2. Not Knowing Who We Are
Normal POV
Leyva woke up smiling. At first she had forgotten why she was smiling. Then she remembered. Today The Dragon departs! I'll have to get my disguise ready! It was past noon when she woke up a second time that day, this time by Ruby.
'Let's call my dad! He's going to want to come over to watch us get ready!'
After waiting about twenty minutes, the time from Ruby's house to Leyva's, he was finally there.
Ruby and Leyva had already changed into their costumes, Leyva in a black suit, and Ruby in a suit from Milan that her friend happened to have around her house.
The two friends went into Leyva''s room with Joseph, Ruby's dad. Ruby sat down on one of the chairs, and Leyva started on her hair. Ruby took this as a chance to take a nap.
'Huh? What?' Ruby declared sleepily, looking around for the culprit who had shaken her awake. She spotted her standing by her own head.
'Your hair is done. I finished it a few minutes ago.'
'Oh! Neat.' Ruby looked in the mirror. 'You must have spent ages on this! I look just like a younger version of my mother! Even the short hair! It's creepy!' Ruby's brown hair had been cut, highlighted, red streaked, and curled. She really did look like Leyah, her mom.
'What color do you want for eye shadow?'
'Um�bronze. Do you have that?'
'Mmhm.'
Leyva put the bronze eye shadow and eyeliner on Ruby, which was pretty much all she needed.
'Move! Now you need to do me!'
Ruby sighed. 'Do you think there's anything we have to do for you hair?'
'No. It's fine.'
Leyva had gotten her hair cut a couple days before, making it look like a boy with short hair had grown it out about three inches. She said that she had been wanting to get her hair cut for a while, but didn't want it too short, but not long enough to really bother her. It was a drastic change, and it took some getting used to.
All that really needed to be done to Leyva was some concealer for the freckles, black spray-in hair dye, and a nail clip and buffing.
The two friends finally went in the direction of the car. They had been around and about for about an hour, saying goodbye to the places they wouldn't be seeing for a long, long time. Both of them cried when they had to leave.
Leyva had spent her whole childhood at this place, exploring, with Ruby by her side much of the time.
'Don't cry, Ruby. You'll mess up all the work I did on your make up.' Leyva gave a small watery chuckle.
Ruby smiled to herself. Leyva was trying to make her smile. Like she always did when she cried.
The redhead pulled her best friend into a tight hug, and buried her face in her shoulder, her body racking with sobs.
'I'm glad we're going somewhere, but now that it comes to actually leaving, I don't want to go. Well, my body does, but my heart and soul will always remain here, roaming Blackfrogg Brook barefoot in the spring, ripping it's pants on the trees, always searching for that little pond we never found, but knew was in the woods somewhere. I'm going to miss this place.'
Leyva pulled away from the hug, her face dry and eerie. A strong voice, crackling with power came out from between her parched lips.
'Of the two friends, El'Ruka, Lizzard Sworn,
One will return to see the place where she was born
The other is caught in a place that won't let her go
Only redeemed by death or the Cold Snow
Forced to scatter the seeds of evil in the one she loves
Or rid Black Feather's father of the plague in his lonely heart.'
The strange look left Leyva's face, as she stepped back another pace.
'What just happened? I remember saying something, but I forget.'
'I could never forget the words,' Ruby said, as she recited the verse that was now forever engraved into her memory. 'Let's go, now. We don't want to be late, and our parents are probably looking for us.
Ruby took Oliver, from her mother, Leyah, and began to speak to him in baby voices that embarrassed Leyva.
'Aren't you a good dog? Aren't you? You look so much like a cat! Woof, woof, meow! Woof, woof, meow! Awww!' Ruby kissed the top of the dachshund's head. 'You're so cute!'
'God, Ruby! Will you stop doing that!? What if Oliver could hear everything you said and understood it?' Oliver squirmed in Ruby's arms. 'Maybe that's why he's trying to get away.' Ruby let Oliver go, and he ran around the car for a while, before falling asleep in Leyah's lap.
After a couple hours long ride in the car, the two families finally got to the docks in Portland, where they were scheduled to meet the crew of The Dragon. Ruby and Leyva were the first out stretching, and running around the wooden planks, dipping their feet into the icy foam of the sapphire sea. Leyva picked up a piece of kelp, and flung it at Ruby, hitting her square in the face. They both laughed, and started a war, flinging anything they could find in the sea, including the water, at each other. They stopped once a small U-Haul pulled up. Lena looked bouncy, Sophie, her dog, following her with her eyes.
I don't see Leyva or Ruby anywhere, she thought, but they're probably running wild around the dock. I do see a girl and a young man though, standing by the edge of the water. They're both strangely dressed up. I wonder if they're going to be on The Dragon!
Lena petted her dog, Sophie, without thinking as she said to the driver of the U-Haul, Sam: 'I think we can unload my things now.'
'Yes, milady,' he answered, as he rushed to do her bidding.
I wish he would stop doing that! I hate when people call me 'milady.' It gets on my nerves, and it's so old fashioned! Putting Sophie's leash on her pink diamond studded collar, she opened the door, and set her small dog down. Sophie twitched her ears, and ran over to Sam.
'Hello, milady!'
'Would you please stop calling me that?'
'If you wish it, milady.
Lena tried to keep her anger under control.
'I do wish it.'
'Your wish is my command.'
Lena walked away, smiling tightly, but resisting with every nerve to slap out at Sam, and knock him to the ground.
'Do you think that whole U-Haul is Lena's?' Ruby whispered in Leyva' ear.
'Most of it. She does have two parents, though.'
Leyva and Ruby loaded their stuff onto a small dinghy rowed by red haired men. They each had about five sea trunks. About half were filled with clothes, the rest with random stuff they'd need, like rolls of colored duct tape, leather boots with silver buckles and manga. (*Author Note: Yay!*)
Soon Leyva and Ruby found themselves on board of the most beautiful ship to sail the oceans. Her prow was perfectly angled with the stern. The rails were gleaming and the deck smooth. Leyva immediately took off her shoes and socks, hating them every moment, and she didn't want to slip on the slippery surface. Suddenly she felt free and wanted to prance about on deck. She did.
Ruby was the one that found their cabin. It was the biggest one the ship had, and was in the place the captain's cabin usually was, in the very back of the boat, and had a triple bunk bed built into the wall. Leyva took the top one and Ruby got the middle one. Since they decided Lena was going to move in later, she was stuck with the bottom. There were three desks with candle and lantern holders with drawers underneath full of quills, ink, papers and candles. There was a bookshelf for Leyva and Ruby to fill with the books they liked, which the former immediately got to.
Lena's temporary room was around the corner from them, and wasn't as big as theirs, as it had one bed and was just for her. The hall had wooden floors and wooden walls, darkened with age, which made them even more breathtakingly beautiful. There were only a few other doors along the hall; one for Leyva's parents, Ruby's parents, Lena's parents and one big one for the crew. Banhr's was beneath the mess hall, a very unusual place for the captain's cabin.
In the middle of the wooden floor of Ruby and Leyva's room, there was a large rug with huge sweeping skies and a vast ocean with a small ship on it and a gigantic serpent spitting water into the sea. The sky was a deep beautiful blue with the moon shining at its reflection in the water, fish were jumping with the light gleaming off their scales in rainbows that made the water sparkle. It seemed you feel a faint ocean wind, mixing with unknown smells from a strange land. Smells of the ocean, and the elves, the elves were moving about the ship and working on the rigging, and one of them, a tall one looked a little like Captain Banhr�What?? Smells of the ocean? The elves are moving around? Captain Banhr? What's the captain doing on this rug? How do I know who he is? I haven't even seen him yet! Leyva stepped back in surprise.
'Did you notice a wind coming from the rug??' she asked Ruby, who had come over to see what the rug was that held Leyva so entranced.
'No.' Ruby looked at Leyva with a glance that held sincere concern. 'Are you starting to lose your mind?'
'I-I don't know,' Leyva answer truthfully.
'The Dragon has started to move!' Ruby said, changing the subject.
'Oh, yippee!!' Leyva jumped up, and when she came down, her bare foot landed on a splinter. 'Youch! There's a hugemongorendously large tree trunk stuck up my leg!!' She hopped around on one foot for a while until Ruby calmed her down and took out the very small splinter.
Leyva suddenly burst out of the room, limping and running, very inappropriate for a fancy man with a cane, and skidded to a halt as she saw Lena coming up the hall.
'Hello Milady,' Leyva said in a gruff voice as she gave a deep bow.
I wish people would stop calling me milady! do they think I'm a queen, or something? Lena giggled at the thought.
'Come on Jenn!' Leyva shouted to Ruby who was following her a bit slower.
'Coming!' Jenn? Is that my new name, or something? Well, I suppose I'll have my fun, too!
'Have you any new friends on The Dragon?' Leyva asked Lena.
'Yeah. Zivah, the cook. She's really nice.'
'Mmm.'
'Do you know her?'
'Ah, not really. I've seen her, that's all.'
'I can't get over the fact that Leyva isn't here.' She paused, then began to explain who her best friend was to the person�that was�actually her�' 'She's my one of my closest friends, and her parents are, and I asked them where she is, but all they would say is that she didn't want to come and stayed at her grandmother's house in California.'
Ruby had walked up to them and sat down on a stone bench in the hallway, beckoning Leyva and Lena to do so, too.
Shit, thought Leyva, I don't think our cover story was good enough. Oh well, she seems to be accepting it�
'So�do you like The Dragon?' Ruby asked Lena.
'Oh, its nice, and so is my cabin. I have rumors that you two have the biggest cabin on the ship. It was the captain's cabin before you came. Are you brother and sister, or friends?'
'Yeah, Archie's my brother.' Ruby looked towards Leyva to see her reaction to her new name. It was pretty bad. Lena looked curiously at the redhead's (now black) furious face. 'Oh, don't mind my brother. He detests his name. But you should use it any ways, because he doesn't know you well enough to beat you to a bloody pulp.'
Lena looked looked worried for Ruby's mental health but shrugged it off. 'Have you met Leyva and Ruby's family??'
'Um�no�we haven't,' they said in unison.
'Oh, hey, me and Archie are going outside.' Lena immediately covered up the awkward moment. 'Do you want to come?'
'Sure. Whatever.'
Ruby hooked her arms through Lena's and Leyva's, maneuvering their ways around passages and crates until they came up to the prow of The Dragon. Leyva had heard somewhere that you could see forever from the prow of an enchanted ship, and that's what it was like, looking off south into the sparkling blue of the never ending sea beyond the bay.
Leyva cautiously ventured out onto the dragon figure head. It was a deep sea green with emerald glass sparkling in it. The glinting eyes were like a beacon, sending rays of truth and light into the ocean, and the fire looked to be made purely of ruby, though Leyva knew that couldn't be true. It seemed that that was why this ship was so beautiful, that there was its own glimmer of hope hidden in a dragon.
Leyva checked to see if Lena was watching, and once she was sure she wasn't, she took her hat off shaking her hair around, making it fall into a more girlish haircut. It tossed in the breeze and was playfully buffeted by the moist air. A single silhouette against the quickly fading light, that, if seen from a distance, would seem a black girl with black short hair being blown by the winds, sitting on a black figure-head, every sail unfurled, and all the colors of the sunset outlining her body and the ship.
Leyva looked down at the water being parted by the swiftly moving ship, water spraying up and splashing the girl. It was deep, deep green with a tinge of blue mixed into the melee of waves hitting the soaked wood of the boat.
Lena and Ruby sat with their backs to the wall, trying to stay out of the wind, each with their own thoughts. Ruby, thinking about when dinner was, and Lena, wondering who these people were, and where Leyva and Ruby were.
A loud bell knocked everyone awake from their thoughts. Ruby leapt up shouting: 'Dinner!!!' Leyva almost fell off her perch on the figure head in fright. She was hungry too. Swiftly, she arranged her hair right, and stuffed her hat on her head.
'Me�hungry!!!' Leyva bellowed, once she was on the gently swaying planks of The Dragon.
Lena barged past both of them, saying, 'See if you can catch up to me, you old fogies!' She ran as fast as she could, then stopped a few seconds later. 'Where's the mess hall?'
Laughing, Leyva and Ruby carried her to the dining room, Leyva taking her hands and Ruby her feet. Her butt dragged the ground as she protested.
'Put me down! You're gonna�shred my butt to ribbons! I'm gonna die!' Several of the crew looked curiously at them, but turned away to hide their laughter.
The mess hall was a big long room attached to the galley with wooden tables spread around that had wooden benches on either side. The tables were set for around fifty, eight or so for the passengers and the rest were the crew. Some of them were already seated and eating. Leyva noticed that most had fire red or snow white hair. She plopped down with Lena and Ruby and looked around. At the head of the table there was a heavily muscled, red haired man. He had a small scraggly goate and an aura extended around him, radiating authority. Banhr! This must be him! He seems just right for captainship.
Dinner was amazing. Zivah, the cook had made an extra special dinner for the new guests. There was nut bread, white bread, rye bread, wheat bread, cheese ficelle, baguettes, many types of butters to spread, ales, blackberry juice, strawberry juice, soy milk, milk, water, an arrangement of fresh fruits, assorted creams to go on top, stir-frys, tofu, potato leek soup, minestrone, cauliflower gratin, vegetable pie, five different salads, strawberry rhubarb pie, berry pie, chocolate mousse, raspberry sorbet, lemon sorbet, coffee ice cream, chocolate ice cream, and a giant molasses spice cookie.
'Oh my gosh, Jenn! Try this�I just made it up! Strawberry rhubarb pie with apple and honey and raspberry sorbet on top. It's delicious!'
'Mmmm, that is good!'
'Let me have a bite! I'm hungry too!''
So it went on�everyone exchanging friendly insults and making sure no one missed out on any interesting concoctions made up on the spot. The adults made friends with the crew, and Lena sat with 'Jenn' and 'Archie.' The mess hall was rather noisy with people roaring with laughter, flying insults at each other and people talking extra loud to be heard over all of the rest of the din. Plates were clinking and food was being passed around, and there was, just as usual, the general noise of the sea, dimly heard. After about an hour, the watch came barging in through the door demanding food. The reinforcements took their place outside, as the others sat down and began to eat as it if was the only food they had seen in a year.
Soon people were beginning to slow down the eating and just sat back, relaxing and basking in the warmth and security of good friends all around you.
'Song!' someone called. 'We need some entertainment!'
Leyva looked around and saw that no one was really making a move to go up, even though they were discussing between themselves what they could sing.
'Fine! I'll go up,' she muttered to Ruby.
'What song are you gonna sing?'
'Erev Shel Shoshanim.'
Ruby rolled her eyes. It was her best friend's favorite Hebrew song and sang it all the time, though she had to admit it was beautiful.
Leyva slowly got up and stood where everyone could see her. She started singing hesitantly, first in Hebrew, then the english translation.
'Erev shel shoshanim.
Netzeh na el habustan,
Mur besamim ulvonah,
L'raglech miftan.
Lylah yored le'aht,
V'ruach soshan noshvah.
Havah elchash lach shir balat,
Zemer shel ah'ha'va.
Evening of roses,
Come, let us go to the garden,
Myrrh, spices and frankincense,
To your foot are a carpet.
Night descends slowly,
and a scent of rose wafts the air,
Come I will whisper to you a song,
Secretly a melody of love.
Shachar homa yonach.
Roshech maleh t'lalim
Peich el haboker shoshana
Ek'r'fenu li.
Lylah yored le'aht,
V'ruach shoshan noshvah.
Havah elchash lach shir balat,
Zemer shel ah'ha'va.
Dawn, the dove is cooing,
Your hair is full of dewdrops,
Your mouth is like a rose unto the morn,
I will pick it for myself.
Night descends slowly,
and a scent of rose wafts the air.
Come I will whisper to you a song.
Secretly a melody of love.'
Leyva's voice slowly quieted, and the whole cabin was hushed. Everyone looked at each other for a couple seconds, and then the whole place erupted into applause. The crew was stamping their feet loudly and shouting above the clapping. Leyva gave a small smile and went back to her seat, her black walking stick hitting the ground in time with her pace.
Lena leaned over to her. 'Great job, Archie! Never knew you had it in you!' Leyva just smiled back, content for now.
Ruby stood up suddenly. 'Who's next?!!' she called out loudly. The man sitting at the head of the table stood up. 'I guess I will,' he said. The sailors' faces burst into huge grins. 'Banhr! Banhr! Banhr! Banhr!' they chanted. Apparently he was well liked. One man shouted out his favorite song. 'Sing the Handsome Cabin Boy!' A laugh rippled through the crowd and there were several sounds of agreement. Banhr chuckled softly, nodded his head, and began.
'Tis of a handsome female, as you may understand
Her mind being bent to rambling unto some foreign land.
She dressed herself in sailors clothes, or so it does appear,
and hired with our captain to serve him for a year.
The captain's wife she being on board, she seem-ed in great joy,
To see her husband had engaged such a handsome cabin boy,
and now and then she's slip in a kiss and would have like to toy,
But the captain found out the secret of the handsome cabin boy.
Her cheeks were red and rosy, and her hair hung in its curls,
The sailors often smiled and said he looks just like a girl.
But eating the captains biscuits, their color didn't destroy
and the waist did swell on pretty Nell, the handsome cabin boy.
'Twas in the Bay of Bisca your gallant ship did plow,
One night among the sailors was a fearful scurrying row.
They tumbled from their hammocks, for their sleep it did destroy,
and swore about the groaning of the handsome cabin boy.
Oh doctor, oh dear doctor, the cabin boy did cry,
My time has come, I am undone, and I must surely die.
The doctor come a running and smiled at the fun,
To think a sailor lad should have a daughter or a son.
The sailors when they heard the joke, the all did stop and stare,
The child belonged to none of them, they solemnly did swear.
The captain's wife she looked at him, and said "I wish you joy,
For it's either you or I betrayed the handsome cabin boy."
Then each man took his tot of rum, and drunk success to trade,
and likewise to the cabin boy who was neither man nor maid.
Here's hopin' the wars don't rise again, our sailors to destroy,
and here's hoping for a jolly lot more like the handsome cabin boy.'
When it was finished, everyone was clutching their stomach with laughter, for Banhr had strutted about and had a different voice and face for each character in the song, and had dramatized it almost to absurdity with his arms waving and jumping up and down.
There were a couple more songs, and soon people started filtering off to their respective rooms. Leyva and Ruby stood up with a groan and walked out the door.
'Go on without me. I want to talk to my dad.'
'Sure. What for?'
'I feel like playing my violin. It's no fun without him though.'
'Oh� Okay.'
Leyva took off at a sprint and banged on her parents door. 'Dad! Dad! Can I come in?'
A sleepy voice answered. 'Sure.' She bounded in and saw her mother in bed and her father sitting in a chair reading a book by candle. 'Dad! Play music with me?'
'Leyva, it's nine o'clock!'
'So? I feel like playing now! Pleeeease?' She gave her dad the puppy-dog eyes.
'Fine,' he sighed. I'll go get my flute.
'Yaaaaay!!' Leyva jumped up, dancing around. 'Come on! Come on!' She grabbed the parental unit by the hand and dragged him into her room where her instrument was.
'Great! You convinced him!' said Ruby in one of the few chairs littered around.
Leyva took out some music and placed it on a stand that had recently been pieced together. Rummaging through her trunk she found what she had been looking fore
'Haha! There you are�!'
Leyva unzipped the case and took out a midnight black violin, its silver strings contrasting deeply with the utter darkness. She lifted her bow and started playing the same exact moment her father blew his first breath into the flute.
Ruby closed her eyes and let the music wash over her like water does to the shore, leaving her breathless and amazed. I'm so jealous of Leyva that she can play like that! It's just�beautiful! She watched as her best friend's fingers danced over the fingerboard in a blur. Her bow was flying across the strings, and when the music finally died down and then stopped, there were several snapped horse hairs from using so much force.
The cross-dressed girl let her violin hang from her fingertips and threw her head back and laughed, exhilarated. Her father quietly chuckled beside her.
'Ah�I haven't played the flute for so long. My mouth hurts.' Leyva's father, Chuck, massaged around his mouth, opening and closing it repetitively. 'Mouth exercises!' It was an inside joke between the father and daughter.
There was someone applauding from the door. The two younger whirled around, and the older slowly turned.
'It's Banhr, isn't it?' Leyva asked.
'Yeah. �Beautiful music. I'm sure the crew would love it if you two would play for us sometime after dinner. I know I'd like it.' He granted them a small smile, turned, and walked away, fingers dragging against the wood walls as he made his way back to his cabin.