captum | caged

“What are you wearing?” a 16-year old Cirrus held her stomach and laughed.

“I thought poufy pants and pink shirts were all the rage now,” a 21-year old Suho scratched his head in confusion.

“And your hair!” Cirrus pointed to her fiancé’s orange-brown hair and continued to laugh. “Did you not like black hair anymore?”

“But the people in Vicinis told me that all young maidens love guys who dress like this!”

“Well, who are you trying to impress?”

“You.”

Cirrus suddenly stopped laughing. “Excuse me?” she asked as she took a few steps towards Suho. The nobleman nervously scratched the side of his neck and was sheepishly staring at the ground.

“I know we’re engaged and all, but I want you to fall in love with me, well… for me,” Suho muttered.

Raising an eyebrow, Cirrus asked teasingly, “So you decided to change yourself so I would fall in with you? Did you want me to fall in love with the old you or this new version?”

Before Suho could respond, Cirrus brought her hand up to his face and caressed his cheek. “You don’t have to do anything. I love you for who you are, Suho, orange-brown hair and all.”

“So you do like the new hair then!” Suho chimed. The ends of his mouth curled up into the charming smile that attracted the hearts of maidens across the kingdom.

“It’s a nice change from the black hair, I suppose. But please don’t wear those clothes again,” Cirrus chuckled. Then she stood on her toes and planted a kiss on his cheek. “I love you.”

“I love you more.”

The princess awoke suddenly with tears rolling down her cheeks. She found herself constantly dreaming about her life in the palace, with most of the dreams centering around Suho. I guess what they say is true. As you approach the end, you start thinking about the beginning, she thought to herself with melancholy.

She sat up and massaged her lower back. Sleeping on bare wooden floors had been a drastic change from the soft mattresses her body had become accustomed to. She wiped her tears away with her hand and sat upright.

Being held captive in the basement of a pirate ship, Cirrus had no concept of time. The princess had no idea if it was daytime or midnight outside. She slept whenever she felt tired, and whenever she awoke she usually found a refilled glass of water and food just an arm’s length outside of her cell. She crawled towards the glass of water and drank half of it, deciding to save the other half for later. She picked up the slice of bread, which had butter spread on it, and slowly nibbled at it.

After the first time Baekhyun had visited her, the princess had not seen the captain since. Every now and then, a pirate with blond hair would check up on her. He looked older than Captain Baekhyun, but the twinkle in his blue eyes and his vibrant smile reminded her of a child. He was responsible for delivering Cirrus’s meals, and occasionally tried to make conversation with her.

Cirrus heard the doors in the ceiling unlock, followed by the sound of footsteps. The blond pirate stopped in front of her cell, bent down and replaced the glass of water with a full one. Then, on the plate next to the glass, he set down another slice of bread with cheese spread on it. He reached into his pocket and fished out an apple, which he placed next to the bread.

Cirrus stared at the fruit. She hadn’t had fruit in what seemed like ages, and she looked up at the pirate. When she met his eyes, he grinned at her.

“You should eat this quickly, princess,” he whispered to her. “You don’t know the trouble I went through to steal this for you.”

“Why?” was all she managed to say.

“I feel sorry for you, love,” he shrugged his shoulders and sat down on the floor. He tried to hide the excitement in his voice at hearing her voice for the first time. Unknown to Cirrus, 4 days had passed since Baekhyun brought her onto the ship. The captain had informed him to check up on the princess every 4 hours or so. When he made his routinely check-ins, either she was asleep or she stared at him blankly.

“You must have been used to eating all the luxuries the land and sea have to offer at every meal, and now you’re eating bread and butter. Besides, if you don’t eat fruit soon, you’ll grow sick and weak,” he finished.

Cirrus refused to thank the pirate, but she nodded her head in gratitude. She reached out for the apple and bit into it, savouring its sweet juices.

“Is it good?” he asked.

Cirrus nodded her head again, and continued to eat the apple.

“Good,” he chuckled. “Oh, and by the way, if anyone asks, Ardent didn’t give you the apple.”

“Ardent?” Cirrus questioned.

“Tis my name, love,” he winked at her. “I’m the captain’s first mate. I’ve been with him through thick and thin, and it seems as if he’s caused you some harm. I’m always cleaning up after his messes,” Ardent laughed and shook his head. “He’s not a bad guy though.”

“Him? Captain Baekhyun?” Cirrus scoffed. “You’re trying to tell me that the captain of the Lux pirates isn’t a bad guy?”

“A bit twisted, sure,” Ardent grinned. “But does he have a black heart? No way.”

“And I suppose someone who threatened another with death isn’t a bad guy?” Cirrus mumbled as she took another bite of the apple.

“Well, we’re pirates first and foremost. Of course there’s been some bloodshed, but Baekhyun never kills unless he has to. He’s very particular about his clothes, you know? And blood stains are hard to clean off,” Ardent explained.

“This is preposterous. I don’t even know why you’re telling me all of this,” Cirrus shook her head. “I’m a prisoner and you lot are the kidnapper. First impressions are forever remembered, and we did not start on a good one.”

“Is that something you learned from the castle?”

“It’s called common sense.”

Ardent chuckled and stood up. “I’ll keep that in mind, princess.”

.::.        .::.        .::.

“And?” Baekhyun asked in an unamused tone. The captain had his feet propped up on his desk, with his eyes focused on the pages of the book he held in his hands. “You’re asking for the impossible, Ardent.”

The first mate was standing at the doorframe of the captain’s chambers. He closed the door behind him and walked towards Baekhyun. “All I’m saying is, she’s clearly depressed. It ain’t good for her health! She’s had no exposure to the Sun and do we really have to feed her leftovers?”

“She’s still alive, isn’t she?”

“Well yes, but at this rate she’ll grow sick. And then what? We let our only connection to the lost treasure die?” Ardent crossed his arms and sighed. “You put me in charge of her and I’m telling you, every time I go down there she looks more and more sickly. She hadn’t said a word to me this entire time, until today!”

“And why was today so special that she spoke, hm?” Baekhyun inquired as he rested the book on his legs.

“Oh, um no reason,” Ardent gulped, hoping that the captain hadn’t noticed a missing apple in their storage. “That’s not important though! We need to move her to another location, preferably one where she’ll be able to see the Sun and Moon.”

“Out of the question. Where would we let her stay? In one of the empty crewmember rooms?” Baekhyun scoffed.

“Baekhyun,” Ardent said firmly. The captain planted his feet on the ground and rested his elbows on his desk. “I’ve been your ally since we first met, and I want to see you claim the title of King of Pirates as much as you want it. I’m just trying to help you accomplish that goal, even if I have to make some sacrifices.”

After a long silence, Baekhyun finally said, “Fine, you make a good point. The princess will be relocated to a room where I will be able to have constant supervision of her. Also, how long has it been since we retrieved the princess?”

“4 days,” Ardent replied dutifully.

“Good,” Baekhyun brushed through his hair with one hand. “I think it’s safe to assume we’ve lost Chanyeol and his crew. Any signs of peculiar movement?”

“None.”

.::.        .::.        .::.

When the doors to the ceiling opened, Cirrus expected to see Ardent. Standing in front of her cell however, with a key in his hand, was Baekhyun. “Today’s your lucky day, princess,” he said as he inserted the key into her cell. “A little bird has told me that these living conditions are unsuitable for a princess, so I’ve decided to relocate you.”

He unlocked the door and into the cell with a rope in the other hand. He knelt down and told the princess to hold out her hands. He tied them together, then informed her to follow him. When Cirrus stepped onto the deck, she was greeted by a strong wind that smelt of salt. She had to close her eyes because even the soft, orange light of the setting Sun was too bright for her eyes to handle.

She followed Baekhyun closely, stealing glances at the crewmembers whenever she could. Unlike Chanyeol’s ship, Baekhyun’s ship was considerably smaller. A lot emptier too, she thought to herself as she scanned the entire deck.

The captain opened a door on the other side of the deck, and guided the princess down a hallway. As they passed each door, Cirrus took note of the wooden nameplates that decorated the top centre of each door. Crew Cabin #1, Crew Cabon #2, Cirrus silently read each wooden plate. The pair finally stopped at a door labelled “Ardent”, which was neighbour to the room labelled “Captain Lux”.

“Welcome to your new quarters, princess,” Baekhyun spoke up, breaking the silence. When he saw her staring at the wooden plate in front of her, he added, “Ardent is the little bird, a cheeky little bastard of a bird I might add. He’s moved to another room. You are to stay in his quarters for the time being.”

Baekhyun dug into the pocket of his black trench coat and fished out a small, silver key. He unlocked Ardent’s room and waltzed inside. The room was small compared to any room in the palace, but it was a blessing compared to the dark cell she had been living in. A hammock was hanging at one side of the room, and a desk was situated at the other side. Two small windows at the far end of the room allowed her to observe the scenery outside.

Cirrus continued to study the room, when her eyes landed on a small, rectangular doorway that was situated directly above the hammock. “What is that?” she asked and walked towards the hammock.

“Oh, that’s a two-way sliding door,. My room is on the other side,” Baekhyun answered and demonstrated how to open the door. Cirrus managed to catch a glimpse of the view on the other side; a significantly larger room adorned with rugs and a large bookshelf.

“With Ardent being my first mate and all, he and I need to be in constant communication. If one of us needs to send a quick message, we usually just say it through this opening in the wall,” he explained after closing the small door. “With you inhabiting this room however, I’ll be able to use it to make sure you haven’t run away. Not that you would be able to, given the one-way lock on the front door.”

“You keep your own crewmembers locked up in their rooms?” Cirrus asked, gasping silently.

“Nonsense,” Baekhyun waved off her comment. “Ardent fiddled around with the previous lock and made it so it can only be opened from the outside. He’ll be back later to make similar adjustments to the sliding door. I can’t have you spying on me, after all.” His last sentence almost sounded playful, and Cirrus asked herself if the captain was toying with her. If she had strings attached to her limbs, he would no doubt be the puppeteer.

Baekhyun then turned to leave the room. Before leaving, his lips curled into his signature grin as he told her, “Enjoy your new cage, princess.”

A/N: Ardent is perhaps my favourite character in the entire story. I absolutely love writing about him, and hopefully as the story progresses you guys will like him just as much as I do :) As for the reasoning behind his name, you'll see in the next chapter! (or use google translate because by now, you guys should know which language inspired this fic).

\\ xoxo