Woooo, I haven't even started chapter three yet...AND MY FUCKING BACK SPACE KEY BROKE. AGAIN. I literally just replaced it two and a half months ago... fuck alienware...

I've started a collaboration SpaMano story with another author and we'll probably begin advertising for it sometime later once we begin posting chapters

Anyway, i'm bending history quite a bit for this... braille was invented by Luis Braille in the 1800s but this is considerably not the 1800s... in fact, I don't know what time period it is.. i just write stuff... anyway, here's part 2

The Pirate's Oracle

Chapter Two: Braille

Lovino's stomach began growling and he whimpered softly. The thought of food made his stomach churn, but he was starving. He hadn't eaten breakfast, nor had he gotten anything since he'd been left in the room. For a while, he'd managed to wander around, carefully shuffling about the room, just looking – so to speak – around at things. He'd found the captain's clothes and some nicnacks, but nothing that would help him escape. Not that anything would even help… Who knows how far away from land he was now… So, with that in mind, he'd sunk back into the blankets and tried to stop his stomach from turning.

The door opened and Lovino jerked upright. The smell of something mouthwatering drew his attention and he bit his lip, knowing that whatever it was, it wasn't fruit and bread.

"Hungry? Sorry about that. We've been short on rations and I can't just go giving out stew at any time I want, not even you." Dimas' voice carried softly. The man sounded tired, leaving Lovino to wonder just what time it was and how much time had passed. It couldn't have been a couple of hours, but with every moment planned out for him, he never had to worry about time.

"You can't even look after me properly, just take me home…" his stomach let out a loud growl in affirmation, which made Lovino's cheeks go red and Dimas burst out in laughter.

The captain's foot steps grew closer and the weight of him sitting on the bed startled Lovino. The oracle tensed, feeling the weight shifting.

"Here, it's cooled down a bit, and I'll be honest, it probably tastes bad, but it's good for you, so eat up." Lovino felt something set down in his lap, warm and the source of that inviting smell.

"What is it…?" he asked, cautiously.

"Stew… The meat is a bit chewy because we had to salt and dry it so it would last, but I'm telling you, our cook knows what he's doing when we have fresher supplies. It's got some carrots, some potatoes, and also sundried tomatoes… I'd eat it before it gets any colder. It's gross cold."

"I'm not allowed to eat this." Lovino said, hurting to even say such a thing, but he should stick to his diet.

Dimas snorted, "Right, because we have an abundance of rabbit food on the ship. Eat that or you starve. Until we make our next port, you get stew and stew… oh, and stew. Learn to enjoy it my friend."

Lovino stared downwards, feeling the warmth of the bowl in his hands. He licked his lips and slowly grasped for the spoon. Once he had it, he lifted a spoonful to his lips and carefully shoveled it into his mouth. The flavor hit him hard, and the textures were new. Once he swallowed, he found himself no longer trying to taste the new flavors as he just spooned bite after bite into his hungry mouth, filling his stomach while he could. Once he couldn't get any more, Dimas moved to help get the last few bites onto the spoon.

"Thank you…" Lovino panted softly, licking his lips, "I don't care what you say, that was delicious…"

"You'll change your tune after the fifth night." He replied, amused.

The oracle just scoffed and lied down, "I would like to take a bath now."

"Wouldn't we all. I have some rose scented water and some cloths, so if you want to bathe, that's as good as you're going to get until our next port."

"That's disgusting!" Lovino cried out, sitting back up to look in the captain's general direction.

Dimas got up and shuffled around the room, "That's our lives. It's not ideal, but there's not much fun about bathing in cold sea water. I could draw you a bath of that if you'd like."

Lovino only grumbled in response and tugged his robes off, leaving him in his shirt wrap and pants. Curling up, the oracle let out a defeated sigh. He was going to die in this dingy room on this nasty ship with these disgusting people.

He felt the bed shifting again as the captain flopped down to curl up, "If you try and kill me in my sleep, I'll know and I'll retaliate. I don't care who you are." Dimas said, his voice tired, "Just sleep and tomorrow we'll begin the seeing."

"Great. I'm so excited." Lovino hissed. He closed his eyes and settled as close to the edge of the bed as possible.

The rocking of the ship turned Lovino's stomach less now and he sighed softly, nuzzling into his pillow. It smelled of that man, and while he hated him, he found it more comforting than the smell of his own room, which smelled too clean for him. He was asleep in minutes.

Land, the waves licking at its feet. Soldiers standing and ready for battle. Dimas stepping in front of the man Lovino knew well, Antonio. Both stared off. Dimas laughs, but Antonio isn't amused.

Men hold their weapons up towards the captain. Antonio moves. Dimas falls. Blood.

Lovino sat upright, breathing heavily. His clothing was tangled up against him and the blankets and he whined, pulling off the shirt, leaving him in only the pants.

"Bad dream?" Dimas asked, obviously tired.

"N-no…" he muttered, rubbing his face, "Vision."

"Oh? What of~?"

Lovino sat for a moment in silence, "Your death." He croaked.

A heavy silence fell over the room as Dimas took in what Lovino had just said, "Excuse me?" he said, finally breaking the silence.

The oracle lied back down and closed his eyes, "You heard me. I saw your death. I don't know when, but you step off the ship and you're killed right on the shore. Soldiers coming to get me."

Dimas snorted, "I'd love to see some lousy soldiers come for me." He spoke softly, his voice wavering slightly in the end. He lied back down himself, his breathing forced and controlled.

"It's what you get for taking me…"

"It's what I deserve for offering you a better life than the one you had in exchange for a service? If you were more trustworthy and my crew more trustworthy, I could let you out… but now is not the time for that. Just get some more sleep and try not to wake me again with your mumbling."

"I don't mumble!" Lovino huffed, curling up. Why was this man so infuriating‽ He closed his eyes and wished he could find out where his vision took place so he could just lead the man to that spot and get everything over with. The rocking of the ship eventually lulled him to sleep, being kinder to him now than before.

Lovino awoke again much later. He could feel the bed sheets were cold beside him meaning Dimas was up and had been gone for a while. His stomach was pained with hunger, driving him to sit up and grope at the bedside table, looking to see if there was anything for him to eat. He felt a plate and on it was a couple of pieces of slightly hard bread. He groaned softly and smelled them in hopes they weren't moldy. Luckily, they smelled okay. He tore off bits and pieces and ate them slowly, letting his mind wander over everything that happened. The swaying was beginning to upset his stomach again, but the bread seemed to help quell the feeling for the time being. He finished his meager breakfast and fumbled around the floor, looking for his shirt and robes. After dressing himself, he shuffled around the room, bored. At least in the palace, he had Antonio to tell him stories and nurse maids to read to him and teach him to weave – something he was good at when you gave him big enough threads. He even got to paint. While he knew they were nothing special and probably blobs of color mashed together on the canvas, the feeling of the brush sliding over the canvas, the smell of the paint and thinner, and the momentary feeling of escape were what he loved most about it.

He sighed in frustration finding old papers, useless to him. He couldn't read… He found telescopes and a ton of little things. Nothing of use to him. He brushed his fingers over this and that and paused. One of the books was different. He slid his fingers over the spine. Instead of indented bands and what not, he felt raised bumps. Why was this book different…? He grabbed it off the shelf and opened it up, expecting to find the covers filled with nothing but smooth pages filled with things he could only imagine. Instead, they were covered in the same bumps. He ran his fingers over them and desperately wished to know why.

The door opened behind him and he turned around, "Why is this book different?" he asked instantly, the smell of sea filled the room.

Dimas chuckled, "Nosy brat." He said, pulling the book from Lovino's hands, "I searched everywhere for the small collection I have of these books. I don't even know if the stories are good yet since I haven't read a single one. Since I knew you couldn't see in the conventional sense, I found a man who studies such afflictions and makes life for the blind easier. He taught me how to read bumps." He said, "You don't know how to read them…?"

Lovino frowned, "No… what makes you think I can read…?"

"That's just it… these bumps are so the blind can read!" he turned the book to the front cover and rubbed his finger over the bumps, "Okay, this word is 'The'." He grabbed Lovino's hand and his finger and rubbed it over the word, "T… H… E." he said, his voice filled with a sense of excitement.

The oracle didn't know what to think. There were books he could read on his own? He felt both rage and excitement bubble up inside him. Rage because no one had ever told him before, making him rely on others to read to him. Joy because once he learned to read these bumps, he wouldn't need anyone to read to him again…

"You can teach me to read this, right?" Lovino asked, running his fingers over the bumps.

Dimas snorted, "When I have time, I will. I figured they would have taught you already." He said with a hum.

"I thought you knew about me." Lovino muttered, "I never get to do anything on my own. This would give me more freedom in my room, but it's obviously too much freedom. I couldn't bathe myself until last year when I refused to bathe until they let me hold the cloth. The nurse maid still sits in there to make sure I "do it properly". I couldn't feed myself, dress myself… I barely managed to get those rights… I still can't walk by myself. I'm not allowed to eat meat, fish, sweets. I can't have wine, beer, alcohol in general at all…"

"I used to be sheltered, my brother and I. All we had was each other and our over protective mother. But I always wanted more, you know? I love adventuring. But my brother, he preferred sticking to our mother's rules. He stayed indoors and stuck by her side like the good little boy he is." Dimas said, his voice soft, and slightly resentful.

"Your brother?" Lovino asked.

"I have some time to teach you a few letters." Dimas said, evading the question.

Lovino frowned but shook it off, learning to read on his own far more important than some dirty pirate's personal life, "Fine."

The captain led him over to the bed and the two of them sat down.

Dimas pulled out a piece of paper and began pressing against the back to raise the paper. Once he was finished, he took Lovino's hand and gently brushed his finger over the first letter, "A." he said. He moved to the next, "B." and so on until Lovino had gone over all of them. They reviewed over the first six over and over again until Lovino had them down pact. Lovino was honestly feeling a bit over whelmed. He didn't know how this would help him… He didn't know how to use the bumps yet. How did the letters fit together to form the words? How would he even know what anything was once he figured out which letters were there…?

"I have to get back to work before I'm thrown over board. Keep working on those six." Dimas said, getting up to leave the room.

"But-" the door shut and Lovino huffed, "How is this supposed to help me read…?" he muttered, running his fingers back over the bumps, "A… B… C…" he mumbled, disheartened.

He leaned back against the bed and closed his eyes as he drifted off in thought, letting his hand slide from the page. Lovino began humming to himself. Shoving the page from his lap, he grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around himself tightly like a hug and nuzzled against the pillow behind his head. He sang the song softly and pretended his mother was holding him, rocking him back and forth as the ship swayed. The mens' footsteps became her heartbeat, their voices the people of his palace, tending to him as they did his brother. Tears spilled out onto his cheeks and he whimpered softly, wishing that this was the reality he'd been given.

He wiped his face, breaking from his day dream when somebody knocked something down outside. Lovino let the blanket fall from his shoulders.

The door opened, "I brought food." Dimas' voice said softly.

"Good. I'm starving."

There was a shifting on the bed and a warm bowl was set into the oracle's lap. He slowly ate the food given to him. Once he was finished, he looked towards Dimas, "Tell me a story." He demanded.

"A story…?" Dimas asked as he stripped down to something he could sleep in and clean himself up a bit, "Let's see… oh! I know the perfect one, I guess." He licked his lips, "There was once two brothers. They were as close as brothers could be, but they were very different. You see, the older brother was completely amazing in everything he did. He knew how to climb and hunt and swim. He was never afraid to break the rules. The other followed all the rules religiously. When their mother said to come in, he would. When she told him to sit still, he would.

"One day, they both got in trouble for something the elder brother did and it put a rift between them. They began to fight and despite all attempts to fix their relationship, it was ruined. The eld-"

"I've heard this story." Lovino said, staring in his direction, "Antonio tells it to me all the time."

"Ah, but you see, you've probably only heard the biased version of things." Dimas grinned, "My tale is obviously better because it takes place in the elder brother's point of view. The elder brother got into more trouble than he could handle one day and ran away. He wanted to get out and live and-"

"Hurt people." Lovino snarked.

"No. Well… that's not why he left, but it was bound to happen when his little brother rose up through the military and vowed to kill him. You see, the elder brother was only defending his freedom. Following rules was dull, so he broke as many as possible. He lived his life happy and loved every moment of it. No walls to hold him in and nobody to tell him no."

"Doesn't he want to hurt the hero? To stop him from putting an end to his freedom?"

Dimas chuckled, "Why? The hero lives to see the villain fall, but the villain lives in the moment, doing what he wants or what he thinks is best. I live by that same principle. I won't let some stingy uptight men ruin my fun~"

"You're depraved." Lovino said, "But it sounds like you just told me about yourself anyway. That's hardly a story at all."

"Oh, but it's a story when my brother tells it to you?"

"Brother…" Lovino blinked and looked up, "Antonio is your little brother…?"

"He is. And he joined the military to find me. Unfortunately for him, fortunately for me, he was drafted into being your personal guard. How do you think I was able to imitate that whiny little voice of his so well~?" he said, his voice full of laughter.

Lovino huffed and crossed his arms, "I don't see what's so funny. Antonio's the one that kills you."

A pregnant silence filled the room, "So what gets me killed anyway?"

"It doesn't work like that and I wouldn't tell you anyway. The sooner they kill you, the sooner I'm safe at home."

"You must be wonderful at parties." Dimas hummed, not letting his words affect him, "No fun allowed~"

Lovino just grumbled.

"How about this, you actually help me like I want, and I'll more than happily continue teaching you to read and I'll give you every single book I have that you can read."

Lovino frowned and crossed his arms, "Fine." He hissed, "But they're still going to kill you." He said.

"Mmm, not if you do your job right~" Dimas teased, "Now, get some sleep because tomorrow, we have to find out where we should dock that won't get me killed." He said, slipping into the bed. He curled up and closed his eyes.

The oracle stared in his direction, lying down as well.

Dimas opened his eyes and was met with the dull blank eyes of the prince. He shuddered, "Go to sleep and stop staring, that's fucking creepy."

"I can do as I please because no matter what, you need me." Lovino said. If Dimas could hold things against him, he could certainly hold them against the captain!

Dimas snorted, "I could have you sent to the dungeon cells to sit and wait until I need you."

Lovino stared for a bit longer, "You're an asshole." He said, rolling over and closing his eyes. He hated it here, but it could always be worse.

The captain snorted and closed his own eyes once more, "And proud of it princess. Get some sleep now, okay?"

It wasn't long after than both of them were fast asleep.

~Lady Pyrien