"That was very kind of you. But then again I expect nothing less from my Lorelei," Aliana cracked an eye open and smiled gently at Lori. She let her eyes shut again as she let out a soft hum and relaxed into Lori. Her stomach grumbled quietly, but Aliana paid it no mind as she asked Lorelei, "What about the… twins? How did you meet them?"
Lori blushed at the compliment and smiled. “You're too sweet.” she replied, leaning down to kiss her forehead. Though she furrowed her brow slightly when she heard Aliana’s stomach growl. “But you should eat more. Here, sit up and have the soup.” she encouraged before laughing at the question. “Oh, Nic and Niki. They blew up a magistrate building, don't remember why… probably just to cause trouble. They ran to get away and ended up on our ship. They had skills and were willing to work so, we let them stay.” she shrugged. “Of course, to this day, we still have a hard time telling one from the other. I think they enjoy confusing us. We think one of them is a boy and we’re not sure about the other. The only ones who know are the twins themselves and Charlie. But she doesn't tell us.”
Aliana grumbled quietly as she sat up and took the soup from Lori. She took small sips as she listened to Lorelei's stories about the twins. She let out a little laugh at the final comment about one of them possibly being a boy, "How do you think someone is a boy? Are they really that identical you can not tell?"
She shrugged. “When you see them, you'll know why we think that. They wear the exact same clothes as each other. Same color, same pattern, right down to their shoes and the length of their hair and how they tie it back.” she explained, a little exasperated. “Honestly, it gets a little annoying if you think about it too much.”
"Then I hope I will not have to think about it too much," Aliana laughed at Lorelei's exasperation. She had slowed down on her sips of the soup to admire Lori in the heat of her exasperation. Aliana had a very soft smile on, "Who else is there?"
Lori sighed, managing to calm back down, and chuckled softly at hearing Aliana’s laugh. “Well, there's Charlie. Charlotte but everyone calls her Charlie. She's the ship's cook, healer, and unofficial “mom” to most of the crew, including myself. Though Tommy's the only one who calls her such.” she admitted. “Tommy's the youngest member of our crew and was the most recent addition before you. But he doesn't talk about where he's from or his life before joining us. We just found him one day, hiding between some barrels when we were already a long way from our last port.”
"A mother and a child," Aliana said more to herself than to Lori. She was trying to remember everyone she was being told about, which wasn't as hard as Aliana thought it would be. She took one final sip of the soup before placing it back down on the tray. Aliana leaned back onto Lorelei, "Is that all? Jax, Nikki, Nic, Charlie, Tommy and you?"
“No.” Lori chuckled softly, wrapping her arm around Aliana’s shoulders. “We wouldn't be a very impressive crew or able to sail as well as we do if that was all of us.” she admitted as she looked down at her. “There's only four more members. Drake, Marcus, Jacob, and Skinner.”
"Well tell me about them," Aliana smiled up at Lori. She relaxed into Lori enjoying being held by her. The more time she spent with Lorelei the more she realized how much she missed being just touched by her lover.
“Alright.” she nodded. “Drake and Marcus were the first crewmates that we actually hired. Both are good hard workers, though Marcus is the stronger of the two and Drake is… more of a musician. Helps keep our spirits up.” Lori smiled. “I think he knows our song as well as we do.” she said, referring to their shanty. “Jacob is a sweet guy and is kind of our animal expert. Even though we don't have many. A couple of chickens, a goat, and a rooster he manages to keep quiet most of the time.” she chuckled at some instances she remembered from before Jacob joined and the difference he made. “Skinner’s not a very talkative person but he's the best shot on board and he wears an eye patch even though he has both eyes.”
Aliana's hand went up to the necklace, that she had forgotten to turn around, and gently rubbed it at the mention of the shanty. She chuckled a little at hearing that Skinner had an eyepatch even though he didn't need it. She nuzzled her nose against Lori very softly before looking up at Lori, "They sound like good people. I am glad you met them and gave them a home."
Lorelei smiled at the gentle affection and held Aliana close. “For a crew of pirates, aye, they are good people. I trust them with my life and I believe they trust me as much. Like I said before, we're practically family and we never leave a crewmate behind.” she chuckled softly. “Honestly, I’m almost thankful to your father for what he did at times. I’ll never forgive him for separating us but because he gave me this ship… My life has only improved.”
"I do not think you should forgive him, I certainly do not, but I think being thankful for the opportunity being sent away brought is perfectly fine," Aliana replied smiling up at Lorelei. She was leaning into Lorelei as much as the other would let her. She glanced down thought her smile never faded, "And I am thankful you found a family when my father cruelly ripped away all you knew and had."
Lori chuckled and nodded in agreement. “Jax actually says the same thing. Or same meaning at least, about the opportunity we’ve all had.” she told her. “T’e sea affects people when they meet her. Some try ta conquer her, some feel small and are in awe of her. Others respect her and grow stronger. You, t’e sea made you bold, Cap’t.” she said, imitating Jax’s heavy accent.
(Sorry for the late response, spent all of yesterday moving in to my dorm and all of today unpacking/promoting my clubs)
"I have to agree with him," Aliana giggled at her impression. She silently wondered what the sea would do to her while she journeyed with Lorelei. She looked up at Lorelei with a quiet smile on her face, "You are much more bold than before my father sent you away. I do not think the Lori I remember would dare think of stealing me away on the day I was to wed another. But this one did. And I love you all the more for it."
(No worries. I was kinda busy today too.)
“No. Probably not.” Lori agreed with a light laugh. “I didn't know what I was really capable of back then, nor did I have the right skills. Plus, him being the King spoke volumes to me before I realized he only can harm me on his land. On the sea… Certain things just don't matter as much as they do on land.” she explained, smiling confidently “I love you too, Aliana. I thought about you every day. If I would be able to see you again, how much you might have changed… You were so brave speaking out against your father and that prince.” she admired, kissing Aliana’s forehead.
Aliana blushed for what felt like the hundredth time that day. She glanced down at the bed once more her eyes refusing to look up and meet Lori's, "I was not brave. If I was brave I would not have allowed my father to give me away like that. I would have fought more than I did even though you still owned my heart. Instead it took me seeing you to finally gain the confidence I needed to fight against my father's wishes."
Lori gently cupped Aliana’s chin and tilted her head back up to look at her. “But you are. Even if it just took you seeing me, you still said and did those things. To me, that means you already wanted to and that makes you brave.” she smiled softly, encouragingly, and lovingly. “I hope you'll get the chance to see it in yourself one day.”
"You really think that?" Aliana whispered softly. Her face shone with disbelief as she looked back up at Lori. There was no way one woman could show so much love and encouragement in a single look towards Aliana. Even Haley, the only other female Aliana was remotely close to, couldn't show that much in a single glance. Aliana's Lorelei really was amazing.
“I do.” Lori said confidently, smiling at her lover. “And the fact that you waited for me to come back and keep my promise was also very brave of you. You could have given me up. But you didn't.” she smiled brighter. “You're stronger and braver than you think.”
"If you say so, then I might just begin to believe you," Aliana replied with a very soft smile on her face. She couldn't help that Lorelei's confidence was infectious. Aliana just took in every word that fell from her lover's lips tucking each and every one into her heart. Whether she truly believed the words or not.
“I hope you do.” Lori chuckled softly as she held Aliana close. “At least one day, if you don't yet. Who knows what the sea will bring out in you.” she smiled, genuinely curious and a little eager to find out.
"I suppose we will find out together," Aliana said back softly before she leaned up slightly to give Lorelei a soft short kiss. Her heart was racing hoping that Lori was fine with that as she settled back into Lori's embrace.
“Aye. We will.” Lori nodded, returning the sweet kiss. It was so familiar and reassuring that they had actually succeeded. That Aliana was here, on the ship, safe, and in her arms. “I’ve missed you so much.” she whispered.
"I missed you far too much," Aliana whispered back. She hesitated for a second before she leaned up and kissed Lori once more. It was exhilarating to be able to just kiss Lori without fear of consequence. Aliana was here, with Lorelei, finally free to be with the one she loved most.