𝔜𝔬𝔲 froze, your title echoing in your ears. How had he known? You were even more bedraggled than you'd been when your ship was taken by the pirates- er, the other pirates- and they hadn't known. But they were also unterritoried, ungoverned pirates. There was a chance, actually, that these boys were privateers- for your own country. You shot a glance up at the flag barely visible between the ropes and rigging of the ship. The colors marked it as definitely not your country's flag. With a sinking suspicion, you realized they were the Kozmiran colors. This was, quite likely, worse than the previous pirates. You'd fallen right into your long time enemy's hands-- the ones you were on the brink of war with, nonetheless.
"How did you..." you broke from your musings to stare at the boy again. He met your gaze easily, and for some reason the prolonged eye contact made your cheeks grow warm. But you lifted your chin, not wanting to show weakness. "How do you know who I am?"
"Doesn't everyone know Princess Y/N? The 'Warrior Princess' of Talin?" The boy's tone was slightly mocking.
Warrior Princess? You frowned, slightly. You'd wanted your weapons training to be kept mostly secret. It was better for your enemies to underestimate you, in any regard. So how did this boy, this Kozmiran pirate, know about you?
"And you could place me?" You lifted one eyebrow, curious.
"I know more than you think, doll." He replied, his smirk still firmly in place.
"That wouldn't be difficult." You delivered the line with the same sweet voice you'd been using-- your princess voice, as you thought of it. Meanwhile, your mind was racing, trying to connect the pieces. You still didn't know how he knew who you were, but you were quite confident in your assumption that he was the aforementioned 'Blind Diamond'-- the Kozmiran pirate who'd rose to fame about a year ago. You hadn't known he'd be so young.
One of the boys behind you snickered, and you cast your glance over your shoulder to see that Mush had returned and that, in fact, you had pushed off from the other ship entirely. You panicked briefly, before your eyes alit on the familiar form of David, who was sitting on a rowing bench under close watch by two of the older boys. He was watching you, slight panic in his expression. He was clearly trying to say "don't antagonize him". Which was absolutely boring and something you wouldn't be doing a lot of. You shot David a reassuring glance, to which he looked at you skeptically.
You moved your gaze back to Blind Diamond, who was still watching you with that slightly amused expression.
"Fight me," He said suddenly, holding his hand out to the side, his gaze never leaving yours. One of his boys placed a sword in his hand, and he offered it to you hilt first.
He was giving you a weapon? Was he that idiotic?
"Why should I?" You asked, wary to reveal your skill. Even if he knew you were proficient, there was no reason to show how much.
"Because I want you to."
"That's no reason."
He tilted his head to the side the slightest amount. "How 'bout this, Princess. If you win, I'll drop you and your boy off at the next town. No strings, no tails."
"That's too easy." You said with a slight smirk of your own, taking the sword and hefting it in your hand. It was well-balanced, a good sign. The boy was a pirate, after all, and you'd trained with David for years. You'd be fighting on unfamiliar ground, but you were still confident enough.
Blind Diamond laughed. "Sure, if you think so." He stepped back, slightly, dropping into a casual stance, his own weapon held diagonally across his body. "Ready?"
The boys around you cleared to the sides, forming a rough circle. You held your own blade up, nodding in return. You touched the tip to his to signal the start, pulling back and striking again quickly. His sword barely seemed to move, but it was there, blocking you easily. Your eyes narrowed slightly and you started testing his defenses methodically, keeping a watchful eye for any sneaking strikes he might put in.
You started to grow tired after a few minutes, the dress you were wearing hampering your movements and adding to the heat of the full blaze of the sun. You knew you had to win quickly, or your stamina would give out. Blind Diamond's showed no sign of wavering. So you stepped close, locking your blade with his, before jumping back as if he'd pushed you through. As you'd hoped, he pursued the option for attack, drawing closer again. You stepped backwards, intending to use the circular motion David had taught you to send his blade flying, if you could just get the right angle...
You slipped. The heel of your boot hit a coil of rope in your back step, quickly tangling itself around the shoe and sending you firmly to the ground. You dropped your sword as you caught yourself, scowling furiously at the rope as you pulled it off. You felt a cool, firm object nudge under your chin, pointing it and your gaze up. Your eyes traveled up the length of the sword to the boy's face. "Yield?" He asked casually, flicking some of his hair out of his face.
You pressed your lips together, nodding begrudgingly. The boy extended a hand, dropping his sword to his side, and you, though you hated to do it, took it. He pulled you up with ease, stronger than you were expecting, tugging you right up to his chest. You put your free hand out, firmly connecting and pushing off him as you ripped your hand from his grasp. He barely looked like he'd broken a sweat, while your maroon gown was torn at the hem and extremely mussed.
Blind Diamond laughed again, sliding his sword into the sheath on his belt. "Well fought, Princess." he said, scrutinizing you again.
"An explanation, Blind Diamond." You prompted, saying nothing of your fight and crossing your arms. You put emphasis on his name, showing that you knew who he was as well.
"I suppose you deserve one, after that." He shrugged, unfazed by the use of his nom de plume as if everyone should know him. For some reason that irritated you more. "Care to join me in my cabin, Princess?"
You quirked an eyebrow at him, and he actually blushed. "Along with your boy, of course. And my second, should he choose to stop making eyes at Sunny." Blind Diamond said loudly, causing Mush to start and shoot a glare at his captain, noticeably not looking up at the crows nest anymore.
You turned and walked to David, taking his arm and pulling him up. David took your arm protectively, hooking it through his. The other boys dispersed silently to their various tasks, and without ceremony the pirate captain turned and walked into his cabin. You and David followed slowly, Mush walking behind you. He shut the door after entering, turning to stand with his back against it.
"Have a seat." Blind Diamond waved a hand airily, sinking into a comfortable looking arm chair behind a desk and kicking his heels up onto the solid wood surface.
You sat down hesitantly on one of the chairs on the opposite side of the desk, David taking the chair next to you.
"If you don't mind me asking," David began, the first time you'd heard him speak on the ship. His voice was cold. "Why are we here?"
"What, didja wanna stay with Weasel?" Blind Diamond blinked. "I mean, we ain't too far off by now, we could put you back on board."
"No," You said quickly. "Not really."
"See?" The boy pointed at you. "She gets it. Trust me, if you stuck with him... wouldn't end well for either of ya."
"And you're expecting this to end well for us?" David gestured around the cabin. "Not likely." He snorted, shaking his head.
"Very likely, in fact. At least, you ain't gonna get hurt." Blind Diamond said, gaze fixed on you with that curious light back in his eyes.
"Sure." David huffed.
"So what are you going to do with us, then?" You asked, the steel in your voice clear.
"Nothin' yet. We're still out at sea for a couple more weeks, won't head in for a while. So as of now, you're my guests."
"Guests are usually free to leave." You said, your eyebrow raising.
"Feel free to, Princess. You won't get too far." Blind Diamond smirked, shaking some hair out of his face. "We're in the middle of the ocean. On my ship. B'sides, it won't be all too bad. I'm here, after all." He punctuated the final statement with a cocky wink.
Somehow, that didn't bring you much comfort.