Samantha Cheng 7.5.13

Achava the Pirate I hate it here. My name is Achava. I am an orphan and I live in a orphanage. I

hate it here, we’re treated badly and we have no play time. I believe that all children

should have a little bit of freedom. My best friend is Jacey. Even though Jacey is a

girl and I am a boy, we share a lot of common interests and we understand each

other in our hardest moments. We are both 13 years old. We also look like we are

brother and sister so that’s another reason why we are good friends. We both have

bright orange hair and we also have the same blue eyes but we our ears and noses

are rather different. One night, I decided that I had enough of the orphanage so I

secretly told Jacey that I was going to run away. I told her I would come back

eventually, in secret, to visit her.

That night, when the grandfather clock struck 12, I silently got out of my bed

and put on my day clothes. I crept out of the orphanage. I walked and walked

through the night to the docks. I didn’t know what I could do at the docks but at

least I knew that I could find something. Then I fell asleep on the wooden boards of

the deck.

When I woke up I saw a man looking into my eyes.

He said, “Boy, do you want to be a pirate? Our crew is short and we need some

extra help.”

There was nothing else I could have done, so I agreed.

That pirate then said, “Welcome to the crew, boy! My name is Zain. What’s

yours?”

“My name is Achava. What are my jobs on the ship?” I replied.

“Your jobs on the ship is to help with the cooking and clean the deck. Now

come on board.”

“Thank you very much, kind sir! May I please meet the captain?”

I was so grateful because I would have nothing else to do if this man did not

offer me this job.

“Of course you can!” Zain replied, “Come this way! Follow me.”

I followed Zain onto a ship. He led me into a private room in which there was

a man with a grand coat and an eye patch. However, the captain was young and he

was handsome. His name was Qamar.

So that’s how the first few days of my new life went. I realized that I was never

seasick even though I had never been on a boat before. It was fun and exciting. I

soon learnt how to be a pirate with a few easy lessons from the crew. I soon learnt

that these pirates sailed around looking for islands that might have treasure and all

we had to do it wait and have fun. I often would climb up the ropes and then swing

about. The pirates also explained that when we thought there was treasure we

would have to explore and dig, with everyone doing their share.

One day, as I walked past the mirror in the grand hallway, I realized how much

I looked like the captain. I kept this to myself for a few days until I couldn’t hold it in

any more. I requested to see the captain. As soon as I saw him, I told him that we

looked alike. The cheekbones, the eyes and the mouth.

The captain shook his head sadly and said, “I cannot hold it in anymore.

Especially that you have now found out.”

“Found out what?” I asked, curious.

“You see, Achava, I am your father.” The captain said sadly.

I gasped in shock. How could it be? I just thought that we looked alike, I never

thought that we were really related.

“Yes, Achava. It is the truth. I have been carrying this secret with me for years

and it has been killing me to not see you grow up with my very own eyes. You see,

Achava, your mother is Obelia.”

Obelia? The toughest female pirate on this ship? Possibly the toughest female

pirate in the world? So my father was Qamar and my mother was Obelia. But why

would my parents abandon me if they loved me? The captain seemed to have read

my mind.

Father sighed and told me the whole truth, “You see, Achava, when you are a

pirate, you are not allowed to have children, it is against the pirate laws. But when I

met your mother we fell in love. Soon she was pregnant and you were born. You

were beautiful but we knew we couldn’t keep you, so we sent you to the orphanage.

Everyone on this ship knows the truth, we have been all keeping it a secret. When

one of my men found you, we were so happy. Because all these years, my only

dream was that one day I would find you. Now I have and I am hoping you will stay

with me.”

So I did have parents that cared about me! I was so overcome that I started to

cry.

“Please don’t cry,” said father.

“Alright. I won’t cry. It’s just that I’m so happy! You wouldn’t mind me

around?”

“Of course not, you silly boy! I’m your father! I told you, if you stayed on

board it would be a dream come true!”

So I agreed to stay on the ship and I became a pirate boy. It was great fun and

I enjoyed my new life because I was free to wander around and I now knew that I

had a loving family that cared for me, I knew nothing could keep us apart now. But I

kept my promise to Jacey and often, on nights, I would take a rowboat and go over

to the orphanage. I would speak with her throughout the nights, but I would always

return to my family.

THE END