Daughter of the pirate king (an ateez fanfiction)

Chapter 16

I cautiously peek my head outside of Hongjoong's quarters. I can't see anyone from where I stand, but it's getting dark, so it's hard to tell for sure. No one is needed for steering because we're not moving at the moment. Hongjoong is biding his time, probably formulating some sort of plan for infiltrating my father's keep if he hasn't already. No matter what he has planned, he will not get far. My father will have scouts everywhere. They might have even spotted the ship already. Over the last few days, we've passed by several small, empty islands. This area is dotted with them. My father has chosen one of the larger ones as the meeting point. We can't be more than a few hours sail from it. I reach the main deck and take another look around. There's movement by the port side. A few more steps and it turns out to be Seonghwa, preparing a boat. "Did you kill him?" is the first thing he asks me. "Surprisingly, no. You're welcome." "Thank you. That means more to me than I can say." I shrug. "Is that supposed to be for me?" I ask, pointing to the boat he's lowering into the water. "Yes. I've ordered the crew to go belowdecks. You should have enough time to get to your father's keep. The only thing more I ask is that you give us a headstart before sending the pirate king after us." "If I were to send my father after you, it wouldn't matter how much of a headstart you had. The only reason you're not all dead now is because he was never looking for you." Seonghwa looks up from the rope in his hands. "What do you mean? Are you saying that—" "My capture was all a ruse." The look he gives me is priceless. "But I thought you decided to make the most of your kidnapping by searching the ship once you'd arrived." "Afraid not. I planned to get kidnapped from the start. My father ordered it."

Seonghwa's face is open confusion. "Why would the pirate king send out his only heir on such a dangerous mission?" "Because I'm the only one he trusted to be successful. I have certain abilities that others do not." Seonghwa releases his hold on the rope. The boat must have reached the water. "Are you using them now? Is that why I'm doing this? Helping you?" "If I were, you would've given me the map already. Since you're trying so hard to conceal it from me, you can rest assured you still have control over your mind." "Your eyes have changed," he says, seemingly randomly. "What?" "They were blue when you first got here. Now they're green." He's awfully perceptive. My eyes are blue when I have the strength of the sea with me. Once it's all gone, they shift back to green. "My eyes are blue-green," I say. "No. They've definitely changed." He leans against the railing, looking surprisingly unafraid. "What are you?" "As if I'd tell you." "Are you a siren?" I cringe at the word. It's so strange to hear it coming from Seonghwa's lips. "Not exactly." "Your mother is a siren. That story. The rumor that your father is the only one to have bedded a siren and lived—it's true." Is there any point in denying it? My father will be hunting down this ship shortly anyway. "Yes." "But why are you the way you are? Sirens depend on human men for their survival, but they produce more sirens. What makes you more human than seacreature?" "That is an excellent question. You're right: I'm not fully a siren, more halfsiren–half human. And there is something special surrounding my birth. I'll tell you what it is if you tell me where you hid the map." "Tempting as that is, I can't tell you that. Why don't you get it over with and make me tell you?" "It doesn't work like that." "Then how does it work?" "I'll tell you. Just please hand over the map, Seonghwa." "Sorry, Aurora." "Fine. I'll get it out of you. But I'll have you know I loathe doing this." 

I reach down to that unnatural part of me. Suddenly, I'm uncomfortable in my own skin. Goose bumps rise on my arms and legs. My hair seems to stand on edge. Mentally, it's exhausting to be so aware of everything around me. "You're doing that thing again," he says. "You've changed." I've never had anyone be able to detect the change in me before. Not even my own father can tell, so how can Seonghwa? "I'm tapping into the part of me that comes from my mother. I hate using it. Feels awful and unnatural." "Does it give you the ability to read my mind?" "No, I can only tell what you're feeling." This seems to give him great alarm. His emotions turn from a glowing, vibrant red to light gray almost instantly. Gray is an interesting color. When it's the dark gray of storm clouds, the emotion is tied to guilt. In a lighter hue, the emotion is grief. A deep sadness has come over Seonghwa. But the change is so immediate, it causes me to believe he's thinking about something extremely sad to him on purpose so I can't get anything else out of him. "Are you thinking sad thoughts on purpose?" I ask. "It's terrifying that you know what I'm thinking." "Not thinking. I don't know why you're sad. Only that you're thinking about something that causes you grief." Now I need to play on his fear. His fear of me finding the map. He won't have hidden it on his person. He had to have known I would search him for it. He'll have hidden it somewhere on the ship. I'll have to gauge his fear if I'm to find it. I start moving about the ship, but I keep him talking as I do.