The Docks, Thursday Morning

[good_for_six]

As suitably dramatic fog rolled into the harbour, an equally dramatic and somewhat familiar ship by slid out of the fog and up to the dock.

A very dramatic, familiar, and pantsless pirate swung off the deck and landed on the dock. "Set fire to my tits and call me Andraste," Isabela declared to am audience that might be about. "Didn't think I'd wash up back here anytime soon."

Oh, well, time to see if Fandom was still as full of fun and attractive people as it used to be.

[Open!]

Comments

[onahighdiskhorse]

What was Ainsley doing out and about so early? Making a bunch of TikTok videos about all the problematic things she'd encountered on the island so far. And there were a lot of them.

Look, it was nice to be 16 and fueled by the righteous power of The Discourse instead of things like sleep.

Anyway, she was out on the docks in time to notice the ship emerging from the sudden dramatic fog, and standing there with her arms crossed and a very disapproving frown on her face.

"Oh, no. They brought you back."

Hello to you too, worst teenager ever.

[good_for_six]

"Hello to you too," Isabela said to the tiny, judgmental teenager.

[onahighdiskhorse]

"What are you doing here?" Ainsley wanted to know, and that was absolutely not a whiny tone she was using, you take that back.

[good_for_six]

"Getting off my ship," Isabela cheerfully informed her. "Then hopefully getting off in general."

Shame was for other people.

[onahighdiskhorse]

"Ughhhhhhhhhhh," Ainsley said, oh so eloquently. "Why are you like this. Just. The worst bi representation."

SO PROBLEMATIC, ISABELA.

[good_for_six]

"That's odd," Isabela said. "You don't look like Pentaghast, but you sound just like her."

Way harsh, Isabela, Cassandra was nowhere near as judgey.

[onahighdiskhorse]

Yeah, that was really unfair to Cassandra.

Ainsley sighed. "No, she went way too easy on you."

See?

It was a good thing this kid was probably never going to meet Aveline, though.

[good_for_six]

Yes, Aveline didn't deserve to get put in the position of defending Isabela from judgey teens.

"Though she did loosen up some once that boy of hers got involved," Isabela said, mostly to herself, then came to a decision. "Right! Boys or girls?"

[onahighdiskhorse]

Aveline really, really didn't deserve that.

"I don't see how that's any of your business," Ainsley said like the giant hypocrite she was.

[good_for_six]

Especially when she still had a few blissfully Isabela-free years to go.

"Of course it's my business," Isabela blithely replied. "How else am I going to know what to look for for you?"

She was a helper!

[onahighdiskhorse]

"Ew ew ew ew I don't need your help!"

Shrill much there, Ainsley? Sheesh.

"You are a terrible influence --" like she wasn't going to take that as a compliment -- "and way too hypersexualized."

Sorry about this, Isabela.

[good_for_six]

Clearly Ainsley did. Or someone's at least.

"Oh, I know," Isabela said with the happy sigh of a pirate with several people in every port. "Which is why you can take advantage of my experience that I'm generously offering."

[onahighdiskhorse]

What Ainsley needed help with right now was not having the vapors.

"How are you even worse than I remember."

Maybe if you didn't get all your knowledge of older seasons from reading fanfic, Ainsley.

[good_for_six]

This was entirely your own fault, Ainsley.

"I see my reputation precedes me." Isabela sounded so, so proud of herself.

[onahighdiskhorse]

And Ainsley (whose fault this was entirely, yes) looked so, so horrified.

"That is not something to be proud of."

[good_for_six]

"Being remembered the way I want to be?" A sexy, sexy pirate who knew how to have a good time. "Of course it is."

[onahighdiskhorse]

"As bad representation?" She liked that phrase. A lot. That was the hill she would die on. "Ugh, way to set cultural awareness of bisexuality back like a hundred years."

If it sounded like Ainsley didn't really know what half the words coming out of her mouth actually meant, that was because she really didn't.

[good_for_six]

Oh, Ainsley, outside of a very few select people, Isabela didn't care what anyone else thought of her.

"Sounds like their problem, not mine."

[onahighdiskhorse]

If only Ainsley would grasp that concept sometime in the next five years.

"Ugh, you're impossible," she grumbled. Maybe she could change this with the fancy new toque she'd gotten this morning? She could try, anyway. Like... make her put on pants, for a start.

It didn't seem to be working.

[good_for_six]

"I do my best!" Not at all. Nothing could overcome the power of the pantslessness.

Nothing.

[onahighdiskhorse]

And yet, Ainsley was still trying. You could tell by the way she screwed her eyes shut and clenched her fists and concentrated really, really hard.

"Why can't I fix this?"

[good_for_six]

Because Isabela was just too...Isabela for anything to make that much of an impact on her.

"Do you need to visit the healers?" Ainsley looked like she was going to sprain something like that.

[onahighdiskhorse]

"I'm fine," insisted a very red-in-the-face teenager.

She was not, but at least she wasn't in any danger of spraining anything.

[good_for_six]

"Whatever you say, dear," Isabela said, going to pat Ainsley's shoulder.

[onahighdiskhorse]

Ainsley squirmed out of the way.

"You. Are. The worst."

No, Ainsley, that was you.

[good_for_six]

Water, duck's back. "But I'm the best at parties."

[onahighdiskhorse]

Also incredibly frustrating.

"I don't want to know about it," insisted Ainsley, backing away a few steps. "You shouldn't be telling me any of this at all."

Ainsley, you were the one who basically just clicked past all the ratings and age restrictions and then was shocked at the contents.

[good_for_six]

It was a gift. An extremely not safe for work gift.

"You're the one who started a conversation with me, darling."

[onahighdiskhorse]

Sure, Isabela. Try and use logic with this one.

"Yeah, well..." Ainsley scowled. "You're the one who just showed up even after you got written off the show."

Rude, Ainsley. Also incorrect.

[good_for_six]

Well, it was that or dunking her in the bay, and she hadn't got there yet. Yet.

"I'm sure I'll find a warm welcome here regardless."