Evening 24th May - Mucked make a visit

"I could clout him," Thompson said cheerfully. "Should've darn done it. Don't reckon anyone'd blame him if he had - includin' the First Luff. He looked almost fit to bust, he was that put out by it all." He shoved the chew of tobacco into his mouth. "Ah well. Let's hope it don't come to nothin'. They've seen us brung down here. Who's goin' to tell 'em if the cap'n decides that's all that he wants to do?"

Which he probably wouldn't, but you could never tell.

Taylor smirked. "Prolly have to wait in line for that. Jonny Seward was close to knockin' poor Robbins' ears in, an' half the gundeck besides."

"Won't be a lad aboard sayin' a thing to that lot, 'bout anythin'," Chase said. "So Mister Bush was mad's all that? I'd've liked to see it!"

There was the familiar chuckle behind them again. "He were right hoppin.' Not so grand to see when it's pointed a you, but not so bad to watch when it's pointed aways at somin else." Perry had not gone far, just far enough to be out of eyeshot should the sentry suddenly take it into his head that Perry belonged with the rest of the seamen in irons.

"Aye, he were right furious with the whole thing. 'Specially when the bastard provost said I couldn't be trusted not to lie 'bout bein' involved in a fight." If he hadn't been in irons belowdecks, he would have spat over the side in disgust. As it was, he just rolled his eyes. "I reckon he would've thumped the sod himself if he weren't a gennelman, like."

The others grumbled while Perry hesitated, making up his mind whether or not to broach new subject. The sentry wasn't kicking him out or threatening him - yet. He began. "Did - any of you in the tavern where you was - happen to meet anyone - with anything for me?"

Chase and the others grinned. "Still dunno how that lot got off the ship in one piece," Chase said, shaking his head.

Taylor was eying Perry warily. "Anythin' for you? D'you think we'd be lookin' out for anythin' ashore that ain't ours?"

Thompson shrugged. "I din't get nothin' for anyone aboard, mate," he said, shifting as though to bend his knee and put his foot flat to the deck. The instinctive motion was prevented by the irons, which rattled a little and he gave a rueful half-shrug. "Sorry," he added apologetically, relaxing his leg again.

Perry looked genuinely disappointed at the news, too disappointed and distracted even to sneer at Taylor's remark. "Oh," was all he said, staring at nothing. After a moment he recovered himself. "Oh well! Didn't expect nothin' anyway."

The true purpose of his visit over, he realized that perhaps something more was needed along the lines of sympathetic cheer. He did not want them to attach too much weight to the strange question, and the marine at least warranted a drop of sympathy. "What about y'all then? Will you get a flogging?" He lowered his voice to a whisper, as if floggings might be summoned by over-loud speech.

Thompson shrugged. "I dunno. Wouldn't be surprised if we do, though I know the captain ain't the sort to go handin' out punishments like that, not if'n he can help it. An' they provosts can't make him do anythin' he don't want to do, not with him bein' a Navy captain an' all." He shifted a little. "He'm a good sort of captain to serve with, he is. Could be worse, I s'pose."

He wondered what it was that Perry had been expecting, and hoped that he'd receive what ever it was before they sailed.

Flogging. Chase made himself shrug carelessly, while the other seamen glanced at each other uncomfortably. He ignored them.

"Mebbe we will get the cat," Chase said lightly. "But we gave them soldiers a right good drubbin' an' that's worth it."

Perry of course did not know that Chase had received a flogging only a few weeks before, nor would he have cared. He himself had endured enough floggings in his time. Such was the way of the damned Royal Navy.

"Ah well, that's how it goes, ain't it," he said cheerfully. "Oh, nearly forgot. I were sent to bring y'all a present so you won't get bored." He retrieved and dumped a very large load of frayed ropes onto Chase's lap. "Doin' a bit o' polly should keep you busy till they find some'in better."

"Speakin' o' bein' busy, shouldn't you be somewhere else now?" Allen said as he came up behind Perry. Obviously the sailor was not the only one who had decided to drop in on the poor group locked in irons.

After being relieved of his duty, Allen had been on his way to the Marines' berth when he caught a snatch of conversation concerning the provosts' visit and the men who had been accused. Curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he had gone to see just who was locked up--and he was both shocked and angry to see that Thompson was one of them.

"So you got caught up in this mess too, eh?" he said to Thompson, giving him a sympathic smile, "Wish there was somethin' I could do t' help..."

Thompson looked up. "Hello there, mate," he said, and shrugged. "It warn't anythin' much. Jus' a stupid bar-fight, like happens in Pompey all the time, only some of them damn provosts come along to break it up. Seemed they didn't want to leave it there, neither, an' come aboard here to try to get us all in trouble with the Captain. Ain't like it was us who started the fight, neither."

He sighed. "What do they expect when there's Army folks around when we get to a place? An' thanks, mate, but I don't think there is anythin' anyone can do. Well, anyone 'cept the Captain, o' course."

"Bloody rotten luck t' have them buggers comin' by jus' at that time," Allen shook his head, then grinned as he said, "But I hope all you lads gave them army boys a good thumpin' before th' provosts caught you."

"O' course we did. Prob'ly wouldn't be in this mess now if we hadn't." Thompson grinned in return. "I was standin' on sentry outside the Captain's cabin when they come aboard, an' all. Mightn't've seen me, else."

Chase glared at the pile of old frayed rope ends that Perry had dumped into his lap. Stupid Yank. He was not about to start picking out oakum from anything. That was landsman's work.

"Course we gave 'em a good thumpin'," Taylor said to the newly-arrived Marine. "Showed 'em what real fightin' lads can do."

There was a chuckle from Higgins. "Figgers that we'd miss out, don't it, Allen?"

"Don't forget you'm missin' out on this little lot here," Thompson said, shifting a little and making the irons rattle. "Still, we showed 'em us Terpsies can give as good as we get. Settled their hash for 'em, that did. Stupid bloody soldiers."

Perry was by now slinking away again. Bloody self-righteous marines, lording it over everyone else... But he had more important things to do than spend time talking to a bunch of idiots locked in irons, and his scheming mind was already in action as he stomped away from the group.

Allen glanced at Higgins.

"Yeah, it does figure that we'd miss out, but like Thompson says, we're also missin' out on bein' locked up too," he said. Noticing Perry was leaving, he could not resist adding, "Well what do you know, he actually listened t' me!"

Thompson shifted his baccy to one cheek so he could make himself understood. "Don't go pattin' yourself on the back too hard, Nate," he said, and shrugged. "Ya know, if we'd'a known we was goin' to end up in irons for it, we might've done a sight more damage to them soldiers than what we did. Stupid sods can't take a joke, is what it looks like."

"We woulda done that, if them provosts hadn't come bargin' in," Chase pointed out. " 'Cept for Chicken here, we was hardly touched."

"Well, that's true. Prob'ly only 'cause them soldiers couldn't see straight, though. Reckon I give one of 'em a bloody nose, anyhow. Afore I caught an elbow in the side from one of you lot." He shrugged, grinning. That was the problem when you joined in a bar fight between soldiers and sailors, if you were a Marine. The chance were pretty high both sides would mistake you for a soldier at some point during the mix-up. "I'm jus' glad it weren't anythin' more'n an elbow, though, an' that's the truth. Wasn't even that hard, not really."

The seamen grinned when Chase suddenly blushed. "That was you?"

"Wish I'd been ashore too," Higgins said regretfully. "S'what I get fer swappin' watches wi' McEwen!"

Thompson nodded and shifted a little. Damn, the deck was hard.

"Aye, that was me. Not everythin' in a red coat's a soldier, after all, mate. No hard feelin's, though - it wasn't so hard as all that." He grinned at that. He was lucky he'd been able to twist away from it and hadn't felt the full force.

There were heavy footsteps from further aft and Thompson twisted round, slumping a little as he saw Sergeant Quinn approaching.

"All right, lads. Anyone want to tell me what happened ashore? And how on earth did you come to be mixed up in it, Thompson?"