Catherine woke up in an unfamiliar room. She looked around and saw a young boy with blue eyes staring at her. When he saw she was awake, his mouth stretched into a goofy grin that almost exactly matched Arthur's. He walked over to the bed and leaned down to look at her.

"You okay, miss?" he asked.

"I think." She said uncertainly.

"Good! My name's Alfred by the way."

"Catherine."

"That's a pretty name. "

She smiled at the boy just as Matthew walked in the room. When he saw she was awake, he walked over and shooed Alfred out of the way. He put his hand on her forehead to check for a fever.

"Are you feeling alright?" he asked after a moment.

"Yeah, I think so." Catherine said honestly.

"Think?"

"Yeah, think."

Matthew smiled at her for a moment before turning to walk back to the table at the other end of the room. He picked up a wet rag and came back to place it on her forehead. "You know you must be pretty special."

"Huh?" Catherine looked at the young man in confusion.

"My brother. He left to chase after Gilbert for you." Matthew shook his head. "I don't know why but he seemed pretty determined to find the guy."

Catherine looked down guiltily. "How dangerous is he anyway?"

"Arthur can take care of himself. He's one of the best sword fighters I know. There's a reason he works for the queen."

"He works for Queen Elizabeth?" the surprised girl stuttered. "But he's a pirate!"

"Privateer technically." Matthew corrected. "The queen tells him which ships to attack and in return he gets to sail around the world and do whatever he wants."

"The queen employs pirates." The stunned girl said quietly.

Matthew laughed. "The queen is a very good lady who just wants her country to grow and prosper. This is the best way she sees how." The man came to sit beside the girl on the bed. "So, can I ask what you have against Gilbert?"

Catherine looked into the strange purple eyes of the blonde in front of her. "He killed my sister."

"I'm sorry." He looked away his usual shyness returning. "Well, that explains my brother's reaction."

Catherine watched him as he stood up and walked to the door. He paused with his hand on the door handle.

"I know you don't like us very much but you could give my brother a chance. It's apparent he has feelings for you. He'll be back soon enough. Just think about what I said, okay." Then he walked out the door.

Catherine lied back down on the bed, her thoughts crashing in her mind. Her heart beat heavily in her chest as her mind repeated what Matthew had just said.

He has feelings for me? But he's just a filthy pirate. A murderer and a thief. He's barley even human. How could this have happened?

The girl finally fell asleep. But her feelings still haunted her dreams. Confusion swept through her subconscious mind. Her sleep was fitful, wracked with nightmares and pain.

Arthur stepped off the dinghy onto the shore. He was met with a few stares but nothing more. His search for that bloody pirate had yielded nothing but frustration. After following him for a day, his ship had been overcome by a storm. Soon they were turned around and had no clue where they were going. So he had grudgingly ordered his crew to turn the ship around and go back to the village.

Now, as he forced his way to his younger brothers' home, he was exhausted and aggravated. When he came into view of the house, a very excited Alfred ran out to meet him. He feigned a smile and picked the boy up. He carried him inside where Matthew was making dinner.

"How was your trip brother?" Matthew asked absently.

"Long and tiring." Arthur sighed. "I'm going to bed." He walked off down the hall to the bedroom. After shutting the door behind him, the exhausted pirate sat on the bed.

"Um. Hello." The surprised girl said.

The blonde man nearly jumped out of his skin. He jumped up and turned around to Catherine sitting up in the bed rubbing sleep out of her eyes.

Oh great. Now what's she going to think of me? Arthur thought to himself. "Sorry, love. I didn't know you were in here." He realized his face was heating up to a bright red. I'm going to kill Matthew!

"No, it's fine." She said sleepily. "I need to wake up anyway." She stepped out of the bed and left the room.

Arthur stared after her for a moment before lying down on the bed himself. He drifted off into a sound sleep. The room was silent except for the sound of his steady breathing.

Catherine walked down the short hallway to the small kitchen. The little boy, Alfred was bouncing in his seat just as Matthew was pouring stew into his bowl. Matthew smiled shyly when he noticed her standing there.

"Would you like something to eat?" he asked.

"Matthew's cooking isn't that good, though." Alfred warned.

"Shut up and eat." The older brother scolded.

Catherine sat across from him and was handed a bowl of the stew. She ate quietly, barley listening to her companions' idle chatter.

"Hey, Miss Catherine?" Alfred asked suddenly.

She looked up into the boys curious blue eyes. "Yes."

"Do you have any brothers or sisters? Or is it just you?"

There was a loud clang as her spoon dropped into her bowl. She starred into his large eyes that were so innocent and sweet. "It's just me." She managed to stutter.

Matthew cleared his throat and picked up everyone's dishes. His purple eyes darted to Catherine's face. He was worried she might start to cry but she managed to keep it together.

Soon, Alfred was yawning and Matthew told him to go to bed. He gave his big brother a hug, before running off to the other bedroom. "So what your story?" Catherine asked.

"Excuse me?" Matthew asked sitting down beside her.

"What's the story behind you and your brothers?"

"Oh that. Well it started when I was about thirteen. Alfred was about five. We were street kids running around this tiny village. We stole whatever we ate." Matthew looked up at the girl's shocked face. "You look stunned."

"Well, it's just that, I was a street kid, too. My house burned down and it left me out on the street. So I know all about that kind of life."

"Well, our story had a happier ending. One day a pirate ship pulled into the bay. The whole village immediately rushed down to see what was going on. I lost Alfred in the crowd and couldn't find him. Then I saw him run straight out in front of one of the pirates. He raised his sword, and I watched helplessly. Just when I thought it was the end, another man grabbed his arm. I remember his bright green eyes glaring at the man." Matthew looked down with tears in his eyes. "That was Arthur. He saved my little brother and adopted both of us as his little brothers."

"Even though he's just an evil pirate." Catherine muttered.

"Pirate, yes but not evil." Matthew said. "I mean, he's a jerk and a sarcastic fool."

"And you're a backstabbing git." Arthur said walking up behind Matthew.

He jumped out of his seat, startled by the sudden intrusion. "Arthur, I…"

"Haven't you ever heard of not talking about someone behind their back?" The pirate sat down and put his feet up on the table. "I mean, I wasn't here to defend myself." He winked at Catherine, a teasing smile on his lips.

"And now, you're just proving my point." Matthew said sitting back down. He smiled at his brother and asked, "Am I forgiven?"

"Sure why not?" Arthur said shrugging.

Matthew stood and yawned. "Well, I'm going to bed." He walked off down the hallway and into the bedroom.

Catherine glanced across the table at the pirate that was staring at her. "Need something?"

"No, I was just wondering about something." Arthur said.

"What's that?"

"Are you still coming with me, tomorrow?"

"Where?"

"Back out to sea. You know, with the crew and all that?"

"Well, since you got what you wanted from that albino, and you're not going to chase after him anymore then, no."

"Of course, I'm still going after him."

"Why?" Catherine leaned back in the chair. "You got what you wanted from him."

"I made a promise to you, dear." The man put his feet on the ground. He stood up and came to stand behind the chair. "You will get your revenge."

Catherine looked up at the man's face. All teasing had disappeared leaving a serious expression. She finally nodded in agreement.

With that done, the Brit went to sit back down, the teasing light returning to his eyes. He wiped a strand of blonde hair out of his face. "You should probably go to sleep. We're starting a long voyage tomorrow."

"Where to?" Catherine asked trying to stifle a yawn.

"The Mediterranean." Said the pirate with a mischievous smile. "Italy more specifically. It's a few months journey from Boston. And we're fairly close to there."

"A few months?" She looked at him in surprise.

"Yes that's the bad side of living on the sea. The ocean is quite large, love."

"So why Italy?"

"I happen to know he stops there sometimes."

"Okay so you're going on a hunch here?"

"Sorry, it's the best I got, love."

Catherine slouched down in the seat with a sigh. "Yeah I guess I understand."

He smiled apologetically. "We might also need to stop by Britain, too."

"Why's that."

"I have to talk to my… I guess you could say she's my boss."

"Who Queen Elizabeth?"

"Yes, how did you know that?" He looked at her warily.

"Matthew told me you're a privateer." She said sarcastically.

He immediately brightened. "Oh so what do you think? Pretty neat, huh?"

"I think it's pretty hypocritical." She said harshly.

Arthur's smile faltered for a moment. "Oh yeah. Why?"

"Well I just think it's stupid to hire a criminal to do the military's job." She stood and walked back to the bedroom.

"Oh I see." The smile was completely gone from the blonde man's face. The light in his eyes went out as he looked down at the floor. His thoughts ran together in a jumble.

Oh, so she really does hate me. But why do I even care what she thinks. I'm a pirate. This little girl shouldn't have any effect on me. But she does and I can't figure out why. So what can I do to make her like me? Or at least not hate me.

The pirate thought about this all night. He didn't realize the time until the first rays of the morning sun were stretching across the room. He stretched his stiff muscles and went into the kitchen to prepare breakfast for the others.