"Cap'n! Cap'n Shanks?"
The red haired man blinked a few times, coming to after his fitful daydream. "Huh? What?" His shipmates groaned in response. The captain was a good man, but he was just too relaxed sometimes. And he always daydreamed, whether it was the middle of a furious storm or inside a local pub. Sometimes, the crew just wanted to find out what was so great to always drift away to.
"Sir, your meal's been sittin' in front of you for near twenty minutes now!"
Shanks shook his head a bit as his stomach growled in reply to the information. He laughed good heartedly, picking up a fork and chowing down on the feast set before him. A smile crossed his face as he imagined it, a new land to be discovered by his crew and himself. Never before had they been to the tiny island, and so far, they had been treated with a great respect. 'Well...maybe not respect, but at least they hadn't drawn pitchforks and guns' he thought with an amused grin. After a few minutes, he was back to his good-natured self, commenting to his closest crewmates about the land. "Oy, this is a grand island. I mean, just look around! Good food, good view, and best of all...Good Grog!" With a cheer from his mates, they clanked the giant mugs together and took a long, drawn out chug.
Before long, Shanks was leaned back in his seat when something caught his eye. A finely toned back with long white hair that would normally be concealing such beauty from behind, but was instead hiked into a rather messy ponytail atop her head. A few of his crewmates followed their captain's stare as he murmured, "Talk about a good view..."
She leaned across the table, slamming down an empty mug, and pointing at her friend. "13 in four minutes, and that's a new record!" Her friend grumbled slightly, still cradling a half full mug.
"How exactly is it that you can drink that much on an empty stomach at 11 in the morning?"
"What can I say, love? I'm a talented woman." She smirked as she pushed the longest bits of her bangs behind her ears, exposing numerous earrings around them. Adjusting her shirt, which had moved up slightly in the vigorous chugging, her eyes fell upon a new mug of grog set down in front of her by the waitress. "What's this?" she asked, looking up at the rather large waitress, "You giving ones on the house now?"
The waitress put her hand on her flabby hip, glaring down at the troublesome girl and her friend. "The red haired gentleman behind you sends his compliments." She turned quickly and rushed back to the kitchen.
Her friend's eyes widening, she looked over the mug then back up to the white haired girl. "Want me to-?" The brown haired girl asked, gesturing behind the other. Without a reply, the white haired girl glanced over her shoulder at the grinning man, and a smile crossed her mouth as she looked back towards her mousy looking friend.
"Not too shabby lookin', is he?"
"Not at all." Her friend sighed softly. "What, they can't wait anymore until past noon?"
"What, and let this vixen of a woman get past me? I think not!"
The white haired woman looked upside down at the captain standing behind her, and she smiled. "Finally got enough courage to come over here? That must have taken a lot, with an entire crew cheering you on, sir," she drawled, a peculiar accent seeping from between her strawberry lips. With nothing left to say, she turned back to her friend until she heard a chair being pulled out from behind her.
He smirked, having a seat behind her and leaned his elbows on his knees. "What is there to say, love. Secretly, you knew you wanted me to come over here and have a drink with yourself. Oy, where're my manners. Captain Shanks is the name."
"Vitani Kida, Captain Shanks." She smirked as he took her hand and gently kissed her knuckles. As her eyes met his, another great smile crept across her face, although it was no match to his.
"Absolutely lovely to meet you, kid." He grinned, almost bursting with charm, gracing her with a nickname that he felt was very suiting. While she must have been close to 21 years of age, the playful gleam in her eyes was like that of a child. Standing, he leaned down again to whisper in her ear. "If you think that 13 in four is good time, come to the pub tonight around 10, and we'll see how strong your stomach truly is." He took notice of her front as he bent over her with great appreciation, before announcing to his crew that the time to eat was over, and that their ship needed swabbing.
As the joyous crew left the cafe, she leaned over to her friend and smiled. "Hmm...I might have to take him up on that offer."
"Don't get ahead of yourself, Kida. That's Captain Red-Haired Shanks! Haven't you ever heard of him?"
"Of course not, but..." she smiled, glancing over her shoulder at where he had exited. "I think I'm willing to find out." Her dark eyes returned back to the serious eyes of her friend. "Don't worry so much, Nova. I've been on pirate ships my whole life, ya know? I think I can tell a good pirate from a bad one."
The older girl picked up her tea and sipped it slowly, closing her eyes. "You can, Kida...but usually not until about two months too late."
Kida leaned back in her seat and smiled, thinking about the coy smile of Shanks. 'I'm hardly ever off that much, Nova.' she thought, drifting off into a daydream of her own. 'Well...maybe not, but I have a good feeling about this one.'
-----
The night came and went, and it wasn't until two days later that the captain saw a flash of white hair go by him. Rushing over, he subtly walked beside her. "You never came, love. Something off?"
She looked up at him and smiled when she saw a truly worried look in his eyes, hoisting the box that she was carrying on her hip. "I never said that I would, now did I, Captain?" He reached out to take the box from her when she continued on her path. "I'm a big girl, Captain 'Red-Haired' Shanks, and I'm perfectly able to take care of myself."
He frowned, slightly flustered at her hard-to-get attitude, but eventually brushing it aside. "Maybe you'd like to have dinner with me tonight then? My treat."
She smiled and stopped, turning to face him with a raised eyebrow. "Perhaps I've already eaten?"
"A walk then? And while I doubt you have already eaten, I will be waiting for you at the restaurant until the time that our walk is set." She sighed with false impatience, shifting her weight from one foot to another.
"You're not one to give up easily, are you, Cap'n?"
A great smile crossed his lips as he held onto his belt buckle, leaning against a post next to her. "Of course not. Now, dinner is at 7 o'clock, and the walk at 9. I hope to see you then, kid." He bowed slightly and made his way down the opposite direction of the street.
-----
'Who am I to turn him down twice?' She wondered, standing outside of the restaurant, hearing Nova's words like a broken record in her head. A sigh escaped her lips as she silently cursed her friend for poisoning her mind. 'It's only been two years since Oran...maybe I should wait a little bit longer...' she reasoned, slowly starting to walk down the street when she heard a voice from behind her.
"Don't see you around these parts much!"
She turned quickly, and nearly jumped when she found a tall man standing behind her, reeking of alcohol. "I would assume not," she told him sternly, "Now why don't you run along and bother someone who you have a chance with...like a dog." She grumbled to him, turning and walking down the same direction when she felt a hand grab her arm and shove her against the wall.
"Now that's just not nice, little lady." The drunk smirked as he leaned over her. "But I'll be nice to you-"
"Oy! What's going on out here!"
Kida and the drunk turned to see a flash of red hair standing before them, a rather terrifying look in his eyes. "I said what's going on out here?"
The drunk stepped back with his hands up in surrender, backing off from the white haired girl. "Sorry, mate. Didn't know she had a brand on her already." He turned and jogged down the street as she lowered the gun from where his stomach was a moment before. Shanks walked over to her and smiled sheepishly.
"Don't suppose you'd want to join me for dinner now, would you?" The fierce protective glow had left his eyes, and the boyish charm had finally recovered in his face as he held out a hand to her.
After a moment's mental debate, the girl looked up at him and smiled, taking his hand and stepping away from the wall, which she had been tossed against. "You know, dinner sounds great right about now."
-----
"You did WHAT!"
Kida sighed at the shock of her friend, rubbing her cheek with her eyes closed. "I don't see why you're all freaked out about it, Nova. It was just dinner and a small walk, nothing happened." She glanced up and made a face at the still shocked expression on Nova's face. "Besides, I already promised him that I would go to the pub with him tonight. And..." Kida's grin spread across her face like wildfire. "I'm sure we could find someone on his crew that's suitable for you. They'll all be there. Come on, Nova! You absolutely have to come with me!"
"And get felt up by drunken pirates while you flirt shamelessly with some popular captain? I think not." Nova opened her book stubbornly and pretended to read it, looking up after a moment at her friend's sullen face. "What makes you think I want to go? Or even that I should try and get together with one of his crew? I AM capable of finding men, Vitani."
A pout rested on Kida's face as she crossed her arms. "No, you're capable of finding bookworms that are more concerned about if their shirts get coffee on them while they whine about the brashness of pirates. Which you should definitely be more offended by, Nova, being that you ARE a pirate."
"A pirate? Hardly. We may have been brought up together on a pirate ship, kid, but I would hardly consider myself a pirate. Not anymore, at least." The brown haired girl took a sip of her drink and sighed, looking up at Kida. "Kida? Are you alright?"
She sat, her slim shoulders shaking slightly, her teeth clenched. Years it had been since that dreadful day, a day that had at first seemed like any other day. Her dark eyes welled with tears as the memories flooded back to her.
---Time Change---
"You little snot! How dare you steal that gold from me!" A tiny girl ran ahead with lightning speed on the ship, dodging blows from a few of the crew. Although it wasn't worth much, she clung onto a small bag of gold from their last ransacking with a gigantic grin on her face.
"Hahaha! You can't catch me!" She shouted joyfully, her small chest feeling like it would explode from the feeling of adventure that she had put herself into. Sliding around the corner, she smacked directly into the first mate. "Kori!"
The man picked up the girl by the back of her shirt, his other arm still crossed across his chest. "Stealing again, kid? The captain won't be happy with you. You know the rules, no stealing from the crew!" The small girl squirmed in the bear-like grip of the huge man, still clutching onto the bag of gold as the rest of the crew caught up. Kori raised his eyebrow at her as she hugged it tightly to her chest, unwilling to give it up. "No? I guess I'll have to take you to the captain again, kid." He grumbled, still holding her by the back of her shirt as they entered the captain's cabin.
The tall man sat in his large chair, facing away from the door and the first mate. "What is it, Kori?"
Kori held up Kida over the desk of the captain. "Kida has been stealing from the crew again, sir. You told me earlier that should she continue to that I should report it to you."
"Set her down on the desk, Kori, and leave us."
"Aye, sir."
With that, Kori left the shaking Kida upon the captain's desk as she awaited her punishment. As the door closed, the captain turned around to face the young girl. "Kida. Why do you feel it is necessary to cause chaos on this ship? Do I not give you clothes to wear, food to eat? Is it truly that difficult to follow one of the few rules that I laid down for you?" The little girl's face puffed in response to him.
"You always make me stay under the deck in hiding when everyone else gets to raid ships! And that's not fair! I'm just as good a pirate as anybody else! Why do I have to stay here, Cap'n? Why?"
The old man chuckled, patting the little girl on the head. "Perhaps you are, kid. But I don't think that having a ten year old girl assist on my raids would really help our situation would it?" She sighed softly, defeated. He stroked his beard and leaned back in his seat, contemplating something. "I know it's hard, little one, surviving on your own, your mother dying when you were a toddler, and your father a pirate. It's understandable that you want to find him. But how can you find him if you die now?"
Her eyes welled with tears as she looked up at him, sighing softly. "Yes, Cap'n."
"Good, now that we're in agreement, as punishment, I want you to return all the gold to the crew members you stole it from and apologize. Never steal from a mate, Kida. That's one of the rules of the sea, not just me." She gasped softly at this, thinking of the rules of the sea. "And if you do it again, I will have no choice but to ban you from raids forever."
"Aye, sir!" She saluted him, jumping to her feet. "I won't steal anymore, sir! I swear it!" With that, she ran out the door towards the crewmates.
Later that day, the Scavenger pirates came into view of another ship, however, they thought nothing of it, and continued on their path. Kida was down in the lowest parts of the ship, gathering all the hidden gold that she had stolen when she heard shouts and yells from above. Instinctively, she hid behind a few of the barrels as she had been taught to do just in the knick of time, as nearly 20 men bustled downstairs to steal their gold. 'We're...we're being raided? But by who? Why?' A small gasp escaped her mouth as one in particular stood above her, a hat upon his head. He couldn't have been more then 17 years old. He looked down directly at her, although she couldn't see his face, she knew he saw her. Without a word, he followed the rest of the crew back up to the deck.
Silence. After a few minutes, what seemed like hours to her, she slowly crawled back up the stairs and to the deck. Shock overtook her. The crew, everyone, was either dead or fatally injured. Tears running down her face, she ran to the captain and Kori. "Cap! Kori!"
Kori had been dead for awhile, then. The captain looked up at her, his head bleeding along with his chest and stomach. "Kid...you're okay..." She hugged him tightly, sobbing. "Shhh...you have to...be quiet. I have to tell you something important, Kida." She looked up at him, the fire that was eating away at the deck reflecting in her dark eyes. He smiled. "I never told you...how much you look like your mother. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you, little one...my daughter."
She stopped moving, staring at the dying eyes of her captain, her father, until his breathing stopped. "Papa..."
-----
She gasped slightly as she was being shaken back and forth. "Nova! What do you think you're doing!" She yelped, trying to shove the other girl off of her.
"You were daydreaming again!" Kida sighed an apology as she leaned back in her chair, taking a sip of her drink. "What is it that you always think about, Kida? You never tell me."
She sighed, looking down at the floor. "Nothing but nightmares, Nova. Just nightmares." The worried expression on her friend's face not changing her mind, she took a bite of some food. "Nova, do you remember the day that you first met me?"
"Of course I do, Kida. You looked like a skeleton when we found your ship, what was left of it, anyways. Then the captain took you in. Why do you ask?"
"Hard to believe that it's been 11 years already, isn't it?"
"Kida, come on, what is going on? First you're sitting there, talking about going out and getting drunk with that guy, then you space out, and now you're talking about the day that we first met. It's starting to get me antsy."
She shook her head slightly, sighing. "Sorry, Nova. I didn't mean to worry you."
"It's fine, and there's no way I'm letting you go drinking all by yourself with a bunch of hooligans. I'll come with you tonight."
"Thanks, Nov."
-----
That night, after hours and after many competitions of Kida and Shanks' drinking, which, although Kida refused to admit it, Shanks had defeated her multiple times. They walked down the empty streets, the roar of the pub still loud enough to wake the dead, although Nova had gone home nearly an hour and a half before. Kida and Shanks walked side by side, her arms crossed after a harsh wind blew past. She shivered and her teeth chattered.
"You cold, love?"
Kida nodded slowly to the captain's question, and came close to blushing when he took his cloak from around his shoulders and set it upon hers. She smiled up at him and buttoned it together, holding it around her like a blanket. It wasn't long before they came to the beach, the ocean's waves crashing on the shore. She sat upon the ground and stared out at the glistening sea as he sat beside her. "Pretty decent view, isn't it?"
A small smile laid on her lips. "Yes, it's beautiful."
"So tell me about yourself, Kida. Where are you from?"
She blinked up at him about the sudden question, but answered him truthfully. "I-I don't really know for sure when I was born. My mother died when I was about two years old, and I lived on pirate ships the rest of my life." He raised his eyebrow at the last piece of information, unsure how to reply to that.
"A pirate's life, eh? Must've been hard on a kid."
A tear fell from her eye as she clutched her legs to her chest, staring out at the rippled water she had known her whole life. "It was." Shanks swore to himself about obviously bringing up a touchy subject. 'Great, mate. One question and you successfully upset her.'
"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to upset you." He pulled her to his chest in a light hug, and she blinked, feeling her hands and arms against his chest. After a few moments, she looked up into his eyes, and he down to hers. She could feel his breath upon her lips as his own grew closer.
At the last moment, she pulled away slightly. He blinked a few times and let her go, turning back to face the ocean. "Sorry..." They sat in silence for a moment, Kida unmoving from her position. Smiling, she took her hand to the back of his neck and pulled him to her, planting a kiss directly on his lips. He was shocked for a moment, but grinned as he wrapped an arm around her waist, gently returning the gesture.