May the Father of Understanding Guide Us (Open)

Roger nodded, and went to lead them down to the cabins. Instead, he stopped, and looked at the men on the quarterdeck, who quickly got the message and made their way down to the top deck, to operate with the rest of the crew. Roger escorted Elizabeth off to the stern, where he leant up against it with her, keeping an eye on the British ship.

"The Captain of that ship was British. He and I knew each other, back before I met you."

He rubbed his head slowly, sighing and looking at her, smiling down. He loved her so much, he found it near impossible to say what he needed to. He needed to tell her, to let her know the truth behind the issue.

"He... It was Whitehorn. The Captain of that ship."

Roger looked back to the ship, as it slowed down and weighed anchor by the side of the Butcher's ship. Daniel was going to get on that ship, and if the brothers were lucky, he'd think that ammunition and stolen goods were the surplus of merchants. Chances were, he'd not think that.

"Ah, that explains it then." On any other day, she would have lost her mind entirely, and gone after him. But now she was in no mood to fight, argue, chase, nor anything else along those lines. "Besides, what he said about me a few months ago, it means nothing to me now. Bitter words spoken by a bitter man. However, if he even tries to so much as touch me, let alone take me by force, I'll kill him with my bare hands." Elizabeth turned, and wrapped her arms around him as she buried her face in his chest. She was thankful that he had stepped in and stopped her from doing the unthinkable, she didn't even want to think about what Whitehorn would've done to her, especially during her altered state.

Roger was certainly surprised by the reaction, but he wasn't going to pursue the subject any longer. He simply held her, resting and closing his eyes. He always felt better with her, he always had. Having her with him, it meant more than he could ever comprehend. He pondered, for a moment, what he'd do once they got back the Queen's Night. Part of him wanted to break the ship down, sell it piece by piece and buy something for Elizabeth, but he didn't think she was that materialistic, not in her heart of hearts.

"Are you alright? You seem..."

He stopped himself, realising quite quickly what must be going on. He smirked and chuckled, kissing her on the forehead gently. Potions, drugs, whatever it was, he didn't know, but he knew that it had calmed her down. That was certainly a good thing.

"Come. I'm certain you want to lie down. I'll command the ship 'till you're fit for it."

He didn't realise until a few moments later that he was still speaking in his overly British tongue; though not even close to as proper as he'd once been, now that he became aware of it, it felt sort of odd, to change between tongues. He'd need to settle on one eventually.

"Thank you, love" Elizabeth said softly as she continued to cling onto him for dear life, but that was probably because her legs were just about ready to give way beneath her. She gently kissed his cheek, and waited for one of her men to help her to her cabin. Peace had once again returned to the galleon, Elizabeth was happy that she was finally about to get some sleep again, the women were happy that the men never made it onto the ship, and the men were happy to have escaped the clutches of the British once again. Elizabeth enjoyed every moment that she spent in his arms, he not only made him feel loved, but safe too. He had become her security.

Slowly, but surely, Roger moved with her down to the cabins. He took each step carefully, not wanting her to slip or lose her footing. He held onto her close, not wanting to let go. As the doors to the cabins opened he led her in, and sighed calmly as they closed. It was quiet. Everyone was outside it seemed, most still fairly nervous about the British ship, and for good reason.

He opened the door to her quarters, and led her to the bed. He laid her down and kissed her gently, smiling at her. He didn't want to go, but at this point it'd be best he did. The crew needed a veteran commander, and with Elizabeth out, that was his place.

"I'll be right back. Once the British ship is on its way, I'll weigh down near the Butcher's, and we can all rest. At some point I imagine we'll need to tow them back to port to get repairs, but for now it should all be fine. Just relax, alright?"

"Aye, thank you, Roger" Elizabeth said softly and tiredly as she curled up on the bed. Panther leapt straight onto the bed, and curled up against Elizabeth. De Payens had wrapped himself around a lamp in an attempt to get some warmth, but he eventually made his way over to the bed to warm up with his owner. "If any of the men give you trouble, or if they mess up, just let me know, and I'll dock a portion of their pay." Elizabeth soon drifted off to sleep, and Panther weasled his way under her arm. The iguana struggled to make his way up the bed, but he eventually found his footing on an old white jaguar pelt hanging over the side of the bed.

[[OOC: Just to clarify, I'm waiting for Guill to post here.]]

(Sorry, sorry, sorry, etc., had a crazy week. Now... where were we?)

Watching the British ship weigh anchor next to him, Damian signaled for his men to raise the sails. It felt odd, anchoring next to one with consent. Walking down the steps of his ship, he put his hands on his side, and, some what mockingly, asked, "There a problem, ma'am?", only stopping to stand behind his railing, looking towards the man on the other ship. He looked oddly... familiar. Eh, might aswell get itover with, kill a couple men, steal their riches, leave, the usual. But, then again, they only had one sail.

Elizabeth woke in a cold sweat after yet another nightmare of the deaths of all her loved ones. She pulled the blanket over her shoulders, and looked at the old painting of her and her father.
"Perhaps I should spend a week at Nassau, just to clear my mind and figure out what the hell I'm doing" Elizabeth thought aloud as she ran her fingers through her hair. She climbed out of bed, and grabbed her book before she returned to her bed. She looked at the picture of her and her friends, and hung her head. She flipped to a fresh page, and began to sketch the day's events. When she first met the Admiral, she thought him an insufferable pillock while he thought her a pirate whore. Yet now she found him to be the only one able to keep her grounded and sane.

Daniel crooked his brow, looking down at the men on the ship opposite him. They were the men he was after, the ones that had been present during the battle so long ago. My, times had changed since then. He made way down to the gangplank of his own ship, which was being held up, ready to be slammed down over the two vessels; for invasion, or invitation.

"According to the glorious and respected Admiral, you're a merchant ship. You've kept your word, and turned your lives around, become good and honourable men. Now, if this were true, we would owe you enough guinea to have your entire ship rebuilt. It's not right for men of the crown to fire upon merchants, after all."

The men of the HMS Fortunate did not hesitate, did not waver. Their rifles were held high, their cannons loaded. If the 'merchants' made a single wrong move they'd have gunpowder to greet them. Daniel nodded, and the plank was lowered, and he was the first across it, speaking all the way.

"But of course, we'd first need to check your stock. Ensure that you are, in fact, a merchant ship. Foods, fabrics, slaves, whatever it is you're trading in, I surely hope it's not damaged. So, captain. How about you support that dear Admirals claims?"

Daniel had less than no faith in what he'd been told. These men dressed as pirates, held themselves as pirates, even the ship reeked of piracy. It'd be an easy haul, that was for certain.

"How're ye doin'?"

Roger spoke softly as he opened the door to Elizabeth's cabin. The ship was doing fine, and he'd told the men to fire on the British ship if combat broke out. He wanted to spend some time with Elizabeth, he needed to make sure she was okay.

Elizabeth shut the book, and smiled as she looked up at him. He was indeed a welcome sight while she was fairly certain that she was not. In fact, she most likely looked like death.
"Much better than I was earlier, that's for certain" Elizabeth said with a laugh. She still didn't look all that well, but she felt better, and in the end, that was all that counted. Panther looked up at Stodd, yawned, and made his way to the top of a crate where he fell asleep again almost immediately. "Thank you for helping out." She wasn't sure if it would be appropriate to give him a more personal name so early on, so she tried to avoid calling him anything at all.

Nodding lightly, Damian said, "'Course, 'course. Stole this ship, actually. Now, it weren't from any innocent men, you could say. Stole it from Pirates, hiding as British. Now, being one with my fair deal of strength, you could say I... 'neutralized' some of them, and stole their clothes, and their keys. Havn't checked the cargo, fully. Won' be 'prised if there were weapons.". Looking around a bit, his eyes spotted his brother, and, after motioning for the man to come closer, Damian said towards Daniel, "Come on over. Don' see why y'didn' lower it already.". Pulling his sleeve over his wrist, hiding the Hidden Blade, he said, quietly, to his brother, "Do not act out. These men have enough power, judging by the size of their ship, to tear this ship a new one. No, no... Three new ones."

(Also, I'm on a computer right now. Haven't found a replacement just yet. Time is limited at times, this being one.)

Back at Ireland, Morgana had been overthrown. She had been stripped of her rank, and cast out of the Order. The members of the Irish rite were now trying to get in contact with Elizabeth, and bring her in for a talk.

---

The women had returned to their posts once they had put on their disguises yet again. They weren't entirely happy about it, but they didn't really have a choice in the matter. A group of women took to cleaning the rifles, and preparing for the next battle. Another group set off to sharpen the weapons. Some of the men were taking care of the cannons. They were trying to look as innocent as possible to avoid drawing the attention of the British.

"Move. We don't want to be here for too long; we're quite certain that you traders have your own things to deal with. We'll see what you've got, judge your future, and if all is well we'll pay you for your repairs. Now go on, lead."

Daniel pushed the men onwards, as he was led down below deck with some twenty British regulars following close behind, the crew on his ship remaining ever vigilant. They all knew how risky this could be.

Roger sat down by her side, rubbing his hand over her back gently and smiling. She looked so tired, so worn out and so broken, yet still utterly beautiful. He didn't talk for now, he was happy just to help her. He looked at the panther and frowned; a large cat, it wasn't something he was used to, but at least it could've been worse, and the thing was tame.

Elizabeth smiled softly as she rested her head on his shoulder. She noticed him eying the ocelot, and chuckled quietly.
"Remember our first battle? That Templar that came to my aid? He was gunned down by some Assassins a while back. Left me that ocelot. Fully trained to attack on command... I suppose it's his way of looking after me." Elizabeth burst into quiet laughter, and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Remember how he attacked Morgana?" Elizabeth looked up, and softly kissed his cheek. This was all she really wanted, and soon they would head their separate ways. "How will we keep in contact when we're apart?" There was a hint of pain in her voice.

Roger stayed quiet as she spoke, letting her reminisce and tell him tales. She seemed to take joy out of it, remembering old friends and old antics. He supposed she didn't have much else to cling to anymore. It was a way they could both relate really; old glories were all he had left too. He brushed her gently, holding her close to him when she asked about their contact. He kept looking at the back of the bed, shaking his head.

"We wont. Because we wont part. Ah'm not leavin' again, no matter what. My ship... Ah don' want it in the grips of pyrates or Templars or any sorts o' bastards 'at could ruin it. But that doesn't mean I'm leavin' you for it."

"So... we'd sail as a small fleet?" Elizabeth was trying to think about how everything would work out. Would he sail alongside her on his own ship, or did he have some other genius idea? Either way, she was overjoyed that she wouldn't lose him again. She didn't know what she would do if she lost him again. Before, she was merely infatuated with him, but now it was something more, something more powerful. He had given up a sword of Eden in exchange for Thatch's skull, the only thing that she truly wanted.

Roger looked at Elizabeth again and laughed, rubbing his head slowly. He'd not given it any thought. He thought he'd know what to do once they saw the old girl, and he had to have faith in that. He'd know what to do when the time came, he was certain of it. He had to be.

"Ah'll know... when the time comes."

He kissed her forehead softly, wrapping an arm around her and rubbing her shoulder. This wasn't just some trip to him, this journey would be the thing that set the course of his future. Whatever happened next, it would mean everything.

"Well I suppose we'll have to wait and see. We should be reaching Ponta Delgada in a week, then we should be at Nassau within a month." Elizabeth sighed, and rested her head on Stodd's shoulder. At least there was some small chance that she would be able to remain with him, but it still caused her some pain. "I can't believe how quickly everything has changed."

"How quick has it been?"

Roger leant back, looking at the ceiling. He was starting to get an idea of what the fate of his ship would be, he knew it well enough already. He'd abandon it, sell it, burn it if he had to, as long as he didn't have to leave her side. But, if he stayed by her, he'd need to keep her and her crew in line with their duties. He'd need to be an Admiral, onboard the ship of privateers. It'd be abnormal, but he'd get away with it.

The only question was if she could pull it off. He looked at her, silently, just gazing at her for a moment.

"Very quickly. Just a few months ago, I was still a pirate, an Assassin, and a wife. Then that all changed in the blink of an eye" Elizabeth explained softly with a warm smile as she cuddled up against Stodd. He seemed to be the only stable thing in her life. He was the only constant. She looked up at Stodd with a strange look in her eyes before she rested her head on his chest. "Would it be alright if I took leave for a month? I just need some time to figure things out, to grieve, to relax, and to come to terms with everything. I'll be staying at my mansion at Nassau." Elizabeth sighed as she closed her eyes. All her friends, aside from the Butchers, Roberts, and Tiago, were dead. "I'll be on my best behaviour, I swear it."

The Eve had plundered yet another Spanish brig, "for glory lads!" Thomas had given his quartermaster a crate of rum he had acquired from the sunken ship. "I offer my thanks, Captain." Fredrick had said in a very light tone.
After a long month's sail The Eve was finally arriving to Havana. Thomas as excited as he felt to gather new supplies also felt very cautious, his company wasn't always welcome in these parts.

"That'd be fine. Take all th' time ye need."

He rested his hand on her head, closing his eyes and sighing. It really had been fast. A few months... That's all it had taken. Just a few months and his career was on the line, his life was hanging by a thread, and he'd found something that made it all worth it. He wrapped his arms around Liz, pulling her into his lip and resting his head against hers.

"Thank you, love" Elizabeth said softly as she rested her head against his chest. She felt safe when she was with him, like no wrong should befall her again. "You're welcome to come to my house, and stay for as long as you want to. In fact, I would love for you to stay for a while, even if it's only for a few days." Elizabeth wrapped her arms around Stodd, and purred happily.

(Should we jump to their arrival at Nassau?)

(That'd be a good idea I think.)