Chapter 2 Tomato Jerk (Is a Good Insult)

Antonio tried to sit down at the window seat farthest from the door but the dog barked at him. "Toro gets the window seat then." He said with a smile sitting down next to Lovi. Heracles smiled as well, glancing at them.

"Toro?" She asked mockingly.

"That's what I've named him because you didn't seem to have given him a name yet. I think it fits him. Mostly because of the little white marks over his eyes."

"His name is Biascicare, jerk."

"But don't you think that Toro sounds so much cuter?" Antonio grinned. Lovi gave him a weird look.

"You-a are really stupid, aren't you."

"Am not! I just-" Antonio got distracted as they passed a yard full of dogs to which he waved at passionately. Lovi face palmed, regretting her decision to let this man take her to Berlin. He was obviously brain damaged in some way. Apparently their previous conversation was soon forgotten by the Spanish man, as he pulled out a tomato and started to munch on it thoughtfully.

Lovi looked at the red fruit curiously. As far as she remember, she had never eaten a tomato before, she couldn't help but wonder what it would taste like. Antonio noticed her look, and she looked away, not wanting to have to interact with the idiot. Heracles took that time to rouse from his nap, looking around tiredly, as if looking for something that seemed amiss. Seemingly seeing nothing, he fell back to sleep and Lovi made her move. "Could-a I have a tomato? Not that I think your tomatoes would be any good." She growled out, avoiding Antonio's eyes.

"Sure, Lovi~!" He handed one to her.

"Stop saying my name like that you Tomato Jerk!" But she took the piece of fruit and started to eat it, finding that she liked the taste and it was gone in seconds. That was when the carriage lurched to the side. Antonio nearly shrieked and thrusted his head out of a window.

"Where the infierno did the horses and the driver go!?" He cried out, already grabbing their small bags that they had brought with and opening the door. The carriage was still going at neck breaking speed, the horses having been running when detached, and it seemed that they would hit a tree if they didn't get out of it, preferably now. Grabbing Lovi's wrist, and earning a few swears in both italian and spanish, he jumped out of the carriage.

"What were you thinking!?" Lovi screamed as she brushed snow off of her dress.

"I just saved your life, you could at least thank me." Antonio snapped. He took a breath in, now was not the time to let his more angered side out. He placed a smile on his face, "Besides, you look so pretty when you're scared."

"I am not!" She yelled back, blushing slightly.

"Look, we still have a ways to walk seeing as our ride was… ruined." Heracles stated, brushing snow off of himself and the bags, ready to go. "I suggest we move or the ship will leave us behind."

"Oh, they won't the Captain owes me." Antonio laughed.

"I don't think he sees it that way."

"So what? I knocked him out, he was driving the ship in the wrong direction. I helped us survive that storm and you know it."

"Wait, you-a commandeered a ship?" Lovi broke in with a look of surprise. Was this guy really that capable?

Antonio rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "Well, less commandeered, and more borrowed so we wouldn't die. I really like ships. Anyways they aren't expecting us for a few days we have a little time."

Lovi rolled her eyes and grabbed a bag. "Come on idiotas."

"So wait-a you didn't say anything about-a lying."

"But it's Kiku. You really have to go through him to get to Felicia."

Lovi grabbed Antonio by the collar of his shirt, nearly punching him in the process. "I agreed-a to show up. Fine-a. Dress up. That-a makes sense. But lying. No!" She put her face up to his. "I don't-a know how it is in Spain but-a I wasn't trained to-a lie to royals."

Antonio smiled and said, "I just thought this was something you had to see through to the end."

"You-a thought!" Lovi huffed.

Heracles pushed them apart and led Lovi off to the bridge that crossed the river of runoff from the mountain they were trekking down. "Lovi, I want you to tell me what you see." He said handing her a rose as she looked at her reflection.

Lovi threw the rose in the water. "I see a skinny little-a nobody with no-a past and no-a future."

"I utterly dismiss that sentence." Heracles stated. "What I see is a very pretty girl with a fiery and engaging personality who knows exactly how to be a royal without any training, at least in the ways that count." Lovi smiled slightly. "And trust me. I've known plenty of royals."

It took a little while before she gave them an almost smile. "You-a know what? I-a might as well give it a shot. What-a do I have to-a do?"

"We'll teach you how to be a royal." Heracles assured her, starting to lead her a bit farther away from Antonio, speaking in a hushed whisper. "I have been meaning to ask something of you as well, something that sounds a bit odd."

"What?"

"Do you happen to know of a boy named Oliver? I've been looking for him quite sometime, and you mentioned an orphanage earlier. I was wondering if you had maybe seen him."

"Pink-a hair, and a really stupid-a face with-a freckles?" Heracles gave a sort of nod, like it fit who he was looking for. "Yeah, we got sent out the same day."

"Where is he now, do you know?"

"Probably went-a to-a that-a stupid-a mansion I was-a supposed to-a go work at. He was-a too chicken to-a come." Heracles frowned for a bit, and slowly led her back to Antonio who was watching with confusion.

"She has agreed to learn." Heracles confirmed to his friend, his tangent forgotten for a while. They started to list off some facts. She was born by the sea, terrorized the cooks for not doing their jobs, and had a white horse that she loved dearly. As they spoke, the memories that they must have been related to tickled at the edge of her brain.

She interrupted them only once as they walked on their way to the ship, and it was merely to say, "Uncle-a Remus had-a cat!" Where the two men looked at each other in surprise. She gave them a grumbled response to ignore her.

"Oh, Lovi~," She felt the urge to rip Antonio's head off as he called her with that annoying tone of his, "That was correct! So good!" And then he started to instruct her on how to hold herself, which she did begrudgingly. The positions seemed silly but she went along with it, familiar to some of the instructions. Though, her favorite part was when Antonio tried to teach her how to ride horses with his horse not liking him so much, throwing him off into a pile of mud. That was the first time she had truly laughed in a long time, and it had gotten stares from the two men. She had quickly scowled to show them that that didn't mean that she liked them. The lessons took days to learn, but by the time she was to the ship, the worst of it was behind her, and she could swear that she could remember all the people in her family along with the family's friends names.

It was a privateer ship. Antonio had gotten them a ride on a freaking privateer ship. Her jaw dropped as a blond man with thick eyebrows, and a rather fancy red hat and jacket walked down the plank with a scowl. The man growled, "What are you doing here, Antonio?"

"You said that I could bother you anytime, Arthur." Antonio said with a grin.

"That was sarcasm."

"We have money." Antonio teased, holding a small bag in front of him. "Well, it's more of jewels and maybe a few tokens for some really good bars." That seemed to do the trick since the blond man's glare turned into a smile as he grabbed the proffered prize.

"Welcome aboard. Again." Suddenly there was a sword at Antonio's throat. "But if you touch my ship anymore than any other passenger again, I will end you." Antonio nodded, the dumb smile never leaving his face, and the sword dropped. The captain turned to the other two with a quick smile, though his eyes stayed on Heracles for a while, suspicious. "Welcome to my ship." And he left into the ship.

"Lovi!" Antonio called running towards her a bundle in his arms.

"What?" She said sharply turning around.

"Here take this. I got it for you." He handed her the bundle and ran off chasing a butterfly. Tch, the idiot.

"He likes you." Amelia the first mate and wife of Arthur said a lilt in her voice.

"Really-a?" Lovi asked a blush creeping up on her face. "Not-a that I'm-a interested."

Amelia smiled. "Arthur may think I'm clueless sometimes, but I know love when I see it."

Arthur watched Antonio come up from below deck. They had just anchored down for the night. "Oi!" He called to the other man. Antonio waltzed over to Arthur. "What's your plan with that girl?" He asked suspicious.

"Nothing." Antonio replied with a sly smile.

"Don't mess around with me Toni. I have my wife on board! I don't want any law breaking shenanigans on my ship and I don't wanna be a part of a con. What's going on? And don't lie! Despite the fact that you act the part of the buffoon, I know you have devious mind in there. You always have a plan, admittedly it's usually a stupidly brash plan, but a plan none the less. Now what are you planning?" Arthur asked.

"I'm not doing anything to put you or anyone you care about in danger. I promise. Also since when did you have a wife that came with you on this sort of thing?"

Arthur huffed, "The wife I've had for two and a half years, and for as her joining me on adventures, she snuck on board."

Amelia appeared next to Arthur and kissed his cheek. "Yes, yes I did, and you don't care." When Antonio first saw Amelia he had been surprised to find out she was Arthur's wife. First there was her appearance, she wore a button up shirt and leather corset and surprisingly a pair of pants and some men's boots. Somewhere in his mind he had always pictured Arthur future wife as being a lady seeing as Arthur was a prince, but Amelia was about the exact opposite of a lady. She was loud, energetic and very distractible. A very nice opposite to Arthur's normally surly attitude and horrible temper. They were the only crew because they had lost most of their previous crew some how. Arthur wasn't talking about what happened.

Arthur grinned looking at his wife. "Of course not, you're handy."

Amelia looked at Antonio and said, quickly taking Arthur's hat off his head and placing it on her own, "Lovi is gonna be up in a sec. By the way you have a good eye for dresses." She winked at him.

True to Amelia's word Lovi was up on deck in less than a minute. She was wearing the dress he had bought her a simple dark red dress with gold trim. He gulped. He had not expected her to look that pretty with her hair down. "Wow. You look beautiful. I mean the dress looked pretty at the store but on you it's just amazing." Antonio said going up to her.

She blushed a bit. "You really-a think so?" She asked looking down.

"Yes mi tomato. You look kinda like a tomato actually especially when you blush." He lifted her chin up so she had to look at him. This made her blush even more. He turned away and coughed awkwardly, "You need to know how to dance."

"Can you-a teach me tomato jerk?" She asked looking around awkwardly trying to hide how hurt her feelings were when he had looked away by insulting him.

"No I'm not very good but maybe…"

He waved at Arthur across the deck who yelled back, "What do you want you bloody git!?"

Antonio yelled, "Could you help me and Lovi learn to dance?!"

He watched as Arthur and Amelia talked together until Amelia ran off into the the captain's quarters with something in her hands. Arthur followed her until she slammed the door in his face. Arthur sighed and made his way back over to Antonio and Lovi. "What-a the hell-a was that?" Lovi asked Arthur.

"That was Amelia saying that until I teach you two how to dance I am banned from my own quarters and then taking the keys and locking herself in the room. I love her to death, but she can be really annoying." Arthur sighed. "Now you want to learn how to dance? It's pretty easy." He positioned their arms and started them dancing. He watched for a few second before breaking them apart saying, "Lovi you don't lead Antonio does."

He set them off dancing again, this time Antonio leading. He smiled as he watched them twirl around. They made a cute couple. The little dog they had brought with them rubbed against Arthur's leg and he absentmindedly petted it.

After a while Lovi said softly, "I'm getting-a kind of light headed-a."

"A little dizzy?" Antonio asked. She nodded. "It must be from all the spinning. We should stop." He stopped spinning her and let go. He seemed to hesitate, leaning in close before something flashed behind his eyes and he looked away. "I'm kinda tired. You did great and you look very nice but I am ready to go to bed." He said leaving her on the deck. Arthur shook his head. That spanish conman was a fool.