Chapter 10: A New Arrival
Len's POV
I was reading a book-the same book I had mentioned earlier-in my new room.
Headquarters? Office? Who cares, honestly?
I was around eight chapters in. Before I finished reading the page I was on, there was a knock on my door.
I looked up from the book. I placed a bookmark in there and got up from my desk, then walked towards the door and opened it.
It was Piko.
That was when I remembered that he had said something about becoming a pirate. I didn't think he was actually serious about it.
Then again, I'm sure DEX, Gakupo, and OLIVER thought the same thing.
But I thought it was a joke, so I made sure by asking him one question:
"What are you doing here, Piko?"
"The guys were teasing me again and I just got tired of it all. I also had a conversation with Rin before I got here, but she didn't let me follow her. Gakupo suggested that I should be a pirate earlier, so here I am!" Piko said as he looked up at me.
I remembered that too. But wasn't it a joke?
"Are you sure it wasn't a joke? I'm pretty sure it was." I said.
"I don't know, Len, but all I know is that I want the teasing to stop." Piko said.
I crossed my arms. He was absolutely serious.
"So...you want to be part of my crew, huh?" I asked as I looked down at the boy.
Piko started looking around.
"...Do you even have a crew?" He asked.
"Probably, but I have no idea. Maybe not." I said as I shrugged.
Then I turned around.
"You know what? Forget that. You're officially a pirate now. No initiation needed." I said as I walked back to my desk and picked up the book I had been reading earlier.
"Really?!" Piko asked, still standing in the doorway. I could see a look of excitement on his face.
"Yup." I said as I started reading the chapter I was on earlier.
"Yes! But why?" He asked.
"Well, Piko, I know that the other boys always cause you distress in some way, so here you won't have to worry about it." I said, eyes glued to the book.
Piko's eyes lit up as he smiled, but then he lowered his head.
"Think they'll miss me?" He asked.
"I don't know, Piko. Maybe they won't. It's not my place to say if they'll miss you or they won't miss you." I said.
"I guess you're right. So when do we start sailing seas and fighting good guys?" Piko asked as he walked into the room and closed the door behind him.
I looked up from my book with a raised brow.
"Slow down, little man. I don't even know what we'll do as pirates." I said as I returned my eyes to the page of my book I had been reading.
"So then what will we do?" Piko asked.
"Like I already said, I don't know. Read a book or something. I might end up figuring out something for us to do later besides reading." I said.
Piko sighed, but ended up looking through my bookshelf anyway.
Eventually, he found a book that he seemed interested in. He pulled it down and started to read it. I was on chapter nine of my book now.
**************
It had been a while after we had both read our books. I was on chapter 17 of the book I had been reading and I was really enjoying it, but I decided to see how Piko was doing.
He was crying.
"...Why are you crying?" I asked as I placed a bookmark on the page of my book, setting it down on my desk as I looked at him.
"This ending was so beautiful!" Piko said as he looked at me, tears streaming down his face.
"Oh." I said as I opened my book back up.
*******
I had finished chapter 17 of the book and was on chapter 18 when I thought I heard something outside.
I placed my bookmark in the page of the book I was on and got up from the desk. I started to walk out of the room, but was stopped in the doorway.
"Hey Len, what's wr-" Piko began to say something, but I cut him off.
"Sssshh! Someone's out there!" I said as I whispered quietly to Piko. I turned around and began to walk through the halls.
Once I made my way to the end of the hall, I opened the door in front of me. As soon as I did, I noticed a girl standing there on the deck. A girl I had never seen before.
She looked like she had just been woken up in that white nightgown and slightly wavy-looking teal hair that was very long and down, but didn't look tired, and instead, she looked curious as to where she was.
As soon as I started walking towards her, she noticed me and didn't even look scared.
"Captain Hook?" She asked.
Wow...wasn't even fazed to see me standing in front of her. I guess I could strike up a conversation with her.
"Yeah. Who're you?" I asked rather gruffly.
"Miku, but you can call me Wendy."
I don't know why, but for some reason, we shook hands as if we were co-workers or something who had just met and had a small conversation.
Actually, I guess we just did have a small conversation.
"Hey, I have a question for you." Miku asked suddenly.
"Yeah?"
"What's your name?" She asked.
"My name?" I asked.
Well, technically it's either Len or Captain Hook now.
"Your REAL name. Your name before you came here." Miku said.
"Len." I said.
I'll admit that I wasn't entirely sure if I should tell her my name or my character's name before she asked me for my real name, but since she asked, why not?
"Len? So then do you prefer Captain Hook or Len?" Miku asked.
I just shrugged.
"Either is fine."
"Alright." Miku said as she walked away, presumably looking around the ship. I couldn't help but watch her walk around.
I was just making sure she didn't mess anything up.
Miku walked around the ship, barefoot, and not even caring if she got splinters, or that's what I got from her.
At some point, she looked like she was going to jump off the ship.
She was standing on a ledge far away from me. What was she doing?!
"What are you doing? Get away from there!" I said as I started running towards her, but Miku turned around, looked at me, and stepped back onto the ship.
I stopped running and just started to walk towards her. She gave me a strange look.
"Did you think I was going to jump off?" She asked.
"Yeah, because that's what it looked like. I seriously thought you were going to jump." I replied.
"What would happen if I were to jump?"
"I don't know. I haven't even been Captain Hook for long." I said.
The look on Miku's face changed to a look of confusion as she tilted her head to the side.
"Never mind. It's a really long story. Can you even swim?" I asked.
"Yes. Why do you ask?"
"Just making sure." I said, and then started to walk away towards the door that had led me onto the deck in the first place.
"Where are you going?" Miku asked.
"If I play my cards right, I'm going to finish a book. I've been getting lots of distractions while reading. It's a really good book." I said as I put my hand on the doorknob, turned it, opened it, and then closed it behind me.
I got back to my new room and saw Piko reading a book on the floor.
"Is that a new book?" I asked as I sat down at my desk and picked up the book I had been reading this entire time.
"Not exactly since it was in this room, but if you mean I picked it out of the bookshelf, then yes." Piko said as he just continued reading.
"What else would I mean?" I thought as I turned to the page I was originally on before meeting Miku.
Or Wendy.
"It's a book about a girl who gets bullied by a mean blonde. I just started it." Piko said.
"Sounds sad." I said as I continued reading my chapter.
"I guess we'll just see." Piko said.
3rd person POV
Little did Len know that Rin was watching him again.
She flew from Len's window and started to fly through Neverland. Unlike before, no one was asking her any questions.
Which was completely fine with her, especially since it caused her no distractions.
Rin flew as fast as she could out of Neverland.
MEIKO had come out of her tent just in time to see Rin flying towards the star that would get her out of Neverland.
Something in her changed. She became somewhat saddened.
"That Len kid was different, but oh well. If he didn't become Captain Hook, the cycle couldn't continue." She thought as she headed back inside her tent.
As for Rin?
She was already making her way back to Mikuo and Miku's house.
She said she would go back for him, after all.
And she meant it.
End chapter