A writing challenge issued by the one and only, Gunlord! A Legault/Heather fic and man did I underestimate the difficulty...
Disclaimer: My disclaimer is to warn you that this story sucks. It is poorly written and the plot is absolutely horrednous, so I say read at your own risk and I apologize in advance. I hope you laugh at least once, whether it be because of my atrocious writing or witty one liners...anyway enjoy! Hopefully.
"Wow, what a beautiful day!" spoke the feared and renowned pirate Dart. And he was indeed right; it was a fantastic day, The sky was a that perfect shade of blue with just a cloud or two in the sky, the ocean was a crisp and clear aqua, and the sun beamed down on him perfectly with just a slight breeze passing through to keep them warm, but never hot.
"Dart," spoke a man concealed by a dark blue cloak and a deep scar on the left side of his face, "shouldn't you be steering the ship?"
"The ocean shall steer her, Legualt!" replied the helmsmen proudly.
"Yeah into a rock…" Legault replied.
"Oh-ho, my good friend, you do not trust the ocean," began seaman, "or is it you do not trust the great pirate Dart! Fear not! The ocean has never led me astray."
He turned from Legualt and struck a pose gazing out at the ocean from the port side. It was a romantic sight and Legualt could not deny that Dart was far more familiar with the ways of the waters than he was. However, the thief (though he preferred dangerous assassin) could not shake the fact that not steering a ship was never a good thing.
"Maybe becoming a pirate wasn't a good idea," Legualt muttered to himself, "too much to worry about."
"ROCK!" screamed Guy from atop the lookout tower, tearing Legualt away from his complaining, "HUGE ROCK! To the left! We're headed right to it!"
"It's not the left! It's called starboard side!" screamed Dart in return, shaking his fist angrily to remind his comrade of the proper sea terms.
"Not the time, Dart!" returned Legualt, glaring at Dart, "And what did I tell you about steering the damn ship!"
"Oh don't be so overdramatic, it's not like it's a fire dragon or anything." Dart replied, "Besides I'm sure Guy is over exaggerating." Dart said before turning to look at what his comrade defined as a "huge rock." But Dart didn't even need to turn to see the rock to know it was coming straight for them because in mere moments the entire ship was consumed with the shadow of some gargantuan structure.
Guy was indeed wrong; it was not a huge rock. It was a monstrous rock. Dart turned to Legualt for a moment and gave him an "oh crap I may have really messed up this time" look before sprinting to the helm and using all his strength to try and divert the path of the ship.
"Dart you idiot," cried the former member of the Black Fang as he came to Dart's aid, "I did not survive a war, Nergal, and a dragon to get killed by some stupid rock!"
The two yanked the wheel with all their strength until they drifted to the right of the giant rock in what seemed like slow motion. The three crew members all gave a collective sigh of relief before Dart finally broke the silence.
"What'd I tell you? The ocean gave us a little scare, but we turned out fine." He stated plainly with a laugh as he gave Legault a little too hard of a pat on the back. The cloaked man however, failed to even notice because he was staring at a far more horrific site that they were slowly drifting towards.
"Hey what's the matter – oh crap" Dart returned Legault's look of horror as he stared helplessly at the site before him. The crew had dodged the rock, but only to drift straight into the mouth of a vicious storm. The beautiful day had turned to a dreary and foreboding one as the clouds quickly turned gray and angry.
Legault was all but ready to just give up. The rock moments ago had cut of at least ten years of his life so it probably wasn't worth thinking he could make it through this too.
"Storm!" shouted Guy over a roar of thunder, "Huge storm! Left – I mean starboard side!"
"We know Guy, alright! We know!" yelled a frustrated Legault.
"Don't worry Legault! The sea shall see us to safety!" said Dart, placing a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "She has never let me down."
"Oh in the name of the spirits, shut up." replied the thief in a rather defeated tone.
Dart unfortunately didn't have any time to respond as the winds started to blow angrily and the rain came down in buckets. Legault decided that this was his own fault; he thought being a pirate wouldn't be so bad, but he should have known following Dart was a suicide mission. However, trying to cling to all the hope he had, the thief did his best to try and furl the sails and battle the raging storm as the waves began to soak him and the deck. Dart meanwhile was shouting orders and trying to steer the ship until a bolt of lightning struck the water and sent him hurdling backwards…with the wheel still in his hands…broken off from the rest of the ship.
"Uh, Legault," the pirate began, "we uh have a problem" he finished as he held up the broken steering device.
Legault couldn't even respond, he just looked at him a sighed helplessly for about the 300th time that day. After a moment he thought he'd look to see if maybe Guy could lend a hand, and then he sighed for the 301st time. Guy was clinging for dear life against the mast as the wind had him lifted completely parallel to the the rest of the ship screaming. As if to top it off and eliminate any slight chance of survival Legault now realized they were heading straight into a giant whirlpool.
"He do you find it at all ironic that your name is Hurricane, and you're going to die from a hurricane?" Dart asked, suddenly appearing next to him.
"Shut up, Dart."
And soon everything faded to black as the ship plummeted into the raging waters.
When Legault finally awoke he was sure he was dead and was staring at an angel. The woman was wearing all purple: purple paints, purple shirt, and a purple cape that sagged behind her as she crouched over his seemingly now dead friend Dart (a statement that failed to fill him with much grief at the moment). In fact, Legault's thoughts were far more drawn to the blonde haired vixen that sat just a few feet away. She had a dazzling figure, and though he couldn't see her face as she hovered over his friend, he was sure it was every bit as beautiful as the rest of her. It also boded well for her character that she seemed to be trying desperately to try and save his dead friend. The poor woman, he thought, of such a good heart that even after Dart had passed away she was still trying so hard to save his life.
"Miss," Legault started weakly, she failed to notice him, "excuse me, ma'am?" This got her attention as she turned her head with some interest at the source of the sound. And yes, he was right; the faced matched the rest of her in beauty.
"You're alive?" she said with a mixture of surprise and disinterest, "you must be one lucky guy."
It was as she turned to face him that Legault realized she was not tending to Dart's wounds, but rather she was picking through his lifeless body for any valuables. He was just about to reprimand her when he realized that he would have done the exact same thing.
"Get a good haul?" He asked in a somewhat sarcastic and condescending tone.
The woman stared at him in return for a moment analyzing his features and maybe even sizing him up, Legault thought.
"Good enough, thank you." She replied sticking her nose up in the air and crossing her arms. "And don't think you'll be taking it back. Not that this one had much of anything." Just as she was about to leave the woman noticed something about Legault she failed to see when she first stumbled on the two washed up on shore; the man carried a fairly large bag at his belt full of she was sure to be coin. She thought to herself that she should remind herself to take it from him at some point, but to do that she'd need to keep him hanging around for a little while.
As she was speaking Legault noticed a large pendent hanging around the woman's neck. It gleamed in the sunlight and he was sure it must be very, very valuable. He made a mental note to himself to take it for himself before he departed from his new companion. However, to do this Legault thought he would have to find some way to keep the woman around.
"So…" both conscious members said simultaneously. This raised Legualt's suspicions immediately, and the woman's as the both quickly went silent and glared daggers at one another. He had already devised that the woman was a thief of some sorts, but she also carried some kind of other air about her he couldn't place.
The woman felt similarly as she couldn't help but think there just wasn't something right about her new companion. He seemed very well built and that scar on the side of the face made her wonder if he was some kind of warrior, which both worried and excited her. Big brutish men were a lot easier to steal from, but also a lot more dangerous if you go caught. Then again, she never got caught and the man was more lean and wiry than muscular.
"Aren't you going to ask me how I'm feeling? You did just find me washed up unconscious on the shore." Legault stated plainly. As the words left his lips he did actually start to wonder what was going on. The last thing he remembered was cursing Dart's stupidity and heading head first into a whirlpool. The environment was nothing he could recognize.
"I wasn't no," began the woman flicking a lock of hair out of her face, "I mean you seem fine, but if you'd like I can start with the pleasantries."
Legault couldn't help but smirk at the comment, something about the woman he liked. "No that's alright." He finally said coming gingerly to his feet, "Legault." He said extending a hand towards her.
Perfect, she though taking his hand and eying up the pouch of gold she had spotted. He was already taking a liking to her, but she couldn't really blame him, she did consider herself quite the beauty after all.
"Heather." She responded with a smile as she shook his hand.
Perfect, she was already starting to take a fancy to him he thought as he took another glance at the medallion around her neck. To be honest he couldn't really blame her for being enthralled with his rather rugged and handsome demeanor, though.
"Well, Heather," he began, shooting her what he thought to be a dazzling smile, "it's a pleasure to have one so beautiful to be the first thing you see when you wake."
'ugh' though Heather, look at that smile, 'he's so full of himself. Typical man.'
"A pleasure to find someone so dashing washed up in a place like this, Sir Legault." She replied with a coy bat of the eye lashes.
'Oh yeah, Legault, you got her. Work it.' Thought the thief as he slowly started to inch towards her, just a little closer and he could use those deft hands to take the medallion and be on his way.
'What an idiot' thought Heather as she closed the distance between her and the man she now knew as Legault, 'just a little closer and then I'll give him the old "opps I'm a clumsy damsel and tripped into your arms."' Then she'd grab his coin purse and be on her merry way.
"Grah! What! Where am I?" shouted Dart, now conscious and in a great deal of confusion. "Oh hello there." He then said in a rather vulgar tone as he noticed Heather standing beside him.
'idot' Legault though, you couldn't have just stayed passed out for another 10 seconds? Or better yet just have been dead?'
'Moron' Heather thought, 'I've already got your gold, you couldn't have just sat their quietly for another 10 seconds?'
"Oh, Dart, so glad you're alive. Thought I had lost you." Legault said in a completely neutral tone.
"Ha-ha, the sea will never conquer Dart!" bellowed the pirate, "Dart conquers the sea."
"By the goddess he's been awake for barely 10 seconds and I already can't stand him" Heather muttered to herself, but Legault managed to overhear, drawing a subtle laugh.
"Hey, where's Guy?" the question actually surprised Legault. He hadn't noticed the third member of their crew was missing until Dart happened to mention it.
Guy was a good man, he couldn't deny that, and Legault wanted to find his friend if he could. That was if he was still alive.
"Excuse me Miss Heather, you wouldn't happen to know if there was another man among us somewhere around here, would you?" asked Legault in the most elegant and ingratiating tone he could muster. He was still trying to woo the woman out of her medallion after all.
Heather couldn't have been more annoyed, she was seconds away from getting her hands one some good coin, but she had some sympathy for the men, they were idiots, but they were just trying to find their friend.
"Yes," she sighed, "He washed up not far from here closer to your ship. Some Gallians on patrol took him up that road to get healed. He seemed quite hurt."
"Ah you have my gratitude, madam." He said with a slight bow. He silently cursed himself, the bow was over doing it. "Well we'd better get going Dart, You've been a great help. I'm so sorry to cut our meeting short, but we should find our friend."
"Indeed!" yelled Dart, as loud as ever, "And then we have to get back on the sea!"
"You're insane if you think I'm getting back on a boat ever again, especially with you."
Dart sighed with sadness as he began to try and argue the fact the sea was a wonderful place and that was the first time he'd ever really messed up. Heather watched the two as they slowly began to test their injuries and gather their messily belongings to get going in the direction she had pointed. Her eyes slowly made its way again to the bag at Legault's hip. It wouldn't be too far to travel with the two to the village their comrade was at, but it certainly would be a waste of her time. However, the woman just couldn't shake the fact that the man's gold might just be worth the trip. She'd been in Gallia a little over a month now on a request from Lucia and while it was a nice enough place, the Laquz barely had a lick of gold. Legault's purse might just be able to make up for all the loses she had incurred on the trip.
"I'll go with you!" she finally said, condemning herself for sounding just a little too eager. "It will be faster if I lead you there, and it's on my way anyway."
"Ah we do not deserve such kindness!" Legault replied with a smile, oh he had her alright. It wouldn't be long before this disaster turned into a lucky break once he got his hands on that necklace. "Lead on."
Heather nodded and turned as she began to lead the two in the direction of where she had seen a third man taken. 'Maybe I could get them drunk;' she thought 'men are always more willing to hand over their treasures with a little alcohol.'
"How much longer would you guess, Lady Heather?" asked Legault after about two hours of walking, he was anxious not only about the fate of his friend, but also that shiny medallion he just couldn't take his eyes off of.
"About another hour, I'd say." Replied the female thief. She had to admit though; the journey had not been unbearable. Her companions –namely the man with the purple hair- were quite the interesting people. Their banter was refreshing and Legault was not like other men she had met in his life. He didn't seem concerned with being the toughest or loudest man in the world that other men seemed to be obsessed with; although, he did seem to hold the same base inclination to try and remove her cloths as quickly as possible. She had caught him several times glancing at the area just above her chest.
"Well then," began her new friend, "would you actually mind excusing us for a moment? Dart and I have something we'd like to discuss in private." Dart gave him a puzzled look, but then again Legault did not expect the man to understand.
"Certainly, take as much time as you need." Said the blonde haired woman, she couldn't be happier with the two going off for a little while. With any luck she could prepare a little present for them before they got back.
"Dart listen," Legault finally said when he felt they were far enough from their new friend to speak privately, "I think we're far enough along that I can find the village on my own. So when we get back I think I'm going to give our new friend a little love tap to help her get to sleep."
"Why would you do that?" questioned Dart.
"She's wearing what I think to be a very valuable necklace. With any luck we can sell it in the same village we find Guy and maybe buy ourselves a way home."
"Ohhhhh," replied Dart rubbing his chin, a gesture that told Legault the man was deep in thought, "great idea. I already hate this place, too many trees."
"Agreed, so why don't we just –"
Legault was interrupted by the sudden ear piercing shriek of what he could have sworn to be a lion.
"What in the name of St. Elimine was that?" asked Dart in a noticeable amount of distress. It wasn't the sound of a normal wild animal. This was louder, stronger.
"I think it came from over here." Legault motioned for his friend to follow him to a small spot where the two gazed between some branches out on a small clearing. It was an interesting site, not something that amazed either really, but seeing a large Lion and a just as big cat fighting was not something you saw every day. In fact, Legault couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right. These two animals seemed almost intelligent, like the way they were fighting wasn't the mindless attacks of two wild beasts, but planned maneuvers of battle tested warriors. Then, just as Legault was becoming certain that something wasn't quite right, he saw both of the beasts transform in a small puff of light into human beings.
The two starred absolutely dumbfounded to what was occurring before their eyes. Dart's mouth was open wide enough he could fit his whole axe into it and Legault eyes were practically popping out of his head.
"What in Athos's beard was that?" Dart finally questioned as he ducked behind the shrubbery and out of the site of the two transforming beasts, "That Lion….and the cat….they…..they're"
"Yeah…" it was all that the pirate's friend could manage, truth be told he was just as scarred and confused as Dart.
"Legault, where are we?"
"I don't know, Dart, I don't know." Legault managed through the cold sweat that had broken out all over his body.
"They're going to eat us. I bet that Heather girl is one of them. She's leading us right to the village in time for dinner. They probably already ate Guy!"
"Alright, look, let's just relax. I'm not going to rule out the fact that they may want to eat us, but we still need to see if Guy is alright. We'll keep following her for now, but if anything freaky happens, we bolt." Legault was inches from Darts face and speaking in what was barely above a whisper. Dart meanwhile, completely consumed with fear over being eaten, could only nod approvingly, it was a good plan.
Heather could not thank her grandmother enough. When she was still just a girl the old woman taught her one of the most useful skills the thief had ever learned; the art of a finely crafted sleep potion. It was a strange thing to teach a little girl, but maybe her dear old grandmother had foreseen Heather's sly and deceptive nature or that she would be spending most of her life dealing with annoying and vulgar old men. Regardless of the woman's reasons, however; Heather thanked her grandmother once again as she carefully mixed the required herbs together. Her plan was fool proof: offer them a little drink once they get back, they accept graciously, then they'll fall asleep, she'll snag that nifty little coin belt, and then of course she'll slip away unnoticed. It was the perfect plan she thought. And it seemed to be just in time as she heard the silent rustle of leaves and her two comrades break through the forest brush.
"Ah my new friends! Welcome back!" she greeted them joyously. "Anyone hungry? I found us some fresh fruit and drink" She thought it only practical that enticing them with food would make them more prone to wanting to drink her concoction. Although the two seemed just a touch out of sorts from when she saw them moments ago. The taller muscular one seemed especially panicked.
"No." answered the man with the bandanna quickly before turning to whisper something to his friend, "You hear that? She wants to fatten us up. I'm telling you Legault we need to get out of here."
The much more practical thief however wasn't ready to admit the woman wanted to eat them just yet. This was probably just some huge misunderstanding.
"Well I know I'm starved!" claimed the blonde.
Okay, Legault was now willing to admit that it was maybe a possibility she wanted to eat them.
"Yeah, I know I'm so hungry I could probably eat a cat or something." Dart stated nervously as if trying to get the woman to confess to something.
Heather had never heard a saying like that before, but hey, if it got them to drink her stupid sleeping potion then fine, eat a cat - though they probably tasted awful.
"Then come, my friend sit, eat, drink." Heather motioned to a stop on the floor next to her. "I even made a fire to help keep us warm."
"Oh great.." Dart murmured with a nervous laugh, "Hear that, Legault? She started a nice fire to keep us warm, and probably cook us in." he then whispered to his friend.
"What did I say, just act natural. I'll just give her that hit on the back of her head and then we'll get out of here and nobody will get eaten."
Dart knew that Legault was more one for making plans than he was, so the seaman solaced himself to following orders and sat down next to the woman he was almost certain to be sort of wild animal. And seeing as he was a little bit hungry, Dart decided it couldn't be a terrible Idea to bite into some of the food the woman had brought. He was even just about to take a drink when three new figures made their way through the forest and into their small clearing.
"Who dares trespass on Gallian soil? You there, Beorc, why have you come here?" Dart could not believe how impossibly large the man that had appeared was, and he did not consider himself all that small. He was at the very least six and a half feet tall and Dart questioned if the man's huge, red curly hair was enough to outweigh him and Legault together. The thief, however; immediately identified two of the newcomers as those who had transformed into the beasts they had seen moments before. A thought that made him quite nervous.
"State your business or face the strength of the mighty beast tribe." Spoke another of the new visitors; this one was a woman with plain orange hair and two cat ears atop her head.
"Lethe!" Heather suddenly interrupted the group as she made herself known with a happy greeting to her friend, "What're you doing here?"
If there was ever a doubt in his mind that Dart was not about to get eaten, it left him there. So consumed by fear and panic let out a cry and sprinted the opposite direction into the woods as fast as his legs could carry him.
"Ah! Bramimond's face there is no way I am getting eaten!" and then the pirate was gone.
"Uh…what was that?" asked the last of the three strangers to speak. He was about Legault's size, but by far his most distinct trait was his striking teal hair.
"Yes," began Heather, "What was that about?" she continued regarding him with a questioning look. "And Lethe, what are you doing here?" there was confusion abound as Heather seemed to be turning in every which direction.
"I think it would be more appropriate for me to be asking you that, Heather."
And so Legault patiently observed as Heather explained to her unexpected friends that she was in Gallia on a request from someone named Lucia to deliver some special document to some king of beasts named Skrimir, whom happened to be the large man with red hair now standing before him. It was all very confusing and frankly the only thing Legault was trying to really figure out WAS WHERE THE FREAK HE WAS. Where ever that whirlpool had taken him, it was far from his home country of Bern, maybe even far from Elibe.
"I see, but who is this beorc then?" boomed the one he now knew as Skrimir, breaking Legault out of his trance and back to the current state of things. He was pretty sure now that the man wasn't going to eat him, but Legault still thought it might be more than a little foolish to upset the massive wall of muscle that stood before him.
"Ah, sorry," Heather started to say, "Legault this is Skrimir, Lethe, and Ranulf." She pointed to each subsequent member as their name was called, "I found him not long ago washed up on shore with that friend of his who just ran off. I'm starting to think they aren't from around here though."
"Yes, I'm starting to think that too." Legault finally said.
"What was with that other guy who went running off?" asked the man with the teal hair. Legault hadn't really had much time with the man obviously, but he couldn't help but think that he could easily get along with the man's light hearted and friendly attitude.
"Yes, well Dart is a bit simpleminded. We saw the two of you transform and well," Legault wasn't quite sure how to put the next part, "he thought you were going to eat him so he decided to try and take off. There aren't people who can transform like that where we're from."
At this Ranulf burst into laughter as the other two just starred incredulously at the thief, even Heather snickered a little.
"What fool would think that? A proud laguz would never feast on the flesh of man! We are not mindless animals." Skrimir's voice was laced with wounded pride.
"Relax Skrimir, like they said they're not from around here. Let's go and find the beorc then." This time it was the woman with the cat ears who chimed into the conversation.
"Yes, it would be annoying if he got into any kind of trouble." Replied Ranulf, clearly the most logical one of the three, "The two of you wait here; it shouldn't take us long before we track him down."
Heather and Legault both complied with the plan, nodding approvingly. Legault considered himself to be a good judge of character and he thought these three "laguz" would do as they had said. Besides, this was turning into a long day and he did not want the trouble of having to chase after the pirate himself.
Heather couldn't quite place what was going through the man across from hers head. Legault seemed to pay her no mind at all. Granted the man was clearly concerned with other things at the moment, but she hadn't yet met a man who wouldn't take her bait. She had tried several times since the three laguz left to get the man off his guard and seduce him out of his coin purse. It was actually starting to infuriate her. She was a master thief; a simple man like Legault shouldn't be giving her any trouble.
'Yune, all he does is just sit there looking elegant and handsome like I don't even exist. Look at me!' her thoughts screamed, 'Wait, what am I saying? He's just some stupid man like all the others. A slightly less stupid one, and slightly more striking…but a man none the less! All I want is that coin and I will get it.'
"So Legault," she tried again in her most pleasant and inviting voice, "what happened to the two of you anyway?"
"Hm?" Legualt grunted before realizing the woman had questioned her, his thoughts had long since left her medallion and drifted towards what in the world was going on. "Ah, that. Well it's a long story, but…."
It took him quite a while to retell his entire tale of joining Dart and Guy on the seas and how the three had sailed straight into the jaws of a storm and washed up on shore. Heather could hardly believe the tale and seemed to roll with laughter at every word.
"And so this Dart fellow tore the helm right off?"
"Yes," Legault returned with a laugh, "In his defense we purchased a pretty cheap vessel, and Dart hardly knows how to control his strength."
"Yes he does seem to be the type to hit first and think second." Heather could hardly control herself at this point.
"Oh trust me you don't know the half of it. Its guys like him that makes me want to avoid the big brutish types."
Heather's laughter came to an abrupt halt at that point. The woman couldn't help but think it was the same way she felt about most men.
"He has a good heart though, as many like him do." Legault continued with a somewhat somber laugh.
At this Heather nearly lost him. He was like a female version of herself. It's not as if she hated men, it was just that they were so loud and obnoxious, and always seemed to just want to get her in bed.
"I'm thinking I might have to leave him after this though," the man continued, "I've enjoyed our time together, but a guy like me, I like to do things a little more subtly. More sneaking around at night, and less tearing things off of boats, you know?"
"I know exactly how you feel trust me. I have a bit of a confession to make actually." She could no longer escape the fact that Heather liked Legault, only a little bit, but still she liked the man.
"Oh? What's that?" Legault asked in response, very curious as to what the woman could have lied about in their limited contact.
"Well, I sort of have been trying to steal that bag of coins that's hanging around your waste there. You see I make most of my living off a little theft every now and then."
"What you mean this?" Legault asked taking the bag from his belt. He soon started to laugh, "This isn't coin." And with that the thief poured the contents on the ground. "Don't look at me like that, you never know when you're going to need to throw some rocks at a guard or surprise some birds." The irony was practically suffocating and heather once again burst into a fit of laughter.
Legault was really starting to like the woman before him. She was an honest one that was for sure after her last confession, but she also wasn't like other girls. She was strong, independent, like she didn't need someone to relay on. And of course that laid back fun attitude of hers was really endearing as well. The woman certainly knew how to laugh.
"You know," Legault said letting a little laughter escape his lips, "now that we're being honest I actually have something to tell you. I've been trying to snag that medallion off your neck since we got here. See, I'm just as broke as you. Thought that baby could fetch a decent price in town somewhere."
"What this old thing?" Heather said taking the pendent off her neck and handing it to her new friend, "That thing isn't worth half a bronze. My grandmother actually gave it to me. She made it; she was good at making things, yes, but not valuable things"
Legaults eyes broke for a moment towards his fellow thief and they locked eyes for a moment before they both burst into a loud fit of laughter. The irony what they were both after not actually being there was almost unbearable. Their laughter continued to echo through Gallia until the three laguz returned with a very frantic Dart.
"Hope we aren't interrupting anything?" the teal haired man spoke as he made his way through the brush and closer to the two thieves. Skrimir had Dart hoisted over one shoulder, but was having incredible difficulty carrying him through all the pirate's thrashing and screaming.
Neither Heather nor Legault could manage a word as the laughter seemed to just build and build on itself. Finally, however, Legault managed to compose himself just enough to respond.
"Actually yes, we were just discovering what idiots the both of us are." He said through another small fit of laughter. Heather pushed him slightly and insisted that he could speak for himself on that aspect.
"Right well I can solve that right now. You're both morons, now if you could help us get control over your friend here we'd appreciate it."
"Don't be ridiculous you fiend! Legault is just about to rescue me! You know what they call him back where we're from! 'The Hurricane!' Yeah you're scared now! Looks like dinner is going to be delayed tonight!"
"Dart." Legault tried before he was cut off.
"Yeah, Legault get em! Show them what a former Black Fang member can do!"
"Dart!" Legault tried again.
"You can take them! Don't worry about it."
"Dart, shut up! They're not here to eat us." Legault said now approaching the man still hoisted helplessly atop the Beast King's back. "It was just a misunderstanding."
Upon hearing the news that he was no longer in danger of ending up in someone's stomach, Dart promptly ceased thrashing and Skirmir let him down. From there Legault further elaborated on their current situation. With each word that left his lips Dart began to feel more and more safe, but also more confused.
"So where are we again?" he finally asked when Legault had at last finished explaining their current conflicts.
"Far enough away that no one here has even heard of Elibe." Legault stated plainly.
"So what're we going to do now?"
"I still think we should find Dart, Skirmir and the rest of them said they'd accompany us to where he's staying."
Again, Dart feeling that he wasn't the best with formulating a plan decided to just nod his head in agreement and the group soon left to find the lost Sacaen swordsman. It wasn't a particularly long journey, but the group still had a fair amount of time to get to know each other. Dart and Skirmir really took a liking to each other as they battled over who had the better war cry or who feared death less. Ranulf and the female cat Lethe seemed rather satisfied with the fact that their king was preoccupied with something other than pestering them. Heather and Legault, however; seemed absolutely infatuated with one another. It seemed that ever other sentence spoken was followed with laughter as they shared their greatest heists or the biggest fools they'd ever encountered. Lethe was especially surprised to see her wartime friend acting so casually with a man, she always found her to care only for the company of women.
"Here we are. The beorc should still reside here." Legault still couldn't get used to the booming sound of Skirmir's voice.
"Perfect, it shouldn't be too hard to find him." And it wasn't because in moments of entering the small village, Guy came screaming out of one of the buildings and barreled straight into Legault.
"You are not going to eat me, nu-uh no way! The greatest swordsman in all of Sacea does not get eaten!" Legault found the situation all too familiar, so familiar that he had to just slap Guy across the face. He didn't mean it maliciously, but going through the whole "I don't wanna get eaten" thing once was enough.
"Guy nobody is going to eat you."
Guy patiently listened as Legault explained for the second time what exactly was going on. To the swordsman's credit he grasped the concept far better than Dart.
"Not to interrupt," Ranulf respectfully interrupted, "but we've actually prepared a ship for you, we had thought that the three of you might like to try your hand at heading home."
It was a kind and generous offer, but Legault was having some doubts. He happened a glance at Heather to notice she was staring back at him and thought how much more there was for him to tell her.
"A good man! A thousand thanks to you!" bellowed Dart, clearly anxious to try and find his way back to a familiar place.
Somehow though, Legault didn't move to follow his friends and Heather smiled at his hesitation.
"We might make a pretty good team I think." She said, smiling at him as if no one else in the world existed.
"The best." He responded with a smirk, a small gesture, but enough. He knew that and Heather knew that.
"Hey Legault, what're you doing! The ocean calls." He could just barely hear Dart as he beckoned him away, but still he remained.
"Dart, my friend," began Legault, "I don't think I'll be joining you. The ocean and I just don't get a long."
He spoke the words to his friend, but he was still staring at Heather, though she was now only a foot or two away from him. To his credit, Dart understood and did not press his friend on the matter. He gave the man a heartfelt good-bye, but nothing further. Legault couldn't help but feel like he should be feeling worse about leaving his home, but after what had happened to the Black Fang he knew there was nothing for him back home. And maybe it was time to make a new home, and new friends. Heather leaned lightly against his shoulder as the two waved good-bye to Dart and Guy as they followed Ranulf to the ship that awaited them.
"No desire to try and make it back home?" Heather finally asked with a sly smile. She knew she had him, like she had known with countless other men, the only difference? She wanted this one back.
"We had to go through a whirlpool to get here, I'd hate to know how one would get back." He said returning her smile with one of his own. "Besides, happiness was one thing I never could steal from Elibe."
"Well then, I suppose I'll have to steal me that." Heather said as she began to walk away.
Legault took one more glance at Dart and Guy as they faded away into the distance, they would be fine he assured himself. And then he turned to follow Heather to where ever she might be leading him.
A/N: I must congratulate you on making it this far, so what'd you think? I hope its not as bad as I think it is, but please drop me a review and let me know the many mistakes I'm sure I made or the decent points I had.
Its 4 am here though, and I have a double header tomorrow so I am going to bed. Ah one thing, I'm sorry if there are any Dart lovers out there, I didn't mean to make him look like an idiot, I actually love Dart. Just tried to poke a little fun at him. I'm sure everyone else was wildly out of character as well. But I hope you had at least a little enjoyment. Sentury out.