𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐎 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐔𝐍𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖𝐍

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐰𝐨

─────  FOR THE RECORD, when Eniya carried the boy out onto the main deck, she placed him with the rest of his crew as gently as she could without getting sideways stares from the pirate troupe. She had made sure that his hat stayed firmly on his head and didn't do much beyond stripping the trio of their weapons.

Also, when Cabaji told her to 'place them with the cargo,' Eniya didn't know he meant 'place them in a wooden box and haul them around all day.'

It wasn't a strange request at face value. The ship lacked a brig, so that was the next logical place to put them. But looking back on it, she supposed Cabaji did have a strange gleam in his eye the moment that he had properly laid eyes on the trio, the smoke slowly dispersing as they sailed out of the heavy cloud. He had seen the man with green hair and three swords and had practically foamed at the mouth.

At least Buggy found the whole thing rather hilarious.

He had been curious at first, circling the wooden box with a raised eyebrow while pulling at his reattached earlobe, as if water had gotten into it. "And what's this?"

"Your thieves," Cabaji paused. "They're pre-packaged."

Buggy looked between Cabaji's expressionless face, back to the box, and then proceeded to cackle for five minutes straight. The little girl still at the foot of his makeshift throne winced at the sound, and the crowd around them broke out into suitable, anxious laughter.

"Pre-packaged," Buggy snorted, rubbing under an eye and somehow—miraculously—not smearing his makeup. "Ah, I knew there was a reason I kept you around."

I call bullshit, Eniya thought sourly.

Still, Cabaji preened at the praise, willfully overlooking the cruelty in Buggy's words.

Whatever made him happy.

The clown stopped circling, only to cup his hands around his mouth and cry, "Freaks! Get ready. We've got a show to put on. Eniya, be a good girl and take their things to the green room."

Buggy pointed flippantly at the bag and swords tossed to the dirt, and Eniya nodded but didn't move until Buggy did. He and Cabaji were whisked away in a crowd of pirates, all rushing off to prepare for the demented acts that they carefully prepared for the sake of intimidation.

And so began the race against the clock.

It had taken all night to get back to Orange Village, and they wound up docking in the late afternoon. The knockout gas that laced the fireworks was hard to shake off, especially with the dosage—which was less of an exact science and more of a feeling—they had breathed in. But that was fourteen hours ago, and the thieves had all slept heavily since.

They would start to stir, and soon.

Eniya moved slowly, feigning disinterest in her surroundings as performance props were set up around the big top. Above her head, someone was checking the trapeze rig, and another was turning off and readjusting the spotlights. She stuck to the dark pockets in the tent, where the tall poles cast long shadows, squinting against the dim lighting as she weaved through the crowd.