VII: IT'S FOR THE BEST
Song: Dover Beach by Baby Queen

By the time Finley had finished plotting their path to Crystalston, Henrietta had finished off her bottle. In all fairness, the bottle was less than half full when she started drinking about ten minutes ago. The auburn-haired girl wanted to polish off another bottle but debated against it only because having another drink meant having to go out of the comfort and safe space of her room. Even in her tipsy state, Henrietta was consciously avoiding Alistair and the people from her past that came back to haunt her.

Sometime in her quick drinking session, Henrietta had moved from her chair to her bed. She held the empty bottle of what was previously filled with rum by the neck and swung it around, watching how it refracted the light coming from the candle lanterns she lit minutes ago. Her green eyes followed the fractions of light caused by the bottle in fascination. To her, this moment was second-best to being in the calm of the bottom of the sea.

But like all things, Henrietta's peace did not last. Alistair came into the room and immediately stared at the empty bottle in the captain's hands. Henrietta couldn't decipher his expression with fog starting to cloud her mind. All she saw was a crease form between his eyebrows and the downturn of the corner of his mouth. Henrietta was already starting to space out, a clear sign she was close to being drunk.

Henrietta was too distracted by the bottle and the light that she didn't notice Alistair pull up her chair in front of where she sat on the bed. Looking up from her newfound toy, Henrietta silently questioned why Alistair brought the chair closer to her but didn't sit down. Instead, the blonde boy walked to a cabinet that stood next to the small dresser.

Now forgetting the bottle, Henrietta tried to look at what her friend was doing. Alistair opened the cabinet doors, but his broad back covered Henrietta's view. She was curious as to what he was up to but was still trying to keep away from him, so she just stayed silent.

When Alistair closed the cabinet doors, Henrietta pretended to be busy, holding the bottle and feigning interest. She tried her best not to look at the boy walking around the room, rather was just listening to him rustle around, opening and closing drawers and grabbing things from the bookshelves.

Henrietta's body stiffened for a second when Alistair dumped the things in his arms next to her on the bed. The captain just went back to pretending that the bottle was the most interesting thing in the room and not the boy that just sat down on the chair in front of her. Why does he have to be so close to me?

A chuckle erupted from Alistair's lips and grabbed Henrietta's attention. "How many times do I have to tell you? Etta, you cannot lie to save your life." This comment makes Henrietta smile. "How do you know I'm lying?" She asks the blue-eyed boy softly. Their eyes locked and he returned her soft smile before answering. "I just know." His voice was almost a whisper. Tipsy, Henrietta almost did not hear his response had he not been inches away from her.

Henrietta got lost in Alistair's eyes. The blue hue looked darker in the candlelight, and the more Henrietta looked, the more she felt like she was at the bottom of the ocean; calm. It was as if Alistair's eyes were pulling her into the deep cerulean of the water. There was something mysterious in Alistair's eyes that drew Henrietta in deeper, urging her to go under the waves.

So captivated by Alistair's eyes, Henrietta didn't notice when he reached over and held her wrists gently. She only looked down at her hands when the boy pulled the glass bottle out of her hands and placed it on the ground next to him. Henrietta's jaw dropped. If he's playing dirty, then two can play that game.

"How did you get these?" Alistair asked as he rolled his sleeves up. He followed that by pushing Henrietta's sleeves to her elbows. He tenderly ran his fingers across the discolored skin, glancing up at Henrietta's expression when he pressed down on a bruise with pressure. Henrietta let out a small wince but was determined not to give too much away. She was going to be stubborn and stand her ground. She wanted to ignore Alistair, that is what she was going to do.

Looking anywhere but at Alistair, Henrietta kept her silence. She didn't answer him, and she had no plans of doing so. Alistair had seemed to pick up on his friend's stubborn strike and let out a loud sigh. "Fine." He mumbled, reaching next to Henrietta to pull out some herbal ointment and a clean cloth. Henrietta, still refusing to acknowledge the person in front of her, could feel the cool ointment being massaged onto her wrists with the clean cloth. Henrietta felt bad. Here her friend was putting effort and taking care of her, while she was ignoring his presence.

After ointment had been applied to Henrietta's wrists, Alistair dropped the cloth on the floor next to the bottle and picked up some bandages. He silently started to unravel them and Henrietta could feel the air thick with a tension between them both. "Etta? Are you mad at me?" Alistair asked as he started wrapping bandages around Henrietta's left wrist. "No." She whispered back. "Then why are you ignoring me?" Alistair countered back right away. "It's complicated." Henrietta tried to stay vague. She knew her feelings for the boy were getting in the way of her job, and she would just get hurt herself. Alistair didn't like her back the way she did him. All the other times they may have had a moment were just them being dumb kids. Nothing was ever going to happen between them, and Henrietta had to remind herself that she was setting herself up for failure.

"The vague route, I see." Alistair had now moved on to the right wrist. He was being careful not to pull them tightly, monitoring Henrietta's face for any sign of pain. "Can you tell me what's going on?" Alistair's voice was thickly laced with emotion. It was at this second that Henrietta looked at him. He looks so hurt, Henrietta concluded. She wants her friend back, but her emotions need to be under control first. "It's nothing against you. I- I shouldn't tell you, though. That's a bad idea." Henrietta had made a decision.

"Tell me, and then we can decide together whether it's a bad idea or not." Alistair was now begging. He had just finished bandaging Henrietta's wrists and was now holding both of her hands in his. "I'm worried about you, Henrietta." His voice broke while his eyes held unshed tears. It was hard to get Alistair to cry. This was now serious. "You've drunk more in the past 12 hours than you have in the past 2 months. You are unusually quiet. If it's about your father and everyone else, I can make them leave. I don't care about the repercussions. I will do anything for you." Alistair was resolved.

Henrietta could tell Alistair was persistent, and she admired that about him. Unfortunately, these were her problems, and she must face them alone. "I think we need to keep a distance." Henrietta's face was emotionless, but her heart felt like someone stepped on it. Alistair's face dropped in shock. It was obvious that he wasn't expecting his friend to say that. "Very well, Captain." Alistair's tone was very formal as he stood up and let go of Henrietta's hands. The actions almost broke Henrietta. She chose this and she must go through with it. It's for the best. She swallowed the lump in her throat and dismissed Alistair with a nod, watching him walk out the door.

The day's not even over and Henrietta already felt exhausted. She took a few minutes to clean up the mess Alistair made while trying to calm her beating heart and racing mind. Henrietta just kept reminding herself over and over again that she had a job to do. Her crew depended on her and she needed to be strong.

Henrietta fixed her shirt and adjusted the sleeves to cover the bandages. She walked over to her coat rack and grabbed a clean scarf. Wrapping it around her neck and adjusting it to cover the bottom half of her face, as well as her hair, Henrietta made sure her guests wouldn't recognize her.

Squaring her shoulders and holding her head high, Henrietta let out a breath before dramatically opening the door of her cabin and strutting out onto the rest of the ship. "Captain on deck!" Shouted Shadow. The brawny boy stood at attention right by Henrietta's room. Henrietta stopped a few paces in front of Shadow. All Henrietta could think about now was how she was going to enjoy torturing her father on her territory. Alistair and her feelings for him were not a concern at that moment.

"All crew on deck" Henrietta hollered. Within a few seconds, all unnecessary tasks were abandoned and the crew of the Lost Jewel had lined up on the deck by order of rank. Brandon stood closest to Henrietta, while Alistair was stationed at the other end of the line. They all stood straight, their arms by their sides, and held their head up, looking straight ahead.

Spencer looked dumbfounded at Henrietta's leadership. "They actually listen to you?" He asked in confusion. Henrietta rolled her eyes. Of course, her father doubted her. Bryla was still fairly old-fashioned. They were a patriarchal society. They all believed men were made to be in positions of power. Bryla may have slowly been progressing, thanks to Hunter, but they aren't as liberal and open-minded as the other kingdoms or villages. For them, it was unheard of that men listen to women. This is another thing to add to the list of why I left. Henrietta took a deep breath in. It was taking too much of her self-discipline to not hit Spencer, even if he was more than twice her size.

"Time for introductions." Henrietta waved her hand as if to signal she was moving on. Spencer stood an arms-length next to Henrietta, curiosity in his eyes as he looked down the line. Hunter and George just leaned against the railing of the ship, whispering to each other every now and then. Shade sat on the steps that led up to the helm, where Stormy stood holding the wheel. Daniel and Gabrielle approached Spencer, both of them eying the line of pirates and making a show of it.

"My cabin boys, Pyrite and Sunstone." Henrietta pointed to Brandon and Tommy, respectively. "Jewels?" Gabrielle's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You're named after jewels?" She questioned again. "Yes. Fits the name of the ship doesn't it?" Hunter said with a knowing tone in her voice. "The name of your ship is the Lost Jewel?" Daniel spoke up. "You guys really are idiots." Teagan blurts out from her position in the line-up. This causes the rest of the crew to erupt in boisterous laughter. "I thought it was common knowledge that Em captains a ship called the Lost Jewel?" Shadow hiccups between his snickers. "Apparently, these guys lack brains." Raegan slaps Shadow's back hard as she clutches her stomach in laughter. The unexpected movement causes the black-haired boy to tumble to the ground with a thud, making each person in the crew howl louder. Even Stormy's high-pitched giggles could be heard from the deck.

"All right, ha-ha, that's enough." Henrietta's voice wasn't loud enough because her crew had not calmed down yet. "GUYS!" She screamed. This caught her friends' attention and they quickly sobered up. Shadow pulled himself off the ground and the rest of the crew straightened their line. "Thank you. Moving on-" Henrietta was about to continue when Spencer interrupted her. "Why Pyrite and Sunstone? I would assume that those are not their real names." Henrietta let out a huff. She was getting increasingly annoyed with the interruptions.

Thankfully, for Henrietta, Alistair appeared by her side and took over the introductions. "You have to earn your Jewel names here. Pyrite because it's also known as fool's gold. Py over here is a little prankster. Sunstone because he practically rises with the sun." The first mate kept a monotone voice as he introduced everyone else.

Alistair then pointed to Mabel, whose right arm was covered in ink with different doodles. "This is Amber, Topaz's apprentice. Before you ask, she is learning how to be a healer. Thus amber, with its healing properties and such." Alistair beat Spencer to his question.

This introduction went on for a while. Henrietta had taken over the wheel while Stormy went down to line up with the others. The captain just watched on from above as Alistair went on introducing everyone. "Next up is Ruby and Peridot." Alistair motioned to Haven and Brianna. It was not hard to guess how they got their names. Haven's for her bright, ruby-red hair, and Brianna's for her gorgeous hazel eyes. "Our lookout, Moonstone. She is our resident night owl." Alistair then introduced Stormy.

As Alistair continued with the introductions, those who had already been introduced went back to their jobs. Haven and Brianna went down to the crew quarters, most likely to get some rest for the night shift. Stormy climbed the rope ladder that led to the crow's nest on the top of the main mast. Tommy and Brandon picked up their wooden swords from where they had leaned against the wall next to the entrance of the captain's quarters. Mabel dug into her pocket and pulled out a pen, continuing to draw on her arm as she watched Brandon and Tommy play around.

"The twins, our master gunners, Tiger's Eye and Opal-" Alistair didn't even get to explain anything before the twins practically hijacked their introduction. "I'm Tiger. I'm all-knowing, just like those who hold a tiger's eye. Also, it starts with a T. Let me guess, you are in love with him." Teagan didn't even pause to take a breath as she alleges that Gabrielle loves Daniel. This accusation makes Gabrielle freeze up and Daniel shakes his head. Alistair just smacks his forehead. The whole situation was just plain stupid, yet Henrietta felt happy to see Gabrielle so uncomfortable.

Nobody got to say a word because Raegan immediately started talking when her sister stopped. "Opals are supposed to be bad luck. So I am here to bring bad luck to everyone." She said with a wicked smile. The twins looked just about ready to cause more trouble, and Henrietta knew she had to intervene, or else there will be more chaos. "Tiger, Opal, go sweep the floors." Henrietta ordered from the upper deck. "But we swept the floors earlier." Teagan whined back to Henrietta. "Then mop them." The auburn-haired girl fired back. Raegan opened her mouth to argue back but Alistair beat her to it. "Go."

Both brunettes grumbled as they went to the hold to grab mops and buckets, allowing Alistair to continue on. "This is Diamond, our boatswain." Alistair pointed to Shadow. "Yeah! I'm a diamond cuz I'm hardheaded." The boy boasted proudly. "Yo, D, I don't think that's something to be proud of." Teagan said and she put her bucket down on the ground. Raegan chortled as she handed a mop to her sister. Their reactions caused Shadow to get confused.

Once again, Henrietta had to intervene before things got out of hand and a whole fight erupted between Shadow and the twins. "D, tighten the ropes on the main mast. The wind is starting to pick up." Shadow replied with a two-finger salute before rushing over to the main mast. Glad someone listens to me.

Alistair had moved on to introducing Finley. "While topaz, the jewel, come in many different colors, Topaz, here may be our navigator, but he is a jack of all trades." Alistair complimented the broad-shouldered boy, making the latter blush. Finley wasn't good with compliments or being the center of attention. Henrietta needed to distract him. "Topaz, take the wheel." The boy rushed to his friend's side. The tattoos on his biceps jiggled as he bound up the stairs in quick steps.

"Thank you." Finley whispered in Henrietta's ear as she passed him the wheel. Henrietta reciprocated with a small smile before she walked gracefully down the stairs just as Alistair was introducing himself. "I'm Aquamarine, the first mate. My blue eyes earned me the moniker." Henrietta parked herself by Alistair's side. She didn't like the way Gabrielle was eying the blonde boy. Henrietta didn't know what she was feeling or why, but she knew she didn't like it. "Of course, you know Captain Emerald." With this, Alistair excused himself to go check on how the rest of the crew was doing.

"Let me guess, emerald because of your green eyes?" Gabrielle questioned with an envious tone as she looked at the captain from head to toe. "Gee, what made you make that conclusion, Gabrielle?" Henrietta was sarcastic in her reply. No matter how many times Henrietta makes these people uncomfortable, she will never get tired of it. She relished the fact that her guests froze when she mentioned Gabrielle's name. Now, they all stood in front of her, cautious and wary looks plastered on their faces. "Unlike you, I do my research." Henrietta shrugged her shoulders. "There is no need for you to make an introduction. We all know who you are."

There was a stunned silence within the group. Most of them opened and closed their mouths, no sound coming out. Henrietta wanted to laugh. She was so engrossed with how ridiculous they looked that she was startled by a hearty laugh. "Close your mouths. You all look like fish, gaping open and close." Hunter pointed out when her laughter died down.