i blink groggily as i try to process the words and my surroundings, my vision a little wavy. was that just a regular nap on the beach or did that shark tooth prick me with some sort of sedative? all i can figure out is my shoulder hurts from lying on it for however long i've been in this brig unconscious.

wriggling myself somewhat upright against the wall near the bars of the cell, i look towards the occupant across the way. they're looking at me expectantly so i try to sort my confusion the best i can.

"Is that who's done this, Captain Lucy? I didn't do anything to her though? This is all about a missing shark right, but i have no idea where he is!" as i speak i carefully try to test my bound wrists, a little frustrated at this overkill. i'm in a cell already damnit, why tie me up as well... why did i ever think looking for a stray shark was a good idea...

(this is cool! thanks for turning this interactive, and for the story so far!)

“What… the hell?” Nero grumbled irritably as he stirred. Finding himself captured and bound like some common criminal did nothing to improve his mood. Blearily he glanced around the small dank cell while awareness returned. His back felt as if it were on fire as he struggled to sit upright and it popped in a few places as he moved. The rocking and creaking meant they were at sea, though he couldn’t tell if they were actually sailing or simply anchored.

A voice from across the way earned a sideways glance in said direction. “What’s it to you?” He snapped while struggling against his restraints. “How long have I been here?” The longer he sat the more disgusted he was becoming with his surroundings. This was no way to treat someone of noble blood. What sort of sick game was this woman playing at? Really it was the Baron who was to blame. Had he not been so sickeningly adorable Nero most certainly would have never gotten involved. Cursing himself for becoming soft in his old age Nero continued to struggle to try and break free.

((This is very exciting! maybe you all would be interested in this as well?))

Come back!

I received your anon gifts/story and I read and enjoyed all of it!

I blinked at the face drifting in and out of focus. It was hard to decide what to pay attention to first: the question or the muscle pain that would take a week to go away. (Lucy isn't the only one who's angry.) I almost said that aloud but managed to restrain myself. Being tied up and kidnapped by someone who is feared by sharks is not the time to start making enemies. Instead, I replied: "I'm not sure myself. But if Lucy is that angry, maybe she said something about it? It might be to do with a shark or a certain hat or both. But, more to the point, are you Diamond Dorian? If so, I don't supose you could tell me how I got here and how mad Lucy is? I mean, are we talking 'yelling-sea-curses' mad or 'gone-to-prep-the-plank' mad?"

Outfit Not Found "She must be angry about Baron Bitey," Claire replies as she struggles against her bonds. "What about you? Why are you trapped in here with me?"

Claire mentally takes stock of the situation. I'm tied up in a ship's hold with Captain Dorian. We're Captain Lucy's prisoners. Captain Lucy is upset about Baron Bitey. I'm unharmed but pretty sore, especially where the rope is touching me. I seem to have all my belongings, not that they're of any use to me anyway. If only I could get free of these bindings..."

Jean fusses with the bindings on her wrists, but the knots are tied tight. As expected of a pirate, she laments internally. But there is little time for feeling sorry for herself. The man in the cell across the way speaks up, and she immediately recognizes him as Diamond Dorian, possible pirate and potentially thief.

"Wrong place, wrong time," she says aloud, "at least in part. I was looking for the Baron, but it seems Lucy got the wrong idea." A thought occurs to Jean, and she asks, "Is it true you stole her hat? She certainly seems to hate you quite a bit. What kind of history do you two have?" The least she could do was gather information.

(( thank you for the ping! This looks like it'll be fun~))

OH my goodness, this was you?! I was wondering and could not figure out a place on threads t talk about it! This was so amazing and creative. I LOVED the voicemail as well. :P lol That was so legitimately creepy and creative. -high fives you- You rock!

I will try to participate in this further than simply reading and enjoying. As of right now I am not doing too well. My grandma, just passed and I'm greatly struggling with sadness. her viewing was today and her funeral will be next week. It is really a stressful sad time in my family right now.

As Lilith's eyes adjusted to the dim light in the holding cell she took a chance to look at the bindings on her wrists. The ropes were covered in blood from the raw wounds on her wrists but were still bound tight. Not only were her hands bound, but her wings too. Her tail however had been left free, that was something at least. Though all of this was a minor inconvenience for her, it was not exactly a scenario any demon would want to be finding themselves in let alone tell their fellow kin about unless it were circumstances of their own choosing. She peered at Dorian through narrowed eyes, distinguishing his form from the rest of the darkness. His face seemed weary, wrists bloody too. "I didn't do anything to her." Lilith's mouth curved into a smirk, her tail swaying behind her. "Though I do wish I was conscious for the ordeal - she seems like a wild pirate, the kind of wild creatures like myself find rather endearing." Her smirk was quickly replaced by thinly pressed lips, her eyes narrowed at Dorian again. "How did YOU end up here, and for all things unholy why are there two of you laying claim to this Baron Bitey? Last I saw, the creature seemed perfectly happy to be enjoying its independence."

(I love this idea so much, and thank you for the entertaining story and updates!)

Still confused and dazed from my dream, I sit there with my brow furrowed for a few moments. After getting a grasp on my surroundings, I glare at Dorian. "I suppose looking for that adorable little shark is what got me into this mess...but why are you here? Have you heard any news about what happened to Baron Bitey?" Looking up and out of my cell bars, I yell (hoping my captor can hear me), "And why the hell am I tied up?!"

previous post

the current part is now closed! I'll be doing a raffle tomorrow to pick the first winner and hopefully getting the next part out!

Thank you so much to all the amazing participants so far. You're all amazing ♥

((Apologies for the delay! I've had a few things pop up on me the past couple days! This entry I'm doing a response based on some of the most common themes of the responses you guys gave! That is, assume Dorian has been asked why HE'S there, reference the Baron and how suspicious things are with him, and you've implied vaguely that he's the reason you're here too ))

"Look Lucy haaaates me, that's why I'm here," Dorian exclaims, hands on his hips. The downturn to the corner of his lips indicates he doesn't really like your implication that somehow HE'S at fault for your incarceration. Quite frankly you don't care that he doesn't like it. It's true!

"She can't stand that I'm more popular and I have amazing ideas and that Bitey likes me better," he tosses his head and huffs, "And okay. Okay... maybe Bitey was technically her pet first! But he always comes and visits me! That means he likes me better."

You're not sure how that works... but you wonder how the Baron feels about all of this. He seems smarter then the average shark. Maybe smarter then the average pirate. And from the way he acts... well you'd guess he likes both of them... even though they both seem to have some very unlikable parts to them.

"I suppose I do feel bad that you've gotten caught up in all this mess. I think I could help you out though..." he pulls a small knife out of his boot that your captors must have missed and slides it from his cell to yours, "Can't exactly get the chains off my ankles with that but you should be able to cut your ropes off and the lock should pop if you jam it in there just right."

That's all well and good but you stick out like a sore thumb on a pirate ship! Someone is bound to notice you... But almost as if he read your mind Dorian continues.

"You'll need a disguise though. The laundry room is next door, you can probably find something that fits you in there."

...You know what? You're not going to question why a pirate ship has a laundry room. Time to get your pirate on.

Second Prompt!

This one is easy! Recreate yourself (or a character representing the protagonist for this story) in a pirate themed disguise!

There will be TWO winners of this one, one chosen by raffle, and one chosen by me! The Deadline for this prompt is Sunday September 20th

FIRST WINNER!

The raffle gods have spoken! The winner of the first prompt is... !

Please choose which of the three Pirate Queen items you'd like and I'll send it over to you!

Outfit Not Found

The laundry was well-stocked and Litha was able to create a pirate-style outfit quickly. She even found a turban-like headdress to cover her flaming green hair for a better disguise. Lucy seems to make for many foreign ports, the clothes looked like they came from all over the world.

Feeling better already, Litha strolled along the passage next door which seemed to lead to the kitchen if she could believe her nose. The strong smell of bouillabaisse whiffed through the hull and a little brown rat tried to steal vegetables from a nearby basket. She kneeled and offered some carrots to the little one which was very trustful and followed her around afterwards. Lacking another companion, Litha talked to the rodent in a low voice and decided to name her Duchess.

It seems like these clothes were pilferred from a mangled corpse but I guess they'll do

Outfit Not Found

Ahh, thank you so much! I'd love to grab the please :)

And while I'm here, hopefully I'm dressed sufficiently to pass through the ship!

by Reaper

I'll switch over to my OC Ta'Kaela for the rest of this:

Private Outfit

Outfit Not Found

Jean made quick work of her bonds with the borrowed knife, but for the lock on her cell she used her sturdiest lockpicks. Lucy clearly hadn't thought it worth checking her belongings with her captives so well-tied, and that was a major boon. Jean had all kinds of useful things in her bag of holding, things she didn't want to be without.

In the laundry room she found a pair of pants only slightly too short, and a shirt that was loose enough to look the right size. She exchanged her usual goggles for a lovely hat that matched her hair nicely, and found a spare sword to round out the outfit, thanking her lucky stars that her friend had taught her the basics of swordfighting.

Disguise acquired, she returned to the brig to see if Dorian had any last-minute advice.

Outfit Not Found Looking through the laundry is harder than one would think - IT STINKS! Someone actually needs to do the laundry instead of just pilling it up!

Thankfully I was able to find something to blend in with the crew.

Dorian had called it a laundry room and I had steeled myself for piles of dirty rags that pirates call clothes. But it turned out to be a well-appointed dressing room with some amazing outfits! I guess I shouldn't be surprised, given how both Dorian and Lucy are dressed in their photos. Some pirates do like to be stylish!

I spent a little longer than I should looking over all my options, then finally got dressed. I hope I don't stand out on the ship... Was the hat too much? I really couldn't help trying it on!

Illuminata 200910by ValiskaOutfit Not Found

Lumi was unwillingly a bit grateful for the knife, spitting hemp out as she cut the ropes. "So what are you going to do, just stay here?"

Once she was properly dressed she brought back a hat pin. She didn't wear hats because her ears were on top of her head, but she handed it to Dorian. "Here. This looks like it might make a decent lockpick."

She kept the knife, though, and then she went out to explore.

The small knife skitters across the floor and lands about a foot away from your cell door. "Dammit," you mutter, your arms at this point numb behind your back. You awkwardly stick your foot between the bars and luckily are able to reach the knife. A few more admittedly uncoordinated moves later (and a few minor cuts to your hands) and your arms are loose. You rub your wrists and swear never to get involved with pirates again, before jamming the knife into the door lock and freeing yourself. The knife breaks in the process.

Dorian's plan sounds..less than watertight, and you make your way over to the far side of the room with more questions than answers. You pass by an incredibly dank mop and bucket and can't help but gag. If that's any indication of the sanitary conditions on this ship, you're not looking forward to searching through the pirates' laundry for a disguise.

The heavy wooden door to the laundry room creaks obnoxiously and you're sure someone must've heard it. A horrid, musty smell washes over you and your hands fly to cover your nose, but it's too late. The combination of seasickness and pirate stench wins out, and you find yourself vomiting in the corner. Your shiny new boots are a sad casualty. Hopefully you can find another pair. When there's nothing left in your stomach you wipe your mouth on your sleeve and turn back to face the task at hand.

Okay. I should probably find something easy to put on. And..hopefully not crusty. You shiver before you can stop yourself. Your first target is a pile of jackets thrown carelessly on the table. Luckily you only touch blood twice (luckily) and come away with a vest and a coat. A few more minutes of searching through various drawers and sacks, and you're able to find a pair of pants loose enough to slip on over your own. A box full of bandannas gives you plenty of accessories to choose from, and you pick up a practice sword from a wooden crate at the back of the room (the blade is dulled and you hope you won't have to use it).

You're just about to give up on finding a new pair of shoes to replace your, um, soiled boots, when you notice a scrunched lump of leather shoved under a chair. You carefully pick up the well-worn shoes to inspect them for biohazards, and are surprised to find them in relatively good condition. They're way too big for you, so you stuff the toes with the extra bandannas you'd found earlier.

You step back into the other room and ask Dorian: "How do I look?"

Outfit Not Found

At this point Nero was so far beyond annoyed his snappy tone was returning to its normal blasé cadence. “Suppose you’ve got amazing ideas on how to get out of here then.” He muttered while rolling his eyes. But to his surprise Dorian produced a knife and slid it over toward him. Maybe the guy was telling the truth…

After fumbling with his bindings then subsequently the lock on his cell for quite a while, cursing under his breath the entire time, and almost giving up it finally clicked and the lock fell open with a crunch. Maybe the lanky aristocrat fit into this world of Pirates better than one would think. Though to his horror the next part of the plan was possibly worse than being bound and tossed in a cell to rot.

However, Dorian did make a valid point. Anyone wearing an outfit as expensive as Nero’s soiled or not was sure to be mistaken for a Captain, if not an Admiral. It would be wise to grunge it up a bit. Thus resentfully Nero stripped off his own clothes and replaced them with what he assumed seemed more piratey, using the cringe-worthy leftovers of someone else's wardrobe. Pirates liked red, didn’t they? There sure was a lot of discarded jewelry and baubles down here for a group of people rumored to be obsessed with hoarding the stuff… Never having been the type to wield such obvious weapons as knives and guns, Nero reached instead for a metal goblet. Pirates were all drunken bastards right?

Outfit Not Found

Better to be sure, Nero returned to the cells and squinted down at Dorian. “Adequate?” He asked while fussing with the goblet in his hand, the way he’d seen his brother do many times before.