Chapter 52 – Back to Port
July 31, 1660
Ding ding. Ding ding. Ding.
I came to at the sound of the first bell, not exactly sure where I was. As I lifted my head, I found I was on top of the table with Nala under me as the dark skinned woman woke up herself. Looking around the room, it was plain to see the debauchery that had taken place as people seemed to have passed out with their final orgasm and lie where they fell. Jasmine lay atop Simba as I lay atop Nala, Colette lay atop Shang, Aladdin atop Mulan, Linguini was caressing Monica's red hair as they lay in each other's arms. In fact, not one person lay with their spouse as we awoke at the bells, our own nakedness and the passionate embrace in which we found ourselves a clear indication of what went on even as events began to unfold in my brain.
It had been a wild orgy that lasted most of the night, endlessly swapping partner after partner until we began to repeat, only then did we pass out. While I expected a few fights to start as husbands saw their wives laying with other men, what I got was meek acceptance as people instead began to look for their clothes, gather them into the arms and head down to their rooms to clean up as the rising sun shone bright through the windows.
Stepping out into the early morning sun, I saw the sailors still getting the ship squared away from days of intense storm but the sheer state of things at the time was appalling. A few of our top sails hung in tatters having come loose and allowed to flap in the wind during the storm. Timon had them taken down and replaced once he took the deck, the process taking time as the ship was readied for another day. Simba and Nala led a party around draining the boxes and barrels holding the boarding weapons, then sharpening and cleaning them. Shang, Mulan and Merida led a group cleaning and maintaining the cannons, some of which had rust patches showing from the salt and lack of maintenance the past few days.
In watching the crew, I soon saw Mirazh and the new outfit she now wore likely made from bolts of cloth taken in a previous action and kept for this purpose. Dressed now in a white, long sleeved linen shirt, red vest with gold trim and dark pants and boots I had to admit she looked ready to act as a sailor as she helped maintain the cannons but I wasn't the only one that had found the mage. I was forced to watch as Jasmine spoke with her and the two disappeared below, giving me pause that maybe Jasmine was about to rip, or try at least, Mirazh a new one for her antics but the two soon reappeared and the mage went back to her work without further comment. Jasmine herself snagged a rope and shot straight up into the rigging where Aladdin was working on replacing the top sail with Timon. Aladdin seemed surprised at her arrival, but the two's embrace seemed real and genuine as Aladdin held his wife.
"What got into her?" Ariel said as she looked to where I was watching. "Never seen her climb the masts before."
"She's pregnant," I told my helmsman who squealed in delight.
"That fast?" Ariel asked me and I nodded.
"Yeah," I said with a sigh as the pair broke apart and seemed to talk as sailors worked around them, but Timon himself soon hoisted himself up a rope as he began to inspect the mast closely, running a hand over it before climbing higher and repeating the process. Smelling trouble, I went to await Timon's verdict.
"Problem?" I asked him as he slid down the rope to the deck.
"Crack running right up the masts," he told me as he pointed it out in both masts. "She could break in the next strong gale. As it is, I can't run full sail without risking the sailors in the rigging."
"We have proper replacements?" I asked him but he shook his head. "Then we'll head for Saint Martin for replacements. Till then, try not to bend the masts too much. We'll make due at a crawl."
"Understood," he said as I turned and headed back to the poop deck. I didn't like the idea that the masts were cracked, but that was like driving a truck with two lug nuts. You could get away with it for awhile, but it was bound to bite you in the ass.
It was almost eight bells before Simba led the crew into weighing anchor and we got underway. Timon lifted the mainsails on all the masts, plus the all the sails on the mizzenmast which was still solid. Since everyone seemed to be maintaining civility in the wake of last night's orgy, I went ahead and planned out the trip to Saint Martin, using a measuring compass and the map's scale to figure the trip at roughly twenty five nautical miles. It would be a slow trip, taking the rest of the morning and not arriving until midevening where Timon set the crew to stripping down and removing the masts and getting replacements installed after docking the ship.
But, that didn't require me so I gathered the logbooks I had and switched to my best clothes before heading out. The storm had been a little rougher here and people were still cleaning debris from the street, but I still quickly made the governor's mansion, finding the governor in his study with a well dress man who spoke in a heavy French accent. As he and the governor talked in French, I wasn't able to follow the conversation but I had to figure they were bartering peace.
"Lord Hunt," he said as after I stepped into his office. "Meet Ambassador DuPont."
"Ambassador," I said as the latter stood and bowed slightly to me.
"Lord Hunt," the ambassador said. "Governor LaBit has spoken fondly of you."
"Give him my best regards when you return," I told him.
"We were just discussing peace between us," the governor informed me.
"I hope you were successful," I said and the governor shifted uncomfortably, probably sensing a possible betrayal. "I'd hate to be put in the situation where I would have to hunt down French ships after the governor issued me Letters of Marque."
"We were," the governor informed me, his shoulders relaxing. "The only power we remain at war with is the English."
"I guess I'll return to harrassing them as soon as my masts are repaired," I told him and the governor shook his head.
"These storms come up so quickly and are so violent I wouldn't doubt some ships weren't lost," the governor then said sadly.
"These waters are known for them," I told the governor though I wasn't sure when the name hurricane came around. "I believe they are called 'hurricanes' and, they can be some of the most violent storms you'd ever witness and last for several days. The good thing is they are only common for three months of the year, starting about now."
"Small comfort," the governor said as the ambassador looked uncomfortable.
"I must report back that we have achieved peace," the ambassador then said as he stood. "The governor is waiting for good news."
"You should have fair winds on your return trip," I informed the ambassador. "The next storm should take a good week at least."
"This too is good news," the ambassador said as he turned and left.
"I see your last trip was particularly successful," the governor said as he perused the six logbooks.
"I even upgraded to a frigate again," I informed the governor who smiled at that.
"Well, that is good news," the governor said as he looked at one of the logs. "Any other damage on your frigate from taking it?"
"The damage was from the storm, not taking it," I told the governor. "I had to resort to some shady tactics to turn the tide, but well within the realm of honorable military tactics."
"So you sailed your ship, under Dutch colors, with only the women visible to entice the French close enough for your lady cannoneers to blow them to pieces before the men surged from below-decks to make quick work of the survivors?" the governor summarized after I told him of the fight with the little fishing vessel against the large frigate before he burst out laughing.
"I don't ever want to have to do that again," I told him as the governor stifled his laughter. "But, if things don't turn back to war soon all I will have will be a brothel and a mansion."
"Unfortunately I have a litany to take you there," the governor told me. "Having the ambassador on premises has kept me…"
"Busy with tending his needs as a good host?" I finished as the governor faltered for the right words.
"Apt, and true," the governor said with a sigh.
"Well, I'll leave you to running the king's affairs and tend to my own business," I told him as I stood, the governor standing with me to shake my hand.
"Safe travels," he said before I turned and left, the governor quickly sitting back to his desk I was able to notice as I stopped to open the door. I could only guess at what it took to run an island in a time where most of the food not only had to be shipped in but sourcing everything required careful planning via writing letters and waiting for a reply, likely in years.
Shaking my head at the complexity, I stopped as I heard a guitar's strained sounds and a woman's laughter coming from the opposite end of the house than the front door. Turning and heading out the rear door, I found the laughter came from Elsa and Anna sitting with a familiar face I finally placed as Lieutenant Westergaard who had helped me take down Hook. It was the redhead Anna who sat with the guitar on her lap as she tried to play a melody on the instrument but the discordant sounds it made told me it was drastically out of tune. I shook my head as Elsa's pet parrot squawked as it eyed me standing at the door to make the three turn their heads to notice me and, since I was caught and they were standing to make appropriate introductions I went ahead and approached the group.
"Lord Hunt," Elsa said as she curtsied to me. "A pleasure to see you again."
"Miss Arendelle," I said back to her as I removed my hat then nodded to her sister. "And Miss Arendelle. Lieutenant, good to see you again."
"It's captain now," he said as he brushed off his shoulder epaulets to draw attention to them.
"Congratulations," I said with a smile. "I'm guessing Governor Fitzherbert saw potential after helping me take down the pirate, Hook?"
"He did," the newly minted captain said as Elsa gestured for me to sit in a proffered chair and join the group. "My new rank also came with a new assignment; captain of the guard here in Saint Martin."
"We're glad to have him," Elsa said happily.
"I was surprised, honestly," Hans said as he continued on. "The last report I had before being notified of my transfer was that the English were about to raid here."
"You knew of the ship-of-the-line on its way?" I asked him and he nodded.
"We knew something was coming," the newly minted captain said as he spilled the beans. "The English had been building up an army for some time which is why Governor Fitzherbert had been wanting to establish a new governor here so they could raise their own army and defenses."
"Rumor was that if the English hadn't moved before father was installed, they'd just quietly reinforce and hope that we could repel any attack that came," Elsa said as she filled in some of the gaps. "Taking the ship-of-the-line and the troops out? That solved two headaches for us to which we are greatful."
"I heard you and your men cut through some four hundred men," Hans told me which made my heart sink at the reminder of the death I had dealt out for foolish pride. "With what? Fifty men?"
"A little less," I informed him as I let out a sigh and decided to change the topic. "So, Miss Arendelle, decided to take up the guitar?"
"I'm not very good at it," she admitted with a giggle as she strummed it once more, the sound making us all wince.
"It might help if it were in tune," I told her to bring her head up. "If I may?"
"Certainly," Anna said as she handed me the wooden instrument, then produced a tuning fork from a pocket of her dress. "This was with it."
"For the E string, I'd wager," I said as I took it as well. After situating the guitar on my lap, I struck the tuning fork on the bench and began tuning the big string on top, eventually getting the two close enough to sound identical.
"That's one string, but what about the other five?" Elsa asked as I sat the tuning fork down.
"Like this," I said as I moved a finger to the fifth fret of the E string and struck it and the next string down. "When the two strings produce the same note, it's in tune."
"Interesting," Elsa said as I began to tune the string.
"Huh," Anna said as she watched me tune the five other strings similarly.
"Just remember this one has to go one fret higher," I said as I got to the fifth string.
"Why is that?" Elsa asked as I tuned the string.
"Well, there's twelve notes in music," I said as I explained it to her. "And from G to B, there's only five four notes instead of the five on the others."
"There's so much to learn," Anna said quietly as I strummed the guitar to produce an almost harmonious sound before going back over the strings once more. "It does sound much better now."
"Guitars can be simple to complicated depending on how you want to play it," I told her as I strummed the instrument once more to find the sound harmonious as it should be. "When I first began playing one, my teacher wanted me to learn this difficult play style instead of a simpler one I could easily master then move on to a more complicated style later."
"Why don't you play something," Hans asked as I began to hand the instrument back to its owner.
"It'd be better than listening to me torture that poor thing," Anna said with a smile and a chuckle.
"Alright," I said as I situated the instrument back on my leg as I tried to think of a good song to sing before starting Creedence Clearwater Revival's 'Have You Ever Seen The Rain' whose metaphorical lyrics would offer little to my current audience and lacked any modern references I tried to avoid when I did play. To them, even if they did catch on to the metaphorical nature of the song, they would figure it was about someone asking another if they've survived the hell life could become.
"That was beautiful," Elsa said after I finished the song.
"So, you're from the New World or the old?" Hans asked me.
"English colony," I told him as it seemed to be time for me to explain where I was from. "Deep in the woods of Georgia. Been traveling since I was old enough to walk."
"Travel?" Elsa asked, her curiosity piqued. "Where to?"
"Most of Europe, the Orient, Egypt, across the desert, across all the oceans, to the top and bottom of the world, and most everywhere between," I said probably a little too flippantly given her shocked expression.
"You've crossed the desert?" Hans asked incredulously.
"There are oasis scattered across it if you know where to look," I said defensively, knowing that much was true. "Following and befriending the Bedouin tribes helps immensely."
"When you say 'top and bottom of the world'…" Elsa then began to ask tentatively, "You mean the arctic poles?"
"Or at least as close as you can get by ship," I clarified for her. "There's a large island at the southern pole where a large, black and white flightless bird lives and swims to catch fish. The northern pole lacks such an island but any attempt to sail over it is doomed to fail. The ice there is too thick and too cold and, like snow on mountains above a certain elevation, it also never goes away."
"So you've seen the pyramids of Egypt?" Anna asked me curiously.
"The pyramid isn't confined to Egypt," I said to make her draw drop. "They're scattered across the Arabic world to even here in the new world, if with a slightly different look."
"I would have thought you had been to college," Elsa then prompted me. "With everything you seem to know, you couldn't have learned it all through traveling."
"A little here, a little there," I said as I hedged the truth as I couldn't come out and admit I was a college graduate who majored in accounting at a college that wouldn't exist for three hundred years.
"And you never learned to navigate?" Anna questioned me.
"As an able bodied seaman, my job was to tend the rigging and the cannons, not determine where the ship goes," I said as I admitted that much though they didn't act like they believed me. "I learned map reading moving around on dry land, not wet. It's a lot harder to determine where you are when there are no landmarks to help determine your position and your speed can change with the wind."
"That's true," Hans said as he agreed with my position. "I spent the entire trip over trying to calculate where we were and how much longer it'd be. I have to admit, after the first month, I was beginning to wonder. Give me a good map, and march me blindfolded into the field I can find my way with no problem. Get me just out of sight of land while on water? I couldn't find my way back."
"So how were you planning on finding Saint Martin?" Elsa then asked me pointedly.
"A little trick I picked up in the Pacific," I said with a smile though it suddenly occurred to me I couldn't place where I had picked it up or why, which was odd. I could usually remember why I learned something or where. "When traveling on the water and looking for land, especially an island, look for clouds hanging over a specific spot. Doesn't always work, but you'd be surprised how close you'll come and maybe, with a good spyglass to help and a weather eye on the lookout, you'll find land with no problem."
"I never thought of that," Elsa said as she gave me a smirk.
"There are a group of people that have traveled the Pacific islands for several thousand years using that simple trick to find a new island to live on," I told them, again the information something I learned but not able to remember why or how I learned it. "They take off in their boats from an island with no real idea of where they are going, just waiting to find a new island to make a home and then they settle down for a while, then they pick up and go again. All of it with no advanced scientific instruments and just the stars and sky to guide them."
"Huh," Elsa said as she looked wistful. "So, you picked that up just by listening?"
"I did," I confessed to her. "And also by watching and making observations. Take your parrot, for instance. It can learn hundreds of different words and phrases and mimic them perfectly just by repeating the phrase to it until it repeats it back. Once it learns the phrase, it won't forget it. Older parrots that have learned this process can even mimic a phrase it's only heard after a few times."
"So, Olaf could learn to speak?" Elsa asked as she looked at her pet parrot.
"He could, but it's not true speech," I told her as she scratched at the parrots chin. "He might say something like 'Polly want a cracker' or 'How are you today?' but there isn't the same intention behind it. Same thing as me saying, 'Hasta la vista' or 'ménage à trois' to someone. I know the phrases but not the words. To me they mean nothing alone."
"'Hasta la vista' is 'See you later' in Spanish," Hans then told me. "You lost me on the other."
"I've heard it once," Anna said as she smiled broadly towards her sister. "Wasn't told what it was though."
"I've an idea, but it doesn't matter," I said as I brushed it off.
"What would be a good first word for it to learn?" Elsa then asked as she accepted the change in topic.
"'Hello' and 'Polly want a cracker' are some of the more common I've heard them say," I told her. "If I had a parrot, I'd probably go with something nautical such as 'Shiver me timbers' or 'Ahoy, matey.'"
"Interesting," Elsa said as she looked over the harbor. "So, what ship are you sailing these days?"
"I have a forty cannon frigate taken from the French," I told her with a smile which she returned.
"I'd love to see it," Elsa said with that same warm smile.
"Then let's take a walk to the harbor and I'll give you a tour," I told her with a smile. Elsa continued to smile as she rose, prompting me to rise as well if only out of politeness. Hans and Anna rose as well, Hans extending his arm as Elsa came abreast of him. I expected Elsa to take his arm, the two likely a pair, but Elsa instead breezed past the captain to take my arm instead as Anna took the captain's arm.
I then escorted Elsa down to the docks where I showed her the Wanton Queen, the first of her masts being lifted out of its place after its chocks were removed to free the wooden timber. The four of us watched from the poop deck as the foremast was removed and carried away before I took them down through the gun deck before arriving at my private quarters where Colette served us dinner at the captain's table.
"It's a beautiful ship," Elsa said after we had finished dinner and moved into the wardroom. Elsa and Anna took the chairs to the rear while Hans and I sat to the lounge chair.
"You have your own guitar?" Anna said as she eyed my guitar.
"Something I acquired long ago," I said as she ran a finger over the instrument. "I've learned many a song in my travels, sung to me over a campfire by various people I knew. Sometimes by women, mostly by men."
"So, you know songs for women?" Elsa asked me. "Would you care to play one?"
"Sure," I said as I stood and picked up the guitar. I strummed the instrument, but found it slightly out of tune. After testing the big E string and finding it wonky, I opened a desk drawer and pulled out my recorder.
"No tuning fork?" Anna questioned me.
"Uh, no," I said as I began playing an E note on the recorder with my left hand and strumming the guitar with my right. Indeed the two notes were out of sync so I adjusted the guitar and tried again.
"How many instruments do you play?" Elsa then asked me as I began to tune the rest of the guitar as I had Anna's earlier.
"Organ, harpsichord, recorder, guitar, harmonica," I counted off quickly before stopping to think. "Most other instruments I could play if only simply after some examination and practice. Just don't ask me to join an orchestra until I've had a chance to master it."
"I find that hard to believe," Hans said as he challenged me. "I tried playing a violin once and even after three days in the barn, couldn't manage more than a handful of notes."
"Probably playing something written by a composer," I surmised and he nodded. I gave him a smile as I decided to sizzle his nuts.
"That's probably because you're playing something rather complicated," I said to which again he nodded. "I know songs that only have three notes or, for a guitar, two chords and could teach Anna to play them before she leaves this room."
"That's foolish," he challenged as he crossed his arms.
"Childish, rather," I said as I began to play 'Mary Had a Little Lamb' on the recorder, the simple notes achieved by lifting one finger after another before laying them back down with just my left hand. Elsa and Anna just smiled as I showed Hans up, but after setting the recorder aside, repeated the song as I played it again on the guitar, switching to chords after the first verse to show more complexity than fingerstyle on the third pass through to further blow his mind.
"So, you said you could teach me how to play something before leaving?" Anna said as I nodded my head.
"The first chord is E," I said as I changed my fingering to the proper chord and strummed it. "Strum all six strings down then up twice then change to this chord, A, and repeat the up and down twice before going back to E. Just remember the A chord is only the five lower strings and not the top one."
"So simple," Anna said as I began to demonstrate the chord and how easy it was to change chords just by lowering the second finger and change the first over the fret and moving it to the now fifth string. "So, what song does it play?"
"Well," I hedged as I stopped playing then began again before starting to play and sing America's 'Horse With No Name' to the group. The song was usually one of the first taught or learned by amateur guitarists and its heavily metaphorical lyrics could be interpreted a number of different ways if you didn't listen to its final verse that put the song into perspective. Hans looked rather miffed as I handed the guitar over to Anna and quickly taught her the two chords and soon had her doing a good cover of the song herself.
"It's so simple," Anna laughed as she handed the guitar back to me.
"You seem to have a knack for allegorical lyrics," Elsa said, the word throwing me until I remembered it from A Knight's Tale. "But you said you know songs for women and haven't delivered."
"That is true," I admitted to her, as I settled the guitar on me knee and strummed it, finally making a choice for a female led song as I sang Dolly Parton's 'Jolene.' Halfway through the song, Elsa turned and gave Anna a smirk as the redhead fingered one of her long red braids to make her chuckle but I had to think they liked a more straightforward song as their was no allegory in the songs lyrics.
"Lovely," Elsa said as the three clapped. "You know anything a little more...loyal?"
"I do," I said as I began playing Faith Hill's 'Breathe,' Anna intently watching my fingerstyle as I played each string individually to produce the proper sound. I had always loved the song for its devotion between partners, the song covering nothing more than a single moment between lovers where the singer admits to finally opening themselves to love as they lay in the embrace of their lover. The sisters seemed to enjoy the song while Hans looked bored, but whether it was noticed by the enraptured sisters I wasn't sure as all three broke out in clapping when it was done.
"I think you missed your calling," Elsa said as I sat the guitar aside. "You play wonderfully."
"I've had plenty of time to practice," I told her as a knock on the wall brought our attention to Jasmine who stood at the entryway.
"The governor has sent a carriage for his daughters," Jasmine told me as I stood to face her.
"I guess it is time to go home," Elsa said as she and Anna stood from their seats. "It's been a wonderful evening."
"It's been a pleasure," I said as Elsa extended her hand and, realizing what the moment called for, kissed her hand like a proper gentleman of old. Elsa smiled as I did so, but it was Hans incensed stare as I rose that I got the biggest kick out of. I didn't know if the man was interested in Elsa romantically, but he sure didn't like me sharing pleasantries with her.
"My lord," Anna said as she curtsied to me with a giggle which made me sigh heavily at the formality but accepting it nonetheless. Growing up in America as a commoner really had me at a loss in these matters even if I was quick to accept the title and its benefits.
"By your leave, my lord," Hans said as he bowed to me, having more decorum but also a lower station which I surmised mattered in these matters. I nodded to both in turn, escorting the three out and onto the deck to the gangplank then down to the carriage where the girls entered before the carriage pulled away. Hans for his part just walked away once the carriage left, leaving me alone at the end of the pier as the carriage carrying Elsa and her sister back to home and a warm bed. I had to admit, even if I had just had an orgy the night before, it was one of the most fun evenings I'd had in a good long while and reminded me of spending a relaxing evening with friends.
Turning back to the ship, I cast my eyes briefly to where the sun had dipped below the horizon taking the light with it. Looking to the Wanton Queen where the Timon was ripping apart the main mast, I sighed at that as I knew it'd be several days before the replacements were installed and secured with the rigging replaced and until it was, I wasn't going anywhere. But, with a smile on my face as I recalled the evening entertaining Elsa, Anna and Hans I had to admit there was something nice about having guests and entertaining that I'd been missing being on the road all the time and how much I'd like to have a house to do stuff like this properly.
It was a nice thought as I walked back aboard, but having a home and trying to have a social life would only take me from the sea more than being a baron already threatened. Now, if I had a wife to keep the social calendar going and I just dropped in while in port that was a different issue but I had no wife. Elsa seemed interested in the position, completely ignoring my title and instead offering her hand for me to kiss. The question was did I want to pursue her even if Hans was interested?
Well, maybe, I finally decided as I entered my private quarters and turned into the wardroom. She was smart, actually taught me how to use a sextant, and was interested in scientific endeavors as she explored the world. Another big plus was that I would be based here in Saint Martin where her family was so she'd never be alone and it would make it easy to date in the interim and she was a smoking hot blonde. The only wild card I could name was the time period and realized I had no idea how to engage in wooing a woman of a higher class even if she were still below me on the social ladder. To me, it was like a billionaire dating an actress, one having access to everything and the other wanting it. In my time, such pairings were considered quaint but any rough patches were usually looked over but I wouldn't get that here. If I screwed up, it could definitely embarrass me in front of her and made me think the best thing going forward would be to play it slow and hope she preferred listening to music rather than dancing to it. Of course, as the ranking socialite I might get away with introducing the waltz that should be hot right now, not that I knew any but the Blue Danube.
Well, that and the Tennessee Waltz but the lyrics kill the mood.