Norman had never really been on a ship before- not even his father's. He'd been taken out to the docks to watch the men on board tie up sails, repair stuff, run things to and from for them, but never had the time to look around and explore a ship. Now, in the creaking, salty space that he would call his own for the next few months, he felt a childish surge of excitement. Sure, he'd been excited for the past month preparing for today, but the way his boots picked up slivers of wood from the planks beneath his feet really let it sink in that he was there.
"Ya' all set in, lad?" Norman was startled by the deep, gurgling voice behind him. He turned to find the man he'd briefly met in the tavern a few months ago that had been the start of this whole ordeal. He was a… Fluffier fellow, with enough beard for him, Norman, and probably half the crew. His eyes were green like Norman hoped the open sea would be and his face was marked with the hundreds of waves he'd probably sailed with this boat. Norman gave him a sheepish smile and nodded.
"Yessir, not much to unload, though." The man bellowed a laugh and leaned against the door frame of the cabin room.
"Yes 'o course. Ya' land folk never seem to take much out with ya'. Always thinkin' ya comin' back to whatever ya' left behind." He said very seriously and Norman paled.
The air sat for a few moments before the man laughed again, slapping his knee.
"Aw, I'm just tuggin' your chain, lad! No need to look so spooked! We aren't goin' far, just a trade route. You'll be home before ya' know it!" He reassured, patting Norman on the shoulder warmly. Norman let out a shaky and relieved laugh, nodding.
"Yeah… Sorry." The man shook his head.
"No need to be sorry, son, I'm not the only one who'll be givin' ya sand in your trousers about it." He turned to leave and paused in the doorway. "Oh, and… Uh… Later t'night, once most the other men gone to bed, come in and see me about ya' other job." Norman could tell he was trying to be nonchalant about it, but his shoulders tensed and the air in the room shifted in a peculiar way.
"Yessir."
"And around the other fellows, call me Cap'n alright?" Norman nodded, forgetting that he was still turned around.
"Yessir, Captain McGuckett."
The warm water was deceiving and Dipper knew it. The pleasant feel of the salty water near the town harbor sure was nice to swim in, but he knew that the longer a fish breathed the water, the quicker his gills would fill up with whatever trash they'd thrown in it. Rusted anchors, broken glass, large, rotten wood planks, and other various land items were scattered among the sands between the thick supports of the docks. Dipper hated it. He hated people, mostly, for their disconcern for the beings in the waters and even for themselves. He thought of sailors as savages, with their strange and violent traditions. Throwing women off ships, burning each other alive in battle, sinking ships without ever questioning if there was a reef of life below them or not. To Dipper, they were mostly selfish creatures and it'd take a miracle to change his mind.
"Mabel!" He called tentatively, picking through the trash on the seabed. Though he'd warned her so often of glass and other sharp land things hidden under the sands, she loved to sift through them and lay on the ocean floor. Dipper sighed as he combed through the harbor for the last time. The 17th time, actually. He'd been counting. If he wasn't freaking out before, he certainly was now. His sister could be hurt- her friends could be hurt. She could be dead and he wasn't there to do anything about it. He took a deep gulp of seawater and calmed himself. She was probably fine. Most likely up along the shore somewhere doing something dangerous and-
Oh gosh he was anxious again. He felt a large disturbance in the water- well, one different from just the boats bobbing on the docks. He looked up and saw one of the larger ships being pushed from the docks, rocking rather viciously as it tried to tear away from the mostly still harbor. He watched it for a moment before frowning and turning away when a very bright flash of pink caught his attention. He whipped his head back just to see a tail disappear behind the other side of the large vessel. He knew that obnoxious tail anywhere and shot up to the hull of the ship, dodging the turning rudder by a few fin lengths. He hugged the side of the boat, pulling himself faster around to the front- or wait was it the back? He wasn't sure, but he was going in the direction of his sister's tail and that's what mattered.
He managed to pull himself to the keel of the boat and around it, trying not to be flattened against it by the current created by its movement. He nearly cried out with joy when he saw Mabel's tail swishing quickly at the surface of the water. She had somehow gotten her entire torso above the water and he swam up beside her to grab her and pull her back down. Her hair tried to choke him when she splashed back into the safety of the waves and when she had tamed it behind her, her eyes were wide with awe.
"Mabel! I've been looking for you an-"
"Dipper, oh gosh, I found the most peculiar thing, I absolutely need it, please please get it for me!" She spat out, trying to follow the moving ship still. Dipper gawked and grabbed her by her arm, tugging her back and glaring furiously.
"Mabel, by the seas, do you have any idea how late it is?" he fumed, gripping her wrist so she couldn't pull away.
"Well…" She began, realizing how angry Dipper was, but he cut her off.
"I have been searching for hours and nothing! Gosh, I thought you had been caught in a net or eaten by a shark or or… I don't know! You scared me and I finally find you and all you care about is some thing you've been too distracted by to think to yourself 'Oh! maybe I should at least check in with my brother so he doesn't think I'm DEAD!' " he spat angrily. Mabel sunk under his fury and frowned.
"Dipper, I didn-"
"And you couldn't even answer when I've been swimming around this filth heap forever calling you? What were you doing that was so desperately important that you couldn't hear me? You know what! I don't care, we're going home, this is ridiculous, you can't do that to me, this is entirely unfair, Mabel, to just disappear and not care abou-" Dipper rambled, turning to drag her with him back home, when a set of very sharp teeth dug into his arm. He recoiled, letting go of her and crying out in pain.
"I'm being unfair? Mister 'stay-in-the-cave all the time?!' ", Mabel scoffed, putting her hands on her hips and flicking her tail irately. Dipper stared at his arm and to her incredulously.
"Did you just bite me?" Mabel rolled her eyes and huffed.
"Look, I'm sorry okay, I'll tell you all about whatever later, alright, but that ship has something, okay, and I really badly need it, Dipper can you please wait just a while to chew me out and help me for a minute?" Mabel begged. Dipper began to rant again, but stopped himself, took a deep breath, and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Fine. What is it." He asked curtly, quietly vowing to chain her to the cave wall when they returned home.
"It's a really long necklace thing- it's made of pink pearls and stuff and I saw it when a bunch of the sailors were loading the ship. It's in the hull somewhere and I can't get any of the sailors' attentions' for some reason! Your voice is like, way prettier, could you get one of them to get it for me- pleeaaseee!" Mabel begged as Dipper began to scowl.
"Mabel, I am NOT singing to get you some necklace. You have a ton back home."
"No no, it's like a necklace but way longer and bigger- I could wrap it around my tail if I wanted!" She reasoned and Dipper rolled his head, groaning.
"Okay okay… If I get this, will you stay closer to home when you're out roaming afterwards?" Mabel nodded quickly and Dipper sighed.
"Fine. We'll do it once the moon is higher. And I still get to chew you out later." Dipper reminded as he began after the ship that was now sailing away. Mabel giggled and patted her brothers back as she swam next to him.
"Yeah yeah, I know… I love you, bro-bro~" She mused sweetly and Dipper groaned again.
