Archive of Our Own

Jim had a secret.

Sorta.

Maybe he was being dramatic but Jim wasn’t sure what else to call a topic he never talked about and one those around him rarely had the courage to bring up. The whole topic wasn’t a secret, there are things even the best of the best could never hide, and the fact was Captain Hawkins is a bonded omega.

Those around Jim could catch the faint scent of alpha. Those Jim allowed in a little closer could glimpse the top of the bite mark, his alpha’s claim, on his neck. Those who paid attention to Jim’s schedule would know he spent two months out of the year not on a Navy ship. Two months separated by five, a six month rotation that perfectly matched the suppressants Jim took like clockwork.

So no, Jim having a mate was not in question. The question that tickled ears as rumors were whispered amongst the ranks was who the lucky or unlucky bastard was. Not once during the last five years had Jim brought his alpha to events, or dinner parties, or even to live with him on his ship, a benefit allowed for mated captains. Was it through shame? Did this alpha have a busy life of their own?

Jim humored a few of the rumors, and may or may not have started one or two himself, because if there were enough wrong rumors no one would be able to spot the truth. The truth of it, that secret Jim kept from even his own mother, was that the illustrious Captain Hawkins’ mate is a pirate.

Five Years Prior

Jim had taken to the naval academy like a fish to water. Once he had adjusted to the rules, more like once he found a way to carefully push those rules, he found himself at the top of his class. Jim rode that high and pushed himself to stay there because if there was one thing he would need after graduation it would be top credentials to back himself up with.

Omega rights this, freedom that, Jim would never escape the alpha bias in the Navy. He knew this information before he joined, before Amelia brought it up, before he had ever stepped foot on The Legacy. Jim didn’t think he’d be able to do it but after the events on Treasure Planet, well, who else could say they found Flint’s treasure then rode on a wave of fire through a portal? The Legacy’s return had been big news and Jim hadn’t let his fifteen minutes of fame go to waste.

He made sure his spot as number one of his class was undeniable. Jim hadn’t fucked around with the other cadets, hadn’t gone anywhere or allowed himself to be caught in a compromising situation. Had gone so far as to wear beta cologne to mask his omega scent. Jim was number one not because he fucked or flirted his way there but because he was the best the academy had to offer.

Despite all his efforts, there were only so many ships that would take an omega, suppressants or not, and they were not the best the Navy had to offer. Even so, Jim had accepted a two year assignment on a scouting vessel and resolved to do his best. He had his ups and downs, alphas posturing, betas casting glances, a captain that accepted Jim but didn’t bother being any nicer than that. He wasn’t the only omega on board but he was the only one who refused to keep his head down.

Jim’s attitude hadn’t won him any friends but he had been accepted by a small clique who kept him around if only for the money they made off bets. Omega alcohol tolerance was low at best, disastrous at worst, but Jim had made it his goal since sixteen to fix that. He could never hope to outdrink an alpha but he didn’t have to. All he had to do was line up a few shots, bat his eyes, and let the crew make their bets against the unsuspecting patrons of whatever dive they found themselves at during shore leave.

It was a one time party trick, Jim did have his limits, that he had successfully completed not an hour ago. The sound of overly excited spacers and the amused grumblings of the regulars mixed with the terrible music the bar had playing a little too loudly. The novelty of meeting an omega who could drink tended to soothe the loss of a few coins. It also opened the door for every unmated alpha who thought they’d score with who must be a seriously dunk omega.

Jim loved nothing more than to disappoint as he nursed a beer. What he hated was an alpha who wouldn’t accept a no like the one who was pestering him now. The alpha had realized Jim wasn’t intoxicated enough and was pushing for him to drink more, the drink likely spiked. The only people Jim trusted less than his sorta friends were strange alphas.

"How many times does a lad need ta say no fer ye to get the hint?" A deep accented voice sounded off next to Jim. A deep voice that never failed to send a chill down Jim’s spine.

He didn’t bother to hide the smile on his face as he turned to Silver. The ursid was a large man, was still a large man, and alpha or not Jim had no doubt Silver’s stature would have been enough to scare off most of Jim’s suitors. The now comparably small alpha that had been hounding Jim took the loss and slunk off leaving his chair open for Silver.

“Silver!” Jim wanted to tackle Silver in a hug. Finally, finally, he had a friend to share a drink with. Someone who would have his back even if just for one night. Instead, Jim offered up his hand to shake. Despite it all he wasn’t sure if a hug was wanted and at the very least he didn’t want his Navy clique to see him get too friendly with anyone.

"Jimbo." Silver responded as he ignored the hand and went in for a crushing hug. It was short, sweet, and likely missed by everyone else in the room "Yer a sight fer sore eyes."

"I bet you tell all the pretty omegas that." Jim teased once he got his breath back.

"Just the one."

From there they fell into casual talk, where has Silver been, how was the Navy treating Jim, so on and so forth. It wasn't until the manager called closing time Jim realized he had been ditched by his clique. Just another irritating wrinkle in Jim's life. No one wanted to babysit the omega and the proof of that was the punctuation of the woes he had just laid on Silver.

The biggest being the Navy’s strict rule against unbonded omegas holding positions of power. Jim could hardly blame them for it either and that was the worst part. If it had been unfair he’d fight back for all he was worth but at the end of the day the ugly truth of it would still be there.

An unbound omega was a security risk.

An opportunistic criminal would have no issues getting their hands on heat inducers. Suppressants or not there was nothing an omega could do to prevent a chemically forced heat. At the height of it the omega would be willing to spill secrets, to let out everything the unsavory folk of the underworld could ever wish to know, if it meant they’d get a knot.

These fears were not unfounded. There were incidents in the Navy’s spotty history, incidents better left unspoken, incidents Jim had read through during his now abandoned crusade to prove the Navy wrong. The records had been explicit to the point where Jim had fought not to vomit. For once Jim decided not to fight a rule but that wouldn’t keep him from bitching about it.

"I'll have to pick a different path at this point." Jim pouted as he kicked at the pavement. Silver was being kind enough to walk him back to the motel.

"What if ye didn't 'ave ta?" Silver questioned. For a split second Jim let himself hope. If anyone could find a way around or through a tough spot it was Silver. That hope was quickly quashed down.

"What? You have some magic way to turn me into a beta?" Jim scoffed. Science let people swap genders but there was something deeper, something immobile about second genders that kept everyone locked into what they had been born into.

"I'll bond ye." Silver offered as easily as he would have offered Jim a drink. As if what he just said wouldn't change not only Jim's life but his own.

"You can't be serious?" Jim had stopped dead in his tracks as he looked around to make sure no one was close enough to eavesdrop. "Silver that'd make me a liability to you."

On average, most people found themselves bound by their late twenties if not sooner. Silver was closer to forty than thirty and had yet to claim a mate. Jim wanted to say that's because Silver wasn't average but he had learned most pirates, thieves, people in unsavory positions didn't bond. A mate was a weakness, a liability, someone that could be leveraged against the other.

"Serious as the stars, lad, but only if ye agree to it." 

"What about my heats? What if the bond doesn't take the first time? There's so much to think about." Jim rambled.

"Take yer time, doesn't 'ave ta be tonight or tomorrow night or anytime really." Silver smiled. "I ain't rushin' ta claim anyone else."

"How will I find you when I do decide?" Jim asked.

"When's yer next heat? I can meet up wit' ye outside a safe house an' ye can give me yer answer then. Two days before.”

"The ship I’m on is heading back towards Montresor. Stick to the area and keep your ear open for The Clandestine. I’ll be having my next heat in three months, I’ll see you then.”

Three months was and wasn't a long time. One moment it felt like Jim blinked and a week was gone and the next minute felt like days. He was constantly vacillating between taking Silver's offer and not depending on how his day went. Some days were bearable, enjoyable even while others he'd get overly snide remarks or hazed just enough without alerting the higher ups.

Then he had been called into the captain’s office for a talk. Jim’s two years were almost up, his next heat landed at the end of it, and he had a few choices to make. One of those was signing up for another two on the ship. The other brought a scowl to his face. The captain had a list of alphas who had offered to help Jim with his little problem, to bond him, so he could climb the ranks. To say Jim had responded poorly to the offer was an understatement.

He didn’t know half of the names on the list and the other half he’d rather go AWOL than lay in bed for. There was no doubt the clique had made bets on this too, had spread the word little omega Jim wanted to be a captain. His pride against his ambition. His freedom for rank. Jim would have to accept a name on that list or pray for a miracle. Well, Jim laughed to himself on the way out, they were about to see a miracle.

Silver showed up two days early, as planned, and he and Jim had a long talk. The bond was mutually beneficial. While Jim would be able to go off and live the life he wanted, Silver hoped to settle into an actual job somewhere. The older spacer had lamented about how he was getting ‘too old for this shit’ and wanted nothing more than to settle down someplace quiet.

The trouble was no one wanted to hire an alpha as old as Silver without a mate. All signs pointed to him being one of those unsavory folk and they weren't wrong. As for heats, Jim would stick to his once a year rotation for now. It was all he could afford on his salary and figuring out the logistics of anymore seemed like too much too soon. They would revisit the arrangement later as needed. For now their deal already felt too muddled.

If Jim had known sharing a heat would have felt as good as it did he would have fucked around sooner, maybe. There were collars omegas could purchase to prevent bond bites and a slew of other devices that assured the heat would go their way, but Jim hadn’t dared. He barely trusted himself let alone anyone else. Anyone who wasn’t Silver.

For years Jim had pinned for the man, had always hoped to run into the ursid at a dive bar, and that was exactly what had happened. Even if it was Silver’s name on his lips during his heats Jim had never let the fantasy go any further than just friends. It tore at a part of his soul to know Silver was bonding with him as a means to an end. This fact being the only reason Jim didn’t spill declarations of love at the peak of his heat.

The bond took on the second try. Silver had done well to layer the second bite over the first, he didn’t want to mar Jim’s flesh more than he had to, and a sloppy bite mark spoke of a lack of restraint on the alpha’s part. From there they enjoyed the rest of Jim's week off either caught in his heat or scenting.

Walking away from Silver was rough but if asked, Jim found the feeling of missing someone refreshing. Now he had someone to go home to, even if it was a facade, something he could look forward to once a year. A bond mate, proof at least one person out in the etherium cared for Jim. Even if Silver didn't love Jim he cared enough and fuck if that wasn't something he had been missing.

The look on the captain's face when Jim presented himself marked and scented was the cherry on top of his wonderful week. The look on the faces of his clique were less entertaining, but they wouldn't be an issue for long because Jim was out of there and on his way to bigger and better things. While Jim had been limited by his biology, the others were simply limited.

Four Years Prior

Jim had been dying to see where Silver had settled in. The ursid had written about the place in great detail in one of his rare letters. Between the great risk of simply knowing Silver and Jim's suddenly rocketing work life correspondence was rough at best. Still, that didn't stop Jim from dancing with glee every time he got a letter.

Silver had found work at a cozy diner next to an out of the way port that kept just busy enough for the locals to keep food on the table. The diner rarely saw patrons that couldn’t be considered locals so when Silver brought Jim in he had become the immediate center of attention. The locals had regarded him with caution, he was obviously Navy and he'd bet Silver wasn't the only fugitive here, but the second Silver introduced Jim as his mate the mood relaxed.

Jim's blood hummed at being called Silver's mate. That's what he was but after nearly a year apart it was a fact he sometimes forgot. Here in the diner he couldn't escape it or hide the stupid look on his face. It felt like hugging Silver after their year apart all over again. 

They could feel the light pull of the bond, the gentle reminder they weren't alone in the universe, which was a comfort most days. It wasn't until Jim was safe in his alpha's arms he realized how unhappy he had been. Silver agreed. Whatever his feelings were for Jim he had at least missed him.

After introductions and lunch Silver wasted no time getting Jim settled in for his heat. They had two weeks this time, a week for heat then a week after for Jim to simply exist. The perks of being promoted up a rank.

Silver's home wasn't big but it didn't have to be since he lived alone most of the year. The kitchen was generous, Jim looked forward to a few home cooked meals, with a small living space next to it. Above the living space was a loft that served as Silver's bedroom, currently their bedroom.

Silver had nesting blankets on the bed, a luxury Jim hadn't ever had, and he was beside himself. Finally, Jim could make a nest then fuck in it.

He had never felt more loved than in those two weeks he had spent with Silver. The older man didn't have to be so nice, so doting, all they had done was make a business deal. Jim had expected Silver to treat him like he had on The Legacy, friends at best, but he couldn't recall a moment Silver hadn't been touching him in some way.

There were moments Jim nearly told Silver he loved him, because how else was he to interpret his actions? The casual scenting, casual touches, and showing off Jim as if he was worth all the treasure in the world. In a way he was, Silver had given up a world's worth of treasure years ago, but Jim didn’t think too much into it and let himself be pampered for two weeks before he went back to being cold and stoic.

Two Years Prior

It had only been five months since Jim had seen Silver last. He had shown up for his two weeks, they had shared his heat, and Silver pampered Jim. Nothing had been weird, no warning signs, no extra scents, no nothing that told Jim he wasn't Silver's only omega.

It was something neither of them had talked about, if they could have partners on the side, people who were closer. It was a topic Jim hadn't even considered until a jealous spacer had taunted Jim with a particularly nasty jab.

Your alpha isn't here because he has someone else.

Jim wanted to argue back and say they were wrong but in the span of seconds everything Jim had ever felt good about started to crash down around his ears. Of course this was happening. Of course something had to go wrong. The spacer wasn't jealous for nothing, oh no, Jim had finally been promoted to captain. Jim was also not allowed to be happy for longer than five minutes.

Jim had recognized the spacer from the list of names his first captain had shown him. Names he had memorized if only so he knew who to avoid. A list of names that would no doubt have paid to see the proud Jim Hawkins as he was now. On the verge of tears, hours away from a heat, and dead afraid of what was beyond his mate's door.

Silver didn't know Jim was here. He didn't know Jim had decided to switch to twice a year suppressants. Didn't know despite all of Jim's accomplishments he still felt worthless. It had been a rushed choice, Jim's promotion allowed him more time off, so here he was. With echoes of the taunt rattling through his head he steeled himself and knocked on Silver's door.

Then Jim waited.

The look on Silver’s face when he opened the door was shock and something dark curled in Jim's stomach. Of course Silver was shocked, he hadn't called ahead, but Jim was beyond reason, beyond rational thought. He ignored Silver's questions as he shoved his way through the door.

Jim scented the air in the small house deeply as he continued to shut out Silver. The tang of spices hit his nose, Silver’s own deep scent, the hint of chemical cleaner from the bathroom, the soft scent of laundry detergent from the bedroom, the same cacophony of smells that was always here. No one else.

Jim crumpled into a ball on the floor as he cried with desperate relief. That cruel alpha had been wrong, there was no one else. He felt Silver join him on the floor as he wordlessly pulled Jim into his lap. The two of them sat there for as long as it took for Jim to calm down.

"I'm sorry." Jim croaked out. His voice was shot.

"Nothin' ta be sorry fer, Jimbo." Silver responded softly.

"There is, you never asked for this mess. I can't pretend any more, Silver, I can't keep pretending our bond isn't slowly killing me."

"Jim I-"

"I love you and I know I can't make you love me back. I'm here because I thought there was someone else and I couldn't stand the thought of you-" Jim couldn't finish the thought.

"I need ta tell ye somethin' an' I need ye to listen, actually listen." Silver spoke and Jim felt every muscle in his body stiffen, ready to run. "Ye can't force me ta love ye because I've loved ye since The Legacy . Yer a wonder, Jim, an' I never said nothin' because I felt guilty about the bond. About forcin' such an amazing person inta my bed. I hoped one day ye'd forgive me but ta love me back-"

"I'm here because someone said I wasn't your only omega." Jim had started to cry again. Silver loved him, had loved him this whole time. "I couldn't shake the thought and imagining someone else with you made me so mad."

"Mad enough ta plot a drop in? Is that heat I'm startin' ta smell?"

"Yeah. I finally got promoted to captain and with it I get more time off, more time I want to spend with you so I switched to twice yearly suppressants. I should have talked about it first, I wasn't sure if you wanted me here more or not."

"Captain Hawkins." Silver whistled. "An' of course I want ye 'ere. I'd tie ye ta my bed an' never let ye go if I thought I could get away with it."

"Captains get to take their mates on board with them. I don't want to force you from your home but it's something to think about if we can figure out the other part." The pirate p art.

"I don't want ta go ruinin' yer reputation by association let alone through a bond. I don't mind bein' on the sidelines."

"I do. I want you there with me so badly." Jim whined. He blamed the noise on his approaching heat.

"If ye can figure it out, I'll go. I'll follow ye ta the ends of the etherium." Silver pulled Jim in tighter. "I love ye an' I trust a smart lad like ye will find a way."

Jim's heat was shorter, down to four days due to the shorter wait, but it was no less passionate. If anything, the way Silver had treated him was more loving and tender than any other time before. Jim didn't hesitate to scream his love for the man and Silver responded in kind.

Everything and nothing had changed. Silver still pampered Jim, showed him off around the port, rarely took more than two steps away from him, but it was like a wall that had been there was gone. Jim pampered and flattered Silver in turn and there was no mistaking what they were. Two idiots in love.

Present Day

Jim looked over Silver's record as he waited for his guest to show up. In the last two years he had been quietly altering the list of crimes, a small edit here, erasing a crime there. The list was now half as long and no one was the wiser. Yet it wasn't enough. There was one giant, glaring crime Jim could never erase, one he'd need help with, the mutiny on The Legacy .

Jim smoothed himself out before he responded to the knock on his door. Through it walked the one and only Amelia. Jim stayed sitting at his desk as he watched her take in his office, her nose scenting the air as she did. She wouldn't catch the scent she wanted, while Jim's own was tangled with the scent of alpha; it currently wasn't enough to parse out which alpha.

The last time he had seen Silver was three months ago, enough time for him to no longer smell like the unique scent. Enough time for Jim to figure out how to phrase, beg, plead with Amelia to help him. Jim was pretty smart, had looked into loophole after loophole, but Amelia was smarter and that’s what he needed. What they needed.

“I need you to not freak out.” Jim told Amelia who had taken a seat in front of his desk.

“What did you do this time?” Amelia looked unamused as she crossed her arms. This wasn’t the first time Jim had called on her for a favor.

“It’s about my mate.” Jim tried to hide the blush he could feel spreading across his face.

“Oh?” That got Amelia’s attention as she sat forward. The only person more curious about Jim’s bond than his co-workers was Amelia. Heck, he still hadn't told his own mother.

“You can’t freak out.” Jim stressed again.

“Hearing you say that twice does not help.” Amelia teased.

“It’s Silver.” Jim rushed out.

“The… anniversary theme?” Amelia asked as she gestured for Jim to elaborate.

“John Silver.”

“The pirate.”

“Yes.”

“The pirate that mutinied on my ship and nearly got you killed.”

“Yes ma’am.” Jim winced as he watched Amelia close her eyes and take a deep breath.

“Pray tell, how does a Navy captain end up bonded with a pirate?”

Jim told her, and bless Amelia for being level headed, she actually listened. She listened when Jim had explained their meeting, how they made a deal, how Jim basically traded his bond for his career, and how he doesn’t regret it. Almost. He regrets the distance.

“You understand how that sounds like he manipulated you, correct?” Amelia pressed after a heart racing moment of silence.

“He isn’t holding anything against me, I could have taken a different career path, we could break the bond still but-” Jim swallowed down a whine, he never whined but the very idea of their bond being severed filled him with anxiety.

“But feelings got involved. Of course they did, Jim. That’s what happens when you’ve been bonded for so long and share your heat.” Amelia sighed. “Is this why we’ve seen neither hide nor hair of the man for five years? You’ve gone and domesticated an alpha pirate?”

“I guess, him not being a pirate wasn’t part of our deal.”

“It was, you just didn’t realize it. Jim, next time you see Silver ask him why he wanted to find a steady job and why he happened to be in the bar that night.” Amelia stood up to leave and Jim thought that was that until she stopped short of the door. “There is a way and I’ll look into it for you but I won’t take action until you get those answers.”

“Thanks.”

Three Months Later

Jim brought up Amelia’s questions at the end of his next visit with Silver, the end of his heat. He thought it was happenstance but if Amelia felt him running into Silver was anything else then he would listen and ask, even if he thought it was absurd.

“You saving me at the bar wasn't a coincidence was it?” Jim spoke up at the ceiling. Silver sat at the end of the bed tuning his arm.

“What makes ye say that?” Silver didn’t stop what he was doing.

“Call it a hunch.”

“Yers or Amelia’s?” Silver shot back.

“Amelia's…” Jim trailed off as he turned his face into his pillow. He hated when Silver did that, figured out what was really going on like he could read minds. But he knew Jim had talked to Amelia, Jim had told him himself.

“She’s right.” Silver stopped fiddling with his arm. “I was keepin’ tabs on ye, makin’ sure ye were safe. I’d seen ye shake off bigger alphas before but… I couldn’t watch ye any more. I should be yer alpha no one else. I thought I'd take it slow, keep runnin' inta ye on yer shore leaves an' then ye 'ad gone an' spilled yer juts about bein' unbonded. I would'a taken ye there in that pub if ye'd asked." Silver kept his back to Jim as shame rolled off his body. “If ye want ta break the bond knowin’ I manipulated ye we can.”

Silver sounded so defeated and it hurt Jim on a level he’d never felt before. It was all he could do to keep from crying as he draped himself over Silver’s back.

“No, please, no.” Jim whispered. "It doesn't matter anymore, please don't leave me."

"Ain't goin' anywhere."

"Amelia wants to know why you settled down." Jim mumbled the question against Silver's back. “Stopped being, you know, a pirate.”

"I thought that were obvious. Can't share heats with a sweet thing like ye if I'm runnin' fer my life. An' the thing about my bones wasn't a complete lie. Bein' a 'borg ain't easy on the body.”

“She said she’ll help us.”

“Aye? Never thought I’d see the day.” Silver chuffed.

“Well, she said she would help me and that’s close enough.” Jim slid off of Silver’s shoulders and made his way onto his lap. “After I asked you those questions.”

“If all that spitfire wants is fer me ta spill my guts to ye then we’re gettin’ off cheap!” Silver laughed. When he was done he looked down at Jim with so much warmth and wonder Jim thought he’d melt. “Yer serious about us, this, fer the long run then?”

“I want nothing more than to never leave your side again. It’s been almost six years, Silver, I just want you there.”

“We should talk about some things, then.” Silver spoke as he relaxed the both of them back on the bed.

“What is there to talk about?” Jim huffed. “You’re here, I want you not here, we both agree right?”

“I’m talkin’ about long term plans, Jimbo. Where ta live, if ye want ta start a family, yer plans an’ the like.”

“I-is that something you want? Kids?” Jim hesitated to ask. He had never considered it before, them being a family unit, wouldn’t dare dream of it but if Silver wanted it… Jim felt his face flush at the idea. Oh god.

“Only if ye do but ye might want ta make up yer mind on it sooner rather than later. Ain’t gettin’ any younger.”

No, no they weren’t.

Jim saw Amelia two days after his return waiting for him in his office, arms crossed, a smug look on her face.

“Fine, yes, he manipulated the situation a little bit.” Jim sighed.

“And?”

“And I still love him anyway. What did you find out?”

“I found out some of Silver’s crimes have been erased from the system.”

“Expired.”

“Let’s go with that, sure.” Amelia rolled her eyes. “I found a way to keep your mate out of the slammer. He can turn himself in to you upon which you can choose to either supervise his sentence yourself or hand him off to the courts. It’s a risky move, Jim, if Silver commits any crime while under your watch you will both go down for it.”

“So it comes down to how much I trust Silver.”

“Yes.”

One Year Later

Jim used to hate formal events, he’d take his mom and hope for the best, but the stiff suits and the stiffer chatter made him want to rip his own skin off. Now, however, as he stood in front of Silver in a matching tuxedo, Jim couldn’t think of any place he’d rather be. Well, Jim could think of one place and he could tell by the heated looks Silver was giving him that they had the same idea. That part would come later, right now they had a debut to make. Jim’s first event with his mate.

There were whispers, as there always were, Jim couldn’t pull a pirate more infamous than himself out of obscurity and not attract attention. The first few weeks after Silver turned himself over to Jim were the worst two weeks of Jim’s life. He would thrust himself back to out running a n exploding planet before he allowed himself to be at the mercy of the Navy courts. At least then Jim could do something, anything other than nearly working himself into a stress heat.

Through a stroke of luck, or pity, or called in favors from Amelia. Silver had been released into Jim’s custody. There were rules, community service, fees, all drops of water if it meant Silver could live uncaged next to Jim. Finally Jim had what he always wanted, to be the captain of his own ship and sailing it with Silver. 

Tonight’s event was being thrown in honor of the Navy’s conception date and Jim couldn’t think of a better event to finally debut Silver at. There would be nearly a thousand people present in the queen’s own palace. Doors upon doors, rooms upon rooms. Silver would stick out but in a crowd of hundreds instead of tens he wouldn’t be the center of attention.

Jim imagined many bets would be settled tonight as he and Silver made their way casually through the crowds. People knew about him and Silver, knew the answer to that partial secret he had kept close to his heart for years, but with the wild number of rumors that had surrounded Jim for just as many years you’d have to be a fool to believe the answer without seeing it. And that’s exactly what Jim wanted, to be seen, to dance and laugh and showcase his alpha, his mate, his Silver.

Silver took to the event like a fish to water as he danced and talked his way through the crowds as if he had been doing this for years. Jim was envious, he always had been, of Silver’s charisma but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy watching Silver in action. Jim listened as Silver artfully danced around who he used to be, laughed off the mutiny, beamed down at Jim as if he were the reason for all the change. The truth of it, that secret Silver displayed so proudly now, was that the infamous John Silver had been changed by Jim.

The night wasn’t all flowers and fine wine, the occasional posturing alpha would make a comment or refuse to acknowledge Silver at all. If Silver didn’t pay the strange looks or barbed comments any mind then neither would Jim. He’d bitch and whine later but he refused to let anyone get to him now. If anything Silver had taken the comments as a challenge.

As much as Jim flaunted Silver the older man had in turn strutted like he had won the best prize in the room. In a way he had. Jim was attractive and had received many offers through his entire career. People who insisted they'd be better, they'd be there, but none of them got close to convincing Jim to leave Silver. Of course he had told Silver about every attempt, every person who thought themselves better than the pirate, much to Silver's enjoyment.

Sometimes Silver worked these facts into sex. He'd tease and edge Jim and ask him what he really wanted. Is it that younger recruit? Are you craving the touch of something young and sweet? How about that lady coronal who leaves candy on your desk? Or maybe it's someone you haven't told me about. Tell me Jim, is there someone else?

The answer was no, always no, Jim wanted Silver and just Silver until his last dying breath. It made no sense to anyone else, no sense to Jim, and certainly no sense to Silver but the latter had never hidden being a selfish man. If Jim wanted to give himself up body and soul then Silver wasn't going to argue it. He'd take and take making sure he gave back in equal measure until Jim was done with him or his last breath.

Silver knew those days would be the same one. He'd either live to see his hair turned grey surrounded by the family he'd built or he'd take his own life the second Jim broke the bond. Either way Silver knew every moment he got with Jim was more than he deserved and he'd be damned before he did something that made Jim regret it.