Child of a Pirate, Raised at Sea

Chapter 2

     I kept my word and didn’t leave the room. I plopped myself down on the window seat and leaned my forehead against the glass, feeling the rays of the setting sun touch my face. I sighed and began to wonder when my Father would be back for me. I could here the voices of my father’s crew mixed in with the new comers but I couldn’t make out anything they were saying. Suddenly, I saw movement out of the corner of the room. My eyes darted to a man emerging from behind the door on the other side of the room. I gave a squeal and launched myself at the door. But he was closer. The man slammed his arm against the door and leered at me. I plainly saw the dagger strapped to his thigh and his wide, bruised and well used looking knuckles. I wouldn’t fight. I would out smart him. I took a step back and looked him in the eyes. When he advanced towards me, I heard no footsteps on the floor as I expected, I heard no sound from him at all. I could clearly still hear the wind creaking through the ships many wide drafty corridors, and a sea gull cry out in the distance as it finally caught its hard earned dinner. He looks half crazy, I thought to myself as he got closer, nwo grasping the dagger in his right hand. Suddenly, in a voice as rough as wales skin he asks,
“What’s your name?” With my heart thudding loudly I took one step back. But then I thought, why should I be afraid? This was my Father’s ship after all, with 40-some odd crew members that would risk their own life to save mine. “My name is Attica. What’s yours?”  I asked with all the dignity and confidence I could muster.
But before I could get to the part where I outsmarted him he lunged at me and threw me over his shoulder. I shrieked and began pummeling his back with my fists but to no avail. I had hardly noticed we had moved until he deposited me ungracefully onto the deck where my father and all the other men were. Currently, they had stopped conversing and were staring at me in shock. My father came forward and put his hand on my shoulder. I looked at him, about to demand an explanation for being handled this way, when I realized he was looking at the man who had dragged me unceremoniously from my quarters with a look of dread. I had never seen my father like this. I decided to stay quiet and watch whatever unfolded before me. “Hesiod”, my Father exclaimed, “I made it clear I did not want her part of this.” His voice was firm but his hand on my shoulder shook, though with anger or fear I didn’t know. Either way I wrapped both my arms around his waist, hoping he would draw some power from knowing I was on his side. I looked around and noticed that, strangely, our crew didn’t seem at all concerned by these turn of events. In fact, they seemed dazed or in a trance. Some were weaving back and forth with their eyes glazed over. Another had seemingly appeared to have fallen asleep standing up, drool rolling down his beard. In surprise I came back to my Father and Hesiod’s conversation. “I don’t take orders from you” Hesiod exclaimed, “And besides, she’s coming with us after all, she might as well know...” He was going to say more but my father cut him off quickly. Hesiod seemed to gather himself and decide on something. He knelt down in front of me, still clinging to my Father and said “I know this is all very knew and confusing for you so I’ll try to make this simple.” He looked at me, like actually really looked me in the eyes for the first time and a shock of realization spread through me, “This isn’t the first time we’ve met is it?” I asked before I could stop myself. His grin was so familiar it nearly left me breathless. I remembered his smile! I remembered him and I on this ship laughing, dancing, playing tricks on my father, hiding from the rest of the crew, stealing food from the kitchen, as more memories flooded my mind I felt so overwhelmed my legs buckled underneath me and I felt two pairs of arms catch me. When I came to, I saw my father staring worriedly at me but when I looked at Hesiod he was like I had remembered. “You remember me don’t you?” he asked.
“Hesiod!” I screamed in delight. “I missed you so much!” Out of the corner of my eye I saw my father’s face darken and him lower his head and shake it as if in denial. He was incredulous. “How do you remember? What do you see?” I was distracted by how I was feeling in this moment and my father’s question confused me “Of course I remember. I don’t know how I forgot him! We grew up together. He was like my brother!” At this I saw the excitement and amusement die a little in Hesiod’s eyes and I began to think that maybe I hadn’t remembered as many memories as I thought…or at least the important ones. Suddenly, I didn’t feel so giddy. I accepted my Fathers help to get up and turned to Hesiod. He seemed suddenly unsure of himself and shifted his weight and eyes away from me. Before my father led me away, presumably to rest, he told Hesiod to attend to his crew for him while he looked after me. I went willingly with my Father but kept looking back over my shoulder at Hesiod. He didn’t look back at me but I noticed a definite stoop to his shoulders that wasn’t there before as he marched over to the crew that was still in a daze and whispered in one of their ears. Before I could remark to my father how odd this was he whisked me below deck.