A/N: Thank you all who reviewed the last chapter. It's really encouraging to know that people still like this fanfic. My chapters will be coming out later now, I have a lot of things going on, and the chapters will be getting longer as events progress. I will try my best to get them out on time, I still plan on at least releasing two chapters a month, but I just want everyone to know that the chapters might be more spread out throughout the month.
Falling For You
Chapter 4: The Crew
The next day, Jim went about his chores like he normally did. It almost felt like a normal day except for the ever reminder at the back of his mind telling him it wasn't. He had to continually push the reminder away just to focus on what he was doing. He would look at the clock sitting in the dining area occasionally but tore his eyes away once he realized what he was doing. Amelia and Delbert were once again at the inn. They too seemed to be waiting for something to happen. The only person who knew of what was to come once ten o'clock came around was his mother. She went around serving people like she normally did, always in the same cheerful mood.
Ten o'clock soon rolled around and then went. It was soon fifteen minutes past ten and Jim was in the kitchen putting away plates when he heard a knock on the front door to the inn. He quickly finished up what he was doing and went out of the kitchen.
"Why, good morning Mrs. Hawkins. Yer looking lovely on this fine morning," Zoltan exclaimed as Jim watched him take off a rimmed hat in greeting.
"Good morning to you as well, Mr. Ruslan," his mother said as she stepped aside to let him in.
"Please Mrs. Hawkins, call me Zoltan. Oh and I've something for ya. Bring 'em in boys." At that moment two men came in with a table between them. One man looked to be no older than twenty-five. This one was tall but shorter than Zoltan. He had spiky hair that seemed to stand on its own. His eyes were a medium shade of blue but had specs of green around his pupil. The build of his body was similar to that of Zoltan's as well but it seemed like he had slightly less muscle. His clothes though did not seem to be those of a typical spacer but more of a fighter. He wore a zipped up muscle shirt with a collar that went up to his jaw line. He wore long baggy black pants that covered up the majority of his black combat boots. An earring on his left ear lobe could also be seen. The earring looked to be in the shape of a wolf's head.
The other man that was carrying the table in looked completely different than his companion. He looked to be well into his fifties and he looked not much taller than Ashe. This man had gray eyes that seemed to hold a lot of joy within them. His stomach was in the shape of a keg and it seemed to be giving him trouble as he tried to assist the younger man. He had more of the appearance of a mechanic. He wore a denim hat with a short rim in the front and was dotted with small oil stains. A white shirt with a pair of overalls covered the rest of his body and brown work boots covered his feet.
The two men set the table down where it used to be. Jim remembered that it went in the place of the table that crashed onto Ashe. The older man let out a huff while pulling out a handkerchief. He wiped his forehead while looking at the younger man. The younger man rolled his eyes before saying, "Come on Harry, it isn't that heavy."
"Remember lad, I'm not as young as you," the older man said with a chuckle.
"I can tell," the younger replied with a pat on the other mans stomach. The older man grunted and followed the younger one back out the door. Zoltan shook his head but he had a smirk on his face. His mother watched with a shocked look on her face as the two men brought in another table and then the same amount of chairs that had been broken in yesterdays brawl.
"Zoltan, you didn't-" his mother started to say but was cut off by Zoltan.
"Mrs. Hawkins, please it's the least I can do. Angel also insisted that it be done. She felt bad for destroying yer inn." Just then there was a ripping noise coming from the other side of the dining area. Everyone turned and watched as the tarp that Jim had put over the hole was taken down. The two men then lifted up a piece of glass and started to fit it into place. Once it was fixed, the men reentered the inn and waited by the doorway for Zoltan to be finished.
His mother sighed with a smile on her face. "Thank you Zoltan."
"Me pleasure Mrs. Hawkins," he said with a bow. He then straightened and gave a smile to Jim as he made his way over. "Give any thought to me offer lad?" It was then that Charge decided to come out. He formed into his hawk form and sat on Jim's shoulder. He chirped a greeting and then started to rub his head against his cheek. The soothing warmth that Jim felt the day before came back as he petted the flame's neck.
"Yeah I have," Jim said as he looked up at Zoltan. Zoltan then raised one of his eyebrows and waited for his answer. "And I think I'll take you up on it."
Zoltan let out a roar of laughter. Charge lifted himself off of Jim's shoulder and flew around Jim to show off his own joy. Zoltan then turned around to the other two men and waved them over, one in particular. "Cloud! Come over here, lad." The young blonde walked over with a confused look in his eyes. Once he was standing next to Zoltan, Zoltan put an arm around his shoulders. "Jim, I'd like ya to meet Cloud. He's the second in-command mechanic on me ship. Cloud, this is the lad I was telling ya about."
Cloud looked at Jim and then at Zoltan. It was hard to read his expression. Before, confusion could be seen in his eyes, but now he either wasn't confused like before or he was hiding it extremely well. "Sir, what are you getting at," Cloud said in an even voice.
"You're going to be the lad's tutor," Zoltan said with a smirk. Cloud's face finally showed emotion. He paled as he once again looked at Jim and then at Zoltan.
"Sir, I thought Milo was going to be his tutor."
Zoltan sighed, his smirk vanishing. "Cloud, Milo is getting up in years. I have a feeling that he won't be with us long. That would mean that ya become the new head mechanic and as of right now, I don't think any of the others are ready to take on the position of second. But Jim here, if he decides to stay with us after his month is up, I fully believe he has what it takes to fill that role." Jim felt an odd sense of pride when he heard Zoltan say that. He felt himself straighten slightly as he looked at Cloud. Cloud glanced over at him before darting back to Zoltan. He seemed to be rolling over what Zoltan had said. "Also, we need to get more people skills into ya." At this Cloud frowned and sent a small glare at Zoltan.
"Alright, I'll do it, but I would expect you to also tell Boss that he is to tutor him as well," Cloud said. He then eyed Jim up and down before walking out the inn without waiting for a response from Zoltan.
Another sigh escaped from Zoltan as he folded his arms over his chest. The shorter man looked at Zoltan, shrugged, and then followed Cloud out of sight. "Don't let his words get to ya," Zoltan said getting Jim's attention. "He's been through a lot for someone his age, and well, he has trouble opening up if ya get what I mean." Jim just nodded as he looked once more at the door. "Go and get yer stuff, those two want to get back as soon as possible and I'd hate to keep Spiky waiting long in the mood I've most likely just put him in." Jim nodded once again before going up to his room to get his stuff. He packed only the things he needed into a drawstring bag. Morph floated about him excitedly at the prospect of going somewhere new. Charge had decided to follow him as well and was now perched on the back of his desk chair. The hawk watched with interest as Jim went about his room getting various things. Once Jim declared himself done, he put his jacket on, threw his bag over his shoulder and left his room. His two companions flew about him, letting out cries of excitement to each other.
"I'm glad I could please ya, Doc," Zoltan said as Jim was at the foot of the stairs leading to the dining area. Zoltan was now over by Delbert and Amelia. Delbert had a large stack of papers in his hands that he quickly flipped through. Amelia sipped her tea with a mix between satisfaction and dislike on her face. Zoltan stood with a smile on his face as he watched Delbert. All three adults looked up as he entered the room. He was about to ask where his mother was when she quickly entered the room.
"Ok, I think I have everything for you," she said as she walked over to him. In her hand was a small pouch and he could hear the jingling of coins from within it. "I've already given Zoltan any papers you'll need. Here is some money. I believe it will be enough-" but Jim cut her off.
"Mom, I'll be fine," he said in reassurance.
"Aye, Mrs. Hawkins," Zoltan said as he walked up to stand next to Jim. He placed a firm hand on Jim's shoulders as he looked at his mother with a smile still on his face. "The lad is in very good hands. He might seem a bit cold, but Cloud is one of me most trustworthy crewmembers. Jim will also be with me son and Angel for most of the time. Me son is very protective when it comes to his friends and I already can tell the two will be fast friends."
His mother sighed but nodded all the same. "Just try and stay out of trouble, alright?" his mother said looking at him, a faint smile on her lips.
"Don't worry, I will," he said and then hugged her. She returned it and once they parted a full smile was on her face. He waved good-bye to Delbert and Amelia, who returned the gesture, before exiting the inn. He glanced back to see that all three were standing in the doorway, still waving. Morph chirped "good-bye" as he sat on Jim's shoulder.
"Not sure how much trouble ya'll be out of, to be honest," Zoltan said with a chuckle. "The group ya'll be with just seems to attract it wherever they go." With that, they climbed into the long boat. Cloud was at the controls and once he saw that they were settled, took off in the direction of the Space Port.
"Wow," Jim breathed out as he looked up at the ship. The Wolf Star, which Zoltan explained was a standard ship for any C.G., was much bigger than Jim had thought. It was at least twice the size of the R.S.L. Legacy. He now understood why it took a large mechanic crew to keep it running properly. The ship had three main sails and almost seemed more like a very large merchant ship than a ship for a police force. Jim watched as men went about amongst the rigging to get the ship ready for take off. Men on deck could be seen moving barrels and carts about. Two men, one in a long boat and another on deck, were tossing barrels onto the ship. Both men stopped what they were doing and waved in greeting as they passed, which Zoltan and Harry returned. Then the noise coming from the ship could be heard as they drew closer. Orders being told, questions being asked, and the merry tone of singing were just a few of the things Jim heard as Cloud drew the longboat level with the main ship's deck.
Zoltan jumped off of the long boat onto the deck with gracility that surprised Jim due to Zoltan's size. Jim soon followed him with both Morph and Charge calling out cheerfully, seeming to be affected by the noise coming from the ship. "Come on, I got business to take care of, but I'll have me son show you around," Zoltan said over his shoulder to Jim.
"Hey!" Jim turned just in time to catch his bag as Cloud tossed it to him. Cloud was now standing with Harry at the controls. "Once Leon is done showing you around, tell him to take you down to the Hollows." And with that said, Cloud signaled for Harry to take off and they were soon out of sight.
"The Hollows?" Jim asked as he repositioned his bag on his shoulder.
"It's what the crew calls the engine room," Zoltan explained as they walked about the deck, Zoltan looking around. "The Cave is where the long boats are stored. I'd also be sure to get everyone's nicknames down, almost everyone on the ship has one and people like using them more than their actual name. Ye'll pick up the lingo soon enough." Jim nodded as he walked behind Zoltan, looking around with awe.
When he was in the long boat, he thought that everyone that was working about was all men but he was surprised to see women amongst them. There were at least two carrying barrels below deck. Some were scattered about in the riggings as well. But one woman, or girl since she looked to be about his age, caught his eye. She was standing up by the wheel of the boat and was standing with her arms crossed behind her back. She had long white hair that went to the middle of her back. A blood red scarf created a headband on the top of her head to hold her bangs back. Her eyes had a very light shade of blue that made them seem like they were made out of ice. Her light tan skin shone in the sunlight as she overlooked the crew works with a stern look. The girl's clothing also looked like that of an officer of some sort. She wore a light black jacket whose sleeves went to her elbows and had at least two straps on her shoulders. Underneath that she wore a dark red shirt whose sleeves went slightly passed that of her jacket's sleeves and it looked to be a little baggy but still showed off the curves of her torso. Military issued light black pants covered her legs and black military boots covered her feet.
Zoltan let out a huff, getting Jim's attention away from the girl. Zoltan then looked over at the girl Jim had been looking at and called out to her. "Oi! Snow, ya haven't seen Leon have ya?"
The girl turned and looked at him with a slight surprised expression on her face. She then looked around for a quick moment before looking up at the rigging. "He's up there, helping Zarrick, sir," she said in a voice that seemed to express authority. Both Jim and Zoltan then looked up to see where she was looking. Sitting on one of the main sails was a well-muscled boy. He had similar spiky hair like Zoltan but his was jet black. He had pale skin just like his father and it could be seen well due to the fact that he had no shirt on. Sitting close to him, and seeming to be talking to him, was another boy. This one had jet-black hair as well but it was shaggier looking and seemed to stop half way down his neck. Muscle could also be seen, due to the fact that he didn't have a shirt on as well, but he wasn't as well built as his friend. Sweat could be seen on his pale skin but it didn't seem to bother him.
"Thanks Nieve," Zoltan said before walking over to the rigging where his son was. "Oi, Leon, ye need to get down here! I got a job for ya to do for me."
The spiky haired teen looked down at Zoltan before jumping off of the rigging. Jim was surprised that the fall, which was a decent height, didn't even to seem to affect the other boy. The boy then grabbed a white shirt that was hanging off of a barrel and pulled it on as he came over.
"What is it, Pop," the boy said once he was in front of Zoltan. Closer up, the similarities between the two were astounding. The two had similar face structure and shared the same eye color. Leon, though, looked like he was going to be shorter than his father by only an inch or two once he was fully-grown.
"Boy, this is Jim, Jim this is me son Leon. He'll be the one to show ya around and the one ya'll listen to when ya go on a mission. If ya need anything, just ask him and he will help. I think ya can do that for me boy?"
"Yeah, yeah," Leon said sighing, but with a smirk on his face. "By the way Pop, I'm beginning not to trust Nieve; she's been working everyone like dogs since you left."
Zoltan laughed, "I trust Snow, but it's me ship and I want to make sure everything is to me liking. Spiky wants him down in the Hollows once yer down showing him around. But if ya want, Jim, ya can watch the launch, up to ya to decide." And with that said Zoltan walked off towards a door under the wheel with a wave. Charge chirped a "good bye" and followed his master.
"So," Leon said with a smirk, as he looked Jim up and down. "You're the new guy, huh?"
"Guess so," Jim said with a shrug.
Leon then let out a laugh as he clapped Jim on the shoulder. "Welcome aboard! Come on, Pop told me to show you around and if you're to be in the Hollows shortly after take off then we better get started."
They then started across the deck to the door that Zoltan had passed through only minutes ago. Jim glanced up at the girl still standing by the wheel. She watched him and Leon for a bit before going back to watching the rest of the crew work.
"That's Nieve," Leon sad as they went through the door. "Or Snow if you want to go by nicknames. Anyway, she's the first mate since Pop's last one retired. He's training her now for, what he says, when I take over the ship."
"Is she always that…stiff?"
"Naw, she might come across mean but she's nice. You just got to read between the lines, so to speak." Jim nodded as he took in their new surroundings. The hall was well lit by overhanging lamps. The walls and ceiling were painted a sky blue that reflected the light from the lamps to make it seem like they were actually outside with a clear sky with a sun. The light that that was reflected, however, then appeared to be lost when it hit the dark blue carpet. Wood doors dotted the walls every few feet as they walked farther down the hall.
"First floor below deck is the sleeping quarter. The infirmary is also on this floor. I got to introduce you to the Doc and then you can drop off your stuff. You'll be bunking with Zarrick, who you'll meet later, and me." Jim nodded as they turned a corner. At the end of the hall, Jim noticed a neon sign with the red medical cross on it.
"I swear you get hurt more while on pleasure cruises than on missions." Ashe let out a soft snort as she buried her chin a little deeper into her folded arms. She let her eyes linger on her companion for a moment before looking away. She shifted a little from where she laid on her stomach. A slight pain went through her then, which she winced at, as she pushed her stomach a little too hard into the medical bed which she was laying on. "Stop moving. You'll only make it worse and I highly doubt you want to be in here longer."
Ashe turned her head back to look at her criticizer. A woman in her mid thirties stood at a counter, preparing something that Ashe couldn't see. The woman had light blonde hair; but too dark to be considered platinum, that she wore in pig tails that started right behind her ears. Her eyes were the same dark blue as the darkest shape of her eyes reminded Ashe of a cat. She wore a white lab coat that went down just to above her knees. Underneath the coat, Ashe remembered seeing her with a dark blue blouse and a black skirt that stopped just before the end of her lab coat on. She wore black high-heels that gave her at least another inch or two in height. Ashe had to marvel at the other woman though. The older woman gave off the vibe that she was not one to cross at any time. It was because of that vibe that Ashe was obedient at the moment.
Ashe hated doctor offices, plain and simple. The woman in the room with her now soothed this feeling for the moment though. Ashe had known her for the past ten years. But that didn't mean she couldn't put up some sort of resistance to any treatments she got. Ashe really didn't know where her dislike came from either. She could handle being healed by mana manipulation; hell she actually enjoyed it and preferred it. But put her in a room with medical supplies and a person in a lab coat that she only just met, and there was bound to be trouble. It didn't even matter what kind of medical supplies either. It could a simple machine to monitor her heart rate and she would do anything in that moment not to have it attached to her.
'Course, the only reason why I'm not protesting now is the fact that Marron threatened to take me off the mission if I did,' Ashe thought bitterly. When she and Zoltan had returned to the ship the other day, she had discovered that she was injured a lot more than she previously thought. She had developed a fantastic bruise on her back from crashing into table and then having it land on her. It hurt to bend over, which was apparent when she bent over to pick up something only to have pain go through her back. Other bruises dotted her body, but they were gone by the morning. Marron had scolded her for being so careless, and wanted to take her off of the mission because she said that both of her major injures could get worse. But Ashe had pleaded with her not to. In the end, Marron had agreed to let Ashe go on the mission, but only if Ashe promised to continually come to her for treatment and that Ashe would be careful as to not upset the bruises. Ashe promised, and that was what led her to the Infirmary at this moment.
"All right, sit up and take your shirt off," Marron said as she walked over to Ashe. Ashe let out a sigh and sat up slowly, trying not to think of the pain shooting through her back. Of course that was easier said then done. Ashe hissed in pain as she was finally sitting up and started to take off her shirt, which Marron helped her with. "Bra off too." Ashe glared at her but complied. The bruise on her back went all the way up to between her shoulder blades. Ashe shivered as she felt one of Marron's hands start to rub some kind of lotion on her back. She looked down at the bottle that Marron had placed next to her. "Don't worry; this is just to help reduce the bruising. You're going need to have either Nieve or Selphy put this on for you while on the mission." Ashe nodded numbly as she sat there. She didn't want to think about how she was going to be feeling on the mission. She wasn't feeling that great at the moment and she knew that she wouldn't be feeling much better in a few days.
'Looks like I'm going to have to jack up on pain killers, great,' Ashe thought. She wasn't going to be in a good mood at all during this trip and that upset her more. When she was upset, she almost always hurt someone else, be it feelings or physically. She would normally go to the gym to vent it all out, but with two large bruises on her torso that was out of the question. Her only saving grace was that it took a lot to get her angry. 'Guess locking myself up in my room is going to be my best bet.'
As she was thinking of things to do during her self-imposed isolation, an unwarranted surprise happened to enter the room.
"Hey Doc, I brought the new guy like you asked," Leon said as he entered the room. Ashe stared at him wide eyed as Leon looked at her, with a similar expression on his face. Over his shoulder Ashe could see Jim also staring at her and she could see a faint blush start to form on both boys cheeks. Thankfully though, she got over her shock only to replace it with anger and embarrassment.
"Leon, get the fuck out," she yelled as she covered her chest the best way she could. Marron quickly got up as well and started to walk towards the door. Leon quickly did as he was told and shut the door. Marron stopped in her tracks and ran a hand through her bangs with a sigh. Ashe sat there looking at the door, not daring to move. She could feel her cheeks heating up as she continued to stare.
"Let's finish you up," Marron said turning to her. "I had expected them to come before I treated you, but just like Zoltan, he must have picked the boy up later than he said." Ashe nodded and allowed Marron to rub the lotion on the rest of her back and stomach. Once the lotion was done, she then wrapped Ashe's torso up in bandages. Ashe then got her bra and black t-shirt back on as quickly as she could; ignoring the large amount of pain running through her as she did so. She then curled her legs up to her stomach and wrapped her arms around them as she rested her forehead on her knees. Marron, who had gone to the door while Ashe redressed, glanced back at the teen before opening the door. "You two can come in now." Marron then walked over to the counter and started to take out different bottles of medication as Leon and Jim reentered the room.
"Ashe I'm really-" Leon started to say but stopped when Ashe lifted a hand to indicate that she didn't want him to talk.
"Let me calm down first before you say anything," came the muffled reply from Ashe. If it was one thing she didn't want to do, it was make Leon feel bad. She looked at Leon like a brother and for that she knew she really wasn't that mad at him. She understood that he made a simple mistake but the embarrassment was overwhelming. For one, Leon hadn't been the only one to see her half nakedness. If it wasn't for that fact then Ashe knew she would be over the whole situation because it was, well, Leon. But since Jim was there it made it harder for the embarrassment to fade away. She only knew him, for what, almost two full days and yet he saw more of her body than was legally allowed in public. Granted, one situation she brought onto herself but this one just popped out right at her without warning. The second thing that made it hard for the embarrassment to be let go was what might happen later on in the day. Rumors within the crew spread like wildfire if the people found out what happened. That made it hard for any sort of secrets to be kept. Also the fact that teasing another member for an embarrassing act wasn't uncommon. The teasing was what she was really worried about. Nieve lived off of it, especially when it came to teasing Ashe, and this would just give her more ammunition for later. Ashe also knew that at that moment her temper was on the tip of going off. She didn't want to be angry but if she wasn't allowed the time to calm down she knew she would lash out at the first person to talk to her. But as hard as it was for her at that moment, she knew that she had to let it all go. She took in quiet deep breaths as she heard the other three people within the room.
"So you're the new guy."
"Yes, ma'am," Jim said taking his eyes off of Ashe to look at Marron.
"Zoltan gave me your latest medical records," Marron said, bringing Ashe out of her thoughts. "I would still like to give you a check up myself. And you might need to get a few injections, but those can be saved for later." Ashe then heard the clicking of Marron's high-heels on the floor and lifted her head to see what she was doing. In her hands she held two cups, one small clear cup with three different pills in it and another baby blue plastic one that appeared to have water in it. After making her way over to Ashe, she handed both cups to Ashe, who frowned down at the pills once the cups were in her hands. "Well Leon, it looks like you'll only be having a team of five once we get to Zealand." Ashe's eyes darted up to Marron then. Marron continued to watch her with a neutral look on her face. Ashe let out a grunt before downing the pills and then the water shortly after. "Now was that so hard to do?" Ashe let out another grunt as she stood up from the bed. Marron rolled her eyes before turning back to Jim. "Come by tomorrow morning before you go down to the Hollows."
"Yes ma'am," Jim said once again before following Leon out of the room. Ashe followed behind him and shut the door behind her. She let out a sigh and looked up. Leon stood in front of her, a worried look on his face. He seemed to want to say something to her but resisted the urge to.
Ashe ran a hand through her hair before saying, "I'm not mad at you and I'm sorry for yelling. You know how I am around doctors and you caught me off guard when you came in. But I do want you to promise me that you won't tell anyone what happened, especially Nieve. It's bad enough she is still teasing me for getting caught by those pirates, I don't need to hear her go on about this as well."
Leon's face cracked into a smile as he pulled Ashe in for a hug. Ashe was grateful that he was mindful of the bruise on her back. Leon ruffled her hair as he smirked at her. "You got it Ashe." Ashe nodded before walking down the hall towards her room. "Where are you going?"
"To my room," she called back without looking over her shoulder. And with that said, she entered a room half way down the hall and was out of sight.
Jim watched quietly as he watched the two interact. Even without knowing anything about their relationship, it was apparent that the two were close. Ashe had seemed to be on the brink of snapping out at Leon in anger but when they exited the infirmary she was completely calm.
"Well, this is interesting." Jim jumped as he heard a voice next to him. He turned to see Nieve stand there. She had a smile that seemed to yell mischief, and what could be considered an evil glint in her eyes. Jim couldn't help but notice that she was only a few inches shorter than him. Nieve then turned and looked at him. Her smile widened when she seemed to have noticed him. "Oh, hello. New guy right?"
"What are you doing down here Nieve?" Leon said, cutting Jim off from replying. Nieve then turned to Leon, the mischievous look back on her face.
"Captain wanted me to check up on Ashe. So what happened between the two of you?"
"None of your business, slave driver," Leon said as he crossed his arms over his chest.
Nieve rolled her eyes at him as she mimicked the move. "Great nickname metal-head. You do realize that either way I'm going to find out, right?" Leon snorted out his reply. Nieve shrugged and walked past him; seeming to be heading towards the room Ashe had entered.
"She won't tell you."
"Yeah, yeah. Why don't you get back to the little task that you were given? Or is it too hard for a metal brain like you?" With that she too entered the room and left Jim with a slightly miffed Leon.
"Come on, the bedroom is down here and then I'll finish showing you around." Jim nodded since he got the feeling that talking to Leon at that moment wasn't the greatest idea.
The bedroom that Leon led him into was fairly large. Jim couldn't help but also notice that the room sat right next to the one that Ashe and Nieve were currently in. A bunk bed sat against the wall on one side and a single bed sat opposite it. A closet took up another wall. Three dressers sat under a window that overlooked the Space Port. There was another door that Jim guessed lead to a bathroom of sorts.
"You get the top bunk," Leon said sitting down on the bottom bunk. "This is my bunk and Zarrick has the single bed. The dresser on the far right is yours and there should be room in the closest for some of your stuff." Jim nodded as he started to unpack. Leon fell onto his bed and put his hands over his face. Jim watched him out of the corner of his eye. Morph seemed to take interest in what the other teen was doing. He floated around Leon as he watched him. All of a sudden there was a thunk on the wall right behind Leon's head. Both boys looked at the wall as the soft murmuring of yelling could be heard. Leon rolled his eyes as he sat up. "Looks like Nieve has started teasing her again."
"Do they always act like that?" Jim asked trying to make conversation.
"Yeah, Ashe is one of Nieve's favorite people to tease. Zarrick is another favorite target for her but not for teasing. Zarrick has a weird habit and Nieve takes it upon herself to scold him for it."
"What kind of habit?"
"Not that you won't see it later but I guess it's a good forewarning. Zarrick can't help but take his clothes off in public sometimes. It's something he got from his dad. Hell, he doesn't even know he does it most of the time." Jim looked at Leon with wide eyes. He had gotten the feeling from Ashe that this crew was a bit out of the ordinary but that was one thing he hadn't expected. Leon gave him a sheepish smile. "Didn't expect that huh? Well, let me give you some advice. Anything you thought was normal, you might as well throw all of that away. I guarantee you that even after your month on this ship; you won't be looking at the world the same again."
"I'll take your word for it," Jim muttered as he went back to unpacking. Leon laughed. They fell into silence again before Leon asked him a question.
"Hey, how much fighting experience do you have?"
"Depends on what you mean by experience. I fought a crew of pirates before and I know how to use a gun fairly well. But other than that, not much."
"That could be a problem," Leon said while rubbing his chin in thought. "We tend to get into fights while on missions. It might be a good idea to get you a teacher for at least some hand-to-hand combat stuff. I'd be willing to teach you but I know there are far better people on this ship that are better fighters than me."
"Does everyone on this ship know how to fight?"
"Almost everyone, a good chunk know how to use magic and then the rest are good in other aspects of fighting. Cloud, for instance, is deadly with or without a sword. Give him a broadsword or a claymore, and you'd be lucky to live for the next five seconds. He's also decent with hand-to-hand combat." Jim filed that information away in his memory. He hoped that it might become helpful when he was around the stoic young man. He straighten up, deeming himself done with unpacking. Leon got up as well and patted Morph as the blob settled on his shoulder. "Alright let me finish showing you around. The launch should be happening soon." As they exited the room, the yelling from the room next to them could be heard louder than before. Jim glanced at the wall as he could make out Ashe's voice raise in volume as they walked away from the room.
The rest of the tour flew by to Jim. The floor below the sleeping quarter was the dining quarter. Leon didn't go into detail about the floor since he said that it would be best to do that during dinner later on that day. The floor after that was the relation quarter, where Leon explained that the crew came in the free time. A gym and a large lounge took up the floor. Below that was the Hollows and Cave. Leon told him that he could go to any floor via an elevator. Even with knowing that, Jim got the feeling that no matter what he was going to get lost.
"Would all crew members please report to the deck," came a female voice over an intercom. "The launch is about to begin. Repeat, would all crew members please report to the deck."
"It's about time," Leon muttered as him and Jim made their way to the deck. If Jim thought the crew amazed him when he first came onto the ship, it was nothing compared to how they were now. Men and women alike jumped around in the rigging as if performing a dance. It seemed that as one person finished off untying part of a sail, another was there to help assist them do another. But there was also an odd feeling about the deck. Whenever they had the chance, members of the crew would stop and stare at him before going back to their work. It gave him a slightly uncomfortable feeling and he fidgeted slightly from where he stood. Morph seemed to have noticed his master's discomfort. He floated off of Leon's shoulder and settled back on Jim's. He rubbed himself against Jim's cheek as if to say, "It's alright, I'm here". This little action raised a soft chuckle from Jim.
Soon the ship started to float away from the dock where it had sat at by the Space Port. The sails seemed to reach out towards space as they took in the solar energy. A surge of excitement went through him at that moment when he realized that the gravity of the Space Port had vanished and he was currently floating on deck. Soon the artificial gravity kicked in and he landed cat-like back onto the deck. The sound of the engines starting up came next, then the feel of the ship blasting off. The feeling of the solar wind hitting his face brought back memories of the Treasure Planet. The knowledge that a new adventure was coming sent a thrill through him.
Leon chuckled next to him. "You better get down to the Hollows. Don't want to make Cloud anymore upset then he probably is. I'll come and get you for dinner." With that said, he trotted off for the sail he was on before. Jim took a final surveillance of the deck before going back down below deck to start on his new job.
A/N: Well, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. I had to redo this chapter a lot but I'm happy with how it turned out. The next chapter should be out soon. R&R please.
