A Daemon's Second Chance (Tales of Berseria x Kingdom Hearts)

Chapter 22: Jack's Lesson & The Isle of the Dead

"Now it be my turn to ask ye some questions." Sparrow told her, "Why's a young girl like yourself dressed like a pirate?" The therion became a bit irritated at the statement.

"First thing: I didn't chose to dress like this and second: I'm basically a pirate if being in a pirate crew counts." Velvet explained, thinking back on her journey. "I've been traveling with a crew of pirates and their first mate as they searched for their missing captain. Ever heard about Captain Van Aifred?"

"Yes, lass. A mysterious pirate that disappears when he's going to the end of the world." Sparrow answered. "He's an old legend between pirates alike."

"I met him once but only for breath second. Their first mate tested me and my companions when we first met and helped us quite a bit even though I was focused on a selfish goal, I even kidnapped a child while destroying a whole village."

"And I am to presume that at some point in your life, you would have met that young lad there along with that boy and his friends." Sparrow guessed.

"Yeah." Velvet answered, seeing Laphicet leaning over the side of the ship as he talked to Will, "I met him a long time ago and he became a big part of my life after that. Sora and the others I met a few weeks ago. During the times when I met Laphicet, giving him a name and personality, I was known as an cold blooded killer and a monster, a warrior and I thought I could do things on my own. However, through trial and error, I realized that my goal was much more complicated and I needed as much help that I could in order to help people to take care of themselves instead of relying on someone else to do stuff for them."

"There is a set of rules for which you must follow in life, Velvet." Sparrow answered, and this was the first time Sparrow addressed her by name, "The rules are a simple one; what a man can do and what a man cannot do. For example, I can drown you. But I cannot bring this ship all the way to the Isle de Muerta on my own. Learning what your rules are in life are what make you strong. Savvy?"

Velvet looked up at him, she thought about the many times she told her friends to follow their own paths but they followed her journey no matter the consequences or their goals. Her emotions and friends made her strong enough to fight Artorius and eventually, kill him.

"Land ho!" Donald shouted up at the crow's nest. Everybody looked towards the direction where Donald was pointing at. There, sure enough, was an island. Velvet absentmindedly looked at Sparrow's compass. The needle was pointing straight at it. Guess it did work after all.

They docked themselves alongside a rocky path to a cave, and got off. "You lads and lass wait here." Sparrow told the five heroes, "Young Turner and I will rescue the lady."

"Hey! What about us?" barked Sora.

"You're to guard the ship, o' course." Sparrow responded, "It's a task given only to the bravest pirates."

"You think were suckers?" Velvet asked him, then sighed, "Still, I think we can manage. Fine then."

"Guard her well!" Sparrow told them, and he turned to leave before turning to Will and asking, "You ready?" Will nodded, and they dashed along the path towards the cave. The rest of them gathered onto the ship, and waited.

"He was definitely just trying to fast-talk us before," Velvet told the others, "And you guys fell for it."

"Technically, I knew what he was doing, but I decided to go with it." Laphicet corrected her, "Still, I do think he knows what he's doing. After all, we made it this far thanks to him."

"I guess." Sora replied, sitting on a crate, waiting.

They waited for an hour, meandering the deck and the harbor while they were waiting.