A/N: Well, I'm alive!

Sorry it was so long that I updated ANYTHING on fanfiction dot net. University just creamed me for the last few months (throwing a history course at me when I do a literature degree... hmm yes, makes perfect sense... not... orz) and I've had a lot of things to think about. Getting this written down at last over the Christmas period just really helped with the relaxation.

This isn't to say that I'll return to my normal updating speed (I doubt it really; university and real life just appear to be going out of their way to throw a spanner in the works) but I'll try my hardest to get all of my works bang up-to-date ASAP.

Thanks for your patience and your support. I hope you'll enjoy reading this chapter (where not a lot is getting done.. again.. just like on a normal pirate ship haha) and reviews will be much appreciated!

Warning: If paragraph is in the viewpoint of a character that can not speak German (a.k.a. Gardenian), the (most likely bad) German will be untranslated. Currently Naminé is the only Bastionite character that can speak Gardenian. Remember that.

Leon didn't return to the cabin until very late at night, finding Cloud asleep on the bed, still fully clothed. Leon did as he normally did; strip himself of his clothes and slide into bed, regardless of the company. Rather than sleep though, he found himself watching the other.

He knew a bit about this aristocrat. That he was the eldest son of a second wife. That he was considered to be fairly old when his marriage had been arranged at the grand age of three and twenty, but fairly young in the marriage market in general had he been free to choose his own path. That he knew his way around a pistol but was more proficient with the sword and used a knife when necessary. Other than that, there was nothing more he did know about Cloud. It seemed that the old man in Balamb only thought that was necessary.

…yet Cloud reacted strongly to the word 'cage'.

Then again, it sounded like the word brought about different forms of despise from the siblings. It seemed cruel for Leon to offer freedom when he knew that deep down he'd have to hand the siblings back into a new captor's hands. He growled under his breath, turning onto his side and facing away from the blond.

He thought he'd be able to do this. It seemed like he was already starting to grow rather fond of this one despite the trouble he had already caused, unfortunately for him. But Ellone's safety is paramount… I can't let myself put a total stranger's wellbeing in front of a family member's. He sighed unhappily; damn Terra for pricking his curiosity. He would have been better off not knowing.

Naminé found herself doing the laundry early the next morning with a couple of the crew members and Kairi supervising, trying not to grumble too much even though she was starting to get hands that looked a lot like prunes. Although she wouldn't speak to anyone else, she could understand what the others were talking about.

Apparently her dear older brother had gained some notoriety.

"Can't believe the Captain willingly puts that monster in his own cabin and even sleeps in it!"

"After yesterday, he's probably banned all sharp objects in that room. I heard Cook's on strict orders to make sure that all the cutlery comes back from the cabin just in case."

"But is it really okay for us to cart him about? I don't see why we couldn't just gut him and say it was an accident."

"If you have time to gossip like old hags, then you've got time to scrub!" Kairi's voice barked. "Start scrubbing!" The men continued with their work. Kairi bent down beside Naminé. "I'm sorry… no one should hear that about their own brother."

"They didn't know I can understand them," she said softly, trying her hardest to scrub a stain out. "…is Cloud… in trouble?"

"…sort of," Kairi answered honestly. "The crew don't like him since he threatened our navigator's life. The captain is keeping him in his cabin in order to protect him from the crew… your brother would be a fool to leave it."

"…what will happen to him if he leaves the cabin?" Naminé asked hesitantly, fearing the worst.

"…I don't think-"

"Kairi."

The pirate girl pursed her lips… then she spoke again. "If he left the cabin now, I can't guarantee that the captain will be able to save him from his own crew. They're angry at your brother because he had our navigator held hostage. He might have killed him if he got too spooked."

"Cloud did that?!"

"It's probably something you don't want to believe your brother was capable of doing, but it appears he seems to think being in the company of pirates is worse than being caged by promises he doesn't want to keep."

Naminé knew what Kairi had meant by promises; Cloud might never have voiced it while being vocal about his distaste for his siblings' marriage arrangements, but even he didn't want to get married to a girl he had never even met before. He was only going through it because he felt obligated to Vanitas and their father's memory. She whispered, "Well… I suppose being among this pirate crew isn't so bad…"

"Oh? You think so?" Kairi asked, a small smile on her face.

"It isn't like any of you are trying to do anything harmful to us," Naminé said; she had observed that she and Ven seemed to have a lot of freedom on board, even if it did appear that Roxas and Cloud were being punished for being uncooperative. She lifted up the shirt she had been washing; the stains just weren't coming out. "If anything, it's almost as if you're treating us like equals even though our ranks on board are so different."

"Captain always said that it's better to treat guests well. Only good things come of it when you leave them at their destination later." Kairi then looked up; it seemed that the first mate was in a foul mood again. Naminé cowered a little as he approached them. Kairi only frowned, speaking in her native language to the other pirate. "What? Another bad night?"

"You get that girl to talk some sense into that little bastard! He's already tried to strangle me this morning!"

"My, what a violent kid…"

"It's like he has a death wish! I've never met someone so determined to get killed!"

"Oh dear, it looks like the pot doesn't like looking at his reflection in the kettle."

"What was that?!"

Naminé watched with wide eyes; the red-haired duo continued to bicker with each other, the man clearly irate about something, and Kairi just accusing him of not liking the fact that he could see a bit of himself in his charge's personality. She stayed quiet.

How on earth was she supposed to get this stain out?

"Oh for the love of-! Fine! Don't be a help Kairi!"

Naminé screeched when she felt her wrist being grabbed and her whole body being wretched up to stand, looking into the cat-green eyes of the first mate in pure terror. "You're the sister, right?" he asked slowly. She couldn't be sure if he wasn't confident that his Bastionite was good, or if he was just trying to calm himself down.

"Axel, you brute! Let her go!" Kairi screamed.

"Shut up!" He turned back to Naminé. "Well are you?"

"Y-Yes," Naminé squeaked.

"Then you tell that idiot brother of yours that he'll have an easier time if he just damn well cooperate with us!" He yelled in surprise and released the girl; Kairi had kicked the first mate straight in the shin.

"You fucking idiot! How on earth is yelling at her going to help us any?!"

"I'm at my wit's end already with this shitty little bastard! If I have to fight him off in the morning just one more time I'm going to slit his neck and throw his body overboard and claim it was an accident!"

Naminé feared for Roxas' life. She curled up and wrapped her arms tightly around herself, closing her eyes tightly and trying to shut out the rest of the world. She wanted to hide away in a corner and try to ignore the world. Please… make them stop… She could hear the pair almost coming to blows. It brought back memories of watching their father discipline others in his militaristic way. Please stop them!

"I'll have your hides stretched on the mainmast as a warning if you don't quit your caterwauling!" a new Gardenian voice interjected. At once the whole deck seemed to grow silent and still; Kairi and Axel were rendered mute. Naminé dared to look, fearful at who the new taskmaster was.

She was surprised to see a young man, probably only a year or two older than her brother Cloud, walk up to them. His scarred face looked at the two red-haired pirates with contempt. "Look at the pair of you. Both of you are officers on this ship and you bicker and carry on like fishwives! What sort of example are you setting for the rest of the crew?! I ought to have the pair of you flogged!"

"But-!" the pirates chorused.

"No buts! Keep your family business below deck and away from the crew! Don't cause a scene on my ship!" The man looked over to Naminé. He walked over to her; she tried to hide herself again by closing her eyes, her knees rooted to the boards in fear. She nearly yelped in surprise when she felt strong arms pick her up to her feet and dust her off. "My sincerest apologies for my first and third mates' behaviour," he said. "I'm afraid they quite forget themselves when their arguing is in full flight."

"I-It's… fine…"

The man just seemed to smile kindly at her. He then turned to the silent crew and glared daggers at them all. "I don't remember saying that this was a show. Back to work! The lot of you! This ship doesn't clean and sail itself!" The crew members scuttled about, returning to work and keeping their eyes down. The man nodded his head slightly to Naminé and then returned to his own business, walking away from her laundry group. Axel too stalked off, spitting curses and other obscenities in his native tongue.

Kairi sighed. "Sorry about that," she muttered. "My brother and I can get carried away sometimes. It's a wonder neither of us have killed each other yet."

"Who was that man?"

"That was the Rex Pirata, our captain," Kairi answered, looking over to the retreating back that was striding purposefully to the ship's wheel. "And he's clearly in a foul mood."

"Really…?"

Kairi nodded her head. "I wonder if something happened between him and…" she paused and shook her head. "No, I would have heard something about it. The ship walls have ears after all."

"Kairi?"

"Please don't worry about it," the pirate girl smiled. She then picked up Naminé's current load and sighed. "You really haven't done this before at all, have you," she stated. She knelt at the bucket that the aristocratic girl had been using. "Now watch what I do and you'll have near to spotless laundry every time."

Cloud had given up on escaping his new cage, taking to brooding over his fate as a pirate's captive and also over the fates of his brothers and sister. What would happen to them? Would they just be sailed around aimlessly until a ransom was paid by their prospective in-laws? He doubted very much that Vanitas would even entertain the notion of doing any sort of business with pirates, not even with one clearly as eloquent and as educated as the Rex Pirata.

Cloud was almost annoyed at the fact that the Rex Pirata must have been no older than him and wasn't as violent or as vicious as he had feared. He was doubly more annoyed with the fact that Leon seemed completely reasonable. How on earth could a pirate be reasonable?!

He never once thought in his life that he'd be wondering why a pirate wasn't that much like how he assumed a pirate was.

He jumped from his spot at the window when he heard the door click open from the outside. Was it Leon? Or one of his crew members? It was the Rex Pirata that walked inside, but he barely acknowledged Cloud's existence, only locking the door behind him and walking over to his desk. He seemed to be looking for something. Cloud didn't know whether he should confront Leon or not again about his captivity.

"…what did you mean by you wanted to offer me freedom?" he finally asked. Leon turned on his boot heels, a mild form of surprise on his scarred features. Did he forget that Cloud was here? No, it was more like he was surprised Cloud had spoken to him. He doubted the pirate would have forgotten about his own captive.

"Exactly what I said. There's no strings attached if that's what you're wondering."

"I don't believe you," Cloud said bluntly.

"I don't expect you to," Leon replied shortly, turning back to his desk and rummaging about in the drawers. "Don't trust a pirate. That's one of the first things good little upstairs boys like you are taught. That and beware strangers bearing sweets and that anyone that isn't the same as you is to be treated with suspicion."

"That's not fair," Cloud frowned. "You don't even know who I am past the title and the social status."

"And you don't know who I am past being a pirate," Leon quipped back. "Don't give me that hypocritical garbage." Cloud could only fume silently; he didn't like being spoken back at with that tone of his. It was almost like he was being scolded, by someone with peasant blood. Leon finally found what he was looking for; it was probably a map, but it was rolled up so Cloud couldn't be too certain. It could be a stolen scroll for all he knew. Or the paper was protecting something like a flag inside so that the ship could be disguised as a merchant vessel. "Your sister and brother… which twin was it… Ventus? They're both doing well," Leon remarked idly, unrolling his scroll.

"…where are they?" Cloud asked.

"Ventus is under our ship doctor's care. He's a good man; he's even started teaching the boy medicine. I heard your brother's been a quick learner. The crew like him too."

"And Naminé?" The eldest Strife captive's voice was dripping with acid; if Naminé was being treated like a harlot then he would…

"She's been given easy tasks to fulfil until she gets strong enough. I can assure you that she's being treated with absolute respect. Kairi and Aqua would hang any man by his balls if they ever did something untoward to her."

Cloud seriously hoped for this pirate crew's sake that what Leon said was true. Because never mind Kairi and Aqua, he'd kill them if they even looked at his sister in an inappropriate way. "…then what about Roxas?" Leon tensed slightly. "Why isn't he doing well?" Cloud probed.

Leon sighed. "He's resisting. Violently. He's too much of a liability to allow him on top deck."

"Like I am."

"And whose fault was that?" Leon pointed out. Cloud's frown deepened. Damn it. Cornered again. "I'm glad you're not blaming someone else." Leon started to move away. "I'll have the cook bring you something later since you're behaving yourself."

"…tell me who wants me and my siblings," Cloud demanded quietly. The Rex Pirata stopped in his tracks, but he didn't turn back. "I haven't forgotten what you said or what Demyx said. Someone didn't want us to reach the Disney Continent. That someone is a traitor to Hollow Bastion. And forgive me for saying this but you don't exactly seem the type to choose alliances and stay loyal to them… unless there was a reason for it." He saw the brunet tense even more. So there was a reason he had to help this mysterious traitor. Judging by Leon's silence, Cloud wondered if it was a personal matter.

"…I can't say," Leon finally managed to murmur.

"Can't? Or won't?"

"I can't." Leon finally turned around; Cloud nearly did a double take. There was a pained look that for a moment flashed across in his silvery eyes. "I feel foolish for saying this, but I can't tell you what's going on. There's more at stake here then petty politics and whatever greedy reason you think I'm doing this for." Leon then snorted in annoyance. "Then again, I'm wasting my breath. Doesn't matter what my reasons are, you'll still think me as a greedy, dangerous pirate that only thinks of himself."

"That's-"

"Unfair? Guess what; life is never fair. If it was, I would be steering well clear of you four. Kidnapping is not a crime I particularly like doing. Taking care of captives is too much of a hassle." Leon started moving again. "Now if you excuse me, I've got a ship to sail."

Cloud flinched as the door was slammed shut behind him and locked from the outside. At least he had learnt a little bit more about the situation. As for the Rex Pirata… something was off. Cloud would never be able to tell someone what exactly it was that made him feel uneasy, but for the briefest of moments Leon just seemed like a man that was agonizing over his situation.

…was it possible for a pirate to be blackmailed? "No, that's stupid. A pirate would never allow himself to be in a situation to get blackmailed. Even if his own mother was being held hostage he'd probably shoot her on the spot just so he's not in a vulnerable position."

But was that even true for the Rex Pirata? Leon just seemed to be contrary to every single label that Cloud had thought was "quintessentially pirate" so far. So that must've meant that he was getting something very precious in return for agreeing to capture the Strifes. Gold? Jewels? Land maybe? Leon himself had said that not every treasure glittered. Maybe they were missing an important crew member? "No, don't be ridiculous. I may not know much about the outside world, but I know for a fact that they have a crew that's more than able to take care of a schooner like this one." Then what the hell was it that Leon was willing to do something he himself admitted to not liking just to get it?

And why the hell was he starting to care about just what was it the pirate wanted?

To admit he was freezing would have meant surrendering in Roxas' opinion. To do it in front of Axel would mean giving total dominance to the pirate and Roxas was just not prepared to do it. Not even for a night shirt.

The only things he was grateful for was that Axel always returned just before the candle was about to sputter out of life and that the first mate seemed to believe that he could rest a bit easier if he held him tightly in the bed like a human shackle, which meant Roxas had to be on the bed during the night. One other thing he was grateful for was that Axel hadn't figured out Roxas' biggest failing amongst the many he had. He didn't doubt for a second that Axel would seize the chance to take advantage of it if he ever did find out. Roxas just pulled the coverlets over him even more tightly, trying to not think of that possibility.

To think of it would mean that he'd be even more fearful of the red haired man, even though the man had never truly laid a finger of harm onto him other than that first spank across the buttocks.

The candle sputtered out of life. From his own natural reflexes, Roxas screamed and pulled the coverlets tight around him, his breathing accelerating and his chest heaving from the extra strain his heart was going under. Not the darkness! Anything but the darkness!

"What the hell are you screaming about now?" he heard Axel's voice from behind the door. As soon as the pirate had opened the door and allowed some of the outside lantern-light flood the room, Roxas had jumped from the bed and grabbed the pirate by his middle tightly, burying his face into Axel's chest. The pirate grunted in surprise, his body going stiff at the sudden embrace. "…Roxas?"

"Don't leave me in the dark!" Roxas whimpered, clinging to him as if his life would be in danger if he ever let go. "Please don't leave me…"

"…gut ist dieses ungeschickt …" He felt Axel's arms tentatively wrap around his shoulders, awkwardly patting his back. "Um… there there?" Axel murmured, clearly uncomfortable by the sudden turn of behaviour from the little blond.

"Don't patronize me," Roxas muttered, his voice still a bit shaky. He then let go quickly, now remembering where he was and who he had just suddenly embraced. "Th-This doesn't mean we're on better terms!"

"…Pardon me for saying this, but if I didn't know any better I'd say you just gave me a trump card," Axel pointed out.

"…if you have any sense of mercy you would never use a man's fear against him."

"You're not a man," Axel reminded him. He stood outside of the room briefly, and for a moment Roxas feared Axel was going to shut him up in the dark. The pirate instead came back in, bearing a lantern in his hands. "But I'm not going to terrorise a boy with his greatest fear either. That would make me no better than the men who would." He went about hanging the lantern on the wall, making sure it was secure and would not fall down. "This is an oil-burning lantern. It'll last us longer than the candles. Might even burn all night, so you won't be completely in darkness."

"…thank you," Roxas murmured, having to swallow down his pride. So pirates did have a shred of decency in them…

"It's fine," Axel said. "Es ist, nicht wie ich Erlöschen meiner Weise, zu Ihnen bös zu sein war. Ich würde eher ein ruhiges Segelhaus haben, ohne zu müssen, ungefähr sich zu sorgen, ob Sie tot sein werden, bevor wir sogar ankoppeln."

"I hope you're not calling me names in your language," Roxas muttered. He didn't look away when Axel's green gaze turned on him.

"I'm not," Axel answered. He then sighed heavily. "Okay… now listen little lord. There are two ways you can go about this. You can cooperate and you'll get an easier life, or you can continue to behave like a little savage and continue having to rely on coverlets to preserve your modesty."

"I find it unbelievable that you expect me to cooperate," Roxas sniped quietly.

"I think you'll find that you actually have more freedom when you cooperate," Axel retorted. "Für die Liebe von allem, das heilig ist sind Aristokraten im wirklichen Leben dieses störrische?!"

"…what exactly do you want from me?" Roxas asked, trying to keep calm. After all, this man was the one that could snuff the lantern light out if he so wished.

"Simple. A quiet guest that will gladly and willingly help out on deck when he's asked to." The pirate then shrugged. "At the moment it seems only your sister and twin brother will actually do that."

"Naminé and Ven are working on the ship?!"

"Mmhm," the pirate hummed lightly. "Don't really know much about that older one though. All quiet in the cabin at the moment."

Well at least he now knew that his siblings were safe, and it didn't sound like his twin or his sister was being treated badly. Then again, how could he be so sure? "…if I find out that you've done something to any of them, I'll strive to see you all hang," Roxas growled, trying to make himself sound menacing. This only awarded him with a laugh from the red-haired pirate.

"Sie versuchen wirklich, wie eine große Katze zu handeln, nicht Sie Kätzchen zu tun?" Axel then smirked a bit. "Alright then. I won't protest my innocence if that happens."

What? Was that… confidence? He yelped when he felt something get thrown into his face. He pulled the offending article away. "…a shirt?"

"It's cold tonight. I don't want you getting ill from the weather."

Stranger and stranger. It seemed that Roxas' view on Axel was beginning to change. He didn't seem so bad. On the other hand, he told himself not to give himself up just yet; the pirate was still a pirate after all. This change of attitude could have been just a farce to get him to behave.

Cloud had learnt something rather dull about being a pirate captive. Maybe a part of him thought that he would be battling with wit and wiles every waking moment with his capturers, but it seemed that he was being entirely ignored. Other than Leon and the cook who barely spoke a word to him, Cloud was living in total isolation from the rest of the ship, and he had come to hate it so much already.

During the day, he just tried to busy himself with some of the books on Leon's bookshelf even if he didn't really understand a word of Gardenian, vainly hoping that maybe he would somehow understand it. Unfortunately, there wasn't much luck of that happening. So he turned his attention to finding little oddities that he saw so certain that the pirate captain had in his cabin. Maybe something he could use as a makeshift weapon in case of…

Well, he was going to claim self-defence for whatever the need to use some sort of crude protection.

Other than the few nautical devices that Cloud familiarised himself with while on his short tenure aboard the Ifrit, there was nothing. Nothing but maps, charts, and drawings. Cloud was going to pass them over with disinterest… but then his eye caught sight of it.

He lifted it up, tilting his head slightly as he looked at the pencil sketch. It was depicting a young woman, clearly of aristocratic standing (or at least wearing her rest day's best) judging by the simple but elegant dress she wore, a shawl resting around her arms and back as it were a natural part of her. Her hair was short Cloud noted, not exactly fashionable among the nobility. So maybe of the merchant class if not aristocratic?

The pirate's lover? He didn't think pirates were capable of something that pure, but it seemed like the only logical conclusion of why a pirate captain kept a drawing of a beautiful woman in his room. And a simple pencil drawing at that.

"Decided to turn my desk inside out, have we?"

Cloud jumped, turning to the door. Leon was leaning against it. "Dammit man, you move like a ghost!"

"It helps," the brunet said idly, pushing his weight off the door and walking over to him with a lazy stride. "Now what are you looking at? Hoping to find a map of a ship that might just have a slim chance of escape?" Cloud opened his mouth to respond, but he noticed that the almost catlike smirk of glee had changed into furious shock as Leon's stride became more hurried. "Where did you find that?!"

"It was hidden in your ma-"

"Who said you could look through them?!" Leon cut across Cloud, grabbing him by his wrist and squeezing tightly. Cloud squawked in alarm at the suddenness, dropping the drawing as if it were hot coals. "You bloody, nosy little primped poodle! You go through every person's belongings just to find something you can use as leverage to get your own way?!"

"I-!"

"More fucking trouble than you're worth!" Leon continued with his tirade, almost tossing Cloud to the floor. Thankfully for the young aristocrat, Cloud was quick to regain his balance and still at full strength. If things got violent he was certain he would be able to hold his own barehanded. "I ought to have just let you drown with the rest of those stinking mutineers and Silver! Scheißhund! I should have-!"

Cloud didn't even give Leon a chance to finish his sentence because, faster than Cloud had even managed to register what was going on, he landed a punch square across the pirate's jaw as hard as he could. He watched the other stumble backwards, the creak of the ship sending him a little further than the punch might have done if he had thrown it on dry land. Cloud could only think of one thing about punching, one thing that he remembered about it thinking back to the childhood scrapes he would get into with other noble children his own age.

Punches only served to hurt both parties, and they hurt like a bitch.

"…And I thought I was the one that was supposed to be the hysterical captive-come-damsel in distress," Cloud scoffed, rubbing his hand and stretching it out to numb the pain. Leon had not moved even a step, nor dared to touch the now mottled patch of skin forming on his jaw. He didn't even honour Cloud with a reply. "It's just a drawing. Of a girl. I was looking. It wasn't like I was pleasuring myself with her as the… ahem… muse."

"…you looked through my belongings…" Leon muttered childishly.

"You're keeping a captive contained in your cabin, who is going to go mad with boredom at some point during this trip. What on earth made you think I wasn't going to be just the smallest bit curious about how my captor thinks or who he is past the 'Rex Pirata' moniker?" Cloud then frowned heavily. "And I hardly think I'm the villain when you're the one that held me hostage in the first place."

"You're hardly a vulnerable victim either," Leon grumbled.

"Oh so we're going to continue circling each other in hope that I back down because you're oozing with dominance?" Cloud asked sarcastically.

"Did anyone tell you what a stubborn arse you are?"

"I should think you'll get used to it." He turned his attention back to the drawing. "So… who is she?"

Leon strode back to his desk and grabbed the drawing, opening a drawer and securing it inside. "No one for you to concern yourself about."

"Is she another pirate?"

"No!" Leon exclaimed. He then coughed and regained his normal composure. "No… she's never committed a crime in her life and I want her to remain that way."

"A lover of yours then?"

"No. Of course not." Leon snorted a bit. "I'm surprised you came up with that one; didn't think you believed pirates capable of feeling any sort of emotion."

"Trust me, part of me still believes you're just monsters preying upon innocent people only capable of feeling murderous glee, but you seem to be convincing me that you're about as human as any other person." Cloud then sighed, looking at the bruise on Leon's jaw. "…and I can't believe I'm going to say this, but… I'm sorry."

"I deserved it," Leon murmured. "It's not the worst thing that's ever happened to me." He then sighed. "Besides, I came here to check up on you, not to fight."

"I thought I wasn't worth your time."

"Well I need to make sure you haven't committed suicide or done anything stupid."

"Trust me, I'm not desperate to take my own life." Cloud folded his arms. "I will get my siblings and myself off this boat. I will see you hang for your crimes. Just you wait."

"…Looking forward to it," Leon said nonchalantly, but there was a small flicker of a smile on his lips.

"Good. Then you'll tell me which Governor told you to kidnap us and then tell me why you're working for him," Cloud chirped falsely.

"I commend you for your persistence but you are not getting anything out of me." Leon sighed a little bit. "Anything I can do to make the trip a bit more comfortable for you?"

"…Excuse me?" Cloud looked at the other as if he had just suggested the most ludicrous thing he had ever heard. And in a sense he had. "Repeat that again?"

"I asked if there is anything I can do to make the trip more comfortable. Though I highly suggest against asking for a walk on topside. The men are still going to grab any chance they get to give you a short drop followed by a sudden stop."

Cloud gulped, instinctively putting a protective hand over his neck. "If you're trying to win over my loyalties, I will tell you now that comforts won't buy it."

"I'm not trying to buy anything from you," Leon retorted. "I'm just trying to make the trip comfortable for guests, like a good host should."

"Pretty words for a pirate," Cloud scoffed.

"You'll find that I'm actually treating you much better than a normal pirate would be." Leon moved away… then turned back, brought out a key hanging from under his shirt with another pendant that Cloud hadn't been able to take a glimpse of and locked the drawer that he had secreted the girl's portrait. "And you're actually no better than a thief for going through a man's belongings." He walked away again. "I'll see you later."

Cloud said nothing in return, watching the door shut behind the pirate and hearing it being locked again. He knew a little more about him now, even if it wasn't that much.

First, Leon seemed to be in a predicament that centred around the Strife siblings not reaching the Disney continent and that a Governor from their home country of Hollow Bastion was involved. Blackmail was currently the most probable reason why Leon had been forced to burn down the Ifrit and kidnap the siblings, though admittedly he had saved them from the pirate captain Silver.

Second, there was a mysterious girl that Leon kept a portrait of, who was not a pirate, but neither was she a lover. Cloud couldn't believe it was a family member personally, considering how the girl's clothing seemed to suggest a respectability that Leon just did not have an ounce of. Nor did he believe she was just a friend to the pirate.

Third, he had to grudgingly admit that despite the odd spat between them, Leon was actually treating him and his siblings very well, if he could believe the pirate's accounts. They weren't in the ship's brig behind prison bars, Cloud never really went hungry, Leon had asked if there was anything he could do to make the trip more comfortable, and it did also sound that the ship's doctor was willingly taking care of both Ven and Naminé, even if there was very little word about Roxas' wellbeing other than his violent resistance. On top of this, Leon never really went out of his way to scare or hurt him; any hurt or scares he did get was justifiable. Like the hostage incident.

Though he was still iffy about sharing a bed with his captor, even if Leon never did anything strange to him. "But despite all that… I hardly know anything at all about him."

Ven flinched as he felt the sponge on his back, hissing as hot water mixed with salts and oil cleaned a particularly nasty burn he had received trying to help out on deck with putting a repaired sail back where it belonged. Terra had to stop him from helping out any more when Ven tried to take on heavy lifting chores that only served to aggravate the rope burns he had received.

"I know it hurts," Terra said quietly. "But it's keeping it clean so that it doesn't get worse."

"Your way of doctoring is wholly different to what I'm used to," Ven grumbled. He had heard horror stories of aristocratic patients dying not from gangrenous limbs (caused from overindulgence or some horrific disease) but on the surgeon's table while getting the villainous limb hacked off by a saw. Then there was being bled by leeches. Leeches were the last thing he wanted anywhere near him.

"It might be slow and steady but it means lives are saved and made better," Terra replied, squeezing the sponge again and dabbing carefully at the broken and almost cleaned skin that had only been very bloody moments before. Ven flinched again. "Departurian medicine isn't known to be instantaneous or painless I'm afraid, but it's almost done."

"I'm surprised the crew allow you to nurse them," Ven stated.

"I was too when I first became their ship's doctor." Terra seemed to laugh quietly to himself in reminiscence. "But I think they can see that I was doing much better than their old one. He was more of a carpenter than a doctor. Useful for creating peg-legs but not much else."

"So you weren't here at first? With the captain?" Ven asked, curious to know more about his foreign mentor.

"No," Terra replied. He was now beginning to bandage Ven's shoulder and back. "I joined the crew about two years after Leon received the Rex Pirata title. Aqua and I owe him a huge debt for letting us join his crew."

"A debt? You owe him money?"

"No. Our lives."

Ven looked over his shoulder, seeing Terra was concentrating more on bandaging rather than looking at him. "…don't you think it's more dangerous living as a pirate than as a respectable doctor?"

"Ven… it was more dangerous for me to be in my homeland or live in another country where they hate what they don't understand. Pirating is actually probably safer for me and Aqua." Terra then looked up at Ven. "Because regardless of race, belief or status, all is equal when you're a pirate. We're all in the same boat. Literally and metaphorically speaking."

Ven said nothing more after that; Terra had alluded to him just why a man that could pass himself off as a respectable gentleman in most societies like him had joined a pirate crew. "Is… Is that why you don't take your bandages off your wrists?"

"…that's a story for another day Ven," Terra said, tying the bandages securely. "Let's see those hands."

"Terra… you can tell me. I won't judge."

"Another day Ven," Terra said again. "Right now, I'm more concerned about you."

Silence descended upon the pair; Ven didn't ask for anything more from Terra, but he kept looking at those black bandages on Terra's wrists. What sort of marks and scars did they hide from the world? Was Terra ashamed of them? Or did he feel that they were his burden that only he should bear? And what of Aqua? Did she feel the same way with her own hidden wrists? Why did they both come to bear them? What sort of situation did the pirate captain save them from? They were all questions Ven wanted to ask, but knew that Terra would never answer. Maybe another day he would.

Ven doubted that the answers would ever be given.

"…It's strange," Ven murmured.

"What is?"

"This pirate society. It seems more… free compared to what is considered a law abiding society."

"I suppose it is," Terra replied. "Of course, there are some burdens pirates bear that a law-abiding citizen cannot."

"Such as?"

"Well for one, pirates are a bit limited in their choice of where to stay when they decide they no longer want the pirating life. I for one doubt I will ever be able to return to my homeland, and I know that I will either be killed by pirating or will become too old to continue. So where do I go after that? If I live to fifty, and I very much doubt I will considering the life choice I've made, I can't exactly go live in another country if they're after my neck."

"So there is nowhere for you to go?"

"Well, that was a fear of mine. Until Leon showed me his homeland. It's my only choice now."

"…free to roam the seas, but confined to live in only one place on land," Ven murmured. "What a juxtaposition."

"Almost ironic, really," Terra replied. He bound and tied the bandages on Ven's hands. "No more heavy work for you. Give those hands and burn a chance to heal before you try hauling a sail back onto its mast."

"Then what can I do?"

"Watch what I do and learn," Terra replied. "You're an apprentice doctor under me. Not a manual labourer."

"But… how are you so sure that I can be a doctor?"

"You have something your twin and your older brother don't have."

"And what's that?"

"Patience. Learning takes patience, and I'm afraid your brothers are strangers to it." Terra then laughed. "That's why I'm confident you'll do well." He patted the boy's uninjured shoulder, causing Ven's cheeks to go pink.

Ven had no idea that Terra was going through his own turmoil. Giving the boy skills that he could use later on if he wished to pursue the path was one thing, but he was starting to develop a small fondness for him, even though he had told himself not to considering the ultimate fate of the boy and his siblings.

Trying not to get emotionally attached to the youngster was starting to drain a bit on him. That was why he was unwilling to tell Ven how he had come to wear his bandages around his wrists; if he did, then there would be no way of Terra being able to ever betray him… and it would mean that his own loyalties to Leon would have to be called into question. "And I can't do that to him or to Ellone," Terra murmured to himself in his mother language as he turned his attentions to his medicine making. Because not betraying Ven and his siblings… would mean betraying Ellone and Leon.

He had to choose the people he knew the longest. He had to.

Leon came back up to the ship's wheel, nodding his head to the man on duty and turning to where Zexion was. He was staring out to where they had been, watching for something. Leon approached. "Something on the horizon?"

"No sign of our 'client' following us as I first thought. Though I suppose it won't be long until he reaches Destiny Islands once we dock there," the small navigator replied. "How's your captive?" Zexion turned, and then balked. "Oh, forget I asked."

"I deserved it," Leon muttered with annoyance. "I lost my composure around him. He most likely did it out of self-defence, so I don't blame him."

"Careful, otherwise you might reach a rather unfortunate situation where we're one short of a captive needed to save your cousin."

This only caused Leon to sigh wearily. "I know…"

"If you know then you shouldn't be losing your temper around him," he replied. "And more to the point, I really doubt you should be seeing him as much as you do, or offering him some form of comfort. I'm not even all for treating the other three as possible crew members, even if it does keep them separate."

"Then what would you do Zexion? Imprison them in the brig where they might get sick with all the bilge water in there? Terra would object to that with absolute immediacy if that suggestion was ever mentioned." He sighed. "He's a doctor through and through after all…"

"And you can't keep pandering to them," Zexion said pointedly. "Otherwise you're going to find yourself in a situation where you're going to end up hating yourself for doing yet another terrible thing to them. You might as well keep them thinking you're the bastard son of a devil and praying for the day that they see you executed."

Leon didn't really believe Zexion's words. Then again, those that did think he was "the bastard son of a devil" often ended being dead within the space of a night of meeting him for the first time. Like the mutineers of the Ifrit. They were quite dead… and quite deep in Davy Jones' locker. Zexion sighed heavily, "You didn't believe a word I said, did you."

"I'm sorry. I'd rather be an enigma than a bastard hell-spawn, and if I have to be the latter I'd rather be it for the last few hours of a person's lifetime."

"Sometimes I wonder just on earth how you became the Rex Pirata," Zexion said. "You just don't act like a pirate."

"Consider this; a Rex Pirata doesn't necessarily have to be the best pirate of all pirates."

"Then how is a Rex Pirata made."

"Inheritance, good leadership, the ability to keep the peace between all of those pirates if we have the rare meeting, good connections that keep you protected in certain places, and of course the ability to come out alive from naval battles."

"So you didn't kill a man to get that title."

"I defeated a man. That doesn't automatically mean a killed him."

"Bit risky isn't it? For a new Rex Pirata to leave the old one alive."

"It's a bit risky to believe a man that has kidnapped my cousin by giving him our guests in exchange for her safe return."

"True enough," Zexion relented. He turned himself around so that he was leaning back on the ship's railing. "Which leaves the question as to what you're going to do if he doesn't honour his bargain?"

"…I'll cross that bridge when I get to it."

"Honestly… how on earth am I to report positively about this to my superiors?"

"Just trust me on this."

Leon knew he was grasping at straws here. He was in an impossible situation, one where he faced losing his cousin, respect from his allies and even his own life if he wasn't careful. He needed to find a way to defeat his biggest and possibly most dangerous enemy he had made so far in his life. He frowned heavily. But how? And why is he so interested in scuppering his own country's best interests when Hollow Bastion is in desperate need of a new venue of income? Surely those four's engagements to foreign powers would only help their trade market…

"You're trying to figure that man's motive again, aren't you?"

"Haven't you?"

"It's a conundrum that is just too alluring to leave unsolved," Zexion said, a small glimmer appearing in his eyes. It was the glimmer of a scholarly inquisitiveness and curiosity only found in the most pursuing men of knowledge. Zexion was just that. "Much like the world is."

"And there your reasons for travelling with a pirate crew rather than Radiant Garden's merchant or naval vessels lie transparent."

"Because a pirate knows the sea better than an average sailor, so why not ask the most extraordinary pirate to be my guide."

"And yet you're my navigator."

"Funny how things turn out as such." Zexion then glowered at Leon. "Oi! You've just changed the subject completely!"

"Yes. Yes I did." Leon moved away. "It's best not to talk anymore of our situation. Walls have ears, and on a ship even the floors have ears." He turned to look over his shoulder for a moment. "Don't stay up too late Zexion. I can't be having one of the Empress' best students losing our way in the morning."

"The Empress is not my teacher. I am just a mere servant in her navy. That's all."

"Almost sounds like you're boasting Zexion." Leon then idly looked up at the mast. "And goodnight to you Demyx. You shouldn't eavesdrop on a conversation."

"Ah?! DEMYX!" Zexion yowled, glaring up at the heathen crew member amongst all the rigging and ropes. "Just because I taught you how to speak Gardenian does not give you special dispensation to eavesdrop on my conversations!"

Leon laughed as he left the pair to argue with each other, nodding to the man on duty at the ship's wheel –"Keep a sharp eye out for trouble." – before he walked down back to the main deck. He hesitated to go back to his cabin… maybe give it another hour until Cloud had fallen asleep so to avoid his questions.

Maybe it wouldn't hurt to think of a plan of what to do if the traitorous governor did go back on his promise.