Viola

Twelfth Night - Abridged

It was an interesting place when one had not recently been unconscious.

Firstly, the lighting changed. Windows let in substantial amounts of daylight, but for whatever reason a lantern was left on her desk. It illuminated the Lady Captain from behind, turning her hair to a halo but incinerating fire in her eyes.

Secondly, it was colorful. Reds and purples everywhere, but blues and greens in a scarf here and a map there were what accented the room.

"Are you gonna stand and stare or are you going to say something with that pretty mouth of yours?"

I met her gaze unblinkingly. "What would you like me to say?"

The sheer darkness of her eyes was nearly unbearable. Though she saved my life once, I hadn't ruled out the possibility the Lady Captain was a demon sent to plague me.

It must be something she did on purpose. "Where did you learn commerce and economic thought, and why did you not think it prudent to mention?"

"It's not a skill, Captain, only a recitation." My eyes burned, but I had shoved myself into this spider's web and now I must stick.

"Sewing is your true skill." She smirked. "And I guess we are in need of a surgeon,"

I finally blinked. "My father was- is. Is a merchant. As a child, he would entertain me with tales of work. I doubt he thought- thinks. Thinks I understood them,"

The Lady Captain did not blink. Her eyes continued to burn into mine like a fire burns a man stuck in the Norwegian woods. In January.

"Interesting. Then I think it would be wise, or some might say necessary for you to spend a little more time in this cabin with me and Jack,"

I blushed, my cursed mind taking the simple duo to places I'd rather they not go.

"Not in that way, unless you'd like to. I, however, would rather Jack stay out of that picture." She leaned in like and actor telling me a secret so all the audience could know. "He has certain equipment I can't say I ever wanted to know how to operate,"

I stepped back, aghast at her profane talk. "That's-that's not what ladies speak of!"

"I am a lady, yes." Her lips curved as if I had said something terribly funny and her scar caught the light just then. "But I am also a captain."

She stepped towards me, closing the few feet between us. "And this." she leaned down to speak in my ear.

I waited for my alarm bells to sound, something within me to give me an excuse to leave, leave her hot breath on my face and the smooth, tantalizing smell on her coat and her strong shoulders and her long legs.

"Is my." Her breath tickled my ear which sent goosebumps across my neck and oh, God.

"Ship." She popped the end of the word and some pressure behind my eyes both appeared and disappeared.

I wanted nothing more than to stay and to get away. I was a fly caught in this spider's web but she was not going to eat me, not yet.

She wanted to play with me first.

"Is our meeting rescheduled, Captain?" A man in the now open doorway asked. Jack. He was a tall lean dark-skinned African who wore a red bandana around his head at all times. His left ear wore a single gold hoop.

I nearly catapulted away from her.

Unaffected, she remained in nearly the same position.

"Of course it isn't. We only have some extra company that will be joining us from now on,"