Lacey looked down at the crazy old man with a grin, before stepping over him. She lent on her knees and spoke down at his face.

"Ye be on The Cutlass, an' I be her Capn'. Now, I hope ye got something useful fer this ship, coz I ent int' throwin' old men into th' ocean." She straighened and continued walking over him, making her way to the stern of the ship, looking for Iale.

The pirate in question was leaning against the railing of the ship, shadowed by the enormous sail, sulking.

Lacey had seen that look on Iale's face twice before. Once had been during an invasion of a Muluku trade port, during which the Precipice had done its part in conjunction with the other ships to secure the port and take their trade territory back from a gang of (now extinct) Mugrobi air pirates. The Precipice had taken a cannonball to the belly and things had looked grim, but Iale didn't begin to frown until she saw their sister ship destroyed and sunk, all its men lost and its flag burned.

The other time had been at the Widow's Walk.

Iale was not predisposed to bouts of emotion. She felt emotions in short bursts every couple of weeks, and the emotion was generally anger, or hunger. What Lacey saw in the hunched posture of her occasional mortal enemy was something approaching tired frustration.

((Noe: viewtopic.php?f=5&t=1010))

Lacey walked over and leaned on the railing beside Iale, staring out at the ocean, not saying a word. She smelt the sea breezes and relished the cool whipping breeze on her face. Looking down into the water, she could see dolphins keeping up with the ship. Looking back up to the horizon, she waited for Iale to speak first.

"I still plan on killin' ye one day, Lacebottom." The threat came out more like a tired, baleful hello. "It be nothin' short o' torture bein' yer first mate. Part o' me wants to scrag ye soon as yer back be turned, part o' me's watchin' it to make sure no one else gets there first. I reckon ye've got a similar conundrum."


----




The blonde pirate smirked.

"The feelin' is definitly mutual, DuPint." She picked her thumbnails quietly for a moment.

"Ye realise half me crew wants t' see ye hung? Why do ye protect him who left ye fer the wolves?"


----





"He's my cap'n," said Iale sullenly, turning a stubborn frown to Lacey. "He be stricken with a terrible affliction, one he'd not have had I not convinced him to sail to deeper waters, no doubt. 'Tis me own fault for not realizin' it afore we docked."

She spat over the side of the boat.

"He'd been actin' all funny, ye know, givin' strange orders, not talkin' to me, broodin' in the hold. I figured he was upset because the Brothers had called him back from his voyage. Didn't know nothin' about the damn map. He must'a gotten it from that raid on the Pinotza." She shielded her eyes from the midday sun, and gazed out across the water, wondering briefly if they had come near any ports on their voyage to the waypoint. "Ye know, I ain't even got a professional educated guess what be marked on that accursed map. An' I knows me treasure."

------


Lacey listened to Iale berate herself for her captains illness. In that situation, she would have been exactly the same. The woman turned around and leaned back against the rail, nodding.

"It must be worth a lot, Hawke is very intent on gettin' it." She squinted at Iale.

"Should know what it is soon enough lassie. But watch yer back Iale. These banders, they got it out fer ye. I ain't about t' let them take the pleasure of guttin' yer from me, but I can't have me eyes ev'rywhare at once." The green eyed pirate said softly.



----



"Don't need yer lookin' after," said Iale brusquely, but Lacey could hear a reluctant grin in her voice, even if it didn't register on her irate face.

"Bloody Brothers couldn't hit the broadside of a frigate if they was leanin' against it on a day with no wind an' clear skies. 'Arf those men ain't never set foot on a ship, I wager me life. Look at the disgraceful state o' the mainsail! Blood o' me mother, I aughter tie 'em up by their clockin' toes, the poxy mongrels..."

Still protesting indignantly about the state of the ship, Iale stalked off the deck, her small boots making surprisingly loud thumps on the aged wood.


---




"She's in quite a state Captain, problems at sea?" Vik asked as he finished his repairs and gathered his tools together. Seemed there was friction of some kind from every member of the crew, the whole lot seemed to be out to get one another.

"Fine day out, the repairs are coming along rather smoothly, if a bit slowly. How fairs our worthy Captain today?" Vik wiped his face with the sleeveless rag of a shirt he was wearing. It seemed good insurance to show the crew he wasn't lacking in muscle or attitude.

Besides, the Captain tended to pay a little extra attention to him thus attired. He had to admit she caused a definite increase in his pulse when she was around.


-----




Lacey turned her eyes from Iale's departing form and smiled at the smithy. She'd wondered when he was going to finish his work.



Pushing herself away from the railing, the blonde walked over to Vik and made a wistful sigh, eyeing his lovely muscular arms.

"Aint to bad, smithy, could do with some company though. Seem's like I ain't entertaining enough t' be around t'day." She made a little pout, before reaching out to stroke a sweaty bicep.

"Ye should get in out o' the sun fer a bit, lookin' a might hot out 'ere. All...glistening." The green eyed woman smiled invitingly and walked backwards slowly to her quarters.

"If one were lookin' t' get out o' this sun, one might find the Capn's quarters offers excellent shelter." Stopping at the door of her hold, Lacey winked and pushed it open, raising an eyebrow questioningly.


-----


From a fair distance away a small voice, negligible really, piped up.

"I say, could someone help me up?" Johanes warbled quietly. "I seem to be stuck."

Angel sighed as she watched her comrade's antics. The way Lacey and Iale went at each other, it was difficult to tell when they were serious or enjoying playful banter.

Her boots thrumming against the deck, she walked over to Johanes and offered a helping hand. "Alright then." She mumbled as she helped him out of his predicament.