Neither Lady nor Pirate (Complete)

Chapter Five

This one is a bit longer, but I can't say I'm sorry.  Lots of important things happening. :)

I hope you enjoy.

XOXO

sophie9630

****

FIVE

After her first day on the ship, particularly the hour she spent with Finn in the crow's nest, Abbie had to admit that she felt more comfortable walking around a ship filled with pirates.

Many of the men took very little interest in the young girl or why she was there, and those who did were decent enough for Abbie to have small conversations with. Abbie thanked her lucky stars that they didn't look at her with malicious intent, with plans of torture and rape in mind.

At least...she hoped that those things were not what they had in mind for her as she adjusted to live on a pirate ship.

It was admittedly a difficult challenge, though, because there were a number of things about the men of The Iron Lady that challenged Abbie's upbringing in the upper ranks of society.

They hardly bathed, roughhoused for sport, and swore with only the foulest words after a particularly unwanted event. They drank too much and vomited frequently, a sloppy occurrence that Abbie hoped would never befall her.

The ship they called home, though cleaned regularly, never seemed to rid itself of a putrid stink that made Abbie wonder if they hid dead bodies under the planks. Abbie found herself gagging any time she stepped foot on the deck.

But, through it all, Abbie realized that these men were not all bad. They may have been rowdy and boisterous, but she could see their personalities shine through their pirate demeanor.

Of course, she had not yet seen them in an encounter with another ship, or with a village. The idea of innocent people being pillaged and killed horrified her, but she kept her thoughts to herself. Fear was a dangerous tool in the hands of conniving scoundrels, and Abbie would not give them the satisfaction of being a weak-willed and weepy captive.

She knew that if she wished to survive, she had to play their game, which was fine by her as long as they remained civil.

If she had counted correctly, it had been a week since her attempt at running away, and in that short time many of the pirates warmed up to her. Abbie was beginning to wonder if her interpretation of pirates had been skewed, but kept a keen eye for signs of deception and lies.

It was rather hard to feel suspicious though, when the men went out of their way to help her adjust to her strange new life.

Port and Slim were especially kind to her. They always offered her the first choice for food, however meager their rations might have been. Abbie noticed that their diet consisted mostly of the dry biscuits and some sort of desiccated meat. It was repulsive, but she never turned away the chance to eat.

One day, Slim had even done some digging around and found her a parasol to protect her from the sun. He had watched her fumble around squinting in the harsh sunlight her eyes had not yet adjusted to. After nearly toppling overboard—narrowly being rescued by a begrudging Finn—Slim decided it was best if Abbie had some protection after all.

The parasol was a light orange, and had little frills hanging off the sides. It was old and smelled of must, and was not exactly the kind of thing Abbie would normally have been seen toting. 

Slim's eager excitement at having found it was adorably charming, like a small child handing his mother a tiny snail shell as if it were a diamond.  Abbie had offered him honest thanks when he had given it to her.