Private Tales Coasting Along

[Andromeda]

Ana gave him a mock frown about the whole running away business as she pulled down his trouser leg over the bandaged leg.

"If I wanted to get away from you all I would have to do is get in the sea, we've clearly discovered you're not a good swimmer," her eyebrow quirked a little with a smirk. She set about putting the first aid kit away and making a note to let Louisa know she had had to use it so she could replenish the bandages. At his next question she listed her head to one side as if listening to something and then did the math in her head before nodding.

"Yes I think I have about 20 minutes," the sound from downstairs was getting louder and rowdier as people began piling into the Tavern. If they looked outside they would probably even see people setting up shop there. Ana stood again and looked again in the mirror then at the other dresses he had brought. They were all too nice for this type of performance. "I am going to see if Louisa still has the trunk I sent ahead, these will just get ruined downstairs - I'll be back in a second," she ran her hand over the soft material before heading out the door.

About fifteen minutes later Ana reappeared in her own clothing and laid the travelling dress carefully over a chair. What she wore now was definitely more pirate than nice girl off to the library. Her white blouse had long bell sleeves but they came off her shoulders leaving them bare. Her waist was cinched in with an underbust corset and she wore a gauzy skirt made up of reds and pinks. She wore her hair up and off her shoulders in a messy bun held in place with ornate sticks.

"Do you need a hand downstairs?" she glanced in the mirror as she put in her earrings.

 

[Acteon Cass]

Leg wound finally bandaged up, the man examined the siren's work. He had to admit that he had not expected it to be so well done. Soldiers and sellswords got good at the activity if they were not lucky bastards getting sit on their haunches while feasting on the teats of luxury. It might have been the same for pirates and sailors. Well the ones who were more aggressive at least. Plenty of pirates just went for an intimidation strategy and made resisting not seem worth it. Less bloodshed and less vengeful looting.

Acteon sung his leg off the bed and onto the floor when his pant leg was rolled back down to test how it felt. The numbing was working already. Strange how poisons had a hard time working on him yet medicines did not. They were basically the same thing just in different doses. Perhaps that was how his body could tell. But he had a feeling he could walk on it now.

Ana had given him a time as well as mentioned seeing if her trunk was still here. With a smile he said, "Tell Louisa I asked about her. Just because the poor woman has no hope of catching me tonight does not mean I can not give her some false hope." He was clearly being playful and joking around. From what Ana had said it was better she not hear from him or else things would get awkward.

When she returned he frowned a bit. In a tone that was clearly pretending to be serious rather than actually so he said, "You changed somewhere else. Here I was hoping to get that peek I missed before." He took a moment to study her over and had to admit it suited her. She seemed far more comfortable and natural in the wear. This time with an actual serious tone he said, "Beautiful. Hard to imagine you could not pull off any clothes."

At the asking if he needed help down the stairs Acteon stood up. He had tested his leg a bit before but that was not with his full weight. He shifted a bit more over to it periodically until he was satisfied. "I should be able to make it on my own. If you are still worried however I would not say no to the offer."

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Ana merely gave him a bemused look at his comment about changing before focusing one again on applying some subtle paint to her lips and eyes, finishing off the look. She stood back for a moment and brushed her hands down her skirt before nodding to herself. In a way it was like a mask for her. The singer Andromeda was a persona and this was her battle paint. She turned and blessed him with a smile at the compliment though before putting a hand under his elbow as a bit of support should he need it.

"Well let's go get you a good spot then," as she led him from the room and back down the stairs at a careful pace she settled him down in a booth nearish the stage but also close to the bar so he wouldn't put too much weight on his leg should he want refreshments. Not she she doubted Louisa would leave him alone whilst she was singing. The woman gave a friendly wave.

"Wish me luck," Ana shot him a smile once he was tucked behind the table before leaning over it, her hands resting on the wood of the table, to give him a kiss before heading up to the stage.

The room was a chaos of sound but as soon as Ana stepped on to stage it hushed. She hadn't even said anything, was merely fiddling with the things on stage and getting them how she liked them but everyone was watching intently. Once she was done she smiled to the room.

"As many of you know, my crew were lost in the War of Black Bay so this set tonight is for them," there was a murmur and a few people raised their tankards in agreement before she cleared her throat and then shut her eyes.

Then Ana began to sing.

"We're going away to leave you now
Good bye, fare thee well
Good bye, fare thee well
We're going away to leave you now
Hoorah, me boys, we're homeward bound

Ah, give me the girl with the bonny brown hair
Your hair of brown is the talk of the town

So fare you we're homeward bound
Homeward bound to Liverpool town

So fill up your glasses for those who were kind
And drink to the girls we leaving behind

We're homeward bound I hear them say
We're homeward bound with eleven months pay

Our anchor we'll weigh, our sails we will set
The friends we are leaving we'll never forget"

 

[Acteon Cass]

As Acteon figured Ana was going to keep an eye on him as they walked down the stairs. It was probably for the best as his footing was not the most stable but it did get him to wonder what she would do if he ever was injured worse than this when she was around. With his line of work and habit of getting into trouble there was a good chance of it happening. Something told him she would be hovering around him like a raven around an injured deer.

Once they were down in the tavern she went out of her way to get him to a table located near her and the bar. It was truly prime property as more than a few patrons gave him nasty looks once he was sat down. Why no one was in it yet was a mystery to him. More nasty looks were directed his way and even a few of the men outright wishing death upon him when Ana gave him that kiss. The action left him with an imprint of her lips on his cheek. Even after she had left the mark caused a few interested women to find better prospects elsewhere instead.

The performance began as soon as Ana had made her way up to the stage. The action silenced everyone and she used that moment to perfectly set up the performance as tribute to her old crew then got right into singing the first song. It was a song of homecoming and it touched the hearts of more than a few in the crowd. With an action like singing it was hard to say if her power was at work or just her amazing voice but the effect was powerful. Older men of the sea were tearing up and more than a few women, both young and old, were outright weeping. It was not a sad song. It just was one that brought out great feelings in some of the audience.

While Ana was singing Louisa found her way over to Acteon. A eyebrow was raised to her then a look of acknowledgement as a pint was placed in front of him. He raised it up to her with a smile. She smirked and winked back at him before returning back to the bar. Not one to turn down a free drink and because he was rather thirsty the man drank it down fairly quickly. Not long after it was set down emptied Louisa was back with another. A smile was shared by them both and then she was off again with the empty mug.

Acteon drank this one down slower, but still drank it fairly quickly. Before it was even finished Louisa was back yet again with a replacement. This got a questioning look from Acteon that just resulted in a smile and a pat followed by a squeeze of his shoulder by her. His second mug empty now she took back off with it to wherever it was she had come from. Was she trying to get him drunk or just was a generous owner? He couldn't tell. All he knew was Ana had yet to finish her first song and he was already on pint number 3.

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Once Ana had sung the first song she relaxed entirely into the usual motions of performing. The following songs were a rollercoaster of emotions for the room from highs to lows, to ballads of love to some of loss. Some were funny and had people laughing and others brought up memories of the people who were no longer with them. For Ana it was all a cathartic release of emotions.

She wasn't sure how long she sung for she just knew that once she had sung that final song she had finished. The rest of the room seemed to catch that it was the last one to - it felt... final and the right tone to end on. For a while there was silence and then the room erupted into applause and the stomping of feet. The siren smiled and did a little curtsy which got another round of applause before she made her way off stage.

Ana was quite surprised to find it was Hawk who was standing by the steps, holding out a glass of water. She took it with a grateful smile.

"We were really worried when you're friend jumped you both over the boat," he chuckled. Ana took a sip.

"The water calms me down. But... thank you for telling me. It would have been worse if I had heard it from the people here," he nodded and then after a moment they embraced in a firm hug. After she pulled back he let her go.

"If I can do anything... let me know," and then he nodded and disappeared back into the crowd as Ana made her way back to Acteon.

 

[Acteon Cass]

With each pint that Acteon drank Louisa always seemed to have another one right in front of him ready and waiting. Was she watching him like a hawk or did she just have some kind of weird ability to know? He could not say and was not about to say no to free drinks. A sellsword and former soldier he was no stranger to consuming large amounts of alcohol, even if the ale here was rather strong.

By the time Ana had finished her performance, which was absolutely beautiful and lovely and so was all of her singing, Acteon had lost count of how many drinks he had had. It was over twenty as that was where he lost count. The werewolf curse gave him a high resistance to poisons and this included alcohol so it would take a lot to get him drunk, but by the gods did Louisa manage to do it. He was so drunk that he was flirting with every female or female looking person in the bar, although did keep his hands to himself unlike the other flirty drunks roaming around by this point. It was clearly more for fun for him than anything else though.

Louisa walked up to Ana after her conversation with Hawke. She stopped her before she could get to Acteon and said to her friend with a smile, "The poor boy is drunk. Don't worry. I'll take him to my room and he can sleep it off there."

Drunk Acteon noticed the pair, or more specifically Ana, and said in a more than loud enough voice, "Ah Beautiful! The truest vision of beauty! Wonderful! Perfection! Loveliest woman of eternity!" He clearly did not remember what he was going to say and was just saying ever compliment that came to mind. There might have been more than ale in those pints he drank.

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Ana raised a brow at Louisa's comment and then her gaze slid to Acteon and the way he was acting. It warranted an even higher eyebrow raise. In truth she didn't know what Acteon was like drunk after all, they had only had a bottle each on the island and he had given up most of his for her then. Perhaps he was just a lightweight.

"No... it's fine I've got it," she slid around Louisa with a small smile and made her way over to Acteon, the amusement clear in her eyes. It seemed only fair he had seen her drunk and now she would see him in such a state. Gently she patted him on the back and then ordered a glass of water and pressed it into his hands. She did agree that he needed to sleep it off but she also knew she couldn't disappear from the crowd just yet when people would want to talk to her.

"Alright sailor let's get you to be," Ana chuckled and helped him to his feet carefully.

 

[Acteon Cass]

While Ana was having her little chat with Louisa a few drunk girls decided that his flirting was serious and so walked up to proposition him. The Allirian was just smiles and politeness. Well it was what he would have been if not for the poison coursing through his veins murdering some of his self control. Instead he just smiled to them and said, "Sorry. I am here with and waiting on the most beautiful woman in this whole country. You would have to ask her if it is okay for me to wander off. She is very concerned about me you know. Not sure why but it is adorable. She is adorable. Did I mention that? That she is adorable. She is adorable."

This got them to leave as some other guys were giving them the "let's bone" eyes and the girls did not want to figure out who Acteon was talking about to them. It was not as if it was completely obvious. Everyone knew who she was! He knew who she was!

What was Acteon doing again? Oh yes. He was drinking the thing put directly into his hands. It smelled like water, but that could not be. This was a tavern. He drank it and found out it was water. A miracle had occurred. Excellent. Oh it was Ana. He smiled to her and placed a hand on her arm. An affectionate squeeze followed.

"Ana! I was just talking about you! Did some girls ask you if they could join us tonight? I told them they had to ask you. You know because you worry about me for some reason." Acteon said then let out a laugh. Once he calmed down from his laughing he went on, "I still do not know why you worry. It is adorable. You are adorable. Have I told you that? That you are adorable. You are adorable."

The Allirian did motion to the siren to lean in closer as if he had a secret to share after she got him onto his feet. If she leaned in or not he would still say, "Louisa gave me twenty...ish... drinks. I do not think it was just ale though it looked like ale. Do they serve ale here? Where did Louisa find ale? Is she able to use magic?"

He got distracted by some guy bumping into a table loudly not far away and chuckled at it. When he looked back to Ana he seemed as if he had forgotten what he was talking about. He had forgotten what he was talking about. "Ana did you know you are adorable?"

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Ana glanced from him back to Louisa who simply shrugged and moved back behind the bar. Pursing her lips together she shook her head a little and returned her attention to the problem at hand. Drunk Acteon.

"No, no girls asked me if they could join us," perhaps a wise gambit on their behalf. Wherever they were now they had probably cottoned on to who exactly he had been telling them to ask and whilst Ana could enthral women if she used her magic, she was not their favourite when she merely existed. Carefully she worked on getting Acteon up and out of his chair then began to guide him towards the stairs with his arm around her shoulders.

"Come on you," Ana laughed at his repetition. "I'm sure I am adorable, yes. And yes, we do serve ale here - mind your step," she paused so he could steady himself and then began once again up the stairs. It took a while but finally she got him up the stairs and back into bed. After helping him with his boots and tucking him in she put her hands on her hips and shook her head again. "Right well there's water on the table try and sleep it off ok? I have to go and spend some time with the people downstairs. If you do end up finding yourself a girl just put a sock on the door."

 

[Acteon Cass]

Acteon ended up lead up the stairs by Ana. She likely would have expected him to be clingy or handsy given his flirty words before but he was not. If anything he seemed more reserved when it came to physical contact while he was drunk. He just seemed more comfortable that way.

Once in the room he got his boots off just fine and even told her as much. But the tucking in did not last. by the time her hands met her hips he just threw the covers off and sat up. A frown was on his face to go along with a generally upset look. "If you are going then go. Knew you were ashamed of me. Just go be pretty and charming like you always are and stop the worrying. It was adorable before but now it just feels wrong."

With that said Acteon really did not wait for Ana to say anything before he was standing up and heading for the door sans boots. As he went he just said, "Going for a walk." The booze must have been numbing the pain because he did not limp as much as before he got drunk.

Tha Allirian was not happy. He was feeling insecure, but not in himself so much as this situation. Before on the ship she had told him to stop treating her like a child and that they were equals. But since then things had changed. She was worrying about him, which he could understand, yet it just seemed like she was ashamed of him or ashamed of herself because of him. He could not fully grasp exactly how to describe it. She had been watching him like a hawk for some time now. They were sharing a room. She had put him at a table near her and the bar. She had bandaged his leg. She moved him up here because he had drunk a bit. It was making sense and showed she cared.

At least she seemed to care until she tried to leave him in the room alone. She even made the comment about him finding a girl. Was she fine with it if he did find someone or was she just making fun of him because she did not think he could find a girl if he wanted to? What did he even mean to her? Would she care if someone else came in to snatch him up? Louisa was not the only one to seem interested yet Ana was not bothered at all. Did she just feel that secure no one could take him from her or did she just not care if he was that much?

All of these thoughts began to run through his drunken mind quickly. They would circle back and then start and stop little cycles seemingly at random. All he knew was he was not happy about things and it had everything to do with how Ana seemed to care more about getting him out of the way than she did anything else.

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

"Ooooh no you don't," Ana slid in between him and the door, one hand on his chest and the other pushed the door he had managed to open after a few clumsy attempts, shut again. Andromeda was not a patient woman. She knew that, knew the fault was entirely hers but she had done nothing about it before. With pirates, when they were drunk or injured you most often than not required a substantial amount of force to ensure they stayed where they were put. The temptation to do the same to Acteon as she would any other was strong but she resisted. He had held her hair back the morning after her own drunk farce, had stopped her from throwing herself at him when she was drunk, and had even slept with her in his arms all night despite her sulking.

So she wouldn't hit him over the head with the chunky bottle of water that she had brought up with her to their room.

Yet.

"Let's go back to bed," Ana removed the hand from the door and put it also upon his person and began to turn him gently back towards the bed. It probably looked a humorous sight given her height but he seemed either too drunk to resist much or willing to listen to her enough to let her move him. She tried attempt number two at tucking him into bed. "I have to speak to the people downstairs, a lot of them knew my family and want to pay their respects ok?" she cupped his face tenderly, held his gaze to look for some understanding. "I will be back in an hour. I promise. No more than an hour."

 

[Acteon Cass]

The attempt to open up the door failed as Ana quickly got between Acteon and it. How did she move so fast? Oh right. She did not have an injured leg and could walk straight. Still adorable though. He frowned at her when she did this and looked down at her, although only in the physical sense. He knew how stubborn she could be already. With a sigh he let her lead him back to the bed.

Acteon sat down on the bed but did not lay down. As much as she wanted him to sleep he was not tired. He was exhausted but not tired. Sleep came hard to him ever since the werewolf attack. Between the nightmares and just a kind of insomnia that held him awake. The main problem right now though was on how to deal with Ana so he could just go get some fresh air and think while looking at the moon. Maybe howl. He did not know exactly what he was going to do yet.

Then Ana had his face in her hands and was telling him what she was doing. She could do what she wanted. He did not care. Well he did care just not about her seeing people and getting to talk about her family. That was important. It was just the locking him away and being ashamed of him part that he did not care about. His eyes clearly showed how upset he was about things and how stubborn of a mood he was in although also just seemed to be melting in her touch.

"Understood."

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

She was torn; a feeling she did not like. Usually Ana would have no problem leaving someone to go and do what she wished but as he looked at her she felt doubt. Did she really have to go and talk to people downstairs? Was it really what she wanted to do? Yes. No. Her lips pressed into a thin line then formed a small pout as she deliberated. Then a breathy sigh and she pressed her lips to his in a slow and deep kiss. It took effort to keep her hands on his cheeks and not to tangle them in his hair and hurl him to the sheets. That wasn't what he wanted, he wanted more and if she were to have a chance of giving him that then what she desired couldn't happen.

So she let him go and offered him a smile.

"Please try and rest, your leg needs to heal," then she let his face go and walked over to the door. Again she hesitated, debated, before wrenching the door open with a jerky movement and forced herself out. Of course she wanted to talk to people, to find comfort in their tales. She knew that. It was just guilt that held her back.

 

[Acteon Cass]

Acteon wanted to leave. He wanted to go outside and feel the wind. He wanted to let the cool night air temper the burning emotions within him right now. He wanted the moon to be his light and his guide. He wanted to gaze into it for answers it did not have for him. It was what he would do.... If it was anyone else but Ana.

The kiss as her touch remained on his face fully captured Acteon's shaky focus. His eyes closed and his hands came to rest on her hips. If she knocked him back and mounted him right now he would gladly do anything and everything she desired. He did have feelings of lust for Ana, although they were not nearly as strong as the other feelings he had for her. Lust was all he would have felt if it was anyone else.

The break away from the kiss was devastating but Acteon understood why it needed to be done. So he just let her slip from his hands. He just gave her a weak smile as she spoke and left the room. For a minute or two he just stayed sitting on the bed not moving. Eventually though he got up. He headed to the door and put his hand on the handle. But he did not open it. Ana wanted him in the room. She wanted him in here badly. Why? Why did she want him here and why did he care that it might hurt her if he did?

The Allirian walked away after a bit and headed for the window. He opened it up and then got himself seated on the window seal. The air felt great. It was refreshing. His eyes gazed up to the moon and his mind began to wander. He thought of his mother. He thought of his father. He thought about their marriage. It had been arranged. It had been political and done for the benefit of them both. For her family it got them ties outside of Vel Anir and the Cortosi Coast. For his family it brought in a new market. It was never meant to be happy or loving yet it was. It was so happy and loving that his father still had yet to remarry or even seriously entertain the thought of sleeping with another woman let alone marry again. Would Acteon ever find that or would his life be loneliness or the kind of unhappy, loveless marriage his parents were suppose to have had?

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

The hour she had set herself downstairs was more than enough, Ana realised. Her performance had been her lament and her gift to the people she called a family and it had taken more of a hit on her emotionally than she had actually realised. She felt tired to her very core. So the conversations she had to sit through though they were nice also felt a little like they dragged. It made her feel guilty for even thinking such a thing but it was true. The way some people spoke and cried upon her shoulder made her feel like they desired for her to be the rock through all of this when in truth they should have been hers.

Her father would have been upset at her for thinking this way. He would have told her she had survivors guilt or something of the sort. He would have thought her weak for wanting comfort for herself. It was the job of those remaining to be strong for those who couldn't be. Ana could be strong for them because with Acteon she could let herself not be strong.

Once it drew closer to the hour she made her excuses, though in truth she probably didn't need to. As Louisa said to her as she went to head up to her room, she looked like shit. There were smudged around her eyes where she had cried during parts of her performance and she had been rubbing at them when people spoke to her to keep further tears at bay. There were bags and she looked paler than usual.

She opened the door then shut it behind her with a relieved sigh then turned the lock so nobody would barge in. Seeing him by the window she kicked off her shoes and padded over to where he sat on bare feet and took up a spot beside him. Whilst he watched the moon she watched the ships on the waves.

 

[Acteon Cass]

The thoughts Acteon had switched form his family and marriage during the hour he was alone in the room to his direction in life. He was rebuilding his family's company and properties back to what they once were as well as sorting out revenge against those who had stripped his family of what they had. But what was he going to do after that? Be a merchant, be it a very wealthy one, but just a merchant? After everything he had seen and done it just did not feel right to him. He had survived an ambush by a werewolf pack. He had control of the wolf now inside of him. He had made a small fortune on his own as a lone sellsword. He had formed a plan to take the walls of a city that worked perfectly in only a few hours. He had connections and knew people of talent. Was the life of a merchant all he wanted?

More and more these thoughts of his deeper ambitions swirled around inside of Acteon's head. Then he heard the sounds of Ana's return up the stairs. He knew it was her from the way it sounded. Even before she opened the door and stepped in so her scent could spread to his nose. This revelation now began to dominate his mind. Thoughts of their time together began to take hold.

Ana joined him at the window and the pair just silently stared off at the elements of nature of that controlled them on an instinctive level. For him it was the moon, a cold and aloof mistress, and for her it was the ocean, a mercurial and chaotic mistress. But there was some kind of comfort for them to be found within these bitches of nature.

Acteon had just wrapped his arm around Ana's waist when she sat next to him. He had pulled her in as close as she could get and placed his other hand on her thigh. It was a way they had sat before with contentment. It had been content for him at the very least. Now was no different.

After an indistinct amount of time had past Acteon finally broke the silence. His voice was clearer than it was earlier but it was clear he still was feeling the effects of his drinks, "If you want to bed me tonight Ana you can. I can even leave the room after if you want. Know you are more comfortable not staying with a guy after. Or we can cuddle. Whatever makes you happy Ana. That is all I desire. You to be happy."

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Ana smiled when he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her from the other side of the bench to press her back against his chest. She allowed him to and used the room now to stretch her legs out along the length of the bench instead. The comfortable silence continued and she leaned her head back against his chest and looked out the window. It was a lovely night. There weren't even any sounds of fighting coming from downstairs which was a marked changed. It seemed she had done her performance well this time.

The siren had been so lost in the quiet of the evening that when he spoke she actually jumped a little, especially as his lips were so close to her ear. She patted the hand that rest on her thigh and gave a soft chuckle.

"I'll summarise the same words you said to me a few nights ago, not when either of us are drunk," she twisted slightly and pressed a kiss to his jaw before returning to looking out the window. "How are you feeling? Ale beginning to wear off a little?"

 

[Acteon Cass]

A slight chuckle escaped Acteon after Ana responded to what he had to say. He responded to her kiss on his jaw by giving her a kiss on the forehead. This moment was so uneventful and mundane yet it felt like everything to him right now. It made him wonder if she felt the same or if she was just worrying again and going along with him to get him to go to bed.

"You are a rather vindictive woman Mistress Ana. Is it the pirate in you or just something such a beautiful, wonderful woman happens to be naturally? I imagine you are not use to your advances getting rejected either. Must have been devastating." Acteon said as he looked down at Ana now. She was more alluring than the moon. "And yes. It is working its way out. I am rather resistant to poison and my body recovers quicker. Makes it handy for dealing with drinking too much. Less of a hangover."

The Allirian smiled after he had spoken and kissed her again. "I am sure you wish you had the same constitution for drinking. Certainly would never have to worry about experiencing another hangover like the one you had earlier this week."

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

"It's definitely the pirate, it's why your noble arse can't handle it," Ana's laugh was a bubbling thing as she rested her head back against his chest and glanced up at the moon then back to the sea. "No I am not used to it, you did hurt my ego a little there but I was thankfully drunk enough not to hold onto it for too long," she shook her head. It had confused her the next morning still, and she had yet to be given an answer by him about what exactly he wanted from her - from this. But she wouldn't push it tonight. Whenever one of them seemed to ask the other got frightened or upset and left.

Ana grimaced as he reminded her of her hangover and she pulled away a little from how they were sat so she could turn and look at him properly without hurting her neck.

"That. Would be an excellent gift. I can usually handle my alcohol but I really shouldn't have drunk that third bottle of whisky," she rubbed her chest in memory of how it had burned down as well as back up.

 

[Acteon Cass]

Acteon's wit seemed to be returning to him more but the flirtiness of his drunken state remained. So when Ana made her comment about his ass he smirked a bit. "I just hope your plump, pirate ass can handle it when I do finally throw you onto that bed. Be a shame if you can not last all night."

The conversation went onto her hurt ego and then she seemed to have memories from that night return to her mind. Between her words and the way she rubbed her chest it was clear. Acteon also remembered the topic of that night and how neither of them ever seemed to answer the lingering question on both of their minds. Perhaps he should give it now? He was more aware of how he felt and what he wanted than he was then, although he still could not express it fully. The thought that it was always going to be like that no matter how long they were together floated by.

The smirk returned as Acteon said, "Careful Ana. If you rube your chest too much you might give me ideas and desires. And what ever will you do with those?"

His expression grew serious as he decided he should tell Ana what he had been thinking about while she was gone. "Ana I was thinking while you were gone. I thought about us. About my parents. About marriage. About how I feel. About what I want. I thought about all of it. I think I have a better answer for you now than before. If you wish to hear it."

Acteon's mind felt sharper right now. More clear. He knew he was still drunk but the bit of haze that had caused him to ramble and be so quirky before seemed to have faded away. Now he was just left with his flirty comments and his unhindered self. This was him closer to his full moon state than he ever would get. So if she wanted honest answers out of him now was the best time.

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

His flirty comments made her laugh some more but she didn't rise to the bait. No, he had made it clear that he didn't want this to be a one time deal so she would wait until she was certain it would be more. However his comment on what he had been thinking about in the past hour sobered up her laughter quite quickly.

Did she want to know?

The fact he had been thinking about marriage was already quite clearly freaking her out. Panic was written across her face and she looked like a deer about to bolt from a hunter. She shifted uncomfortable on the bench. She did want to know but she was also terrified. Slowly she nodded.

 

[Acteon Cass]

It was slow. Ana's response to Acteon was slow and panic had already set in it seems. Not a good sign at all for him. But this had to be said. It had to be said while it was still so fresh on his mind and he was in a state to say it. If he waited until the morning he never would be able to get it out there like it needed to be. He was a coward at times and this would make him the worst of ones if he sobered up first. So he took in a deep breath and gave into the liquid courage.

"My parents had an arranged marriage. My mother was a noble from a minor house in Vel Anir and my father is from my family which is an ancient line of merchants from Alliria and the Reach. It was typical for us both. My father's father wanted to secure new ports in Anirian lands as well as an edge over local merchants. My mother's father wanted to expand their ties east and away from the Cortosi Coast and Anirian lands as well as gain an ally with wealth in case something happened. They found it in each other and so my parents were wed. It was never meant to be a happy marriage. They were never meant to like each other or love each other. It was political and my parents had a duty to uphold for their families." Acteon began to speak as he looked out at the moon. "But they did find love and happiness with each other despite it all. That is rare with arranged marriages. My father's father had his marriage arranged for him but never did come to love his wife. My father's father's father was the same. They liked their wives and were good to them but never did love them the way my father did my mother. He has yet to even remarry or form any kind of real relationship with another woman. I imagine he may have slept with a woman from time to time but it was never more than a single night or a paid affair."

The man paused a bit. He needed to breath a bit before going onto the hard part. "I owe my family the same duty my fathers before me did. For the sake of my family I need to marry. I need to have children legally born under the Cass name. So much work has gone into building up a better future for the next generation. A new form of profit here. An expansion of an existing venture there. More land. More coin. More security and comfort.... But it was also stripped from us not long ago. The Cass family is only me and my father. That is only two members of a family to hold an amount of properties only nobles of other lands could hope to have. It is a difficult task to keep it all under control and running smoothly for two people, but it was not two people. It was just my father. He had kicked me out to learn a lesson. I had become arrogant in thinking I was owed my family's wealth and position. I might have been taught by tutors but I did not learn until I did not have the safety net my family had spent centuries or even thousands of years building up for us. So he had to deal with it all alone while I sorted myself out and then stayed away out of a sense of petty anger."

Acteon turned to look at Ana once again. "This meant our family's enemies had only one person to target: my father. And they did. By every means possible they stripped everything away from him and left him homeless on the streets of Alliria without any coin. That was what I finally returned to. That was what I had done to my family by not fulfilling my duties as a good son should to his great father. I am trying to make it right Ana, but I only now realized how much more I should be doing. We do not just need our land and properties back. We do not just need our company and wealth again. I need to do my part in growing my family so that our enemies can not so easily target us again. My ancestors worked too hard to provide us this comfort and security to allow it to all end with me."

An affectionate smile crossed his face. "And then there is you Ana. I can not explain exactly what it is I feel for you and doubt I ever will. I know, however, that it is more than simple lust or desire. If it was then all I would care for was getting between your legs and satisfying that desire before leaving and likely never seeing you again. But I had that chance and it felt wrong. It is not the sex I want but the time spent with you. It is the closeness both physically and emotionally we have been having since the island. The cuddling, the talking, the sitting in silence. I enjoyed the idea of having my arm around your waist and you leaning against my chest far more than my manhood between your thighs. I do not want this closeness and sharing to end. You are the only one I can truly drop this mask around and now that I have done it I can not going back to keeping it on all the time. I know who I am now because of you and it makes how I use to live before feel so fake."

Acteon took Ana's hands in his own and squeezed them gently. "I know you do not wish to marry. You even flinched when I mentioned the word earlier and began to panic at the idea of it. It is just something you do not desire. And I will respect that. I will not force nor bind you to anything, even if by some miracle of the gods we did become married. I would never expect you to change into one of those dreadfully boring housewives or noblewomen who depend on their husband. It is not who you are and not who I want you to be. You would be free to continue being yourself and do what you wished. And if you do not wish to marry even knowing this then, well.... I still owe my family a duty to marry Ana."

The Allirian cast his eyes away from the siren's. He did not know what he would see there but that coward within him had gotten past some of the temporary courage he had consumed. "You will always have a place at my home Ana. I will always wish to cuddle and talk and just sit in silence with you. I will always need you in my life. You will hold my heart in whatever weird way it is we have. But if you do not wish to marry, even if only in name, then I will have to find someone else who will. I will be forced to do as my family has always done for the good of my family. But I will not have what my parents had. I know I could only hope for that with you. I will have what my grandfather had. It will not be happy. It will not be loving. It will be a business deal where our only obligation to each other is creating the new generation."

Acteon let Ana's hands drop from his, if she had not already removed them herself, and looked up to the moon once again. It felt calming to him as he lacked the courage to be able to look at Ana right now. He did not care how much he hurt or disappointed the goddess of the night sky, but he did care how he might hurt and disappoint the goddess of his heart.

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

Well, there was her answer.

Andromeda wasn't sure if it was the one she had wanted though, in truth. She had listened to everything he had had to say with the attention it deserved, even if her every instinct urged her to leave the room before he had a chance. This wasn't who she was. Ana was the sea and when you married the sea it was violent affair that could very well see you drown in it. So far everyone she knew who had been married to it had been lost, and she worried for that fate with Acteon too. She desperately tried to imagine a scenario where she could see herself how he wanted it to work; married and with her stomach round with a babe.

It... jarred.

She looked down at their joined hands unable to meet his gaze either as he continued to speak. But could she face the alternative he presented her? Ana had to agree she shared a similar sentiment of not having to pretend to be something she was not when it came to Acteon. He was the first person she had crossed who she hadn't had to be weary about touching or saying something in the wrong way. One little bit of control that slipped... it didn't matter with him. She wanted that to continue and grow but... could she do it whilst he went to bed with another woman and she had his children? No, no she couldn't do that.

He dropped her hands and she folded them in to her lap awkwardly.

He was asking her to condemn him to a loveless life or give him her hand and in truth she didn't know the answer to either.

"Of all the ways I imagined a marriage proposal it wasn't like this," Ana's voice cracked a little as she made the joke. She had to say something to ease the thick tension in the room, couldn't leave it like this. "I cannot give you an answer right now Acteon," her eyes skated away from him to look down at her hands. "It is a... a lot to think about. We only met last week and... and I'm only 21, I've only just started my life.... I..." am not ready.

But would she ever be? That was what she needed to figure out.

 

[Acteon Cass]

Acteon smiled at Ana's attempt to make a joke in the situation but could not bring himself to chuckle the way he might if things were less intense. Instead he just listened to her answer. He listened to even the words she was not speaking....

Acteon looked to Ana now. The courage he needed to overcome the coward had been granted by her own doubt. It was the temporary sort of thing a man felt when someone he cared for was in need. She was not looking at him. It was another thing the two of them shared it seemed. An affectionate smile developed knowing this fact. Were they both such cowards?

"I never expected an answer right away Ana. I simply needed to tell you what it was I wanted but also what I have to do. The choices I am left with are not something I would have wanted but they are still the ones I have." Acteon said in as calm and soothing of a voice as he could for her right now. This was not something he wished was happening. Cuddling under the moonlight as the two silently enjoyed each other's company was what he wanted. Yet he could not have his way. Life would not allow it.

"My parents had never met before their wedding day and were younger than you are Ana when they wed. Neither of them wanted it either.... At first. My father told me he expected a plain girl with maybe some attractive features would be who he was meant to spend the rest of his life with, but he got my mother. She was beautiful and had the brightest blue eyes. They reminded me of the ocean. They did not know each other yet had to take that ever so permanent step." Acteon said almost more to himself than to Ana. "They both would have wished they had the time we have had together and been as old as you were before having to marry. But they were not given it.... Yet they found love in what was suppose to be lacking it. An impossible feat considered by most. You need time. You need to be ready. You need to know each other. They had none of it and it seems no one ever does. My father told me that now he does not care about any of that. It is not the time before marriage he cares about. It is just the time he got to spend with my mother that he cares about....."

Was Acteon even still on the same topic here? He could not say. His mind was on his parents. He missed them. His mother he missed the most dearly. Both father and son had been cheated out of so much time with her that they could never get back.

Not even realizing he was saying anything out loud Acteon said, "I wish I had more time with you mom...."

Andromeda Barbarossa

 

[Andromeda]

"I understand that's how it works where you're from, and with your families," Ana shifted uncomfortably. Did he want her to comment on his last sentence or was that more of a musing out loud? She wasn't sure she could provide any kind of comfort either way, she hadn't known her mother and her father had taken his own life as soon as she was old enough in his eyes to face the world on her own. There was no love lost there. She took a breath.

"Pirates don't even tend to get married, it's very rare. This is just a whole different way of thinking to wrap my head around and then children?" her voice began to take on a higher pitch now as the panic began to truly wind its way into her words. "Do I even want children? I would be passing my curse on to them, sure it might be more dilluted by that point but what about yours too? Does that get passed on? Is it right to bring in more people like that into the world? What if they can't control it as well, what if they hate us for it, what if-"

It was very clear Ana was falling hard and fast down a rabbit hole of fear at this point.