Original Stories Fan Fiction / Romance Fan Fiction ❯ The Ocean in a Pirate's Eyes ❯ Chapter Two ( Chapter 2 )

I wonder if that ship is still there, thought Aurora as she made her way across campus to Professor Frumgar's office. Ah, well, I just hope this works. She flipped through a few pages of a language book, briefly stopping to read some of the history of the Caernai.

 

“The Caernai live to the North West of the Inoreth peninsula. The people of Caerni are mostly sailing traders who often travel to the Syran Islands to trade goods for their gold,” she read aloud. “Interesting… But most Caernai have dark tans and light hair from being in the sun all the time, not to mention their accents aren't that thick,” she muttered to herself before realizing she was standing in front of Professor Frumgar's classroom.

 

Shaking her head, she pushed open the door and walked inside. “Professor Frumgar?” she called, cautiously closing the door behind her. The windows were shaded by bright blue curtains with golden embroidery on them.

 

“In here, my dear,” called a raspy old voice. Aurora walked to the back of the classroom and through the door that led to the Professor's own personal office. “Now where did I put that book?” he muttered absently.

 

“Professor Frumgar?” she called again, getting the old man's attention.

 

“Oh, Aurora, my dear!” he said, climbing down the ladder connected to the bookshelf and cleaning off his glasses. Professor Frumgar was a short, plump old man with a kind heart. But that was not to be taken lightly; the professor was a very strong sorcerer and just recently retired from the Sorcerer's Army. “What can I do for you?”

 

Aurora cleared her throat, nervous. “Well… I just recently received a letter from my foster brother, Demetri,” she started, not knowing where she was going with this. Okay, okay… Just come up with a legitimate lie. “And he's currently in… Caerni, doing business with their traders. He's asked me to visit him, and I felt that I should learn the language before I go there.”

 

Professor Frumgar's bushy white eyebrows rose as he studied the girl thoughtfully. “Well, surely he could translate for you, could he not?” he asked. Aurora felt her body tense.

 

“Yes, but I've always wanted to learn more about the Caerni culture,” she added quickly, looking as sincere as she could. “I know I'm training to be a sorceress, but from what Demetri tells me, trading seems like an interesting profession, and I'd love to see the rest of the world.” She tried to make her eyes big and hopeful as to convince the professor. “Please, professor.”

 

The professor sighed, scratching the top of his balding head. “Aurora, you know how tough a process it is to make the potion,” he said, frowning. Aurora pouted.

 

“I know, professor, but I'm willing to make it on my own time—I just need you to gather some of the ingredients for me.” The professor stared long and hard, making Aurora almost sweat from the anxiety. Finally, he sighed in resignation.

 

“Alright, Aurora. I'll make the potion for you during my prep periods, so come get it from me before you go galavanting off into the town for lunch.” Aurora's expression brightened as she bowed respectfully.

 

“Thank you so much, professor!” The old man just shook his head, grinning as he shooed the girl back out into the halls.

 

 

Aurora winced, disliking the bitter taste and murky smell of the potion. She had rushed over to Professor Frumgar's office to pick up the potion before she headed out to the local café just on the outskirts of the school. Professor Frumgar had advised her not to eat until approximately three and a half hours after she'd consumed the potion, so she went straight to the bathroom of the café to drink it all in one gulp.

 

Of course, now she regretted it. Why did I want to learn this language again? she asked herself, gagging as she finished off the remaining drops of the potion. The potion itself was made from magical vegetables only found in the Potions Master's cupboards, strands of hair from a native of the place whose language the consumer wanted to learn, and pages of an ancient book only the wisest of sorcerers had access to. Grimacing at the bitter aftertaste, Aurora wondered if drinking anything would have any effect on the potion.

 

Probably, she thought sourly. I need a toothbrush, badly. Aurora sighed as she picked up her bag and shoved the cup inside, hastily closing it shut. She pushed her way out of the café, which had filled up rather quickly since she'd first arrived. Then again, the coffee here is cheap and actually tastes good. She stopped briefly to clip her hair up, then took out the book on Caerni and began to read it again.

 

Intrigued by the information, Aurora began muttering aloud again after brushing her bangs out of her eyes. “The Caerni live in two different worlds: in the level world, and the world above.” She paused, turning that thought over a few times. “What does that mean?” she asked herself.

 

“There! There she is!” shouted a voice from the opposite end of the road, pointing at Aurora. She gazed confused at the group turning hurriedly around the corner and running straight at her. Realizing they were actually after her, she shook herself out of the momentary confusion and dropped the book, dashing in the opposite direction.

 

Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! she thought, frantically searching for the next turn. Trying not to look back, she wondered for a moment why the group was chasing her. Maybe they thought I stole something at the coffee shop?

 

Then, she heard people shouting, “Get her! She's a witch! She must have shrunk the bags of bread and meat and hid it in her bag!” Great, they do think I'm a thief! she thought, groaning inwardly.

 

Damn it, what am I going to— A hand reached out, covering her mouth as she was pulled roughly into the shadows of an alley. She struggled, trying to scream for help, but the voice urgently whispered, “Keep quiet! It's me.”

 

Her eyes widened as she recognized the deep accent that the male Caernai had spoken with the previous night. Oh my God! What is he doing here? …Oh yes, they're pirates, she reminded herself. At least I think they are.

 

Once the mob of angry shopkeepers had passed by and rounded the corner, the man eased his grip on Aurora and sighed in relief. “Damnit, what were you thinking, getting yourself caught like that?” he asked, annoyed. “And what the hell are you—wait…”

 

Aurora stared at the man, gaping unintentionally. The same pirate with black, dreadlocked hair and bright ocean-blue colored eyes was here, speaking in Caernaic to her. And she understood it. “Um… Who are you?” she asked, gasping when the words came out in Caernaic. Wow, I didn't think a spell that powerful would take effect this fast, she thought.

 

The man stared incredulously at her. “You—I mean, Cassie—who am I? Who are you?” he retorted, looking very confused.

 

“I'm Aurora Williams. Now tell me why the hell those shopkeepers were after me,” she answered, crossing her arms firmly.

 

However, the man continued to just stare.

 

 

Cassie sighed, stuffing her hands in her pants pockets and looking at all the shops lined up on the street. She knew that Noir would be uninterested in jewelry and fruits; he made it quite clear that he only wanted what was necessary. And what was necessary to him was merely loaves of bread and slabs of meat.

 

Rolling her eyes, she turned a corner and found a large shop with many loaves baking in the sun behind their glass covers. Licking her lips, she thought, That would make a fine meal tonight.

 

She looked around for Rolan and gave him the signal once she found him on the roof of a very tall and very fancy hotel. He then signaled to Noir, and in turn, he set a large pile of dry hay on fire.

 

“Fire! Someone get some water!” Almost immediately, all the shopkeepers and their customers ran towards the fire, seeing the smoke rise as the fire spread. Seeing this as a very short amount of time that she had, Cassie made no mistake in wasting it.

 

She hurriedly stuffed ten loaves of bread and eight slabs of meat into a sack, then ran away from the store. “Wait! Thief! Mister Joseph, Misses Nora, a woman is stealing your bread and meat!” shouted a voice. Cursing, Cassie quickly dashed around the next corner, barely glancing back at the mob.

 

Noir cursed when he heard the shouts of the mob regarding a thief. Damn it, Cass, he thought irritably. You're losing your touch.

 

Hearing footsteps coming from the street that connected to the alleyway, Noir cautiously peeked out to see a girl with bright red hair and hazel eyes running away from the mob. Instinctively, he grabbed her, covering her mouth so she wouldn't scream as the mob rapidly passed by. Sighing, he released her. “Damnit, what were you thinking, getting yourself caught like that?” he asked, annoyed. “And what the hell are you—wait…”

 

His eyes widened, realizing that the girl he thought was Cassie was most definitely not. For one, the girl was perhaps half a head shorter than Cassie. Her hair was also much more intense than Cassie's, and her eyes glowed with wonder rather than irritation. On top of that, he now saw that she wore a high school uniform. He ran his eyes down to observe her clothing more closely: a long-sleeved white shirt with golden trimming that covered some of her neck, underneath a sapphire colored jacket with only three out of the five buttons clasped together. The skirt matched the jacket, though it didn't have any golden trimming on it.

 

“Um… Who are you?” she asked, apparently nervous.

 

“You—I mean, Cassie—who am I? Who are you?” he demanded, still looking very confused.

 

“I'm Aurora Williams, now tell me why the hell those shopkeepers were after me,” she retorted, crossing her arms.

 

Noir stared a few moments longer, then sighed. “I'm afraid I've mistaken you for a friend of mine,” he muttered.

 

“Mistaken? So your female friend is a thief and steals?” she inquired, not knowing what she had said until after it came out of her mouth. She gasped, clasping her hands over her mouth.

 

“What? How did you know that the thievery had anything to do with me? And how do you know it was a girl?” he asked suspiciously, though it was apparent he had already given it away. When she looked away, seeming to fumble over her own thoughts, he observed her thoughtfully. “You're the one I sensed last night, aren't you?”

 

Aurora opened her mouth to object, but nothing came out. Sighing, she figured it would be better to just tell the truth. Even if it would cost her her life, or something to that extent. She just wasn't in the mood for arguing or even trying to find a way out of this. “Yes,” she answered with a sigh, rubbing her forehead. “I was just walking and came upon your ship, and I thought it was strange because I'd never seen a pirate ship dock here before—I mean, I've seen others but—sorry, I'm starting to ramble.” She looked down, her cheeks slightly red.

 

Noir smirked. “I knew I could smell some magic in that little corner of the ship,” he mused, scratching his stubbled chin thoughtfully. “Cassie just isn't as aware as I am, so—”

 

“Over there! She went thataway!” shouted a voice. Cursing, Noir grabbed Aurora's wrist and dragged her out of the alley.

 

“Hey, wait a minute!” she shouted, trying to pull free from his grip.

 

“No way are you going to get us caught now!” he replied, quickening his pace. Aurora stumbled, unable to keep up with him. Frustrated, he stopped abruptly, causing her to bump right into his chest. He picked her up, causing her to blush beet red and shout ferocious objections, but he ignored them.

 

Noir swiftly made his way out onto the dock, rushing to the retreating ship and agilely jumping up onto the closing stairs in time before it was too far out of reach.

 

Grinning triumphantly, he set the girl down, turning to see a red-faced Cassie right in front of him. “Noir, you idiot!” she yelled. “I nearly got caught back there! Next time you want me to steal something, you'd better not be picky about it, and even if you are—wait… who's this?” She stopped suddenly, noticing Aurora's awkward presence.

 

Aurora flushed, looking down and seeming to find the wooden floor very interesting. Noir cleared his throat, explaining, “The mob mistook her for you, since you have the same hair color and eyes, so I thought that she was you and saved her from the mob.” He paused, looking disgruntled. “Until I noticed her uniform.”

 

Aurora scoffed, glaring. “Well if you had bothered to pay closer attention, I wouldn't be in this mess,” she retorted. “Even if they did catch me, they'd only be able to search me. If they were lucky, they would be able to afford a spell-search and have a Sorcerer search my bag for any shrinking spells I could have cast—only to find nothing, of course.”

 

The man glared at her and crossed his arms. “As if! From what we've studied and what Rolan has told us, your kind will hang people for absurd reasons. If money has gone missing, then they'll suspect anyone and everyone that they know. Relative or not, they'd have them hung in a second for money.”

 

Aurora gaped, but could not object to his statement. Apparently they've done their share of studying, she thought wryly. She pursed her lips, folding her arms as well. “Yes, but only if there's evidence. They would never be able to afford a spell-search, and even if they could, they'd probably want the best Sorcerer out there. And in the process of searching me, he wouldn't find anything.”

 

Cassie blinked a few times. “Wait, you speak Caernaic?” she asked suddenly. The girl turned to her, forgetting for a moment that she was still there.

 

“Oh, yes,” she replied awkwardly, remembering that she'd just learned the language today. Sighing, she shook her head. “Anyway, can you please take me back to port? Lunch break ended half an hour ago, and I have classes to go to.”

 

Noir snorted, turning around to pick up the sack of food Cassie had brought back. “You can swim back if you want,” he said, “But we're not dropping you off. We can't afford to be caught, since we are pirates.” With that, he slung the sack over his shoulder and huffed his way out of the small room.

 

Cassie shook her head at his retreating form, turning to face an angry Aurora. “You're one of them, a sorcerer, aren't you?” she asked curiously.

 

Taken aback, Aurora slowly nodded. “Yes, I'm studying it,” she replied cautiously. Cassie hummed thoughtfully.

 

Snapping her fingers, she quickly replied, “Come with me. We may need your help with returning to our home world.”