Chapter 8

The next day, Basil watched as two of the crew "escorted" Amber up from the brig and brought her to Ratigan. She didn't know what to expect, and was trembling nervously as he towered over her.

"First, I have a little surprise for you," he said, removing something from his coat pocket. Holding it up, she was surprised to see it was a necklace. The piece of jewelry was very simple: a black silk ribbon with a silver pendant engraved with an elaborate letter "R." Despite her fear, Amber glared up at him.

"You want me to wear that like some kind of pet?"

"You should be happy to wear it," Ratigan remarked, appearing to be hurt by her comment. "It could keep you out of trouble. Anyone who sees it will know who you belong to and will think twice about messing with you. But of course there's always another alternative, if you don't like it," he shrugged, smirking mischievously.

Amber glared one last time before sighing in defeat, turning around and holding her hair up as he fastened the necklace around her neck. Once it was on, she never felt more degraded in her life. Basil felt himself seething with anger himself as he watched from a distance, although he was relieved that Ratigan hadn't chosen to brand her with the "R" instead.

Standing at the helm where the whole crew could see, the Captain got their attention and began to speak.

"Now gents, I have but one rule concerning our new guest," he began, placing a hand on Amber's shoulder. She tried to shrug it off, but he held on firmly. "She's mine; therefore, you are not to touch. In fact, if any of you so much as looks at her the wrong way, I'll have your guts for garters. Savvy?"

Amber glared up at him again, infuriated that he was treating her like a piece of property, while there were nervous replies of "Aye aye, Cap'n!" at his orders. Ratigan smiled at her in response, causing her to fume even more. However, the rat didn't miss the few mutterings and shifting of some of the crew. One in particular seemed to clear his throat as if to say something, but then thought better of it. Unfortunately, Ratigan wasn't going to let him off so easily.

"Did you have something to say, Mr. Teague?"

"Erm…" the mouse stammered nervously. "N-Nothing important, Cap'n… J-Just—"

"Out with it already!" Ratigan snapped, beginning to lose his temper.

"S-Some of the crew were thinkin'… 'tis bad luck to have a woman aboard, s-sir."

"Is that so? Y' know what else is bad luck?"

Amber jumped at the loud crack that sounded close to her ear, horrified as the mouse fell down dead with a bullet in his brain. Ratigan returned his pistol to its place in his belt casually, as if shooting one of his own crew was a daily occurrence.

"Does anyone else have a problem with Miss Amber's presence on my ship?" Ratigan asked sarcastically. "Didn't think so. Now get ta work y' bloomin' cockroaches!"

The crew hurried about to do their tasks, tripping and shoving each other to get out of the captain's way.

"As for you, missy," Ratigan said addressing the girl, "you can make yourself useful with that bucket and mop over there. Just don't get in the crew's way… wouldn't want ya to get stepped on," he added with an amused grin.

Amber balled her fists up by her sides. "Now you expect me to clean this ship like a maid?"

"Would ya rather spend your time in down in the brig?" Amber repressed a shudder, hoping she'd never have to spend another night down in that horribly cold, damp, and disgusting place. She looked down and shook her head. "Then ya best get to swabbin'."

The captain watched with a satisfied grin as Amber fumed silently while going to get the mop and bucket. Normally swabbing the deck was a menial task assigned to Basil, but he needed something to keep this girl busy and out of mischief.

Speaking of the whelp, Ratigan noticed that he wasn't the only one observing Amber as she began her task. His eyes narrowed into slits as he saw Basil glance over at her occasionally while he tightened the ropes or hoisted a sail. Other members of the crew would watch her too, but they were looks of lust while she was scrubbing the deck on her knees or whenever she bent over slightly. He had to admit, she was a lovely thing to look at, and a nice change of scenery on the ship. But the looks Basil gave her were… different. Concern, sympathy… compassion. Even his first mate gazed at her sadly every once in a while.

"Bootstrap!" Ratigan called out suddenly. The green lizard slithered down from his position up in the crow's nest as fast as he could.

"Aye Cap'n?"

"I have a special job for you. You have a good view of the ship from up there on the ratlines, don't you?"

Bill gave an awkward salute. "Aye sir, got a bird's eye view, I do!"

"Good. Then help me keep an eye on the girl, make sure she doesn't get into any trouble. Basil and Lehmann too," he added. "We'll be making port soon, and I don't want any missing cargo. Understood?"

"Aye aye, Cap'n," Bill replied with a sly grin. "I'll keep a good eye on 'em."

After the lizard scurried away, Ratigan gave one last glance before heading into his cabin. He began to have second thoughts about keeping the girl. She could turn out to be a distraction to his crew. Or… perhaps he could find a way to use her to his advantage.

As Ray came up on deck to take the second watch, he was surprised to see the girl still mopping the floor at the stern. She didn't notice his presence until she turned around and ran into him. Startled, she jumped back and accidently hit the bucket of dirty soap water, causing it to spill all over Ray's boots. Amber's eyes grew wide with fright.

"I-I'm so sorry," she apologized desperately. Ray watched in surprise as she fell on her hands and knees and began wiping his shoes clean hurriedly.

"Hey, it's ok," he assured her, kneeling down and taking the rag from her. "It was just an accident. But… why are you still out here? You should be resting now."

"I haven't got any other order, sir," she replied nervously. "And I don't know where I'm supposed to sleep."

Poor girl is scared to death, Ray thought. "Come with me," he said, reaching a hand out to her. "I'll find you a place to be."

However, Amber hesitated. She'd seen the looks directed toward her all day by the crew… once alone, he might have other plans with her.

"It's ok," Ray said quietly, reading her thoughts. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

Seeing the sincere look in his gray eye calmed Amber somewhat, and she finally took his hand.

"I'm Ray Lehmann," he said with a smile as he helped her to her feet.

"Amber," she replied, offering a small smile of her own. "Amber Lee Mus."

"Pleasure to officially meet you, Miss Amber," Ray said with a smile. With her hand in his, he noticed the blisters that had formed from swabbing the deck all day. "First we'll take care of these," he said with a smile, turning her palm upward to get a better look. As he escorted her down below deck, neither mouse had noticed as Bill had sat watching the whole time up in the crow's nest.

"We better keep quiet," Ray whispered as they descended the stairs. "If anyone sees us, we'll be in serious trouble."

Amber nodded silently, but the pendant around her neck made a little tinkling noise as she walked.

"Stupid necklace," she muttered, holding her hand over it.

Ray smiled sadly. "It's better you have that to show you belong to him. I— Mr. Basil got the 'R' a more… cruel way."

Basil… that was the mouse that was so kind to her the night before. He didn't seem like the other pirates… come to think of it, neither did Ray. She looked at the mouse curiously, wondering if he and Basil were here of their own accord, or if they were like her, forced to stay here against their will.

Soon they reached Ray's cabin, and Amber followed him inside. She sat in the chair by his desk as he cleaned and bandaged her hands. As he got up to rinse his own hands clean, she noticed a black hat on the desk beside her. Something about the brilliant red feathers appealed to her, and she couldn't stop herself from placing the hat on her head while his back was turned.

"It suits you," she heard him say, not realizing he had turned around.

Amber quickly removed the hat from her head, blushing in embarrassment. "It's okay," Ray said with an amused smile, walking over to place it on her head again and steering her towards a mirror. They both stood and looked at their reflection for a moment before Amber took a lock of her hair and placed it as a beard.

"Arrr! Now I'm a real pirate," she giggled. Ray's smile grew bigger and he chuckled.

"Nah..." he replied, removing the hair from her face. "You should stay the way you are. En smuk kvinde; a beautiful lady."

Amber blushed again and looked again at herself in the mirror. As they looked at their reflections, Ray's smile suddenly disappeared.

"You don't belong here..." he muttered quietly. "You should be home at land."

Amber hung her head sadly, feeling that chilling fear creep up on her again. "What will Ratigan do with me?" she asked worriedly.

"Ratigan is a…" Ray paused, as if searching for the correct English word. "…Collector. He wants to own what he can. Things, mice, power; everything. I guess you're just a part of his... collection."

Amber nodded, touching the pendant around her neck. "Are you a part of it too?"

Ray didn't answer at first. Amber tilted her head curiously as his hand unconsciously strayed up towards his collarbone. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but instead thought better of it. He shook his head and gave Amber an apologetic smile. "Well, let's find you a place to sleep," he said, taking his hat from Amber's head and place it on his own. "It's getting late, and I have to take the next watch soon."

Amber nodded. "Mr. Lehmann?" she asked as they went to the door. "You have to teach me something Danish one day."

Ray smiled mischievously. "Rød grød med fløde."

"Rod gro…graah… What?" Amber giggled.

"Heh, we'll work on it," Ray chuckled.

As they stepped out from the room, they were surprised to see Fidget hobbling quickly towards them. "Mr. Lehmann, Mr. Lehmann!" he said hurriedly.

Amber's eyes grew wide and she ducked behind Ray, afraid of getting in trouble for being seen, but Ray remained calm and in control. "What is it, Fidget?"

The bat looked surprised to see the two emerging from Ray's cabin together, but shook his head and pointed back in the direction he had come from. "Somethin's wrong with Basil."

Ray's heart pounded and Amber gasped audibly before sprinting quickly after Fidget as he led them to where the crew bunked for the night. Ray had to elbow his way through the crowd to get to Basil, who lay curled up in a ball on his side.

"What happened?" he demanded, kneeling by Basil's side and checking his pulse.

"He was moanin' and groanin' in 'is sleep," Fidget answered, "and Smithy, who bunks beside him, got mad cuz he was keepin' him awake, so he turned 'is hammock over and made Basil fall out and told him to shut up, but he didn't move. We thought 'e was dead at first."

Dreading the worst, Ray pulled Basil's shirt up and removed part of the bandages to inspect his wounds; sure enough, he could tell even in the dim light that they were infected. And even though his skin was hot to the touch and feverish, he shivered as if he were cold.

"Bring him to my cabin," Ray instructed, helping them to lift Basil up. Between three of them they carried the injured mouse back to Ray's cabin and laid him on the bed on his stomach. Amber followed quietly, biting her lip nervously as she watched over Ray's shoulder.

"C-Can I do anything to help?" she asked.

"You could fill that basin with some water," Ray replied. "We need to get these wounds cleaned. And there are some fresh bandages in that chest over there."

Amber nodded and hastily did as he instructed while Ray removed Basil's shirt and the rest of his old bandages, wincing as Basil out a painful groan. "I'm so sorry Basil," he whispered, feeling the guilt return. When Amber returned with the water and the bandages, she helped him try to clean the wounds as carefully as they could.

"We have to get his fever down and stop this infection," Ray muttered. "He needs a doctor—"

Ray was interrupted by a knock at the door before Bill came inside. "Captain wants a word with you right away, sir," he said gravely.

Ray gritted his teeth in annoyance. That rat had the worst timing…

"I'll be right back," he told Amber, rising to his feet.

"I-I—" she stammered nervously, looking down at Basil with worry.

"You'll be fine. Just keep cleaning those wounds and try to stop the bleeding."

"Okay," she whispered as Ray followed Bill and closed the door behind them, leaving her alone with the unconscious mouse.

….

Pausing at the door to Ratigan's cabin, Ray put his ear to the wood before knocking softly. He knew by now that the Captain could get very irritated when he was disturbed, no matter if Ratigan had called him. And the evil smirk on Bill's face told him that he was probably in trouble, but for what he had no idea. However, once the rat told Ray to enter, he carefully turned the doorknob and stepped inside.

"You wished to see me, Captain?" Ray asked. Even though it had been five years since he was brought onboard the Felicia, facing his Captain was always a nerve-racking experience.

"Status report," Ratigan simply stated, not even bothering to look up at the Dane as he remained focused on the maps and charts on his desk.

Ray stood at attention with his hands clasped behind his back, not taking the seat across the desk from Ratigan because he had learned the hard way not to do so unless instructed or offered to, and he spoke almost automatically. Being the first mate, he was used to responding to this command frequently and reported every detail to the Captain, everything from the ship's progress to the crew's performance of their duties to how low they were running on supplies.

"Very good," Ratigan replied once he was done. "You may return to your post."

Ray turned to go, but then hesitated. He always tried to avoid speaking with the Captain as much as possible and never brought up anything that might upset him. But for whatever reason, he decided to speak his mind for once.

"Um… there is one small thing, sir," Ray remarked as he returned back in front of the desk.

"Mmm," Ratigan grunted, not paying much attention and still leaning over his maps.

"I-It's about Basil."

That caused Ratigan to look up with a glare. "What of him?" he asked, frowning irately.

Ray took a deep breath to steady his nerves. He'd been anxious about bringing this up to the Captain, but now that he'd spoken, there was no turning back. "He is getting worse. The wounds on his back are killing him; if we don't get him to a doctor—"

"Perhaps you've forgotten, but he's still paying the price for disobeying me."

"But it's not only him, sir," Ray quietly pointed out. "Several of the crew are still recovering from our last battle, and we could use some medicine if someone were to become sick. We're running low on medical supplies, but what good are they when there's no doctor to use them? Pretty soon you'll have no crew left."

Ray tried not to be intimidated by the rat's glare, but he gulped nervously, wondering if he'd overstepped his boundaries. However, Ratigan actually seemed to consider his words and then sighed deeply. "I suppose you have a point," he muttered. "Alright, Lehmann. It'll be about a two day journey to the next port, so we'll make a small detour to restock and see if we can't find ourselves a physician."

"Yes sir," Ray replied with a brisk nod, trying to hide his sigh of relief as well as his surprise at the Captain's decision. "I'll inform the crew." But as he turned again to leave, Ratigan held his hand up.

"Just a minute, Ray," Ratigan said as he motioned for the first mate to return. "There's somethin' I'm a bit curious about."

Ray's heart skipped a beat. "Yes sir?"

"The Felicia has had her fair share of 'recruits' over the years, though you and Basil have lasted the longest. But I can't help but wonder… what is it that's so special about him?"

"S-Sir?"

"This concern you continue to show for him is unusual to say the least. First you were both eager to hack into each other with swords, but now you're worried about his health. Why the sudden change?"

Ray opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted as Ratigan continued. "There's the girl as well. You've been getting pretty chummy lately."

Ray averted his eye, looking down at the floor.

"You're not planning something?"

"I'm not sure what you are talking about," Ray said confused. Like thunder Ratigan stood from the chair and slammed his hand onto the table, causing Ray to jump.

"You know exactly what I mean! After that little worm came on board you have changed. Is it guilt?" Ratigan said, moving from behind the desk and walking towards Ray, causing the red mouse to retreat back a few steps. "Do you feel sorry for what you did to Basil?" Ray winced, feeling that pang of guilt return from when he was forced to punish him. "Or perhaps you sympathize with him and Amber. Do you think they want to be your friends, just because you know what they're going through? Do you think they can get you away from this ship?"

Ray trembled as he suddenly found himself cornered, his back against the wall. His heart pounded in his chest as Ratigan loomed over him. "You are not betraying me… are you?"

"O-Of course not sir. I-I'll never betray you." Ray held his breath when Ratigan placed his hand on his chin, turning his head to the right to show his missing left eye.

"Good. Because you know what happens if you try to do something I'll not accept." Ray gasped when Ratigan finally removed his hand. "Stay away from Basil and Amber," he threatened. "Now get out!" Ray quickly went to the door, flinching as Ratigan's voice followed behind him. "It's an order, Lehmann!"

….

Basil let out a quiet moan as he came to, wincing at the burning sensation on his back. Sensing that he was laying on his stomach, he tried to push himself up with his arms to sit up only to find that he didn't have the strength to do so. He realized he was trembling slightly, and he felt so cold…

"Shh…it's ok," a voice whispered comfortingly.

Opening his eyes slowly, Basil saw Amber sitting on the bed beside him. She looked like an angel, her dark curls framing her face as she gazed down at him with concern. Was he hallucinating?

"W-Where am I?" Basil asked confusedly, his voice weak with pain. "What happened?"

"The cuts on your back are infected, and it's caused you to become sick," she replied softly, wiping his brow with a cool cloth, which felt very relieving to him. "Ray brought you here to his cabin to recover."

Basil sat quietly for a minute, trying to recall what had happened, but he only remembered collapsing in his hammock at the end of the day exhausted. As Amber continued to clean his wounds, he squeezed his eyes shut and gripped the pillow tightly, gritting his teeth to keep from crying out. Amber bit her lip nervously, knowing that he was in great pain. She felt horrified looking at the bloody cuts across his back. They looked like whiplashes.

"Did Ratigan do this to you?" she asked quietly.

"Y-Yes," Basil answered. "I was whipped for disobeying him, a-and he forced Ray to be the one to do it because he stood up for me."

Basil trailed off as pain overwhelmed him again, and he buried his face in the pillow to muffle his groan. As he gripped the fabric, Amber caught a glimpse of the "R" burned onto his wrist and gasped softly. The more she heard about this rat, the more terrified she became of him. And just thinking of what Ray and Basil must have suffered at his hands caused her hate for him to grow.

"I'm sorry," she said sadly.

"I-I'm fine… J-Just distract me," Basil whispered, trying to change the subject. "Where are you from? Tell me about your home."

"Oh ok… Um… I'm from Charlestown, South Carolina," she began, still cleaning his wounds gently while distracting him from the pain. Basil listened with interest, surprised with himself for being so curious about her life and wanting to know more about her. "I helped my parents run the inn that they owned. But…" Basil opened his eyes and felt his heart wrench when he saw her face grow so sad. "…about a month ago, the inn caught fire, and m-my parents…" she trailed off, unable to go on.

Basil's ears perked down sadly. "I'm so sorry," he whispered, hating himself for causing her to bring up such a painful memory.

"I-It's ok," she replied, giving a small smile and wiping the tears away. "A-Anyway, I packed what little I was able to salvage and used what money I had saved to get passage on a ship going to Port Royal, hoping to start a new life. I guess… I guess I was really just running away from the horrible memories. Then our ship was attacked by the pirates, and, well, you know the rest."

Basil nodded. "I ran away, too," he replied with a sad smile. "My father disappeared at sea years ago, and my mother died a few years later, so my siblings and I looked after each other til Brynna married and Byron went to work for the East India Trading Company. He tried to get me a position in the EITC, but that held no interest for me whatsoever. So one day I signed up with the navy and became a cabin boy on the H. M. S. Intrepid. Commodore Grayson was obsessed with catching pirates, and we were actually chasing the Felicia when we got caught in a storm and wrecked against the rocks. I got trapped under the wreckage, and the crew of the Felicia found me and brought me to Ratigan, and he forced me to join his crew."

Amber looked at him sadly. "So you're just as much a prisoner as I am."

Basil nodded, looking down at the floor. They sat in silence for a few minutes while Amber continued to clean the cuts.

"Well, the bleeding is stopped at least," she said after some time. "Do you think you can sit up so I can wrap some fresh bandages around you?"

Basil nodded, and managed to raise himself up on his elbows. He winced and inhaled sharply, and Amber grabbed him before he could fall over and helped him into a sitting position. Basil felt himself blushing at her touch, suddenly embarrassed at being half bare in front of her. She felt her own cheeks burning slightly and tried to keep her eyes from staring at his slim but built form as she began to wrap clean cloths around his torso.

"What kind of a name is Felicia for a pirate ship anyway?" she asked with a nervous laugh, trying to distract herself.

Basil chuckled. "The name means 'good fortune.' I suppose Ratigan thought it would bring him luck. Pirates are a very superstitious bunch."

Amber laughed in response. It was a relief for them both, being able to share a laugh like this. However, the moment was short-lived as Ray returned. Both mice looked up at him concerned with the wild and frightened look on his face. "Ray, what's wrong?" Basil asked.

"G-Get out."

"W-What happened?" Amber asked nervously, alarmed at the drastic change in Danish mouse.

"Just get out!" Ray shouted. "Skrid! Skrub ud!"

Basil stood shakily to his feet, pulling Amber along with him, knowing that Ray meant business when he lapsed into his native language. However, his failing strength caused him to stumble, and Amber had to put his arm around her shoulders to support him. After the two mice had stumbled out the door, Ray slammed it behind them and put his back against it as if barring anyone from coming in. Panting with effort, his heart pounding frantically and his eye wild with fright, he finally sank to the floor with his head in his hands.


Author's Note: I feel bad for being so slow at updating... so have a longer chapter as an apology ^^'

The main thing I was worried about with this chapter was if I made Basil sound too... wimpy. But he did get a dozen lashes, and with a cat o' nine tails, that's like 9 times 12, so really more like 108 lashes... O.o

A huge thank you again to my cowriter NightMagican. Most of the ideas and dialogue in this chapter came from them, like Bill watching them from above and reporting back to Ratigan, the scenes with Amber and Ray, the part with Ratigan threatening Ray, him telling them to get out at the end, and even Amber's last name (Mus means mouse ^^). She stayed up pretty much all night last night helping me write this XD But I added just a little bit, like the scene with Amber and Basil, as a sort of surprise and a thank you ^^

Oh and "Rød grød med fløde" is a Danish tongue twister. If you've seen any of my Livestreams, you'll know how horrible I am at pronouncing it XD

Basil, Ratigan, Fidget, and Bill (c)Eve Titus and Disney
Amber (c)Me
Ray Lehmann (c)NightMagican