Antonia thanked every last loa her own [i]Maman[/i] had ever taught her; she praised God in heaven and all the saints she had ever known when she saw the oddly out of place trio making their way toward the [i]Dusk Skate[/i]'s berth. The rogue smiled widely to Thomas, giving a silent cheer with an upraised arm - though whether he saw her or not, she could not say - the man was, after all, rather occupied seeing his ship underway.

No matter, he would know soon enough that his new cabin boy had finally boarded. Antonia swung easily down the rigging, hand-under-hand, her whole body swaying lightly on a rope until, several feet above the deck, the rogue let go. She dropped, landing as lightly as a shed feather before she rose to her booted feet, striding toward the gangplank.

"Oh... Oh thank God... Madeleine, I was not sure you would come... " The two women fell into each other's arms, the hard, angry and hurtful words hurled only hours ago erased completely from all thought, no more than smoke on the wind now, forgiven and forgotten utterly. 

[i]"I was not either,"[/i] Madeleine whispered into her dear friend's ear, [i]"Until I saw one too many red coats about the road, far too early this morning outside the [/i]Parakeet.[i] Alongside a few too many pairs of strange eyes on the streets, not red enough with too much drink or too little sleep? No, there was no other choice... "[/i] She pulled back from Antonia, taking a deep breath though her smile remained tremulous at best.

John remained silent, and the rogue suspected it had more to do with his unwillingness to weep before all these roughened strangers and his own son, than sheer lack of anything to say. But Luc was simply beside himself, waiting for the moment for his [i]Maman[/i] and his Tante 'Tonia to pull apart before eagerly inserting himself into the conversation.

"I have brought [i]Capitaine[/i] Lightfoot's gold piece," the boy piped up proudly, patting his burlap knapsack proudly, "And look!" Luc reached for a leather thong tied about his neck, pulling up the sharply glinting prize secured there beneath his white linen shirt. "The tooth from [i]Monsieur[/i] Jax's great shark, his prize from Mistress Moon! [i]Maman[/i] fixed it for me!"

Antonia made all the appreciative noises necessary to see the boy's face light proudly, running her fingers through his dark curls so affectionately. Small talk was difficult in these moments, as the adults did their very best to appear cheerful for the sake of Luc's spirits, as if this sudden change of plans were truly some grand surprise of an adventure, and not a desperate plan born of unflinching necessity. But still the three soldiered on, the two women perhaps far better than the giant red-headed man, who frequently had to stop to blow his nose, and curse some an oncoming, unseasonal cold for his tearing, bloodshot eyes. 

But preparations for the imminent departure of the [i]Dusk Skate[/i] made lingering farewells even more difficult than they obviously already were. Those parting embraces for Luc were bittersweet: a shower of kisses from his [i]Maman[/i] who he loved her far too much to complain about (though he secretly prayed the angelic [i]Mademoiselle[/i] Beauchamp was not looking his way); and a great bear hug in his [i]Papa[/i]'s burly arms that lifted the boy several feet from the ship's deck, leaving him breathless, grinning and a little red-faced. 

The farewells for the rogue were far tenser, though quieter, subdued, and nothing that Luc would have ever noted but for the notable and whispered words between them. Yes, yes she would find a solution to this impossible dilemma, and Luc would be back with his loving parents imminently. Antonia would watch over him always, and [i]never[/i] let him from her sight wherever the [i]Skate[/i] was in port. Of [i]course,[/i] she would ensure Luc wrote them wherever possible, that he practiced his letters and reading and, of course, learned navigation and charting and geography... 

Antonia stood beside Luc, her arm wrapped about his shoulders as they watched his parents step down the gangplank. At least a dozen backward glances over their shoulder were invariably met with smiles, and waves, until Madeleine and John disappeared once more into the burgeoning early morning crowds of Port Royal. The rogue sighed heavily, equal parts undeniable relief and heartache warring in her gut.

But her thoughts were pulled from any maudlin musings at the boy's piping voice. "Tante 'Tonia, you look [i]so[/i] strange," Luc said with all a child's unfiltered boldness, eyeballing her oversized shirt and the trousers and the boots dubiously. It was not until those dark amber-lit eyes turned upward to the Amazon lily braided neatly in her hair, that the perplexed expression fell away

"Except [i]that,[/i]" he continued, pointing to the flower. "That suits you." 

Antonia only laughed, wrapping her arm all the tighter about Luc's shoulders and pulling him even closer for a moment. "Well skirts are an [i]incredible[/i] pain to manage when you're climbing the rigging, and far too heavy when you are being drenched in a torrential storm. You will see Luc," she said with a sly grin. 

"You too will be glad, not to have to negotiate skirts yourself soon enough! But let's get you settled in, find you a hammock and a spot to stow your pack. You will [i]certainly[/i] be put to work, but no worse than at home in the Parakeet I imagine. Do not expect or ask for gold pieces or shark teeth for every least thing you do here, Luc. You will be paid in knowledge and learning in many different subjects aboard the [i]Dusk Skate[/i], and earn your own way, and that will be enough."

"A hammock? [i] I'll be sleeping in a hammock!?"[/i] The enthusiastic grin said Luc had pretty much stopped listening to her words right around the point of his sleeping arrangements, and Antonia burst into bright laughter all over again. Fine, fine... There would be time to go over duty, responsibilities and expectations once they were actually away from the docks, after all...