Alone and Unloved no More - Part 5
More old badfic c:
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Chapter 5
Days passed uneventfully for the most part. The threesome struggled to man the ship by themselves, with Hook at the helm for the most part and Ashanti and Smee wordlessly carrying out his orders. Ashanti felt slightly alone. She felt sure that Smee had taken no sides against her, but she also knew that he and the captain were constantly talking about her. She didn’t know what words were exchanged during those meetings, nor did she care. She was estranged from the captain now, probably destined to be abandoned the next time they docked. There was nothing she could do to restore her reputation with him, whatever it may have been.
Having no lookout, they didn’t spot land until they had almost passed it. It was Hook himself who had spotted it with those ocean-blue eyes of his and had, with little warning, given the wheel a harsh spin, sending several barrels rolling over the starboard railing and his two crewmen scrambling across the deck to prevent themselves joining the ill-fated kegs. The sails whipped as wind whistled through them, the ship groaning in protest to the sudden change of gravitational pull. When all was at peace again, Ashanti borrowed Smee’s spyglass and made her way to the crow’s nest, mostly to get away from the captain and his presently bad temper.
(A/N: Jump back to old writing)
When she woke up it was at a very agreeable temperature, around sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit. It was mostly quiet, but she could hear the distant sounds of people talking and working. She woke up slowly, and when she finally opened her eyes she saw Hook standing above her.
“Wake up, Ashanti,” he said. She blinked a few times.
“Wh…?” she moaned.
“We’re going shopping. We need supplies, and we’ve got plenty of loot to trade in,” he said. She stretched, yawned, and looked around. She was lying in a hammock, much like the one in the Jolly Roger. She turned and stepped off, then followed Hook out of the room and onto the main deck. She barely remembered what had happened, seeing as how she had slept like a rock, but she knew it would all flow back to her eventually. Somehow she knew she was in for another argument with him this evening or sooner, so she would have to enjoy their ‘happy time’ now.
When she got onto the deck she found that they were in a town - and a moderately large one at that; it was nestled on a large, steep mountain. There were around fifty ships and boats roped to the docks, where Ashanti happened to be right then, and then the rest was town. The town was separated into four districts, each traveling higher and higher on the slope as they traveled higher in numbers - The first being merchants’ booths and cheap food. The second district was better food, set up in small, rickety old buildings. The third district was the district which Hook described as ‘where the cheapskates do business’, indicating they weren’t going there. And the fourth district was all the upper-class, super expensive food. Even all of the loot Hook and Ashanti had combined wouldn’t fetch them one fish.
“Those are the lads who go fishing for kraken and all that,” Hook said.
“Do they ever catch any?” Ashanti asked. They were walking at a leisurely pace, which was a nice change for Ashanti’s sore feet.
“Of course not,” Hook said, “They bring back giant octopi and say it’s kraken, and those brainless idiots up there believe each other, so they sell meaningless food at insane prices, when you could get something better, and most of the time fresher, down here, for better prices.”
“So… that’s how it works in towns like this?” she asked.
“Most of the time, yes,” Hook said. “And these merchants will gladly trade rings and necklaces for food and drink, which is good, seeing as how we don’t have any money.”
On their right was an innumerable amount of merchants, and the town, and on their left were the docks. The dirt roads were bustling with people, mostly men, and they were all giving Ashanti strange looks.
“Why are all these people staring at me?” she asked.
“Well, for one, you’re a woman - you know very well that women don’t usually sail, and anyone can clearly tell by your looks that you’ve been sailing. And two, because you’re pretty - I’m sure at least fifty percent of these men are unmarried. And three, because you’re with me,” Hook answered. Ashanti glanced at him.
“What’s so wrong about being with you?” she asked.
“Have you forgotten that I’m Captain Hook?” he asked, giving her a strange glare. He was obviously still angry about last night.
“No, but…” She groaned, “Fine. Be a jerk about it,” she grumbled. He grabbed her by the arm.
“Ask around here and find a doctor’s office, where you can get your hand taken care of. We don’t want it getting infected, now, do we?” he asked. She shook her head.
“No, sir,” she said slowly. He nodded.
“Good girl,” he said, smiling suddenly, “Go on.” He pushed her towards a road that led up to the second, third, and fourth districts. “Find somewhere cheap, though. I’ll get food for us.” Ashanti nodded, then ran up the path.
She headed for the second district. But after only a few steps she was exhausted. She looked up. This mountain was quite a bit steeper than it looked - and it looked pretty steep to begin with. So she was almost climbing up the hill to reach the second district, where it got flat again for the buildings and houses. She did as she had been told and asked around for a hospital. She found a cheap one where she was, and was able to see the doctor right then, as it was a slow day.
When the doctor pulled away Hook’s scarf and saw her wound, he couldn’t help but gasp. “What happened?” he asked. After staring at the gash, which was blood stained and looked like it was infected, Ashanti spoke up.
“An accident. I was practicing sword fighting with my master and he just accidentally stabbed me,” she said.
“Why weren’t you wearing any protective gloves?” the doctor asked. She looked up at him, then gave a nervous smile.
“I forgot to,” she said. He looked worried.
“Well, you’ll need stitches for sure. It doesn’t look infected, just dirty. It will get infected, though, if we don’t clean it soon. Come on,” he said. He helped her off of wherever it was she had been sitting and led her into a very prettily decorated room. He led her to a sink, where he scrubbed his hands very thoroughly, and did all it was a doctor is supposed to do, then gently pulled her hand underneath the water and began cleaning it. She cringed. It stung horribly. “So,” said the doctor, “I never caught your name.”
Ashanti was silent. “Alison,” she said.
“Ah,” said the doctor, “Very pretty name. I like it. Come with me.” He led her to a large, comfortable chair and sat her down in it. He left the room, then returned a few minutes later with his equipment and such.
Getting stitches wasn’t too bad, she thought, after getting a dirty blade struck all the way through her hand. Whenever she thought about it her hand stung. So she didn’t. She rarely conversed with the doctor, leaving her time to think. What were they going to do, after they left this island? They didn’t have any real objective or anything. Maybe Captain Hook was just longing to get away from Neverland. Maybe he was just longing to get away from it all, to get as far away as possible from that island. She sighed. Even with how much she liked Hook, there was a flicker of fear he instilled in her - that much was true. Not to mention she knew very little about him. She didn’t know anything about his past, or where he had been born, or who his parents were exactly. If he had been a British boy, or English, how was he involved with a sultana of Greece? Just as she was drifting farther and farther into these thoughts, the doctor tapped her on the shoulder.
“All done, Alison,” he said. She blinked, about to tell him that wasn’t her name, when she remembered she had lied to him.
“Oh… Okay,” she said. He led her out of the room to the waiting room, where he gave her some final instructions. Her hand was wrapped in some clean gauze, which she was supposed to try not to dirty, and she was also supposed to take some pills every day.
“You also need to return in six days to get your stitches taken out,” he said. She blinked.
“But I need to leave port tomorrow,” she said.
“Well, you can’t leave those stitches in for more than a week,” he said. She blinked.
“Oh…”
“Where are you headed?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I would have to check with my captain,” she said.
“Oh, well… Is there any way you could stay here for a week? You really need get those stitches taken out by then,” he said. She blinked.
“I’ll go ask my captain,” she said, “I’ll come back with an answer later today.”
“Alright then,” he said, “Here’s your medicine. You need to take one pill once a day, around four o’ clock in the evening. That would be best.” She nodded and took the tube of pills. “All of the instructions are on the side. Take it easy,” he said. She shook his hand and headed out of the building, looking for Hook. She knew this would end in an argument, but she surely wanted to follow a doctor’s instructions over an irritated young pirate captain’s. At least they hadn’t made her pay.
She walked down the hill, which was a lot easier than going up, and looked around the docks. Hook was nowhere to be found. She looked around the merchants’ booths. She couldn’t see him anywhere. After thinking about it for a moment, she headed back to the ship. On her way, she read the instructions for her pills.
“Take one pill every day with a small amount of water,” she mumbled, “for two weeks.” She shrugged. “And I thought this injury would be high-maintenance.” She turned and walked up the dock towards her ship, and then up the ramp to her ship, which was strangely unnamed. But she could tell it apart. Without becoming a boat, it was the smallest ship there.
She hung around on the empty deck for a while until Smee walked up from inside the ship.
“Ahoy, lassie,” he said happily, carrying a burlap sack. It was most likely full of garbage. That’s what Smee had been doing all day, cleaning up after the pirates who had been here before them. She smiled.
“Hello,” she said, “Has Captain Hook returned yet?”
He shook his head. “No, not yet,” he said, “But I’m sure ‘e’ll be back ‘fore dark.”
“But I need to talk to him,” she said.
“Well, sorry, lass. I can’t help you there. I was supposed to stay here and guard the ship, so I can’t help you look for ‘im,” he said, “But he’s got to be on the island somewhere, aye?”
She sighed. “Yeah, I guess,” she said. She looked back towards the town. She knew he would stick out - he was dirtier and dressed differently than all of these people. “Well, I’m going to go look for him.”
“Alright, lassie,” Smee said. She walked down onto the docks and began searching for her captain. Seeing as how there weren’t any real buildings in the first district, it should have been easy to find him. But it wasn’t. She searched until sunset to find him, and when she did they bumped into each other while heading back to the ship.
Hook had taken on a completely different appearance. He had taken a shower, and shaved. All of his injuries had been dressed, and all of his ripped clothes had been washed and patched. He now had less loot on him, as he had spent it all on treating himself. He also had a new hat on. But Ashanti was relieved to see his arms full of bags of food.
They stared at each other. Ashanti blushed.
“You look different,” she said. He gave her a half smile. “You look younger.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, “I look the same to me.”
“Well, last time I saw you, you were dirty and beat up,” she said.
“Ah, well, it must be so very different for you,” he said, and gave her a smile. He turned and began walking down the dock towards their ship. “Did you get your hand taken care of?” he asked. She followed him up the ramp to the ship.
“Yes. But…” she said. He turned towards her.
“Hang on a moment,” he said, “Smee!” he yelled. Smee bustled up on deck.
“Cap’n!” he said, “You’re back!” Hook handed Smee the bags of food.
“Take this food to the kitchen,” he said.
“Aye, cap’n,” Smee said. After he was gone, Hook went over and sat on the stairs. Ashanti followed, trying to tell her story, but Hook was too overcome with happiness to let her speak.
“Ashanti, this is amazing!” he said, smiling at her, “Nobody here knows who I am! Nobody is afraid of me!”
She stared at him. “That’s nice, but…”
“I could go into all of the shops and to all of the merchants’ booths, and nobody would give me food for free because they were so afraid!” he said.
“Yes, well, I…”
“The only thing people were afraid of was my yellow blood, but I got free medical service because they thought it was--”
“Can we stay here for a week?” she asked suddenly. He stared at her, the smile frozen on his face. He blinked, letting his lips droop a bit.
“Well… I don’t see why not,” he said at length. She smiled.
“Thanks,” she said, and began walking down the deck. She turned back to him. “Watch after these for me, alright?” she asked. She tossed her pills back to him. He caught them in his lap. Before he could say anything she was down the ramp and on the docks.
She decided to treat herself with the same things as Hook; she got her clothes washed and patched, and she bought herself some new boots - they were comfier to walk in. She was able to use a shower at an inn to scrub herself and shave, and she bought a few things no woman should be without. She got her hair cut to her jaw, scrubbed, and conditioned, and ended up getting it styled (Though she didn’t ask for the last). She also stopped by the doctor’s office to tell him they were staying for a week.
It was dark when she returned to the ship, carrying one bag of things for her, and three bags of meat, fruit, water, and all that. She handed the food to Smee, who took it below, and then left her own bag on the deck for the moment. Hook was at the wheel, checking that everything was in order. If there was any damage, they still had plenty of loot to pay for repairs. Of course, Hook wasn’t in the best of moods, as he had read the instructions on her pills, and had taken them completely wrong. After explaining they weren’t for what he thought, and about her hand and all that, she convinced him to come with her to dinner while Smee went to town and got cleaned up.
They went to a nice restaurant all the up in the third district, after climbing their way up the mountain. They had given Smee some loot to pay for anything he wanted to have done, and Ashanti had changed into a fancy dress that she had bought, that showed off her legs up to her knees and made Hook blush any time he looked at her. Lucky for him, they were at a table, and he couldn’t see her legs.
Presently, Hook was staring at her. “What?” she asked. She hadn’t bought any make up or anything; she wasn’t into that. She was naturally beautiful, anyway.
Hook shrugged. “Nothing, it’s just that you cut your hair really short.”
“Oh… Well, most of it was dead hair, anyway,” she said, “From not being washed in ages.” She eyed his own hair. “How come you didn’t cut yours? It’s getting long.”
“I was forced to shave it all off once, and the next day it was grown back, longer and thicker,” he said. “From then on out, I haven’t really cut my hair.”
“Oh,” she said. She sighed and took a large sip of her wine. They were silent for a moment. There was a band in the corner, made up of several orchestral instruments. They were playing very calming music, and most of the other people in the restaurant were adults, or polite children, so it was a very nice experience to Ashanti, who had known nothing but loudness and arguing for the past few days. It was only then that she noticed her voice was hoarse. She took a sip of wine again.
“How’s your hand?” Hook asked softly. She nodded.
“It doesn’t hurt now,” she said. They fell silent again. Hook had barely touched his food up until now, but now he started. Ashanti looked out the window. She could see almost the whole town except for what was above them, and miles of ocean after that.
She sighed, as did he. It felt good to relax for a moment. To forget their troubles, and the fact that they would again be sailing in a week. But at least for now they didn’t have to worry about that. Ashanti turned away from the window and began eating again, staring at a gold button on Hook’s coat. She realized that that was this was a different coat than the one he had been in for the last few days. She tried to remember what he had been wearing, and finally came to the conclusion that he had been wearing a black coat. But she couldn’t remember when he had put it on. This coat he was in now wasn’t black, but it was almost. It was very dark blue. She didn’t bother asking how much it was, since they still had fifty percent of their loot, even after giving some to Smee.
She watched him take a sip of whatever it was he had. Most likely wine, like her. He gave her a smile so sweet it caused her to almost lose her appetite. She stared blankly at her food and forced some more down her throat. But she had to stop. The argument from last night had pushed itself back into her head, and she could put it off no longer. She knew Hook was still angry about it, and if there was one thing her parents had told her, it was never to go to bed angry.
She pushed her plate away a bit and moved her eyes from his coat to his face. He looked concerned.
“Are you feeling alright?” he asked. She shook her head.
“I… Listen…” She sighed. “I need to talk to you about last night,” she said.
“What, about that argument?” he asked, “I’m not angry about it anymore.” He shrugged.
“No, about what I said. About being afraid of you,” she said. He stared at her.
“Oh,” he said. He looked around uncomfortably, then rested his eyes on her. No one was looking, and she spoke softly.
“I just want you to know that what I said was true,” she said. He blinked. “But… not to the extremity that you think. I mean… Last night, I was afraid of you. And… I still am… but… I…” she looked out the window, her eyes glistening with tears. “I just mean, I’m--”
“Ashanti,” he said, his eyes set in stone, “Are you afraid of me, or aren’t you?”
She stared at him. How long had it been since she had last cried? Had it been long enough? Could she finally be holding in enough pain and confusion to let it all come out in the form of tears? She put her hands over her mouth and stood up, nodding.
“Yes,” she whispered, and strode out of the building. Hook stared at the table for a moment, then stood up and followed her, paying for their meal on the way out.
Ashanti was sitting on the ground, her back towards the restaurant so she was facing the sea, which was glittering in the moonlight. Every now and then he saw her wipe tears off of her face as he approached her. He sat down next to her, and she didn’t turn. She just wiped her tears away with her arm. Hook sighed.
“Ashanti, I--”
(A/N: Awkward jump to new writing)
She had thought that she wouldn’t be able to be found here. She had thought she would be safe from the prying eyes of the outside world.
Yet here he was. The captain himself had come and found her. At the sight of him walking towards her, she felt her heart speed up nervously, and she began looking for her escape. Though he was blocking the main entrance to the area, there was another tiny alley directly opposite it, just large enough for her to squeeze through. She wasn’t sure where it led, but at least it would get her away from him.
He came closer, and she rose, turning away without a second glance and trying not to run as she headed for the alley. She heard him pick up his pace and her stomach lurched, and she followed his lead, running as fast as her legs would take her. She had just reached the alley, that sliver of freedom within her grasp for a beautiful, fleeting moment before his hand closed around her wrist and yanked her back.
“Let go of me!” she cried, refusing to turn her head.
“Calm yourself, Ashanti!” he said. She felt like an animal stuck in a trap. Whatever words were coming out of his mouth, she didn’t hear over her own mind screaming at her to get away.
“Let go!”
“I am your captain,” he said, grip tightening warningly, “and that was an order. Now calm down.”
She bit her lip, surprised. He was acknowledging himself as her captain, so evidently he meant to take her. Did he not hate her? She slowly let herself relax, turning towards him with a watery gaze.
“I want to go home!” she said. He had to fight to keep the laugh from escaping him. He pulled her out of the alley and let go of her hand, a rueful smile playing on his lips.
“As do I, love.”
His words finally made her look up.
(A/N: There's some awkward jumping around here, but I don't think anything's missing. Back to old writing)
“Listen to me,” she sobbed loudly, turning to look at him. He fell silent, watching her closely. “I’m so confused right now. From the moment I arrived in Neverland, it was complete confusion, starting with the fact that I still don’t know how I got there. I had no choice but to go with it; do the work, eat the food, be a pirate. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been fun,” She wiped her eyes and turned to the sea again, “but playing pirate is poor consolation.” She buried her face in her hands. “I want to go home…”
The only sound for the next few moments was her crying. He scanned her up and down, his mind on the sole fact that she was in pain.
“Ashanti,” he said gently, pushing her short hair away from her face with his hook. She looked at him. His eyes were hard, as though he was a father telling his daughter something very important, but his voice was full of understanding. He cast his eyes down, and with a blink they were back up on her face. “Do you think I haven’t tried getting out of this world?” he asked, “Do you think I haven’t tried getting home again? If I could get home I would do so many things, but I can’t. This place is a point of no return.” She looked away, breaking down even more. Hook grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her towards him. “But listen to me,” he said, his eyes scanning her face. She stared at him, her cheeks horribly tearstained. He gave her a small, hopeful smile. “You… are not… alone. Me, Smee, and you - We’re all pirates in the same boat, and that’s how we’ll stay. We have to band together, and we have to find uncharted islands, and we have to bury treasure and be the pirates you, and I, and everyone wanted to be when they were a kid.”
Her heart sped up. She was a pirate… She had never thought about it, but she was involved with all of these pirates… She called this man captain, she sailed on a ship, she was involved in fights and bickers and games, and the occasional toasts. Wasn’t that enough for her to be called a pirate? She had even lied to the doctor about her name.
“You’re not alone, Ashanti,” he said, “We’re going to get a crew - people just like us. the ill-at-heart, the lonely, the homesick, and the condemned - and sail out of here next week, and when we do, we’re going searching for some place we can call home.”
She stared at him. One last tear made its way down her cheek as she pulled him closer. She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, her hands grasped weakly to his coat.
“Thank you…” she whispered. He wrapped his arms around her back, thinking hard. Even if it was he who just said it, he didn’t fully understand it…
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Chapter 5
Days passed uneventfully for the most part. The threesome struggled to man the ship by themselves, with Hook at the helm for the most part and Ashanti and Smee wordlessly carrying out his orders. Ashanti felt slightly alone. She felt sure that Smee had taken no sides against her, but she also knew that he and the captain were constantly talking about her. She didn’t know what words were exchanged during those meetings, nor did she care. She was estranged from the captain now, probably destined to be abandoned the next time they docked. There was nothing she could do to restore her reputation with him, whatever it may have been.
Having no lookout, they didn’t spot land until they had almost passed it. It was Hook himself who had spotted it with those ocean-blue eyes of his and had, with little warning, given the wheel a harsh spin, sending several barrels rolling over the starboard railing and his two crewmen scrambling across the deck to prevent themselves joining the ill-fated kegs. The sails whipped as wind whistled through them, the ship groaning in protest to the sudden change of gravitational pull. When all was at peace again, Ashanti borrowed Smee’s spyglass and made her way to the crow’s nest, mostly to get away from the captain and his presently bad temper.
(A/N: Jump back to old writing)
When she woke up it was at a very agreeable temperature, around sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit. It was mostly quiet, but she could hear the distant sounds of people talking and working. She woke up slowly, and when she finally opened her eyes she saw Hook standing above her.
“Wake up, Ashanti,” he said. She blinked a few times.
“Wh…?” she moaned.
“We’re going shopping. We need supplies, and we’ve got plenty of loot to trade in,” he said. She stretched, yawned, and looked around. She was lying in a hammock, much like the one in the Jolly Roger. She turned and stepped off, then followed Hook out of the room and onto the main deck. She barely remembered what had happened, seeing as how she had slept like a rock, but she knew it would all flow back to her eventually. Somehow she knew she was in for another argument with him this evening or sooner, so she would have to enjoy their ‘happy time’ now.
When she got onto the deck she found that they were in a town - and a moderately large one at that; it was nestled on a large, steep mountain. There were around fifty ships and boats roped to the docks, where Ashanti happened to be right then, and then the rest was town. The town was separated into four districts, each traveling higher and higher on the slope as they traveled higher in numbers - The first being merchants’ booths and cheap food. The second district was better food, set up in small, rickety old buildings. The third district was the district which Hook described as ‘where the cheapskates do business’, indicating they weren’t going there. And the fourth district was all the upper-class, super expensive food. Even all of the loot Hook and Ashanti had combined wouldn’t fetch them one fish.
“Those are the lads who go fishing for kraken and all that,” Hook said.
“Do they ever catch any?” Ashanti asked. They were walking at a leisurely pace, which was a nice change for Ashanti’s sore feet.
“Of course not,” Hook said, “They bring back giant octopi and say it’s kraken, and those brainless idiots up there believe each other, so they sell meaningless food at insane prices, when you could get something better, and most of the time fresher, down here, for better prices.”
“So… that’s how it works in towns like this?” she asked.
“Most of the time, yes,” Hook said. “And these merchants will gladly trade rings and necklaces for food and drink, which is good, seeing as how we don’t have any money.”
On their right was an innumerable amount of merchants, and the town, and on their left were the docks. The dirt roads were bustling with people, mostly men, and they were all giving Ashanti strange looks.
“Why are all these people staring at me?” she asked.
“Well, for one, you’re a woman - you know very well that women don’t usually sail, and anyone can clearly tell by your looks that you’ve been sailing. And two, because you’re pretty - I’m sure at least fifty percent of these men are unmarried. And three, because you’re with me,” Hook answered. Ashanti glanced at him.
“What’s so wrong about being with you?” she asked.
“Have you forgotten that I’m Captain Hook?” he asked, giving her a strange glare. He was obviously still angry about last night.
“No, but…” She groaned, “Fine. Be a jerk about it,” she grumbled. He grabbed her by the arm.
“Ask around here and find a doctor’s office, where you can get your hand taken care of. We don’t want it getting infected, now, do we?” he asked. She shook her head.
“No, sir,” she said slowly. He nodded.
“Good girl,” he said, smiling suddenly, “Go on.” He pushed her towards a road that led up to the second, third, and fourth districts. “Find somewhere cheap, though. I’ll get food for us.” Ashanti nodded, then ran up the path.
She headed for the second district. But after only a few steps she was exhausted. She looked up. This mountain was quite a bit steeper than it looked - and it looked pretty steep to begin with. So she was almost climbing up the hill to reach the second district, where it got flat again for the buildings and houses. She did as she had been told and asked around for a hospital. She found a cheap one where she was, and was able to see the doctor right then, as it was a slow day.
When the doctor pulled away Hook’s scarf and saw her wound, he couldn’t help but gasp. “What happened?” he asked. After staring at the gash, which was blood stained and looked like it was infected, Ashanti spoke up.
“An accident. I was practicing sword fighting with my master and he just accidentally stabbed me,” she said.
“Why weren’t you wearing any protective gloves?” the doctor asked. She looked up at him, then gave a nervous smile.
“I forgot to,” she said. He looked worried.
“Well, you’ll need stitches for sure. It doesn’t look infected, just dirty. It will get infected, though, if we don’t clean it soon. Come on,” he said. He helped her off of wherever it was she had been sitting and led her into a very prettily decorated room. He led her to a sink, where he scrubbed his hands very thoroughly, and did all it was a doctor is supposed to do, then gently pulled her hand underneath the water and began cleaning it. She cringed. It stung horribly. “So,” said the doctor, “I never caught your name.”
Ashanti was silent. “Alison,” she said.
“Ah,” said the doctor, “Very pretty name. I like it. Come with me.” He led her to a large, comfortable chair and sat her down in it. He left the room, then returned a few minutes later with his equipment and such.
Getting stitches wasn’t too bad, she thought, after getting a dirty blade struck all the way through her hand. Whenever she thought about it her hand stung. So she didn’t. She rarely conversed with the doctor, leaving her time to think. What were they going to do, after they left this island? They didn’t have any real objective or anything. Maybe Captain Hook was just longing to get away from Neverland. Maybe he was just longing to get away from it all, to get as far away as possible from that island. She sighed. Even with how much she liked Hook, there was a flicker of fear he instilled in her - that much was true. Not to mention she knew very little about him. She didn’t know anything about his past, or where he had been born, or who his parents were exactly. If he had been a British boy, or English, how was he involved with a sultana of Greece? Just as she was drifting farther and farther into these thoughts, the doctor tapped her on the shoulder.
“All done, Alison,” he said. She blinked, about to tell him that wasn’t her name, when she remembered she had lied to him.
“Oh… Okay,” she said. He led her out of the room to the waiting room, where he gave her some final instructions. Her hand was wrapped in some clean gauze, which she was supposed to try not to dirty, and she was also supposed to take some pills every day.
“You also need to return in six days to get your stitches taken out,” he said. She blinked.
“But I need to leave port tomorrow,” she said.
“Well, you can’t leave those stitches in for more than a week,” he said. She blinked.
“Oh…”
“Where are you headed?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I would have to check with my captain,” she said.
“Oh, well… Is there any way you could stay here for a week? You really need get those stitches taken out by then,” he said. She blinked.
“I’ll go ask my captain,” she said, “I’ll come back with an answer later today.”
“Alright then,” he said, “Here’s your medicine. You need to take one pill once a day, around four o’ clock in the evening. That would be best.” She nodded and took the tube of pills. “All of the instructions are on the side. Take it easy,” he said. She shook his hand and headed out of the building, looking for Hook. She knew this would end in an argument, but she surely wanted to follow a doctor’s instructions over an irritated young pirate captain’s. At least they hadn’t made her pay.
She walked down the hill, which was a lot easier than going up, and looked around the docks. Hook was nowhere to be found. She looked around the merchants’ booths. She couldn’t see him anywhere. After thinking about it for a moment, she headed back to the ship. On her way, she read the instructions for her pills.
“Take one pill every day with a small amount of water,” she mumbled, “for two weeks.” She shrugged. “And I thought this injury would be high-maintenance.” She turned and walked up the dock towards her ship, and then up the ramp to her ship, which was strangely unnamed. But she could tell it apart. Without becoming a boat, it was the smallest ship there.
She hung around on the empty deck for a while until Smee walked up from inside the ship.
“Ahoy, lassie,” he said happily, carrying a burlap sack. It was most likely full of garbage. That’s what Smee had been doing all day, cleaning up after the pirates who had been here before them. She smiled.
“Hello,” she said, “Has Captain Hook returned yet?”
He shook his head. “No, not yet,” he said, “But I’m sure ‘e’ll be back ‘fore dark.”
“But I need to talk to him,” she said.
“Well, sorry, lass. I can’t help you there. I was supposed to stay here and guard the ship, so I can’t help you look for ‘im,” he said, “But he’s got to be on the island somewhere, aye?”
She sighed. “Yeah, I guess,” she said. She looked back towards the town. She knew he would stick out - he was dirtier and dressed differently than all of these people. “Well, I’m going to go look for him.”
“Alright, lassie,” Smee said. She walked down onto the docks and began searching for her captain. Seeing as how there weren’t any real buildings in the first district, it should have been easy to find him. But it wasn’t. She searched until sunset to find him, and when she did they bumped into each other while heading back to the ship.
Hook had taken on a completely different appearance. He had taken a shower, and shaved. All of his injuries had been dressed, and all of his ripped clothes had been washed and patched. He now had less loot on him, as he had spent it all on treating himself. He also had a new hat on. But Ashanti was relieved to see his arms full of bags of food.
They stared at each other. Ashanti blushed.
“You look different,” she said. He gave her a half smile. “You look younger.”
“What are you talking about?” he asked, “I look the same to me.”
“Well, last time I saw you, you were dirty and beat up,” she said.
“Ah, well, it must be so very different for you,” he said, and gave her a smile. He turned and began walking down the dock towards their ship. “Did you get your hand taken care of?” he asked. She followed him up the ramp to the ship.
“Yes. But…” she said. He turned towards her.
“Hang on a moment,” he said, “Smee!” he yelled. Smee bustled up on deck.
“Cap’n!” he said, “You’re back!” Hook handed Smee the bags of food.
“Take this food to the kitchen,” he said.
“Aye, cap’n,” Smee said. After he was gone, Hook went over and sat on the stairs. Ashanti followed, trying to tell her story, but Hook was too overcome with happiness to let her speak.
“Ashanti, this is amazing!” he said, smiling at her, “Nobody here knows who I am! Nobody is afraid of me!”
She stared at him. “That’s nice, but…”
“I could go into all of the shops and to all of the merchants’ booths, and nobody would give me food for free because they were so afraid!” he said.
“Yes, well, I…”
“The only thing people were afraid of was my yellow blood, but I got free medical service because they thought it was--”
“Can we stay here for a week?” she asked suddenly. He stared at her, the smile frozen on his face. He blinked, letting his lips droop a bit.
“Well… I don’t see why not,” he said at length. She smiled.
“Thanks,” she said, and began walking down the deck. She turned back to him. “Watch after these for me, alright?” she asked. She tossed her pills back to him. He caught them in his lap. Before he could say anything she was down the ramp and on the docks.
She decided to treat herself with the same things as Hook; she got her clothes washed and patched, and she bought herself some new boots - they were comfier to walk in. She was able to use a shower at an inn to scrub herself and shave, and she bought a few things no woman should be without. She got her hair cut to her jaw, scrubbed, and conditioned, and ended up getting it styled (Though she didn’t ask for the last). She also stopped by the doctor’s office to tell him they were staying for a week.
It was dark when she returned to the ship, carrying one bag of things for her, and three bags of meat, fruit, water, and all that. She handed the food to Smee, who took it below, and then left her own bag on the deck for the moment. Hook was at the wheel, checking that everything was in order. If there was any damage, they still had plenty of loot to pay for repairs. Of course, Hook wasn’t in the best of moods, as he had read the instructions on her pills, and had taken them completely wrong. After explaining they weren’t for what he thought, and about her hand and all that, she convinced him to come with her to dinner while Smee went to town and got cleaned up.
They went to a nice restaurant all the up in the third district, after climbing their way up the mountain. They had given Smee some loot to pay for anything he wanted to have done, and Ashanti had changed into a fancy dress that she had bought, that showed off her legs up to her knees and made Hook blush any time he looked at her. Lucky for him, they were at a table, and he couldn’t see her legs.
Presently, Hook was staring at her. “What?” she asked. She hadn’t bought any make up or anything; she wasn’t into that. She was naturally beautiful, anyway.
Hook shrugged. “Nothing, it’s just that you cut your hair really short.”
“Oh… Well, most of it was dead hair, anyway,” she said, “From not being washed in ages.” She eyed his own hair. “How come you didn’t cut yours? It’s getting long.”
“I was forced to shave it all off once, and the next day it was grown back, longer and thicker,” he said. “From then on out, I haven’t really cut my hair.”
“Oh,” she said. She sighed and took a large sip of her wine. They were silent for a moment. There was a band in the corner, made up of several orchestral instruments. They were playing very calming music, and most of the other people in the restaurant were adults, or polite children, so it was a very nice experience to Ashanti, who had known nothing but loudness and arguing for the past few days. It was only then that she noticed her voice was hoarse. She took a sip of wine again.
“How’s your hand?” Hook asked softly. She nodded.
“It doesn’t hurt now,” she said. They fell silent again. Hook had barely touched his food up until now, but now he started. Ashanti looked out the window. She could see almost the whole town except for what was above them, and miles of ocean after that.
She sighed, as did he. It felt good to relax for a moment. To forget their troubles, and the fact that they would again be sailing in a week. But at least for now they didn’t have to worry about that. Ashanti turned away from the window and began eating again, staring at a gold button on Hook’s coat. She realized that that was this was a different coat than the one he had been in for the last few days. She tried to remember what he had been wearing, and finally came to the conclusion that he had been wearing a black coat. But she couldn’t remember when he had put it on. This coat he was in now wasn’t black, but it was almost. It was very dark blue. She didn’t bother asking how much it was, since they still had fifty percent of their loot, even after giving some to Smee.
She watched him take a sip of whatever it was he had. Most likely wine, like her. He gave her a smile so sweet it caused her to almost lose her appetite. She stared blankly at her food and forced some more down her throat. But she had to stop. The argument from last night had pushed itself back into her head, and she could put it off no longer. She knew Hook was still angry about it, and if there was one thing her parents had told her, it was never to go to bed angry.
She pushed her plate away a bit and moved her eyes from his coat to his face. He looked concerned.
“Are you feeling alright?” he asked. She shook her head.
“I… Listen…” She sighed. “I need to talk to you about last night,” she said.
“What, about that argument?” he asked, “I’m not angry about it anymore.” He shrugged.
“No, about what I said. About being afraid of you,” she said. He stared at her.
“Oh,” he said. He looked around uncomfortably, then rested his eyes on her. No one was looking, and she spoke softly.
“I just want you to know that what I said was true,” she said. He blinked. “But… not to the extremity that you think. I mean… Last night, I was afraid of you. And… I still am… but… I…” she looked out the window, her eyes glistening with tears. “I just mean, I’m--”
“Ashanti,” he said, his eyes set in stone, “Are you afraid of me, or aren’t you?”
She stared at him. How long had it been since she had last cried? Had it been long enough? Could she finally be holding in enough pain and confusion to let it all come out in the form of tears? She put her hands over her mouth and stood up, nodding.
“Yes,” she whispered, and strode out of the building. Hook stared at the table for a moment, then stood up and followed her, paying for their meal on the way out.
Ashanti was sitting on the ground, her back towards the restaurant so she was facing the sea, which was glittering in the moonlight. Every now and then he saw her wipe tears off of her face as he approached her. He sat down next to her, and she didn’t turn. She just wiped her tears away with her arm. Hook sighed.
“Ashanti, I--”
(A/N: Awkward jump to new writing)
She had thought that she wouldn’t be able to be found here. She had thought she would be safe from the prying eyes of the outside world.
Yet here he was. The captain himself had come and found her. At the sight of him walking towards her, she felt her heart speed up nervously, and she began looking for her escape. Though he was blocking the main entrance to the area, there was another tiny alley directly opposite it, just large enough for her to squeeze through. She wasn’t sure where it led, but at least it would get her away from him.
He came closer, and she rose, turning away without a second glance and trying not to run as she headed for the alley. She heard him pick up his pace and her stomach lurched, and she followed his lead, running as fast as her legs would take her. She had just reached the alley, that sliver of freedom within her grasp for a beautiful, fleeting moment before his hand closed around her wrist and yanked her back.
“Let go of me!” she cried, refusing to turn her head.
“Calm yourself, Ashanti!” he said. She felt like an animal stuck in a trap. Whatever words were coming out of his mouth, she didn’t hear over her own mind screaming at her to get away.
“Let go!”
“I am your captain,” he said, grip tightening warningly, “and that was an order. Now calm down.”
She bit her lip, surprised. He was acknowledging himself as her captain, so evidently he meant to take her. Did he not hate her? She slowly let herself relax, turning towards him with a watery gaze.
“I want to go home!” she said. He had to fight to keep the laugh from escaping him. He pulled her out of the alley and let go of her hand, a rueful smile playing on his lips.
“As do I, love.”
His words finally made her look up.
(A/N: There's some awkward jumping around here, but I don't think anything's missing. Back to old writing)
“Listen to me,” she sobbed loudly, turning to look at him. He fell silent, watching her closely. “I’m so confused right now. From the moment I arrived in Neverland, it was complete confusion, starting with the fact that I still don’t know how I got there. I had no choice but to go with it; do the work, eat the food, be a pirate. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been fun,” She wiped her eyes and turned to the sea again, “but playing pirate is poor consolation.” She buried her face in her hands. “I want to go home…”
The only sound for the next few moments was her crying. He scanned her up and down, his mind on the sole fact that she was in pain.
“Ashanti,” he said gently, pushing her short hair away from her face with his hook. She looked at him. His eyes were hard, as though he was a father telling his daughter something very important, but his voice was full of understanding. He cast his eyes down, and with a blink they were back up on her face. “Do you think I haven’t tried getting out of this world?” he asked, “Do you think I haven’t tried getting home again? If I could get home I would do so many things, but I can’t. This place is a point of no return.” She looked away, breaking down even more. Hook grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her towards him. “But listen to me,” he said, his eyes scanning her face. She stared at him, her cheeks horribly tearstained. He gave her a small, hopeful smile. “You… are not… alone. Me, Smee, and you - We’re all pirates in the same boat, and that’s how we’ll stay. We have to band together, and we have to find uncharted islands, and we have to bury treasure and be the pirates you, and I, and everyone wanted to be when they were a kid.”
Her heart sped up. She was a pirate… She had never thought about it, but she was involved with all of these pirates… She called this man captain, she sailed on a ship, she was involved in fights and bickers and games, and the occasional toasts. Wasn’t that enough for her to be called a pirate? She had even lied to the doctor about her name.
“You’re not alone, Ashanti,” he said, “We’re going to get a crew - people just like us. the ill-at-heart, the lonely, the homesick, and the condemned - and sail out of here next week, and when we do, we’re going searching for some place we can call home.”
She stared at him. One last tear made its way down her cheek as she pulled him closer. She rested her head on his shoulder and closed her eyes, her hands grasped weakly to his coat.
“Thank you…” she whispered. He wrapped his arms around her back, thinking hard. Even if it was he who just said it, he didn’t fully understand it…
--