Pirates

Chapter 14

I saw him a week later, walking around. He was practically fine now and the look he gave me told me that soon I would not be. I tried to keep my head down, stayed out of his way, but I knew that sooner or later, I would be dead, or worse. Of course, I didn't let this on to the Captain: I couldn't have him thinking I'm weak or a coward. Or at least, I didn't until a particular night. I was called to the Captain's office for my usual dinner, which, in spite of myself, had become the highlight of my day. It was company, something I realised I was pining for. At home, I would walk to my friends, have picnics, go to balls, but here I was left to myself all day and I had very quickly realised I wasn't much for company, in fact, part of me even felt slightly sorry for the Captain having to put up with me.
I walked in to the room to find the usual spread of food and sat down at the table as the Captain put some papers away in a chest of drawers. He was only wearing a white shirt, trousers with a belt and boots today, no elegant frock coat. When he turned around, I could see that his hair was ruffled and I noticed a black smudge on his cheek and I didn't know if it was the slow set insanity or the lack of humour, but I burst out laughing. It wasn't even that funny, but it seemed like the world's best joke at that time. He stopped short of the table when I started laughing and held the expression of a confused smile. "What?" He asked chuckling a little awkwardly. When all I could do was point at his face when a second onslaught of laughter took over me he started asking franticly "What? What is it?" He was smiling properly now. Then he started rubbing his face to try to see, but obviously the source of the black smudge was his hand, as when he started rubbing his face it spread from his cheek to half his face, around his mouth and his nose.
"Stop rubbing your face!" I said when I had sobered up a little. I grabbed a napkin from the table and dipped it in a goblet of water and passed it to him.
"Would you mind?" He asked, awkwardly, as though it pained him to ask. He held the napkin out.
"Why can't you?" I asked in return, fully sober now and remembering who I was and what he was.
"I don't have a mirror, I broke it."
"How do you manage to break a mirror?" I inquired, the smile slightly returning to my face, despite my efforts to stop it.
"Well," He responded as if to say 'there's not really a story', but I was resilient.
"If you want my help, you will tell me the story."
He sat down and turned the chair out wards from the table, towards me and started the story. I took the napkin from his hand and pulled the goblet of water towards me. I dipped it in the water as he said "I was young and I was very heriocally masculine, just to clear that up." I raised an eyebrow.
"Hold your hair back." I instructed and he obeyed.
"So I was quite the ladies' man," He glared when I tried to restrain my laugh. "And one particular girl seemed to get attached to the idea of marriage."
"Well that was an absurd notion." I said sarcastically, but he didn't realise it was sarcasm as he replied in full seriousness
"Exactly! So I sat her down and explained to her the truth about how I was not ready to settle for one girl."
"What did you really tell her?"
"I don't know what you mean." He answered not looking at his hands and obviously avoiding eye contact.
"What did you really tell her?"
He was still looking at his hands when he said "I told her that I had a terminal illness and wouldn't want to leave her widowed."
I gasped "That's horrible."
"But it worked." He said optimistically looking me in the eyes. "Or at least it did until she saw me a week later with another girl." I smiled evily as I washed his face.
"So she came to my house that day and the mirror was on the side and" He trailed off.
"Finish the story." I ordered.
"She smashed it round my head." He huffed, exasperated. I tried to stop myself laughing, but failed. Then I noticed he started wincing. He tried to rub his eyes.
"What is it?" I asked worried that I had done something wrong and that he should decide to punish me. "What's wrong?"
"My eyes. AH!" He winced again. "They're stinging like the Devil! AH!" He gritted through his teeth. "What have you done to me, woman?" He stood up and knocked me out the way stumbling and feeling around the room for something to wash his eyes with. I picked up the goblet and brought it to him, but then I noticed the bubbles. I tasted the water. It was not water, but wine. He pushed open the doors and stumbled on deck me following him timidly.
"WATER!" He bellowed across so the entire ship could hear him and it was as though a storm struck as men ran about the deck searching for water for their Captain. Soon enough the Captain was seeing clearly again, though his eyes were red raw. The entire crew wanted to know what had happened, but I saw the Captain, now sat on a step, glance slightly at me and then say "It was nothing, a mere accident." However, the man now labled as my enemy saw the glance and read between the lines.
"It was that Witch." He snarled and the crew stopped and looked at him. "She hurt our Captain and who knows what she will do next? Forget the money, she threatens our safety which is a great deal more valuable."
"That is enough." Snapped the Captain in return. "I am fed up with having to punish you. You are my friend as well as a crew member, but you make it so difficult to to not see you as the latter first and foremost." He stood up and turned to leave. "Now I am tired and will return to my office in the company of the Witch." I did nothing but silently obey, but as soon as the doors shut behind us I couldn't help repeating over and over
"I am so sorry. I didn't know it was wine. I just, I didn't know."
He chuckled slightly. "Well if you weren't in danger of him before, you definitely are now. Hungry?" He sat down to eat as though nothing had happened, so I joined him.