hiding

Enough with the heavy

"Look at the coastline," Marco instructed, now serious, this had been their second lap around the island, "Tell me what you notice."

"Umm, mostly small fishing boats, a small merchant ship." Alexia wasn't sure what answer he was looking for, "One or two boats could possibly be other pirate crews, but they would be small, nothing to difficult to handle if needed. I don't see any Navy ships."

"Very good." Marco had a smug look on his face as he then headed to fly directly over the island. The island was covered in light forestry, that cleared towards the middle of the island, revealing a decent sized town, "What can you tell me about the town from here."

"It's busy, a lot of people, though from here I don't really notice any Navy colors. It looks as though the town thrives off of its shops and trading. It's mainly homes on the outskirts of the town, not as busy there. The buildings aren't spaced apart very well so there are plenty of alleys, easier to evade and escape if necessary. If we had to fight, there's a high chance for civilian injury, definitely destruction of buildings."

"Are you sure you haven't done this before?" Marco gave another smug look.

"No, why?" Alexia looked confused.

"You seem to have a knack for this. Most people would have no clue what to look for. Your doing well for this being your first time. Where do your instincts tell you to go from here?" Marco encouraged, interested at just how well she might be at this.

"Well it would probably be smart to start from the docks, and head towards the town on foot. As spectacular as the view might be from up here, we won't know exactly what we are looking at until we can see it up close. There are too many smaller important things we could miss from up here, plus we're too noticeable up here like this, we don't want to raise awareness of our presence to the wrong people."

"Miss Alexia, I believe we just might have found where you belong on the crew." Marco stated, heading towards the docks.

"What do you mean?"

"You seem to be a natural. It usually takes most people a few times and constant education to remember what to look for. Your looking at being placed under the first division."

"Wait, that's your division right?" Alexia's voice seemed a little happier.

"Of course, my division is the best division." Marco smirked.

"Don't let the other guys hear that." Alexia laughed, playfully digging an elbow into his side. "They'll cook you for dinner."

"Yoi, you think your so funny do you?" Marco growled.

"Don't be ridiculous. I know I'm hilarious." Alexia said sarcastically.

Marco landed on his feet right at the tree line a few yards away from the docks. Alexia was proud of herself, seeing as most of the ships visible proved to be just small fishing boats. Alexia could only see three fishermen on a boat, no one else appeared to be around.

"You can let go now. Or do you just like clinging to me yoi?" Marco teased, making Alexia aware she had not yet let go.

"In your dreams feather brain." Alexia scoffed, letting go, slightly stumbling as her feet hit the ground.

"I think those are nightmares." He burst out laughing.

"Well maybe if you screamed in your sleep instead of smiled all the time like a pervert, I'd believe you." She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Yoi!" Marco pretended to be mad, putting her in a headlock, roughing up her hair playfully.

"Marco!" Alexia whined, pouting.

"Lexi!" Marco whined back, mocking her, "Come on, we have work to do."

Alexia nodded her head in agreement, smoothing her hair back into place when he let her go. They were able to complete the rest of the assignment quickly. The town appeared like most any other town that thrived on the trading business. Nobody appeared suspicious, and there was no sign of Marines. Marco pulled out a transponder snail from his pocket, calling back to the Moby to report it was safe to dock. It would take about two hours before the Moby and her paddle ships docked and anchored.

Marco and Alexia had decided on a small tavern near the outskirts of town, while waiting for the rest of the crew to dock. Again, Alexia had been spot on; there was a small pirate crew in the tavern. They were boisterous, but not too rowdy. They seemed to keep to themselves. Marco had ordered himself a bottle of sake, raising an eyebrow as Alexia followed suit.

"Since when have you been one to drink?"

"Since I haven't been on pain meds for a few days." Alexia reminded him. Doc had her on pain relievers basically since the first day she woke up on the ship. This week was the first week she hadn't needed to take any.

"We should probably talk." Marco sighed.

"Let me guess... something along the lines of I need more training, I need to adjust to the idea of facing Marines, yada yada yada."

"What gave that away?" Marco seemed surprised.

"I might have over heard Curiel and Vista in an argument about if I would choose a gun or sword when you increase my training." Alexia stated matter of factly, taking another swig of sake, "From there I basically cornered Curiel and begged him until he told me."

"Please say you didn't use your pathetic puppy eyes on him." Marco rolled his eyes.

"Nope, that only seems to work on you," Alexia stated, amused, "More along the lines of I said I would highly consider using a gun."

"Will you?" Marco asked, refusing to address the puppy eyes statement, "Use a gun that is?"

"Eh probably not," She shook her head, "I mean I don't mind carrying one, but I think honestly... I'm more comfortable with a knife or dagger. I don't want to disappoint Vista either but, I think swords are just too big and bulky for my comfort, it's more effort to carry and harder to conceal."

"Would you be comfortable with a knife considering..." His voice trailed off.

"I think so." Alexia knew what he was saying, "I didn't have any intentions of actually killing myself, I was just irrational and panicked, I was just wanting a way to stop the pain."

"Okay then. But..." Marco stressed the importance, "If for some reason you find yourself in a place where you can't handle it, you need to find one of us."

"Okay okay!" Alexia whined, pushing his shoulder playfully, "Enough with the heavy, relax for once. You worry too much."

Marco rolled his eyes, thinking for a second that she was the biggest provider for most of his worry lately. He took another sip of his sake, giving in.