Day Trip

"Beat to Quarters you say?" De Guarde grinned and snatched Oxley's sticks. "Well then, Beat ter Quarters it is!" He didn't think it would be a problem to tap that rhythm even with the children around. The civilians would hardly know what to do and there were no other navy men around, that he could see. None that weren't come from Terpsy or looked like the ones that ought to be.

And so he did it, quickly, before Thompson got the sense to snatch him up like he did poor Tom.

"Didn't when I 'listed, neither," Thompson said, and allowed Oxley to finally twist free of his grip. The drummer darted out of reach, grinning. "Only got to be Royal in... the year two, I think it was. Durin' the Peace, anyhow." He shrugged. "They was jus' plain His Majesty's Marines when I 'listed, in '97."

And then someone was beating to Quarters and he looked around for the culprit. "Mathew de Guarde! You want to spend the next three weeks in the bilboes?"

"Gang way there!" Chase cried, coming forrard at a run, interrupted from his fascinated study of the silver laid out neatly in the captain's cabin. The sudden stuttering of the drum had erased all other thought except instinctive reaction from his mind. "Shift aside, don't you lot know how t'clear ship?"

"Aye, that's what we is now," Mayden said, managing to keep from springing toward the arms locker for his musket, having seen the wicked grin on the Tar's face as he hammered away on the drum.

"'T'ain't nothin' to worry about," Thompson said, feeling as though he ought to be heading topside, though he didn't have his musket to hand, which made him feel half-dressed, or something. "You'm goin' to be for it, Mathew, lad, when the Cap'n finds out who's bin doin' that!"

Oxley frowned as de Guarde snatched at his sticks. "Hey!"

Then he heard what the other boy was beating and his eyes widened. "Oh.. you're gonna be in trouble. It'll be worth it, though!"

He grinned at the confusion on the faces of the strangely-dressed people around him. they obviously had no idea what that particular beat meant, and didn't know what to do when the ship was at Quarters, unlike the two seamen who came running for'rard from wherever they had been.

De Guarde looked at the assorted men and couldn't help but laugh, though warm heartedly at them. Chase came all the way, running and thinking that it was time for it, and even the others looked as though they wanted to go running places, springing and hopping about to their stations, even if they knew they ought not to.

"See how daft them people are." He nodded in the direction of the bewildered men, women and children who had obviously no idea why the Tars and marines panicked all of a sudden, or what the tap meant.

"Tommy lad, you know it just HAD to be done!"

Bolitho and Bush had been up on the quarterdeck, having only come aboard the ship a few moments earlier. Bolitho was mightily concerned about the lack of crew aboard the ship, as was Bush. They were in the process of searching for any sort of officers when the sound of a drum beat suddenly came from below.

"Dear God, someone's beating to quarters!" Bolitho exclaimed, looking around for whatever the threat was, "Where on Earth are the officers?"

Branning, having been the farthest forrard, had run directly for the arms room, only to find on his arrival that not only was the door barely secured, but also that it was utterly empty. Dismayed and coming on to panic, for he was armed only with his bayonet, he hurried back to the upper gundeck as fast as he could.

"There's no muskets anyplace!" He cried, upon fighting his way through the babbling pack of visitors toward the others.

"I don't know, sir," Bush said to Bolitho. He too was looking around for whatever was threatening the ship, but could see nothing. "Seeing as there are no other officers, should I go belowdecks? I may be needed down there..."

When Bolitho nodded his approval, Bush hurried to the ladder and made his way down to the gundeck.

Thompson sidestepped the bigger Marine who came running aft in a panic. "Don't fret so, Brannin'. One of the young monkeys decided it'd be fun to beat to Quarters for a laugh, that's all."

He glared at de Guarde to put the drum down now that he'd played his prank.

"What is going on?" Blackwood demanded, one hand on his sword. The only reason for such hurried drumming was for alarms, which even he as a soldier knew.

Not knowing of the impending doom on the way, the lad shook his head in defiance and hopped back, his drum still there. He was in fits and giggles though, seeing how Branning had nearly brought the whole ship down only to find himself a musket.

"..Ain't no monkey!" He stomped his foot and just as much in defiance tapped the beat again, silencing it rather abruptly at the sight of an officer, hiding the sticks behind his back.

"He... what?" Branning blinked in disbelief, trying to wrap his thoughts on this concept. "There's no alarm?"

"No, there ain't," Thompson said and caught sight of the officer hurrying towards them. He straightened abruptly to attention.

Chase and Evans had, after realising that there were no other real saliors aboard, banded together to man a single gun, despite the sheer impossibility of such a task. They had yet to be made aware of the absence of actual danger.

Bush clambered down belowdecks, still searching for any of the ship's officers. Instead, he saw several of the Terpsichore's own crewmen and Marines--and then he spotted De Guarde, quickly ending his drumming and tucking the sticks behind his back.

"What in the name of God is going on here?" he shouted, in the loudest, most harsh voice possible.

Blackwood frowned at the lad with the drum before turning toward the sea officer who had come down the ladder.

"There appears to be no alarm," he said. "But rather an overly mischievous drummer boy with little concern for the panic he has caused."

Oxley spun round like a top and froze in the position of attention at Mister Bush's yell. The young boy who had been so curious earlier let out a nervous squeak and dived behind his mother.

De Guarde makes a start to inch behind one of the guns and the men gathered, hoping to make himself invisible while the ear piercing shout makes many of the visitors stare, and startle, and some even jump, many step back, and a few children have started crying, so frightened they were by the suddenness of the shout and it's harshness.

"Drummer boy?" Bush looked incredulously at Blackwood, "That is no drummer boy, sir. He is a seaman. However, you are quite right that he has very little concern for any sort of commotion he causes."

By now he had noticed the other people standing around the gundeck, all of whom were now staring at him. But Bush was much too annoyed with De Guarde's antics to pay them much attention.

"What do you think you're playing at, De Guarde?" he said as he approached the boy, "Beating to quarters when there is no threat? That is irresponsible and dangerous. When the captain hears of this, I can only imagine what he will say..."

"We.. we could skip tellin' him.. mebbe?" He squeaked nervously, realising that he had failed at sneaking of before it was too late. Which, with so many witnesses would probably have been impossible anyway.

"..I.. tried t' drum." Not wanting to dunk anyone else who might've wanted to get and play te drum. "t' see.. if it would do good when this was fer .. real... " Or maybe he owuld better have been quiet.

"We will not skip telling him," Bush said flatly, "He was most concerned because he thought there was a real threat to the ship--as was I. If you really were merely 'practicing,' then you made a very foolish choice of drumbeat with which to practice."

Oxley winced at Bush's words. If he'd had a chance to try it out, he would only have beaten fr the officers' dinner, or something equally harmless. But de Guarde had to go and beat to Quarters, didn't he? Didn't he have any sense?

Not even a drummer boy, but a common seaman. Blackwood relaxed the grip on his sword, shaking his head in disgust.

"Certainly it is one thing to raise the alarm, even honestly, while on picquet," he said coldly. "It is clearly far more serious to do so falsely aboard ship. I am sure no one aboard is in any great hurry to thank you for the deceit."