In Love with a Pirate

Claire's little secret revealed

Claire looked out and saw how close they were to the spaceport, and decided that now would be a good time to grab what was left of her belongings and head to the deck. She went to Silver's room, where she had begun to keep her stuff...for multiple reasons...and she picked up her bag.

She was surprised when she lifted it, and it was heavier than it had ever been before.

"What the...?" She asked herself as she opened the bag and found a note that read:

Hey C-ster, I hope ye find d'is before ya reach the port. D'er is some'tin in yer bag for ya. I saw it on Tecra, and knew how good it would look on ya' Can't wait ta' see you in it.

She could almost see the smirk on his face as she read his words. Claire reached into her bag and pulled out a black leather adventurers coat, and she immediately tried it on. It went down just below her knees, with a slit on each side that went to her thighs. It had cuffs on each wrist, and nice big lapels to match. She went to close it and noticed that it had two rows of buttons, one for a tight-fitting, and one that was nice and loose.

Luckily, she had a long waist so as big as the baby was, her bump wasn't huge, and the looser fit of the coat hid it well. She went back to the bag and pulled out a crimson-colored tricorn hat that was embellished with various-sized gears that were displayed on the brim. She placed it on her head, and glanced at herself in the mirror as a smile crept on her face...she looked good.

The RLS Legacy finally reached the Montressor SpacePort and docked in its designated spot. Claire buttoned up her coat and headed out to meet her mom. She was ecstatic as she stepped off the plank, and immediately started to look for her. It had been a whole year since she saw her, and she missed her terribly.

She couldn't help but chuckle when she saw how lost her mom looked in the crowd of sky-farers, and she decided to rescue her. She grabbed Sarah's shoulder and shouted through the noise

"Mom!"

The distraught Sarah turned towards the familiar voice. "Claire! Oh, am I glad to see you! I have missed you! Look at how much you've grown!"

Claire hid her nerves behind a laugh. "Well, it has been a year."

They reached in to hug each other, and Claire held her breath in hopes that her mom wouldn't feel her swollen belly. Of course, she would tell her...but she didn't want her to find out like this. Her mom had a warm smile as she kissed her forehead.

"Let's go home."

The two had been walking for a while when Claire recalled the fire. "Wait...so, where IS home? Are we still at Delbert's?"

Sarah seemed to have an almost embarrassed smile on her face as they walked up to a very small cottage.

"Nope! This is home sweet home!" Claire walked inside and took a look around. It was nice, but tiny compared to the Benbow. It was a two-bedroom home, with one bathroom and an itty bitty kitchen. Claire frowned when she walked into the cooking area.

"Oh, mom...this galley...umm...I mean kitchen...isn't big enough to support your cooking."

Sarah let out a sad sigh. "I know...I haven't been able to cook the way I like to since the fire. I make do, but I miss the big meals I used to make. This is all that the insurance would cover."

This wouldn't do, not at all. Her mom didn't even have an inn anymore, and it broke her heart because her mom was passionate about it. She was gonna fix this.

"Mom, I love you, and I will be right back!!" She said as she ran out the door.

Sarah reached her arms out in an attempt to stop her, but quickly realized it was pointless as her daughter disappeared.