I don't own these characters; Disney does.
6: The Pirate Code
Betty groaned as she stumbled into the captain's quarters, only to find her cabin occupied. She was not very surprised by it. In fact, she would have been more shocked if it was empty considering the fact that the two people in it had disappeared from the deck a while ago. Glaring at the two unwanted occupants in the room, who were huddled around the table, Betty tore off her jerkin and threw the jacket in the direction of her favorite chair. It did not make it. She did not notice.
"You know, this is the captain's cabin and I don't recall you two getting the vote," Betty grumbled, glaring even harder at the pair for not leaving when she entered the room. She stomped around the room, moving close to the bed, far from them. She hoped the noise made it hard for them to concentrate. They had no right to be upset with her, after all.
Vivian turned to look at the brunette while Kim's eyes remained focused on the table, looking over a map. Blue eyes showed little sympathy for Betty. The captain snorted from the look, but secretly she was glad Vivian did not seem angry with her. None of what happened was her fault, after all.
"What's the matter, sweetheart? Upset because when we're not on land Kim doesn't like your company at all?" Vivian teased, marching over to Betty. She hoped the light taunting eased the one-eyed woman's mood.
Betty turned her nose up as Vivian stepped over to her and wrapped her arms around the captain. Betty continued to glare down at the navigator. Vivian ran her hands up and down the captain's back, feeling the tension there. Kim did not see any of this because she kept her eyes pinned to the map, not in the mood to see the one-eyed captain.
"Aw, it was a really hard day for you today, wasn't it, baby?" Vivian asked. The Global Justice had been docked at a port earlier in the day and Betty found out that one of her crewmen was actually a spy for the Imperial Navy. As punishment, they left the damned scoundrel on a tiny, deserted island with no provisions — as the captain ordered.
The thing that made the day especially tough was Kim argued with Betty on her decision, in front of everyone. Betty could not back down and Kim did not seem to know when to quit. Before things escalated too far, Vivian had grabbed Kim and took her to study maps. The argument drained Betty more than the exile did.
"Could we just go to bed?" Betty inquired, her voice low from aggravation and exhaustion. She did not want to see or even think about Kim for the moment.
"Sure. I will do my best to help relax you. I know it's been a trying day," Vivian answered.
Betty sighed, as that was a huge understatement. The blonde quickly dismissed Kim from the room. The redhead left, not even acknowledging Betty's presence. The captain sighed and flopped down onto the bed as soon as the younger woman was gone. Vivian curled up into Betty's side, her presence comforting the brunette.
"You're taking this hard for someone who's supposed to be a salty pirate and the dreaded Hound of the Sea. So, the mermaid doesn't like you much right now. It'll pass," Vivian tried to assure the brunette, rubbing the small of her back in gentle circles. She was certain Kim's fury would burn out eventually. The captain and the redhead got along too well for Kim to stay mad forever.
"I don't care what she thinks," Betty lied, snorting through her nose to back up her claim.
With a small smile, Vivian shook her head. "Yes, you do. That's your little trouble buddy. You hang out with her more than any other crewmate when we get on land. You have to remember, she's not too used to this life yet and she doesn't like killing. You know he's going to die and, to her, you killed him. She was even angry with me for a little while since I didn't say anything to stop you."
Betty nodded, but sighed and rubbed her face with one hand. "No matter what anybody said, that was the punishment. She needs to accept that."
Vivian nodded in complete agreement. "This is true." She paused for a moment and then realized something. "You know, we've had her on board for months now, but we never bothered to explain to her the code like we do for others."
Betty slapped herself in the head, unable to believe they had let something so important slip by for so long. "Right. She took to everything else so easily it slipped my mind to tell her about the code. It's like she's been here forever and should just know, like all the others."
"I noticed, but then again, I didn't bother to say anything either."
"You're just happy to have an apprentice navigator and a girly girl around," Betty teased, smiling for the first time all day. The remark earned her a chuckle and a light slap on the butt.
"Like you aren't happy you have a bruiser around with the same interests as you. I've never seen a woman so prone to getting into bar fights outside of you anyway," the blonde commented.
Betty rolled her eye, even though it was true. Kim got into a fight at almost every tavern she stepped into with the captain. It amused Betty to no end since she loved fighting her way out of places. It was all of the bar fighting that brought Kim and Betty closer. And that was why Betty was so bothered by Kim's cold shoulder ever since they marooned that damned traitor on a barren rock earlier that day.
"Come, love. Let me get your favorite oil, rub your shoulders, and then we will go straight to bed," Vivian said.
Betty did not turn down that offer. The scent of the oil and Vivian's delicate hands on her exhausted, tight muscles helped ease some of the tension from her body. Vivian settled down next to Betty in their bed and held her, assuring her that things would be better tomorrow. One of them would explain to Kim why the spy had been marooned and about the Articles of Agreement on their ship. They were sure Kim would understand, as she was an intelligent and logical creature. Then, everything could go back to normal.
-8-8-8-8-
Kim sat on deck, covered by the night and watching the stars. Thanks to Vivian, she could tell where they were by the tiny, shining dots in the sky. She had learned more about the stars in the past few months than she had learned about the entire sky in her whole prior life. She had learned a lot of things these past few months — mostly taught by Vivian and Betty.
Despite Vivian's warm personality, Kim actually felt closer to Betty, who was cranky on a good day. But, that was why it bothered her so much when the captain ordered a traitor to be marooned on what amounted to a rock in the middle of the ocean. She knew Betty killed people, having seen it happen during raids of prizes and such. Those times, though, were always during battle, when it was her or them. She never thought she would ever see Betty personally order the murder of one man, no matter what he did. It was exceptionally cruel. And no one — except her — had said anything.
She could not believe the crew had condoned the punishment. Hell, Will had been the one to hold a pistol to the spy to get him off of the Global Justice. She could not believe the former Navy officer, which Will was and seemed to take silent pride in, had actually had an active role in killing a crew member, killing someone they were not fighting, killing someone they knew and interacted with on a daily basis. It did not make any sense to her and she could not see the justice in it. It was just a waste of human life.
She pondered this for the night, staying on deck and sleeping there. It was a warm night and it was not the first time she slept there. She never slept long anyway. A couple of hours, here and there when she could.
Not surprised that Will woke her up to work, Kim yawned and went to get some breakfast before taking to the ratlines like she had been born in them. Checking the sails and the lines to make sure they were secure, Kim remained up there. She knew as soon as she set foot on deck, the captain would want a word with her. And if not the Captain, then Vivian would and after spending all of last night thinking about the marooning, Kim was not inclined to speak with the navigator either.
"Hey, Monkey-Mermaid, get down here!" Betty hollered. She had decided to explore new nicknames for Kim before the incident yesterday. Nothing seemed to stick well, though. She knew Kim did not like the nicknames she earned off of the Global Justice, so she never used those.
"What? I'm securing the lines," Kim answered.
"You already did that! I'm not an idiot, you know!" Betty stated.
Everyone was surprised when Vivian did not chime in with a remark for that, especially since she was at the brunette's elbow. Silence from Vivian let the crew know something serious was going on between the women on the ship. All of the men decided to give the ladies space, not wanting to be caught in any fighting that might happen.
Kim frowned. "That remains to be seen," she mumbled, not loud enough for the captain to hear.
"Get down here already!" Betty pointed to the deck.
The redhead grumbled a few more insults as she made her way back to the deck. Betty scowled as the younger woman approached the captain. Olive eyes glared into pitch black, neither backing down. The bustle on the ship halted, all eyes on the captain and technically the lowest member of their crew; both of whom were probably the greatest fighters the crew had ever seen.
"You wanted me, Captain?" Kim growled out, making the title sound like an insult. The crew thought there was almost a challenging lilt in her voice. If there was, they suspected they might get treated to the battle of the century.
"It's been brought to my attention that we never properly initiated you into the Company. Up until now, you've just been a stray mermaid some idiot fished out of the sea. We never made you swear in and we never made you sign the Code. So right now, we're going to do for you what we should've done months ago," Betty announced.
There were a few murmurs through the crew, as if they were not aware Kim had never been sworn in. But, now that they thought about it, it was clear she had not. This was why Kim still never got a vote in anything and she still got the smallest share of their prizes, despite putting in as much work as any other crew member. It was fair, now that they thought about it, and they were happy their captain had the foresight to make sure it was fair. Betty had not treated Kim like a true member of the crew, even though it was clear the captain favored her. It was thinking like that that made the men happy to serve under Betty Blackheart.
Kim narrowed her gaze on the captain. "What do you mean by properly initiated?" She was pretty sure Betty would never do anything to maliciously hurt her, even though the brunette had left a crewman to die just yesterday, but she was not sure what to expect from the band of pirates. Never mind the fact that she was one of those pirates.
"You need to read the Articles of Agreement and sign into the Company," Betty informed the younger woman, pulling a rolled up paper from the pocket of her jacket.
"The Articles of Agreement?" Kim muttered, shaking her head a little.
"Laws of the ship, rules for the crew and myself. Everyone who is a full-fledged member of the Global Justice signs the rules and accepts the consequences of those laws should they choose to break them," Betty explained.
Kim nodded and focused on the parchment. Betty handed the paper over for Kim to read through the rules. There were ten in all with the first one explaining that every crew member got a fair and equal vote on matters, except in times of combat when the Captain's word was final. Kim was not surprised by that one, even though she did not think anyone really utilized his vote. The whole crew seemed more than happy to go along with whatever Betty decided, as if she could do no wrong in their eyes.
The next rule explained how the shares would be divided, which went with the jobs that sailors did on the ship. Most crew members got one share. Betty got two shares while Will got one and a half, as did Vivian. Kim could only wonder if Vivian got more since she operated under more than one job title on ship. But, then again, Will arguably acted as boatswain, partial-quartermaster, and gunner. Vivian seemed to be partial-quartermaster and doctor along with being the navigator. Money was not really an issue with Kim, so she did not bother to ask about it.
The third article really got her attention. It spelled out the actions that led to a crew member being marooned. Betrayal of the Company and Captain were there, along with it being written plainly that the marooned would be left no provisions. Betrayal was clearly the worst crime, as it was the only one down that left the marooned with nothing. Even stealing from other crewmates and running from a battle allowed the marooned a canteen of water and a pistol. Everyone knew — including the spy — what he had coming to him. Everyone except her.
"He knew what he had coming to him…" Kim sighed, feeling slightly foolish.
"He signed just like everyone else," Betty replied, pointing to where the dead man made his mark. In other words, he agreed to accept the consequences of his actions for breaking their laws, just like everyone else.
Kim would have argued she still had a problem with it, but then she noticed the next article. It stated that when taking a prize — any prize — non-combatants were not to be killed or critically harmed. She doubted she would find that rule on many — if any — other pirate ships. She liked that rule, and noticed it was always followed. Betty and her crew did not kill just for the sake of killing, even in the heat of battle.
"And if I sign this?" Kim asked.
"In for a penny, in for a pound, Kim. You're a real member of the crew then, reaping all of the benefits as such, but also suffering the same punishments if you break the rules," Betty answered.
"And everyone else has signed?" Kim inquired.
The brunette nodded and motioned to the crew. "Everyone on board."
Kim looked around at the crew that had been rather accepting of her these past few months. They took her for what she was and never asked about her past. A few times they had come across her wanted posters and all they said was that picture did not do her justice. They had never disrespected her and they always treated her like she was one of them. Honestly, she knew she was one of them.
"Pass me a quill," Kim sighed, shaking her head. Then she turned to Betty and pointed a threatening finger at the brunette woman. "This doesn't let you off the hook, though. You still killed that man."
"Kimmie, he killed himself. He knew the consequences of his actions," the captain replied blandly. She could not understand why Kim put so much stock in a traitor's life. He could have gotten them all killed and he would not have lost any sleep over it.
"Kim, don't be mad at Betty for that. It was clearly stated in the rules and you have so many other things to be mad at Betty for. Much more logical things," Vivian remarked with a smile. "Like the fact that she interrupted your charting lesson last night because she wanted to whine."
This statement made the crew realize everything was back to normal for the most part. They watched as Kim signed the Articles of Agreement and cheered when she finished making her mark. Before someone could suggest breaking out the rum, tea for Kim, Betty reminded them that Kim still needed to take the oath.
"There's an oath, too?" Kim made a face because it seemed like overkill to her.
"Some of the more willing crew can't read, so we do a written and verbal agreement," Betty informed the redhead in a low tone, not wanting to embarrass the sailors who could not read and, therefore, did not understand what they signed onto, even though they wanted to be members of the Global Justice. They just had not known when they signed on that the ship would be crawling with and commanded by highly educated individuals.
Kim snorted, even though she understood that. The oath had visuals to go with it, showing the huge commitment everyone on board the ship made to Company and Commander. After swearing to follow both the rules and the Captain, and promising to be loyal to her Company before all others, Kim had to cut her hand and spill blood on the ship. Betty also cut her own hand and held it out for Kim. The redhead then shook Betty's hand with her bloody palm, showing they were connected by blood now. This was not only a promise from Kim, but also a promise Betty made with all of her crew members. She would shed blood and give blood for them. As they clasped hands, the ship erupted into cheers a second time.
"Still mad at you, though," Kim told the captain, wiping away any chance of a smile settling on Betty's face.
The crew had a good time celebrating their newest official member, but the rum tasted bitter to Betty. Vivian came up behind the captain and ran her hands lightly up and down Betty's torso. Betty glanced at the smaller woman from the corner of her eye.
"Don't worry, Betty. She won't stay mad for long. She's too much like you. Once we find a prize and the action gets started, she'll remember how much she likes fighting along side of you rather than with you," Vivian stated.
Betty was going to disagree, but she decided to keep her mouth shut. Vivian turned out to be quite right, an annoying habit of hers. As soon as they came upon their next prize, Kim was over her anger, ready to fight along side Betty again. The moment of action got to the redhead, spoke to her, and got her past things with the captain.
They battled side by side and back to back. There was not a moment where Betty did not think Kim would be there and there was never a moment Kim considered not being there. Neither of them thought to not trust the other. They took down waves of sailors on their own.
"This was a huge prize," Will reported after the siege was over and they were moving things onto the Global Justice.
"Make sure everyone get their share and if there's any decent food, make sure it's send to the cook so we can have a decent bloody meal," Betty ordered.
Will saluted and went to carry out those commands. Betty yawned and stretched, looking at the Imperial cargo ship that they had just taken. The Imperial sailors were still onboard, broken, bloodied, and for the main part incapacitated. They were also on their own now as Betty waved her crew back to their own ship. She gave the order to her helmsman to get the Global Justice to friendlier, warmer seas. Kim watched as the other vessel shrunk in the distance.
"You leave a lot of witnesses," Kim commented, speaking to the captain.
"They tell the best tales about how the Hound of the Sea descended on them and ripped their ship in twain with pearly white teeth and frothing at mouth," Betty remarked with a chuckle. Sailors came up with the wildest stories as to why a crew with a woman captain robbed them blind.
Sighing, Kim ran her hand through her hair. "Most pirates would've killed those men, right?"
Betty shrugged. "It doesn't matter what most pirates would do. We're on the Global Justice and I'm in charge. It's about what I would do."
Kim nodded. "So… Vivian said we're headed up to northern colonies. She didn't explain it, just showed me how to plot the course."
"Summer down here brings in a lot of tropical storms while summer up there brings in a lot of fur trading and other baubles. We won't be getting the same amount of gold, but there will be plenty of plunder to be had," the one-eyed woman explained.
"You've sailed all around the world, haven't you?" the redhead asked.
"A couple of times. Of course, I missed most of it since Vivi was nagging me most of the time," the brunette remarked.
Kim smiled a bit. "Vivian's been with you since her alleged kidnapping, huh?"
Betty sighed, but it sounded very amused, almost like a laugh. "It's been a long time, but I have sailed the seven seas with that monkey on my back."
"When are you going to stop?" Kim wondered aloud.
"Fate's gotta win sometime, Mermaid," the captain answered.
Olive eyes took a long glance at the older woman. "You're a tough nut there, Captain. Just accepting it like that."
Betty shrugged. "Only the young think we live forever. And, sure, I said Fate has to win, but I didn't say it's going to win anytime soon. Come on, Monkey, let's go get some food while we've got something good."
Kim laughed. "Am I going to be 'Mermaid' or 'Monkey' around here?"
"Hey, the guys were suggesting we call you 'Mouse' because of the way you run up the ratlines."
Kim laughed again. She suspected she would not make it off the Global Justice with a nickname that did her any justice, but anything the crew came up with was better than what their rivals came up with. She went off with the captain, feeling better about things now. She understood the spy from before had brought his exile on himself. Betty was not a particularly bad woman. They just happened to be in a bad line of work.
"Have you marooned people before?" Kim asked.
Betty shook her head. "Not like that. You need to understand, Mermaid, it was for the best. Beyond him knowing what he signed up for, he was going to bring the Empire down on us. Not even caring about what would happen to me once the Empire catches up with me, I have to think about what they would do to you, to Vivian, to the crew. I'd rather have his death on my hands than all of yours."
"I hadn't thought of that," Kim admitted.
"You shouldn't have to. It's not something you should worry about. I'm not going to worry about it either because I'll always enforce our laws. We're not savages, after all."
Kim nodded. Other places had the death penalty. Hell, the Empire used the death penalty for all sorts of crimes and the Empire was considered the peak of civilization.
"Don't trouble yourself over it, Mermaid. Go join the boyos. Have some fun," Betty said and then she smiled. "Go not drink some rum."
Kim laughed, but went to join the crew. The celebration of the latest prize lasted almost two days. Vivian and Betty disappeared into the captain's quarters the first night and did not emerge until after the celebration was over. Kim did not think anything of it, but she was so sure she was missing something about the Captain and the navigator's relationship. She just could not figure what, even now after being on board for a few months.
-8-8-8-8-
"Kim, come." Vivian waved her over. The blonde smiled brightly, unable to stop even if she wanted to.
"Yeah?" Kim replied, trotting over. Vivian held a chart out and Kim studied it as soon as she was close enough.
"I've figured out our next prize and I want to show you. You might want to talk about it with Betty, too. It'll be different from what you're used to," Vivian informed Kim.
Kim nodded. She wondered what would be different about their next prize. How different could it be to take a ship? They had been doing it for months now and she felt like she got the hang of it.
"I can handle it," Kim said.
Vivian grinned. "I have no doubt about that. Still, it'll be different and you should be prepared."
Kim arched an eyebrow. "And you think Betty will prepare me?"
Vivian chuckled. "You're right. She'll just want to see how you react. Still, try to talk it over with her. It's very different and I don't want you to be uncomfortable."
The redhead soon found out what was so different about their next prize. Vivian charted a course for an island and Betty set up a strategy for attacking a village. Kim did not think it could or should be done, but she was outvoted. As expected.
"How are you, or should I say we, going to take a village? And why are we trying to take this village?" Kim inquired with a craned eyebrow. That seemed like it was something that only an army could do and they were not an army. With less than a hundred crew members, they were barely a gang to most people.
"Watch and learn, Mermaid. I've been at this a lot longer than you and I happen to know who runs this village. Let's just say this dirty bastard has it coming," Betty replied with a cocky smirk.
"Does your brother run the village?" Kim asked.
"My brother is not the only dirty bastard in the world. Hell, he's not even the biggest," the one-eyed woman replied.
"With his height, I doubt he's the biggest anything," Vivian chimed in.
Will cleared his throat, knowing the ladies were entering waters that did not have a bottom. The noise got them back on track and Betty explained the plan. Kim soon found out it was quite possible for a single brig to attack, defeat, and plunder a village. And if the viceroy's crying and begging for his life in exchange for all of the "villagers," who were pretty much his slaves, were any indication of his personality, Kim had no doubt Betty was being nice when she described him a dirty bastard. Life with Betty continued to prove educational in interesting ways for "the mermaid."
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Next time: Betty and Kim get into some trouble that tries to follow them home.