Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet, its characters, plot, or settings, though I plan to improvise when it comes to alien species.

A/N: If any of my followers are reading this, I'm sorry I haven't published any new chapters to HIMTC in a while. A lot of things came up involving police, a paranoid schizophrenic, school, and such. I plan on adding to HIMTC soon. After this week, state-wide testing starts so I'll have time to relax and write once again. I wanted to start this because: 1) I was feeling a bit nostalgic for good ol' Disney movies, 2) I was hoping two stories might force my inner romantic out of hibernation (I am a hopeless romantic; it's just hard to get my romantic side to get writing), and 3)...I really really wanted to try this idea out.

There's little mention of Jim in this chapter, but I promise there'll be more in future chapters.

I just realized I named the villain after a famous baseball player...this is exactly the same story with a different villain name...and something other than a television.

Chapter 1

Captain Amelia and Jim stared at the ancient holo-screen that hung above the tables in the Benbow Inn as the local news channel reported on a very interesting story that would have caught any decent spacer's attention. "We've just received news that an infamous criminal, Bernardo Lombardi, has escaped the Interstellar Prison just last night. He is to be considered armed and dangerous and was last seen on a longboat heading for Montressor. Stay tuned for more on channel 38.9."

Meanwhile a Few Miles Out in Space

"Knock-knock!" I called from behind the door. The smile on my face widened as I heard an extremely annoyed Charlie on the other side set off on a stream of curses at the "Idiot Galute" that dared to disturb his sleep. This guy will never change, I thought to myself as I knocked once more against his door. "Open up Charlie! It's me!" In the Captain's Quarters, sheets shifted as heavy boots thudded against the floorboards of the room. "Alright, alright. I'm up you little brat," Charlie mumbled as the door swung open before me. I giggled under his glare. There was nothing more entertaining than getting Charlie worked up in the afternoon. His salt-and-pepper, blonde hair was tussled up enough to add a good two inches to his height. His wrinkled "white" shirt was covered in stains of peculiar tones and hues – peach, dusty brown, slate gray, and..was that magenta lipstick? I tapped the roll of papers in my hand against his head, flattening his hair down the middle of his scalp. The new style earned yet another short laugh from my mouth. "Captain, you are aware it's 2 o'clock in the afternoon," I informed him in my most official tone. Charlie glared at me once again. "I gave orders to every soul on this ship not to wake me any earlier than three in the afternoon, and here my first mate stands in front of me waking me up by screaming at the top of her lungs."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, stop whining you scoundrel. Without me, your ship would've been blasted to smithereens years ago." I smirked as I added, "Plus, it's not my fault you were up late with a little red-headed bird you met last night at the inn." His eyes widened in surprise that I'd so blatantly told him his little rendezvous. "How did you–?"

I jabbed the roll of papers into his chest. "It wasn't too hard to figure out when Ms. Reed left your room at three in the morning when I was cleaning up the ship for our launch. Plus.." I pointed the roll at the lipstick on his collar. "That isn't exactly discrete, Lover Boy." Charlie swiped at the papers, in my hand, but, as usual, I was too quick for him. He sighed in exasperation as he finally gave up. "Fine, I give in! You're right, and I'm awake. Now why the Hell am I?" I handed him the papers I'd been using to abuse him. "I found these on a table in that little inn back on the asteroid belt last night. I thought you might be interested in them, being a tourist to Montressor and all."

He unrolled them in his hand and scanned them with his almost bloodshot eyes. The further down they scrolled, the wider they got. "Damn, I forgot about these." I crossed my arms across my chest and raised an eyebrow. "What do you say?" I asked impatiently. His expression softened as he looked up at me gratefully. "Did I ever tell you how much I love my little sister?" I shook my head at my step-brother. "What would you do without me? Now get! We'll probably be docking in less than an hour!" He stood up straighter and put his hand up to his forehead in a salute as I turned towards the stairs. "Aye, aye Cap'n!" he cried before he ran back inside his room, slamming the door behind him.

"Sometimes I wonder who the captain is on this ship," I muttered to myself as I climbed back up on deck. I squinted as I entered the afternoon light. "Land Ho!" Abby cried in excitement from her perch on the crow's nest. I pulled a golden spyglass out from the pouch that always hung at my side. Extending the small device and putting it up to my eye, I glimpsed the busy spaceport of Montressor straight ahead. People ran left and right, looking like tiny ants from where I stood. I'd been right when I guessed when we'd get there. Putting away my spyglass, I turned to see the state of our ship.

The Antonia was a relic that could compete with the Pyramids of Egypt in age. It's hull was made of thick gray steel that would've blinded any gawkers in its glory days, though now it had taken on a greenish hue over years of corrosion and age. No matter how hard I tried to sand down the deck, its dark wooden floorboards were able to give anyone with or without boots enough splinters in their feet, he might be mistaken for some Leafkin hybrid. The masts were made of lead pipes, its sails of heavy blue-green silicon tarps, like the solar sails of the pioneers. The cabins above deck were an off-white color, leftover from a whitewash a past owner tired to make to attract potential customers.

Truth be told, it looked like a hunk of junk barely keeping itself together, but its engine ran smoother than any other ship I'd been on and didn't cough out any black smoke from the boiler room as other ships of its age would have. Charlie and I had bought the old ship with our own money when he first became eighteen so we could finally live our dreams to be spacers. We'd earned all the drubloons ourselves, down to the last coin. The old coot was our pride and joy and had been given a special place in our hearts. In return, it had run a good forty-nine trips with us so far, no mishaps whatsoever. Well, none that weren't caused by some hard-headed jackass captain's scatterbrain. This trip would mark our fiftieth voyage.

I smiled at the thought, thinking of how important this trip was. Fifty trips was no small feat for a new ship, even for a small troupe-ship like ours. It was a milestone to be remembered. I slipped my pocket-watch out of my pouch and checked the time. If I was right, I had just enough time to get the ship in tip-top shape by the time we docked. As the first mate/cabin girl/cook's assistant/gunner, it was my responsibility to get everything and everyone on the ship ready and running. I waited for the second hand to reach the twelve before I started my duties. I liked to get myself into a working mindset before I rushed around the ship. Tick..tock..tick..tock..3..2..1

Snapping the clock shut and tossing it back in my bag, I looked up to face the crew members that stood on deck. "All hands prepare to dock!" I jabbed my finger in Toby's direction. "I want to see all your men ready to pull in the masts by the time I come back no deck. That means dressed appropriately and able to cast the lines on a moment's whim. If I say 'Pull 'er in!' you answer 'How fast!' Do I make myself clear?" The Salamandran quickly stood up straight at his post and put a slimy blue, clawed hand just above his yellow-green eyes in salute. "Aye, Ma'am!" I nodded in approval before spinning back towards the stairs below deck. I bent my head back to get a good look at my step-sister. "Abigail, you'd best be down and ready to go in an instant! You're in charge of slowing the down engines when I give the say so!"

"Aye-aye!" she called back with a slight smirk on her face. I eyed her suspiciously. "No funny business, you hear me?" I gave her one last glare before I headed below-decks.

I was all business when it came to giving orders to the other members. I was the youngest crew member on this ship, and I couldn't afford any loss of respect from anyone. That meant barking orders, keeping my ears open, and being able to curse as well as any other spacer aboard.

I took the steps two at a time and hit the ground running. Straight down the narrow hallway and around the corner to the left was the galley. Snatching up a notebook and pen from my front shirt poket, I made a grab at the kitchen doorknob. Suddenly, a series of crashes, clangs, and explosions of glass and metal resounded from within, followed by a very loud parrot-like squawking, with a few good curses spiced in between. I waited a moment before opening the door, partly to brace myself for the inevitable rant from the cook and partly to make sure there weren't any remaining objects ready to crash as I entered. I cracked the door ajar and peeked in, then swung it wide open.

"Y'all right Paulie?" I shouted. The cook was no where to be seen. I strode in and looked around the room. He couldn't be hiding behind the stove or oven against the wall. The pantry at the back was a possibility, though it wouldn't explain the noise. I turned to the right to the closet Paulie usually kept his pots and pans and what-not. The door was closed but I could hear Paulie's muffled curses behind it. "Bloody pieces of crap can't hold up a simple set of bloody pots without giving me Hell!" I sighed and flipped open my notebook and clicked open my ballpoint. New shelves, I scribbled on our inventory list. Then I knocked against the door. "Paulie, I need you out here! Now!" Any movement in the tiny room paused. "Aye, Miss Val. But could you give an old parrot a hand? I can't reach the damn knob for the life o' \fme." I sighed and suppressed a laugh at imagining to fat old Mikawlo stuck in the supply closet. I opened the door and out tumbled the cook in his wrinkled apron. "Ooof! Thank ye' Miss Val!"

"No problem," I answered and helped him onto his feet. I waved my list in front of him as he dusted himself off. "We need to buy anything else for the kitchen? We're dockin' in less than an hour." The giant blue-feathered alien put the claw at the end of his wing up to his beak as he thought about what we'd need to buy while in Montressor. Then, he swiped up my pen and pad and wrote furiously into the list. "We'll be needing purps, that's an essential bit to buy from Montressor. Some other fresh fruit wouldm't be too bad either. We been running low on tomatoes and potatoes fer a while now. And we definitely need more meat, loads more. A good couple of barrels of flour, sugar, and salt. And...there!" He finished the list and handed it back to me, I looked over it, though I knew Paulie knew this kitchen better than the back of his hand. If he needed it, we needed it. "Then that's what we'll get." I shifted my gaze to the cook. "Now you'd best secure everything for landing. We'll be docking in less than an hour and I'd rather not have that calamity repeat itself tenfold." I indicated towards the mess in the closet. Paulie turned to see the state of the closet, then the clock hanging above the sink. Finally he nodded. "This place'll be ship-shape before you know it." I bowed my head to Paulie. "Good day, then." I turned and ran out of the kitchen. On to the rest of the passengers.

Back to the main hall, further from the stairs and to the right was the door to the crew's quarters. Hammocks hung everywhere in the small dark room. Lanterns shed soft warm light over the troupe members that were napping here and there and gave a spotlight to the children practicing their little skits and imagined adventures. It almost broke my heart to break up the peaceful scene. Almost.

I stomped myself into the room, waking a couple of the closer sleepers from their dreams and catching the children's attention. I took a deep breath before bellowing as loudly as I could. "Wake up all of you Lolly-Gaggers! Ship's docking in a matter of minutes and you're all here lying about like you have all the time in the world!" Several crew members, men and women alike, rolled out of sleep and onto the floor in surprise. The kids laughed in delight at seeing the grown-ups act so silly. I smirked as everyone picked themselves up and turned to where I stood. Some were a bit bleary eyed, but all of them seemed to have heard what I'd said. Just to make things clear, though... "You heard me! I expect all hands on deck in a quarter of an hour and that's an order! Anyone who does otherwise will have their sorry behinds locked along with the rest of the cargo on this ship!" Everyone within sight nodded vigorously and gave murmurs of "Aye-aye," and "Yes, Ma'am." I softened my tone a bit. "Then hop to it." In the blink of an eye, everyone was rushing here and there, getting ready for our arrival.

I stepped out of the crew's cabin and turned right until I finally reached the end of the hall where a door bigger and visibly older than the others stood. I pulled up the key that hung around my neck on its gold chain and pushed it into the keyhole in the door's rusty knob. With a few twists and yanks, the door to the cargo hold was unlocked. Motes of dust poured into my face and throat as they did each time I checked the cargo hold of the ship.

My eyes watered as I tried to cough out whatever I'd breathed in before I suffocated. I can't even go once without taking a dust bath? I took back the key and held it in front of me as I walked inside. The key slowly lit up and glowed brighter and brighter the deeper we went into the hold. The room would have been spacious had it not been for the load of furniture we'd taken aboard for an order we'd gotten. They were all covered in white linen, giving a ghostly aura to the dark room. I checked under each of the sheets to make sure none of the items to be delivered were damaged or needed polishing.

Thank Goodness I won't have to deal with these things anymore, I thought as I remembered how much of a pain in the ass it was to polish the darned wooden monsters every other day. I'd made sure to shine them the day before so I wouldn't have to deal with them on our arrival day. One by one, I examined the cargo and made my way further and further to the back. The closer I got to the end of the ship's hold, the more carefully I looked over what lay hidden under the drapes. Our ship's policy was to store our deliveries in order of importance and at the very end of the cargo hold, there was indeed an important package. Small and compact, it had been placed in what looked like a shoe box wrapped in brown paper, tied with string. The owner couldn't seem to stress enough how important it was that the smallest package be delivered to its rightful recipient. I didn't fully understand the reason at the time, but I would find it out soon enough.

Assured that everything was in order, I finally left the cargo hold. I double-checked the time on my pocket-watch. Ten minutes left. Five minutes to get to my room, wash up, change, and organize my things. Five minutes to order everyone through the docking process. Well, I've been in tighter squeezes. I sprinted down the hall all the way to the stairs leading to the deck. Then I took a right down an adjacent hallway and passed the captain's quarters. Charlie opened the door to his room as I ran past. He wore a brown leather vest over an olive-green T-shirt and a set of baggy black jeans. His hair was neatly combed over and his face was clear of any signs of fatigue. "What's the rush Sis?" I shot him a glare as I ran to the end of the hall where my room was. "Just get upstairs and help everyone out. Toby and his gang should be ready with the lines and mast." Without another word, I ran into my room and slammed the door behind me.

I checked my watch. Three minutes of "Me Time". I changed out of my green tee and brown sweatpants into a crème blouse, my lucky black leather jacket and a set of black slacks and fingerless gloves and put on the same brown boots I'd worn in the morning. I snatched up my scrolls, already tied together in a handkerchief the night before, and my wooden briefcase from on top of my bed and grabbed any random hair tie I could find on my way out of the room. Hut, 2! Hut, 2!

I raced on deck where there was now a huge commotion. Everyone was up and raring to go, each with their own supplies in hand. "Bring down the masts!" "Mommy, I forgot my allowance money!" "Don't worry, I brought it with me just in case!" "Everybody remember their lines?" "Wait, who's playing the knight?" "I thought I was!" Let's get this over with, I thought as I sighed. I climbed onto a nearby barrel and set my things at my feet. I put my hands up to my lips and yelled. "Everybody settle down!" An eerie silence came over all the passengers. I looked past them to see the spaceport coming closer. "Anyone who isn't manning the masts and lines, keep to port and starboard!" Waves of passengers filed to the sides of the ships. Only Toby and his boys, all dressed in matching red shirts and black pants, and Charlie remained in the middle of the deck. I sighed as the Captain finally decided to join me and take charge. He climbed up beside me and checked through his spyglass how close we were to the port. "Toby," he called, "I think it's about time, you get the lines ready." Toby nodded and shouted orders to his group. In the meantime I whispered to Charlie, "I'm going to radio Abbey. When do you think we should start slowing up?" He looked at me peculiarly. "I think now would be the obvious time." I nodded and climbed down from the barrel. Next to the door that led below was an intercom, part of a system that connected the engine room, the Captain's office and the deck. I pressed the button to Station C and spoke into the mic. "Power down thrusters." There was an immediate pull forward as the ship slowed down from its regular speed.

We crept to a final halt at the port, with Toby's brother navigating us into the nearest empty space available. Finally. But as I looked at the ship before me, I groaned. Now all I have to do is organize fifty actors, performers, musicians, and artists and their paperwork, unload and deliver a good few hundred pounds of cargo, figure out where everyone's going to stay, go shopping and set up my own stall at the market. Thus was my everyday life as the first mate/cabin girl/cook's assistant/gunner/fellow artist of the Antonia's Troupe of Artists, Entertainers, and Deliverymen.