Yami stared out at the wide expanse of ocean before him, his expression an odd cross of irritated and amused. It had been a few days since Joseph "Joey" Wheeler had been found as a stowaway aboard the pirate king's ship, and while the blond was proving to at least be capable of pulling his own weight (at the expense of most of their food supplies-allowing him in the kitchen meant giving him access to all of their food, and the captain and his crew all quickly learned that Joey had a very healthy appetite), he was also proving to be the most disrespectful person that Yami had ever had the misfortune of meeting.
Honestly, with how small of a filter there seemed to be between the blond's brain and his mouth, it was no wonder that he had to resort to stowing away on a pirate ship-no doubt his mouth had gotten him into some sort of trouble in town, and Yami was sure that the blond would continue getting himself into trouble just because he didn't know how to hold his tongue. Not that he was Yami's problem, of course, nor was he concerned about Joey's well-being once they went their separate ways-no, with all of the comments (especially about his height and his temper), the pirate king was rather looking forward to being rid of the irritating nuisance... or so he said, anyway.
To his annoyance, there was a small part of him that was actually enjoying the back and forth banter between himself and the blond-it was refreshing to have someone treating him like a person on equal footing instead of someone who needed to be feared and obeyed, and the pirate king almost considered keeping Joey on board as a permanent member of his crew... but as cruel as he was, he couldn't just force anyone to follow him, and so he decided to leave the decision to Joey himself. Yami pulled himself from his thoughts as he heard one of his crew members report that they spotted land, and he immediately began barking out orders as he set course for the approaching port, idly wondering what the blond's decision would be once they reached land.
Joey had finished his duties in the kitchen and heard the shout that they had reached land. He popped out on the deck to check it out and spotted Yami. "So where are we?" he asked the captain. The blond hadn't really been told much of anything and he was curious to know where they had landed. Plus a touch of cabin fever was overcoming him and he wanted to get back on solid land and away from this blasted, constantly moving ship.
Yami briefly pulled his gaze away from the approaching port to glance over at the blond, briefly considering ignoring his question before deciding that it wouldn't be worth the headache that would no doubt follow-he'd learned for himself just how stubborn the blond could be when he wanted to. "Seville," he responded. Upon realizing that Joey probably wouldn't know where that was, he added, "A large port city in Spain." Yami could see the blond's restlessness and eagerness to leave the ship, and so (with only the slightest bit of hesitance) he turned to fully face Joey as he asked, "What are your plans now? I highly doubt you have the means to get by in a foreign land by yourself."
Joey didn't reply right away. He just gazed out at the land that was steadily growing closer. "I really don't," the blond replied. In fact, he didn't have a single coin to his name, let alone any plans for his future. "I'm really just taking this as it comes and hoping it'll all work itself out." He turned to the captain, asking a question of his own. "What are your plans? Or are you just planning on robbing them all blind? It really doesn't seem like much of a life," he paused, "I mean, after you get everything you want, what is there then? It all seems rather lonely."
Yami frowned. "My plans... are not what you think they are," he began slowly, unsure of just how much he could tell the stowaway-after all, he wasn't really a member of his crew and he held no loyalty to him, so revealing too much could end up hurting him in the long run. "I'm... searching for something in particular. Most of what you've heard of me were all things that occurred only because people crossed my path and took me lightly; as for theft, we mainly steal either from the rich, or we steal money and goods that were already stolen by someone else. The reason why we're docking here is so I can try and gather information, and if they don't have what I need, then I will just move on to the next port." He kept his gaze out towards land as he spoke, only turning to glance over at Joey when he added, "As for my lifestyle being 'lonely,' I'm perfectly fine with that-so long as I have Yugi by my side to protect, I don't need anyone else. It was how I lived before, and it's how I'll live even after I find what I'm searching for."
Joey continued to stare out at the land. The pirate obviously cared a lot for his brother. It made Joey think of his own sibling. He had a little sister whom he hadn't seen in years. After his drunken gambler of a father had started taking out his frustrations on their mother; she'd beaten her husband over the head with a frying pan and ran off with Joey's sister. Joey couldn't really blame her for doing it but he still missed them sometimes. He turned back to Yami after his internal musing and asked a question, "Just what is it that you're looking for?" It had to be important for him to go to all this trouble.
Yami's frown deepened in response to Joey's question, his eyes briefly flashing in defensive irritation before he forced himself to take a breath and calm down-it wasn't as if he had any malicious intent, or at least not that the pirate could sense, so there was no sense in jumping down the boy's throat over a simple (yet heavy) question. "... I don't suppose you've ever heard of the fountain of youth?" Though the question wasn't entirely rhetorical, Yami continued speaking before Joey could give a response. "I need the power that the fountain possesses. Unfortunately, there aren't many leads to go on, and my time is running out-but at the very least, I hope to secure Yugi's future even if I can't save my own."
Joey thought for a moment before replying. "Fountain of youth? But you don't look very old to me, what do you need that for?" He pondered longer, finally the most likely reason clicking in his head. "Wait, are you…are you dying?"
Yami smiled wryly. "In a sense," he replied, keeping his gaze firmly ahead. "It isn't something I talk about with just anyone, and it isn't as if I have a fatal disease or anything of the sort. It's just... an unusual condition, something that can only be reversed with the power that the fountain has to offer." Deciding that he'd said more than enough, the king of the seas steered the conversation back to the original topic. "You said that you don't have a plan-do you at least have anything you want to do with your life? Wandering around aimlessly will only get you so far without any sort of goal in mind."
Joey smiled wistfully, coming from a life of poverty; he'd never really had time to think about it. Most of his life was spend just trying to stay alive. If he really had to choose something though, there was just one thing that he wanted. "I'd like to find my little sister. I have no idea where she is, or even if she's still alive. She was always sickly…" But of course, this was a silly idea; he had no idea where to even begin looking for her. She could be anywhere.
Yami looked a bit surprised to hear about Joey's sister, his expression quickly softening in understanding. "Well I hope that she's alive and well, and that you are able to find her," he said, beginning to see the blond in a new light-anyone who cared so deeply about their sibling had to be a good person at heart, no matter how annoying they initially came off as being. An idea suddenly hit the pirate captain, and he paused for a moment, mulling over the idea before slowly beginning to speak. "You know... it will be difficult to search for her on foot, and all by yourself, especially when you don't have a single coin to your name; and as I said before, my ship stops at ports all over the world fairly often to gather information..." Yami allowed a moment for the implications to sink in, letting Joey make the decision as to whether or not he was willing to accept the unspoken offer.
"You mean you'd be willing to help me find her?" Joey was frankly surprised. He thought this heartless pirate was, well, heartless. But it would seem that he had a soft spot when it came to family. Seeing how close he was with his brother it really shouldn't come as such a surprise.
"I mean that we're both looking for something, and it would make more sense for you to stay on my ship than to try and search on your own," Yami responded. He glanced over at the blond before adding, "But don't think that means that you're getting a free ride-if you're going to stay, then you're going to officially be a part of my crew. You have to take orders and continue doing work around the ship as you've been doing, you may even have to steal and fight alongside us, and you might not see land for weeks at a time. Are you willing to go to all those lengths for a chance to find your sister?"
Joey thought for a moment. "Really I have nothing to lose, so why the hell not?" He smiled wryly, "Seeing my sister is probably the only thing I truly want to do and am willing to go to any length to do." The blond tilted his head to the side as he looked down at the smaller man. "Does that mean I have to call you Captain now?"
Yami nodded, satisfied by Joey's resolute answer, before giving him a brief smile. "Then welcome to the crew. We'll do all that we can to help you find your sister, so long as you pull your weight and help us in return." He raised an eyebrow at the blond's question, more amused than annoyed as he answered, "Unless you'd like to scrub the deck from top to bottom on your own for not showing your captain respect, then yes, you have to call me Captain. I let it slide before because you weren't officially part of my crew, but if everyone hears you calling me by name, they're going to start thinking they can do the same."
Joey frowned a little. He had a bit of a problem with authority and calling the pirate "Captain" didn't sit all that well with him. But, if it helped him find his sister, he could swallow his pride just this once and relent. "Aye, aye, Captain," he gave a mock salute, bouncing his right hand off his forehead.
Yami (poorly) hid his amusement behind a roll of his eyes in response to the mock salute. Honestly, he'd expected Joey to put up more of a fight with regards to treating him like a figure of authority, but he supposed that Joey's determination to find his sister was more important to the blond-which was something that the pirate captain highly respected about him, and could never fault him for (after all, he'd do the same for Yugi in a heartbeat). "When we get to town, you're free to do what you wish and go about getting information as you like," Yami spoke after a moment, the ship only minutes away from the harbor now. Slipping a hand into his pocket, he pulled out a small satchel and tossed it to Joey as he added, "I'd suggest getting any essentials at the marketplace as well-clothes, shoes, a weapon, and anything else you think you might need."
Joey caught the satchel and swung it over his shoulder in one quick, fluid, movement. He'd always been poor, so the thought of actually having money that he could spend on things other than the bare minimal for survival was an amazing thought. The first thing he was going to buy was a pair of good boots; no more winters having to wrap his feet in dirty rags to keep from getting frostbite. "Thanks, Captain." This time he didn't say it sarcastically, the blond really meant it. Despite being a bloodthirsty pirate, this man was nicer to him than almost any person he had met in his short life.
Yami shrugged, waving off the blond's thanks (while inwardly acknowledging the surprising lack of sarcasm). "Yugi will be going with you to the market to get some things as well, so he'll make sure that you don't buy anything that you don't need," he said as the ship began to pull into the port. "And don't expect this treatment every time we dock-you're going to have to earn any other gold that you get after this." He paused for a moment, a frown on his face, before sharply glancing at Joey and adding, "It should also go without saying that when you're with Yugi, you're not to get into any trouble. I don't care what you do when you're on your own, but if he gets hurt, you'll be the one to pay for it. Understand?"
"Yes, Sir," Joey replied. With the look in the shorter man's eye, the blond knew he meant business. He also knew he'd do the same thing if he had to entrust his own younger sibling to someone else. "But how am I supposed to make money?" It's not like they paid him to help in the kitchen.
Yami nodded, satisfied with Joey's serious response-he had figured that the blond would understand given his drive to find his own sister, but it felt good all the same to have that reassurance that Joey wouldn't let anything happen to Yugi. The pirate captain tried and failed to hide his amusement at Joey's question, and he began walking towards the gangway to leave the ship as he spoke. "The same way that all pirates make money, of course." To make sure Joey understood, he glanced back at him and added, "We'll come across other ships while we're at sea. Pull your weight in each siege, and you'll get your pay, simple as that."
Joey chuckled slightly at that. "Guess I really am a pirate now," he lowered his voice so Yami couldn't hear him, "Whether I want to be or not." The blond sighed. This was going to be quite the adventure.
