I'm really glad so many people liked this! I thought about this so much and I really just want to try my hand at a short piece so I can practice writing my senior project for school (which will be published once it's done, most likely on Amazon). Anyway, enjoy!

Chapter One

The day her life turned upside down, Kate Beckett never thought that it would ever return to normal—and it didn't. Not the normal she'd known for nearly a decade, anyway.

No, this new normal came down to performing chores (mostly mopping down the deck and helping Ryan and Esposito cook dinner; usually bread and broth, served with rations of their drinking water), eating meals with the rest of the crew—whose names she learned more quickly than she ever would have imagined—and staying up talking to Lanie, learning everything she could about the people around her.

She learned that Esposito had been a stowaway, like herself, that the captain had discovered two years prior, on their journey from Spain to the new world, to trade—and steal—goods. He was an orphan, who'd left his younger sister, Anita, in an orphanage until he could return with enough money to care for her the way she deserved.

"He save every penny," Lanie informed her. "He neva even buy a new pair of shoes."

Kate's eyes widened at that. "How old is he?" she asked.

"I think he twelve now; his feet goin' to get very big!" Lanie and Kate giggled at that.

She learned that Ryan came from a bigger family. He had three older sisters to care for him, but he ran away when he learned of their financial troubles.

"He say they be betta off wit-out them, but I do not think so."

"Why do you say that?" Kate asked.

"'Cause it don't matta how much money you have; family is family," the girl replied. "Dat's what my Mama always say." Kate nodded, smiling sadly.

"My mother used to say something similar," she replied.

She learned that Lanie was born on a Caribbean Island, where she lived for the first four years of her life, surrounded by her mother's family and culture, until her death.

"My Auntie Leila sent for my Papa and tol' him that he betta take good care of me, 'cause he the only Papa I had and me the only Lanie he has." Kate chuckled at that.

"And has he?" she asked.

Lanie nodded. "He is a very good Papa. He protect me from those who try and take me away."

"Who tried to take you?" Kate asked.

"Very bad men," Lanie replied, gravely. "Men who say that I could not leave that island, because I belong to them." Lanie spit on the floor. "I belong to nobody," she added, a look of determination on her face. Kate nodded.

She knew all about the slave trade, though her family possessed no slaves. Her mother thought that the idea of owning another human being was horrendous and her father shared those views, despite having grown up being raised by his own family's slaves. Kate couldn't imagine little Lanie or Captain Montgomery being obedient to anybody—let alone masters who would no doubt whip them just for the hell of it.

Kate spent most of her nights learning about the crew. About how Deacon and Martin, twins from the English countryside, escaped abusive parents half a decade ago and were two of the first 'misfits' on Captain Montgomery's 'Victoria', named for Lanie's mother. Eustace and Paulo were mates from South America, and their skin was the darkest shade that Kate had ever seen. They were 13 and 11 years old and had been on their own for years before discovering the Victoria docked in Brazil. Their English was still broken and confusing to understand, but they were nice to Kate, despite the original fear that her presence would bring bad luck to the ship.

Lucas, John, and Samuel, however…

They'd fought hard with Montgomery about getting Kate off the ship.

"She's a woman!" Lucas had yelled. "She'll cause the ship to sink!"

"She'll cause storms and whirlpools!" John added, just as angered by her presence.

"Our ship will fall to pieces with a woman aboard!" Samuel tried.

But Montgomery would hear nothing of it. He'd already heard all these arguments when he had brought his precious daughter on the year prior.

"She's staying," he said, firmly, "or you call all jump off." None of them were willing to do the latter, but none of them were very accommodating, either.

For the first few weeks, they did everything they could to make her want to leave, from pouring leftover broth in her water bucket when she wasn't looking, to stealing the food right off her plate when Montgomery wasn't looking.

But Kate refused to complain. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction. So she poured the broth into the ocean and got some fresh water, keeping an eye out for any of the three grown men. Lanie would always share her food whenever she saw they stole Kate's, so that she wouldn't starve, which Kate was thankful for. And the time they stole all her clothes—including the new ones she'd bought when they were docked in Italy—she fashioned a new dress out of an old potato sack, sliding it on over the underwear she slept in, trying to beat the heat and humidity, tying it with a rope around her waist, and walked proudly up to the deck to mop up.

When Montgomery had seen her wearing the sack, he first laughed, shaking his head at the young girl, before demanding the return of her clothes to anybody who would listen.

"If they're back in her bunk by sundown," he said, "then you'll have nothing to worry about. But if they aren't…everybody's bunks are going to be searched. Whomever's bunk I find them in will walk the plank!"

Kate found them later that night, tucked under her pillow.

After that, they stopped bothering her and kept mostly to themselves until all three of them decided to leave the crew, a good three years into Kate's stay.

"Good riddance," Lanie had whispered in her ear while everybody was bidding them farewell in America. Kate had only grinned.

The last man whose name Kate had to remember was Antonio, an Italian who'd been Montgomery's First Mate since he acquired the ship, he was the eldest of the entire crew. And, also, the biggest.

Antonio was from Sicily and his deeply tanned skin made him an outcast when he emigrated to England at the age of seventeen, looking for work. Nobody would hire him until Montgomery, newly emancipated by his last master's death wish, stumbled upon him. They'd been friends ever since.

He was a big man, his body round and his stature tall, but he was also quite soft; especially when it came to the younger members of the crew. Most specifically Lanie, who taught him the native language from her island in exchange for lessons in Italian. The little girl would sit in his lap at meal times and laugh at all of his jokes and called him 'Uncle Tony' and he called her, 'Tapolina', affectionately.

The crew, nicknamed 'Montgomery's Misfits' by Esposito, was comprised of children and teens who'd been looking for a new home and found it on The Victoria, as well as a pseudo-family. It didn't even take Kate that long to feel that way, as well.

In fact, by the time she'd been there half a decade, she found herself already giving out orders and taking initiative. She was able to convince Montgomery to start taking in female crew members after the three jerks left. Their first recruit was Jenny O'Malley, a petite blonde girl they picked up in Ireland—whom Ryan was immediately infatuated with.

She, like Esposito, had run from an orphanage, mostly because the Matron that ran it was abusive. She was 13 when Kate was 15 and Lanie was 10, so they all got along quite well. She slept in the bunk beneath Lanie's.

Tory was the other girl they brought on, when they were back in London. Kate had refused to go far from the ship, but she saw the brunette attempt to sneak on, the way she had so many years ago. She was about sixteen and was wearing men's clothes when Kate spotted her.

Tory had tried to run but the boys, who'd been returning from the shops, blocked her way. Montgomery showed up a few moments later and there Kate was able to convince both of them that Tory should be welcomed aboard. Tory slept in the bunk beneath Kate's.

That was their crew for the next five years.

Until their captain fell ill.

Lanie was only fifteen when she noticed that her father seemed paler, weaker, and more tired than she'd ever seen him. When he passed out one afternoon, she practically forbid him from leaving his cabin until he got better.

But he never did. If anything, Roy Montgomery's health continued to slowly decline. Lanie attempted to bring him back to health with remedies she remembered her mother making, but it was no use.

The captain was dying. And there was nothing Kate, nor Lanie, nor anybody could do about it. Antonio ran the ship while his superior and good friend was at his death bed, making sure that the crew did all their chores and didn't steal too much at one time when they were docked. He made deals, delivered cargo, and made sure that they had everything they needed to continue, but everybody could see the toll it was taking on him.

Antonio was not a young man anymore. He was well into his fifties now and had seen the crew change completely at least thrice in his lifetime since he'd first joined Montgomery. Even Martin and Deacon, who'd grown into their thirties, were starting to talk about leaving the crew. He didn't know if he could handle it like Montgomery could.

Which is why, when he went to visit his dear old friend, he made one, well-thought-out, request.

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Kate was the last one to go down and say goodbye to Montgomery. She couldn't really handle losing another man she'd thought of as a father; it was too hard. Tory and Jenny, who'd gone in together, right before her, came out with tears in their eyes. Ryan immediately rushed to Jenny, hugging her tightly and allowing her to rest her cheek against his chest, but Tory backed away; she was far too tough for that, she claimed.

"Kate," Antonio called out softly, "he wants to see you."

Kate nodded, placing her mop against the side of the ship, inside the bucket, and making her way, slowly, downstairs. Antonio placed a comforting hand on her shoulder as she passed.

When she got downstairs, she found Lanie already sitting in a chair next to her father's bed, holding his hand. She looked up at Kate, her eyes filled with tears, when the older girl walked in.

"Hello," Kate said, almost in a whisper. Montgomery gave her a weak smile.

"Hello, Beckett," he sighed. Esposito, Ryan, and Kate were the only three he called by their last names because, "they just fit you better." Kate had always felt as if they were pet names. "Come sit," he requested, motioning to a second chair, right next to Lanie. Kate obeyed.

"You…you wanted to see me, Captain?" Kate said, trying to keep the tremors out of her voice. Montgomery smiled and nodded.

"Yes," he said, "I did. I wanted to ask you something." Kate nodded, leaning forward.

"Will you," he said, stopping for a moment to cough into a blood-stained handkerchief. Kate grimaced, her heart clenching painfully. Lanie dabbed his forehead with a wet cloth. He smiled lovingly at her. "Thank you, Treasure," he said, his voice a croak. Tears spilled from Lanie's eyes when he stroked her cheek with his thumb. He turned back to Kate. "Beckett," he continued, "I want you to…to take over."

"What?" Kate asked in confusion.

He sighed, the sound like gravel. "I want you to be the new captain after me; you are my successor." Kate's eyes widened at that.

"No, sir," she said, "I can't. I'm just a—"

"Good leader," Montgomery interrupted. "A strong one, too. You'll make a wonderful captain. Everybody thinks so."

"Every…" Kate turned to Lanie, who nodded, giving her a watery smiled.

"It is true," she said to Kate. "Everybody has agreed; you are our new captain." Her voice broke on the last word, her hand squeezing her father's, but his squeeze back was almost too weak to feel.

"You are a natural leader, Beckett," he went on. "Everybody here respects you and has agreed that you are the best person for the job. We all believe in you, Beckett; don't let us down."

"But what if I do?" Kate asked, her voice small. "What if I let you all down?"

"You won't," Montgomery replied, surely. "You couldn't. Not Kate Beckett. You're just as resilient as your mother."

Kate's eyes widened at that. "You knew my mother?" she asked.

Montgomery nodded. "A long time ago," he said. "She was a member of my crew, back before you were even born. She worked as a midwife at every single port we were docked; she was good at that. She was a good leader, too, but she left us when she fell in love with James Beckett."

"My father…" Kate whispered. Montgomery nodded.

"A good man," he agreed. "A very good man. I knew he'd take care of you both."

"You knew about me?" Kate asked, astounded.

"She sent me letters every now and then," he informed her. "They're in that box right over there." He pointed to a silver box on a high shelf. "Take them and read them if you like, but I must warn you, the last few are not pleasant to read." Kate nodded in understanding.

"Thank you, Captain," she said, softly.

"For what, my dear?" Montgomery replied, his eyes starting to droop, his grip growing weaker on Lanie's hand.

"For everything," Kate whispered. "For taking care of me; for taking care of my mother. For telling me all this and just…for giving me a family." Tears were starting to fall down Kate's own cheeks. "Thank you."

Montgomery smiled at her. "It was my pleasure," he replied, before going into another coughing fit, which caused Lanie to let out a sob. When he was finished, he looked and sounded even weaker than before. "Beckett, there is one thing I want to tell you."

"Yes, Captain," Kate asked.

"In life, you must take a stand; your place to die. I've thought so many times that I was about to do that, but it's now that I realize that you don't always get to choose where you take that stand, do you understand me?" Kate nodded. "Life comes at you too quickly, sometimes, so you have to learn to live in the moment. Don't let anything pass you by; no regrets. And, when the time comes, take your stand and do it with pride and confidence; I know you have plenty of that. Just like your mother…" Kate sobbed out a laugh.

"Yes, Captain," she said. "No regrets."

Montgomery nodded and turned to Lanie. "This is my stand, Treasure," he said. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too, Papa," Lanie replied, leaning in to kiss his fever-stricken forehead. By the time she pulled away, his eyes were closed and his breathing had halted, his hand now limp in hers. "He's gone," she sobbed, turning to bury her face in Kate's neck. Kate held the smaller girl in her arms, whispering soothing words in her ears as she tried, desperately, to keep her own tears at bay; to be strong.

It was no use.

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When Kate and Lanie finally dragged themselves back up, they found the rest of the crew standing there, in front of them, waiting patiently for their verdict.

Kate swallowed thickly past the lump in her throat and tried to stand as tall as possible.

"He's gone," she announced, causing Lanie to let out another choked sob.

It was like a wave of sorrow washed over them, tears falling down nearly everybody's cheeks—even Tory.

Antonio was the first to speak. "So," he said, "did you accept?"

Kate knew what he was talking about immediately and took a slow breath before nodding. "Yes," she said, "I am your new captain."

There were murmurs of acceptance all around, before Antonio shushed them with one raised, chubby hand.

"So, Captain Beckett," he said, "what is your first order?"

Please review because this stupid chapter made me cry and so it took two hours to write because I kept having to stop and collect myself.