Flint whistled, high and sharp, one note that perfectly conveyed his satisfaction as he crouched in the shadowed gloom of the forest. Aika, beside him, turned her head to give him an incredulous look, which he easily shrugged off, linking his hands together behind his head with a prideful grin.

"Ma'd love this," he chuckled, indicating the pillar of smoke rising into the air from the clearing they'd occupied just a while ago. "And it was your idea, Aika."
"I know that," she sighed. She was regretting that decision, most likely, as it was common knowledge among their parents' crew that giving Flint permission to play with pyrotechnics nearly always ended badly for all those involved. "Let's just hope it's enough to draw out the twins, because I'm out of ideas otherwise, and I want out of this forest."
Flint hummed his agreement, crossing his arms over his chest as he sat back, observing the traces of flame that still licked over the wild grass of the clearing. It was nothing dangerous; he'd made sure the blast radius wouldn't send flaming debris into any of the overhanging trees, and he and Aika had paced the clearing beforehand to ensure that no animals were lurking nearby when the explosives went off.

The twins wouldn't forgive them if they harmed the Eternal.

And, seeing as Flint was hellbent on getting them to join his crew (especially now, with his pride and reputation as a capable captain on the line), he figured pissing them off wouldn't get him anywhere in his negotiations.

The blast's echo had long since died down, vanishing into the silence of the forest once again. Slight rustling in the distance told him the animals were curious as to what the hell had just happened, but wary enough that they didn't wander any closer than what he thought was probably scenting-distance. The smoke and black powder would likely be enough to clog up the nose of even the most accomplished hunter in this forest, though, so he wasn't overly worried about another friendly visitor dropping in on them.

Speaking of powder...

Flint squinted at his hands, which were now colored a faint black, like he'd steeped them in coal dust; clumps of powder dug under his fingernails, and he thought he'd be having such a fun time washing himself down later, back on the ship. Aika wouldn't let him get away with not having a bath, for multiple reasons really, but in this case, she wouldn't be very fond of him tracking black dust through every level and room of the ship. Valor, or Vesper, wouldn't care much, but from Vesper he'd have to expect a slew of bad jokes at his expense. So yeah, much as he'd rather just collapse onto his cot at the end of the day, he was going to have spend an hour or so scrubbing off the lasting remains of his own handiwork.

Such was the price he had to pay for his thrilling pastime.

Well, it makes Ma happy, and I'm just about floored from how excited I get with it, so it ain't right to complain, I suppose.

Flint and Aika glanced at one another whenever a twig snapped in the forest, or at the faintest sound anywhere within a few feet of them. The twins weren't going to be obvious about their approach, if they even came looking at all, so the pair remained utterly silent - apart from Flint's occasional sneeze, which he stifled as best he could, subsequently streaking his face with charcoal lines and fingerprints - so that they could catch even the softest sign of their arrival.

He'd resorted to raking his dirtied hands through his messy hair, lower lip worrying between his teeth and wide eyes scanning every twitching leaf or swaying branch, when Aika curled her hand around his wrist, her expression tensing. She held a finger to her lips, and he nodded dutifully, flicking a glance upwards, as the twins had a habit of navigating through the trees partially because they enjoyed the ease it lended to their movements through the forest, partially because they were aware how very few people could track and follow them that way.

"Corin, he's an idiot, right?"
Flint's breath hitched as Aika went stiff beside him.

"More than likely."

"So if they're hurt..."

"It's not our fault."

"End of story?"

"Last page, last sentence, last word," Corin's disembodied voice agreed, and Flint could clearly picture the mocking grin sitting comfortably on their lips.

His own curled into a sulking pout at the comment. An idiot? Sure, he'd heard it all the time from them (and various others) growing up, but he'd thought that striking out on his own was a way to remedy that, make people see that he was more than blind ambition and thoughtless recklessness.

Maybe snagging the twins for his crew would prove to them he was different from how he was as a kid.

Though neither he nor Aika heard them approach, the twins appeared at the edge of the clearing; only their brightly colored hair stood out against the dim shadows cast down by the trees, and the shine of their eyes differentiated them from the common cats and such that inhabited the Eternal. They paused upon seeing the wreckage Flint had left for them in the center of the clearing.

While Aika had been the one to suggest the use of explosives to catch the twin's fleeting attention, he'd gone ahead and added onto the idea; which was why one of Flint's shoes, a chunk of his shirt, and a hastily cut lock of Aika's hair were scattered about the blast site, smoldering from their close proximity to the fire and ash that rained down immediately following the explosion. He wasn't really one for theatrics, but for this, he doubted the twins would be willing to accept defeat unless he and Aika managed to corner them out in the open; if they were able to slip away into the gloom again, he had no doubt they'd make use of some loophole in the rules of their game and escape his crew for good.

"An idiot," Lynx said after a moment, a hint of exasperation dripping into his voice.

Flint did have that effect on people - just like his mother.

"Aika's not."

"He's stupid enough for the both of them."

Aika, stifling a laugh, turned away from Flint as he shot her a panicked look.

"What's Pa going to say?"

"I'm more worried about Ma."

"They'll both kill us."

"Pa does like that redhead..."

"Flint?"

"No, Auntie Raya."

Another pause.

"Flint, too, I guess."

Corin stepped out of the treeline, pace quick and precise, and stooped down to peer at the smoking tatters of Flint's shirt; Lynx slunk past them to stamp out a tongue of flame that had slithered closer to a drooping bush, but glanced back when Corin made an impatient, irritated noise. Seems they'd held out some hope that it had been a random stranger's remains rather than Flint's, only to have said hope dashed now that they'd gotten a closer look.

Aika gently shook Flint's arm, and he gave a slow nod as she slipped away from him.

"Corin."

"Lynx."

"You tell Pa."

"Then you can tell Ma."

"..."

"We could say they just wandered in here on their own."

"Would they buy that?"

"We're almost good enough liars to fool Pa, so..."

Flint rolled his eyes. They were overestimating themselves if they thought they had a chance pulling one over on Timor. Even for Ma's old crew he was incredible, and being a former chameleon of an assassin, he was as silver-tongued as they come when the mood struck him; nowadays, though, he had no need of it, but he still retained the ability to detect even the whitest of lies. Flint had learned that the hard way when he broke his training sword when he was seven and tried to blame it on Aika.

Wait, 'snot the time for gettin' wishy-washy. Get a move on!

"Alright, I've got it."

"Have you?"

"We'll just stay here. Won't go home."

"...that could work. Can't get in trouble if they can't find us."

"Ma might come looking, but--"

Corin cut off as Flint burst from his hiding place with a triumphant grin. The twins, though, barely spared him a glance before they were turning sharply on their heels, looking to dash off into the forest. But Aika was there, barring their way.

Lynx let out a sigh while Corin looked visibly taken aback; they hadn't even considered the possibility that Flint and Aika might outsmart them. It was a little inconceivable; even as children, it had always been the twins leading Flint around by the nose, him chasing after them hopelessly, him getting the business end of all their mischievous pranks.

It was a nice a feeling, one-upping them this time around.

"You're not dead," Corin said, in what was more a dulled exclamation than it was a question.

"That's right," Aika agreed, hands on her hips; she was smiling, just a bit, clearly happy that this was over. "We've found you, fair and square."
"I'd hardly call that fair--"
"Corin," Lynx interjected, dropping a sober hand onto his twin's shoulder. Corin pouted but said nothing else. Lynx, keeping a hold on Corin, spun them both around to better face both Aika and Flint; he nodded slightly to Flint, which made the redhead's smile stretch a bit wider. "You win."

"I don't like it."

"You know Pa won't--"

"I know, I know. Doesn't mean I'm okay with it."

"Don't say that, Corin," Flint rushed, flushed with his victory; he circled around to stand in front of the twins, and Aika moved to his side. "Joining my crew's gonna be great for ya both, I promise! You'll get to go on all kinds of crazy cool adventures, just like your Ma and Pa!"

"More than that," Aika added, tacking on seamlessly to Flint's frenzied attempts to placate them, "it's not like you'll never be coming home. We're planning to sail to the end of the Grand Line, yes, but it won't take forever."

Corin still looked unconvinced, but Lynx offered a curious expression instead of his usual tight-lipped mask.

"The end of the Grand Line?" he echoed.

"Flint wants to recreate the journey our parents went on," Aika explained. "So we can show them we're just as...well, badass as they were back in the day."

That seemed to snag Corin's attention, and Flint's sloppy grin widened another fraction of an inch. They were getting through! That was, honestly, more than he'd been expecting when they finally got hold of the twins. He figured it would take brute force and a bit of luck to drag them aboard their ship, even if they managed to win in the end, as he doubted the twins had any real desire to hold up their end of the bargain. But this gave him some much needed hope.

"...We have to, huh?"

"I'd say so," Lynx said, absently twirling his silver knife around his fingers. He already knew the outcome of this conversation, even if his twin didn't quite want to accept it.

"Can't go back on our word."

"Not with Pa privy to it."

"Right. So."

"So?" Lynx prompted, something akin to an amused smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

"So... guess we're joining Flint's ragtag crew."
Maybe it was the black powder getting to him, having snuck up his nose and muddled up his thoughts some way or another, but Flint felt like one of his hand-crafted explosives: charged with energy, too small to contain his excitement, ready to burst.

"Welcome to the Heir Pirates!" he shouted, throwing himself at the twins in a hug - which they both sidestepped, leaving him to smack into the ground, face-first.

Groaning, Flint wearily lifted his head, spitting out a mouthful of grass.

"Did ya have to?" he whined.

Corin and Lynx merely grinned.

He was going to have to get used to this, but at that moment, he didn't give a damn. His crew was two members stronger, and it was only going to continue to grow. The Heir Pirates were going to be famous on the high seas, he was sure of it; more famous than their parents, even!

...Well, maybe. They'd certainly give it their all, anyway.