Plot truly starts in chapter 3. This is just to show you how miserable Link's life is.

Unpromising Beginnings

"Well...you know what this means! We're just gonna have to start calling you 'Poodle Boy' from now on..." Tetra said with a smirk.

"Or we could just call him 'Poodle'," Mako offered.

"Good thinking, Mako...we'll call him 'Poodle'!" Tetra chirped. "Welcome to the crew, Poodle!"

The rest of the pirates laughed. Link turned bright red.

"I'm warning you, if you call me Poodle ONE MORE TIME-"

"SILENCE! You speak when spoken to!"

Tetra turned to her crew.

"Now, all of you, GET BACK TO WORK!"

The rest of the pirates shouted in fear, and got back to certain duties.

"Poodle, meet me in my bedroom in 5 minutes!" Tetra barked at Link.

She strutted through the door thingy on the ship, down the stairs, and to her room. Niko ran up to Link.

"SWABBIE! I mean, POODLE!" he cried happily as he tried to hug Link.

The boy back away.

"Don't...touch...me..." he growled.

"Oh...sorry..."

"And second of all, DON'T call me Poodle!"

"That can be arranged..."

"Now, what exactly do you want?"

"I just wanted to say 'hi'! Is that a crime?"

"Yes, actually, I consider it as such!" Link snapped.

"See? You even bark! All the more reason to call you Poodle!"

"WHY, YOU LITTLE BASTARD, I'M GONNA-"

But Link was cut short when he felt someone grab his ass.

"AH!" he yelped, turning around.

Gonzo was standing there...

"Hey, hottie..." he said seductively.

Link's eyes widened.

"Stay...away...from me..." he growled.

"You're sexy when you're angry!" Gonzo said. "Grrrr!"

"I don't think Tetra'll mind if I go to see her just a few minutes early..." Link muttered quietly; running away.

He raced through the door, down the stairs, and shoved open Tetra's door.

"TETRA, YOU AND YOUR CREW ARE A BUNCH OF INSANE PERVERTS!" he yelled.

Tetra was sitting on her couch, looking at a sheet of paper. She raised her eyes to Link.

"Oh, and you aren't? You see, Link, you may not realize it now, but you're a lot more like us than you may think..." she said.

"I don't care! Niko just tried to hug me, and Gonzo just pinched me on the ass!"

"You better get used to it. When you're on the crew, there is no time for sex. In fact, there's hardly any time for self gratification! And my men are very attracted to young boys... So, you're like, a delicacy to them! Heh heh...I can't wait to see how things go for you."

"You're sick! SICK, I TELL YOU! You just plan to stand there, and let them have their way with me?"

"Well, yes, actually. Anyway...the reason I called you down here is because I need to discuss a few urgent matters with you..."

Link sighed. "What?"

"Why, the rules and such, Poodle! First of all, you may NEVER, under NO circumstances, disobey me! And second of all, don't bother me. Speak only when appropriate. And lastly, never, EVER come into my bedroom unless I say you can! Got it?"

"Well, that suc-"

"GOT IT!"

"Yes, ma'am..."

"And, about your sleeping arrangements...you said you'd rather sleep with one of the other guys, so-"

"NO, I DIDN'T! I SAID I'D RATHER SLEEP ON THE FLOOR!"

"SILENCE! You are sharing a bed with Gonzo!"

"What? NO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" Link shouted.

"I can, and I will!" Tetra replied firmly.

"You're a bitch!"

"You're a prick!"

"I HATE YOU!"

"Yeah, well, I hate you, too, kid."

Then the two kids just stared at eachother resentfully. Finally, Link nodded to the paper Tetra had been looking at.

"What's that?" he asked suspiciously.

"Oh...just this drawing I made..." Tetra answered mischeviously.

"Ok, what are you up to!"

"Nothing."

"You're up to something, Tetra, and I know it involves me! Now lemme see it!"

"No."

"Yes!"

"No!"

"YES!"

"Well, ok," Tetra said.

She stood up and handed Link the drawing. The boy snatched the sheet from her and stared at it.

It featured a stick figure with an arrow pointing to it that said, "Link", and the figure was laying on the ground in some sort of puddle. A penis shaped object and two dots lay in the puddle.

Link made a disgusted face.

"What is this?"

"You after undergoing castration," Tetra replied in a matter-of-fact tone as she smiled. Then she began laughing.

Link turned bright red as he ripped up the paper, dropped the pieces on the ground, and said, "THAT'S DISGUSTING! MY BALLS AREN'T THAT SMALL!" He stormed out of the pirate's bedroom. Tetra's laughter sounded from the room, failing to cease.

Link returned to the deck of the ship, and all the other pirates stared at him...almost hungrily; longingly...

"Um...do you mind not looking at me! It's really irritating!" he told them.

The others turned and went back to work. One of the pirates, Mako, walked up to Link and handed him a mop and a bucket.

"Miss Tetra said that this is your first chore. You get to swab the decks, swabbie! Ha ha! I made a swabbing joke! Get it? Swabbie? Swab the decks?"

Link slapped him. Then there was a minute of silence.

"Ow..." Mako finally said before walking away.

Slowly, drowning in self-pity and regret, Link started mopping the decks...and, throughout the whole day, he had to keep doing shit like that. It was then that Link realized how much things were gonna suck from that point on. Life would now consist of brutal physical labor. He would be worked hard...