– POV General –

That was it, the fifth day had arrived and with it the day of the departure of the Hysterics for a much more mysterious destination...the unnamed island. Everyone had gotten up very early to gather the few things they had brought with them to the small wooden house. The boys had left for Gaze to pick up the orders that had just been delivered during the night and that prevented them from leaving the mainland.

It was almost noon, everything was ready; the mother and her son were resting inside with Achi while Hestia was chopping wood, Mysie and Kali keeping her company. An eerie silence reigned and only the sound of logs being cut with swords echoed through the forest. Since she got up, the Captain was colder than usual, more sensitive, so that her sudden change had slightly frightened her companions.

Taking their courage in hand, her two friends had decided to follow her, taking the risk of falling victim to her anger, knowing well how rough Hestia could be in this state. While Mysie was totally lost and thought that something bad had happened without being informed, Kali, unfortunately, had a little idea of what was going on but wanted to know for sure.

"H-Hestia ?"

*bam*

"What ?"

Hestia had struck a log with an axe before turning back to Mysie who had been the first to speak her name. Her tone was cold, her gaze icy, and the young redheaded woman couldn't help but shudder at her friend. They had known each other for years, were very close but when the Captain was in such a state, even in front of them, it was very hard not to shiver.

"Wha...what's wrong with you ?"

"Look, I don't know and I have nothing else to say."

Tying her hair in a ponytail, the young blonde woman went back to chopping wood to get past her frustration that came from who knew where. Moreover, to speak about her feelings, of what she felt hardly happened if not never. If Hestia herself was not ready to speak, then it would be difficult to understand. Yet somewhere deep inside her, Mysie and Kali's presence made her question herself.

"This is about Ulysses' mother isn't it ?"

"..."

"Let me guess, this is the first time you've gotten attached to people who didn't grow up with you and you're afraid of hurting them ?"

Trying in turn to get her to respond, the young Quartermaster who knew her Captain almost by heart had said the right words. The young woman chopping wood had stopped dead in her tracks, thinking about what she had said to Ulysses the day before during their conversation. At that moment, she was reliving the night she had discovered his mother for the first time, this little being so fragile, so beautiful, so pure...she didn't seem to belong to her blood-tinged world.

"I know you always say, you are not a good person, a heartless bitch, sadistic, crazy, a murderer, a monster and in the eyes of the world...it's true. These sides that we have accepted and that we love are part of you, but it is not only that which defines you in our eyes..."

"You know how to be caring, protective, supportive and for as long as I can remember you have always looked after us all. You only show those sides to people you've opened a part of your heart to and trust me, when you do, it doesn't matter how much blood you have on your hands...you'll never be able to hurt."

Hestia stood there, not moving, and simply listened to what the two young women had to say even though she already knew it. Of all the people in this world, she knew for a fact that the ones she had left her island with were the ones who would never see her as a monster. The Captain, her crew was apart and what they saw was not necessarily what others would see.

"It's nice of you girls to say that, but...like you said, I can be different with the people that matter, but those other dark parts are part of me too. I don't want to change and I won't change because I am who I am, so tell me..."

Turning slowly back to Kali and Mysie who were waiting to hear what she was going to ask, Hestia suddenly began to smile madly. This time it wasn't a tender smile but the wild, sadistic, bloodthirsty smile she had when she was taking life. The girls remained silent but felt the atmosphere becoming heavy and the pressure rising with every step the beautiful one took slowly approaching them.

"Do you think they will look at me with the same eyes of admiration as they do now when they learn what I have done and who I am ? Do you think that seeing me smile when I slit someone's throat is not frightening ? Will they accept the demon in me as they have accepted the part playing a heroine that I am not ?"

Asking these questions to Mysie and Kali without giving them time to speak, her voice became colder and colder as she got dangerously close. Instinctively, the two young women backed away before finding their backs against the wooden wall of the house. They were trapped but Hestia didn't stop, continuing to ask her questions, she placed both her hands on the wall on either side of their heads.

"Will you still be able to tell that I am incapable of hurting them indirectly if Ulysses and his mother learn that I am for slavery ? Will they look at me the same way if I tell them that I am willing to kill and torture those who get in my way, men, women, children, and old people ?"

Kali and Mysie didn't know how to answer, too busy controlling their breathing which had become excited at the young woman in front of them. Hestia was towering over them, her face no longer smiling but rather looking as cold and terrifying as her eyes. Suddenly, the Captain grabbed the chin of her two friends blocked against the wall, raising their heads to plunge her gaze into theirs, finally asking her last questions.

"So girls~ tell me, huh ? Would they be able to handle such eyes ? The eyes of a murderer."

In her eyes, an unhealthy, wild, crazy, murderous gleam shone as if at any moment the predator she was could devour them. The two girls could not hold her gaze any longer and looked away, trembling and feeling real danger and fear. Hestia had been deliberately aggressive and threatening for the first time with Mysie and Kali, hoping they would understand what she was trying to demonstrate.

"Y-You won't know if you don't try. D-Don't underestimate their strength, that's why you helped them after all...d-don't you ?"

"Let...let others make up their own minds about you. W-We're leaving in just a few hours, once we're on the ship there will be no...turning back."

Letting go of their chins not wishing to frighten or traumatize them further, the Captain's face softened again. Despite the pressure she had put on them, her two friends had stayed put...they had passed her test. Asking them all this, Hestia had realized something she never thought possible, she was afraid for the first time of what someone might think of her.

"Sigh...to tell you the truth, I was planning to go and talk to Ulysses and his mother before we left anyway, I can't leave without knowing…her name."

"It's true that we don't know it, she still hasn't told us but no doubt because she would like to talk to you first and thank you"

What Hestia had said was true, she had planned to wait until the last moment to finally speak to Ulysses' mother to spare her heart. Unfortunately, her decision had had the opposite effect and had caused her to fall into a vicious circle of doubts, giving rise to a yet unknown fear. However, after this short conversation with her friends, she had the necessary hindsight to understand that she was making a big mistake.

The Captain's heart had been turned upside down, she had been lost for five days immersed in a denial that she was not even aware of. After all, how could a woman hunter understand what real feelings were ? They had fallen upon Hestia without warning, it had only taken a second, a single glance under the moonlight to melt her heart of ice.

As a sudden breeze blew the hair of the three young women, in the distance, on the cliff, a woman with silver hair could be seen looking at the horizon. At that moment, the Cerberus Captain had made her decision, ignoring this fear, deciding to face everything. Smiling wordlessly at her two friends, she walked away in the direction of the cliff without seeing Kali's fists clench at the scene.

_______

- POV Hestia -

There she was, this woman who had taken me through so many emotions that almost made me lose my mind, more than usual. I had never spoken to her since I had saved her, far too busy judging me too different to be part of her world. But Kali and Mysie were right, after all...maybe she was strong enough to accept my dark side.

[Aaarg why should she accept me to begin with ? I'll just talk to her without playing the cold bitch to avoid her. Yes, it doesn't matter this time how different and vulnerable this woman can make me feel !]

I felt weak, vulnerable and I hated that feeling that at the same time made me feel so good. It was so hard to understand but I buried all this bullshit and just let my instincts guide me. Lost in my thoughts, I hadn't noticed that I was already a few meters away from her and Ulysses. I had climbed the cliff so fast that now I could not go back.

The little boy looked at me with surprise having seen me appear from nowhere while his mother had her back to me facing the ocean, her hair dancing in the sea breeze. She was wearing a long, simple white dress hiding her legs, fluttering in the wind, a shawl over her shoulders hiding her arms and a large white hat. Again I felt my heart racing as she suddenly spoke still facing the sea.

"Y-You finally came."

"Y-Yes, I couldn't leave without knowing your name"

Speaking those words was hard, I had become attached to them even without really exchanging with them, I had become attached to their story and their struggle. At least that's how I interpreted my behavior, even though it sounded wrong, as if there was something more. Whatever it was, the result was the same, the idea of having to leave this continent and leave them...made me angry.

It had been years now since I could feel deep sadness, since I had cried, and those forbidden feelings were replaced by anger. Their departure made me angry and I knew well how to interpret it, but this time I wasn't going to let it take over and make me cold. As I took a deep breath, the woman, without turning around, finally answered me after many seconds.

"Before I do that...before I tell you my name, I'd like to tell you...something if you don't mind. P-Pardon me my rudeness in not facing you but this way I feel more confident"

"I understand."

At her words I could hear her voice calling me a murderer and criminal again making me clench my fists because of how I felt. I didn't know what she was going to say to me or even what it was going to cause me but I didn't want to regret anything by running away, it wasn't my style. So it was in silence that I heard her say words that I really never thought I would hear from her.

"I-I...I'm sorry."

"You don't have to..."

"I'm sorry I called you a criminal and a murderer when you're the only one in my whole life who lifted a finger to help me. You came to save a poor unknown slave from a miserable fate and all I have been with you is disrespectful and obnoxious. Please...p-pardon me..."

Ulysses' mother had just spoken words I wasn't expecting but immediately warmed my heart...Mysie and Kali were right. Her soft voice trembled, her body too, I couldn't see her eyes but I felt this pure and genuine sincerity that brought a smile to my face. I felt like I shouldn't speak, that I should let her tell me everything she couldn't tell me for five days, I wouldn't have been able to anyway...I was speechless.

"In such a short time you became a role model, an inspiration to my son, we didn't talk much but I watched, listened and felt. You've made him grow more than anyone and more than I ever could have by teaching him what's important. I...I am far too weak to even understand what it is to be as strong as you but..."

"That's not true !!!"

All along I had been listening to her, all along this woman was delivering what was on her heart but at this moment I couldn't let her continue. Her ? Weak ? It was all bullshit and I could feel my blood boiling in my veins...it wasn't fair. I wasn't the best one to decide what was right or wrong but her statements were. This time, I didn't let her continue, speaking up and moving towards her.

"You are far from being weak, you are an exceptional woman, beautiful even if you think otherwise, you are also a model of courage for your son. How do you think he survived without your love and without the strength you showed day after day ? You never took your eyes off the main thing, always trying to protect Ulysses and your baby... you may not be proud of yourself but I can tell you that your son is..."

I had gotten very close to her without realizing it, so close that I could smell her scent I was discovering...she smelled like lavender.

"T-Thank you...Thank you so much for those words...those precious words that I have never heard before, from anyone. Thank you for saving me, thank you for giving my children a future...for giving me a future. Thank you for protecting us, for giving us our freedom and for making your golden sun shine so brightly that it inspired us. T-Thank you...for everything ..absolutely everything..."

As Ulysses' mother spoke these words, for the first time since I arrived she turned to face me. She was holding her hat so it wouldn't fly off, had one hand over her heart and...she was smiling. While tears were beading on her sweet face and her eyes were closed, the woman in front of me had a smile up to her ears, radiant, beautiful, mesmerizing and sincere.

"M-Mommy..."

Ulysses a little further away had seen it all and as his small, broken voice echoed announcing his crying, I was completely paralyzed. His mother was standing in front of me and I felt exactly the same feelings and emotions as when we first met. Her tears seemed to shine like diamonds, her smile was etched in my memory and her face was now etched in my soul.

"Come with me !"

Without thinking, carried by my heart and my feelings, I had rushed to her before grabbing both her hands and asking her to follow me. I knew it was crazy, I knew it might be stupid, but the thought of leaving them both here, on their own, made me sick. I had finally figured it all out, I didn't want to abandon them but I wanted to watch over them and continue to see them smile.

"I-I may not be as good as you see me, the journey we have decided to take is not easy, it is even hard and dangerous. It's a selfish request I know, I have no right to ask you to follow me when you can finally decide your future. But I...I don't want to leave you, I want to be there for you and I promise you that I...that I will protect you."

I had said everything I had in my heart, I had said it in one breath not being able to believe what I had just done. As if my last words were the ones she had always wanted to hear, her clear blue eyes began to shine again, bathed in tears. Her face was tinged with red, her hands in mine trembling or maybe it was mine, as she answered.

"I-Is that a promise ?"

Ulysses' mother, her hair blowing in the wind, had her gaze plunged into mine waiting for her heart to beat an adorable look on her face. But this time I didn't speak, driven by this flood of emotions, I leaned in to kiss her, an action sometimes worth a thousand words. The kiss was soft and instead of rejecting me she returned it a little awkwardly but I didn't care because this kiss was so different from the others, so...special and unique.

It was at that moment that I understood that I didn't want to lose her or abandon her, it was at that moment that I finally understood what was happening to me. It had taken me a while, it had taken the arrival of the departure before I understood what my heart had been desperately crying out for since we met. I was in love...I loved her, I the heartless woman huntress, the sadistic, the monster, the Devil, the nutcase...I had fallen in love.

"I-I...I think Ulysses and I agree that..."

"Wait ! Before...I have to tell you something important. We are not merchants or mere travelers, in fact we are..."

"Pirates ? Yes we know~"

"For how long ? H-How ?"

"Since the beginning haha~ I told you...I've been watching, listening and feeling. Besides, Pirate Captain is way cooler than Heroine, isn't it Ulysses ?"

A small mischievous smile I didn't know appeared suddenly on his face as Ulysses came closer with stars in his eyes nodding briskly with a bright smile. I felt so stupid the whole time thinking that they were not going to accept the dark part of me and my crew. Pressing my forehead against hers, she finally spoke the words that made me so happy.

"We'll stay with you~"

I knew that everything was not going to be easy, that our decision might seem stupid but I did not want to give up on them. Now that everything was clearer, I wanted this little boy, this baby and his mother to be a part of my big family and to see them grow alongside us. As I thought about the perhaps dangerous but joyful future, full of adventures and discoveries, she moved slightly away, finally saying her name.

"I-I'm...my…my name is Katherine, with no last name."

[K-Katherine...]

Finally I knew, finally I could put a name to this mother, a name to this heart that had made mine beat...a name to cherish. I wasn't objective but I thought it was beautifully chosen for her, repeating it in my mind like crazy. I no longer felt that nervousness that had haunted me for five days so smiling, I stroked her cheek, dipping my eyes into hers before introducing myself in turn.

"Well...nice to meet you Katherine with no last name, my name is Hestia Hellfire~"

"Nice to meet you...Hestia Hell...Hellfire~"

"And I'm Ulysses with no last name hahaha~!"

Ulysses had suddenly jumped up next to us to hug us as he introduced himself as we did before laughing as a child his age should. We didn't know what was going to happen to us in the future, but we were destined and determined to stay together as if it was a given. As for me, I swore on my honor as a pirate, to protect and watch over these three precious beings until the end.

It was on this cliff overlooking the sea where our laughter was carried away by the fresh wind that I had just met my first wife, one day known as the Silver Queen.

_______

[N/A: Official illustration of Katherine available on the discord, also if you think their relationship is going too fast, know that its "love at first sight" but it doesnt mean that they are a couple and that things will be easier. You'll see the development, its a harem but I promised to write well the development of every relationship (especially Hestia and her wives)]