Long Journey || ATEEZ

Sirens, Ghosts, Pawns

Hongjoong considered what Shinoko had told him as he headed for his night shift, the girl in question trailing behind to join him instead of Seonghwa, for once.

I'm a siren.

'Half of one, anyway,' Shinoko had admitted. 'My mum's a siren, and my other mum's a fairy. Well, they were those things. They're dead now.'

'I'm sorry for your loss,' Hongjoong had said sympathetically in reply. 'What happened? You don't have to tell me if you're uncomfortable—'

'Siren hunters,' Shinoko had said simply. 'We lived on a small island inhabited by sirens, and we'd stayed hidden for years. Until I fucked everything up by going against my parents' wishes, and swum out to sea, and happened to come across a siren hunter ship. They thought my fairy-mum was a siren too, and they killed everyone.'

'That's horrible,' Hongjoong had whispered, a hand at his mouth.

'I know,' Shinoko had said, shrugging. 'Either way, because I'm half a siren, I can swim for long periods of time, and cover lots of sea in a short amount of time. I could go find Cezanne's ship for you.'

Hongjoong stopped at the edge of the deck, as he pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned to the siren girl.

"Are you ready?"

"Mhm!" Shinoko nodded. "You've got your story straight, right?"

"Yeah – that you might know where Cezanne is, and that you've left on one of the mini-boats to go find her and confirm her location."

"Good," the half-siren nodded.

"One of the boats is waiting down there for you, I got it out earlier today. There's a rope attached to the bottom of it so drag it along with you until we're well out of sight."

"Alright," Shinoko nodded, swallowing nervously, before she walked up to the edge of the deck. "Oh, and one more thing," she said, turning back to the captain.

Hongjoong raised an eyebrow, inclining his head to one side.

"I think there might be a traitor amongst you guys," Shinoko said, her eyes deadly serious. "There's no way Cezanne could have found you that easily, otherwise."

Hongjoong swallowed.

"I don't think it's anyone from ATEEZ – especially as you guys seem so close, but I'd keep an eye on everyone else. You never know who it could be."

Hongjoong nodded slowly, already a strange sense of fear worming its way inside him.

"Goodbye, then," Shinoko said, her voice barely above a whisper.

Taking a deep breath, she braced herself, before taking a step forward, her skirt billowing about her, and plunged into the depths of black ocean.

Hongjoong watched the ripples spread, and gradually disappear, before making his way to the helm, where he, with both hands resting upon the wheel, stared out to sea, wondering how everything had come to this.

Now all that was left was to wait.

* * *

Cezanne was met with cheers as she made her way above-deck, her crew hollering praise, whooping from their perches high up in the rigging. She felt herself grinning despite the failure that had been meeting her for the five days in a row she had held San hostage, and she puffed out her chest as she strode towards the helm.

"How's the prisoner doin'?" came a shout. "He cracked yet?"

"Not yet," Cezanne said, and a couple of groans met her ears. In spite of this, she held her arms out wide, and addressed her crew with her powerful, confident boom. "But it's only a matter of time before he does. Then we'll be off and we'll find that treasure before those rookie pirates can even dare to imagine it!"