pirate king (pirate!au) ➵ ateez ✔️

depths

Tortuga is not happy to have you back.

"You were the man who took our town leader hostage! You cannot simply just stride back onto port and walk here as if you have not just committed the gravest of sins!" A portly man dressed in velvet and gold waves so furiously that his expensive silk cravat has become stained with sweat. "You, hooligans, don't ever come back to this town!"

Wooyoung simply shrugs and makes to pick his ear with his pinky, entirely without a care in the world. You kick him in the shin and he yelps, shying away.

"Say you're sorry!"

"I didn't do anything wrong!" He protests, and Yeosang tilts his head back slightly in the middle of negotiations to fix Wooyoung with a glare so menacing you can practically see the darkness rolling off him. Wooyoung must feel the same sensation - of death stepping across his grave - because he shivers and rubs the back of his neck. "Okay, maybe I might have done a thing or two-"

"This man... utterly unbelievable!" The official continues to rant, and even the soldiers lined up behind him are starting to wince from how piercing his voice is. He jabs a finger at Wooyoung ferociously. "I respect you, Pirate King, but the disrespect this man has shown us! Breaking into the officials' town headquarters! Knocking out the guards! Dragging the head of this town out of his chambers in his... in his sleepwear! Preposterous, I tell you!"

Hongjoong raises his hands, a calm smile on his face to placate the official. "I deeply apologise for my crew member's behavior. It must have been a terrible experience, but I can assure you my crew regrets his actions and is extremely repentant about his behavior."

You look dubiously at the supposedly repentant man.

"He sleeps naked." Wooyoung whispers loudly into your ear, a cheeky smile decorating his face. You stare at him, and then shake your head. He's incorrigible.

"However, I ask you to understand that the situation at hand was dire, and that we had no other choice in order to go after our captain. As thanks for letting this matter slide, we'll compensate the town head appropriately." Yeosang's angelic smile is at full power, and for a second you're almost blinded by the halo settling above his head. The bag of gold coins in his hand (polished by Wooyoung for the whole of last night as punishment) somehow seem dull in comparison. "I'm sure you won't regret it."

The official's eyes are like magnets, drawn to the gold. You can almost see him licking his lips. "... compensate?"

"Very handsomely." Yeosang shakes the bag once. The sound is more alluring than any symphony or sirens' song to your ears. Apparently, that must be the how the official feels too, because his hand reaches out to touch it, before he jerks it back to his chest, coughing lightly. "Well then, I suppose it couldn't hurt just to let it go just this once..."

A soldier behind the official rolls his eyes to heaven in exasperation.

"However! That man is not allowed to step foot into the town, and must stay on the ship at all times. This in nonnegotiable. Also," Yeosang hands over the bag of gold, and the official beckons Hongjoong closer. "There have been... ah... rumors... among the townspeople... Royal Navy... searching for a woman.... bounty... alive... five thousand..."

You glance over at Wooyoung, who's sulking miserably. "You kind of deserve it. Although... thanks for doing it, to get captain and I back."

At your words, Wooyoung instantly brightens. "No problem! It was the most fun I had in weeks anyway!" You send him a flat look, intent on chiding him, but then your captain calls your name.