Previously, on Pirates In Love...

We ran back to the Sirius, the men on the ship yelling at us. I could have sworn I heard Daniel's voice. It didn't seem the rest of the crew had, though. I could have sworn he said…

"We'll get ya, you lil bitch siren!"

Did… did he just call me a siren?

It was dark by the time we reached the ship. The crew made way for open waters. Morgan didn't want to stay on the island with those 'mercenaries or kidnappers or whatever' there. Christopher took me to the sick bay.

He checked my hands and ankles. They had minor abrasions. He still rubbed ointment on them and wrapped them up. He looked at my face. As he cupped my cheeks in both hands, his forehead creased with worry. I wanted to tell him that I'll be okay, that it wasn't that bad, but I couldn't speak.

Christopher - "Why does this keep happening to you, Alex… It's not fair."

Fair? By now I figured this was the usual risk for a girl living in the pirate world.

I placed my hand on his and tilted my head, rubbing my cheek in his palm. I wanted him to know that I was okay. I smiled, but it hurt and made me wince. My lips were chapped and bleeding. Christopher got a balm and rubbed it gently onto my lips and into the corners of my mouth. He cleaned up the cut on my cheek and put on a bandage. He softly touched the bruise on my eye where Daniel had hit me.

I tried to smile again. It hurt less this time. I think Christopher knew I was smiling through the pain. He seemed to become more depressed the more I did it. He was about to walk away to clean up when I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. This time, I had the worried expression on my face. I tilted my head in a questioning sort of way.

Christopher - "This sort of thing. It shouldn't happen to you. It happens to us, the pirates, the ones who deserve it. Not to innocent people…"

I tugged on his hand, unsure of what he meant. It wasn't like this world was fair and just. Bad shit happened to everyone, whether they deserved it or not.

Christopher - "You shouldn't be here."

My eyes widened in shock.

Christopher - "We bring you into trouble. We're a terrible influence on you. We cause you… pain. There's only so much I can do as a doctor! We can't… We can't provide for you in the way you want. You'll never have a proper life, with marriage and family. And in the end of it all… I don't want you to be like us. Bad men."

Bad men? He's a doctor that saves lives! How can he think of himself that way? And I had already changed so much since I'd first got on this boat. I wondered how long Christopher had kept this opinion to himself. I wondered how much he worried about me, whenever I'd go out. When Russell and I were imprisoned. And just now, when I had disappeared. How guilty was he feeling, for letting me stay on this boat, for letting pirates give me my bad reputation?

I waved my hands frantically, trying to convey my feelings. It was too late for me to leave now anyway. Also, I enjoyed this lifestyle. I wanted to stay! I loved everyone on this boat, even creepy Eduardo. I didn't want to leave. Christopher just stared at me sadly, unable to comprehend my flailing arms and hand gestures. I gave up and looked away.

Christopher - "How is it that you lost your voice?"

I shrugged.

Christopher - "... Heh, I guess you can't tell us until you get your voice back. Shouldn't take more than a few days. Here, drink lots of hot tea and honey."

He handed me a cup of tea that had been brewing on the table. I stirred in some honey. A couple days until I get my voice back… What will I tell the crew then? How much of what happened on that boat should I tell them about? Was this Daniel guy working for Richard? The only reason I could think of why he'd call me that was because I used to work at Sirens. We were called the Siren girls, the serenaders of the sea. But why now? I was just outside of Yamato for two years, and Richard couldn't find me there. Why send a group of thugs to come get me? Is it even him? Maybe this has something to do with Charlie? And then there's actually being a siren. I couldn't get Daniel's words out of my head. 'Like I'd let you holler n' manipulate my men…' 'Don't make 'er scream…' 'You know what you are…' It was all so cryptic. But it seemed like Daniel had a better idea of who I was than I did. I just couldn't figure it out, and I didn't want to tell the crew until I knew for sure.

A couple days later, Morgan asked me how I was doing.

Morgan - "We miss your singing Alex! How's the voice coming along?"
Alex - "Better…" I whispered. "Christopher doesn't want me talking much."
Morgan - "Ah, boo him. When you're all better we'll have a party, you can sing us some more of those songs you know from Yamato." He winked at me.

I smiled sheepishly. Whenever we had a party, someone would ask me to sing something once they got drunk enough. I had become the resident bard. But for the past couple days I hadn't been making a sound. I guess the crew missed my voice.

When I was able to speak again, everyone gathered around on the deck to hear what had happened on the kidnapper's boat. I told them a slightly altered version of it. That they seemed to have captured me to bring me back to someone specific. That whoever 'he' was wanted me back in 'perfect condition' and 'untouched'. That they were going to continue coming after me. I said that maybe I'd lost my voice because I screamed for help so much, and the air was dry, and I hadn't drank water, and any other excuse I could come up with. They bought it all. I kept the siren business to myself.

Russell - "I bet, we could hear ya hollerin' all the way down the quay."

I laughed nervously.

Eduardo - "You don't know who they were? They didn't mention who they worked for?"
Alex - "No… They hardly said anythin' to me."
Morgan - "Hmm… There's nothing we can do about it now. If they wanna hunt us down, so be it! We'll be ready."

The men cheered in agreement.

Morgan - "Let's party! We've got one day 'till Prica Island, before the real work begins. Thomas, booze!"

It didn't take long for everyone to settle into their mugs of beer. I didn't want to drink, though. I had too much going on in my head. I needed to be alone for a bit. I wondered if I should go to the crow's nest. But Russell would just follow me up there, as he's always done. If I quit the party early they'd all be mad. If I snuck away, someone would find me somewhere on this ship. They always did.

Eduardo - "Alex! We want a song."
Morgan - "Yeah, sing us a sexy one!"
Russell - "Hey! Don't do what he says, Alex."

I was startled from my thoughts. Oh no, they're asking me to sing. I really didn't want to. Knowing the mythological powers of sirens, I was afraid to sing now. What if Daniel was right? What if I was somehow manipulating the crew this whole time? That scream on the ship was everything but ordinary. If they found out the things I could do with my voice… Sirens are natural enemies to seafarers. They'd kick me off this ship right away. But was it even all true?

Morgan - "What's taking so long?"
Alex - "Ah, um, just uh, thinking of a song!"
Russell - "Pick one already."
Alex - "..."

They were being so demanding. I knew that they were drunk, but this was pushing it. Did they enjoy my singing that much… or is it the siren in me controlling them? Are these withdrawal symptoms or something?

Alex - "Ah, uh, y'know, I'm tired. I'm not gonna strain myself. I think I'll hit the hay!"

The crew grumbled their disapproval but let me leave. Soon they sang some pirate song and continued to drink and be merry. I headed down to the bunker Thomas and I still shared. It had become my home away from home, but now it felt like I shouldn't be there. I looked at Thomas who had quit early again from the night's festivities. He looked worried and restless. He must be nervous about Prica Island. I crawled into bed and curled up in a ball. I wanted to pretend it never happened. I wish I had never screamed. I'm not a siren. They don't even exist. Do they? But if they do, and I am one… Why did this have to happen right after I cemented my decision to stay. I can't stay if I'm this thing!

I heard footsteps come down the stairs. They stopped at the foot of my bed.

? - "Alex…"

I looked up to see the shadowy figure of the Captain.

Alex - "Oh, Captain…"

He sat down beside me on my bed.

Morgan - "You've been acting awfully strange lately… You've got me worried."

Alex - "Strange? Me? Well, I haven't been able to speak so..."
Morgan - "That's not what I'm talking about. You're refusing to sing. You can't look any of us in the eye. You run away from us every chance you get."
Alex - "That's not true."

Morgan looked straight into my eyes. I looked away.

Morgan - "You're not the confident, sexy girl I know anymore."
I scowled. "Captain!" I pulled the sheets up to cover myself. Morgan sighed.
Morgan - "Alex, you know I'd never try anything with you. I made a promise and I intend to keep it. But you… you haven't made me any promises."
Alex - "Is that something I'm supposed to do?"
Morgan - "No… But I'd like to think we have that kind of relationship. I'd like to think that you could tell me the truth, no matter what… What happened to you on that ship? Something changed you. You're not the same."

My heart started to beat faster. Morgan was so close, so close to the truth. But I couldn't tell him. I still didn't believe it myself.

Alex - "I told you everything that happened… I guess I'm still adjusting is all."
Morgan - "You've never been one to take long to adjust."
Alex - "Don't act like you know me!"
Morgan flinched like the words had actually hurt him. "Huh, maybe I don't…"
Alex - "What?"
Morgan - "Alex… I'll forgive you if you're lying to me… But the worst thing you could do is lie to yourself. Then you're the only one who can forgive you… It's a lot harder than you'd think."

I understood him, but he didn't know what he was talking about. If I admitted to myself that I'm a siren, a demon to sailors, then I'd have to leave this ship. I wouldn't want to be here, knowing the risk I posed to them, and the crew wouldn't want me here either. They'd feel betrayed. But I wanted to stay...

Morgan - "I'll leave you to sleep."
Alex - "I'm not lying!" I yelled at his back. He continued walking away and soon the sounds of his footsteps disappeared.
"I'm not…" I started to cry.

We reached Prica Island. It was more of a desert island if anything, there was hardly any foliage. It was hard to tell if that was because of the destruction or if it was just its natural state. There were pillars of cracked concrete that resembled corners of buildings. wood beams speckled the ground, their ends broken and spiky. Large stones and driftwood were strewn about, half buried. Some broken pottery peaked out from the sand. There was a section on the edge that was filled with dry, twig-like trees with yellow foliage. It looked like some gravestones were lined up there. There was really nothing left here.

The crew took this time to bathe in the sea and plan their next destination. Thomas, however, started to walk to the trees. I decided to join him. We walked in silence to his parents' graves. He looked very weary, like he hadn't gotten much sleep. We stood in front of them for a long time. I always thought you were supposed to bring flowers, or some sort of gift when you visited a grave. I had no such thing. I hadn't really thought about it until I got here. I looked at Thomas. He had kneeled down and placed his open pendant on the gravestone. I could see pictures of his parents in there. He looked like he was older somehow…

I started before I even realized what I was doing.

~
'Cause though the truth may vary
This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore...

Don't listen to a word I say
The screams all sound the same

Though the truth may vary
This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore
~

Thomas looked at me surprised. I didn't care, I didn't care about anything. I had my eyes closed. I was singing from my soul. I didn't have flowers for the dead, so instead I gave the gift of song.

~
You're gone, gone, gone away,
I watched you disappear
All that's left is a ghost of you

Now we're torn, torn, torn apart,
there's nothing we can do,
Just let me go, we'll meet again soon

Though the truth may vary
This ship will carry our bodies safe to shore…
~

It was a shortened version, but it was the ballad that the people in my village would hum whenever the dead were sent out to sea. At some point our little graveyard had no more space left. So we came up with this alternative to burial. I remember crying when I sang it at Mildred's funeral. Thomas had stood up. He wiped the tears from my eyes. I hadn't even realized I was crying. He smiled at me.

Thomas - "... Thank you."
Alex - "I'm sorry… I mean, what?"
Thomas - "That's a beautiful song… Thank you for singing it to them."

He picked up his pendant. He took my hand and started to head back to shore. He didn't shed a tear in front of his parents' graves. It was so unlike him. He seemed so much stronger now, much more mature... Suddenly he grabbed my head and pushed me into the ground. We were both lying flat on our stomachs. I shook the sand out of my face.

Alex - "Thomas! The fuck are you -?"
Thomas - "SH!"

He was looking intently ahead. I followed his gaze to see some military bodies rounding up the Sirius crew.

Alex - "I thought the military wouldn't be here?"
Thomas - "I did, too… They're Reiz soldiers."
Alex - "Why are they even here, no one lives here anymore."
Thomas - "Border patrol might have seen us. But Russell didn't see anything for miles on our way in. They must have been waiting on the island."
Alex - "Reiz is serious about pirates…"
? - "Damn straight."

We both looked behind us to see a group of soldiers with shotguns pointed at us. They grabbed us and bound us, bringing us back to the Sirius. The rest of the crew was already on board and chained up. It looked like Morgan and Eduardo managed to hide the maps on them. We got thrown into the bundle. An important looking fellow approached us.

VIP - "So, you're the Sirius pirates. It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance. Too bad it won't last very long."
Morgan - "Where are you taking us?"
VIP - "Back to the main city of Reiz. You men will go straight to the guillotine…" His eyes wandered to me. "Who're you? What's a woman doing with pirates?"
I stuck my chin up. "Wouldn't you want to know."
He laughed. "Ha! Cheeky."

I scowled.

The man had his crew set sail to the Sirius. We followed two other Reiz ships towards the main city. I looked around at the Sirius crew. It didn't look like anyone had a plan. Then again, maybe they had some sort of plan they all knew whenever stuff like this happened. It must have happened before, no?

The main city of Reiz was not far. We got there within the day. On our way over, the military had discovered Thomas' keepsakes. They argued over the validity of him being a citizen of Reiz and whether a death penalty was necessary for such a young boy. The man in charge declared that he be tried in front of the king. The king would want to know about the capture of the Sirius pirates, too.

When Reiz city came into view, it astounded me. I thought Moldor was a wealthy city, but seeing the tall, smooth buildings of Reiz brought the word wealthy to whole new heights. Every little bit of it oozed high class. The polished streets, gleaming walls and windows that reached so high into the sky. And the castle, the main castle! It looked to be made entirely of marble. Every bush, tree, and bunches of flowers were pruned perfectly. I felt like I'd walked into a fairytale.

We entered into the main hall where the royal family had been summoned. The King, Queen, and a young boy whom I assumed was the prince sat in their thrones.

VIP - "Your majesty! We've captured the Sirius pirates who were lurking by Prica Island -"
King - "Prica Island?"

The King stood up swiftly and walked up to us. He stared at Thomas.

Thomas - "I know you…"
King - "Leave us."
VIP - "Your majesty? I-I don't think it a good idea to be left alone with these brutes…"
The King glared at the man. "Leave immediately, and ensure that there is not a soul left in this room, aside from the prisoners."

The man bowed and left, ushering his soldiers out. The King faced Thomas and put a hand on his head.

King - "My dear Thomas… I thought you had died. I didn't think I'd ever get to… But I am so glad to see you again! You're alive!"

The King picked up Thomas in a huge bear hug. Thomas looked shocked.

Thomas - "S-See me again? Do I know you?"
The King put him down. "Ah, I suppose you wouldn't remember much, you were so young. Thomas, when you were but a child I had to entrust you to the care of a dear friend of mine. The world could not know of your existence."
Thomas - "... What are you saying?"
King - "Thomas… You are my son."

Thomas stared at the King. He stepped forward, then started to sway. His head lolled back and he fell. The King caught him.

King - "Thomas?"

Thomas wasn't moving. His eyes were closed and his face looked like he was in pain. The King shook him.

King - "Thomas!"
Christopher - "Your majesty, let me have a look at him."
King - "No, Thomas!"
Christopher - "Your majesty, please, I'm a doctor."

The King looked at Christopher. He had a crazed look on his face. But he did as Christopher asked and released him from his bonds. Christopher looked Thomas over.

Christopher - "He has a fever… but his hands are cold as ice. He's ill."
King - "No… not when we have only just been reunited…"

Little Talks by Of Monsters and Men, acoustic version by Julia Sheer and Jon D