(Disclaimer: I do not own Treasure Planet; just Maryam and my other OC's.)

(Authors Note: Hello my dear readers and fellow writers! First off, I hope you're all enjoying the story so far as I've enjoyed writing it and continue to enjoy adding onto it. Second, I'm going to be working on posting new content for my other stories as I've been neglecting them much to my dismay; however, that's primarily due to the fact that I've been having the worst writers block. I literally haven't updated some of them in months because I just haven't felt inspired to do so, and that's troubling to me because I love to write, but burnout is a real thing and that's what I've been experiencing with some of my other works. Regardless, I just wanted to thank you for the support and patience. With that, I hope you enjoy this latest chapter.)

"English/Common"

"Sarcasm or Emphasis"

**Dreams**

"Shouting/Yelling"

Chapter 7

For the next three weeks, Maryam Weller sailed and worked among the crew of the Walrus as they continued to traverse through the cosmos. During that time, she even developed a few friendships with several of the men, including Will and his pet sabermink; however, B.E.N was still her closest companion and was always happy to indulge in conversations with her. That, and Captain Flint had asked him to accompany her whenever she went below deck. While she was still under the protection of the parley, that didn't necessarily mean all of the men would honor the code and refrain from harming her.

Sure, most of them were respectful enough and didn't cause much trouble, but there were a few who made her rather uncomfortable and somewhat fearful of her own safety. Regardless, if she wasn't around B.E.N or Will, she was with Nathaniel. Oh yes: She had recently started addressing the Captain by his first name, but only when they were alone and in the privacy of his stateroom.

For his part, Flint was becoming more docile around her. Sure, he was still strict and commanding when it came to his crew, but Maryam gave him a sense of peace and tranquility; of which, he usually only found while among his treasure hoard. At the moment, he was up at the helm while Miss Weller was busy scraping space barnacles off the hull with Will. Of course, this was after insisting that she do something to pull her weight around the ship and assist the crew (other than mending their clothes).

As she popped off another barnacle, Maryam asked the young canid, "So, how long have you been part of Flint's crew?"

"Nearly two years," he answered with a grunt while struggling with a rather stubborn barnacle.

"What did you do before then?"

"I was a cabin boy for a small merchant ship called the Olympic Crest, but she was attacked and raided by Captain Flint and his crew." At her shocked expression, he emitted a slight chuckle, "I know: it's ironic that I'm here, but it's not as bad as you might think. In fact, I'd go so far as to call it a blessing in disguise."

"Why's that?"

"Well, the Captain of the Olympic Crest actually shanghaied me from my home when I was thirteen, and forced me to work aboard his ship."

Her felinid ears lowered in sadness upon hearing that, "How awful."

"It was," he agreed. "But that was in the past and I'm certainly better off now than I was back then. Sure, I'm among pirates, but most of them are alright."

"Don't you want to go back home?"

At her question, Will lightly shook his head, "No. To be honest, I didn't really have much of a home to begin with. My parents died when I was young and my Aunt wasn't exactly the best caretaker while I was growing up. But despite all that, I'm actually content where I am: I've got a roof over my head, a place to sleep, food to eat, and I get to travel and see the wonders of the galaxy. What's not to love about that?"

"I'm glad you've managed to stay positive, despite everything you've been through," she smiled while removing another barnacle, to which he gave a nod in agreement before curiously asking:

"So, what're your plans after your parley is complete?"

Glancing back at the young canid, Maryam gave a slight shrug, "I don't know. In truth, I'm not even sure that I want to go back home now that I've had a glimpse of the universe outside of Audra."

"Yea, it is pretty amazing out here," he admitted with a smile before popping off another barnacle.

"It is," she agreed. "Back home, the sky is constantly overcast with dark storm clouds and it's always raining."

He cringed, "I've heard Audra was a water-based planet, but I didn't know it was that watery. I can't imagine having to put up with rain every single day."

"It's horrible," she frowned, "_especially during midyear when the storms are at their strongest." *sigh* "But_as much as I dislike the constant rain and moisture, Audra is still my home planet and all I've ever known. That, and my Father is still there_likely wondering where I'm at," she lowered her ears and frowned at the thought of her poor Papa grieving over her absence/loss. Narrowing her sapphire felinid eyes, she chipped off another barnacle with a huff, "I just wish Edmund would have informed Father that we'd be traveling off-world, instead of stating that we were only going to the spaceport."

"Who's Edmund," he curiously asked as he popped off a rather large cluster of barnacles and tossed them into the cosmic abyss.

"He's my fiance," she admitted with a frown, to which his eyes widened:

"You're engaged!?"

Maryam somberly nodded as she focused on her task; but still, she answered, "I wasn't really given a choice in the matter, seeing as how he owns half the town, including the building my Father and I reside and work in. I feared he'd evict us had I said no; so I agreed to his proposal on the condition that he sign the deed to the building over to my Father." *sigh* "Of course, I also had a feeling he'd take me as his wife regardless of my answer. Edmund is the type of man who always ends up getting what he wants."

"He sounds like an entitled prick."

An amused smile appeared along her face at his response, to which she gave a nod in agreement, "He is."

Before Will could ask her another question, his eyes suddenly widened and he froze in place, "_M-Maryam, whatever you do, don't make any sudden moves," he warned in a quiet voice, causing her to raise a brow before slowly turning her head to look behind her. Unfortunately, she immediately regretted doing so as she was then met with the sight of an enormous selachimorpha galacticus (space shark) slowly gliding alongside the ship.

While most space creatures were docile and posed little threat to ships, the larger selachimorpha species were dangerous and known to attack smaller ships and feed on spacers if food was scarce. This particular beast was well over half the size of the Walrus and equipped with hundreds of serrated teeth.

Feeling her body tremble in fear, Maryam mentally prayed that it would go away; however, it gave an inquisitive nudge to the swing she and Will were perched on, causing the young canid to nearly fall off. Thankfully, she managed to grab him and pull him back just as the dorsal fin passed them by and the beast began to turn around.

"It's coming back," Will shouted before they suddenly felt themselves being pulled up:

"Hold on," the Captain ordered, to which they both tightly held onto the swing as they were hoisted up towards the deck. As this happened, the crew took to their stations and readied the cannons:

"Open fire," Billy shouted as he maneuvered the ship away from its incoming assault/attack, to which the deafening sound of cannon fire was heard, which was followed by the sounds of impact as it made contact with the massive beast. Unfortunately, as it glided past the swing containing the young candid and felinid hybrid, its caudal fin roughly slapped them, knocking Maryam off in the process; however, she fortunately managed to grab onto the wooden seat and hold on as Flint and B.E.N worked to bring her and Will back on board.

Within seconds, the young lad scrambled over the capping and aided his Captain and navigator while Billy steered them all to starboard as the selachimorpha galacticus made another pass at the Walrus.

"Reach for me, lass," Flint hollered as he extended his hand to the young lass while his men continued to fire at the beast.

Reaching up, Maryam barely touched the tips of his sharp claws with her own, but with one final pull from Will and B.E.N, she was able to grab onto Flint's hand, to which he quickly brought her aboard and held her against his frame as she sought refuge in his embrace. As this happened, the crew managed to get several more cannon shots into the selachimorpha, causing it to bleed before swiftly retreating back into the cosmic mist from whence it came.

Not taking any chances, Billy activated the hyper-drive so they could clear some distance between themselves and the beast, lest it should come back seeking revenge.

Taking a moment to calm her nerves, Maryam closed her eyes and lightly breathed in Nathaniel's masculine scent while noting how warm he was and how safe she felt. Upon feeling a hand on her head, the young hybrid looked up to see Captain Flint staring down at her with those piercing eyes of his, while his sharp fingers gently glided through her golden locks and over her felinid ears. Before either of them could speak, B.E.N rushed over to her side:

"Oh Mary, thank goodness you and Will are okay! Are either of you hurt!?"

With a reassuring smile, she shook her head, "I'm alright; just a bit shaken up. What about you, Will?"

"I'm fine, Miss Weller," he replied as his pet sabermink (Scrapper) bounded over and rubbed against his legs. "Although, I think I've had my fill of excitement for one day. I'm gonna head down to the galley and help Mr. Brackus (the cook) with preparing supper." He then saluted the Captain before heading below deck with Scrapper scampering alongside him.

Turning his attention to his navigator, Flint gruffly spoke up, "B.E.N, scan the perimeter while I take Miss Weller over to my stateroom."

"Aye Aye, Sir," he saluted and headed off, to which Nathaniel then led Maryam into his quarters.

"T-Thank you_for saving me," she shakily/bashfully stated as they entered his room.

"Yer welcome, lass," he replied with a curt nod before approaching his desk and pulling out a bottle of rum from the bottom drawer, to which he then uncorked it and offered it to her. "Here. A few swigs of this will help calm yer nerves, as I'm sure yer a bit rattled from that experience."

With a nod of agreement, the young hybrid took said bottle and inquisitively sniffed it before taking a rather large gulp of the dark amber liquid within. "Thanks," she handed the bottle back to him and watched as he corked it and placed it back in the drawer from whence it came. As he turned to head back out, she gently grabbed a hold of his coat sleeve and spoke up: "_Nathaniel?"

"Hm?"

"Will_Will you stay with me for a little while? I don't want to be alone right now."

A small (almost non-existent) smile appeared across his face upon hearing her request, "Aye, lass. I reckon I can spare an hour or two while Billy mans the helm."

"Thank you," she replied in an exhausted tone. Because her adrenaline was wearing off, Maryam was now feeling tired and wanted nothing more than to rest.

With a sigh, Flint led her over to the bed and sat her down before removing her slippers and tossing them aside. Afterwards, he removed his hat, coat and boots before joining her in said bed and draping his arm over her smaller frame. "Nothin's gonna harm ya while I'm here," he spoke in a soft/reassuring tone while she closed her eyes and fell asleep, knowing she was safe in his presence.