Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha. Nor am I an expert in pirate history.
Author's Note: Continuing with the plot, with a "quiet" moment as Captain Taisho contemplates things...
Words: 772
My birthday gift for you all. Consider it thanks for the second nomination this story received, this time for Best Serial! Thanks a lot! Enjoy!
Also, fun fact: I couldn't resist slipping in two brief Disney references... Hint: they're both song lyrics, but only one is a direct song title as well... Can you spot them? Let me know! ;)
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A pirate's favorite pastime was not the pillaging and plundering, as legends would lead you to believe. Nor was it tackling a storm, using every ounce of sheer gumption and gall in your gut and the sweat of your brows to survive and keep your ship afloat. No, not even the freedom to engage in licentious crowds without fear of losing one's "reputation."
No, the true call to piracy and sailing, the real reason why men, women, demons, and half-demons alike have been called over and over to sail out on the open sea, to brave her dangerous and beautiful waters, was something far more simple.
It is the quiet stillness of a clear night, the entire celestial heavens above providing the only natural light to the world, and nothing, nothing at all in front of your ship's hull, breaking the gentle waves but a vast, dark ocean.
It was the unspoken link that connects all seafarers, pirate or not. During those rare moments, when a man or woman wasn't below deck sleeping or working, each and every person who lived and died at sea would always try to find a moment to stare out ahead at the great unknown.
The ocean was an enigma if there ever was one among the world's natural wonders, and sailing men like Captain Inuyasha Taisho were forever captivated by her beckoning call of danger, adventure, and beauty.
But on this night, where the sea laid as calm and still as a glass table, the stars reflected perfectly upon its undisturbed surface like a million fireflies caught in a giant black jar, the half-demon captain of the Siren's Wing was not thinking of his beloved sea.
It was of her child, the wild daughter of the salty waves, the woman with eyes as deep and frightening as the fathoms below: Captain Kagome Higurashi.
Inuyasha was perched up among the riggings, with no back support but the ropes and a thin wooden pillar. Not that he had a lack of balance in any capacity, but it felt nice to rest his back against something as he stared off into the empty black space ahead his ship, where the border between the sky and the sea was utterly indiscernible, even for his heightened senses. He gazed out, sometimes dully watching the ship break the perfect stillness, creating tiny ripples that vanished almost as quickly as they were formed.
The ocean was rarely silent, and nights like these often put even the hardiest of sailors on edge. But Inuyasha found its quiet oddly comforting, leaving him with his thoughts at peace.
Surrounded by the eerily soothing pitch-black ocean, peppered with the reflections of stars, Inuyasha mindlessly chipped away at a spare piece of wood. He often whittled on wood to pass the time, whether to actually create a figurine or just to let it dissolve into tiny chips that he was then sweep into the ocean and let her consume his mindless task. This time he let his hands do the work, not concentrating at all, sinking deep into his thoughts as he were diving head first into the ocean.
Not for the first time since he entered Commodore Hojo's makeshift "contract," Inuyasha questioned the madness of it all. People went missing all the time. People ran away to join circuses or pirate ships or towns of ill repute all the time when they wanted to escape. Clearly, Kagome was running away and had no intention of turning back. So why the hell should he force her back?
"... I'll grant you a full pardon. Your records will be stripped entirely of your piracy and you will be given a substantial income and home. You can retire in peace, wealth, and with a clear conscience..."
Inuyasha snorted quietly. Clear conscience! Right. He hadn't the advantage of a "clear conscience" since the day he was born, and that had nothing to do with piracy and everything to do with his blood.
Demon and human. Neither one or the other. In society, no matter how upstanding, no matter how much blood, sweat, and tears he put into it, he would never ever belong.
No, only out here, on the ocean's surface, whether she be in a calm or turbulent or downright deadly mood, here, the ocean gave him a simple choice: live or die. No complications, no rules, no regulations. Simply life. Piracy was only an addition to the deal.
For the infamous Captain Inuyasha Taisho was not always a scallywag or destined for running away from gallows and cannon fire.
He was originally a member of Her Majesty's Royal Navy.
AN: Which "Her Majesty," you ask? Fuck if I know. Just call her an Elizabethan figure and we'll call it a day lol. This was never meant to be a proper historical AU, but I'm throwing this disclaimer in case anyone tries to come at me. ;) Let me know what you thought! Thank you for your support for this little serial!
