A/N: Hello again everyone! Gosh it's been a while, I'm so sorry it's taken this long to update. Hopefully I'll be able to update more frequently now though as I've finished school for the Christmas holidays (yay!) Enjoy this next chapter and, as always, please review if you have time.
It was needless to say that Eric was enjoying this trip much more than Grimsby. The forty six year old was gripping the side of the vessel tightly, his face a sickly shade of green. He had already been sick once and was sure it wouldn't be the last time. The four year old, however, could hardly contain himself. He was rushing from one side of the ship to the other, stopping every so often to watch as the sailors went about their duties. And, seeing that Grimsby was unwell, Edward had taken it upon himself to watch the young Prince. He helped about the ship as much as he could, but always kept one eye on Eric.
Everything fascinated the four year old and he wanted more than anything to be able to help. But everyone he asked merely replied by saying that he was too young or inexperienced. After asking to help almost everyone aboard the ship, Eric returned to the side of the mighty vessel and sighed, looking out over the blue waters.
"Eric?" The young Prince turned around to see Edward looking down at him. "Are you alright" the duke continued? Eric nodded silently; an immediate indication that he was lying. Having watched Eric since they had left the docks at Glowerhaven, Edward knew that he was keen to help. But there was one job that he hadn't tried for, and Edward wanted to grant him as much happiness as possible so, with a devilish smile, he knelt down in front of the four year old.
"Would you like to help me steer the ship?" Eric's head snapped up, his eyes wide with excitement, but also fear. There were very few people in the world who actually delivered on their promises, most just lead to disappointment. Over time Eric had learnt who he could trust, and he wasn't sure whether he knew Edward well enough to expect what he did from, say, Grimsby and Carlotta. But there was something about Edward, something in the way he acted around Eric that told the four year old that this was one of those few people who he could trust.
"Really" he said, finally finding his voice? Edward nodded seriously, offering Eric his hand and standing up. With a little reluctance the young Prince reached out, and allowed Edward to guide him in the direction of the ship's wheel. With shaking legs, Grimsby followed the two of them, only to lean over the side of the boat again once they stopped. Eric turned round at the sound of Grimsby's despair and was once again greeted with the increasing familiar feeling of guilt. He was the only reason that Grimsby had felt it necessary to make the trip and it was obvious that he wouldn't have come otherwise. With a quick glance at Edward, Eric rushed over to his guardian and wrapped his arms round his legs. The action surprised Grimsby, but he managed a small smile.
"Don't worry about me," he said, "you go and enjoy yourself." Stepping back Eric looking the long way up to Grimsby and nodded, before uttering a small "sorry." The forty six year old merely shook his head, and ushered the young Prince in Edward's direction.
It wasn't long until Tony approached Grimsby with a bottle of what smelt like rum.
"It'll help with the sickness" he said, his words slurring slightly. Grimsby raised both his eyebrows as it became clear that the Earl was drunk; already.
"I very much doubt it, but thank you for the offer" he replied, his stomach churning at the mere thought of consuming alcohol. The Earl replied with a chuckle, downing some more of the amber liquid.
Edward simply shook his head at the sight and rolled his eyes.
"You'll have the last laugh tomorrow when he wakes up with a hangover Grimsby" he said, certain that anything he said now would go unnoticed by his soon to be father-in-law. The Earl scoffed but said nothing else, the rim of the bottle soon finding its way to his mouth once again.
Ignoring Tony's intoxicated nature; Edward turned his attention to the helmsman, who stood alongside Captain Seyers.
"Captain I was wondering if you might grant Eric permission to steer the ship for a while" he said? Captain Seyers looked at the young Duke with scepticism.
"With my assistance of course" added Edward.
"Do you believe that a wise decision," asked the Captain? "He's a child, what on earth makes you think that he possesses the capabilities of steering a ship?"
"I believe that Eric has the potential to become a fine sailor if he's the given the chance," said Edward boldly. "Everyone has to start somewhere." Captain Seyers raised an eyebrow and looked down at the four year old who stood before him. After a moment of thought he straightened up and fixed his eyes upon Edward.
"On your head be it" he almost spat. The helmsman practically jumped back in surprise.
"B-but sir" he stuttered.
"Oh come now Smith, we may be looking at the world's next best sailor" said the Captain, his voice holding a heavy element of sarcasm. Edward narrowed his eyes slightly an annoyance that nobody was willing to give Eric a chance. With a smirk, Captain Seyers and the helmsman disappeared below deck and Edward grabbed the wheel before it could turn.
"Here you go" he said, turning back to Eric with a friendly smile. Eric could only stare at the wheel; it was almost twice the size of him and the only view he had was of the mast and sky.
"I can't see anything" he said worriedly.
"Don't worry about that, I'll make sure you don't crash" replied Edward with a light hearted chuckle. Without wasting another second Eric reached out and took a hold on the wheel. Even with both hands he had to fight to keep it steady, the force of the current against the rudder being much stronger than the young Prince. Every so often Edward would use his strength to turn the wheel so as to keep the ship on its path, but other than that he was just watching. The smile on Eric's face was permanent, an expression that hadn't faltered since his hands connected with the wheel of the vessel. This was something he had always dreamed of but had always believed to be out of reach. The fact that he was actually steering a ship would take him a few days to process, but his happiness was real and it continued to amaze him as to how quickly it had come about. Even Captain Seyers was smiling now, having come back up to check how things were going. The wind played at the four year olds hair, and the taste of salt was constant upon his lips. This is what he wanted. Not to be cooped up in a palace, but to be free, sailing the ocean and never stopping. He wanted to sail until he fell off the edge of the Earth, to discover every mystery that the blue waters had to offer, without anyone telling him otherwise. As his hair was whipped across his face and neck, the Prince began to laugh. It was infectious and, pretty soon, the men around him found themselves chuckling at the sheer happiness of the boy in front of them. Grimsby could only stare. He struggled to think of the last time he'd heard Eric laugh. Then a heart-breaking realisation hit him that there hadn't been one. This was the first time he'd ever heard Eric laugh. Tears began forming in his eyes as he reflected upon the amount of times he'd seen Eric upset compared with the number of times he'd been truly happy. The two were severely imbalanced, and in that moment, Grimsby pledged to grant Eric happiness whenever he could, however small.
After about an hour, a sighting of land was announced from the crow's-nest and the helmsman joined the Captain beside the wheel.
"Very well done Eric, but I think it would be best to let someone more experienced take us into the harbour" said Captain Seyers. Still smiling Eric stepped back, allowing the helmsman to take his place at the wheel again.
"Thank you very much sir" he said, staring up at the Captain. In response, Captain Seyers removed his hat and crouched down to Eric level.
"We'll make a sailor of you yet" he said, placing the hat on top of the Prince's dark curls. Eric chuckled as the hat, being far too large for him, fell down over his eyes.
It wasn't long before the ship was tied up at the docks of the nearby kingdom, and immediately people set about loading coal onto the boat.
"Would you like to get off for a bit" asked Edward? Eric shook his head, but watched as Grimsby, Tony and King Vernon made their way down to the docks. He wondered for a moment whether he should follow, but the thought was forced from his mind when he was suddenly overwhelmed by a familiar pressure on his bladder. He had been so caught up in the excitement that it hadn't even occurred to him that he hadn't been to the bathroom since before they left the mansion this morning. He didn't even know if there was a bathroom on the ship, what if there wasn't? The thought only made his predicament more obvious as a sudden wave of desperation hit him. He knew Edward was stood right behind him, but was too embarrassed to ask; something that was becoming a frequent problem it seemed. But he needn't have worried, for Edward could see that something was wrong. With a concerned expression sketched across his features he knelt down in front of the young Prince.
"What's the matter" he asked. Eric looked down at his feet and felt his cheeks turn hot.
"Do ships have bathrooms" he asked? Edward let out a breath that he didn't know he'd been holding, for he had been expecting something much worse than that.
"This one does," he said, getting to his feet. "Come on, I'll show you where it is."
Grimsby couldn't put into words how relieved he was to finally be getting off the ship. As soon as his feet touched the ground he relaxed considerably. But the calm wasn't to last for long. For upon looking up he was greeted with a sight that had been that last thing he wanted to see today. About twenty yards away from him, standing a head above the other men who roamed the docks, stood King David.
Grimsby staggered back, clutching his chest as if all the air had been sucked out if him. He shook his head in disbelief, blinking hard and hoping that he'd just been seeing things. But the image remained, draining Grimsby of hope and happiness as their eyes met for the first time since the fire.