Jessica's body tossed and turned when her never-ending nightmare pursued her dreams. Her fast breathing paced and heavy, and her heart raced faster and faster by the second.

If Jude didn't do something soon, she would be in danger of dying from overexertion to her heart.

The second Jessica had blacked out, Jude caught her in his arms and took her to the infirmary on his captain's ship. He laid her down on a bed in his medical room and kept an eye on her vital signs.

As a physician, he understood why he had taken her to the infirmary, but what Jude didn't understand was the uneasy feeling in his stomach, or why his legs nervously tapped while he waited for her to wake up. He had never felt like this with any of the crew when they were in mortal danger, so why with her?

Jude sat down on a wooden chair, frowning, watching the heart monitor as it beeped louder and louder. He didn't like how fast her heart was beating, but there wasn't much else he could do but wait. Jude had already given her sedatives, but they either hadn't worked or the ones he had weren't strong enough. He was running low on medical supplies at the moment.

He wished he could take the pain away from her. It was his fault; he shouldn't have blindly taken her choker necklace off without anticipating some form of a reaction. She hid those scars on her neck for a reason, and he had humiliated her by revealing them.

He stood up and looked over her; she tossed about on the bed, a cold sweat running down her temple. His finger stroked the ugly red marks on her neck. It made him wonder why anyone would want to hang such a beautiful creature.

Jude frowned; Jessica had stopped tossing. He looked back at the heart monitor. It had slowed down. He took his hand away from her, and almost immediately, she started to murmur in fear, and her heart sped up again.

He stroked the back of his hand against her bronze cheek. Jessica instantly calmed down and rubbed her face against his hand, yearning for his touch.

Jude smirked to himself, chuckling at her reaction to him.

"You like my affection, Miss Azalea. I'll keep that in mind."

He continued to stroke the backs of his fingers against the soft skin of her cheek as her heart steadied.

His hand shot away from her when Paddy walked in, his lips turned down in a frown.

"Will she be okay?" Paddy asked.

Jude looked back down at Jessica, and he once again stroked his hand against her cheek, noticing she was starting to whimper without his touch.

"I won't know until she wakes up," Jude said, still confused himself as to what happened. It was like her body had shut down from her panic attack.

"Did you find her stuff?"

The feline nodded. "It's all in the galley except for the sword you requested."

Paddy passed him her rapier sword.

Jude nodded at the feline in thanks. He had left her basket of apples, bag, and rapier sword at the roadside when he teleported her back to the ship. He felt obliged to retrieve them for her and had asked his captain to collect them.

"Good. Make sure the rest of the crew doesn't eat the apples. They're for Az... Jesse only," he corrected, remembering to call her by the name she preferred.

He didn't understand why she went by the name Jessica, but she seemed scared when he had called her Azalea. Plus, he liked that only he knew her real name. He didn't want the rest of the crew or anyone else to know or call her by that name.

"There is no need to linger, Paddy. I'll tell you if her vitals improve."

"Thank you." His captain nodded and left.

Jude unsheathed Jessica's sword and gazed at the sharp blade. It was new, recently crafted, but already he could tell she didn't take good care of it. It had blood stains on it. He wondered what fight she had gotten herself into to gain such stains. Clearly, she had won, since she was alive now.

He sheathed the sword, and a small black pouch with white drawstrings attached to the scabbard knocked against his hand. He untied it from the sword and opened up the bag, revealing a couple of trinkets: a Mr Compass, an old key, some money, pieces of cheap jewellery, and a honey gold locket.

He lifted the locket out and watched it swing in front of him, fascinated by the engraving of the bee, the coat of arms of the Honey Tribe Kingdom. He was about to flip open the locket when a bronze hand caught his wrist and stopped him.

"It's rude to go through people's belongings."

"Miss Azalea. You're awake."

Jessica attempted to grab it from him, only for Jude to snatch his hand back before she could. A smirk played on his lips when he dangled it in front of her teasingly.

"Is there something the matter? You seem nervous."

Jessica swallowed, her eyes never leaving her locket as it swung from side to side. It was like watching the pendulum of a grandfather clock. She couldn't allow him to look at the picture of her father within the locket.

Her father had warned her back when he first gave her the locket when she was ten years old not to let anyone know she was his daughter, for it would only put her in danger from his enemies. Nobody knew that Pirate Lord Zachary Flint had a daughter.

Jude once again attempted to open it and she jumped up to grab her locket back, but with his height, he easily lifted his arm high into the air, making it unreachable for her. Losing her balance, she collided into his firm chest and gripped onto his black hoodie to stop herself from falling over.

Jessica looked up at him, a red blush gracing her cheeks. She could feel his chest rumble when he chuckled at her.

"You're blushing, Miss Azalea."

Jude placed an arm around her waist, making it impossible for her to escape from his presence. He did love seeing her blush.

"Don't call me that."

She attempted to push back from him but failed due to his firm grip around her waist. She huffed, accepting that she wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

"Please, can I have my locket back?" she begged.

Jude's heart stammered when he looked into her eyes, so beautiful yet filled with fear. She was scared of him. He let go off her waist, and she immediately stepped back, taking in a deep breath.

He swung the locket in front of her. "I'll give this back to you if you tell me how you acquired those scars." Jude pointed towards her neck.

Jessica's hand reached up to her throat, when she thought back to the day she got the ugly scars. Her throat felt tight, and she looked away from Jude, embarrassed to show weakness in front of him by revealing the tears falling down her cheeks.

"I don't want to talk about it," she murmured. "Especially to someone I don't trust."

"Then I'll look inside your locket. You're clearly hiding a secret inside of it."

Jessica's head shot up, her eyes dark and angry.

"You remind me of him!" she snapped.

"Of who?" Jude wondered, frowning.

"Of the man who gave me these scars. Using blackmail and other means of manipulation to control me." She scoffed at him. "If it bothers you so much, then I'll tell you, as long as I have your word that I get my locket back afterwards."

Jude looked between her and the honey gold locket. Although he was highly intrigued by what was inside of the pendant, he wanted to know more about the scars on her neck.

"You have my word."

Jessica grabbed her choker necklace that was sat on the side and tied it around her neck. She breathed in nervously, her lips already starting to tremble before she even told him her story. It was always a memory that haunted her dreams to this very day. She would do anything to forget about it.

"Back when I was fifteen, my master's ship had docked at Sunrise Island. He was in search of someone and had disappeared in the early evening in search of this person and had not returned. It was the middle of the night when I decided to take my chances, and I attempted to escape from my master's ship. At first, I used the gangplank, but it was too heavy for me to move and would have caused unwanted noise."

As Jessica started her story, the tears had already formed.

"So instead, I used the rope from the sail to make my way down to the deck. I used this acrobatic technique called aerial silk to make my way down safely. It's where the ropes twist around your body. I was about halfway down when my master appeared below on the decking. His haunting laugh had startled me, and my grip on the rope slipped, and I started to fall.

"As I fell, the rope tangled around my body and got caught around my neck. I could barely breathe, and using my hands to pull on the rope to loosen it wasn't enough. I slowly choked to death; it was a painful experience. My master laughed the entire time, finding amusement in my failed attempt. He left me to dangle as punishment, and the ropes rubbed against my neck, leaving the ugly scars that you see. I could feel myself about to die. At that moment, I would have done anything to live, and so he gave me a choice: die, or he would cut me loose as long as I agreed that one day if the need should ever arise, I would owe him a favour. I agreed, and he cut me down."

Jessica had never told anybody about that fatal night, not even Elena, yet she easily told a stranger she had only known a couple of days. She flinched when Jude stroked away the stray tears that had fallen down her cheeks. Jessica hadn't even noticed that he had approached her. She felt humiliated that he had seen her cry, and her cheeks reddened as a result.

"I'm sorry you had to experience such an ordeal," he said. His fingers traced along her jaw bone, and he lifted her chin. "I see you managed to escape from this master of yours. How did you finally escape from him?"

Jessica bit down on her lip and nodded but did not say any more. She was lost in his touch when his fingers stroked down her neck. Why did she feel safe with him?

"During our visit to Sunrise Island, an incident occurred. I don't exactly know what happened. There was a blinding explosion followed by screaming, and the port town we had docked at was set alight. It had been a hot, dry day, and the fire spread rapidly throughout the port town. I took it as an opportunity to escape while my master was otherwise distracted. However, the fire spread quickly, and I got caught up within it. I thought I was going to die until a man saved me. I do not know what he looks like or what his name is, but I remember what he said to me that day: 'take my hand.'"

Jessica breathed in sharply and continued. "I woke up the next day in the neighbouring village, healed from my burns. My master thought I was dead. I rejoiced and stayed on the island for a couple of months until I decided to set sail in search of the man who saved me, only to end up shipwrecked on this island for two years."

Jude stroked her long red hair over her shoulder and a small, sad smile formed on her lips when he delicately placed her locket around her neck. His warm touch sent a pleasant shiver down her spine.

Why is he so kind to me? she wondered.

"I now understand why you prefer Jesse. You don't want him to find you?"

Jessica nodded once again but still stayed silent, looking down at the oval locket resting on her chest. Her hand grasped it, and she thought of her father. She missed him dearly.

"Who was this master of yours?"

Jessica ignored him and looked around her surroundings. Where was she? It looked like an infirmary but not like one she had seen before; this one seemed to have the latest technologies in medicine. However, what got to Jessica was how compact and small the metal room was, and she could hear a slight vibration and a humming sound.

"Am I on your ship?" She started to panic, and her head shifted from side to side. "Get me out of here now!"

Jude watched her, fascinated by her sudden change in mood when she realised she was on his ship. Her breathing had sharpened, and she looked around the room with a deep panic like the walls were closing in on her.

"I can't let you off; we're out at sea."

"What? Why? Now that you know where I come from, you're probably going to sell me to a slave house, then my master will find me, and who knows what he'd do to me if he ever found me again!" She froze and shivered, her body shaken by such thoughts. "I can't go back to him. Get me off this ship right now!"

She started to pace the room, and nervously bit down on her fingers, drawing his line of sight down to her pink lips. He did hate that habit of hers; it was very distracting.

"Calm down!" Jude ordered, grabbing her wrists and stopping her from pacing. He tugged her finger out from her mouth before it distracted him even more than it was. "I'm not kidnapping you or selling you."

She was still panicking. Her head darted around her, trying to find a way to escape. As if she could ever escape from him.

Jude sighed and reached his hand up to her cheek, and she instantly calmed down from his soft touch. Her head leaned into his hand like she was a cat. It made Jude smirk. No wonder she got along well with Paddy. He liked that she could be easily submissive to his affection.

She instantly shot back from him, cheeks red and flustered.

"Stop doing that!" She glared at him.

Jude chuckled. "Doing what?"

He reached his hand up once again, and she slapped it away.

"That! Stop whatever that is that makes me..." Her cheeks glowed.

Jude raised an amused brow. "Makes you what?"

She couldn't possibly turn any redder if she'd wanted to. "Never mind," she mumbled, looking away. "If you're not kidnapping me, then why am I on your moving ship?"

Jude stepped back from her and grabbed the medical bag sitting on his desk.

"The captain insisted we take you back to Southport. I asked one of the locals at Northport where you lived, and they told me. It saves you a day's walk." He left the infirmary. "We'll be arriving in about an hour."

Jessica grabbed her sword and followed after him along the cold, narrow corridors of his ship. Now and then, a member of the crew would walk past in a white hoodie and would give her an odd glance.

"Wait in the galley. I need to talk with the navigators." He pointed to a door to his right. "All your stuff is in there."

Jessica reluctantly did as he said and sat down at the table in the galley, her head leaning in her hand as she sighed, bored out of her mind. She had already been through her stuff and made sure everything was there, including her basket of apples. All that was missing was her bucket of mussels.

She wandered into the kitchen, hoping to find them there and gasped, looking at the state of it. Unwashed dishes, pots, and pans were everywhere, and in some places mould was growing. As a proud cook, seeing such a mess was offensive.

"This will not do at all."

An hour later, Jude still sat in the navigation room with Paddy, Saskia, and Pedro, planning their journey after Harvest Island. There would be a couple more stops before Halfway Point, an infamous island for outlaws.

"We'll be docking soon, Captain," Saskia informed him.

Paddy nodded, and Jude grabbed his medical bag. "Let's say goodbye to your friend."

The feline's mood saddened. "Why can't we have her stay on my ship?"

It didn't surprise Jude that the feline had grown attached to the girl; he usually befriended kind natured people quite easily and found it hard to depart from them. The cat already looked sad with his head hung low.

Jude shook his head. "She doesn't seem to want to stay. Besides, you have no use for her on your ship. All she's good at is dancing and getting into panic attacks."

Although she could be suitable for one use for him. He pulled down his black hood, hiding the pink blush on his cheeks.

"Tell Jesse we've arrived and help her carry her stuff out. I'm sure she'll want to see you one last time before she leaves," he ordered.

Jude left the navigation room, though not without feeling a cold glare from the twins.

"Watch your back because one day..." Saskia's eyes swirled.

"...your luck will run out," Pedro finished.

"We do not trust you..." Saskia glared.

"...nor do we like you." Pedro's eyes were also swirling.

"The feeling is mutual," Jude remarked and walked off, shuddering once out of their sight.

He did not like Saskia and Pedro and always made sure to stay clear from them. One touch and his luck could change forever.

As Jude passed the galley, a delightful smell enticed his taste buds. It smelled like the cook was making something edible for once. He made his way up onto the deck and looked out over the harbour town of Southport. The town was much bigger than Northport and wealthier-looking. It too was in the midst of its harvest festival. He remembered his dance with Jessica; he enjoyed their bodies moving together.

Soon after, Jessica made it up on deck, and Paddy helped her carry her stuff to the harbour. She cuddled with the feline, the two of them enjoying each other's affection. Jude felt a weird twang in his stomach while watching them, and his eyebrow twitched in annoyance. So she liked the cat's affection as much as his.

Jessica looked at Jude and gave him a soft smile. "Thank you." She waved.

Jude looked down at her on the harbour, his expression stoic, his black hood shadowing over his face. He clicked his tongue and walked inside, ignoring her.

"Paddy," he called after the cat. "We'd best be going."

The feline nodded in agreement and followed him back inside the ship.

"Don't you want to say goodbye?" Paddy asked him. "She looked sad when you ignored her."

"I don't care."

Honestly, Jude felt guilty for not having said goodbye to Jessica and making her feel sad. But he had warmed up to her too quickly, and that could be dangerous when out on the seas of Aqua. It was for the best forgetting about her. He had a special job to do, and he didn't want to become too emotionally attached to her. It would not end well for him.

That same smell from earlier caught his attention, and he found his way to the galley, where the rest of the crew were huddled around the table, eating lunch.

"What's for lunch?" Jude asked the dirty looking cook. "Smells good."

"Mussels, but I didn't make them. I found them already prepared on the table with some sliced up bread," the Cook said.

Jude helped himself to some mussels, and his face lit up. They tasted terrific. The flavours danced on his tongue. It was such a change from the bland food he usually ate.

"Who made this?" Jude demanded.

Everyone shrugged, and the Cook passed him a note. "This was left behind, but I can't read it."

Jude frowned before opening up the folded piece of paper, a smirk on his lips when he read the note in her native language.

You might want to think about getting a new chef; yours isn't very hygienic. It took me the better part of an hour to clean your kitchen.

Anyway, enjoy your lunch, and thanks for taking me back home and for not kidnapping me. I admit I enjoyed dancing with you the other night; it was fun.

Miss Azalea.

Jude folded up the piece of paper and placed it in his pocket. Maybe he would have a use for Jessica on the ship after all. He looked over his crew, all of them with delighted looks on their faces as they enjoyed their flavourful meal.

"May we meet again, Miss Azalea."

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