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 Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 1:46 pm
Tyler looked up as he heard the knocking on the door of the shop. He had the closed sign up, nobody should be bothering him. He muttered under his breath as he made his way to the front. He already had too much work to do, and now was not the time that he needed somebody to bother him.
As he opened the door, Tyler opened his mouth to tell whoever it was to go away, and then he saw his two good friends. A grin spread across his face as he leaned in the doorway. "Michael and John...haven't seen you guys in a while. What brings the two of you to my doorstep when I have so much work to do?"
~~~~~~~
Aurelia stood at the rail of the ship, staring out at the sea. She couldn't get out of her mind the young man who had chased them. Somehow, she thought she knew him. Had he lived in the town when she had been there? She shook her head and sighed.
"What's wrong," Jonathon asked as he came up next to her, leaning against the railing.
"That boy," Aurelia shook her head. "I don't know, but I think I know him. He seems really familiar to me is all."
Jonathon placed a hand on her arm. "You probably won't even see him again Aurelia. Best to forget him." He walked back to talk to Sam.
"Yeah, probably not," Aurelia sighed as she continued to stare out at the ocean.
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 2:39 pm
Michael was still incredibly flustered about the whole thing, so John did the talking, explaining it as an adventure of sorts. "I mean think about it- the three of us, chasing pirates on the sea- couldn't think of anything I'd rather do!" Michael hadn't bothered to tell John about his feelings towards the girl, as for some reason he felt that it was none of his business, so the most that the two others knew was that she had broken her pirate father out of the prison. They had no idea about Michael's suspicions of the girl's origins, that he believed that she was the girl who had disappeared so many years ago. That part felt strangely personal to him- and what if he turned out to be wrong? So that bit stayed with him alone.
John kept talking as he stood in the doorway, gesticulating animatedly with his hands while Michael stood quietly outside the shop and brooded. What had been the girl's name? Alita? Alice? Audrey? He had a feeling it began with an A, though he could not place the reason. Well, whatever the reason, he would find her. And when he did, Shaw would die, and she would be his.
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 2:48 pm
Tyler continued to lean against the doorway as he listened to John speak. Oh sure it sounded like a great adventure. It had been a while since all of them had gotten together and done something adventurous. The only thing that bothered him was the fact that there were only three of them, and they were going to chase after a pirate vessel. His gaze lingered over towards Michael who hadn't said a word about the whole thing. He just looked lost in thought and rather flustered.
Finally Tyler pushed himself away from the doorway and nodded. "Okay, I say that we go ahead and do it. Why not? It's an adventure and it gets us away from the town for a little while." He yawned and ran his hands through his hair. "Let's get our things together and get out of this place. I need a break from all this work."
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 3:19 pm
Michael didn't really understand why they were thinking this would be a great adventure. They were going, more or less, to save his own pride- or at least he was. Then again, both of his friends wanted to get away from their monotonous lives- perhaps this was an adventure for them.
With Tyler's last words, Michael got to thinking about supplies. Gazing out towards the harbor, where the pirate ship was but a speck on the horizon, he realized just how much they would need. A great amount of food was in order, and he had no idea how well stocked John's boat was. But it wasn't like any of them had the money to go buy all they needed- they would have to make due with what they could get. And he knew that he could not go back to his home, or his father would scorn his failure, and assign him to mundane tasks aboard the ship- or worse yet, his father would forbid him to leave the house. So going to his own home for supplies was not an option. But they had so much to prepare...
John looked towards his fishing vessel, gauging their supply levels. They had plenty of patching supplies, in the event that the sails were damaged, and he knew they had nets to drag for fish that they could eat, but even still, their supply situation was not good. They would not be able to survive off of the meager scraping of fish that three scrawny boys would be able to haul in. They needed more.
"Any ideas, Mike?" he asked his friend, regarding him with excited green eyes as he stamped an impatient foot. Michael frowned, and looked again towards the rapidly disappearing ship on the horizon.
"We need food," was all he said.
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 8:22 pm
Tyler snorted and nodded. "Yeah we'll need food and water or we'll starve and be parched to death." He motioned for them to follow him into the store. "Lucky for you, I have been tailoring clothes for an extremely wealthy merchant the past week or so. And let me tell you--the man pays generously. Food shouldn't be a problem." He turned to look back at his friends. "Never thought I would be using the money for something like this. Figured I would use it to buy a place of my own so I wouldn't have to live in the room above the shop anymore." Tyler grinned at the two of them.
"Now I don't know about the two of you, but it wont take me long to get ready considering I have everything I need upstairs." He pointed above them. "Oh, and we may need some sort of weapons too. Let's not forget that there is only three of us, and we are going after a shipload of notorious pirates." Tyler chuckled softly.
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 11:53 am
Michael listened quietly to Tyler's words. Well, that would be good, if he could purchase a load of food. There was no way he could get supplies from his own residence, but the mention of weapons put a spark into him. It would be simple enough for him to get into the armory, as he was a naval officer. As long as he could present his rank, he should be fine. They could raid the armory and get together a choice batch of weapons with which they would fight. It was troubling to think of the three of them, none of them over twenty, against a full pirate ship, complete with mighty sea cannon and a hundred armed-to-the-teeth men, seasoned by years on the seas. The thought was rather intimidating. They would have to be more cunning than brutal, or they would indeed perish.
"Easy," Michael said out of nowhere, crossing his arms over his chest. John turned around in surprise, having not heard his voice the whole time they had been at the shop. "The armory." He jerked a thumb in the direction of the docks, where the naval armory stood just inland of the harbor. There were guards, but things should be okay, as he could use his officer's power to get what he wanted. That was the good thing about being an officer, and about being the Captain's boy. Though he rarely did so, Michael could push his weight around if need be.
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Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 4:39 pm
"Well alright then," Tyler said with a nod. "That takes care of everything. I suggest we get moving. Don't want the pirate ship to get too far ahead of us, we'll never find it." He looked at them for a few moments. "Do me a favor and shut the door behind you? I'll be ready in about ten minutes and I'll meet you at John's boat. I assume we are taking John's boat? Considering the other naval officers wouldn't like us taking the big ship?" He whistled as he made his way upstairs.
((short, but not much else to say...time for a skip? Maybe to when they are setting sail?))
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Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2011 9:56 am
((Sounds good!))
Michael, stripped to the waist, hauled on the windlass with all of his might, pushing his body weight against the wheel. John and Tyler were at two of the other horizontal wheel spokes, doing the same in an intense effort to pull up the anchor as quick as possible. "Push!" Michael cried through gritted teeth, moving forward with all of his might against the wheel. Bit by bit, the three boys managed to pull the chain onto the deck using the windlass. Michael was sweating as he labored, while John kept a stream of steady curses coming from under his breath. At last, though, the anchor was aboard, its chain coiled in a pile, and the boys started pulling down the masts to make ready. Michael watched the mainsail unfurl with a rush of excitement, and couldn't help but smile as the ship picked up on the wind, which was blowing perfectly out-of-harbor. He took the steering wheel in his hands, and stared out to the horizon.
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Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2011 3:49 pm
"Well, that was fun," Tyler sighed as soon as the small boat was moving through the water. It seemed everything was going okay for them. Nobody had tried to stop them. Not that anybody knew they were going after a pirate ship. Tyler snorted and shook his head. Going after a pirate ship--the three of them. Well it would definitely been interesting. Before he had arrived at the boat with their provisions, Tyler had stopped by the wealthy merchant's place, giving the clothes he had finished. He had also let the man know he was going to be gone for some time on a little trip.
Tyler made his way to where Michael was and leaned against the rail. "So...the pirate escaping while you were on duty---is that the only reason we are going after them? And without telling your father?" He eyed his friend for several moments, waiting for him to reply. Tyler had never known Michael to make rash decisions like this without thinking it through. Now him and John might have...but not Michael. It was definitely different for him.
((was thinking maybe they could talk a little more about what happened? maybe michael can say he thought it was the girl that disappeared 6 years ago, and Tyler could then provide the name?))
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Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011 4:32 pm
Michael's face burned red, as he believed his actions were being criticized. He kept staring out to sea, wishing that the ship would come into view. Well, out with it, he thought. "No, that's- that's not all- and you know if I told my father, he'd... well, he'd be very disappointed, and I'd be stuck on blacklist duty forever, and you know he wouldn't let me go if he knew what we were doing, anyways." He kept his eyes roaming across the water, making minute adjustments to the wheel to change the tacking. He saw how John was listening, waiting for more of the explanation, as if he knew that it wasn't all, and Michael sighed resignedly.
"That's not all. The girl, the one who broke Shaw out- I know her. At least, I think I do." He rubbed his temple agitatedly, still staring off to the waters. The coast was rapidly growing less distinct behind them as they sailed, and as the shore disappeared, Michael started feeling less and less sure of himself.
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Posted: Mon Sep 05, 2011 4:39 pm
Tyler listened silently as Michael spoke. When he said he thought he knew the girl who broke out the pirate, he raised and eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. He whistled and shook his head slightly. "You think you know the girl huh? Where do you think you know her from?" He turned his gaze out to the ocean, watching as the waves gently rolled. Lucky for them it was a relatively normal day. No extremely strong winds, no rain.
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Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2011 6:11 am
Michael finally looked to his friends, trying to mask his face with an aura of calm and insouciance, but was unable to cover the desperation and what could only be described as longing for the girl. It took him a moment to muster up the courage to say it, for this would certainly make him sound foolish if they knew he was chasing a girl he had secretly been sweet on when he was little more than a child. But finally, he found his voice,. "I-I think she's the girl that disappeared." He paused, believing he sounded foolish, but John was looking at him expectantly for more, having not heard this before. "You know, the girl who disappeared from the town after her mother was killed. The day the pirates came. Must have been ages ago, but I remember her," he said in a low voice, now looking at his feet. "I remember everything. Her hair, her face, the way she walked... everything but her name. I only wish I had gotten her name."
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Posted: Tue Sep 06, 2011 4:32 pm
Tyler had looked out across the ocean but when Michael mentioned the girl who had disappeared the night the pirates came and her mother was killed he looked back to his friend sharply. Of course he remember that night six years ago. And he remembered the girl. Her mother had worked in the shop with his mother. In fact, he and the girl had spoken on several occasions. He remembered the way that she had spoken longingly of the sea.
"Whoa, whoa whoa!!!" Tyler said as he stared at his friend, mouth hanging open slightly. "You're talking about Aurelia right? Raven dark hair, deep blue eyes? Was always on the docks?" Of course Tyler knew where she had hung out most of the time. There were several occasions when Aurelia's mother had asked him to go find the girl. "She used to be in the shop all the time. Her mother used to work there."
Tyler grinned at Michael. "You were sweet on her, weren't you?" His grin faded. "And you think you saw her? The girl who broke out Shaw?" He shook his head. "Well this definitely did get interesting all of a sudden. Why would she be helping them? Why would they keep her so long?"
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Posted: Wed Sep 07, 2011 6:53 pm
Michael thought that the two would scorn him for making this decision to chase pirates because of a girl, but he could have never been more wrong. John looked surprised, but he remained interested in what Michael had to say, his eyes directly latched onto Michael's. And Tyler's reaction was explosionary. "Yes, that's her," Michael said excitedly when his friend described the girl. "She sat on the docks all the time- yes, that's her!" He was pleased that they both seemed to take even more interest now in this expedition because of this news.
And then Tyler said the name with such a certainty that Michael knew it was hers. Aurelia. That was it- that was the girl's name, the beautiful girl who he had secretly coveted for years, even though she was gone. "Aurelia...Yes, that's her." he said quietly, repeating her name over and over again softly under his breath. Then Tyler seemed to catch on, his eyes glowing as he called Michael out on being sweet on the girl, but then his face was overtaken by the most somber expression with his next words.
"It was definitely her. And... yes... I was sweet on her. When we were younger, I mean." He was feeling increasingly sad now, thinking of the past, when he used to admire her from his window while supposed to be doing his studies. He had gotten more than one rap on the head or knuckles for doing this, but he always looked again.
"When I confronted her before they escaped on the ship, she more or less said that... that Shaw is her father."
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Posted: Wed Sep 07, 2011 7:12 pm
Tyler's eyes widened when Michael revealed that Aurelia had said that she was Shaw's daughter. "Whoa--well that certainly wasn't expected." He scratched his head. "Well that would explain why she has stayed with them." He nodded thoughtfully. "Then who killed her mother I wonder? I remember hearing talk that there were two pirate ships there that night. Maybe when we find Shaw and Aurelia we can ask?" Now this whole trip had gotten very, very interesting. He was beginning to like it even more. He had no illusions that just the three of them could take on a pirate ship, let alone Jonathon Shaw's crew. But they could get some long awaited answers that had plagued the town for the past six years. Hell, maybe they would allow them to join the crew! Oh that would be wonderful! A change from his dull, boring laugh.
Tyler grinned and chuckled as he shook his head. "Oh yeah, very interesting, very interesting." He began to whistle as he walked away from his friends.
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