Camille's Adventure

Chapter 16: New Crewmate

Camille went over to a spot on the port side of the boat near the stern. Pearl lay well out of the way, her neck resting on the deck.

"Boy am I glad you got to come along on this voyage. You were helpful in the previous battle." Camille spoke to Pearl.

"It was an honor to save the inhabitants of Narrowhaven, your highness." Pearl smiled

Camille smiled and petted the horse's nose. "I just don't know what to make of that new boy."

"You mean Marcus?" Pearl asked. Camille had kept the horse updated on the going-ons on the ship since Pearl was slightly too big to fit in a crowd.

"Yeah," Camille sighed, "the boy is strange but yet not strange. I don't understand any of this. He acts like he's never been here before and that's understandable but yet he has a feeling about him that he's familiar with this place."

"You know those are two conflicting points," Pearl pointed out.

"I know, I know, I know!" Camille replied, ringing her hands in distress. "Why can't I have all the answers to this right now! All these dreams and all these nightmares are driving me nuts!"

"Maybe you should tell your brother about this."

Camille sighed again, "He already knows about the dreams. The whole ship's crew, even Drinian, knows. Except Edmund and Lucy. I haven't had the courage to tell them."

"Why not?" Pearl asked, cocking her head to one side.

"I just.... don't know how they'd react." 

"React to what?" Lucy's voice said as she walked over to them.

"Uh, react to how I managed to get Pearl on this ship." Camille answered.

Pearl rolled her eyes.

Lucy smiled. "Yeah, how did you get Pearl to come along on this voyage?"

"Well, I persuaded my brother to let her come aboard the ship and after a while he agreed to let her come along only if she stayed well out of the way. Pearl has done pretty good for that so far."

"Well, I am glad you did take her along. Then I get to see her again." Lucy petted the horse softly.

Suddenly a noise interrupted the conversation. Eustace ran from the cabin door and across the deck, a large knife in his hand.

"Trying to run away? We're on a boat you know." Reep pointed out as he swung around Eustace on a rope and landed on the ship's railing.

"Look, can't we just talk about this?" The boy pleaded.

Camille and the other crew members started to gather around the sides.

Reep sliced a hole in the boy's shirt. "That was for stealing."

"This is for lying." Reep stabbed the stolen orange.

"And one for good measure." Reep taunted, smacking Eustace across the face with the orange.

Eustace glared at Reep, his hand with the knife fidgeting. Fruitlessly, Eustace took a swing at Reep, who rolled to the side and laughed in delight.

"That's the spirit! We have ourselves a dual," Reep grinned.

"Catch," Reep flung to orange at Drinian, who caught it with a smile.

Reep positioned himself for the dual. "Come on take your best shot." He taunted Eustace.

Eustace started to stab and swing at the mouse very poorly. Reep dodged all the swings and instead, instructed the boy.

"Stop flapping your wings like a drunken pelican! Poise." Reep imitated a proper stance.

Eustace attempted to copy the mouse's stance.

"Keep the blade up," Reep instructed. "Up, up."

Eustace did so and took another swing at Reep.

"That's it." Reep swung onto a barrel "Now lunge with your foot."

Eustace attempted to lunge with his left foot but missed.

"No, not you left. Your right!" Reep instructed again, smacking the boy's other leg with the flat of his blade.

Eustace tried again this time with more control.

Reep laughed and raced around the deck while Eustace continued to strike and swing.

"Come on, be nimble. It's a dance, boy, a dance!" Reep called to Eustace as the boy got his knife stuck in the rope leading up to the ship's crow's nest.

Slowly, Eustace's swings began to get better.

"That's right!" Reep encouraged as he continued to dodge the strikes. In the blink of an eye, Reep lost his balance on the ship's railing and fell overboard.

"Oh no!" Reep cried as he went over.

Eustace ran over to the side to see what happened. He hoped the mouse had fallen into the water. But Reep hadn't fallen into the water. He was now above Eustace. Reep tapped the boy on the shoulder making him turn around. With a swing downwards, Reep shoved Eustace over with his feet. Eustace fell onto the deck with a thud, knocking over a barrel.

"And that is that!" Reep concluded.

Everyone's attention was now on the barrel that had screamed when it fell down.

Camille's eyes narrowed. When do barrels ever scream? She wondered.

The cover of the barrel moved aside and the small girl from Narrowhaven crawled out.

"Gael?" Her father, Rhince, asked incredulously, moving out of the crowd.

"What are you doing here?" He further asked her.

Gael's eyes looked watery like she might cry. He noticed and came over hugging her comfortingly. Drinian came over to the two and looked at Gael kindly.

"Looks like we have a new crew mate." He bent down to her eye level and held out the orange to her.

Gael took the fruit shyly and held it close to her. Lucy walked over.

"Welcome aboard," Lucy smiled.

"Your Majesty," Gael greeted Lucy with a curtsy.

"Call me Lucy." Lucy dismissed with a grin.

"I am Camille," Camille smiled, also coming over. "Come let's get you situated in a cabin."

The girls walked off and everyone went back to work. Reep went over to talk to Eustace.

"Good match," Reep congratulated him. "I'll make a fine swordsman out of you yet."

Camille smiled then stepped into the cabin.