Spike had just gone to the royal docks, going into the storeroom to check on something. When his ship was destroyed, the guards not only hunted down the attacker, but they also risked their lives to recover as much of his cargo as they could. He was taking inventory to see how much they were able to save. "Looks like all the spices from the crabs are here... The Buffaloon hides are still in decent condition." after a while, he was finished with inventory, "Not bad, I still can make some money on this stuff. That is if I can find somebody who wants to buy my goods."

Luna walked in and heard her nephew, "You're starting to think like a pirate. But just like me, you don't let profit become the only thing you care about. I have some friends who might be willing to do some business with you."

Spike looked over his shoulder and smiled, "Thanks auntie, that's nice. I'm more than willing to deal with people you know. Heck, I'll deal this stuff with the black market if I need to."

Luna nodded, "I'll get in touch with some of my contacts and see who's willing to do business." before heading back to her room and using her crystal ball to get in contact with her former first mate, Astral Shadow.

When he answered, Astral Shadow chuckled, "If it isn't old Looney Luna."

Luna growled, "You know I hate it when you call me that. I'M. NOT. CRAZY!"

"Well, for starters, you chose me as your first mate." before laughing in union with his former captain, "Alright Luna, what's up? You retired 20 years ago, so I doubt you're getting back in the business. Is this one of those 'offers' you make?"

Luna blushed, "N-No! And if I recall, you were the one begging me not to go home after I retired! Anyway, my nephew is in possession of some cargo he's looking to sell. You interested?"

Astral Shadow rolled his eyes at Luna's blush, but replied, "Depends on what he's got. Also, did you ever think to tell me your nephew is following in his aunt's shoes? Seems like a big deal that the prince who's actually in line for the throne to run away from home."

Luna nodded, "You might have heard of him, people are calling him the Pirate Prince."

"Aye, I've heard of him, didn't think he was really royalty, let alone my captain's nephew. If you're vouching for him, I'll gladly do business with him."

Luna smiled, "Thanks, I'll set up a rendezvous point. Our old stomping ground?"

Astral raised an eyebrow, "You mean that old Italian place?"

Luna grumbled, "Not that stomping ground! The Eclipse Tavern."

"Oh, right, my bad. I'll be there as soon as I can. You still remember the password, right?"

Luna rolled her eyes, "Of course I do, I was the one who helped fund the place. Everyone who knows about the place knows about the strict rules about picking fights. It's one of the safest places for us to do business without too many prying ears."

"I'll see you then, Looney Luna" before hanging up before she could yell at him.

Luna huffed, "He knows I hate it when he calls me that!" before calming down and heading back to look for Spike. When she found him, she told him, "I've got a good friend who's interested in buying some goods. For the sake of secrecy, it's just you and I, the HMS Pinafore and the rest of your crew can't know about this place."

Spike raised an eyebrow and asked, "We're not going to get killed there, are we? Forgive me for being suspicious, but thinking of a place that the girls and my crew can't know about, yet my retired pirate aunt knows about, you have to admit it's a bit fishy."

Luna sighed, "Look, we won't be in any danger. This place has rules, no fighting being one of them. Nobody breaks these rules, not me, not you, not anyone. Those rules are absolute, nobody's broken them in over 20 years, not even the worst pirates who have ever lived."

Spike nodded, "Fine, if you think we'll be safe, I believe you. Let's get this cargo onto the ship." before helping his aunt load the cargo onto the HMS Pinafore, after checking that the ship was empty, and Luna got to the wheel and started steering to towards a rock formation called "Tirek's Claw."

Spike's eyes widened when he noticed the were headed towards Tirek's Claw and asked his aunt, "Auntie Luna, are you sure about this? I've heard nobody who goes to Tirek's Claw ever returns."

Luna explained, "Those are just rumors to scare people away from where we're going. As far as most of Equestria knows, this place doesn't exist, and we want to keep it that way."

Spike gulped, but nodded, "Ok, I trust you with this." As they made land, the only sign of living beings was a few docked ships, and a tavern.

As the two pirates stepped off their ship, and headed towards the tavern, a bouncer stopped them and asked, "You got the password?"

Luna nodded, "Neigh" and headed inside of the tavern after the bouncer moved aside

A pirate waved to them in the corner, calling them over. As they sat down, the pirate spoke, "Good to see you again Looney Luna." Before looking to Spike and saying, "And you must be the Pirate Prince I've heard about."

Luna's eye twitched in anger. She knew Astral Shadow well enough to know that he would tease her in a place where she can't get into a brawl with him. She calmed down and said, "We're here to do business, remember? We've got plenty of spices, some Buffaloon hides, and 20 cases of Yum. Are you interested or not?"

Astral Shadow chuckled, "Well, I'd hate to anger my captain by declining to do business with her nephew. I've got some clients who need some Buffaloon hides, but they're picky. Are the hides from Silver Buffaloons?"

Spike nodded, "I've got twenty hides from silver Buffaloons, the other thirty are brown. 50K for the silver hides, 65 if you want all of them."

Astral Shadow chuckled, "You may be tough in a fight, but you're not good at this negotiating business. Normal Buffaloons aren't that rare, but the silver ones, they're worth a fortune. I'll give you 10,000 gold a hide for the silvers, 3,500 a hide for the plain ones. All together that's 305,000. Do we have a deal?"

Spike was shocked that the man was offering over six times he originally wanted, and looked to his aunt, who told her former first mate, "It's a deal, you're no crook Astral."

Astral Shadow shook Spike's hand and said, "As for the spices, I've got nothing for them, I don't have the connections to make money in the spice trade. I do know one guy, but I don't do business with him. He's a chef who owns a restaurant in Canterlot. His name's Mr. Le Schnook, and he's a no-nonsense kind of guy. Price is no object for him, so you can easily sell those spices to him. For please, don't go dressed like that, it'll be much easier to deal with him if you're in your royal attire."

Spike had been to the restaurant Astral Shadow mentioned, it was one of the best restaurants in Canterlot, if not all of Equestria. Even the royal chefs couldn't make such a perfect plate of Beef Wellington. "And the Yum?"

Astral Shadow thought for a moment, "Twenty cases of Yum eh... Well, how about this? I have a friend in Skull Island - Tommy Tin - who's started a business as a Yum bottler. Tell him I sent you, and he'll pay well for the Yum, and we'll be in business with him, sharing the profits equally."

Spike nodded, "It's a deal. Let's get your Buffaloon hides onto your ship."

The three pirates went back to their ships and Astral Shadow gave Spike a bag of gold in exchange for the Buffaloon hides on his ship, "Pleasure doing business with you kid. Any time you need some help, come back any time." before looking to Luna, "It's been a while since we've seen each other. Maybe we could go to our other stomping ground."

Luna rolled her eyes, "Maybe, if you're lucky." before stepping onto the ship.

As they sailed back to Canterlot, Spike asked his aunt, "Is there something I'm missing between you and that man?"

Luna growled, "Absolutely nothing. He was my first mate, nothing more."

Spike rolled his eyes, "Denial is just as good as a confession. You blushed every time he called you-"

"Call me that nickname and I will haunt your nightmares until the end of time!" Luna made it obvious that she hated the nickname, possibly more than she hated the nickname Lulu, which his mother called her on occasion, and it obviously annoyed her.

Spike gulped, he'd never seen his aunt that angry, but nodded, "Sorry auntie, won't slip out of my mouth again."

Luna sighed in relief, "Good, I hate that name. Astral Shadow knew that the Eclipse Tavern was the only place he could call me that without me being able to kick his ass."

And so, Luna has helped Spike sell some of his pirate cargo and has gotten into business with both a chef who would buy the spices, and a lucrative business opportunity to off load his cases of Yum. And now Spike questions the relationship between his aunt and her former first mate, especially with the way he teased her while they were in a tavern where she couldn't lash out at him. Is there more to their relationship? Or is Spike looking for something that's just not there?

Next Chapter: Can You Handle the Heat? Estimated time remaining: 55 Minutes