CassyK

CassyK/Truepirate

There had been an argument, a slight? A transgression? Or was it just something somebody had, and some else didn’t like that? Joseph knew his father was in some kind of trouble, but he hadn’t know what or with whom exactly; they were reasonably well-off and his father had many connections, but now they were having to leave. His mother had passed away from disease, so it was only the two of them. The night before they were due to leave, there was an altercation, Joseph had tried to intervene and defend his father when a blunt instrument - the butt of a sword, or rifle, struck him in the head.

Then, all he knew was drowning.

He still has nightmares about the drowning, which is the only thing he knows to be true on the account of the pirates who retrieved him. He doesn’t really remember, not the night nor incident in question, not his father, or mother - say for his earliest memories of them. It is a haze, it took several weeks for him to remember even himself, or at least, some of himself. Sometimes he dreams about being pulled up through the water, which is the better of the two to rouse him from sleep. The scar on his temple tells of some kind of accident or assault, but his rescuers couldn’t say exactly what happened.

…

Joseph averted his eyes as the surgeon dressed Elissa; he could be a bit of a scoundrel but he wasn’t quite that bad. “I understand, thank you, Adam” the Captain nodded, giving him a clap on the arm as he departed, he grinned at the surgeon’s remark.

Joseph descended to sit on his haunches so that he was eye-level with Elissa in her recumbent position on the bed, he remained there as she sat up. “You punched him…a lot” Joseph half smiled, then frowned and stood up before he removed his coat from across his shoulders, he draped it over Elissa - she was still pale, and would be cold from not only the blood loss and shock, but the chill and damp from the ship. It was heavy, and warm from Joseph’s body. “You can stay with me, or you can go back to your room - what do you want?” he questioned.

CassyK/Truepirate

Hey! Sorry I will try to reply tonight X

CassyK/Truepirate

Okie doke, wasn’t sure what you had in mind. I swear down Joseph is not pleased about this haha, but it just makes sense in light of her condition I think, I also feel it opens up an opportunity for them to chat later perhaps

CassyK/Truepirate

The Captain folded his arms as the surgeon worked, “Aye, too right you are” he remarked with a half grin as Adam passed his comments about Rat. He cast his eyes over Elissa’s scars and the fresh brand on her neck as the surgeon revealed them, he grumbled agreeably, musing as Adam made his observations - the surgeon was sharp and knowledgeable, and Joseph was always careful to listen to him. Elissa had lost enough blood to render her weak, but she was lucky to survive. Her shirt was sticky with clotted blood and of course, had been cut.

“I suppose you’d better tend to him Adam if you feel rightly that you should” Joseph nodded, “although if you’d keep Miss Bishop company just a little while longer, I will fetch for her some fresh garments”; he darted to Elissa’s cabin and returned in a short time with a clean shirt and a thick woollen blanket.

Elissa’s cabin below deck was habitable, but chilly, the sea had a tendency to soak warmth from the ship, and of course, it was always difficult to keep the general mustiness at bay. Joseph considered reluctantly that the comparative warmth, dryness and safety of his own accommodation would prove more suitable for her recovery.

CassyK/Truepirate

Thanks! Would you prefer Elissa is returned to her own room for plot stuff?

CassyK/Truepirate

As much as he’d hate to admit it, Joseph knew Rat wasn’t entirely wrong; Elissa shouldn’t be able to fight. These high society girls were placid, composed and delicate, they needed to be tended to, and that didn’t seem to be Elissa - she’d lied perhaps, to save herself. Probably. She was dressed the part, but that didn’t necessarily mean a thing, perhaps she was a maid protecting the real Miss Bishop? That didn’t explain enough, though. In any case, Joseph had no clue how she had escaped her room - had Rat gotten in? Did Peter give him the keys? The boatswain had only just caught the captain’s attention when they heard the gunshot. He’d follow up with Peter later to find out exactly what transpired.

Joseph lay Elissa on the bed, she was still unconscious; his own clothes were stained with her blood. The Captain grabbed a surgical rag from the stack and pressed it against her wound. He observed as the surgeon prepared his kit, Joseph nodded solemnly as he enquired about Elissa’s purpose. “I’ll stay” Joseph replied, “you might need an extra pair of hands for this one” he expressed - if Elissa awoke whilst the surgeon was treating her, he’d need someone to restrain her.

“and she’ll need to stay with me” he sighed, “I can’t risk this a second time”, he wasn’t pleased about it, Elissa seemed to know him and that made him uncomfortable. This day was shaping up to be particularly stressful; they’d stop off somewhere soon, and once he’d figured what was what, he could cut Elissa loose there too if she was no use to him.

CassyK/Truepirate

The surgeon on Joseph’s crew really was a rare find, an Oxford graduate the physician had found a place to carry out his curiosities; that’s not to say he didn’t do a good job, nor that he needlessly experimented on any of the sailors, but there was greater.. flexibility in trial and error when your patients hadn’t too many family or ties to answer to. In times where the classical theory of the human body and medicine in general were giving way to more modern, scientific ideas, he was certainly ahead of his time - too much so for his colleagues and mentors in the field, who regarded him with some trepidation.

By God this girl is stubborn, Joseph could feel Elissa shudder as she turned pale, and yet refused to be tended to; she slipped her arm from Joseph’s grasp but collapsed after a moment. Joseph was close enough to hand to wrap his arms around her waist as she crumpled, he held her tight to his body before he scooped her up. “It’s a gunshot, to her shoulder” he informed the surgeon, he looked over to Rat being subdued by the crew, “search him and lock him up lads, I’ll deal with that later” he instructed, then followed briskly after the surgeon.

What a nightmare, Joseph had never intended for any of this to happen of course, for one he didn’t want to lose his valuable bargaining asset but more-so, he did have some regret that Elissa got hurt, he just wasn’t in that business.

CassyK/Truepirate

@Truepirate

Oh no! We had a family day yesterday so I’ve not really been online, will work on that reply tonight! Sorry for the delay!

CassyK/Truepirate

Joseph and his crew were startled by the weapon’s discharge, most of them considered for a moment if something had struck the ship. As Elissa emerged from the top of the stairs and collapsed on the deck with Rat in pursuit, their scuffle gained the attention of nearby sailors, a couple of whom took it upon themselves to intervene, pulling Rat away from the girl and grappling him to the floor. It was incredibly serious for him to have fired the weapon aboard the ship.

Oh holy hell… Joseph advanced to the balcony to see exactly what was going on, he witnessed Rat being subdued and the red staining Elissa’s garments heavily - he made his way swiftly down to the main deck. “Surgeon where’s the surgeon?” he commanded, as he gripped Elissa’s good arm gently to examine her.

CassyK/Truepirate

@Truepirate

I’m sorry my reply is small! I also couldn’t bring Pete to hand over the keys cos he really does smell a …Rat haha! This ones all yours for ideas/how he’s gonna go about it :P