[[I AM SO SORRY THIS TOOK SO DAMN LONG I'VE BEEN SO BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND JUST UGH. Anyway I'm trying to force myself to make time for writing again.]]

Chapter 7

As the ships departed, the captives were secured and the pirates went through their newfound vessel. It was salvaged and soon scuttled, the supplies and things of worth were transferred to the pirate ships as quickly as possible. Bumi had the crew do as they wished, while he reclined in his private cabin for a while. He had her once again, but he wasn't going to just let her leave this time. This time he was going to see exactly what was going on.

Lin had been placed under arrest in the brig of Bumi's ship, but he only had her locked in. No chains, no manacles. He didn't doubt if she really wanted to escape she probably could, or at least she could get out of the cell. She brooded while she was watched, two guards outside the door continuing to steal glances at her and talk about why she was even there in the first place.

"Why didn't he just have her killt?" one said in his thick northern isles accent. "She's no good t'us and he knows that."

"Who're you to question 'im?" the other replied, crossing his arms. "'e's been good to us, show some respect."

The first huffed, but his silent agreeing was all that was heard. Lin sighed at being watched like she was, looking around the cell for a way out. Then she stopped, a nagging feeling like if she escaped, she was making a mistake. At the very least she'd have to fight through an entire ship worth of combatants with no support, as well as try and take on the man who had bested her twice now. She sighed and moved back a little into the hay that lined the floor, staring at the barred opening on the cell door and catching glimpses of the men standing just beyond.

The clacking of boots signaled a change, the banter was halted and heavy footfalls continued until there was a jangle of metal. The door unlocked with a heavy thunk of the lock sliding out of place and then it slowly creaked open.

"Well, Lin… We meet again." Bumi smiled. He turned and nodded to the guards that understood his meaning, walking down the corridor and heading up the stairs to wait.

Lin looked away for a moment, "Yeah, we do. That's what happens when you capture someone after a fight." she scoffed but found herself looking up at the man shortly. "What do you want with me anyway?" she asked with a stoic tone.

He laughed heartily, crouching down low to look into her eyes. "Isn't it obvious?" he answered with his own question.

Lin crossed her arms and huffed, "If it was obvious I wouldn't have asked." she snapped bitterly. Her response was met with a frown before he plopped down on his backside and propped up with his hands. "Well?" she asked once more.

"I couldn't stop thinking about you." Bumi answered honestly. He shrugged best he could and gave a small grin. "Haven't been able to get my mind off you since you kissed me."

Lin stared holes into him – and although she'd probably blame the lighting, there was the smallest bit of color coming to her cheeks – then she spat poisonously at him, "Me kiss you?! You were the one who kissed me!" she glared.

"Oh? I seem to remember it differently. I knocked you over and then got above your lips and then you suddenly kissed me." Bumi shrugged again.

"I seem to recall you knocking me over and then forcing yourself on me." Lin was notably redder, and her harsh tone had rounded off slightly. Her barbs had now softened into a more civil note.

Bumi smiled and scooted a bit closer to her, Lin turned herself away from him at first, but not completely. She kept her eyes on him as he leaned in close to her, invading her space. "Care to try again?" he asked quietly. He had to admit the slap was a surprise, his cheek getting red from the contact. He didn't retaliate, but apparently the answer to his question wasn't simply a slap because before he knew it, her lips were pressed to his softly.

While it may have seemed like an eternity, the kiss lasted for about another twenty seconds before she pulled away from him, and this time she couldn't deny she was flushed. Then she realized why she didn't try to escape, and why she wouldn't use the nail she pulled out of the flooring to kill the man in front of her before making a daring exit. "Is that why you kept me alive…? A kiss?" she asked, voice hardly a whisper.

His hand reached over and settled on top of hers, "I respect you. Admire you, even. And damn it, I like you – a lot." Bumi smiled and squeezed her hand gently before standing up. "If you're not too busy tonight… I have dinner at 7, if you'd care to join me." With that he turned and started to leave.

He stopped at the sound of her short laugh, "Sure… Not like I'm going anywhere special otherwise!" she teased. "Sorry… I won't be able to wear a dress, if that's what you were expecting. Not that I would anyway…" She didn't see it, but she knew about the smile on his face as he walked out, leaving the door purposefully open as he walked off.

While the door to her cell was open, Lin didn't venture out beyond the corridor. It seemed… suspicious. Even with the odd – to say the least – feelings she had started developing, she wasn't stupid. After an hour passed and nobody came down to investigate her, she realized he wasn't testing her or tormenting her or anything else of that nature. She didn't have anything to bring with besides herself, so she walked along to the staircase and looked down at the deck below, only to find crates and barrels of storage.

Sighing, she headed up past the crew quarters, gun decks, and then to the top of the ship. It was surprisingly under-manned, from what she saw. Either that or some had been ordered away so she wasn't spooked by them all. Lin walked along the deck slowly, peeking over the sides now and then and gathering a few looks from those that were out. Heading along she found her way to Bumi's quarters, standing there for a good minute before knocking. With no response, she entered and found him reclined and snoring in his chair. She rolled her eyes at the notion that this was the man who had beaten her in both naval and close quarters combat twice, now before her not conscious enough to notice when someone snuck up on him.

When she closed the door and took a step toward him she heard a click. Turning her head she saw a pistol leveled at her, but when he looked up and saw her face it withdrew and was replaced in its proper spot. "What can I do for you?" he smiled. "Sorry about the gun, never be too careful when working with pirates for a living."

"You said dinner was at 7… but I didn't have a timepiece. So I figured I'd come up and see what time it was." she told a half-truth, she did not in fact have a timepiece. But even she didn't know why she had come up.

"Oh! I'm sorry about that. Here." Bumi opened a drawer and pulled out a pocket watch, clicking it open to make sure it worked before he tossed it to her. Lin snatched it from the air and tucked it into her pocket and nodding to him in thanks.

Lin gave a smile to him before turning to leave him, the watch said it was 5:30, so she had a little time to kill before she had her dinner to attend.