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ALL the nomads! (an Autumn QueenxMadam Mim mash of several ongoing rps)

Madam Mim

Madam Mim

One Big Modern Mess
Joined
May 30, 2013
So this thread is a mash of two ongoing roleplays and one new one:
Gypsies and Stowaways (original thread)
The Stowaway (first au thread) both links posted for our personal reference to keep continuity. These things have been going for over a year; a synopsis would be a thread of its own.
Second au thread: The Gypsy.

Last posts in Gypsies and Stowaways[/b]:]

Giorgio paced in the caverns, wishing that there was something he could take his anger out on. He kept hearing Lily's voice in his head:


"I was trying to do it for you, Giorgio! I could barely keep you with me when I was pregnant and now that our baby's lost, how else am I supposed to keep you by my side? Clearly you don't want to take me for who I am!"

I was trying to do it for you.

For you.

I could barely keep you with me when I was pregnant....

...how else am I supposed to keep you by my side?


He slowed as understanding crept into his heart. She was afraid of losing him. She thought that he wanted to leave her? But, but... how could she think that?

He ran frustrated hands through his hair and went back to the cottage. Her sobbing could be heard from outside the door, and he felt horrible for causing her so much pain. Gently he opened the door and closed it behind himself. He knelt next to her sobbing body and then laid down so that he was facing her.

"Lily.... Mon Amie, I am so sorry. I am an idiot. All I've done is hurt you, and you never, never deserved that. I don't want to leave you. I love you so much that my heart wants to burst, and even if we can never lie together again, you are the only woman I want."

He reached out with one hand and touched her with his fingertips.

"I... I know that it was horrible for me to take Maria to try and trick Greyspawn into thinking that she was the one I loved. Even though I was trying to protect you, it was so wrong, Lily. I never wanted to hurt you, but I am an idiot. Please try to forgive me. I am a fool, Lily. I love you, and I keep hurting you."

Lily paid no mind to the sound of the door opening the closing. It was either Garrity come to ask what had happened or Giorgio returned to yell at her some more for having been traumatized by repeated rape. As she heard someone kneel next to her she surmised it was probably the latter. Ignoring him, she kept her eyes covered by her arms and her knees pulled into her chest. But then he laid down.

"But...you were so angry at me for not being able to lie with you. I...I don't understand what I can do to make you not so angry with me anymore," she said quietly from behind her arms. "I just want us to love each other again, to understand one another. I...I don't know what to do anymore to show you that I love you. For you to love me back. For us to be happy again. Before we can make love again, I just need...time. A lot of time."

Last posts in The Stowaway[/b]:]

"You wouldn't even go to Mopp if it was the only way we could be together?" Garrity's voice was light-hearted, but he felt a strange flutter in his gut. Was her love conditional? He would suffer anything to be with the ones he loved, but perhaps...perhaps her childhood was too terrible for her to revisit, no matter who she was with.

He cuddled her more tightly against his chest as they settled into a comfortable silence. Finally she asked him about the alcohol. "We stopped at port while ou were asleep, Lily. We needed supplies and medicine, and Giorgio, this Giorgio, said that he deserved to drink now that he's seen you in a brighter light. I'm sure he has more on board, but he's been much better about keeping it down. Especially after getting rid of Snake and his men."

He caressed Lily's hair as they laid there. "I wonder what it would have been like if the mutiny had succeeded. So much is happening, and I can barely make sense of it all." He kissed her temple as the ship sailed northwards. "As long as I'm with you, though, I know it will turn out alright." Inside, though, he worried about getting the hourglass back and trading it for his children. He wondered about the effects of the magic, if it was really what it was supposed to be, and how a man like his ex-father-in-law might abuse some power. Perhaps he already had; after all, the 'other' Giorgio might be a reflection of what occurred when the Hourglass was handed over.

Garrity grimaced. There was just too much to think about. Hopefully they would have this done and decided soon; the anticipation was nearly driving him insane.

Lily frowned at Garrity's suggestion. She looked up and laid a hand against his cheek. How could he think that she'd ever leave him? With soft eyes she looked up and studied his face.

"Oh darling...how could you ever think that? Of course I would go if it were the only way we could be together. In a heartbeat." She sighed. "But we couldn't stay. That place makes you grow old before your time. The children would never have the opportunities they have even now as half-giajin wards of your father-in-law. The most they could hope for is what I had, which was a low-paying job but a good boss. I don't want that for them or for us."

As they cuddled together, Lily listened to the steady intake of his breath, the comforting beat of his heart. This was how she wanted to fall asleep every night for the rest of her life, listening to these sounds. The sounds of Garrity's body was almost like a lullaby to her. Her eyes only opened again when he answered her question about the alcohol.

"What do you mean, now that he's seen me in a brighter light? What does that mean?" she frowned. "We ah...we should try and find that alcohol as soon as possible or he might get worse again."

First post for The Gypsy[/b]:]

Lily stood on the rocks, watching the last ship of the evening shove off. The enormous, dark-haired man who had been barking orders all day could only be the captain; such an air of authority he had about him. He had come in with a couple of others for lunch earlier in the day, and the bar maid had been sorely tempted to run off. The ship had been unloading all day, so clearly it was just a merchant vessel. What's the worst merchants would do to a little stowaway like her? Turn around and set her back home?

But the Crown And Anchor tavern had been slammed all day. A gale the night before had kept sailors in port longer than expected and had driven other ships in to an unscheduled stop, much like the strangers currently sailing away into the bleeding sunset, so Lily had been busy helping Mr. Haversham keep up with feeding the hungry fishers and merchants. By the time she had made it out to the docks, the ship had already weighed anchor. With disappointment sinking her heart, she sighed and trudged back toward the small but clean pub.

"Lily m'girl! Where ya been?" Mr. Haversham boomed over the crowd. "Your break was over ten minutes ago?"

"Sorry sir," the teenager called back. "Lost track of time." Her boss looked her over once, then harrumphed. A harrumph was Mr. Haversham's sign of general acknowledgement of the state of things, and that Lily should carry on.

Greg Haversham had known the Stevens family since before Lily's older sister Abigail was born. Of course, that wasn't difficult seeing as Mopp-Upon-The-Sea didn't exactly boast a large population. Everybody knew everybody, and everyone always did what there parents did before them. It was fine for some of them, but not for Lily. She'd always talked about getting away and some day she would actually do it. For now, however, she had to just sigh and get on with the job she already had.

As she went back to laying down whisky and wines, she caught sight of her best friend over in the corner. Lily smiled brightly to Jack and waved, signaling she'd be over to take care of him once she was done clearing off this table. Just as she had, the door burst open and in came the last person Lily wanted to see tonight. She exchanged a look with Jack, who smiled and rolled his eyes, before going back to the bar to wait for this table's drinks.

Lily always referred to him as "that dreadful Italian." He was a large man probably in his mid-fifties who always called Lily his "sposa piccola," his little bride. Despite knowing she knew he was married, since Lily had begun working at the Crown five years ago when she was thirteen he had sworn to some day make her his bride. The very thought of marrying such a bore made her gag. She often joked with Jack that she'd marry him before marrying the wealthy Italian merchant.

"Sorry 'bout that," Lily said with a shake of her head, briskly striding over to Jack's table before signaling to the Dreadful Italian that she'd be with him in a few minutes. "Storm's got everyone staying in port an extra day or two, some strangers milling about too. Wish the wind'd blow Kieran back our way, just so he knew he was safe. Whatcha want then, love?" Lily had long called Jack 'love.' It was a sort-of joke between them. Growing up, everyone had thought they were sweethearts. Some still did, or should be, and Lily found it a little funny. Of course they weren't sweethearts! Jack was her best friend! And she was his! Such a thing would just be weird and awkward!
 
....

The sands of the hourglass fell, each grain another possible alternative to the live and lives that surrounded it. Possibilities swirled around the gypsy, the stowaway, and those whose lives crossed their paths.


Gypsies & Stowaways

"Oh Lily... it's not because you could not lie down with me and make love. It's the back and forth, the changing is what drives me crazy. I can wait. I can give you time. All the time in the world, if you want, if you need it. I just need to know that you are not sorry you married me." He reached forward and tentatively threaded a few fingers through hers.

Giorgio DeBarzo was the only surviving son of the pirate Greyspawn, the dirge of the seas and a man whose reputation paled in comparison to how evil and cruel he truly was. The man had put Giorgio through hell as a child, and it was only the occasional intervention of his mother, when she could find them, and his almost-brother Garrity, that kept him from losing all grip on sanity from his father's physical and psychological torment. He had loved one other woman before Lily; another Gypsy named Maria who strung him along for years and then finally left him for a wealthy Italian merchant. The betrayal nearly destroyed Giorgio.

"I am afraid, Mon Amie, that you will see a wealthy man you like and then leave me."

Like Maria did.

He thought the words, but did not say it. The fact that he sneaked off with Maria after marrying Lily, even if it was to use Maria as bait to throw off the cruel pirate Greyspawn, gave him no right to mention his ex-lover. He hoped that Lily would understand and forgive him, but he knew that he didn't deserve her forgiveness. He had brought her too much sorrow to hope for that.


The Stowaway

Garrity drew a hand through his sandy brown hair. His bright green eyes burned with embarrassment at the mention of Giorgio's words about seeing Lily in a 'brighter light'. "I don't really know what he meant by that," he admitted. "He was different for a bit, like a man who had a change of heart. I almost thought that he was in fact a different man, but then... well, you know."

He leaned up on an elbow and looked at Lily. "It was almost like he was the same boy I grew up with, before Greyspawn caught us trying to escape."

But he nodded at her suggestion, albeit sadly. "I'm afraid that stealing his alcohol won't change much. He'll just buy more, and if we make him too made it's likely he'd take out his anger on you. I couldn't bear it if he did. He's very much his father's son, Lily, and Greyspawn isn't someone you'd ever want to cross."


The Gypsy

Jack looked up at Lily and felt his heart ache just a little bit. Yes, she was his best friend, but he had long begun to hope that she might become more. Her desire to explore and not to stay in Mopp, though, seemed to keep them apart. Jack loved the seaside; he loved fishing and tending to his father's little boat. He loved Mopp.

Lily did not.

"Just a bowl of stew and some ale, Lily. Uhm... and if you have a moment, I was wondering if you might go to the harvest festival with me? I mean, as a friend of course. The two of us. Together."

He could feel the Italian merchant watching them and the older man's boring eyes made Jack feel decidedly uncomfortable. He shifted nervously in his seat as he waited for Lily's answer.
 
Lily lifted her head and shook it so vehemently that she had to close her eyes and lay it back down again for fear of vomiting. She frowned up at him and studied his eyes. It was the truth...hadn't she proven herself enough, though? Chewing the inside of her lip, she reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her love's ear.

"Giorgio, no matter what I will never regret marrying you, ever, so put that out of your head," she insisted quietly. "A rich man doesn't interest me. Neither does a poor man. You do, my love. I just...I'm so afraid that you regret marrying me. You seem like it so often..." Lily's eyes watered, but she wouldn't allow the tears to come this time.

Lily took a few deep breaths and looked up at her husband again. "I just need to know that you love me, too. That you won't see some other girl, someone more beautiful or less broken, and finally leave me. I've been so afraid of losing you for so long..." The end of that sentence had to do with seeing him with Maria finally confirming that she'd lost him, but she felt it may be in poor taste to mention that just now, just when things were starting to get better again.

Lily looked up at Garrity with a frown. "Think he'll ever tell me what he meant?" she asked, actually curious. That was one thing she couldn't predict about the captain, was when he would choose to divulge information to her.

"Garrity, I'm worried," she said in a small voice, tucking her head back into his chest. "I...something tells me we'll be stuck here much longer than you want." She shuddered and clung to him, trying once again to find comfort in the warmth of his skin. "I'm afraid he'll find a way to make me bear him a child. I...I dunno if I could do that, Garrity. Not knowing for sure it was his." Lily closed her eyes tightly and curled into a tighter ball, wishing she could just disappear under the covers with Garrity and come out the other end somewhere that wasn't this awful ship.

Lily wrote down the numbers Mr. Haversham had taught her. She didn't know how to read or write; she knew the Crown's menu by heart and simply ticked down prices with a piece of charcoal on a pad of paper. When Mr. Haversham had first hired her he'd taught her simple arithmetic so she could add up peoples' tabs.

Jack seemed nervous when he asked her to go to the harvest festival with him. He did that sometimes, got nervous for no reason. Lily, naïve as she was, had always figured it was just his disposition. She gave him a warm smile and nudged his shoulder gently with her hip to try to fortify him.

"Of course I'll go!" she replied enthusiastically. "We go every year, don't we? Don't see why we'd break with tradition this year. Wouldn't be the same without you, Jack." She mussed his hair affectionately. "I'll go get your supper." When she turned around she saw what had probably made Jack uncomfortable; the Dreadful Italian was staring. Again. She gave him a forced smile before heading to the bar to put Jack's order in, then making her way to the merchant's table. It was best if they just got this over with.
 
Gypsies & Stowaways

"No, no. I do not regret marrying you. I only regret being the one to hurt you. I wish I had hid you better. I wish I could have kept you from getting raped on the Isles. That I could have protected you and our son from Greyspawn. Oh Lily... I am not worthy of you. I am just a wandering man with nothing to my name but despair. I wish I could be more for you."

He squeezed his eyes shut and held her hand. "I know that sometimes, Lily... sometimes I seem a bit not like myself. And sometimes I am not myself. And I can feel... I can feel that those times are coming more and more often, Mon Amie. I can only say now that I'm sorry. If I do or say anything that is hurtful... I am so sorry. I do not think I can control it like I did before. The veil is getting weaker and I am not a strong-willed man."

He had been broken too often.

Giorgio's will and sense of destiny had been shattered by Greyspawn so often that now the other realms were beginning to grow stronger. He could feel the 'other' Giorgio pushing at the borders and trying to get in here, where his Lily was.

It frightened him horribly.

But how could he tell her such things? She would think he was crazy. She'd certainly leave him then, and that would simply kill him.


The Stowaway

Garrity couldnt' think of how to help her with the child, but as they laid there he drew fingers through her long, dark hair and then finally asked. "What if you were to get pregnant with my child first? I know that you don't feel like you're ready to be a mother, but what if... if it was mine, then Giorgio would have to let you leave eventually." He felt badly for having such a selfish thought.

He loved her very much, and he wanted her to return with him and live with him and his children, but he knew that Lily wanted a life of adventure. If Giorgio had her child, though, she could never be at peace.


The Gypsy

Jack blushed as Lily's hips brushed his shoulder. Oh, how he wanted to crush her in his arms and kiss her lips! He dreamed of feeling her hips slide across his own as she moaned his name and pulled him deeper into her....

The young man blushed to the tips of his ears. If she could hear his thoughts she'd be horrified, he was sure!

The Italian merchant eyed the petite little morsel as she left the wimp of a man and walked over to his table. He tried to look sad, although he only felt a sense of excitement and arousal near the little English woman. "Ah...Lily my sposa piccola! How are you today? You have heard my sad news, no?" He looked up at her over reddened lids and sniffed into an embroidered kerchief.

"My Maria, my sweet wife... She is... gone!" He blew his nose into the cloth with a loud blast. Of course, he didn't bother to mention that she had run away. It was enough to let the little beauty think that he was a widower. "I am so very sad! My life, it is over!" He reached out to grab her and pull her closer. He wanted to touch the little Lily so Sweet, and his hands were strong and fast.
 
"Giorgio...my love!" Lily felt her heart break for him. Was that what he'd been thinking all along?! "It's not about who deserves who!" She leaned her forehead against his and looked into his eyes, putting her hands on his cheeks. "Listen to me, Giorgio. We can't change the past. It's done. All we can do is learn from it. We both have things we've done and said that we wish we hadn't; marrying each other isn't one of them. So just, please...don't spend the rest of your life wishing you could have hidden me better or protected me better. Don't spend it wishing you were more for me because you're more than enough for me already. Spend it loving me, and I'll spend mine loving you. Okay?"

As Giorgio apologized she shook her head. She'd already seen this other Giorgio and knew it wasn't him. "My love, you are my husband," she insisted quietly. "I said for better or worse, and that's what I meant. I've seen this...other you. I know it's not the real you. I don't know what he is, but I know he isn't you. Believe me, love."

Lily leaned up and kissed her husband's forehead. When could they stop going to emotional extremes and just be happy with each other? Well...perhaps once they got this stupid hourglass everything would be alright.

Lily sighed contentedly as she lay against the first mate's chest. She was very nearly asleep when his deep voice rumbled in her ear through his chest. She pulled slowly away from sleep to focus on the words, processing them slower than usual. She sighed and smiled, kissing his chest gently.

"No, I don't think I'm ready to be a mother," she admitted softly, "but it seems like I'm going to be whether I'm ready or not. DiBarzo will make sure of it. Garrity, nothing would make me happier than being the mother of your child." Lily planted a soft kiss on his chest then looked up to smile at him. "It would be so much better to spend my life believing my child to be yours rather than knowing it was his. And if I had a son...he'd take him from me. I couldn't let him do that." She wrapped her arms around Garrity's waist and snuggled in again, closing her eyes once more.

"I know he'll come to me before I'm ready," she murmured as she drifted back closer to sleep. "When he does, then we can start trying. Promise."

Lily didn't notice Jack watching the way her hips swayed as she walked away, but she did notice the merchant doing the same thing with a lustful glint in his eye. It was only when she drew nearer that he tried to look sad. God he was pathetic!

"Busy, Angelo. How're you?" She frowned and shook her head, feigning interest in his sad news. She could care less about anything to do with his life apart from the location of his hands at any given moment when he was around her.

Now it was Lily's turn to try to look sad. "Awww I'm sorry to hear that, Angelo." She patted his shoulder and tried to move out of the way, but was caught up in his strong grip. "You gotta let me go, so I can go get you some wine to drown your sorrows. Help you mourn your Maria." She patted his shoulder again and tried to get away.
 
...

Gypsies and Stowaways

"I... thank you." Giorgio smiled at her and then pulled her into a hug. He kissed her cheek and closed his eyes as he rested his face against hers. They had no way of telling if it was day or night outside the caverns. All they knew was whether or not they were tired. "Come, Lily. Will you lay in bed with me and let me hold you? I want to sleep next to my wife, to know that you are safe in my arms, and tomorrow can take care of itself."

He slowly stood and offered her a hand up. The small bed in the cottage looked plain and relatively clean. He didn't care who had slept in it last or who had died in the caverns; he just felt a tremendous weariness in his soul, as if he had been squeezed out and all that was left was the empty shell of who he might have been. As he looked at his beloved little stowaway he wondered who she might have been had the tides flowed differently for them.


The Stowaway

It was almost prophetic.

The knock came at the door, heavy and hard, as they were drifting off to sleep. Garrity startled and then glared the door as if it had been the cause for the sound, and not the person standing on the other side of it.

"What do you want?" He called out, already angry at the intrusion.

"I want Lily. Now. I've changed my mind and I want her to stay with me." Giorgio's voice was slightly slurred, as if he had already had a few drinks. "Open the door and give me back my slave girl!"

Garrity's jaw twitched in irritation as his hand crept towards where he kept a dagger near the bed. If Giorgio was drunk, and it was dark, perhaps....

Perhaps.


The Gypsy

Angelo smiled at the little serving girl. "Ah... Lily. You are so kind. So wonderful and perfect. You know that you will always be my little wife, yes? Mi espousa petite. Maybe you can come and help me to heal my broken heart? I can be a very generous friend, Lily. Whatever you need, whatever your family needs... I can provide."

He smiled and the silver lined tooth near the front of his mouth gleamed. "Broken hearts don't have to last forever."
 
"Always," Lily murmured to Giorgio, resting her cheek against his and gently caressing his neck. She was exhausted, and sleep sounded good. Especially sleep with her husband. She took his hand and stood, following him to the bed and laying down with him.

"I love you, Giorgio," she promised. "I love you I love you I love you. Forever and always. I promise." And a Stevens never broke their promise. As she laid in his arms and drifted to sleep, she smiled quietly to herself at a realization. "You know...we've been so distracted by everything I've yet to hear my new name. Mrs. D'Barzo. Lily D'Barzo." She grinned and kissed the nearest part of him, which happened to be his chest, before sinking deeper into her weariness. "I like it. Much better than Stevens."

The knock came at the door and Lily frowned. What would anyone want at this hour? Her unspoken question was answered by the slurred voice on the other side of the door. No...this was too soon. She whimpered quietly and slid her head under her pillow, hiding and trying to block D'Barzo's voice.

"No no no no no..." she groaned, her voice a little muffled from under the pillow. "No not tonight...it's too soon...he's drunk. Garrity please. Please make him go away." She felt like crying again in desperation, but resisted. She probably got on Garrity's nerves with all the crying she did.

"I...I know I said...but I can't. Not tonight.

Lily chuckled, silently praying to God Angelo was joking. Her? Come live with him? Whether as a live-in mistress or as a wife wasn't exactly clear, but either way it was repulsive. He was repulsive. But when he mentioned her family she cottoned on. He'd been asking around town and was trying to use his status to get him to marry her. Abby was sick and pregnant, and they didn't have the money they needed; it was very possible at this point she could die, either in childbirth or before.

"What're you sayin', Angelo?" she asked slowly. Please, dear God please don't be what she thought he was saying!
 
Gypsies and Stowaways

Giorgio and Lily settled in and slept peaceably for the first time in a long time. Perhaps they were finally being given a reprieve by fate, but it seemed like they hadn't been as much of one mind as they were that night. He found that he woke feeling rested and, surprisingly, warm.

When the gypsy turned to look in the cottage he found that the reason he was warm was that someone had built a little fire in the hearth for them. A tea kettle was steaming near the fire, and a small plate had been set out with dried fruit and dried fish. Garrity had been there, though there was no sign of him now.

Giorgio kissed Lily's forehead. "Wake up, Lily DeBarzo. It seems like morning has found us."


The Stowaway

Garrity felt the desperation in her voice as she begged him to make Giorgio wait. She had just been raped by the pirate's men, for God's sake! How could the captain want her to join him in his room so soon?

The Nordsman secured his blade along the inside of his shirt sleeve and went to the door to speak to the drunk captain.

"Giorgio! Not tonight. She is sick."

"Damn you, you giant pale-skinned idiot! Open the door!"

Garrity didn't want to hurt his almost-brother; he still cared for him no matter what, but.... he loved Lily. He had promised to protect her. Quickly he opened the door and stepped outside, closing the self-locking door behind himself. "Giorgio - !"

There was a bit of a scuffle, then the sound of a body falling heavily to the deck. A moment later, the soft sound of someone dragging a body across the wood could be heard if one were to listen very carefully.


The Gypsy

The heavyset Italian smiled at Lily. He wiped the sweat off his brow with a handkerchief. "Your sister... she is very, very sick. That is such sad news, and with a baby on the way too. But Lily... if you were to have a rich boyfriend, or better... a rich husband? You could send money for a doctor. A good doctor, no? What kinds of things could a loving, rich husband give you?"

He dug around the inside pocket of a vest with one pudgy hand while still holding her hand with the other. Soon he drew out a small jeweler's box from his vest.

"I want you to marry me, Lily. Marry me and I promise that I'll take care of all your family needs. I will be a generous man to you." Inside the box was a small ring, delicate and feminine.
 
Lily smiled when her husband's lips touched her forehead. When he told her to wake up, however, she scowled and moaned.

"Nope, nope, nope," she groaned, rolling onto her belly and plunging her arms under her pillow, stuffing her face into it. "Never went to a church: morning can find Lily DeBarzo. This is Lily Stevens. Sorry." It was a joke, of course. She had said multiple times she didn't care if they got married in a church or not; she was just trying to avoid being awake. Last night was the most peaceful sleep she'd had in a very, very long while. "Besides, can't be morning if it was never night and we're in a cave, so how do you know? For all you know we only slept a couple hours. Nope. Not morning." She grinned into her pillow and snuggled further down into the blankets. It was so warm and cozy in here. Why did she have to get out of bed?

Lily peeked up from under her pillow as weight in the bed shifted. She saw Garrity's silhouette get out of bed and a cold glint of metal as he moved toward the door. She frowned. Was he doing what she thought he was doing?

The stowaway listened to the conversation and ensuing scuffle. Her heart stopped a beat or two at the sound of a body falling to the deck, then being dragged across wood. Slowly she slid out of bed. If Garrity had just died because she'd asked him to protect her...oh God...

"Garrity?" Lily felt free to speak aloud from behind the door, but when she limped across the room and poked her head out she felt the need to whisper as she called his name again. What was going on?

Lily chewed on the tip of her tongue as the merchant spoke. He started talking about Abigail...Her husband Jacob was an accountant (or something) out in the country, but still she had been sick for so long that it was becoming a strain on them. They'd been talking about moving back to Mopp so her family could start helping to take care of her. Everyone was worried about losing both her and the baby.

Lily blinked. He'd meant it. The son-of-a-bitch had meant it! He'd meant it when he said he'd marry Lily some day! She looked down at the ring. It was beautiful. Still, shiny things weren't worth a lifetime of misery to Lily. But he could take care of Abby...

"I uh...wow..." Used to harassment from drunk customers, the scrawny waitress usually had a quick wit and a reply for everything. Now, however, she was rendered speechless. "Angelo, I'm very flattered...but I need to think this through. I need to talk to my Papa first." She looked up at him and closed the box gently. "Tomorrow. I'll give you an answer tomorrow."

She forced a smile before quickly going over to the bar to put his table's order in and pick up Jack's food. Marry Angelo? The Dreadful Italian? But he was fat and old, and his breath was terrible...but he was rich and could save Abby and her baby. He knew she didn't love him. He must know. Still, Lily had an opportunity to save her sister. That she would be a poor girl from a nowhere town becoming a wealthy Italian noblewoman didn't occur to her because it didn't matter. She didn't care about riches. But if it was her fault that she lost her sister and maybe her niece or nephew...how could she live with herself? But how could she live with herself if she did marry him? She would have to share his bed, possibly bear him fat, harry, smelly children like him. The thought nearly made her gag as she weaved through the tables over to Jack.

"Here...sorry it's so late," she murmured distractedly.
 
Gypsies & Stowaways

His throat clenched. A sharp, biting pain shot through the gypsy's chest as Lily teased about not being Lily DeBarzo. He couldn't mutter a sound as she flopped over and thrust her arms under the pillow. He cleared his throat and forced a smile onto his lips.

"Yes, of course, Mon Amie. We have no place we have to go." He laid back down and put an arm around her body. She was joking. She was just teasing and making fun, not saying that she wasn't his wife or that she wanted to be a single woman again... right? It had to be. "We stay as long as you want. Garrity can find his own damn hourglass."


The Stowaway

The cold night was stark and blue. Someone was going down into the hold; a few sailors were about, but none dared look at her. A few moments later a set of footsteps seemed to jog up the stairs, but they were light and nearly danced up the treads.

Lily could tell that it wasn't her Nordic sailor who she was looking for. The footsteps belonged to the captain, and he didn't sound drunk in the least.


The Gypsy

Angelo nodded sagely, closing his hand over hers and the box. "Take it, show your father. I will come speak to him in the morning, no? And we will set a date for your wedding. It will be like a fairytale," he smiled and then licked his lips. He gave her an extra three crowns on top of the cost of his mean and then watched her walk away like a lion eying a lame dear on the plains.

He would have her. He knew it.

Jack smiled up at Lily as she approached. "Are you alright Lily? You look... ill." His face looked concerned. "Did something bad happen?" All kinds of thoughts of people groping her or saying rude things came to mind. "Do you want me to do something for you?"
 
Lily smiled, not realizing that Giorgio had taken her teasing seriously. She relaxed as he laid back down and wrapped an arm around her. Smiling, she turned to face him and snuggle her face into his chest.

"Well, I wouldn't go that far!" she giggled as Giorgio declared that his brother could find the hourglass on his own. "Family has to stick together. DeBarzos take care of their own...don't we?" She looked up expectantly at him. They were all family now, they had to take care of each other. "Still...doesn't mean we can't sleep in a little," she added with a sleepy sort of smile before laying her head back on his chest and closing her eyes again. "We've earned it."

Lily had cracked open the door too late to see who it was going down the steps into the hold across the deck. She didn't step from the safety of the forecastle, but instead watched to see who it was who came back up. When the light was blocked from below, she recognized the slender silhouette of the captain in contrast to her love's large frame. She slapped a hand across her mouth as a cold terror struck her.

He was coming for her.

Closing the forecastle door, Lily turned the key in the lock just in case, then withdrew it and hung it about her neck. She made a round of the cabin, making sure all of the portholes were locked and the curtains drawn across and that there weren't any creaky floorboards that could somehow be used to come up through and trap her. She took a wad of towel and dirty clothes and shoved them up against the crack in the door so the captain could neither see if there was a light on nor slip a lock pick under the door to pull the handle when she wasn't looking. She tried to move the furniture, any furniture, against the door but it was all nailed down. The best she could do was hope the door would hold.

Then and only then did she allow herself to fall back onto the bed and begin to cry again, hugging herself and rocking herself slowly. It had been a trap. DeBarzo had known Garrity would refuse to turn her over and lured him out. It was all Lily's fault...she had asked him to protect her and she'd sent him to his death. She took a shuddering breath and tried to keep her tears as quiet as possible. She didn't want to attract the Captain's attention and challenge him to get through the locked door.

[/spoiler=The Gypsy]
The letch. The way he licked his lips when he looked at her made Lily want to retch. She could only imagine how sloppy and wet his kisses might be. She'd never been kissed before...ugh, this man couldn't be her first kiss! That was cruel of fate! She forced a smile and tucked the box into her apron pocket before getting away as quickly as possible.

Lily was glad her best friend always noticed when something was wrong with her. She glanced around to make sure the rest of her tables were good before flopping into the chair next to Jack and leaning her head on her hand. She sighed, her free hand fidgeting with the little box in her pocket.

"Depends on how you define 'bad,'" she groaned before placing the box in front of him on the table. She waited for him to open it before looking up at him with a helpless expression. "Told him I'd think about it. I'm talking to Papa and Ma tonight. He...he could save Abby. But...him? The Dreadful Italian? My husband?" She crinkled her nose in disgust and looked to Jack for sympathy.[/spoiler]
 
Gypsies & Stowaways

As the gypsy and his stowaway slept Garrity roamed the caverns and searched for the hourglass. He felt a surge of nostalgia... or was it deja vu?... when he took certain turns and tried to find worthy place to hide the hourglass. He remembered the walkways and the small, slick ledges of rock.

"Why are we going so deep?" The young gypsy pirate looked over at his brother, his own dark eyes seeming to glow bright in the pale blue glow of the water. "Why can't we just.... I dunno. Just put it anywhere? No one is going to come and look for anything here. They couldn't sing the sirens to sleep anyway!" He grinned smugly.

"I can't take any chances." Young Garrity peered into the water. He thought he saw.... something... swimming near them. "This is big, Giorgio. Really big. We can stop Greyspawn's plan and get away from him; our entire lives would change." He saw the signs of a structure ahead. A cottage?

"Do you hear that?" Giorgio paused. He listened carefully. "Someone is singing." He whispered. "We're not alone."


The Stowaway

There was a strong knock at the forecastle door. "Mon Amie, let me in." Giorgio's decidedly not drunk voice came through the wood. He knocked again.

"You can be difficult, Lily, or you can be smart. You are a smart girl, aren't you? Not one to do foolish things that make. Me. Mad." The sternness in his voice grew louder. "Now open the door! You wear my collar around your neck, open the door before I decide to separate your head from your body!"


The Gypsy

Jack drew in a sharp breath. "But Lily... you're not thinking of marrying him are you? I always thought, I thought." His eyes grew sad. "I thought you'd marry me one day." He glanced over at the huge, sweaty Italian.

"Please, Lily. There has to be another way. If you need money for medicines I can go out twice a day with my father. We can fish harder. Please... this isn't what you should do." He looked at her with large, pleading eyes. He had loved her every since they were children, and the thought of 'that man' being Lily's husband made him very soul feel ill.
 
Lily laid her head on her husband's warm chest, not knowing where Garrity was. "It's so comfortable and warm here," she murmured. "Can we just...find the hourglass then stay here? You have your voice, we're away from the world, it's warm...we don't have to leave."

She was, of course, only really half-awake while saying this. She still wanted to see the world. But if she could, she wanted to come back with her husband to this spot once they were done exploring and settle down here. Maybe after their children were grown; this would be a lonely place for a child to grow up.

Lily gasped and jumped as the captain banged on the door, demanding to be let in. She cowered in the corner, shaking her head mutely. She couldn't let him in. Garrity would have died in vain if she did. But then the gypsy started making threats through the wood and she knew they weren't idle. Eventually he would get through the door, or she would have to come out for basic needs like food and water and to relieve herself. And then she would be doomed to a fate like Maria's.

Slowly she stood from the bed and crept over to the door. The stowaway closed her eyes and took a deep breath before slowly letting it out and reluctantly unlocking the door. She opened it just a crack and peeked out at the enraged pirate.

"I'm sorry, Giorgio," she whimpered softly. "Please...give me some time darling. I...the Snake and his men..." Tears glistened in her eyes, shining in the moonlight. She knew he liked it when she acted like she enjoyed being his slave. "Please. I'm begging you. I know you like it when I beg, and I'm begging you now. Please don't do this."

"Oh, Jack." Lily smiled gently and put a hand on his cheek, sliding her thumb lightly along the course of his cheekbone.

When they were younger and the opposite sex had started becoming a viable option for a spouse they had promised each other that if nobody else would marry them they'd marry each other. It was a promise they'd kept to this day and she thought he was either joking or implying that since neither one of them had found anyone to marry yet they would just marry each other.

When he started offering to help with Abby's medicines she frowned and shook her head. "It's too much, Jack," she said softly. The medicines and the doctors and the traveling...it's too much even for the two of us together helping. I...I don't want to marry him, Jack." Her voice began to crack with tears she couldn't allow to fall during work hours.

"I just...I can't see another way." She sniffed and closed her eyes, shaking her head. "I'm talking to Papa tonight. He wouldn't want me to marry someone I don't love. He'll know what I should do." Tears of despair were coming far too close. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, willing them to go back before letting the breath out and opening her eyes.

When she did a new, false Lily had replaced her. Jack knew the smile she had plastered on; the fake one that meant that after work would be a long walk, some cheap wine, and a long sleep. She stood and ran her fingers very briefly through his hair.

"Eat up before it gets cold," she said quietly. "I'll talk to you when I can. I...we'll talk about it more tomorrow, yeah? After the harvest festival?" She leaned down and kissed the top of his head. "Thanks Jack. You'll always be my best man, you know. Love ya." She gave him a sad smile before turning to go grab the Dreadful Italian's meal.
 
Gypsies & Stowaways

"We can," Giorgio promised. He was falling into blissful sleep with her. He loved that moment; they were one in thought and heart, and the rest could wait. He didn't care about Garrity or the damned hourglass, to be truthful. He just wanted to be free and to be with Lily.

He knew that she'd never accept that, though. Lily was too sentimental; she wanted to help Garrity even though that very same desire had cost them their son. The Gypsy felt his heart harden slightly at the thought. Lily's love for Garrity was what caused them to lose their son.... that thought and the pain that accompanied it followed him into his dreams.


The Stowaway

Giorgio looked through the crack and saw Lily, his Lily, looking at him like he was some kind of monster.

She was right.

"I'm not going to hurt you tonight," he promised, "but I want to hold you, and you are mine to do with as I wish." He pushed on the door, forcing it open. "Do not be afraid of me. I am your Master. You should crave my attention, since I am the only one who knows how you like this." His finger reached under her collar and pulled her closer to himself.

"You like being my slave, Lily. Admit it to yourself. Life will be so much sweeter once you do."


The Gypsy

Jack's heart was aching. He wanted to argue with her, to beg her to follow her heart's call instead of marrying the Italian for his money, but his throat was constricted. He nodded mutely when she said that she'd talk to him at the Harvest Festival. When she said that he'd always be her best man, and that she loved him, his heart leaped with the thought that she did love him.

She loved him. He knew it.


The 'Dreadful' Italian saw Lily coming towards him and he smiled. "Ah... my darling. I've been thinking of how lovely your name will be; Missus Lily Verdicci. It's like the name of a princess! I will treat you like a princess, my little sweet morsel, I promise you will never regret this." He tried to grab her hand to kiss her again but he was too slow. "I will call on your family tomorrow afternoon. We will celebrate, no?"
 
Lily fell quickly into dream. First she saw a vision similar to what the sirens had shown her, but instead of being happy with both of her men--no, with her husband and her brother-in-law--she saw herself with only Giorgio. They smiled as they sat in the sand together, naked toes buried as they watched their two-year-old little girl throw fistfuls of sand into the lazily pulsing ocean. A baby boy suckled at her breast as Giorgio's arm around her warmed her shoulders. The day was cloudy and chilly but that was alright; they were happy.

Sylvia walked up behind the little girl and surprised her, picking her up before tossing her a short distance into the air and catching her, then wading out to waist-deep water and letting her play with the waves making her grandma's dress billow and float. Some distance away Garrity walked between two of his children, holding their hands as the littlest ran along into the surf. When he looked over at Lily, she didn't really sense any history with them; only sadness in his eyes. But her heart, for once, wasn't filled with guilt when she looked into those sharp green eyes.

When she turned back, Sylvia and the toddler had gone. Still a baby boy suckled at her breast, but Giorgio was different. His hair was longer, dirtier, and his breath smelled of whiskey and rum; his grip was tight and pinching on her bicep, but she wasn't allowed to pull away. The child was done eating and as she adjusted him to pat his back, she looked into very familiar bright green eyes.

"Don't you dare show him to me," Giorgio hissed. He had looked at the baby too. Lily had to switch shoulders so he wasn't looking at the gypsy pirate. His pinching grip on her shoulder finally relented as footsteps in the sand heralded Garrity's approach.

"Almost asleep, I think," he murmured quietly to her as she stood. A baby girl with downy hair was resting against his broad chest, brown eyes very nearly closed, "she's fighting pretty hard. You alright?" He looked over her shoulder and down at the man still in the sand.

"Yeah...fine," Lily answered just as quietly as he kissed her forehead.

Lily woke in the warm cavern, still wrapped in Giorgio's arms. Her Giorgio. A tear had nearly dried on her cheek by the time she was able to close her eyes again.

Lily considered opening the door wider, but then he forced it. She staggered backwards as he forced his way in and stepped in. She took a few steps back, but he only pulled her closer with the collar. The little stowaway closed her eyes, wishing she could deny that she liked the collar. She couldn't. She didn't like being his slave; she hated it. But the collar? If it had been Garrity's...she'd never want it off.

"Giorgio, please..." she said quietly, trying to take a step back toward the bed and putting her hands on his hips to indicate she wasn't trying to run away. "Just hold me then. Please." She wouldn't admit it aloud...she couldn't.

Lily smiled tightly at the Italian. Lily Verdicci...no. She'd rather be Stevens the rest of her life, or marry Jack or Kieran or very nearly anyone else. Lily Hoskins, Lily Shane...those weren't bad names. Lily Verdicci was disgusting. She tried not to show her utter repulsion at the idea of taking Angelo's name.

"Er...gimme time, Angelo," she said through the tightly stretched smile. "I gotta talk with my Papa too, remember." She nimbly danced out of the way of the Dreadful Italian as he tried to grab her again. He was far too grabby; she was sure he wouldn't wait but ten minutes after she said "I do" to rip her clothes off. The thought nearly made her gag.

"Tomorrow afternoon?" She raised her eyebrows. "Um...come over for lunch. 'Round noon, I guess. Tomorrow's the harvest festival, and I've got plans. It starts in the middle of the afternoon you know."


The Dreadful Italian had been put off as long as he possibly could. He'd left the Stevens' residence in high spirits earlier that afternoon and Lily had spent much of the day in her room, a makeshift lock fashioned out of a ribbon and a few nails as she sobbed her woes into her scratchy mattress. Fortunately, Roland had been wise enough to leave his daughter alone. He knew she felt betrayed, and he personally found the man odious. Angelo Verdicci had been trying to make Lily his wife since she was thirteen; he didn't trust the man as far as he could throw him. But he was very wealthy, and Abigail's life hung in the balance as well as that of her unborn baby. They had no choice. Roland personally wouldn't blame his younger daughter at all if she took a lover almost as soon as she was married, and in fact was speaking in quiet tones in the sitting room with his wife Jane over the merits of encouraging such behavior.

While her parents spoke at home, Lily had finally emerged in the late afternoon and walked wordlessly out of the house to go meet Jack, slamming the door behind her. She had managed up enough oomph to work in a few dances near the bonfire, but it just wasn't the same as in previous years. She'd had a few drinks, but even that wasn't enough to cheer her up. Sighing, she took Jack's arm and began to lead him away from the merriment.

"I don't know what to do..." she murmured as they walked through the quickly waning sunlight, the first time all night she'd spoken of what had transpired the evening before. "Papa said yes, Jack."
 
Gypsies & Stowaways

Garrity came back later that night, though time really had no meaning in a cave. He had relived the paths he and Giorgio had taken as young men and found nothing but regret there. Perhaps they should have simply destroyed the hourglass instead of hiding it. After it was hid they were recaptured by Captain Greyspawn. The pirate had beaten Garrity and left him adrift in a dinghy to die. Giorgio had managed to escape, though years later his pirate father caught up with him and punished him for his part in stealing the hourglass. The gypsy was lucky that he got away when he did. It was beyond comprehension what the pirate would have done to his son had he been caught in the midst of the pirate's anger. It was likely that Giorgio would have come out of it slightly insane himself.

The Nordsman watched the sleeping couple on the narrow bed and his heart clenched. Lily loved Giorgio so much... yet she also seemed to care for Garrity. He didn't understand how she could divide her heart in such a way; it seemed to be both the balm and the bane for them. Had Garrity been able to be with someone else without drawing Lily's ire he might have been able to find peace with it... but... he thought of Hannah, the young doctor who traveled with them for a while. Garrity might have learned to love her had they had a chance, but she found Giorgio too much like her late husband, and Lily seemed to hate any attention that Garrity gave to the doctor. It was lose-lose for all of them.

He pulled a thin blanket around his shoulders and then went out to find a soft spot of sand. Lily and Giorgio looked peaceful; he would give them their time of peace before they went to look for the hourglass....


The Stowaway

Giorgio smiled. "Of course, slave. Ask your Master nicely and it might be given to you." He pulled her closer to himself by her collar and kissed her forehead gently even as his other hand caressed her breast lightly. "But after tonight we will see how things change my sweet morsel. I've seen the light, and now it will shine anew on you." He smiled. The smell of alcohol on him was faint, as if it had been a long time since he had drank. His earlier condition had been a ruse... designed, as Lily surmised, to draw Garrity out.


"But my dear sugar cube you need to switch your mind to knowing that you serve me and only me, and if you are a good girl..." he smiled and locked eyes with her, "a good slave... then I may let you see your Garrity as a reward. Whether he lives or dies, eats or drinks... that all depends on how good you are for me. Understand?"


The Gypsy

Jack knew that Lily's heart was heavy with something, and he suspected that grotesque Italian man of being the cause. Every dance she danced, every smile she faked, he knew that something was dragging her soul into despair. Finally she walked with him to the quiet corners of the dance areas and confessed to him what it was.

His heart felt heavy too. "Lily... I wish I had been more bold. Maybe if I had asked you sooner then we'd already be married and at least..." He blushed. "At least you'd be married to your friend and not to some Italian old man with garlic and whiskey breath. I know you wanted adventure and not to be stuck here though... I'm so sorry, Lily. I wish you could have had your adventure."

He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "I wish I had listened to you and we had sneaked away on some ship to some far away land... found adventure and new places. I... I'm just not that brave." He took both her hands in his. "But I do love you, Lily. You're my best friend and everything I want in life. I... I wish I had been that for you too."
 
<Floating Gypsies and Stowaways for now>

"Please...M-Master, just lay in the bed with me," Lily whimpered quietly. "Just...lay in bed and hold me please. Just hold me."

Lily stood like a mouse hypnotized by a snake about to strike. Slowly she took a few steps back and sat onto the edge of the bed. She nodded when he spelled out the terms for Garrity's survival. Her heart leapt at the knowledge that he was alive, then quickly sank when she learned that she'd have to do the wretched captain's bidding. God knew what he would make her do, how he would humiliate her, just for fun because he knew she'd do anything to save her love.

Lily took Jack's arm and walked with him away from the Harvest festival, out of town and towards the forest that stood on the edge of the marshes. It was a little chilly this time of year, so the bugs had all gone underground for the winter and left the two of them alone to weave between the dark trees in peace. She sighed as they stopped and looked at Jack while he confessed to her that he wished he'd married her first. Slowly she came to realize just what he meant.

"Oh, Jack..." She gently wrapped her arms around his shoulders and hugged him tightly. "Jack, I'm so sorry. I...I never knew...I never realized...I'm sorry." She closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. "It's okay. You would have hated it. I know how much you love Mopp, you would never have been happy with me on an adventure and I could never be happy here. I just wish...I wish..."

Lily wished she didn't just have to know the cloying grope of an old man until he died. And she didn't...she could know what it was like to be with someone she cared about. Even if she wasn't in love with him.

"Jack..." she said slowly, pulling away and looking up into his eyes. "I don't love you the way you love me, even though I wish I did," she began, "and I do wish you'd told me earlier. Maybe I could've learned to. But you've been the best friend a girl could have, and you've been there for me so many times even when no one else was. I want to thank you for that." Still looking into his eyes, she began to unlace her bodice. They were teenagers; of course they'd talked about sex before, though they'd never so much as kissed.

"Jack...I want you to be my first," Lily said, a bit shakily. "My first...everything. I can't let him do it. I can't...can't let him be the first man to touch me." As her bodice loosened the sleeves of her dress fell, revealing the creamy skin of her shoulders in the moonlight. "Please."
 
~The Stowaway~

Giorgio smiled at his little slave, enjoying the way his custom-made collar looked around her slim neck. He fingered it gently as he stepped forward to meet her as she stepped back. "You ask me to just lay in bed and hold you as if we were lovers, Lily. You know that we will never be 'lovers'. There is no love here... only obedience from you, and tolerance from me. I own you. Every bit of you... and until you learn to love that there is nothing but suffering for you."

He moved her back until her legs hit the bed, then he pushed her gently down to the mattress. "There will be some holding tonight but there will also be much more than that." He crawled towards her, his legs between hers, and leaned down to kiss her soft lips. His hand moved up the flat of her stomach and across the soft mounds of her breasts to wrap around her neck where the cold metal encircled her flesh. "My lovely slave... my sexy little toy." He smiled at her as he began to wake her sweet body up with his touch.


The Gypsy

Jack felt his heart twist in pain as her words sank in. She didn't love him the way he loved her... he was just a very dear friend to her. "Jack...I want you to be my first," Lily said, a bit shakily. "My first...everything. I can't let him do it. I can't...can't let him be the first man to touch me." As her bodice loosened the sleeves of her dress fell, revealing the creamy skin of her shoulders in the moonlight. "Please."

He could barely make his voice work. "I'd do anything for you, Lily. Anything." He moved forward nervously and then pressed his lips to hers. It was a dry, shaky first kiss, but it made his world sway. His trembling hands moved to her waist and pulled her closer to himself. She could feel that he was hard beneath his trousers, his young body responding to the look in her eyes and finding its own way towards her. He began to slid her dress further off her shoulders. The sounds of music seemed very far away...
 
"We...we could be lovers some way," Lily offered shakily as Giorgio advanced on her. "Please...I can be your lover, if only you just..."

But he was pushing her down onto the mattress. She stopped talking immediately, hoping she hadn't said too much and made him angry. The little stowaway slave began to shake as the captain's hand moved up her body. Lily held her breath momentarily as his fingers wrapped around her throat, afraid he might begin to strangle her. But if she was dead, he couldn't take his pleasure from her. Ruined though her innocence had been, Lily was still naïve to the ways of the world; she had no idea that such a sick individual may have actually gotten enjoyment from that sort of thing.

"Do...am I...am I pleasing to you, Giorgio?" she asked shakily. "Am I too skinny? Are my breasts too small?" These were actually things she had always worried about, though she didn't particularly care about the gypsy's opinion. "I...I can change, if they are. I want to please you." Only to save Garrity, she added in her head. She closed her eyes and breathed in sharply as her body began to awaken painfully. She had recently been raped; she didn't want to even entertain the thought of what was about to be done to her.

"I'm sorry," Lily whispered just before Jack's lips met hers. She felt guilty that he felt so strongly for her when she had never realized this life-long torch he'd been bearing for her. She felt like she was taking advantage of him...but she couldn't let the Dreadful Italian take her virginity. She would have sooner married Jack or died a spinster.

Lily breathed in sharply when Jack pressed his lips to hers. She had to hang on to his shoulders to keep herself upright and her head began to spin. It wasn't so much the kiss as the whole situation. She was kissing her best friend, about to give her virginity to him...and he was in love with her. But she wasn't with him. If she were honest with herself, the kiss wasn't how she had imagined her first kiss to be. There was no spark, no cherubs, no swelling music. Although she could definitely feel something else beginning to swell.

"Jack...only do this if you're certain," Lily whispered shakily, opening her eyes and looking up at him as their lips parted. "I don't...I don't want to hurt you." Still, her young, teenaged body seemed to be moving of its own accord; she didn't remember allowing her dress to fall to her waist, nor wrapping her arms around Jack's neck. It seemed as though his shirt had come off of its own accord, but she realized as the cloth slipped from her fingers to the ground that she must have done it.

Jack's chest and arms were muscular from years of hauling nets and guiding boats through storms. Though his hands were calloused from such work, his skin was soft as she ran her hands over his chest. Lily leaned against him, but her legs still shook. It took a concerted effort, but she finally managed to get her breath under control. Her breath was warm as she leaned in to him, planting long, slow kisses onto his chest. She wrapped her arms tightly around his middle before sliding her hands slowly down to his ass.
 
~The Stowaway~

"No, Lily. Never lovers, you and I. Not that. Just... my sweet toy... and I shall be your master." His eyes met hers as he lowered his mouth to her breast and then licked her nipple through her shirt before nibbling on it painfully. He felt her heart beat in her delicate neck under his hand and his manhood swelled even larger, aroused at the thought that her life was literally in his hands. Whether she lived or died was his alone to decide. She was completely 'his' to use, to enjoy, and to suffer to live if he deemed her worthy.

The tip of his cock whetted with his precum as the thought made it's way to his loins. His mouth moved over the wet fabric of her shirt and sucked at her nipple again, his eyes dancing as he watched her face for every hint of emotion that crossed it. He laughed at her questions. "You're not too skinny and your breasts aren't too small... and even if they were there is no way you could change them, you silly girl. All you can change is how you react to me. Now... smile for your master and beg me to shoot my seed into your hot womb, little slave." His knees nudged her legs apart farther. "The more I believe you, the gentler I'll be."


~The Gypsy~

"Jack...only do this if you're certain," Lily whispered shakily, opening her eyes and looking up at him as their lips parted. "I don't...I don't want to hurt you."

He looked down into her big, blue eyes and felt his heart shattering. She didn't love him. She never would, but she liked him enough to give him this one thing of hers that she had to give. "Lily..." his eyes filled with unspilled tears, "I'd rather be the one with a broken heart than be someone who's never had a part of you. I love you." His voice cracked slightly. "I always have, and I always will." His strong, young arms wrapped around her and he lifted her up to wrap her legs around his hips as he took a few steps so that they could lay in the soft grass.

Jack slowly lowered her onto the ground. He somehow found his shirt and laid it out behind her so that she didn't have to be naked on the grass, then he began to kiss her neck and shoulders softly. His hands traced the curves of her body clumsily... the unskilled nature of his touch only made more gracious by the fact that the hands touching her loved her dearly. He felt the contrast of his great sorrow and his great joy clashing in his soul as they slowly began to undress each other. Soon he'd join with her... and then she would later get up, put her dress on, and marry another man. Jack could have died.
 
Lily whimpered as Giorgio's teeth shot sharp pain up her body through her nipples. She bit her lip and closed her eyes. Do it for Garrity, do it for Garrity, do it for Garrity... Her mantra was repeated over and over again in her head, trying to bring herself away from this nightmare. She took slow, deep breaths and tried to sink into a fantasy.

"Please...Master..." Lily's voice was shaky and weak. She cleared her throat and tried again. "Please, Master, fill me with your seed. I want you to fill me over and over. Oh please."

The stowaway closed her eyes more tightly and tried to imagine that it was Garrity on top of her. It was Garrity with his hand at her throat, and it was Garrity's collar she wore. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if it wasn't. She had to do this. She had to keep Garrity alive.

Lily shook all over. This felt like a dream, like it wasn't really happening. Jack's hands on her body were clumsy but loving, tender; the way he picked her up and wrapped her legs around him was gentle, and he tried to be gentle as he laid her down though she nearly fell. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks as Jack spoke to her, telling her how much he loved her.

"You'll always have this part of me, Jack," she promised, "and I'll always care for you. Nothing will ever take that away."

As his lips traced over her neck, her shoulders, her chest, she kissed every part of him she could. Slowly she placed gentle, loving kisses on his forehead, across his temple, along the ridge of his ear. Lily didn't remember when her clothes had come off, or when he'd shimmied out of his pants, but she seemed to only realize once she felt the soft fuzz against her inner thigh that they were naked. Shaking hands slid down Jack's sides and pulled gently at his hips.

"Take me, Jack," Lily whispered. "Take all of me, please. I...I need to feel you."

Her virgin petals were slick with her arousal as she pressed her hips up against his, her voice and body shook with anticipation, with nerves and fear, with arousal. She was lost in a troubled sea of emotions, but in the eye of it--in the calmest part of this tempest--was Jack. He'd always been there for her, always been solid, always been her rock. And all these year she had never known that he was in love with her...he deserved this. He deserved her for having loved her so unconditionally, so completely, all her life.
 
~The Stowaway~

His touch grew more gentle and his thrusts, though deep, pressed against a part of her that had been neglected in the past. He filled her with full, warm strokes and his kisses on her body began to turn into long, slow licks. He began to loosen his grip on her neck and instead began to caress her shoulders with his hand. His hips pushed his cock deep inside of her and he smiled
 
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