Short Story: The Pirate and the Tailor
It's not every day you meet a pirate captain.
It's certainly not every day that you're asked to go on an adventure with that said pirate captain, either.
But unfortunately for Bartholomew the First, that's just what happened. (Though, asking is an extremely loose term for what happens.)
The strange girl only known to him as Captain Bracken, had suddenly landed in his shop one day; quite literally.
Bartholomew Beadsted had just been putting the finishing touches on a particularly picky customer's top hat. It had taken him a full three hours to convince his patron that there was no way he could in fact make the hat fly, without it leaving the mans head.
"Then attach a strap you silly buffoon!" The man had cried, waving his arms in the air like a propeller. "What do you take me for? An idiot?"
Bartholomew thought it best to remain silent on the subject. But, as it was, the man had not been satisfied with the strap either. So it was really all in Bartholomew's best interests when the boisterous Captain Malady Bracken fell through the window, landing heavily on the table and crushing the problematic hat as well.
"Are you alright?" Bartholomew asked the girl, after recovering from his shock at her sudden appearance.
"Ugh." She replied, pushing herself up and sitting on the edge of the table.
"Sorry 'bout the window, Mate." She grinned quite impishly, and Bartholomew was quite surprised to see several gold teeth.
"I say, you aren't a.. a.."
"A what, Mate?" She asked. But before Bartholomew could say anything more, shouts were suddenly coming from outside, as well as the unmistakable sound of propellor blades.
"Oh golly gee-whiz, sorry 'bout this Mate but can't afford to be caught just yet. Now hold tight and don't chu' worry."
Poor Bartholomew was suddenly being dragged outside of his Tailor's shop into the bright sunlight of the day by one of the strangest people he had ever met.
He wasn't quite certain what all was going on. But he did know that the two large airships and one small one following behind them wasn't a good sign.
"I–say–you–aren't–a–pirate–are–YOU?" That last word, jerked more than the rest, was followed by the sheer panic one feels when you're suddenly walking on nothing.
It wouldn't have been such a fright if he'd known that there was a ship waiting just a few feet below them off the edge of the street.
Lying on deck of the small airship was about the best that Bartholomew Beadsted could manage at the moment. As the apparently insane Bracken rushed about setting sail and hoisting mainsteads and whatever else it was that she was so loudly shouting as she did it, yet Bartholomew was hopelessly lost.
A few moments later however, and the little craft was puttering through the sky with it's two passengers. Bartholomew momentarily forgot about the three ships in tow as he looked around him.
"I say, this is marvelous!" He cried.
"Glad you like it, Mate!" The insane Captain replied with a grin. "Don't suppose you'd mind takin' over the wheel for a moment for me would ye?"
"I beg pardon?" He asked in a panic. Bartholomew had never steered a ship, to be honest, he'd never even been on one before.
In a moments glance behind the ship and beyond their pursuers, Bartholomew caught a glimpse of the steadily shrinking town he'd lived in since the day he was born. A small floating island of no regard save the two shops and several commodities of the tiny dwelling places of Inportensia.
All this in a moment, before Bartholomew realized that the strange girl was no longer at the wheel, but perilously waiting at the side of the ship as the two larger suddenly ran along side.
"I say! Steady on there Bedstead!" She shouted as the ship to the right suddenly bumped the tiny craft.
"Sorry!" He shouted back, gripping the wheel and doing best he could to figure out just how to control the odd boat.
"HEYAAAAAA!"
Bartholomew (poor Bartholomew) was nearly scared out of his wits as the wild girl leapt into the air, cutting the ropes that connected the two craft.
A jerking motion nearly sent Bartholomew sliding as the wheel turned far more fiercely than he anticipated, But, as if by some strange wind of luck, the ship on the opposite side had just fired a volley of hooks, but, due to the odd angle of the deck, bounced harmlessly off before the little ship righted itself. A shaken Bartholomew Beadsted the First, at the wheel.
It wasn't long before a loud and excited voice nearly shouted directly in his ear–"Way to go, Bedstead!"
"It's Beadsted, and how on earth do you know my name?"
"It was on the window of your shop before I smashed through it." She replied smartly.
"I"ll take the helm now, Mate!" She continued, moving to where Bartholomew had been standing a moment before.
"Just a few more ticks and I'll get ye back home, never fear. Just needed to borrow sommat before I left the town then I'd be off to Londonfold."
"Londonfold!" Bartholomew cried. "You mean you're going as far as that?"
"Not that far," She replied, looking at him strangely.
"Say..." She said slowly, eyeing him with some strange regard. "Where you from?"
"Inportensia." Bartholomew replied innocently.
"How many times have you left that little bucket?"
"What do you mean, it's not that little. And I've never left."
A mixture of laughter erupted from the tiny Captain. Some of it out of hilarity, the rest out of an attempt to keep herself of crying.
"Oh dear Mate," she looked at him almost sadly. "I pity you."
"Why?"
"Because," she nodded ahead of them. "You've got no idea what it is that ye've missed mah Matey."
Bartholomew was lost for words. The clouds parted, revealing beneath them the largest collection of buildings and floating islands that he had ever seen.
Several layers to the city that were bustling with small moving trade barges, levels upon levels of buildings and shops, along with a myriad of smells, sound, sights, and feelings.
"This... is this..."
"Welcome to Londronfold, Bedstead." The crazy Captain said with a smile. "Maybe if you'd like, I could make a pirate of you yet."
"What about my shop?" Bartholomew asked.
"What about it?" She returned.
Bartholomew thought for a moment, looking behind him where the small island once had been was no longer visible, and then turning to see the large city spreading out even further before him.
"Don't suppose you need a Tailor, do you?" He asked.
The Pirate and the Tailor ©Mae Fort
It's certainly not every day that you're asked to go on an adventure with that said pirate captain, either.
But unfortunately for Bartholomew the First, that's just what happened. (Though, asking is an extremely loose term for what happens.)
The strange girl only known to him as Captain Bracken, had suddenly landed in his shop one day; quite literally.
Bartholomew Beadsted had just been putting the finishing touches on a particularly picky customer's top hat. It had taken him a full three hours to convince his patron that there was no way he could in fact make the hat fly, without it leaving the mans head.
"Then attach a strap you silly buffoon!" The man had cried, waving his arms in the air like a propeller. "What do you take me for? An idiot?"
Bartholomew thought it best to remain silent on the subject. But, as it was, the man had not been satisfied with the strap either. So it was really all in Bartholomew's best interests when the boisterous Captain Malady Bracken fell through the window, landing heavily on the table and crushing the problematic hat as well.
"Are you alright?" Bartholomew asked the girl, after recovering from his shock at her sudden appearance.
"Ugh." She replied, pushing herself up and sitting on the edge of the table.
"Sorry 'bout the window, Mate." She grinned quite impishly, and Bartholomew was quite surprised to see several gold teeth.
"I say, you aren't a.. a.."
"A what, Mate?" She asked. But before Bartholomew could say anything more, shouts were suddenly coming from outside, as well as the unmistakable sound of propellor blades.
"Oh golly gee-whiz, sorry 'bout this Mate but can't afford to be caught just yet. Now hold tight and don't chu' worry."
Poor Bartholomew was suddenly being dragged outside of his Tailor's shop into the bright sunlight of the day by one of the strangest people he had ever met.
He wasn't quite certain what all was going on. But he did know that the two large airships and one small one following behind them wasn't a good sign.
"I–say–you–aren't–a–pirate–are–YOU?" That last word, jerked more than the rest, was followed by the sheer panic one feels when you're suddenly walking on nothing.
It wouldn't have been such a fright if he'd known that there was a ship waiting just a few feet below them off the edge of the street.
Lying on deck of the small airship was about the best that Bartholomew Beadsted could manage at the moment. As the apparently insane Bracken rushed about setting sail and hoisting mainsteads and whatever else it was that she was so loudly shouting as she did it, yet Bartholomew was hopelessly lost.
A few moments later however, and the little craft was puttering through the sky with it's two passengers. Bartholomew momentarily forgot about the three ships in tow as he looked around him.
"I say, this is marvelous!" He cried.
"Glad you like it, Mate!" The insane Captain replied with a grin. "Don't suppose you'd mind takin' over the wheel for a moment for me would ye?"
"I beg pardon?" He asked in a panic. Bartholomew had never steered a ship, to be honest, he'd never even been on one before.
In a moments glance behind the ship and beyond their pursuers, Bartholomew caught a glimpse of the steadily shrinking town he'd lived in since the day he was born. A small floating island of no regard save the two shops and several commodities of the tiny dwelling places of Inportensia.
All this in a moment, before Bartholomew realized that the strange girl was no longer at the wheel, but perilously waiting at the side of the ship as the two larger suddenly ran along side.
"I say! Steady on there Bedstead!" She shouted as the ship to the right suddenly bumped the tiny craft.
"Sorry!" He shouted back, gripping the wheel and doing best he could to figure out just how to control the odd boat.
"HEYAAAAAA!"
Bartholomew (poor Bartholomew) was nearly scared out of his wits as the wild girl leapt into the air, cutting the ropes that connected the two craft.
A jerking motion nearly sent Bartholomew sliding as the wheel turned far more fiercely than he anticipated, But, as if by some strange wind of luck, the ship on the opposite side had just fired a volley of hooks, but, due to the odd angle of the deck, bounced harmlessly off before the little ship righted itself. A shaken Bartholomew Beadsted the First, at the wheel.
It wasn't long before a loud and excited voice nearly shouted directly in his ear–"Way to go, Bedstead!"
"It's Beadsted, and how on earth do you know my name?"
"It was on the window of your shop before I smashed through it." She replied smartly.
"I"ll take the helm now, Mate!" She continued, moving to where Bartholomew had been standing a moment before.
"Just a few more ticks and I'll get ye back home, never fear. Just needed to borrow sommat before I left the town then I'd be off to Londonfold."
"Londonfold!" Bartholomew cried. "You mean you're going as far as that?"
"Not that far," She replied, looking at him strangely.
"Say..." She said slowly, eyeing him with some strange regard. "Where you from?"
"Inportensia." Bartholomew replied innocently.
"How many times have you left that little bucket?"
"What do you mean, it's not that little. And I've never left."
A mixture of laughter erupted from the tiny Captain. Some of it out of hilarity, the rest out of an attempt to keep herself of crying.
"Oh dear Mate," she looked at him almost sadly. "I pity you."
"Why?"
"Because," she nodded ahead of them. "You've got no idea what it is that ye've missed mah Matey."
Bartholomew was lost for words. The clouds parted, revealing beneath them the largest collection of buildings and floating islands that he had ever seen.
Several layers to the city that were bustling with small moving trade barges, levels upon levels of buildings and shops, along with a myriad of smells, sound, sights, and feelings.
"This... is this..."
"Welcome to Londronfold, Bedstead." The crazy Captain said with a smile. "Maybe if you'd like, I could make a pirate of you yet."
"What about my shop?" Bartholomew asked.
"What about it?" She returned.
Bartholomew thought for a moment, looking behind him where the small island once had been was no longer visible, and then turning to see the large city spreading out even further before him.
"Don't suppose you need a Tailor, do you?" He asked.
The Pirate and the Tailor ©Mae Fort
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