#adenture

Harry adjusted the rigging as his dad yelled out orders. If they moved quickly they could sink the Deircian naval ship that they'd come upon.

"Harry!" His mother called out as she threw him a second flintlock pistol. "Be ready!"

Harry slid the pistol in his belt before shifting their sails further with the other riggers. His mother believed in him being heavily armed, and truth be told, Harry didn't mind. Having two pistols along with his saber definitely gave him a sense of security.

"Marlene!" Sirius called as he helped Harry with the ropes. "How much further?"

Marlene peered from the crow's nest.

"Hold where you are!" She looked to the helm. "Remus! Hard to port!"

Remus heaved the helm and Harry grinned as he felt their ship move, slicing through the waves towards their target. The Phoenix had never been bested in the nearly twenty years his father had captained her. This Deircian naval ship didn't stand a chance.

"Man the cannons!" His dad's voice roared.

Harry moved to his spot on the deck near the helm and Remus, his assignment the protection of the helmsman. Remus gave him a grateful smile and then Harry heard the high pitched signal of Marlene's whistle.

Captain James Potter of the Marauders raised his saber above his head and waited.

Marlene's whistle came once more and James' arm sliced the air.

"FIRE!"

The explosion of cannon fire filled the air and Harry gritted his teeth against the way the first shot made his ears ring. But the second shot, as it always did, helped to quiet the ringing and prepare him for battle.

His assignment in this battle was less a necessity and more a formality. They had no intention of taking the ship, being boarded would not be a part of this battle. The Marauders had no use for the ships of the King's dismal armada. Military ships never had anything good on them anyway. Harry didn't care for soldiers' rations, and they always let their water turn green. But while he wouldn't be pulling his pistol or saber today, standing beside Remus gave him a terrific view of the King's sailors trying to load their cannons while under fire.

The sea heaved under them and Harry felt grounded as he watched her toss the Deircian ship, sending her crew stumbling. He chuckled as one of the failures with blazing red hair decided to swim for it, jumping overboard as James called for the third shot. Probably the only smart lad on that wretched vessel. Once the ship started sinking, she'd pull her whole crew under with her if they weren't far enough away.

And sink she did, as the Marauders sent a barrage of cannon balls against her hull and down on her deck.

Harry sighed as the sea began to fill the ship. That was how he wanted to go. When his body tired of this life, he wanted to sink in the sea and finally let her have him, finally losing himself in her depths.

Captain James Potter called to the riggers when it was obvious the Deircian ship would sink and Harry jumped to it, Sirius and the others quickly by his side as they shifted the sails again. With the wind harnessed, James called out to Remus and within moments they were barreling away as another of King Thomas' ships sunk below the waves.

"Well done!" James called to his crew after they'd made good their escape. "I believe the Marauders deserve a bit of celebration!"

Harry raised his first and cheered with the crew.

"Enjoy tonight my friends!" James grinned, "For I think it's high time we head home!"

Harry cheered, though the way the waves rocked the Phoenix had him turning to the sea. He would miss being away from her, he did every winter. The little bit of rock he'd spent his childhood on wasn't much, and he'd always feel attached to it, but the sea would always be home.

The rock, while the only place he had memories of as a child, was anything but inviting. It was an island in the most generous terms, uninhabited aside from the Marauders crew during the coldest months, their safe haven from the tyranny of King Thomas of Deircia.

Harry had been a babe when it happened, but he understood that when Thomas Riddle, the then Duke of Gaunt took the throne of Deircia, he was determined to kill off the high born families he didn't care for, and give their lands and fortunes to those he chose. Harry's own father, the Duke of Hallows, was near the top of King Thomas' hit list.

One of his dad's own friends betrayed the Potters and members of the Marauders crew, but Sirius' brother had risked his life to save them, and while Regulus died, Harry and his family were all still here. So James packed up Lily and Harry, the entirety of the Potter family fortune, and a tightly knit group of friends - other nobles with targets on their backs - and set sail on James' ship. They'd traveled for months before coming across their island, and after combing over it, set up lives.

The Marauders sailed the Phoenix to other lands besides Deircia to buy what they needed, the Potters not the only ones who brought all their wealth with them, but it wasn't until the children, Harry, Neville, and Hannah, were old enough that they made the sea not just their home, but a battlefield against King Thomas' armada.

"Think you'll survive on dry land, Harry?" Neville grasped his shoulder and laughed.

"Aye! And I imagine you're anxious to get back!" Harry laughed with him.

"Aye," Neville grinned. "It'll be good to be warm at night."

Harry agreed, winter was the worst time to be at sea, though he knew Neville had other reasons for wanting to go back. He went to comment on exactly how Neville would be warm at night when his comment was cut off by the lady herself.

"Quit your lollygagging boys," Hannah threw her arms over their shoulders. "We've got work to do before we dock for the winter."

Harry and Neville laughed and Harry stepped out from under her arm so Neville could pull her closer.

"We have time, Hannah," he chuckled. "We're a good two weeks from shore yet."

"All the more reason to get it done now," Dorcas called as she moved towards the helm.

"See," Hannah teased, "Chores now, celebrating tonight."

Harry saluted as Hannah and Neville laughed at him, "Aye, aye, Hannah."

The work moved quickly with the crew anxious to get on to the fun, the Marauders known as much for their merriment as they were for their ruthlessness with the King's ships.

"To the Marauders!" Sirius called as the crew toasted with him.

"And to the death of King Thomas!" Benjy shouted.

"The long life of Captain Potter!" Kingsley yelled.

"Drink already!" Edgar shouted.

Harry smiled at his family. Pirates tended to be a ragtag bunch of outcasts, but the Marauders only fit the definition of outcasts. Once Harry was old enough, his dad had explained who everyone had once been. Dukes, Barons, Viscounts, Marquees, Earls, and Baronets of Deircia, all of them had picked up their riches and boarded the Phoenix nearly twenty years ago. These twenty-three people were his family, and Harry loved them.

He thought he saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eye but when he turned, Harry only saw Gideon and Fabien arm wrestling. It was strange though, their hair seemed much less red than the color that had caught his attention.

Neville shoved his arm, "Plans to take the winner there, Harry?" He motioned to the Prewett twins.

"I'm not far enough gone for that, mate." Harry toasted his oldest friend. "Where has Hannah gone?"

Neville waved his drink towards the Abbotts, "She's planning with her mum."

"When do you think you'll have Dad perform the ceremony?" Harry chuckled as Neville took a large swig of his drink.

Neville grimaced and then coughed. "Hannah's thinking before the Christmas celebrations."

Harry nursed his drink and smiled over at Hannah, "You'll give my mum ideas, the two of you getting married."

"You never know, you might meet someone the next time we go for supplies." Neville teased. "Forsake the sea and take up as a landsman permanently."

"May your tongue turn black for that!" Harry shoved him and laughed. "The sea is all the woman I need, Nev. I reckon I'll never be happy on land for more than a winter at a time."

The night progressed and Harry let the rocking of the ship lull him into that moment of perfect happiness. Only an hour or so into the festivities, Harry moved up to the top deck and leant on the railing, watching the stars as the Phoenix carried them closer to their winter home.

"It's calmer up here, eh?" James leant over the railing with him.

"Aye," Harry grinned at him. "I like to be out here with the sea when the stars are out."

"You were born to navigate, my boy. The sea claimed you that first journey and she's never letting you go."

"She claimed all of us," Harry took in a deep breath of the chilled night air.

James chuckled, "We chose her, Harry. I thought after my three years in the Deircian Navy were over I wouldn't spend much time at sea. I would have had too many responsibilities to attend to. Coming back to her felt like our only option."

"It worked out well for us in the end." Harry smiled out at the black surface of the sea, listening to the waves hit the hull and how the sound made everything right. "I can't imagine a better life than sailing nine months out of the year."

"What if I told you of a grand castle and mountain chalets? Banquets and balls and beautiful women? People bowing when you walk by and everyone calls you 'your grace'? About people turning to you for everything?"

Harry shook his head, nothing would ever amount to life with the sea under him. "It's better this way. We don't bow to anyone and no one bows to us. Our only responsibilities are the ship and each other. This life, this is everything I'll ever want. The sea, the Phoenix, and the Marauders."

James chuckled and put his hand on Harry's shoulder. "I agree, having you and this life has become more than I dreamt possible. I'll be forever grateful it worked out this way. The alternative would have robbed us of not just this life but any life at all."

Harry was glad he wasn't on watch that night and he could watch the stars glow bright and clear for a few hours. Leaning against the deck railing watching the stars and listening to the waves only seemed to deepen his love for the life he lived, for the sea that rolled beneath the Phoenix and through his heart.

He stayed on deck a good hour after the laughter had died down below not long before the end of the second watch. He bid Emmeline goodnight as she walked the deck, scanning the sea, and descended to his hammock. But as he moved to the room he shared with Neville, Gideon, and Fabien, Harry heard something thud by the stairs behind him.

"Emmeline?" He called looking back.

"Alright, Harry?" Emmeline called down from the deck.

"Aye, I heard a thud, wanted to make sure you hadn't fallen."

"Nay, off to bed with you now. My watch is nearly done, and Sirius has the third. He'll talk your ear off just for the fun of watching you struggle in the morning."

Harry grinned. "Aye, sleep well."

"You as well, lad."

Harry crept quietly into his room and wrapped his blankets around him as he let the sea rock him to sleep, listening to the quiet song of her waves.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Land ho!" Frank called from the crows' nest. Harry rushed to the bow and looked out at the rock the Marauders called home.

Cragged and jutting out from the ocean like a pod of whales rose the intimidating mass that would easily sink any unsuspecting ships. If you didn't know the island, you'd think it an uninhabitable, foreboding, sort of place.

But the Marauders knew the secrets; knew that on the far side the cliffs parted wide enough for a ship and fed into a natural dock; knew that the rocks and the sea had formed shallow caves that served as homes for them all during the few months they spent away from the sea; knew how to climb down its cliffs to the ponds that formed at low tide that filled with small fish and crustaceans; knew that at the center of the island several plants found shelter, and a freshwater pond bubbled up. The Marauders knew how much the island had to offer, and they never took it for granted.

"Come on, Harry!" Neville called to him from the rigging. "We'll have all the supplies to unload and you can gawk at it then."

Harry laughed and helped take in sail. "Yes but we'll be manning the oars in a bit and so I won't see it until we're docked."

"I think you'll live," Edgar laughed as he and his wife Patricia helped pull the ropes. "Besides, you didn't have to row in last time we docked. We all take a turn, even your dad. We're a lucky group to have a captain that isn't afraid to swab a deck or man an oar."

Harry beamed. "Dad says we're a family."

"That we are, laddy" Patricia ruffled Harry's hair.

Harry and Neville moved below deck to the oars, and as Harry went to turn the corner, a flash of red caught his eye. He frowned and looked again. He'd been seeing the same red flash over the last couple of weeks. But anytime he went to investigate, nothing was ever there. Maybe it was a sign that he needed some time on land more than he might care to admit.

But getting back his land legs always took Harry a couple hundred feet, and the first few trips of hauling casks of water and crates of food and goods off the Phoenix were wrought with missteps and near crashes until his body remembered how to walk without the ebb and flow of the sea beneath him.

The Phoenix safely anchored and their supplies unloaded, the Marauders began moving back in.

"Harry, you're on dinner and taking the first watch tonight." James looked down at his parchment.

"Aye aye, Captain," Harry saluted as he moved to help with dinner.

Arabella set him to filling pots with Elphias while she prepared the ingredients for stew and Hestia baked fresh bread. The smells were heavenly and Harry happily moved to kneading loaves once the water was ready for Arabella.

"More logs?" Sirius asked as he and Marlene dropped another couple dozen next to the oven they'd made years ago.

"I think we're all set now," Hestia smiled and handed Harry another loaf to knead, "But you're welcome to speed up the making now that the baking has all it needs."

"Aye," Marlene pushed Sirius towards where Harry was kneading. "You knead, I'll mix more dough."

Sirius whispered something in her ear and then moved towards Harry while she laughed.

"Save it for when you're alone." Harry teased and Marlene tossed a bit of flour at him.

"For that, I'm going to wish a woman on you, Harry." Sirius laughed and took the next round of dough from Hestia.

"So that I can whisper inappropriate things to her?" Harry smirked and set his loaf on the proofing board.

"That is a benefit," Sirius winked at him.

"Leave him be, love," Marlene handed Harry more dough. "We'd be hard pressed to find a woman to tame our Harry; married to sea I say, fickle mistress that she is, trying to kill you one day and then loving you the next."

"Our Harry's a sailor to be sure," Hestia pulled the baked loaves from the oven and slid in the proofed loaves. "He'd need a woman just like the sea herself."

"Oi!" Harry protested their teasing. "I've no plans to settle down and take a wife."

"The thing with love, Harry," Sirius smiled over at Marlene, "Is that you never plan for it."

Harry had rolled his eyes at his godparents, but gave the matter little thought after the exchange.

It wasn't that Harry was blind or made of ice. He had looked after a woman and more from time to time.

When he was twelve he thought he might have been in love with Hannah, until he realized that would involve kissing her and the thought had made him recoil. Hannah was the closest thing to a sister he had and Harry learned to tell the difference between love for a sibling and romantic attraction.

When he was around fourteen Harry thought he loved Hestia, but realized a bit later it was her bread baking he really loved.

It was when he was sixteen that he thought he loved Mary McDonald, going so far as to contemplate asking his dad to assign them to the same tasks on the Phoenix, but those feelings were dashed when Mary mentioned that she would always see the little toddler running around the deck when she looked at him. That was when Harry realized he was best not to pursue any feelings of attraction towards anyone who watched him grow from infancy.

He'd spent a little time with a girl at one of the supply ports the Marauders had selected to work on the Phoenix; and while he rather enjoyed the sort of company she liked to keep with him, Harry could not fathom going after her to renew their arrangement let alone ask her hand in marriage. He wasn't even sure she had told him her real name, she always seemed surprised when he said it. Besides, whatever he might have felt for her was nothing compared to what he felt for the sea.

He attributed it to his injured pride, but after Mary had gently let him down - for now he could see it as it was - Harry had spent a night looking out at the sea, and he decided, under that starlit night, that he didn't need anything more than her, than the sea and her waves. She seemed to respond to his thoughts as the spray of the waves had reached up to kiss his face and the ship bowed him closer to her. He briefly contemplated jumping to her, but stopped himself, letting the closeness, the intimacy, be enough, be everything.

Not that the sea was an easy mistress. Marlene hadn't been exaggerating, the sea was a fickle thing. She did often try to send ships below her waves, but for the most part, Harry felt that the sea was the perfect partner. She was exciting, reliable, always strong but surprisingly gentle as well. Everything about her was captivating, encompassing, and he never wanted to be away from the ocean. His dad was right, the sea had claimed him all those years ago, and Harry surrendered. He was sure he could live a very happy life sailing the Phoenix through the sea till the day he died.

Having the first watch their first night back, Harry was lucky enough to eat just as soon as the stew was ready, which meant he also got a loaf of Hestia's bread right as it came out of the oven. Arabella's stew and Hestia's bread were probably his favorite meal and Harry saved a bit of his loaf to wipe his bowl clean. A side benefit of that being that washing his dishes was much easier.

"I'll be relieving you tonight, love." Lily squeezed his shoulder as Harry moved to the path that connected their caves to the anchored Phoenix. "Don't let me find you asleep from your meal."

Harry laughed and hugged his mum. "I promise, I'll be awake when you get there."

Harry picked his favorite rock to use as his main spot for watch over the ship and camp. It was really the ship that the Marauders kept watch over. The cliffs they used as a dock were the only way to gain access to the island, unless you could jump from your ship and scale sheer rock. Harry enjoyed the sense of security it gave him. They'd been safe here for nearly two decades.

Then Harry saw the flash of red again against the quickly fading sunlight.

He was looking over at the ship when it caught his eye. But where every other time the flash was gone as quickly as he'd seen it, this time Harry caught full view of the person the red was attached to.

He swore as the sailor he'd seen jump from the ship they'd sunk crept from the Phoenix to the island. His flaming red hair was matted in a braid down his back and his Deircian naval uniform was filthy with dirt and dried salt water. He had a sword belted to his hip but Harry saw no other signs of weapons on him. Harry cursed himself for not having brought his pistol and quietly unsheathed his sword. Carefully he crept back behind the rocks and watched, hoping the sailor would be foolish enough to come this way.

And the lad did. Slowly, with his sword held out in front of him as he moved over the rocky terrain, the sailor approached Harry's hiding spot.

It was the rocks that gave Harry away. The sound of pebbles shifting as he moved for the kill. And rather than the sound of a quick death the sound of steel against steel clanged around him.

Quickly he jumped from his position for even ground, putting himself between the sailor and the camp.

"Wait!"

Seeing her properly and hearing her voice, Harry realized that he was a she! He shoved his shock aside at the apparent reality that King Thomas had started allowing women to become sailors and moved to strike again.

She parried and tried to force him back but Harry gave her no ground.

"Listen!" She grunted as she was forced to take the step back.

"So sorry, the Marauders don't find much use in listening to the King's sailors."

"I'm not-" she was cut off by Harry's attempt to knock her feet out from under her. Harry wasn't interested in whatever lies she had to spew. He was however impressed at her technique. She was better trained than any of the King's sailors he'd fought before.

"No, stop!" She tried to shove him back and Harry heard a low whistle, the signal that help had arrived. A rush of adrenaline accompanied the sound and he parried and shoved his attacker back.

She just caught herself on the rocky terrain as she managed to ground out. "I need to talk to Captain Potter!"

Harry grinned as his mum stepped up behind the woman and grabbed her roughly around her shoulders, setting a knife against her throat.

"Interesting request, as you're currently trying to kill his son."

The woman held still and shot Harry a glare that made him laugh. She apparently thought her captured state his fault, which he was proud to take some credit in - as long as his mum didn’t know.

"You can let go of the sword now." Lily knocked the woman's sword with her boot.

The sword hit the rocks with a clatter.

"Very good," Lily smiled at Harry as he picked up the discarded weapon. "Now, why don't we all move slowly and you'll get to meet the Marauders."

"My message is for Captain Potter." The woman objected but dutifully stepped forward.

"You seem to be confused about your situation." Harry chuckled. Their prisoner wasn’t all there if you asked him. After all, what person in their right mind makes demands of their captors?

"I'm not after whatever loot you're burying here! I'm here to deliver a message to Captain Potter and nothing more!" There was an accusing edge in her voice and Harry felt his amusement start to fade as she glared at him, but his mum beat him to the retort.

"You've obviously been fed quite a bit of false information if you think we have buried treasure here, but we'll get to that later. Now let's move."

The woman nearly stumbled into Lily's knife at his mother's words, but Harry watched impressed as his mum kept the woman from killing herself.

Before he could comment further, they were met at the mouth of the camp by the Abbotts.

"Everything alright?" Hannah eyed the woman.

"We'll find out," Lily nodded to Hannah's parents. "David, Lisa, will you take a group and sweep the ship? We're not sure if she's alone."

"It's only me." The woman growled.

"Just to be certain, we'd hate to wind up dead, you see." Hannah laughed, but it lacked humor. "Do you want a sweep of the island too, Lily?"

Lily nodded. "Good idea, grab the rest of the crew and some torches. Be careful."

"Aye, aye," the Abbotts moved to the camp while Harry and his mum led their prisoner to the Potter's cave.

"We've had a stowaway," Harry called to his dad as they pushed the heavy leather cloth away.

"Get some rope, dear," His mum gestured to one of the chests. Harry tossed her a length and then took the knife and watched as the woman sat still and his mum bound her wrists and ankles.

"Well, well," James approached the prisoner. "I didn't think the King would be this clever."

"Captain James Potter?" The woman asked looking up from the floor.

"Lily, where did you find her?" James ignored the question.

"Harry found her. Now that she's bound, we can take her out to wait for everyone to get back from sweeping for more of them."

"My message is for Captain James Potter only!" She protested again.

But James had already swept out of the cave calling orders to the assembling crew.

"Well come on then," Harry hefted the woman up by her arm. He rolled his eyes when she ripped away from his grasp before moving forward on her own.

"Here," James gestured to the fire. "She might as well have a bit of bread and a cup of water while we wait for the search party to clear the ship and island."

The woman looked suspicious, but any protests died on her lips at the sight of one of Hestia's loaves and brimming cup of water.

"Thank you," her voice was quiet and her eyes were wide as she watched James.

"Eat up, then," Lily nudged her forward.

Harry expected the woman to inhale the food, but she ate it in small, measured bites, sipping the water as she slowly ate the bread. Harry wondered who on earth their prisoner was. She acted unlike any of the King’s sailors he’d ever encountered, or any sailor at all for that matter.

At her slow pace of eating, David and Lisa and their search group had returned before she was finished.

"All clear, Captain," David reported to James away from where Lily and the prisoner sat by the fire. "It doesn't look like any others stowed away. We found traces of this one, though, places she was hiding for a decent bit."

Harry felt guilt bottom out in his stomach at David's words.

"I noticed her," he hung his head a moment as he faced his dad. "I noticed her hair several times, and once I heard her, but I never thought someone would stow away. I'm sorry, Captain."

James put a strong hand on Harry's shoulder. "My boy, none of us expected this. Honestly, I don't know if we would have felt it possible had you said something. We've all grown accustomed to the Phoenix being secure against our enemies."

Harry nodded, "I still should have said something to you. You're the captain, you need to know these things."

"I'm your father first and always, Harry." James squeezed his shoulder. "We'll make sure the island is safe and then we'll find out what the King is up to now."

Harry tried to feel assured, tried to let his dad's words wash the sour taste from his mouth and sponge out the images of what could have happened if this woman hadn't had a message to deliver. But Harry still shivered knowing she could have killed them all in their sleep. He could have been the reason for the end of the Marauders, and the thought made his blood run cold.

The prisoner had finished her bread and water at her snail's pace by the time Hannah and the rest of the crew returned.

"It's only her, Captain." Hannah reported. "The island is clear."

James thanked her and beckoned the crew to the fire. “Let’s get this started then.”

"Well, Madame," James sat himself across from the prisoner as the crew came to sit near. "You've given us a rather eventful night. I think the least you could do is offer us some explanation."

"Like how you managed to get aboard our ship?" Remus asked.

The woman glared at the congregated crew before answering. "I was impersonating one of the King's sailors when the Phoenix attacked the ship I was on. I recognized your banner, jumped overboard, and swam for it. I managed to scale up the hull to the anchor's rope and I tied myself to it. When evening came, I climbed over onto the deck and then hid myself aboard the ship."

"Very clever to tie yourself to the rope." Marlene hummed. "Kept you from having to exert yourself to hold on."

"What's your name?" Fabien asked.

Harry turned to see Gideon and Fabien sticking to the shadows and whispering quietly to each other.

"I'm Ginny Weasley, youngest child and only daughter of the Marquee of Ottery St. Catchpole."

Harry rolled his eyes, no wonder this woman didn’t act like a sailor, she was a noblewoman. He turned back to see if Fabien would ask more, but saw Gideon whisper to Sirius then he and Fabien moved deeper into the shadows. Before Harry could try and catch Sirius’ eye, James continued the line of questioning.

"And what sort of message could be so important to risk your life for, Ginny?" James put another log on the fire. "Let alone trying to assimilate with the likes of the King's sailors?"

“I bring a message from His Grace, Albus Dumbledore, Duke of Godric for Captain James Potter of the Marauders.”

A low chuckle rumbled through the crew.

“Dumbledore, eh?” James shook his head. “So the old windbag is still sending others to do his work for him? Pity I thought he would have learned to do his own work by now.”

"What's the message?" Alice asked.

"My message is for Captain James Potter!" Ginny nearly shouted.

"Calm down," Lily shot back. "Captain James Potter is sitting right in front of you. There's no need to shout."

Harry grinned, finding the woman's frustration manifested on her face amusing. This was definitely not going how she thought it would.

She took a deep breath. "I was told to give the message to Captain James Potter and only to Captain Potter."

"Then Dumbledore obviously doesn't learn."

Harry turned to see Gideon and Fabien moving to stand behind James. The prisoner stared at the twins, her mouth agape and eyes wide.

"How's your mum, Ginny?" Fabien asked.

Ginny turned away from them. "Probably would be better if her brothers hadn't run away to become pirates instead of tending to their responsibilities."

"Oh," Sirius jeered. "I think our little lass is a bit confused about what really happened, along with what we are."

"Pitty, that," Gideon grinned at Fabien. "So much for a happy family reunion."

"Maybe reunion is the wrong word," Fabien smirked, "Seeing as we haven't met little Ginny here before."

Gideon laughed, "Ah, but she's so much like our Molly already, might as well be a reunion."

"I don't think we're going to get much further with this tonight." James stood and looked at Hannah. "Can I count on you to look after our guest?"

Hannah nodded confidently, "Aye, aye, Captain."

"Captain Potter," Neville stood. "Permission to look after Hannah while she watches over the prisoner?"

Harry bit his tongue to keep from laughing at the way Hannah rolled her eyes at her fiance. Several of the Marauders didn't manage to keep their laughter quiet.

James being one of them. "Alright, Nev, how about a compromise, I'll assign Harry to watch our guest first and you can enjoy your fiance tonight without any distractions."

Neville grinned sheepishly. "If it's alright with Hannah."

"It's fine Captain," she nodded to James before turning to Neville, "However we are going to have words."

The crew all laughed at Hannah's comment, even Neville.

Harry, while he chuckled, internally groaned at being given the task of watching their prisoner.

"Can you wait with her while I scrounge up a blanket or two?" Harry asked Dorcas as everyone started heading to their caves.

"Of course," Dorcas gave him an encouraging smile. "It'll be alright. Captain will rotate the responsibility, just like everything we do. We're a family, we all help pull the line."

"Thanks, Doe," Harry finally smiled.

Dorcas was right, he told himself. This assignment was just like any other, one that would rotate. He would take his turn and move on to other things, like hauling water or cooking breakfast.

He found a couple of old blankets and a mat that didn't look too worn out in one of the caves they stored supplies in. No point in listening to the woman complain all hours and keep him from a warm night's sleep. He returned to the fire to find his parents and Remus with Dorcas and the prisoner.

"Your mum and Dorcas checked her for anything sharp." James smiled as Harry approached. "So we shouldn't need to worry about her wandering off in the night."

"We had Kingsley, Edgar, and Sirius move a small boulder into your cave," Remus added, "You'll be able to tie her to that."

Harry nodded gratefully. "And I've got some extra blankets and an old mat. I think we're set."

"Excellent," Lily kissed his cheek. "Pull some rocks from the fire and we'll see you in the morning."

Harry used the tongs and selected the rocks he wanted for himself and a few for the prisoner. He looked at his basket of rocks, the pile of sleeping things, and then at the prisoner.

"We'll walk with you," Remus took the basket of rocks and Dorcas took the blankets and mat.

"Thank you," Harry turned to the woman. "Alright, let's get you set up." He reached for her arm but she pulled away.

"I won't be manhandled, and don't think I won't defend myself if you decide to take advantage of my person."

Harry rolled his eyes and grunted, "For someone fighting against the King, you sure do seem to believe a lot of his lies."

"That's plenty said," James cut in. "I promise you Ginny, as long as you aren't attempting to harm us, no one will harm you."

Harry heaved a sigh and looked at his mum who smiled encouragingly. He took strength from it and turned back to the woman.

"And I promise that as long as you aren't trying to kill me or cause trouble, I won't lay a hand on you."

She glared up at him and Harry noticed that she had the potential to be rather pretty, though right now she was a sight to be sure. She looked a bit like she'd come up from Davy Jones' locker.

"Lead on, then," she nodded.

Harry shook himself from staring down at her and moved.

His cave was at the far end of camp. He used to share one of the closer ones with Neville, but when Neville proposed to Hannah right before they took ship in the Spring, Harry and Neville went and found Harry a new cave. The couple even helped him clean it out and tidy it up. Hannah hadn't officially moved from her cave with Emmeline yet, but Harry was sure that it would happen in the next few days.

"Benjy's on watch right now," Remus set the basket of rocks inside while Harry lit his candle. "He'll come if you need anything."

"Thanks, both of you." He took the blankets and mat from Doe.

"Sleep well," Doe gave his shoulders a squeeze and then took Remus' arm as they walked out of the cave and let the leather cover fall closed over the opening.

"Well," Harry took the rope that bound their prisoner and tied it to the enormous rock that had been brought in. "That ought to do it for tonight. I'll lay out the mat and can help you with the blankets and putting some rocks nearby."

"I'll do it myself." She reached for the mat.

Harry let her take the mat and watched as she attempted to lay it out with her wrists and ankles bound fairly close together. She struggled for several minutes before she seemed satisfied with the mat and repeated the process with the blankets. Harry found the whole thing rather amusing, if a bit annoying.

"I'm still going to set out the rocks," Harry shook his head when she reached for the basket.

"I can do it myself," she ground out as she glared at him.

"I'm sure you'd try but I'd like to turn in sooner than an hour from now, so I will insist here that I lay out the rocks or you're welcome to sleep without them."

Her eyes flashed and she stomped to her mat. "I'll sleep without them then."

Awkwardly she managed to crawl under her blankets on her mat and turned her back to him.

Harry shrugged. He wasn't going to make her be warm while she slept.

He set about putting his blankets in order and sliding rocks under and around his cot to warm the air around him at least for a few hours. When the weather really turned cold they'd get out the water skins they filled with boiled sea water. That thought brought a smile to his face.

Once he had his rocks situated he went to blow out the candle and looked at the woman again. She was curled tightly against her blankets and Harry shook his head. She may not like it, but he apparently was going to make her be warm while she slept. He took the few rocks he'd grabbed for her and began setting them near enough to keep her warm.

"I said I'm fine," she kept her eyes closed, but the glare was evident in her voice.

"And I don't believe you," Harry shrugged and set the last rock close enough to keep her feet warm. "Since they're set out, you might as well enjoy them."

He moved to his own blankets and blew out the candle. Once settled Harry sighed, missing the rocking of the ship in his hammock below the Phoenix's deck and the steady song of the sea as her waves hit the hull.

Turning to look across the blackness to where he knew the prisoner lay he shook his head. So much for a nice quiet winter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry woke to the sounds of camp waking and smiled as he pulled his blankets closer. The soft sheep wool with the heavy leather backing made it his favorite blanket for how warm it kept him through the night. The others he used were sturdy and well put to their task, but the sheep's wool was soft to distraction and warm as the summer's sun.

He reluctantly opened his eyes to look across at the woman. She lay sleeping in her blankets, still wrapped tightly around her as she curled in on herself. Harry frowned. If she was going to be here for long they'd need to figure out something better or she'd catch cold. That was the last thing they needed. A sickness running through camp often happened once a winter, but Harry much preferred if it didn't happen at all.

He pushed up out of his blankets and set one of his own over her. She snuggled beneath it and Harry watched her face relax as she slipped into a deeper sleep. He moved to untie her from the boulder and then pulled one of his books from the proper trunk. Quietly lighting the candle to read until she woke up.

It was nice having another person in the cave, even if they were a bad tempered mess. He'd grown accustomed to Neville and while he didn't miss the occasional snoring, he did miss the company, and the way Hannah always ended up there with them. It felt like being surrounded by that sheep wool blanket, and while Harry wouldn't necessarily admit it out loud, it was sort of lonely now with them off being in love. He'd never wish to take their happiness from them, he loved that they'd come together, he just had to adjust to this new way of being with them, somewhat on the outside.

That was another benefit of the sea, Harry mused. She never made him feel on the outside. She held him so close he knew her innermost emotions, her ebb and flow, she made him her own. She had claimed Harry completely.

Harry managed to read through several pages before the woman stirred. He looked over to see her first burrow further under the blankets before apparently becoming aware of her surroundings a bit more and bolting upright.

"Morning," he marked the page in his book and set it down. "Sleep alright?"

She glared at him and Harry rolled his eyes.

"Will I be able to speak with Captain Potter alone today?"

"I would put a significant wager down on no, but you're welcome to dream." He stood and collected all the rocks back into the basket. "Let's get to breakfast while it's still warm." He held out his hand to help her up but she turned away.

"I'm getting up, no need to grab me."

Harry huffed as he shook his head. "I'll be glad when it's someone else's turn to deal with you."

"And I'll be glad once Captain Potter lets me deliver my message and then I can be rid of you as well. I don't have time for pirates." She wobbled a little as she came to stand but continued to glare at him.

Harry held his tongue at her insult and pushed open the covering to the cave as he blew out his candle and waited for the woman to step out. She stood straight as a board as she stared defiantly back at him.

"I don't care much if you aren't hungry but I am and you unfortunately have to come along so let's step to it."

"I'm still tied to the boulder if you've forgotten." She shot back.

"No you're not," Harry gestured to rope around the rock. "I untied it when I woke up. So pick up the slack and let's go."

She continued to glare at him as she picked up the bit of slack in her rope and Harry wondered if the woman ever smiled. She might be pretty if she did, but he was seriously doubting that she even knew how.

"I'm surprised you trust me with enough rope to strangle one of you."

Harry rolled his eyes and took the rope from her hands. "There now you can't attempt to strangle anyone in a camp where twenty-two other people would be there to slit your throat before you could get the job done."

That earned him her meanest glare yet and Harry had to admit he was rather proud of it. She seemed to be upset with him on principle, so it felt right to give her a valid reason. One of the things Marauders were known for was mischief after all.

"Took you long enough," Sirius called from the fire.

"Someone slept late," Harry nodded towards the woman.

"Makes sense, probably the first night she's slept warm and laid out for weeks."

"We've got porridge this morning," Benjy stirred what was left in the pot.

Harry grinned, "And honey?"

"Aye," Emmeline pointed to the clay jar on the table.

Harry grabbed his bowl. "Do we have a spare for her?"

"Right here," Marlene handed it to him.

Harry turned and the woman was now staring in the direction of his parents' cave.

"Eh."

She didn't turn.

Harry rubbed his eyes and tried to recall her name.

"Eh, Ginny."

She turned, "What?"

"Breakfast?" He held the bowl and spoon out to her.

"You ought to eat," Marlene nodded to her. "I'm sure you've lost strength living off our scraps for the last couple of weeks."

Ginny looked like she wanted to growl at Marlene but snatched the bowl and spoon from Harry instead.

"I think we should try and get her a bath and some new clothes," Marlene turned to Emmeline. "The King's uniform turns my stomach."

Emmeline laughed. "I bet Hannah would have a few things. Her shirts would fit at least."

"I've a spare set of trousers," Marlene nodded, "I think they'd do nicely."

"I don't need other clothes," Ginny objected.

Her attitude was starting to grate on Harry. "So you enjoy displaying the King's colors?"

She turned to him looking like he'd slapped her.

Sirius laughed, "I think you got her that time, Harry."

A part of Harry felt guilty for the way she looked at him, shocked at his words, but the larger part was glad that he'd knocked her down a few pegs. Her high and mighty attitude was about to drive him mad.

"See Ginny," Sirius continued, "We're a carefree sort of crew, but we do have our lines. You're walking on them right now with many of us. Lighten up, smile a bit, I think you'll find you might like us, even with how hard you're trying to hate us."

"I'm not here to like any of you, I'm here to deliver a message to Captain Potter and then return to Lord Dumbledore and report." Ginny added a very large portion of honey to her porridge and Harry hid his smirk. Ginny may play the hardened warrior, but he was starting to suspect this was mostly an act; there was apparently a sweeter, perhaps softer, side to Ginny.

Harry fell easily into conversation with those around the fire and enjoyed his porridge while Ginny sat sullen and silent beside him.

"Good morning," James and Lily approached the fire.

Harry smiled and went to greet his parents when Ginny jumped up. "Captain Potter, permission to deliver my message to you."

James laughed, "You've had permission to do so since we caught you trying to run Harry through."

"Privately, Sir," she ground out.

Harry thought it a wonder she still had teeth for how often he'd seen her grind them together.

James sighed and sat down before patting the spot next to him. "I'm going to explain this once, Ginny."

Ginny reluctantly sat next to him.

"I know that Dumbledore is a secretive sort. He's probably told you that the success of your mission is dependent on the secrecy of it. And while making sure the King's sailors didn't know you weren't really one of them was fairly important, I am not a man of secrets. I hold no secrets from my crew. And we make important decisions together. We're united, a family, and I wouldn't break their trust for anything."

Harry felt his heart swell with pride at his dad's words.

"So Ginny, here is your choice: you can relay Dumbledore's message to the entire crew, or we can drop you off at the nearest port."

Ginny looked up, surprised. "You'd take me to a port?"

"Why wouldn't we?" Lily laughed.

"I thought," she trailed off and focused on the rope binding her wrists.

"May I have the day to consider it?"

"Aye," James patted her shoulder. "We'll make sure you have what you need to get home, regardless of your choice."

"Now," Marlene stood, "Why don't we heat up some water for the crew to bathe, specifically you Ginny, and then we'll get you some new clothes." She looked around at those assembled. "Is there any need to keep her bound?"

Lily turned to Ginny, "Can you restrain yourself?"

Ginny nodded. "I promise not to harm any of you."

"I'll make sure that's enough for the others, but she'll need to be free to bathe at least." Emmeline stood and cut the rope around Ginny's wrists and ankles.

"Here," Harry reached for her empty bowl and spoon. "I'll wash them with mine."

She wordlessly handed them over and Harry glanced at his dad as he moved to clean the dishes. James smiled approvingly and nodded him on.

It was nice to see Ginny less combative. If she was going to keep behaving the way she had the night before Harry was pretty sure he'd need to ask his dad to rotate watch over her to someone else within the hour.

The ladies insisted the men bathe first, and Harry insisted they first get the boulder out of his cave. But once the boulder was out and the men cleaned, the ladies took Ginny with them for their turn with the water. Harry pulled on a clean shirt and trousers and decided to lounge about with Sirius and Remus near the Black's cave until it was time for him to start back up his watch over Ginny.

"How did things go last night?" Remus pulled out a piece of driftwood and a whittling knife.

"She's even more standoffish with me than she is when the whole crew is around. I asked where she wanted the rocks from the fire last night and she told me that sleeping cold was preferable to my help."

Sirius turned to face Harry, "Did you let her sleep in the cold?"

"Of course not," Harry frowned. "I just put the rocks where I thought they should go and then this morning when I woke I gave her one of my blankets."

Sirius nodded, "You're not what she thought we'd be."

"What do you mean?" Harry leant forward.

"That your godfather suspects what we all suspected when we left." James came and sat down next to Harry.

"You see Harry," Sirius continued, "We have our own flag, we don't fly the Deircian banner or the Jolly Roger."

"I know," Harry nodded. "We fly the Marauders' banner. You all designed it and Marlene, Emmeline, Hestia, and Alice made it."

"Right, but the name we get from the Deircian crown, and probably from others in Deircia as well, is pirates."

"We're not pirates, we're welcome in ports outside of Deircia." Harry defended. But his dad studied him and Harry ran his hand through his hair. "But, I guess we do some of the same things as pirates do. We sink ships in the King's armada."

"Exactly," James smiled encouragingly, "so to the Deircians, the name isn't totally unfounded, even if it is inaccurate. I would say that Ginny believed she was coming into a den of bloodthirsty pirates. Then you not only don't force yourself on her but ensure that she sleeps warm."

Harry shook his head, "Well, she's seeing that we're not really pirates, so why not just tell us whatever Dumbledore's message is? Then we can get her home."

"Dumbledore has a different way of functioning." Remus looked up from his knife. "He probably didn't bother to tell her anything about what to do if we wouldn't allow her to complete her mission the way he told her to."

"But that doesn't make sense. This is her mission now, she should make the decisions on how it goes."

James chuckled, "We've raised you in a different way than I'm sure Ginny's been. Have you forgotten she's Gideon and Fabien's niece?"

Harry blinked, "Er, aye, I did forget."

"She's the daughter of a Marquee."

"And you used to be a Duke," Harry shrugged. "What difference does that make?"

"But she grew up in that environment, Harry." James ran his hand into his hair. "Do you remember that night on the deck? I asked you about castles and people bowing to you?"

Harry nodded.

"What we left is what she grew up in. There are people who bow to her, people who make her meals, people who clean her dishes. Her time in the King's navy would have been different, but she still grew up in that environment. They think differently than we do and she's having a bit of culture shock."

"You all grew up in that environment and you don't think that way." Harry countered.

"It's a conscious choice," Remus responded. "We realized that the old way wasn't going to work after we left. We agreed that we'd be on an even footing, no longer concerned about the order of precedence or anything to do with our old lives."

"It took us a while to get this down, Harry," Sirius chuckled. "This family had it's growing pains, but you were too young to see it when it was the hardest for us."

"So maybe," Harry looked towards the center of camp as he saw the women coming back from bathing. "If I can explain to Ginny how we function, how we've let go of that old way, she'll understand why it has to be all of us."

"It's worth a try," James nodded. "Are you willing to be the one to do it? I can find someone else if you need a break from her. I was actually thinking of having her uncles do it."

Harry thought about it for a good moment. Ginny had been a pain since she'd stowed away on the Phoenix, but trying to see it from her side, as his dad and uncles had just helped him to do, Harry felt some compassion for her. He'd probably feel the same way as Ginny did now if he was in her world.

"I'm willing to give it the first go. If she won't listen to me then maybe we should find someone else, but she knows I won't force anything on her, she has proof of it. I think I should be the one to try it."

"I agree," Sirius nodded and stood, "Let's go see how much nicer the camp is without a King's uniform in its midst."

Harry chuckled and approached the women with Sirius, James, and Remus.

And then he caught sight of Ginny.

He'd been sorely mistaken when he thought she'd be rather pretty cleaned up. Ginny was breathtakingly beautiful. She wore a pair of Marlene's brown trousers and one of Hannah's linen shirts, the standard garb for all the Marauders, but her hair that had been a matted and tangled mess pulled back behind her head when he'd found her was now flowing in long, damp strands over her back and shoulders. And her skin that had been smeared in dirt and dried sea water was now a creamy porcelain like color and covered in freckles.

Ginny, when not in her Deircian sailor's uniform, was something Harry wanted to keep seeing forever.

"She's a right side prettier now, eh?" Marlene called out to them.

"Aye," Sirius laughed, "I reckon she feels a bit better too?"

Ginny didn't quite glare at Sirius but she didn't necessarily look pleased with his comment either.

"I definitely prefer being clean to being covered in dirt."

"You look much nicer," Lily handed Ginny a dry towel for her hair and then took one for herself. "And the crew agrees you don't need to be bound while you're here, as long as you understand that an attempt against any of us would result in unpleasant results."

Ginny huffed, "I understand that I'm your prisoner, yes."

James shook his head, "No, you don't understand. If you want to go home we'll get you to a port within the week. You get to leave when you want to."

Ginny frowned. "But you won't let me deliver my message."

"He will, to all of us." Harry interjected.

Ginny turned her almost-glare on him. "I'm starting to think no one can hear me."

Harry looked around at his family and back at Ginny. He needed to get her off her guard and he didn't think he could do it with everyone around. "Come on," he gestured, "Let's take a walk and I'll explain it to you."

Ginny rolled her eyes but moved with him towards his cave.

"Ginny," he started again when they were a ways off. "Will you let me try and explain what's going on?"

"It seems pretty obvious to me. Your dad won't let me complete my mission."

"But do you understand why?" Harry pressed.

"Arrogance would be my guess."

Harry clenched his fists. "That's not it at all."

"Fine, what would you call it?"

"Loyalty to his family."

"What do you and your mum have to do with this?" Ginny gripped the towel in her hands.

"That's where you're confused," Harry gestured around the camp, "We're all family. We don't distinguish the Potters from the Longbottoms from the Prewetts. We're the Marauders and we're a family. We threw rank out to the sea when we left. We're equals. We operate as a unit, making decisions together, working as a team. Dad is Captain, but he still takes a turn at the oars, or washing, or cooking. We all do."

"You realize that sounds ridiculous right?" Ginny scoffed. "Pirates that aren't after treasure and work as a united group."

Harry pushed his hand into his hair. Wherever Ginny was learning about the Marauders, let alone pirates, was sorely misleading. He determined that while she might look like a dream, she was still behaving closer to a nightmare.

"Think about it from my point of view. How you grew up sounds ridiculous to me. Having people bow to you, clean for you, having to bow to others? To me that's idiocy."

Ginny stopped walking, "What?"

"You heard me, bowing to another human sounds like idiocy to me."

She huffed in frustration and stormed forward, past his cave and towards the center of the island.

"I bet you don't realize how wrong you are. I bet that you don’t see how messed up your little family really is."

"Really?" Harry followed after her. "Please, enlighten me then."

"Alright," She rounded on him, "Explain to me why there are no children in your perfect family, because it's obvious to me at the very least Sirius and Marlene aren't celibate."

Harry sputtered. "What are you suggesting?"

Ginny smirked at him and Harry felt his blood boil.

"We aren't murdering children or giving away babes," he spat. "There's a leaf from the far east, the Marauders found out about it when they first left Deircia, and it will allow a person to control when they bear children if they eat it regularly." He took a breath to keep from shouting. "We barely had enough people to sail the ship when we started out, and Neville, Hannah, and myself were causing quite a bit of trouble being less than two-years-old. It wasn't easy having three children on board that needed tending when every hand was needed to sail. The crew decided that it was better this way, to keep our numbers right where they were rather than create a small town here."

"So it was your dad's decision." Ginny's smile was triumphant and Harry felt his temper flare again.

"No! You ask any Marauder and they'll tell you it's their choice! Dad doesn't use the title of captain for anything other than to ensure if we ever do get caught by Deircia he goes to the gallows and the rest of us stand a chance at life! We're a family, not some aristocratic hierarchy! We left those titles and the life they represented for something more!"

"Oh please, you weren't even two, how would you know?" Ginny moved away from him again and Harry moved to block her path.

"You were questioned in front of and by the entire crew," Harry pointed out. "Tell me your precious Dumbledore is that open. Would he have called your little secret group together to question me? Or would you have got some watered down debriefing after he'd questioned me privately, assuming you were lucky enough to be considered on the need to know list?"

Ginny stared up at him in shock and Harry could see the truth in her eyes.

"So Dumbledore hasn't changed at all from the stories I've grown up hearing? Still full of secrets? Secrets that come close to people ending up dead?"

She spun away from him and bolted at a dead run.

"Ginny!"

Harry sprinted after her.

"Ginny, stop!"

"No!"

"Ginny!" He finally caught up with her and snagged her arm. "We aren't your enemy!"

She yanked her arm away from him. "But you're pirates! You're not on my side!"

"We aren't really pirates! You have to know that now! And you can't know we aren't on your side because you won't even talk with us long enough to find out!" He stepped closer to her. "But I think we are. And if you give us a chance, really get to know us, you might find you like our way better."

Ginny stared up at him, her chest rising and falling heavily from their shouting match. Harry found his thoughts wandering, wandering to what her arm might feel like without the linen of her shirt covering her skin…

"And what if I don't like it better?" She pulled away and Harry sighed as his hand fisted in his hair.

"Then we'll get you to a port and give you enough money to buy passage home." He shook his head. "You've got nothing to lose, Ginny, except maybe a bunch of preconceived opinions."

Ginny scoffed, "And what of everyone your crew left behind?"

Harry shook his head, "No one was forced to follow us."

"Your precious family left their servants on their own." Her tone told him this was a bigger issue than he felt it was.

"Are there laws that say they can't find new employers? New jobs?" He frowned.

"No, but they were your responsibility, and you left all of them destitute!"

Harry scoffed, "That's ridiculous. A man or woman ought to be able to be responsible for themselves. Besides, the employment of a group of people means little when the employers are murdered. Excuse me for feeling us being alive was more important than a few people's jobs."

"You don't understand!" She shook her head.

"Now you know how I feel!"

And that seemed to be the line that brought Ginny up short. At least she paused to look at him again for a long moment before responding.

“So where does that leave us?”

Harry gripped his hair, “With you making the decision to either go home, or,” he let his hand fall, “Or giving us a chance to be more than you think of us.”

He sighed and shook his head. “I’ll let you think it over. Just follow the path back when you’re ready for a meal, I’m on cooking duty for lunch and need to get back.” Harry turned away and left Ginny standing among the rocks.

Neville and Hannah had already started on lunch when Harry returned.

“I take it from the shouting that things didn’t go well?” Hannah wrapped him in a hug.

“I tried,” Harry shook his head.

“Don’t worry about it, mate, she’ll probably ask to leave now that she knows we’ll get her to a port.” Neville gripped his shoulder.

Harry nodded, ashamed to admit that part of him was disappointed that she would be leaving. He’d meant what he said to her, that she could like it better with them, that she could stay. For all her stubbornness and spite, Harry was drawn to her, and he couldn’t ignore the despondent feeling that was forming in a dark corner of his heart that she didn’t feel the same draw to him. At least when they took her to a port, he’d have the sea. Even as winter took hold, the sea was still better than being on land while lamenting a blasted woman.

“Harry,” Fabien and Gideon called out to him, “Where’s our niece?”

Harry gestured toward the path that led to the center of the island. “Down that way. I warn you her temper has flared from our conversation though.”

They laughed, “Just like her mum then. Thanks, mate.” And the two walked down the path.

Harry watched them go until they were out of sight and returned to making lunch. Hannah and Neville did a decent job at distracting him with conversation and laughter and by the time they were serving up the meal Harry felt like his blood had finally cooled.

“Where are Gideon and Fabien?” Emmeline looked around as Harry sat down next to her and Kingsley.

“They went to take a turn talking to Ginny,” Harry motioned with his head toward the center of the island.

“Looks like they’re back,” Kingsley spoke before taking another bite of his food.

Harry looked up and caught sight of the three redheads moving towards them. Ginny didn’t look nearly so put out as she had when he left. Maybe her uncles had succeeded where he’d failed. He didn’t make any attempt to go to her, finishing his meal and washing his dishes before going to his cave to retrieve his book. He chose a sunny place near the center of camp and sat down to read.

When a shadow was cast over him, he knew it was her.

“Hello,” he marked his page before closing the book.

“Hello,” she sat down next to him, looking down at her boots.

“I’m sorry for making you so upset earlier, and shouting at you.” Harry started.

“You’re not the only one to blame. My uncles managed to help me to understand a bit more of your side of things, and where I’ve been more than difficult.” She finally looked at him and offered a very small smile. “I’m sorry too, Harry.”

Harry grinned, he rather liked the sound of his name on her lips; and her smile. “You’re beautiful when you smile, you know?”

Ginny laughed and Harry felt the sound of it like he did the ocean rolling against the hull of the Phoenix.

“Did you learn that one from Sirius or your dad?”

“From Neville, actually,” Harry grinned.

They smiled at each other for a long moment and Harry felt the pull to touch her again.

“Want to try that walk again? No shouting, I promise.”

Ginny laughed, “Alright, since you promised.”

Harry stood with her and grabbed his book.

“What are you reading?” She reached for his book.

“It’s a charting book, star maps for navigation and techniques for pulling direction from them.”

“Is that your assignment on the Phoenix then?” Ginny thumbed through the pages.

“One of them, we all take a turn on most things, but some of us are better at things that are important to get right. Mary, David, Benjy, Elphias, and I are the ones who are competent to navigate at night and so we rotate that job among the five of us.” He slipped the book from her hands and deposited it back into his cave. He saw her blankets on a pile on the floor and grabbed a machete from one of his crates.

“That’s a big knife,” Ginny frowned as he emerged from his cave.

Harry attached it to his belt. “I thought since we don’t have any spare cots, we’d make you one. I can’t imagine sleeping on the ground last night was comfortable, even with the mat.”

“Make me a cot?” Ginny smiled at him again and Harry felt twice as tall.

“Of course, what sort of pirates would we be if we made you sleep on the floor the entire time you were here?”

“You’d be real pirates,” Ginny followed after him as he moved to the center of the island where a small smattering of trees grew. “But it’s been pointed out to me many times now that you’re much more easy going than pirates.”

“Yes, well, we’ve found that pirates are far too greedy, self-centered, and tend to end up dead rather quickly. The whole point of life is living it. Winding up dead seems counterproductive.”

“Alright then not-a-pirate-Harry, how do we make a cot?”

Harry laughed, “I think you can just call me Harry, though not-a-pirate-Harry has a nice ring to it.”

“I’ve always had a way with words.” Ginny grinned.

“I can imagine,” He grinned back before the rocks slid under his boots and he brought his focus back to the task at hand. “But on to your cot. We start with a couple of stout trunks or large branches a bit longer than you.”

“Branches? On an island that’s only rocks and moss?”

“This island is full of surprises.”

Ginny tucked her hair behind her ear, “I’m starting to realize that the Marauders tend that way.”

Harry ran a hand in his hair as he felt his chest warm. She was a dream to look at, and when she wasn’t shouting at him, Ginny was a dream to be around as well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“And there we have it.” Harry tied off the rope that held Ginny’s new cot together. “Now you’ll not need to sleep on the ground.”

Ginny sat down on the cot and smiled. “You’re a useful sort, Harry, thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” Harry grabbed a cloth and started cleaning his machete. “I’ve learned a few things along the way.”

“Where did you learn to make a cot?”

“One of the ports to the south," He didn't necessarily know yet if he wanted to tell her Keshmar was their main port for supplies and repairs. "We stayed there for several weeks to make some repairs on the Phoenix. I worked for one of the shop owners I met. He taught me how to make what he sold as well.”

“You worked for him?”

Harry nodded, “I asked if he could use a hand while my ship was in port and he agreed. It was a good arrangement; he got a break, I earned a bit to buy a few things, learned a lot, and found a way to pass the time while I was stuck on land.”

“Why would you want to work for someone?” Ginny pulled her legs against her chest as the late afternoon chill started to seep into the cave.

“We need to find a spare coat for you.” Harry pulled his overcoat from his chest and tossed it to her. “And I wanted to work for someone because we try to keep the money everyone brought with them for the big repairs that the Phoenix needs on occasion.”

“You find bowing to another man idiocy but working beneath someone is fine?” Ginny pulled the overcoat around her and buttoned it up around her knees.

“I got paid a fair wage,” Harry chuckled at how much smaller she looked that way. “And at least working beneath someone, I have the chance to learn, to help someone else make it a bit further ahead in exchange for some of the profits.”

Ginny sighed, “You think completely differently from everyone else, you know?”

Harry shook his head, “It’s not just me. I’ve been to countries without Kings, without aristocracy, without a singular leader even. I've been to places that are ruled by a committee.”

“How do they function?” Ginny scoffed.

“Quite well,” Harry set his cloth down and pulled out his sharpening stone. "You'd be surprised how well a man or a woman can get along without a dozen people breathing down their necks just because they're "higher born" or whatever nonsense."

"But who takes care of them?"

Harry looked up from sharpening his machete. "What do you mean? They look after themselves."

Ginny shook her head. "That’s not how it works.”

“Maybe not in Deircia, but in many other places that is exactly how it works.” Harry wiped down the machete again before resheathing it. He knew this was the same sort of conversation that got them yelling at each other hours before, so he changed the subject. “What’s Deircia like? I’ve never been back since we left, seeing as we’re all wanted dead.”

Ginny gave him a smile and Harry felt the apprehension of a fight ease away. It felt the same as when storm clouds would disperse over the sea before they managed to rock ships to their breaking point.

“It’s beautiful, rolling green hills, fields with wildflowers and forests filled with trees.” She sighed. “It’s been hard though. King Thomas’ laws and policies are ruining us and the people. We need to be rid of him or the country is going to implode.”

Harry put everything away and came to sit next to her. “Is that part of Dumbledore’s message?”

Ginny went silent and Harry waited.

“I guess I need to talk to everyone about this.”

“Aye, if you’re going to deliver Dumbledore’s message.”

She pushed her legs out of his overcoat and stood from her cot. “Well, then let’s go see if the crew will listen to me for a few minutes.”

Harry grinned, “We’ll make a Marauder of you yet.”

Ginny shook her head, “I’m a Deircian.”

“We can’t all be perfect,” Harry laughed and led her out of his cave.

It didn’t take long to collect the crew to the center of camp and Harry got the fire going.

“Alright, Ginny, let’s have Dumbledore’s message then.” James wrapped an arm around Lily’s shoulders.

Harry sat next to Ginny as she spoke.

“Lord Dumbledore asks that the Marauders help us in disposing of King Thomas. Deircia is going to collapse under his tyranny if we don’t do something to remove him and all of his court.”

Harry turned to stare at her. Dumbledore wanted them to do what?

“Did Dumbledore tell you how he wanted our help?” Alice asked.

Ginny shook her head. “I wasn’t told what your part would be.”

“Figures,” Benjy groaned. “The old coot hasn’t changed a bit.”

“What are you supposed to do if we say yes?” Lily asked.

Ginny bit her lip, “I’m supposed to stay with you and send word to Lord Dumbledore to meet us at a port of your choosing.”

“And if we say no?” Sirius watched her intently.

“Then I’m supposed to escape and report back to him in Deircia.”

“Escape, eh?” Harry chuckled bitterly.

Ginny didn’t look at him, but her shoulders slumped.

James looked around the fire. “Well, Marauders, what say we?”

“Why help him?” Arabella spat. “His planning nearly got us all killed last time.”

“And our children,” David added, a protective hand on Hannah’s shoulder.

“What would it hurt to hear his plan?” Fabien asked. “We could meet with him, find out what his plan is, and then decide.”

“We'll tell him that any secrets will result in us catching the next tide out.” Gideon added.

“I’m curious what he wants from us too,” Hannah added.

“Aye,” several of the crew members spoke, including Harry.

James looked around the fire. “Are we in agreement to talk to Dumbledore then? Is anyone against talking, not agreeing to help him until we know what we’re in for?”

No one spoke, though Harry noticed that David and a few others looked very nervous.

James noticed too as he spoke. “I think we’ll wait out the winter then, and when spring comes, Dumbledore can meet us at our supply port, talk with us while we take care of the Phoenix, and we can decide whether we’ll help him then.”

“Aye,” the crew agreed.

“Am I to stay here until then?” Ginny looked around at them all.

“Do you want to?” Lily asked.

Harry felt himself hopeful that she might say yes.

Ginny looked around, her eyes falling on her uncles and then on Harry.

"I'll stay if the crew wants me here."

Harry felt the upward curve of his lips and warmth fill his chest.

"Does anyone object to Ginny spending the winter with us?" James asked.

"She'd have to pull her own weight," Elphias spoke. "She won't be waited upon."

"Think you can manage a turn on watch and cooking and cleaning and hauling?" Lily smiled at Ginny.

"I'll take my turn," Ginny promised, "For the winter, I'll be your twenty-fourth crew member."

"Excellent," Mary stood up, "You can start with helping out with dinner tonight. The rest of you can shove off; if we don't start now we won't be eating until three hours after the sun has set."

Ginny looked to Harry, hesitant to move towards Mary.

"I'll grab my book and be close by," he promised. "Mary's kind, she'll treat you well."

She nodded, still looking worried, but stood and rolled up Harry's overcoat sleeves.

Harry hesitantly reached out and took her elbow. To his happy surprise, she didn't immediately pull away, but leant into him.

"You'll be alright," Harry assured her. "I'll be right back." He gave her elbow a gentle squeeze before pressing her forward.

Harry quickly retrieved his book and found a place out of the way but close to the fire to read. He didn't read much though. He was too distracted, watching Ginny.

She started out quiet, only speaking long enough to ask for clarification on directions, but Harry grinned as her confidence grew and she started to show the same sort of confidence in her interactions with Mary and Kingsley and the other Marauders as she displayed with her arguments and her sword. Ginny, once she stopped feeling threatened, was a master at getting people to not only talk and interact with her, but like her.

When she wasn't being a pain and she looked like a dream, Ginny was the kind of woman Harry could get used to being around.

"So," Ginny sat next to him after they'd finished their dinner, "Would you like your cave back?"

Harry blinked. "Oh, was there someone else you wanted to share a cave with?"

Of course she would want to be somewhere else. Sleeping in his cave came about because she had been their prisoner, but now she was a crew member, she could choose to sleep wherever she wanted.

Ginny frowned, "Not particularly, but I figured you'd want to be back on your own. The rest of the crew makes you out to be rather...independent."

Harry chuckled. "I'm often referred to as married to the sea, but I don't mind sharing my cave with you." He held his breath hoping she'd agree to stay.

"Well, we wouldn't need to move the cot you built me if I stayed in your cave."

"Spoken like a true Marauder," Harry finally felt his heart rate settle. "We'll make a pirate of you yet."

Ginny looked up to smile at him. "The Marauders aren't pirates."

"I reckon we aren't at that."

They didn't speak much to each other after that, though Ginny did stay near him through the evening. And when everyone started towards their beds, Ginny waited until Harry stood and started gathering rocks from the fire.

"Here," she held out her hand for the basket.

Harry handed her the basket with a smile, "Thanks."

There was a quiet comfort in gathering the rocks with Ginny, and Harry found he wanted more of it, more of the feeling of being connected to another person this way. Especially when he took the basket back and walked through the dark with her to his cave.

"I'll need to ask around for some odd clothes, I suppose," Ginny slid out of his coat. "I can't very well steal all your things."

"My overcoat and spare blanket don't well qualify as all I own." Harry took the coat and laid it in its trunk.

"Spare blanket?" Ginny looked down at her cot.

"You looked cold this morning," Harry turned to avoid her gaze as she turned it on him. "I thought you could use another blanket."

"Thank you."

Harry glanced at her and her soft smile made his lips turn up at the corners. The image of her under his blanket tonight, looking like a sea faerie rather than a sea monster, was something to look forward to.

"Would you like to put your own rocks out tonight?" He let his smile win out.

"Sure," Ginny laughed and hid behind her hair for a moment. "Thank you for putting them out last night. It was cold."

"You said it, we're not much in the way of pirates." Harry shoved his hand in his hair.

Ginny picked up the basket and the canvas used to handle the rocks. "There's a lot I thought you were that I'm realizing you aren't."

"So suspicious," Harry sat and pulled off his boots. "But a good amount of suspicion keeps us alive I suppose."

"You did attack me when you first saw me." Ginny laughed and handed him back the basket. "Kettle, meet pot."

"You can hardly blame me," Harry took the basket and began laying out his own rocks. "You stowed away on our ship. That's not normally what friendly people do."

"How else was I supposed to get a message to you?" Ginny slid under her blankets and propped her head up with her elbow and wrist. Harry watched, noticing that she held the position better than the women at the ports who were interested in entertaining docked sailors.

"Touche," he turned away, setting the basket near the foot of his cot as his excuse to put some distance between them. He wasted no time climbing under his blankets and blowing out the candle. Looking at her, the dream that she was, in that position, was going to make him wish he really were a pirate.

Plunged into darkness, Harry regained some control.

"Your style and technique were impressive." He said quietly.

"As were yours," her voice had the same hushed quality as his own. "Perhaps tomorrow, we could show each other more?"

Harry laughed. "If we do that, we'll likely end up with most of the crew participating, or spectating."

"So much the better for when I knock you on your back."

Harry looked over, nothing visible to him in the pitch black. "You sound rather confident for a woman who was taken prisoner while she fought me."

"I was taken prisoner by your mum." She laughed. "You didn't manage to best me."

"I guess we'll find out if I needed a partner to take you or not."

"Sleep well, Harry," Ginny sounded smug and Harry wished he could see her face. "You're going to need it."

They quieted and while Harry missed the rocking of the sea and the song of her waves, he had to admit that Ginny's steady breathing wasn't a bad substitute.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Morning crested with the crisp smell of winter’s quickening approach and Harry snuggled deeper under his blankets. He blinked open his eyes long enough to ensure that Ginny slept on then closed his eyes again.

The blasted woman was starting to become something of a fascination and she’d only been with the crew out in the open two days. He realized that he'd been a bit preoccupied with her before she stepped off the ship as well though. The red color of her hair was captivating, even if he didn't realize that's what he was seeing.

Harry shifted with frustration, trying to rid himself of the visions that flooded him.

"I thought pirates were supposed to snore." Ginny's groggy voice drifted through the dim sunlight breaking through the leather door. "Not make their cots creak like frogs."

Harry chuckled. "Tell me, what else do the supposed pirate Marauders do?"

"You snore-"

"I think I've proved that inaccurate."

"You sink every ship in the Deircian Armada."

"Guilty."

"You sink Deircian merchants."

"The only one was an accident, and we collected her passengers and took them to the nearest port and paid that captain handsomely in retribution."

She scoffed. "How do you accidentally sink a ship?"

"We were trying to catch up to see what she was and she ran into rocks. If she'd just stayed put we would have seen she was a merchant and moved on."

"That's ridiculous, we all understand you to be pirates."

Harry growled. "So the lies from the crown are what everyone believes?"

"Well, His Grace, Duke Dumbledore, told us he thought they were exaggerations."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, everyone outside of Deircia knows we're not pirates. The Marauders' banner is even welcomed in ports, like Keshmar."

"But you kill innocent sailors." She let the accusation hang in the air and Harry bristled.

"Have the laws changed? Is it now a requirement to serve in the navy in Deircia?"

"No, but some men find it a way to make a living."

"Serving a King who murders on a whim? I can think of better ways to make a living."

"But they're not your enemy."

"Well supposedly Dumbledore's got a plan to stop it all." Harry pushed up and slid into his boots. "I'm going to go see if there's enough firewood for breakfast." He barely managed to not stomp out of the cave.

To his great relief, there was a need for firewood and he retrieved an axe and moved to the logs the crew had brought to their isle for the winter, chopping into them with as much force as he could muster.

"I'd hate to be under your axe."

Harry turned to see his mum and Marlene.

"We needed more firewood." He shrugged and wiped his brow in his shirt sleeve. "Besides, it burns better when it's drier. If I chop enough that it can sit for a while then we'll need less kindling."

"You know who else chops wood when they're angry?" His mum smiled at Marlene. "James."

Marlene laughed. "Like father, like son."

Harry grunted and went back to splitting the log into sections.

"What's got you so upset Harry?" Marlene moved to sit on the pile of logs.

Harry shook his head and threw another swing.

"My darling," his mum gently stopped him from throwing the axe again before pulling it from his hands. "Have a seat and talk to us."

Harry looked at his pile, enough firewood for at least three days lay before him. He'd obviously been a little more than upset.

"Ginny implied that we're murderers." Harry wasn't in the mood to lead up to anything.

"Bold of her to imply," Marlene leant back and stretched her feet out in front of her.

"How does she think we're murderers?" Lily pulled him to sit with her, her hand securely on his shoulder.

"Her words were 'we kill innocent sailors'. As if the men who choose the navy have no other choice. They're serving a King who tried to murder us! And she has the nerve to call us murderers!"

"But Harry, everyone in a war is a murderer," Marlene moved to sit on his other side. "And when the King decided to have Pettigrew sneak the royal guard into your parents' party to kill us all, we determined that was a declaration of war."

"We decided it wasn't worth getting the men who served us killed over it." Lily nodded. "It's personal, and we'd rather make it a personal fight. But since King Thomas hides behind his soldiers and sailors, we have to fight through them to get to him."

Harry hung his head. "I guess I thought every sailor believed in his cause the same way we believe in ours."

"Aye, some do," Marlene gave an evil laugh. "Watching Snape's vessel sink is still one of my favorite memories."

Lily sighed and shook her head, "Harry, there is no black and white where war is concerned. And you need to be at peace with that. In our case, our enemy is hiding behind thousands of human shields. It's why we're willing to listen to Dumbledore. He might be able to get us through King Thomas' shield, and that means no longer killing the wrong man."

Harry was quiet for a moment as their words sunk in.

"What if Dumbledore can get us through? What will we do then, when King Thomas is dead? Surely we wouldn't go back to Deircia?"

Lily and Marlene shared a long look before Lily spoke again. "I don't think we would. We might want the worth of our lands we left behind, that would finance our sailing for the next hundred years. But I don't know if any of us could return to the life we left behind. At least not in the same way it was."

"I wouldn't want to just for the ability to keep wearing trousers." Marlene laughed and stood up. "We're doing what we think is right, Harry. It's not perfect, but it's what we've chosen. You'll always find someone who thinks your path is wrong. But they aren't you."

Harry nodded and pushed up from the logs. "I suppose I was probably curt with Ginny, then."

"She's grown up hearing the worst of us," Lily took his outstretched hand and pulled herself to standing. "It's going to take some time for her to believe that we're not the sort of pirates she thought us to be."

Harry moved several logs to the sling and picked them up.

"I'll have to remember that the next time she starts to bring up the stories she's heard."

"Remember, what the Deircians think of us is far less important than what we think of ourselves." Marlene ruffled his hair. "By the earth and sky you've grown tall."

Harry laughed, "Aye, I suppose I have."

"Come, you can sit with us while we make breakfast. The rest of our group have already started."

The time spent while breakfast was made gave Harry time to consider what his mum and Marlene had told him. He didn't really care for being called a murderer, but as Marlene said, in war the lines get blurred. He felt secure in the fact that the Marauders being alive and a thorn in the Navy’s side gave the King something to focus on; and Harry hoped their efforts kept him from turning on other families, like the Weasleys.

Speaking of Weasleys, Ginny approached the fire slowly, her eyes locked on him. She nodded to those gathered but moved directly to Harry's side.

It was awkward as they sat in silence next to each other, and just to break the atmosphere surrounding them, Harry spoke.

"The weather's changing, getting colder.*

"It is."

The awkward silence wrapped around them again and Harry wanted to groan. The silence between them followed through breakfast and clean up. Harry had determined to find Neville and Hannah and spend a few hours with them away from the agitated atmosphere he and Ginny had created when Ginny finally spoke.

"Walk with me?"

Harry looked towards Neville and Hannah's cave once before nodding.

"Aye."

They walked about the camp still fogged in by their silence and Harry found that while he didn't care for her calling him a murderer, he cared less for this wall erected between himself and Ginny. He'd known her all of three days, he shouldn't be this keen on her. But he found he hated this deafening silence between them almost as much as he hated waiting for winter to pass so that he could be back on the sea.

"When did you and your family settle here?"

Ginny's voice broke the silence but it didn't clear it entirely.

"Within a year of leaving Deircia." Harry ran his hand over the rocks that surrounded them. "This and the Phoenix are the only home I've ever known."

The silence suffocated them again and Harry pulled in a deep breath, trying to break through.

"Can we call a truce?" The words were out of his mouth the moment they entered his brain.

Ginny stopped to look up at him. "What?"

Harry closed his eyes for a moment gathering his thoughts. "Can we agree that this morning's conversation was… well an argument more than a conversation, but can we agree not to address that you think we're murderers and I don't think it's that black and white."

Ginny turned her head away but kept her body facing him. "I don't, I don't think you're bloodthirsty pirates, just, I don't understand."

"And I don't understand your side either," Harry shoved his hand in his hair. "But can we agree to stop trying to make the other see our side? We're shipmates now, Ginny, at least until you return to Deircia. I don't like to be at odds with my crew members."

Ginny took a deep breath before holding out her hand.

"Shipmates."

Harry took it with a relieved smile.

"Shipmates."

Her hand was smaller than he'd realized and her skin didn't hold the same sort of calluses he had from growing up on a ship. Her skin was softer, and he almost pulled her back when she released his hand; he wanted the smoothness under his hand forever.

"Well, what do shipmates do when they're docked for winter?" Ginny smiled up at him and Harry felt the fog clearing from the light in her smile.

"We entertain ourselves," he chuckled. "There's not much to do, though many of us have books, dice, or games, and we still celebrate the Christmas season. Oh and Neville and Hannah are getting married before then."

Ginny's smile brightened all the more. "Really?"

"Aye, and we'll have a celebration for that."

"And when do you set back out to sea?"

"In March we'll set sail. We head to the south, Keshmar, the same port I told you of where I made cots, and take care of any repairs on the Phoenix. Then we'll decide from there what we want to do."

"That's why you don't build homes. You're only here for four months at most."

Harry nodded and turned back towards camp, motioning Ginny to follow.

"The caves are homes, in a way. The Phoenix and the sea are my home, but this island is special."

"What is it called?"

"We just refer to it as home." Harry shrugged. "There didn't ever seem to be a need to give it more of a name than that."

"I think I'll call it Marauders' Cove."

"It's not really a cove." Harry objected.

"And you're not really pirates." She smirked up at him and Harry laughed. "Besides, if I tell people it's a cove, no one will ever think twice about this rock."

Harry felt a warmth spread from the center of his chest outward.

"Thank you."

"I want you to know," Ginny stopped walking, "That I appreciate the level of trust you and the crew have given me. I understand there's a lot riding on it."

Harry reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. "Again, thank you."

They walked back to camp in silence, but now the silence was comfortable, warm, inviting. Harry smiled, certain this winter would be better than most of the past ones.

Ginny would be there with him.

And the companionable silence followed them through the morning. Ginny borrowed a book from Alice and she read with Harry next to the fire as it burned down to embers and the sun sailed higher in the sky.

“Do you dance?” Ginny’s voice pulled at him and Harry blinked from the text in front of him as he came out of concentration.

“Er, pardon?”

Ginny rolled her eyes like he was impossibly slow.

“You said that Hannah and Neville will be married in the coming weeks and that would include a celebration. In Deircia, wedding celebrations always include dancing.”

Harry chuckled as she explained herself. “We do dance, Ginny. My family was raised to know how, and it is a way to pass the winter. Neville, Hannah, and I were all taught to dance simply for the sport of it.”

“Dancing is not a sport!” Ginny’s indignation was evident in her voice.

“You’re a Marauder this winter, Ginny, everything is sport to a Marauder.”

“He’s right, you know?” Hannah came to sit next to Ginny as Neville plopped down next to Harry. “Everything we do has to have a bit of fun in it.”

“Everything?” Ginny’s face was full of skepticism.

“It helps if you think about it as just making life more entertaining.” Neville nodded, stealing Harry’s book. “Take this for example, a star charter's book is not fun for all our navigators, but they find ways to make it entertaining.”

“My dad hates reading those books,” Hannah nodded, “So he works with Elphias, having him explain the reading while Dad challenges what was written.”

“They’ve managed to ensure we aren’t buying from third rate scholars anymore.” Harry smiled at the memory of David and Elphias realizing that the book Elphias had purchased had incorrect calculations in it. Elphias had hurled the book into the sea, and she’d swallowed it up, just as disgusted as the navigators had been.

“Can you be serious?” Ginny demanded, only to have the other three burst into laughter.

It took Ginny two heartbeats to realize the joke, but rather than laugh with them, she’d scowled.

“We don’t take anything lightly, Ginny,” Harry pacified with a response. “But just because something is grave does not mean that we can’t find a way to enjoy ourselves.”

“But these are grave times!”

“All times are grave, Ginny,” Neville tossed Harry’s book at him and Harry caught it easily. “I’ve a penchant for history books and I can assure you, there’s not a moment in written history where there wasn’t one country or another in crisis, and you’d be surprised how many moments there are where the whole world is struggling over something or another.”

“Neville has a knack for languages as well,” Harry explained, “And he reads in many tongues, not just Deircian. He tries to pick up at least one history from each port we dock at.”

Ginny sighed, “Being a Marauder sounds too good to be true.”

“It is,” Hannah grinned. “But we’ve invited you along for a look into what we’re about. Stop fighting it, Ginny; let a little mischief into your life. You’ll understand us better if you do.”

Hannah stood and held out her hand to Ginny. “Trust me?”

Ginny looked at Hannah’s hand with trepidation written all over her face.

“Hannah, let her alone,” Harry sighed, worried that the truce he made with Ginny just hours earlier was about to come crashing down around his ears.

His comment seemed to anger Ginny for whatever reason though and she took Hannah’s outstretched hand.

“I trust you as far as I could throw you, Hannah, but I never back down to a challenge.”

Hannah whooped, “Let’s go boys, we’re off to adventure!”

Harry grinned as the excitement flooded him. Growing up on the little isle, Harry and Hannah and Neville had found that they had the ultimate playground. They learned to climb rocks and found secret hiding spots; they played made up games and chased each other for hours; and while they were no longer children, the three still sought the companionship of each other as they haunted their favorite spots.

And as Hannah took the lead, Neville a half step behind her, Harry fell into step next to Ginny. He steadied her as they walked along the rocky paths, and helped to show her how to climb the boulders that as a child he and his playmates would jump from one to the next. How they’d never fallen was still a mystery to him.

Hannah stopped at their favorite boulder, lower than all the boulders surrounding it that created a protected circle around them. The wind didn’t reach them, the sun was able to shine down on them, and the rock was still large enough for them to spread out even as adults. Harry hoisted himself over and then reached down and offered Ginny his hand.

She looked wearily at his hand before her eyes burned with fire and she reached out, clasping his wrist in her small hand.

It was easy to pull her up and onto the boulder and he felt the same pull to the smoothness of the skin along her wrist. He indulged for a moment before letting go, and when he did let her go, he slid his hand along her wrist and palm to her fingertips.

Seafoam.

The feeling was so clear he was surprised that he hadn’t realized it when they’d shook hands that morning. Her skin felt like seafoam.

Ginny pulled away, looking at her hand before turning away from Harry entirely. Hannah caught Harry’s eye and he watched as a small smile graced her lips.

“Welcome to the castle, Ginny.” Hannah settled into Neville’s embrace as they sat on the boulder.

“Castle?”

“That’s what we called this little space when we were children.” Harry explained, sitting down on the cold stone.

Ginny sat too, looking around at the rocks surrounding them.

"Have any of you ever been in a castle?"

"Before we set sail," Neville nodded. "But not since, so the three of us have no memory of it. Though Hannah enjoys the odd story of knights and damsels locked in castles on occasion."

Hannah elbowed Neville in the side and smirked at Ginny. "We all enjoy a good story now and then don't we?"

Ginny laughed, "I guess this does sort of feel like the spires of a castle."

"Have you been in castles then?" Harry asked.

When his father had offered to tell him tales from Deircia, it hadn't appealed to Harry at all. But hearing tales from Ginny felt different for some reason.

"I've been in a few, though we don't live in one."

"What are they like?" Hannah asked.

"Drafty," Ginny chuckled. "And often cold."

"Then we've missed nothing," Hannah grinned.

"The manor houses can't really be defended the way castles can be but they're warmer and look nicer." She turned to Harry, "But I was never one for castles. I preferred books about sea adventures."

Harry felt his heartbeat increase.

"And now you're in one of those stories," Neville chuckled.

"My books have been proving to be somewhat inaccurate actually." Ginny shook her head but smiled. "I doubt that those who wrote the stories have ever been on a ship."

"Maybe you could write your own." Hannah grinned. "I'm sure we could give you some good stories to write about."

"I've not much time for writing," Ginny shook her head and Hannah shrugged before a glint touched her eye.

"Say, have you ever played hunter, Ginny?"

"I don't think I have..."

"Hannah," Harry shook his head, "We haven't played that in years."

"Are you too old for fun?" Hannah challenged.

"It's a game we played as children, Ginny," Neville interrupted Harry and Hannah's bickering. "One person is the hunter, the rest hide from them and evade being touched by the hunter. The goal is to be the last one found and caught."

"And we haven't played since we were probably thirteen." Harry added. He'd known Hannah long enough to tell when she was up to something, and this was most certainly one of those times.

"Oh, we played a game like that but you had to stay in one place," Ginny nodded, "And we didn't call it hunter. We called it hide and seek."

"That's a much nicer name," Harry chuckled.

"Well, we weren't pirates." She grinned at him and Harry laughed.

"Let's play!" Hannah insisted, "Harry is the hunter."

"Hannah," Harry turned back to her, his laughter now halted.

"Sure," Ginny nodded. "How long do we get to hide?"

"Fifty heart beats," Hannah said and stood.

"Nev," Harry looked to his friend, but he found no ally.

"It's just one game, Harry. It'll be fun. Nostalgic."

Harry narrowed his gaze. "If I find you hiding with Hannah I'm forfeiting."

"Aye," Neville managed to look sheepish, "Now close your eyes and let us start."

Harry gave Hannah one more look of warning before closing his eyes and silently counting the beat of his heart.

There was a reason they'd called the game hunter. It was a game their families had taught them, and it was a game with purpose. The game taught them to both track and to hide. How to look for signs of people hiding and how to cover up those same signs when you were the one being tracked. It was a game to teach survival in the chance that their island was ever found out. It would keep the three of them safe while the adults fought off the potential invaders.

But now they were adults, now they would fight to protect themselves, and the game wasn't necessary anymore.

Harry counted his fifty heartbeats before opening his eyes and listening. Coming back into this game was like coming back to an old friend. He climbed slowly down the boulder and surveyed the ground. There was the slightest boot indentation going in one direction and Harry grinned at the shape. It was the boot from a Deircian naval uniform. He looked for signs of Neville and Hannah, but they'd left no trace.

It wasn't necessarily fair to go for the easiest first, but Harry pushed it aside for the desire within him to track and find Ginny.

Her trail was never obvious but there were little things that gave her away. Places where she had tried to squeeze in but hadn't fit, scraping the moss on the rocks. Rocks that had been turned over. Slight impressions of her boots in the gravelled dirt. It took him very little time to catch up with her, and then he saw what he'd been searching for all along.

The flash of red.

It was barely there, a slight shimmer before it disappeared, but it gave Harry her exact location.

He grinned at the anticipation, the same feeling when the anchor was raised and they would push out into open waters.

Silently he moved to approach her hiding spot from the other side, giving him a better chance at catching her before she could run from him. He figured since he took the easy route, he should at least give her a chance to evade.

He stood silently just outside the alcove that she was tucked into.

"Hello, Ginny."

She bolted from her spot with a gasp and Harry was right behind her. The rocky terrain wasn't easy to run on and Harry had the advantage of having spent his life on this rocky ground. In five quick strides he had not only caught up to Ginny, but had her back pinned up against a boulder, both of them breathing heavily.

She glared up at him but Harry almost didn't notice, overwhelmed with the way she smelled like the island around them overlayed with something that was almost flowery, and the feeling of her seafoam soft skin under his hands.

"Alright, let off," Ginny pushed against him and reluctantly Harry stepped back, letting his hands slide along her skin as he did so.

Ginny looked down at her hands before forming them into fists and moving away from him.

"Well do I get to help you find Hannah and Neville or do I wait at the castle?"

Harry shook himself from the way feeling her seafoam skin had distracted him.

"Oh, we usually played that the captured waited back at the castle, but if you wanted to help find Hannah and Neville, you could."

"Don't be ridiculous, of course I'm going to help you. I want to know how you found me so quickly."

Harry grinned. "You want me to teach you the secrets of hunting?"

"Don't look so pleased." Ginny spun away and started heading down the path. Harry reached out for her hand, mostly to stop her but also because he wanted to feel her skin under his fingers again.

"If you want me to teach you, then how about you let me lead?" He ran his thumb against the skin over the back of her hand, feeling for a moment like he was on the sea again.

Ginny looked down at their hands and then up at him.

"Alright."

Harry ran his thumb once more over her skin before letting go and trying to breathe a little deeper.

"Have you ever hunted before?"

"No, but I'm always up to learn."

Harry started by showing her how he'd tracked her, the places she'd left marks and made it obvious to him where she'd headed. Teaching her to hunt Hannah and Nev was something else though. Hannah and Neville were as skilled at leaving no trace as Harry was.

"What happens if we don't find them?" Ginny whispered.

"If we give up then I'll whistle and they'll come out." Harry whispered, holding up his bosun whistle as he looked for any sign of his friends.

"Whistle, like your mum did when she came to help you."

Harry nodded and smiled when he saw it, a lone brown leaf on the ground, a bit too far from the rest of the leaves from the little plant among the rocks. He pointed to it and smiled.

Ginny looked incredulous that he found it significant, let alone that he'd noticed it. But she followed silently as Harry led her along the trail. It was the slightest movement, something anyone else would have assumed was a shifting in the light.

Harry smiled.

He moved to whisper in Ginny's ear and had to stop himself from reaching out to touch her. He'd need to remember not to be this close to her often; it made him wonder what it might be like to be a pirate.

"Neville or Hannah is behind that boulder. I'm going to circle around; you keep going this way, slowly. You'll flush them out, I'll catch them."

Ginny nodded once and Harry pulled himself away. Then he quietly heaved himself up onto the boulders and moved to his next catch.

It was Neville. He was tucked up in a little space that two boulders created. Harry smirked; Neville hadn't played to his best today. Normally he went for places that gave him plenty of options for escape as did Harry and Hannah, but today Neville only had one way out. Apparently, he wasn't up for the chase today. Harry couldn't blame him, since they'd grown old enough to fight to defend themselves he much preferred his saber to running.

Harry slipped soundlessly down to the ground and nodded Ginny forward.

She rounded the boulder, and Neville sprung from his spot running right into Harry.

"Well done, mate," Neville chuckled as Harry caught him from falling. "I didn't expect you to use Ginny to help you."

"Now to find Hannah." Ginny stepped up behind Neville with excitement.

Harry went to answer when they heard a high pitched whistle coming from camp. Harry whistled back before answering Ginny.

"We'll have to pass that to another day. Sounds like lunch is ready."

Neville pulled his whistle to his lips, sending out the call that the game had ended. Hannah answered with the same whistle. A moment later they heard her coming through the rocks.

"Let's go, I'm starving." Hannah took Neville's hand and kissed his cheek.

Harry spent the rest of the day fighting the memories of how close he'd been to Ginny that morning, along with how the skin of her hand felt under his fingers. He even found himself staring at her.

It was disconcerting.

And it continued like that for the rest of the week. He felt gratitude when it was finally his turn to be on watch. Sleeping in the same cave as Ginny was starting to affect his dreams, and while having Ginny playing the starring role was pleasant, to say the least, awakening from them left Harry feeling almost bitter at how removed they were from reality.

When Lisa came to wake him for the third watch, Harry gratefully pulled on his boots and overcoat and moved outside.

The cold night air helped him clear his head, cutting his lungs as he breathed it in. And while the sound of the waves hitting the cliffs helped to bring some peace to him, his mind still spun with his feelings surrounding Ginny.

It was all ridiculous, really. He'd nearly killed the woman when he first saw her properly. His lack of a pistol was the only reason she was alive. But he thanked the sea and the gods that he hadn't had that pistol. Because at this point Ginny was someone Harry was realizing he might just take a bullet for. He'd die for any of the Marauders, that was part of their code, their family. But Ginny was an outsider. There was no reason for him to feel this way. She was a Marauder for the next few months, but she was a Deircian really, one of Dumbledore's men.

He looked up at the stars and began charting in his mind; an attempt to rid his mind of her presence. It was no use, however. Not even the stars could keep Ginny out of Harry's mind.

"Harry?"

Harry pulled the cold air into his lungs again before turning around.

"Alright, Ginny?"

She pulled one of Hannah's old overcoats tightly around her, her face moving in and out of the shadows. "Yes, I, I just, I woke and, and saw you weren't in the cave."

"I'm on third watch tonight, remember?"

"Oh right," she sounded mortified. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I mean, I should have remembered. I won't bother you." She turned to leave.

"Gin."

The word was out of his mouth before he could stop himself, a nickname he'd started calling her in his head that finally found its way out into the open. She paused in her flight to look at him with wide eyes still tired with sleep.

"It's fine, really," He smiled at her, his fingers longing to reach out and touch her. "It's good to know you look out for your crew."

Ginny smiled and to Harry's great surprise, she came and sat next to him.

"I used to read about pirates, and adventures of sailing to distant places."

"You've mentioned it," Harry nodded, still slightly in shock at her decision to stay with him.

"I, I read for an escape. I wanted more from my life than simply marrying well and running a household." She shrugged. "The stories let me pretend I could have adventure in my life, at least for a few hours."

"Well, now you're living the story." Harry chuckled quietly.

"I suppose I am, but not like the stories made it out to be." Ginny smiled up at him and Harry felt like he was looking down at the sea from the Phoenix's bow.

"Real life often isn't what we read in stories," Harry chuckled. "I tend to think real life is better in many regards."

Ginny was quiet for a long moment, staring out into the darkness surrounding them, before she spoke.

"Do you know I've not once been on watch?" She chuckled. "I thought it would be more than this, just sitting in the dark. In my books something always happens when the characters are on watch."

Harry laughed. "I prefer that nothing happens when I'm on watch. But weren't there scenarios where Dumbledore needed someone on watch? Did he not give you a chance?"

"Dumbledore runs a different ship than your dad does." Ginny looked up at the stars.

"Obviously, Dumbledore's a land lover. He has no ship."

Ginny laughed. "Yes, well that's part of it too, but he doesn't have the same attitude as your dad or any of the Marauders. We don't all live together for starters, and we aren't all aware of what's going on. You've told me that secrets are what almost ended up killing the lot of you, but Dumbledore feels secrets keep people alive."

"Do they?" Harry chuckled bitterly.

Ginny sighed, "Maybe, but you were right, that first day. The Marauders aren't the only ones that Dumbledore's secrets have almost killed." She swallowed. "I have twin brothers, a lot like Fabien and Gideon, and they were doing something for our cause, I don't even know what. But they both nearly died because of the lack of information they'd been given, the blasted secrets, and my dad barely got to them in time. It took months for them to heal."

"I'm sorry, Gin." Harry indulged in the way she leant into him and he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I wish I could say I hadn't meant to hurt you, but to be honest, those first few days I definitely had moments where I found you infuriating."

Ginny laughed. "Don't worry, I thought you were an utter idiot as well."

"Do you still?" Harry held his breath.

"No," Ginny smiled up at him. "Now I think you're alright, for a pirate."

Harry rolled his eyes. "We've established I'm not a pirate."

"I suppose we have," Ginny's chuckle shifted quickly into a yawn.

"You're tired." Harry squeezed her shoulders. "You don't need to be out here in the cold. You can go back to bed."

Ginny rubbed her eyes and nodded. "Alright, don't trip and die on your way back."

Harry squeezed her shoulders, wanting her pressed against him for just a moment longer. "I'll do my best. Good night, Gin."

She stood with another yawn. "Good night, Harry."

Harry watched her until she faded into the black of the night. There was no way around it, Harry was starting to realize that he was falling for one Ginny Weasley, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.