Building Neverland-Hook Rising

Chapter 1-The World's Most Famous Crook

Rumors of pirates nearing the port of London spread like a plague but none could say where the rumors began for no one noteworthy had been the one to spot the ominous black flag in the distance. Some rushed to the docks to see but there was nothing to be found. No dreaded pirate ship on the horizon. Just the usual fishing boats and cargo holds. There was one strange ship, but the crew kept to themselves and seemed to not cause any trouble. 

Moira had a secret world of her own. A neverending curiosity towards the pirate rumors as she went about her daily duties in the tavern, sweeping, serving, and contemplating deep thoughts of piracy and freedom upon the open ocean waves. What it must be like to live such a life, to do what one wanted when one wished, to pursue adventure, knowledge, and treasures untold. It was a life she so secretly yearned for. Life rather than her dreary day to day, working her hands to the bone for minimal pay, getting her ass swatted by drunken peasants that she was forced to serve and smile to day in and day out. 

Today would be a day like no other, she just did not know it yet. She stood in the back, chopping potatoes for the large brown stews that boiled and bubbled atop the stove. Looking into a shining plate of metal on the wall, she eyed her light blonde curls and vibrant golden hazel eyes. Wiping two streaks of flour under her cheeks she growled into the reflection for a moment before falling into a fit of laughter at the sight of herself. She was positively insane in her opinion! Wiping the flour off of her high cheekbones, she dusted off her hands and prepared for work. Tossing in the chopped red potatoes she added in some cured herbs, sage, basil, salt, and copious amounts of water to the bubbling brews. The finished stew smelled delicious, but none for her lest she wished to purchase a bowl of her very own and she could never afford such luxuries. She would have to wait until she got home to dine, unfortunately. Though at home all that awaited her foodwise were bits of stale bread and old coffee. It was a severely depressing thought but she thrust it from her mind and did her best to remind herself to be grateful, at the very least, for what she had. Her stomach grumbled loudly as she bent forward slightly, pressing the back of her wrist to her clammy forehead. A dizzy spell overtook her for a brief moment and for a second there she felt faint. After a few seconds of leaning against the doorframe, the feeling eventually passed. She shook it off, and stood up, getting back to work. 

She was so hungry and the day was so long. Moira quickly pushed the thoughts out of her mind and headed out into the front to begin taking orders for the bar. There were a few within, some near the back, but mostly they congregated near the front around the bar itself. Pouring brew after ale after mead after brew, she began to lose herself to the rhythm of the movement. Going into a daze, she began pouring each order, one right after another just as she had done thousands of times before. Using the momentum to distract her from her troubled aching stomach. Sliding one ale down the bar, she lent an ear to the gossip she overheard, catching a word she so longed to hear. Pirates.

"I heard it's that old ship what said to be run by nothin' but children that be near." Whispered one patron to another as the others threw down their cards and scoffed at the absurdity of his statement. "I tells yah, it be the truth! I seen it with my own eyes! Long ago...when I was a sailor in me youth! I'm tellin yah, the ship was manned by nothin but children!"

But then men around him waved their hands, dismissing his words before one of them spoke up. "Blythe yeh old goat, that just be superstitious sailor talk. Ain't no pirate ship fulla youngins what never graced the seas and yeh jest need teh accept dat." Grumbled one annoyed patron over his slow-burning cigar, the smoke rising high and filling the area with a slight fog about their table. She coughed as she inhaled some of it, waving her hand to rid herself of the stench, catching their attention briefly as they all turned back to their card game in prickly silence.