The Tempest

[Chevi]

"Have you dealt with pirates before?... You must have.Sailor that you are. A-all I know is that story of Caesar, when he complained his ransom was too little and asked them to make it higher."

"I'm a fisherman, not a merchant." he sighed. "We've seen them occasionally, but quickly got out of the way... Yeah, that sounds like something you'd try too." he added with a chuckle, but then his breath caught as she wrapped a leg around his hip. Even half frozen and buffeted by the waves, that was... a lot.

"I can take over. You must be exhausted." 

"I've got you." he smiled, pulling her closer. "We'll be fine. We'll get out of here as soon as they leave. And then we can get dry and warm... and eat something..."

[Sara]

Unaware of the affect her movement had had (considering it just good sense so she didn't drift away), she smiled against his skin and murmured; "You're showing off..." She pulled back a little so she could see his face, tilting her own up to get a look at him. "If you let me go because you're too embarrassed to say you're exhausted well..." She narrowed her eyes, "There won't be a lot I can do about it but I will be displeased..." She gave him one of her infuriating little smiles and shook her head, burying her face again in the crook of his neck. 

"And dry and warm and food." She nodded against his skin, "I wish we had wine...you don't know any fishermen-fishermen tricks for making alcohol o-out of moss do you?" 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"You're showing off... If you let me go because you're too embarrassed to say you're exhausted well... There won't be a lot I can do about it but I will be displeased..." 

"I'm not letting you go." He held her close, holding on. He wouldn't. She smiled at him and then buried her face in his neck. He wanted her to be alright. He wanted her to live.

"And dry and warm and food. I wish we had wine...you don't know any fishermen-fishermen tricks for making alcohol o-out of moss do you?" 

"I could kill for some wine." he chuckled, although his voice was shaking now too. "But sadly, no..."

It felt like eternity, slowly growing cold and weary, until suddenly the ship appeared around the peak of the island. Under full sail, in the light of the sun getting low, it was heading away from them, towing the skiff. "Look!" Lucius pulled Ovinia along, moving around the rock to stay hidden, although no one seemed to be paying them any attention now. The ship was sailing away, in the direction of the setting sun.

@Sara

[Sara]

Ovinia thought the coldest she'd ever been had been that night in the storm, but this was a close comparison. She gripped onto Lucius as tight as she could but there was no more warmth in his skin as there was in the water and she shuddered chattering breaths against his neck and cheek as he kept them firmly anchored to the rock. By the time he pulled her away, excitedly exclaiming, her body was stiff and wouldn't quite work under her own steam. It took her a few moments to realise what he was looking at and she had to squint her eyes to focus on it properly as she treaded water, one hand firmly grasping his. 

"They're l-l-leaving." She turned to him, almost too tired to grin. Almost. She did smile and then floated closer to him. "L-lets go," She jerked her head at the island. It seemed an absolute age away and whilst it would be easier to swim without clutching onto him, she wasn't sure she was going to be able to do so at any reasonable pace without him dragging her. Every muscle in her body was stiff and freezing. By the time she made it back to the sand, she collapsed onto it, on her back, breathing deeply, shuddering as the waves lapped at her ankle. This was exactly how he had found her a month ago. This time, she still held his hand.

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

Lucius was not entirely sure how they made it back to the beach. By the time they did, the sail was a small spot in the distance. The sand, on the other hand, still held the heat of the day, warm against their back as they collapsed side by side, catching their breath. He was still holding her hand. The sun was about to set soon, but it still had some warmth too, now that they were out of the water. Not enough to get to their shilled bones, though.

Lucius allowed himself a few deep breaths before he sat up.

"C'mon. Up. We need to go. We need fire. Get up."

[Sara]

"Nooo." She whined and shook her head, screwing her eyes shut as she tried to take in the warmth of the sun and the sand. "Leave me here. I'm fine." She was chilled to the bones but she was fine, unlike the day they had first met, stranded here battered and broken.

She cracked one eye open and stared up at him, looking younger than her years drenched as she was, and also more determined than ever. "Go and start the fire and I'll meet you there when my legs start to work." She kicked them as if to prove a point. They did feel stiff as boards and about much use. She doubted she'd made it twenty paces. "I'm not moving, I'll join you when I'm good and ready." 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"No you are not. I'm not leaving you here, you're soaked and half frozen. Get up." Lucius stood, pulling Ovinia up by the hand. If she resisted, or couldn't move her legs, he was fully prepared to pick her up. His own strength was dwindling, but the sooner they made it to the campfire, the better. And he was not going to leave her behind.

[Sara]

"It's warm here." She protested and propped herself up on her forearms, shooting him a glower. She groaned in protest as he tugged on her arm and she scrambled, very ungracefully to her wobbling feet. She found that, despite her better judgement, she had to drape an arm across his shoulder to keep herself standing. It wasn't exactly a long walk back to the other side of the island where their camp was, but felt like a marathon to her. 

"What if they're hiding, waiting for us." she murmured as she tried her very best to lay one foot in front of the other and keep walking as they trudged through the thicket. Every few moments she found the need to stop and take a breath to regain her strength, "O-or they've stolen our things..." Her movements were painfully slow, as was their progress as she tried to walk back to camp.

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

He managed to get her on her feet, although she was wobbly and slow. They made their was across the island, towards the shack.

"What if they're hiding, waiting for us. O-or they've stolen our things..."

"What things?" Lucius chuckled, a little out of breath. They really had nothing worth taking. "They wouldn't go into that trouble for us... But I can go check." He added, once they reached the tree line above the beach. "Stay here."

The shack was still there. The fire was just embers now, but the rest was there, although turned upside down, and surrounded by footprints. The pirates had really looked. Lucius searched around the shack carefully, but saw no sign of anyone. "We're clear!"

[Sara]

She mumbled in discontent as he abandoned her to go and check their meagre home...although she felt a roll of anxiety in her stomach fro him, and their place...which was a home. It was odd that such a feeble dwelling could hold so much emotion for her, but it was safety and that was what they needed.

It felt like an age before he popped up again with a jubilant 'we're clear!' and she let out an audible sound of relief, small, weary smile on her face. She trudged the remaining few paces to the fire, breathless and exhausted. She slumped down in front of the fire with a grumble but a softer look in his direction. "Thank you...again." She had the decency to look sheepish, "Every time something happens I thank you because well..." She shrugged and glanced down to the embers, starting to stoke them with a long branch they kept for the purpose, "I don't know what I'd do without you." 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"You'd do just fine." Lucius grinned, suddenly feeling lighter now that they had the pace to themselves again, fire and all. He pulled off his soaked tunica in one motion and laid it out on the nearby rocks. "You're too stubborn to let a deserted island kill you." He ducked into the shack, bringing out the other tunica. "Here. Change. I won't look."

[Sara]

She didn't look at him as he stripped off, but it wasn't out of prudishness this time. She'd grown more used to him, and his ways (which included the irritating way he deemed it acceptable to strip off in public) but this time she was just too focused on her task lighting the fire to give him much attention. 

"Thanks." She mumbled as she stuck out her arm for the tunica. She still hated it, four weeks later, but she could feel its warmth in her fingertips and on wobbly legs, pushed herself to stand, trekking the few paces to the treeline. She cast a glance over her shoulder to make sure he wasn't watching before she pulled her chiton over her head and donned the scratchy, short tunica. She was sniffing and wobbling by the time she made it back and balled up the chiton, throwing it at his feet. "Can you fetch my comb for me?" She didn't know if her numb fingers would work to comb her hair but she had done it since she was a girl to bring herself comfort and she needed it now. 

"You don't..." she swallowed, realising they needed to get the awkward conversation out of the way now they were back on dry land, "Look at me...differently...now you know I'm not...married, do you?" More stupid and immature perhaps?
 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"Can you fetch my comb for me?"

"No" Lucius stepped over the balled up dress to put some dry wood on the fire. Exhausted and worn out as they were, he was still committed to not following her orders. Or hanging her dress out to dry for her.

"You don't... Look at me...differently...now you know I'm not...married, do you?" 

"Well... I considered not giving you the tunica now that you're not pregnant" Lucius smirked, glancing up at her. The truth was, he did look at her differently. Because she was clearly a lot more naive than he'd thought. She had not idea... about anything, at all. "Fine, I'll get you damn comb." He ducked into the shack again and returned with the comb, tossing it at her. "Fuckers ate the figs. I'll go see if I can find more."

[Sara]

"No Ovinia, I couldn't possibly be helpful..." She parroted back, mimicking him with a roll of her eyes as she used her fingers to nimbly work knots out of her hair. 

"All the more reason to give me the tunica," She shot back at him as he ducked into the shack to get his comb, "You have to protect my innocence now Lucius, so I get all of the clothes and blankets." She tried to reach out and grab the comb as he tossed it to her but her gangly arms misjudged and it landed in the sand.

"Did they take anything else?" She asked with a wince. Not that they had much to take - bowls and jugs they'd scavenged, the blanket, their bed(s), her comb and sewing kit and the fishing gear. All they owned in the world.

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"All the more reason to give me the tunica. You have to protect my innocence now Lucius, so I get all of the clothes and blankets."

Leave it to Ovinia to turn everything to her advantage. Lucius laughed, shaking his head. "All the clothes? You want me to walk around naked?" He currently was, minus his underwear, because, well, she had the dry tunica. And honestly, from an otuside point of view, her innocence was ruined now either way.

"Did they take anything else?" 

"Doesn't seem like it." he shook his head. "Stay here, get warm. I'll get some food."

Lucius returned soon, with fresh water in the bowl and some figs. Even with the number of trees on the island, the figs were bound to run out soon. But for now, they still had some. Lucius sat down next to Ovinia, placing the food and water between them. The sun was setting now. He pulled up the blanket to wrap it around his shoulders, glancing over at Ovinia. "Are you alright?"

@Sara

[Sara]

She mumbled an embarrassed but emphatic; "No." And pouted, setting to combing her hair. She didn't want him naked. No thank you. 

She watched as he padded off to collect them food and water and she felt her uselessness rear its head again. Determined not to be caught slacking (and therefore mocked by him), she pushed herself up when he was out of eyesight and set to righting  the shack - setting things up the right way and sweeping out the sand and crud brought in by the pirates. She withdrew back outside when it was done, dragging the blanket behind her and depositing herself, chattering, in front of the fire to warm up just as he appeared along the tree-line.

She took the water and sipped from the jug. She was parched and then held it out to him - managing to catch his eyes right as he asked his question. No. She wasn't alright. She opened her mouth and then shut it again, stuttering for a moment. She sighed and pushed the water jug into his hands. "Yes..." She coughed and then shrugged, her shoulders slumping, "No. I...we almost died today." She tucked her hair behind her ears. "I...don't know what I would have done without you." 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

Ovinia looked shaken. It made sense, having spent several hours in the sea hiding from pirates. She drank, then offered him the water, but he handed it back. He had already drunk at the fountain.

"Yes... No. I...we almost died today. I...don't know what I would have done without you."

"You would have been fine" he sighed. "You are quite stubborn when you want to be." Gods save the pirates if they ever tried to capture her. The thought made him remember their exchange in the water. "But, talking about that..." his voice was more serious now as he looked at her intently. "Don't ever ask me again to kill you."

@Sara

[Sara]

"Stubbornness only helps when people listen to reason." And she doubted the pirates would have cared a jot for her ability to argue about whether it was worth their while to capture her. 

She met his gaze and the force of it shook her. She exhaled and ducked her head to rest on her drawn up knees. She didn't want to look at him as she spoke. "I will if I have to. I know I'm too much of a coward to do it myself and..." She swallowed, "If it happens again you'll need to." She glanced down at her knees but her voice was firm. "Promise me you will, if I ask?" 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

She met his gave and then turned away, hiding her face. Lucius did not want to have this conversation, he was bone tired and cold, but not even that could overwrite the memory of being scared of what would happen. Of what she wanted him to do.

"I will if I have to. I know I'm too much of a coward to do it myself and... If it happens again you'll need to. Promise me you will, if I ask?" 

"No." Lucius' voice was determined. He could be stubborn too. "I... I can't promise you that. Because I couldn't do it."

@Sara

[Sara]

Fury overtook her and she choked, turning her face up to glare at him with the full weight of her displeasure. "Y-you're so selfish!" She shook her head determinedly. "Do you think I want to die? B-but I'd rather that then what they'd do...you know what they'd do..." She couldn't imagine, even if they ransomed her, that they wouldn't have their fun and pleasure first. She knew the way it went, naive though she was. Her father had had the talk with her about it before she'd set sail on this ill-fated journey. 

"Then I'll have to do it myself." She glared at him. "And you'll have to live your life in slavery, remembering that you couldn't even do this one thing for me." She pushed herself to stand on wobbly, tired legs. "Coward. I'm going to bed." 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"Y-you're so selfish! Do you think I want to die? B-but I'd rather that then what they'd do...you know what they'd do..." 

He knew. He knew, and it was an impossible choice, and impossible decision. But he knew he couldn't harm her.

"Then I'll have to do it myself. And you'll have to live your life in slavery, remembering that you couldn't even do this one thing for me. Coward. I'm going to bed." 

Lucius' jaw dropped in disbelief.

"One thing?" Him doing all the thing since the shipwreck... all that aside, that was still the most unfair accusation he'd ever heard. "I was ready to give myself up to save you, you stubborn... And all the while you still think I'm somehow a danger to your innocence!" he yelled after her as she walked to the shack.

[Sara]

She stormed into the shack, only half-listening to him, seething. She couldn't let sleeping dogs lie though, and turned on her heel, taking a half-step back out so she was stood in the doorway, glaring daggers at him. 

"I don't want you to give yourself up for me!" She screeched back to him, "I need you here - I told you then I wouldn't survive here and you're not listening to me!" She was embarrassed at the fact, but it was true. Maybe she'd last a week but then the winds would change or a storm would come or the spring would run dry and she'd be a goner. A slow, painful, lonely death. "And what does my innocence have anything to do with it?!" 

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

Oh, he was listening. He had been listening all this time. He just hated the idea of hurting her, and he also hated it that she was yelling at him now like somehow all of this was his fault.

"And what does my innocence have anything to do with it?!"

"You tell me!" he snapped back, getting up from the ground because he hated having a yelling match while sitting by the fire. "Do you have any idea what you are asking? Do you realize that you want me to what, find a way to kill you, after all this time protecting you? And in the meantime, somehow you also find the time to act like I am some, some kind of secret monster you have to keep protecting yourself from. So which is it, Ovinia? Am I good enough for killing you but not for being near you?"

 

[Sara]

"Stop yelling at me!" She screamed, the irony not lost on her. She was furious and that look on his face wasn't helping. "Do I have any idea what I'm asking?!" She shot back, struggling to contain her anger and a laugh, "YES! I'd rather be dead than raped, and you should respect me enough to do me the courtesy of using that knife on my throat!" 

Her dark eyes were full of fury and she took another pace closer to him, jabbing a finger in the air. "And I don't think you're a monster! We shared a bed! But you're being a fucking prick now!" Damn the sailors and their coarse language. Damn her for picking it up.

 

TAG: @Chevi

[Chevi]

"We shared a bed because you didn't want to die freezing." Lucius said with a frown. He was done with the yelling now. He was done with everything. He was done being the person... the thing that kept Ovinia alive and comforted. "Meanwhile I am stuck on an island with the one woman I'll never touch. I can't hurt you because I'd never hurt you. Fuck. Maybe I'm not a monster but I'm definitely an idiot." He shook his head and turned away. He was fairly sure he would not sleep in the shack tonight.

@Sara