Pelagic [Voltron/Refuge AU]

Promises

Chyra reluctantly climbed down from the rigging late at night, when the bright halo of moonlight was directly above the ship's purple sails. Despite the dull pain in her ribs, she moved silently; years of practice scaling up ships allowed Chyra to be undetected when she wanted to be. She could sense exactly which wooden boards would creak if she stepped on them, was acutely aware of each rope's position on the tangled web of rigging, and could navigate the ship noiselessly without even realizing it. She was just so used to being on the sea. The movements of the waves and the great wooden beast that she lived upon were even more natural to her than the unyielding steadfastness of the land. She could read tides and currents like they were pages of an immense, complex book. Chyra was at home on the sea and couldn't imagine living anywhere else, despite not liking her exact circumstances and the company she had been forced to keep. But even if she could quit the Galra clan without being hunted down and killed, Chyra would never abandon her home on the ocean.

Chyra jumped down the last couple of feet from the rigging, her leather boots hitting the wooden deck soundlessly as her legs absorbed all of the force of the jump. She looked around the darkened deck of the ship, squinting at the warped shape of the merman as he dangled haplessly from the mast. The dangling hook that trapped him hung down from about halfway across the thick crossbeam of the mast, many feet above the heads of even the tallest of the Galra pirates on the ship. Even further for a shortie like Chyra. She caught a flicker of movement coming from the entrance to the crew's quarters belowdecks and immediately tucked herself into the shadows to avoid detection. However, when Creed's distinctly curly brown hair was silhouetted against the lamp positioned near the merman, Chyra relaxed and straightened, heading towards her partner in crime.

She stepped into the lamplight immediately to Creed's right, causing the teenaged pirate to exclaim and leap backwards in fright. His motions startled both Chyra and the merman, and Chyra glared at Creed once he realized that she was there. The teen clutched at his chest, apparently trying to calm his rapid heartbeat. 

"Chyra! You've got to stop doing that." Creed scolded, bracing his hands on his knees and breathing heavily.

"Oh calm down you big baby." Chyra responded. "It's not like I meant to scare you, you're just oblivious."

"More like you move more quietly than a sea phantom." Creed mumbled under his breath. Rolling her eyes, Chyra turned her amber gaze towards the captured merman, who was staring down at the two pirates with apprehension clear in his storm grey eyes. Neither Chyra nor the mer said anything, allowing the tense silence to instead be shattered by Creed's curiosity.

"So, might I ask exactly why you made me take the worst watch shift available?" Creed asked sassily, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Because everyone is asleep. So we won't be seen or overheard," Chyra replied, "keep watch. I'm gonna get this guy down." She patted Creed's shoulder and started to walk off, only for the young pirate to grab onto her shirt and pull her back.

"Chyra, wait! Do you know how much trouble we could get in if the captain finds out?"

"Of course I do," Chyra snapped, snatching her billowy white sleeve out of Creed's grasp. "You think I don't know how Sendak might react? I'm the one that he threw across the deck today! But I can't allow Sendak to be so cruel. I mean, it's not his fault he's here, why should he be punished?" Chyra demanded, now referring to the merman dangling from the mast and watching the exchange with curious eyes.

Creed still looked unconvinced. However, he relented with a sigh and shook his head at how foolish he believed Chyra to be. "Fine. But if the captain somehow figures out that it was you- which, by the way, he most certainly will- don't involve me and don't say I didn't warn you."