Ship's Core (CaptainSwan fanfic)

Twelve

I hope this picture made you smile :)

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I wrote a long, informative letter to my father explaining what had happened, that I couldn't be queen, and it was too much pressure to spring on me like that. And so, I decided that I was going to do what I was always meant to do; become a pirate.

I sent the letter tied to a dove's ankle, much like my mom had taught me to do. It was hard doing something that reminded me so much of her.

As the white bird flew towards the horizon, it reminded me of my mother flying away, leaving us behind. Never coming back.

I felt a lump in my throat, and I wanted to cry, but just as a tear was about to fall down my cheek, someone spoke beside me.

"Are you alright, Princess?" it was Smee.

I turned to face him. He held sympathy in his expression, and I quickly concealed my sorrow with a smile.

"I've never been better. I was just, um . . . enjoying the salty air." I said smoothly.

He nodded in understanding.

I sighed.
"So. What's for dinner?" I asked delightfully, my stomach empty.

"Fish and a hard, tasteless bread called hardtack. And it's the same for tomorrow. And the next day. And the day after that. But don't worry, the day after that will be exactly the same." Smee explained, sighing. I was a little disappointed, but apparently that's just something you have to put up with as a pirate. 

"Sometimes I wish . . ." Smee looked around cautiously before continuing. "I wish I could go back. Back to the days before I was a pirate."

When I asked why, he began to reminisce about his life before he took it upon himself to serve as Captain Hook's best mate. How his mother was the best cook he had ever encountered, he always looked forward to sitting down at the dinner table and experiencing the new and exciting flavours she had produced for him. How his father would get them all to sit right in front of the fire; Smee, his mother, his two brothers and his sister, and he would tell them all great stories. Some true, most just myths, but all of them . . . fascinating. 

"That's how it happened, actually. I was only a boy of twelve, and we were all at the fire, ready for my father to come home from work, sit down by the dancing flames, and tell us yet another exciting story." Smee explained. "However, he was late. And I worried. He was never late, my papa. Always very punctual. My mother told us everything was fine, that he probably just got held back at the tavern, as that was where he worked. But I could tell by her that something wasn't right. My baby brother, Benjamin began to throw a fit, demanding a story. And from there, everything spiralled downwards. Benji was throwing a tantrum, rolling around on the floor, moving the carpet with him. It didn't take much for the carpet to go up in flames. We lived in a log cabin in the woods, you see. Everything was very flammable. So when the carpet caught fire, it didn't take long for everything else to as well. I remember Natasha, my older sister, her pigtails caught fire, and she was screaming the house down, if it wasn't already falling apart. By the time my mother got her senses together, the whole living room was already ablaze. She told us all to run outside, and we did, Benji in Natasha's arms, me at my mothers side. But we didn't notice that my eight year old brother, Jack, was unconscious on the floor, and he didn't follow us. When we got outside, I remember my mother screaming Jack's name and running into the house after him. Then I remember Benji crying for his mama, and running into the burning house, and Natasha going to rescue him."
A tear fell from Smee's face before he said;
"That was the last I ever saw them."

I felt the lump in my throat only grow bigger, and now all I wanted to do was let tears pour down my face like a waterfall, but of course, I couldn't. What sort of a pirate would I be if I did?

"I went looking for my papa that night, after I had cried myself dry outside my flaming house. I asked the owner of the tavern at which he worked where he was, he said he had gone home hours ago. So, I followed the trail back to my house and . . ." He paused, and a tear rolled down his cheek.
"And I found his body next to a creek, his head on a stone, blood everywhere." Smee looked down, ashamed.
"He was drunk."

I couldn't stop the tears pouring down my cheeks uncontrolably, but silently.

"I lived on the streets from that point forward, and when I was fourteen I crossed paths with Hook. He took me in, said he'd fatten me up again, as I had lost plenty of weight. And from that point, life went on." He sighed.

"Why-" I choked and cleared my throat. "Why did you tell me all of this?"

He shrugged.
"I guess I trust you, Princess." he replied with a sad smile.

"You know, you can call me Emma." I said after smiling in response.

He shook his head.
"Princess suits you better. It can be my nick-name for you."

I chuckled and wiped away my tears.

"AY!" I heard someone yelling from the quarterdeck. It was Hook, who was at the wheel.
"ENOUGH WITH THE WATERWORKS! GET THE SHIP PREPARED! THERE'S A STORM AHEAD!"

I looked around urgently to see large, dark clouds, heavy with rain, rolling in towards us. In the distance, just under the clouds, the waves were moving frantically like there were giant sea monsters swishing around beneath the surface. I hear thunder rumbling and the sky turned white for a second with lightning.

Hook was right.

A storm was coming.

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Oh my God this chapter was so short I'm sorry! But I have loads of homework and I felt like I needed to post this now, so here you go!

I hope you learned a little more about Smee in this chapter, that's really what I was going for.

Vote if you enjoyed and comment your thoughts!

Love and tragic backstories,
-C