Feliciana shifted nervously as the scary British man in front of her paced. She understood why grandpa had hired him, he had barely said anything to her yet he was uncomfortably intimidating nonetheless. "C-captain Kirk-"

"I could throw you overboard this very instant, do you understand that?" he snapped. Ludwig stood by nervously, unsure of Feli's fate. She whimpered and fell to her knees in front of the captain. "Please Mr. scary pirate, don't throw me overboard! I just want to help! I promise I'll work hard and fight and clean and do whatever you want! Please, please, please! I have to find the mean captain that-" Feli cut herself off before she said to much. Arthur groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Fine, but I swear, the minute you become a waste of space, you're gone. Are we clear?" Feliciana smiled and saluted him as she stood. "Ve! Thank you Captain Kirkland!" Arthur rolled his eyes at Feli's cheeriness. "Yes, well Ludwig, you'll be in charge of making sure this one doesn't do anything stupid." Ludwig nodded and ushered Feli out.

"Stupid French bastard" Lovina growled as she rolled her sleeves up. He had to go and get sick, leaving her to do all the cooking. She was supposed to spend the afternoon with Vash; he had promised her he'd teach her some self defense so she could kick Francis and Gilbert's asses whenever they pissed her off. The only reason she agreed to the damn Spanish bastard's pleas was because she couldn't take any more of Matthias's cooking. Unfortunately, putting beer in everything did NOT make it better. She chuckled softly to herself as she remembered how Matthias grumbled unhappily when everyone cheered after she agreed to take over. They all could be so ridiculous sometimes, that's why she liked-

Lovina chopped faster. No, they were pirates after all. She didn't care about them. Not even about that stupid captain with his stupid eyes and stupid smile and stupid hair and-

Lovina yelped as she nicked herself with the dull knife she had been using. "Dannezione" she hissed as her finger started to bleed. She tried to reach for a nearby rag when Antonio popped by. "Hola belleza! How are you doing?"

He rushed over when he saw blood running down her hand. "What on earth did you do? Here let me help." He hoisted her up onto the counter. Lovina, of course, put up quite a fight as he tried to look her hand. "Get your hands off of me bastardo! I don't need your help!" Antonio sighed as he took the rag from her.

"You're so stubborn sometimes" he mumbled as he delicately cleaned the cut. Lovina was surprised at how nimbly his calloused hands moved. They felt rough, but gently held her small hands as he ripped a piece of the cloth and wrapped it around her finger.

"I know it seems like nothing, but you need to keep an eye on it. If it gets infected here, there's not much we can do."

"Right, wouldn't want your source of income to become damaged goods" she grumbled. Lovina's breath hitched when his hands cupped her jaw. Antonio gave her a stern, unreadable stare as he came closer. "Is that how you think I see you Lovina?"

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. "Do I need to remind you of why I ended up on your damn ship in the first place? Because I sure as hell didn't forget" she snapped. He looked down and reached for her hand.

He chuckled as he gently stroked her knuckles. "You know, no one's ever had the guts to speak to me the way you do. No woman has ever made me work so hard to earn her affection." Lovina's lips parted as he stared at her. His grip on her hand tightened. "Will you join my crew Lovi?" he asked eagerly.

Lovina's felt her cheeks grow hot as he waited for a response. Why hadn't she given him one yet? There was only one, right? Antonio flashed her a huge grin. "You're hesitating! My god, I thought you would've punched me in the face by now!" He pressed his lips to her forehead, which did not help her current lack-of ability-to speak predicament. Neither did his smile.

"I-I never said yes!" she stuttered. He grabbed her by the waist and slowly pulled her down. "Ah, but you never said no mi amor" he smirked. Lovina stumbled as her feet touched the floor, making her fall into her arms. She prayed that he didn't hear her heart beating out of her chest.

Lovina stepped away and stared at the ground. "I can't. I have to think about my sister…" Antonio's smile faltered as she walked to back over to the food she was preparing. "And besides, you wouldn't want me" she added, chuckling pitifully. "I'd only cause more trouble." Antonio laughed and leaned against the table.

"Mi amour, in case you haven't noticed, I like trouble" he responded with a wink. Lovina rolled her eyes and stirred the tomato sauce she was making. "And more importantly, everyone here loves you."

Lovina stopped what she was doing and gave him a quizzical stare. "I don't know what you're talking about." He tilted his head and smiled warmly.

"It's true! Francis and Gilbert-"

"Francis and Gilbert like anyone who will act as a source of amusement when they get bored. Which is often."

"Ok. Matthias and Herakles-"

"Matthias is half drunk all the time and all Herakles does is nap." Antonio crossed his arms and pouted. "Hey, Matthias let you in the crows nest. He doesn't just do that for anyone." Lovina sighed and checked on various pots. "He was drunk when he took me up there."

Antonio groaned and rubbed his forehead. "Are you really going to give me a reason for why everyone doesn't like you?"

"If that'll shut you up." Antonio frowned. "Why do you put yourself down like this Lovi?" She let out a dry laugh. "So I can prepare myself for when I get back home." she strained the pastas she cooked then mixed it with the sauce in a separate bowl. Antonio watched as her shoulders slumped. "Just go tell everyone the food's ready."

All the crew members eagerly gathered to eat some real food. Matthias grumbled as he put some of the pasta on his pate. "Thank you for helping out Lovina, I was afraid I'd have to choke down Matthias's shit again tonight." Everyone laughed as Matthias pouted.

"Yeah, laugh it up assholes. Just don't expect me to share my booze with any of you shitheads." Lovina stood while everyone ate.

"Lovina, why don't you sit down?" Herakles offered. She gave him a small smile and shook her head. "That's ok. Plus there aren't any seats left anyway." Antonio raised an eyebrow and smirked. "You can sit here, Lovi" he said as he patted his knee. Lovina crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at him. "Absolutely not" she hissed.

Eli chuckled as she swallowed. "Lovina, I think you're the first girl to flat out turn down 'Captain Carriedo'." Toris and Feliks giggled as Eli used a strangely feminine voice when referring to Antonio. Lovina smirked.

"Good. Someone's gotta keep his ego in check" she snapped. Gilbert frowned. "I thought my awesomeness did that?"

"NO" everyone shouted unanimously. Lovina gave Gilbert a good shove, which ultimately knocked him out of his chair. She laughed as everyone cheered. Feliks stood and wrapped and arm around her shoulder. "You're the best hostage ever Lovina" he said as he chuckled. Lovina glanced over at Antonio who was giving her a smile that made her stomach flip.

Everyone here loves you.

Lovina's eyes widened as she watched the crew in front of her. The corner of her mouth tugged upward as her heart fluttered. "Lovina, are you crying?"Toris asked, concerned. She instinctively put her hand against her cheek and felt the drop.

"She was obviously laughing too hard at you idiots." Somehow, Antonio had come up behind her without noticing. She gaped at him for awhile before nodding. He smiled and placed an arm around her shoulders. "Why don't you come with me to bring Francis some food?"

She nodded again as he led her out of the dining area. She quickly glanced behind her and saw a knowing smirk on each face.

I'm glad I got to work in more of the crew in this chapter. I will definitely feature them more in later chapters. And next chapter we'll meet Arthur's crew!