Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

the wind whistled quietly as the tall willow trees surrounding the swain manor danced in the breeze. it was a fine day. the sun beat down onto the grass and pathways below that lead into the quaint village that stood at the bottom of the swain’s hill. the stark blue sky held not a cloud for miles creating the perfect backdrop for any artists new sketch. it was these types of days that you cherished the most although it made it somewhat hard to work in your military uniform. the long tailored coat and waistcoat as well as a frilly long sleeved blouse seemed perfect for rainy or chilling days but this was sadly not one of those. the cobblestone pathways were almost able to melt the bottom of your leather work boots which wouldn’t be ideal for chasing down crooks.

swain manor, your home, stood tall and proud upon a hill that overlooked the village below, ("a safety precaution” the royals had insisted when the idea was pitched). this made the home seem threatening although you knew it to be a place of laughter and joy, the locals would never be allowed to know what it was like inside the luxurious hallways of the manor, they would only ever know that the noble swain family lived there, the nobles that lived there to protect them from harm that could potentially come their way. however, there was never much danger as the village was peaceful, only a few small robberies happened, that was all.

-

the door to your bedroom closed with a light thud and a soft ‘click!’ from the lock sliding into place. nobody was allowed in there.

you walked down the long hallway towards your father’s office, admiring the individual paintings of the swain family. you stopped to stare at them, the large golden frames glistening in the rays of sunlight that emitted from the windows. your mother had insisted on putting the paintings in the drawing room but your father refused, wanting everyone to see every beautiful piece of artwork your mother created.

the first painting was of your father: lord alexander swain. the painting captured his greying hair almost comedically, swept over and styled different from his usual hair. the sun made his pale skin glow to the point where you squinted to see the painting correctly. your father’s eyes seemed too harsh to actually be your father, perhaps this is how your mother saw him before her death? a man purely of business, fighting to protect the village and family that he loved so much? the blue your mother had used seemed too light, it pierced through your skin and made you shudder as you glanced quickly at the military uniform portrayed in the painting, the exact same navy blue colour as your coat, the silver details swirling across the collar and sleeves. you pressed on.

the second painting was of your step-mother: lady eleanor swain. her beauty was captured in so many ways. her brown curls feathered over her pale shoulders and revealed just how boney she was. even in a painting, she seemed so sickly. her eyes were a forest green that matched with the dress she had worn on the day of the painting being done. the frills and ruffles were enough to make your skin itch like crazy, so much that you felt as if small bugs were crawling up your sleeves. you shook your arms in a hurry, moving to the next painting that was further down the hall.

the third painting was of your twin brothers: harry and anthony swain. both of them were sat with their bodies facing one another but their heads facing forward. even sat down it was easy to tell that anthony was taller than harry and that caused a fond smile to form on your lips. they had insisted on dressing the same and styling themselves the same for the painting to throw off anyone who looked at it but you knew them too well. the black hair and bright blue eyes looked the same to anybody else but the mole on one boy’s top lip told you this was harry and freckles across the other’s face meant this was anthony. the white button ups and hair would not throw you off. it made you miss them, you wished they would come home. you moved on.

the fourth painting was of your eldest brothers: daniel and thomas. these two looked nothing alike despite being twins so the question of adoption was always a frequent topic in the manor. they were truly twins no matter how many times your father had insisted they were adopted. daniel had platinum blonde hair in the painting although you knew it to look more dirty, his grey eyes were portrayed perfectly, it made you think he was a zombie even in the painting. thomas had the wildest brown hair you had ever seen and your mother had captured that perfectly, his eyes the brightest green you thought you had ever seen. you would never get tired of seeing their faces.

the fifth painting was of your sisters: lydia and ruth. the more you stared at the painting the more you realised you missed them. both of them had moved away once they had married and started their own families, nobody had seen them in years although postcards had been sent and the odd telephone call had come through. you couldn’t bring yourself to look at their eyes in the painting, they were the same lifeless grey as daniel’s eyes. their blonde hair had been styled to perfection when your mother had painted them and it showed, the soft lilac dresses they wore complimented their hair perfectly. the more you looked, the more you felt they watched you so you moved on.

the sixth painting was of your step-sister: felicity. you would never look at this painting long, you hated to see her bratty little face running around the halls so you weren’t about to look at how your mother had painted her like she was an angel. felicity had brown hair that always had a mind of its own although your mother had painted it as straight and tamed. her eyes always had a mean stare although your mother had painted them as large and innocent green eyes. the dress she had worn was a sickening pink that made your head buzz and stomach churn. you quickly moved.

the seventh and final painting was of you: general (Y/N) swain. you stared at yourself in the painting and the painting stared back. this is how your mother had seen you. you shook your head and sighed, looking at your (H/C) hair in the painting that swept past your shoulders, your mother had painted it so beautifully. your (E/C) eyes had a soft look, nothing like the harsh glare you normally wore. work made you tired, you were no longer allowed to see the world as you wanted, your innocence and purity torn away as you had to go fight to defend the royals. you thought of resigning but you didn’t want your family to be disappointed in you. taking one glance at the uniform your mother had painted you in, you turned and reached the end of the hallway.

knocking twice to signal your arrival to your father, you cracked open the door by an inch.

“father, it’s me. you wanted to see me?” your voice came out quiet as you stepped foot into the large office, not bothering to look around as you knew the wooden bookcases filled with files and other books that meant nothing to you, the sleek wooden floor, the large glass windows that were covered by maroon curtains, the same maroon coloured walls and the large crystal chandelier all too well. alexander looked up from the documents in his hands and offered a warm smile. “ah welcome (Y/N), i thought i would see you later. i’m glad you’re here, i need you to do something for me.” alexander set the documents down in a neat pile and stood up, picking up another document that had been on the corner of the desk. he walked around and handed you the file.

“some townspeople have been hearing some rumours from the next town over about ‘the pirate king’. i need you to go and find out anything you can about these rumours.” alexander returned to his desk and went back to work, not sparing another look in your direction. he worked too hard.

“of course father.” you mumbled and left the office as fast as you had entered, closing the door quietly. sprinting back to your room, you almost pulled the door off of the hinges as you searched for your weapons. fixing your belt, you put your pistol into its holster, sliding a short dagger into the little pouch next to it. on your other hip you slid your sword into its sheath, making sure it was secure as you picked up your favourite musket, the one you always took on missions with you without fail, and slung it over your shoulder, securing the strap as you left the bedroom and made your way down the hall and to the grand staircase. felicity tried to stop you, her whining growing louder and louder with ever step you rushed down. you left the manor with no words said.

-

the village was bustling with life when you arrived.

children ran around carelessly with their friends, screaming and shouting in joy as they ducked into alleyways and pushed into people, not caring if they harmed anyone. the marketplace was open down on the docks so that’s the first place you checked. as you walked you nodded towards people and waved to let them know you meant no harm and this was simply a check up.

‘the fruit stand has a crowd today, i hope mrs clyde is okay.’ you wondered as you stepped towards the large crowd at the stand. mrs clyde greeted you with a smile, quickly turning to serve the next customer. you decided to question people who were stood in the line, gathering small details on the rumours.

apparently ‘the pirate king’ was a children’s tale based off of a real pirate. this ‘pirate king’ was the ruthless ruler of the seas who fought anyone in his path and stole their riches whilst he was at it. the ‘pirate king’ was told to be at least 6’7, a very tall man, taller than your father, he had black hair and sharp blue eyes, one of which was covered by an eyepatch although it wasn’t known which eye was covered, not that it really mattered. the ‘pirate king’ had a kill streak of over two thousand people, even if they were innocent but that didn’t matter. his crew was just as fierce and feared as he was. some versions of the tale said there were over fifty men on the ‘pirate king’s ship whilst other versions of the tale said there was a measly four people on board the ship, one of those people being the so-called ‘pirate king’ himself. the ‘pirate king’ and his crew were on some sort of mission to assassinate the royals although that was probably false.

you scoffed. “they tell tales like THIS to children? that’s absurd...” the woman in front of you gasped and shook her head, grasping your hands quickly. she looked frightened. “you mustn’t say that! it isn’t absurd general swain, it’s completely true!” the woman was now shaking, looking over her shoulder every few moments. you rolled your eyes and pulled your hands away, taking the woman to the side to attempt to console her and calm her down. “ma’am with all due respect, i just can’t see how this tale is true. yes there are fearsome pirates out on the ocean but i don’t see there being a so-called ‘king’ of them.” it seemed you would be returning to your father sooner than you imagined to tell him the news. you could only imagine the look on his face when you told him of your findings. the ‘pirate king’ isn’t real and it’s only a children’s tale. the woman shrieked and hugged herself, staring with wide eyes at your face. “general swain you CANNOT say that! you really really cannot or else he’ll come find you!”

you wanted to laugh.

“alright ma’am it’s alright, please take deep breaths for me, okay? i apologise if i offended you, thank you for telling me everything you know.” you smiled and the woman flinched but you shrugged it off, moving to the next person who only repeated what the woman before had said.

anybody you asked told you of the ‘pirate king’s’ tale and his mission which cracked you up inside. however, you were becoming aware of the dark clouds that were suddenly rolling over the village as you asked people what was going on with this rumour.

as the last person began to tell you the tale of the ‘pirate king’, there were multiple shrill screams as people stopped and stared above the village, their eyes fixated on something in the sky. you drew your sword and looked up, your eyes widening and mouth falling open. it wasn’t a cloud that had covered the village in darkness, no, it was-

“PIRATES!”

Chapter Text

“what the fuck is that…?”

the screams of the townspeople rang throughout your head, they were deafening as people ran for cover as this gigantic ship flew across the village. it came to a stop and things seemed peaceful until the canon fire began.

fires began to spread as the village fell into chaos, people screaming and crying, mothers grabbing their children, people getting crushed in falling buildings or worse, a canon ball itself. it seemed like the world was about to end. “everyone remain calm! the military will deal with this!” your voice fell on deaf ears as people continued to run. how could anybody stay calm at a time like this? the deafening sound of metal colliding with concrete and cobblestone filled your ears as the ship’s anchor was thrown down only a few feet from where you stood. your head snapped around to watch as four more generals appeared with other soldiers in tow, some running to go help people evacuate the area whilst others ran to the safety towers that lined the docks.

“shit shit shit, WATCH OUT!!!”

the first safety tower fell and with it, fell one of your comrades. his body plummeted to the docks below and hit the ground with a sickening crunch and splat as his body fell straight into fencing. the sight of his eyes rolling back into his head as he began to bleed out, his bones sticking outwards made you heave, vomit rising in your throat. the second tower fell and crushed a poor mother and her little boy as they tried to escape. you felt ill. the third tower fell and although you wanted to look away, you couldn’t. your heart felt as if it would explode in your chest.

“general swain! fucking hell we need to move!” it was one of the other generals. her eyes were wide and she held to what you assumed was a now empty pistol. she had been firing aimlessly at the ship and there was no point. “general amara…what the fuck is that thing?”

general amara pulled you along the cobblestone path, dodging any craters and trying to help as many people as she possibly could. “that’s the illusion! or better known as the treasure!” your heart stopped. ‘the illusion’? ‘the treasure?’

“that’s the ship of literally the most feared pirates on the earth! fuck why are they here?!” she screamed and turned sharply, her eyes turning white as she stopped still. general amara barely had time to face you as a bullet got fired straight through her head. she dropped like a fly and you knew you were next. so you ran, but not away from the ship no, you ran towards it.

with your heart in your mouth you removed your musket and aimed at the head you could see above the railing on the ship. the bullet missed by pure centimetres.

“COME DOWN YE FILTHY PIRATES!” you jumped as a soldier raised his sword toward the ship, anger in his eyes. he couldn’t stand as his legs were crushed completely by fallen rubble yet he wanted to fight? it was honourable. you soon wished he hadn’t had said a word. a ladder was thrown down as well as a rope. “oh shit…”

they came down the rope so fast you thought they had teleported. the fear in the soldier’s eyes grew as he was shot down in an instant.

there was eight of them. eight insanely handsome men. but you wouldn’t have said they were pirates at all, instead you would have called them royalty instead. “hold your fire.” you hissed out, pulling your pistol from your belt and aiming it for what you assumed to be one of their gunners, your eyes weren’t trained on him however. you stared at the short man ahead of you, he seemed familiar and you didn’t know how.

“oh shiver me timbers!” the one man laughed. holy fuck was his laugh just as pretty as him.

the short man stepped forward and you pointed the gun towards him to which he put his hands up and smiled warmly. “put the gun down lass, i mean no harm.” he spoke in a calm manner as if he was completely oblivious to the state of your village. you scoffed and rolled your eyes, gun still pointed towards his head.

the man seemed around 5’7 but he sure knew how to hold himself tall. black scuffed boots, brown trousers that flared slightly and had patches of black and white checkers in places, a white turtleneck, a large beige fur coat and to top it off, a pirates hat on his head. made from leather, it was stuffed and dirty but had some charm to it in a way. the man’s ears were covered in piercings which made you want to stare for hours at the studs and little chains. his eyes were a hazel colour and burned holes into your skull as you analysed every inch of him. lastly you took notice of his hair, a brown mullet that he shockingly pulled off. ‘oh NO, he’s hot!’ your head screamed. this had to be the captain.

behind the ‘captain’ was a tall blonde man who made your heart skip a few beats. his hair was neatly swept to the side and framed his face perfectly, his eyes were also brown but they seemed slightly more grey then the ‘captain’s’ eyes. he wore a long brown trench coat that had a black studded belt wrapped around his waist, white trousers and brown dress shoes. he didn’t seem to have any piercings but that didn’t matter right now.

next to the blonde man stood a even taller man with ashy brown hair, styled similar to the blonde man’s hair. he was one of the most beautiful men you had ever set eyes on. like the blonde man, he wore a brown trench coat although this seemed to be made of leather. not the best for hot weather. he wore a black turtleneck with crème trousers that had some spots of brown, reminding you of a cow and black shoes. you glanced up at his face again to see him staring right at you. grey eyes, he had grey eyes but he didn’t look lifeless like your brother daniel did. taking a deep breath you turned and caught sight of two silver hoops in his right ear.

it felt like you had made a grave mistake taking your eyes off of the taller man as you moved onto the man you had pointed your gun at before. his eyes stared into yours and although you were scared, you couldn’t help but feel slightly entranced by him. his hair was a deep brown with red streaks all throughout and you couldn’t help but realised how much it suited him. his eyes were a greenish-grey, almost catlike. his ears were littered with piercings much like the ‘captain’s’ however he had more dangling chains. he wore black turtleneck with some white designs, a dusky beige jacket with a leather body warmer over that, brown trousers and black boots. you noticed the four pistols in his belt plus a standard musket strapped to his back. definitely one of the gunners.

your eyes shifted to someone who seemed more nicer.

next to the man with the ashy hair was a man the same height as him, this one had black hair and he was actually smiling at you instead of trying to kill you with one look. he wore a regular white shirt with an expensive looking gingham blazer and a brown fur boa, black leather trousers and black shoes. his eyes were a warm brown and you felt as if you could look at him forever and feel at home.

standing right next to the smiling man was a slightly shorter man that looked as if he could snap you in half with his bare hands, almost as if you were an apple. he wore a white turtleneck like the ‘captain’ with a brown leather jacket on top as well as some expensive looking necklaces. they were probably stolen if you were being honest with yourself. dark leather trousers and brown boots, gosh what is with the leather? looking up at his face you couldn’t help but smile. he looked rather young, possibly around your age which made him 22, maybe a year older. he had soft brown eyes and brown hair that was once again styled neatly. much like the others, he also worse a few earrings. like the first gunner, he had two pistols strapped to his belt.

the moment you pulled your eyes away, regret filled your body as you came face to face with the biggest smirk on a man. you could TELL he was trouble. this man was stood close to the gunner with brown and red hair, their arms practically linked. this man had silver hair but looked more brown when the light was off him. his eyes were a pale green that had flecks of brown in them, under his left eye was a small beauty mark. he wore a regular black shirt with a crème jacket on top that had white fur on the shoulders, it looked quite classy. he also wore leather trousers and black boots. these pirates liked their leather. lastly you took notice of the many earrings he wore, one of them being a large cuff on his left ear. that could hurt if it was pulled on.

lastly you turned your attention to what you thought was a statue at first until the man moved, his eyes sending a cold chill through your bones. brown tousled hair and striking grey eyes, he was breathtaking. perhaps he belonged in a museum. he wore a white shirt and a few necklaces, also probably stolen. a brown fur jacket that had stripes of white across it, black ripped jeans that had a black tattered bandana tied trough one of the loops and lastly black boots. and of course earrings! he had a pistol strapped to his thigh which for some reason you couldn’t take your eyes off of.

once you finally finished looking at the men, you realised that they were pirates and they had quite literally destroyed your village and killed so many people.

“what is it that you want?” weak. you sounded weak as you lowered your pistol from the man with the hat on. he smiled again.

“allow me to introduce myself. i am captain hongjoong of the illusion or better known as the treasure, although we like to call her ‘the destiny’. pleasure to meet you.” hongjoong’s voice was calm and you almost let your guard down. you rolled your eyes. “i do not care for your name, pirate. state your business.” yet he ignored you.

“this is my crew! i apologise for the damage to your little town, i would have liked for us all to talk before we fired but someone didn’t want to wait.” hongjoong glanced at the brown and red haired man and then back towards you, smiling once again. if he wasn’t so pretty you would have punched that smile straight off of his face.

before you could open your mouth again, hongjoong was turning around to face his crew, taking the hat off of his head. he went to speak but you knew better.

you drew your sword and lunged forward, the pistol clattering to the ground.

“captain!”

“let him go!”

“get your filthy hands off of him, military scum!”

the shouts from the pirate crew made you feel scared but alive as you held your sword to their captain’s neck, holding his wrists firmly behind his back.

“state your business or your captain gets it!”

Chapter Text

you held your sword steady to the captain’s throat, your breathing shallow next to his ear. your hands were shaking as the gunner from before aimed his musket at your face.

“let our captain go! get your retched hands off of him or i’ll blow your brains out!”

Hongjoong chuckled and turned his head slightly, careful of the sharp blade at his throat. “oh, i suggest you be careful. your hands are shaking, you could seriously injure yourself!” he was worried about you hurting yourself but not worried for his life? what a man. “captain, i will not hesitate to have you and your crew thrown into prison with a date for a public execution..”

the crew quietened down for a moment and then there was another voice.

“let my captain go general, you shall fight me instead.” the tall blonde man stepped forward and removed his trench coat to reveal a frilled white buttoned shirt with a few military style pins and medals pinned to the left side of his shirt. on the right side of his collar there was a small pin in the shape of an hourglass. as you released the captain, you realised that he also had this pin on his hat. you wondered what it meant although you knew that it wouldn’t matter for long as you were now being brought into a duel. you stepped forward and rested your sword to your side.

the blonde man drew his sword and held it straight up in front of him, the point towards the sky. he closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, and then looked towards you. “Park Seonghwa.”

you arched a brow, watching his face closely as he rushed forward and swung towards your face. you blocked with your own sword, forcing the man’s hand to the right. up close you realised that he was extremely handsome and for some reason, you knew you recognised his name. your hands shook as his face came closer. “general please watch what you’re doing, you may amputate someone’s hand.” his voice was smooth and low as he drew his sword back quickly and plunged it through the cloth of your coat and straight through your stomach. the pain was delayed as you continued to stare at the man’s face.

“that is your name, no?” your voice came out in a whisper as the man, now recognised as Seonghwa, began to slowly draw the sword from your stomach.

“yes, that is my name. unfortunately, it is the last name you will ever hear.” Seonghwa moved back and watched as you clutched your stomach. he then walked towards the ship.

why did you seize up? why didn’t you force the sword from his hand and apprehend him? and why did you definitely recognise his name?

“Yeosang, do what you can to her and then help get her to the ship.” there was a faint voice as your eyes started to close and you stumbled, your sword falling from your hand just to clatter against the cobblestone ground. “Y-Yeosang?” you muttered and looked around quickly, vision blurring rapidly as you continued to lose blood. your mind began to race. what was going to happen to you? “get her to the ship”? were you about to be kidnapped?!

‘Yeosang’ rushed towards you and removed a small bag he had hidden under his jacket. your coat was removed and lay on the floor as you were carefully lowered onto it, ‘Yeosang’s fluffy jacket placed under your head. the sun beamed down into your eyes, the smoke from the canons billowing across the sky. “hello general, can you see me?” the voice was calm as pressure was put onto the wound. your head turned slightly as your eyes fluttered until you could make out the figure of ‘Yeosang’. “my name is Yeosang as you heard. i’m going to have to unbutton your shirt a little but i will not take it off, do not fret.” he spoke calmly as he checked for a reaction as he removed the pressure from the wound and started to unbutton the lower half of your shirt. he quickly moved to the bag and took out a cloth and began to wipe away the blood as fast as he possibly could with his right hand, his left hand very carefully reaching to see if there was another wound on your back.

how far had the sword gone? you had surely punctured an organ or two right? were you going to die? you hadn’t even told felicity that you didn’t hate her as much as it seemed.

“Yunho! Yunho come help me!” Yeosang called and continued to wipe away the blood, pressing down onto the wound again. the pain was unbearable but you did not want to scream or cry in front of the enemy. you simply gritted your teeth together and squeezed your eyes shut despite feeling as if you would pass out the second you closed them.

another person was quick to kneel at your side and press down onto the wound with the cloth Yeosang had used.

“general, could you your eyes for me please?” the voice was sweet and you opened your eyes to see the kind looking man, Yunho as Yeosang had called him. Yunho smiled and lightly patted your shoulder, continuing to apply pressure with his right hand. “hi general swain, i’m Jeong Yunho. it’s nice to make your acquaintance. we’ve heard stories from passing ships about you and they spoke highly of your fighting. whatever happened, lass?” Yunho’s words stung.

Yeosang moved Yunho’s hand and looked towards your face. “general i’m going to sew the wound together but i will unfortunately have to reopen it when we get you onto the ship alright?” you pushed yourself up slightly and groaned as the pain spiked through your stomach into your back. “you will n-not get me onto that blasted ship!” you swiped at Yeosang to which Yunho caught your hand and slowly pushed you back onto the floor. “stay calm or this will hurt more than it should.”

before you could respond, Yeosang started to sew the wound together, glancing up every few seconds. you grasped Yunho’s hand tightly, ignoring the yelp he let out as his fingers cracked loudly.

after a while the pain continued but bandages were being wrapped around your torso for some more protection. your shirt was buttoned up again as Yeosang put his equipment away and stood up, signalling Yunho to keep you on the floor, calling someone else over. this person being the second tallest man.

“Mingi, assist Yunho in tying her wrists and ankles together. we need to get her onto the ship with no issues. and hurry, i’m sure that the other authorities, the alive ones that is, have been alerted. hurry before San shoots you.” Yeosang ordered and rushed past the gunner from before, named San. the others were now seemingly on the ship.

Mingi produced a thick rope from his pocket, glancing at Yunho as he continued to hold you down. as you tried to thrash around, Mingi became increasingly angrier ever second. the next thing you knew, everything had gone black.

you wanted to go home.

Chapter Text

the cold air whipped around your face, the smell of salty seawater filled your nostrils as you finally managed to open your eyes. you were confused. your eyesight was blurry and your head felt fuzzy, you couldn’t gather coherent thoughts. there was a dull throb in the back of your head as if you had been clobbered with a plank of wood. finally, you sat up.

the room you were in was a small wooden room, the walls were decorated with shelves that held many different medical books, empty vials and bottles filled with substances. there was a small bed across the room with a tattered quilt lay on top, it was exactly the same as the bed you laid upon although there was no quilt on your bed, they must think you didn’t deserve one. there was a desk on the back wall, papers and books stacked upon the cheap looking wood. on a small cloth lay some medical tools, some of which seemed coated in blood although it looked as if someone had tried to wipe it away as fast as possible. some papers fluttered in the breeze as the window above the desk had been opened slightly. you slowly moved your legs off the side of the bed, pain rippling through your stomach.

a door swung open, the wood creaking as someone walked down the stairs into the room.

yeosang.

yeosang walked into the room and gave you a look. his hair was now a brilliant shade of blue. his clothes had also changed but that wasn’t what you wanted to focus on. yeosang was in front of you, you were in a strange room that clearly wasn’t in your village.

“you’re awake, that’s good. i was afraid you wouldn’t wake up after the surgery.” you looked down at your stomach and realised you were in a shirt that wasn’t your own.

“where are my clothes?” you murmured as you looked back up at yeosang as he searched through bottles. “ah worry not, your shirt and coat will be washed on board…although you might be needing another shirt, it’s rather bloody. i apologise for having to change you out of your clothing, i didn’t want the wound to get infected.”

things were silent for a few moments before yeosang spoke again.

“i have managed to close the wound and cover it so you won’t get an infection. there wasn’t any internal bleeding or punctures, somehow seonghwa had missed any organs. you’ll be in pain however you should be able to move around as long as you don’t make sharp turns. i will check up on you in a few hours.” his voice was relaxed as he pulled out a small vial from a stand and walked towards the bed. he crouched down a little and held the vial out. “drink this, it’s a herbal painkiller.”

the liquid inside the vial was almost colourless although there was a slight green tint to it. in your mind, you thought of poison. with a shaking hand, you reached up and took the vial from yeosang’s hand. you swirled it around for a moment and sniffed the vial, registering there was no smell. yeosang snorted and stepped back to return to his desk.

you took a deep breath and drank the liquid. there was a sickeningly sweet taste to it and despite wanting to spit it out, you swallowed and dropped the empty vial onto the bed. you looked down into your lap and messed with loose threads on your trousers. there were rips in the knees, dirt and ash covering most of the left leg, dry blood on the right thigh. sighing, you sat in silence and tried to shrink into yourself.

the door opened again and the steps creaked as another person walked down. you refused to look up.

“yeosang, the captain wants to see you and…the military woman on deck.” the voice was harsh but you paid no mind.

“thank you for making me aware san, i will be up in a moment.” yeosang started writing something, the scratching of a pencil sliding over the paper filled the room. after a solid minute of silence, footsteps approached the bed and your wrists were pulled forward harshly. your head snapped up and you came face to face with san who was now blonde. had they all managed to dye their hair in the few hours that you were out?

“remove your hands, pirate.” you hissed and pulled backwards, but san kept his iron grip on your wrists. he produced a thick rope from his pocket and began looping it around your wrists with the one hand. “yeosang, assist me.” san stared directly at your face, his eyes burning through your skull.

yeosang stepped over and with the most gentle hold, he held your wrists together as san secured the rope. you pulled and pulled, kicking your leg outwards until your foot came in contact with san’s shin. he let out a pained wail.

“owww! you fucking bitch!” he hopped back, holding both hands over his left shin, jumping around on his right foot. yeosang let out a short laugh as he gathered another rope from san’s pocket, carefully tying your ankles together. “it will be hard to walk but you’ll still be able to lass. now let’s get you on the deck before the captain throws both of us overboard.” yeosang tightened the rope and pulled you up, pulling you towards the stairs. step by step, he helped you climb.

“release me!! RELEASE ME! i will have your head upon a stake if you do not remove your hands!” your pleas fell on short ears as yeosang pulled you into the open air. the sun blinded you which forced you to squint. san followed after, grumbling and mumbling under his breath.

the ship no longer seemed to be in the sky and was now slowly gliding along the oceans blue waters, rocking and swaying. ahead of you were the main two masts, flags raised high in the sky as they fluttered in the wind. red and black striped flags with what looked like ‘ATEEZ’ in the centre of the flag. yeosang pulled you along the deck and towards the first mast. there stood a man with brown hair and blue tips. from looking at his face, you recognised him to be mingi.

yeosang pulled you over and made you stand with your back to the mast. before you could process what was going on, rope was being tied round your torso and you were being tied to the mast. “what the fuck…?” your voice came out small as the rope was secured around the mast and mingi returned in front of you. you stared up at his face but found no emotion in his eyes. yeosang stood next to him and waited as the rest of the crew came along onto the deck. the last to arrive was hongjoong, black and white hair peeking from underneath the thick brown hat on his head. the rest of the crew stood silently as hongjoong stepped forward.

“it’s wonderful to see you awake lass! i was worried when yeosang said you might not wake up.” he took his hat off and held it to his chest, smiling at you as stared into his eyes. “i would have preferred to perish.” you hissed. hongjoong simply rolled his eyes and stepped forward. you turned away as you no longer wanted to be seen.

“you see, we’re on a quest.” the short yet rather intimidating captain spoke up, causing your head to turn. there was a dull ache that continued to throb in the back of your head. being tied to a mast turned out to be one of the worst things you had come to experience.

“on a quest to find what exactly..?”

“afraid i can’t s—“ hongjoong was cut off as another man jumped forward and almost fell flat on his face, regaining his posture quickly, his smile blinding in the sunlight.

“the Pirate King’s crown! oh, and a cromer! we’ve been looking for ages and-“ he stopped, looked at the seven other men that were gathered on the deck and then gasped, his hands flying to his mouth. “i’ve said too much…”

you could only laugh as the man was scolded, stopping as soon as the tip of a sword was posed at your neck. following up the blade, you saw hongjoong who was surprisingly not as angry as you thought he would be at his crew member spilling their secrets out to a complete stranger, the stranger being a part of the military too.

then he posed the question,

“so, are you in?”

everything was silent for a moment and then you started laughing. “am i in? am i in? who do you think i am?! i am not here to join your scummy pirate crew!” you snapped and shuffled around a little, hoping the rope around your torso would loosen.

hongjoong smiled and lowered his sword to his side, watching you closely. “ah…oh dear…well we were hoping you’d join us in our journey! i’m sure you know a little about the cromer, i’m aware that the military has been looking for a special object that is able to manipulate time if the holder so much as wishes to do that. we are also looking for this object which is the cromer, a ‘simple’ hourglass is you will.” the captain paced around as he spoke, waving his sword a little. once he finished speaking, he stopped pacing and looked at you again. “we would like you to join us on our journey.” he spoke again.

you rolled your eyes and shook your head. “i refuse. i am not here to join your crew, i would rather you threw me overboard!”

it went quiet again.

hongjoong snapped his fingers and mingi stepped forward. with fast hands, mingi untied the rope from your torso and brought you forward. within seconds, you were now at the side of the ship. they were actually going to throw you overboard. you were going to die. you were going to be thrown overboard and you were going to die. you were never going to see your family again. as mingi lifted you with ease you squeezed your eyes closed tight. you could be brave and attempt to float somewhere but you knew you were far out at sea.

“i’ll do it!!”

mingi chuckled and set you back on the deck. “there it is..” you were walked back towards hongjoong and then made to stand still. the rope around your ankles was untied but the rope around your wrists was kept on. hongjoong smiled and patted your shoulder. “i knew you would come around!” he took your arm and pulled you towards the captain’s quarters. you heard the crew disperse and go on with their own activities. hongjoong swung the door open to the quarters and lead you to a chair in front of a desk. he pulled you over and allowed you to sit, taking the rope from your wrists. he then sat on the other side of the desk, pulling out a large map and some papers as well as a quill. he dipped the tip into a little pot of ink.

“now, i apologise for taking you and bringing you onto my ship but we really do need your assistance. the Pirate King’s crown was stolen and we are trying to retrieve it. the cromer is essential as it can alter time and parts of the universe. here’s a rough sketch of what the cromer looks like.” hongjoong slid a small piece of parchment across the table, causing you to tuck your chair in a little to look at the sketch.

it was a simple spherical hourglass that was held onto a stand. from the position of the stand, it appeared as if the cromer would be able to spin. you studied the sketch for a little longer and tried to remember anything you possibly could. despite not wanting to work with pirates, you believed that if you worked with them, they might allow you home in one piece. “i remember head general seung had spoken about a special ‘hourglass’ that would allow them to achieve something. they never told us what they wanted to achieve and why this ‘hourglass’ would help them. i do not remember much more.” you sat back in the chair and offered an apologetic smile to hongjoong. he shook his head a little and returned the smile.

“it’s nothing to worry about at the moment, i don’t believe that they would have found it. there is a special item that is needed to find the cromer, that being a compass. it’s called ‘the compass of the answer’ which can be a mouthful sometimes but that’s it’s name. you must find the parts of the compass for it to be complete and functional. lucky for us, we have three out of four parts!” hongjoong rattled a drawer in the desk and pulled it outwards, taking a small box out. he took a key from around his neck and unlocked the box, showing the contents to you. “we would be ever so grateful if you could help us find the last part. i know we have quite literally kidnapped you but your help would be much appreciated. i can tell you’re special (Y/N)..” the captain closed and locked the box, putting it back in the drawer. he then looked back up and reached across the table, carefully taking your hands in his.

with another smile and a gentle squeeze of your hands, hongjoong looked at you with hope in his eyes. you couldn’t help but feel like you’ve had this look before. being able to see hongjoong up close you could recognise little features on his face. his warm brown eyes, the slit on his right eyebrow and the small scar on his left cheekbone. you feel as if you know him. you felt as if you could warm up to him, get used to this.

“i’d be honoured to help, captain.”

Chapter Text

the slow rocking of the ship was almost enough to pull you into the land of slumber if it wasn’t for the loud singing outside. it was your first evening on the ship, only 3 hours after you had agreed to help hongjoong and his crew on their journey, and you had already hated every second.

the ship was relatively large which granted your own little barracks separate to any of the boys. you would have been excited about this if it wasn’t for the fact that you were quite literally kidnapped, however you were a little grateful. you couldn’t imagine bunking with any of those pirates.

there was a faint knock on the door.

you ignored it.

the person knocked again.

“come in!” you huffed and resumed the book that you had been given by hongjoong. the book was a tale on the Pirate King to which you didn’t want to pay much attention to but after a while, it become rather gripping. the door opened and squeaked closed as the sound of small steps filled the small space. the words on the pages jumbled around as the silence stretched out. finally, you looked up.

standing by the door was wooyoung who you remembered as the man who tried to spill all of the crew’s missions a couple of hours earlier. hongjoong had finally introduced you to the crew after you had finished your talk in his quarters. he held a small cracked plate in his hand and a clear mug with what looked like water in it. he offered a smile. “i brought you some food general. it’s not a lot however, i’m sorry.” he set the plate and mug down on the desk opposite the bed, turning back towards the bed. “oh! you’re reading the book captain gave you? i saw you leave his quarters with it but i wasn’t sure that you’d actually read it.” you folded the corner of the page you were on and placed the book on the bed. it was quite a thick book for a small story.

“it’s…it’s rather interesting. you can sit if you like…” swinging your legs over the side of the bed, you dusted the quilt off and made room for wooyoung. he stood and stared at the empty space on the bed, contemplating if he should. after a few moments of silence, he walked over and sat on the edge of the bed, looking at the wooden floor below. he fiddled with the sleeves of the blazer he was wearing and turned to face you. “so i’m wooyoung, i know captain introduced us but i’d like to say it myself. i’m the chef on board but i sometimes join the gunners! you know san? the ‘scary’ blonde one?” he used air quotes when he said scary, chuckling a little. you nodded and stood up, striding across the room to pick up the plate, returning soon after. you sat back down and picked up the fork that was resting on the side of the plate. there was a few small vegetables as well as a section of beef which was lightly salted.

“he’s my best friend, but don’t tell yeosang that, yeosang and i have known each other for eight years!” wooyoung smiled brightly, closed his eyes and sat back on his hands. “yeosang found me after my mother abandoned me, he was twelve and i was eleven, only a month away from twelve. i don’t know why his family took me in but i’m thankful that they did. i’d be lost without yeosang…i was so scared that i would die, left on the streets at eleven with no food, no shelter, only a thin tattered shirt and shorts and a necklace that i had stolen from my mother when i was younger. i’m glad he found me…” wooyoung mumbled, opening his eyes. he glanced in your direction and gasped, sitting up properly.

“are you alright?!” wooyoung moved the plate and fork away, his hands flying to your face. you flinched as wooyoung rubbed his thumbs across your cheeks, his expression worried. “you’re crying.”

“i’m sorry that all happened to you…” you whispered, refusing to look wooyoung in the eyes. he gasped again and moved closer, bringing you into a warm embrace. “ah no no it’s okay don’t cry! come on, breathe for me.” he rubbed a hand soothingly up and down your back, his free hand resting on the back of your head. you slowly began to relax until you were hit by realisation. you were in the enemy’s arms. you pulled back and wiped your face.

“wooyoung…c-could you leave me alone now? i’d like to eat and get some sleep..” your voice was quiet and a little shaky but wooyoung heard every word. he nodded and stood up, clearing his throat. “i’m sorry if i upset you, feel free to return your plate and mug if you feel up for it. sweet dreams general.” wooyoung then left the barracks with no further words said. the door squeaked closed and the room then fell silent. you resumed your meal, picking at the vegetables.

wooyoung had a hard childhood, the poor soul.

as you sat and ate, you stared out of the window and watched the waves as the ship continued forwards. after a while of silently watching the waves, you set your plate down on the desk and returned to the bed, settling down against the pillows.

as the room darkened, you slipped into a deep slumber as the singing outside finally stopped…

————————————————————————

the streets were bustling with life as you walked along the pathways to the market. children ran around with their friends, shouting and laughing at nothing in particular. you took a turn down a small alleyway which was a shortcut down to the docks.

as the alleyway got thinner, a small sniffle was heard from an alcove in the wall. you stopped.

you moved towards the alcove and stopped infront of a small boy with a tattered grey shirt and ripped brown shorts. he was sat on a old blanket that someone had thrown away, huddling himself in the furthest corner to stay warm. his black hair was ruffled and greasy, dirt and small twigs resting in small tufts. he turned to look at you, mud streaked on his face and neck as well as his fingertips and feet. his eyes widened.

“p-please don’t hurt me!!” he yelped and tried to move further back, hands shielding his face. through the gaps in his fingers you could see a small mole under his left eye.

“hey…i’m not going to hurt you little one. what’s your name?” you crouched down and held a hand out towards him, cautiously moving his hands away from his face. the boy flinched but didn’t answer. “where are your parents?” the boy sobbed loudly, tears streaming down his face.

you shrugged your coat off and removed the pistol from your pocket, wrapping the coat around the boy’s shoulders. “shh it’s okay little one…do you know where your home is?” you took a handkerchief from your pocket and gently wiped the mud away from his face and neck, dabbing his tears away with the clean side. “i…i don’t know..” the boy whispered and messed with his hands. you finished cleaning the mud from his arms, hands and legs, discarding the handkerchief. you took note of a necklace around his neck. “alright little one. i’m going to have to take you somewhere safe so you don’t get hurt out here. i’ll find your parents and we’ll get you home, how does that sound?” the boy nodded and sniffled again, wiping his face. you smiled and stood up, leaning down to carefully pick the boy up.

you held the coat around his shoulders and brought him close to your body, slipping your pistol into your pocket, minding not to hurt the boy.

as you walked out of the alleyway, you asked the boy what his name was again. after a few moments of silence, he spoke up.

“it’s…it’s wooyoung…”

Chapter Text

the morning sun filtered through the window into your barracks and illuminated the room in a soft glow. you arose from your slumber and rubbed the sleep away from your eyes, looking around the room. it took time before your eyes finally adjusted to the bright light from the sun.

the plate and mug had disappeared from the desk and in their place there was a crumpled note and a small vial.

removing the quilt from your body, you trudged over to the desk and picked up the note.

‘general,

i hope you are feeling well. you didn’t open the door when i knocked last night so i came in and left your medicine on your desk. you don’t have to look so on guard even when asleep. please take the medicine after you read this note, whenever that may be.

i hope you join us for breakfast.

-Yeosang’

you smiled at the note and picked up the vial, popping the cork off and quickly drinking the contents. once finished you placed the vial and note back onto the desk and moved to where you had haphazardly kicked your boots off the night before, putting them on. you needed to find somewhere to bathe.

the door to the barracks opened with a squeak, alerting anyone outside of your presence, however, there was nobody there. as you climbed up onto the main deck you realised that the ship was stopping at a town’s dock. you could see people waking up in their homes, opening their windows to let air in. in the silence, it all seemed so peaceful. suddenly, a hand slammed down onto your shoulder. you spun around and punched the perpetrator directly in their nose, kicking their legs from under them.

yunho yelped in shock as he went down like a sack of potatoes, holding his now bleeding nose. “what was that for?!” he shrieked, rolling around on the deck. before you could even open your mouth to apologise, the barrel of a gun was being pressed harshly into your right temple. the cold steel sent chills down your spine.

“san, stand down. you’ll blow the woman down if you shoot.” came hongjoong’s voice. he sounded tired as if he just woke up.

“that’s what needs to happen. she hurt yunho.” san’s voice was low in your ear, a low growl that vibrated in his chest. you continued to stand still, not letting him instil fear in you. hongjoong sighed and ran his hands through his hair, walking over. he moved san’s hand down which removed the gun from your head, rendering no more danger. san glared at hongjoong and then at you, gripping his gun tightly.

the rest of the crew soon came up onto the deck, saying their good mornings.

you crouched down and held your hand out to yunho. “sorry for attacking you, you startled me.” yunho let out an airy laugh and took your hand, pulling himself up. he wiped his bloodied nose on the back of his free hand, smiling. “it’s alright! it’s my fault for creeping up on you like that. sorry lass!”

“alright listen up everyone! we’re heading into the town in a moment so make sure you have all you will need. we’ll find a place to wash up.” seonghwa instructed to which everyone scampered off to go collect any money they had and a spare small weapon to carry. yunho squeezed your hand and walked off to his own barracks. it didn’t take long before everyone to come back onto the deck, chatting to one another happily.

hongjoong and mingi lowered the anchor and made sure the ship was close to the dock, setting down the bridge to walk down onto the dock. everyone gathered around and one by one, descended onto the dock. yunho turned around and smiled up at you. “come on general! just keep walking and you won’t fall!” you returned the smile and walked down the thin planks, panicking as they creaked under your boots. yunho opened his arms as the wood cracked and splintered, snapping in two halves. you jumped and grabbed onto yunho’s shoulders as he pulled you into his body, your feet hovering above the dock. “are you okay?” he set you down and held your arms tightly. you nodded slowly and held his sides.

the others took off with you and yunho in tow. “you’ll have to stay close to us, okay? this town is filled with other pirates, they’ll try take anything that they can, including people.” yunho warned you, walking so close that your arms and hands brushed against each other. you hummed in reply, showing you understood the instructions.

hongjoong guided everybody to a small inn, slamming the doors open as hard as he could. you stayed close to yunho as everybody filtered into the small room and then up a set of narrow steps, then into a thin hallway with doors lining the left and right walls. “right crew, we’re staying here for the night. i’ve found an informant in this village who may be able to help us with our mission. take any room you want, some might have to bunk up. just wash up as fast as you can so we can set out again.”

“aye aye captain!!” the pirates shouted in unison whilst you nodded, taking one of the rusted brown key’s from hongjoong’s hand.

after entering the room that the key opened, you went to close the door but a foot stopped it. the person shoved themselves into the room, scowling at you.

“cap told me to bunk up with you, heaven knows why. you better watch yourself military scum, i won’t hesitate to send you straight to davy jones’ locker..” san shoved past you, heading to the small washroom to get cleaned up. you stood in the doorway in shock. “rat bastard…” you snarled and slammed the door shut, deciding not to question hongjoong’s madness. you threw yourself onto the large four poster bed, rolling around before you got comfortable.

what felt like an hour later, san finally returned, greeting you by throwing a wet rag at your face.

“what the bloody hell was that for?!” you moved the rag and sat up, half asleep. san laughed and ruffled his hair, droplets of water flying from his hair. he nodded towards the washroom. you got up and walked past san, smacking his stomach with the rag, muttering under your breath.

the washroom was small and there was barely enough room to take clothes off. you stripped down, looking at the scars across your arms, chest and stomach in the small dirty mirror that had been provided. you washed up as fast as possible as you didn’t want to keep hongjoong waiting. you were intrigued about the ‘informant’ that hongjoong had been able to find. maybe if the informant helped hongjoong to find the last part of the compass then perhaps you could go home safely. you wondered if anyone had searched for you yet…

————————————————————

hongjoong told everyone to go explore the town whilst he waited for his informant at a close by tavern. he gave everyone some spare money and gave only one instructions, “come back to me in one piece.”

mingi had come with you on your walk around the market place. he stayed close, easily towering over you as you walked the stone paths into the town’s centre. the atmosphere was tense as neither of you spoke, that was until mingi suddenly blurted out that he was sorry he had knocked you out and tied you to their ships mast. you easily forgave him and quickly learnt that he was simply a gentle giant.

your conversations with mingi were pleasant as you browsed the market, buying some ingredients for wooyoung.

“general, i’m going to go into that store over there okay? keep looking around but don’t leave the market place.” mingi held your shoulders as he spoke, making eye contact. you nodded, not planning to make an escape as you knew you would be caught and killed. “alright. oh and mingi! call me (Y/N)? you don’t need to use my title or anything.” you smiled at the tall man, hoping that you could make friends with at least one of the pirates. mingi stared for a moment and then smiled, taking his leave shortly after which meant you were left all on your own.

the street stretched out for miles both left and right, market stalls lining both sides of the pavement. you started to walk past the stalls, looking at what each one offered. maybe you you could buy something for the long trip ahead.

before you could even step towards the fruit stall, there was a violent tug on your left leg which caused your head to shoot down. your money pouch had been stolen. you looked up to see a boy staring back before he ran off, his hands gripping your money pouch tightly to his chest. “thief! come back here!” you yelled as you chased after him, weaving through people and long thin alleyways. finally, the boy ran towards a dead end and froze, his eyes on the brick in front of him. he turned around and backed up as you stepped towards him. “hand the pouch back or else i will have reason to get the military involved.” as you moved closer towards the boy, you realised that he could be no older than 17.

he had black matted hair that was longer at the back of his head, forming a shaggy mullet, deep brown eyes that stared back at your face. he was quite tall for a possible 17 year old, easily around 5’9 which was still taller than you. he was wearing flared brown trousers that were a little torn at the bottom and had dirt running up the left leg. he also wore a frilled white shirt with mesh sleeves that could have made him look like royalty if it wasn’t for the tears in the arms. his boots were in the same shape, dirty and tattered.

“there will be no need for the military to be involved.”