Starlit Destiny
Genre: Ateez Pirate AU
Rated: PG (I think) for violence and mentions of sensitive topics.
Summery: A lonely siren loses the only person he has ever cared for. While hunting down those that took her, he comes across a pirate seeking revenge. As they follow their goals, they build a crew. A family. Now this misfit band of not quite pirates are working to uncover the darkness that is trying to take over.
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Chapter 13: Unfair Play ♠Jongho♠
Seonghwa and Hongjoong we’re already back when they returned to the ship and Wooyoung started to run forward, but San grabbed the back of his shirt.
“Did you find out anything?” San asked, then let Wooyoung go.
“No” Hongjoong said with the shake of his head. “You?”
“I got us some money!” Wooyoung shouted, holding up a pouch.
“He stole some money,” Jongho corrected.
“No, I won it. Well, San won it.”
“You cheated.”
“I cheated a cheater, big deal.”
“It is a big deal. What if you had been caught?”
“I talked our way out of it.”
Jongho growled in frustration. “You. Cheated.”
“Yes, I did. It’s what I do for a living. You joined pirates. Did you really think we were law abiding? There’s no telling how much money that man has cheated off of people and we need it. I’m sorry you’re too stuffy to let loose even the slightest bit.”
“Wooyoung…” San cautioned.
“I’m not stuffy,” Jongho snapped. “Just because I don’t enjoy hurting others doesn’t mean I don’t know how to let loose.”
“I didn’t hurt anyone, unlike you, I’m sure. People like you only follow the law without thinking about who it affects or enjoy when you can use it to abuse common folk.”
Jongho grabbed Wooyoung’s collar, his hands shaking. “I have never abused my power like that. I’m helping people. That’s what we do. We help them and protect.”
“No. That’s just what us common folk are told. All you and your fellow trained dogs protect are the nobility and aristocrats.”
Jongho pulled back his first, but his arm was caught before he could lash out.
“Let him hit me,” Wooyoung taunted, pulled forward by Jongho’s grip still on his shirt. “Prove me right.”
“Wooyoung, no,” Yeosang said, getting in between them. He wrapped his arms around Wooyoung and started to push him away while San wrapped his arms around Jongho and pulled him back.
“Guys, stop,” San said. Though, it came out as a grunt with the effort he was exerting trying to pull Jongho away.
“That’s enough!” Hongjoong’s sudden bellow made everyone freeze in place. He marched over, making them all take a few steps back. The tone, presence, and scowl made Jongho think of his training days and he instinctively stiffened into attention, his eyes dropped to the floor.
Hongjoong hadn’t blown up once at them, he’d barely been strict. But in that moment, Jongho could see a captain. Stern and commanding. A leader.
“Now I know we didn’t all come from the same background and we’re going to have differences of opinions and argue. But I will not have physical fights on my ship unless it’s for training. You two can either walk away, or talk it out.”
“But Hongjoong—”
“Wooyoung, do we need to go below deck?”
“No, Captain,” Wooyoung said quickly with a gulp. His wide eyes dropped to the ground and he took a step back without another word.
“These rules apply to everyone,” Hongjoong continued. “Am I understood?
Everyone replied quickly with either a “Yes sir,” or “Yes Captain.” Then Wooyoung sulked off to the small room below deck. That meant unless Jongho wanted to be with him in the tight space, he was stuck on deck with the others.
Most of them went about their business, but San was eyeing him in frustration until Yeosang pulled him away to help put away the supplies they had bought. With nothing else to do, Jongho made his way to the side of the ship and took a seat on a random crate.
He mulled over Wooyoung’s words, which stung, but weren’t necessarily a lie. He’d found out first hand just how corrupt some of the other soldiers and government officials were. He’d nearly lost his life finding out.
Wooyoung had likely spoken from experience and in the end, regardless of their methods, they had the same goal. As long as no one innocent was hurt, maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to cross some of his lines. He was already going against his superiors as it was.
But, Wooyoung had been out of line calling him stuffy. He was not stuffy.
They just didn’t know him yet.
♠
“Wooyoung.” Jongho marched up to the lounging pirate, making him jump. “We need to talk.”
“Why?” Wooyoung snapped. “So you can criticize me some more?”
“No.” Jongho took a deep breath. “I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I wanted to say I’m sorry for earlier. You were right about the corruption. I discovered it first hand only recently and it’s hard for me to accept. My father was a guard and I wanted nothing more growing up than to serve the kingdom. But those I trusted to have the kingdom and its people’s interest at heart tried to have me killed when I brought the slavery situation to them. All this time I thought I was helping people, but now, after all this, I’m not sure. I took my frustration out on you and I apologize.”
Wooyoung sniffed in thought then smiled. “Apology accepted. I shouldn’t have antagonized you either,” he said. “I wanted to get a rise out of you, but I pushed too hard.”
“You were right though. Except for me being like them. Or being stuffy.”
Wooyoung burst out laughing at the almost pouted defense.
“I’m serious! You might not believe it, but I used to get in trouble with my superiors when I was in training.”
“You were a trouble maker?” Wooyoung said in shock. “You’re right, it’s hard to believe. But I knew you’d be a perfect addition to the crew.”
Jongho’s mouth opened in surprise. He’d forgotten that Wooyoung had been the one to encourage him to join and suggested him to the captain. He had been the first person in a while to vouch for him.
“Teach me,” Jongho said and Wooyoung tilted his head in confusion.
“Teach you what?”
“How to cheat and talk my way out of a bad situation. Teach me how to be a pirate so that I can be a part of the crew.”
“You want me to teach you how to swindle people out of their money?”
“Only those that deserve it. Like you said. Cheating a cheater isn’t a big deal. The money doesn’t belong to them in the first place.”
“Alright.” Wooyoung jumped to his feet then walked over and grabbed Jongho’s shoulder. “Let’s get going.”
“Wait, right now?”
“No time like the present. Best way to learn is on the job.”
“But it’s almost night.”
“Exactly. There will be way more games going. People are braver and more reckless under the cloak of night.”
♠
Jongho watched and listened during the first couple of games and after each one Wooyoung would explain how he cheated. He explained why he would choose a target, things to look for before, and things to watch for during a game to make sure you didn’t push your luck.
Then Jongho joined him for a game. He didn’t make many moves without a sign from Wooyoung and was shocked the first time Wooyoung secretly slipped him a piece he needed to win. Wooyoung kept that up. They’d play one or two rounds of a game and won most of them and Jongho understood. It was addicting. The thrill and the success. He understood why Wooyoung and San made a living at it and why the captain had joined a few games himself while they had been in this town.
He weighed their bag of winnings and grinned as they walked away from another successful game.
“Wow! I didn’t expect a smile like that from you,” Wooyoung said with a laugh as he nudged Jongho. “Guess you’re not so stuffy after all.”
“It’s more fun than I expected. I get it now.”
“That’s why people get addicted and ruin their lives. It takes self control as well as skill.” Wooyoung stretched then patted Jongho on the back. “We better head back now. I’d say that was a pretty successful first lesson.”
Jongho nodded, then paused in his tracks when he saw the commotion from another game. “Let’s do one more,” he said, pointing to the spectators. “That must be a good one. It has a big crowd.”
Wooyoung hummed as he observed the people on the outer edge. “I don’t know. I really think we should head back. It’s getting late.”
“Last one,” Jongho urged. “It must be a big game. Let’s at least watch.”
Wooyoung hesitated for a moment then shrugged. “Sure, why not?”
They pushed their way to the front and found a fairly large card game in progress. The players were on the rougher side and a few of them were clearly pirates.
A few people around them were quietly complaining about the cheating game host and the merciless pirate crew that the men belonged to and Jongho traded glances with Wooyoung.
“You should play a round,” Jongho said. “And since they’re pirates, maybe we can get some information.”
“I don’t know, Jongho. There’s something about them that’s rubbing me the wrong way. I don’t know if we should risk it.”
“Come on. They can’t be any worse than any of the others you’ve played against today. And besides, we’ve been in this town for two days and still don’t have anything. We might finally get a lead.”
“I don’t know the language they’re speaking very well though. If it goes wrong —”
Jongho huffed and crossed his arms. “Alright, if you don’t have the confidence to do it, then let’s just go back to the ship, hyung.”
He started to walk away but Wooyoung grabbed his arm. “That’s the first time you’ve called me hyung.”
“Is it?”
“I know what you’re doing, just so you know. But fine. It couldn’t hurt to try.”
“Just play it safe like you’ve been doing and if they still seem dangerous, you can call it quits and we’ll leave.”
“If I’m doing this I’m seeing it through till the end. I’ll show you a master at work.”
Wooyoung adjusted his shirt and checked on some of his hidden cards, then made his way towards the players. “I’d like to join if you don’t mind.”
The response he received was in a language Jongho didn’t understand, but Wooyoung was able to respond back in it. Though, a little awkwardly. Some of the pirates were giving Wooyoung a look that almost made Jongho tell him to stop the whole thing. But, he held it in and kept a close eye on them in case they tried anything.
After one round with a losing hand, followed by several wins, Jongho realized Wooyoung wasn’t playing it safe anymore. But the other players didn’t look like they suspected anything, even though they were growing more frustrated with each loss.
Finally, Wooyoung gathered his winnings and said what sounded like a farewell. While the others were grumbling, they didn’t protest as he stood and joined Jongho.
“What did I tell you? Master at work,” Wooyoung said. “Let’s go get a meal. I wiped them out.”
“Shouldn’t you wait until we’re farther away to start boasting?”
“Nah. They can’t understand us. I couldn’t understand everything they were saying, but I’m pretty sure they were mocking us, so I just gave them a friendly lesson.”
“I still think you should have been more careful with your wins. I’m surprised they didn’t accuse you of cheating.”
“They didn’t think I was smart enough to. And, seeing as they’re not coming after me already, I’d say they’re good sports.”
“Alright, I’ll trust your expertise then.”
They found a small restaurant with stew just off the road and Wooyoung ordered them some food and drink. After they were a few bites in, Wooyoung cleared his throat and adjusted awkwardly in his chair. “So, you said someone tried to kill you when you tried to expose the slavery incident?”
Jongho nodded. “An official in your town if you’d believe it.”
“Do you remember his name?”
“Of course,” Jongho said, then took a drink. “I recorded everything about him so that I can report everything at the castle once I know more about the situation and find more who are involved. His name was Kang —”
Wooyoung cut him off with a scoff. “Of course it’s him…”
Jongho’s eyes widened as Wooyoung downed the rest of his drink. “You know him?” Jongho asked.
“We have some…history with him. I guess you could say I’m not really surprised. The good news is he doesn’t have a very skilled assassin at hand right now…probably. So you should be safe. Especially now that you’re with us.”
“Do I even want to know?”
Wooyoung smirked, but it wasn’t with his usual mirth. His eyes caught somewhere behind Jongho before he could respond and he stiffened, then ducked his head. “Time to go,” he said. “Looks like I was wrong about them being good sports.”
“Wha—”
“Don’t turn around.” Wooyoung placed a few coins on the table and stood slowly. “They might only be here for food, but let’s just quickly slip out the back to be safe.”
Jongho got to his feet and followed Wooyoung’s lead. They were nearly to the door when someone behind them shouted.
“Run!” Wooyoung shouted and broke into a sprint. They burst out the back door and were met with a dead end alley whose only exit led back to the front. “Great.”
They paused, both trying to formulate a plan.
“I told you we should have gone back to the ship. You were arrogant.”
“It was your idea to play against them in the first place! Come on. Let’s just hope they don’t have anyone keeping watch out front.”
They started towards the alley’s exit as someone burst out from the door behind them and shouted again. Wooyoung pulled out his knives but rammed into someone at the exit and fell to the ground, the knives clattering away from him. A much larger man reached down and pulled Wooyoung to his feet without any effort, and immobilized his arms behind him.
Jongho dodged as someone grabbed for him. Another lunged at him, but he punched the man, making him fall instantly.
“Jongho, go back to the ship!” Wooyoung shouted, still struggling against the giant man. “Get he—” He cut off with a grunt as one of the players punched him in the gut.
Jongho grappled with another man, then knocked the pirate into the wall as he made his way towards the exit where the other pirates were leaving with Wooyung. He tried to follow, but a shot was fired, and the bullet barely missed.
“Jongho! Get out of here!” Wooyoung shouted again.
Jongho hesitated. If he had his sword, or they didn’t have guns, he would be more confident. But as it was, going and getting help would be smarter. So, as they started towards him again, he gave Wooyoung a nod, then turned and ran as fast as he could.
The footsteps pursuing him died out before too long but he didn’t stop or slow down. When their little ship came into view, he shouted, hoping someone was on deck.
Someone draped in shadow leaned over the railing and his voice caught in relief. Once he was closer, he could make out Hongjoong’s features. “Hyung!” he cried out. “Help! Wooyoung was taken.”
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New crewmate next week! Place your bets on who it is!