There must have been a word for this feeling. They were stopped at Shipwreck Bay just like they had been so many weeks ago, observing a storm of questionable origin. Z felt quite peculiar about it all.

More curious was the question of whether or not the storm was a new one the one they had avoided just a few days ago. When he had asked Blue what she thought, she tried to shrug and hurt herself. Again. That was becoming annoyingly common. Moving her shoulder or neck in particular ways aggravated her injury. He felt rather particular about that, too.

"So what's the plan if that storm comes our way?" Z asked without taking his eyes off the flag as it flapped about in the wind.

"Then we will weather it," Blue said simply without looking up from the book she was going through.

That was a little annoying. Storms were cold and he hated being cold. With her in the bed, he supposed he would have to get that hammock of hers out if he wanted to curl up under some blankets properly. Or… no.

"Hey, y' think y' can sleep in yer hammock?"

She considered the idea before nearly shaking her head. "No. And it is too tight — you will not fit in it, either."

He grit his teeth. "So what am I supposed t' do t' stay warm?"

She paused. "Put yourself in a corner with a pile of blankets?" she suggested.

Z held his tongue; this was all theoretical anyway.

Early in the night, Z bumped his head on the desk. He had grabbed three blankets and strewn two over himself and used the final one as a pillow before curling up underneath the table. Now he was trying to sit up, certain that he had heard something. The bump slowed his movements, though he refused to make any more noise, certain that he had heard something.

He sat there for a very long time, listening to the gentle lapping of calm island waters before relaxing slightly. Had there been anyone, they would have made themselves known by now. Perhaps it was an animal? Unconvinced that they were totally alone, Z pulled his pegleg out from underneath the blankets, attached it, and was up on his feet.

There was nothing to sight on the upper decks of the ship. He also spotted nothing around them, not in the water nor on land. When he checked down low, Blue was still asleep, though it looked like she was having a rough time at it.

They were totally and utterly alone.

Perplexed, Z returned to the desk and sat in the chair, scratching at the back of his head. He thumbed at the scar hidden in his hair as he contemplated what it might have been that woke him. Sitting there for a short while, he decided to get comfortable. It was too warm with all those blankets anyway — he was sure the storm would pass them by. The night was young still and sleep called to him.

It was raining when he woke. Not a hard rain, but a sturdy enough rain that told him they wouldn't be going anywhere.

Looking out the back of the sloop, Z thought about that for a moment. The weather wasn't too bad. A little rain wasn't going to capsize a sloop, but Blue was likely still in no condition to be doing much.

Nope, they were stuck here again.

Unlike last time, Blue wasn't at the half-wall fishing. As he hadn't been scolded for sleeping with his pegleg attached, he took that to mean that she wasn't even up yet. Or at least, she hadn't gotten out of bed and inspected anything. His stomach grumbled quietly and he forced himself to his feet. He could check on her while he heated a fish for breakfast.

Just as he thought, his crewmate was laid back in bed; she still looked uncomfortable. She looked even more so when he heard her shift and turned his attention away from the stove to greet her. She was simply staring up at the ceiling and that made him stay his tongue for a long moment.

"Y' hungry?"

She grumbled a little, then, "I will eat whatever you don't."

"Err—" He caught himself and decided he could just save her half.

"The storm came our way," he said after a moment of silence.

"So I hear."

Even for Blue, she was being particularly curt. Z did his best to not take it personally, though that also brought his curiosity to the forefront of his mind.

"How y' feelin'?"

She was still for so long that he thought she was just going to ignore him, and then she shifted and produced the bottle of pain reliever from under the blanket in her left hand. She sat up and used her teeth to uncork it.

"Not great, I take it."

"Awful," she said.

After taking a large sip, she grabbed the cork with her fingertips and handed it and the bottle to Z. Then she started unbuttoning the jacket she had been wearing. He wasn't sure if he should help or give her some privacy or what so he turned his attention back to the stove.

"Where is this tied?" she asked, fiddling with the bandaging that still held her right arm stable.

"Uh, left side, I think," he said, not too certain. That would explain why she couldn't find a way to get it off.

With the fish heated, Z took it out of the pan and set it beside it, turning his attention to Blue. She looked frustrated.

"… d'ya want some help gettin' that off?"

She turned to face him. "… please."

He wasn't sure that he would ever get used to her just sitting there without a shirt on. In fact, he rather hoped that she didn't make a habit of this. It was such a contrast to how she had been, and the scars…

Removing the bandaging — which Z now recognised as the spare sailcloth cut into straight lines — was not too time-consuming. There was a huge line of stitching that went from her upper back over her indented shoulder and into her chest. No wonder she was in so much pain.

Slowly, carefully, she moved her arm. The movements were deliberate and safe — she did nothing that caused any more visible pain than a mild wince. The range of motion she had was deplorable, but the arm was still somewhat usable.

Before he could say anything, Blue was on her feet. She stepped over to the clothing chest, knelt on one knee and rifled through it. She mostly used her left hand, though it was a little awkward — she was very clearly right-handed. This task was not so difficult that he offered to help; instead, Z grabbed the fish and sat at the foot of the bed, busying himself by pulling it apart.

By the time Blue was done, he had finished eating his part of the fish. She had picked out a vest, which she managed to get into on her own. Such a task posed quite a bit of difficulty for her, but she had it done and over with before he could do anything about it. He wondered if she intended to wear it as is despite the scars that were still visible when she stood, a new jacket in hand. It was a better fit for her than the previous one.

Rather than it being about the scars, it was probably about the chilly weather, Z realised. He felt dumb for focusing on those so much.

"I suppose these can go," she said, turning to him. It took her poking at the stitches on her face for him to realise what she meant. "Are yours ready to come out as well?"

"Uh—" Z felt at the largest injury he had sustained, a slash to his upper arm. It barely complained at his touch. "Probably. Here." He held out her part of the fish. "Y' should eat first."

Blue managed to down about half of her portion in one go before turning back around. A small wooden case was retrieved from the equipment chest, the box that Z recalled held materials to fix wounds with. Then she disappeared up the stairs. He followed her up to the desk and was unsurprised to see that her fish was gone, but it still shocked him to see her eat like that, so used to her timid nibbling.

"Sit," she commanded.

Ignoring an overwhelming sense of déjà vu, Z did as told. Rather than remove his shirt, he simply pulled the neck down his arm to reveal a modest cut that had been closed up.

"It's jus' this an' one on my good leg."

Blue side-eyed him. "Just that?"

"Everything else healed on its own."

"… ah."

Somehow, he felt bad about that.

With her dagger in hand now and a set of tweezers in the other, she started on removing the material from his arm, whatever it might have been. He recalled that she used silk. This seemed thicker.

Now probably wasn't the best time to ask, but the thoughts wouldn't leave him alone.

"Is it jus' yer shoulder that hurts?"

Blue paused and eyed him again. Annoying her when she had a knife wasn't one of his best ideas, but thankfully she was more docile towards him nowadays.

"Mostly… my face still hurts, and my hip complains every time I put my full weight on that leg," she replied as she worked, her movements slow. "They send out a wave of pain with every beat of my heart. The cheek is not so bad, the shoulder… it rumbles my core, even with the remedy."

"I'm sorry," he blurted out.

"Nothing to be done about it now."

That was true, but it didn't mean he had to like it.

Before he could say anything more, she asked, "Do you still have the other set of clothes you were wearing?"

"The torn up ones?"

"Yes."

"Yeah, they're in another chest in the hold. So's yer white outfit; I wasn't sure if I should toss it or not."

That caught her attention and Blue paused in her work to consider it. "Why?"

"Why save it?" he asked. When she nodded, he shrugged the other arm. "I jus' didn't know if y'd want to keep it or not. Seems most'a what y' wear is somethin' y' made, and y' got all those silks still… I jus' thought—"

"You needn't defend your decision, I was only curious."

That relaxed him.

With the pricking sensation of his arm having come to a close, he looked over again, surprised she was finished already. He fixed his shirt before he brought his leg up, set his foot on the corner of the desk, and pulled his pant leg up. The cut to his shin had been less problematic than the one on his arm, but the doctor had insisted on closing it nonetheless.

"I can fix your clothes," Blue said as she started. "It is two simple cuts, correct?"

"Two big ones and a bunch'a little ones." She made a small noise of acknowledgement. After that, Z asked, "What about yer stitches? Y' want me t' take 'em out?"

She sighed. "May as well."

He got the feeling that he was annoying her, but how eluded him. Uncertain of the mood between them, he stayed quiet as she worked. Removing the stitches from his leg took little time. He adjusted his clothes before standing up so Blue could take his place. She then passed the tools to his hands.

"You will want to find the end with the knot—"

"I know how t' take 'em out," Z interjected. "It's puttin' 'em in that I'm not so good at," he said with a chuckle. It made him feel better, but Blue's expression was still impassive. He continued: "Y' said yer face doesn't hurt as much?"

"It is a deep pain," she said. When he clearly wasn't sure by what she meant, she added: "Don't press down and it will be tolerable."

"Understood."

There were two wounds on her face: the biggest one was a line going from the outside edge of her eye down and inward to the top of her lip; the other was a smaller cut closer to her nose. She closed her eyes as he started on the smaller one first.

"Can I ask a question?"

Blue sighed but stayed still. "What is it?"

"How did… how did… this… happen?" Z asked pensively.

"He hit me."

"… he hit you?"

"Yes."

"With…?"

"His hand."

"He what now?"

Blue cracked her closest eye open to give him an unimpressed look. "Graymarrow hit me. With his hand. And before you ask, I do not remember if it was a fist or not."

"Sorry. It's jus', this looks like a scratch'a some sort more than anythin' else."

She was quiet for a moment, then: "I do wonder… I wonder if he hit me so hard he simply… pulled everything apart."

Z paused to stare at her. What strength it would take to do that. "Did… Does it really hurt that bad?"

"Hmm. How to…" Blue made a thoughtful expression. "Have you ever fallen or been hit so hard that it felt like the bone hurt?"

"Ah, yeah." That made sense to him. "It's like y' said, a really deep sort'a pain."

"Precisely."

As he pulled the final stitch from her skin, the wound bled slightly. It was barely a drop, but it made him pause and consider it.

"What is it?"

"It's bleedin' a bit so I'm not sure the other one's ready."

Blue brought a hand up as though to touch the wound, then apparently thought better of it. She was still, then: "Grab the mirror would you?"

He grunted a response before stepping away to do that. He had seen it before when she grabbed the medical case so it only took him a moment to come back with it. When Blue hesitated to look at herself, he wondered if he should have refused her request. It was subtle, but there was something… something about her expression.

"What is it?"

Having pulled slightly at both wounds to better inspect them, Blue put the mirror down and declared, "It will be fine. Pull the stitches."

"That—" —wasn't what he meant. Z held his tongue and instead began his work.

Removing the stitches from the larger wound took longer. The skin of the face was so much more delicate than almost anywhere else, more sensitive, and this injury was not insignificant in the least. As he worked upwards along it, she became visibly tense. It bled lightly from a spot directly below her eye and the very top of the tear. He thought it could have waited another half-day.

"There, done."

She lifted a hand to touch it and he brushed it away.

"Don't pick at it, it'll scab up in a bit."

She halfheartedly grunted a response at him.

"Now," he started, putting everything back in the case after wiping it clean, setting her dagger on the table; "I'll go put this back. What're you gonna do?"

When he sensed that she didn't have a response right away for him, he stepped away. When he returned to her, she still looked like she was thinking.

"I am tired… but not tired enough to sleep." She turned slightly in the chair, looking to the books they had collected. Z followed her line of sight.

"Ah." The thought crossed his mind to get some good sleep in the bed, but… "Y' sure? Y' look awfully rough."

She gave him an unimpressed look. "Am I supposed to look pristine after all that?"

"No…" But it was so weird for her to not care about how she looked. Perhaps it was a byproduct of all the pain she was in, maybe the medicine. Perhaps… "Do y' want some help with it or somethin'?"

She blinked. "Help with what?"

"I dunno, brushin' yer hair fer one. It, uh—"

"I was just going to cut it short."

It was his turn to blink. Blue's hair seemed to be a great source of pride for her, and he had to admit that it looked good. To cut it…

"Really? It's gonna take way longer for it t' grow back than it is fer yer arm t' heal."

The way she looked at him, he knew she didn't agree. Something about that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

"I suppose you can…"

He was so glad she didn't argue it. He quickly retrieved the hairbrush and when he returned, Blue had moved so that she leaned forward, good arm on the table and supporting her. It seemed the damage to her shoulder would not prevent her from manipulating books.

As Z stood behind her and started working on untangling her hair, he asked, "So what've y' learned from those books?"

She gave him a small groan. "It is… fleeting. My memory. I will need to read these over once more when I am in better condition."

That was unfortunate. It didn't sound like she knew if it was the medicine or her condition making her like that. Still… "Y' can't tell me anythin'?"

"I told you about the three ship alliance. They were busy collecting four or five Shroudbreaker stones. They knew to do this because they had hunted down another Skeleton Lord previously: Briggsy was the mentioned name."

Z paused. "That's a name I haven't heard in a long time."

"Oh?"

"She was a busy pirate. Used t' be y' couldn't go too long without hearin' 'bout her doin' somethin' or another. Then one day the word was that she fell t' the curse."

"How unfortunate."

Z grunted in agreement.

"Besides that, however… Nn, they were quite busy with this or that," Blue added. She almost didn't finish that sentence. Z paused again to look at her, concerned. Then she was thumbing through a book, clearly looking for something. He worked on her hair while he patiently waited. "There was another skeleton: Rooke. Apparently she killed a young couple." Blue flipped a page. "And she mentioned Graymarrow by name."

"Really?"

"Mhmm. It seems this alliance had quite a lot of time to prepare for that battle. One crew was openly spineless, the other put on a facade. I have not figured out yet what the third ship was doing."

"They might not take kindly t' us sinkin' their friends…"

"Mm, Hancock's log indicates that he had no intention of sharing any spoils with either ship once they were ready to go. I think they might be appreciative if they know that."

"Maybe." Stepping back, Z took a good look at her hair. It looked much better. "Think y're good…"

"Thank you."

"Uh huh." Z refrained from voicing his surprise at her gratitude. Changing the subject, he said, "Hey, uh, y' mind if I get some sleep in the bed?"

"Go," Blue said, waving him off.

He grunted an acknowledgement. Before he stepped downstairs, he paused and addressed her once more: "If y' need anythin', wake me up."

"Of course."

Once more, a noise roused Z from his slumber. This was becoming a tiresome occurrence. At least this time it was clear what it was: the howling wind.

He was surprised to see Blue sitting on the bed beside his foot, wrapped up in a blanket. Less surprising was the log book she was reading. He sat up some, getting her attention.

"Get cold?"

"Something like that," she said. "The wind is intense even with the shutters closed, you know, what with the open aft."

"Yeah, that's fair," he said, sitting up some more.

He had been a real smart ass by doing it before when they had just met, drunk and testing the waters, but he felt the urge to offer her to lie with him. Before he could say anything quite yet, she reached forward and placed the book upon the closed barrel. She leaned back against the wall.

"I am tired of being tired. My head is… clouded. The medicine does not help that."

"At least it helps the pain, eh?"

"Mm. If I am not frustrated by the pain, I am frustrated by the slowness of my mind."

"I'm sorry. Do y' at least feel better from earlier?"

Blue side-eyed him. "No."

Considering the passage of time he sensed, that was surprising. "Really? I mean—" He sighed and shook his head. "I jus'… thought y'd be healin' quicker than this."

She said nothing to that statement. Instead, she simply took a deep breath and slowly let it out.

"I suppose we will be curling up in this little thing again."

"Well," Z started, moving a little. Blue raised a hand and shook her head slightly.

"It is fine: my leg is no longer bothering me so I can bend my knees and sleep that way to give you room."

"… ah." He realised something. "So y' do feel better!"

As she turned to get ready to lie down, Blue stopped to glare at him. "How much the injury to my hip bothered me is hardly of any significance when my arm is in the state it is."

He sighed. "All right then." He paused to watch her slowly move into a comfortable position on her back, bending her knees. Despite what she said, he moved so she could stretch her legs out behind him. Just like before but for differing reasons, he couldn't help speaking again. "Y' sure y' don't wanna—"

"This is fine," she said sternly.

He let himself fall onto his side. "All right."

Z had just gotten quite a bit of sleep. Blue, as she had stated before, was tired of being tired. Sensing that she wasn't asleep, he wondered if it was because she was too angry to be. He turned so his shoulders were both against the bed and he could lift his head to look at her.

"Hey, y' got—"

"Why must you speak? Is there something wrong with silence?"

"We're both awake and gonna be, ain't we? I was jus' gonna ask if y' had any stories t' tell since we can't do anythin' with this storm here."

Blue groaned, probably because he was right. Then: "I'm sure someone of your disposition could sail through this if you are so inclined to do something."

"It'd be a bad time," he said. "It's doable with an extra set of hands, but, uh, y' ain't in any condition t' be doin' anythin' like that. And I'd get soaked t' the bone out there and my other set of clothes are full'a holes. 'Sides, it's nice and warm right here."

She sighed. "We are at quite an impasse then."

"That we are. So? Got any good stories?"

She was quiet for a moment. "Not especially."

"What?" Z didn't believe that for a moment; the notion made him sit up high on his elbows. "Y're tellin' me that a pretty little thing like yerself just happened t' get t' the Sea'a Thieves without anythin' in'erestin' happenin' that's worth talkin' about? Even after this last week?"

"That I am."

"That's bullshit, Blue. Y' looked like y' barely kept it together when y' looked int' that mirror. Y've gotta have plenty on yer mind."

"Have you ever considered that I would prefer to not talk about it?"

"I can't imagine why! I've been dyin' t' tell y' about what happened in here while you were on that gally — don't y' have anythin' y' want t' say out loud?"

She put her good arm's hand behind her so she could lean on it as she sat more upright. "And that is precisely the difference between you and me."

Z glowered. "Talkin's supposed t' make y' feel better 'bout things." When she made a face, he added: "It does."

"Not I."

He sat upright and grabbed one of her calves, pulling her closer. Blue seemed surprised to be looking up at him like that, just enough that he could detect it, and yet she carried a fearless expression.

"Then what does make y' feel better?"

Z got the feeling that she may have actually been considering the question, her expression softening as she looked away. Another moment passed and there was a distinct splashing against the ship that made him lift his head. He'd heard that time and time again. Blue looked too, and then they looked at each other.

Company.

Swinging his legs out from under the blanket, Z had to reach over again and press Blue back down, much to her surprise. He shook his head when their eyes met and he turned his attention to getting his pegleg attached as quickly as possible. Blue was in no condition to be fighting anyone. The sound of footsteps on the quarter-deck and the rustling of a loaded gun only confirmed that suspicion.

When he stood and started for the stairs, he spied Blue sitting up again. That she would stay down low was something that he doubted — she was far too stubborn to be told what to do and yet…

Standing on the top stair to the mid-deck, Z made sure his steps towards the map table were even lighter. Moving unheard wasn't his best skill, and it did normally take some effort, but right now it was easy with the wind. He managed to reach his destination and looked up through the beams of the canopy; he just barely spotted someone's black hat on the far side of the quarter-deck.

Careful to stay quiet and not fall, Z climbed onto the half-walls of the mid-deck, using the beam to steady himself in the whipping winds. When he was confident, he jumped up and grabbed onto the edge of the canopy, pulling himself up onto it with some effort. Just as he was finishing getting upright, the intruder spun around, having sensed that he was not alone. Z was unsurprised to find that the other also wore all black, even if it was a nicer outfit.

"Uhh—"

Z wasn't even going to entertain the idea of talking to this person — as far as he was concerned, setting foot on his ship was an act of aggression and this person would die for it.

Drawing his cutlass, Z dashed up the stairs and at the other. Their blades connected once, twice, and on the third swing the intruder parried particularly aggressively, taking the opportunity to back up and vault over the helm. He cried out when Blue's dagger slashed his lower back open and he staggered forward with urgency.

Just as expected, she wouldn't stay hidden. Z took the opportunity to also vault, putting himself between the two. He then swore when a pistol was fired and the bullet found his side. He had felt the bullet enter and exit and damned did it hurt and bleed. Worse still, he had been so distracted that he hadn't grabbed any food before ascending.

Somehow, he was and wasn't surprised when Blue stepped forward past him. Perhaps it was the sight of her dagger in her left hand, held in a reverse grip, that had something to do with how he felt about it. He knew her right arm would be useless here, a liability even, but her posture indicated anything but. She gestured for the man to come and attack her, taunting him. Between that and his blood dripping from her blade, she ignited quite a fury within him, a rushed attack accompanied by a vengeful howl.

Her movements were not as graceful as with her primary arm, grand gestures exaggerated by an awkwardness, but Blue succeeded in parrying once, twice, and a third time. When she expected a fourth swing, she instead found herself suddenly backhanded. She had to stagger backwards to avoid falling, regaining her balance just in time to connect her blade with his again. It had come at her side and the angle she held her dagger at meant that his sword got caught in the cut-out on the top of it. As soon as Blue realised her advantage, she twisted her arm as much as she could, making it awkward for him to keep ahold of his weapon. With this, she managed to press forward, forcing him backwards. Then she suddenly yanked her blade in the opposite direction, ripping his sword from his grip.

Less dazed and feeling the urge to help, Z rushed forward with his cutlass, readied to stab forward. Their intruder was surprised by this and had no means to defend himself from such an onslaught — no matter what, someone's blade was going to embed itself in him. The indecision he displayed allowed Z to do exactly as he hoped, driving his sword into the other's body down to the hilt. He carried his momentum further, stopping where the bowsprit just started to rise above the main-deck's railing. In one smooth motion, he gave the other man another good shove, pushing him off the Forlorn Phoenix and removing his blade from his side. Z and Blue stood beside each other as they watched for the few seconds that he floundered in the water before the chill and wound dragged him under.

With that taken care of, Z turned to make for the mid-deck. He got as far as the mast before he had to stop, leaning against it, soaked by cold rain and blood. Blue took one look at him and then disappeared down low. She returned a moment later with a mango she sliced open, which he graciously accepted. Still…

"Was I not clear enough that y' shouldn't've come up here?" he asked after downing the majority of the fruit.

"If I had stayed down there, you would be dead and I would still be fighting."

He glared at her before looking away with a sigh. She was right, but Z still felt some sort of annoyance that she had disobeyed him.

Aware of Blue still standing before him, he looked at her until she looked back. Judging by where her eyes had been, she was interested in his wound.

"It's fine," he said after feeling at his side. It was still tender, and blood had run down his leg, but he was quickly recovering. He looked up and scanned their surroundings. "We should get movin'."

"Mhmm." Blue looked him over again before declaring, "I will fix your other set of clothes. The rain will wash the blood from what you wear now."

Before making for the quarter-deck, he paused and asked, "Hey, do we have any fish left over?"

"Perhaps. They will be old and dry if we do."

"Better than nothin'. Check for me?"

She hesitated before nodding carefully; then she turned and disappeared once more.

Z got himself situated on the quarter-deck. He looked around once more and could spot nothing distinct through the storm, but he swore he could see a set of lights at Dagger Tooth that didn't belong. Whatever the case, they needed to leave the area.

As he worked on untying the ropes to the sail controls, Blue came back up with the requested fish, to which he simply nodded in appreciation. Just as she had warned, it wasn't in the best of condition, but it was still edible.

Before she started back down to the hold, she said, "If you need help up here, just yell."

"I won't, but thanks."

She gave him an annoyed look before leaving him to handle the ship.