10. Saving a Sea Turtle
Gibbs came to stand next to Rose by the railing, where she had been gazing at the waves, thinking about nothing much. Sailing could be very relaxing, carthagic even.
"Have you decided whether to go with Jack yet?" asked the old sailor.
"No... How can I decide when I don't know what he's going to do? I don't like the secrecy."
"Jack is a man of many mysteries," said Gibbs dramatically. Lowering his voice, he continued: "I have a hunch of what it's about, though."
"Tell me."
"Well, you see, Jack leaves on this unknown errand twice a year. He never seems to look forward to it, and afterwards he drinks for days at an end."
"No news, Jack always drinks a lot."
"Not like this, nowhere near this. Anyway, adding up those clues, I'm thinking this biannual appointment is with...," he looked about him to make sure nobody was nearby, "...his mother. You have to admit it makes sense."
"That would depend on what his mother is like, but I suppose it does." Rose tried to imagine a female version of Jack Sparrow and failed. "Who is his father?"
"His father's a famous pirate and buccaneer. Edward Teague, or Blackbeard as some call him. I don't think the two are very close."
"Blackbeard… that actually sounds familiar. I think I read about him in my time."
"Don't tell that to Jack. He would hate it if his father's name made it into the history books but not his." Gibbs grinned.
"So, you think he wants me to meet his mother?" she asked after a while.
"Aye. Aye I do. And that's an honor indeed. As far as I know he never brought anyone else there. He likes you." Gibbs winked.
Rose could not hold back a pleased smile at that.
"I think I'll go with him," she decided.
.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.
Jack and Rose were dropped off on an empty looking strip of beach, surrounded by jungle. In ten days the Barnacle would pick them up again, and in the meantime the others would search for a suitable uninhabited island with a lagoon where they could safely summon the sea goddess.
It was with a great deal of nervousness Rose waved goodbye and saw the fishing boat sail away. What if Gibbs had been entirely wrong about the purpose of Jack's errand, and that this was just a way to take advantage of her? He wanted her in his bed, he had said as much, and though she had come to like him lately Rose did not want to sleep with him. She knew too little about Jack for that sort of thing, and she still did not trust him entirely.
"So, what's this mystery mission about?" she asked, pushing back her anxiety as she followed Jack along a barely visible path through the dense foliage.
"You'll see." He seemed tense, his face had an unusually grim expression. Was his mother really that bad? If that was who they would visit.
The jungle opened up and they came to a steep hill, covered with bushes, and on the top stood a small wooden building. When they had climbed the hill, Rose stopped to admire the view. She could see the beach where they had landed, and beyond, the blue expanse of the sea.
"Amazing!"
Jack came to stand beside her. "Indeed," he agreed, his features softening as he lovingly gazed at the horizon.
The house was sturdy but simple, built of rough wooden planks, and had glassless windows covered by shutters. Jack opened the shutters to let in the light, and Rose looked around in the single room with surprise. The furniture was very modest; a bed, a few shelves, a table with one chair, a wood-burning stove, but the walls were decorated with several beautiful coal drawings. With a sharp pang Rose was instantly reminded of her Jack, but where he had drawn people, this artist had exclusively drawn ships.
She went closer to one of them, reaching out to touch the yellowing paper. The ship was black, with black sails on three masts and a black flag with the familiar pirate's skull and bones motif. The detail was exquisite.
"You drew this," she guessed, and Jack's silence confirmed her suspicion. Walking around the walls, Rose came across a shelf with two wooden ship models, one of them half finished. They seemed to be the same ship as the drawings had pictured. "And those? You made those too?" she asked.
"It's a pastime." He shrugged.
"Is it the Black Pearl?"
"It is. But enough of the questions, let's eat." He unpacked the provisions they had taken with them from the Barnacle, hardtack crackers and salted meat, and then went to rummage in a small cupboard beside the stove, taking out a bucket, a wooden plate and a tin cup. "I only have tableware for one, but we can share." He went outside with the bucket and soon returned with it full of water.
Rose could hardly believe her eyes when he dipped the cup into the bucket and placed it on the table.
"We'll drink water?"
"Aye." He had a very odd expression and Rose suddenly realized one thing he had not brought from the fishing boat.
"Where is the rum?"
"Didn't bring any."
"You brought no rum for a ten day's stay?" Rose blinked in surprise.
"No." Jack pushed the table closer to the bed and sat on it, indicating Rose could take the single chair.
They ate in silence, soaking the hardtack in water. This mission kept getting more mysterious. Jack always drank, but in his house there was no alcohol. Why? And what was his errand here? There were no mothers around as far as she could tell, and the surrounding jungle seemed deserted.
"So, what do we do now?" she said at last.
"We'll stay in this house one week, and then I have an appointment. You can come too if you want."
"An appointment with who?"
"You'll see."
"Dammit, Jack." She scowled at him.
He grinned mischievously, clearly enjoying her frustration.
"And during the week, what will we do?"
"Passing the time. Fishing, picking coconuts, that sort of thing. Maybe nude swimming together?"
"You wish."
.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.
It really became the oddest afternoon. Jack spent most of it fishing just like he had said, catching a few weirdly shaped fish and one squid. He went swimming too, with Rose pointedly turning her back as he unabashedly stripped all his clothes right in front of her. She only peeked a little at his backside when he walked out into the water, secretly admiring his firm buttocks and broad shoulders.
On the way back to the cabin, they found two old, dry coconuts near the path, and Jack used his long knife to cut some young palms, peeling off the leaves and bark and taking out the white cores that he claimed to be good food.
Seeing Jack prepare dinner was another novelty. With practiced ease he boned the fish and fried them on the stove together with the squid, and then sliced up the palm marrow and the coconuts. The fish tasted lovely, and the sweet coconut meat and palm cores made a nice side dish.
They did not speak much, Jack was beginning to look gloomy again and Rose did not want to ask why, knowing he would probably refuse answering anyway. She just had to be patient, in time she would find out.
When they had finished their meal the sun was already setting, and thanks to the house's location on the hilltop, Rose could watch the amazing panorama as the large red orb sank below the horizon. This view alone would make the week enjoyable, she figured, and the languid afternoon had been very relaxing after all the adventure lately.
When she returned inside, she saw Jack had found a couple of bone dice.
"Want to play?" he asked.
"Sure, if you tell me how."
This he did, and soon they were pleasantly occupied. Jack won nearly every round, the pebbles they used for tokens piling up in front of him.
"Cheater."
"Prove it." He smirked.
"You're a pirate, right? You guys are not exactly known for your honesty."
When it had become too dark to see the dice, Jack proclaimed himself the winner. "And this means I get the bed," he decided.
Rose looked at the simple bed, dismayed as she realized there was only one. "Then where will I sleep?"
"Ah, I'm feeling generous today. I'll share."
"I'm not sharing a bed with you!"
"No? Suit yourself then. There is always the floor."
Grumbling, Rose spread the blanket Jack offered her and laid down on the hard surface. It was awful, no matter how she turned and twisted she could not find a comfortable position.
"Damn you, Jack," she cursed. "A real gentleman would give up his bed."
"I'm far from being a gentleman." He chuckled.
"Clearly."
Rose held out a little while more, then she sat up with a sigh. "If I come to the bed, will you leave me alone?"
"Rose… I am a bastard, I know that, but not that kind of bastard." He sounded uncharacteristically serious. "I won't touch you – unless you want me to."
A little less apprehensive, Rose crawled down beside him, feeling him move back to accommodate her. The bed was narrow and she was acutely aware of his warm form so close. At least he had bathed.
"Goodnight," she murmured.
"Goodnight." After a while he silently added: "I'm glad you came." She did not know if he meant to the bed or on this errand. Maybe both.
.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.
The first day in Jack's house had been nice and relaxing, but the second day was completely different. He woke in a foul mood that only grew worse as the day proceeded. He snapped angrily at whatever she said or did, and as they went fishing, he nearly broke his fishing rod in halves when he did not catch anything fast enough.
Rose took a walk along the beach, hoping he would have calmed down when she returned. She walked barefoot, feeling the warm sand under her soles and enjoying being in such a paradise. Every now and then she bent to pick up a pretty seashell or a smooth stone.
After about a mile, she discovered a small pond that had formed when the tide fell, with a cute little sea turtle swimming in circles.
"Hello, you," she cooed. "Are you stuck?" She picked it up, admiring its reddish shell and marbled skin pattern and stroking its smooth head.
"Perfect," came Jack's voice from behind, as he caught up with her. "Since my luck has abandoned me today, we'll have that for lunch."
"We're not eating it." Rose clutched the animal protectively.
"Don't be stupid. Give it to me." He reached for the turtle but Rose backed away. "Oh for Heaven's sake! You'd rather we starve then? Bloody softhearted woman!"
"Go away." She scowled at him.
"Just give me the damn creature."
"No!"
"Fine! I'm not making you anything else, if that's what you thought." He spat and stomped away in the direction they had come.
Rose frowned at his retreating back. Why was he so horrible today? Yesterday he had been almost… sweet, for lack of a better word. Human.
When Jack had gone, she went down to the beach and carefully put the turtle into the water, smiling as it eagerly paddled away, free at last.
Then to her surprise it suddenly began to grow and expand, and right in front of her eyes it changed form. When the metamorphosis was complete, a young girl of around ten or eleven stood before her, wearing a rusty red dress in the same marble pattern as the turtle's skin. Her hair was rusty red too, a bit like Rose's own, and her skin was brown.
Rose stared at the girl, too shocked to utter a sound. This must be a hallucination, brought by the heat. This was not real.
"Thank you," said the girl. "You saved my life."
"It was nothing," mumbled Rose weakly. Of all the strange things she had experienced since she died, this waking dream was by far the weirdest. It was so real, so vivid.
"No, it was everything! That horrible pirate would have eaten me!" The girl shuddered, and then smiled cutely. "I'm Otohime. Who are you?"
"I'm Rose," she answered automatically.
"Nice to meet you. Will you be my friend? I'm very lonely."
"Oh. Well, sure…"
"Great!" Otohime took her hand. "Come, I'll show you where I live."
Rose numbly followed the girl out into the water, but when it reached her chest she temporarily woke up from her trance-like state.
"Wait! You live under the surface?"
"Of course. I'm the daughter of the Ruler of the Sea." The girl pulled harder on her hand, and Rose found herself following against her better judgment. To her surprise she could breathe the water like air, and together they walked on the ocean floor between seaweed and corals with a multitude of fish of all colors and forms.
Further out it got deeper and darker, but Otohime wore a white seashell in a chain around her neck and it spread light enough for them to see by.
"I'm dreaming, right?" said Rose conversationally.
"No, your eyes are open. When I sleep I always have my eyes closed, and Mom too."
"Right. So then I'm hallucinating?"
"Hallu-what?"
Rose was about to explain when she caught sight of a dazzling vision ahead. Down in a valley on the seafloor was a grand castle, lit by thousands of shells like the one Otohime wore. Merfolk swam in and out of its many windows, playing tag in the surrounding garden, and a small red crab passed by, riding in a wagon pulled by seahorses.
As they came closer, Rose saw the garden was designed in a specific pattern. On one side of the castle grew freshly green sea lettuce, on the next side was a meadow of multicolored sea pens in seagrass, then came red sea cucumbers and starfish among brown, leafy kelp, and lastly, a mass of white brittle stars fenced in by a row of icicles.
"It's the four seasons," she realized.
"Yes! Not many notice it." Otohime beamed at her. "The garden gets like that because no time passes here. So you can't stay too long, or you will find everybody has grown old and you haven't. That accidentally happened last time I brought someone here." She giggled.
"Right. I will remember that."
The area was well lit, and now Rose saw it came from the very walls themselves, they emitted a bluish, fluorescent light.
They were almost there now, walking on a white road made of a thick layer of white seashells that lead to the palace gates. They were huge and pompous, covered with millions of pink pearls, probably worth a fortune. Rose was reminded of her pearl earrings that she had given to Jack for his help with the quest. If she could get just a handful of the ones decorating the gates she could maybe buy them back.
On either side of the entrance a muscular merman stood guard. Their naked chests were green-tinted, much like fish skin, glittering in the light from the castle. Their torsos seamlessly faded into large tail fins and their fingers were webbed.
"Bringing land stuff again, Otohime?" said one contemptuously.
"That's not an item. It's a woman," said the other, a hungry glint awakening in his lifeless eyes. And then he changed, right before her eyes, losing much of his fish appearance and turning into a handsome young man around her own age. Only the fishtail remained. When she looked at the other he had changed too, and now Rose could not quite recall what they had looked like before.
"Do you come here often?" said the first one, giving her a lopsided, boyish grin, coquettishly stroking back a lock of his hair. His eyes twinkled and Rose could not hold back a smile of her own.
"No," she said.
"What are you doing?" Otohime stamped her feet. "Stop that, you two! She's mine."
"So, have you ever wondered what a merman looks under his tail?" asked the other, ignoring the girl. He had swam up to her, coming so close she could see his impressive six-packs and bulging arm muscles.
"No," she said again, reaching out to touch his swelling bicep just to see if it was real. It felt rough and scaly under her fingertip which confused her a little, but then the merman flashed his even, white teeth in a gorgeous smile and she forgot what she had been thinking.
"Get off her! Go away! I order you!" screamed Otohime.
"But I like them," said Rose dreamily. "They are pretty."
"No they are ugly fishmen who just want to eat you. Don't let them mess with your brain."
"They can eat me if they like. I don't mind."
"You're impossible. All of you." Otohime pushed Rose inside the palace and slammed the gate in the mermen's faces. An angry screech came through but Otohime ignored it.
"They are horrible," she muttered and took Rose's hand again. "I wish Mom would fire them and hire mermaids as guards instead." They walked a while through long, empty corridors.
"Are you going to eat me too?" asked Rose. The absurdity of the situation made her giggle. But she must be dreaming, so it probably did not matter.
"Of course not! You're my friend. And you saved my life."
They had come to Otohime's room now, which was large and had a lovely view over the summer garden. The walls were decorated in various hues of pink and covered in shelves with a huge collection of what to Rose looked like junk; broken bottles, crooked cutlery, a painting, a bent chandelier, a pair of mismatched boots.
"I collect things from the surface," she explained. "I wish I could go there, but Mom says I can't until I'm grown up." She pouted. "That's why I changed into a sea turtle… but that did not turn out at all like I had planned."
"Where's your mother now?"
"Oh, busy working as usual. She's away a lot, but since time doesn't pass down here I don't notice it anyway, so that's okay, I guess."
"But if time doesn't pass, how can you grow up?"
"Oh!" The girl stared at her. "I hadn't thought of that." She sat on her fluffy, pink bed, absentmindedly toying with an ancient looking wooden horse. "Mom probably doesn't want me to become an adult. Well, I'm going to, so there! I'm moving out." She jumped up and began to hurriedly pack a bag, cramming down clothes, collectables and toys in an unorganized mess. "I'm going to stay with the mermaids at Isla Serena. Want me to take you back to the shore first?"
"Yes, please."
This time Otohime turned into a silvery dolphin, and let Rose ride her. They left through the window to avoid the hungry mermen, and the journey back was much speedier than when they had come the other way.
When they were back at the beach again she changed into her girl form and took off her necklace, giving it to Rose.
"Whisper my name into the seashell if you need help sometime. I owe you for saving my life."
"I will. Thank you."
"Goodbye, Rose, it was great fun meeting you!"
"Goodbye, Otohime."
The girl dived into the waves, turning back into a dolphin the moment she touched the water.
Rose looked long after the disappearing creature, not knowing what to think of her strange afternoon. Had all this been real?
A/N:
What do you think of the out-of-character Jack of this chapter, why did he not bring the rum? And what do we make of Rose's strange adventure? I always love to hear your thoughts. :)
Thank you all who favorited this story. It means a lot to know someone is reading and enjoying! Also, big hug to 8Ball3 for reviewing.