Treasured

Chapter VI: Welcome Aboard

Disclaimer: Don't own it yet unfortunately.

A/N: I APOLOGIZE FOR THE BIG BREAK? D:

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It really is the journey that counts, not the destination.

- Jonathan Haidt

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Natsuki's mouth twitched. She rubbed her temples wearily and leaned on the wooden mast of the boat to keep herself from keeling over and dying. What has she gotten herself into?

Moreover, why was the captain of this ship acting perfectly normal as if she never got hurt? Well kind of. It seemed like her steps were a little different than her usual graceful walk. Perhaps she was limping- a little. So little Natsuki was probably the only one noticing it. Despite that, the elegant ex-princess was currently pacing back and forth on the ship making sure everything was in order. As the chestnut-haired pirate passed by Natsuki, she gave her a little wink that successfully made the shorter girl blush.

Growling and muttering under her breath, the gunwoman pushed herself off the mast and slowly made her way towards Mai, the only personnel on the swiftly moving ship with no hostility towards her. Unfortunately the fiery-headed girl seemed to be having problems of her own as a little, shorthaired girl clung to Mai like gum in tangled hair. Mai had no problems blending in with the pirates since her cooking without doubt won over the hearts of the crew through their stomachs. She even earned herself a little-monkey-pet-girl-thing who didn't seem like she wanted to separate from her newfound food source.

"Mai-chan! Mai-chan!" the girl enthusiastically called her name in successive intervals. "Make some more! Please!"

"Sorry Mikoto-chan, you'll have to wait until supper to get your next meal." The older girl didn't look too bothered by Mikoto's constant nagging, although she was having a hard time keeping herself standing on both feet. Natsuki watched them bleakly. Mai would probably soon be dubbed as the mother or older sister around here while Natsuki would be known as the "Ice Cube" or something similarly pathetic.

Deciding this wasn't the best time to bother her only acquaintance, the gunner made her way towards the ledge of the boat and slumped on it, earning a death glare from a weird-looking girl that carried around a peculiar doll. From the split-second glance at the girl, Natsuki knew that this one had problems but comments like these were better kept to herself.

The girl had 'hmphed' at her turned back and proceeded to turn that weird, spiral head of her doll.

Ignoring her weird chant, the dark-haired girl watched the splashing waves crashing against the hull of the boat as it sliced through the sea. She pictured dolphins jumping alongside the boat in her head. A foolish thought but heck, she was currently living some sort of dream… or nightmare.

It was hard to blend in with the crew. Natsuki felt awkward around just about everyone, excluding Mai. This was the reason she didn't know anyone's names. Shizuru still felt friendly and warm, but not in the same way as she had been as a kid. After the ex-princess hit puberty, Natsuki couldn't even look at her anymore without feeling her cheeks heat up a little. She had become extremely gorgeous, not to mention as elegant as a well brought up princess unlike the usual stereotypical pirate. No wonder she was so damn popular.

"Oi, aren't you gonna ask for my name?" muttered the doll girl grudgingly as she approached Natsuki. "If you're gonna stay with us, then you better get on my good side."

Natsuki cocked her eyebrow at the rude welcome but looked at the girl nonetheless. She was short and her scowl reminded her of a crow somehow. At least her bouncy red hair kept neatly underneath a bandana had a nice vibrant colour to it. If it weren't for that freaky doll consisting of a round and thin wooden board that was in a shape of a spiral attached to another long piece of wood then Natsuki might have considered her normal. As the dark-haired girl eyed for a while, her eyes drifted to that said doll which was being spun at an incredible speed.

All of a sudden, Natsuki felt her stomach flip. Her vision became blurred and for the first time, she noticed the rocking of the boat. It then occurred to her that she never fared very well on boats not when she was prone to seasickness.

Her knees became weak and if it weren't for the strong arms that supported her, then she might've have fallen along with the jerk of the dock. Yet once Natuski realized who was holding her, she sprung up to her feet only to fall back onto the wooden railing.

"Ara, ara, Natsuki must not overdo herself." Shizuru's luring purr made the girl shiver involuntarily.

Shiho eyed the dark-haired girl before "tch"-ing and stalking off. Natsuki didn't care whether she had a bad point on her list now, what mattered was to act like everything was okay. How would Shizuru think of her if she acted all soft and weak? She was, after all, supposed to be her protector when they were young, when the other girl was still a princess.

"I'm fine. More importantly, I'm the one who's supposed to ask whether you're alright." Natsuki's voice was a little low, her eyes darting elsewhere unable to look at Shizuru. The blush on her face probably hadn't disappeared yet. "Others may not see it, but you're limping a little."

"Very perceptive as always," murmured the pirate, slowly advancing on the poor girl who could no longer back away. "Would Natsuki like to make sure herself?"

The thought sent heat up to the girl's face as if she hadn't had enough already. "N-no! I mean, j-just. Ugh, I-"

Chuckling at another uncomfortable squeamish she had caused, the brown-haired woman took her friend by the wrist and dragged her off deck into the room behind a door Natsuki had never noticed before. The space was dimly lit at first through the little light provided by the window but curtains were drawn open and rays of sunlight cascaded in. Everything was beautifully illuminated, and like the ship itself, it held the coolness of a pirate everyone admired as well as elegance.

A huge bed was stationed in the center of the room. Silk bed sheets, and bedposts covered with a semi-see-through drape made it seem as if they were in a royalty room.

The marble globe of the world and the wooden plank walls brought back some ship-feel to it, but it matched well. As expected of Shizuru. Natsuki was now entirely convinced she's the Mashiro-hime she knew, but she'd want explanations of the what, how, why and when soon.

Feeling the content of her stomach dangerously flip, Natsuki found herself leaning against a chair. As much as she felt embarrassed by Shizuru's hospitality, the ex-military general felt grateful for the pirate who led her to the bed and gently lay her in it… but her appreciation quickly faded as she felt herself being embraced by the very same person who helped her in.

"Ma-Mashiro what-" It didn't feel quite right calling the girl Shizuru. Natsuki felt her face heat yet again, but as she tried to pull away, her eyes widened. Shizuru was deathly pale, her lips no longer bearing any colour… she must've always been like this ever since their arrival on the ship. The captain must've been trying to reassure her crew by acting as if nothing happened when in reality she did in fact lose a lot of blood. She must have secretly tended to her own wounds when no one was looking.

Natsuki felt like the biggest idiot. How could she call herself her best friend if she couldn't figure out when she was in need of help?

Her nausea somehow vanished as panic replaced it. The dark-haired girl swiftly rose to her knees and unbuttoned the black vest the captain wore. It was no time to think about how wrong this must look…

To her utter shock, the white blouse Shizuru wore under the vest was soaked in blood on the side. Natuski didn't think twice about removing the shirt as she quickly reached for the bandages, and the alcohol bottle that were conveniently placed on the night table just beside the bed. The ex-military general had tended to her own wound many times and luckily, the cut had not been as deep as the girl feared. Shizuru must've been exhausted from the blood loss, and with water and rest, she'd regain her energy soon.

Throwing the soiled bandages aside, Natsuki concentrated on disinfecting the wound. She was oblivious at the large blush that appeared on Shizuru's cheeks this time… and luckily for Shizuru, she managed to make herself fall asleep by the time her beloved friend was done- or pretend to do so anyway.

The dark-haired girl's eyes wandered to the pirate's face. To Natsuki's relief, her cheeks regained color as well as her luscious lips. Shaking her head to liberate herself from staring at the woman's beautiful face, the girl decided to clothe her friend again. But to her frustration, Natsuki could no longer touch Shizuru without feeling embarrassed so she simply covered her body with the silk covers. Now the only thing that bothered the gunner was the image of her lace bra and what they covered that refused to leave her mind.

What the hell. Why were thoughts like this flooding her mind? About her friend no less.

Deciding it was best to leave the wounded woman to a restful sleep, Natsuki slowly and silently made her way to the door but she was stopped abruptly at the sound of a slightly accented voice.

"Ara, is Nat-su-ki leaving?" there was a hint of sadness in her voice as she drawled particularly on her name. How long had she been awake?

"Um. I'm feeling better, but you get some sleep." Natsuki turned to look at her but cursed at herself for doing so. Shizuru was staring directly at her, eyes half-lidded and silk covers nicely hugging her body as she propped herself up with the help of her elbow. The younger girl was sure people would kill to see their favourite pirate pose like that for them.

"But I'm cold."

Somehow Natsuki knew the woman would say something completely innocent accompanied by a look of pure innocence. Seriously, how was she supposed to keep Shizuru's crew from biting her head off if she was constantly seducing her, voluntarily or involuntarily?

Hesitantly letting go of the doorknob, the gunner reluctantly returned to the bed. She then awkwardly offered her coat, but the other woman simply chuckled and tackled her down back into her arms.

"Mashiro-hime," Natuski half-whined, half-warned.

"Ara, please call me Shizuru. I have been responding to that name for quite some time now." She played with one of Natsuki's dark locks. "Now I'm simply going to tell Natsuki of the plans now. Is something wrong?" Innocent as always.

"Your crew. They'll think I'm trying to-"

The chestnut haired woman chuckled and placed herself on top of the blushing Natsuki. "Don't worry," she whispered. "I'm just telling you what's going to happen next, nothing more."

'Nothing more' already seemed like much more. Luckily, Shizuru pulled herself away and sat on the bed, inviting her friend to do so as well. There was a small fleeting pang of disappointment but the green-eyed girl was convinced it was nothing. The only problem with sitting though was the bra. The silk covers no longer covered the captain.

"Here." Natsuki removed her coat and handed it to the woman in front of her. "You'll get cold again."

Shizuru smiled at her warmly, which ironically warmed her face yet again. How many times was she going to do that?

"Thank you Natsuki-kun." She gracefully draped it over her shoulders and buttoned it. "Now you must be wondering where we're heading."

"That, I do. But first, tell me about what happened. How did you become a pirate, it makes no sense to me. People were saying you had violated the princess as well!"

Shizuru chuckled. "Ah, so that's why you were so angry at me at first. That makes me happy to know you were so concerned for 'me'," she smiled warmly, "you remember the rumours of the false child do you not?"

"You mean… the rumours about the Royalty covering up the death of their only child by adopting another? Which, in this case, would be you. I never believed it. I thought the villagers were making up bullshit for all the rights that weren't granted to them." Natsuki's brows furrowed.

The sandy-haired pirate sighed, "it seems it was true after all. They had found another girl my age in the slums. Her adoptive parents showed up to the palace one day and made a scene, which eventually led to the discoveries that she was in fact Mashiro."

"But how did she end up there…"

"Ah yes, I remember now." Shizuru chuckled lightly again. Her laughter sounded like bells to the other girl. "You always detested history lessons. Don't you remember the war between the South and Artai?"

"Oh. Right… Artai had come in to get some information about the weapons you've been developing. They're quite something," Natsuki remarked. That battle against Shizuru and her hi-tech weapon almost made the gunner pass out.

"Yes, and in the process, soldiers have attempted to kidnap the princess which was the real Mashiro at that time. They planned to hold a ransom but it failed and when they thought Mashiro had been killed, they replaced her with me."

"That's all very hard to believe." The dark-haired woman quickly glanced at Shizuru. It felt like a knife stabbing at her heart when she saw her sadly smile. It must have been hard for her.

"So I thought as well. I was placed in the palace at a very young age so I thought I belonged there," she continued. "To cover up the truth, the council at the palace made sure to make the transition between me and Mashiro as soft as possible. Through lies that is. So to make the pirates even more hated as is, it seems they chose a quite ungraceful act to tell."

Natsuki wanted to hurt that council. Always causing drama.

"But it doesn't make any more sense, how would that make Mashiro a presentable queen later?"

"Who knows, the council never liked me very much. I always listening to the villagers and offered them as much help as I had the authority to. So I'm guessing they wanted people to hate me as much as possible." Shizuru innocently smiled. Natsuki scoffed, that plan had backfired and Shizuru must've known it too. The most popular pirate of the seas, and a good one at that. Shizuru's name was mentioned many times when stories of small islands whose existence was almost swiped by Artai was saved by a pirate. Many of Artai's military forces were taken out by Shizuru and her crew. Quite the news considering Artai was known for its strength.

"That's cruel. They should have just said the truth!"

"The truth will make people doubt the reliability of the Palace. Replacing a child's disappearance with another is a huge lie."

"That doesn't mean they're aloud to cast you out!"

The captain smiled, "I feel honoured to have you care for me so much. But I chose to leave the country."

There was a silence. Natsuki felt her brain muddle up in her head. "What?"

"I chose to leave," repeated the woman. "It was the only way I could see you again."

The gunwoman's jaw went slack. Had Shizuru come all this way for her? All this trouble… to save her no less. Natsuki was certainly not worth doing all that for.

"Why… you could have stayed at the Palace and the council's bullshit wouldn't have been so bad… why did you go through all this trouble?" Surely Shizuru must have had ulterior motives. No one in their right minds would go through such an extent for one person…

Shizuru smiled her usual dazzling smile. Delicate lips curved upwards as her face gleamed with beauty. "Oh but I do have more reasons to leave."

Natsuki felt a pang of disappointment but quickly brushed it aside. How selfish could she be? Shizuru came for her after all, and went through tremendous trouble to get to her.

"But seeing you was my first priority and what compelled me to take action," continued the captain. Her eyes were downcast, "I hope Natsuki isn't mad at me for taking so long."

The gunner blinked. How could she be angry? That wouldn't make any sense. Only a spoiled brat of a prince of princess would be angry… "Ah. What? No! No of course not!" the gunner could feel her cheeks burn. Shizuru knew her better than that. She would never get angry for such trivial things… unless the cunning pirate was trying to make her confess her gratitude. "S-so what are the other reasons?" A subject change would do the dark haired girl some good.

"Ah yes. Your country is quite unstable is it not?" questioned the pirate.

Natsuki felt her heart clench at the mention of her country's current issue. "Yeah… and all this because of Artai.'

"Taking possession of your country after promising peace if they allowed your hand in marriage to the Duke is a terrible thing to do. Moreover, your country couldn't defend itself due to the lack of weapons." Shizuru stated the facts Natsuki already knew of. Where was she getting to?

"Yeah, and I couldn't do a thing." Anger and the need to avenge all the casualties brought upon her home had been welled up inside her heart. It threatened to spill but the gunner didn't allow it. Right now it spun in vicious circles like magma that pushed its way around in hopes of being released. "And I still can't do anything. Nagi will probably blow up the North now that I left. I betrayed my home." There was sadness in her voice.

Pulling Natsuki into a tight hug, the dark haired girl responded by returning the embrace. She made sure not to touch Shizuru's wounded side. "Natsuki, don't you worry." The other woman chuckled at her little rhyme, "I came here to help you. Why do you think I liberated all those islands from Artai's grasp?"

"To get millions of fans?" joked the girl.

"Ara, no actually. It is to weaken Artai so we can gather allies and liberate the North."

Natsuki pulled away abruptly. Her eyes were wide with disbelief. "What?"

A sudden explosion sounded through the boat. The wooden walls vibrated powerfully. Both girl jumped to their feet.

"It seems our conversation will have to wait Natsuki," smiled the captain, glancing at her friend. "It seems some of Artai's generals have come after us. I'm looking forward to fighting alongside you."

As if on cue, the obnoxious voice of someone Natsuki had totally forgot about until now resurfaced. "NATSUKI-SAMAAAA! I've come to rescue you!"

"Takeda..." Natsuki muttered as she massaged her temples and looked at Shizuru wearily.

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A/N: yes, I know I took forever but I can't keep promises. Sorry for the delay!

If it weren't for the reviews I would probably take up another month. No preview for this chapter unfortunately, I tried my best to write this as fast as possible.