Lost At Sea

@ BearGirl
It really didn't surprise Louis that Charlotte was so stubborn. She really took after her old man in that regard. Always wanting things done their way, not giving a rats ass to listen to others. Annoying, really, quite an annoying habit of theirs. Although, Louis had to give it to Charlotte. She was becoming more independent by the way. No longer the girl always going to daddy to find out what she was supposed to do.

"You, my dear, talk too much." Louis all but blurted out once Charlotte had finished speaking. "I know perfectly well what those rings mean, in my life, I have seen them plenty of times," Louis explained. "A pirate who is good at their jobs know damn well who to trust and who do not trust, and all three of those rings are telling me to not trust you. Or the ones who they represent."

Slowly, Louis' tongue licked over his lips. Taking in Charlotte's reaction. "I'm not going to let you die Marina, and you are not going to be the death of us so stop talking like that already. It's annoying." Clearing his throat, Louis reached out and gently grasped a few strands of her hair, running his fingers through it as he pulled his hand back. Admiring the soft texture of her well-kept hair.

"We need to cut this." He told her, not really giving her any say in the matter. "Your hairs to long, it'll get in the way of everything. When we get into town, we'll head to a boutique as well. Get you something to make you look less..." He allowed for his words to hang for a moment. "Womanly." Louis cleared his throat, looking away from Charlotte for a few moments. "We'll make a man out of you, Marina. Trust me, no one will notice you and you will go through with this willingly or not. Captains orders."

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte let out a small huff as Captain Louis said 'captains orders'. "I am tired of foolish, stubborn men making decisions for me." She said as she looked straight into his eyes, her own narrowing at him. "You have no reason to be this stubborn about my life at this point. And I do not think I am going to listen to you just because you are a captain. You have no proof you can do what you say you will." She said, referring to his promise to protect her. Charlotte didn't believe him off his word. That he could protect her, that she wouldn't be the death of them. He was just gambling with her now and she didn't want to keep playing.

Sliding back down in the bed, Charlotte grimace as she shifted. Soon she was laying down, her back turned to him and she was pulling her blanket up over her head. "Now, stop acting like you are in charge of me. It's annoying." Charlotte started to think over why Louis was being stubborn about it. Weren't pirates suppose to be self serving? She didn't see the positives as to why the man would want to keep her around, unless he was planning on selling her back to one of the three. It was possible but at this point, Charlotte didn't believe that was his endgame.

Though as those thoughts started to swirl around in her mind, a knock on the door from one of the crew came. The man poked his head in, looking at the woman before handing the captain her dinner. He was quick to head out, knowing when the captain did not want to be disturbed. Though, at hearing the door open, Charlotte spoke up, though her voice was slightly muffled under the blanket. "I am not hungry. You can go now, Louis."

@ BearGirl
A small scowl appeared on Louis' face as he listened to Charlotte. It was becoming evident that they were just going around in circles now. Nothing was getting done, they were just going nowhere with all of this damn back and forth. "You have no proof that I can't protect you either." He said as he watched the young girl pretty much have a temper tantrum right in front of him.

"As long as you're on this ship, I am in charge of you. An if you don't want to be locked up like a prisoner then I would start acting appropriately." Louis said as he tried to get rid of the scowl that was on his face. Instead having it shift to a tired one as he ran a hand over his face. He was not in the right state of mind to be dealing with a overly annoying teenager right now.

At the sound of the knock, Louis turned towards it and nodded his head. Marina's dinner was here and by god, it smelled amazing. "That's fine that you're not hungry, I'll eat it." He said as he walked towards the chair that was by the bed. If she wanted to have a tantrum, then he could be as annoying as possible. "Mmmmm, Roast duck, stewed potatoes and carrots. Oh wow, the chef really out did themselves this time." Louis said, using the spork that was given for her to eat and making noises like he was scooping up some of the food. "Yum." He mumbled, pretending to eat.

"You sure you don't want any? It's amazing." Louis said, hoping that his antic's would gain her attention. He even went so far as to raise the plate to his mouth and blow the steam from the food towards Marina so that she got a better indication of how good everything smelled.

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte let out a small puff of air as she curled up tighter into herself. She could hear the noises that he was making and Charlotte wasn't going to cave just because of that. Besides, she was sure that in a few minutes time, the captain would be tired of annoying her and head off to do whatever it was he did on the ship. Though as she started to smell the food, Charlotte stomach started to growl hard again. It had been over a day since she had eaten anything and admittedly, Charlotte was hungry but she was stubborn too.

A small whimper left her lips as she realized how starving she was. Though the young woman was not sure what she wanted more at the moment, food or to win. It would have been one thing if it was another crew member but Charlotte didn't want to give into Louis as he was already trying to force so much on her as it was. Charlotte let out a small sigh after a moment before closing her eyes. "I just want to sleep."

At least that was true. Charlotte was tired, frustrated and weak. If she wouldn't eat to make a point, at least she could head back to bed. There was no point in arguing with Louis anymore. He was just someone else that Charlotte needed to work around. She might as well let him do what he wanted while she tried to figure out her escape plan. Perhaps she could convince someone in the next port to help her? She doubted that any of the crew would defy Louis.

@ BearGirl
Lowering the plate so that it was resting on his lap, Louis arched an eyebrow. The words that escaped from Charlotte's lips didn't mean he out right lost yet. She was still away and being stubborn. "Then go ahead, I'll just enjoy this delicious food that the chefs made," Louis said making a lip-smacking noise like he was enjoying the food that was on the plate.

"Well, I'll be damn. You got lucky, You got some of the crispy skin on your plate." Louis said, faking being impressed. "That's the best part." He moved the piece around the place, acting like he was cutting it into smaller pieces so that he could eat it easier.

"You sure you don't want any of this Marina? They gave you some Shrewsbury cakes for dessert." Picking one up with a fork, Louis brought the thin biscuit cake thing towards where Charlotte's head was under the blanket. "It feels so soft in texture. I think they just make them this morning."

Pulling his hand back, Louis put the soft desert back onto the plate. Leaning back in his seat as he watched Marina. He was curious as to how much more teasing she could take. "You know what, all this food made me thirsty. I'm gonna go and grab a beer." Louis announced, wondering if he wasn't in the room if she'd eat. It worked on his little sister when she was a child, so maybe that'll work.

Getting up from his seat, Louis put the plate on the chair he was just sitting it. It was low enough so that she'd be able to eat if she just laid on her side, Plus it was close, so there was less of a chance of any of it spilling. Louis headed towards the door and opened it, he cast a small glance towards Marina for a moment before walking out the door, closing it behind himself. Of course, he wasn't planning of actually leaving, he ended up just leaning next to the door so that he was still close to Marina. Although, he did tell someone to grab him a beer when he spotted someone.

@ FallenHope95

Once the door was closed, Charlotte slowly turned over in the bed until she was facing the food that was left on the change. It was not very long until she was reaching over and starting to take little nibbles of it. Though once she got started, Charlotte just started to eat. She was so hungry and her stomach was desperate for anything really. So much so that she ignored the silverware and just ate it all with her hands.

Though, once the plate was empty, a little frown moved over her lips. Admittedly, she did feel better with food in her stomach but she didn't like the fact that Louis would be able to see she ate it all when he came back. Though it only took her an instant until she picked up the plate and silverware and chucked it out the little window in her room, allowing both to land and sink down into the sea. Charlotte was positive that Louis would be mad at her for her actions, but it felt better than flat out admitting defeat. Besides, she could just throw a silver piece at him, that would be more than enough for a plate and some cutlery.

Slowly, the woman turned around so her back was to the door again. She pulled the blanket over her head once more and closed her eyes. Maybe she could fall asleep before Louis even came back into the room.

@ BearGirl
The cool bubbly liquid slid down Louis' throat like water. Years of learning to deal with strong liquor really doing good for his tolerance. The stuff on the ship was now considered weak to the young man. A now he craved something stronger, something that would actually take the edge off of his stress. Not this watered down brew that they had left on the ship to quench the men's thirst.

It had been at least fifteen minutes since Louis had left Marina in the room alone. So, surely the young girl had finished her dinner, right? Right. So, walking back into the bedroom, Louis' eyes quickly went to where he had left the plate. Arching a brow when he noticed that the plate that was left for her was no longer in the same spot.

"Well, I guess you were hungry." Louis mused as he walked to his chair and sat down once more. His eyes looked around the room for where she could have possibly dumped the food or hid it. "Now, where the hell did you put the plate? Or did you eat that as well?" Louis mused to himself, taking another sip of his beer.

It was then that Louis noticed that Marina was actually asleep and he made a mental note about it. So, pursing his lips together, Louis stood slightly and pulled her blanket more over her shoulders after noticing that it had slipped slightly. Then, he blew out the candle that was in the room closest to her. Making it a little bit darker for her before he headed out of the room. He needed some sleep himself so he'll have someone standing outside her room on shifts.

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte slept throughout the night soundly. And once the morning came, the woman felt better than she did before. She was still weak but at least she was able to move around in the bed without so much pain radiating through her. Slowly, Charlotte slid out of the bed with some trouble. Though once out, she was able to use the wall to stay up and head to the door.

Louis was not in the room with her, so Charlotte was hoping she would be able to move around the ship for a bit. Though, as she opened up the door, she saw one of the crewmen guarding it. The man was quick from stopping her from leaving the room, and after a bit of arguing, the man had closed the door and locked it on his side.

Charlotte yelled through the door for a minute before heading back to her bed and sitting down. Already, the woman was beginning to pout a bit. Now she had to wait for the captain to come down to the room, which was not what she wanted. A sigh left her lips before she laid her head down against the wall.

@ BearGirl
It felt amazing to finally get some shut-eye after being awake for a whole day. The bed that Louis usually found kinda hard and uncomfortable most nights, was like a cloud. Although, that could have just been because of his sleep-deprived brain or something like that. He didn't know, nor did he really care at the moment.

When morning came, and by the time that Louis had woken up. It turned out that Louis had missed breakfast by an hour and learned that they'd be arriving at their destination by nightfall.

After grabbing a quick apple from the kitchen, Louis made his way towards the little stubborn Princess' room. His hands in the pant pockets of his tan colored pants as he walked down the hall. His men looking at him and giving him a small nod before they'd all continue on with their task for the day.

Once he got to Marina's room, Louis waved away the guard and walked in without knocking. His eye instantly going towards Marina's location. "You're awake. " He said, sounding kinda surprised. Although he was the one who hadn't slept the last night. "How are you feeling today?" He asked, curious about her answer.

@ FallenHope95

As Louis entered her room, Charlotte looked up at him. Unlike yesterday, he seemed well rested and less annoyed. Though, he tended to look like that before she started speaking. Before he had even come in though, Charlotte had decided that there was no real point in arguing with him any further. It was clear she was unable to change his mind on anything. He was just another roadblock that she would need to find a solution to.

She took a moment, thinking of how to answer his question. Though even after that moment, she did not know how to answer. Charlotte was physically better than the day before but that was about it. She was still tired, and unable to stand on her own two feet without holding onto something. But at least she was standing. But Charlotte felt more frustrated knowing that Louis planned on just pushing her around. All in all, she felt neither better nor worse than the day before but the why had changed. "Unsatisfied." Charlotte answered, figuring that was the most accurate and least fight inducing answer she had.

"I want to leave but your guard will not let me." Charlotte told him before turning her head back out of the window. If she could not get what she wanted, in the least Charlotte wanted to spend some time somewhere else besides the room. Some time up deck was definitely preferable than being locked away down there. Though it appeared that was not going to happen anytime soon with how the crewman had acted. "He kept telling me that I was detained down here...." The woman let out a small sigh as she dropped her head, now looking down at her hands.

"I just want some water." Charlotte whispered as she slowly slid back into the bed so she was laying down on her side again. Hopefully, she could kept the conversation with the captain quick today. Maybe he would leave her alone if she didn't start up a fight.

@ BearGirl
Unsatisfied, the word caused amusement to dance along in Louis' eyes as he took in the appearance of the young girl that was on the bed. She did look better, but from how she was still acting, he could easily tell that she was not feeling well. Although, at least she was well enough to sit on her own.

"Did you ask the guard to get some water?" Louis asked as he stopped in his spot a few steps away from the door. Kind of in a middle spot between the door and the young girl that was on the bed. "I had told my men to not allow you out of the room for your safety and ours. I never told them specifically that you were not allowed any food or drink." Louis explained, not sure if she had asked or had thought they'd just allow her to wonder around the ship on her own when they had already caught her trying to off herself.

Slowly, Louis stuck his tongue out of his mouth and licked his lips. He wasn't a fan of keeping Marina locked up in the room, but he also didn't want to allow her to have free roamed of the ship.

"Why don't you come to sit on the deck. That way, we can keep an eye on you as well as allow for you to have some fresh air and move around if you're feeling up to it." Louis suggested, curious about what Marina would want to do.

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte ended up telling Louis that she did not want to sit out on the deck. While she had wanted to walk around the ship, the idea of sitting and being watched was less appealing to her. Instead, the young woman turned in her bed, her back facing Louis as she slept most of the day away again. She still was not feeling particularly well so it was not difficult to convince her body to sleep more. Though when she was awake, she rejected the meals brought to her and ended up writing and drawing some in the parchment she somehow managed to get.

As the day started to come to an end, she could hear the sounds of a port closing in on them. A confused look started to move over her face before she sat up and looked out of the small window of her room. A great deal of anxiety started to move through the young woman as they moved closer and closer to land. As they eventually started to dock, Charlotte's heart was beating at incredibly quickly and she started to find it hard to breath.

She couldn't help but worry that the captain had been lying all along, that he just wanted to sell her back to her captures for a boatload of gold. Though, even if that was not the case, Charlotte was still worried that she would be force to go out and actually do what Louis had said, cut her hair and change her clothes. Just being near others that could possibly figure out who she was was too much of a risk.

@ BearGirl
Standing at the front of the ship, Louis watched as they got closer and closer to the port. His men all worked like crazy as they got the boat ready to dock. Men were getting the ropes ready and making sure that the anchors were secure. The last thing that the ship needed right now was to set sail without a crew to pilot it.

Once they had docked, Louis yelled out commands to his crew. They needed supplies, food, medicine, cleaning agents and above all else. They needed information on where they're next pillage will take place. It's been a while, and Louis is ansy to get into some action once again. Plus, their gold reserve was running a little low as well.

Making sure that his pistol was strapped on, Louis walked down to the room that they kept Marina in. His boot-clad feet making echoes as he walked, making it almost impossible for Marina to realize that he was heading to her room. Today was the day that they were planning to change Marina's appearance a little bit so that she was more hidden. So that she could escape from her past.

"Let's go," Louis said as he walked into her room, not bothering to knock. "We have some errands to do." He said, holding the door open and ushering for her to walk out so that they could leave. "Come on, I don't have time for your arguing. It doesn't matter if people recognize you or whatever you're scared of, I have plans and we need to get them rolling."

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte looked over to Louis as he walked into the room. A deep frown on her lips as he started to say that she had to go out with him. She had no intention of going out onto the port and there was nothing that he could do to make her go willingly. Digging herself into the bed, Charlotte grabbed onto the mattress. She had a bad feeling about Louis' stubbornness and she hoped she would be too difficult for him to try.

"I am not going to go." She growled at him. Her heart was beating at a million miles per minute and she was clearly breathless from just thought of having to go. "You can go fuck off, I am not leaving this ship." Charlotte told him flat out. She wasn't one to curse really, but this was something she took seriously. There was a long list of things that could go wrong and she couldn't see any benefit of going out.

Someone who knew her could see her, maybe her father's army was her. Even if no one recognized her, she did still have to worry about whatever Louis wanted to do with her. Maybe he was trying to sell her off? But if that wasn't the case, then she still had to worry about the man trying to cut her hair and make her wear something weird. She had tried to change her appearance before and it didn't work then, so why would it work now?

@ BearGirl
Of course, she would act like this. Why Louis thought that Marina would act good for once, he didn't know. Maybe it was the good in himself that he was hoping would rub off on her, although. That was obviously proven false.

"I don't really care for your wishes, Marina," Louis said as he walked more into the room and headed over to the bed. "You are going to come with me. Rather you like it or not." He told her. Leaning down, he grabbed onto her arms, just below her elbows and started to pull her from the mattress. It would be a lie if he told someone that it was pretty easy to pull her from the bed, but, after some struggling and arguing. He did manage to get her to release the mattress and pushed her towards the top of the ship.

"Alright, now let's go," Louis said as he held onto the girl's elbow, all but dragging her with him off of the boat and onto the dock. Some people were looking at them oddly, but Louis easily ignored them. It wasn't their business to know what the two were up to anyways.

Heading into the town, Louis looked around for a moment before finding a salon. He pulled Marina towards the building and pushed her into it. "She needs a hair cut, make it short." He told the stylist before she could completely greet the two of them.

@ FallenHope95

Charlotte had tried to fight Louis the whole way to the salon. Though, after some walking, the woman was quickly exhausted and having a hard time keeping up. She was barely able to walk without something support her, so being dragged along really made her struggle. Charlotte kept tripping, almost falling on her face until she just had to grab onto Louis just so she wouldn't fall. Though as they moved through the town, Charlotte kept looking around, just trying to figure out what she could do next. If she could find the sheriff or something, maybe she could get away from the captain.

By the time that they had gotten to the salon, the woman was in tears. She wasn't quite sure where they were going, what was happening or what could possibly happen. Though once they got to the salon, some of her fear was released but it didn't change the fact that none of this was what she wanted. "No I don't!" Charlotte said as she was put down into one of their chairs. The woman still looked a bit panicked as she turned to the stylist.

Panic set in harder and it was showing in Charlotte's eyes. Se wasn't sure whether or not it was a good idea, but it was beginning to feel like the only option she had in this god forsaken port. "This man." Charlotte said before pointing at Louis. "Is a pirate and holding me against my will. Please help me!"

@ BearGirl
Listening to Marina cry and yell on the ship was one thing, but out in the town was a different story. Louis really didn't need people knowing right away who he was and starting all of these fake rumors or whatever.

"Sorry, she's not really right in the head," Louis said as he looked to the stylist who was looking a little worried. "She has a habit of letting her imagination run wild, I've taken her to a lot of doctors, but no one really knows how to help her." He made sure to look stressed out by the idea of having a loved one who was a little mentally unstable.

"I'm just a fisherman, and can't handle helping her care for her hair any longer, can you please. Make it more manageable for when we're out on the ocean?" Louis gave the woman his best begging look, which ended up winning the woman over and getting her to agree to Louis' request quite easily.

"It's alright hun, the nice woman isn't going to hurt you, she's only going to cut your hair a little bit," Louis said, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder as a way to pretend to care for Marina's nerves. Then, he stepped back as the woman got ready to cut her hair, not wanting to be in her way.

@ FallenHope95

The stylist nodded before beginning to work on the woman's hair. She was careful to move around, trying not to upset the woman more than she already was. Though she did try her best to calm Charlotte down, telling her that everything was going to be okay and that she was going to look great. But Charlotte was completely unconsolable. Only moving into small whimpers as the stylist finished up her work.

Once completed, the woman ran her fingers through Charlotte's hair, a pitiful smile moving across her lips as she looked to Louis. She had cut a large portion of Charlotte's hair, now only leaving a short bob. "How does this look, Sir?" The stylist asked as she gently ran her fingers through her hair again. "It's much shorter now and it will just need a quick brushing in the morning. Much easier than the long hair. And, if you need it out of the way, you can just tie it up with a ribbon. Less likely to get all wet with that sea breeze."

The stylist bent down and looked at Charlotte with pity in her eyes. "Is that not better sweetie?" She asked, gently taking her hand. "That must feel better than having that long heavy hair weigh you down. And now it won't get in your way." Charlotte looked down at the woman before shaking her head at her. Charlotte absolutely hated it.

She reached her hands up to her face, rubbing her eyes before looking away from both of them, her head hanging low. Charlotte felt her heart keep falling deeper and deeper in her chest.

@ BearGirl
"She looks beautiful, thank you so much," Louis said as he smiled at the reflection he was seeing in the mirror. Marina really did look really good with her hair that short. She looked younger, freer. Not as uptight and stubborn. "Very cute, youthful."

Reaching into his pocket, Louis pulled out a gold coin and handed it towards the woman. "I hope that gold is alright. I don't have anything less on me." He told the woman, smiling and politely turning her down when she tried to give him quite of bit of change back since the gold coin was worth so much more than the small haircut that was given to the young woman in the chair.

"Alright, now on to the second destination," Louis said as he moved towards Marina and grabbed her hand, pulling her up as he had on the ship earlier. "Are you going to fight me still or are you going to act like a big girl and actually walk to the boutique?" Louis asked, his voice low so that only Marina could hear him.

"Remember, I have no problem dragging you. Or, if you prefer I can carry you like a child through the streets. " Louis arched an eyebrow as he watched the young woman, waiting to hear if she was going to come along quietly or if they have to do things difficulty once more.

@ FallenHope95
At Louis' words, Charlotte was quick to immediately drop and sit right where they were walking. Her legs crossed underneath her, her dress puffing out around the woman. Though her head stayed down, not wanting to look at the man. She knew that he would have no problem picking her up and carrying her. At least this way, she was making his life a bit difficult. Besides, Charlotte was still having a hard time walking alongside Louis even at his normal pace. 

Though as he spoke, Charlotte had no response for him. She felt like she was breaking down from the inside. It didn't matter what she did or said, her life was just moving from one capturer to the next. It felt like every time she wanted something, it would slip from her grasp. As though every time she tried to take something for herself, Charlotte would be pushed back 10 steps. At least with her father, the King, and her fiancee, she knew what they wanted. With Louis, she had no idea what his motives were. 

Once they made it to the boutique, Charlotte moved to one of the chairs and glanced out the window. There was no point in looking around since the captain would just pick what he wanted for her anyways. He had made it clear that he didn't particularly care what her desires were. The thought of speaking to one of the ladies had crossed her mind but with what happened at the hairdresser, she was sure Louis would be able to charm his way out of it. 

What Charlotte needed was a stroke of luck, which she was sure would not happen. For someone to come in a drop a weapon. For an old trusted friend to walk down the street and for Charlotte to get their attention. If she couldn't outfight Louis, and couldn't out talk him. She either needed help or a distraction so she could hide. Running wasn't an option either.