Chapter Seven: Blisters
I climbed back onto the Black Pearl. I looked over to where Anamaria was intimidating another pirate. I sighed to myself. I could not think of anything else as we were heading back. ~Anamaria was a good friend of mine, my only friend besides Jack really. I'll try to talk to her.~ I gathered up all of my courage and walked over to her. She turned her back to me.
"Anamaria, what's wrong? Is it something I said? I didn't mean to hurt you in any way. Anamaria?" She didn't utter a single word. She stayed as cold as brass. "Please speak to me. I don't want to ruin our friendship." ~I hate it when I am given the cold shoulder.~ Anamaria turned around angrily.
"Friendship? If you were my friend you wouldn't have done that!" Her teeth were bared as she growled at me. "You know what? I don't need friends like you!" She stormed off to Jack, who was steering the ship. She yelled at him and he backed off and let her take the wheel. I ran to the dorm that I had previously shared with Anamaria. ~She would probably kick me out tonight.~ I fell onto my bed and cried. ~No! I need to pull myself together! I need to be strong. If any of the pirates, especially Jack, sees me like this, they'll think I'm weak.~ I got out of bed and washed my face. After taking a deep breath, I walked outside. I decided to make myself useful and grabbed a mop.
~~~~
At dinner, Anamaria made sure that she was seated on the other side of the room. Other than that, everything was basically normal. The pirates were stealing each other's food as usual. I watched as Anamaria snatched Joshamee Gibbs' roll. She bit into it smugly. Pirates have tried to pilfer my food, but Anamaria used to scare them away. The only other person, I've noticed, whose food nobody bothered was Jack's.
I bitterly stabbed my fish with my fork. ~Why is she so angry?~
"Back off my food!" I shouted at a pirate, and he recoiled. Anamaria glared at me. ~I should try to talk to her tomorrow; hopefully she would have cooled off by then.~ I turned to look at Jack. He was deep in conversation with Will on his right. To his left, a sneaky pirate was reaching for his roll. Approximately a millisecond later, Jack had abruptly turned around and twisted the man's arm. He eventually flipped over while screaming in anguish. The other pirates laughed at his foolish attempt, and so did I.
~~~~
That evening, I helped Mr. Cotton put up the sails. He tried to teach me how to tie a sailor's knot, but I couldn't understand his parrot.
"Any man for himself!" The parrot repeated for the past few minutes. I looked at it confusedly. ~What the hell is it trying to say? "Any man for himself?" What does that mean?~
"Mr. Cotton says that you push the rope through that loop." Mr. Gibbs supplied. I looked at him incredulously. He smiled; he was obviously pleased with himself. ~How does he do that? Is that even what the parrot meant?~ I turned back to my knot and strung the rope through the loop. I looked at Mr. Cotton for the next piece of instructions.
"All hands on deck!" The parrot shouted happily. I turned to Mr. Gibbs.
"Mr. Cotton says that you put it through the wrong loop. Here let me teach you instead." Joshamee sat down next to me and grabbed another rope. ~Thank you. At least you can speak English.~
Later that night, I felt a horrible stinging on my hands. I looked down at them. My jaw dropped in utter horror. They seemed to have grown hideous, bulging, red bubbles of some kind. They were very raw and hurt. I blew on them to ease the pain. It didn't last very long unfortunately. ~What are these?~ I noticed Jack at the wheel of the ship. I ran up the stairs, cupping my hands so that they wouldn't get worse. I held out my hands for Jack to see.
"Jack? What are these?" I complained childishly. Jack brought them closer to his eyes and smiled.
"Ah, these be your first blisters, aye? I don't think you 'ave ever done work before." Jack laughed. ~What is so funny? They hurt!~ I nodded.
"No, I have never worked before, and these are my first, uh, what did you call them? Glissers?"
"Blisters." Jack corrected. "Here come with me." He turned and walked over to Mr. Cotton. Mr. Cotton nodded after Jack had asked him something I didn't catch. Mr. Cotton quietly strolled over to the wheel and took over. I followed Jack into his cabin.
"Come here. Let me see them blisters." I held out my hands. He took them and put a wet towel on my hands. ~Ouch! It stings terribly.~ I winced at the pain.
"What is that? It stings." I looked at him, waiting for an answer. He chuckled and grinned at me.
"It's rum. An amazing remedy, rum is. I found out that it helps blister turn into calluses faster. You're lucky that these blisters aren't bad, they may not become calluses at all. I've 'ad worst." he acknowledged. He showed me his hands. They were course, like wind beaten stone.
"Those are calluses?" I exclaimed. ~I don't want to have those! I like my soft hands, thank you very much!~
"What's wrong? Ne'er been scarred before?" he teased. I felt insulted. ~That's not true!~
"That's not true!" I pulled up my sleeve to show him a scar, "Look at this. I got burnt from when I ran into a candle. At least my father didn't know about it. He would have freaked out." He laughed out loud.
"You call that a burn? Look at this one," he pulled up his own sleeve to reveal a large burn on his arm. I gasped. ~Damn! That is huge!~ "I got this in Tortuga. Someone lit me arm on fire, so I burnt the damn building down with that same flame. Almost everyone there respects me now." I gawked at him.
"Well, I fell down a staircase and I still have a scar from it." I exposed a nearly evanescent scar on my elbow.
"Really? Hmm, I guess that beats out the two bullet shot wounds on me right lung." Jack pulled down his shirt. ~Yes!~ He uncovered two wounds, just like he had said. My jaw dropped in amazement. ~Hmmm, what do I have that could compare.~
"Oh, I'm not allowed to get a real tattoo, so I secretly gave myself a fake one." I showed him my knee. "Look, you can still see it a little." It was faded and smudged, but Jack saw the remains of my drawing.
"Ah, that's nothing. I gave meself a real tattoo." Jack pulled up his sleeve, and as plain as day, there it was. It was a talented drawing of a bird. ~Wow, that is good, and it beats my little doodle.~ I covered my knee again in shame.
"You drew that?" He nodded. "What is that?" I pointed to a white symbol of some kind below the sparrow.
"It's the brand of a pirate. See, it's a 'P,' savvy?" I was completely confused and lost.
"Well, what is that?" I had absolutely no idea what this 'P' was.
"For pirate, can ye read?" I shook my head sadly. I brightened up as an idea came to me.
"Can you teach me how to read and write?" I asked him hopefully. Jack thought for a moment and was very quiet.
"Aye, I'll teach ye how to read. Meet me in the kitchen late tomorrow night." ~Yes, I'll finally learn how to read, and best of all, it will be Jack who teaches me.~ I thanked him graciously and left.
~~~~
I opened the door to the cabin room I shared with Anamaria. It was next door to Will and Elizabeth's. They were very small and could barely fit the two twin beds. I plopped down on my heavily and happily. I looked to my left and saw Anamaria lying in her bed across from mine. She was very disgruntled and angry. ~Oh no, she's still mad at me, but about what?~ I took a deep breath.
"Anamaria, I don't know what has gotten into you lately. Why are you angry with me? Have I offended you in any way? If so, I am terribly sorry." She paused for a moment in which we exchanged stares. She eventually broke the awkward silence.
"I saw the way ye looked at 'im." She said bluntly. I knew she was referring to Jack.
"What does that have to do with anything?" She sat up.
"Because Jack is mine!" She yelled aggressively. I was in shock. I was under the impression that she didn't like him very much.
"Are you two a couple?" I asked. Anamaria hesitated.
"No," she answered softly, "but I've loved 'im ever since I saw 'im. That is until 'e stole my boat." She chuckled lightly. "But I've forgiven 'im."
"Anamaria, I love him too. That's mostly why I wanted Jack to kidnap me. I have never loved anyone before in this way, and it makes me feel so lighthearted." ~Oh boy, how should we solve this one?~ "I've got an idea. I'll promise not to ruin our friendship if you win his heart, and you'll do the same. Is that fine by you?" Anamaria thought it over and smiled.
"Aye, I agree." We shook hands, and talked about Jack the rest of the night.
I climbed back onto the Black Pearl. I looked over to where Anamaria was intimidating another pirate. I sighed to myself. I could not think of anything else as we were heading back. ~Anamaria was a good friend of mine, my only friend besides Jack really. I'll try to talk to her.~ I gathered up all of my courage and walked over to her. She turned her back to me.
"Anamaria, what's wrong? Is it something I said? I didn't mean to hurt you in any way. Anamaria?" She didn't utter a single word. She stayed as cold as brass. "Please speak to me. I don't want to ruin our friendship." ~I hate it when I am given the cold shoulder.~ Anamaria turned around angrily.
"Friendship? If you were my friend you wouldn't have done that!" Her teeth were bared as she growled at me. "You know what? I don't need friends like you!" She stormed off to Jack, who was steering the ship. She yelled at him and he backed off and let her take the wheel. I ran to the dorm that I had previously shared with Anamaria. ~She would probably kick me out tonight.~ I fell onto my bed and cried. ~No! I need to pull myself together! I need to be strong. If any of the pirates, especially Jack, sees me like this, they'll think I'm weak.~ I got out of bed and washed my face. After taking a deep breath, I walked outside. I decided to make myself useful and grabbed a mop.
~~~~
At dinner, Anamaria made sure that she was seated on the other side of the room. Other than that, everything was basically normal. The pirates were stealing each other's food as usual. I watched as Anamaria snatched Joshamee Gibbs' roll. She bit into it smugly. Pirates have tried to pilfer my food, but Anamaria used to scare them away. The only other person, I've noticed, whose food nobody bothered was Jack's.
I bitterly stabbed my fish with my fork. ~Why is she so angry?~
"Back off my food!" I shouted at a pirate, and he recoiled. Anamaria glared at me. ~I should try to talk to her tomorrow; hopefully she would have cooled off by then.~ I turned to look at Jack. He was deep in conversation with Will on his right. To his left, a sneaky pirate was reaching for his roll. Approximately a millisecond later, Jack had abruptly turned around and twisted the man's arm. He eventually flipped over while screaming in anguish. The other pirates laughed at his foolish attempt, and so did I.
~~~~
That evening, I helped Mr. Cotton put up the sails. He tried to teach me how to tie a sailor's knot, but I couldn't understand his parrot.
"Any man for himself!" The parrot repeated for the past few minutes. I looked at it confusedly. ~What the hell is it trying to say? "Any man for himself?" What does that mean?~
"Mr. Cotton says that you push the rope through that loop." Mr. Gibbs supplied. I looked at him incredulously. He smiled; he was obviously pleased with himself. ~How does he do that? Is that even what the parrot meant?~ I turned back to my knot and strung the rope through the loop. I looked at Mr. Cotton for the next piece of instructions.
"All hands on deck!" The parrot shouted happily. I turned to Mr. Gibbs.
"Mr. Cotton says that you put it through the wrong loop. Here let me teach you instead." Joshamee sat down next to me and grabbed another rope. ~Thank you. At least you can speak English.~
Later that night, I felt a horrible stinging on my hands. I looked down at them. My jaw dropped in utter horror. They seemed to have grown hideous, bulging, red bubbles of some kind. They were very raw and hurt. I blew on them to ease the pain. It didn't last very long unfortunately. ~What are these?~ I noticed Jack at the wheel of the ship. I ran up the stairs, cupping my hands so that they wouldn't get worse. I held out my hands for Jack to see.
"Jack? What are these?" I complained childishly. Jack brought them closer to his eyes and smiled.
"Ah, these be your first blisters, aye? I don't think you 'ave ever done work before." Jack laughed. ~What is so funny? They hurt!~ I nodded.
"No, I have never worked before, and these are my first, uh, what did you call them? Glissers?"
"Blisters." Jack corrected. "Here come with me." He turned and walked over to Mr. Cotton. Mr. Cotton nodded after Jack had asked him something I didn't catch. Mr. Cotton quietly strolled over to the wheel and took over. I followed Jack into his cabin.
"Come here. Let me see them blisters." I held out my hands. He took them and put a wet towel on my hands. ~Ouch! It stings terribly.~ I winced at the pain.
"What is that? It stings." I looked at him, waiting for an answer. He chuckled and grinned at me.
"It's rum. An amazing remedy, rum is. I found out that it helps blister turn into calluses faster. You're lucky that these blisters aren't bad, they may not become calluses at all. I've 'ad worst." he acknowledged. He showed me his hands. They were course, like wind beaten stone.
"Those are calluses?" I exclaimed. ~I don't want to have those! I like my soft hands, thank you very much!~
"What's wrong? Ne'er been scarred before?" he teased. I felt insulted. ~That's not true!~
"That's not true!" I pulled up my sleeve to show him a scar, "Look at this. I got burnt from when I ran into a candle. At least my father didn't know about it. He would have freaked out." He laughed out loud.
"You call that a burn? Look at this one," he pulled up his own sleeve to reveal a large burn on his arm. I gasped. ~Damn! That is huge!~ "I got this in Tortuga. Someone lit me arm on fire, so I burnt the damn building down with that same flame. Almost everyone there respects me now." I gawked at him.
"Well, I fell down a staircase and I still have a scar from it." I exposed a nearly evanescent scar on my elbow.
"Really? Hmm, I guess that beats out the two bullet shot wounds on me right lung." Jack pulled down his shirt. ~Yes!~ He uncovered two wounds, just like he had said. My jaw dropped in amazement. ~Hmmm, what do I have that could compare.~
"Oh, I'm not allowed to get a real tattoo, so I secretly gave myself a fake one." I showed him my knee. "Look, you can still see it a little." It was faded and smudged, but Jack saw the remains of my drawing.
"Ah, that's nothing. I gave meself a real tattoo." Jack pulled up his sleeve, and as plain as day, there it was. It was a talented drawing of a bird. ~Wow, that is good, and it beats my little doodle.~ I covered my knee again in shame.
"You drew that?" He nodded. "What is that?" I pointed to a white symbol of some kind below the sparrow.
"It's the brand of a pirate. See, it's a 'P,' savvy?" I was completely confused and lost.
"Well, what is that?" I had absolutely no idea what this 'P' was.
"For pirate, can ye read?" I shook my head sadly. I brightened up as an idea came to me.
"Can you teach me how to read and write?" I asked him hopefully. Jack thought for a moment and was very quiet.
"Aye, I'll teach ye how to read. Meet me in the kitchen late tomorrow night." ~Yes, I'll finally learn how to read, and best of all, it will be Jack who teaches me.~ I thanked him graciously and left.
~~~~
I opened the door to the cabin room I shared with Anamaria. It was next door to Will and Elizabeth's. They were very small and could barely fit the two twin beds. I plopped down on my heavily and happily. I looked to my left and saw Anamaria lying in her bed across from mine. She was very disgruntled and angry. ~Oh no, she's still mad at me, but about what?~ I took a deep breath.
"Anamaria, I don't know what has gotten into you lately. Why are you angry with me? Have I offended you in any way? If so, I am terribly sorry." She paused for a moment in which we exchanged stares. She eventually broke the awkward silence.
"I saw the way ye looked at 'im." She said bluntly. I knew she was referring to Jack.
"What does that have to do with anything?" She sat up.
"Because Jack is mine!" She yelled aggressively. I was in shock. I was under the impression that she didn't like him very much.
"Are you two a couple?" I asked. Anamaria hesitated.
"No," she answered softly, "but I've loved 'im ever since I saw 'im. That is until 'e stole my boat." She chuckled lightly. "But I've forgiven 'im."
"Anamaria, I love him too. That's mostly why I wanted Jack to kidnap me. I have never loved anyone before in this way, and it makes me feel so lighthearted." ~Oh boy, how should we solve this one?~ "I've got an idea. I'll promise not to ruin our friendship if you win his heart, and you'll do the same. Is that fine by you?" Anamaria thought it over and smiled.
"Aye, I agree." We shook hands, and talked about Jack the rest of the night.