William turned his head to the captain as she asked her question. Though, it took a full ten seconds for William to register it before his cheeks flared in color before snapping out of it. "Uhh, well. Ahem. N-not yet." William muttered slightly embarrassed. "It's kind of hard to find something to find as beautiful as the moon. I always think it's because I never look hard enough. But, when I find whatever, or whomever it is if it be a woman, I'll know it to be the right thing when the full moonlight just...enhances it's natural beauty."

He sighed, he never fully admitted what he felt would fulfill his dreams before, but with the captain, it felt good to get it off his chest. He felt more secure around her for some reason. "Ahem, anyway, I think the little fella has taking a liking to you." He stated, watching the cat inch it's way to Kita.

Glancing at William out of the corner of her eye, Kita found herself wondering about his flushed cheeks once more. It wasn't the first time she had seen his face flush in her presence, but even after seeing it a few times, she found herself puzzled as to what elicited the reaction. Was he embarrassed? Angry? Ashamed? Uncertain and bashful? None of these made sense, and even if she could fathom which it was, why on earth would he feel any of those often enough for her to need to puzzle over it? The man was confusing to say the least. He was unusual, and rather unlike most she had ever met. Only a few men stood out as unique to her, but at least her crew made sense to her.

William's answer was as compelling as his admitted whimsy, and the captain found herself simultaneously impressed and intrigued. He hadn't found the object or person of his dream, but whichever it turned out to be, Kita was somehow sure it would be worthy of being compared to the moon. He didn't seem like he was setting the bar low at all.

Kita was brought from her musings with the realization that the cat was in fact approaching her once more, growing ever so slightly bolder with each return for a treat. A smile unwittingly came to her face, the captain extending her hand slowly to the black feline to sniff. "I would like that...." she murmured, adoring the small bundle of fur in front of her.

William smiled at the cat making Kita smile. He made no comment on it for fear of getting a scolding from the captain. He kept his mouth silent. Then the thoughts turned to the name he learned. Nathan Veitch. He would have to get more information on him, and the tablet he probably has. If he could do that, then he could plot out a possible way of punishing him, or take the tablet.

He looked around before clearing his throat. "Well, I'd best be going. Things to do whilst we're here and such like that. Hope to see you around Captain." William smiled at her as he worked his way back to the busy streets of the port town, wanting nothing more then start asking around about which island a Nathan Veitch governs.

Kita caught a glimpse of the blonde's smile, secretly finding it to be a very nice smile indeed. The only other smile that came close was Gavin's, the young man in question always a bright and good-natured person who smiled easily. Quickly focusing her attention back onto the kitten so as to not be caught glancing over, the captain made no move to interrupt the silence. Kita nearly gasped in delight as the kitten touched it's nose to her offered hand, sniffing and appraising her.

The only thing that broke her inner squeal of happiness was William's voice, the man deciding he had better things to do than stick around and watch her try to befriend a kitten. Looking up at William as he stood to walk away, Kita considered trying to engage him in conversation for all of two seconds before deciding against it. It's not like she wanted the company...and besides, what would she talk about? Instead, she nodded her head in assent before returning her gaze to the kitten. "Aye. Don't forget to get some sleep tonight." she said, offering a final piece of cured meat to the kitten.

~~~~

As the night dragged on, the crew slowly but steadily went from gambling and enjoying themselves to either retiring to an inn or the ship for some well-needed rest. Occasionally some of them had to be none so politely escorted out of certain establishments when they got too excited or rambunctious. Thankfully, nothing of any actual concern or trouble resulted from any of the crew and their antics, and the evening ended without incident.

Kita was back on the ship, gazing out onto the land with an almost melancholy expression, finding sleep was eluding her. She wished she could be like her first mate, who seemed quite capable of sleeping anywhere and any time he needed to. She didn't doubt Gavin was sleeping out under the stars as he did when coming to land. Probably by a tree, on a roof, or high on a sand bank overlooking the beach.

The night wore on, and William could find nothing save only rumors of where Veitch was governor in. He walked silently, debating on whether he should head for the ship, or find a tavern. He was tired, and didn't think he could find a tavern quick enough before they filled up with patrons. So he slowly walked back to the ship. He had to walk carefully, so he wouldn't be caught by any muggers.

When he finally made his way back to the ship, he noticed the Captain watching the land in a silent way. "She can't sleep? Oh well. I'll just have to get in the ship and head for my cabin. I'll enjoy having the place to myself since Gavin is sleeping out on the shore tonight. Though... I don't know, maybe I don't want to be alone." he pushed his thoughts aside as he carefully walked onto the ship and attempted to tiptoe past Kita, hoping he can reach his cabin and find sleep without disturbing her attempt to ditch insomnia.

Kita rested her chin in her hand, eyes watching the docks in silence. Whenever they were in port, she automatically positioned herself where she could clearly see where the crew would board, not about to let anyone on her ship without her knowledge. Kita grew alert upon seeing a figure approach her ship, only to relax once William was close enough to be recognizable from her position. Crew returning was nothing to be concerned with, so she remained in her spot as the blonde finally boarded, his light and careful footsteps barely reaching her ears. It was considerate to think he was trying to be quiet, the captain debating whether or not she should say anything to him. In the end, she decided to let him believe she hadn't noticed him, and let him go to sleep uninterrupted.

~~~~~~~~~~~

As the sun began to peak over the horizon on it's way into the sky, a soft snore came from a now fast asleep captain. Kita had drifted off at some point late into the night, and promptly fell asleep while leaning against the railing. Miraculously, she had slumped down onto the deck into a half upright position instead of leaning over and falling forward over the side of her ship, or worse-. The sound of gulls did nothing to rouse her, the woman obviously overdue for some quality sleep.

William was struggling through a field, his face mud spattered. He thought he saw his family and began to rush towards them, trying to reach them before the bandits.

But he woke up. He was sitting up straight from the waking process as he checked his face. "Dreaming...it was a dream." He muttered as he got up and looked out his cabin window as he saw the captain asleep where she was at. He smirked silently and debated about bugging her, but decided to let that go, however, the thought of getting his sword back hovered in his head. It would make figuring out information a lot more easy. But he thought for the next hour or more to just stretch and maybe practice his sword techniques.

He walked outside and grabbed a nearby broom, deciding to use that for practice as he did so. He counted the strikes he made in his head so that way he wouldn't wake up the deck's current sleeping Captain.

It was just a dangling rope, and yet the mere sight instilled a hopeless fear in the young woman. No matter how many people she shoved past or how fast she ran, she grew no closer to the gallows, the figure standing there refusing to beg or try to make a deal to save himself. Kita wished he would say something, fight them and argue that he had never gone against the lord of the land. But he didn't resist, simply told her to run and to take care of herself.

The speech had ended, and the executioner released the floor beneath her father, his body falling with a jerk only to dangle before the crowd, her screams all but ignored.

Kita awoke with a start, startled to realize she was curled up on the deck of her ship. When had it become morning. More importantly- she didn't even remember going to sleep!
Before she could try to rid herself of the lingering thoughts and images from the dream, a shuffling of feet and a soft swoosh of something being moved through the air met her ears, causing the pirate to go on alert. Scrambling to stand, Kita glanced around her, hand hovering over her sword handle when she saw the source of the sounds.

William. He was using a broom as a make shift sword, and seemed to be practicing. It was impressive to say the least. But her face colored instantly upon realizing he had seen her sleeping. How long had he been there?!

William was concentrating on the strokes to notice the captain stirring or waking with a sudden start. He was visualizing his opponent with his mind. Holding the broom handle with both hands he performed several strikes and blocks before perform arming several slices in a spinning motion. It was then he heard the shuffling of feet and he in a slight shock sent the broom into the air with a startled yelp.

The broom handle flew in the air before awkwardly landing on it's user's foot. "Ouch!" He muttered as he turned his attention to his hurt foot for a moment before turning to the captain. "M-mornin Captain. Didn't notice you woke up. Hehe, I was just, um practicing my sword skills and seeing as my sword is still confiscated, well I had to improvise." He tried to explain to the captain as he noticed Quicksword was actually turning red for no reason. "C-captain your face is red are you okay?"

He mentally slapped himself as he realized he shouldn't have probably asked that question. His eyes shot wide at the realization of this. "Ulp, I'm dead. She's gonna fricassee me and turn me to garnish for a stew..."

Kita watched mutely as the blonde trained, focused and strong. He had obviously been taught well, and it was evident that he wasn't a novice to the use of a blade.

Even so, once his concentration was broken, it was amusing to see him yelp and drop the broom on his foot, subdued only by the mental image of how that would have looked had he been practicing with a real sword, or a metal dummy sword. The captain said nothing as William explained himself, nodding to show she understood even as her mind was frantically bemoaning the fact she had fallen asleep on watch! Suddenly, he wasn't talking about himself, but asking if she was ok.

Was she ok? No! Her face was red and he'd seen it, and worse, she had fallen asleep! Fallen asleep before going to bed, while watching her ship no less! And to be seen in such a vulnerable position for who knows how long? She was embarrassed enough as it was to be caught unaware, but adding on the fact she was asleep for an unknown length of time only to be called on her mortification was the final straw.

Eyes as wide as William's, Kita all but sputtered. "H-How long have you been there?! How long have I been asleep? How long did you see me?"

William looked slightly terrified to answer. But he had to answer before he got cut to ribbons. "Uh, I just got up like, 10 minutes ago also that's about how long I've been here. If I were to guess by the look on your face I'd say almost six hours since I saw you awake at midnight." He answered. He swallowed very nervously on the last question though.

"I, uh, only looked at you for ten seconds I swear!" William squeaked his final answer in as he felt his confidence shrink. The captain seemed flustered, and she didn't like to be flustered it seemed. "Oh Lord, please please PLEASE don't hurt me!"

Kita's mortification grew, the pirate queen trying in vain to calm her nerves. She'd been so vulnerable...and out in the open, for about six hours?! How could she have nodded off on watch? Worse, how had she not awoken as soon as he came on deck to practice? It was unusually unnerving to say the least.

"S-six hours..." she muttered in disbelief, one hand reaching up to her temple. "Dammit all!" Kita hissed, straightening herself out. Face still red, she took a few deep breaths to attempt to calm down, her eyes narrowing slightly at William. "You aren't to tell anyone you saw me sleeping. And...and should it happen again while I'm on watch, you better damn well wake me up. Understood?" Kita decided, giving William a stern look before another realization overtook her features.

"C-continue your practicing!" she instructed hastily, rushing off towards her quarters in a hurry.

"Y-yes ma'am!!" He shouted as he grabbed the broom and continued to do so like nothing happened. That was close, really really close. Poor William didn't know what to make of why the captain was flustered, but possibly it was due to sleeping on watch which is usually a bad thing.

"Is that what upset her? Surely the captain's quarters have a lock or something in case she does take over watch...right?" he asked himself in silent thought as he kept practicing. Although he did notice the captain sleeping for merely ten seconds, he had to really admit that the captain looked cute when asleep.

He turned pink at the thought and just kept focusing on his sword swings. As long as he stayed focused on his practicing he was sure the captain won't chew him out again.

The captain was absent for just shy of ten minutes, emerging from her quarters without the embarrassment of before. However, her clothing had a slight sprinkle of suspicious short black hairs. Once on the deck, she noted with a sense of relief that the rest of her crew had not come aboard yet, and were still milling about the town. Probably waking up or eating by this time.

The thought of food seemed to trigger her own stomach to protest it's lack of sustenance, earning a slight look of chagrin at her body betraying her. Kita headed towards the ramp off her ship when she remembered William was still at the bow, practicing. She felt a sudden urge to snap at her new crew member for keeping her waiting, but was thankfully mollified by her recollection of being the one to tell him to continue in the first place.

Kita turned around and headed back towards William, motioning with her hand for him to stop. "C'mon. Time to find breakfast. Cyrus doesn't have to cook on shore days, so we fend for ourselves. Hurry up or I'll leave you on board!"




[[I think work is trying to smother me XD ]]

William stopped practicing the moment the Captain called for him. He nodded his head and put the broom against the mast as he walked to hurry and meet Kita near the gangplank. He noticed however the small hairs on her shirt, but didn't say anything as he nodded again. "Let's find breakfast then Captain." He stated as he followed her off the ship, walking down the streets with her as he rubbed the back of his neck, still slightly embarrassed but not saying a word about it.

He heaved a sigh. The practice was good, it made him think he still had his sword, at least for a little while. "So, where do you think we should go for breakfast?"

Kita walked in silence into the town, glancing over as William's footsteps met her ears. His sigh didn't go unnoticed, the captain momentarily considering inquiring about the audible cue, but she decided against it. Food first. She passed by the inns and the tavern, pausing outside a quaint bakery with smoke already rising from it's chimney. The warm, tempting smell of bread and pastries demanded investigation, the captain slipping inside.

"I tend to come here..and if this isn't enough, I get something from the marketplace. Farmers often have little stands they sell their produce at." Kita explained, feeling somewhat surprised at William's phrasing. He had said 'we'. Implying he was following her, that they traveled together. Sure, she traveled with Gavin, Claire, and her other crew members, but she rarely had extended one on one time with them.

William followed Kita into the bakery and smelled the rolls and other assorted breads, fishing into his coinpurse, he pulled out several silvers and bought a roll and ate it. He was hungry at that moment, and the taste of warm cooked bread flooded his senses. He had a small smile as he ate it.

"This is good bread." He stated out loud, not realizing the captain was still there. "Makes me feel like I'm at home." He almost frowned when a debate entered his mind. Home, he forgot what it looked like. His old home at any rate. He gave a small sigh and finished his roll. "Right, anything that needs to be done Captain?"

Kita glanced over at the blonde man, arching a brow as he bought himself a roll before she could even ask him what he wanted. She nodded as he commented on the bread's quality, about to agree when he compared the good food to being at home.

Home.

She had essentially taken him away from his last home, the young man being a spoil of battle for all intents and purposes. His words elicited a slightly guilty feeling in her gut, the captain regarding William in silence for a moment, her hunger momentarily forgotten.
"Do you miss it...your home?" she asked at length, avoiding his eyes as she handed over some silver coins, asking for 'the usual'.
The 'usual' appeared to be five loaves of bread for the ship, a bag of flour, and a large peach scone for her breakfast. Biting into the scone with a satisfied sigh, Kita finally calmed down enough to glance over at William. "Is that enough for your breakfast? A single roll? If you lack the money, I'll buy you something."

William looked at the captain when she asked her question. He thought it over and shrugged. "Not really. Anything I'd have called home on that island was just a life of wandering. At least with the crew and you I get to go in newer, exciting adventures. I kinda like the Sanguine Wolf."

He turned red a bit when she asked about buying him breakfast and eyed a large biscuit. "It's...not that I lack the money, I was always taught to eat light." He muttered as he pulled out another five silver coins and paid for the biscuit before taking it. "P-plus, I had enough money to get by. I just used up the last of my big bounty hunting payouts." He took a bite out of the biscuit.

"I thank you for your offer though Captain. Hey, since I don't really have my sword on me, do you mind me tagging along with you? I promise I won't be a bother." He asked slightly curious about what her routine on a full day of shore leave was like.

"I see." Kita felt herself relax ever so slightly, oddly relieved to hear he wasn't cursing being scooped up to be a part of her crew. She nodded and bit into the soft, fruity scone as she regarded the blonde with an unreadable expression. He was certainly not like any of her other crew members- for better or worse. Even as she thought this, she noticed he once more seemed to go somewhat red in the face. What on earth could that be about? Perhaps she needed to have Christoff examine him again? Was William sick? She tried to fathom just what was prompting his face to burn at random intervals.

About to ask him, she decided against it as the man spoke- not keen on interrupting him. His pause between words earned a suspicious arch of her brow, the pirate captain not buying his story. Even seeing him pay for the biscuit did not assuage her doubts, and she fished out ten silver coins and three gold from her own pouch of money, handing it to him abruptly. "Go on. I haven't paid you anything yet, so a small allowance for the time being. And don't let your teachings deprive you of making sure you get enough to eat so you have energy." Her tone left no room for argument, and with a wave to the baker, she headed back out the door onto the streets.

Expecting William to wander off and entertain himself, she was surprised to hear his footsteps still behind her. Turning to face him, she met his request with silence. The only person who had followed her like this before was Gavin. It had been a while, and she certainly wasn't used to people keeping her company when not on the ship. After a moment of thought, she shrugged and continued walking. "If you wish to come with me, you may. Your time is yours to do with as you wish."

William was surprised by Kita's gesture with the money. He fought the urge to blush again as he gave a small smile of thanks. He followed her for a little bit until she stopped to register her request. He gave a small smile at her saying yes to it as he finished his biscuit as he continued to follow her.

"So captain, what do you normally do on shore leave? Gather info, replenish stocks? There has to be something interesting you do other then play cards at when it gets to evening, by the way, how much winnings did you get away with?" He asked this out of sheer curiosity and nothing less then that, not because he wanted to know how much she won, he just wanted to know how good a card player she was to see if he could match her in a game.