The salty sea spray tickled her face, and she took a deep breath, appreciating the time away from the stuffy rooming below deck. The waters were clean and beautiful, and stretched on as far as the eye could see. Her spot at the very front of the ship gave a perfect view. Her thick auburn curls were brushed back away from her face and neck, and flew conspicuously behind her. She hadn't felt this free since…ever.
"Oy!" a rough voice shouted from behind her.
She lost her footing out of surprise and tripped slightly backward. She turned to see the captain of the vessel, (the Elizabeth or something like that) glaring at her from the below deck entrance. His arms were crossed over his broad chest, his lips pursed in distaste.
"What're yeh doing up here?" he snapped. "My men can't work with a lass hanging about all day."
"I-I'm sorry, sir," she stuttered. "I was only enjoying the beautiful view."
"Aye, it is quite pretty." he stepped up to join her, his tone a bit softer than before. "But it's a nuisance to have yeh up here. Not to mention yeh could get hurt, Miss…?"
"Crowe. Annabelle Crowe." she replied, relieved that she wasn't in trouble.
The captain nodded, and motioned for her to return below deck with the six other people traveling on the vessel. She plodded reluctantly down the steps, being careful not to trip over her skirts, and into her quarters. She threw herself onto her bed, and closed her eyes. She hoped with all her heart that they'd arrive to Port Royal soon. She was tired of having to be cooped up in the stuffy inside of this God forsaken ship, with the company of people she didn't even know.
She was on the way to stay with one of her mother's sisters and her husband. They were friends with an officer from the Queen's Navy, who would soon be promoted to Commodore. Her mother hoped that this would be the chance to marry her daughter off to someone of status. Though Annabelle wasn't looking forward to the prospect, she would at least attempt to be friendly. She doubted that anything would come of it, though. Though she'd never admit it to anyone, what really excited her about going to Port Royal was…
Pirates.
She'd sneaked books of pirate lore from her brother's room as a younger girl, and the idea of piracy excited her all too much. Young women with high prospects and dignity weren't supposed to fantasize about pirates. She was aware that her fantasies were less than respectable, and frankly, she didn't care. She wanted to cruise the high seas, not a care in the world! To feel the kind of freedom that she'd only ever read about. But Lord knows, that kind of freedom was found in other places, other people's lives. She could never attain such a wild fantasy…