Notes: Title is temporary if anyone’s a better one please tell me. The title doesn’t have a lot to do with the story but I couldn’t think of a good one.

Forbidden

Chapter 1

By Purple Penguin

The clouds had turned an ominous dark grey colour, the sky rumbled overhead and I was sitting in a small wooden fishing boat in the middle of nowhere. I guess I had lost track of time after I left Balamb harbour and now I had no idea where I was. I picked up my few supplies that a friendly woman who always at the docks gave me. I feel sorry for her, she always hopes her son is alive but a year ago he went out with a friend on a boat and never came back. I never meet him. I was a cadet at Balamb garden, the best and only gunblader in garden; sometimes it would be nice to have some competition. I switched the torch on the map and pulled on my rain hat harder as the rain started to pour. Lightening flashed overhead and I regretted being so far away from shore just for a few bloody fish. I rowed desperately as the waves got higher and the wind threw my little boat around. I was starting to get scared that I’d never see the shore again. I large wave crashed over me and I started bailing in vain, the sea was too strong it tipped over my boat and took everything away from me. I desperately struggled against it, I was Seifer Almasy and I never went down without a fight but it was too strong and everything went black.

“What do you mean it’s not going to work?! It has to!”

“B-But sir the lightening hit the top of the mast, the sails are burnt and ruined. We must stop for repairs.”

The commander paced back and forth glaring at the men. He sighed and looked up at the flag that had survived the storm and still flew high in the air. The black background with the silver lion head on it. The pirate ship known as Griever sat helpless to the strong tide with its sails in tatters. The commander sighed again; the captain was no going to like this.

The captain of the ship was Squall Leonhart, everyone feared him even his own men they knew he decided who lived and who died. Nida Kaze was second in command; he wasn’t half as bad the men respected him more than feared him. He wore all black clothing with a long black cloak that had the pattern of two swords crossed over each other on the back.

Nida sighed. “How long will these repairs take?”

“We need supplies we have to stop somewhere.”

The commander glared in annoyance. “Alright but you have to go tell the captain.”

The pirate stared in horror. “What!? B-But commander it’s not my fault. What will I say? He’ll listen to you! Please don’t-”

The commander cringed at the cowardly man in disgust. “Fine I’ll do it.” All that crying and over what? Squall wasn’t that bad. He turned and walked to the captain’s quarters. It was a lot less likely that Squall would kill him but then maybe if he was in a really bad mood. Those two were the founders of the ship, they were the first two and they had been friends but Squall didn’t have friends now he was too far gone for that.

He knocked lightly on the heavy wooden door.

“What?”

Nida pushed the door open, he looked in and spotted Squall looking out the window.

“Sir?”

The brunette man was clad in tight leather pants; big chucky black boots and a black bomber jacket covered a plain grey tee. His unruly brown hair was just long enough to reach past his ears and hang in his eyes. He glanced over his shoulder glare in place.

“What is it?”

“Sir, the sails are ruined we have to stop somewhere for supplies to make repairs.”

“Who’s working on them?”

“It’s not their fault, Squall. One of the sails got badly burnt by the lightening.”

The captain glared at the mention of his name. Nida cocked his head, Squall never was talkative but they had known each other long enough for him to know when something was wrong. “What is it?”

“Get the boy to tend to Irvine’s injuries.”

“Injuries? You didn’t?”

Those angry eyes snapped up. “Of course not, I don’t know who yet.”

Nida nodded. “I’ll make sure he’s looked after.”

“....Thank you.” Squall whispered so quietly Nida barely heard him but he did and he smiled slightly.

“Find the nearest island and stop for repairs.”

“Yes sir.” He saluted and headed down to the slaves quarters.

Nida walked down the stairs into a bare room at the bottom for the ship where the slaves lived. They only had two slaves and only one of them got all the jobs to do, captain had a favourite slave. The walls were grey and the floor was bare. A small mattress sat in the corner of the room with a thin sheet on top; they didn’t get blankets there wasn’t enough to spare and being the room under the kitchen it was always pretty warm. Some worn sofa cushions lay in the corner and a tall figure lay on top of them sleeping. He was nude except for a thin sheet over his waist and downward. His light brown hair was loose and flowed down his pale body. He intense violet eyes were closed and he looked peaceful. As Nida walked closed he could see the blue-ish, purple-ish mark around his eye, a long cut ran down his upper arm, his lip was split and bruises covered parts of the rest of his body.

The commander sighed and left to find the other slave to tend to Irvine’s injuries. He headed towards the kitchen where he thought the little blonde would be. He looked in through the door and a little blonde boy sat on a stool peeling vegetables for dinner. The boy jumped when he saw him.

“S-Sir?”

“The captain wants you to tend to Irvine; he’s been injured.”

The blonde boy’s eyes narrowed slightly but the nodded and put down his vegetables.

Zell headed for the slaves quarters. Injured? He meant beaten. What had that bastard done to him now? He hated the ship, the crew but especially the cold-hearted captain. Zell had ended up a slave boy after his and Irvine’s ship had been picked up by pirates. He considered himself the lucky one out of the two of them at least all he has to do chores like cleaning, cooking and tending to the sick. At least he didn’t get used for sex. He wasn’t quite sure what happened between them but he knew his friend cared in a way about the captain and Zell felt sorry for him.

Zell entered the slaves quarters and retrieved his first aid kit from beside his bed. He knelt beside his friend and gently shook him awake. The brunette jumped but sighed when he saw Zell kneeling beside him, he tried to smile but winced as he hurt his split lip.

The blonde looked over the cuts and bruises that covered his friend’s body. “What did that bastard do to you?”

The brunette shifted to sit up on the cushions. “It wasn’t Squall he wouldn’t do that.”

Zell stared at him. “Squall? Since when were you on first name terms?”

His friend shrugged and didn’t answer.

The blonde sighed and dapped at the gash on Irvine’s arm.

“So if it wasn’t the captain who was it?”

“I don’t know.”

Zell snorted. “Yeah right.”

“One of the other pirates, I went up on the deck in the middle of the night I didn’t think anyone else would be up. I didn’t recognize him.” He smiled slightly. “All pirates look the same, you know that? Except Squall and Nida of course.”

“Who?”

“The commander.”

Zell stared at him. “I worry about you sometimes.”

“Don’t, I’m fine.”

“How do you know the commander’s name? Or don’t I want to know.”

Irvine frowned. “Squall mentions him sometimes.” He winced as Zell pulled the bandage around his gash a little to tightly.

The blonde handed him an ice pack for his eye. “What are you going to do about this guy then? He might try to hurt you again.”

Irvine shook his head. “I’m not stupid enough to go back up there alone, I’ll be fine.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Land ahoy!”

Nida sighed. That guy in the crow’s nest had been watching too many movies. “Captain.” He saluted as Squall came up onto he deck. “We’ve come to an island sir.”

“Stop there for repairs.”

“Sir.” He saluted again and ran off, ordering the men about.

The brunette stared off into the distance, feeling eyes watching him he turned to see to pirates looking at him in curiosity, he glared at them causing them to jump and ran off to help the others.

The large black ship anchored off shore and a few pirates leapt overboard swimming up to the island. The commander gathered some others together and they rowed to the shore in a little boat.

I opened my eyes slowly; my back was burning from the sun that shone down on me. I moved my fingers feeling sand run through my fingers. I looked up, a forest lay ahead of me and I was on a beach. I sighed in relief; thank god I was alive. Where was I? How would I get back? Was I the only one here? I’d hate to be alone in this place. I jumping, hearing voices, people were shouting at each other close by. I heard vines and branches being cut back. I didn’t know whether to run away or go towards the voices. I fished through my soaked pockets, sighing in relief. The sea didn’t get my fishing knife. I held it out ready to defend myself and walked through the trees gingerly; I paused seeing a flag flying over the trees. I stared in horror, this had to be a bad dream, not Griever I’d seen the reward posters up at Balamb for the capture. I peered through the trees seeing a man in a cloak and another man in ridiculous shorts and a vest with a bandana round his head. Something rustled behind me and I turned just in time to see the bat coming down and everything faded away again.

“Commander! I’m found someone!”

Nida frowned at the blonde man. “Why did you hit him?”

“He was spying on you sir.”

“How are we supposed to ask him if there is a village here or supplies?”

The pirate scratched the back of his neck. “Um... well...”

The commander sighed, throwing up his arms in frustration. “Idiots.” He called over some more men. “Help him take this guy to the ship!”

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