Anchor
chapter 2:
"You don't need ten new dresses, Gyatso-"
"Oh yes I do, Captain, I can't wear this every day out in the sun! But why should I expect you to understand clothes, you can't even wear your shirt properly-"
Yung sighed, rubbing his left temple with his index and middle finger, trying to tune out bickering around at him. Jinora had been on the ship for four days, and so far (although Yung was sure he had missed a few) she and Kai had gotten into at least five arguments a day. Most of the time it was just a jab - they loved having a go at each other, twisting each other's words and riling the other up. They grated on each other's nerves like no one else; Yung had never seen Kai get so easily pissed off before.
At first, it had been amusing to watch someone actually not only match, but sometimes outsmart Kai's smartass comments. Now, it was just giving Yung a headache. He could do nothing but watch as both of them got to their feet.
"Believe or not, some people actually only have two or three outfits, but I suppose you wouldn't know what's that like-"
"I'm not asking for what I have back home, I'm asking for just a few more dresses so I don't have to wear the same dirty thing over and over again like you do-"
"Ten isn't a few, it's bloody expensive for one thing-"
"Well you'll be getting plenty of ransom for me, so use some of that-" They were practically nose-to-nose, and even though Kai was at least a head taller than her, Jinora lifted her head to meet his glare, returning with one of her own, never backing down.
"Um...Kai?"
"What?" The Captain tore his fierce gaze away from Jinora, still fuming, but his expression softened at the sight of Appa. "Oh, sorry." He shook his head, running a hand through his hair. He sighed heavily, stepping away from Jinora and dropping into his chair. "What is it Appa?"
"Just wanted to let you know, Cap, that Otaku's double checked the charts and has confirmed we should arrive at Half-Moon Bay in four more days," Appa said. "He's planning our main voyage afterwards up on the deck, and he wants to get your approval before going any further."
"Of course." Kai rose from the table, shooting Jinora one last glare before heading out the door. Jinora crossed her arms over her chest as he stomped up the stairs.
"Erm, Jinora?" Yung began tentatively. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye. "You might want to ease up on Kai, he has a lot on his plate at the moment." Jinora huffed, and before she could open her mouth, Yung hastily added, "Besides, arguing with him isn't going to get you anywhere. If you want something, it wouldn't hurt to be a little nicer. Appeal to his better nature...and not bite his head off. For all of us. Your bickering is giving me a headache."
"The Captain and I don't bicker," Jinora grumbled.
Yung raised his eyebrows in disbelief. "Have you heard yourself speak lately? You're always having a go at each other."
"He makes it so easy," Jinora replied. "Besides, he's just so...infuriating. He crawls under my skin like a nasty little parasite."
"If it's any consolation, I'm sure it's mutual," Yung said exasperatedly. "Now, enough negative talk. I managed to convince Otaku to lend you one of his books so you'd have something new to read."
Jinora's face light up. "Oh, thank you. I am sorry, if all the shouting has gotten to you."
"Apology accepted. Should I go get the book?"
Jinora nodded. "Yes please."
After a few hours of reading up on deck, and seeing that Kai finally seemed to have a free moment (he had been especially busy that morning) Jinora slowly approached him. "Captain, can I have a word?"
He seemed surprised by her non-hostile tone, and nodded, eyeing her warily. "What's up Gyatso?" he asked, taking a swig from his bottle of rum.
"Well, I know things kind of got out of hand this morning, but I wanted to talk about getting some more dresses," she frowned when she caught him rolling his eyes, and crossed her arms over his chest. "Look, I don't know what your deal is about this-"
"But I know what yours is," Kai replied. "You think I haven't met girls like you before? Rich, always had more than enough and not a care in the world, and the biggest concern you have is what you wear. And then, when you make a mistake, well you always have your precious daddy's money to fall back on." Her face crumpled. What he said was true; partially, of course. "I have a feeling I'm hitting a little too close to home."
Jinora was ashamed at the tears pricking in her eyes. No. She refused to cry in front of him, of all people. "You don't understand anything about me."
Kai arched an eyebrow. "Oh really? Tell me, how much did I get right?"
"None of it! But I know who you are: you're just a selfish asshole!" Jinora snapped, poking him in the chest.
Whatever slight amusement that had been on Kai's face vanished, and he grit his teeth. "I never would have expected such vulgar language from a woman of the upper class-"
"You don't know anything about me, you son of a-"
"Well I know that you're a huge pain in the-"
Jinora threw her hands up in the air. "That's it, I am done!" She turned on her heel and shoved past him, slamming the door as she went below decks and stormed off to her meager excuse for a room.
Kai sighed as he watched her walk away, and felt Yung's eyes on him, and turned to see the man giving him a disapproving look. "What?"
"She was trying, Kai," Yung said simply.
"It was kind of petty of you," Otaku piped up. Skoochy murmured something in agreement. "Besides, Jinora's not that bad. She likes books, anyway, and she's pretty nice to rest of us. And really, a few dresses isn't that big of a deal."
"Look," Yung said, lowering his voice. "I know better than anyone else that you have a good reason for disliking the rich but..." I know you think that money provides safety. But be careful. It can also be a cage. "Jinora is our hostage. She's not exactly in the lap of luxury anymore. Try and see things from her point of view. We did take her away from her home and her family."
Kai frowned deeply. "I suppose that's true. Alright, I'll give her some time to cool off, and then I'll go get her and bring her back up, alright?" Yung nodded, smiling slightly.
Kai waited an hour before going below decks and paused outside the door of the cabin boy's quarters: his old room, now hers. Maybe he had been a bit unfair to her. And it did seem like she had only two dresses, and that would get uncomfortable very quickly, as they couldn't do laundry very often. Kai took a deep breath, and then knocked. "Gyatso?"
He was surprised when the door flew open, and stumbled backwards slightly. Once he regained his bearings, he saw Jinora glaring at him. Her eyes were rimmed with red: had she been crying, he wondered. The thought made his stomach squirm with guilt. He hadn't meant to make her cry. Get her to stop talking about her silly dresses, maybe, but not actually upset her. But his temper had been running high all day, he supposed, from their arguing, and he had reached his breaking point.
"What do you want?" she said, the edge in her voice jabbing him in in the side.
"I, er..." It was the first time he had been at a loss of words, and he hoped she wouldn't rub it in his face. "Look," he said finally. "I'm sorry, okay? I was out of line." Jinora simply regarded him coldly. "So yeah, I'm sorry."
"You said that already," she pointed out.
Kai managed a small laugh. "Yeah, I'm not great with this apologizing stuff, especially with giving me a look that could kill." Jinora's glare softened, and it gave him confidence. "So anyway, the way I see it is we're stuck like this for the next few months right? It can't hurt to try to be a little nicer to each other, and not always be at each other's throats."
Jinora eyed him warily, but he could see her considering it. "Snarky comments still allowed?"
Kai half-smiled. "Wouldn't expect anything less of you, Gyatso."
She stuck out her hand, and Kai went to shake it when she pulled back slightly. "I get at least five new dresses."
"As long as they're pretty cheap, knock yourself out," Kai replied.
Jinora shook his hand, her grip surprisingly firm. "Then you got yourself a deal, Captain."
"I promised the crew I'd bring you back up on deck," Kai said. "They're worried about you."
"I'm not going back up."
"I'm not breaking my promise," Kai said firmly. "C'mon Gyatso, don't be a stick in the mud. Come on out, or I'll come get you."
The words, "I'd like to see you try," had barely left her mouth before Kai picked her up and hoisted her over his shoulder like a potato sack. "What are you doing?" she hissed, her hands grabbing at his shirt. She hated being picked up, or any form of being off the ground in general. A phobia of heights of any kind had been carried with her for years, ever since falling out of a tree in her family's orchard as a girl.
"Taking you back up to the deck," Kai said, tightening his grip slightly as he turned around and began to walk up the stairs. "I did warn you, Gyatso." Once it became apparent Kai wasn't going to drop her - he certainly was strong, even if she knew she wasn't very heavy - she relaxed, but it was still a relief when he set her down on the wooden deck of the ship.
The rest of the crew stared as Jinora regained her balance, and then promptly punched him in the face. "That's for touching me without my consent."
Kai rubbed his jaw, and amazingly, cracked a smile. "Not a bad punch, Gyatso."
Jinora shook out her hand, her knuckles stinging slightly after making contact with his face. She stared back at him, and smiled a little when it seemed he wasn't going to grow angry with her, and she realized it was the first time they had ever truly smiled at each other. "Thanks, Captain."
Kai looked around at the crew, who were still staring. "Don't you have work to do?" he said loudly, a trace of the smile remaining on his face. He turned back to Jinora. "See ya around, Gyatso." He went over to the steering wheel, stealing a cigarette from Skoochy and giving it a blow, the smoke trailing over his lips.
Jinora gave him one last look before cracking open the book Otaku had lent her. Perhaps Kai wasn't quite as awful as she had thought.
"Remind me again why I'm the one who has to take Gyatso dress shopping?"
"Because you're the only one who doesn't have other business to deal with at the market, and you'd rather go than stay behind and look after the ship," Yung pointed out. "Now go. Otaku and I will handle getting the food, and Momo's staying back with the ship."
"Fine." Jinora was waiting for him, which slightly surprised him as it was very early in the morning (she must have been an early riser) and they walked down the ramp from the ship to the docks of Half-Moon Bay together. Jinora was wearing her second dress, a pale yellow one with a tight hold on her waist, showing off the flare of her hips, her purse clamped tight in her hands. "Let's get this over with."
"Don't sound too excited Captain," Jinora said dryly, her lips twisted up in a slight smile. "I've never been to a pirate's marketplace before."
"There's a lot of...interesting characters around here. So stay close to me, okay? Don't go anywhere alone. The ransom noticed promised I'd bring you home, safe and sound, Gyatso, after all. Don't make my job harder."
"For once, I promise I won't," Jinora replied.
The marketplace was swarming with people, all of a lower class, so Jinora's fancy dress stuck out like a sore thumb. Food of all kinds was being sold at stalls, as well as jewelry and protective amulets, weapons and beer. A couple of men stared at her, because of her body, or because of the money they were sure she had, she wasn't sure, but she stepped closer to Kai anyway, and noticed he had one hand clasped firmly on his sword hilt, like a warning, and immediately felt safer. It was apparent that Kai's reputation proceeded him, and Jinora wondered how skilled a fighter he truly was, as Momo was hardly a challenge.
They found a dress shop easily, and it even had a small changing room to try and see if the dress fit you. Jinora pulled a few into the dress room with her, and Kai tried to ignore the young shop owner's attempts to flirt with him. He wasn't in the mood, and she was a little too old for him, anyway, closer to thirty than twenty. After nearly twenty-five minutes had passed, Kai sighed heavily, leaning against the door of the dressing room.
"Can't you hurry up in there Gyatso?"
"I need to see what works, Captain, now shut up, I'm almost finished." He heard rustling and felt her push on the door and got off it, letting her step out of the dressing room. She had at least three dresses draped over her arm, as well as a couple of vests, shirts and pants. Pants? Jinora caught him staring and rolled her eyes. "I'm getting these clothes for practicality, so yes, pants. They seem very comfortable anyway, and it'll be a relief to not have to wear corsets for once, they're such a pain."
Kai resisted the urge of saying, "They're not the only thing," remembering he and Jinora's tentative truce, and instead kept quiet as Jinora rang the clothes up with the sour-looking shop-girl. He was surprised when Jinora pulled a wad of bills from her purse, and handed them over to the girl, before turning back to him and catching the look on his face.
"What? You don't think I went out empty handed, did you? Besides, some of the items were a bit more expensive, and you do have almost thirty men to feed." Jinora smiled slightly. "I may be spoiled, but I'm not a brat, whatever you may say."
"Looks like I have to admit I was wrong about that then," Kai said, shrugging as they left the store, Jinora clutching the packages of her new clothes to her chest. "That reminds me, Yung and Otaku are picking up extra fruit right now, to prevent scurvy and 'cause you're a vege-something-"
"Vegetarian," Jinora corrected him.
"Yeah that, and it'll be fine for now, but once we're out at sea for a good few weeks we'll start to run out, and you might have to eat some meat or fish or something 'cause that lasts longer," Kai continued. The fruit section of the market was particularly crowded, and Jinora had to stand so close to Kai their shoulders and arms brushed. Once it cleared, they had barely taken a step forward before a man stepped out of the shadows.
"Heard you kidnapped Governor Gyatso's daughter." The man had unnaturally red lips, reminding Jinora of the colour of blood, twisted up into a smile, but all it did was set her on edge. There was a cobweb stuck to the sleep of his dark jacket. "If you want her out of your hair, I can offer you a nice sum for her. Surely better than what the Governor's offering, men would pay quite a lot for a pretty little thing like her." Kai felt Jinora take a step closer to him, and he narrowed his eyes.
"You know I don't do those types of business deals, Koh," Kai said darkly. "Now, if you don't want your slave ship to be the next one we liberate, I suggest you go and get a head start. Now."
Koh simply smiled. "Of course."
Kai glared at him while they pushed past him, and ran a hand through his hair. "I hate men like him," Kai muttered. "They're disgusting, rotten bastards."
"Yung said you went after slave ships," Jinora said, slightly alarmed by the cloudy look in his eyes. She had seen Kai angry, but this seemed to be a different type. She tried not to think of how Koh looked at her, like she was a piece of meat and nothing more than a nice little commission, with a price tag around her neck like a noose.
"I'm sorry he said that to you," Kai said, his expression softening. "Wish I punched him, actually, but he's probably slithered away to some slimy hole by now."
"It's...thank you." For a split second, Jinora had wondered if Kai would agree to the deal, and terror had closed over her throat. Out of all the pirates that could have captured her, she was certainly lucky to be with some that didn't want to harm her.
Kai gave her a slightly surprised look, and she realized she had never thanked him for anything before. "No problem. Besides, in the ransom note I told your dad he'd get you back safe and sound, and I always keep my word."
"Everyone has been giving us a wide berth," Jinora remarked. "It seems your reputation with a sword truly does proceed you." They both fell silent, walking along the street among the noise and people, before Jinora asked, "When do we head back to the ship?"
"Now, if you'd like," Kai offered.
"Yeah, I would, I can go change properly."
When they arrived back on The Waterbender, Yung, Otaku, Momo and few other crew members were waiting for them. "How'd the dress shopping go Captain?" Momo snickered, as Jinora headed below decks to change.
Kai shot him a look and Momo fell silent. "It was boring. We ran into Koh, though, that slave-master. Otaku, make sure we find out about his whereabouts, would you? I wouldn't mind tracking down a couple of his ships in the new few weeks."
"Of course Captain," Otaku said. "Oh, and we also picked up a chair for Jinora, it's in the dining hall already."
"That's good," Kai said, and he turned around when he heard the door creak open, and Jinora stepped out. But she looked extremely different, now wearing her new clothes: a loose white blouse that left her shoulders bare, with a light leather corset. Her hair wasn't tied up anymore, and her curls spilled over her shoulders, past halfway down her back. A brown skirt went her just above her knees, and she wore black leggings underneath with black boots. Although it wasn't as restricting as her old dresses, if Kai had had any misgivings about the curves of her chest or hips, they had been obliterated.
"Much more practical, don't you think?" Jinora said with a grin, placing her hands on her hips and glancing down at her attire. "Captain, hand me your sword would you?"
It took Kai a moment to respond, his face feeling hot, but the sun was high in the sky now, warming things up so he supposed that made sense. He unsheathed his sword and made sure she had a good grip on the hilt before letting go. Jinora raised it in one hand with surprising ease, and pulled her hair back in the other. There was a shnng noise as she cut her hair, almost half of it hitting the deck before the wind started to blow it away.
Jinora's hair was much shorter, choppy and uneven, but somehow suiting her as it fell to her shoulders and curled a little around her cheeks and chin. "Much better," she said decidedly, handing Kai back his sword. She felt his eyes on her, even as he sheathed it, and gave him a slightly curious look. "Something wrong, Captain?"
Kai shook his head, cracking a smile. "Not at all Gyatso," he said smoothly.
Jinora's lips twitched upwards. "Of course." She tugged on the ends of her hair, before dropping her hand. "Oh, Otaku, I'm almost done the book you lent me, and I have to say, I'm really enjoying it."
Otaku grinned eagerly. "Really?"
"Really. I'd love to discuss a theory I have about how it's going to end - don't tell me of course, but -"
Kai couldn't help but smile as she and Otaku walked away, talking animatedly to each other. He crossed his arms over his chest, watching Jinora walk away; the swing of her hips was a lot more obvious now.
"I think you like her," Yung muttered, and Kai gawked at him.
"Come on," Kai said, rolling his eyes. "Be serious."
"I am."
"Then you seriously must have hit your head on something, if you think I could ever like Gyatso." Kai lightly shoved Yung's shoulder. "Now, don't you have food to put away? Momo, you can help him with that too."
"Just give it some time, Kai, you'll see," Yung called.
Kai rolled his eyes again. Him, like Gyatso? As if.
