The internet seems to hate me when it comes to finding original creators, but the watermark says this was made by ifellfromtheskies on tumblr.

xXx

Keith knocked on the door to the captain's cabin. "Shiro? Are you in there?" When there was no response, he frowned slightly and reached for the handle. "Shiro?"

A voice suddenly came from behind him. "Oh, he's not there."

Keith whirled around. Ten feet away stood Kuron, one hand resting comfortably on his hip. He seemed just as relaxed as he'd always been. "Kuron? What're you doing here?"

"Shiro's not here," the pirate repeated. "He's moved on."

Keith furrowed his brows uncomprehensively. "What's that supposed to mean? He... Why wouldn't he be here?"

"You need to move on. Focus on the here and now. Lance needs you."

Keith clenched his fists and put one foot forward challengingly. "You're expecting me to just forget about Shiro?"

Kuron shook his head. "No, not forget. Never forget." He stepped forward and put his hand on Keith's shoulder. "But don't get so caught up in saving the past that you lose track of the present."

Keith looked at the hand on his shoulder and sighed. "But he's not dead. I know it."

"He'll do just fine until you find him. But what good will it do anyone if you're dead?" Keith stared at the ground, not wanting to meet Kuron's gaze. "Stay alive. He can wait long enough for you to save your own skin."

The gentle rocking of the ship was somehow comforting. He closed his eyes and listened to the quiet lapping of waves against the hull, drawing in a deep breath and trying to relax. "Shiro can wait," he whispered quietly.

"What was that?" Kuron asked.

Keith opened his eyes. He was met by the same pungent, oppressive brig that had been his affliction for the past-- How long now? Two days? Three? More? After several moments of serious thought, he decided that three seemed about right. Maybe four.

"You know, if you start talking to yourself, you're probably losing it," Kuron continued.

Keith blinked in surprise. "Did I say something?"

"I want to say you said 'Shiro can wait,' but I can't believe you'd ever say such words." He shifted slightly, looking just as asleep as he'd been nearly this whole time. "You know, it's probably not a good thing that you also can't remember it. Maybe you really are going bonkers."

Keith furrowed his brow in concentration. "I think I had a dream," he said uncertainly.

"Ooh, you think. What an incredible development. I'm so proud."

Keith sighed and rolled his eyes. "I think... you were in it?"

"Oh, goody. I hope this wasn't one of those weird ones that you really shouldn't tell the person about." There was some jest in his tone, but it was still pointed.

"It was... kind of weird?" he started hesitantly. "It started out like... other dreams I've had in the past few weeks. But then you were suddenly talking to me, and I was confused because you weren't annoying, and... you gave me some kind of advice?" He shook his head. "I don't remember it that well. All I can really remember is that you were there, and we were on my old ship." He watched Kuron expectantly.

After a moment, the pirate nodded. "Uh-huh."

Keith sighed. "You weren't even listening, were you?"

Kuron kept his eyes shut, but his eyebrows lifted in mock offense. "I'll have you know that I was actually skim-listening."

"Mhmm. Sure, let's go with that." The sailor smirked in spite of himself.

"Don't sound so skeptical. You're probably going to be stuck with me for another week."

Keith frowned slightly. "A week?"

Kuron shrugged. "I could be wrong. It's not like the rest of the crew actually talks to me, and I hardly go abovedecks to look for myself."

"Hmph." Keith raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything.

There was a brief lapse of silence. "You seem to have recovered pretty well," Kuron commented finally.

"I still have a bit of a cough, but yeah." He smirked slightly. "You almost sound like you care."

Kuron sat up slightly and narrowed his eyes at Keith. "Don't mistake my observance for caring. It's an easy mistake, but a grave one."

"Yup, you care." Keith settled down farther, closing his eyes with a smug grin. "You're just as curious about me as Lance was." He lowered his eyes at the name of his friend, and his expression became distant as he became lost in thought.

Kuron felt distinctly uncomfortable. Why did this kid always have to bring up the worst subjects? The pirate didn't even have to do anything to upset him; he managed to depress himself without Kuron saying a word. It was almost impressive.

After several minutes of the painful silence, Kuron stood up slowly and stretched, reaching his arm up to the ceiling and lifting his chest as he inhaled deeply. Keith regarded him somewhat curiously. The pirate had barely moved while Keith was awake.

When he finished stretching, Kuron rested his hand on his hip. "I'll be back soon," he told Keith. "Don't go anywhere." He then climbed up the ladder to the deck above.

Keith puzzled over his behavior. Maybe he just needed a breath of fresh air after all that time spent in the musty brig. But that didn't explain the suddenness of it. He tried not to let it bother him too much, but it was hard to keep the thought from occupying his mind without going to one of the other thoughts that he was avoiding.

He sighed and closed his eyes. Kuron would be back soon enough, and even if he wouldn't, what difference would it make? It wasn't as if his presence did much to affect Keith's agenda at the moment.

He didn't realize he'd fallen asleep again, but suddenly he was waking up to the sound of someone climbing down the ladder. It didn't sound like Kuron, but he couldn't think of anyone else who would want to come down. Had Kuron finally decided that enough was enough and that he wanted someone else to watch Keith?

The person's legs came into view, and he realized: It was the captain.

Keith glared at the floor between his feet. Marvelous. Just peachy.

The captain reached the floor and turned to face Keith. His ridiculous hat was nowhere to be seen as he smirked at his prisoner. "Why, hello there." Keith set his jaw and replied with stony silence. "How have you been enjoying your stay?"

Keith lifted his gaze to look at the captain. He didn't bother to meet his eyes; instead, he studied the man's arms, which had a number of scratches on them. They almost resembled... claw marks.

The sailor couldn't keep himself from smirking when he realized what had happened. "You seem to have gotten on the wrong side of a mermaid," he commented.

The captain curled his lip. "You need to get your pet under control."

Keith narrowed his eyes, struggling not to lash out at the captain verbally or physically. "He's not a pet."

"What difference does it make? He needs to be tamed."

Keith stood up and leaned against the wall at his back. "Tell me this: Do you tame a person? Do you domesticate them according to your wishes?"

"The ones that require it." The pirate crossed his arms.

The sailor sighed. "Right, I forgot. You have no morals whatsoever."

"The only morals I need are in the pirates' code."

Keith raised an eyebrow. "Which is?"

"Not relevant to you," he answered bluntly.

Keith looked around the brig disinterestedly. "Right, right. Of course."

The captain dug his nails into his arms, his face twitching as he struggled to suppress his impatience. "You have some kind of connection to it. How do you communicate with it?" Something that sounded almost like desperation had begun to creep into his tone.

"He's not an 'it'," Keith replied mildly, still not bothering to look at the captain.

The pirate marched up to the bars of the cell. "I ought to have you flogged for your impertinence. We'll see what you have to say after you meet the cat of nine tails."

"Ooh, I'm so scared," was the monotonous reply. He took the three steps necessary to stand directly in front of the captain and smirked. "There's not really anything to say that I haven't already tried to tell you, but you can't seem to get it into your thick skull that he's a free soul that can do as he pleases." He glanced down at the man's arms, then met his eyes again. "Which seems to be whatever you don't tell him to do."

The captain grabbed his shirt through the bars and pulled him forward so their eyes were mere inches apart. "Maybe I should just feed you to the fish now and get it over with. It would be easier than what the druids have in store for you if--" His anger suddenly evaporated. He regarded Keith for a moment, then nodded slowly. A grin spread itself gradually across his face, and he released Keith's shirt. He took a few steps back and chuckled, then went up the ladder, leaving Keith to his concerns and his imagination.

xXx

Keith awoke to the sound of metal clattering on wood. He opened his eyes slowly to see three hardtack biscuits sitting on a tin plate next to the same cup he'd used earlier, now refilled with water. He looked at the base of the ladder, where Kuron had already reestablished his position and was presently shifting to get comfortable again. Wincing slightly at his stiff neck and back, Keith pulled the plate and cup closer to himself, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. "The plate is a nice change," he commented.

Kuron grunted. "I'm glad you liked it. I had to win three bets to get you that privilege, so I should hope you're happy."

Keith looked at the plate in surprise. "Thanks, then."

"I didn't, actually. I just asked for a spare plate and said I didn't care how clean it looked so long as no one licked it. The cook was more than happy to give it to me because that meant he didn't have to try and wash it." He could scarcely hide his smirk.

He sighed. "Thanks less."

"You're welcome," was the almost cheerful reply.

Keith started eating one of the biscuits, chewing slowly so he wouldn't choke on the dry and tasteless bread. "So where did you go, other than getting me a plate?"

"I had the opportunity to have a brief chat with your... fish acquaintance."

Keith, almost choking on the biscuit, sat up immediately. "Lance? You talked to him?"

"Briefly, yes. He told me he's all right. They haven't tried too much with him yet. He's just a bit... testy."

Keith's expression lit up like a lantern. He set the biscuit on the plate, no longer interested in the food. "How did you get to talk to him?"

Kuron sighed and sat up slightly. "The captain left his cabin for some reason, and he only left one guard who barely even paid attention. That meant I had a bit of time to slip in and do some chatting."

Keith ran his hands through his hair, bringing them to a stop on top of his head and chuckling softly in disbelief. "Did he say anything else?"

"He doesn't trust me much, so he didn't say much more than that, but he seemed to be in fairly good condition."

"That's good." Keith nodded slowly to himself. He tapped his fingers together thoughtfully. "How long do we have before we reach port?" he asked suddenly. "You said a week?"

Kuron slowly drew in a deep breath. "Yeah, funny story. You know how I said I could be wrong?"

"Sort o--"

"Yeah, you've got a few hours."

Keith blinked in surprise. He took a few moments to process what Kuron said, not realizing his hands still rested on top of his head. "What do you mean, a few hours?"

"I said what I meant, and I meant what I said. Yes, I said about a week, but as it turns out, I was greatly misinformed. So you've got a few hours to get ready to switch prisons." Kuron shrugged. "Sorry about that."

Keith didn't even notice the apology through his racing thoughts. He had been planning on finding a way to escape before they reached the island; he'd been anticipating having several days to think through and carry out an escape plan. But now he had hardly any time at all to even think of an idea, much less execute it.

Kuron's question interrupted his thoughts. "Are you going to finish that hardtack?"