Chapter 8
A/N: Sorry, I know it's been awhile.
"Meg, grab the ropes!"
"HOLD ON!" I sawed the remaining threads off my long skirt, about a foot of cloth piled at my feet. On a second thought, I sawed off the long sleeves to my elbows. Jack stared, then quickly turned away.
"Meg, are you done YET?" Will hollered. I walked quietly behind him, slapping the back of his head as I passed. "Hey!" Without a word, I grabbed the rope and pulled down with all my weight on it.
"This good?" I called to Jack.
"Uh, yeah, that's fine. Perfect," he said distractedly, fiddling with the wheel. A gunshot cracked in the air, and I turned; the Interceptor was heading towards us at a worrying speed.
"Uh Jack?" I called. "You done with the wheel mechanics yet?"
"Do all women nag like that?" he grumbled. I glared, and he stumbled back on his words. "Yes, yes, I'm almost done, love."
"Stop calling me that! My name is Meg, not love."
"Right, sorry, love."
I rolled my eyes. Men.
Will grabbed my arm and dragged me up to the wheel deck, where Jack wiped his hands unceremoniously on Will's sleeve. Will frowned. "Get low," he hissed, and we all dropped to the floor. Jack placed a firm hand on the middle of my back, and I felt shivers racing up and down my spine. I'm sure I blushed. The sudden loud sounds of hooks grasping the sides and wooden gangplanks setting immediately flushed out all thoughts of Jack and where his hands were.
"Search all the decks! I want them found!" Commodore Norrington commanded. Jack peered over at the now empty Interceptor. Without a word and a flick of the wrist, he grabbed a rope and swung over. I grabbed another and followed suit, my legs clutching the rope for all I was worth. Jack grabbed my wrists as I came up to the deck, and I fell into his arms unceremoniously. He seemed surprised, but very resisting. And then Will fell from the rope onto the deck, and Jack released me.
"Will, cut the ropes," he ordered quietly. Will leapt up and snatched his hatchet from his belt, slicing the ropes with one firm swing. Jack looked down at me, his eyes suddenly very revealing. But before I could accurately study them, he grabbed my arms and swung me away from him. "Meg, go unveil the sail," he whispered in my ear. I nodded mutely, sprinting past Will and tugging on the great white sails. They released into the air like huge bird wings, the edges fluttering gently in the wind. Jack was already at the wheel, and the gangplanks fell into the water with a splash. The other sailors were suddenly shouting, and Commodore Norrington shouted, "Everyone back to the ship!" A sailor swung from a rope, trying to land on the deck, but lost his balance mid-air, flipped a few times, and fell into the water. I peered over the side. He didn't come back up. I raised a hand to my mouth in worry.
"Thank you, Commodore, for this lovely ship, and for your permission on letting us sail away," Jack caroled, waving his floppy leather hat to him. Gunshots went off at his statement, and I dove for the floor. The bullets pinged against the wood. Will tugged on a rope farther up the ship, and Jack whooped, replacing his hat and speeding into the infinite sea.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"When my mother died, I came here from England, in search of my father," Will finished, sharpening his sword blade. Jack nodded morosely.
"Is that so?" he said distractedly, walking back up to the wheel.
"You said something about my father, back at the jail. I didn't think about it then, but I realize now. I'm no fool, Jack. You knew my father." Will said the last bit with a firm conviction.
"As a matter of fact, I did," Jack said, not looking at him. "He was a good man, your father. A good pirate." He paused, turning to Will. "I swear you look just like him."
Will stood stunned. "What?" I sat down quickly, leaning against the side. My father? A pirate? I remembered the soft dark eyes, his strong hands lifting me up, his deep laughter and my squeals of delight. My mother crying, standing on the porch, pleading with him not to go. His hands against my cheeks, promising to return soon to take me across the sea. My father. "My father was not a pirate," I said steadily.
"He was a successful merchant sailor of Port Royal," Will finished.
"He was a bloody pirate," Jack snapped. "A scallywag if I ever saw one."
I stood up sharply, and Will unsheathed his sword. "My father," he spat, making every word clear. "Was not a pirate."
Jack sighed, his back going slack. "Put it away, lad," he said in a tired voice. "It's not worth you getting beat again."
"You didn't beat me," Will argued. "You didn't go by the rules of swordplay, and if you had, I would've killed you."
"Well, it's a good thing I don't play by the rules, now isn't it?" he said capriciously. Will stood alert, his sword still pointing at him.
I started to walk over to him. "Look, Sparrow, our father-" I never finished my sentence. With a sudden jerk, he whipped a beam around, catching me in the face and sending me to the floor on my back. Will got it in the stomach, dropping his sword and dangling above the water. Blood spurted from my nose, trailing down my cheeks. I struggled not to cry. Jack picked up Will's fallen sword and pointed it down at me, then looked at Will.
"Since you're just hanging there," he drawled to my brother. "Why don't you just pay attention, and realize what a man can do.and what a man can't do." He looked down at me. "You might want to listen up, too, love." I moaned. "For instance, I could let you drown. I could kill your sister and use her blood to clean these decks. But I can't sail a ship into Tortouga all by myself. Now, you can accept that your father was a pirate and a good man, or you can't. But you both got pirate blood in you, and you'll have to deal with that someday." With a groan, he spun the wheel in a few circles, and the beam came swinging back. Will let go and fell to the metal grate with a grunt and a thud, lying stunned beside me. My blood slowly began to stain the wood. "Now, can you sail under a flag of a pirate or can't you?" Jack turned his sword around, offering the handle to Will to take. He grasped it, almost surprised.
"Tortouga?"
Jack grinned fastidiously. "Tortouga."
A/N: I'm not sure how to spell Tortouga. Is that right?
A/N: Sorry, I know it's been awhile.
"Meg, grab the ropes!"
"HOLD ON!" I sawed the remaining threads off my long skirt, about a foot of cloth piled at my feet. On a second thought, I sawed off the long sleeves to my elbows. Jack stared, then quickly turned away.
"Meg, are you done YET?" Will hollered. I walked quietly behind him, slapping the back of his head as I passed. "Hey!" Without a word, I grabbed the rope and pulled down with all my weight on it.
"This good?" I called to Jack.
"Uh, yeah, that's fine. Perfect," he said distractedly, fiddling with the wheel. A gunshot cracked in the air, and I turned; the Interceptor was heading towards us at a worrying speed.
"Uh Jack?" I called. "You done with the wheel mechanics yet?"
"Do all women nag like that?" he grumbled. I glared, and he stumbled back on his words. "Yes, yes, I'm almost done, love."
"Stop calling me that! My name is Meg, not love."
"Right, sorry, love."
I rolled my eyes. Men.
Will grabbed my arm and dragged me up to the wheel deck, where Jack wiped his hands unceremoniously on Will's sleeve. Will frowned. "Get low," he hissed, and we all dropped to the floor. Jack placed a firm hand on the middle of my back, and I felt shivers racing up and down my spine. I'm sure I blushed. The sudden loud sounds of hooks grasping the sides and wooden gangplanks setting immediately flushed out all thoughts of Jack and where his hands were.
"Search all the decks! I want them found!" Commodore Norrington commanded. Jack peered over at the now empty Interceptor. Without a word and a flick of the wrist, he grabbed a rope and swung over. I grabbed another and followed suit, my legs clutching the rope for all I was worth. Jack grabbed my wrists as I came up to the deck, and I fell into his arms unceremoniously. He seemed surprised, but very resisting. And then Will fell from the rope onto the deck, and Jack released me.
"Will, cut the ropes," he ordered quietly. Will leapt up and snatched his hatchet from his belt, slicing the ropes with one firm swing. Jack looked down at me, his eyes suddenly very revealing. But before I could accurately study them, he grabbed my arms and swung me away from him. "Meg, go unveil the sail," he whispered in my ear. I nodded mutely, sprinting past Will and tugging on the great white sails. They released into the air like huge bird wings, the edges fluttering gently in the wind. Jack was already at the wheel, and the gangplanks fell into the water with a splash. The other sailors were suddenly shouting, and Commodore Norrington shouted, "Everyone back to the ship!" A sailor swung from a rope, trying to land on the deck, but lost his balance mid-air, flipped a few times, and fell into the water. I peered over the side. He didn't come back up. I raised a hand to my mouth in worry.
"Thank you, Commodore, for this lovely ship, and for your permission on letting us sail away," Jack caroled, waving his floppy leather hat to him. Gunshots went off at his statement, and I dove for the floor. The bullets pinged against the wood. Will tugged on a rope farther up the ship, and Jack whooped, replacing his hat and speeding into the infinite sea.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"When my mother died, I came here from England, in search of my father," Will finished, sharpening his sword blade. Jack nodded morosely.
"Is that so?" he said distractedly, walking back up to the wheel.
"You said something about my father, back at the jail. I didn't think about it then, but I realize now. I'm no fool, Jack. You knew my father." Will said the last bit with a firm conviction.
"As a matter of fact, I did," Jack said, not looking at him. "He was a good man, your father. A good pirate." He paused, turning to Will. "I swear you look just like him."
Will stood stunned. "What?" I sat down quickly, leaning against the side. My father? A pirate? I remembered the soft dark eyes, his strong hands lifting me up, his deep laughter and my squeals of delight. My mother crying, standing on the porch, pleading with him not to go. His hands against my cheeks, promising to return soon to take me across the sea. My father. "My father was not a pirate," I said steadily.
"He was a successful merchant sailor of Port Royal," Will finished.
"He was a bloody pirate," Jack snapped. "A scallywag if I ever saw one."
I stood up sharply, and Will unsheathed his sword. "My father," he spat, making every word clear. "Was not a pirate."
Jack sighed, his back going slack. "Put it away, lad," he said in a tired voice. "It's not worth you getting beat again."
"You didn't beat me," Will argued. "You didn't go by the rules of swordplay, and if you had, I would've killed you."
"Well, it's a good thing I don't play by the rules, now isn't it?" he said capriciously. Will stood alert, his sword still pointing at him.
I started to walk over to him. "Look, Sparrow, our father-" I never finished my sentence. With a sudden jerk, he whipped a beam around, catching me in the face and sending me to the floor on my back. Will got it in the stomach, dropping his sword and dangling above the water. Blood spurted from my nose, trailing down my cheeks. I struggled not to cry. Jack picked up Will's fallen sword and pointed it down at me, then looked at Will.
"Since you're just hanging there," he drawled to my brother. "Why don't you just pay attention, and realize what a man can do.and what a man can't do." He looked down at me. "You might want to listen up, too, love." I moaned. "For instance, I could let you drown. I could kill your sister and use her blood to clean these decks. But I can't sail a ship into Tortouga all by myself. Now, you can accept that your father was a pirate and a good man, or you can't. But you both got pirate blood in you, and you'll have to deal with that someday." With a groan, he spun the wheel in a few circles, and the beam came swinging back. Will let go and fell to the metal grate with a grunt and a thud, lying stunned beside me. My blood slowly began to stain the wood. "Now, can you sail under a flag of a pirate or can't you?" Jack turned his sword around, offering the handle to Will to take. He grasped it, almost surprised.
"Tortouga?"
Jack grinned fastidiously. "Tortouga."
A/N: I'm not sure how to spell Tortouga. Is that right?