Princess!Reader x Pirate! Spain and England: Love Lost at Sea

Chapter 11

The sun was setting once again. The crew was dining. ___ could hear their loud, boisterous voices from the deck. She had quickly eaten a small ration and fled from the loud commotion. Her hands were settled on the railing of the ship, and her (e/c) eyes stared off at the unending ocean. The waves rocked thee boat gently. She still felt slightly queasy, but managed to push the sensation aside.

A soft breeze moved her hair, and she inhaled deeply. The air smelt of salt and freedom. It was intoxicating. Her fingers were still fiddling with the ring that hung loosely around her neck. If only Alfred were here. This had been our dream. To travel. Her heart grew heavy. She was going to miss him immensely. He had been her best friend. Her partner in crime. Her knight in shining armor. They grew up together, him working in the stalls. She'd go and watch him work, talk to him and wait for him to be able to play. She watched him grow from a young, energetic boy to a strong, golden-hearted man. Even when on 2 different social classes, they had remained close... and he stuck by her side, as the head of (k/n)'s knights. He had always been there to protect her..

And now she was on her own. He must be so worried. No doubt he was doing everything in his power to find ____. She wondered what he would think if he saw her now, rugged and training to be a pirate... of course, he knew the more adventurous and tougher side of her. She told him her dreams of traveling the world. And they had wrestled as kids. There had always been a rough aspect to the princess, but she had been forced to repress it when she became older. She had to be poised and elegant, which was a struggle since she had been naturally clumsy and untamed... but they succeeded. She had been morphed into what they needed her to be, and hid who she had wanted to be.

But now, she was free. Free from the social classes, from the harsh and strict rules of royalty. She could be whoever she wanted to be.

Who would that be?

____ felt cold and hugged herself. She had always been a princess. She lost herself to that role over the years, and her very existence lied in that title. Princess ____. Without her crown, her kingdom, what was she? Who was she?

"You look lost." She jumped at the voice and whirled around quickly, locking eyes with Captain Antonio. He chuckled. "I didn't mean to startle you." "No, you're fine... I was just in a daze, I suppose..." ____ relaxed her tensed shoulders and sighed, returning her gaze to the gently rolling waves. "I guess I am lost." Antonio stood beside her, resting his elbows on the railing. "What do you mean, chica?" ____ shrugged. "I am in a situation I've never been in before, going places that I've never seen before, with people I hardly know." She smiled sadly to herself. "I've been given a chance to get away from a life I always told myself I never wanted... but it was all I've ever known. Now I have nothing. No direction in life. No orders, no purpose. I'm free. And it scares me." Antonio stared at her intently as she spoke."I've always been a princess. Now I don't know who to be."

"You can be ____."

She gave him an odd look. "What?" "You don't need to have orders or a given direction to live your life. Life doesn't follow a map, or a set of steps. You can go wherever, do whatever. You can choose your own path. You can be youself." ____ blinked her wide eyes. He seemed to glow in the light of the setting sun. Her heart skipped a beat and she smiled. "You're nice, for a pirate." Antonio laughed. "We're not all bad. Our titles do not define us. We are our own people."

Those words made her nod. So what if she had been a princess? She was her own person, and could be herself now. She could dance terribly and sing loudly and could even put her elbows on the dining table! ____ was beaming now, eyes ablaze with a wild determination. Antonio noticed the change in her attitude and smiled.

____ then noticed something gleaming in the faint light. She looked down at her hand. The ring. She slipped it off and stared down at it. It was truly beautiful. It was a tie to her former life, the role she had played for so long...

"Never again..." The words left her as a whisper, and ____ cocked her arm back and threw the ring. She could see it sparkle before disappearing, forever lost in the ocean below.

........

"We must find him." The words were determined, almost harsh, even. He stood over a map, along with the leader of his navy. They had been trying to track down Captain Antonio for days, with the help of (k/n). "That bastard... I'll kill him when I find him..." His fist was clenched, shaking with rage. His wedding had been interrupted, his princess stolen. What terrible things were they doing to ___?? The possibilities made Matthias  shake with rage.

He and the commander discussed ways to find the pirates. They had already notified their allies to be on the look out for Antonio's ship. Time was ticking. Each moment they had ____ drove Matthias a little madder.

He sent the commander away. The door shut behind him, leaving the prince in silence. Alone. Matthias sighed. He was tired and stressed. The king of (k/n) was worried sick. Quite literally. After they had taken Princess ____, he had gone into a wild frenzy of orders and coughs. Eventually he had to rest as to not work himself up into an unhealthy state, and Alfred and Matthias took most control over the operations of finding the princess.

He should have done something. Was there something he could have done? Matthias shook his head and gazed down at the ring on his finger. It sparkled in the light of the lantern. He clenched his jaws, determined.

"I will have my bride."

"I'm coming for you, Antonio."

To be continued...