Chapter 7
Hope
That night, both Elizabeth and Jade both struggled to remove the necklace, but the strange beads burnt their hands. Jade was cursed!
"Dammit!" she exclaimed, picking up her knife and resuming the knife throwing. Elisabeth only sighed as the children began crying for food. She doubted she could feed them, as she had no food, and, the only other way was. . . . a bit inappropriate to do in front of Jade. So, she could only gather them once again into her arms and lull them to sleep. Jade took no notice and continued tossing her knives.
"Jade." Elizabeth said, gently rocking the twins. "Could you please not do that in front of the twins?"
"What? It's not like I'm gonna hit 'em or anythin'! More likely, I'd end up hittin meself! I'm cursed, remember! This bloody necklace. . . ." Jade sighed, and set the knives down. "I shoulda left it on the beach!"
"Nobody had any way of knowing, Jade."
"Yeah, well, let's face it! I'm no pirate! A pirate coulda told it was cursed if they had half a brain! Sure, I can swab the decks, beat the crap out of a man, and can boast that I'm a decent swordfighter, but I'm not a pirate! I mean, I couldn' protect you or Maria that night, I've never pillaged, and me dad thinks I need to become a lady! I need to get better, but as long as that ba-"
"Jade!"
"Sorry, ma'am. I mean, as long as Barbossa's controllin' ev'ry move I make, I'm defenseless! I should be out stealin from a Spanish galleon! They've got loads of gold, Spain! But me dad wouldn' let me! 'Cause 'e was the only one who could take care a me!" Angrily, Jade pounded the back of her head on the wood behind her, a single tear slipping down her cheek. "I miss 'im."
"You never had a mother, did you Jade?"
The pirate girl just shook her head and breathed in fast, quick breaths. Elizabeth draped an arm around the girl, and cradled her as if she were her own.
"Don't worry, Jade. As long as I'm here, no harm shall befall you. I promise, someday, I'll find your mother for you. Until then, I'll serve in her place."
"Thank you, Miss Turner." Jade said hoarsely.
"Barbossa won't lay a finger on you."
Suddenly, the door creaked open, and a rather scared looking boy walked in, covered from head to toe in dirt.
"The captain told me to come keep watch over you two." he said hoarsely. "He says, captives need to stick together."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Cap'n, if you keep pacing your cabin like that, you're gonna wear a hole in yer precious ship!"
"Shut-up, Anamaria!"
"Well, honestly, you really oughta come out for a change!"
"Fine! IF it'll shut that horrible hole in your face!"
The female pirate grinned as Jack stormed out of his cabin, and Jack made a mental note to do something truly evil to her in the future. So, rather than wearing a hole in is cabin, he waited anxiously at the wheel, having no idea whatsoever where the hell they were headed anyway. After a few minutes, however, his anxious energy seemed to disappear. He strode over to the edge, and peered into the water, feeling miserable. How he missed her! His treasure trove. She was the best thing he knew to be living. He remembered the time she had saved his arse from a jail off the coast of Italy. When he hadn't been able to explain that he hadn't stolen from a particularly rich noblewoman (which he had, by the way) because he didn't speak Italian, they'd tossed him in a cell. After his usual ritual of trying to look impressive in front of the other pirates, then, trying to find a way out, then just lying around, bored out of the few wits still remained in his head, a faint song had filled his ears.
"Oh, yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!" not quite as enjoyable as "A Pirate's Life For Me", he had been, nevertheless glad to hear Jade's voice. And there she was, only nine and carrying a ring of big, rusty keys, a mischievous grin etched on her face.
"Good job, Jade!'' he had cried."Now, give me the keys!"
"Nope."
"What? Why not!"
You have to say what you know I want you to say!"
"Oh, please, no-"
"Say it."
"Oh, all right. I, the infamous Jack Sparrow, need the help of a nine year old girl to get out of jail!"
Jack returned his thoughts to the Pearl and sighed deeply, when he suddenly felt a hand on the lower part of his back, pushing quite hard. The next thing he knew, he was struggling to stay afloat in the icy Atlantic waters, as Anamarie's face laughed above him.
"That's fer mopin' captain!" she yelled.
"ANAMARIE, YOU WENCH! WHEN I GET UP THERE-"
"Well, Jack, you were mopin! And I can't stand mopin!"
"OH, I AIN' MOPNG ANYMORE, ANAMARIE! I'M JUST MAD!"
"Well, it's better than moping!" she called, dropping down a knotted rope. Jack angrily grabbed his hat and climbed up the rope, thinking of several clever ways to kill that woman! Gibbs met him on the deck.
"I am gonna kill her!" Jack muttered, taking the blanket Gibbs had offered him.
"Tha's a good idea, Cap'n! All women on a ship are bad luck."
Jack turned on him.
"What!? Are you sayin' Jade was bad luck?"
"Well, sir. She was a girl!"
"I'm gonna prove to you that women aren' bad luck, Gibbs!" Jack said, stalking off toward him cabin. Gibbs just muttered.
"Now, was that the eighteenth or nineteenth time I saved her life?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jack sat, undisturbed in his cabin for several more hours, until the clunk of a crutch interrupted his train of thought.
"Jack." Will said urgently. "A storm's blowing in from the northeast."
Jack cursed.
"Also." Will went on. "We think we've found traces of Jade. A ship called the Rosy Serpent has just pillaged a small harbor, and it's said that they had two women with them. One, hardly old enough to have grown out of her childhood, and the other, fully grown with two small infants."
Jack's dull eyes suddenly seemed to sparkle with an immediate burst of energy.
"Well then, Will. We'll just have to get through this storm and we'll find 'em!"
"Well, Jack. It's a very big storm. I-I don't think it's going to be that easy.
Hope
That night, both Elizabeth and Jade both struggled to remove the necklace, but the strange beads burnt their hands. Jade was cursed!
"Dammit!" she exclaimed, picking up her knife and resuming the knife throwing. Elisabeth only sighed as the children began crying for food. She doubted she could feed them, as she had no food, and, the only other way was. . . . a bit inappropriate to do in front of Jade. So, she could only gather them once again into her arms and lull them to sleep. Jade took no notice and continued tossing her knives.
"Jade." Elizabeth said, gently rocking the twins. "Could you please not do that in front of the twins?"
"What? It's not like I'm gonna hit 'em or anythin'! More likely, I'd end up hittin meself! I'm cursed, remember! This bloody necklace. . . ." Jade sighed, and set the knives down. "I shoulda left it on the beach!"
"Nobody had any way of knowing, Jade."
"Yeah, well, let's face it! I'm no pirate! A pirate coulda told it was cursed if they had half a brain! Sure, I can swab the decks, beat the crap out of a man, and can boast that I'm a decent swordfighter, but I'm not a pirate! I mean, I couldn' protect you or Maria that night, I've never pillaged, and me dad thinks I need to become a lady! I need to get better, but as long as that ba-"
"Jade!"
"Sorry, ma'am. I mean, as long as Barbossa's controllin' ev'ry move I make, I'm defenseless! I should be out stealin from a Spanish galleon! They've got loads of gold, Spain! But me dad wouldn' let me! 'Cause 'e was the only one who could take care a me!" Angrily, Jade pounded the back of her head on the wood behind her, a single tear slipping down her cheek. "I miss 'im."
"You never had a mother, did you Jade?"
The pirate girl just shook her head and breathed in fast, quick breaths. Elizabeth draped an arm around the girl, and cradled her as if she were her own.
"Don't worry, Jade. As long as I'm here, no harm shall befall you. I promise, someday, I'll find your mother for you. Until then, I'll serve in her place."
"Thank you, Miss Turner." Jade said hoarsely.
"Barbossa won't lay a finger on you."
Suddenly, the door creaked open, and a rather scared looking boy walked in, covered from head to toe in dirt.
"The captain told me to come keep watch over you two." he said hoarsely. "He says, captives need to stick together."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Cap'n, if you keep pacing your cabin like that, you're gonna wear a hole in yer precious ship!"
"Shut-up, Anamaria!"
"Well, honestly, you really oughta come out for a change!"
"Fine! IF it'll shut that horrible hole in your face!"
The female pirate grinned as Jack stormed out of his cabin, and Jack made a mental note to do something truly evil to her in the future. So, rather than wearing a hole in is cabin, he waited anxiously at the wheel, having no idea whatsoever where the hell they were headed anyway. After a few minutes, however, his anxious energy seemed to disappear. He strode over to the edge, and peered into the water, feeling miserable. How he missed her! His treasure trove. She was the best thing he knew to be living. He remembered the time she had saved his arse from a jail off the coast of Italy. When he hadn't been able to explain that he hadn't stolen from a particularly rich noblewoman (which he had, by the way) because he didn't speak Italian, they'd tossed him in a cell. After his usual ritual of trying to look impressive in front of the other pirates, then, trying to find a way out, then just lying around, bored out of the few wits still remained in his head, a faint song had filled his ears.
"Oh, yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!" not quite as enjoyable as "A Pirate's Life For Me", he had been, nevertheless glad to hear Jade's voice. And there she was, only nine and carrying a ring of big, rusty keys, a mischievous grin etched on her face.
"Good job, Jade!'' he had cried."Now, give me the keys!"
"Nope."
"What? Why not!"
You have to say what you know I want you to say!"
"Oh, please, no-"
"Say it."
"Oh, all right. I, the infamous Jack Sparrow, need the help of a nine year old girl to get out of jail!"
Jack returned his thoughts to the Pearl and sighed deeply, when he suddenly felt a hand on the lower part of his back, pushing quite hard. The next thing he knew, he was struggling to stay afloat in the icy Atlantic waters, as Anamarie's face laughed above him.
"That's fer mopin' captain!" she yelled.
"ANAMARIE, YOU WENCH! WHEN I GET UP THERE-"
"Well, Jack, you were mopin! And I can't stand mopin!"
"OH, I AIN' MOPNG ANYMORE, ANAMARIE! I'M JUST MAD!"
"Well, it's better than moping!" she called, dropping down a knotted rope. Jack angrily grabbed his hat and climbed up the rope, thinking of several clever ways to kill that woman! Gibbs met him on the deck.
"I am gonna kill her!" Jack muttered, taking the blanket Gibbs had offered him.
"Tha's a good idea, Cap'n! All women on a ship are bad luck."
Jack turned on him.
"What!? Are you sayin' Jade was bad luck?"
"Well, sir. She was a girl!"
"I'm gonna prove to you that women aren' bad luck, Gibbs!" Jack said, stalking off toward him cabin. Gibbs just muttered.
"Now, was that the eighteenth or nineteenth time I saved her life?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jack sat, undisturbed in his cabin for several more hours, until the clunk of a crutch interrupted his train of thought.
"Jack." Will said urgently. "A storm's blowing in from the northeast."
Jack cursed.
"Also." Will went on. "We think we've found traces of Jade. A ship called the Rosy Serpent has just pillaged a small harbor, and it's said that they had two women with them. One, hardly old enough to have grown out of her childhood, and the other, fully grown with two small infants."
Jack's dull eyes suddenly seemed to sparkle with an immediate burst of energy.
"Well then, Will. We'll just have to get through this storm and we'll find 'em!"
"Well, Jack. It's a very big storm. I-I don't think it's going to be that easy.