The White Night

Chapter 2

It was now morning and Lucas began to wake, he saw that the woman was still sleeping. He rose and began to walk to the kitchen. Robin was inside making breakfast: fried eggs, grilled vegetables ,and potato pancakes. Lucas grabbed some fried eggs along with a cup of coffee and hot green tea. As he returned to his room with food in hand the woman was begging to wake up. As he looked at the woman he noticed a silver key around her neck on a chain. It rose the question: 'What was it to?'

She was unsure where she was, she wasn't in the closet anymore. As she adjusted to her surroundings she saw the man in the chair next to the bed she was in which begged the question:

'How did I get in here?' the question raced through her mind as she looked around franticly.

"Calm yourself down I don't feel any hostility from anyone on this boat" the voice echoed in her mind.

'Can you please tell me who you are and why you're here, in my mind?'

" Well you see I don't know how I am here myself ." the voice replies

' Well then can you atleast tell me what you call yourself?' the voice went quiet for a minute not replying to the question. The truth is that even the voice knew nothing. Well, that wasn't true he knew lots, he knew where they were and multiple things, but not his name.

" Why should I answer that when you know not of your own name." This made the woman think.

' Okay well since we both need names why I don't think of one for you and come up with one for me?'

" Okay then." the voice agreed. They both began to think about this. the woman who already had many names in her head but they all meant horrid things.

' I've got it! Okay I'll call you Michi because you show me the path whenever I'm lost.' She thought about yesterday when she was running away. The woman was smiling and talking through her mind with the voice in her head. She was pulled out of her mind when someone unfamiliar said something.

" So, are you done smiling for no reason?" Lucas asked curiously. The woman began to blush out of embarrassment.

"S-sorry" she said quietly.

"No no it's okay" Lucas handed her the plate for food in his hand "here you should probably eat something, you must be hungry."

The woman's stomach growled in sync, but she pushed the food away. She then began to look at the floor.

" What why won't you eat it? You're hungry." Michi said.

' I'm not eating anything they give me. what if they try to kill me or something.' she retorted

"Any why on earth would they have a reason to kill you?"

" I don't know why am I the only one who can hear you?" she said aloud by accident. She suddenly covered her mouth embarrassed.

" Well, that's because maybe we're in the same room? Well that's if you're talking to me, you may be talking to an imaginary voice in your head. " Lucas answered jokingly and slightly confused. The woman just looked away from him and took the plate of food he had sat on the bed. She mumbled a very faint thanks and began eating. Lucas just smirked wondering what had changed the woman's mind in just a short period of time. He then realized that he still didn't know her name.

"So, what's your name?" he asked

The girl just stopped eating and sighed, obviously slightly irritated. She didn't answer, not right away at least. Then she suddenly put off a disturbing auror, one that was both gloomy and angry.

"I don't know." she replied simply "I wish I could tell you but I don't know."

'Tell him your name is Niko, it's actually suits you. It means sunshine."

" Well, what should we call you. I mean you can't just not have a name." Lucas' voice was calm and soothing to the girl.

" Call me Niko" her voice was sheepish. Lucas on the other hand thought her voice was cute.

"Okay Niko let me go introduce you to all of my crew. You'll love them they're... interesting." Lucas seemed to smirk as he finished his sentence. Niko just nodded and took the green tea Lucas had given her: it was now warm, no longer hot. Lucas turned to her and gave her a warm hearted smile.

" If you want we can go get you some hot tea." Niko nodded gently placing down the cup of warm tea.

"Actually I think I'd prefer coffee instead." She giggled

A few weeks passed and Niko became more familiar with the ship and its crew. She had met the witch doctor Ignatia Hayashi, the one who had cared for her while Niko was unconscious. She had long white hair and was very smart, however she had fully black eyes and could be depressing at times. Niko also had learned that Ignatia could use black magic, curses, and potions.

Niko had also met Gonzo Kurosawa, the swordsmen and Lucas's best friends and second mate. Gonzo was tall, tan, muscular, and also had a few tattoos. There was a particular tattoo that caught Niko's eye: it was blue and black with the outline of what seemed to be a wolf on it. Gonzo himself was somewhat scary he always held a stoic expression but he was actually really nice to Niko. Although he had many things about him which Niko often looked at the main one was his red hair. It was a dark red but when in the sun it seemed as if his hair was actually fire.

Then she met the cook, Robin Oshiro, his name had meant big castle and it described him extremely well. He was tall and very muscular, he also had many scars all over his body, he was scary and brutal looking. Niko had met him when he was chopping meat and it is something she would never forget. He had seemed to use many knives which scared Niko even more, however a few days after she met him he was smiling and was cuddling the scientist Taranis.

This brought up the scientist. Taranis. Niko felt like she bonded with Taranis and no matter what she could understand him. What was interesting about him was that he wasn't human. He was a tiger looking brute with large bird wings. He walked on two legs and mainly spoke english but would sometimes roar when angry. Niko was that even when he did roar she could understand the curses he said somehow, although he would mainly say bad words. Taranis himself was extremely smart and always wore his lab coat. Niko had also noticed he had mainly stayed away from anyone except Lucas, however he had seemed to like Niko. 

Lucas he started to smile more with the blond woman now aboard his ship. He felt like he was bonding with her; he'd introduced her to all of the crew, showed her all of the ship, well, everywhere but one place. He started to feel warm about her and as much as he wanted to know about her he only knew what she knew: nothing. His crewmembers all seemed to love Niko, and she seemed to bring a new feeling to him as well.

As Lucas was walking with Niko on deck Rwenzo came up to them holding an item the shape of a shoe box.

"Oh miss Niko I forgot to give you this box when you woke up, you know with all the running I forgot about it." Rwenzo turned red from embarrassment "Sorry." Niko looked puzzled for a minute before finally asking what everyone had been wondering.

"What is it?" Rwenzo just sighed

No one knew the box would later hold a key to discovering who the new crew mate really was.~~~~