Part 14 (1/2)

Fourteen.

Awkward Surprise ”You could have at least smacked the dragon's face away from my s.h.i.+p!” Bonny bellowed, making me start to seriously question if she had dragon blood in her.

”I'm so sorry I happened to save the majority of the people upon your s.h.i.+p and the majority of your s.h.i.+p. Maybe next time I should just go sleep in the cabin when a dragon attacks.” I spat my venom as we both yanked in unison to pry the cabin door open so we could get inside to see the rest of the damage.

Well, she wanted to see the rest of the damage. I just wanted to make sure Reynard and Kit were okay. Oh and Han too, of course. Though, once I had told Ettie about him she was worrying enough for both of us.

Once the door was pried away from practically being melted into the framing, we could see that the damage to the cabin area really wasn't all that serious. But what was far more amusing was the fact that Han lay utterly naked in the fetal position on the floor, with a fox soundly curled up into a ball and sleeping on the side of his far too hairy chest.

I think we were all stunned by the sight, because not a single person said anything for a solid minute. Most of us were just staring at the odd spectacle, before the fox lifted his head up and smiled with its wicked slit eyed smile. No surprise when he let out a large yawn.

”Nice to see you too, Reynard.” I added while grinning back to the fox before looking up at the hole above my cot, most likely from the spill of brimstone that gushed from the dragon's mouth. Unfortunately the collateral damage was my bed, which explained why Reynard was sitting on a naked Han, rather than the bed like where I had left him.

”Don't forget me too. I'm always forgotten.” Kit spoke while Reynard jumped down from Han. Many of the pirates, that were already moving to clean things up, looked around for a moment, before focusing on the fox then continued about their way.

”You're not forgotten Kit. But if Reynard isn't making a fuss then we know you are okay. And there are other people to worry about.” Ettie said, while pulling a blanket from Captain Bonny's bed before wrapping it around Han and lifting him up to a sitting position. She slapped his jowls a few times to try and get him awake.

Han stirred almost instantly, making groggy mumbles as he lifted his head and focused on his sister. She smiled as soon as he was craning his neck to look around at everyone else before she continued. ”Glad you're still around. Guess the old dog isn't down yet?”

”You know me. Suffered all sorts of witches, what's a little dragon?” Han replied right before his groaning and moaning to stand up without accepting any help from Ettie. She acted like it was a normal thing to happen and decided to pet the fox next to her instead.

”This is all warm feeling goodness but have you seen my s.h.i.+p? This isn't a few hours repair, this is more: I am amazed my baby is even flying anymore.” Captain Bonny spoke through her gritted teeth and her arms crossed, looking from Ettie and Han to me still standing next to her. Her stare was menacing, if anything.

I could see a response bubbling up in Ettie, but before even I could comment the entire s.h.i.+p seemed to lurch and I nearly toppled over. I heard a couple others fall around me. As soon as I was braced and standing full again, I gave a half slanted smile to Bonny. ”Guess we spoke too soon about the still flying part?”

The captain grumbled mostly unintelligible things before some stumbling pirate girl, with shreds of caramel hair poking out from her bandanna, rushed into the cabin, breathing kind of heavy and looking seriously frightened.

”C-captain. We... uh...” She paused looking around at everyone else in the cabin and stiffened almost instantly before continuing. ”Um... can't keep the s.h.i.+p up. The engine is f-failing and we can't put t-the sails back up.”

Bonny turned to look at everyone in the cabin behind her. She didn't look frightened or concerned, just serious. ”You'd better grab onto something tied into the s.h.i.+p because this won't be one of my best dockings.”

”Docking would imply there is somewhere to land. Last I saw, we were still over wide open water.” Ettie added, acting like it was just a leisurely crash into the water.

Captain Bonny turned specifically to look at Ettie helping her brother up and grinned. ”My s.h.i.+p is still a s.h.i.+p, unless the hull is blown we will be fine on the water.”

She turned away again and looked past the girl in the doorway. ”Furthermore, I saw land on the horizon. At the very least we should make close to the sh.o.r.eline.”

”I guess this means the vacation trip has come to an end.” I shrugged, while Reynard looked over at me before crawling up onto Ettie, as if he was looking to see if it was alright with me.

The pirate king pushed pa.s.sed me, without another word between us. I gave Ettie a look of frustration, but she just nodded her head for me to look behind. There Bonny was standing in the entry way with her jaw set hard.

”Thank you. It could have been worse. Now brace yourself,” The captain spoke with a light tone to me, before her booming voice reappeared, ”and everyone needs to clear away from anything that might move and crush you. This landing is not going to be pleasant.”

With that final comment, the captain of the airs.h.i.+p was gone from my view. I started to grind my teeth, as I turned back to look at Ettie and Han standing up, Ettie with Reynard on her shoulder. We hardly even managed to look at each other before the whole s.h.i.+p rocked again and tossed me into the nearby dresser.

”Maybe it would be better if we were not in the cabin for this?” Han commented, the blanket still wrapped around him. He probably wouldn't be able to get clothes until after the s.h.i.+p crashed. It would be too risky to go below deck now.

”I agree.” Ettie added as she moved her hand to grip onto Reynard and hold him against her body. She moved past me and out into the main mast area. Han quickly followed her, while my eyes fell to the place where my bed used to be. That hole was going to be a danger if we don't hit at least shallow water. But I couldn't do anything about it now.

Once I s.n.a.t.c.hed up and slipped on my poncho and my belt of hatchets, I was out of that cabin as well. It was just in time too, as I hit the side of the doorframe when the boat rocked again.

Outside, smoke was fuming everywhere, making my eyes water. It was pretty obvious this s.h.i.+p was coming down, and fast at that.

”Riri, grab something now!” Ettie yelled out to me, from the piece of the remaining mast she was holding onto with one hand tightly. I looked up at her and it must have taken my mind a whole two seconds to process what she had said, because I just stood there.

It wasn't until another lurch of the s.h.i.+p that I jumped toward the closest piece of wood attached to the s.h.i.+p that I could find. My fingertips barely grasped onto the railing of the stairs nearby, as I practically felt the entire world drop out from underneath me.

There was this brief degree of everything freezing in place, including my heart, before the whole s.h.i.+p just slammed right down into the shallow tresses of water. Buckets of rain were pouring over us and soaking us, while I pulled myself into gripping tighter against the banister.

The s.h.i.+p screeched and came to a complete halt, forcing everyone to stutter forward from the momentum left over.

”We hit a sandbar!” I heard some pirate girl yell. Everyone seemed to relax from holding whatever they had a grasp of. I still held tightly to the banister though, until Ettie came over to me with a smile and a fox.

”How scared?”

”Remember that time I banished that ghost invading the well in that town?” I replied, without even looking toward her. I could smell wet fox fur and her wet lily scent though.

”That bad?”

”No, that was way scarier than this. I was just trying to think of that so I can feel like it is safe to remove my hands from this banister.” I explained while turning my head to look at Ettie. Her lips hung open as she shook her head. Reynard was placed back on her shoulder, before laying her huge hands onto mine and prying my fingers from the stairwell one by one.

”You can be such a baby sometimes, Riri.” She sighed, as I let her pull my fingers from the banister. Once they were all off, my hands remained in hers, gripping them a bit tightly.

”I just hate flying, what is wrong with that?” I commented, while Han bounded over to us. My eyes fell to our hands, and I quickly yanked at them, but Ettie held them firm.

”I just find it amusing. That's all. You fight all kinds of creatures that would make most people run in fear and you can't handle a little flying s.h.i.+p crash.” Ettie added, while Han sniffed the air noticeably. Reynard saw him do it and decided to join in as well.

”Strange, I don't smell a leak. Guess she hadn't been that scared eh?” Han concluded with a smirk aimed at me, before he glanced interestedly to Ettie and mine's hands. Reynard just looked confused as he kept making loud sniffing noises.

”Don't make me hurt you, mutt.” I growled.

”No one is fighting on my s.h.i.+p. Or what is left of it anyway.” I heard Bonny input, before looking from Han toward her direction. Her one purple eye was gleaming with a watery brilliance as she crossed her arms not more than ten feet from me.

”Yes Ma'am.” I mocked and attempted to salute before I realized my hands were still clasped in Ettie's. My face was really starting to burn up, she didn't normally do this.

”Act like that and I won't tell you who is coming toward us.”

”As long as it isn't a dragon, I could honestly care less right now.” I explained with exhaustion laced in my tone of voice, as I felt my hands finally freed from the tyrannical grip of the witch. Ettie and Han both moved away from me toward the side of the s.h.i.+p to look around.

”I don't see-Oh!” Ettie exclaimed.

”A couple of people are making their way toward us. Curious, do you not think? We are in the Sleeping Kingdom after all.” The pirate king explained quickly, probably not wanting the information to be blown by whatever Ettie had seen.

The twin witch was already rus.h.i.+ng back over to me and grappling my arm and one of my hands to drag me to the side of the s.h.i.+p. She smiled at me and said. ”You aren't going to believe who it is.”

”You'd be surprised by the kind of believable mood I'm in lately, Ettie.”