I'll tell you a tale of the bottomless blue

[touchofcashmere]

Who: Stede Bonnet and you!
What: New Shipmate Shenaniganry
When: End of April, beginning of May
Where: Everywhere
Warnings: None yet



I. Welcome to the World of Tomorrow
There is very little about this new world that Stede understands. It's all baffling to him, some of it downright incomprehensible. So if you see a flickering of lights coming from a nearby room, you might find the gentleman pirate turning the lightswitch on and off again.

"Would you look at that? Amazing! And so bright! You could read all night with something like that. But how does the fire extinguish and go back on so easily? Or burn without heat?" He glances at whomever found him. "Listen... you don't think we're dead, do you?"

II. Sign-ups Here
Stede is a professional at these things by now. He feels disjointed in this strange world and the best thing to do when you're disjointed is to seek the familiar. So he has a deckchair and a little table-managed to procure a pen and paper from somewhere and accosts anyone who passes by.

"Hello! Would you like to sign up to be a pirate? No pay just yet but adventure and glory and a cut of any treasure we come across. You wouldn't say no to some nice booty, would you?"


III. Room-Mate [locked to Gogol]

Somehow or another Stede has found his room, but when he pushes open the door his expectant face falls.

"Please tell me this is a closet."

Then he notices the room is occupied.

"Oh, sorry, is this yours? It's a very nice closet. You could do a lot with it."



IV. Hit him up with anything. He is down for adventure.

Comments

II

[lightconductor]

Watson pauses, because he is definitely the sort of man who grew up without entirely outgrowing his boyhood desire to be a pirate, and this is an entirely unexpected question.

He looks Stede over, briefly wondering if this is some sort of trap. Definitely this is not what he's expecting to encounter on his afternoon walk around the deck. Still, even if this person is associated with Jenny in some way, Watson can't possibly resist at least entertaining the idea a little.

"Do you have a ship?"

[touchofcashmere]

"Well!" He brightens. "Aren't you a dapper chap! You look like a man who knows his mustache." Stede hasn't yet succeeded in growing one that doesn't look like an overgrown ferret.

"I do as a matter of fact... Not sure where she is right now, but, well, you've got to strike while the iron is hot. Does this mean you're interested?"

[lightconductor]

Almost self-consciously, Watson touches his moustache. "Thank you," he says, seriously, because maybe he's a little bit proud of his facial hair. Just a little bit. "That means a good deal from someone as... fashionable as yourself." Or so he assumes. The man looks like he stepped out of a painting. Watson does not, in fact, know that much about early 18th century fashion trends.

"But yes, I suppose I am interested, at least cautiously so. You... don't have anything to do with Jenny Storm, do you?"

II after watson

[saltandpepperbeard]

You'd think he'd be right at home on a ship, but this is no ship. This is a fucking city on the water. This bizarre pleasure cruise somehow propelled itself without sails or rigging and Ed is both perplexed and very intrigued by that. And a bit scared of it, but that's neither here nor there.

But if there is anything that can temper a weird new experience, it would be a familiar one. And Stede's take on pirate recruitment is typical Stede. Ed's just about to approach when--oh look! he has a gentleman taker. Like attracts like, or something. Ed steps back and watches the exchange from the shadows of an overhang, lurking within earshot but out of sight.

Fancy man with his fancy fucking accent and his fancy fucking mustache. Ed scowls at Watson, twisting his own mustache self-consciously into curls, waiting for the whole thing to finish.

When fancypants has left, Ed sneaks out of hiding and around behind Stede's table--slightly absurd for a grown man with a wild beard, if anyone happens to spot him--and springs in behind his fellow captain, dropping his hands to cover Stede's eyes. It's a dangerous move to pull on a pirate--even one of Stede's questionable caliber.

And if he gets stabbed? Worth it.

"Boo."

[touchofcashmere]

"Fuck!" he nearly starts out of his skin, jerking the hands from his face before realizing who they belong to. "Don't do that, Ed! You nearly scared me out my pants."

He twists to look up at him, glad to see a familiar face, especially this one, especially so close, perhaps a little too close. He tries not to think about that however.

"Thank god you're here. Have you seen anyone else? Lucius? Oluwande? Your..." little shit goblin. "...short asshole?"

God that was all he needed. Last he remembered Izzy the prick had buggered off because Stede had won and still had the slight pains to prove it-- but he wasn't hedging his bets in this instance.

1

[baubled]

Effie doesn't share his excitement about indoor lighting (it's not even all crystal!) nor does she have even the slightest idea of how electricity works, so she's very glad when he changes the topic.

"I think I would know if I was dead," she says quickly and pauses while she actually considers it. "If I was dead, wouldn't there be people here who I recognized? People who passed on before me?" she gives him a visual once-over. "And I'll say your color is very good for someone who could be dead." So it's decided then: not dead. Probably.

[touchofcashmere]

"You think so? Sun does wonders for the complexion." Though he had to be careful not to burn. He flicks the lights on and off again just for the experience of it.

"Your color is quite good as well. That's one good thing, anyway. This place is a marvel." He's still not sure what to make of it. "Are you settling in well, Miss Effie?"

[gummyhabits]

"Oh, it's not fire, sir. It's electricity- an energy that flows through little wires behind the wall from a power source!"

Gummy is happy to correct the mistake, but. Uh. This may well be Stede's first time meeting an Ursus- by which I mean, someone who looks almost completely human save for the golden bear ears on her head. And they are indeed functioning ears. (The vault door and frying pan she's carrying around over her shoulder may be equally odd, really.)

Though... the girl's bright smile falls immediately at his question.

"No. I can't afford to be dead, so I won't be."

Ah, the sort of confidence only middle-schoolers can have.

[touchofcashmere]

She is altogether odd and Stede has seen many an odd fellow. He's not entirely sure what to make of her. She seems a bit young to be out here but also...absurdly strong? And those ears are... Could she be some sort of selkie type creature? He's heard of those or read of them at any rate though he didn't think one actually existed.

It seems a bit rude to bring it up however.

"Well I'm not sure all of what you're talking about but it makes as much sense to me as anything." He doesn't say that death doesn't really wait for when it's convenient and instead brings up something else.

"You seem pretty strong there."

II. Sign-ups Here

[serpentinthegarden]

"I already tried the pirate adventure thing once. It's really not as much fun as you make it sound... the ship ends up with a mind of it's own and then you get locked in a closet."

He took one of the offered papers simply to stare at it for a moment before handing it back.

"Whose booty?"

[touchofcashmere]

"I've usually found the opposite," he mutters to himself. He glances up at the lanky fella dressed all in black with black shades and red hair and it's not even leather and he doesn't even have a beard to speak of. Honestly it's like he's not even trying.

"Booty as in treasure. As in loot. No ones in particular... Unless they willingly come on board with you and then I suppose it's your business."

II

[sictransitgloriamundi]

[sitting cross-legged in a chair next to him. that was probably there before, right. probably. don't ask questions.]

Yes.

[touchofcashmere]

[well that's not startling at all and he's only a little spooked by it but]

Well! Good to know.Er... [he readies his pen] What name do you go by and what are your applicable skills?

II.

[mooninthewater]

There's some attempt to be polite when anyone approaches, of course, especially the newcomers. Smiles, nods, you know... the works. But at the word "pirate," he bristles instantly, taking a step back.

"..." It takes him a moment, but he recollects himself with a nervous laugh. "S-sign ups? Don't they just... decide to become pirates?"

[touchofcashmere]

"That doesn't mean you can get away without organization! Many a stalwart crew has been sunk because they didn't have a lengthy ledger." It seems like the lad is unsettled however so he smiles. "It's volunteer only."

He didn't believe in kidnapping crew. If he was going to share his adventure with a handful of lusty rowdy men, he'd prefer it if they at least pretended to like him.

III

[quizpersona]

"Ah-ah-ah!"

As if his general disposition wasn't enough on its own for setting up weird first encounters he also wags his finger in time with each disapproving sounding 'ah.' Given how universal the roommate experience seemed to be for everyone else it's a surprise it took a while for his own to arrive. Then again, by keeping Gogol separate for as long as possible- well, perhaps this mysterious Captain has a sense of pity for his passengers after all.

Gogol splays his hands out wide, either as a belated welcoming gesture or as a bid for the new arrival's direct attention, that's anyone's guess.

"This is our closet and you're a super special 'hostage-on-vacation' now! Didn't you get the memo?"

[touchofcashmere]

Oh great. The young man seems like a bit of an asshole, which is just lovely. The perfect glaze on this shitcake of the day.Still he has enough breeding not to let this show and he's been deceived by appearances before.

"I heard what they said, but this is ridiculous. There's no room for anything let alone two people." Where is he going to put his wardrobe if he can acquire one-- or books?

"And no offense,I don't even know you. What if we don't get on?" And he doesn't expect to. He's too used to freedom. He hasn't done this kind of thing since he was a young boy and had hated it even then.

ii

[weirdone]

Wanda is fairly new here, having just shown up within the last several days. She had been angry, at first, magic curling at her fingertips. Speaking to Nat at Scoops had helped, though the Long Pig flavoured ice cream that had been available still had her stomach still in knots, just a bit.

There was little sense in remaining in her room, though - there was a stranger that was bunking with her, and Wanda is suspicious at best, and had therefore left to explore, get some air, let the wind push through red hair.

She did not expect to see the man with a table and a signup sheet, asking for volunteer pirates.

The smile on her face is small, her brow furrowed, and while she is young, her eyes crinkle at the edges, a tiredness weighing upon her so, so heavy.

"Did you say...a pirate?"

[touchofcashmere]

He has lived with tension and weariness enough to see it easily on her face. He smiles and pats a chair.

"Yes. Piracy. Action, adventure, living free on the high seas. It dangerous work, but rewarding. Are you interested?"

ii.

[decohere]

Ava, 29 years old going on 5, giggles behind a hand to her mouth at the word booty.

"Do I get a fancy hat?"

[touchofcashmere]

He is charmed a little by it.

"Sadly I'm not in the position to provide that kind of thing. Eventually should we come across a fancy hat of your preference, you can take it -- or you're welcome to bring one of your own, otherwise it might not be coming for a while."

And he's never really thought of outfitting his crew per se. There was once when he toyed with the idea of a sort of uniform, mostly the daring open shirted variety, but then it goes against the idea of a ragtag bunch of miscreants.

II;

[fonomena]

He'd been quite inclined to just sort of idly drift by the little setup, more set on a path towards a set of stairs up to the next deck, but--well, a question like that would grab just about anyone's attention! Jade pauses, taking in the pen and the paper and the man currently presiding over them with slightly arched eyebrows, before a mildly amused sort of smile falls upon his features.

"Well, most unfortunately, I'm afraid I'm probably under some professional obligation to decline this offer..." Because there's a profession or two that's technically supposed to be opposed to piracy, generally, and perhaps Stede might be able to attempt a guess or two at the profession in question here--some indicator in the cut and lines of Jade's teal clothing, gear from home that he still favors rather more than anything else he's found on this ship yet; a uniform of some kind.

Still, he's not continuing on his way just yet either, as a vague curiosity takes hold. "Rather bold of you to be holding a recruitment right on the deck of someone else's ship, though! That is a very pirate sort of way to go about it. Have you found any takers so far?"

[touchofcashmere]

He's not inclined to trust men in uniform to begin with, even before he'd started on his chosen career path. Yes they might look nice, but the people in them are usually too far up their own assholes to even pretend hard enough to be polite.

"Well, I have one. Hiram, if you've heard of him. Rather creepy man. Other than that, no, but the day is still young. Anyway, where else would I hold it? Lord only knows when we'll reach port or what shape we'll be in when we get there."

II

[prodigalmess]

When a person paints a mental image of what a pirate looks like, Stede is not usually what comes to mind. Malcolm can't help but stop at his table, curious as to why a well-dressed man is recruiting for piracy like someone might recruit for a softball team.

He frowns in thought. "You're planning to be a pirate on this ship?"

[touchofcashmere]

"I'm a pirate everywhere, mate. That's the best part. But I also plan to engage in piracy which I think is your real question. Hence the crew." But this looked like a well put together young man with his future ahead of him so Stede wondered if he'd even be interested.