"Come on, work ya pesky lil thing..." Errat muttered in frustration as his fingers were tied as he was assembling something on his desk.

 

It was in the middle of the night, other crew members were asleep, long had they drove into each of their own dreamlands. The ship was swaying gently from side to side in the night breeze... except for one.

 

Roderick yawned as he ventured down the corridor as he had accompanied Jack to sleep. Carrying a single dim oil lamp in his hand as his legs dragged him through the wooden floor. The small boy was begging for the adult to read him some books, which the older individual obliged to.

 

It had been several months since Roderick had joined the fleet, he was getting comfortable around his crewmates. Especially towards Jack, the small boy reminds the man of someone he used to know. Although, he was still annoyed with Errat as usual, with the latter always being loud and glued towards him.

 

Roderick yawned wide, "He really is clingy, even hugging my arm in his sleep. Though the book he want me to read was about constellations... odd for a kid like him. And he never takes off his scarf." Roderick talked to himself as he was walking down the corridor towards his room when he noticed that the door to the captain's cabin - aka Errat's room - was open wide.

 

"Hmm?"

 

"Don't you dare slip you piece of-- DAMN IT!" Errat exclaimed as he lifted both of his arms and grabbed his head. It made the other man curious on what the captain was doing. His mind was pulling him so that he could rest, though it was unusual to see the man sounding so frustrated. He then decided to do the opposite to what his logical mind tells him to do.

 

Roderick inhaled some air before he entered Errat's room and closing the door, "What happened?" He asked as he approached the desk that Errat was at and put the oil lamp on top of it.

 

Errat let out a deep, exhausted sigh and looked at Roderick as if he was about to cry like a child, "It's just that this stupid, damn string! It doesn't wanna cooperate with me!" He whined, laid before him was a stack of paper on top of a hard leather cover. The ropes to attach the papers into the cover were all messy and disoriented.

 

Roderick glanced at the object before he looked at Errat with his stoic expression as usual - sympathizing the frustrated man, "What are you even making? It's already night, if someone hears you whine like that they would be awake. All thanks to you."

 

"Hah... I just have to make this right, I want everything to be in top shape!"

 

Roderick then stared at the book that the captain was making, "...Kull paper for the content and Guilon deer skin for the cover, am I right?"

 

Errat nodded and smiled, "The best materials to make a good ol' book!"

 

"Then why not ask someone else to make it? I know for one that Philip likes to make blank books." Roderick suggested as he leaned his lower back against the desk and crossed his arms.

 

"As a matter of fact, I did ask 'im how to make one. It's ma first time making one on my own."

 

"What for? Personal use? Don't you already have many for that?" Roderick raised his brow in question.

 

"Nope! Not at all!" Errat said before he turns his focus on the half-made book, "I'm makin' this for someone~"

 

Roderick's heart thumped in response to hearing those words, though he doesn't really know what was the reason his body reacts to that, "...Who are you making it for?" He asked - logically

 

"Someone from my hometown, you're gonna meet her when we get there. We're gonna arrive there in several days so I wanna finish this quickly." Errat replied as he tried to tie a knot to the last set of strings. He was smiling goofily as he was focusing on the object.

 

Roderick raised his brows, "Hometown, huh? Must be nice getting back then, it's on the northern side, right? That's why you're stocking on warm clothes."

 

"Exactly! Don't wanna freeze to death now, do we? Hmm~ Hm Hmm- DAMN IT!!" Errat winced out loud as the tips of his fingers were bruised red from tying the knots.

 

There was a look of concern for a brief moment when Roderick's eyes made their way to the other man's hands. He lifted himself off the desk and leaned closer towards Errat, "Let me see that." The man said as he pulled on the leather cover to bring it closer to him.

 

"Hmm... That's not how you do knots, you idiot." Roderick commented as he began to repair the mistakes that Errat had created, "You don't repeat tying it over and over again, watch." He said as he made two loops after tying it once. He then put one of them under the other before pulling on them.

 

"There, that's how you do a proper knot."

 

Errat gasped as he was amazed at how tidy and neat it looks, "Now that's more I like it! You know so many things, Rody. I'm impressed!"

 

"...Have you never tie your shoes before? Any kid can do that."

 

Errat laughed as he looked at the other man, "Well I usually slip in and slip out, so I dunno how to tie a proper knot."

 

Roderick then blankly stared at the captain, wondering if his ears heard the man's words right, "...If what you mean is another kind of 'slip in and slip out', I'm not going to talk with you ever again."

 

"Hmm?" Errat hummed and blinked for a few seconds as he saw the irked look on Roderick's face. It took him a moment for the gears on his head to turn. He then let out a burst of loud laughter and hugged himself from it, "HAHA!! Oh, Rody, ya never cease to entertain me!" He wheezed out loud before calming down after a few minutes.

 

While waiting for Errat to calm down, Roderick continued to gave the man a blank stare with his Emeral pupils.

 

"Haha... Hah... I mean I used to go to brothels like that, but I ain't gonna pull that stunt!"

"Then make it specific, you're going to make misunderstandings here and there if you continue to be vague like that!" Roderick exclaimed back as he was glaring at Errat before turning his head away from the man himself.

 

Errat chuckled, "You know, I'm not just the conqueror of the sea. Some say that I even conquer the ladies' heart~ Wanna know the trick, Rody?~" He teased.

 

"Shut your damn mouth up!"

 

"Hehe~"

 

Roderick groaned from how annoying Errat was being. He was about to leave the room before his eyes shifted towards another object on top of the desk. He then reached over his hand to grab the item.

 

He was observing how the object fit in his hand perfectly. The hard and rough leather grip, the bits of rusted metal on the sides of the item, and most of all, it was brandished with golden lining across the barrel.

 

"A revolver?" Roderick said as Errat snapped out of his teasing self. His expression turned tense as he snatched the weapon from Roderick's hands.

 

"H-Hey, it's rude to grab someone else's stuff like that, 'ight?" Errat stuttered as he looked at Roderick anxiously.

 

Roderick furrowed his brows in distress from the response, "It's the first time I saw it... Does it work?"

 

"...I don't really know... But it might still give a bang or two..."

 

Roderick's brows furrowed more and a deep frown was upon his face, "...Then why the fuck didn't you use it? You could have used it back in Dungan at that Medussa."

 

Errat smiled wryly as he held the revolver in his hands, "...I don't use this, it belongs to someone else."

 

"Who?"

 

Errat took a deep breath and smiled, "...The previous captain. He wanted me to keep it with me... he says that it's a keepsake from him to me." He replied though he felt as if there was a fire burning his wounded heart.

Roderick was completely silenced at Errat's answer as he looked at the revolver, "...My apologies..."

"No, no, it's all peachy..." Errat then turned to fix the knots on the book he's making, "...It's old memories anyway, it's already late, Rody. You should rest, I'm going to continue making this." He said as he looked at the other man with a smile.

 

"...Alright, you should sleep too later. Good night... Errat" Roderick said before he grabbed the oil lamp and walked towards the door. He took a glance at Errat's back before exiting the room.

 

The sounds of Roderick's footsteps echoed throughout the corridor as one man was hearing it fade away. That same man's smile faltered as he stared at the revolver as memories of his past ran by his mind.

 

A single drop of his tear dripped into the revolver as he was all alone in the room.