Grayson did a small check to see if his body was doing alright; some missing sections were repaired by workers, and his sails were replaced with fresh white sails.
Grayson liked having new sails, as the old ones would rip if he went through a storm, and even his flag with the Maelstrom Buccaneers' symbol was repaired, keeping the idea that he was still a pirate.
However, Grayson was still a little confused when he had a crowd of people gathered to see him, taking photos and even talking to the Earl of Sodor and the people who found him.
The group with Stephanie, who all went into the secret hatch where the loot he and the Maelstrom Buccaneers had collected over time, from the lieutenant to the sailor, was missing, indicating they went to do something as she talked to the press about her discovery.
Perhaps they were doing whatever they could with all that money they discovered from that secret hatch he had, which he rolled his eyes about as he was being repaired and checked for anything missing.
Grayson had his body repainted with the colors he represents, feeling brand new after the rebuilding was finished, and he went off sailing to venture around after being somewhat dry-docked for a long time.
He first sailed around Sodor to see the changes to the island while he was away, wondering what new docks were there and seeing some slight changes to the island.
Some docks had grown over time, which was interesting for Grayson to see the changes from small to large over time.
Of course, there would be people watching him sail past the docks who would mention him with a point of a finger, and photos would be taken, which Grayson had gotten used to since he was dry-docked.
Grayson continued sailing around Sodor, looking at the differences and noticing new docks, ranging from Bigg City Port to Cozy Cove.
There were even tugboats roaming around the place, some noticing Grayson and boggling at him whenever he passed.
Ten Cents and Sunshine once accidentally mistaken him for Neptune's Ship, but Grayson assured the two confused and slightly terrified tugboats that he was merely a galleon ship.
They were a little embarrassed for assuming he was Neptune's Ship, but they helped him get around some parts where the fishermen had placed their nets to catch fish so he would not accidentally get tangled in them.
Grayson listened to the two tugs as he carefully went around where the nets were, even noticing a paddle boat moving by, which caused him to perk up after seeing the boat.
"Did I see a paddle ship?" Grayson asked.
"Who?" Ten Cents asked, looking over and seeing the paddle boat moving, painted in the same livery as he was. "Oh, that's O.J. He's part of our Star Tugs family, as people would call it."
"I see," Grayson murmured with interest. "I 'ave seen some paddle boats like his afore. They be mighty interestin' t' see movin' around back in me time."
Ten Cents looked at Sunshine as if silently asking, 'What is he talkin' about?' but Sunshine gave the 'How should I know?' expression as if he were shrugging.
Eventually, O.J. approached the two and asked, "Ten Cents, Sunshine? What are you two doing over here? I thought-" he paused after seeing Grayson in between the two and muttered with surprise, "Oh, my…"
"Ahoy, good sir," Grayson smiled, speaking slightly in clear English but with some struggles and slang creeping in. "Forgive me for distractin' your mateys. I was tryin' to pass by but wandered into a part of the ocean littered with nets, and these two fine scallywags helped me pass through them."
"It's quite alright, sir," O.J. responded with a slight chuckle as the two left Grayson. "I didn't expect to see the Reaper of Souls myself."
"Either with a paddle boat." Grayson nodded before continuing to sail forward. "It was nice meetin' you, Mr. O.J.!"
"You as well!" O.J. nodded as he turned back towards Bigg City Port as Grayson continued his adventure.
As he was passing by some docks, Grayson noticed locomotives of any kind, some with different appearances than others but with different liveries.
Grayson's curiosity was growing as he continued looking around the docks and even the people wandering around, wondering if he could take a break from sailing for a long time and try to walk on land.
After looking around where he was, Grayson started heading to the dock and docked at an empty spot, focusing on his powers and transforming into a human form.
His human form still resembles Blackbeard with red eyes, but since age has gotten to him, his jet-black beard has white streaks along with his hair, and his skin has paled a little and started to show some wrinkles.
But there was something new about him besides his appearance that showed his age: his pirate uniform.
He wore a black jacket lined with gold trimming, a white shirt with a dark brown girdle, dark blue, almost black pants with a red sash around his waist, and boots.
Grayson adjusted his pirate captain's hat to get it right before starting his journey through the docks to see more of this change.
…Well, he did not think it would get that much change at first before accidentally going headfirst into chaos in one of the biggest cities he had ever seen!
People were calling, noises were happening around him, and cars were honking, and sometimes some of them were sentient and would call another to 'Move!', 'Get out of the way!' or 'Road hog!'
Grayson walked down the streets while wincing a little from the loudest noises or usually getting a little cramped whenever there was a tight crowd.
This was like going through the market whenever he gathers food for Grayce, but this is nuts!
"Hey, look at that awesome pirate costume!" one of the boys pointed out, pointing toward Grayson as he looked around with confusion before pointing at himself.
"Yeah, you!" another boy nodded before a small group of kids approached Grayson. "Wow, it all looks real!"
Grayson smirked, changing his pace slightly to entertain these curious kids as he pointed to himself with a thumb and said, "Of course, I am a real pirate cap'n meself."
"Really?" one of the boys asked with a bright smile.
"That's right, me matey," Grayson nodded with a chest filled with pride.
"Boys!" Grayson perked up after hearing a call, and a woman stepped out of a building as she clapped her hands together to usher them toward her. "What did I tell you about approaching random strangers?"
The woman has long, beautiful, jet-black hair graying at the roots, tied in a bun with a ribbon, round glasses, and somewhat wrinkled Caucasian skin.
She wears a beautiful dark blue dress with an apron, a collar, boots, and tall white socks as the kids start heading towards her.
The two looked each other in the eyes, and Grayson smiled and tipped his pirate's hat towards the woman, saying, "Ahoy, ma'am."
"Hello," the woman said slowly, looking confused about this stranger as she looked up and down at him. "Are you certainly a real pirate?"
"O' course," Grayson nodded. "I 'ave sailed the seven seas fer as long as I can remember 'n 'ave stumbled across a beautiful pearl like ye."
The woman blushed slightly at Grayson's compliment and huffed a little, responding as she turned away, "Well, just be careful around the children. I don't want any of them harmed by your antics."
"But Auntie Vazquez!" One of the kids complained, gently tugging on her dress. "He's awesome!"
"Now, children," The woman, nicknamed 'Auntie Vazquez,' responded to the child. "He may be a 'cool-looking' pirate, but think logically if he were to swindle you into doing something."
"Ouch, I wouldn't 'ave the heart t' hornswaggle these sprogs o' yers," Grayson remarked.
"They are called 'children.'" Auntie Vazquez responded curtly. "Not 'sprogs.'"
Grayson shrugged with a slight chuckle before bowing towards her with a tip of his hat, responding, "Well, since I am on a wee adventure meself, I'll visit here a wee t' visit this place wit' ye."
He winked at the end, which caused Auntie Vazquez to blush from his flirt as he started leaving as one of the children called, "Bye, cool pirate!"
Grayson waved goodbye to the children and continued walking, still thinking slightly about this 'Auntie Vazquez,' deciding to come by her sometime whenever he had time to wander around the place again.
Grayson, however, was once more overtaken by everything going on around him, feeling cramped and standing out like a sore thumb among everyone else walking around him.
The noises he can handle because they sound like the cannon battles he once went through back in the old times, but with everyone wandering around and seeing him walking around 'wearing a costume,' Grayson started to feel like he wanted to tell them that it is part of his attire.
So he returned to the docks, hopped into the water, transformed into his ship form, and started sailing, deciding that walking around on land was enough for him.
Grayson soon arrived at where the Mayfield Marine Base used to be and instantly stopped sailing, looking at the gigantic place solemnly.
If he could use his powers to bring Grayce to him, he would have left the Mayfield Marine base with Grayce, but Sea-Wolf used her violin on him, causing his magic to blend with the violin's and screw it up.
Faint tears pricked the corners of Grayson's eyes at the thought of what had happened to his beloved daughter.
He still feels angry towards Sea-Wolf but calms himself down after remembering what Stephanie had done for him and the restless crew.
"Excuse me?" Grayson perked up after someone spoke to him and glanced over, seeing the same ocean liner he had passed before. "Are you alright, sir?"
Grayson looked away from the ocean liner for a minute, getting back together before responding, "Aye, I am alright."
The ocean liner smiled a little before sailing next to him as he continued, following this ocean liner as he passed.
"I didn' get t' know yer name, ma'am," Grayson told the ocean liner.
"My name is Queen Mary," the ocean liner responded with a kind smile. "You must be the Reaper of Souls, right?"
"Aye, ma'am." Grayson nodded. "But me name be Grayson."
"'Grayson?'" Queen Mary asked with a slightly confused expression.
"It's a name me daughter gave me," Grayson explained.
Queen Mary glanced away from Grayson after he explained to her before asking, "How's this 'Stephanie' doin'?"
"'Stephanie?'" Queen Mary asked, glancing back at Grayson with confusion.
"Aye, Stephanie." Grayson nodded but paused after seeing Queen Mary's confused expression. "Ye ne'er heard about someone by the name o' Stephanie Allen?"
"No, I have not," Queen Mary responded. "Who is she?"
"She…" Grayson started but stopped as he was thinking about who Stephanie was. "She's a mysterious sprog who can play Grayce's Bonesong Violin."
"That is the violin's name?" Queen Mary asked.
"Aye," Grayson nodded. "A very powerful artifact that was created by Grayce… I think."
Queen Mary cocked her eyebrow a little after Grayson mentioned, 'I think,' thinking that something or someone else had created the violin.
"Hey, Mary!" Queen Mary perked up after hearing her name called and looked over, seeing one of the ocean liners. "Who's your new friend?"
"Me name be Cap'n Grayson!" Grayson responded as the ocean liners approached the ship.
"Wait a moment," one of the ocean liners perked. "You're the Reaper of Souls!"
"Aye, I am," Grayson sighed but did not snap towards the ocean liners, not wanting to create a battle among these strong ships.
"Wow!" one of the ocean liners blinked. "You look a little smaller than we expected."
"Vaterland!" Queen Mary scolded a little.
Grayson laughed after the ocean liner remarked about his size and responded, "I get that a lot in me past. But don't let me somewhat wee size get t' ye all. I hold many secrets among me decks 'n wit' others who are brave t' venture."
Queen Mary smiled a little at how much courage and cockiness Grayson has, and the small fleet of ocean liners and Grayson chatted with each other.
The ocean liners listened to Grayson's stories about his grand adventure with his daughter Grayce, which confused and surprised the fleet when he mentioned his daughter.
The others who noticed the small fleet were a little suspicious after seeing Grayson, even not getting close to him, but instead continued with what they were doing.
After chatting for a long time, the group separated to continue sailing, and Grayson stopped by the dock to take a small break before hearing, "Ahoy, Grayson!"
Grayson looked over and saw Stephanie waving her hand to him as she had a backpack on her back with a cat on her shoulders.
"Ahoy, Stephanie!" Grayson greeted Stephanie with a smile. "Wha' brought ye here t' come towards me?"
"I came here to talk with you, Captain Grayson!" Stephanie smiled. "Mostly to catch up on how your day is going."
"Well, then," Captain Grayson smiled as the ladder to his deck landed for her. "Climb aboard, sprog!"
Stephanie nodded and started to climb the board onto Grayson's deck, soon landing on her feet as the cat hopped off her back.
Then she opened her backpack and laid it down, allowing sentient dolls to step out from inside, curiousing Grayson after he martialized as a human before the group.
"Strange," Grayson remarked. "I ne'er noticed ye 'ave a cat 'n sentient dolls."
"She doesn't bring us around much," the female doll responded with a slight glare, and Stephanie blushed a light blue color as her ears flicked a little.
Grayson chuckled after the female doll huffed towards Stephanie before kneeling towards the dolls and holding his arms out towards them.
Notches hopped onto a barrel as the dolls carefully climbed onto Grayson's shoulders before onto a barrel next to Notches as he lay down.
Grayson gently scratched Notches' chin and head, causing him to purr as he rubbed his chin over Grayson's hand.
"How was your adventure around Sodor, Grayson?" Stephanie asked as she hopped onto a barrel as a seat.
"Confusin', t' say the least," Grayson responded as he gently leaned against the railing. "Everythin' had changed so much o'er time that I felt overwhelmed by simply steppin' into the city. The scallywags are great, but I didn't feel all that wit' the crowd by how much I was stickin' out."
Stephanie looked away from Grayson for a moment before slowly responding, looking back at him, "I felt the same way, too."
"Ye did?" Grayson asked, looking back over to Stephanie with a somewhat confused expression.
"Yes," Stephanie nodded before mentioning her blue hair and pointed ears. "I often stick out towards the 'normal' people surrounding me because of my appearance. Whenever I look at someone with normal ears and hair, I envy them because I want to be like them… but couldn't."
"Why?" Grayson asked.
Stephanie looked up at him with a smile and responded, "Because I am better than just 'fitting the mold.'"
Grayson looked confused after Stephanie responded, and she continued, "I meant, like, someone acting 'normal,' just being themselves with their own ideas and interests. For you and me, we're different because I'm a dorky eleven-year-old girl who constantly gets herself into trouble through adventure and has blue hair with pointed ears, and you're a pirate galleon ship who has been through battles and survived to tell tales."
She smiled softly as she leaned back in her barrel, finishing, "Even if we can just 'fit the mold' for one day, we'll see how it feels with the other people… but it would end up feeling boring because of having to repeat the same thing constantly."
Grayson nodded as he pieced everything Stephanie told him, responding, "Aye, I see wha' ye be tellin' me. But wha' does all that 'ave t' do wit' 'nah fittin' the crowd?'"
"Oh!" Stephanie chuckled after realizing she had ranted a little about the situation. "Sorry. I said, don't attempt to change yourself for everyone so you can fit the crowd. Change yourself so you can be happy with who you truly are."
"It may take time to help change yourself, but," She smiled softly as she gently poked his chest with a finger, adding, "You can do anything you want if you believe in yourself to change for the better for yourself."
Grayson thought to himself after Stephanie explained to him as she removed her hand from his chest before chuckling as he ruffled her hair, "I guess that's the first step o' change!"
"That's right!" Stephanie beamed with a smile as he removed her hand from her head.
Then Stephanie stood up and used her powers to summon the Bonesong Violin, pausing before turning towards Grayson and asking, "Do you want me to play music for you?"
He stared at Stephanie longingly as he saw Grayce from Stephanie before smiling and nodding, answering, "Aye, you may."
Stephanie nodded before stepping back a little and watching the eyes of the violin glow and speaking towards her in a riddle, "I see you want to play a lively tune for Captain Grayson. Let's play a familiar tune I have in store for you in dedication."
She nodded and took the bow out before starting to play a lively tune, following along with the sound of the music while having a smile across her face.
Tapping his boot to the rhythm of the song, Grayson started singing along with the music, "🎵Once a ruthless pirate on the open sea, sailing under the black flag, wild and free, but the winds of fate, they blew my way, now I'm singing a different tune today!🎵"
Stephanie smiled as Grayson continued singing as she started dancing to join him, "🎵From plunder and pillage to a new beginning, I found a path where redemption was winning. The tides of change carried me ashore, and now I'm a pirate with a heart forevermore!🎵"
From the strings of the violin a beautiful blue aura of magic came from the violin as Stephanie continued playing, creating a group of pirate crew members as they sang along with Grayson, "🎵A pirate's life, it can rearrange, from the darkest storms to a sunlit change! I've hoisted a new flag, my colors rearranged, in the winds of change, my heart's exchange.🎵"
Stephanie chuckled as she continued playing the violin in her hands, allowing the music to take control of her body as she listened to Grayson singing.
"🎵No more treacherous battles, no more strife, I've chosen a different course in life,🎵" Grayson sang. "🎵With a crew of misfits, we chart new seas, helping those in need, spreading the breeze.🎵"
Stephanie jumped onto a barrel and continued playing her violin as the next repeated verse sang, "🎵From plunder and pillage to a new beginning, I found a path where redemption was winning. The tides of change carried me ashore, and now I'm a pirate with a heart forevermore!🎵"
"🎵A pirate's life can rearrange from the darkest storms to a sunlit change!🎵" The chorus comes, and Stephanie sings along, although her voice is hidden among the others. "🎵I've hoisted a new flag, my colors rearranged, in the winds of change, my heart's exchange.🎵"
Stephanie smiled brightly as she continued playing the violin in her hands, enjoying the little 'party' as she danced on the barrel underneath her.
"🎵I've traded my cutlass for a helping hand, for a pirate with purpose, I now stand,🎵" Grayson sang. "🎵No longer chasing treasures, but dreams untold, in this world of change, my heart's made of gold.🎵"
Brandon then used his magic to great a pint of beer in his hand and lifted it up, singing, "🎵So raise a toast to the pirate I've become, with tales of courage and battles won, in the heart of change, I've found my way, a pirate's life, with a brighter day.🎵"
"🎵From plunder and pillage to a new beginning, I found a path where redemption was winning.🎵" the pirate crew sang as Stephanie sang along with them. "🎵The tides of change, they carried me ashore, and now I'm a pirate with a heart forevermore!🎵"
"🎵A pirate's life can rearrange, from the darkest storms to a sunlit change! I've hoisted a new flag, my colors rearranged, in the winds of change, my heart's exchange.🎵" the pirate crew sang.
"🎵Yes, I can c~h~a~n~g~e~!🎵" Grayson sang at the top of his lungs as Stephanie finished playing her violin before accidentally toppling backward, landing butt-first on the barrel underneath her.
The crew vanished with the undrunken pint of beer in his hand, and he glanced over, seeing Stephanie halfway stuck in the barrel butt first, holding the violin in her hand and blushing a medium blue color.
"It seems like you've gotten yourself stuck in a tight fit," the Bonesong Violin remarked with a slight chuckle. "You should've instead sit."
Stephanie started laughing after the Bonesong Violin remarked, and Grayson looked a little confused about why Stephanie was laughing while also wondering how he would get Stephanie out of this stuck position.
