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“You ready to go yet?” Killua asked. “I swear you’re the only person I’ve ever had to wait on. They used to just jump into the sea and swim to me when I so much as waved at them.”
“Well, that’s a bit unfair,” Gon said, pouting. “They didn’t have to tie their shoes first.”
He pulled the last knot tight and stood up.
“I was just thinking - you don’t have to tie your shoes at all, do you? Maybe that’s how you get ready so quickly!”
“Hope you didn’t have to think too long about that,” Killua said, flopping his flipper feet. “I’ve got enough cause to question my thrall’s intelligence. Never too late for me to shout kidnapping, you know?”
Gon walked up to the boy’s chair and smiled at him in the mirror. “Might as well wait until we’re in town then… Unless you want your new thrall to be a half dozen crabs and a jellyfish?”
“I’ll pass,” Killua said. He looked from Gon to himself in the mirror and began to fuss with his hair. Trying to shake the salt out of it was fruitless – there was always more. It glittered when it caught the light. “You’re sure I don’t look like an idiot?”
Gon placed a hand gently on his shoulder. “You look beautiful, Killua.”
Green blush blossomed on blue skin. “I know,” Killua said quickly.
“In fact,” Gon continued. “I bet you’ll cause the chaos you’re always talking about. Nobody half as pretty will be able to wear sundresses for a week – not once they see how good you look in yours. And their lovers? I wouldn’t want to be them today. They’ll get two earfuls for every three seconds they stare at you.”
“I should think you wouldn’t want to be the lover boy on any day,” Killua said. “But especially not today, you’re right about that.” He tugged at a strand of hair one last time.
Gon noticed. “No one minds the salt, Killua. You know that. It’s like diamonds in your hair.”
“Yeah, well, if you’re done, can’t we go?”
In response, Gon took hold of the other’s chair, tapping a pinky tune to confirm. The young man nodded in assent. Then, and only then, did Gon turn him towards the door. “We’re off!”
///
“Morning Bisky,” Killua said. “Have you got anything for a special occasion?”
The baker, aged with years of muscle but young in the face, smiled softly. “Well, I expect I do, but I’d have to know the occasion to pick it out. Different sweets for different times, kid, except for the lemon tart.” She wagged a finger for emphasis. “That one’s good always.”
“Even when the boy is on a diet insisted by the witch?” Gon asked.
“Especially then,” Bisky said. “Nothing will sate a sweet tooth as quickly.” She jabbed at his toned stomach. “Though I’m sure you're only speaking metaphorically. Your thrall keeps himself in good shape, Killua.”
“He doesn’t disappoint, not in that way,” Killua said. “Though he makes up for it with other failings, I’ll have you know.”
Bisky put her hands on her hips in mock severity. “A wit as wide as the sea and you put it to use lashing at sweet little Gon? Your tongue must be more than quick for him to put up with you as he does.”
Gon didn’t need to see Killua’s face to guess his reaction. He could practically see the green of his blush reflected off Bisky. He cleared his throat. “Anyways, we were just celebrating Killua’s newfound powers. Have you got any sweets for that?”
“Oh, for newfound powers,” Bisky said, looking amongst the treats of her stand. “Blueberry tart, perhaps? Or a madeleine?” She looked between the two of them. “Thought to catch me flat-footed, did you? You kids think you invented magic. I served satyrs in Greed for a decade, you know.”
“I didn’t know that,” Gon said. “Honestly, I was trying to set up a joke.”
“Oh?”
“You see, Killua’s new power is gravity. It’s pretty weak right now, mostly just affects the eyes, but he has caused a few stumbles on our way through town. I can’t think of any non-magical reason for it.”
“Ah,” Bisky said, a twinkle in her eye. “This power wouldn’t happen to only work on boys, would it?”
“Actually . . .” Gon said.
“Oh, enough. You’ve got me nostalgic for my younger years and it’s barely ten in the morning. Here, the perfect pastry for the most beautiful sea witch in Whale.”
Killua accepted the brown square with the grace of a king with his crown. Gon laughed.
“A brownie? Not something from back home?”
“For the power of gravity, I recommend a treat with some density to it. You should enjoy such things while you’re young. You have to plan your day around this kind of food when you get older.”
“Thanks Bisky,” Killua said.
///
“She’s mad!” the witch said, placing his fork down. “I feel like I’ve eaten three cakes!”
Gon took a considerable drink to wash down his latest bite. “It’s a bit rich, isn’t it? At least we’ve still got some for later.”
They sat on a balcony overlooking the ocean. One could see the old hut they stayed at, plain as day.
“I wish we could do this more often,” Gon said. “Sorry all I can do is fish. If I learned something else, maybe we’d have a bit more money.”
“That isn’t really necessary,” Killua said. “For all your teasing, I really will develop my powers soon, then we won’t have anything to worry about. I’ve nearly learned how to turn saltwater into freshwater. They’ll make me their ruler just for that.”
Gon smiled. “You’ve been halfway along that skill for quite a while now.”
“Turning freshwater into saltwater is more useful anyway! It’s not my fault you humans can’t drink it.”
“You’ve got us, there. Most water is salted. We’re the odd ones for liking the plain stuff.”
“I should think so. Maybe I could threaten to turn the town’s freshwater into salt? They’d pay good money to talk me out of it, don’t you think?”
“I think Bisky would send you bawling if you tried it,” Gon said with a grin. “She’d probably give me a good whipping too, just for not talking you out of it.”
“Well then . . . I guess you’ll just have to improve your fishing. Until I develop something useful, at least.”
“Yes, sir.”
They sat for a while, just watching the waves. Killua shook salt from his hair, and more appeared glittering in its place. Gon wished he knew how beautiful he was. He always claimed to, of course, but they both knew it was a front. He’d always been shy about being the only magical creature in town, though everyone was always kind to him. If there was just some way he could—
“Thrall,” he said, pulling the boy from his thoughts.
“Yes?”
“Come here.” Killua had turned away from their table to look out at the ocean, but he had a hard time moving the wheelchair on his own. He was made for the water.
Gon got up and stood before him. “What do you need?”
“Kneel,” he said, still not looking at him. Determinedly not looking at him, it seemed. “You should renew your pledge of loyalty to me on a day this special.”
Gon smiled and played along, kneeling down in front of him.
He leaned forward, grabbed him by the shirt and kissed him. It happened so quickly Gon wondered if he’d imagined it.
“Killua?” He asked.
The witch kept his gaze off him, though his cheeks were gradients of green once again. “Don’t think too much about it, thrall. It’s only a curse.”
“A curse?”
“That’s right. Just as the lovers’ eyes wandered towards me today, yours might do so to others in the future. This curse I placed on you will cause a shock of lightning in those situations to ward them off.”
Gon smiled widely. “I’ve gotta try that out.”
He looked at him. “Don't you dare! The pain will be unmanageable for an ordinary person.”
“It will remind me of you,” Gon said. “I might trigger it just for fun from time to time.”
“You!” He blustered a moment before pulling him forward to kiss him again. It was slightly less brief, and Gon committed it firmly to memory. “I’ve just removed the curse. Now there’s no reason for you to be acting like an idiot.”
Gon took the witch’s hands in his. “All right, then. Only you.” He stood up. “Now, let’s get to it! We don’t get a lot of days off so we’re going to make the most of it.”
“I’ve already made sure of that,” Killua said. “But I’ll play along, I guess. Let’s see what you’ve planned for me.”