A/N: Let's try this again... I posted this before I went to bed and when I woke up it was unreadable. Lame!
The late-night conversation on the deck with Kristoff was never again mentioned. Life on the The Revenge continued on its merry way. The crew chased down two more merchant ships since the first Elsa encountered. These times, however, Elsa stayed put on her home vessel and let the more experienced crewmembers invade the unsuspecting ships, Captain Anna leading the raids joyously, as she does. As the days progressed, Elsa noticed gradually that it was becoming easier to find the captain on the Revenge than ever before. This could be because one of two things: Elsa was getting better at looking or the captain herself was making it easier to be found. Perhaps both.
One night, Elsa came upon her in the commons area after dinner playing cards with a few members of the crew. During the day, the captain could now be seen more often on the lower decks amid the crew, not only the quarterdeck with Kristoff. On those occasions, Kristoff steered the ship from the helm and didn't seem at all grumpy about the arrangement. Elsa saw the captain once or twice assisting the gun master as he took inventory in the hold and the boatswain as he tied off his mast ropes. She was even once glimpsed up in the crow's nest with Marsh as they took it in turns to press the telescope to an eye. Elsa wondered if she had been blind and frightened before, because no one else seemed to perceive a change in the captain's behavior. She wished she could press her inquiries to Kristoff, who obviously knew the captain best, but that was out of the question as he already mistrusted her. He would accuse her of collecting information to use against them. She instead asked someone she knew was a friend.
"Olaf, may I ask you something?"
The dark-haired boy was taking a sword to a barrel in the hold, fencing like it was a vicious opponent, left hand held high above his head.
"Okay, hold on." He lunged forward, plunging his sword straight into a crack of the barrel, allowing for a small stream of the mead inside to escape. Elsa appraised the damage, eyebrows raised.
"Whatever you do, don't let Kristoff find out about that. And for God's sake, don't tell anyone I was here to witness it. They'll be forgiving to you, but not to me."
Olaf pulled for a few seconds at the sword now stuck in the barrel, then gave up and stepped away from the swaying weapon, wiping his hands on his pants. "What makes you say that?"
"Never you mind," Elsa said, also taking a stab at removing the sword. It was stuck pretty solidly.
"What did you want to ask me?" he asked, watching her struggle.
Elsa pulled on the sword a few moments before answering, giving herself time to phrase her inquiry. Now that she was here, she was unsure what exactly she wanted answered. She gave another tug to the sword, then also quit and, panting slightly, turned to face the young boy.
"Have you noticed anything different about Captain Anna?"
Olaf tilted his head to the side, surveying Elsa with those bright blue eyes. "What do you mean?"
"Don't you think she's been around more recently? Not holed up somewhere?"
"Seems the same to me!" The boy, becoming disinterested, had started pulling once more on the sword still stuck in the barrel. "She always goes out of her way to talk to me."
"She does?" A pang of envy.
"She usually asks me how you are, though." Elsa searched the boy's face for any hidden meanings but found only innocent indifference.
"What do you tell her, Olaf?"
"The truth." He shrugged, wiping his hands once more on his trousers. Elsa watched him struggle with the sword for a few more seconds before reaching forward. "Together?" The boy nodded enthusiastically. They both gripped the handle and with an almighty tug, they dislodged the sword from the barrel. Another stream of mead was released, staining the planks at their feet. Elsa looked up from the puddle of mead and at Olaf. "We weren't here. We don't know what happened." Olaf nodded solemnly, then giggled and sheathed his sword. The two then fled from the scene of the crime and made their way onto the deck.
To their surprise, the entire crew was assembled around the steps to the helm, gazing up to the very top step on which stood Captain Anna with Kristoff, predictably, at her elbow. She was wearing a bright, ecstatic expression and was amidst an excited speech.
"...have finally discovered. It is located conveniently on an island nearby. We know the island, but we do not know the specific place in which to find it."
The sailors grouped at the bottom of the stairs were hanging on the captain's every word. Elsa turned to Olaf in askance, but he merely shrugged.
"...will only be bringing along one other to assist in the endeavor. After lengthy debate, Kristoff and I have decided on my man - or in this case, woman."
Elsa had been staring blankly at Captain Anna, pondering the possible texture of her full lips, when the woman in question looked right at her and said her name, stirring her out of her reverie.
"What?" she said, bemused, as the crewmembers nearby began to slap her back and spare her congratulations and warnings.
"Don't get yourself killed, eh?"
"Good on you, novice."
"You can take my sword if you think you'll need it."
A few of the men were less than friendly; she heard a few muttered phrases like, "sending a woman to do a man's job… pitiful."
Elsa noticed that Olaf was tugging on her arm excitedly. "You're so lucky, that sounds so fun!"
"I don't even know what's happening. And stop that," Elsa said, pulling her arm away from his not-so-gentle ministrations. "I missed half of that speech, what's going on?"
"Anna and Marsh found a trading post for smuggled merchandise, something they've been hoping would turn up for ages!"
"Why…?" Elsa was about to pose a question about her own involvement, which she was still confused about, when she felt a large and rough hand on her shoulder that spun her around forcefully. She knew it would be the first mate before she even looked up.
"You've been nominated. Time to go!"
She began to protest but Kristoff merely shoved a holstered blade into her arms and led her to the sideboard of the Revenge. Captain Anna was already waiting in the dinghy as it dangled over the side of the ship, biding her crew a goodbye and some last-minute admonitions. Elsa climbed in precariously as the captain called to the crew from over her head.
"Listen to everything Kristoff says and Olaf - I leave you in charge of steering." A small cheer rose up from the deck and Elsa glanced up in time to see the captain wink at the boy before sitting down. Elsa averted her eyes as Anna settled in. She had made sure to sit as far as she could from the captain. Kristoff perched himself aft and took up oars as the boatswain and another crewmember Elsa knew by sight but not by name lowered their skiff down into the water. Elsa caught one more glimpse of Olaf's toothy grin before the sight was overtaken by the starboard side of the Revenge.
A thrill went through Elsa - she had not been off the ship since she had been thrown overboard during the first merchant ambush and she had not been alone with the captain since that night of stargazing on the quarterdeck. She did not know what this chance expedition would bring for the two of them but she found herself feverish with anticipation.
The dinghy touched on the water and the captain and her first mate released the ropes from either side, setting the boat free. Kristoff immediately set off rowing. They were soon drifting lazily away from the Revenge and toward a lush, green island that Elsa had not regarded in her earlier panic.
It took almost half of an hour to reach said island and it was quite the uncomfortable trip for Elsa. The captain did not acknowledge her presence. She sat completely still the entire time - save for one shaking leg - eyes trained solely on the approaching island as if willing it to her. Kristoff, on the other hand, kept shooting Elsa glares that she could only interpret as warnings. When this happened and eye contact was established, Elsa would glance away innocently as if she had not seen.
When finally they came ashore, Elsa could swear it was those glares that were burning her skin and not the sun. As soon as the bottom of the dinghy hit sand, the captain bounded out, splashing water everywhere. She landed on the beach, boots completely soaked by the tide, and swung back around to survey Elsa as she, too, removed herself from the skiff. She waded a little more gracefully to the beach than her captain. Elsa reached her side and turned to watch Kristoff set back off.
"I shall return at sundown!" was all he said, but made sure to throw Elsa one last scowl as though his discontent at leaving the merchant's daughter alone with Captain Anna on an uninhabited island had not already been apparent.
"Don't mind him," piped up the captain once the first mate was a good distance away. "He's merely jealous." She nudged Elsa with her elbow comradely and chuckled before taking a step towards the thick jungle and unsheathing her sword.
"You might want to buckle that on," she added, gently tapping the flat edge of her sword to the holster Elsa still clutched uselessly in her hand.
"Right," said the merchant's daughter, turning away slightly so the captain could not behold her burning cheeks. After almost a minute of struggling to strap the holster on, Captain Anna took the situation into her own hands.
"Here, let me."
Elsa dropped her hands to allow the pirate to manhandle the piece of equipment around her hips. She endeavoured modestly to not think about how close the captain was, how interested she was to see the red-haired head bobbing near her chest and just in her line of sight. Captain Anna had it buckled in seconds and took a step backwards.
"All set?" she said, grinning widely once more. She did not pause for a response. "Onward, then!"
The captain led the way, chopping through pieces of the thick jungle, sword in hand. The deeper the two women trudged, the darker it became - and the more quiet. Soon the rhythmic swoosh of the tide soaking the sand was replaced by creaking trees and distant birds.
"Captain Anna?" she finally asked to break the silence. The redhead hummed merrily in response. Elsa watched as her companion stumbled over a protruding tree root and quickly leveled her balance by gripping a nearby branch. It was the third time this had happened - it was not nearly so hard for Elsa to progress through the trees - perhaps the captain was extremely clumsy but did well to hide it. Elsa had certainly never noticed it before but the realization now had her grinning - it was an endearing trait.
"Did you need something, sailor?" prompted the captain.
Elsa decided to cut straight to the chase. They were alone, after all. No Kristoff to judge or Olaf to intervene. "Why have you chosen me for this expedition? Why am I here and not Kristoff? You know I'm useless. So does the rest of the crew."
"You are not useless," the captain said, sharply turning her head to shoot Elsa a look over her shoulder. "We just haven't figured where exactly you fit into our crew yet."
"Remember when you took Olaf and I from that merchant ship? You told us we had to learn to be pirates or die. I haven't learned very well how to be a pirate, yet I'm alive."
"Oh, that," said Captain Anna, waving her hand nonchalantly as she stumbled once more. "Merely a scare tactic."
"But if I'm useless as a crew member, surely I am only excess baggage. If there's one thing I've learned of my weeks on your ship, it's that any surplus waste gets thrown overboard."
"You don't know of what you speak," replied the captain. Her voice was still cheery, but there was something harder disguised beneath it.
"Then I shall speak more plainly." Elsa was becoming aggravated; she wanted answers. "I am sincerely confused as to why you think my presence on the Revenge and this island necessary."
Her tone was quickly approaching irate and Anna was picking up on it. Her next words matched Elsa's exasperation.
"You are sounding quite ungrateful to be picked up by the Revenge," she snapped, stopping and turning to face her companion. This was the first time Elsa had seen the captain cross - her face was flushed and her eyebrows were knit together. "You also seem rather ungrateful at the fact that I'm trying, to an extraordinary degree, to find you a job in which you will be suitable - which is why I brought you along on this expedition, to train you myself, to see if I could make more out of you than the others had. But if you're content to revel in your feelings of being a waste, by all means continue."
The outburst had a strange effect on Elsa. Firstly, it was the most Captain Anna had said directly to her since the night on the quarterdeck. Secondly, it gave light to the captain's age - in the moment, Elsa felt the three years between them acutely. Tearing Anna's character down to the quick lowered her intimidating nature but also made her more human.
The anger from the captain and Elsa's sudden realization of her infallibility stunned the merchant's daughter into silence. Anna's eyes searched hers until the red brows unknit themselves and the captain turned away.
"Forgive me. I overstepped my boundaries."
"Not at all, I deserved it."
A moment of pause before the pair continued on in silence. They had been at the search for many hours when Elsa noticed that the jungle, though already shadowy and strange, kept on darkening until Elsa could barely see the captain before her. She kept her gaze trained on the outline of Anna's hat and twin braids beneath it to keep her bearings. It soon became clear that it was impossible to search for a hidden trading post in such dim light.
"Perhaps we should try again tomorrow?" Elsa ventured..
The captain sighed in defeat as she resigned herself to return to shore. "You're right. It must be nearing sundown, it's so dark."
"Or there's a storm brewing." Elsa had been worrying herself giddy about this possibility for quite a while now.
She was unfortunately proved right the moment the two women stumbled out of the trees. A horrible wind had picked up, the strength of which Elsa had not felt since her first night on the Revenge. They had not noticed the wind earlier because it had not penetrated the shelter of the trees, not like the change in light had. The sky was now almost black and a glance out to sea ascertained at once the condition of the Revenge. Her sails were closed and all anchors tossed as she bobbed violently in the rising waves. There was no way Kristoff would be able to come retrieve his charges in that feeble dinghy. He could probably not come for the whole night - perhaps not even until morning.
The weight of Elsa's situation was like a leaden ball to the gut - she was trapped alone on an island with Captain Anna in the middle of the storm. It was both a dream and a nightmare come true, all at once.
The captain, tossing off any and all care, removed her hat and shook out her plaits so that her red mane cascaded around her face in wavy tendrils, buffeted by the wind. A freckled hand came up to brush the locks aside and she threw her head back to laugh heartily at the storm. Then, all trace of her former animosity gone, she looked over at Elsa with that familiar, wild glint of adventure in her eye and a smirk curling at her lips.