The crew rushed to the starboard bow, gazing into the azure waters that surrounded them. There, flailing in the silver spray, was a man with hair as golden as the sun. They sprang into action, fetching rope, tossing it towards the man and pulling him aboard.
"Thanks," he spluttered, coughing up seawater.
"What were you doing there?" Ruby asked, bringing him a blanket, "Did you go for a swim and lose your boat?" She regarded him with scrutiny; his chin was clean of any hair, yet he was tall and built well, meaning he was probably used to hard labour in his youth.
"Oh, nothing of the sort," the boy replied, "I was the helmsman on a cruise ship on her way to Menagerie, when bearing down upon us was a pirate ship! They boarded us and took all the loot they could and stuffed their ship with captives to sell. I was among those captives, but a spat with the quartermaster had me thrown overboard.
"I know I have no right to make any demands of you, but could you deliver me to Weller Key? I need to contact a huntsman or something to rescue my family."
"Of course!" the captain immediately replied, "We needed to stop there for resupply anyway. What's your name?"
"Jaune Arc."
"Fear not, Jaune, we'll get you to Weller Key!"
The castaway grabbed Ruby's hands and shook them in gratitude, "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
"Not a problem," the young captain responded jovially, "Weiss, take Jaune here and show him around."
Weiss was not enthused by the prospect. She felt that Ruby was being far too accommodating to this stranger who, for all they knew, were part of the very pirates he claimed to have been raided by.
But, the younger woman was the captain, so her word was law, "Fine…"
"Thanks! Hey, Ren, can I speak with you for a moment?"
Begrudgingly, Weiss showed Jaune around the Crescent Rose, being as vague as possible in regards to their cargo (whether Ruby trusted him or not, there was no way the aristocrat would tell him they were carrying illicit goods). "Here are the cabins; ladies on the left and gents on the right."
"Thanks," Jaune said, smiling gratefully, "So, you're the quartermaster, yeah?"
"It's one of my duties."
"Right. So, I was wanting to help out," the castaway stated, "I don't feel right if I just sat around doing nothing when your captain is helping me."
Weiss' opinion of the boy steadily rose. While she still had her reservations and suspicions, she felt that he was, at least, reasonable and intelligent enough to realise there was a point he could be taking her captain's generosity for granted. She would admit freely that she had intended to give him work regardless, so it certainly helped that Jaune's work ethic was good. "Of course, you'll be helping around with what we need, mostly Nora or Ren. Just follow mine or Ruby's orders until we reach port."
"Aye aye, ma'am!"
The two then returned to the deck, where Ruby had finished her conversation with Ren. The older man approached, "Hello, Arc. I hope you are all right?"
"As right as a mast."
"Good, then you can help Nora. She's handling the rigging. Once you're done, could you help me in the galley?"
"Sure, though I'm not much of a cook." With that, Jaune approached Nora who began excitedly ordering the bewildered boy around, whilst Ren disappeared below deck.
"So, what do you make of him?" Ruby asked.
Weiss hummed unsurely, "He was quite eager to help around, so at least he has some sense. Still, I find him suspicious, and I don't like the way he stares at me when he thinks I'm not looking."
"Do you think he's a liar?"
Weiss seemed to falter, "Well… I'm not sure. He comes across more as a lost little boy than a pirate. But, I know that there are plenty of people out there who can act one way when they are, in their hearts, another."
Ruby nodded, "Right. I've told Ren to keep an eye on him. I personally don't think he's a threat, but better to be safe than sorry
"Anyway! You said we're about a week's journey from Weller Key, right?"
"Roughly. Navigation isn't my strong spot," the aristocrat replied, slightly embarrassed.
"Guess we should look into finding a proper navigator, then. Perhaps a cannon or two, in case we get accosted. How are we doing with provisions?"
"I did an inventory while I was showing the boy around," Weiss stated, "We definitely have enough to get to Weller Key, and Kuo Kuana should be fine too so long as we don't get blown off course or anything."
The captain sighed, "Guess we'll do another inventory when we get to Weller. We're gonna be bled dry to get this tub in order. Still," she made her way to the helm and grasped the wheel, "I suppose we can just do some fishing when things are calm. It'd be nice to have some actual meat."
Weiss agreed. Ever since running away, her diet mostly consisted of mouldy bread and salted jerky. At this point, even fruit would be a luxury.
Evening came and Jaune was in the galley helping Ren. It wasn't much, mostly just fetching him ingredients and utensils, sometimes watching the food whilst the cook did something else.
Ren wasn't much of a conversationalist, the blond boy found, but he was an engaging person to talk to when he did speak. He reminded Jaune of old Mistralli elders, with plenty of insight and wisdom to impart whilst never coming across as condescending or demanding.
"So, who have these pirates taken from you?" the older man began as he stirred a pot of vegetables.
"My sister and nephew," Jaune replied, "They were travelling back to Vale after my brother-in-law passed on. I can't imagine how the lad's doing right now, I hope he's okay…"
"The pirates are probably looking after him," Ren said, "Watch this." The cook moved to a nearby barrel. "I'd imagine they'd want a healthy boy to sell when he grows."
"I don't want that."
"Then what's your plan?" Ren took over the cooking again, adding some alcohol to the broth.
Jaune faltered, his face shifting through worry and panic, "I… don't have one. I'm not a fighter, so I was going to ask a huntsman or two to help."
"Do you have any money to hire one?" Jaune was silent. "Then you may want to evaluate how you will rescue them."
Jaune couldn't sleep that night. Worry and doubt filled his mind, striking at his resolve like a bullet. What could he do? He was just a lad who could not even grow a beard. He had no money, all his possessions washed away by the foaming sea and claimed by her dark, abyssal depths. He could not fight, nor could he afford someone to help. With a sigh, he quietly raised from his hammock and made his way above deck, careful to not disturb Ren or the girls.
The cool wind gently caressed his skin, carrying the salty scent of the sea to his nose. The crash of the spray against the hull of the Crescent Rose, whilst the light of the moon and stars illuminated the world.
Sitting at the port bow, with a fishing rod in hand and a bucket of writhing fish at her feet, was Ruby. She seemed to sense his presence, as she craned her neck around to face him, "Hey Jaune," she called.
The boy gave a shy wave, approaching when beckoned. The captain was silent as she watched her line, the tackle bobbing amidst the silvery water. "Can't sleep?" she eventually asked.
"Yeah…" the helmsman admitted pathetically, "It's just… I'm not sure what to do."
"About what?"
Jaune shrunk slightly, "About how to rescue my family… What could a scrawny kid like me do?"
"Who knows?" Ruby replied, "None of us really know what we're gonna do until we do it. My dad always said he'd go to Vacuo, yet he never did."
"I think there's a difference with my case, though."
"Is there? You either do it or you don't."
"But what can I do?"
"You do what you can." The line tugged, and the captain began to reel in her catch. "Only then can you find out if you can." From the water burst a wriggling, slimy fish, her silver scales shimmering in the moonlight. "If you don't try in the first place, then you'll never know if you could."
"Of course I'm not going to do nothing," Jaune replied, a slight tone of annoyance in his voice, "I just don't know what to do."
"The answer will come up soon," Ruby replied, tossing the fish into the bucket and casting her line again, "After all, if you won't settle for doing nothing, then you'll have to find an answer."
"And when will the answer appear?"
Ruby smirked, "I say it will materialise at Weller Key."
"What makes you say that?"
"A feeling," the captain replied, "A word on the wind. A disturbance in the universe. It is what it is; a feeling."
Jaune sighed, "That's not exactly strong evidence."
"What is strong evidence? Most of us make decisions based on our feelings.
"All in all, you'll know what to do when the time comes, because if doing nothing is out of the question, that means doing something is all you can do."
"I… see…"
"As I said, you'll know what to do when the time comes."
Silence reigned over them as a soft, salty breeze blew by, the waves gently lapping against the Crescent Rose's hull.
"Why did you become a sailor?" Jaune suddenly asked.
"I've always loved the sea, ever since I was a little girl. On Patch, there's this cliff that overlooks the sea, and in the evenings the sun sets over the horizon, colouring the pearly water in reds and pinks. When night washed over, the sea would become inky with a spike of silver from the moon.
"I'd stay up late with my mam to watch that sunset, looking over that horizon that seemed endless. I dreamed of sailing with her forever on that sea, going adventures in exotic places, meeting strange natives, mapping uncharted waters. Once, I imagined us going underwater and finding cities of pearls."
Jaune laughed, "I just needed some money."
"To each their own."
Days passed until they reached Weller Key. Jaune spent his time helping Nora adjusting the rigging, though the excitable girl quickly tired him out. Since his chat with Ruby, he even got a few shifts on night watch. It seemed that Ruby's vouch for him also warmed him up to Weiss whilst Nora's friendship improved his relationship with Ren.
Sailing into the bay, they dropped the gangway onto the pier. There was a tense atmosphere around the town. As Ren and Nora loaded supplies onto the Crescent Rose, Ruby and her first mate escorted Jaune to the local constable.
"Excuse me," Ruby called, "We picked up a castaway who was attacked by pirates."
"Hello sir."
The constable sighed, "The Red Skulls, right? They've been raiding the shipping lanes and are hurting trade. Shops aren't getting food and money isn't getting into town. We've pooled what we could afford into a bounty reward, but the huntress we hired hasn't returned. We've seen neither hide nor hair of her. If things keep up, I fear the negativity will attract the Grimm."
"What about the Navy?" Weiss asked.
"They're locked up on the routes between Menagerie and Nanfang, as well as the routes up to Atlas.
"No, we're gonna have to sort this out ourselves. You, boy, what do you have to say?"
Jaune jumped at his voice, "Uh, well Sir, we were raided by about 30 men."
"Plus the five to ten they would need to maintain their small fort in the woods. I don't have enough men to siege that place, and the Navy is useless."
"Uh, Sir?" Jaune spoke up, "They have captives, among which are women and children."
The constable sighed, rubbing his eyes tiredly, "Bollocks…"
"Well, constable," Ruby grinned, "Is that reward still available?"
"If you want to go for it, you're welcome to try. No down payment, though, ain't got the money."
"Aye, Sir."
"Ruby?" both Weiss and Jaune said.
The captain led them outside, grinning confidently, "Well, I say this solves everyone's problems; Jaune gets his family back, the captives are released, Weller Key gets her trade back and we get paid."
"But, Ruby," Weiss began, sweat dripping down her brow, "Are you sure we can do this? The two of us can fight but we don't know about Ren and Nora, and Jaune doesn't look like he's ever held a sword!" She quickly glanced at the castaway, "No offence."
"None taken…"
Ruby smiled, "We won't know if we don't try. Besides, my heritage is that of huntsmen, I can't just leave them on their own."
"I…" Weiss began yet could find no words to argue with. After all, her own heritage was that of naval officers, and to leave these people would be a dereliction of duty. "Okay…"
"Ruby," Jaune called, "Thank you!"
The captain laughed, "Don't mention it. I did say an answer would appear, didn't I? Now, let's plan our raid."
Merry Christmas to all! I hope you are enjoying your holidays. I've got another project in the works, but I'll still be working on Red Hood Pirates.Anyway, have a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year!
