10,000 words and nearly two hundred hits (about 20 each chapter). The Ninja would like to think everyone who's read even if you didn't leave a review. It's stuff like this that encourages her to write more.

After this chapter things will start to speed up. The Ninja will write a little every night, but the next chapter will be out probably Saturday morning. Midterms just snuck up on her like ... BAM. x.

Session 06: Fever Pitch

Angela is still upset over what happened at The Golden Dubloon this morning. Taking her break early, she decided to take out her frustration at the entrance of Smuggler's Cove, cleaning her laundry in the strong flowing stream that lead out into the ocean. Sleeves rolled around her armpits, she bent at the waist to scrub some dirt out of one of her favorite shirts.

" Damn that fat slob! " Rolling up her shirt, she'd slam it into her wicker basket filled with wet clothing. " I came to this island to get away from people like him, but jerks seem to follow me no matter where I go ... "

Sighing, she reached into her dry clothing basket and pulled out her favorite dress. She laid it in the water with care and started scrubbing, but soon noticed something odd.

Much more dirt than it appeared seeped into the water. All of it was a coppery color that reminded her of ... blood? No wait, it wasn't coming from her dress!

Standing erect with her long ears raised, the Aisha followed the trail of blood to the mouth of the cave where a pool had accumulated. Creeping backwards, the bar girl could guess that a terrible battle just took place deep within the pirate caves ...

Bump. Her foot brushed up against something that didn't quite feel like a rock in the water. Running over it with her bare paw, she shuddered at the thought of just what it might be.

Suddenly gloved a hand shot out of the bloody water, grabbing onto Angela's apron. The grip was firm enough to hold her, but the guy on the other end didn't seem strong enough to pull themselves out of the water. The aisha had a sinking feeling, like the hand was pulling her down into the water ...

And she screamed.

" Hannah! "

That was all the blonde haired usul could get out before he found a rope fastened around his neck. After all those years fending for herself, the girl knew how to deliver some damage if she got aggravated.

Needless to say she's pretty aggravated by all of this.

In the few vital seconds it took for Garin to become aware, Hannah jumped onto the bed, pinning him down on his stomach. Sitting on his back, she managed to get the rope around his throat in a deadly nose that she tightened by yanking on the rope every few seconds.

Luckily, a concerned member of the household decided to check up on her after noticing she'd been gone for far too long. " Hannah, are you -- " Armin wasn't quite sure what he was seeing, but the usul on the bottom seemed to have difficulty breathing. " Wait! Stop! STOP! " He pleaded in the whimpering voice of a confused child.

Noticing that the older girl was a bit distracted with this newcomer, Garin tried a desperation move to save his life. Wiggling around under her, he managed to get his hands free long enough to attack the girl's sides with a hard, rapid, tickling. If there was one thing she remembered about the girl aside from her dependency on grog, it's that she's extremely ticklish.

His assault was enough to weaken her defense. " Hey! " She tried to hold back the dam of giggles, but her trembling lips gave her away. Hannah pulled back, but the boy didn't stop. " Stop ... it ... you ... son ... of ... a ... " She fell to the floor in a wave of endless giggles.

Garin didn't stop there. He jumped onto the floor beside her and continued, adding to Armin's confusion.

Looking between one usul and another, he finally managed to piece things together. " Garin? " Remembering the description from Hannah's stories about the boy. " What are you doing here? " He seemed to forget that just seconds ago Hannah was wringing the life out of him.

Hearing his name, the blonde usul looked up from his tickling. " And you are? "

" Armin the Small. " Giving his full title with airy pride. " I'm a friend of Hannah's. "

" A friend? " Moving his tickle attack down to Hannah's vulnerable stomach as he spoke. " I'm surprised Hannah has any friends after the way she treated my crew. " Much to Armin's surprise Garin didn't seem either angry or disappointed by it. In fact, he seemed to take it as a joke!

Hannah finally mustered enough strength between breaths to push Garin away from her. " What the hell are you doing here? " She panted, repeating Armin's question with a very angry tone.

Falling on his rear, he'd rub his lower back before looking pitifully towards the female. " Far be it from me to say hello to an old friend. " He noticed the glare she gave. " You might not want me as your friend, but I still care about you! " See? He could get just as snappy if he tried.

Taken back by his words, Hannah didn't come up with a response. He's a ruthless pirate! He shouldn't be caring about anyone but himself!

Armin took it upon himself to tell them both about their current situation. " Those people at the door were from Meridell. " He turned to face Hannah. " They want to come over for dinner. "

Bombshell. " You can't be serious ... " The brown haired usul cupped her face into her paws. " By Fyora, you can't be serious ... " How long did they have? Only about an hour or so to make a dinner fit for a king?

" I can have my crew come in and help -- "

" No! " Hannah snapped, rising to her feet. " You need to get out of here, now! "

Garin seemed confused. " Why? I only want to help. "

" Because ... " Her voice sounded as if she became a mother speaking to a child. " You're a pirate, and they're from Meridell. If you don't know the Trinity Kingdoms (Meridell, Brightvale, and Darigan) have jurisdiction to arrest any and all criminals they come across. "

Taking a moment to let this new information sink in, he'd nod in understanding. " But I don't know where my crew is. I can't leave without them! "

Arrgh! Where's Punchbag Bob when you need to take out some frustration? " Just get out of here! If there's anyone still in the house I'll point them in your direction, but you have to leave. " She begged, growing weary of this whole situation.

" I'll go. " Garin agreed, walking with Hannah to the door. " But I do want to talk to you later. "

Hannah put her hand on the doorknob. " About what? "

" Don't act dumb around the kid. " He looked back to Armin as she opened the door.

Hannah looked down the hallway and noticed someone approaching. " Shit! Armin, stall them! " Pushing the bori into the line of fire, she slammed the door shut again.

" Who was that? " Garin asked in confusion while Hannah pushed him away from the door.

" Jeran! " Armin cried sheepishly, trying his best to remain calm amongst the chaos. " Hannah will be down in a few minutes, so we should wait downstairs. " He didn't falter in his explanation, but didn't down and out lie to him either.

Acknowledging the bori with a nod, he'd cast a glance at the closed door. " I heard some screaming. Is she all right? " He asked, concerned.

" Yes! " His response was forced. " She said a Miamouse and freaked, but we managed to nail that little bugger one good! " A dry laugh ensured.

" A Miamouse, you say? " Jeran used a telltale tone, leaning against the wall opposite of Hannah's bedroom door. " Did you know that Miamouse aren't native to Krawk Island, Armin? They're a pretty uncommon species even as petpets, so perhaps you killed someone's pet? "

Armin's face fell, realizing that he stupidly tripped on his own lies. " That would be terrible then, right? " He backed against the door, at a total loss of words.

" I would say so. " Jeran pushed off the wall towards the door. " In any case, I have to return the corpse to it's owner if you don't mind ... "

" I can't jump! "

On the other side of the door Hannah and Garin were having technical difficulties of their own. Both standing on the railing of the balcony overlooking the gardens around Hannah's house, they realized that a jump from here would be quite fatal.

Hannah thought of the alternatives. They could try rushing past Jeran, but didn't know how strong the knight was. Besides, all she needed was a rumor about how she started harboring criminals to get around the territory. She could only hope that Armin could get them enough time to build an escape plan ...

That's it!

" My rope! " Bare paws searched her body for her escape rope, but she couldn't find it. " Did you see my rope, Garin? "

" Not since you put it around my neck. " He replied sarcastically, putting his hands around his bruised throat for epiphysis.

Hannah's eyes searched the room in hopes that it lay somewhere nearby, but noticed that the was opening. Hesitation was her downfall. If only she could've just hidden him in the closet!

Garin took on the offensive, reaching into his vest for his blade. Unfortunately, he forgot that he stood on very narrow ground, and lost his balance. Panicking, he grabbed the closest thing he could get his free paw on in hopes of saving himself.

That just so happened to be Hannah's dress. The events happened to quickly that Hannah couldn't even muster a scream before gravity yanked her off the balcony.

Five stories lay between them and certain death ...

Hannah didn't notice that her mark started glowing ...