Chapter 11
The Other Perspective
Jim stared up at Silver in shock.
"Silver?" he gasped. Silver smiled, putting his cybernetic hand on Jim's shoulder.
"Aye, lad, tis me."
"Silver!" Jim cried, pushing himself into the cyborg's arms despite his dizziness. Silver laughed.
"Easy, lad, easy. Yer still a bit rough around teh edges." Jim didn't care. He simply hugged the cyborg back as tight as he could.
"I've missed you, Silver," Jim whispered, content to feel the man's arms around him again, his fatherly embrace, the steady whir of his metal appendages, and the smell of freedom, the smell of adventure, clinging to his clothes.
"It's good ta see you too, Jimbo," Silver whispered, hugging Jim back before he lifted the boy up and set him back on the bed. "But yeh need to slow down for a minute. Take this. It'll help yeh." Jim took the strange plant and ate it. Within moments his headache ebbed and the last of his fatigue disappeared. He let out a content sigh.
"Silver," he began again. "What happened to the others? We were drugged by a man named Smithy after a band of pirates –"
"I know, Jimbo. Alice told me," Silver interrupted.
"Alice? Then she's here? Is she alright?" Silver couldn't help but laugh at Jim's wide eyed expression.
"Yer still starry eyed over tha' lass aren't yeh?" he chuckled. Jim's face turned a rosy pink. "She's fine, Jim. Now if yeh come with me I'll explain everythin'." Jim got off the bed and followed Silver out of the stuffy bedroom and down a hall toward a large kitchen. As Jim walked in all of his friends jumped up from their seats around the wooden table.
"Jim, you're okay," Alice laughed, catching him in a tight hug. Jim stumbled a bit but grinned and hugged her back. Silver leaned against the doorframe watching the two of them with an amused expression. When Alice finally pulled back she turned to Silver. "So what happened?" she asked. Silver cleared his throat.
"Yeh all might want ta 'ave a seat," he said. Jim was just about to join his friends at the table when he saw Smithy leaning on one of the counters. His eyes narrowed.
"You! You drugged us! Give me one good reason…" Jim began, marching over to Smithy whose expression turned into fear.
"Jimbo, stop, lad," Silver ordered. Jim hesitated, but continued to glare at Smithy who shimmered out of view, camouflaging with his background. "I'll explain it if yeh jus' sit down." Jim swallowed but slipped into a seat next to Alice. Immediately the kitchen was silent. Silver tried to start again when Jim interrupted once more.
"Wait, you all know Silver?" he asked his friends.
"He was the pirate that tried to kill you on your voyage to Treasure Planet," Raymond shrugged.
"But he helped Alice save you. And in turn the two of you let him go. We know the whole story, Jim. Alice told us before you woke up," Dalia said.
"We're cool with it. It's actually pretty awesome. And he hasn't tried to kill us yet," Doug added. Jim looked at his friends and smiled.
"You won't tell anyone will you?" he asked, a crease forming on his brow. They all shook their heads.
"No way, man. Alice made us swear to secrecy," Dalia chuckled. Jim looked at Alice who grinned.
"Yeh got yerself a couple o' good friends there, Jimbo," Silver remarked, taking out his pipe.
"So Alice told you what happened to us?" Jim asked, turning to face Silver again.
"Aye, lad, she did. From what I've heard, teh six o' yeh had a rough couple o' days," he nodded.
"You can say that again," Ray snorted.
"An' I suppose yeh all want an explanation as ta why Smithy drugged yeh."
"That'd be sufficient," Jim agreed.
"Well, Smithy is not yer enemy. I met the lad a while back when I landed here on this moon Oberon –"
"Wait, wait, wait, you're saying this is a moon?" Jim gasped. Silver pursed his lips.
"Aye it is, now would yeh stop interruptin' an' let me tell me story?" he teased. Jim was silent as Silver continued. "I met Smithy in a pub down the road. He was a right good gambler at that. Me money drained faster than me glass o' ale," Silver chuckled. "Anyway, as we played through the night I told 'em the story of Treasure Planet. I left out the mutiny jus' as a precaution an' always kept me cyborg parts covered. Well, Smithy began telling me about his adventures as well. As yeh all can see one thing led to the next and ever since t'at night Smithy's been helpin' find me a safe place to stay. I told 'im all about yeh two," he said, pointing to Jim and Alice. "So I guess when he saw ya enter teh pub earlier taday he wanted to find a way t' bring yeh all back to me," he finished.
Jim and the others all shared a surprised look.
"That, and I didn't want any of you to be found again by those pirates," Smithy announced, shimmering back into view right behind Jim who jumped.
"Aye, now Alice told me yeh were all attacked by pirates on yer roundtrip ta the Academy," Silver nodded.
"Yeah, we were attacked by a man named Edward Dancer," Jim replied.
"But he calls himself Bloody Dancer," Alice added.
"Hm, I don't believe I ever heard o' him. I suppose you're goin' to need a radio ta signal yer school, eh?" Silver rubbed his chin with his cyborg hand.
"Wait, those pirates wanted more than to just kidnap us, that's why they keep coming after us," Alice spoke up.
"Yeah, they're after her necklace," Dalia agreed, jerking her finger toward Alice who pulled the black obsidian stone from her pocket. Silver leaned forward in his chair as Alice held it up.
"What makes yeh t'ink they want yer necklace?" Silver inquired as Alice handed it to him so he and Smithy could observe the cursed piece of jewelry.
"They almost killed us over it," Jim grunted, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. "They kept saying something like it led to a treasure bigger than the Queen's armada." Silver looked at Smithy who shrugged.
"Well, Alice, I t'ink it's right up yer alley," he chuckled, handing it back to Alice. Her eyebrows rose.
"Me?" she questioned.
"Aye, it beats me what tha' might be, but I'm sure a book would suffice," he chuckled, handing the necklace back to Alice. She blushed and laid it out on the table.
"Well before we go to the library, there is one more thing I saw before Dancer nearly strangled Jim," Alice announced, her hands shaking. Everyone's eyes turned on her in interest. "He has the same necklace," she choked out.
"What?" Josephine demanded, having been silent until that moment.
"Alice, are you sure? Maybe you just thought you saw a similar necklace," Jim argued.
"No, Jim, I know what I saw. He had the exact same necklace around his neck. I even checked my pocket and mine was still there," she explained. "There are two of them."
"But, why would Dancer be after yours if he already has one?" Doug inquired, trying not to bump his injured wing.
"I don't know," Alice sighed. "I don't know anything anymore," she whispered, looking down at her feet. She couldn't help but think about what had happened in the bar. Would she have killed Leah? She had felt so angry, and what did Leah know about her parents? Jim noticed her look but said nothing as Silver got to his feet.
"Well, let's just start by getting yer injuries checked out an' some food in yer bellies. This here's Smithy's apartment an' we agreed yeh can all use it for now. He's got a radio for yeh all t' use as well," Silver said.
"Yes, but it's old and I have yet to put some of the pieces together," Smithy admitted.
"Oh, I love fixing things. I can help," Ray exclaimed, jumping to his feet. Smithy chuckled.
"Really?"
"He's the mechanic out of all our crew," Jim grinned.
"And a darn good one," Ray agreed, following Smithy out of the room and back down the hall.
"Now," Silver grunted, getting to his feet. "Who wants ta help me fix dinner?" he smirked, his eyes looking between Jim and Alice who rolled their eyes, knowing there'd be a whole lot of dishwashing that night.
Dinner was quite eventful that night. Jim and Alice were both glad to be in the presence of their old friend again. They told Silver all about their lives at the Academy, how unfortunately Morph had to stay behind because of the No Pet rule, and how they had used the remainder of the treasure to rebuild the Benbow. Silver seemed glad to be back with them too, for he continued to crack jokes about how different they looked in Academy uniforms and how Jim's haircut made him seem taller. Silver even entertained their friends with stories and warm cider after they all ate just like all the times back on the Legacy.
Although Alice was happy to be in the safe company of her friends again, her mind kept turning over and over about all the things Leah had mentioned connecting to her past. At last she felt a need for fresh air and stepped out onto a balcony connected to Smithy's apartment room. She leaned against the rail and took a deep breath before her eye caught sight of a drainpipe. Alice knew it was a silly idea, but she wanted somewhere a little more private.
Wringing her hands she grabbed onto the drainpipe and climbed a few feet up onto the roof of the apartment complex. As Alice turned around to find a suitable place to sit, she suddenly spotted Josephine who sat on the edge of the roof, letting her legs dangle over the side while she observed the stars. Alice made to climb back down the drainpipe when Josephine called her back.
"You can stay a while, if you'd like," Josephine whispered. Alice looked around before slowly approaching the girl and taking an uncomfortable seat next to her. They were silent for a long time.
"I'm not going to come out and say I'm sorry for being so rude to you," Josephine began, not taking her eyes off the stars. Alice shrugged.
"I don't expect you to," she muttered. There was another long moment of silence in which Alice heard silent sniffles escape Josephine. She wasn't sure if the girl was crying or not, and if she was crying whether Alice should comfort her.
"It's my mom," Josephine spoke up before Alice had a chance to say something. "I come from the Planet Fillius. I'm an only child. I've never had any brothers or sisters to look up to like all my friends at home did." She stopped and took a deep breath. Alice listened as Josephine began again. "Everyone on my mom's side were really interested in beauty. You know, perfect hair, making sure your nails and skin are polished. Having a beauty queen daughter has been passed down for generations in her family. She thought that when I was born I'd be the next in line."
Josephine broke off giving a sad little laugh.
"From an early age I was pushed to be the best in beauty pageants, to have the loveliest skin, or manicured nails. I took after my dad instead. I was more interested in artillery. My parents got into a fight over it. My dad wanted me to have a future on a ship at the Interstellar while my mother wanted me to become a beauty salon worker. I got to the Interstellar, but my mom is disappointed in me now. She hardly responds to my letters anymore," Josephine finished in a whisper.
Alice was shocked the girl was telling her this.
"I wanted to prove that I had it in me to be beautiful, to attract boys, to be what my mother wanted –"
"A floozy?" Alice questioned. "Did she want you to attract men in particular?"
"No!" Josephine snapped before taking another deep breath. "No, I guess…that was my undoing. I like Jim, Alice. I'm not going to lie to you."
"I don't want you to," Alice replied, giving the girl a sincere smile. Josephine snorted.
"Yeah, well, don't think I told you this to kindle a friendship. I just wanted us to get our stories straight," Josephine grumbled as she got to her feet and turned to leave. "And for the record, I'm not backing off of Jim," she spat, storming away. Alice turned back to the stars and sighed. Her mind was so flustered about everything, especially the hatred she'd felt earlier. She gazed up at the stars in longing. Where were her parents? Were they somewhere out there, thinking about her as much as she was thinking about them?
A hand on her shoulder made Alice jump.
"Sorry," Jim chuckled, sitting down beside her as the two of them dangled their feet off the roof.
"How'd you know I was up here?" Alice asked, feeling his hand slide across the ledge and grip hers.
"Lucky guess," he smiled, their fingers lacing together. They were silent for a moment. "What's bothering you?" he asked, turning to look at her. Alice pursed her lips.
"I was just, thinking about…my parents. Leah keeps bringing them up and I can't help but wonder if they even remember me," she choked out, her eyes filling with tears. She looked away and swallowed, trying to keep her voice steady. "Or if they ever cared about me."
"They do," Jim replied.
"How do you know?" she asked, turning to face him so Jim could see the tears racing down her cheeks. "What if they're in trouble? Leah said my father was dead," Alice blubbered, her vision blurring from all of her unshed tears. "What if they don't remember me? What if they're both dead? What if I never get to meet them, never get to feel a parent? What if I'm always this alone?" she sobbed, burying her face in her hands.
"Hey," Jim whispered, gently pulling her hands away from her face. "Look at me. Look at me, Alice." Alice looked at him. "You are never alone. I can't say anything about your parents because I don't know either, but wherever they are I'm sure they love you. Who couldn't love you, Alice?" he teased, giving her that familiar half smile. Alice returned the smile through her tears as her face flushed. "And no matter what, you'll always have me," he finished in a voice barely above a whisper. Alice's heart stopped as he leaned in so their foreheads were pressed together and their hands intertwined. Both of their eyes slipped closed as they sat like that for a few minutes.
"I'm just scared, Jim," Alice breathed. "I'm scared to be forgotten." Jim tightened his hold on her hands and leaned in so their lips brushed.
"You won't be," he muttered, closing the distance as their lips met. Their kisses had certainly come a long way in the past couple of months together. No longer did they kiss with the awkward shortness as before, but their emotions remained the same whenever they kissed. Jim's heart started up that familiar rhythm as Alice's pulse quickened. Their bodies gravitated closer together as their arms wrapped the other in a tight embrace. When they finally broke the kiss both of them were finding it hard to breathe.
Jim grinned and pulled back as his eyes opened. Alice followed suit.
"I don't want to go back down yet," she admitted.
"We don't have to." Instead Jim wrapped his arm around Alice as they lay down on their backs and curled up together watching the stars that seemed so close and yet so far away.
"That's Gemini," Jim whispered, pointing out a star constellation after a while of silence. When he received no response he craned his next to see Alice already fast asleep curled into his warmth. Jim smiled reminiscing on the first time she'd fallen asleep against him back on the Legacy. Just like last time he adjusted his position so he was more comfortable before closing his eyes as well, a smile lingering on his lips.
Unbeknownst to the sleeping teenagers a space galleon had just launched from Crescentia spaceport making its way to the Interstellar Academy Terebellum in search of the brave lost spacers.
A/N: I am so sorry this is so late guys. Almost two weeks late! Sheesh! I really am sorry. Things have been a little hectic lately. This is like a little filler chapter to add some more romance and really let others see Josephine's perspective. It seems she's being pressure by her parents a lot. And sorry if I didn't portray Silver's character very well. I was being lazy and I wasn't sure how he would act here.
I'm not sure when I'll write again. I'm struggling a lot lately, so I apologize if the next chapter isn't for a while.
Review please! It would mean a lot to me :D
Special thanks to: lazyX1000 and PartofYourWorld-ArielMermaid :)