Chapter 6: Stormy Platforms
The new days brought both comfort and worry to Kat. As time went on, what were the developments at home? Were boats out to find her, or did all of them give up hope on her? Sometimes she would catch herself looking out at the horizon fearful that she would find white sails blocking some light from the rising sun. Fearful . . . why fearful? Shouldn't she be looking forward to the navy coming to get her? But that more than likely will mean that the Pearl's whole crew would be captured and hung, including Jack.
On the ship she began to feel more at home with the other pirates all around her. With the captain giving the crew enough warnings not to touch her, they began to play around with her more than anything. Anamaria still treated her the same, even if the crewmembers' perception changed little, and of course, Mr. Gibbs saw it as even more bad luck that there was now two females on the ship instead of only one.
With all the changing opinions around her, Kat never really knew what to make of the flashy Captain Sparrow, although she never did. At times he could be the most egotistical and pompous man she has ever known, but at other times he could show so much care and concern in his actions toward her. At times she can't even find one reason not to trust him, but then from the back of her mind she is reminded once again of his occupation. Some chills would go up and down her back as she thought of the things that he must have done in his past. Singing his song of marauding and looting, but she still couldn't picture him doing any of the sung acts. Hearing it so much from not only the captain, but the crew as well, she too had learned the whole song and caught herself singing it to herself as she worked.
She woke up once again in the small bed facing toward the porthole. Sunlight could not be seen through the small circular window and Kat smiled as she thought it was still early morning. She would be able to beat the sun once again and get a jump on her morning chores. The other men weren't even up yet as she could imagine and she would get at least half of her chores done before they would even step out onto the deck.
Kat sat up in her bed and grabbed a blue bandana she had picked up from the lower decks while cleaning and tied it around her head to keep her hair back. The lace that was ripped off her dress no longer could hold up her hair and she needed to find something else. Once she found the bandana she washed it countless times before she deemed it clean enough to wear; besides her hair is not as clean as it once was. With the days out on deck and with the sea air, it had turned into a giant knot, which she didn't even want to try and get out some days. As she secured the knot on the back of her head she felt the ship lurch to the side abruptly.
"What was that?" she slung her feet over the side and threw the sheet off of her. Again the ship lurched to the other side and she was thrown to the floor. She stumbled as she tried to gain her balance and staggered toward the door.
She threw it open and then understood why the ship was rocking and why the sun hadn't come up. Water was flooding over the hallway leading out toward the deck. Outside on the deck the whole crew rushed back and forth trying to hold down the sails and the other important objects upon the deck. Mr. Cotton rushed past her as his parrot flew over her head in the hallway. It flapped its wings and refused to follow its master out into the stormy weather.
"How did this come about?" Kat asked herself.
"Batten down the hatches!" the parrot squawked from under its cover.
Kat could see the other crewmembers fighting the waves of water as it pushed them over and threatened to push them into the sea. She could see a few go over the side, but then climb back on with a tug of a rope that they had tied around their waists. Soon enough they will be too tired and would not be able to hold on for long. She looked to her side and saw another piece of rope. She tied it around her own small waist with the knot that Jack had shown her the day he rescued her from the ropes and headed out into the hard rain.
She found a spot to tie the other side of the rope to secure her to the ship. She ran up to the group of men who were trying to keep a smaller boat from going over the side. She grabbed the rope and started to heave with the others keeping the boat from falling over the side. As they secured the boat down on the deck Kat heard the yelling between the captain and first mate, Mr. Gibbs.
"How are we goin' to make it through this, Cap'n?" Mr. Gibbs held tight to the railing on the top deck.
Jack held tightly on the wheel keeping the course that he saw fit to ride through the storm, "The Pearl can take it! We'll make it through!"
Kat watched closely as she saw Jack fight with the wheel, trying to keep his own ship from going to the depths as so many had before. She walked through the other men as she fought against the stinging drops on her face. At any time she was expecting for drops of blood to come off her face as the vicious drops continued to drown her. Anamaria almost fell in front of her as she jerked back from a falling rowboat.
Kat looked down at her as she struggled to get up and held her hand down, "Anamaria!"
She looked up at her like she was crazy. Neither one of the women really knew why she was helping her, but she only thought it was only right to help another; especially in a situation like this. Anamaria grabbed her hand and both women pulled to get her back up on her feet. Before she did anything else Anamaria stared at her straight in the eyes.
"Thank ye!" she pushed past her and back to her duties on the rowboat, "But I didn't need yer help!"
Kat looked at her with such distaste and just shook her head. After shaking herself out of the stance against Anamaria and with another jolt of the ship she began to make her way to the helm. Along the way pirates were struggling to keep the sails down with the unrelenting winds and Kat had to help or see others go over the side.
After helping the closest men to the stairway she climbed up the stairs on all fours slipping every other hold on the slick wood. She made her way up to the wheel and held the railing where Mr. Gibbs was only a few moments before. Kat looked around and found the round man helping another group of men tie down the last bit of the ship. She looked at Jack who was trying to keep his concentration on the wheel and whatever obstacles that could be seen from the flashes of the lightning.
She not only felt, but more than likely also looked terrified. She watched as he tried to keep the wheel steady with in his grasp and probably noticed her prominent feature. He gave her a reassuring smile showing his few gold teeth and immediately was almost thrown off the wheel. Kat rushed forward and helped him turn the wheel over to the port side as he was trying to do earlier. He pulled himself back up and gave her a smirk as he saw her helping him turn the wheel. They both held the wheel and kept their concentration on their hands clasping tight to the slick wood.
Before long Kat's hands slipped off and she fell to the side of the deck; hitting the side of the wooden railing and to the inch of water that had already congregated on the deck. She cried out in pain as she felt the large blow to her side. She grabbed her side and held it tightly in her grasp, keeping her eyes shut tight and her teeth clenched.
From the middle of the deck she could hear Jack yelling at her, "Ye all righ', Kat?"
"I'll be fine, Captain!" Kat pushed herself off the floorboards and tried to balance herself.
Before she gained her full confidence in her legs again, the wheel slipped from Jack's grip and she was once again thrown to the side, but instead of falling to the floor again, she was thrown over the side. She looked up and saw as the rope that was tied around her waist had untied and was swaying just above her head. She tried to grab it before she fell too far, but couldn't grab it fully in her hand and fell into the cold, salt water.
"Kat!" Jack yelled through the rain, "Gibbs, take the wheel!"
Mr. Gibbs ran up the stairs as fast as he could and Jack held a piece of rope in his hand, to keep himself from being lost over the side as well. He looked over the side and saw a loose piece of rope, with no one on the other end of it. The knot had come lose on her fall and she was floating in the water possibly below the boat. His head swung back and forth trying to find a trace of the woman lost over the side and saw a small shadow as the lightning lit up the area beneath the ship.
Jack dove in after her, of course leaving his hat and most of his affects in the small compartment by the wheel. He went through the water trying to find her, the water pushing him every which way and the rain still pouring even harder over his head. He opened his eyes and watched the whole scene as the lightning from the storm above lit the water and he found the limp figure floating in below the waves.
He grabbed her around the waist and pulled her head above water with his. The waves were still everywhere, rocking every which way. The ship, surprisingly enough was still not far away and Jack tugged on his rope to be pulled back on board. The rope began to fight against the currents, trying against all might to bring the captain back on board. Both Jack and Kat hit the side of the ship as they were pulled up, Jack squinting a few times while Kat made no signs of contact with the ship in her body or her face.
As soon as they were pulled on board Jack carried the soaked Kat into his cabin, which was the closest, and began to give her some kind of revival. She wasn't breathing on her own and her face was placid and pale. Anamaria followed him to his cabin and ushered the others out of it.
"Tha' was madness, Cap'n," she said, "Ye could 'ave been killed."
"And she would 'ave if I didn't go after her," he said harshly then looking back at Kat. He stroked the side of her face and started to push on her chest to get her breathing again, "Come on Kat, luv."
He opened her mouth and began to breathe into it to mimic the breathing that she should be doing on her own . . . hopefully something would come of it, "Don' die on me now."
He took another breath, but before he could use it Kat began to cough up the water that was lodged in her throat. Jack let out his breath in a relieved sigh and looked down at her, "Now, tha's a girl."
Kat concentrated on the floorboards as she let the water gush out from her mouth. The water receded after a few seconds and she was left taking deep breaths and grasping her chest. Looking horrified, she turned to Jack and Anamaria both looking back at her with two different facial expressions. Jack filled with relief and Anamaria's was full of what looked like disappointment. She looked at her drenched state and smiled.
"Well, that was interesting," her eyes rolled back and she fainted on the floor.
"Ye know, I can't always save ye. I 'ave much more important things to do."
Jack smiled and shook his head at her unconscious form. Slowly he picked her up and placed her on his giant bed to rest. He covered her with whatever blankets and skins that he could find to make sure she didn't catch cold, but didn't dare to try and take off her wet clothes because that would ultimately lead to certain death. Anamaria watched with disbelief; she knew he wouldn't have done that if any other crewmember were in the water. Why was she so different? She had no more value to the crew ever since she notified the captain that they wouldn't be getting a ransom from her rich father, so why keep her on the ship?
He walked past Anamaria and back out the door and into the storm, "Anamaria, get back to yer duties."
"Aye, cap'n," she began to walk past him when he stopped just outside the door, and grabbed her arm.
"And I be wanten' to talk to ye when the storm is settled," he stared her in the eyes.
"Aye cap'n," she repeated and walked out back to the other men in need of assistance.
***
Kat woke up with the sound of arguing voices on the other side of a cabin door. This wasn't her usual room, or usual bed for that matter. She kept the covers up to her chin and tried to look around as best she could. It looked as if it was the captain's quarters, with the fine craftsmanship on every wall she was sure it was. The dark wood was covered with scenes etched into it, looking just like random pictures drawn in a book. The tables surrounding the bed were long and some held the most delicious looking food on them. Kat didn't dare to touch them, thinking that she had enough in her body for the day.
Outside the bigger porthole windows she saw the sky was still dark, but she could see no sign that the storm was still going on. The sun had gone down on what must have been a horrible and tiring day for the whole crew. Before Kat could look at anything more in the cabin or through the window, she heard the rush of voices from the other side of the door once again and shut her eyes thinking that they may come in. From the sound of it, the two arguing were Jack and Anamaria. The subject she would soon find out.
"It was yer job to teach her everythin', Anamaria," Jack said to her.
"Ye taught her a secure knot on the ropes, I thought tha' would be enough to keep her safe."
"In a storm? Tha' knot I taught her was to keep her confidence, not to keep her from drownin'."
"Wha' did ye expect me to do, Cap'n? I did teach her everythin'. It wasn't me fault tha' she didn't ask for the specific knot."
"No she didn't, but I did."
"As far as I'm concerned it was her own fault," Anamaria took a pause, "And I'll not be takin the blame for it."
"As far as the captain is concerned in this, ye neglected yer duties assigned to ye and almost got a member of this crew killed."
"She is no crewmember, Cap'n! She is a member of the great society back on land and should be taken back to her own kind."
"Own kind? There is only one kin' of humans, Anamaria," he leaned on the door, "And righ' now she is goin' to stay on this ship."
"The whole crew has been complainin' Cap'n. Ever since she came on this ship we 'ave had to walk on eggshells to make her comfy."
"Tha's strange to hear . . . even Mr. Gibbs has come up to me and told me even if it be bad luck to 'ave her on board, she is becomin' a pleasure each day."
"Tha's his opinion."
"And this is yers," he paused and pushed off the door, "And mine is tha' she be a good member and has shown her value. She will be stayin' on this ship for as long as I say. No matter who is now be needin' to teach her, or wha' opinions are said."
"Wha' do ye mean by who be teachin' her?"
"Ye will have all yer duties back and she will start with new jobs set by me. Ye will not 'ave to worry 'bout takin' the blame anymore as ye said earlier."
There was another long pause and after a few minutes Anamaria spoke up again, "Is tha' all, Cap'n?"
"For now," he let out a sigh and Kat heard a set of boots walk briskly toward the outer deck. Even with her eyes closed she knew that someone had walked into the room. Their boots hit the wood making a good amount of noise until they reached the bed. Kat felt someone sit on the edge of the bed and move some of her hair off her cheek.
"I'm sorry tha' ye 'ave to go through this, luv," Jack whispered and walked back out the door, closing it softly behind him.
"It's ok . . . Captain," Kat whispered opening her eyes and looking at the door leading to the deck. As soon as she wakes up tomorrow morning she would start again on her work, earlier than she normally would. Starting with tomorrow she would start all over.
She turned on her side and her brow furrowed with a question burning in her head, 'Why would he care so much to risk his life to save me?'