Underground Pirates

Dinner and a Show

"If I had been told that a three course meal this good could have been had down here, I would have called that man a liar," Sarin said, before adding, "Thank you Martha."

James had in fact paid his way, and had even offered to pay for Loon, who was to proud to accept the generosity, although deep in his heart of hearts, Pennyless knew he owed the man from before and was just trying to repay his debts. The young man had stood silently on the ferry, afraid for a repeat of the ride out, trying to figure out how he had gotten mixed up in this mess. On the ferry ride off of the island, he had been trying to escape just this woman, afraid she was going to seek revenge, and now he found himself at her table, her revenge seated next to him in the form of a nearly one armed pirate named Sarin, who, aside from forcing him to help out, had not really been that bad to him.

"No problem." The old woman said, "James, would you like some more?" she asked, offering James a bowl of candied yams.

James held up his hand. He felt like he was about to burst with how much he had already eaten. Maybe this was her revenge, he thought. She was going to force himself to gorge himself to death. If she had recognized him from the night before, she sure did not let it be known, but every time something got sat on his plate, he feared that the healer might have found some way to poison it. But it all smelled so good, and he had not had a meal like this in, well, ever, and he just could not help himself.

"So, Sarin, if you are serious, I have that list of things for you."

"To repay a meal like this, I'll have to get double everything on the list." Sarin replied with a smile in between bites of barbecued pigeon.

Martha laughed, "This? This is nothing, just a few things from my garden, and a few birds out of the coupe out back."

"Well," Loon said, wiping his mouth on his sleeve. He had already wiped the face paint from his time above off, and his arm came away only with the red of the sauce from the bird, "if this is nothing, I'd like to know what it takes to get a formal invitation to 'something' with you."

The four men and one woman laughed, a sound not heard very often in the down below.

"Well," Martha said as she raised her glass of rotgut, "I'd like to propose a toast," and she waited for the other four to also raise their glasses, not one of them matching. "To us. To people who can enjoy what they have. Even when it is not much. To people, who despite what they did yesterday," she shot a quick glance at James, who shrank before it, before continuing, "can walk into somewhere with a new attitude. With the desire to help. With the desire to repair. With the desire to fix the wrongs that have been done."

"Hear, hear!" Everyone, except for James said as Martha finished, he instead stood.

"I'd like to add something, for I know it is true of me, and I'm pretty sure it's true of some of you too." He said, meekly.

"Go on," Martha encouraged, still holding her drink aloft.

"Some of the things we've done in life may not lead to our proudest moments, but sometimes, it is the reflecting on them that matters, the realization that they were wrong, the moving forward and making good on the bads you've done."

"I'll drink to that," Sarin said as Pennyless sat back down.

"So will I," said Loon, who's glass clinked against the raised others.

Clacks was the only person at the table to remain silent, although he did at least touch his glass to the others at the table.

"I don't suppose you have any of whatever that tea was to numb the pain, do you?" Sarin asked as he fumbled with his for for what felt like the millionth time. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before trying again, finally getting another bite of yam into his mouth.