"How could I possibly trust you, if you're taking over this ship?" Adelina asked very quietly, barely heard over the commotion above. She cringed to herself, regretting saying anything. Her breaths were shallow, trying to not be heard.
Cicada heard a faint voice and began to move towards where she thought she heard it from. She kept talking to the princess, "People are getting hurt up there ya know? For your safety. If you come quietly no one else will be hurt. I can promise you that much."
Adelina let out a sigh and slowly stood up, revealing herself. She stood about only five foot two, her bun disheveled. She had tucked her knife in the folds of her glorious dress. "Please tell your people to stop hurting mine." She said in an authoritative tone.
Cicada saw the princesses and a smirk fell upon her face. She was shorter than the princess by about two inches, curse her genetics, tan skin and covered in a layer of freckles. She looked to the princess and reached for her cord of rope, "Not until I have your word you'll come with me, your highness."
Adelina paused for a few moments, thinking. In her eyes, her people's wellbeing was more important than herself. She looked at the girl standing not too far away from her, studying her. She concluded the girl was a pirate, but she didn't know who. "If I must. I'll have you know, once my father finds out I'm missing, he will go to Hell and back to find me."
"Oh darling," Cicada purred slightly as she took a step towards the princess. If the princess knew about outlaws and pirates by heart, she may recognize her as the so-called 'Sea Devil', "He's been hunting me down for years now. Now will you come with me or not. I should give hte order sooner or later."
Adelina took a step back as the pirate stepped closer. She swallowed, making eye contact with the girl. What did she mean, he's been hunting her for years? She happened to know little to nothing about the outlaws and pirates. "Let's go then." She said, almost challenging her. She brushed past the pirate and went through the door. "Are you coming?" She asked looking back.
"Oh, of course. You'll be dead without me," Cicada grinned and stepped out after her. She made sure to stay close and that her cutlass was pointed at the princess just to make sure no one tried anything. Before doing anything she made eye contact with James and he silently called the attack off from his end. Though some of her crew didn't quite get the memo. She called out to the sea of fighting crews, "None of you move a step or the princess gets it!"
Adelina eyed her crew as they all slowly backed away from the other crew. She didn't look worried or afraid in the slightest which confused her capitan. All the fighting had come to a stop, a silence hung for a few seconds. "Are you going to take me aboard your ship or are we all going to stay here and stare at each other?" She asked the pirate, confusing her crew even more.
"Oh, we're going," Cicada responded pulling at the princess's arm towards her own ship smirking. She signaled for the rest of her crew to follow. The others moved away carefully taking those that were injured with them. She kept walking her back straight up and tall. She spoke softly to the princess, "I was just making sure your crew wasn't going to go after mine. We've taken enough wounded for today. Now get a move on."
Adelina resisted the pirate's grasp on her arm, but she kept walking. She glanced back at her crew, then back to the front. Her nerves were through the roof, but she had learned to control them and basically fake it 'til you make it. She glared back at the pirate and picked up her pace.
Cicada understood her resistance, but it was all for show. She brought her across and the crew pulled up the planks between and began to sail away. Cicada continued moving the princess to the captain quarters as she gave her final order, "Shoot the sails with the canons. Make the journey for them back as slow as possible."
Her crew nodded and went to work maneuvering the canons and aiming for the sails. It didn't take long for the sails to be ripped to shreds with only a few shots.
Adelina winced as she heard cannon fire, at least it was only the sails. She kept walking alongside the pirate as they got to the captain's quarters. "So, why do you want to take me in the first place? I did nothing, apparently, it is all my father that did anything to you and your crew."
"Well I figured I could earn a pretty penny with you," Cicada flashed her a grin. She let out a sigh and sat down in her chair letting the princess explore the room.
"Is that really it? Most people, if they saw me, would bring me back to the castle, safely, then get a cash prize if I've been missing for a while." Adelina said. She didn't move, instead, she looked right at the pirate, not shifting her gaze.
"I have no intention of bringing you back to your father," Cicada stated calmly. She kept her own gaze on the princess letting out a sigh and taking her hat off letting her wavy long red hair run down. She leaned over her desk, "Instead you'll be staying with us. Probably for the rest of your life."
Adelina's eyes widened and she went quiet. She had a plan for her life… she may have not been super happy about in the beginning, but she knew she would have probably enjoyed it eventually. "You mean… I will be living on this ship… for my whole life…?" She asked, defeated, "What is the point of being here… if you are not going to sell me like you said before. What do you want from me?"
"I can tell what I don't want," Cicada was dead faced. She knew this was a shock to the princess's system and needed to just remain calm. She stood up from her seat and leaned towards the princess, "I don't want your kingdom and your, well at this point ex, fiance's kingdom to join in an alliance. That's too much navy power and puts my interests in jeopardy. Besides, the ship'll grow onto you. It tends to do that to all who boards her."
Adelina just looked at the pirate in front of her. She stepped back when the woman stood up. "Well… I didn't want to marry the prince either, I would rather meet someone on my own than have an arranged marriage." She explained. "You could have just let me go along with it then I would tell my father I don't like the man, maybe he'd reconsider."
"I highly doubt it," Cicada responded noting the step back. She leaned back away and moved so she was in front of the desk. She sat down on top of the desk so she was at the very least taller than the princess, "He wants the alliance, and probably doesn't care about your wants. Think about it like this, I've just given you freedom. You can do whatever the hell you want now. You're just stuck on a pirate ship."
"That's the problem, I am stuck on a pirate ship. I do not enjoy being on the ocean, I would much rather watch it from the shore." Adelina explained. At least she didn't get seasick, that would make sure she wouldn't be on the ocean. But the pirate was right, her father couldn't care less about his daughter, he just wanted to be the most powerful he could be.
"As I said earlier," Cicada shrugged her comments off. She took a look over the princess and thought to herself that dress had to go. She hopped off the desk with little problem and walked over to what appeared to be a wardrobe. She had her back to the princess though she knew the door was locked so the little lady couldn't escape. She started to rummage through what clothes she had, "She tends to grow on ya. Now come on over here, you look too much like a princess for my taste."
"Well to bad, I am a princess and clothes won't change that. I am not changing into anything from this ship." Adelina insisted. She coudn't get over the fact that she was stuck on a pirate ship, unable to see her family ever again, and unable to be part of the royal kingdom ever again.
Cicada turned around and raised an eyebrow at the princess. She leaned against the wardrobe the clothes she had already grabbed resting on her arm, "I am well aware clothes don't make a person. However, this is more to your benefit than my own. It would be so easy to keep you tied up in a contracting outfit like that."
Cicada could help the purr that came out with the last sentence. She was the princess's captor and while she was lenient there were certain things she wasn't going to budge on.
"Why do you care what I am wearing? This is my body, my life. At least let me wear what I would like since I am stuck on here for all of my life and I can't really control much else of my life anymore." Adelina pleaded. It may not be much of anything, but it may be the only part of her that shows she's the princess left.
Cicada paused for a moment. The princess had a point. She dropped the clothes back into the wardrobe and closed the whole this up, “Very well then. You have a good point. Though I’m almost positive after a day or so you’ll be begging to get out of that stuffy dress.”
"That may be true, but right now, I would like to stay in this dress," Adelina said. She looked around and found a chair and sat down in it. "So, since I am going to be here a while, who are you? I will not bother introducing myself since you most likely already know me."
Cicada thought for a moment before going to sit back on her desk. She eventually tipped her hat back so a full view of her face could be seen, “Captain Cicada of the Firefly at your service. And of course I know your the princess, but I have never heard your name said. Or at least was paying attention when it said.”
"My name is Adelina De Clare, a… pleasure?… To meet you, Captian Cicada." Adelina said. She smiled ever so slightly. "What do you expect me to do here? I can not and will not work with your misfit crew on the ship. I would be as useless as a bag of sand."
“Oh you won’t stay that way for long,” Cicada responded grinning wildly, “I’m sure you’ve been taught basic domestic skills. You don’t need muscles to be of use, though it does tend to help. And as for will not, you won’t have a say in the matter.”
