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lizzie-and-chip-swap-au · 4 months

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12. Ollie Oops

Ao3 Link || Part Eleven • Part Thirteen (WIP) • Fic Masterpost ><><><

The roads of this place were rocky, cold, and slick. Ollie walked fast, his head down and his face bright red. His hands rested nervously in his pockets. Every head that turned to watch him pass felt like an osprey eyeing a particularly vulnerable fish.

Breathe. Act confident. They don’t know you don’t belong here.

Their gaze never lingered, turning away to their own business. Of course they did. Not even his own “crew” would miss him. Why would these people give a second thought to a street urchin?

Ollie glanced down at himself, glad for the first time that he had only one outfit. The months at sea with no change of clothes left his shirt and pants raggedy. No one would want to steal from a kid who didn’t have anything, right?

But don’t look too poor, he reminded himself. Remember the plan.

He forced his hands to his sides. They felt awkward there—less like his limbs and more like stuff he had to lug around. He put them back in his pockets. He pulled them out again. He stuck only his left hand in.

Okay, this feels natural… I guess…

Plus, this way he could feel the treasure in his pocket. He held onto it like it was his life. In a way, it was.

Ollie’s plan was simple: find someone who’d take him on as a proper apprentice. Was it a smart plan? Not really. Was it an easy plan? Also no. But it was a simple plan and right now that’s all Ollie had going for him.

He couldn’t go home. He just couldn’t. Not yet.

Ollie had gotten his taste of adventure, of freedom. He’d learned more in the few weeks he’d been at sea than he had in the whole rest of his life! And he could be good at it. Ollie knew he could.

After Lizzie had yelled at him, Ollie began thinking about what going ‘home’ would look like. He thought about doing boring household chores, about sitting in a classroom all day, about waking up in the same place for the rest of his life. Worst of all, he thought about how quickly his time as a pirate would fade into the dull everyday life of Zero.

His real hesitation, though, came from a shameful corner of his subconscious: he was terrified to go back. The Navy having the whole island on lockdown was scary, sure, but what really worried him was his mom. This whole thing started because he ran away for a stupid reason he couldn’t even remember anymore. Maybe if he learned some real-life skills and brought back a bunch of treasure she’d forgive him. If he could learn to be strong, if he rescued his mom and showed her how awesome life at sea could be, she might even end up proud!

That would be the life, taking his mom out of their tiny hometown and adventuring every day. He cherished the daydream of keeping his family close without needing to sacrifice his newfound freedom.

But that dream would never come true with Lizzie involved. If Lizzie took him home he’d be miserable. Lizzie would tell his mom what a burden he’d been, that he was pathetic and fragile… then he’d be grounded forever. His mom would be too terrified to let him even walk down the street.

No way he was letting that happen.

Ollie’s grip tightened around the compass. His heart sank and sped up at the same time as he held it.

Guilty as he felt, he’d never been more proud of himself than when he’d pickpocketed it right under Lizzie’s nose. At first, he hadn’t planned on keeping it. He’d just wanted to prove that he was worth his salt! But then, when he was going to return it, right when he was about to give his speech about why he should be kept around, Lizzie lost it on him.

“You’ll never be a pirate.”

Her words were like wasps in his ears. Why’d she always have to go and cut him down? Just when he’d worked up the courage to confront her, too!

So, in his first and only act of spite against the Grandtide crew, he’d decided to keep it.

Ollie squeezed the compass a little harder. He wished Jay, Lizzie, and Gillion could be the teachers he needed. John might’ve been a good fit but, as much as he and Ollie got along, he busy was unlearning everything he knew from the Navy. He didn’t have any good experience to pass down yet. Besides, he’d never take Ollie on with disapproval from Lizzie.

Ollie needed to look outside the Grandtides. There was a whole island of pirates and swashbucklers out here! One of them had to be the perfect fit he was looking for. A new burst of excitement ran its course.

Still, he was going to miss his previous guardians. Ollie promised himself that after he was a real pirate he’d find them again. It wasn’t that hard to find a specific ship, was it? The mail got around somehow just fine so he could probably figure out a way.

Or, I could just go back to them right now, he thought.

He shook the idea off. No way. He’d tried to convince them for so long and it never worked! Jay was nice but treated him like he was a baby, Gillion didn’t really listen to him, and Lizzie was, well, Lizzie. He needed someone new who would let him actually do stuff.

On another hand, he already missed them a lot. Plus, he didn’t know anyone else within a thousand miles. It was dangerous out here. Even if it was because they thought he was useless, the Grandtide Pirates would take care of him. It was safe on the Moonlist Albatross; he knew he’d always be protected.

On the other hand, it was TOO safe there. He felt squashed. If he had to spend another week stuck in his room he was going to explode from being so stir-crazy. After last night, he didn’t even feel comfortable on the top deck. Between soul-crushing boredom and suffocating awkwardness, he just had to choose freedom, didn’t he?

That new guy on the ship was the sand that finally tipped the scale. Ollie couldn’t see much but he seemed so different from the other pirates, so relaxed and free. “That kid should learn how the world works. Someone needs to teach him the ropes.” The stranger’s words countered Lizzie’s like a balm. Ollie wasn’t stupid enough to go to him specifically for advice—John probably had the man locked up for a reason—but that didn’t mean he wasn’t at least a little bit right… right?

Ollie clutched his compass as hard as he could. Going back and forth like this was making him angry. He wanted so much to have it both ways that his heart ached. He wished he had Lizzie to protect him but also that she’d let him breathe. He wished she’d guide him through adventure instead of dangling it in front of him but holding him back.

He squeezed his compassions and wished as he whisked along the cobblestone paths. He wished, he wanted, he wished, he wanted, he wished!

Caspian stepped cautiously through the strange storehouse. Part of him was unsure why he’d committed to this heist when the entire tournament was likely a sham, but the rest of him was unsure why he did anything anymore.

Since he’d left his tribe, his life as an adventure had been largely directionless—though not pointless. He wouldn’t call his time out of the sea empty in the slightest. He helped where he could and enjoyed himself when he couldn’t. He’d certainly met enough strange friends and foes to be excited. He was content with the challenge that was living day by day.

He’d been on Joaldo a few months now and it had been pleasant. He found work in an inn, entertainment in the people, and comfort in the close oceans. He’d even formed one of his longest-lasting surface friendships with an apothecary in the Respite District.

Despite his short stay and uncommon appearance, Caspian had become quite the local. The only thing holding him back from complete cultural adjustment was the fact that he’d never been to the Paramount Tournament.

At first, he was inclined to enter the games himself. He traded the idea in for watching it as a chance to force Rudith out of his apothecary and into some fresh air for a change.

But then Caspian heard rumors about the grand prize: The Luxbris Pearl. He, of course, didn't believe it at first. Not really. But the details were so specific... The people on the surface understood so little of undersea customs, it was shocking how one knew about the pearl at all. Caspian himself only had a vague recollection of it.

The host of the Paramount Tournament was someone known as the Baron. was someone Caspian had heard little of but had still certainly heard of. He was an elusive man, the kind with no direct authority but so much influence he held an unofficial office of power. The type who would have such a treasure as the legendary pearl.

Caspian's interest was piqued but not overtaken. The whole nature of the Baron was undeniably shady. He no doubt had ridged every piece he was a part of to turn out in his favor. If he was such a collector, Caspian doubted the prize would be fairly winnable.

And so, through an exhaustive use of every resource he could scrape together, Caspian found himself sneaking into one of the Baron's dens.

Inside was a lot mustier than Caspian had imagined it would be. The place was dingy and damp in a way that made him feel ill. It was, to say the least, not at all what someone as elegant as the Baron ought to reside. Caspian began to wonder if he'd been sent on a bad trail.

Eh. I came this far, he thought. May as well see what this place is about. Something interesting to make it worth my trouble.

As luck would have it, something interesting came up very soon after. No guards or monsters, just the faint sound of a child sobbing.

“GAHHHHHHH!”

Unimaginably wild winds flogged Ollie’s face. He scrunched his eyes shut as tight as he could but the stinging wouldn’t stop. He could barely hear his pain in the seemingly endless tunnel.

It took Ollie several minutes to realize he was no longer flying. His ears were still ringing, his skin still stung, his heart was still pounding, and when he dared to peak he still saw darkness. But he wasn’t moving.

He opened his eyes all the way, finding he wasn’t in pitch black. It was just dim lighting. He blinked and rubbed his eyes, letting dark vision come into focus.

Ollie was somewhere in an empty and wide room. The smell was both musty and gaudy, simultaneously like a rotting abandoned building and a high-end cologne shop. Ollie covered his nose. Either scent was too strong to be comfortable. Around him, Ollie saw no walls. He frowned and carefully put a foot forward, tapping the ground as if it were going to collapse beneath him again. Luckily, this ground seemed solid.

But so did the pathways outside, Ollie remained himself with a shiver.

Still, seeing no other option, Ollie began walking. Or, he tried to. He hadn’t taken more than three steps when he stumbled into a desk.

“Ow!” Ollie yelped. He smacked his hands to his face while his voice echoed into the darkness. Nothing came.

After a few minutes of silence, Ollie felt brave enough to continue his investigation. The desk looked incredibly fancy. There was parchment and quills on top of it, which was boring. Underneath there was nothing, no secret button or note, not even a chair. Also boring. Ollie finally tried the drawer.

Locked. Ugh, of course it is. Maybe I can break it open like Lizzie would?

Ollie reached into his pockets, hoping for some forgotten tool to be in there. Unfortunately, his hands felt only fabric.

Wait. Where’s the compass? Ollie dug around more. Still nothing. Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no. That was my only chance!

Ollie slunk down to the floor. All the confusion, panic, and defeat he’d been repressing bubbled up like vomit in his throat. He couldn’t help it: he let out a wail.

“Where am I?” He sobbed to no one. “Why am I here? I’m sorry I ran away. I’m sorry I hid again. I want to go back. If you let me get out I promise I’ll go back! I want Lizzie. I want Gillion and Jay. I want John. I want… I-I I want—“ He wailed again in full misery, “I WANT MY MOM.”

Nothing answered. No one came. Ollie was left alone without his guardians and without his treasure. Suddenly red filled his vision. He jolted upward, still sobbing, now screaming, and began tugging on the drawer.

“Give it back! GIVE ME BACK MY COMPASS,” He blabbered near-incoherently.

A voice behind him interrupted his rage. “Do you mean this?”

Ollie froze stiff as a board. He kept himself exactly the way he was, hands on the drawer, one foot out mid-step, not even daring to shift his eyes around wherever he suddenly was.

The air was still for what felt like forever. A bead of sweat formed on Ollie’s temple as he stood too terrified to even gulp. A hand reached out and touched the back of Ollie's head. It was wet in a way that, had Ollie not been traveling with Gillion for months, would have been super creepy.

"Oh!” The man quickly retracted his hand. “I’m so sorry! I thought you were a prestidigitation of some kind. Um. Assuming you aren't some other kind of spell or trap, I suppose an introduction would be appropriate. My name is Caspian. What on Mana are you doing here?”

Ollie whipped around. It wasn’t Gillion, of course. He didn’t sound anything like Gillion. But He did look a little like him—in skin tone if nothing else. The man was tall and polite-looking. More importantly, he was light blue and wet skin with short hair like flowing ocean foam. He held Ollie’s compass in his left hand.

”You're from the undersea!” Ollie exclaimed without meaning to. "Sorry," he quickly corrected. "That was rude."

Caspian didn't look fazed at all by the blunt statement. "Yes, I am and there's no need to apologize. There are very few of my kind up here so I know I stand out. I'm the first undersea person most people meet."

"No. I-I mean you aren't the first one I've met."

At that, Caspian's eyes narrowed. "Really? Who--"

He was cut off by a shadow clawing his chest.

A few minutes earlier:

"It was a net gain in the end, but a few people owe me a great deal still..."

The Baron was seething. La Alma could tell; even as he spoke with his usual croon, his tension infected the air. La Alma kept his bored gaze trained on the mask in his hands. He didn't bother listening to the Baron's post-match speech anymore. The Baron had no reason to take his irritations out on the wrestler. La Alma had no reason to ask what was bothering his boss, either.

Years ago, such seemingly aimless wrath would have terrified him but he knew better now. As usual, he'd done everything right and "won" the fight. It was pathetic but he was safe.

"...But I'm not sure how much more allure this invincible act has in it," The Baron said amidst his usual notes. "That samurai was interesting but perhaps a more even match next time.”

At that, La Alma's ears perked up. Next year, could he have an actual fight? A real match? Or did the Baron plan on getting rid of him to make way for a new champion? He couldn't ask, of course. Even if he got an answer he couldn't do anything. This room and his training were all he had for the next 364 days.

“And--what is that?” The Baron’s voice turned indignant before disappearing altogether.

La Alma’s ears perked up. He tried to remind himself that his business was done. What did he care the Baron had something going on? Why should he brace himself as if he were about to fight? Why were his senses screaming at him to prepare himself?

The door to his cell burst open in a splatter of ice. A genasi carrying a child like a football half-sept half-fell into the room. He barely had set foot inside before he toppled over. The weight of the kid was clearly too much for him.

“Gods I need to work out more,” the genasi huffed, eyes daring around. They quickly met La Alma’s. “Oh. Oh dear. Um, hello! You wouldn’t happen to be loyal to that Baron figure, would you?”

La Alma’s mouth hung open at the display. Before he could produce a single thought about the situation, the Baron—the actual Baron, not a voice or shadow or disembodied eyes—stepped into the crumpled doorway.

“And just WHERE do you think you’re off to?” He snarled.

#jrwi riptide #lizzie & chip swap au #jrwi #ollie jrwi #jrwi caspian #jrwi la alma

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