For the Secret Battle (Take 2)
Round 1
The docks were filled with boats of all sizes and shapes. Street urchins tried to sneak onto all of them, well, all of them but four. The Maurader Ships. The figurehead of each ship represented which pirate ruled the deck. Of the four, only one was in disrepair, and not because it had been in battle, but because the captain didn't seem to care. Captain Wormtail with the rat figurehead was probably the most despised captain of them all. The whispers mentioned that he even had to bribe and threaten to even get the barest amount of crewmembers. These were not bad traits in a Pirate Captain, but if you wanted to survive in a battle, you needed the trust of your crew. Captain Moody, with a wolf figurehead, always seemed to have a softspot for the handicapped pirates that no other captain would take. This had led to his crew trusting him impeccably, although rumors had him as scary if you were around him after dark. These two captains had long since pulled into port, and were probably drinking in a tavern somewhere.
It was Captain Prongs and Captain Padfoot that the eyes of the docks turned to. These captains were the most liked of all four. Captain Prongs was known for demanding a well-ordered ship, but rewarded his crew with impressive amounts of gold. Captain Padfoot always had a smile, even as he gutted you for crossing him. They greeted each other on the docks with a quick hug before the eyes saw the two disappear onto Captain Padfoot's ship.
"James!" Captain Padfoot threw his arm around Captain Prongs' shoulders. "I heard you had a successful trip!" Sirius wagged his eyes. "Got yourself a wildcat I heard."
"Ay. And she's a pain in me behind!" James rubbed his forehead. "Gorgeous woman, fire for hair, but she is a hellion." James sighed. "I was hopin' you might have better luck taming her."
Sirius wiggled his eyebrows. "Ne'er been a dame I couldn't tame!"
"Wonderful!" James said with sarcasm as he led the other down into the brig. Sirius knew not to take it to heart. Instead he just grinned.
The moment they entered the brig, Sirius saw the woman jump to her feet. She started to screech profanities at them. Both of them paused before James shouted. "Desist woman! You are giving me a headache!" The woman didn't stop. James tensed, but Sirius but a hand on his shoulder. He nodded that James should head up to the deck. James clapped him on the shoulder and quickly exited the room. The woman paused for a moment before she started to scream again. Sirius merely grabbed a barrel and, turning it on its end, sat and watched her.
He said nothing as she grew quiet, but while her mouth said nothing, her eyes spoke volumes. Sirius merely closed his eyes and leaned against the wall. Moment's later she spoke again, although this time it was at a much more acceptable level. "Are you my new guard? I scared the last one off."
Sirius opened his eyes and laughed lightly. "You could call me that."
She bared her teeth at him before returning to her bench. "Well, you can tell your captain that he will never find me sharing his bed."
"Oh?"
She seemed a little put off by his tone of voice but continued. "Yes. He bombed my village..."
'Was anyone hurt?" Sirius broke in, curious.
"Well... no."
"Than what is the big deal? He's a pirate, he needs to blow some stuff up, otherwise where would the fun be?"
"There is no fun in being a pirate."
"Oh I beg to differ." She glared at him.
He could wait her out though. He leaned against the wall once again, but his eyes traced the wood above him. James even kept the roof of his brig in good repair, it made Sirius wonder whether his own was in this good condition. His musings were cut short when he heard her speak softly. "What kind of fun do you get up to than?"
Sirius held his smirk in, he could handle this. Leaning forward he caught the woman's eye. " Of course, there is bombing of villages. It's always exciting to see buildings crash. But even more simple then that..." He trailed off, and watched as she fell for his bait. "There is nothing more enjoyable than steering a ship." Sirius closed his eyes and gave a noise of contentment. When he opened them again, he found a pleasant stain on her cheeks and her eyes averted. "If you are amenable to it, perhaps I could show you the joy of steering a ship." He watched, fascinated, as her eyes filled with suspicion, and nearly laughed gleefully when they turned into plotting eyes. He knew she would see it as a chance to escape, he was hoping that it would be enough of a temptation to get her to agree.
A few moments later she spoke up. "I suppose I would be willing to test whether guiding a ship holds any enjoyment for me."
He leaned forward, his elbows on his knees. "What do you do for fun than?"
Her chin jerked up. "I bake."
Sirius felt himself blink slowly a few times, the image of this wildcat humming to herself while she put something in an oven filled his heart with an ache. Sirius frowned before he stood and left the brig. The moment he found James he guided the man into the Captain's Quarters. "James. I want her."
James raised an eyebrow. "That isn't even funny."
"I'm serious James. I want to trade for her."
James just stood there watching him. "Ok... but don't hate me for it later."
Sirius didn't make him any promises and they quickly began to bargain over what was a fitting trade. Finally they came to an acceptable deal. They left for the deck and laughed over the same jokes they had told each other for years. James waited for him at the dock while Sirius ran onto his ship. He looked around until he spotted a familiar red head up in the rigging. Sirius grinned and quickly climbed and began helping the man retie part of the mast.
The comradery between Charlie Weasley and himself had been an instant thing. Sirius dreaded the day the man decided to leave his crew and start his own, but for now, no captain could ask for a finer First Mate.
Once the mast was secure Charlie turned to him. "How can I help you Captain."
Sirius grinned. "I just traded James for a wildcat in his possession and I was hoping you would be in charge of moving her from his brig into mine."
"What did you trade?"
"Rights to Diagon Cove for a few months."
"Diagon Cove? Must be some wildcat."
"Oh she is."
Charlie rolled his eyes before saluting him. Than with a grace that only Charlie had perfected began to descend the rigging. Sirius merely jumped from the rigging to a beam attached to the mast until he found a rope he could use to swing down. When his feet hit the deck he found Charlie barking orders to the men on the ship and Sirius left it to him.
On the docks, Sirius found James flirting with one of the many women who lingered about. Sirius merely grinned and pulled his friend away, despite the protests. James growled "Wonderful. Since I no longer have a hellion to warm my bed I thought I had found myself a lovely ball of fun to replace her. But no. You had to drag me away."
"Come on James, you know there are better bedmates than that in Longbottom's Tav." James merely grumbled the rest of the way.
When Sirius returned to his ship, he heard the screaming. He quickly climbed aboard the ship and found Charlie standing with his back to the brig door, a grimace on his face. The moment he spotted Sirius though, the man sagged with relief. He walked forward and pointed his finger at the door. "That woman has been screaming on the top of her lungs for the past 10 minutes. Please for the sake of my ears make her stop!" Sirius grinned, clapped the man on the shoulder, and entered the brig. The moment the woman spotted him she stopped.
"Captain Prongs must be glad you're off his ship if you did that on the way into port."
She blushed slightly but kept her chin lifted. "Too bad for Captain Padfoot than. He will have to suffer it too."
"Aww would you do that to little old me?" Sirius watched in interest as she turned even more red.
"I thought you worked for Captain Prongs." That confirmed it than. She didn't realize who he was. He thought she might have figured it out from Charlie.
"Sweetheart, I'm Captain Padfoot."
She opened her mouth. Closed it. Opened it. Closed it. Sirius merely took a seat in a little wooden chair he kept down here for any guards. Finally she spoke, thought it wasn't what he would have expected. "Don't call me sweetheart."
"Oh? And what should I call you?"
"My name. It's Lily."
Sirius stood and bowed slightly. "Well it is a pleasure to meet you Lily. My name is Sirius Black, commonly called Captain Padfoot."
Sirius sat in his quarter fingering his forehead. There wasn't a mark on his skin, but his pride was wounded. That woman had managed to catch him off guard and had thrown her shoe at him. If it had been anyone else he would have thrown them overboard. But her feisty nature just made him want to capture her all the more. The door to his room opened and Sirius looked up to find Charlie standing there. Charlie's expression had Sirius standing instantly. "What's going on?"
"I got a message from Captain Weasley, the Slyther Pirate Ships are trying to take some of our sea."
Sirius growled angrily and grabbed the red jacket from his chair and put it on. "Let's get the other marauders and see if there are any other Griff alliance ships around and head out." The two of them walked across the deck and Sirius was pleased to find his crew already getting the ship ready to sail.
Sirius quickly jumped to the dock and set off at a trot for Longbottom's
It was only later, after he had made sure his ship was ready for battle, that Sirius remembered the woman in his brig. With a sigh, he descended below, a lantern clutched in his hand. When he walked in, he was surprised to find her fast asleep on the bench in the room. Sirius sat in the chair and watched her. The ship rocked around them and the light swung around causing her face to lighten up and darken. Sirius wanted to move her. Some part of him was tempted to move her from the brig to his own quarters. But he had no proof that she wouldn't kill him in his sleep.
Sirius thought about what they had spoken about, and he decided to go through with his promise. He slipped into the bars and shook her shoulder. He watched as her eyes slowly opened and she just looked at him. Sirius had to hold tightly to the bars next to him not to lean forward and kiss her. But all too soon her eyes hardened. Sirius stepped back before she could punch him. "Do you still want to learn how to steer a ship?"
She eyed him warily before she nodded. He held out his hand. "Than come with me." She slowly reached out her hand. When their skin touched fire seemed to race up his arm. Her eyes reflected his shock and he watched as a momentary flash of lust filled her eyes before she buried it behind a mask, but that was all he needed to know. he smiled and led her out to the star-filled deck.
Thank you for reading! Please leave a review on your way out!
Prompts used:
Era (Worth 1 Point)
1. Marauder
Genre (Worth 1 Point)
1. Romance
Words (Worth 1 Point)
1. Wonderful
2. Baking
Characters (Worth 2 Points)
1. Sirius Black
4. Charlie Weasley
Dialogue (Worth 3 Points)
1. "That isn't even funny."
2. "Don't hate me."
3. "You're giving me a headache."
AUs (Worth 4 Points)
1. Pirate!AU
Pairings (Worth 5 Points)
1. LilySirius