Dancing with the Devil

[thatched]

Who: Thatch and Lea
Where: The Moon, Corsair Kingdom
When: 4/25 Evening [backdated]
What: Things need to be discussed, plans to be made
Warnings: Dark themes
Status: Closed



It was about that time. Thatch leaned back in the chair, crossing his feet at the ankle on the desk and smoked a cigar, looking up at the ceiling. He wasn't sure how this would go over exactly. He wasn't sure of any of it. But the fact was he needed help for an operation like this. His own division would be ideal of course. Would know what to do without being told but-- the closest he had to that here was Lea. Maybe Logan in a pinch but Lea could blend in. People would notice a man easier than a boy.

Letting out a flow of smoke he pulled the journal onto his lap and flipped it open, writing a private message for the kid.

If you've got a moment, come see me.

That done, he waited patiently, watching the smoke swirl toward the ceiling in the flickering lantern light.

Comments

[by_heart]

Lea paused and looked back over his shoulder. Sure, his official title was "cook," but he could hear the implication on those words and it just made things that much more frustrating. They were his hands and it was on him to decide just how much more dirty he was going to get them.

"Demoting me now? I'm still getting used to having a heart to follow, you know, and if there's one thing I learned from the time I didn't have one, it's that you shouldn't follow someone who only tells you what they want you to know."

[thatched]

"Demoting? Hardly. You're a valuable member of this crew. I'm setting you free. And if that's the case then you definitely shouldn't follow me."

Which was a lie, but what did it matter?

"The captain is a much better man for that kind of thing." If anything he was the heart of the crew. The reason why they did anything. As it should be. As it always should be.

[by_heart]

One day Lea was going to figure out why the hell people were so devoted to Ace. One day. Provided Ace didn't blow anything up, smear anything on his head, or forget what Lea's actual job on the ship was, except that happened more or less every day. Being told not to follow Thatch, though, just added a little twist in his gut. It wasn't like he wasn't completely aware of how he was setting things up for himself, allying himself more closely with Thatch instead of Ace, making the tasks he set him a priority...it was how he was used to operating. Not that it went well the last time, either.

"You know, the easier solution would be to actually tell me things." It was said mostly to himself as he rested one hand on the door frame, ready to leave but not sure where exactly to go afterwards.

[thatched]

He did tell Lea things, though nothing he wanted to hear. The rest of it would turn against him in the end. He knew it. Could see it. If Lea couldn't accept vengeance, he'd never be able to accept what Thatch was. What his true role was always. To keep the peace. To be the poison in the dark.

"There are no easy solutions. And if you want to learn how to use your heart, new that you are, you may want to follow someone who has one." He let the darkness flow from him, curl into life, snake across the windows. He was glad Pops couldn't see him now. See the kind of person he had become.

[by_heart]

That was enough to get Lea to turn around and lean on the door. Was that supposed to scare him? Darkness, true Darkness, was a hell of a lot scarier than that. He'd spent enough time inside it to know.

"You have one. Don't flatter yourself." There was no explaining losing your heart to someone who never had, but to Lea it was no joking matter. Not with his own so newly regained and the possibility facing him upon his inevitable return home that Isa's might be gone for good.

[thatched]

More a warning then anything but he hadn't known what he was thinking other than perhaps making a fool of himself. A faint sting of heat spread over his nose at Lea's comment. Don't tell him what he has and what he doesn't. But he shouldn't be surprised, after all, Lea knew everything.

"Thank you for stopping by," he said, managing to sound civil enough as he pulled out a ledger. He had things to plan and by himself it would be that much harder.

[by_heart]

Lea arched an eyebrow and tapped his chest once over his heart, just to repeat his point before slipping into the darkness of the hall. There was a lot he was going to have to sort out now. Like he needed more, but what was a guy like him to do? Not a villain anymore, not quite a hero yet, always on his shoulders which direction to go. For once, he was pretty confident he picked the right one, no matter what Thatch might think about it.