Rating: T
Warning(s): Some cursing and minor violence.
Character(s)/Pairing(s): Shade and Captain Scarlett friendship all in Scarlett's perspective. It could be considered romantic if you make your own assumptions and squint.
Setting: This takes place after the Captain Scarlett and Her Pirates Booty dlc. If you haven't completed it, you're going to be spoiled. Also mentions other dlc's, but just in passing.
Notes: Been a while updating. Skyrim dlc's took over my life, and for that, I am so sorry. Then I suffered severe writers block over the Maya/Lilith femslash I promised and I honestly could not deliver this time. It's hardly polished and I'd rather not let my writing suffer for it. Trying to make a break through my block, I looked through the reviews and found this pairing suggested. I suddenly belted out 2k words in a few hours time. This chapter is seriously ridiculously long by my standards. Don't know what my problem is. Still working on it though. It'll be my first femslash ever so I guess I just want it to be perfect. Anyway, sorry for those that were itching for that one. Here's this instead. Love it, flame it – I don't mind. Enjoy (if you can, I am SO sorry guys).
The few times they've spoken had been brief, Scarlett guesses as she pulls her sandskiff into the once paradise town of Oasis. Hardly a real conversation outside of petty insults and a few threats mostly on her part and never face to face. She always found him shut up in that shack of his as if a thin sheet of metal could have truly stopped her. He wouldn't face them of course, being just one man against so many. She'd lead her crew into town, help themselves to the well water, and they'd be on their way. They stopped coming after the well ran dry and sometimes, she wonders if she should've given him the choice to join her crew or die. Passing by the numerous corpses in the center of town, she thinks a quick death would've been kinder than the slow death of dehydration.
Right now though, she's lost her ship and is no longer a captain of anything since the Vault Hunters had laid waste to her crew and she's grateful she hadn't killed the lone man who makes the silent town his home. Her escape from the Leviathan hadn't been easy and she walked miles to reach a Catch-A-Ride station in the scorching heat. Scarlett didn't dare come near her ship in the off-chance the Vault Hunters had decided to have a little cruise party to celebrate their good fortune. Making an appearance no matter how desperate she is wouldn't be the smartest move at the moment. It's a known fact not many pirates make it into old age without erring on the side of caution and she's been a pirate for quite a while.
The sound of music carries on the hot breeze as she makes her way to the shack and she wonders why he still remains. Can't be the people being that they're all either dead or sand pirates. The ambiance maybe, she decides. There's something to be said about the cloudless skies, the lazy heat, and the whole expanse of everything just swallowing you up. Before the drought, people used to call the city of Oasis a tropical Shangri-la of sorts. Scarlett likes to chalk that up as a matter of opinion since she prefers the vast empty canals and lakes where water once flowed. When the light hits the sands just right, the whole canyons light up like rivers of gold.
The music rises in volume as she reaches the counter and for the first time, she finds the shutter open. Glancing at a pair of sandaled feet propped up on the counter, she guesses he's asleep; chair tipped back and hat pulled low over his face. This is the first time she's seen him in person and she's ever so slightly disappointed by his choice of wardrobe. Scarlett fights the urge to pluck his hat off his face and throw it away somewhere, trash maybe, and struggles to recall his name. Is it Sherman? Shay? Is Shay even a man's name? No, can't be that but here's definitely a 'sh' in it somewhere she's sure.
"Hello there!" Scarlett bangs smartly on the counter with her hook and startles Sherman – or maybe Shawn – from his nap. "I don't think we've been properly introduced, have we? You've always slunk away in here every time I've visited. Of course I've always come round pillaging all you have left to survive, but let's leave that behind us and start over shall we?"
He slowly adjusts his sunglasses to see her better against the sunlight and for a moment, she hopes he'd save her the trouble of guessing his name and introduce himself. Instead, he lets out a strangled shout as he scrambles out of his seat and bangs the stutter down on her hook. Her whole arm vibrates at this and she knocks the radio to the floor with the shriek of metal on metal as she fails to pry it up. A few inches is all she can manage, and she thinks she might be stuck. Very stuck. She tugs pointlessly and it doesn't give way. She didn't have a set plan on what exactly was going to happen when she decided to drop by, hopefully intimidate the hell out of him, but this changes everything now.
"That isn't any way to treat company now is it?" she says pleasantly while fruitlessly struggling with her predicament. The sound of movement comes from the other side and she wonders what he's up to. Getting a weapon? Making his escape? Both likely. "I'm unarmed," she adds, and that much was true. She had dropped her gun in the Leviathan and she doubts she'll ever get it back. Damned Vault Hunter thieves. "Open this up and let's be friends for the moment, yes?"
A short silence follows and she thinks she might have won him over, and easily too. "I am quite comfortable like this, thanks," he says finally and Scarlett curbs her temper. That's fine. This will do until she can convince him to give her some information. Finding out where the Vault Hunters are and what they did with her treasure would make this all worth it. Water would be good too, but that could be asking too much. She'll see how it goes.
"So, you are very much alive," he continues lightly and almost disappointed, as if merely remarking about something half-unpleasant like a hangnail he'd have to file down and damn it all, wouldn't that be such a bother. "That is not good."
"Mmm, yes. Very unfortunate business, I'm afraid. Just a sloppy mess, really," Scarlett leans against the counter to ease the strain on her arm. "I was so sure I'd reach the treasure before the Vault Hunters did. Shame that. After all the trouble I went through to find the treasure in the first place, you'd think I'd get some sort of metaphorical reach around."
"Well, this is awkward since I'd have to disagree," Shelby? says with a strained sort of laugh and there's another sound through the shutter. Something opening and closing, click of a latch, and the unmistakable clinking of bullets hitting the floor. Ah, a gun. How lovely. "You see, I would call that karma for pillaging our town and nearly leaving us all to not die of thirst."
"'Us' you say?" Scarlett narrows her eye, thinking. His new friends still here? No... everyone's either dead or gone, she's sure of it. Perhaps he'd really gone round the bend like she's always suspected. She decides against broaching the subject of his mental stability, very rude really, and instead tries to be as honest as possible. Mostly. "Like I said, unfortunate business all around and I'm truly sorry for that. But that was a side effect, I think. The pillaging, the backstabbing, and the deaths of all my puppies were all a result of everything I've given up for Blade's treasure. And I've... I've lost so much for absolutely nothing."
And it's true, she thinks bitterly. Through the years, she's lost so much of herself trying to find Blade's treasure, that last bit of glory in Pandora, and for what? To a few common Vault Hunters in under four hours. Nothing will give her back all those years. Or her limbs. Or her once friends. That's not karma. That was sacrifice. Payment. And one she'd pay again if given the chance. Well, not her remaining limbs, of course. Then that'd just be ridiculous because what kind of pirate has two peg legs and hooks? The ridiculous kind, that's what.
Briefly, she thinks of Sandman and wonders if things would've been different between them if she hadn't tried to kill him long ago. Or maybe it wouldn't and she'd still be here now. Pirates at last. "They stole that from me. And I think you more than anyone would know how it's like to be left alone and with nothing."
"What exactly do you want, Scarlett?" he says after another short pause. This time, his voice cracks with something like irritation and Scarlett quickly decides to give up this angle. He has a gun and that three-inch gap is enough to shoot through.
"I want the Vault Hunters," Scarlett says frankly. "And I know you know where they've gone. I can't repay you now for giving up your mates, but I can give you my word that I'll not kill you in the future. Call it an I.O.U if you like."
"No, absolutely not. That is out of the question," Shane, maybe? says firmly and Scarlett guessed as much. Perhaps she should have killed him before if he was going to be so uncooperative. "As much as I enjoy spending this wonderful quality time with you, I have a very big gun and I suggest you leave before I'll be forced to shoot you. A lot."
"Fair enough, but one more thing," Scarlett gives in. She hoped things would've turned out differently but being unarmed and in suddenly such a vulnerable position had changed that. Maybe it is karma. "Erm... gah this is so embarrassing but I'm... ah..." she tugs at her hook for emphasis. "Stuck."
The shutter rises barely another inch and Scarlett passes her hook through. "Many thanks," she says cheerfully and risks a peek through the gap with her good eye. "You wouldn't happen to have some water on you by any chance? I'm quite parched and –" And the barrel of a gun blocks her line of sight. Well, it was worth a try. "Right, I see you're fresh out."
"Goodbye, Scarlett." The shutter closes with a bang and she would've been more indignant about his rudeness if she hadn't of course pillaged his town more times than she could count. Karma and all that.
"I'll be back," she promises. And she will, he's the only lead she has after all. "And when I do, we'll see if I can't convince you to be a tad more helpful."
And without another word, she makes her way back to her idling sandskiff. She lost years of work in a single day, but she can start from scratch if she must. All she needs is the prod in the right direction and this Shade character has exactly what she needs.
"Ah, yes, that's it! Shade!" Scarlett announces with a slap to the steering wheel. That was sure to drive her mad all day.
The second time she visits, two days have passed and there's still enough time for the Vault Hunter's trail to be fresh. She's been busy since she's last seen him. Busier than she's been in years and she's only manged to round-up a mere skeleton of a crew to help man her ship, but it will suffice for now. Her new men aren't as loyal as her last bunch, but that can be earned with time and plenty of action. They'll have more than they can handle soon enough.
This time, she surprisingly doesn't find him in his shack, but on the beach sitting under an umbrella with someone. Or rather, a corpse, she suspects by the smell. Squinting against the sunlight, she makes out a board between them, chess perhaps. What a strange little man. She readies her pistol and without any further hesitation, she closes the distance between them while he's still unsuspecting and presses the cool steel at the nape of his neck.
"Games up, mate," she says as he tenses and slowly holds up his hands. "I think we both know why I'm here, yes?"
"Oh, w-what a surprise!" Shade sputters and Scarlett slips her hook around his throat, forcing him to stand. He laughs feebly and sways on his feet for a moment before she turns him around. "If I'd have known you were coming, I would have broken out the Chinese checkers."
The man was a pitiful sight, Scarlett decides with one look at him. She's seen men like this before out here in the wastes. Gums exposed and skin painfully cracked. She wonders how he's managed to survive on so little for so long. Carefully rationing a few sips a day if he's feeling particularly luxurious? Coconut milk? Piss? All likely. She entertains the idle thought of him killing the last of the town's survivors to ensure his own life until she decides that no, she's seen enough killers too and Shade was not one of them.
"You poor thing," she tuts and runs the dull edge of her hook up his cheek leaving a fine pink line against his skin. His sunglasses slip down to the bridge of his nose and Scarlett can't help but giggle at the sight of his brows. "And you're a ginger? How in all the holy hells have you not burned to a crisp and died out here?"
Shade licks his dry lips and grins wider still. "What can I say? Too weird to live, too rare to die."
"We'll see about that," Scarlett smiles back and gives him a rough shove towards the docks where her ship waits. "Say good goodbye to your mate. If you play your cards right, you might finish your game by tea time."
"I'll be back, Frank," he assures the heedless corpse on the ground. "No, no. Don't get up, I can handle it. Let everyone know I've... I'm going out for a walk."
"Yes, 'a walk'," Scarlett decides to humor him and address the corpse. "He'll be back, Fred. No promises though," she whispers the last bit conspiratorially.
"It's Frank," Shade tosses past his shoulder as she nudges him forward with her gun.
Scarlett shrugs indifferently. "Fred. Frank. Whatever."
An hour later, deep in the brig of her ship, Scarlett is nearly sure he's going to talk. Men like him usually do. She's going to find her treasure. She has to. It's the only thing she has left to hold on to and she must have something to keep her going when nothing else will.
"Where was I? Oh! Yes, so, just imagine the look on my face when I finally walked back on board to find out those thieving Vault Hunters had played shuffleboard on my deck while I was gone. With grenades," she admits much to Shade's amusement who probably chuckles more than he should given his situation, but Scarlett lets it slide and laughs right along with him. "I swear it had to have been the stumpy loud chick... wuss'er name...wait! Gaige? Yes – her. I never liked her from the start."
A cool pitcher of water sits between them on the scarred tabletop along with a few discarded orange rinds and she thinks he looks a bit better now that he's had a solid drink in him. His mouth not as tight, his skin not as drawn. He's nice and comfortable now and while pain and hardship can sometimes make a man talk, Scarlett never liked those tactics much because most everything on Pandora is full of pain and hardship and that breeds hard people. Better to be friendly and welcoming than to be harsh and cruel. At least… until someone stops being useful. And Shade is very useful at the moment. She delicately peels the rind back on a second orange until she feels the curious sensation of being stared at. Sparring him a quick glance, nothing but the glare of the unflattering light overhead reflects back. Gah, but she can't stand how some people prefer to wear sunglasses indoors. It's just as cheesy as the rest of his get-up.
"So..." he says and takes a slow sip from his cup, no longer the thirsty swallows as before but simply enjoying it while he can. And he should; he might not get another drink after today. "I take it you're going to start torturing me soon, yes?"
"'Torture?'" she echoes back, stifling a laugh. "Heavens no! I don't torture people – I kill them! All the begging and crying and screaming 'please no!' gets very tedious after a while. And the mess!" Scarlett clicks her tongue with a roll of her eye. "Very nasty. No, I don't do torture."
"Well if you're not going to tickle me with that very, very scary hook... what am I really doing here?" Shade leans forward in his seat, drumming his fingers nervously against the cup. "I don't know where the Vault Hunters are and –"
"Oh, but I think you do," Scarlett says, all good humor gone now that they're talking business. "The last man who told me he wouldn't help me or didn't tell me what I wanted to hear, I shot between the eyes because I believed him. Now, if you tell me you don't know anything… I'll believe you too. So, are you going to die today, or are you going to help me and go on your merry way?"
Scarlett lets this sink in and wishes she can see what he's thinking, but the glasses are doing a good job of hiding it. She's bluffing though, she couldn't kill him, not if he truly knows something. She needs a lead. A heading. A whisper, something he heard in passing – just anything that will show her where to go! Oh sure, she can poke around and try to find others that are affiliated with the Vault Hunters and find out their whereabouts, but that could take weeks and she doesn't have that kind of time. This sad little man is the only thing that can help her now and she's been waiting far too long to get her hands on the treasure to afford any more delays.
Shade folds his hands on the table and after a few moments, clears his throat. "I am afraid I really do not kno–" And in one swift movement, Scarlet reaches the short distance between them and slams his face down on the table; her pistol pressing against his temple. "No! No, no, no, wait! Hear me out!"
"Sorry, what was that? I could have sworn you wouldn't be able to help me," she bites out as pleasantly as she can and keeps him from struggling with her hook. Apparently, he thinks he's got the upper hand because he has what she wants. Sometimes she wonders why she tries to be civil at all if this is the thanks she gets.
"Yes! Wait – no! Just listen." The tabletop fogs up with his breath; glasses askew and hat knocked off. He hesitantly grasps the hook around his neck for more breathing room. "I do not know where they are... but I think I know where they could be going. Does that help, friend? Friendly, friend," he laughs weakly. "Please don't kill me."
"Oh, so we're friends now, are we?" she lifts her hook away with a grateful smile and goes so far as to dust off his hat and place it back on his head. "Lovely! By all means – let's gossip!"
Shade slumps back in his seat, his hand gingerly testing the pinkish-red ring around his neck and grins. "Yes. Friend," he takes a moment to adjust his glasses. "After the Vault Hunters came back from the Lair of the Leviathan, their hands full of – your –loot, they spoke to a woman over the ECHO about the existence of a newly discovered Vault –"
"Another?" Scarlett cuts him off with a snort. "Honestly, how many bleedin' Vaults are there on this planet? So sorry, carry on."
"That's just it, I do not know where," he wrings out his hands before stilling them. "A man cut through the frequency, shouting on about a crater and… that is all I know before they left. You find that Vault, you find the Hunters."
Scarlett takes a long moment to consider his words. Vague as they are, she trusts him. The way she sees it, he's desperate enough to be honest. Besides, a quick search of the ECHOnet can confirm this story. A new Vault wouldn't be hard to find since word travels fast on Pandora of such things and someone's bound to know exactly where it is. She's finally got something to work with.
"This helps, yes?" he prompts a bit too eagerly, clearly ill at ease by her long silence, and she almost smiles.
"We'll see," Scarlet says as she stands, the chair lightly scraping against the floor. She impatiently waves her gun at him to do the same. "C'mon, up you get."
He finishes the last of his drink and follows her out the door and up some staircases until they reach the sandskiff bay. All the while, she entertains the idle thought of killing him then and there and kicking his body off her ship… but decides against it. He was useful now, he could be useful again. In the end, that's what kept Herbert alive for so long.
"You're letting me go?" Shade says at last when she pauses to digistruct a sandskiff.
"Surprised? I said I would," Scarlett shrugs. "Go on now, before I change my mind. I've had a lovely time but I must be off. Got lots of pirate-y things to do and all that."
Shade takes in the cove where she's made her base and frowns. "You're leaving me here? This is sandworm country!"
"This is an airship, not a taxi," she deadpans. "I can either shoot you off my ship, or you can chance it out there. Goodbye, Shade. I wish you the best of luck."
And with that, Scarlett slides the door shut, leaving him alone, unarmed and miles away from his cozy shack back in Oasis. And now... she's once again on the right track. She'll have her treasure in no time.
For the first few days, Scarlett was hopeful. That once stolen fever back in her veins again with the wind in her hair and a direction to guide her. After the first week or so, she started to worry. At a month, she was desperate.
In all that time, she had traveled to a wasteland called the Baddass Crater of Badassitude, a truly uninspiring name, and learned of the arena some pumped up beast of a man had staged for the chance to open the Vault. By the time she had arrived, it had been opened and the Vault Hunters gone. Poking around and questioning the locals at a place called Pyro Pete's Bar – a shabby little dump with a disgusting lack of toilets – she heard they traveled abroad to a continent called Aegrus not far off the east coast. Again another heading, and again nothing when she arrived. Nothing but spear shaking natives and constant gray skies. It was rather dreary mucking about in knee-high swampland. And then… the trail went cold once more. What an utter waste of time.
Well, not a complete waste. They did plunder and pillage and leave behind a path of destruction everywhere they went – pirates after all. Supplies ran short, blood-lust ran high, and the men were uneasy enough as it were with Scarlett's less than cheerful demeanor. But it all felt pointless to her, like an annoyance to get quickly out of the way and she took no real pleasure from it. At length, she stopped looking for the treasure and instead started plotting her revenge since she grew to accept the fact she'd never get it back. Likely sold off on the very first day they laid hands on it. It was her heartbeat. Her life support. And now it's gone. It was wishful thinking on her part to believe otherwise.
And so, it's come to no surprise that she's found herself back at the beginning, walking through the empty plaza of Oasis once more. It's cooler now, the stars just creeping out over the horizon. After going so long with nothing but the oppressive cloudy skies over Aegrus, she's glad to be back. This time, Shade watches her approach and this time, he doesn't close the shutter down as she strolls up to the counter. He looks to be doing alright, more or less how she's last seen him anyway and oddly enough, a part of her is truly pleased he's still alive.
"Welcome back," he says and arches a deck of cards between his fingers, reading up for what she assumes is a game of Solitaire. Instead of biting down on his usual bottle rocket, a limp and slightly bent cigarette smokes gently. "You were missed."
Scarlett highly doubts this. "Please don't make this weird," she sighs and leans against the counter. "Those will kill you, y'know."
"Something tells me it won't now that you're back," he chuckles and shakes out a beaten up pack from a breast pocket to offer her one. Surprised he'd offer at all, she accepts despite never actually liking the habit. He leans closer and in the sharp spark of a flame, she supposes it has gotten weird because there's something awfully intimate about having someone lighting up a cigarette for her. "So, how goes the hunt for the late Captain Blade's treasure?"
"Somewhere between 'bugger' and 'all'," Scarlett admits, and strangely at ease about it too. The sting is still there, but it's worn down to a dull ache by now. "I've spent nearly a decade looking for it and it's gone. The legendary treasure of the sands, lost for a quick buck to the dozens of vending machines all around Pandora."
"It does kind of cheapen the whole thing," he agrees and short bark of laughter escapes him until he apparently thought better of it and sobered immediately. "My deepest condolences, friend."
Scarlett highly doubts this too and thinks sarcasm doesn't suit him. "Go on, s'alright to laugh. Was a half-arsed plan to begin with. Spent most of the time one step behind them and the rest wondering where they've gone. It was like trying to find a midget in a sea of bruisers – very confusing. And how are our mutual friends these days? You've heard from them lately?"
"I wouldn't know," he pauses for a slow drag and lays down the first row of cards. "I haven't seen them since you left."
"I don't have to threaten your life again, do I?" she says casually. "Because I'd like to think we're past that stage in our relationship and you can already assume that I'll keep my promise. It'll save me loads of time and I've already made some plans for this evening."
"No, no," he chuckles nervously. "They actually turned out to be very flakey and even accused me of making up reasons for them to come over and hang out with me. Which were true, but… screw those guys."
Scarlett watches the smoke twist and cling to his glasses and considers this. He seemed sincerely put out by the Vault Hunters brush off and once again, she found herself believing him. After all was said and done, what more would the thieves do here in Oasis? Go on holiday? The treasure is gone and they have no reason to return or keep in contact with him. Shame, really. She was hoping he'd have another lead for her. Just anything to go on to help plan her revenge but he's just at a loss as she is. If he's no longer chummy with the Vault Hunters, it seems that Shade has finally outlived his usefulness just like Herbert. All death threats aside though, Scarlett wasn't exactly thrilled by the idea for once. It's was a nice seeing a familiar face that hasn't betrayed her in some way. Or at least, not yet.
Unless…
"How do you feel about joining my crew?" Scarlett says quickly before she could change her mind. "I can promise you the life of adventure, a small cut of the booty, and alternating Saturdays off. However, before you make your decision, my number one rule for anyone who joins is that you join for life. That and… no hats. I'm the only one with the hat," she adds quickly. She'd rather not spend every day looking at that ugly thing if she can help it.
"Me? A sand pirate?" Shade's brows disappear up into said hat and a decent amount of ash falls from his lips. "As honored as I am at your most gracious offer, I am not sand pirate material. That said, you can ask my friend Jocko. He has always wished to be a sand pirate you see, and even has all the accessor–"
"I'm not asking one of your rotting puppets, I'm asking you," she cuts over him as she puts out her mostly ignored cigarette, her patience wearing thin. "I'm actually in need of a new cook and I think I could put you to use. If you know how to boil water and don't question where most of the meat comes from, you're perfect for it."
Shade seems unconvinced. "What happened to your last cook?"
"Oh, Mercer?" Scarlett rolls her eye, irritated now that she's reminded of the whole thing. "He took a fancy to a native girl over in Aegrus and ran off with her. He's probably trying on loincloths as we speak. I think I'll give him a few weeks of bliss to lull him into a false sense of security before having him killed or something like that. He'll die for sure though so don't worry, the position is totally open."
For a long moment Shade says nothing and she thinks he hasn't even noticed his cigarette has all but burned down to the filter. "I don't happen to have a choice, do I?"
Scarlett wants to say no like she's done so many times before. She'll pull out her gun and give him an ultimatum; the only kind of loyalty she knows how to make. He'll accept it, she knows he will… well … she thinks he might. But she leaves her gun in her holster this time. She doesn't want to risk it since she could get used to having someone around that isn't out to get her. It makes for a nice change of pace and he's not bad company once she got past his grating voice.
"Yes, you do," she sighs rather reluctantly. "You can join me, or keep playing Solitaire." Scarlett bites her lip momentarily, debating. "There's always the chance I might kill you later either way, but I'm feeling quite positive about this at the moment. What d'you say, do I have a cook?"
Shade puts out the fag end of his cigarette on the counter and grins in that wild way she's grown to like. "You may count me in, Captain."
"Wonderful," she says, and oddly enough, she means it. "Let's get going, yeah? I'm starved."
He pulls down the shutter like she's seen him do so many times before, but for the first time, the light goes out on the hot pink neon sign. She'll miss it, she thinks. Perhaps she'll swing by later in the week to carefully take it down and decorate her new cook's kitchen. Somehow, it feels off not seeing him under it. A door opens and shuts on the side of the shack and when Shade appears, she notes that he apparently didn't feel the need to pack a thing. Except...
Scarlett regards him coolly, "Your hat."
"I am keeping the hat."
"Fine, you're the exception," she lies, she's totally going to burn the thing the first chance she gets. Pirate at last.
A/N: Got a lot of games coming out that I'm itchy to play. Not to mention the news of the upcoming dlc/six character class that's been getting me all excited. Any speculation you guys would like to share? I'd love to hear everyone's guesses. Anyway, not sure when I'll update again. Still working on the Maya/Lilith femslash. Don't be surprised if things change up though. Still feel really bad for going against what I said in the last chapter so from now on, I'll never promise anything unless I've already gotten halfway through it. For those you made it back, thanks for reading!