(A/N) I really need to get my crap together and get a better schedule for releasing these… sorry again for the delay everyone.

In my defense, making a cosplay does cut in to writing time. As well as a lot of family stuff the last few weeks. But enough excuses, let's get into it, shall we?

*boop*

At a glance, Marinette's stone-like expression made it appear as if she was calm.

But in reality, it was only to mask the growing possibility of a panic attack.

She had no idea where she was, or where her friends were. No other boats in sight, only her in the small rowboat with three other people she did not know. Not to mention the fact that they were garbed in strange historical outfits. The only sounds that accompanied them were the waves and the occasional grunt from one of the men who were rowing them to an unknown destination.

Marinette was terrified to the point of silence. Normally whenever she was scared, it was a lot more vocalization and arm-flailing, but this wasn't anything like watching a scary movie or walking through a haunted house.

What exactly were these people going to do to her when they reached their destination?

The older woman would often glance down at her, concern flickering in her eyes. From what Marinette could remember, this woman, Madame Rena, had been discussing with one of the men something about a Captain or Captain's. She was unclear due to the way they spoke, if she had any guess they spoke like pirate's she had seen in movies.

Either this was an elaborate joke with some very detailed cosplayers, or just like her gut was telling her, that this was real.

But that didn't make any sense to her, this kind of thing existed hundreds of years ago. So, unless she somehow travelled through time, this whole situation was entirely impossible.

Amidst her internal conflict, she looked out over the ocean. More specifically, she turned her attention towards the direction they were heading. She wasn't sure if she was seeing things, but she swore she saw a small dark speck along the horizon.

"That's definitely the ship, good eye lass." Marinette's concentration was broken when Madame Rena spoke. Turning her head, she saw that the older woman was looking through a spyglass before offering it to her. With a shaking hand, she took the spyglass before pointing it where the distant ship lay.

It took a second to find her target, but soon enough she could see the dark colored ship in more detail. It looked like the many other ships she had seen in history books or movies. As she tried to study it, it was clear that the ship was turning towards them. It was becoming clear that someone on the ship had seen their small rowboat and decided to meet them somewhat in the middle.

Marinette handed the spyglass to Madame Rena as the dread began to grow in her stomach. With every minute that passed the small speck gradually grew larger and larger more rapidly than before. Madame Rena could easily see the fear on Marinette's face now and gave her a comforting squeeze on her shoulder, almost as if it was a silent promise guaranteeing her safety. Though, it still didn't do much for the everlasting confusion and fear.

She could now see the ship as clearly as she had in the spyglass, with more and more details as it continued to approach. Marinette almost gasped at the realization of it's size compared to their small rowboat. She could hear shouting as it slowed to a stop next to them almost perfectly. Two ropes and a ladder were tossed down to the four in the rowboat, and the men immediately took the ends of the ropes and began tying them to the boat.

It was then that Madame Rena stood, putting on a tricorne hat that Marinette hadn't noticed until now. Two foxlike 'ears' were nestled almost comically on top of the hat were close to causing Marinette to laugh if not for the situation she was in. The older woman grabbed ahold of the ladder before beckoning Marinette to follow. Mustering as much courage as she could to grab the ladder, heart pounding as she shakily made her way up. Marinette could hear Madame Rena speaking to people above her, but she was too focused on climbing the ladder safely to properly listen to what was being said.

As she reached the top, a gloved hand reached out to help her up. She looked up to see Madame Rena, a comforting smile spread across her face. Marinette in turn could help but offer a small smile in return, which seemed to relieve Madame Rena as a wider grin graced her features.

Madame Rena's expression darkened as she turned her head. Following her line of sight, Marinette was met with half a dozen unmasked men staring back at her and the older woman. While some gave their full attention to the older woman, a few would glance at Marinette with peaked interest.

One's gaze was proving to be rather uncomfortable for the girl.

"Remember what I said boys, if any of you so much as lay a finger on her, you'll not only answer to me, but the Captain's as well. If you think my punishments are bad, yer in for a surprise." Madame Rena then moves her head to whisper into Marinette's ear.

"I'll be back shortly lass, don't let these boys try anything." Marinette's eyes widen as she realized what she was being told. Fear and anxiety began to build as Madame Rena gave her one more comforting squeeze on the shoulder and made her way to a door on the back of the ship.

Marinette stood there awkwardly, not knowing of what to do or where look as the men stared. They traded unsure glances with each other before the one who had held a predatory gaze started to walk towards her. The other men looked at him in shock before one stammered out in confusion.

"T-Theo, Madame Rena said to leave 'er alone, what're you-"

"Oh, shut it! Like the bosses will ever find out. Besides, after I'm done with her, there won't be any need for it." The man supposedly named Theo gave her a grin that left her both nauseated as well as terrified. She had to try and get away from him and fast, her mind racing as he reached up a hand as he got closer and closer.

"You know, by the looks of things, she's not in the slightest interested in what you're offering." A new voice caused everyone to look around in surprise. Marinette's eyes came to rest on a figure leaning nonchalantly against one of the masts.

The first thing she noticed is that he was entirely dressed in black, which by itself was extremely different than the rest of the men. Even down to the scabbard attached to his hip was completely black. Messy golden locks were only slightly tamed by the tricorne hat similar in fashion to what the fox-themed one had been. Also, much like Madame Rena, he wore a mask that seemed to bring out green eyes even from this distance. He flashes her a grin before Theo addresses him.

"Stay out of this Chat Noir, I saw her first. You can go and return to the crow's nest." He voiced with a copious amount of disdain.

"On the contrary, if this is a competition of first sight, then it is obvious I saw her first since I was the one who spotted the rowboat." 'Chat Noir' winked at her before continuing his retort, "And on top of that, even if it was the case of first sight, she would still be disinterested."

This caused Theo to snarl and turn his full attention to the other man. They continued to bicker, Chat Noir staying surprisingly calm while Theo's rage continued to grow by the second. As everyone else's attention was on the two men, Marinette looked around, trying to find a way to defend herself in case this turned sour. Each of the men had sheathed swords at there hips, all different in some way.

As luck would have it, the hilt of the man closest to her was familiar. She might have to thank her fencing instructor if, and when, she gets home on showing her what a rapier hilt often looked like.

"Just because the Captain's favor you, doesn't mean I have to obey you! The girl is going to be mine and there's nothing you can do about it!" Theo turned back towards Marinette, reaching out to grab her forcefully. Chat Noir's gaze hardened as he began to move.

Chat Noir was quick to react, but Marinette was faster…

In a fluid movement, she dodged Theo's hands. Moving in the direction of her desired objective, the sound of the metal weapon being unsheathed caused all the men to freeze and stare at the now-armed Marinette.

Her face was hard as she pointed the rapier at Theo. The weight of the weapon had only taken her by surprise for a second. It was a different feeling than the foil she usually worked with, but at the same time, it was still similar enough to not hinder her training useless.

The first one to recover was Theo, who began to chuckle at her actions before pulling out his own sword. The cutlass did little to intimidate her as he spoke again.

"Oh, this one's a fighter," he spoke jokingly as he playfully tapped her sword with his and continued, "sorry to say this, but you're dealing with a very exp-"

With a flick of her wrist, she sent his cutlass flying out of his hands and readied herself again. It took a moment for everyone to registered what had occurred. 'Chat Noir' smirked, the other men were in awe, and Theo's face filled with rage.

"Why you little…"

"I think we've seen enough. Barbot! My office, now!" Madame Rena's voice called everyone to attention. Theo physically cringed before obeying the order. Marinette exhaled in relief as she lowered the rapier before turning to look at Madame Rena and two new faces.

*boop*

And there we go, hope this was interesting to you guys. Got some more familiar faces in play now.

I'll try to be more consistent with releasing chapters. Though I will say with next Wednesday being a holiday, there won't be a new chapter then.

Until next time, Lots of love to you all!

~Imperial