Fantasy 𝙩𝙤 𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡 𝙖 𝙢𝙖𝙣. - [1𝙭1]

[calypso]

i hate this man.

sybil.

Although Sybil was more than happy to slip away back to the warm comfort of thick duvets and plush pillows, it seemed like Knox had other plans for the duo that evening. When both of his hands clamped down on her shoulders, Sybil nearly jumped out of her skin. Her head whipped back to send a sharp glare at him, though it did nothing to deter the saccharine smile overtaking his lips.

“...i'll teach you some tricks to defend yourself."

Of course. Sybil was currently experiencing the second worst headache of her life, and this idiot wanted her to go fight with him. A low groan left her lips, and she moved to shrug his hands off her shoulders lest her mind begin to wander again. Although, it didn’t stop Knox from giving her a light squeeze that made her stomach do a slight flip. A shudder immediately ran down her spine at the realization, and it took everything in her to not turn and slam her head into the desk. Though it would certainly be a more entertaining use of her time, given just what Knox had planned.

As they left the meeting room and Sybil was once again greeted with the sun in the sky, she debated turning on her heels and jumping right off the edge of the ship. Her eyes nearly squinted shut against the harsh rays, one hand reaching over to feebly cover her eyes. Still dressed in the outfit from last night, it was starting to resemble an outfit Sybil would dress herself in rather than the careful eye of Leena. Although she had been mostly silent since his announcement of their intended training, it was primarily from the headache that had made itself present once more. Though it came in ebbs and flows, the bright sun and enthusiastic nature of the Captain made the throbbing against her skull unable to be ignored. Perhaps if she simply proved to Knox in a timely fashion that this sort of thing was unnecessary for her, he’d let her crawl back into bed with little to no protest.

Admittedly not listening to a word Knox said, Sybil only tuned in at the very end of his instructions. “...here, try grabbing my wrist like you're about to pull me away."

She could do that.

Reaching out without much thought to it, Sybil latched onto Knox’s wrist. However, the realization of her situation was quick when Knox reached over to clamp his hand around hers and twist it back, a noise of surprise sounding from Sybil as she was pushed down onto her knees in an instant. Although he was quick to scoop her right back up to her feet, the look of surprise on Sybil’s tired face was a new one. Of course she had never worked with…legs before, but this was something else. If Knox had so easily pushed her to the ground just then, why did he ever entertain her in the first place? That was the sort of power she was used to using to get her way, and yet…He didn’t.

“I hope you know that I think you’re an asshole,” she grumbled out as she brushed herself off, though it only made her conscious of her wrinkled and untucked outfit. Was she always this much of a mess? Still, she didn’t have much time to think about her own messy appearance before Knox had slipped behind her and locked his bicep around her torso. Her cheeks immediately pinched themselves with a slight pink hue, though her brain was immediately screeching at her own body. What the fuck was wrong with her right now? Perhaps the alcohol was still in her system, and this was just a reaction to that…

She was supposed to be paying attention to whatever he was babbling about, so she could go back to sleep. Yet for some reason, whenever he pressed on her stomach with his hand, her entire mind went blank in an instant. He was muttering something about choking and positions in her ear, but she didn’t register any of the words leaving his lips. Why exactly was he moving her hands to his thighs?

Before the question could even fully form in her head, Knox was falling backwards with a light grunt. Sybil was sent stumbling after him, a squawk of surprise sounding again as she nearly took an elbow to his chest in an attempt to catch herself. Though she managed to avoid knocking the wind out of the Captain, she did brace herself against his chest to avoid smacking their foreheads together. Her braid had entirely come loose at this point, a few of the locks threatening to tickle against Knox’s face as she leaned over him. The sun had hit the back of her head at this point, nearly setting the auburn hue ablaze upon her head.

“Why don't you give it a try?”

Swallowing thickly as Sybil stared down at him, there were a few seconds of silence as she attempted to connect any wires in her brain to do something. Perhaps she should slam her hand down against his stomach and wind him to escape back to the room? Or poke him in the eyes? Anything to avoid this situation now.

There was something wrong with her.

“...Fine, I suppose,” she finally coughed out, her voice still rough from the lack of water in her system. Though she thankfully opted to not punch Knox in any capacity, she did use his frame to push herself back onto her feet without offering a helping hand. Once he had made his way back onto his feet, Sybil shifted side to side and cracked her neck a bit. If she did this, then they’d hopefully be done. The bed had never seemed appealing than right now.

When Knox moved to grab her once more, Sybil immediately dropped her center of gravity to begin the steps he had instructed her only a moment ago. Admittedly, however, a bit of instincts overcame Sybil as she began to move through the actual technique. Without much thought, her teeth sank in the forearm of Knox as she dropped down, her fingers still moving to grab behind his knees and force him down to the deck. Her teeth ran along his skin as she did, instantly welting up a few bright beads of blood from his arm. A smear was streaked across her lips, visible once she tossed her head back to stare at Knox. There was an odd look in her eyes as she stared at him, her lips pressed into a thin line. As if it was taking every fiber of her being to not lick his own blood off her mouth.

“There,” she said, her tone a bit breathless. “Can I go now?”

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  upper decks
• tags

  sox

coded by reveriee.

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[sox]

she should sleep soon...

knox.

“i hope you know that i think you’re an asshole.”

sybil's disgruntled grievances rolled right off knox's shoulders as a pleased smile overtook his cautious expression, glad to see that she was willing to learn from him even if it was just for her own survival's sake. he could certainly make do with that much cooperation, especially if she proved to show some promise in this field.

that being said, nothing could have prepared him for the tactic she would turn to mid-maneuver— though in all honesty, he truly should have known better. at the same moment that sybil leaned down to throw him off balance, her teeth dug into the flesh of his forearm and dragged along the vein, several dots of blood gushing forth as he flipped onto his back and blinked up at her in surprise. he didn't quite process what had actually just occurred until he felt a warm trickle of liquid trailing down his hand, eyes landing on the newfound wound.

“there. can i go now?”

once the dots connected in his lagging brain, all the captain could think to do was let out the loud, chortling laughter bubbling up in his chest, his head falling back against the wooden planks in acceptance of his bloody defeat. a few of the crew members that had paused to observe the situation joined in soon after, giggling amongst themselves at the tiny little lady who'd just sunk her fangs into their tireless leader and subverted everyone's expectations in an instant.

"yes,"

he managed through strained breaths and a dazed smile, finally sitting up after a short while to tear off his expensive sleeve and wrap the onyx fabric around the bite mark,

"yes, you can. you've made your point clear. good job— go get some rest."

.

between daily sparring sessions for its cautious inhabitants and material preparations for the incoming mission's various task forces, the few remaining days passed in the blink of an eye as the indira's schedule rapidly became more rigid than ever, everyone busy with one thing or another while the coastline began to draw near. with just one last night of sleep standing in the way of the fated culmination of their efforts, the captain ordered everyone to cease their worrisome fiddling and get some much-needed rest before their hectic schedule officially commences while he wrapped up some loose ends.

as such, it wasn't until nearly midnight that a weary knox quietly slipped back inside his quarters to find the usual tenant lounging within, draped across his duvet like it was hers to begin with. luckily for her, however, he hardly had the energy to even glance her way much less tousle for ownership of the mattress, instead heading straight for his desk to plop down in his cushioned armchair and finish penning emergency orders for each unit should they not hear from him within the allotted timeframes they'd discussed during their strategy meetings.

unable to focus with his companion's eyes blatantly boring into him the entire time, he eventually gave up on adding whatever unnecessary details he'd belatedly decided to tack on at the end of each report and placed down his fountain pen in favor of a small, ornamental box from within his desk drawer. sliding his chair back, he stood from the workspace and turned to slip out of his daytime clothes and into his nightwear comprising of an unbuttoned cardigan and silk trousers, no longer caring at this point whether he had an audience or not before returning to the bed with the box in hand.

"you shouldn't have stayed up,"

he remarked softly, a yawn interrupting his words as he slipped beneath the covers beside her and placed the box in sybil's lap,

"but since you did, i'll just give this to you now. we didn't have time to do any real weapons training, but these should be straightforward enough in a pinch— take a look."

inside the casing was a matching set of three ornate, hand-forged steel hairpins of varying lengths, each with a unique twisting pattern and intimidatingly pointed tips that would make for a gnarly gash should they connect with an opponent's skin with any amount of force.

"i know your teeth are your preferred weapon of choice, but you can't rely on being close range enough for that all the time,"

he began explaining, lounging back against the pillows to let sybil peruse them on her own,

"and if you aren't quick enough, they'll be dragging you off by your curls in an instant. these are meant for holding back your hair, but i figured you'd find more use out of them if they a little sharper than normal... wanna try them out?"

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• outfit
• location

  
  

  the captain's quarters
• tags

  calypso
  

coded by reveriee.

 

[calypso]

sometimes i think he wants me to kill him.

sybil.

Although Sybil had managed to slip away that evening to nurse her hangover, Knox wasn’t the type to give up so easily on doing what he wanted. Of course, she wasn’t either, but that thought offered her no comfort every single time he slammed her down onto the deck after she failed a technique. Though she shouldn’t have been surprised at this point, given just how Knox behaved at every other single point in their time together. He was certainly a determined individual, and seemingly very worried for her well-being on this upcoming task.

Truth be told, Sybil should have also been worried. When Sybil was a siren, she had never bothered to learn about those humans deemed notorious; She was far more worried about her next trophy and how to secure it. In all truth, Knox’s crew was the only band of humans to gain any form of notoriety under the sea for their constant spearing of her sisters. Eikka had never crossed her mind before that night with Natasha, and now it was the only thing she could hear whispered among the crew.

Her physical weakness had been a sore point for the last few days especially, no matter how often Knox forced her back onto her feet. If she had even just a fraction of her original strength, this entire ‘mission’ would be nothing more than a pitstop on their path. Now, it was a do or die scenario. Either they get the necklace from Eikka and escape alive, or Sybil would be back under the waves far sooner than she imagined.

Of course, escaping Eikka simply meant growing closer to facing her mother again. And…The other part of her deal.

As Sybil pondered her situation and growing amount of bruises on her back, she hardly noticed Knox slipping into the room as she lounged about the bed. She had finally opted to accept a pink slip from Leena, a piece of cargo that she swore up and down no one would miss. Not that she cared all that much about someone missing their nightgown; Why give it to pirates if you wanted it transported?

Kicking her feet behind her head as she ran her fingers along the ornate decoration she had swiped from Knox’s desk. It was the only thing she could entertain herself with on the ship, given that all the books that lined his room were written in a language she was completely inept in. Knox’s attempts to teach her the written language had been put on pause in lieu of preparations, to both her own annoyance and relief. She saw the pitiful glances the crew gave her whenever Knox took the parchment from her hands to read outloud, but the agony of trying to even properly grip the pens drove her insane and close to tears everytime.

How disgraceful.

Although Knox said nothing as he slipped into his familiar desk position, Sybil opted to keep her gaze trained on him. It was more entertaining than the wooden dragon she had, but it seemed that Knox didn’t appreciate her eyes trained on him after a few minutes. As he pulled out the ornate box to rest on his desk, her gaze immediately flickered to the new item in an attempt to figure out what it could be. She nearly missed Knox disrobing to nothing but trousers and an unbuttoned top. Though she couldn’t pinpoint where the scars were on his chest from this distance, it didn’t stop her gaze from lingering just a bit too long on his now shirtless appearance.

Shifting from the position on her stomach to sitting upright as Knox walked over and slipped into the bed, Sybil opted to say nothing and let him speak instead. The ornate box was dropped into her lap, and she resisted immediately ripping it open to let him finish speaking. (Truly, a moment of growth from the siren.)

“I rather not have you wake me up every single time you come in here late,” she remarked when he commented on her awake nature, her fingers deftly unclasping the box to flip the lid open. Her head tilted to the side, and she blew a stray curl away from her eyes to examine the three hairpins that were presented to her. A buzz began to form behind her eyes and overtake her entire mind.

Sharp. Sharp enough to kill a man if she hit his throat just right. Sharp enough to gouge someone’s eye out.

Knox’s next few sentences were lost on Sybil as she plucked a hairpin from the plush cushion they rested upon, holding it up in front of her eyes to examine the new weapon. It wasn’t as good as her claws, but it was a weapon. She could kill with this, given the right circumstances. Was this a sign of trust? Idiocy? Confidence in her own ability to not get killed immediately in a fight?

“...wanna try them out?”

Without even thinking, Sybil launched forward with an unprecedented speed. It was like a viper striking at their prey, her weight knocking Knox backwards against the headboard as her body moved on its own. The hairpin was immediately positioned against his neck, the point tip just barely sinking into his jugular. Her pupils were constricted as she peered up at him, her knee digging into the space next to his hip as her free hand rested against his chest. She didn’t say anything, only twisting the hairpin a bit back and forth against his skin.

She was so close. She could end it right now, and go home. She could forget about overthrowing her mother with the Second Eye, and she could instead grovel for her forgiveness and offer Knox’s heart as a reward. She could smell the sea. It was all so close to her.

And yet…The thought of returning beneath the waves only brought back memories of lashings and broken bones from her mother. Cracked ribs and flayed skin when she dissatisfied her for whatever reason. Groveling for her forgiveness would only hurt her more in the end.

A sigh sounded from Sybil as she pulled the hairpin away from Knox’s neck, sitting backwards and hanging her head a bit. Unfortunately, sitting backwards also meant practically sitting in Knox’s lap. However, it appeared that her mind wasn’t exactly focused on such thoughts at the moment.

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• outfit
• location

  
  
  

  the captain's quarters.
• tags

  sox

coded by reveriee.

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[sox]

oh! nice...

knox.

knox didn't have time to process the implications brought on by the spark of familiarity that lit up sybil's focused pupils before her body launched itself in his direction, slamming him against the headboard with the sharp point of the hair pin pressed precariously against the largest artery in his neck. every one of his instincts urged him to turn the tables on her right away, to overpower her through sheer strength and flip her over into a defensive position, but he knew better; this was an important moment for her, the culmination of all the rigorous training he'd forced her to endure for the last few days paying off at long last.

as she lingered over him with the weapon twisting back and forth against his neck, knox cocked his head to the side ever-so-slightly with a knowing smile and unblinking gaze, gauging the litany of conflicted emotions crossing her strained expression with a deep curiosity. that tiny movement proved to be just enough force to break skin, however, his amused smirk only solidifying further as a small, warm dot of crimson trickled down his neck to settle on the groove of his collarbone. despite the ever-present danger brought on by her touch was sure to spell disaster for him down the line, there was a deep-rooted primality between the mid-sparring bite marks and his present predicament that tickled knox's fancy in a way he'd never experienced before as he faced her head-on, though he did not dare to verbalize such inexplicable sentiments out loud for both of their sakes.

only once sybil sighed and backed off a little did he release the bated breath he'd been holding, shoulders relaxing as he grimaced at the feeling of a bruise forming atop his vertebrae from hitting the headboard sort of hard earlier. she remained in his lap after pulling back, however, a strange look in her crystalline eyes that evaded his understanding as she pondered something unknown to him, no doubt.

"i take that to mean you like them,"

he commented softly, still watching her in case she spontaneously decided to go in for round two without warning.

"that's a relief. i can show you how to tie your hair with them in the morning— sleep is more important right now."

after lightly dabbing the blood off of his neck and the tip of the pin with the handkerchief on his side table, knox settled back under the covers and motioned for sybil to put the case away and join him, leaving plenty of room for her to tuck herself against his side however she pleased. though it had initially taken some serious adjusting to get used to her clinginess during the nighttime, he'd since grown accustomed to the familiar warmth of her lithe fingers gripping his bicep or curling around his waist in her sleep.

'how quickly man adjusts to circumstances that previously felt impossible to him— what a notion...'

"by the way, that slip looks nice on you,"

he murmured, eyes fluttering shut as he weaved his fingers together behind his head. the compliment came plenty belated in the flurry of action just then, but a soft, pink hue quickly colored the tips of his ears once he finally took notice of it.

"pink suits you well..."

• .
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• outfit
• location

  
  

  the captain's quarters
• tags

  calypso
  

coded by reveriee.