⊰ T W E L V E ⊱

THE SWORD

"What is this?"

I peeked an eye open to find Yoongi standing above me with crossed arms. He was frowning as he looked at the makeshift hammock.

"I made this for Jimin. He was still sleeping in the brig and I couldn't let him stay there, so now he can sleep here instead," I explained, sitting up so I could meet his eyes. The scowl on his face only worsened when I said Jimin's name.

"You do know this is where we steer the ship, right? He's going to get in the way."

I sighed. "It was the best I could do. We don't have extra mattresses so I had to find a place where I could tie the net to make a hammock. Besides, we usually anchor at night anyways so everyone can sleep."

He pursed his lips. "What about when we don't? Since we're headed to our first destination now, we've got to stay moving to save some time. I don't want to hear his snoring while I'm stuck steering all night."

"Then I'll take the night shifts. I'd rather stay up all night than make him sleep in that disgusting dungeon," I said firmly.

"I don't understand why you care so much."

I stayed silent, knowing that a big part of the answer was that I was under Jimin's spell, or influence, as he called it. Even if I wanted to explain it to Yoongi, I couldn't, according to Jimin's command.

"I know you only really see him as a dangerous creature, but he was a human once. And he's becoming one again. The least I can do is treat him with some decency." Though it was an excuse to avoid telling him the truth, I still believed it.

I stood up from the hammock and met Yoongi's dark eyes. "So do you want me to cover the night shifts then?"

"No," he said immediately.

My brows furrowed. "Why not? Are you so concerned for my health that you don't want me losing any sleep?"

"It's not that. I mean, I do care about your health and I want you to rest, but I don't want you to be alone with Jimin. I don't trust him around you," he explained.

"Why does it matter if I'm with him or not? We already made a deal. He's not going to harm me."

Yoongi shook his head and stepped closer. "That's not what I'm worried about," he muttered while he raised his hand to cup my cheek. Butterflies swirled in my stomach from his touch.

I placed my own hand on top of his. He must've taken my action as a signal to continue, because he started leaning in, his eyes drifting to my lips. As he got close enough for his nose to nearly brush mine, my eyes drifted closed.

"What do you think, Katherine? You like? I think I look snazzy," Jimin's rather loud voice broke us apart.

I stepped back quickly, recalling Jimin's warning for me to stay away from Yoongi.
Jimin was just reaching the top of the stairs as we stepped away. He looked up and noticed our awkward positions, and I knew from his expression that it was obvious what we were about to do. His eyes glinted with anger as they met mine.

"It looks great." I managed to keep my voice from wavering. I took in his outfit change, and it really did look great. He wore a silky black shirt with a low v-neck which exposed some of his chest, and a long leather coat on top. His black pants fit perfectly and were tucked into black boots. He looked like a pirate. "I can see you like black," I added, trying to distract him.

"Not really, I just look damn good in it." He smirked.

My shoulders dropped as I realized that he was letting it go. For now, anyway.

I heard Yoongi clear his throat and I turned to look at him, but he was staring at Jimin.

"Ready to help us navigate today?" Yoongi asked him. I looked back at Jimin and saw that he was still watching me, despite Yoongi addressing him.

"Yep." He slowly tore his gaze from mine and looked at Yoongi. "Hoseok is up first."

My ears perked up at Hoseok's name. "What does he want? Are you able to see it?" I was excited to seek out the different things each of us wanted. It was a change of routine for us, and it held the promise of adventure.

"I can tell what direction it's in, and I can see that it's some sort of tool, or maybe a weapon..." Jimin trailed off and frowned. "But I can't get a clear picture of it in my head. Probably because I'm less siren now."

"So your abilities are weakening because you're turning more human?" Yoongi asked, a serious look on his face.

"Just a little. But don't worry, it's a slow process. I'll still be able to lead you to all your destinations as long as we don't waste time," Jimin said as he met the pirate's gaze.

I glanced from one to the other, picking up on the obvious tension between them. "Well, while you two figure out where we're headed, I'm gonna go get the rest of the crew ready."

They stayed quiet as they watched me leave.

Thankful to finally be free of the tension, I quickly went to the crew's quarters, and when I found that all of them were still asleep, I started yelling.

"GET YOUR FOUL PIRATE ASSES UP!"

Multiple groans and grumbles filled the room in response to my loud volume, but there was no movement. I clicked my tongue and crouched down to one of the lower bunks, pulling the blanket off of the sleeping figure.

I had to hold back a laugh as I took in Jungkook's face. His mouth hung wide open with a trail of drool dribbling down his cheek, but the funniest part was that his head was hanging entirely off the side of the bed. I put my finger under his chin and lifted it up to close his mouth, but the minute I let go, it plopped open again. I snickered.

Standing back up, I inhaled deeply and prepared to shout. "Time to rise and shine, cupcakes! If you don't get off your butts in the next thirty seconds, I'm dumping all of our rum into the sea!" I shouted.

In a flash, blankets went flying, beds were creaking, and multiple feet thumped on the wooden floor.

"Not the rum!" Namjoon and Jungkook yelled as they scrambled to their feet. Taehyung, Hoseok, and Jin followed one step behind them.

"Good. Now that you're all up, you need to go to your posts. We set sail today to get whatever it is that Hoseok wants."

The men all nodded and started heading out of the room, except for Hoseok.

"So mine is the closest to us?" he asked in surprise.

"Yeah, I guess so."

"Interesting." He seemed absorbed in his own thoughts.

"So what is it?" I asked.

"You'll find out for yourself," he snapped. As he started walking away, I grabbed his arm.

"Hoseok, what is your problem? I really don't understand what I've done to you to make you start treating me this way." Normally, I would've stayed quiet, but his behavior could only be ignored for so long. "I miss how we used to be with each other. I miss training with you."

"Those days are over. Just drop it."

My stubbornness kicked in. "How about this: if you find whatever the item is that you're searching for, I'll back off and leave you alone. But if I find it before you do, you have to spend a day training with me like we used to," I proposed, playing on his weakness to never back down from a challenge.

He looked at me with his arms crossed, then he sighed.

"You're on."

* * *

It took us two days to get to the destination. Nothing eventful happened other than Yoongi bickering about Jimin's new bed. We spent each day working on the ship, doing chores, and taking breaks to relax and play games with dice. Yoongi kept his distance from me, respecting the fact that I wanted time to think about us. Jimin was happy as he quickly caught on to the way we were avoiding each other. He thought I was just following his advice to steer clear of Yoongi, but the truth was that the more time I spent away from him, the more I longed for him.

It was early afternoon by the time we finally arrived.

"We're here!" Jimin hollered. I turned to look up at him from the deck. He was laying on the hammock with his eyes closed and his hands behind his head, like he had zero cares in the world. Taehyung stood at the wheel a few feet in front of him.

"What the heck are we supposed to find here?" Jin asked from beside me.

I followed his gaze to the sight just a few hundred feet ahead of us, taking in the empty beach of sparkling black sand. Just a little ways beyond the beach towered large, rocky cliffs that casted dark shadows along the ground. It was beautiful, but it also looked ominous and lonely.

"A sword."

My head whipped around at the sound of Hoseok's voice. He leaned his elbows on the railing and stared out at the beach.

"A sword? Why would a sword be the thing you want more than anything else? Can't you just get a new one if you aren't happy with the one you have?" Jin asked, clearly not understanding why we came all this way for a weapon.

"It's not just any sword. This blade is legendary, passed down as a myth. My father used to tell me about the sword when I was little. The legend goes that the blade was forged by the most skilled blacksmith and enchanted by the most powerful witch. They created the sword under the command of their king, who planned to gift the weapon to his eldest son. When the son received it, he immediately began training with it. He quickly became a skilled warrior, but as his skills grew, so did his thirst for power.

"Only one year after the king had given him the sword, the son used it to kill his father and take his place as king. When the reality of what he'd done finally hit him, the new king became paranoid. He blamed his greed and bloodlust on the sword, claiming that it was cursed. He feared that someone would somehow steal the sword and use it to kill him just like he had done to his own father. Because of this, he decided to hide the sword on a deserted piece of land so that nobody could find it and use it against him. He was too attached to the sword to destroy it, yet his paranoia caused him to hide it away. He eventually died without ever telling a soul where he hid it."

"But why would you want a sword that's cursed to make you greedy and bloodthirsty?" I asked. The story was intriguing, but if it was real, I definitely didn't want to see Hoseok turn into a monster.

"Most people agree that the sword wasn't actually cursed. The son already had evil in his heart, and the power the sword gave him only made it worse. He blamed what he did on the sword as a way to cope with the fact that he murdered his father," Hoseok explained.

"I hope you're right," I mumbled.

After a few more minutes, we were close enough to anchor the ship. After we did, everyone made their way into the small lifeboat on the side of the vessel. As I was sitting down, I noticed that Jimin was the only one that hadn't gotten in yet. He stood frozen in place, eyeing the small boat apprehensively.

"Jimin? You coming?" I asked. He looked at me and I could see in his eyes that something was making him cautious. "What's wrong?"

"We're not going to get very wet, right?" he asked.

I frowned, not understanding what he was worried about. "We'll get splashed a little bit, but nothing major."

"I just can't get too wet. If too much water touches me, my tail will come back."

No wonder he's so hesitant to come with us. He just got legs and now they might be taken away.

"If you're that worried about it, you can stay here on the ship. You don't have to come with us." I didn't want him to feel uncomfortable, though I was pretty sure he wouldn't get wet in the first place. The water was calm and the waves at the shoreline were mellow.

"No, I'm coming. I want to be on land any chance I get," he said with new resolve.

As his words sunk in, I realized how important it must've been for him to step on land. He probably thought he was going to be a siren forever, which meant he'd never be able to feel the earth underneath him again. Being on a ship was better than being stuck in the water, but being on actual land was likely far more satisfying.

"Okay, I think it'll be safe anyway. You'll barely get splashed," I said, hoping to reassure him.

He finally stepped into the boat, then Taehyung pulled the rope to lower us down into the water. We made it to shore in no time without much water getting on us. Jimin looked relieved that he managed to stay dry. He jumped out of the boat and onto the dark sand, but his eyes widened as he realized that the sand he stood on was wet, so he quickly ran further up the beach until he was on dry ground. I couldn't help but laugh at his little sprint.

The rest of us got out of the boat and pushed it up beyond the tide line so that the waves wouldn't be able to pull it back in while we were gone. When we were sure it wasn't going anywhere, I finally absorbed my surroundings.

The black sand beneath my feet almost looked like the night sky. Flecks of iridescent silver sparkled in the light, resembling stars. Toward the right side of the beach was the tall rock wall that loomed above us intimidatingly. To the left was thick jungle that progressively went up at an incline. It was a beautiful island, but it had an air of danger and mystery about it.

"Let's split up and search, but stay in pairs. We never know what might be hiding around here," Yoongi advised.

Before I could even make a move toward anyone, Hoseok and Yoongi started walking to the jungle, Namjoon and Jin went to climb the hill that led to the top of the cliffs, and Taehyung and Jungkook started walking farther down the shoreline. I turned to Jimin, finding him already looking at me in amusement.

"Guess that leaves us two." He winked. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I was surprised that Yoongi willingly left me alone with Jimin, but I supposed he was trying to give me the space I'd asked for.

"Let's go," I said before heading towards the right side of the beach where the shadowed area was. Jimin followed me silently, and after a while we reached the rock wall. I continued moving along, absentmindedly sliding my hand against the rock as I walked beside it.

"How can we be sure that the sword is even here?" I asked Jimin as he trailed only a couple of steps behind me.

"Because I wouldn't have sensed it otherwise. If Hoseok's desire was something that didn't exist, I wouldn't have been able to pick up on a location," he explained.

"Well, what if-" my words caught in my throat when I felt the rock suddenly disappear from underneath my hand. I stumbled forward from my loss of balance, then I realized that it was opening up into a cave.

"Jimin, look!" I exclaimed as I started entering the dark cavern. Squinting my eyes in an attempt to see through the blackness, I could still barely make anything out. I carefully felt my way along the side of wall, trying to navigate to the back of the cave. This would be the perfect place to keep something hidden, I thought, almost positive that we would find the sword.

"Kat, I really don't think we should be in here," Jimin muttered from somewhere beside me. I ignored him and continued feeling my way along the wall, hoping I'd find some sort of indention where the sword would be lying.

"Shit!" I shouted out when suddenly the ground underneath my feet started crumbling. I instinctively reached out, latching onto Jimin's arm. He pulled me close to him in an attempt to get me away from the loose ground, but in a flash, both of us were falling.

• • •