Eastern Winds (Ukraine intro-reserved for awesome)

[StarshaSestra]

She couldn't get over the noise. So much of it, as though everyone in the city of Berlin had poured out and decided to see who could bark German the loudest. Merchants haggled, children shrieked, dogs howled as they chased eachother's tails. When it wasn't voices, it was vehicles--cars, buses, trams, filling the air with smog and steam and so much noise.

Yekaterina couldn't help but whimper, clinging to the bulky case of her gun as much for security as for anything else. For a young woman who had before only been familiar with the quiet life in the country, or the stuffy silence of a manor house, the city seemed like a chaotic mess of movement. She was standing just outside the train station, bracing herself against a wall as she watched the people flow and crash through the streets.

'And Natalia is somewhere in that...that... swarm?' Katushya's heart dropped, and it took more strength than she thought she had for the Ukrainian not to break down crying. As it was, she hoisted her gun case closer to her bosom, forcing herself off the wall with trembling steps and melting into the crowd.

Yekaterina tried her hardest not to jostle against any of the other pedestrians, but her nervousness, along with her burden, made her a bit clumsier than normal. Every time she bumped into someone, she let out a stuttering apology, bowing her head and nibbling her lip.

Katushya was still unsure where exactly she was going--when she had boarded the train to Berlin, all she was thinking was how far away she had to be. Her sister often spoke of travel to far off places, though, so, she figured the best place to start was most likely the air docks.

She paused, and began to look around for someone she could ask for directions. Spotting a nice-looking young man with a bird, Yekaterina approached, lightly placing her hand on his arm. Contorting her face slightly, she began to speak some halting, fumbling German.

"Ah, b-bitte entschuldigen ... e-entschuldigen sie, aber, ah, der ... die ..." Katushya bit the inside of her cheek, fidgeting her grip on the gun case's strap, "die...l-luft-docks?" She lifted her head, smiling brightly and nodding, "Tak! Luft docks! Wo ist?"

Ah, p-please excuse...e-excuse me, but, ah, the...the...
the...a-air docks?
Yes! Air docks!
Where?

[Preußen]

As a pirate doing business in Berlin, people didn't usually touch you unless they wanted a fight (or your head; both situations were common, really). When Gilbert felt an oddly gentle hand on his arm, he visibly stiffened, immediately giving a small shout of surprise as he rounded on his assumed attacker.

Only to come face-to-face with her.

To be fair, Gilbert had come across his fair share of brutal women in his life - some of them being quite the tricksters, luring him into a false sense of security, and then...well, let's not get into that. What could he say, he was a sucker for a pretty face.

But this was one face that couldn't fool him - or rather, there was no way someone so obviously scared could be trying to scam him. The girl looked downright terrified, and Gilbert - being the kind, gentle-hearted pirate Captain he was - kind of felt sorry for her.

"Erschreckte mich," he muttered softly, only wincing a little at her sorry attempt at German. He looked at her pityingly for a minute, eyebrow quirked a little as he stared, eying the odd case she clung to so desperately, before his gaze shifted to her face again.

"Sprechen Sie Englisch?" he asked, because, honestly, he didn't want to listen to her mangle any more of his native language. She certainly tried, though; he'd give her that much.

"What are you looking for at the air docks?" he tried next, because a girl like her didn't look like she had any business at the air docks. However...

He glanced at the case in her arms again, and although it bared resemblance to a gun case, it was much larger, and...this girl didn't look like the kind to lug around a giant gun. With a small sniff, he leaned closer, examining the case, one gloved finger poking at it gently as he tried to peer at it from every angle, "Hey, what's in the case?"

Erschreckte mich = Frightened me
Sprechen Sie Englisch? = Do you speak English?

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina jumped back with a squeek, clasping her arms around the gun case, "B-Bitte verzeihen! N-nicht ab-absicht..." She bit her lip, forgetting how to say 'scare', and wished that she had paid more attention to the language lessons her host family had given her. She had tried, honest, but where Natalia just took to it so well...

Katushya eyes pricked suddenly, and she sniffed, rubbing her eyes. It would do no good to start crying in front of strangers--she was going to be seeing a lot of them from now on. She shouldn't get in the habit. "Y-Yes," she managed, her voice still a bit trembly, "A... a little. Better than German." She attempted a sheepish smile, "Though, I am knowing that does not make much sense."

Yekaterina lifted her head at the other's question, "Ah, tak, I am looking..." The Ukrainian paused, and fumbled, lip trembling, "Ah... am looking, looking for younger sister. Is about my height, doesn't smile lot, long blonde hair with black bow, c-cold blue eyes... w-wears...p-pretty b-blue dresses..."

Katushya clung to the gun-case, and began aggressively rubbing at her eyes, sniffing, "S-So sorry, j-just... worried."

That was when Yekaterina noticed the other's speculative examination of her case, and she abruptly tightened her grip. "A-A-Ah, is... is..." She bit her lip, not really willing to implicate herself by revealing she had stolen a cannon, but not wanting to lie, either. Katushya settled for halfway. "Is... is protection."

B-Bitte verzeihen! = P-Please forgive!
N-nicht ab-absicht... = N-Not in-intentional...

[Preußen]

He continued to examine the case for a long time, finally determining (wrongly, but how was he to know?) that whatever she had in the case wasn't worth his time, and didn't deserve the amount of interest he had already given it.

Gilbert's gaze shifted from the case back to the girl, thinking back over her description of her sister, and felt himself growing slightly concerned. If a girl like that had come through Berlin, chances were she would have been met with a lot of horny pirates and criminals. He didn't want to tell this poor, sniffling - was she crying? Oh, Scheiße. - young woman that her sister probably wasn't around anymore; that is, if she was still alive, she may very well have been kidnapped, or joined with a pirate crew to avoid getting sold as a slave.

What many people didn't realize was that while Berlin looked like it was all business, there was an awful lot of crime thanks to the pirates, thieves (two completely different breeds of criminals, mind you), and other criminals that lurked around in the shadier areas of town. The docks were mostly filled with pirate vessels and illegal cargo ships, many of them carrying contraband and human slaves.

"Ah, I don't think you'll be finding your sister around these parts," he began slowly, trying to let her down as gently as possible. He pulled a watch out of his pocket and gave it a quick glance before looking up towards where he could just see the mast and sails of his ship over the rooftops. The dock workers would be done loading his ship up soon.

"Hey, look, I'm heading to the air docks, myself," he started again after a pause, jerking his head in the general direction of the docks. "I can take you there. Walk with you for your protection, and all that."

A man bumped into him, and Gilbert let out an angry shout in German, stumbling forward but quickly catching himself before he hit the girl before him.

"Gott verdammt ungeschickt..." he grumbled softly, trailing off and rubbing his side slightly where he was bumped. He stopped abruptly, recognizing the lack of weight at his belt, and glanced into the crowd where the man was making off with his pouch of money. He cursed loudly.

"Gott verdammt! Kleine Ratte nahm mein Geld!"

Scheiße = Shit
Gott verdammt ungeschickt... = God damn clumsy...
Gott verdammt! Klein Ratte nahm mein Geld! = God damn it! Little rat took my money!

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina took a deep breath, blinking rapidly to dry her eyes as she looked back up at the nice young man, shifting her grip on the case. "Ah, yes, well, sestrychka is... determined. And, she spoke often of travel, so, I thought..." Yekaterina glanced down, embarrassed, examining the buttons on her black dress as it occured to her again how hopelessly clueless she was.

Katushya's head abruptly raised again, however, at the other's generous offer. Her eyes lit up, a surprised and relieved smile coming to her face for what felt like the first time since she entered the city. "Ah, w-would you? Would be so grateful!" She rested one hand over her chest, bobbing her head. "M-My name's Ye-"

That, of course, was when the other man was bumped. Yekaterina took a step back as he stumbled, an expression of concern. "Are you al-" Her eyes widened at the other's cursing, and her eyes immediately darted to the running pickpocket.

Instead of calling for the other to stop, Katushya immediately went for him, holding her case low. She caught up surprisingly quickly, raising her case and knocking the thief directly on his head, causing him to fall into the street. The man looked back at her, dazed, and was faced with a surprisingly firm expression of maternal reproach as she let her case swing to one side.

"Das ist nicht deine." Yekaterina reprimanded, holding out her hand, "Bitte zuruckzugeben."

Sestrychka = Little Sister
Das ist nicht deiner = This is not your.
Bitte zuruckzugeben = Please return. [/size]

[Preußen]

Gilbert watched for a brief, dazed moment as the girl who looked like she couldn't harm a fly quickly caught up to the pickpocket and gave him a good whack. He quickly collected his bearings, however, and followed after her, pulling his Luger from it's holster beneath his coat as he approached. He stopped just beside her, pistol pointed at the man's head, and grinned wryly.

"Sie traf mich unerwartet," he addressed the man slowly, as he was still laying in the street, holding his head and looking between the two, obviously rather dazed. "Es wird nicht wieder vorkommen. Haben Sie eine Ahnung, wer ich bin?"

The man squinted, trying to straighten his vision for a moment before his eyes focused, first on the Luger that was pointed at him, then on the face of the man pointing the gun.

"Nein," the man responded in a slow slur, and Gilbert glanced to the girl next to him, wondering just how hard she had hit the thief.

"Ich bin Kapitän Gilbert Beilschmidt von The Imperial Eagle," he informed the man with a smug grin, cocking the gun and nodding toward his money pouch, still in the thief's hand. "Geben Sie es zurück."

A look of recognition dawned on the man's face, and he immediately tossed the money bag towards Gilbert's feet, fingers trembling as he reached into his pockets and began to pull out other stolen goods, as well.

"Es tut mir leid! Tut mir leid! Bitte vergib mir!" he shouted in a wavering tone, fingers fumbling over jewelry, watches, and coin purses. "Bitte nehmen Sie diese! Nehmen sie alle! Bitte lassen Sie mich los!"

Gilbert sighed, holstering his gun and picking up his own pouch of money, but leaving the others on the ground.

"Sie sind erbärmlich," he told the man coldly, reattaching his pouch to his belt and making sure it was tied tightly before giving the girl next to him a gently nudge and turning away. He began walking back toward the sheltered alcove of a nearby shop, pausing to let a few children playing run by.

Sie traf mich unerwartet = You caught me off guard
Es wird nicht wieder vorkommen. = It won't happen again.
Haben Sie eine Ahnung, wer ich bin? = Do you have any idea who I am?
Nein = No
Ich bin Kapitän Gilbert Beilschmidt von The Imperial Eagle = I am Captain Gilbert Beilschmidt of The Imperial Eagle
Geben Sie es zurück = Give it back
Es tut mir leid! Tut mir leid! Bitte vergib mir! = I'm sorry! So sorry! Please forgive me!
Bitte nehmen Sie diese! Nehmen sie alle!
Bitte lassen Sie mich los! = Please take this! Take it all! Please let me go!
Sie sind erbärmlich = You are pathetic

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina watched as the other man addressed the thief, blinking a bit as she tried to keep track of what was going on. She tilted her head at the thief's dazed expression, frowning slightly as it crossed her mind that she might have hit him a bit too hard.

'If it was not a thief, I might feel more sorry,' Katushya thought pragmatically, settling her case across her back. As a child, her family taught her that thieves were to be viewed lower than dogs, and, while the Ukrainian felt pity for the man, she felt no qualm for her action.

Yekaterina glanced over at the other man, now known as Gilbert, her eyes widening as he introduced himself. 'Kapitan?' She thought, 'But, he's so young! Younger than me, surely!'

Yekaterina was then further stunned by the thief's response, her eyes widening as he seemed to pull riches out of nowhere and throw them on the ground. Her hand lifted to her mouth, as she thought of just how much there was, and what it would be worth. Then Katushya's eyes spotted a white gold locket, open to a sepia colored family portrait in miniature, and just like that the greed washed out of her, leaving her cold and disgusted.

'Yes. Lower than dogs,' she mentally confirmed. Not even sparing a last glance at the thief, Yekaterina turned with Gilbert's gentle nudge, following along quietly a short distance before she spoke in her quiet, soft voice.

"You are Kapitan of airship?" Katushya's heart pulsed, as she thought once again of her little sister, her dreams of blue skies and searching. Yekaterina's mind stirred, considering...

[Preußen]

Gilbert rounded on the girl as soon as she spoke, recognizing the tone and the look in her eye as she questioned his status. This girl, looking for her sister, was searching out the airdocks to try to find a ship. Gilbert paused, glancing up towards the rooftops again where the white sails of his ship billowed softly in the gentle breeze.

"Er, sort of," he began, not really wanting to have this conversation with someone he had just met. The scene with the pickpocket had drawn some attention, and while pirates weren't uncommon in Berlin, he had certainly done a bit to draw the attention of some people he'd rather not have the attention of, to put it gently.

"Look, I'll take you to the docks, but you have to move quick and keep up. I'm running late," he told her quickly, one hand gently gripping her elbow as he check the crowd around them before releasing her and taking off at a brisk pace, head held high and slightly heeled boots clacking on the street as he weaved himself into the crowd almost seamlessly. He glanced over his shoulder once, to see if the girl was following, before rounding a corner into a darkened alley, which was - for the most part - bare. He paused at the mouth of the alley, glancing into the crowd as he waited for the girl to catch up.

He wasn't against the idea of taking her with him, oh no, but not all people took very kindly to people in his line of work, and judging from the way she was looking at that pickpocket, she probably wasn't too fond of pirates. However, with the idea that he may have been spotted by one of the people who didn't want him in the city, he knew that the girl would have been seen with him, and therefore implicated as well. For her safety, wouldn't it just be better if he brought her along for now? If she changed her mind later, he could always bring her back, or drop her off at a different port...

He took a deep breath and tried to clear his reeling head, reaching up onto his hat to give the small yellow chick there a gentle stroke on the head with a leather-clad finger. She cheeped happily, and he smiled, letting his breath out in a sigh.

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina let herself be dragged along, stumbling only a little before she managed to keep pace. "D-Do not worry, I can," she assured, but, she had the feeling that the Kapitan was not listening. Shifting her case into a better position on her shoulders, Katushya's eyes darted nervously as she followed in the wake of the other man.

Katushya was not ignorant of the curious stares she had been drawing before the incident (that was how she had come to label it, the incident)--now, after, she was almost hyper-aware of the many eyes that watched their passing. How long before one of the many witnesses talked of the incident, mentioning a black-clad blonde and her large case? How long before that story reached her host family? They were not back-woods people, and surely had some form of business in Berlin...

'I'm thinking like a thief now,' Yekaterina thought, and it only took the weight on her back to remind her why. She nibbled her cheek, eyes pricking almost instantaneously, and wiped at her eyes with the back of her gloved fist. It was different, her situation. Katushya needed the gun, not for money, but for protection. She needed it to find her sister. She was not a thief, even though she stole.

She was not that man she had so coldy turned her back on.

Yekaterina shook her head, clearing it, and refocused on the reason she stole--to find her sister. That was her goal, and whatever she had to do to reach it, let it be. Katushya looked up at the young Kapitan, and thought again about her sister's blue skies. As she entered the alley with him, she began to think about how to voice her proposal, later, when they weren't running late. Or just running.

"So, your ship, the Imperial Eagle. Is how far from here?"

Behind her, a few men slipped out of joint with the crowd, winding their seperate ways through the streets, and heading for the air docks.

[Preußen]

Gilbert looked at her, considering, for a long moment. Finally, he let out a sigh and gestured that she should walk with him before he began walking through the alley at a much slower pace, listening to his boots clack on the ground beneath his feet for a while before answering.

"It's close," he answered simply at first, then continued, "Just a few streets away. This is a short-cut."[/b]

He shoved his hands into his pockets as he walked, watching the ground ahead of him carefully for debris and trash that littered the alley floor. Gilbird sat atop his head, peeping softly every so often as she dozed. A few times she would awaken and peer over the edge of the tricorn to look at the girl walking beside her master. Each time she did this, Gilbert would reach up and gently coax her back to the middle of the hat, where she would be safe from the danger of suddenly toppling over the edge of the hat. She would give a chirp and nuzzle his gloved palm affectionately before settling back down into sleep.

After so long, Gilbert found himself growing uncomfortable with the silence that had spread itself over them, and he began shooting glances toward the girl and her rather intimidating case, the contents of which were still unknown to Gil. He was becoming increasingly curious as to what a girl like that would carry 'for protection,' but he was also intrigued by the ease with which she seemed to handle the case, for it looked quite heavy. To stave his curiosity, Gilbert distracted himself by talking; he was good at talking.

"So, what's your name?" he asked conversationally, a very vague grin on his face as he sent the girl another glance.[/color]

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina, who was also growing uncomfortable with the silence, looked over, and smiled. "Ah, I am Yekaterina. Yekaterina Braginskya. Though, bat'ko always was calling me 'Katushya', because of headbands."

She reached up, lifting up her shapeless black hat, and revealed the currently dark-blue accessory. "He was Ukrainian, bat'ko. Very old country sort of man." She replaced her cap, adjusting it carefully, and looked up at the other's tricorn.

Yekaterina immediately spotted the little bird that first made the man distinct in the crowd, and discovered with no small amount of delight it was actually alive as it peeped at her. Katushya brought a white gloved hand to her mouth, barely concealing a bright smile. "Ah! Is such cute bird chick. Does bird have name?"

Katushya knew she was dangerously close to gushing, and was quite proud of herself that she did not immediately try and hover closer to the bird, knowing that would most likely frighten not only it, but the man it used as its perch.

Nonetheless, she did have the incredible desire to reach over and coo back. Had to have been the farm girl in her. Or perhaps just the part of her that had a weakness for cute things.

Bat'ko = father

[Preußen]

Gilbert nodded as she talked about her name and nickname, briefly wondering who this 'bat'ko' was, but the thought was pushed out of his head as the question about his faithful companion arose. He grinned and reached up to gently scoop the little bird off of the top of his hat, cradling her gently in both palms as he walked, holding her out to the Ukrainian girl to see.

"Her name is Gilbird," he told her with a grin, trying not to gush, himself. He recognized a fellow animal lover in this girl, though, and figured it would be okay to gush around her, at least a little. "She's like my best friend. We've been together for so long, I can't even remember-"

He paused here, still grinning, as the little chick peeped and hopped from his palms onto his sleeve.

"I can't even remember when or where I got her. For some reason, she never grew any bigger than this," he mumbled a bit thoughtfully, tilting his head this way and that as he looked at the chick. He didn't even notice that by this time he had stopped walking all-together, leaning against the wall of the alley with the little chick hopping on his sleeve, peeping at the girl and inspecting her closely, clearly curious. Gil almost let out something akin to a giggle, but stopped himself, giving the little bird a gently stroke on the head. She peeped happily and gently nipped the tip of his gloved finger, the gesture clearly affectionate. He beamed.

"That's how she gives kisses! Isn't it just so cute?"

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina nodded, coming to a stop as well as she held both hands to her mouth and leant close, "Ah, is so cute~ We had chicks at farm, too. Beerswallow, tak?" Tentatively, she reached out a finger of her glove, moving slow so as not to startle the little bird.

"Pryvit, little Gilbird, may I have kiss, too?" Katushya giggled, blue eyes twinkling as she cooed over the animal. "Nothing like cute animal to brighten day, tak?"

Knowing that he was also an animal lover, Yekaterina couldn't help but feel a sense of kinship with the Kapitan now. Somehow, the situation seemed familiar, though, the Ukrainian wasn't quite sure why. She looked up at Gilbert, tilting her head slightly in bemusement.

Come to think of it, a lot about the Kapitan seemed to remind her of someone she had seen before, though she wasn't sure whom. She certainly didn't know any men quite so pale in her little home village, nor in the small town just down the manor. Let alone one that shared her love of small animals.

'Must be some sort of sign,' Yekaterina thought, 'that this is the right way for me.'

Pryvit = Hello
Obviously. "orz

[Preußen]

Gilbert chuckled, watching with great amusement as little Gilbird not only gave Katushya a small 'kiss' on her finger, but also promptly hopped onto the girl's finger, giving her another little kiss accompanied by many happy chirps. Gilbert masked a look of surprise by forcing an expression of mock shock and hurt.

"Gilbird, you traitor!" he gasped dramatically, and the little bird peered at him curiously, head tilting this way and that before she gave him a small chirp and a kiss. She didn't leave Katushya's hand, however, and Gilbert laughed.

"She really likes you," he told the Ukrainian, as if she couldn't already tell. "It's weird; normally she doesn't like anyone."

He was suddenly struck by a very vague and far away memory of people and faces with names he couldn't remember, a little chick similar to Gilbird but different, bigger and more yellow, and people he thought should be called friends. It was gone as soon as it came, and while he pushed away most of his confusion, he couldn't help the look of puzzlement that crossed his face when he looked at Yekaterina again. There was something odd behind her eyes that made her different, somehow - he felt like she was familiar, achingly so, to the point where he almost felt as if he knew her - but he couldn't put his finger on it.

"Ah, maybe we should hurry up and get to the docks, ja?" he tried to brush away some of the uncomfortably odd feelings of familiarity, but some of them still clung to him as he turned and began walking again, gesturing for the girl still in possession of his best friend and companion to follow him again.

[StarshaSestra]

Yekaterina beamed with delight as the little bird leapt to her hand, tilting her head with a giggle. "So sorry, Kapitan--was not meaning to come between you." Careful to make sure the hand Gilbird was perching on was steady, she gently pet the bird's head with her other pointer finger.

"Am glad you like me, little Gilbird." She looked up to the bird's namesake, and was momentarily puzzled by the look the other's look of puzzlement, struck again by the strange not-quite-deja vouz. Smiling bemusedly, she nodded, "Tak," and fell back in step with the other, tenderly cradling Gilbird in her hands as she walked.

Katushya was tempted to ask the Kapitan if she had seen him before, but, she somehow sensed that asking would unsettle the young man, so, she avoided it. Instead, she asked a different question. "Are you knowing where you next make port?"