I Am The Sea || Choi San

market

Jongho is carrying Theo's books, even though she has offered to take them from him. She herself is holding the paper scrolls beneath her arm as her fingers unfold the paper she has written her list on.
"Okay, next we need to find a healer's shop or medicine stand to get herbs and salves," Theo announces as they turn a corner and make their way down the street.

The people here have gathered around different stands, and Theo has to climb to the top of her toes in order to see what all the fuzz is about.
San next to her has his hands in the pockets of his dark, ragged jacket, strolling along next to her.
"Shouldn't you read the books first in order to know what herbs you actually need," San asks as they pass a stand selling gilded amulets.
Theo stops in her tracks and takes one of the books from Jongho.
"I don't have time to read all these pages right now." She states. "But I am guessing there's some sort of index or register in the back of these books by which you can find certain recipes according to their ingredients. I can just use that as a list of herbs I need."

She opens the book in the back, leafing through the pages until she finds the index as she has predicted. San presses his lips into a line and glances away when Theo grants him a winning smile.
There are only twenty herbs listed, before the list goes over to mushrooms and animal products, it shouldn't be hard to find those. From her time in Seonghwa's kitchen, Theo knows he even has some of those in bundles hanging over the stove.

Jongho spots a healer's tent first.
A white tent, held up by four wooden posts and rope, four tables inside.
Dried herbs hang in bundles from the roof. Glass bottles in every size are lined up neatly, containing plant seeds, flower petals, dried insects, butterfly wings, milky white water, grainy broth, and various other liquids in almost every color under the sun.
The floor is covered in old carpets, small crystal statues stand between the table legs.
Incense is burning in a corner, delicate wafts of white smoke slithering through the air, and the smell of it surrounds anyone stepping foot into the tent.

"Well," San looks around with raised eyebrows, "This should do the trick."
Getting the right herbs is fairly easy. The vendor takes a mere minute to look over Theo's list and then collects a bundle each of rosemary, peppermint, chamomile, clary sage, and angelica, before he also grabs after a glass bottle containing two sticks of cinnamon, a small metal tin of a creamy yellow salve, and another bottle of cayenne pepper seeds. Lastly, he wraps two bundles of fresh eucalyptus and a small aloe plant with its roots still attached into newspaper.
Theo exchanges the better half of her coins for the ingredients and the vendor packs everything into a small cloth bundle, tied with string.

After acquiring the herbs, Theo finds a handler selling sewing kits closer to the Capo Rodas market place, and she buys two from him, before she and her two companions make their way across the town square.
"We have two hours left before we need to be back on the boat," San says. His eyes travel over the display of knives and swords around a big dark tent, his fingers reaching out for the sharp edges and pointy ends.
"Surely Captain Hongjoong wouldn't actually leave without us if we wouldn't make in time, would he?"
Jongho on Theo's other side weighs his head from side to side, but San shakes his head.
"No, Captain likes to sound mean but he really isn't. He'd never leave any of us behind," he says, "Still, it's best if we don't push him unnecessarily over the edge. He will give you scrubbing duty if he sees fit."

Theo turns away to look towards the harbor as San weighs a small knife in his hand, the blade made from a dark metal, barely longer than the span of his hand. The hilt is wrapped in black leather, a small sea green stone is set into the end of it.
He twirls it swiftly through the air, catching it safely in his hand.
"Why don't we ever stay longer than one or two days in one place?"
Theo's question is tentative, but San and Jongho know the quiet longing in it, the splash of yearning to experience new cultures, new people.

"We don't know," Jongho finally says, "But Captain is very careful. He always knows what's best for the crew."
"But don't you ever want to be with the people?"
San looks at her then, and blinks slowly. Theo's eyes are glued to the people passing by, flitting from tent to tent, hanging onto each lantern and garland fixed between the walls and houses. Her eyes flutter close when the breeze carries over the sticky-sweet scent of freshly baked parfaits and biscuits.
San wonders if Theo had made the right choice by deciding to stay with the Inception, when she so clearly yearns for the bustle of human interaction.

A pirate's life can be a lonely one, and Theo - from what San has gathered over the past weeks with her on board - has spent most of her life in the presence of an unloving mother, and the absence of her late father.
And San knows too well what it's like to have experienced enough loneliness to last a lifetime.
Someone who has been as deprived of a town's life as Theo surely wants nothing more than to experience just that.
He can understand why Theo wants to stay longer than they're able to.

"It's not on us to decide," he says then and Theo turns to look at him with those impossible grey eyes, "We follow our orders and no one gets harmed. We're pirates, Theo, and our crew has made a lot of enemies over the years. It's wise to not stay in one place for too long."
Jongho pulls on Theo's sleeve and they turn away.
As the two of them follow a group of young sailors, San exchanges a few gold coins for the small knife and its sheath, before hurrying after them, hiding the knife in an inside pocket of his jacket.

"That ship that approached us a few weeks ago, the one with the red sails," Theo says now, "Are those our enemies?"
Jongho tuts his tongue, "That ship isn't something you ever want to see again, trust me. And as long as we stay on the move, we're not going to, so don't worry about it."
Theo does not feel satisfied by Jongho's answer, but she knows she's not going to get more out of him, so she keeps quiet.
She follows Jongho and San back across the market place towards the harbor.

Back on the ship, Wooyoung swings down from the crow's nest when he spies Theo, San, and Jongho approaching the deck.
"There you are," he says with a wide grin, wrapping his arms around Theo's middle. "I've been waiting for hours, you guys really took your time."
He takes the stack of books from Jongho and places the bundle of herbs and ingredients Theo was still holding in her arms on top.
"Seonghwa, Yunho and I got back before noon," he adds as he takes the lead towards Theo's cabin. The girl follows him after motioning to San and Jongho that she'll be back in a minute.
Wooyoung presses through Theo's door and places the books, scrolls, and herbs onto her desk.

He unfolds the bundle as if Theo had gotten the herbs just for him, and carefully untangles the herbs from each other.
"I'll build you a shelf for all this," he murmurs to himself as Theo steps up beside him, "And maybe you could use a hammock like we have downstairs."
Theo sorts through the scrolls and smiles at Wooyoung.
"I could help you, I've never build any type of furniture before."
Wooyoung grins at her and nods.
"Very well, but not right now. The Captain has decided to finally tell us his entire plan to find the Pearl."