The Fish Out Of Water (Philippines' Entrance)

[pilipinas]

How did she get roped into this again? Let's just go over the facts again.

1. She was (supposedly) offered good pay with this job.
2. Living quarters were included, since it was on a ship.
3. Necessities ie. clothes were provided.

As per the recruitment paper, anyhow. Sounded like a good deal, and naivety never stopped her from jumping into something that involved some level of commitment. Now, she was a cheerful, optimistic (usually) girl, so it didn't irk her when she was thrown an apron and pale dress. Nothing new, nothing new. She was so used to cooking and cleaning, it was surprising she didn't have an apron herself. (Well, she did, but it was back home.)

Well, there were still things to look forward to, even if the required maid costume was a bit. . . foreboding, let's say. Like bad memories of a previous employer. But! This ship was supposedly well-made and not to mention, a sky ship. Those were always exciting. And it's not like she came to Europe to be bored. No, she came all the way from Asia on various ships and with various crews to seek fortune! And less hurricanes. Not to mention, all the fair-haired Westerners were interesting to look at.

So she found the dock the ship was supposedly stored. Bobbing in the air was . . .

"Oh no," Maria-Estella almost gasped, gripping at her provided apron. "I knew this setup was familiar!"

Before her was the Le Madre Maria. How stupid of her! She signed up for her previous employer -- a lazy one at that -- again. It was a long, long time ago that she was sucked into that crew at the promise of better housing and less stormy seas, but that wouldn't stop her from hitting that Spanish captain should he ever be so stupid again. To be fair, she would (no matter how begrudgingly) give Le Madre Maria a chance again -- just for the pay and the travel. She grinned to herself. At the very least, maybe this voyage could bring her back to those American pirates!

[[So. . . I know she's an Asian, but Filipinos love NA/Europe way more anyhow. OTL Feel free to point out any problems and I'll fix ASAP.[/is brain dead] ]]

[Spain]

The grin on Antonio's face could only be described with one word as he saw the name of his newest crew member-- ridiculous.[/s] He'd missed the cute little maid who used to work for him (and her cleaning skills, not just her cute little face and--whoops, he's getting distracted again), and the thought of having her back on his ship brings a new sort of bounce to his step.

Spotting the girl on the dock with a horrified look on her face, Antonio whooped in joy and dashed down the gangplank to throw his arms around her, gathering in a huge (and rather un-pirate like) hug. "¡Estellita~~!"

[pilipinas]

Well,there was at least a little time before the voyage, right? Maria-Estella turned on her heel, to look about the dock. She had only gone two paces when thudding boots hit the wood of the dock behind her, and soon enough she found her feet no longer touching the ground, someone's arms around her waist. She squeaked, turning her gaze past the hair over her shoulder to see that grinning Spaniard she remembered.

"Kapitan Antonio, po!" She wriggled in his grip. If only she was taller! How many times had she wished that? Antonio had more than enough height on her, even stretching her legs out she still couldn't touch the ground. "D-down! Put me down, po!" She flailed about again, crushed by his enthusiasm. Really, Spanish pirates were said to be some of the worst out there! Where was the fearsomeness in this man? Certainly not present at the moment.

After a moment or so, Maria gave up. This was tiring. "I can't believe I got myself wrapped up in this again, po. . ." She pouted, her cheeks puffing.

[Spain]

Antonio beamed as he saw that adorable tomato face--with a laugh, he cuddled the girl in his arms, nuzzling their cheeks together and cooing, "I missed you so much, Mariaaa~welcome back to La Madre Maria! It's so nice to have you again~~you've gotten so big! Fusosososo~~"

[pilipinas]

Maria tried to smile, really, though even her attempted half-smile was distorted when her new and previous captain mushed their cheeks together. He was cuddling her like a child! "Kapitan, please let me down, po! iAhh, i-save sa akin, Amerikano!"* She cried.

'Big'? She hadn't, really. Maybe more than she realized! Oh, that would've been great -- to finally hit five feet tall! Then again, the last time she worked on La Madre Maria (And remembered how weird it felt to work on a ship with the same name, even if the names had different meanings) she was definitely smaller. Around ten she was, last time; it was one of the first ships she worked on, too, after she got sold into the labouring business.

"I'll get on the ship, po," Maria-Estella sighed. "But I can't go anywhere if you're holding me in the air!" She tried to wriggle free again, kicking her boots about. She was going to have to get used to this

"What is it you want me to do this time around, po?" She finally caved. "Kapitan, don't tell me your cabin's a mess like last time?" Cleaning, cooking, and nursing; those were the specialties she sold. Might as well stick to it.

*Ahh, save me, Americans!

[Spain]

After getting kicked in the shin by the none too enthusiastic maid, Antonio finally set her down, brushing the dirt from her shoulders and grinning. Really , it had been too long, and he (along with his ship) were in desperate need of someone like her around. The Spaniard smiled widely and nodded to everything she said; until, of course, she mentioned his cabin. The grin turned sheepish and he scratched the back of his head. "Maybe...it's not that bad...but you'll see! Haha, you should see how big my crew's gotten, querida! IT's huge now!"

[pilipinas]

To right his wrongs -- sort of -- Antonio set her down and pinched the dust from her shoulders like there was dirt there to sweep away. He grinned and grinned and grinned -- oddly, she did too, usually. Must be something she picked up in her previous time on the Madre.

Maria-Estella bristled. "Kapitain Antonio, don't tell me you've let your cabin rot away again, po!" She sighed, though it resolved her to work hard. The internal work clock in her started up again. Maria rolled her sleeves up, marching up the gangplank with a cleaning determination. She absent-mindedly nodded along with Antonio's ramblings. "I'm sure, you had a big crew even when I worked her before --" She shrugged, picking up a pail of water and the old, wrung out mop in each hand. She pointed the mop at her new captain, this time grinning confidently.

"What's in the worst shape, po? I'll start there and make my way up," Maria asked. Get the hardest work done first, then everything else feels easier, she always believed. So start with the filthiest end of the ship, no doubt somewhere in the brigs, and make her way up!

[Spain]

"Probably my cabin...or the crew's quarters." he smiled, ushering the young girl into the sleeping quarters, unable to hide the glee at the though of having his former maid back on the ship. "It's good to have you back, chica."

[pilipinas]

Maria couldn't help but notice how he ever so subtly skipped over the topic of his own quarters, and led her to the sleeping cabin. She was hard to surprise when it came to dirty cabins and closets and rooms -- an expert, even in her young age! Though opening the door, her eyes widened to a degree. "Ang aking diyos!"

The last time she was on La Madre, she had left once her work was done. The place had been clean, more or less. The very least, it was organized and there was less grime on the planks than usual. (Because, with the nature of the sea and skies, messes were to be expected. Less on air ships, however.) Now the place was filthy. "Kapitan, did you not hire another maid? This place is a sty, po!"

Antonio wasn't phased, grinning like a fool. Cut him open and he'd spill out happiness. Maria-Estella shuffled a little. Last time she was here he was so. . . far away. Like the ship and the sky, and conquering were his only loves. He was always a smiley person, but at least now his smiles were directed at people. And, by default, she smiled a lot too. So, with his grin threatening to stretch his face, she smiled too. "Good to be back," She ended up grinning up at him.

Ah, but there was work to be done! It was good thing the beds, for the most part, were hanging hammocks. They wouldn't get in the way. Maria-Estella gave the wash pail a good swish, before throwing the water to the floorboards, regardless of if her or Antonio's boots' got caught in the soapy water. "First, fixing this! I won't let you slack off again, po," She warned, beginning to mop up the water, and wash away the dirt.

[England]

Coming up from below deck, Lovi was searching for Antonio - for once he was actually doing some work as the list in his hands proved. "'Tonio." he called out, looking around, peeking into the man's cabin (no one told him he couldn't go in there...) and checking both his own cabin (he'd found Antonio sleeping in there once or twice already) and Afonso's, but with no luck

Finally, he drug himself down to the last place he had to check before heading off the ship and checking the town - the crews quarters. Being the social Boss that he was, the man could sometimes be found down there, exchanging stories with the crew that weren't on deck. "Boss? Are you in here?" he asked, while opening the door.

[Spain]

At the voice, Antonio beamed and whirled around, bounding across the room to wrap his Italian first mate in a hug. "Lovi~~! Come meet our new maid! "

[pilipinas]

Maria didn't wait up to furiously scrub at the grime caught between the floorboards. She went about the room with the soapy mop, edging crates out of the way to clean and propping up various things about the room to get at the floor beneath. Her work didn't rain on her parade; never! It was her speciality, and she worked with a confident smile, humming along as she did. Song was always important in her home. With the right tune, any mood could be joyous. "Mm. . . if you'll be my star, I'll be your sky . . . mhmmhmhm. . ." She hummed away.

The Pinoy looked up at the sound at the door. A brown haired boy with a flyaway hair curl poked into the room, seeming to be looking for Antonio. He said 'boss', after all. Antonio on the other hand recognized him instantaneously, launching at the boy with a hug. Maria-Estella returned to her work for the time being, but looked up again, hearing the Captain mention the new maid. She could safely assume he meant her, since clearly there was nobody else cleaning up the place.

"Kumusta!" She smiled with a wave. "Another crew member, yes? Call me Mame, po!"

[England]

"Ack - maid?! Wh-when did we get a maid?" he choked as he turned red in Antonio's hug. He could smell soap in the room - a room, he added mentally, that he normally avoided because of it's.... odiferousness. - and if having a maid meant being able to traverse the ship without feeling like he was swimming through a poor mans sweaty arm pits, he was all for it.

Looking the girl up and down, he nodded brusquely and offered a hand to shake. "Hey. Um... welcome, I guess..." he offered.