Skye Says: Because I love you all so much…

Disclaimer: I own all of the charries except the ones from the movie, which I love to death and would never claim as my own.

Chapter Three- "Homesickness"

Antonio's ship, The Merchant

The sea, somewhere south of Florin

Three months later

It had been easier than she'd thought, leaving the little Italian island she'd called home for as long as she could remember. She hadn't cried at all- well, except for a few tears at the house. She hadn't cried when they'd pulled away from the door, nor when Sicily became scarcely more than a pinprick of shadow on the horizon, nor even when the island disappeared completely.

Caterina leaned against the railing of the ship, sighing as she stared down at the moonlit water. The first time she'd really cried had been only when she'd cooked her first meal aboard The Merchant. As soon as her eyes had fallen on her mother's neat, even handwriting, she'd dropped the stolen recipe card and promptly burst into tears.

Maybe things wouldn't have been so bad if I'd actually said "goodbye", Caterina thought. Maybe it would've been better to actually tell Mother everything.

But… she hadn't, and it was pointless to follow this train of thought any further.

Caterina had ended up waiting for her mother to go the market that afternoon, leaving Caterina alone. She then gathered a few possessions into a burlap bag, tucked Robert's letter into her bodice, and commandeered her mother's pasta recipe. Finally, she hunched over a piece of parchment and scrawled out a note:

Mother,

I'll be gone when you read this, I suppose. Gone where… I'm afraid I can't tell you.

I know how hard it is for you to lose your husband and then to come home one day and find that your daughter is missing.

I'm terribly sorry.

Don't fret about me. I have plenty of money and clean clothes, and I can take care of myself.

All my love,

Caterina

P.S.: I, er, "borrowed" your pasta recipe. I hope you don't mind.

Naturally, she'd cried then, too, but surely that was to be expected.

Waves lapped against the ships hull, drawing her back to the present. Salty sea air whipped her hair around her face as she lifted her eyes to the stars, silent tears falling down her face.

The next morning, Caterina rose early and headed down to the galley with the intent of frying up some fish Antonio had caught the day before. He'd been so nice to her lately- the least she could do was fix him some decent breakfast.

Going to light a fire in one of the only wood-burning stoves on deck, she found that it was already burning, which meant that she hadn't gotten up early enough.

"I couldn't sleep…"

Caterina whirled around to find herself face-to-face with the sailor himself. Antonio was dressed in loose brown pants and an off-white linen shirt that was open at the collar, revealing several inches of smooth muscle.

She tried not to stare.

"You were sobbing again," Antonio clarified as he began to rummage through a crate. "I thought you said you were done with crying in your sleep."

Her hands clenched on the fabric of her skirt. She had decided to wear green today, in hopes that a color change would take some of the pain out of her memories. "I thought I was done with crying in my sleep."

"Hm." He held up a bag of flour.

She took the flour from him. Their fingertips brushed.

"I set the fish out after I let the fire."

"Grazie."

He watched her as she laid the fish out in a skillet. She was wearing green, he noticed, for the first time since he could remember. She should wear green more often. It suited her.

Caterina added the flour and the oil to the fish, humming a tune as the meat began to sizzle. After a few moments, she felt Antonio's eyes on her. "What?"

"Oh, nothing… just… you look lovely in green."

Caterina tensed up as he approached her. "Oh. Really? Green?"

"Si. You should wear it more often."

She bit her lip and returned her attention to the fish.

"Caterina, you've been sailing with me for awhile now, and we've had several meaningful conversations. Would you humor me if I were to say that we're friends?"

She nodded. "We're friends."

"And… as your friend," Antonio said. "I care about you."

A sudden pang of guilt struck Caterina's chest as soon as the words left Antonio's lips. I her lifetime, there had only ever been four people who had really cared about her. Vizzini and Solanio were dead. Humperdinck had merely been desperate. Bianca… well, she'd probably shattered Bianca's heart.

"I'm not sure… what's going on with me, Antonio," Caterina whispered, relishing the scent of the frying fish. Her stomach growled now, and she was glad that the meat was almost done cooking. "I wish I did, but… I have no idea."

Antonio reached out and brushed her hair away from her temples. "You're homesick, signora. That's all."

Her emerald eyes fixed themselves on his chocolatey ones. A cold sense of uncertainty washed over her, followed by uneasiness. He was standing uncomfortably close.

"It's only natural… for you to be… homesick."

Was it really that simple? Homesickness? Was it really homesickness that tore at her gut, ripped her heart in half, and stole the air from her lungs? Was it homesickness that drove her to tears whenever she thought of Solanio and Vizzini? Was it honestly homesickness that raked its venomous claws across her memories, turning the priceless into the painful?

Homesickness? More like heart-wrenching despair.

Without warning, Antonio's mouth smashed against hers, shattering her thoughts. The suddenness of this act, compounded with all the pain she'd been feeling and what Antonio had so ineffectively diagnosed as "homesickness", caused Caterina to shudder violently as she jerked away from the sailor.

Then, her hand flew back against his cheek so hard that she felt his blood on her cheek. A flood of anger and horror poured from her eyes as she shot Antonio a look so cold, it was a wonder he didn't shiver.

"You won't be able to sleep tonight, either," she hissed, swearing at him as she stumbled up the stairs and across the hall to her cabin.

As the door slammed shut behind her and the Sicilian woman dissolved into tears, the discordant smell of burnt fish floated around in the air.

It was noon in Sicily. A pleasant breeze gusted over the rolling landscape, carrying the sound of laughter.

Very familiar laughter.

"Come on over here, Cat! I want to show you something!"

Caterina gasped as she realized who the figure on the lush green hillside was. Her heart pounded against her ribcage so furiously she feared it might burst as she sprinted towards the man, eyes wide in surprise. "Solanio!"

"Si," he called back, flashing her a warm grin. "Who else?"

She ran straight into his arms, hugging him tightly and never wanting to let go. He smelled sweet and spicy at the same time, like cinnamon. "I love you, Solanio," she breathed into his neck. "I'm crazy about you."

Solanio's arms tightened around her. Caterina began to feel like she was suffocating.

"Hey! What are you doing? I can't breathe!"

She struggled to get free, but it was no use- he was far too strong. Black spots began to hover before her eyes as she gasped for breath. "S-Solanio!"

"Calm down, Caterina," Solanio growled in a voice that sounded too much like Antonio's. "It's only homesickness..."

Caterina woke with a start, gulping in air and weeping bitterly.

The only satisfaction she got from crying herself back to sleep that night was knowing that Antonio would hear every single sob.

Thank God for paper-thin walls and "homesickness".

Skye Also Says: Looks like there's a bit of drama going on aboard The Merchant. The next chapter might take me awhile to write, by the way, so I might not have it up for a few weeks.