AMONGST THE YOUNG
by SpelCastrMax
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry it's taking me soooooo long to write this, but it's coming along and I promise to be a little more punctual in the future. THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS! By the way, not a lot happening in this chapter - just a bridge between scenes.
CHAPTER NINE: Talks
It was calm seas all the next few days. The sun was hitting the horizon, bathing the world in a pink hue. The teenaged Sinbad fell easily into his role as captain, but still could not help wanting to act his age. Meanwhile, Maeve spent much of her time talking to Bryn or Dermott about magic.
Rongar took over the tiller for the captain, who had been watching the red head sit quietly alone with a book in her lap. Sinbad approached her slowly as if coming upon a skittish animal.
Maeve held the book up higher, attempting to hide her face from Sinbad. "What are you reading?" he questioned, looking at the leather binding feeling a sudden jealousy toward her attention to the inanimate object.
"Magic book," was her short reply.
Sinbad nodded his head and sighed. "Oh. Okay. Well...you've been reading for hours. Need a break? Or do you want to help me with the mizzen ropes..."
Releasing an irritated sound, Maeve shifted the book in front of her and grumbled, "I'm trying to find out what that woman did to us so Bryn can undo it."
Sinbad attempted to move the book down so as to get a look at her face. She resisted, yanking the book back in front of her and making another annoyed sound. Setting his hands on his hips, Sinbad told her, "I thought we could talk. We don't really talk anymore. I think we had more conversations when we were fighting as little kids, remember?"
Glancing up from the book and rolling her eyes, Maeve curtly answered, "Yes, Sinbad, I remember. It was only last week after all."
Frowning, Sinbad thought about simply leaving the subject and walking away. However, he did not want to loose nor did he want Maeve to keep her face hidden in her books all day long. In a moment of complete thoughtlessness, Sinbad grabbed at the volume of magic again, snatching it right from Maeve's hands.
"Sinbad, you wretch! Give that back to me!" she yelled, jumping up to chase after the captain as he backed away, holding the book over his head.
Dermott watched and began to make a twittering noise. "Stop that. It isn't funny," Maeve snapped at the bird, then turned her anger back on Sinbad, "If you don't cut this out I'll never speak to you again!"
Sinbad laughed heartily, "No more insults! Sounds good to me."
"Oh!" Maeve huffed. "Fine, have it your way." She shook the hair from her eyes and took a deep breath. Pointing both hands at Sinbad who stood still with book in hand and an inquisitive smile. "Rise up," she commanded concentrating all of her energy on the young man. As she repeated the same words, Sinbad felt himself grow lighter until his feet lifted off the deck.
"Woah," was all he managed to say as he looked down, noticing that Maeve was panting.
A moment later, Maeve dropped her hands, causing Sinbad to fall two feet down, landing on the deck with a loud thud. The apprentice sorcerer also fell, her knees giving way beneath her. Sinbad ran over to her as she weakly held her head.
"Maeve," he worriedly called out as he reached her, "Are you alright?"
The teenager's eyes lost their weary expression, flashing with mischief. Maeve snatched the book from Sinbad's hands and triumphantly told him, "Fooled you."
Sinbad didn't find it as funny. He swore under his breath and pushed away from the girl. Maeve followed him. "What's the matter?"
"I've got to take my turn at the tiller," Sinbad called over his shoulder.
The young sorcerer's apprentice gave Sinbad a dark look. "That's what I thought." The words were just loud enough for Sinbad to make out. He turned to her and demanded an explanation. "I'm the girl who broke your heart, right. Better stay away from me." Her voice grew lower as if she was trying to impersonate him.
Moving back towards her, Sinbad pointed a finger at her and realized, "You were trying to make me angry at you!"
"No, I wasn't."
"Yes, you were."
"Was not."
"Was too."
"And so what if I was?"
Sinbad paused. He took a deep breath and tried hard to ignore his frustration. "Maeve, what's wrong?"
"Nothing," she insisted, "Why do you always have to ask so many questions. Humph." With that, she picked up her book and stomped her feet across the deck.
Shrugging his shoulders, Sinbad turned back towards the tiller. "Girls."
Dermott soared over the ship and followed his sister. The young woman scowled up at the bird as he twittered. "I'm not being rough on him...I just don't...oh, why don't you leave me alone. If you aren't going to tell me anything then..." Dermott flew down closer and Maeve paused to listen to him. "What do I want to know? I want to know why I feel betrayed... like I can't trust anyone."
At last perching, the hawk hung his head. The girl studied him, staring intently at the dark eyes. "You're sad," Maeve pointed out, "Why are you suddenly so sad? You're not a normal hawk, are you. " After several moments of silence, Maeve pleaded, "Dermott, why won't you tell me?"
The hawk had nothing more to say. Instead, he spread his wings and went to sit close to the tiller as if it were his way of telling her that no matter what residual feelings she had, Maeve could trust the people she was with. A little ashamedly, Maeve escaped below deck, barely giving Doubar a glance as she passed by him.
Doubar went to the tiller, crossing him arm across his wide chest and trying not to laugh. "What did you do to her now?"
Sinbad's jaw dropped. "Me? Doubar, I was just trying to be friends. She's the one who keeps storming off."
The man let out a loud healthy bellow. "Finally, a girl who keeps you on your sixteen year old toes. I'm sorry to tell you, but you'll never fully understand that one, little brother."
Sinbad smiled and rolled his eyes. The familiar term that he had so long answered to started him wondering, "Doubar, why are you still here? Shouldn't you have a ship of your own by now? Shouldn't I be serving under you?"
Doubar sobered, but he was completely sincere when he stated, "Sinbad, I will never have the skills, the compassion, or frankly the brains to be a captain...not a captain like you anyway. But trust me when I say it is an honor to be a member of the crew of the great Sinbad."
"The most important member of my crew," Sinbad added, "My whole family. I'm glad we were finally at sea together. It was hard all those years I was away training, but it was something I had to do."
"Little brother, those are noble words...for someone so young." Doubar gave Sinbad another smile, then a squeak from Dermott drew both men's' attention to the stairs leading up to the tiller. Firouz and Rongar were there, announcing that there was an island in sight.
Sinbad squinted his eyes. "There's no island. I can't see anything."
"I saw it was the magnascope," Firouz explained holding up the long box with the rounded glass within it, "It's one of my inventions."
Doubar took the tiller while Sinbad peered through the magnascope when it was offered to him. Through the glass he could make out the silhouette of land in the distance. "Amazing. What a crew I have when I'm older...I mean, what a crew I have now!"
Firouz bashfully grinned. Rongar pointed behind him where Maeve had reemerged from the small door which lead below deck. She stepped passed them all asking what was happening.
The magnascope was placed in her hands. "Magic?" she asked after she saw the island through the glass.
"Science," Firouz explained.
"I should have guessed," she replied, "How far are we?"
"I'd say a couple hours," Firouz told her, "Give or take."
Sinbad nodded. "Well, in case there's more give than take, why don't you men gather what we'll need for the island now so we'll be ready."
"Why can't you say it in a more exciting way?" Doubar protested, "You know like 'Men, gather the supplies and be ready for danger and excitement'."
Sinbad smiled. "Danger, excitement, and cold weather. Be sure everyone has warm clothes."
Doubar shrugged his shoulders and Firouz chuckled, "Remind me, which one of you is the older brother?"
Maeve held out her hands to Sinbad. "No book. Just came to talk,"
"About time," was Sinbad's response. He wagged his eyebrows and added, "Couldn't resist my charm huh."
The comment made Maeve giggle, which she tried to hide by ducking her head for a second. When she still had not controlled her smiles she faced him once again.
"So, where exactly are we going?" Maeve asked through her laughter.
"To the Island of Cenpra; it's all ice and snow.," Sinbad explained, enjoying the sound of her giggles and wishing he could think of another way to make her laugh, "I went there once last year...or several years ago...um...when I was fifteen. I was one of the mates on this ship...'the Venture'. The captain had heard the legends of Cenpra and decided he wanted the amulet that's guarded there. His mistake was trying to take the amulet off the island."
Maeve leaned in a little as if anxious to hear a secret. "Are there people there?"
With a smirk, he told her, "Yes. King Proso and his little circle of friends. They all live in this enchanted garden and palace which is the only place on the island where the snow never falls. They're a shallow group. Every night they feast and celebrate. And we'll have to pass through his garden in order to get to the ice cavern where the amulet is."
Maeve looked at Sinbad's scowl. "Maybe the king's changed after all this time."
"I doubt it. Especially since he has sons who were well on their way to being just
like him. The oldest would be about eighteen now." Sinbad glanced at Maeve. "You may want to watch out for him."
Maeve rose her eyebrows at the captain. "And if he tries anything, what are you going to do? Talk it out with him."
"Hey, I happen to be an excellent swordsman!" Sinbad insisted as his grip on the tiller tightened.
"Oh, of course. The only time I've seen you use a sword it was bigger than you were," she teased.
"At least I'm trying. I haven't seen you even touch your sword."
Maeve shook her head at him, the laughing expression remaining. "Incredible. I think you might actually be as dimwitted as you look. .Do you always try to change the topic like this? I don't even have a sword."
Sinbad sighed and grumbled under his breath, "Maeve." He called to one of the crew members, a small man who rarely said much, and asked him to take the tiller. When he was sure the man had a strong grip on the steering device, and was still going in the correct direction, Sinbad motioned for Maeve to follow him.
"First of all," Sinbad said as he opened the door leading them below deck, "At least I have my memories of how to fight and run a ship. Second of all..." He went to the wall in the main cabin where the weapons hung and placed the blade with the blue engraving into Maeve's hands. "...Doubar told me that is yours."
The young woman stared at the steel. "A lot of good it does me. I don't remember how to use a sword."
"Well, you're going to have to get over that cause those fireballs of yours take too much energy."
"Captain. Hero. Physician. There's no end to your talents is there?" Maeve's eyes were still on the sword as she tried to determine where her hands should go around the hilt.
Sinbad rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure which is worse, you ignoring me or you picking on me." Maeve simply glanced at him. It was a sideways glance, with the hint of a smile and mischief in her eyes. For a split second, almost so fast that Sinbad nearly missed it, an image flashed in his head of a grown woman with red hair giving him that same expression.
In the same moment, Maeve managed to find her grip on the sword. Her smile broadened. It had been as if the muscle memory of fighting had returned to her in that instant. Triumphantly, she showed the teenaged boy standing beside her.
The woman vanished from his mind's eye and Sinbad's fists rested on his hips. "So you've figured out one thing. How about we go on deck and..."
"Watch me beat you horribly," Maeve put in.
Sinbad unsheathed his own blade and went back onto the deck after scoffing at her boast. When they arrived on the deck they realized the air had grown cold. The crew had all huddled in their cloak to keep out the biting winds. Sinbad rushed to the starboard side and looked out over the water. Ice was forming, coming at them swiftly. There was no way to out maneuver it, just wait until it had trapped the ship.
"We'll have to walk from here," Sinbad explained.
"Walk?" Maeve replied with uncertainty.
"The island doesn't allow any sort of ship close to it. The ice will release the Nomad when we decide to leave, but the only way onto the land is to walk across the ice." Sinbad hung his blade back at his side. He turned to where Doubar, Rongar, Firouz, and Bryn were gathering up their own cloaks. "Let's go."