Pay The Piper

[John Silver]

Silver has his hands on his hips much like all those years ago while watching his young cabin boy scrub the deck. Only Jim just didn't get 100 + men killed in a skirmish battle some weeks ago. "Once yer done with that i expect to see those dishes cleaned and then shined until it looks like a bloody mirror" the ursid chuckled, dropping down into a chair next to the young man who hopefully has finished his task of cutting up the large pile of fruit that had been placed in front of him. "Since Jasper put you in my charge don't think i'm gonna go soft on you laddie" he watched the man for a moment before fishing for his pipe that was in his pocket.  

[Aladdin]

Aladdin looked over at Silver. He grunted but nodded. He wasn't mad anymore. Not really. He understood why he was demoted. He had screwed up in the battle and probably gotten a lot of people killed. He then replied, "I don't expect you to."

He then glanced towards the cut fruits. "What do I do with these?" he asked.

[John Silver]

"I don't expect you to."

"That's good" the ursid mutters having found his pipe and now was currently lighting it with the lighter that was stored in his cybernetic arm, well hand technically. After a few puffs, Silver glances at the man as he spoke

"What do I do with these?"

"Put the lot in the bowl over there" he motions to said bowl on the counter-top nearby. "Once that's done you can start on butchering a fresh waterbuck we got today" he moves over to pull back the tent flap to show the carcass hanging from a hook, covered from the flies and other bugs of the Savannah. It's glassy eyes staring empty ahead, this was a complete sacrificial offering to the pride. It asked to die, asked to be part of the circle of life. Not like his crew-mate that had joined Aladdin's team to battle. He was a rigger on Silver's ship, he had a name and a story and just like that it was gone the moment Aladdin fled the battle.

"What made you leave Zane Beaker to his death?" Silver rumbled quietly, his once golden eye flickering to a orange color.

[Aladdin]

Aladdin shut his eyes tightly. He couldn't bring himself to answer though. He didn't know if his answer was the one Silver wanted to hear or not. "I- I can't answer that..."

[John Silver]

"I- I can't answer that..."

Silver's eye shifts to that crimson tint, his expression darkening just as quickly. Aladdin was about to learn he had picked the wrong answer. "I'll ask ye again, why?" he steps closer to the young man now, towering over him. "You best 'ink long and hard lad" he rumbled out, a bear like growl to his Irish tone. "I take the lives of my crew-mates very seriously" his flesh hand reaches out to grab a piece of mango and pops it into his mouth.

[Aladdin]

"I know you do... but I can't answer that," Aladdin just couldn't. Anything he would say would be chided at, and the excuse he was thinking of wasn't good enough. He was in pain. He had no idea how many died or who died. All he knew was that he screwed up. He kept looking at the work he had down and wanted to break something. He didn't show it, though. He walked over and put the dishes onto the counter.

[Mulan]

  Standing just outside of the tent to Silver's kitchen, Mulan listened to their conversation, brows knit and arms folded in pensive thought. She had posted herself here, rather than directly inside, to allow Silver his space to work, and Aladdin his space to think. Even in the face of her new position as Aladdin's mentor-- which, really, she was more like his warden, given how he'd come to be in this circumstance to begin with-- it didn't feel right to her to loom over anyone's shoulder. It wasn't that she felt he didn't deserve this. He did. What Aladdin was responsible for... it still hurt Mulan to think about. It wasn't just tragic, it was avoidable. That was what made it so infuriating.

  Moreover, Mulan trusted Silver to handle the punishment aspect of Aladdin's situation. She held a lot of respect for the man, and appreciated his method of honest, character-building work. However, when Silver's topic turned to one of the casualties in particular: apparently one of Silver's own crew, Mulan cast an uncertain glance over her shoulder. Silver was level-headed, but even the most controlled individual can behave rashly when things become personal. And from the sound of Silver's darkening tone, Mulan worried that the captain might behave... very rashly.


  "Captain Silver?" She began, lifting the flap and stepping into the tent. With calm, measured steps she approached the pair, and laid a sympathetic hand on the cook's shoulder. "Please. I know you're angry. You have every right to be." Her gaze briefly shifted towards Aladdin, and her stare went from soft and understanding to firm and direct. "And Aladdin will answer you. In time."


  Her eyes returned to Silver, and her expression softened again. "But whatever you may be thinking right now, it won't ease your pain, and it won't bring your friend back."

[John Silver]

"I know you do... but I can't answer that,"

Silver swallowed the bite of mango, eyes trained on the young man with now complete spite "You sniveling little shi-" Silver's snarl was thankfully cut off by Mulan entering the tent and the ursid  turned swiftly to his fellow solider 


"Captain Silver?"

"Mulan" the gears in his arm hum and whirl as they were just to switch functions. 


"Please. I know you're angry. You have every right to be."
"And Aladdin will answer you. In time."

A soft snort escapes Silver's nose before he lifts a hand to rub the bridge of his nose, one of the little ticks that tells he was annoyed or fed up with a situation "When will that be?" he musters out, 


"But whatever you may be thinking right now, it won't ease your pain, and it won't bring your friend back."

"Have you lost friends, Mulan? Do ye know that feeling that eats away at your soul?" he looks tired suddenly, voice tight as if he was about break down.  "Does he even know what he has done?" he hisses out, Mulan would feel his shoulder muscle tense as if ready to leap onto his new kitchen helper. "Heaven help him, had Jimbo been out on that battle field" the thought made the cyborg sick to his stomach.  

[Mulan]

"Have you lost friends, Mulan? Do ye know that feeling that eats away at your soul? ... Heaven help him, had Jimbo been out on that battlefield..."

  "I know, Silver. I know." She watched the anger drain away to exhaustion in his stare, seeing something past her, some far away grief that Mulan could only imagine. In truth, Mulan had seen her share of death. Her first war had begun with dozens of bright and hopeful faces. Faces she had trained with, faces she had come to trust as friends. She thought of them, she thought of Shang, and she thought of her father. But Mulan wasn't sure these were the things Silver needed to hear right now.

  "I'm not asking you to understand him," Mulan began, carefully choosing her words. "I'm not even asking you to forgive him." Her voice was soft, almost a balm in her attempt to soothe him. "I only ask you for your patience, Captain."

  "Please."

[John Silver]

Silver’s heavy frame turns to look up at the women giving her a careful look, as if trying to see if what she said would be true. “patiences?” His voice wavers again, a invisible flag waving in his throat. “How...how long until the lad kills another person, another squad” he coughs, eyes burning with tears