Yuna grinned solemnly as everyone sat around for a nice meal together.
The dinner table that once seemed so lonely, used only by herself, was now filled with guests. At first, she wasn’t sure if she liked the idea of living with others, even if it was temporary. But by now, she had grown fully used to it.
For dinner, both Yuna and Maria made a delicious roasted beef dish, dressed with countless spices. Thanks to the existence of magic, something that would take hours was achievable in minutes with the right elemental control.
Though Maria didn’t use magic, Yuna was an expert at it.
“Pwah!! This dish is absolutely amazing, Miss Yuzu!” Nanaki exploded in delight, stuffing her mouth with more food right after. She was the one who brought the meat, but didn’t know someone was capable of creating a better-tasting dish than her father.
“My, I see that the youth these days have a great sense of respect.” Yuna flipped her hair proudly, nearly whipping Maria, who was sitting just to her right. If it wasn’t for the pirate’s quick instincts, she most definitely would have gotten hit.
“Hey! Watch it!”
“Miss Lemonia,” Yuna sneered back, “is that truly the best way for you to treat the master of the house? I give you lodging, a job, and a delicious meal, and this is your attitude? Looks like someone was raised wrong.”
As Yuna burst into laughter at her own joke, she felt her head suddenly yanked backward. Having to deal with constant humiliation, Maria had had enough of her host’s snarky remarks.
“Oops. Sorry, ‘master,’ looks like your hair is getting in the way,” Maria grinned ominously. “Perhaps I should cut it off tomorrow. Oh, but I wouldn’t want to interrupt your busy day, so I’ll just do it while you sleep.”
The two locked horns, gripping each other’s hands, trying to overpower one another.
Nanaki trembled at the sight of two adults fighting while taking another bite. She had never seen her parents fight so violently, so this was a somewhat new experience for her.
“Are they going to be okay?! Shouldn’t we stop them?” she worriedly asked.
Fin turned his head to the left, facing Nanaki. “It’ll be fine. Despite fighting like that, they’re actually quite good friends.” Nanaki refused to believe it at first, but his innocent eyes indirectly told her that he was telling no lies.
“ME?! FRIENDS WITH HER?!” Despite being locked in battle, Maria couldn’t in good conscience let that comment slip by. When Fin turned his gaze back to Maria, the two ladies were wrestling on the ground.
“THAT’S RIGHT, FINNY! HOW COULD YOU EVEN COME TO THAT CONCLUSION?!” For the first time, it seemed like they were on the same wavelength.
“I mean, after our talk the other night, I couldn’t help but realize you guys were actually pretty close.” His words perked Maria’s ears. She still hadn’t been able to get Fin to confess what their conversation was actually about.
Gathering as much strength as she could, Maria kicked Yuna away, sending her body flying across the dining room and crashing into the wall.
Like skating on ice, she slid toward Fin with pleading eyes. “Since I’m clearly involved in this talk of yours, it’s only fair that you let me know what you guys talked about, right?”
“No.” His answer came faster than she anticipated.
Maria backed away, furrowing her brows. “W-Why?! I don’t see why I’m always being left out in these kinds of things. Do you secretly hate me, Fin?”
“How’d you come to that conclusion?”
“I’m just embarrassed to say it. Maybe one day I’ll tell you, but that day is not today.”
“Fu. Fu. Fu.”
Fin pursed his lips as he realized the greatest wildcard had finally appeared. Being Yuna’s familiar, the strange paper cat was obviously present during the secret talk. He had no right to stop the creature, so all he could do was pray it stayed silent.
“Yer lookin’ for an answer, eh?” it talked directly to Maria.
“Well, I gots a clear answer, if yer willin’ to pay da price.”
Her knight in shining armor. Maria excitedly asked what the price was.
“Fu. Fu. Fu. It’s really simple. I’m not a cat of many desires, but if there’s one thing I want in life, it’s…”
While Maria was listening attentively, Nanaki’s jaw dropped upon seeing what should be impossible. She rubbed her eyes three times, but the floating paper cat still remained in the air, and it was talking no less.
“GAMBLIN’!! There’s been a grand openin’ in the city, ya see. And I wanted to try out the services they was providin’.”
“Sadly, Master won’t give me any gold to spend on leisurely activities. She’s a real slave driver, if ye ask me. Ah, but I didn’t say nothin’.”
“If ya wish to know somethin’ as menial as the lil’ talk they had back in the boy’s quarters, I’d be happy to tell ya for the small, small price of ‘the gold you stole from Master.’”
“Is that really all you need?” Maria asked, raising a brow.
“THAT’S RIGHT! ‘COURSE IT IS!!! I’ve been wantin’ to gamble e’er since I learned of its existence. Either that, or ya let the boy o’er there marry Master. I’d love to be an uncle one day. KEKEKEKEKE!”
“Well then, of course, that sounds like a deal to me.” Her statement surprised Fin, as he knew Maria to be an absolute lover of money. Even when they were children, she’d rather die than part ways with a single coin.
“Buuuut… I’m a little bit broke right now. So here’s the plan. You give me the remaining half of your gold, and I promise I’ll give back double. So if you gave me 50,000 gold, I’ll give you back 100,000.”
Never mind. This was the Maria he knew.
“Fu. Fu. Fu. You strike a hard bargain. DEAL!!!”
“Listen closely now, kelp-head.”
Maria drew in closer, lending her ear to the cat. As the paper cat opened its non-existent mouth, a strong gust of wind howled through the dining room. The tablecloth flapped fiercely, and E-CAT was flung far across the room.
Then, a fireball hurled at the cat with pinpoint precision, rapidly burning it to a crisp. “GAAAHHH!! IM DYIN’ IM DYIN’ O’ER ‘ERE!!! MY GAMBLIN’ DREAMSSSSSS!”
Everyone turned their gazes to the source of the magic to see Yuna, drawing in heavy breaths with her hair completely undone. “You vixen, you think you can trick my familiar into telling MY secrets?”
“They’re not even your secrets to begin with! If I’m involved in these talks, I deserve to know!” Maria fired back.
“See?” Fin earnestly smiled at Nanaki, as if to prove what he had claimed earlier was true. This time, rather than being doubtful, she clapped slowly at the man’s extremely perceptive nature and intuition.
“How long have you guys been in Flarenorice for? At first I thought you were tourists, but I don’t think tourists would get a local job,” Nanaki asked.
“Ah, we’re not residents here. Maria and I are trying to gain enough money to set back out to the seas.”
“You need money? Even though you live in a place like this?”
Fin waved dismissively. “This isn’t our home. Yuna’s letting us stay here temporarily. She wanted to help us out, but I told her that we need to earn our right to set back out. Freeloading is no good, after all.”
His mature outlook on the world somehow made Nanaki realize that the group in front of her were, in fact, adults. It was a bit hard to tell based on the behavior of the two quarreling ladies, but she hadn’t even thought of the significance of freeloading.
Clapping her hands together, an idea sparked in her head. “In that case, what if we had a fun day out? My dad has a spare grill we could use for a beach day.”
“Beach day?” Fin scratched his chin. “I feel like Maria and I have been to a lot of beaches in our pirate career, so it’s not really something I’m too excited for. I’d probably like to spend that time earning some money.”
“You’re wrong, Finny,” Yuna called out from across the room. Both ladies’ hair and clothes were tattered and messed up. They stood completely still, as if the damage had been done telekinetically. No labored breaths, not even a slouch.
“I believe Nanaki is right. A beach day would be adequate fun.”
“But I need to earn—” before he could finish, he was promptly interrupted.
“Finny! I’m looking to hire a grillmaster for my fun beach outing. You need money, correct? Well, this is a perfect opportunity to take advantage of this deal.”
Fin wasn’t that smart, but he wasn’t dumb either. Taking the hint, he smiled and accepted Yuna’s offer. It was clearly a way to lure him in, but this way, it was a win-win for both parties. However, while Nanaki simply wanted to show the group around the beautiful shores of Flarenorice, Yuna had completely different plans.
“Fu. Fu. Fu.” The orange paper cat floated next to Fin.
“HUH?! IT’S ALIVE?!” Nanaki shouted in disbelief.
“Yer in luck, boy. Even I haven’t seen my master in a swimsuit. Though, knowin’ her, she’s probably gonna look absolutely stunnin’ no matter what she wears.”
Fin nodded along.
“Close yer eyes, and imagine what her stunnin’ Velion figure would look like. Her glistening skin, slim waist perfect for holdin’, a swimsuit suited to highlight the most important of proportions, and most importantly…”
“HER...”
E-CAT took the biggest inhale of its life before bursting out the following words like an explosion, its head jolting violently.
“CALCIUM. CANNONSSSS!!!!”
Nanaki was amazed, never having heard those words before. She tugged on Fin’s shirt, asking, “What are calcium cannons? Are they something pirate-related?”
Fin simply stayed silent, not wanting to corrupt the innocent girl.
“It’d be boring if we just went there and just stood around.” Maria chimed in, a fire seemingly igniting in her eyes.
“I say we have a little competition to liven up the mood.”
“Miss Lemonia, it seems like your kelp-brain IS capable of coming up with good ideas. I was just thinking the same thing.”
“Competition for what?” Fin obliviously asked, with Nanaki nodding just behind him.
“After an entire day of working under this drill tyrant, I’ve grown sick and tired of it! If I win, I want you to hand over the other half of your treasure you have stashed somewhere. With that, I should be able to leave this island as soon as the next day!”
“Well, you have yourself a deal, Miss Lemonia…” Yuna confidently accepted, before fiercely pointing at her opponent. “However! If you lose, I’ll have you dedicate the next five years of your life to paying off what you stole from me.”
This competition was bad news. Having observed their rivalry for a few days now, there was no telling who the clear victor was. Just to make his own standing clear, Fin cleared his throat and spoke up.
“Wait. Do I have to be included in her pay plan too?”
Yuna shook her head. “Nope! You can keep enjoying life as you will, my loveliest Finny.”
He breathed a sigh of relief, Nanaki patting him on the back as if to say, “good for you.” Maria, however, wasn’t so understanding or sympathetic.
“Why are you assuming I’d lose?! You should be asking if I’m willing to split my earnings with you!”
“Well, I’ve known you ever since we were kids. You’re not the kind to share your money,” Fin retorted, crossing his arms.
“Remember that one time, when… what was that guy’s name? Oh yeah, JZ. He dropped a bronze coin he was going to use to buy some snacks, but you refused to give it back to him. You claimed that it was finders keepers.”
“Even though he only dropped it for a second.”
“Then, when he tried to get it back, you punched him with all your might, making him bleed out of his nose.”
Everyone deadpan stared at Maria, internally impressed at how someone could be so greedy. Putting Fin aside, his story gave them perspective on how she ended up in the career path of a pirate, and a captain no less.
“W-WHA?! That was so long ago! We were probably like, what, eight?” Maria guiltily shouted, forcefully averting her gaze from the judgmental stares coming her way.
“JZ was very sad that day, y’know. He even moved away to make sure he’d never interact with you again.”
“Our trio group suddenly turned into a duo because of your greed.”
“Um, aha… I guess everyone has their unique personality traits…” Nanaki chimed in, the optimism fading in her tone with each word.
“Truly a poor person’s mentality. I suppose poverty will forever be in your blood, Miss Lemonia.”
Maria practically vibrated with pure annoyance, feeling the adrenaline pumping through her veins. She sat down and forcefully stuffed food into her mouth in an attempt to quell her rage. This was, by definition, stress eating.
However, her strategy was extremely short-lived, as the culprit who started this entire discussion, leading to her being judged so harshly, spoke the final words that blew her fuse.
“Isn’t that your fifth plate? If you keep eating, you’ll get fat.”
The room fell completely silent. Nanaki quietly scooted away from Fin, as if to take shelter. Even Yuna, who would gladly jump at the chance to insult Maria, stood in awe at what the boy had just blurted out.
He didn’t mean it maliciously. In fact, he said it in her best interest. Being a pirate captain required one to be agile and prepared for any form of combat. If they were weighed down by unnecessary weight, it could mean the difference between life and death.
“K-K-...” Maria held back her words as best as she could, but felt her legs winding up like a spring.
“K?” Fin looked confused, trying to decipher what she was saying.
Maria strained her hands, veins becoming visible. Unable to contain herself any longer, she exploded from her chair, leaping at Fin with the ferocity of a bullet. Before he could even comprehend the situation, he was on the ground, with two hands wrapped around his neck.
“I’M…!”
“I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!!!!!”
…
If not for the surrounding witnesses stopping Maria, the captain of the Clementine Pirates would have met his end that night.