Off to sea I'll go

[redblood]

8 years earlier

John looked with wonder at the ship. He had wished to travel around the world and now he might have the chance. It was a pirate ship, and he wanted to join them. They were in need of new crew members, and they were probably desperate enough to even take a 15 year old inexperienced male with them. And he was right.

He had asked his best friend to come with them, but he pleaded in vain. His friend didn't dare to take such a step into the unknown. It crushed his heart to be separated from the person he had been with his whole life, but there was no future for him there. He was an orphan and had no education, he lived on whatever job he could find at that age. He didn't know if he would stay with the pirates, maybe he could find something better along the way. But at the moment it was better than staying where he was.

He said farewell to his friend and left.

Present time:

It had been 8 long years since John had seen the chore of Illion, his hometown. And now finally he was back. At least for the next few hours. There had been no reason for the ship to return before, since it wasn't a big town where they could earn money from the things they had stolen, or gotten in treasure hunting. There still wasn't much of a reason, but John had been able to find a buyer that were willing to collect his items in Illion. As the captain of the ship, he could just have ordered his men to take them to Illion without a reason, but if he did such a thing they would eventually question if he had the right to be their captain.

He had already gone through an awful period where they hadn't accepted him, and he didn't want to go back to those times. At that time he had the right amount of the men on his side for mutiny to not erupt, but there had been some poisoning attempts by those who was opposed to him being their leader, and some had left the ship after a couple of months.

Now when he had all the men on his side, he couldn't do anything to make them doubt him. Though today he would let himself go a little bit. He hoped to see someone he hadn't seen for years. He didn't even know if his childhood friend still lived in town or not, what if he was gone? Would they even recognize each other? They both must have grown a lot since the time John joined the ship.

As the ship took its place in the dock, John hurried off the ship onto land.

" Look after the ship while I'm gone. Make sure everything goes smoothly. " John ordered one of his men.
"Where are you heading off to?" The man asked.
" Anywhere but here. " He answered and left. He strolled through the city, trying to see if he could remember any faces or people. He couldn't recognize anyone. Not because he had cared much for the towns people when he had lived there. There was only one he thought he actually would be able to remember if he saw him.

 

[Tayssi]

8 years ago

Max had stared at the ship, shoulders tense and already wishing it would leave. He knew exactly what his best friend, John was going to do once it came into port. He had known for a long time how much his friend wanted to travel, to leave this town for good, but Max wasn't like that. He liked to security of the town, he knew people, knew the day to day life. He wasn't afraid he was going to lose his life at any moment to come.

Max had heard John's pleas for him to join him, but he refused. Even if John was leaving, Max just couldn't follow him. So, as his best friend said his farewell, Max stood there and watched him leave, unable to do anything to convince him to stay. Watching the ship leave only a couple hours after coming to port, Max thought he'd never see his best friend again.

Now

It had been far too long since Max had seen his friend. And now he had heard the ship he had left on was coming back; if only for a few hours. Opening the door to his small home, he stepped outside and looked at the town. He lived just on the outskirts, so he'd have a slight walk before he made it to the port. He couldn't fathom why the ship was back, but he wasn't arguing the fact. The chance that he could see John again was slim. After all, he had been 15, and it was common for young crew mates to be killed, either in battle or from the hard work. However, Max would stay positive. He would see his friend again

For the 8 years they had been separated, Max had found a job as a small time merchant, earning just enough money to get by. It wasn't the easiest job, or the best paying, but atleast he was living. He was no longer living on the streets and he had managed to con a man passing through the town a year after John had left to teach him how to be a good merchant. None of the elderly people in the town would buy items from him, but the people around his age and younger would. The elderly still saw him as the tiny street rat who constantly bugged them.

Sighing, Max ran a hand through his curly mouse brown hair which now went to just above his shoulders. Before John had left he had always kept it at basically a buzz cut, so he wasn't sure if he'd recognise him with longer hair. His grey/blue eyes scanned the town as he gently shouldered past people, trying to see if he could locate his friend. Would he have come into the town or stayed with the ship? He didn't know but he'd check the town first. If he was still alive, surely he'd be looking for him as well. Unless he had forgotten all about him? Maybe being on the ship for so long, he had made other friends and totally forgot about him. That thought made Max frown but push on anyway, determined now to see his old friend.

Eventually, he saw his friend, looking around, trying to locate something. "John!" Max called, raising a hand to wave at the man with a broad smile, hoping he'd recognise him. Max certainly had changed quite a bit. He wasn't the scrawny boy with limbs too long for him. He had grown into his full height of 6'1'' and now had a fair bit of muscle on him. Due his change, Max could only hope John would recognise him.

 

[redblood]

What happened was far beyond John's expectations. Instead of him searching through the whole town before maybe finding his friend, Max found him in an instant. The tiny little boy he had once known had changed quite a bit, but still recognizable. John raised his hand and waved back before walking towards his childhood friend. As he came closer he noticed that they were about the same length, while their hairs was the polar opposites. Max used to have short hair and now he had let it grow out down to the shoulders, while John never had cut his hair as a kid, but now had a nice cut that stopped just where the neck started.

"Max, long time no seen." He said as they were close enough for him to pull his fellow into a hug. "Look at you, you've changed a lot. You're not a little shrimp anymore." John continued as he released Max from the embrace. He was as excited as a child, it was such a nostalgic moment to meet Max again after such a long time. "I can't believe you're still in this town. What have you been up to all this time?"

 

[Tayssi]

Max smiled as he saw his friend's face light up and he instantly knew he recognised him. As he came up to them, he couldn't help but grin when he saw that he was pretty much the same height as his old friend and not heaps shorter like he always used to be. He noticed that he had his hair cut and he couldn't help but chuckle at the irony of it all. Max now had long hair and John now had short.

As they got closer, he grinned as John spoke and then pulled him into a hug, which Max returned. "I know!" he said before he continued, commenting that he wasn't as short as he used to be. "Can't call me a shrimp anymore," he pointed out to him and laughed as he saw just how excited the man was to see him again. Max was just as excited as his friend, but he did a better job at hiding it. It was fantastic to finally see him after 8 long years. As John went on to say he couldn't believe he had stayed and then asked what he did with himself, he grinned again. "I've become a merchant," he said with a soft chuckle, "managed to con a man into teaching me," he gave the man a smirk. "And what about you, man? How's life as a pirate?" he asked, wanting to hear what John's life had been like.

 

[redblood]

"Seems like you've hit the jackpot then." John said quite impressed. A merchant could become a wealthy and influential person if they worked hard enough and learned how to do it right. But even if they weren't that successful, which most of them wasn't, it was usually not hard to at least make a good living out of it. Though personally, John would have gone to another city if he would have taken that route in life.

"You know, dangers around every corner, adventures around every bend. Excitement wherever you go." He answered to Max's question. "It has been everything I've expected, and more. Though it became quite boring without you there. Sometimes I wished that I would have just dragged you with me." He then continued with a jokingly laugh. There had been times he had wished for his best friend to be there with him, but at the same time he had also told himself that he didn't want to expose Max for such dangers. Now a days he was mostly happy that Max had declined the offer. John had been near death so many times during those first years when he wasn't used to it, Max would probably not have made it very far. It didn't have to do much with his strength, at that time John had been just as weak as his friend, they had both been kids so no surprise there. But without the confidence you couldn't survive long on a pirate ship. Max just didn't have that at the time. Though even if you had confidence, it was still dangerous.

"Oh yeah, and the captain died three years ago. So I got the ship." He suddenly mentioned and grinned at his friend, just waiting for the reaction Max would have after hearing that his friend became a pirate captain.

 

[Tayssi]

Max grinned at John's comment about him hitting the jack pot and he gave a light shrug. He wasn't an excellent merchant, but he did well enough to survive on. And that's all he really needed. Chuckling lightly at the man's words about danger and excitement. When he told him that he sometimes wished he had dragged him along with him, saying it got rather boring without him, Max shook his head lightly. "You did well enough on your own," he told him with a lopsided smile. Some times he had wished he had gone with John however, he figured he would never have made it like John had. He was pretty sure that he would have died a long time ago. Killed more than likely. Max never had the confidence to do something like that. He had preferred the security of the town.

John went on to tell him that the captain had died three years ago and he had become captain. Max's eyes widened as he stared at the man for a moment, his voice faltering him for a moment before he stuttered, "R-really?" he asked. He wasn't sure whether he was excited his friend had become a captain when he was so young, or if he was scared of the fact that he had been strong enough to lead the ship. Running a hand through his mousy hair, he watched his friend with an expression of shock and excitement. "Jeez, you've done better than me. I'm only a small town merchant," he said with a sheepish laugh.

 

[redblood]

"Depends on how you look at it. In most peoples eyes I have done much worse than you." He replied to remind Max that Pirates were outlaws, hunted by governments and sometimes even other pirates. They weren't the worst pirates out there, already during their previous captains reign they had had rules of not hurting innocent people. Once John took over the ship he had extended that rule so that they could not attack or steal from innocent people either. They mainly stole from other pirates, or government ships, and from those who at some point had stolen from them. Most of their fortune came from treasure hunting and trading.

"So, has anything changed? No lady that has stolen your heart? Or maybe it's the opposite that caught your eye." John teased Max. He had eight years of memories and teasing to catch up with in just a few hours. He almost wished he could stay, but after eight years on the ship, the crew had become family to him. He felt responsible for them as their captain. And he loved the sea, the adventures and even fear itself. Once you were in that world, you could never go back.

 

[Tayssi]

"Not as boring as what I do, though," Max counted with a raised brow. He knew what people thought about pirates, knew most people despised them yet feared them. And John was one of those pirates. And yet, Max could never see his old friend as a pirate. Sure, he was a Pirate Captain and he was on a pirate ship, but Max still remembered John when they were kids. He was never a tyrant. He was always helping him with what ever he could. Yes, John had been gone for 8 years and many things would have changed about him, but in Max's eyes, he was still his best friend. He could never imagine John killing an innocent. That just wasn't him.

When John asked if someone had captured his heart and then insinuated maybe it was a man, Max just laughed. "No, no. Definitely not. What about you, John? Did any of those pirates catch your interest?" he jested with a chuckle. He couldn't see it happening, but Max just had to stir his friend up. Even just a little before he had to go. And when he went this time, Max was certain he'd never see him again.. Ever. And that thought upset him. Seeing him for only a few hours after 8 years and then never seeing him again was a horrible thought for Max.

 

[redblood]

John laughed at the counter attack. "Now when you're saying it, there is some handsome fellows on there. I'm trying hard not to get attached though, they might as well be dead tomorrow." He said as he dramatized it a bit, faking a tear at the end. He couldn't help but take it a step further. "But you know, it is a captains job to keep his men happy. So if they want someone handy to help them out, then you'll just do what you have to do." After eight years on the sea surrounded by sex crazed men that just waited to get into the next shore to get a woman into bed, he had learned to make everything into a sex joke. It didn't even have to be a good joke, they laughed at everything no matter what had been said.

"What about we go somewhere to eat." He then suggested, it had been some time since he had been in town, so he wasn't certain if the old places was still there, of if some new places had been built. It was rare for such small towns to get mayor parts of it re-built, but it happened.

 

[Tayssi]

Max couldn't help but laugh at John's comment about there being some attractive men on board the ship. When he saw him faking a tear, he shook his head at the man's dramatics before he gaped at his next comment. He knew it was a joke but it definitely caught him of guard. Composing himself, Max rolled his eyes at his friend. "Your mind has certainly been lost to the gutter," he said lightly to his friend. Max guessed that he had learnt all that from the pirates. It was definitely weird hearing such crude words from his old friend.

When he suggested getting something to eat, Max grinned. "There's a new place called Peter's. Nothing big or fancy but the food's pretty good," Max said and started in the direction of the small café like place. He glanced back at John, "come on," he said with a chuckle. They soon came to a small café place, with a few seats around tables and seats up at the counter. "I'll have my usual," Max said to the middle aged man behind the counter who smiled broadly before looking at John. Max looked at him "what do you want? They've got quite a bit to choose from," he said.

 

[redblood]

John was more than amused at his friend's reaction to his little joke, and he could do no other than agree at his comment. He had changed a lot since he started traveling with his fellow men, some for the better and other for the worse. Though his choice of joke and use of word were probably a pretty neutral change, it all depended on whom you asked.

He followed Max to the café called Pete's. It was such a weird feeling to walk in his hometown, which had almost frozen in time, but then coming to a completely new place that never had been there before. Thing had changed. Was it a good change? Who knew.

"I'll take the same as him." He said to the man behind the counter. If it was what Max usually had, then it couldn't be too bad. After traveling with pirates for so many years he had become far from picky, it was just to take what you got. "You should definitely try to get your mind lost to the gutter someday." He commented to Max. "It's quite fun actually. Just go out on an adventure of a lifetime, get into a bit of danger, have some comrades to support you and teach you inappropriate jokes, and then eventually you'll come home as a changed man whom understand our messed up world. If you survive of course. I did, and I turned out alright." He smiled brightly during his last sentence. He wasn't too sure if he was joking or if he meant it to be taken seriously. On one hand he loved Max as he was, but on the other hand he thought everyone needed an life-changing adventure at some point. Just so they could see what a boring existence they had been living, and then they could decide if they wanted to go back to it or if they wanted to live a life of excitement.