Jack hurried along as his fingers flipped through the handful of papers hed gone over religiously the night before, doing his best to memorize just who was trading what and to which port beyond the seas. He yanked out the slip he had been looking for, handing it over across the counter of a stall to the bazaar, who nodded in acceptance before waving him off.

"Aye, Captain," the bazaar muttered, aimlessly, "I'll have my men load it all up fer ya."

"Thanks," Jack nodded with a smirk, "I'll have it in Buenos Aires faster than you can sell those sandcakes in the window there."

"Yer on!" the bazaar laughed, shaking his head amusedly, "Here, go on and take this to cover primage."

He dropped a small sack of coins onto the counter, catching Jack's bewildered expression, "N-No, I couldn't possibly - you're already paying for the shipping."

The man waved him off, "Morrison, you've been a seam'n as wily as you are loyal. I can't even remember a time my payment wasn't on time. You've been a good friend and a better merchant runner; let me celebrate that with a little extra coin in your pocket, aye?"

Jack smiled, leaning over to take the bazaar's hand with his own two, covering his up as he nodded in thanks, "You're too good to me, old friend. I can't see you this journey will be much different. Back on the 24th of November?"

"Aye," the bazaar agreed, nodding once more, "Now get outa here, ya scallywag! I've got ta get sellin' those sandcakes there!"

"Good luck," Jack replied, happily, before topping his cap and turning to leave, making his way out of the small, cramped building that sat just in between two larger buildings.

Stepping out into the crowded port that sat just beside the shipyards, Jack shoved the papers and sack of coins into his pocket before maneuvering through the mass of people, moving more sideways than anything as he made his way toward the statue in the middle of the square, where Lena was to keep watch over Angela's while he worked. Soon enough, he noticed them, with Angela's face still a model of shock and amazement as she continuously stared at the flowing rover of bodies rushing to and fro.

Lena sat, cross-legged, up on one of the statue's arms, one hand shielding her eyes from the sun as she scoped her captain out, pointing at Jack as he made his way into sight, quickly leaning down toward Angela, "Man ho!"

Angela quickly looked up to follow Lena's pointing, smiling from ear to ear as her father came into view, her legs quickly rushing over toward him, nearly knocking him over as he wasn't expecting her hug. Nearly jostling his papers, he sighed mildly, though quickly returned the hug.

"You're going to crumple the orders up," he frowned, "You need to look professional, you know."

Angela eyed him from below, her chin against his chest as she frowned, "But Lena said-"

"Oxton says she was a dolphin in a previous life," Jack interrupted, drolly, "I respect and trust her skills as my third mate, but there are some things I expect from myself, as captain, that I wouldn't from my crew."

"Thank goodness," the two heard Lena complain from above as she shook her head, displeased, "Rigidity gives you wrinkles, you know."

Jack looked down at his daughter with a disinterested expression before pulling away, going over the forms in his hands, "Okay, once I go through all the invoices and get them checked out, I need to be back at my ship by midday for the loading. Primage fees usually come out of the vessel's pocket, but Victor was kind enough to pay it himself, so…"

He pulled out the small satchel of coins to hand to Angela, who accepted it warily, unsure of its origin, "What's primage?"

"That's what we pay the loaders who go through the trouble of getting the cargo onto the ship," Jack explained, dropping the bag into his daughter's waiting hands, "Small price to pay for me not having to do it. I have a few more orders to get sorted, so if you and Lena want to go shop down by the marketplace, that money's yours."

Excitedly, Lena hopped down from the statue with gusto, immediately bolting to Amgela's side, grasping her shoulders as she peered into the sack of coins, "Oooooh baby!"

Jack chuckled mildly before Angela smiled up at him appreciatively, reaching over to hug him again, "Thanks."

"Bah, just enjoy yourselves. And Lena," Jack spoke, suddenly with an authoritative tone, "Be prepared to head out."

"Aye aye!" she shouted, her happy-go-lucky expression immediately disappearing as she took on the sudden appearance and tone of a third mate, causing Angela to laugh at the juxtaposition.

Jack nodded, "Good. See you two soon."

He gave Angela a rough pat on her shoulder before turning to leave, diving once more into that sea of people. Lena quickly returned to her excited state, grasping Angela by the hand and pulling her in the opposite direction, up toward the higher docks that were more of a boardwalk amusement park than much else.

"Ohmanohmanohman!" Lena repeated, excitedly, "Come on; I just gotta get that giant plush bear! I don't care what Cap says; it's fitting on board somewhere!"

Angela followed along, albeit mostly by force, but she finally managed a few words in as Lena's furious pace slowed in the presence of heavier foot traffic, "Hey, Lena?"

"What's up?"

Angela's lips curled up in nervous thought, speaking up quietly, "Do you think I'm ready to go with father?"

"On the Splitstream?" Lena asked, rhetorically, looking Angela over with a cursory glance, "I guess. I don't know; I've kids born between the gun decks that lived their whole lives out at sea. Why? You wanting to go out?"

"Well, yeah, but father insists I stay here forever," Angela muttered, distantly, "I'm not a kid anymore, you know."

Lena nodded, "Yeah, but he's just lookin' out for ya. He's like that with the crew as well. Your old man is a lot of things, but if you asked what he was most of, it'd be loyalty. The man stops at nothing to make sure we're all sound as a pound. He's just doing the same for you."

"I know," Angela frowned, "I just wish he'd give me a chance every now and then to, I don't know, jump out the nest and learn to fly."

Smiling gloomily, Lena paused to turn toward Angela, the younger of the two staring up at her worriedly as she spoke, "You know who else flew too far for him to follow?"

Angela paused, her eyes looking away as her head lowered, quietly. She knew the answer, though it was an explanation she didn't often offer herself. Hearing it from somebody else, however, she suddenly faced the biggest reason her father was so adamant about keeping her safe at home.

Lena suddenly patted her shoulder, giving her a smile, "Come on; I'll win ya something. I barely see ya; let's not make it all mopey!"

"Yeah," Angela nodded, weakly, as Lena began her furious pace, pulling her along.

The third mate still managed to converse as she dashed and blew past bystanders, throwing her head over her shoulder as she did, "I guess I could teach ya some stuff about it to help ya out. You know, some basic rules and stuff; I caught that list of nautical terms ya had in your hand earlier."

"Uh, I guess," Angela answered, unsure of taking much of any knowledge from somebody so eccentric, though, she was a third mate after all; not a position for most anybody less than exemplary.

"You gotta boyfriend?" Lena asked, catching Angela wholly off guard.

"Uh- N-No!" Angela stuttered back in reply, her face blowing up into crimson, "W-Why would you think that?!"

Lena eyed her curiously for a moment, though quickly went on, shrugging, "It's just a question. It's a rule; if you're seeing somebody, you've gotta cut it off. You don't need that hanging over your head when you're out on the ocean's waters, right? Out there, anything goes; you're no longer a member of any nation- you're a part of a nation of just a few sailors trying to stay afloat."

She finished up innocently enough, "Besides, it isn't much fair to them; what with waiting forever for you to return 'n all. Just better for both people- you gotta cut it off. Unless you're like Jesse and have a family 'n all."

Angela tried to hide her still-red face as she asked, quietly, "Did you-?"

Lena scoffed, interrupting her as she answered, "Oh yeah, every time. Every time I end back up home though, I can't help but run back to that bird; goddamn, it's like she has me in a trance!"

"She?" Angela wondered, sincerely, earning a sneaky grin from Lena as she went on.

"Oh yeah, we go waaaay back, Emmy and me. Back when I was running lines down the docks, that dame caught my eye so hard I missed my footing and landed in the bloody bay! That's rule two, though."

Angela's eyes nearly winced at the mention of a second rule being involved in that story, "R-Rule two?"

"Ya plunder, or ya get plundered," Lena pointed out, rather devilishly, "I kinda stole her from some guy she was seeing. Even before I made it out to see, I was already on the trail of some sea-sunk booty!"

Lena went on walking for only a brief moment before she stopped, her arms going limp as she suddenly burst into laughter, swinging her body lazily as her head rose into the air, cackling happily at her own unintended joke, leaving Angela with a slight laugh herself, though Lena was absolutely lost in her own world by know.

Coming to her senses, Lena's laughter turned into spasms of giggles as they approached the midway, the dock often filled with mechanical oddities that came to this place from many parts unknown, some of the technology absolutely dazzling to the locals. Lena was quick to 'ooo' and 'ahh' at each demonstration as the two passed along, leaving Angela to silently examine the mechanisms that whirred and churned while peeling apples automatically or strung up rope.

"Hey Lena…" Angela spoke up quietly, the sad tone quick to catch her senior's attention, "Does father ever talk about mom?"

Her eyes rose up toward the sky as her hand massaged her chin, thinking deeply, "Hmm… Y'know, now that you mention it, not really. I mean, even on our drunker ni- I mean, nights where we're totally sober, of course; even then, he doesn't talk much about her. I know her name, but that's about it. Jesse would know; he's been wrangling alongside your dad for forever. Why?"

"I don't know," Angela sighed, "He doesn't say much about her to me, either. Maybe a story or two, but nothing too broad. I know they met on the seas and were both crewed on the same ships and all for most of the time, but that's about it."

Lena smiled, "Well, I do know that all that he does, all this work and time he takes to be a kick-ass merchant ship captain, he does it for you. He knows he can't really be your mother, so he does all he can to make up for that. Honestly, I don't think he believes he can be all he can be without her, but you didn't hear that from me!"

Angela smiled, "Don't worry; I've sort of come to that myself."

"Ah! Observant child!" Lena praised, slightly patronizingly, rubbing her hand atop of Angela's head, "You'll be a good lookout yet! Just like your good ol' Lena!"

Laughing in reply, Angela shook her head, smiling, "Funny; I've always looked up to you."

"Me?! Really?!" Lena shouted out, amazed, though Angela was quick to pull on her arm to pipe her down.

"Not so loud!" Angela whispered, "If father hears, he'll keep us separated!"

Lena scoffed, "Pfft, I'd like to see him try! I fly across those masts; I'd show him what-for, flying above my station like nobody's business!"

She snickered at the thought, thought the both of them knew, well enough, that Lena Oxton wouldn't ever dare to pull rank in such a way. Still, Angela appreciated the thought of having somebody in her corner, so to speak. She had, indeed, looked up to Lena; especially in the darker days after her mother's death, Angela couldn't help but see a ray of sunshine from her very smile, no matter how weak it might have been, given the situation.

"Hey…" Angela spoke up, quietly, catching Lena's ear once again, "I was sort of lying when I said I didn't have a boyfriend…"

"Ah ha!" Lena shouted, accusatorily, though with enough of a conniving grin that Angela didn't much mind, "I knew you were too pretty of a girl not to have something going on! Let me tell you; all the pretty girls are always taken- I kind of thought you were a bit odd, actually! I mean, no offense or anything, but I mean, come on, you-"

"Thank you!" Angela interrupted, with a rather nervous tone.

Lena then frowned, "Does your father not know?"

"Well, I mean…" Angela trailed off, looking away as she scratched the back of her neck, nervously, her eyes narrowed in fright, "I don't really know how to tell him… I mean, I don't have a 'boyfriend' per se…"

Lena's face contorted curiously, her eyes shutting in thought, "Wait, but you just said you were lying abou- oooooh… Well shucks, kiddo; I was just joking around earlier. I wouldn't have said that stuff if I'd known you were-"

"I-It's okay," Angela assured, blushing a deep red, "You know… I just trust you is all, and I figured you should know, I guess."

Her hand still at her chin, Lena's fingers reached up to stroke her cheek as she stared off into the distance, her eyes nearly shutting against the sea wind that blew to her, her mind working in circles before she finally looked back toward Angela, "Let's get you on this next trip."

"W-What?!" Angela replied, shocked, "I-I- But father-"

Lena grinned, "Kiddo, you've grown up! I mean, I knew you had, but, like, wow! We need to spread those wings, alright! If it's my last act as third mate, by George, I'm gonna get you on the Splitstream before it next leaves port, got it?"

Despite wanting such a thing for years now, actually hearing it being discussed so vigorously, Angela's heart suddenly raced as fear flew through her, unable to speak as her mouth became dry. Lena gave her a reassuring wrap of her arm around her shoulders, giving a spirited pump of her arm.

"Come on," Lena smiled, gently, "Do you really want this?"

Angela could feel her body shake at the question, though at that minute, through all the fear and apprehension, she found that original desire to sail alongside her father, to follow in her mother's footsteps, if only to feel whatever connection she could feel to her. Her father had always preached courage, and she knew, all too well, that this was the time to practice it.

"Yes," she nodded through a wavering voice.

"Alright!" Lena shouted, "Oh, you'll love it! We'll get to drop the masts together! and roll lemons and limes across the deck! and get on Jesse's bad side! and watch the dolphins swimming alongside the ship! It'll be great!"

Angela smiled, weakly, at the thought, finally nudged toward that uncomfortable place that wasn't at her familiar home. Still, she felt that tug of adventure, perhaps the same tug that first pulled her father out into the endless ocean. She could finally help her father, learn all that he knew, become the progeny that he could be truly proud to offer the world.

She could finally spread her wings.