Long Journey || ATEEZ

Treasure

Hongjoong surfaced, gasping and fighting for air, before quickly recovering and making his way ashore. He peeled off the heavy and damp white suit and dumped it into the sea, before turning to the group of survivors. He quickly scanned the group, and with a sigh of relief, saw that all of his crewmates were stood there – bedraggled, soggy and shivering – but nonetheless all there.

"Hyungnim!" San cried, running over to his hyung with concern in his eyes. "Are you okay? What happened back there? You took so long."

"I'm fine," Hongjoong breathed, patting San's back. "And quit worrying about me and look at yourself – you look like a half-drowned cat."

San smiled sheepishly. Hongjoong allowed himself to chuckle a little, before straightening up and doing a quick headcount of the surviving prisoners.

"...ten...twelve...fourteen...sixteen...seventeen. Seventeen," Hongjoong said, something resembling despair invading his entire body. His shoulders, that had been bunched up from cold, slumped, and his eyebrows creased, a pained look entering his expression. "There's only seventeen left. Of almost forty-five."

"Sorry," San apologised.

"No, don't worry about it," assured Hongjoong. "It's not your guys' fault. If anything, it's mine. I should've been more careful." He gave the demon a grimace.

"What's going to happen to them?" San asked. "They're out, but I hardly think they're safe. The people who survived all of that on that boat might come looking for them. Plus they have no home or family that we know of – they have nothing."

"True," Hongjoong agreed, glancing at the sullen forms of the ex-prisoners, as Yunho, Mingi and the others handed them towels they'd had ready. "I was thinking..." he started hesitantly.

"What is it, hyung?" San asked.

"...that maybe, we could recruit them into our crew? We could sure use the extra hands onboard, and that does mean they get a home as well." Hongjoong paused. "If they want to, of course. I don't want to force anybody into anything."

"That sounds like a great idea, hyung," San said encouragingly. "You should speak to them tomorrow about this."

Hongjoong nodded, before the two headed off to help their fellow crewmates with the ex-prisoners. They seemed uninjured for the most part, but they seemed shaken up. Which was expected, of course.

Hongjoong agreed for them to stay for the night on their ship, and decided that he and the rest of ATEEZ would be spending their night there as well. They had loaded most of their cargo onto it, and so blankets and such were available for everyone.

That night, the captain went to bed with many thoughts circling his head.

* * *

Our destination is there somewhere at the end of that horizon.

Hongjoong gulped as he stepped onto the steps leading to the forecastle the next morning. Butterflies raced around agitatedly in his stomach; he had never felt this nervous before. Today, he had to win the hearts of the ex-prisoners, offer them a home on the seas. Of course, he already had his main crew – but he wanted to help these people, who were on their own with nowhere else to go. He had planned on hiring people from elsewhere, but most of the ex-prisoners seemed able-bodied and well – apart from the starvation they had gone through – and seemed like a better alternative.

If you're going to get on a boat right now, you need a Pirate King.

Hongjoong finally made it to the deck, his steps laboured and slow, and turned to face the gathering of ex-prisoners. The rest of his crew stood behind him, Seonghwa at his side. Hongjoong turned back to them, his eyes flecked with doubt. To this, Mingi gave a supportive double thumbs-up, Jongho nodded with his trademark casual smile, San beamed like the little ball of sunshine he was, and the others gave him looks of encouragement.

There's no advice needed, just become my teammate.

Seonghwa nudged the captain's arm lightly, and gave him a reassuring smile. Everything would be okay.

Hongjoong smiled back, and cleared his throat, turning back to the crowd gathered beneath him.

"Attention, everybody."

The sea and us are always one, I got it.

Immediately, the bustling noises and mutters of the ex-prisoners ceased. They all looked up, up at their potential new captain.

Some had hope in their eyes. Some had doubt in their eyes. Others' eyes were empty, blank. The things they had seen, experienced as they were snatched from their homes and thrust into a world limited to a rusty metal cage and a feeling of uncertainty and never-ceasing fear had proven too much for their fragile minds.

Hongjoong took a deep breath in, closed his eyes. He let the butterflies in his stomach calm, and they settled. He reminded himself of how hard he had worked to achieve his goal; he reminded himself of all he had given to get to this point. When he reopened his eyes, they were burning with a renewed passion.

Hongjoong paused for a fraction of a second, trying to remember what he had written in his little poem notebook last night, before it came to him.

"People want it," Hongjoong started, his voice starting off hesitant and shaky. "People dream about it."

Still too shaky. He shook himself internally; it was crucial to show the confidence of a true captain if he was going to convince even one of them to join him on his journey.

"It can be different to every individual."

He held his head a little higher.

"It can complete us, or it can destroy us," he continued. His voice grew in strength, volume; Wooyoung would've been proud. And from the satisfied grin spanning the holin's entire face, it seemed so. "And it can change the world."

A fluttering feeling in his heart – a pleasant one – passed through him.

"People call it...treasure."

Mumbles and mutters arose from the crowd. What was the young captain talking about? Would this 'treasure' be the thing they set sail to find? What was their treasure?

Hongjoong watched their reactions with a quiet wariness. He wondered what they thought of him, but despite this, he was starting to gain certainty, and began to pace up and down the edge of the deck, looking out to the horizon, gesturing to the almighty sea.

"The sound of the wind blowing from the horizon, the warmth of the sun hitting the ocean waves – the vibrations of the sand, beating like the hearts of youth!" Hongjoong spread his arms out wide. "We're at the starting point of this long journey."

Hongjoong didn't stop to gauge their reactions this time.

"The freezing winds may make us shiver, the heat of the sun may make us thirsty—" Hongjoong's voice grew louder, more passionate, "—the vibrations of the sand may swallow us! But we'll never stop – gold, eternal life – honour, love, fame!"

The desire, the pent-up energy, the thrilled anticipation he had been holding inside for weeks, months, years, finally poured out of him in one passionate cry to the heavens.

He turned to the group of ex-prisoners, grinning, an almost manic glint in his eyes.

"It doesn't matter what you dream for – so let me ask you. What. Is. Your. Treasure?" he finally declared, jabbing a finger at the members of the crowd with each word.

He stood, breathing heavily for a moment, eyes still shining with leftover passion and glowing ice-blue, before puffing out his chest. He fixed the group of underdogs with a hard stare, the stare of a rightful captain.

"Will you join us?"