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The Pirate & The Stowaway (JosieAnna & I)

D

DarkRiffs

Star
Joined
Jan 9, 2009
His fingers drummed across the table in the tavern, his nails clicking and scratching against the hardened, gnarled wood of the oaken construction."I hate recruiting" he grumbled before knocking back the rest of his grog.He'd rejected every single man who'd applied, for the simple fact they were all sissies, men who'd not worked a day in there miserable lives.Then again, what would one expect from one of the richest of port cities but silly nobles wanting to play swashbuckle.The worn and faded straps of his boots gave a dull shine in the firelight of the tavern as he contemplated his next set of moves, his crew had been suffering a morale low lately so they'd stopped at port to raise spirits...if productivity hadn't been an issue he'd have worked his men to the bone by then.

Tossing a few dubloons on the table he stood up, smoothing out the ruffled old coat he wore, the buckles on which were worn nearly through.His hair fell down his back in long matted blond tendrils, dirty and unkempt, sprawling out from under the tri-coned sailors hat he wore, a fetching black colour, in which strange trinkets and other odd ends were hung.A tattoo sprawled up his neck, visible just under the collar, and his ears had small spacers in them.He was a deeply superstitious man, trusting in strange forces and old beliefs to guide him, and it had proven to work so far.

Stepping out of the Tavern he took a long draw of the salty sea-side air before beginning the long walk back to the cabin of his ship, having never been able to sleep on land, much preferring the rolling deck of a ship.
 
Joanna stood near the docks, her long, wavy, dark brown hair streaming in the wind, just the same way her long blue skirt was billowing. She was looking over the information that her spies had just given her. She knew what she needed, and now she knew where it was. The only real question was how to get there. Staring at the sails, she thought over the list of ships and their destinations, having already memorized it. There was one leaving in the morning, and it would dock close to where she needed to go. The only question left was how to get there. Turning away from the docks, she began walking down the road heading towards town. Several people in town owed her favors, and she intended to call them in.

Three hours later, the sun had set and she was ready. Although, there were few that would still call her a "she." Her long hair had been cut to just below her ears. Her ample breasts were no longer noticable threw the white billowy shirt and the cloths that bound them. She wore black pants tucked into boots of the same color. What hair she had left was tucked up under her hat, and soot smeared her face. She made sure to hunch over as she walked down the docks, trying to walk the way she'd seen the sailor's walking, but not quite mastering it. Finding the ship she wanted, she looked around to make sure no one was really paying attention before walking aboard. Making sure to stay hidden from anyone who might be aboard the ship, she quickly made her way down to the cargo hold to hide, hopefully for the duration of the voyage.
 
It wasn't more than an hour later the crew of the ship returned, hungover and each sipping the very hair of the dog that bit them the night prior.It wasn't hard to tell by the thick accents and general lack of manners in tone what kind of ship it was...Pirates.The conversations on deck could be heard down below through the various holes in the deck."Aye, the cappin been off in his own world lately I been noticing" one man stated, to which the next replied; "Ye, seems to me he be losing the will to lead".The banter went back and forth as the crew prepared and set sail.

It had been a little after sunrise the captain rose, stepping out on deck and growling as the sting of the sun hit his eye, for not but a rusted old ball magnet lay in the other socket, the magnet to his compass he always kept safe incase some wise ass decided he wanted a mutiny, for it was the only compass on board, for a reason."Tighten the slack on that line!" he bellowed out sourly as he trumped down to the cargo hold, his boots clinking across the deck as he descended down the stairs."Bloody lazy sons of dogmeat" he grumbled as he began rummaging around the stores."Trade a hundred of them for one bloody hardworker" he stated, slipping a bottle of rum from a crate and dusting it off.

With a sigh he uncorked the beverage and took a deep swill, shuddering before downing it, wafting the aroma of the open bottle before he froze.There was another scent in the cargo hold, an unfamiliar one, and when a man knew his ship as well as he did...unfamiliar things ment danger.His fingers slid into his coat, wrapping around the handle of his loaded pistol as he gazed around, trying to pin the source of the heavenly aroma.
 
Joanna spent the time before the crew returned getting used to the gentle sway of the ship as she walked around, trying to figure out what kind of cargo the ship held. From this, she strongly suspected that she would be traveling with pirates even before she heard the crew. Upon hearing them, she sighed softly. A rather unfortunate developement, that, she thought to herself. Hearing the hints of displeasure in many of the crew, Joanna decided she'd have to be more careful than usual to avoid getting caught. Keep your crew for one more voyage, and then you can have as many mutinies as you want. Just get me where I need to be first.

Not long after the ship set sail, the girl gave into exhaustion. She hadn't truly slept in almost three days, and they hadn't been the easiest of days to begin with. So, confident that even if she was found, she would be mistaken for a boy and simply hauled into service, she allowed her body to accustom itself to the motion of the ship enough to fall asleep. When the captain came down for his rum, she was fast asleep in a darkened corner. It wasn't likely that he'd see her just by looking, but nor was it likely that she'd wake up and hide better while he searched for her.
 
He was nearly out of the hold, ready to give up when he noticed her.It had been a fluke, the deck had rolled and the setting sun flashed through a porthole to give him a glance of her, or a him he thought.A scowl played across his face as he stepped over."Sleepin aye?" he said, uncorking the rum and upending it onto the boy to attempt and wake him."GIT YER SCURVY ARSE UP!".
 
Joanna stirred a little in her sleep as the sun hit her face. When he spoke to her, she awoke completely and was able to move away enough that the rum wouldn't drench her shirt, making the bands around her breasts obvious. She scrambled to her feet, a little wary. Being caught hadn't been in her plan. Looking at him, she tried to think of how to play this. She wasn't sure who he was, but she thought he was probably the captain. Tread carefully, Jo, she warned herself. "Ye the cappin?" she asked, her voice deep, her eyes taking in everything, just in case he decided to fight his stowaway.
 
He shoved the woman, or as he thought man, against the wall."AYE I BE THE CAPPIN....and I don't take kindly to stowaways on my ship, so ye best think of a good reason for being here or I'm gonna string your bowels from the stern to the bow" he said deep and gutturally, obviously in a bad mood.His breath stunk of rum and fish, and his hair was matted and dirty, but strangely he was almost handsome.He was rather young for a captain, only just in his late twenties, his eyes a scolding jade and his face stern and shaped.
 
Joanna gasped as she was pressed against the wall, something that could give away her true identity, if one looked closely enough. Smelling the captain's breath, she wrinkled her nose and turned her face away, attempting to breathe in the air not fouled by his breath. Thinking quickly, there was only one excuse that she could come up with. "Adventure, sir. I need adventure, but I knew ye wouldn't 'ave 'ired me on, so I snuck aboard." She drew in a large breath, the bands around her breasts threatening to break, then looked back at him. Once she got over the smell of the rum, she had to admit that he was quite attractive...which gave her the idea that she could barter passage with...something else, if this didn't work. Stop it! You're supposed to be a boy for this voyage! Not one who likes other boys, either! she scolded herself mentally.
 
His eyes narrowed dangerously, his thumb itching against the handle of the pistol in his coat.He grumbled as he thought for a moment."Can ye cook lad?" he asked, raising an eyebrow."I should hope so, It might just be yer savin grace.Me last cook nearly killed me with badly prepared fish.Needless to say I keelhauled him and he didn't make it".A smirk slid across his face as he continued, "The job be yers if ya want it...otherwise yer gonna be long overdue to get to port" he warned.
 
Joanna stared at him for a moment before answering. "Aye, sir. I make a decent cook." After listening to his story, she smiled a little. "I certainly won' poisin ye," she promised, her eyes sparkling as she realized that he wasn't going to kick her off the ship. "Where be the kitchen, then?" she said, pushing away from the wall.
 
"Good" he said in a much lighter tone, backing off of her and turning on his heel.Striding back over to the rum racks he grabbed a fresh bottle and spun about."Your name?....I can't well introduce you to the crew if ye've got no name" he stated casually.He was glad to have a new cook, none of the other crew dared touch the humiliating and dangerous position.Few had lived who'd cooked the captain bad food, and fewer still actually cooked good food.
 
"Name? Erm, J-Jack," she stuttered, making it up on the spot. She quickly followed the captain. Growing up in a family with no adults, and being the eldest girl, saying she made a decent cook was a bit of an understatement. She'd even cooked on ships before. But she was still nervous about how well this would turn out, seeing as everyone had their bad days and she'd spent most of the last week being nervous. She was exceptionally worried about what she'd have to work with in the kitchen.
 
He strode upon the deck and immediately the crew turned to gaze at the unfamiliar face."We keelhaulin this one cap?" one asked with an expectant grin.The captains own face had a sneer of delight, but he shook his head."Nay....say hello to the new cook boys" he stated."Jack be his name, and food he shall tame.With fingers so nimble a thumb and a thimble, food he shall cook for all men simple" he spoke eloquently."Now lad...git down under deck and git t'work on lunch.Higgins here'll escort ye" he stated, gesturing over the navigator."This way" the man said in a deep rich voice, gesturing for the skinny lad to follow as he headed beneath deck.
 
Joanna was careful to notice everything around her as she followed the captain, then had to do her best not to stare at him as he spoke to the crew. Why, the man could be a poet, she thought to herself then shook off the thought. Hearing the captain's orders, she followed Higgins below deck to see what she could put together for the noon meal. Being so close to port still, she thought they might have some meat, with which she could make a stew.
 
The cupboards were nearly bare and the stores were all dry goods.There was a rain-catch with fresh water, a benefit not many ships enjoyed, it seemed the captain was rather sharp."Ain't much t'cook with on this wreck, but I'm sure ye can think something up" Higgins stated."Just a tip....the captain loves it salty, tough, and dry" he instructed before he left her in the dank and somewhat moldy kitchen.A thin layer of dust covered the cutting boards and there were cobwebs in all the pots and pans, obviously nothing had been cooked in a while.It was more likely they'd simply ate the raw drygoods.
 
Joanna looked around the kitchen and didn't immediately have a brainstorm for a meal, so she decided that cleaning the pots and pans, and making the kitchen look at least close to sanitary was the place to begin. As she cleaned, she whistled and scoured her brain for something to cook. In the end, she made a bread and found some potatoes to make a soup, hoping the captain would approve.
 
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