Terra had kept the ship going through the night. It had thankfully been an easy night to sail had sailed for a little while, but Terra had taken this task mostly upon himself. But come morning and when his crew and guests had shaken the dregs of sleep off, he was starting to pull into port. Ven and Moana scrambled to help him dock the ship. Once they were at the pier, Terra stepped off to deal with the port inspector. A silver coin from him managed to get the man to go the other way while Jack helped carry Aqua down the gangplank.

Throughout the night, she had only gotten progressively sicker. She appeared to be at death's door itself. Elsa hovered over her, trying to blot the sweat off Aqua's face. Against her protests, Jack had picked her up, piggy backing her down the deck of the ship, attracting the attention of the people on the dock. Now Aqua was blushing deeply, though it could be partially contributed to fever, draped over his back and he was pretty sure she was sulking.

"You know, you'd be so much lighter if you lost the dress. That has to be at least ten pounds of fabric alone!"

"S-Shut up!"

"Elsa's even wearing more suitable clothes," he pointed out, "And she's the Queen."

She refused to speak. She had clearly noticed Elsa's new clothes and disapproved of the new attire. Even she couldn't disagree that Elsa's new outfit would help her blend in more. The baggier pants and tunic were masking who Elsa truly was. No one would look under that to try to determine who she was. She was just another 'sailor' who had come to shore, just like hundreds before her. As long as she kept her head down, no one would be able to say anything differently. And that's exactly what they needed to keep things quiet.

"Isn't it uncomfortable?"

"You just want me undressed." she grumbled.

Jack shrugged. He was curious about how she looked beneath her dress. He might be a "gentleman" among the crew, but he was a guy. Any guy would be curious, especially considering how close she was pressed against his back. Besides, Jack liked flirting. He was completely unaccustomed to her types of reactions, which only made the game more fun. If there was something Jack enjoyed - it was a good game. Teasing her, even if he didn't really mean it was fun.

"I'm not going to lie. That'd be a benefit for me," he said. "But seriously, you'll have a heat stroke in this thing."

He was melting just by being in contact with her or rather being in contact with the voracious skirts that were practically devouring the both of them with their plume. There was no way that dress wasn't uncomfortable for her. He knew you were supposed to sweat out a fever but Aqua had to be dying in the dress that she was so determined to keep on. He was also aware of the looks she was getting. An elegantly dressed woman on the back of a sailor. She screamed rich nobility, even if she wasn't one. Unless they managed to convince her otherwise, she was only going to paint a target on her back for pickpockets and other naredowellers.


"Excuse me," Terra said, grabbing the inspector before he dashed off with his coin, "Another coin if you can tell me the best healer you have on the island."

The man grinned as Terra flicked the coin in between his fingers, making it trail across his knuckles and dance in between the joints. The inspector eyed the silver coin with clear appreciation. Terra knew people. Some of them just happened to be easier to read than others. This man was easily tempted by bribes. Why wouldn't he be? He was in a position of power and respect, but not a lot of pay. Certainly not for the kind of life the man appeared to have with his well to do outfit and holier than thou attitude towards Terra himself. But the coin certainly helped sweeten his arrogant disposition.

"That would be Grandfather Pabbie."

"And where do I find him?" Terra asked.

"Across from the Dancing Dove. It's the only pub in town."

He scrambled to catch the coin that Terra flicked to him. Terra began to walk towards town. Elsa, Jack and Aqua trailed behind him. The four of them were going to go into town to find the healer. Meanwhile, Ven and Moana would remain on the ship. Once Aqua was cured, or announced dead, whichever came first, Terra would relieve the two of their watch so they could go drink in the bar. They had earned it for working so hard. He was still tired from sailing through the night. Aqua would be settled one way or another.

"You'll get another coin if you tell no one we're here or where we are going, but if I find out you didn't…"

Jack gestured to the man, as if slitting his throat as he passed. If the inspector told anyone, Jack would be back to kill the man. Their secrecy was the utmost importance. Jack's gesture was more of a bluff than an actual threat. Terra and his crew often didn't kill folks. They just used their 'bad reputation' to scare people. He doubted he looked intimidating considering he was carrying Aqua's prone form across his back.

They marched their way into town. Their tiny little troupe attracted it's fair share of stares, mostly because of Aqua's attire. If the woman had been dressed like any civilian, they wouldn't have given her a second look. Instead, she screamed wealth and money, by wearing her clothes. People were probably sizing them up for picking their pockets. Terra moved his coat back a little, showing those who thought they could get lucky, that he was carrying a handful of pistols around his person. Two in either boot, two on his belt and one shoved into the lapel of his jacket. If they tried anything, they wouldn't get far. That seemed discouragement enough.

'Grandfather Pabbie's' house wasn't far from the Dancing Dove. It was a little stone hut with a white curtain acting as the door. Terra motioned for Jack to stop, and he did, but Elsa bumped into his back, too busy looking at Aqua to realize he had stopped. He caught her by the elbow to keep her from falling before letting her go. He knocked outside the stone, wondering if the old man was even home. If not, Aqua wouldn't last.

"Come in."

Terra pulled back the cloth, allowing Jack to go in first with Aqua. Elsa was tight on his heels, leaving Terra to take up the end of their parade. Inside, there was a tiny old man with wild unmanageable white hair and a shirt, stained with plant matter. His eyes widened when he saw his guests. Hurriedly he cleared a cot for them. Jack took this as his cue to lay Aqua down. The woman was breathing heavily and her eyes were screwed shut, as if even breathing hurt. The old man knelt at Aqua's side, checking her wrist for her pulse before looking up at them.

"What happened?" he inquired.

"Poison," Terra grunted.

He was probably holding his breath just as much as Elsa and Jack were. They wanted to hear desperately that she would be okay. Jack had invested his night keeping her alive. Elsa could potentially lose her best friend. Terra might have said he was keeping Aqua alive to keep Elsa in line, but he felt responsible for her. If they had gotten to the vessel sooner, she wouldn't have tested Elsa's wine. Yes, the woman had done her job, but she didn't deserve to die for it. She was on his ship so it made it his job to see her through to their end mission.

The man checked her over. He was silent as he worked. For the most part, Aqua was a good patient. She moved when he asked her to, she remained still when it was required of her, despite the clear pain that she was in. It was a show of strength on her part. Terra believed she was trying to be strong so that Elsa didn't worry. Though the Queen looked like she was about to pass out from sheer worry. She was a wisp of the woman who had pulled the gun on him, as grief and concern consumed her. Perhaps even guilt because it had been her wine that had poisoned her friend.

"Uscet, better known as assassin's weed." Pabbie told them.

"Is there a cure? Can we save her?" Elsa pleaded.

The elderly man looked at her, a very solemn expression on his face. He took both of Elsa's hands in his, giving them a squeeze. She felt her eyes watering, the anticipation killing her as slowly as the poison was killing Aqua. Terra swallowed thickly. There had to be a cure. But with a name like Assassin's Weed, the signs weren't good. She had survived so far, perhaps on sheer willpower not to leave Elsa alone with the 'big bad pirates' who 'kidnapped' her. If he needed to be Aqua's bad guy to keep her around, then he would be.

"We can try."

The old man hobbled over to shelves and pulled down bottles with worn labels, some completely worn off. Only known to the old man because he knew their uses. Haldi. Bitter root. Lamyotus. Milfoil. Ikoss. Kon. A bottle of something that smelled like a mix of pickled eels and bananas. The old man carefully pinched out what he needed of each item and threw it into a pestle and began to grind it into a fine powder. Once he determined it ready, he dumped it into a kettle and added some water before placing it over the fire.

"What are you doing?" Terra inquired.

"Making a tea. She'll have to drink it," Pabbie said. "It's not a pleasant sort and we can't add anything for the taste."

"Will it save her?"

Pabbie looked immensely old upon hearing the question. He probably got this question a lot, considering he was the only medicine man that the village had. Herbs might be too late to save Aqua. Considering the amount of time the poison had already been in her system. They may very well be too late to keep her at all. No one could say they hadn't tried their best to save her. Terra hadn't even asked how much coin this would cost him to save her life. He considered it well worth whatever it was going to be.

"That depends on her." he said, "The medicine will help, but she has to do the rest of the work. She has to want to live. She'll have to stay overnight…"

Terra loathed to lose time that they could have used getting ahead of their enemies, but he knew the old man was right. They couldn't do anything for her if they kept moving her around like this. It would not let her rest and recover or even let her get her strength back enough so she could overcome the poison, even with the cure soon on it's way. Terra supposed he could get some rooms at the inn for the crew. He could stay on the ship, so no one would try to make off with anything. Pirates weren't the only thieves to worry about.

"I can stay with her," Jack volunteered.

Both Terra and Elsa looked at him in surprise, mostly because the words had been on the very tip of Elsa's tongue. Jack volunteering for a second night to watch over Aqua had clearly been unexpected. He was under no obligation to do so. Even if he had been the one to bring her on from the Queen's first vessel. He hadn't been the one to poison her, so he shouldn't have felt guilty over her situation.

"Very well," Pabbie said. "But you will help me keep her with us."

Jack nodded. It was, after all, what he had been doing the night before. One more night wouldn't hurt him. Terra regarded Jack carefully. He hadn't seen his first mate so emotionally invested in anything in a very long time. As his friend, it worried him. He didn't know what Jack's state of mind would be if he did end up losing the maid to the poison, but he knew there would be no reasoning with him. Still, he had to give him a chance to reconsider.

"Jack, are you sure?" Terra inquired.

Jack flashed his captain a million watt smile and nodded.