Cold air was now whipping through the sails but also through the pirates’ thin clothes. They weren’t as prepared as they needed to be for this journey. The Captain was standing at the helm. His mouth set a thin line gritting his teeth against the sting of cold.

Captain Morrow could be intimidating on a good day and on a bad one he could be every bit the nasty pirate that others whispered about. Thankfully, he and Xan had always had an even keeled relationship. They weren’t exactly friends, but they worked well together.

“What did you need to speak with me about Morry?” Xan spoke louder to be heard over the wind. It cut through his jacket and down to his bones. It would be tough sailing until they reached warmer waters.

“I need you to organize the men into working parties. I don’t think this weather will let up anytime soon. Put the men in working shifts for 20 minutes at a time and then send them back below deck. No one that doesn’t need to be out on deck should be.”

“Yes, Captain.”

“Also, I think we should make preparations for a storm. I have a bad feeling we’ll have one build tonight. All we can do is prepare the ship and hunker down for the night.”

“Yes Captain, I’ll make sure we have everything prepared in case of a storm.” Xan turned to start organizing the men.

“One last thing laddie, I’ll want to meet this new charge of yours, eventually.”

Xan met his Captain’s eyes and gave a firm nod. Of course, the Captain would want to meet Finn. He was probably less than pleased Xan hadn’t asked him before bringing someone aboard but he also knew the Captain trusted him a great deal.

After that Xan took off and went below to start gathering the men and making preparations. They needed to have the ship ready before the storm hit and before nightfall. They also needed to keep everyone safe and make sure no one was suffering from the cold.

They dug up more blankets from storage and passed them around the barracks. They told the men that had finished up top to go sit in the kitchen for a spell to warm up faster.

They tasked the three warlocks on board with casting protection and warming spells. Those with elevated body temperatures volunteered for extra shifts out in the cold to protect their human brethren. Everyone on the ship used their abilities whatever they may be as much as they could to help.

Ships needed to work like a well-oiled machine. That this one in particular accepted anyone regardless of race allowed them a little extra boost at times. They used having Supernaturals on-board to the best of their abilities.

The sun was setting and dark clouds were rolling in. Xan always preferred to weather storms in a harbor but they’d have to make due. The warlocks had been working on their protection spells so Xan tried to put more faith and hope in their abilities.

It was time for dinner and the Captain was sending everyone below for the night to try to sleep out the storm. It was also best to try and eat dinner before it hit, even though the rocking might bring it back up.

For the last time that day Xan was the last in line. He quickly grabbed the plates from Blay and hurried back to his cabin.

He found Finn back in bed. He was wrapped up in the blankets, his back resting against the head of the bed, the blanket was draped over his head like a hood with his face exposed and his arms sticking out. It looked like he was on the last chapter of Hamlet.

He didn’t look up immediately when he heard Xan come in. He finished the paragraph he was working on before sticking the twine back in to mark the page. He slowly unraveled himself but kept one blanket wrapped around himself like a cloak before coming and sitting down on the little stool by Xan’s desk.

Xan felt a small smile threating to spread across his face. Finn looked every bit the kid he was, and he deserved to act like it. He didn’t seem so afraid now, nor did he seem shocked or hesitant at the sharing of food.

Xan passed him a plate before digging into his own. They ate in silence for a while enjoying their meals.

“Are you almost finished with that book?”

“Yeah, just a little more to go. I’ve read it before so it’s a faster read.”

“Why’d you pick it if you’ve already read it? Were the other books that bad?”

Finn almost seemed to laugh. “No, the other books seemed interesting too but I like Hamlet it’s a good book. Now it has memories of when I read it for the first time.”

Finn’s eyes looked sad and faraway so Xan didn’t feel like he should ask about that.

“It’s probably going to get colder tonight. One of the warlocks will probably stop by in a little while. They’ve been casting spells trying to put an extra seal on the ship from the cold and to protect us.”

“Why do they need to cast protection charms?”

“A storm will probably roll in later tonight.”

Finn started to tremble. No, no, no! No more storms Finn thought. No more, please no more.