The ship had been at ease for a few hours before the girl finally came to. Most of the men had retired to the lower deck and lay comfortably in their hammocks.
When she opened here eyes, her vision hazy at first, she tried to make sense of where she was. At last, when she could see clearly an uncertainty sparked in her. She was not on the same boat she saw last before closing her eyes. How long had she been asleep? Why was she alone? Various questions swam about her mind.
When she sat up she patted her body to make sure nothing was missing from her person.
Curious now, she stood up, the smooth wooden floor felt nice under her bare feet. She walked over to a window and peered out. It was late in the night which brought her to a chill. Thankfully there was a small fire on the opposite side of the room. The girl carefully made her way to the fire to warm herself; she didn't want to make a sound. Just then her stomach growled and she couldn't remember the last time she ate.
Suddenly, the handle twisted, a soft click sounding as if being unlocked.
With her heart beating at a faster pace the girl clutched the baggy dark blue jacket around herself more securely. Her eyes were glued to the door as it slowly opened.
Jim walked in with a tray of food and the girl wondered if he had brought it for her for himself. When he saw her standing by the fire, pleasantly surprised that she was awake, Jim closed the door with his foot and slowly walked over to his desk where set the food down. "For you," he said.
The girl looked at him and then at the food and then back at Jim. It was clear that she was not sure of his intentions.
Who is this man, she thought. Why am I here?
"You probably have a lot questions," Jim started. He motioned her to take a seat and eat. Jim sat down, too, glad that the girl was cooperating so well. Although He was not too surprised. He figured she might have been threatened on the last ship if she did not comply with the pirates. He held back a grimace as the thought of what they might have done to her ran across his mind.
The girl wasted no time to start eating. She grabbed the chicken leg and chowed down.
Jim waited till she was nearly done to start talking. "What's your name?"
The girl stopped in mid-chew as he asked her this. She looked over at him and wiped her mouth with the sleeve over her jacket and then finished chewing. She said nothing.
Jim sat more comfortably in his chair and stared at her. In the dimly litted room he could still see the dirt on her. Her creamy dark complexion failed to work as a camoflauge for said dirt.
As she licked her fingers clean she slid the empty plate forward, burping, but it would seem she did not mean to and raised a hand to her mouth.
Jim grinned at this; he didn't mind. "My name is Jim Hawkins. Can you tell me your name?" He asked again.
And surely, with enough patients, the girl answered him in a soft toned voice. "Iris," she ran her fingers through her hair a few times trying to get the parts that were going rouge to stay down. Her efforts were in vain. Until she was able to properly clean and groom herself, her short unkempt hair would remain the same. It rested just below her chin. Curls were going everywhere.
Jim imagined that her hair was a far more vibrant color than that of the dark auburn he was seeing now with the dim light of the fire. And her eyes he noticed were a bright hazel color.
"Its nice to meet you, Iris. And welcome to my ship. You don't have to worry about pirates anymore."
Iris continued to stare at Jim. "Did you kill them?"
"Most of them." Jim answered her.
"Where are the rest?"
"In their cells below deck. They will be tried for their piracy when we return."
There a small pause before Iris said, "Where are we be returning to?"
"Montressor. Perhaps you will be able to find someone there that you know."
Iris shook her head. "That's not possible."
Jim cocked his head to the side and asked, "Why not?"
"I don't know anyone from there."
Jim took a breath, trying to find a way to help her. She didn't seem dangerous. He figured she was kidnapped, in the wrong place at the wrong time, but he would wait for her to tell him exactly what happened.
"Where are you from then? Maybe I can take you there, or perhaps someone else that I know and trust?"
Irish shook her head again.
"Why not?" Jim wanted to know.
"It's just as difficult to reach my home as it is to leave it."
Jim said nothing, hoping she would continue. And she did.
"The place where I am from is covered in a crazed storm made up of crystals on the edge of the atmosphere. To simply fly through it would mean a great deal of loss and possibly death."
"The Coral Galaxy." Jim said at last. "You're right, its extremely difficult to reach. So how is it that you came to be here?"
Iris was quiet for a moment, and then she said, "I don't know. When I came to I learned of my kidnapping and the sudden danger I was in. I don't know how those pirates reached my home and I don't know why." She sighed. "I do know one thing, though, and that is I must return home as soon as I can."
"That's completely understandable. You want to get back to your family, I get that. However, that may take some time."
Iris looked grim all of a sudden as she looked down at her hands resting on her lap. "Time is not on my-our side." She quickly corrected herself.
Jim said nothing to this at first and stood up to stoke the fire. "What do you mean by that?"
Iris looked over at him and said, "I don't know. It is just a feeling I have."
Once he finished stoking the fire Jim walked over to Iris who was still sitting and picked up her plate. "I'll help you in any way that I can, but in order for me to do that you must be honest with me."
Iris nodded once.
"And you have my word when I say you are safe on my ship. No one will give you trouble." He held his hand out for her to take. "You have my word." And they shook hands on it.