by Delaney Rain
Fighting back laughter, Eric leaned down and kissed that tiny head. “Don’t worry about it, kiddo.”
“Yes,” Ty said before clearing their throat. “This is a good lesson for all of you. Did you remember you could ink if you became afraid? That it would frighten away predators?”
Eric didn’t like thinking of them having predators, but he held his tongue since it was a reality. The hatchlings said they hadn’t remembered that or shook their heads, so that was something. Sextus’s coloring started to even out and they seemed a bit happy about possibly helping with a teachable moment.
Since they were all sitting in blackness, Eric asked, “Want to drain the pool? Refill it?”
“Yes, please.” Ty’s nose wrinkled like maybe the ink was icky after all.
Eric turned on the overhead waterfall—which everyone loved—so they could rinse off as the water drained back out to sea. Once it all looked clear again, he closed the drain and let the waterfall refill the pool. He showed them all how to turn things on and off, and Ty made the rules about who was allowed to do what and when. Everyone agreed with the rule about sticking all tentacles to the sides of the pool while it was draining; none of them would fit down the drain, but little tentacles would.
As the hatchlings went back to the slide or tried to catch the drips from the waterfall, Eric eased over to sit beside Ty.
“Hey,” he said, putting his arm around them, “how’re you doing?”
Ty rested their head on his shoulder for a moment. “I am well. It was sad to let the eggs and semen leave me this morning, but I know it was the right thing to do.”
“It was both, yeah.” He kissed their temple before whispering in their ear, “I’m looking forward to tonight, though.”
Ty’s chuckle was throaty seduction. “As am I.” They turned enough to run their fingers up into Eric’s hair. “But why wait?”
“Well, there’s… And…” But Ty’s fingers trailed down to Eric’s chest and their thumb was teasing at his nipple. He cleared his throat as his cock woke up. Since he was naked all the time now, everyone was about to notice.
Standing up, he moved behind Ty, who laughed a little. “Okay, little squishies, Ty and I need to go do some things to make the boat move, so you stay here and play.” He pointed at them sternly. “Secondus is in charge, and safety is everyone’s goal. Understand?”
“Yes,” they said dutifully in unison.
Eric was about to say more when Secondus leaned into their new role with, “Primus, you have to wait until the end of the slide is clear before you start down. Everyone else, you have to get out of the way quickly. And nobody has to go down the slide if they don’t want to.”
He’d known Secondus would be a good one to leave in charge, but wow, that was impressive. Smiling down at their little authority figure, Eric waved for Ty to follow him.
But Ty hesitated to go into the main lounge. “I will make everything wet.”
“It’s all designed to dry quickly. You can go anywhere you want.”
They both went through the lounge slowly, Eric naming things as Ty asked what they were. It was interesting seeing what they did and didn’t know about. Couches, yes. Mini fridge, no. Ice cubes inside the mini fridge were like giving Ty a gift, so Eric filed that away for the kids later on.
At the back of the lounge was a corridor leading to the dining room, bar, and the mid-deck, but they took the door to a staircase leading up. Ty on stairs was as curious a sight as them walking across the floor, but they managed it well enough with some tentacles pushing and others pulling. The small space echoed with the sound of suckers popping as they released and Ty moved forward.
Through another door and they were on the bridge.
“From here, I can maneuver the whole ship by myself. I made sure of that and that I’m trained and certified in taking care of everything, even in emergencies.” He shrugged. “Yeah, there are some things that I can’t do, but I know a little about a lot.”
“I am not worried about your skills.”
He leaned down and kissed them for that because their confidence helped his. They weren’t about to cruise to another island an hour away; they were heading out to open water, father into the South Pacific. Theoretically, Ty and the hatchlings would be fine even if the yacht sank. Eric, though, would need at least a life vest and a whole lot of elixir.
But they’d be fine. It was a good time of year for such a voyage, and he’d spent several hours checking everything before agreeing that they were ready to depart.
Eric walked over to the front of the room, which was all glass, even on two feet of the floor. “I can see you guys from here,” he said pointing down. “And I removed one of the panels to make it easier to talk or pass things back and forth.”
When Ty joined him, they looked down at the hatchlings in the pool. The high screams of Sextus and Tertius reached them as they kids clung to each other all the way down the slide. It was nice to see them getting braver. When Primus made to go down headfirst, Eric called out, “Are you all being good?”
Each of them froze, little heads swiveling like they couldn’t figure out where he was. Then Ty chuckled, and they all looked up with innocent smiles.
“We’re being mostly good,” Secondus said.
Primus sat up and went down the slide like they should as though to reassure them that they were definitely being good down there.
Ty moved closer and leaned against the glass as they sent their longest tentacle through the open floor panel. There was a lot of squealing and laughing as the scoop-shaped tentacle made the water into a whirlpool.
“A very good idea,” Ty said, drawing their tentacle back up. “You are so smart and thoughtful.”
Grinning, Eric backed away from the glass floor, crooking his finger for Ty to follow him. A week without sex was long enough, so when Eric got to the table behind the captain’s chair, he laid back on it and spread his legs. Ty was on him instantly.
In between frantic kisses, Ty actually talked dirty to him. They must not have liked a week without sex either, because they didn’t blush even once as they said things like, “I am going to shove my whole cock inside you, Eric. I must. I must have you.”
“Oh, god, yeah. Do it. Fuck me with that monster cock.”
Multitasking like the amazing creature they were, Ty used fingers and tentacles to prep Eric’s ass with the elixir while also jacking him and teasing everywhere else. Some tentacles held his legs wide open while others held his arms down against the table. He tried not to make a lot of noise, but the restraint and anticipation were too much to contain. Held down and spread open, Eric writhed in ecstasy as the elixir lit him up inside.
A long, low moan bled from his lips when the tentacle stretching his ass open withdrew and their cock entered him. He shuddered and groaned as the pressure built, that massive rod demanding all of him. The constant slide of firm flesh across his prostate had him struggling to take each breath. When Ty pressed hard against him, Eric knew they were all the way inside him, his ass stretched across the wide base of that two-foot sea monster.
“You are mine, Eric,” Ty whispered in a hoarse voice. “Forever mine.”
“Yes. Oh, fuck, Ty. I’m so yours!”
Cock leaking everywhere, Eric felt Ty’s twitch or shiver inside him, and that was all it took. With a holler, Eric strained against Ty’s hold on him and came so hard he shot himself in the face. Ty stroked Eric’s cock through each pump of pure ecstasy and shallowly thrust themselves in and out of his ass. Panting through the incredible sensations, Eric managed to open his eyes and watch Ty throw their head back and grip him tighter as they came, too. He swore he could feel the big cock flooding him and relaxed back against the table as Ty slumped on top of him.
“We’re really…getting good at that.”
Ty giggled and released Eric’s arms and legs. He wrapped both around his mate.
After a while, as their heartbeats slowed and they cuddled more, Ty whispered,
“I love you, Eric.”
With a sudden lump in his throat and the burn of tears in his eyes, Eric needed a moment before he could say it back. They’d promised each other they’d stay together always, and Ty had given Eric their kids, but these words were a first for them.
“I love you, too, Ty. So much.”
Chapter Eleven
The morning started out with everyone sitting in the pool watching Finding Nemo—for the sixth time—and sipping on tuna smoothies through twisty straws—Eric’s was strawberry and banana. But by the afternoon, they were above Pacilona Nepthis.
It had been two weeks of sailing in something of a zig-zag pattern that took them steadily southwest toward the Solomon Islands. Though they could make the return trip in a more direct path, Ty had only known the underwater landmarks that pointed the way. Each zig and zag had been after Ty went off the aft deck to check their position.
And now they were here.
Eric tried not to fret as he helped get all the hatchlings clinging tightly to Ty’s chest. They would go down first to make sure it was okay for Eric to come down. And Ty was also going to get depth readings using a dive computer attached to their wrist, which would help Eric plan his descent and eventual ascent. Assuming, of course, that he could even go however far down Pacilona Nepthis was. The fact that he couldn’t look and see anything beneath the surface had him worried that he wouldn’t be able to descend at all.
The hatchlings were going with Ty as proof that a human host had worked out and for the cuteness factor in case anyone was upset about Eric being on the surface. Don’t be mad. Look at the adorable babies!
Everyone got a little kiss from him before Ty slipped over the edge and into the water. Eric lost sight of them almost immediately, Ty’s dappled blue skin blending perfectly. Then it was just Eric sitting on the deck as the yacht gently bobbed in the waves.
“To think,” he whispered, “I used to long to be on my own. To just get away from everyone. Now I miss my—” He stopped and gasped a little breath, hand over his heart. That was the difference. “My family. I miss my family.”
He had a committed partner and children, and they’d all made a home together. He had a family again, and this one was everything to him. Hugging his legs to his chest and smiling over his realization, he waited for them to come back.
Worry swamped him when Ty returned after less than ten minutes. “Oh shit. Are they mad? What happened?”
Ty shook their head. “No one was mad, but you cannot descend.”
They propelled themselves over to him and latched onto the deck to stay close before showing him the dive computer. The readout was disappointing, and Ty was right. Pacilona Nepthis was way too far down at over fifteen hundred feet for Eric to ever make it there, let alone stay for any meaningful length of time.
“So they have agreed to come up.” Ty’s eyes twinkled, and all the hatchlings were smiling at him.
In the time it took Eric to gasp, Cecaelia popped their heads above the surface behind Ty. There were at least a dozen in all shades of blue, and Eric thought they were the most amazing thing he’d ever seen.
“Hello,” he kind of croaked at them, overwhelmed by their willingness to include him. Because they could’ve stayed below and talked to Ty alone, but here they were.
From Ty’s shoulder, Primus hollered, “Look, Eric! That’s Falsor, they helped make us.” They pointed at a medium blue Cecaelia before then pointing at Eric. “And Eric is the one who held us inside him so we could grow!”
A blush lit up Eric’s face, but he waved anyway. Curiosity over the kids’ donor had him staring at Falsor. When Primus flung themselves off of Ty’s shoulder and into the water, Ty turned in alarm only to relax when Primus reached Falsor. That said something about Ty’s level of trust in their donor.
And, yeah, it had a bit of jealousy growling inside Eric. He felt like he was meeting Ty’s ex. Like he was the stepdad. Not the greatest feeling since he didn’t want to be territorial, and Falsor certainly hadn’t done anything wrong. So when Primus encouraged Falsor to come closer and meet him, Eric put on a smile.
While darker than Ty, Falsor was also smaller. They were shy and hesitated to hold onto the deck until Ty showed them how. Eric immediately got the feeling he was looking at Sextus all grown up. That right there changed how he felt about Falsor for the better.
“It’s nice to finally meet you, Falsor.”
Their cheeks turned purple and they couldn’t quite meet his gaze, but they grinned and said, “It is good to meet you as well, Eric. The hatchlings insist you are very fun.”
Before Eric could do more than chuckle over that description, Primus said, “This is Cyen, Eric!” And they jumped into the water again.
Ty made a growling sort of noise. “Primus, what did I say about splashing at the surface?”
Tertius hollered from where they clung to Ty’s chest, “The sharks will eat us, Primus!”
“Is there sharks here now?” Quatrus asked before dipping under and looking down.
“Sharks?” Eric scrambled to his feet. “Holy shit, everyone get on the boat right now. Oh, my god.”
Though someone said that sharks were rarely a problem, Eric didn’t listen. This deck could be raised and lowered, so he sent it a few inches below the surface to keep their guests from drying out. Everyone came aboard and, though there were a lot of tentacles, they made it work.
Closest to Eric—who sat in the doorway with just his feet in the water—were Ty, Falsor, and the one Primus had wanted him to meet. Ty finished the introductions.
“Eric, this is Cyen, my donor.”
“Your donor?”
“Yes?”
Eric cast them a guilty look. “I thought Falsor was your donor.”
“No, no. Falsor is our hatchlings’ donor.”
“Oh! Sorry.” Blushing over that, Eric smiled at Cyen. “You’re their grandparent. It’s great to meet you.”
Cyen had a lot of dappling across their skin, making them look like they were underwater in bright sunlight. “I am quite thrilled to meet you, Eric. Tyfodorus spoke only briefly of you, and I am most curious.”
Taking that as a cue, Eric told the story of how he and Ty met in the lagoon. While everyone chuckled over Eric’s initial misunderstanding of Ty’s intentions, what they really wanted to know was why Eric eventually said yes. What convinced him to submit to being a host?
“Well, mostly it started with helping Ty. They didn’t want to have to subdue an animal that wouldn’t understand what was happening. They liked being able to communicate with me beforehand, and I liked being able to save them from what seemed like a traumatic event for them, too.”
There was a murmur from many of them that sounded like they understood that exactly.
Ty put their hand on Eric’s thigh, smiling fondly, and that was when Eric realized he was naked. A blush bloomed on his face, but it was clear no one minded at this point.
“But then,” Eric went on, “while we talked, I started to like this incredibly interesting person. Our life experiences were so different, and it was like we fascinated each other.”
“You still fascinate me.”
Eric kissed them for that, and heard a few interested noises from their audience. Oh, right… Cecaelia didn’t know about kissing. So Eric made their kiss a little dirtier to get Ty to moan before he backed off. Now it was Ty with some color on their face as they giggled quietly.
“It was only after I agreed to test the elixir that I discovered everything else we do well together.”
And that’s when an incredibly frank discussion began about Eric’s anatomy, and what Ty knew about accessing and using it for hosting. Eric let Ty lead that conversation so he didn’t spontaneously combust from embarrassment. Instead, he took the hatchlings through the boat to the pool so they could get their nap in.
It wasn’t that he didn’t want Ty sharing everything they knew about sex with a human—it was important if any of the Cecaelia were g
oing to try that themselves—but that didn’t mean he had to listen. Or, dear lord, let them look. And if anyone asked for a demonstration, he’d keel over dead on the spot.
“Can we stay here for a while?” Cinqus asked before a huge yawn overtook them.
Eric bent and put his arms in the water so everyone could climb or splash into the pool. “Yeah, we can stay for a while. You probably have memories from Ty and Cyen about visiting Pacilona Nepthis, but I bet it’s fun to see everything yourselves, huh?”
“There’s memories from Ty and Cyen,” Secondus said sleepily, “and Lyohasius and so many more.”
“Who’s Lyohasius?”
“Ty’s parent.” Primus yawned, making the rest of them do it, too.
Eric resisted yawning, but just barely. “Right. The one who caught a tiger.”
“Like Jasmine has!” Sextus announced even though they already had their head resting on Tertius’s back.
“Yep, just like that one.” He imagined Lyohasius had been through one hell of a fight to get that tiger to be their host, but he wasn’t about to make the babies remember it. The fluffy pet from the Aladdin cartoon movie was enough for them to associate with now.
He made sure the water was still warm enough and that they were all in the shade. Then he sat and watched them settle in and fall asleep. Now that he knew them and their adorable quirks, he would forever say yes every time Ty asked him to be their host again. These little darlings filled him with such hope and pride, of course he wanted more.
Trusting that they’d sleep for a couple of hours and hoping the graphic discussion had veered into tamer waters, Eric tiptoed away from the pool and back toward the aft deck. He hesitated in the shadows, listening to the conversation, only to realize he didn’t understand a single word. Good grief, he’d never asked if Cecaelia had their own language. He was flattered they’d spoken English when he’d been there so he could be included from the beginning.
