Trim the Sails and Swim the Sea!

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

Rikken looked out over the ship in the morning light, pleased to see the visible crewmembers hard at work. It took quite a bit to keep a ship running, but it wasn't as if he was particularly new to that. It had been several years since he first took to sea as a young teen, and he had to use every bit of his experience to keep this place in order. Especially considering how his captain could be at times...

Speaking of which, where is the maniacal little bugger?

Narrowing his eyes at the lack of his captain's presence, he started off toward the cabin where he knew he would probably be. No matter how long they went at this, he was certain that things would probably never change between them. He was lucky that the Ghost Triton had been so successful as of late under his leadership, or Rikken was certain that his behavior would have already caused the crew to start questioning it.

Striding up to the door he knew that he'd find the younger man behind, he knocked a bit roughly before calling out. "Captain! We'll be reaching the island in a few hours time now. Captain?" Without hearing an answer, the man sighed and turned the handle, finding the door surprisingly unlocked. As he strode in, he gave a slight sigh at the scene that he knew he would probably see there...

 

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

Kaden had fallen asleep pretty late the night before. Books were still strewn on the bed or the floor where he had managed to kick them off, and he lay spread out like a starfish on the dark green sheets. Sleep really is great...everyone should get more of it...

Bam! Bam! Bam! Captain?!

The sound of someone knocking on the door not too gently startled the young man awake. Another of the few books still on the bed slipped off with a large 'Thump' as the bright-haired man jumped up, olive eyes wide with surprise. "W-wha? How long did I-- oh." Frantically, he scrambled to get out of the bed, resulting in his falling on the floor as well, and grabbed his belt and boots to try to get them on before Rikken got too impatient. "I'll be out in a minute! I just--" His face froze as the door opened and his first mate stepped in to see him still somewhat disheveled o the floor and trying to pull on his boots. Hadn't he locked that? Did he forget?!

Either way, if the eye twitch was any indicator, he was probably in for another brief lecture from his longtime, more serious companion before he was going anywhere. And this is what happens when you try to stay up late researching...I just can't win...

 

[Mistress Dizzy]

Sometimes Kassy wondered if she'd been born into the wrong world.

The young mermaid sighed out a long stream of bubbles, as she watched the human population bustling around the docks. She was so far below them, but the sun was bright enough that she could get a clear glimpse of their movements. No one was around- no one who could speak to her, anyway. Who would be human watching at this time of year? Solstice was coming, and no one wanted to be alone on that week.
Solstice was a celebration, a festival of bonds and new beginnings. Traditionally, it was for friends and families, but years of changing times had turned it into a season of lovers. There were couples everywhere, some that would find themselves broken up after the week ended and the parties stopped. Yet, even a week of having someone was worse than having no one on the most romantic week of the cycle. It was embarrassing, and Kassy knew she would be alone. She was only eighteen, no longer a child but feeling so far from maturity. It started here, though. She had seen those her age making eyes at each other, whispering and pairing off. It hurt to watch, because she couldn't have it.

Kassy wrapped her arms around herself in a solo hug, as if to ward off the loneliness creeping at the edges of her heart. She gave herself a squeeze, feeling the cool metal of her golden wrist cuff brush against her skin. Leo... what was he up to now? Probably preparing some wonderful Solstice surprise for his wife. She traced her fingers over the design pressed into the metal, stuck somewhere between joy and pain as she thought of her cousin.

He had been bonded less than a year. His new wife was a lovely woman named Bianca. They were very obviously in love, and she was happy to know that Leo was happy. Though, if she really was honest, she was upset as well. Jealous. Not of his wife, but of him. He had found love and strength, and he had found escape. He had left her. Kassy knew in her soul that he hadn't wanted to, or meant to, and if he had the means that he would have taken her to his new marital home as well. But his mother- her aunt- always had to have her way, and so Kassy had stayed.

As she watched a figure near the edges of the water, blurred by the surface of the waves, Kassy wondered what it would be like to be a human girl. It was not the first time she'd thought about such a thing. She'd been told that humans possessed no magic whatsoever, that they had no ties to the world they lived in. While most of her town thought this a horrible curse, Kassy thought it marvelous. If she had been born human, would she be happier? After all, humans had no magic, so there would be no reason for the town to fear her and for her aunt to despise her, and for the history books to make allusions to what she was, and the rest of the class to whisper and shoot glances her way...

"Humans have it lucky..." She murmured, and wiped thick pearly tears from her cheeks.

 

[YamiCuoreLaroux]

(Ah...this is so late...I'm sorry...)

After quite the lecture from his second mate, Kaden eventually was able to leave the room with the information regarding their proximity to the island where they would be stopping for the time being. For the most part, the crew had been told to use the time to restock and get repairs done. As was often the case, however, there was another motive for stopping at this particular place.

Mostly, the rumors that spread through the town. That perhaps strange things might be around this island.

It was probably just an embellished story born of a mistaken sighting made late at night, but the young captain had been willing to chase down even less substantial rumors before. The crew probably thought he was crazy for his odd fascinations, but they seemed happy enough as long as he made sure that they got the chance to bring in some kind of haul frequently enough. Besides, while he hadn't exactly found what he was looking for yet, he did manage to find quite a few other nice things while searching.

As the ship neared the port, Kaden finally got to doing his actual job and keeping control of the crew as they all worked to bring it in safely. No colors flying while in port; even if law enforcement was somewhat loose here and the port wasn't that heavily patrolled, it was never too bad an idea to exercise at least a little caution. Raising a panic would severely limit the time he had to search.

Once the ship was securely docked and the men were aware of exactly what needed to be done before they could have their fun, the captain turned them loose and took leave of the vessel himself, taking in the scenery of the bustling docks for a moment before fixing the red coat he wore and setting off toward the town. He had a bit of asking around to do.