Chapter 4

The First Day

"Hey! Hey! Are you all right?"

Justin groaned as he heard the deep familiar voice but he couldn't open his eyes.

Oh, thank God! Hey, can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?"

Justin turned toward the voice as a flower turns toward the sun. With a huge effort, he opened his eyes a crack only to be blinded with a white light.

He slammed them closed and groaned again. He tried again.

There he was. After so many days staring at his picture and nights dreaming about him, there was Brian, looking down on him with kindness and concern. His brown hair was thick and groomed. He wore a golden headband with a single large ruby in the forehead. He wore that simple white shirt and pants outfit Justin had seen when he'd been with the sea witch, and he was barefoot. His brown eyes were softer and much more content than they had been on Babylon.

Justin reached up and stroked Brian's cheek and then his hair. It felt wonderful to at last make the physical contact. He smiled up at him.

Brian was a little startled at the physical gesture. It was too intimate, sensual. But at the same time it felt...right. Was that weird? The young man had the bluest eyes he had ever seen. And his smile! Wow!

"My goodness! You could light up a room with that smile! It's like sunshine!"

Incredibly, the young man smiled brighter.

Brian grasped the hand playing with his hair and pulled.

"Can you sit up? Are you hurt?"

Justin let himself be pulled up. He closed his eyes and held his head as a wave of dizziness passed. The tide had come in. He was sitting halfway in the ocean and the water had washed a mess of seaweed over him

His tail was gone. Justin lifted one white leg with its (his) five toes and stared wonderingly. He wiggled his toes and still with that magic look of wonder looked over at Brian.

Brian stared back, puzzled.

"Yes, that's your leg. Say, are you all right? Can you get up?"

Justin tried. There was a flash of pain. He stumbled and fell back into the water. Then he remembered.

"Geez! Are you all right!?" Brian splashed in and tried to help but on Justin's second try, he only succeeded in pulling both of them into the drink.

Brian broke the surface, laughing, expecting the same but heard only silence. He looked over and saw Justin laughing but no sound coming out.

"How are you doing that? Who are you? Where did you come from?"

Justin looked out to sea and did not have to pretend the sadness that crossed his face. He pointed straight out to sea.

"Were you in a shipwreck?"

Sure, let's go with that. Justin nodded.

"Washed up from a shipwreck! Just like me!"

Brian stood and held out his hand. "Well, shall we try again?"

Justin shifted to his knees and then braced himself. He grabbed the proffered hand, stood and rose, dripping from the water.

It was like walking on knives. But Justin bore it and bore it well. He didn't care. All that mattered was that he was here and that he would be here, with Brian, for 3 weeks and then hopefully forever.

Looking down, he saw a flash of gold. He reached down and picked up Brian's diadem that had fallen off. He held it out and approached shyly. Brian backed away, matching him step for step. His eyes were round as coins.

Brian was dumbfounded and more than a little turned on when the young man finally arose out of the water with nothing but his own crown, a necklace, and a smile. He was white and smooth and hung, and completely unconcerned that he was completely nude. He reminded Brian of a sea sprite or a siren that could tempt a sailor with sex and then lure him to his doom.

Smiling shyly, he approached Brian, who backed up out of the water until his back hit a large rock formation. Brian watched as if in a dream as the naked young man walked from the water, wincing slightly with each step but slowly and surely approaching him. He still maintained complete silence.

Justin reached Brian and shyly crowned him with his golden diadem. He moved closer. Then closer still.

Brian couldn't move.

Slowly, Justin put both palms on Brian's chest. He could feel the man's body heat, his heartbeat.

Lub dub...lub dub...lub dub...

Slowly, Justin moved his hands in opposite directions, around Brian's waist around to his back. He pulled himself flush against Brian, looking for some resistance, but there was none. And so, slowly, still so slowly, he turned his head sideways and pressed it against the center of Brian's chest. He could hear Brian's heart even better here and he loved it. Although he noticed it was starting to speed up a little. He sighed in perfect contentment.

Lu dub...lub dub...lubdub lubdub lubdublubdublubdub...

Brian gulped.

"My goodness, you're a friendly little fella, aren't you? Look, I'm flattered and more than a little turned on, but I should tell you right now, I'm engaged. If you're worried that I won't help you, or something..."

Justin backed off a step and shook his head vigorously. He looked up reproachfully into Brian's eyes.

"I'm sorry! Look, forget I said that. I'm Brian! What's your name?

Justin shook his head sorrowfully. He tapped his throat with his fingers and then made a slashing gesture.

"You can't speak? You're a mute?"

A nod.

"Well, I'll take you to my doctor." He'll figure out what's wrong. First, we'd better take care of a more immediate problem. Hmmm....I don't have a blanket...This'll have to do for now."

Brian unbuttoned his shirt and whipped it off.

Now it was Justin's turn to get wide-eyed. Brian was beautiful. Lean and toned, he had 8 pack abs and muscular pecs and arms without being overdeveloped.

Brian grabbed Justin's arm, spun him around and pulled him closer to him, Justin's back against his chest.

Justin was swept up in a torrent of emotions. Excitement, joy, lust, heat, and a touch of fear coursed through his veins. What was Brian going to do to him? Ohhhh, what was Brian going to do to him? He thought again, lustily. He was unbelievably turned on. Doing his part, he pushed himself backwards against Brian's muscular front and felt an unmistakable hard on against his tight little fanny.

He reached up and wrapped his arms around the back of Brian's neck. He looked up and wiggled his bottom invitingly against that hard on, feeling it throb.

Brian gasped at the sensations and looked down into blue depths that rivaled the sea and drowned in them. He saw that the young man wanted to be kissed, yearning, needing to be kissed.

And so he did. He only meant it to be a peck; a quick kiss to satisfy a lost soul but something went horribly, horribly wrong.

It wasn't quick. And it wasn't satisfying. The sea sprite opened for him and took him. Brian groaned, probing deeper and deeper, losing himself in the sensations, wanting more and more but never reaching fulfillment. Passion exploded, comets collided, the world faded away. Brian felt something strange, a sense of familiarity, almost like déjà vu. He probed still deeper into the sea sprite and this time Justin groaned. Brian closed his eyes, searching his memory, tasting the blond's sweetness but also tasting something more. A taste of something that had been there but now wasn't. A taste of...

Sunshine. Justin sucked at it greedily, tasting it on Brian's tongue. It was the sunshine he had given to Brian last time to revive and restore him. It was the sunshine that was altering his persona, giving him the peace and contentment that he was seeking through his manic dancing on Babylon. And Justin knew it would be a part of him, forever.

A few minutes or millennia later, Brian finally tore himself away. "Oh God! What am I doing?"

Justin looked up at him with a "Really!?? You don't know?" expression.

"Oh well, I know what we were doing. It's just...wow! You know? I've never felt anything that intense before. It was as if we've done this before..."

Justin nodded vigorously.

"But we've never met, and..."

Justin nodded again, hard. He grasped Brian's hands between his own and looked deep into his eyes.

"We have met?"

Another vigorous nod.

"We kissed??"

Another vigorous nod.

Brian looked back sorrowfully. "I'm sorry. I don't remember. Look, I know how important this is to you. But I just don't remember. I'm sorry."

He held out his shirt. Carefully, he tied it around Justin's waist at the back, covering his front like a makeshift apron. Unfortunately there was nothing to be done about that enticing rump, he thought roguishly.

"There. That'll tide you over until we get you home. I'll take care of you. We'll fix you up."

Brian supported Justin around the waist as he led him back to the castle. He noticed again the slow gait and slight wincing.

"What's the matter? Does it hurt you to walk?"

Justin nodded and held forefinger and thumb close together. "Just a little."

But he squared his shoulders and picked up his speed a little. Brian heard the message as clearly as if Justin had spoken it. Don't worry. Not a problem.

Justin was fully prepared to walk the whole way to the castle. Therefore he gasped pleasurably when he felt himself swept off his feet and lifted into a cradling position by the larger prince. His arms went round his neck as if it were planned. He rested his head on Brian's chest.

For the first time he felt at peace. He was home.

"It's a good thing I like to have my morning jog along this beach. There's something about it, don't you..."

But as he looked down he saw that Justin wasn't listening to him. After many sleepless nights, he had instantly fallen asleep listening to something MUCH more pleasurable.

Lub-dub...lub-dub...lub-dub...lub dub...

BJMBJMBJMBJMBJMBJMB

"Oh, my God!"

"What is it Dr. David?"

"My God, it's ...it's horrible...despicable!!!"

"WHAT IS IT!?" Brian was starting to freak out.

Dr. David, Brian's royal physician was shining a light and staring down Justin's throat. "This young man's vocal cords have been severed. No, burned. No, decimated! Like someone's poured a mess of some sort of acid down his throat. I'm afraid he'll never speak again."

Brian was appalled. "That's terrible! Who would do such a thing?" He turned to Justin. "Sunshine, who did this to you?"

He did not notice how easily the endearment fell from his lips. But Justin noticed and smiled a little. He patted and stroked Brian's hand comfortingly. He shook his head.

Brian's anger cooled. "Oh yeah, I guess you can't tell me, even if you wanted to. Poor little sea sprite." He kissed his forehead.

He turned back to the doctor. "Is there nothing you can do?"

The doctor thought a moment and then produced a prescription pad and pen. "Keep him stocked up with paper and a pen," he suggested.

"Yes, THANK YOU, Dr. David!" Brian answered sarcastically.

"Here, can you tell me something about yourself? How bout your name? Can you - will you write your name?" Brian asked Justin.

Justin nodded and wrote on the pad.

Brian looked eagerly, but then his face fell.

"Hmm, looks like another language," commented Dr. David, looking over.

"Yes, THANK YOU, Dr. David!"

"Well, he seems to understand our spoken language. Perhaps you can teach him to read."

"Yes, THANK YOU, Dr. David!" Brian ground out.

Brian led Justin out, picking up an emergency blanket on his way.

BJMBJMBJMBJMBJMBJM

Soon after, with the blanket replacing Brian's shirt around his waist, Justin stood with Brian in the great hall where they met up with Brian's fiancé, Michael.

The great hall was cavernous, with a black and white checkerboard floor and a carpeted double staircase leading to the upper levels of the castle. Doors and hallways led off in all directions in a circular pattern. Justin felt like he was in a sort of wheel.

"Brian! How was your run?" Michael asked, bounding down the stairs, "Anything interesting...happen? Oh, I guess so," he finished, catching sight of Justin.

"Michael, sweetheart! Glad to run into you!" Brian said, moving in to give him a quick kiss, "I have amazing news. I found this little guy washed up on the beach. He's survived a shipwreck and is destitute and I think all alone in the world now. So I brought him home to help him. Not only that, someone's poisoned him and he's been made a mute."

Brian was so excited that he was oblivious to the hard expression that came into Michael's emerald eyes. But Justin noticed and was afraid.

Nevertheless, Justin was a prince of the sea and no coward. He put on a smile and started forward with his hand outstretched.

"Why that's terrible! HOW ARE YOU!? ARE YOU ALL RIGHT!?" Michael yelled in Justin's face.

Justin jumped a foot in the air and two feet back. He cowered behind Brian for protection.

"Michael!! He's a mute, not deaf! What's wrong with you?"

"Oh right, sorry," Michael said, not sounding sorry at all. He spoke softer but now slowly and overly clearly as if speaking to a 5 year old. "Hooooowe arrrrrrre yooooooou? Are yoooooouuuu oooooo- kaaaaayyyy?"

"HEEEEE'S NOOOOOT AN IIIIDIOOOOOT, either. Geez Michael, what's got into you?"

"Uggghh, whatever," Michael dismissed Justin as one does a stupid and incontinent puppy. "So....how long is he staying?"

Now, Brian was annoyed. "Oh, I don't know. How bout as long as he needs to! How bout as long as he wants to!"

"God, Brian, you can't bring in every stray charity case that washes up. Then where would we be?"

"Oh, I don't know. Maybe in a HUGE CASTLE full of charity cases? Michael, what is wrong with you? He's a person, not a stray puppy. He needs our help. And besides, I remember a time not too long ago when YOU dragged in a washed up stray. And I let you stay around."

Michael flinched.

Brian put his arm protectively around Justin and led him away. Michael was summarily dismissed.

"Come on, sea sprite, I know a good guest bedroom on the next floor. Can you handle one flight?"

Justin nodded and steeled himself. He bravely walked almost normally up the staircase.

"What's wrong now?" Michael's voice rang out churlishly even in his own ears.

"If you must know, it pains him to walk for some reason. I won't know more until I can find a way to communicate with him better," Brian answered, now thoroughly annoyed. "I'll talk with you later. I have to take care of my "charity case".

And he led Justin away.

BJMBJMBJMBJMBJMBJMB

A few minutes later, only one door down the hall from the stairs, Brian led Justin into a bedroom.

"I hope this is OK," Brian said, suddenly shy. "After Michael's behavior, I wish I could do more."

OK!? OK!?!?

The room was gorgeous. There was deep pile carpet the color of a ripe strawberry. In one corner was a wide, deep, wardrobe full of sumptuous clothes, in another a huge desk with paper and pens and pencils for writing. There was a huge king-size bed with black silk sheets and a black down comforter. Across from the bed was a huge fireplace with a red velvet chaise longue sitting in front of it, and a leather armchair next to and facing the chaise. The fireplace was dark now but Brian told him he could have it lit anytime he wanted to. He showed Justin where the bell pull was by the bed. He told Justin he would have a valet assigned to him within the hour. He showed him where a door off to the side led to a bathroom with a toilet, sink, and a claw foot bathtub. A large window with a rounded top showed a view of the sea with drapes that matched the carpet. They were open now but Brian showed him how to close them with a pull of a cord.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Brian asked, finally.

Justin sat on the bed and mimed stretching and yawning expressively.

"Of course. You must be tired," Brian smoothed back an errant lock of blond hair. "You must have really been through something. Poor little sea sprite..." he said softly.

Justin nodded sleepily.

Quickly, Brian turned down the covers, levered Justin into bed against the pillows and tucked him in. Stroking his hair, he told him:

"Sleep as long as you like. Pull the cord when you wake and someone will help you dress for dinner. Everything is going to be all right now. I'll take care of you, I promise. You're safe now."

Justin smiled sleepily. His fair face and blond hair were a stark contrast against the black sheets. He reached up and cupped Brian's jaw and stroked his cheek affectionately. Then his arm dropped as if it weighed a thousand pounds.

Brian continued stroking Justin's hair, soothing him to sleep. On one pass, he fingered his gold and pearl crown.

"That's a lovely crown, by the way," he said.

Justin smiled. He tapped it and then tapped Brian's crown.

Brian thought a moment. "I don't understand. Do you want to switch?"

Justin shook his head. More deliberately, he tapped his crown and then patted his chest twice. He tapped Brian's crown, then with open palm, patted Brian's chest twice.

"You're like me." A nod. "A prince. You're a prince too!" Brian guessed in an epiphany.

Justin nodded happily, sleepily. Slowly, he drew off his crown and pressed it into Brian's palm.

Brian was overwhelmed. The message was clear. The only thing Justin had of value, he was giving to him. The last of his wealth, status, identity, he was giving to him as payment.

"No!" he said, his voice rough with emotion, "This is yours. You owe me nothing. Besides, this looks much better on you. I can tell...this was made especially for you. He re-crowned Justin and kissed his forehead. "Thank YOU for offering though. Good night. I'll see you soon."

He crossed the room and closed the drapes. As he exited the room and murmured "Good night," again, he saw that it was pointless.

Justin was already asleep.

TBC