1. 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.

2. “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.

3. 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!”

4. 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