Forever And Ever

● Chapter 4 ●

** there are references to original characters in this chapter. It does not state exactly how they look like, you can use your imagination! **

...

Freddy stared into the sea solemnly. He felt so empty now, and he still could not explain exactly how he felt about the bunny.

They were sailing again on their way to the second kingdom. It has been almost a week since the incident with Bonnie, yet it still weighed in Freddy's mind.

His melancholy was interrupted as he felt a rough paw land on his shoulder.

It was one of his teammates in the troop he led. He went by the name 'Henry'.

"Ey, why the longface, cap'n?" He asked.

Freddy sighed. "Nothing. I'm just... homesick, I suppose." He lied.

"Aye, you'll get ov'r it, boss!" Another member named 'Bruce' spoke up, pouring himself a cup of rum from a barrel.

Freddy was very well-spoken, which made sense for his social class. He was always rather amused and fascinated by the informal dialect the lower classes used. It took him a while to even understand what his own men were saying to him half the time.

And pirates were even more ill-educated. Their barbaric and offensive language aggravated him to no ends. But Bonnie spoke very well for one of them.

That was a pleasant surprise for Freddy. He assumed Bonnie was uneducated because he admitted he could not count, yet he had an impressive vocabulary and spoke very clearly. He wondered where the bunny learned it from.

Freddy could not control it as his mind kept circling back to him. Bonnie's soft voice, his radiant, starry eyes, his laugh...

Freddy absolutely adored his laugh. He was so joyous and outgoing. Bonnie just had a charm to him that he could not explain. He wanted to hate the bunny, but he couldn't. He remembered their kiss so fondly. He never wanted it to end. A small part of him hoped Bonnie was thinking of him as much as he was.

He paused his daydreaming when he saw the odd looks the crew was giving him.

"What'er you thinkin' about, boss?" An officer named Rocky asked.

Freddy sighed and took a seat on a barrel. "It's nothing..."

He felt Rocky give him a nudge with his elbow and he had a knowing look on his face.

"Is there a pretty lady on yer' mind~?"

Freddy chuckled goodheartedly and shook his head. He was not technically lying.

"Was it that bunny you 'was with?"

Now Freddy was beginning to grow nervous. "N-no..."

"Who was that anyway??" A young wolf going by Garrison sat by him curiously.

Freddy hesitated to answer, fearing their reaction. "...Bonnie."

All of the men stared in alarm. "The PIRATE, Bonnie??"

Before Freddy could answer, Garrison spoke up again.

"How did ye' survive, man??"

He furrowed his brows in confusion. These men seemed to know a lot about him, but Freddy hardly heard of him all these years. The noble class rarely talked about these subjects, and many have never even seen a pirate. He supposed it made sense that peasants would hear more about marauders than them.

"What do you mean 'survive'?"

Rocky jogged out of the cabin again and held a paper in front of him.

"This 'ere Bonnie?!"

Freddy looked it over. It depicted an ink sketch portrait of a serious and intimidating bunny with matted, wild fur going in all directions. He had narrowed snake-like eyes, and he wore a black coat. The poster was titled 'Wanted' and held a ransom price at the bottom. They wanted him 'Dead or Alive'.

Freddy nearly laughed at how inaccurate it was.

"Yes, it was him."

The men gathered around him in concern. "Do y'know what he coulda' done to you?? I hear he's killed fifteen officers!" Garrison exclaimed.

"I believe he works for Captain William Afton too, eh?" Bruce jutted in.

"That be hogwash! Afton's been dead f'r years." Rocky scolded.

"It be true, though! I hear he 'ain't even livin' like we are. He's some soulless husk doin' Afton's bidding!" Garrison barked.

"All of ye' have read too many ghost stories." Henry crossed his arms.

"He's just a pirate. A sneaky one, at that."

Rocky nodded. "He's killed fifteen guards, stolen from how many estates?? And he's sunken two ships!"

"Allegedly." Henry corrected.

"Eh, who cares?? We'll catch that savage in no time. We're gonna' see who's so 'sneaky' when his head's in a noose!" Rocky exclaimed. The other men broke into a fit of laugher at that.

Freddy was silently listening to their debate, but he felt himself growing rather irritated quickly.

They were speaking exactly how Freddy talked about pirates, but he knows Bonnie. He knows the bunny he met is nothing like that. Or so he thinks.

Hearing them talk about hurting Bonnie filled Freddy with an inexplicable rage. He felt a strong urge to defend him and tell his officers off, but he held his tongue. It would only draw unnecessary attention to himself.

He was beginning to realize how foolish he's become. He was fantasizing about a man he practically just met. He's trying to defend his name like he held any responsibility for the bunny. He may never even see him again.

That made Freddy upset. Very upset.

Henry snapped in his face to get his attention.

"Don't be messin' with no pirates again. It's dangerous. We're supposed to be arresting those brutes." He lectured.

Freddy nodded silently. They suddenly noticed a light fog was developing around the boat.

"Ay', I think that's our stop." Garrison pointed ahead.

They all turned towards a piece of land in the distance. It was a large island with a dense tropical forest surrounding it.

He pushed those thoughts for the bunny aside and focused on the mission.