~*~*~*~*~*~
Chapter 3 Getting to Know You
"Here you are, ladies," Lane said, opening a door to a cabin. "I figured you'd want to room together, so I had some lads to set this up."
The room could only be described as opulent. There was real carpet laid down, and the walls were fine planking, smooth to the touch. Instead of bed frames, there were hammocks at three of the walls, with blankets piled on top of them.
"What are those?" Paris demanded, sounding slightly scandalized.
"Those're hammocks. Come on, now," she added. "You've seen hammocks before, haven't you? They're extremely comfortable to sleep in, and they're better than beds because they go with the motion of the ship: no rocking you out of your bed on rough seas. Can't promise you won't overbalance," she added, a smile teasing at the corners of her mouth. "But you won't just be thrown out of bed, either."
Rory stepped towards one, and poked at it. "How do you get in it?" she asked Lane.
Instead of answering verbally, she showed the three women how, sitting on the side and then sliding in. Rory tried it first, and she nearly was dumped on the floor under the load of blankets when it flipped. She scowled at her mother's laughter, then challenged Lorelai to do better.
Lorelai had the same result.
It took the three women nearly ten minutes to get the hang of it, but soon they were stationed in their hammocks and refusing to move.
"This is far too comfortable," Lorelai said, drawling her voice. "I'm afraid I won't want to move in the morning."
"Oh, you'll be up and about," Lane said, smiling. "I promise. You'll sleep so well you'll have more energy than you'll know what to do with. Well, I'll leave you ladies to your rest. Night."
"Good night," Lorelai said, already stifling yawns. "Goodness," she added. "What time is it?"
"It's nearly two in the morning," Paris said.
"Then I think it's best we get to sleep," Rory said, adjusting the blankets around her until she was comfortable, and then drifting off into a deep sleep.
~*~
The next morning they awoke after the sun was well into the sky. And they awoke hungry, because there was a tray of steaming stew and bread waiting for them, left by some helpful soul, sending the delicious aromas wafting through their cabin.
"The cook is absolutely fabulous," Lorelai said, devouring the stew in an unladylike way. The bread was full, and made a good tool for sopping up the last of the liquid in the bowls.
When they emerged onto the deck into full sunlight, Rory couldn't help but smile. "This," she said emphatically, gesturing around at the crew as they worked, "is what ocean journeys should be." She breathed in the sea air, feeling grateful to have gotten off the rotting ship. "This captain must be a firm task master."
"He is that," James said from behind them.
They spun around, and Paris immediately launched a tirade at him. "Why didn't you tell us you were a pirate!" she demanded, then scowled when she realized how ridiculous that sounded. "Where's Tom?" she asked instead of following up on the question.
"Tom is now serving as the cabin boy on this vessel," James said. "I'm very sorry I had to lie to you, Paris," he added. Then, as an afterthought he turned to Lorelai and Rory. "And you, also, ladies. But please, now that you are free to do so, call me Jaime."
"Certainly, Jaime," Lorelai said. "You did, after all, rescue us from that sinking wreck. We owe our lives to you."
Paris folded her arms and refused to give in. "I'm very grateful," she said stiffly. "But, Mr. White, if that is indeed the truth, I cannot abide a liar." With that she walked to the railing and steadfastly ignored the trio watching her.
Rory turned to study Jamie, and saw there was real sorrow in his eyes. "Paris will come around," Rory said quietly to him. "She just needs time to recover from her little snit."
"This happens to us all the time," Lorelai said. "And she's still with us."
Jaime gave them a wan smile. "Thank you."
A man came up to them at that point. He was moderately tall, and had the same brown hair worn long and tied back as Jaime. But when he spoke his accent was from someplace in the central European region.
Jamie smiled at the man's greeting. "Hey, Dave," Jaime said. "These are our newest passengers, but I'm sure Lane has already filled you in."
"She did," he said. "But it is nice to meet you in person. I was busy moving boxes in the cargo bay to make room for the bounty from your brig, so I didn't get to witness your grand entrance."
"That wife of yours always sends you to do her dirty business," Jaime said, obviously joking.
Lorelai and Rory stopped dead. "Wife?" Lorelai finally managed to stammer. "Lane is…"
"My wife," Dave said. "For over a year now." He grinned foolishly. Then his smile faded. "I'm sorry. Does that disturb you?"
"No!" Rory hastened to assure him. "Not at all. It merely caught us by surprise. We had no idea she was married." She paused. "Is it, um, difficult…I mean, do you find it upsets you…."
"That my wife outranks me?" Dave laughed. "Not at all."
Lorelai and Rory simply stared at the man. He couldn't be serious: it was perfectly preposterous that a man would put up having a woman—much less his wife—in charge of him.
"Ah," Jaime said, smiling slightly at their reaction. "This crew is not a normal one by any means. Not one person on this ship would survive too very long in any country we know of. And not just because we have prices on our heads." He winked at Rory in a rogue-ish action.
"And how fare our passengers, Rygalski?" said a familiar voice from behind them.
"Slightly scandalized, I think, Captain," Dave answered, grinning, "but otherwise just fine."
"Scandalized?" the captain said, coming into view. "About something aboard my vessel?" His smile was more than slightly wry. "Do tell."
"Not scandalized," Lorelai clarified hastily. "Merely…surprised. Pleasantly so, however." She frowned at the captain, and Rory knew her mother didn't trust him. Never mind that he had rescued them, and continued their transport across the ocean to England without asking for anything other than their silence. Reputation obviously counted more than actions to her mother at this point.
"We're fascinated, actually," Rory said. "Won't you tell us how Lane came to be the first mate on a pirate ship? What made you hire a woman to such a prestigious position?"
The pirate captain opened his mouth to reply when someone shouted for assistance somewhere in the riggings above. "Forgive me, ladies," he said, bowing slightly, smiling at Rory. "Duty calls. Perhaps we will speak tonight at supper?"
Before either lady could respond, he hoisted himself into the ropes and masts above them, disappearing from plain view almost immediately. Rory felt impressed by his prowess at sea, but knew her mother wouldn't see his leaving as anything but rude.
"Really," Lorelai muttered to her daughter after the pirate was well out of range. "That was very rude." Rory sighed, wishing for once that she'd been unable to predict her mother's behavior.
Paris joined them once again, and the women set off to explore the ship together, seeing Tom happily going about his duties as the cabin boy.
Rory was much happier after viewing this ship. The wood was in fine repair, and there were no leaks or weaknesses she'd spotted. The crew looked to be in the prime of health, even the older men, and looked to be experts. So what if they looked a little dangerous, and wore various weapons on their persons? It wasn't as if they'd pulled those weapons on them as they toured the ship.
In fact, they were generally more courteous than the sailors on the ship they'd left.
"Do you think that comes from having a woman first mate?" Paris mused.
"'As to do with the captain being a stickler," said a gruff voice with a hard Scottish accent from behind them. "No problems with rude language, gestures, or behavior, as long as it hurts nobody. In your cases, it would offend you. Given we're all countin' on your silence, none of us want to offend you. The men're on their best behavior."
They turned to find a man they'd yet to be introduced to standing behind them in a doorway, blinking at the sun.
"Hello," Lorelai said politely. "Who are you?"
"Luke Danes," he said. "The cook on this here barge." He rolled his eyes expressively at what he thought of the ship.
"This is a wonderful vessel," Rory said indignantly. "Really. You should have more respect for the captain you sail under than to insult his ship."
"Really?" Luke laughed shortly. "Why should I be doin' that?"
"He's the captain! At sea his word is law."
"That may be so," he said. "But seein' as I'm the one what taught him what was what, I feel I don't really have to listen to him now."
"Are you his father?" Lorelai asked, not knowing whether she was appalled or intrigued. That ruffian had a father?
The man snorted, making Paris frown at him in disapproval. "No. He's my sister's kid. Both his parents got the Plague, and it fell to me to take him in."
"Fascinating," Rory murmured, casting her gaze around for the captain. "Mind if I ask how the pair of you ended up in this particular career?"
The man shrugged. "Just sort of…fell into it, I suppose. Earned ourselves a reputation and just sort of went on from there. Now, if you ladies will excuse me, I must be seein' to tonight's supper."
"Of course," Rory said for all of them.
"You cook marvelously," Lorelai told him. "I cannot wait for the evening meal."
The man merely nodded at the compliment, then made the gesture into a farewell.
"Well," Lorelai said. "There certainly are a lot of characters on this ship, aren't there?"
~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Note: As I said, this is a fun piece, not anything but lighthearted. I'm guessing on people's origins based on their last names: Rygalski sounds vaguely Slavic, maybe, to me. Danes almost certainly is Scottish, and Mariano is Italian. I figure Jess' mom moved to England and had Jess, but you can glean whatever you want from this. I have no idea where Gilmore could come from, but it sounds kinda like an Ellis Island name to me. Oh well. I already said this is just a fun piece, so no wittering at me for inaccuracies.