FYI: The rating may be changed through the story.... Each chapter will be rated separately! Story rating may be changed later. (I tend to overrate things, because I don't want to surprise anyone!)
PG
She tossed deep brown curls over one shoulder, and narrowed chocolate eyes.
Hands on the hips of her plain-white tunic, she dressed rather like a short,
somewhat shapely, man. She tried to mask her disgust at this latest development.
"Please." Spat Jessica. "It has been far too long! He'd never
remember me!"
Just then, the devil decided to push through the doors. Blue eyes still bright,
his body still as tanned as last she'd seen him, he moved to a table just a
few yards away from her. This wouldn't work.
Evidently, Molly sensed the coming onslaught and imposed herself in front of Jessica.
Jessica merely brushed past Molly, and headed straight for Eric.
"Eric, darling. It has been a while, hasn't it?" She asked serenely,
gliding up to his left. Eric stood in one abrupt motion, dumping the serving
wench onto the ale-coated floor.
"Jessica!" He exclaimed with an obviously faked pleasure. She noted
the way his eyes darted around, and the way his ears turned a sullen pink. He
also refused to look at her.
"Quite a lengthy bachelor's party, huh?" she asked, looking to his
companions. One or two looked confused, but the other four looked solidly at
the ground. "Two years is certainly enough, I would have thought."
She glared at him, willing him to look up, to feel her pain, to know how much
she'd missed him
Yeah, right.
She brought back her fist, and punched him. She threw her entire body weight
into that one contact, and sent him sprawling on the ground.
He sat up, and spit blood. She proceeded to beat him senseless, and got herself
kicked out of yet another bar.
Molly still had to work, so Jessica went home. She had a half-formed plan by
the time she'd walked the mile to her three-roomed home of the last eight weeks.
She entered through the kitchen, and walked into the bedroom. Rummaging around
in the bottom drawer of the low-quality wardrobe, she pulled out her traveling
pack and filled it with her belongings.
She left a note for Molly whenever she got back, thanking her for the hospitality, and promising to send her a letter sometime. She left the rest of her money on the kitchen table; Molly wasn't wealthy, and Jessica felt a little, like she'd been a burden. With no more than a backward glance, Jessica was off towards the docks. She hated the sea, the salty waterbut she would endure it for a few days if someone would take her.
That very night she found a captain willing have her on for a while; she would be their cook until they got to their next port and picked up more people.
Gray light filtered through the early-morning mist as Jessica climbed aboard
the ship. She was The Temperamental Barmaid. The crew thought the name was a
riot, and they were a very friendly bunch. Clean, pleasant and respectful, if
she hadn't hated the rolling waters so much, she might have stayed on forever.
As it was, she agreed to stay through one more port with them. One week to their
first stop, where they picked up six more men. That brought the grand total
up to thirteen, including her. Several men were arguing with the captain about
the numbers because of superstitions, and several of the newcomers didn't want
a woman aboard.
"Bad luck my arse!" Jessica yelled at Liggins, one of the new men.
"Women aren't bad! We're cleaner-"
"Yer wastin' water!"
"We're more polite-"
"What's that get you?"
"I'll shove a carrot up your right nostril, if you don't leave-."
"Andright then. Carry on!" He ginned with good-natured humor
and hurried on his way, leaving her with a bag of un-peeled carrots at her feet.
That was the state of things for the next few days. Quiet, calm, and relaxed.
And then there was rain. Not 'oh no, the-picnic-is-ruined' rain, the 'looking-up-will-drown-you'
rain. Followed by hail, lightning, and peals of thunder that bordered on physical
blows.
Suddenly, gunshots rang out. Jessica dropped to the deck and slipped on a pool
of warm blood. A scream tried to claw it's way out of her throat, but she held
it down and groped her way to something solid. Pushing her back up against the
helm, she managed to re-claim her footing.
Someone loomed in front of her. It was hard to see through the rain, but she
could hear in the brief pause between the booms of thunder.
"Sorry lass." She realized it was good ol' Liggins, before a fist
shot out of nowhere and slammed her head into the deck.
God, waking was painful. She had a migraine, and even the gently soothing sounds
of the sea hurt and made her whimper in pain. Things were a bit fuzzy around
the edges, but otherwise, she remembered everything in perfect detail; the way
his hand had been smeared with blood, the shadowy figure that appeared out of
the downpour, her last feeling of anger when she couldn't even see his face.
Coward.
When she finally mustered up the courage to open her eyes, Jessica let out
a moan of anger and frustration. She was locked below deck, in one of those
4 X 5 cells. You know, the one with the bars and the uncomfortable cot. And
sitting just outside was another man.
He had sandy hair, smelled like bad tobacco, and was the size of a small mountain.
And he was snoring. Good. Now, the best part would be for him to have the keys
he chose that moment, however, to turn just a bit, and she clearly heard the
jangle of small metal things. They also happened to be on the other side of
the snoring hill of flesh. Wonderful. Now what was she supposed to do?
Weeks passed. Or, it felt like weeks. She had no idea of why they were here,
or why she was locked in a cell. Two tiny meals a day and a pitcher of water
were her only companions day in and day out, and of course, one man or another.
Then one day, Lady Luck shone upon her bleak existence. Her guard was passed
out, drunk, directly in front of her cell. The keys were attached to his belt.
The belt could be undone, and the keys obtained. Finally! After kicking him
in the side a few times, she determined he wasn't going to wake up any time
soon. She carefully undid his belt, and reached around him to the keys. She
cupped them carefully in her hand so they wouldn't make any noise, and held
her breath, listening.
She reached up, oh so quietly, and put the first key into the lock and tried
to turn it. Nope. She tried the second key. Still no luck. By now she was starting
to sweat; any moment now, the shift would change, and she would be discovered.
Finally, she managed to shove the third one into the lock, and it obligingly
turned with an audible click. It was loud enough to be a gunshot! She gently
pushed the door open, and it creeaaked. She flinched.
Inching open the door took even more of her patience. She slipped through the
small opening, and leaned in for a closer inspection of the unconscious man
at her feet. She found a knife that she tied to her waist with a bit of sash.
The cabinet across the room wielded two pistols, but they had no bullets. Besides;
she couldn't load one just now; She was about to scream with madness at how
quiet she had to be.
She also found a sharp cutlass, about the length of her arm. Perfect! She knew
enough about them that she could take any one of the scruffy men she'd seen
here in varying states of intoxication. She felt confident (and desperate) enough
to even chance fighting them sober. After she was armed and presumably dangerous,
she concentrated on the above deck. Hearing nothing, she crept towards the door.
Poking her head out, she saw no one. Wonderful. She went back below for a moment,
and hauled the drunk into her cell, locking the door.
She again ascended the steps, but to a slightly different scene.
"You mangy COWARD!" Yelled someone. She heard the sounds of metal
clanging off of metal, and heard a great boom. The ship rocked.
"She's taking on water, captain!" cried a higher voice. More metal
clanging.
"WHAT?" Yelled a loud, deep voice.
"She's taking on wa-" He never finished that sentence. A sword decapitated
him right about then, and a wave of blood spilled across the wood to her left.
She heard another great boom. It sounded very loud, coming from the steps
beneath her. She strained her ears for more, and heard what sounded like several
men yelling. They also sounded to be coming from below her. She could not fight
them with more on deck, she knew that much. And she didn't even know their skill
level! She moved to stand on deck, and looked about to see where she had the
least chance of being seen. Just then, she heard people making for the stairs.
She moved forward, out of their line of sight until she could think. The Galley!
There were plenty of places to hide down there! She moved purposefully towards
the door. She'd almost reached it, when another one of those large booming sounds
smashed into the boat, and tipped it sharply. Jessica fell over, and landed
at the feet of some strange men in ragged garb.
She looked up, and saw surprise flash across their faces. Quickly, she pushed
herself to her feet and made for the door. She tugged. Hard. It wouldn't open!
"Damn you! Damn you all to the lowliest of Hells! Back to where you came
from, 'eh?" She yelled, as loudly as she could. She was petrified. She
could either show it as being scared...or being really, really angry.
Just then, someone decided to fall on the helm and jerk it again. She tried to keep her footing, and threw herself into the wall, hoping to grab something steady. She didn't, and proceeded to stumble backwards and into the arms of a man. Well, she assumed it was a man- she was temporarily blind with pain. She guessed that most women wouldn't have been able to lift her easily; this person did. She also knew that most women liked to bathe. This person didn't. That was about all she got to before she blacked out.
She woke up with a hard surface beneath her, and something digging into her
hip. She didn't show she was awake; who new who was watching her. She slowly
prepped her muscles to grab the knife in her sash, and rise in one smooth motion.
(She would have used the sword, but it seemed to be missing) This would have
to be done carefully. She moved a little, as if in sleep, and found her hands
and feet unbound. Wonderful. She couldn't hear anyone, another plus.
Then she moved. She stood as quickly as possible and had the knife in hand
half a second later. But someone had been waiting.
He grabbed her hand and spun her around, pressing her body to his own, and
had managed to turn the knife. If she moved, she would slit her own throat.
She reacted out of pure adrenaline.
She pushed the knife away from her throat, as she simultaneously raised her
heel towards his crotch. She took him by surprise; He was on his knees in the
time it took her to turn.
Instantly, hands grabbed her. They pulled her away from the downed man, and
they got her hands secured and dropped her to her knees. She struggled and managed
to bite one man, but other than that, it was pretty pointless.
Her mind reeled. What was this? She was obviously in a hostile situation, yet
no one had offered her direct violence. They hadn't chained her, they hadn't
disarmed her even though her weapon had been painfully obvious, and any dangerous
positions she'd been in thus far, were seemingly in self-defense. She went limp.
Clap. Clap. Clap. Slow applause meandered towards her right side. Since someone
had pulled her head back by her hair, she couldn't get a glimpse of whom it
might be.
"You can let 'er go. I want to see what we've got 'ere." Said a man
with obviously some sort of rank. The others let her go and she rose to her
feet. She turned quickly to see him, and was stunned at what she saw.
"You're a bloody pirate!" She spoke incredulously. "But, I thought
there weren't any around here anymore!" She exclaimed softly. "Norrington's
crew haven't found any for months" she trailed off as she felt someone
looming. She looked over her shoulder to see a man reaching for her. She backed
up.
"Best not mention that name 'round 'ere, love." Someone spoke into
her ear. She let out a small yelp and flung an arm behind her. She heard a SMACK,
and whirled around. There stood that pirate, holding the side of his face.
"Now I know I didn't do anything to deserve that!" He exclaimed.
"You startled me!" Jessica yelled. She felt on the verge of tears,
but she wouldn't admit it. She'd said the wrong name, done the wrong thing,
to someone of rank, nonetheless! She'd die out here amongst pirates, on the
ocean! This was unbearably depressing.
"Look, if you're going to kill me, could you either make it quick, or
do it at the nearest beach, please?" She asked glumly.
The Pirate looked a tad bit surprised, and then he started to laugh.
"My my, love. Already planning your own death, 'eh? You're a cheerful
one."
She couldn't help but smile. "I suppose I am. What of it?" she watched
him as he slowly walked around her.
"You're of a different sort than we're used to seeing." He began
thoughtfully. "Most of us are vulgar. You're an odd one, love." The
pirate finished, with an odd smile. Bits of gold and silver littered his mouth.
'My god, if I could knock out a few of his teeth, I could buy a horse! I'd
never have to be near these waters again!' she thought with an inward sigh.
"Are those gold-plated, or solid?" she asked, staring at his mouth.
He laughed out loud.
"Gold plated, miss. I tend to spend the most o' me gold, but I'll save
some o' me favorites for later." He replied, flashing another sparkly smile.
"Right then." She spoke, looking around. "Wellwhat's she
called?"
"Aye, she be the Black Pearl." He said with another sideways smile.
"Well, she's quite lovely, if you're into the sailing thing." Jessica
admired.
The pirate seemed surprised.
"And you've never heard of her?" He asked, incredulous.
"I might have, I just don't remember." She shrugged, looking towards
the mast, squinting her eyes to see the top.
"You are an odd one, I'll give ye that." He answered. "And I
don't quite remember your name."
"Nor do I remember yours." She turned and squinted at him.
"Oh, terribly, terribly sorry." He doffed his hat and gave a bow.
"I be Captain Jack Sparrow."
"Thank you. Now, Mr. Sparrow-"
"Captain, love, Captain, if ye please."
"Sorry Captain. May I ask how long I am to be here?" she tried to remain nonchalant, but she dreaded anything other than, "Oh, a few hours at best."
"I'm not sure. We don't dock often, if we can help it. It all dependsyou
anyone of rank? Anyone be looking for ye? Perhaps with some gold in the bargain?"
She looked up and met his dark-rimmed eyes. "'Fraid not." She whispered.
"What was that love?" He asked, moving closer to hear her.
"To be perfectly honest," she paused to swallow, "I'm afraid
not."
"Well then, honesty is, of course, appreciated." The captain said
with a toothy grin. Many men behind her chuckled. "But, that means one
of two things. You caneither work for us then, or we can kill you. Which will
it be?" he said, loud enough for all to hear him.
She only had to think for a second. "Well, I don't fancy dieing here,
so I suppose I could work." She added sarcastically.
"Wonderful. And what would be your name, so I may stop calling yeh, 'love',
'miss', and anything else that happens by. Need to know that. Or, do I?"
He asked slowly, giving her a look that she thought was to be seductive. She
wanted to laugh, it was so strange. But she didn't fancy death, so she settled
for a shy smile.
"It's Jessica." She replied, looking towards her feet.
"Well then, Miss Jessica, what all do you know about sailing?" he
asked her, moving to stand in front of her. He posed with one hand on his hip.
"I know you need food for whatever time you're away fromland. And
I can cook. I can clean. But actual sailing, I know almost nothing about."
She replied truthfully, shrugging her shoulders.
"Hmm. That's a bit unusual. Why were you so far out to sea then?"
He asked. She guessed he was referring to the attack. She tried to outline the
problem.
"I guess they were other pirates. They took over our ship after our second
port. I know we were traveling for about a week and a half before you all came
along; I was stuck in the brig." She answered disgustedly. "I don't
know where all we were going."
He watched her thoughtfully. "Well. I suppose if you clean well, we could
teach you." He offered with a sly grin. More men laughed.
"Alright then." She sighed. "When and where do I start?"
"Right now. The men's quarters are over there." He gestured to his right. "And when the shadow from the mast reaches that door, you can start dinner."
Another couple of weeks went by. She cooked, she cleaned, she learned. The men
were sure appreciative; they now had a proper place to sleep, and they had food
with more flavor than just salt.
It was actually going rather well. They started treating her like precious
cargo, as opposed to a slave. There were only two rules: do as the Captain says,
and stay out of his cabin.
Jessica thought nothing of it, since most of the time the Captain was either
on deck, or plaguing the sailors. He had a quick wit, and mysterious air about
him.
Jessica, though, was not one to get involved; one failed marriage, two failed engagements, and a violent breakup were all she needed. She was barely 22, and maybe she'd try for love again, in oh, eight or ten years. Or never! Never kept sounding better and better.
The captain was fairly different looking, compared to many men she'd met; hair
as long as many maids, golden-brown, kohl rimmed eyes set in a triangular face,
and a trimmed mustache with a stubble goatee. Add an angular nose, and a wardrobe
of good-quality rags, and there stood the most dangerous captain on the sea.
Or so Mr. Gibbs bragged. If that man spent as much time doing his duties as he did talking about the captain to Jessica, The Black Pearl could have been a one-man crew.
Mr. Gibbs was currently telling yet another impossible tale to Jessica. This
one, recalled Jack fighting twelve Great White Sharks, with nothing but a kitchen
knife and a rope. Supposedly, his bandana was forever stained red by their blood.
"Please, Mr. Gibbs, that story wasn't supposed to be told until my funeral."
Jack smiled, leaning against the doorway with his arms folded. Jessica jumped
a bit when he spoke.
"Huh. Sorry Jack, I guess I forgot." He spoke apologetically, and
flashed a grin.
Jack waved off the apology with one hand. An expensive flash of teeth dismissed
Gibbs back to whatever he'd been doing earlier.
Now Jack's attention was focused on Jessica. She stopped her half-hearted sweeping
and waited for instructions.
"Excuse Mr. Gibbs. A bit too much grog to his head, I think." He
spoke good-naturedly, gesturing to the steps the first-mate had just disappeared
up.
Jessica grinned and nodded.
"You stories paint you to be rather invincible, eh Captain Sparrow?"
She joked.
Jack ducked his head with a small smile. "Mr. Gibbs is much too flattering.
Poor man gets so lonely on land, that he makes up stories to entertain himself."
He looked to the stairs again, this time in guilt. "I should never have
left" he muttered quietly.
Jessica respectfully looked at the ground, then back at Jack after a moment.
He seemed to realize where he was, and cleared his throat.
"Well then, Miss Jessica, do you think it's about time to start dinner?"
he asked her.
She glanced around. "I suppose so. What sounds good tonight, Captain?"
she replied, moving to put her broom away.
"I was actually thinking of cooking tonight. Giving you the night off."
He paused, and smiled at her look of suspicion. "Don't worry, lass, there's
no catch! Just wanted to do something other than yell at the crew for a change.
Go, ahead and go up. Take the night off! And tell Gibbs if he tells you another
story tonight, he walks the plank!" he exclaimed with shining eyes.
Jessica grinned as he shooed her out of the galley.
Alrighty then! This should give a little beginning insight....I already have the first few paragraphs written, I just need to come up with about thirty more for the next chapter! Well, I hope this was enough to be interesting, and hook you into reading more! I promise there will be much more things happening in the next chapter....someone dies and comes back to life and whatnot. ^_^ As for romance of any kind...I'm not sure yet, but it might be fun! Ok then, thanks for reading! ^_^
~Airyn