𝐓𝐖𝐎 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐋𝐃𝐒 ━ 𝐣𝐚𝐜𝐨𝐛 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐝

iii. nothing rum can't rid of

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐓𝐇𝐑𝐄𝐄

━

"you wish, love"

▬▬▬▬▬𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐐𝐔𝐄 𝐋𝐄 did not dislike her crew. In actuality, she rather liked them. It was just that, after a life full of attending events and balls, she had began to prefer solitude over socializing. So the moment she could, she excused herself from the revelry happening below deck to head above for some fresh air.

Before she could reach the taffrail however, Jacob stepped out of the Captain's cabin, with an almost joyful pep in his step. He didn't seem to notice her until she spoke out loud.

"Something good must have happened," Angelique observed as she walked past him.

For a moment, he didn't reply, but she heard him follow her to the railing where she leaned over and rested her forearms on it. He joined her, also gazing at the night sky and sea rather than at each other.

"Well," he said, leaning on the railing too. "You guessed correctly."

"Let me guess further," she mused thoughtfully. "Crow had a near-death experience today. And... it made him wonder. About life. About what would happen to the Inevitable after he's gone."

Angelique turned her head to look at him. "He made you next in line for captain, didn't he?"

He let out a huff of amusement, "Precisely."

She returned her eyes to the stars and water, silence enveloping them. For a moment, she could even pretend they didn't dislike each other.

He broke the quiet, his fingers drumming softly on the wood of the railing.

"Are you to come with us above shore this time? To see your parents in Whiterock, I mean," he said.

Angelique closed her eyes momentarily, if only to delay the answer to the question. 

When she had left quite a while ago, her parents were none too happy. And Crow somehow survived their wrath. But only because they had ended up pretending it was their idea. To send the princess away on the Inevitable to make her more accustomed to a harsher life. Where everything wasn't handed to her on a silver platter. It was a political maneuver, of course, trying to make themselves more likable among the poor.

It wasn't just that either. How could they possibly ever let the people think that they had no control over their own child? It would undermine their royalty, their power. Make them seem incompetent.

She hadn't seen her parents in three years. Whenever Crow had needed to bring in the horns of the beasts he killed, she never went with, always deciding to stay on the ship. But it didn't matter how much she avoided them. She was still the heir. She could escape the confines and expectations of the high society for a while, but not forever.

Angelique knew it was about time she saw her parents again. So why not the day after tomorrow? 

She nodded once. "Yes. I... intend to."

Jacob glanced at her once, surprise flashing once in his features. "Alright. I'll let Crow know."

They were having good conversation. She hesitated, knowing she shouldn't. But what he had done earlier had been gnawing at her all evening.