Calmer of the Storm: Wow. I think I'm REALLY going to shoot myself for this. But I was watching POTC 2 today…it was on TV and I was like 'I really like pirates…' and then I remembered a manga that I read a while back called 'Wanted' which is about pirates, though it's quite short. And recently I've been reading (children's novels again…but they're well-written! I promise!) Vampirates by Justin Somper. So…yeah. I think this says something about me and my lack of creativity. I think for almost all of my stories I've borrowed from somewhere else…oh well. I suppose you can't be good in every department of writing, right? Haha…give me an idea and I can expand on it, just don't expect me to come up with anything on my own.

Just a note…the characters are going to be slightly OOC. Mostly because I had to work them to fit my ideas, but the OOCness will be explained. At least, I think it will be pretty evident why…if not, well, maybe it's just cause I'm the author and I think things are more apparent than they really are. Lol.

WELL…with that being said…-sigh- I DO NOT own Digimon. Never have, never will. And, due to my obvious lack of creativeness, be glad that I don't. Haha. I don't own Vampirates or 'Wanted' or Pirates of the Caribbean, for that matter. I begin writing this now unsure if I'll ever post it…well, we'll see how this goes. This is the prologue, at least.

~*~

Of Oceans and Pirates

By: Calmer of the Storm

Prologue

She was just a normal girl. Always she had lived in the shadow of her older brother; her bigger, smarter and obviously better older brother. At least, that was what the adults thought. Taichi would go places. He had some maturing to do of course, but he was a mere fourteen years old. He had the curse of adolescence with which to defend himself, which thus offered an excuse for anything deemed inappropriate behaviour for a young gentleman. They saw how he had raised his sister, and he was the sole heir to the Yagami family inheritance. Their parents had died of disease when he was ten, and so it was he who had to take on the surrogate role of raising his little sister, who had been exhibiting signs of the same illness. They said she was young and strong, though, that she would pull through it. They said it was because of him; because of the strength and the will that he had.

But the siblings knew better. Taichi knew his shortcomings, though he was still quite young himself. He knew he had to care for his sometimes-ailing sister. He knew that it was his responsibility. And he loved the girl with everything in him; she was all he had left. If anything were to happen to her…the boy did not know what he would do. He knew that his sister had an undying devotion to him, just as he did to her. At six years old she had been forced to understand things that no child should have to. She had been forced to grow up, just like he had. But Taichi hadn't handled it as well as her. He resented the fact that his childhood had been ripped away from him, that at the age of twelve he'd had to make decisions that only a man such as the one his father used to be would. But there was no such resentment in Hikari. She was innocent and pure, despite her mature outlook on the world.

They said he was smarter because he was older and because he was a boy. They said he was stronger, that he would be able to fully handle the weight of the prestige his family name would have for him the moment he became of age. But Taichi knew better. He knew that, despite her youth, Hikari was wise beyond her years. Her childish innocence allowed for a view of life that not even he could comprehend. Despite this innocence he knew that she was not naïve. She was stronger than he was, able to take the things that the world threw at her with a grace and countenance that many adults he knew could not even pretend to have. Taichi knew that his sister was more capable, that she was more worthy. But the world would never see it that way, simply because she was a girl.

Things might have been different, however, had they not been taken under the wing of another wealthy family. The governor, who had been in close confidence with the Yagami siblings' own parents, had opted to take them in. He'd had two boys of his own, the fair-haired children the same ages as those he sought to bring to his own home. Governor Ishida was a well-respected man, known for his wealth and his stern yet fair rule over his people. The older of his two sons, Yamato, would eventually take over his rule. The boy had known this his whole life, and had therefore adopted an attitude that seemed to scream that he knew this. There was a forced air about him, one that he tried to project that said he didn't want it. He was a rebel, but not the dangerous kind. He was the silent rebel, throwing icy glares at his father whenever things did not go as he had previously planned. Quickly the boy was learning the ways of the adult world.

That is, until a slightly more carefree Taichi had come into the picture. As they were the same age, and both heirs to a great fortune, they were automatically stuck together. It was expected of them that they would become the best of friends. But they were too different. Yamato could not handle the impulsive nature of the wild-eyed boy, and Taichi could not handle the stoic one of his counterpart. The stretching and the growing was far too much for either of them to handle. Yamato had thought Taichi too immature for his own good, and he simply rubbed him the wrong way. Maybe it was the way that people naturally flocked to him…they hung on his every word. He quickly became a leader within the household that Yamato had held sway over for so long.

As the years when by, however, it was difficult to ignore the fact that the two had grown quite close. Despite all odds, for they were almost exact opposites in every way, they had become friends. Their friendship was a bond that transcended the superficial and even some of the deepest of friendships. They balanced each other out; the calculating Yamato and the whimsical Taichi.

It was these things that neither of them would admit, as Hikari would later find out. Where Yamato was the opposite of her brother, she seemed to be the piece that completed him. She was the quiet voice of reason, an external extension of his conscience. She was Taichi's soft spot, and she knew it quite well. And yet she would never take advantage of this, knowing that her brother had already done more for her than should have ever been asked of him. It was why she spent so much time with the younger Ishida, the boy called Takeru.

It is around these two that this tale revolves.

While their brothers were off doing 'grown up' things, the younger siblings were left to behave as they pleased. Takeru would inherit some fortune, of course, but he would never be elevated to the status of his elder brother. He did not have the same pressures and expectations, and so he was allowed to live a simpler lifestyle. The boy loved his brother and strived to be just like him; Yamato was strong, so Takeru had to be too. And now that Hikari was in his life, he had to be strong for her as well. Little boys had to protect little girls. It was just the way things went.

At first, things between them had been strange. The six-year-old girl was shy, and the six-year-old boy pretended to be. As her brother left her he watched with wide, cerulean eyes as she practically folded herself inwards. Her head was down and her hands were clutched tightly around a rather sorry-looking doll, one that she had obviously toted around for quite some time. He would later learn that it was the last thing her mother had given to her. Hikari did not want to let go of her parents anymore than she had to. And so Takeru would never make fun of her for carrying it with her wherever she went, and he would also defend her when others tried to.

This was their relationship; from the beginning he had been her protector. His sincere and more outgoing nature was comfortable for her, and she found the boy to be a safe place. It wasn't so hard to leave her brother's side anymore, not when Takeru was around.

The little boys and the little girl grew older, their relationships among each other growing and stretching as only relationships can do. But it was when Hikari and Takeru were ten, and Taichi and Yamato were fourteen, that things suddenly changed.

Life can change in the blink of an eye; nobody knew that better than Hikari and Taichi. What Hikari didn't know was that her constant, her safe-harbour, would yet again be torn from her grasp.

Looking back, Hikari knows it was foolish. They weren't supposed to be out late at night; Takeru's father was a well-known man among high society, and a powerful one at that. This meant that he was also quite the target for those who wished to exist under the law without penalty. It did not help that the vibrant colour of the boys' hair and eyes made it easy to distinguish just who their parents were.

That night, though, Takeru had insisted that he needed to show her something. Sneaking into her room he had roused her from her light slumber, holding her hand the whole way. He hadn't even allowed for her to get changed out of her nightgown. They had to do this quickly, he'd said, before someone noticed they were gone.

Hikari had to admit; the rush was exhilarating. Always she had lived beneath the confines of rules and regulations, never finding a need to break them. The prospect of doing so scared her half to death. She knew it did for Takeru too; he had a keen sense of right and wrong like no other she had met. Because of this she knew that if he were going to break the rules, he must have good reason for it.

He had dragged her outside the walls of the mansion, and away from the gate that separated them from the outside world. The sky was brilliantly lit with millions of stars; she'd never seen it like that before. But it was not this that he wished to show her. At least, it wasn't the full extent of it all. They stopped in an open field; a hill that overlooked the ocean. It had taken a while to get out there, but Hikari was no longer afraid. Dropping her friend's hand, the girl took a step forward to marvel at the sight before her. It was a field of white lilies, their petals enhanced by the glowing moon and the dancing stars. Of all the clothes spun in the world, no one was dressed as elegantly as a lily. With the inky black ocean in the background over the crest of the hill, the tiny fireflies that blinked as they flew around the lilies looked like stars that had removed themselves from their spot in the sky to grace the earth with their presence. It was truly a beautiful sight, one that really couldn't happen on a night that was cloudy.

Turning back to the boy behind her, Hikari noticed that he was not there. He had darted off into the field, and she saw that he was chasing after the glowing bugs. It was like catching a star, he'd said. He wanted to get one for her. And then he would get one for himself, too, so that her star would never get lonely. The girl saw that he was having enough trouble catching her own star, and decided that maybe she should help him out and catch his for him.

It was more difficult than it looked, catching one of these tiny, floating stars. Neither had been successful, and so Takeru settled for picking a silk-spun lily from the ground. It was in the shape of a star, he told her, but would only glow in the moonlight. That was okay; it was all the star she needed. Hikari knew that she would cherish this star, just as much as she still, even now, cherished the doll that her mother had given to her so long ago.

The night was not getting any younger, and the two knew that they would probably be in enough trouble as it was. Turning, they saw the lights in the mansion were lit. They had been found out, then.

The sound of something in the distance stopped them for a moment. Cannon fire. It was at this point that they both realised that the lights in the house were not simply due to their absence. Something was amiss. Grabbing Hikari's hand, Takeru began to run. They had to get back. He didn't know what it was, but he wasn't going to let it take her.

They made it over the next ridge, ready to make a beeline towards where they had escaped from the fortress-mansion in the first place. It was here that the two children saw what had happened. In the harbour down below they could see the shape of a dark and eerie ship outlined against the dim lights. Pirates. The cannons raged, and the shouting carried up to where the pair was standing.

Takeru was struck with an urgency he knew he had to act upon; he knew they had little time. Something told him that the pirates were smarter than to just enter the harbour and start blasting things. No, they were much, much more cunning than that. They were already stalking the land, looking for treasure and other things that pirates looked for.

Home was in sight. They could see the loose rocks in the wall where they had climbed over. Once there they would be safe.

A scream and a sudden jerk on his arm caused Takeru to stop. Turning around he saw that they were no longer alone. Hikari, still clutching the lily he had given her, was now within the grasp of a large, burly pirate. Fear was evident in her wide crimson eyes. His massive hand covered her mouth, silencing any more sound that she had in her. She looked so small and fragile in the man's arms; Takeru knew he had to be careful. He didn't want him to break her.

There was no weapon to threaten the bigger man with, but Takeru would try. He rushed at him, but was stopped by another set of hands. In his struggle he saw that it was actually two sets of hands; both of them locking around his arms like iron cuffs.

Hikari was aware only of the man who held her; his painful grip and his stench. She was aware of Takeru being held in the same way. Breathing was becoming difficult; her vision began to blur. Then it became dark and blotchy. She heard the rough voices of them men, catching only a few coherent phrases.

The next thing she knew, Hikari was being let go. The fall to the ground was longer than she'd thought, and she let out the sound that had been held back in her lungs. The girl didn't have the strength to hold herself up, and she saw as they carried her friend away. She was aware of one thing; he was gone. These pirates had carried him off, probably because they recognised him to be the governor's son. He would be ransomed, then. And she knew that Governor Ishida would not give into their demands. Takeru was his beloved son, but not the most important one. The demands that would be made would be much too big. Takeru would die. Her rock, her hiding place…it was gone. And she could have done something to prevent it.

The only thing she came away from the experience was a name; the name of the notorious pirate, Captain Scar.

~*~

Ten years had passed since that day. The only thing left she had of her friend was the lily he gave her, which she tried so hard to preserve. The only thing she had of it now were tiny fragments, the petals mostly crushed and inserted into a small pouch that she was never without. Something had told her that her friend was not dead. At the age of sixteen, Hikari had had enough. Her brother had made his way into the world he had been born into, and they were pushing her to find someone to marry. Still she dwelled within the governor's house, for it was the only place she could call home. The place that still had some reminders of him. They had all lost hope, but she hadn't. She wouldn't lose hope. Not until she knew for certain. The demands for ransom had not been met, and so they assumed the bright young boy to be dead.

So she set out, leaving only a note for her older brother. She would come back someday, after she found him. Dead or alive, she had to find him. Something drew her to do it; she needed him. She needed to see him. Nothing short of knowing exactly what had happened to him would still the turmoil in her heart.

Four years she had searched, on top of the six she had waited at home. No one knew a thing of the little boy named Takeru who was the governor's son. Memories in the pirate world were short, she was quickly learning, though whether that was due to choice or alcohol she didn't know. She had taken on the guise of a boy, knowing that being a girl would get her nowhere, or perhaps into a place she did not wish to be.

Four years and she was beginning to lose hope. How was she supposed to find him, if no one was willing to help her? The subject of the Captain Scar was almost entirely forbidden; he was a legend on the seas. No one crossed him. Making a simple inquiry into his whereabouts was likely to get one killed. Fortunately for her there was at least some sort of compassion in this world, no matter how thin and fickle it ran. But Hikari had always been good at listening.

Finally, that listening had paid off. She had recognised him the moment she caught sight of him; not because she remembered seeing what he looked like, but because she'd heard what they said. Eyes as blue as the sea he commanded, hair as vibrant as the sun. But it was the scar, the one that ran across his back, over his right shoulder and down the length of his arm that distinguished him for what he was. She recalled seeing this scar the moment she laid eyes on it; it had been on one of the hands that had grabbed Takeru that night so long ago. Somehow she had made her way onto his ship, and she was now working for him. He was younger than she would have expected; he had been young ten years ago too. But maybe piracy did that to a person. And there was a sort of age that was visible only in his eyes, if one dared to look at them for long enough.

She held the rank of an ordinary seaman, for though she had searched she had not remained for long on any given ship. They knew her as Hikaru, the name to which she had responded for the last four years. It was a miracle that she'd managed to pull it off for so long, though sometimes she suspected that these men weren't as stupid as they seemed. Perhaps they were much too concerned with their lifestyles…and, as she had learned quickly, expendable crewmen were always desired. But she wasn't here to be 'expended'. She was on a mission, and she wasn't going to stop until it was fulfilled. And she was closer to finding Takeru that she ever had been before.

~*~

Calmer of the Storm: Ok. So I stole the pirate name from 'Wanted'. I honestly tried for like, half an hour to think of a good name. I even searched wikipedia. Didn't work.

So tell me what you think! The rest of the story will have more dialogue and whatnot…this was just the beginning. The set-up, prologue…whatever. The boring bit xD. Should I continue? Not sure if I really want to…haha. Don't know what I've gotten myself into here. This was definitely a spur-of-the-moment thing, but if you guys want it, I'll keep writing.

Heck, knowing me, I'll fell compelled to keep writing anyways. Haha. Nonetheless, let me know!!