A/N: I've taken quite a while to write this chapter, mostly because I haven't been sure where I want it to go. I didn't want to rush it, so sorry if I did take a long time.

Enjoy, and please read and review! Is it getting too boring? What could be improved? What parts didn't you like? Etc.

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"Ye alrigh' there, love?" Sparrow asked, concerned as Lorraine leant over the side of the ship, retching because of the seasickness.

Her white-knuckled fingers gripped desperately on to the railing as she bent over, her hair now resembling rat-tails because of how much she was sweating. Her stomach was now empty, but she could still feel her muscles inside convulse. She was dizzy with the continuous motion of the rolling waves, her hands were damp with sweat, as was her forehead and arms, and the back of her neck would suddenly seem to flare up with intense heat every few moments.

"Do I look alright to you?!" she hissed angrily. Wasn't it obvious she wasn't alright?

"Okay, okay! Only askin'…" he mumbled apologetically, his eyes wide with her irate outburst. He stood next to her unsurely as she turned to retch once more. God, she felt awful! She held her head back up and her breath hitched as if she was going to throw up again. She did this twice more and then she leant against the wooden railings and sank to the ground on her knees before holding a hand to her forehead, which was glistening with sweat. Her eyes were closed and her face was pale; she felt wretched.

Sparrow bent down and patted her on the back, trying to look into her face which now hung low. It was bad enough being sick, but being sick in front one of the most feared pirates in the Caribbean was beyond embarrassment. Lorraine could feel the damp material of her dress cling to her back as the captain's hand rested upon it, and she looked up. Sparrow's face was only inches away from hers and she could smell the rum on his breath; she cringed and wrinkled her nose. His eyes reminded Lorraine of her younger cousin, Thomas, in an odd way. Sparrow seemed almost childlike; he had that typical air of boyish mischief about him, yet that look in his eyes could make him seem as innocent as a church boy. Although, there was far more depth in him than in Thomas, because he was, obviously, a lot older and had experienced far more on his travels.

"I think I…I'll be…I'll be alright now." Lorraine muttered as she breathed in some of the fresh air.

Captain Sparrow grabbed her arms and hauled her up onto her feet; she staggered but soon regained her footing.

"Thank you."

"No problem, love."

Lorraine turned to go towards the stairs leading below deck, but the captain stopped her. "If ye want my advice, I'd say it'd be best for you to stay up here in the breeze rather than down there in the stuffy heat."

Lorraine nodded in understanding and he left to steer the wheel of the ship and relieve the person who had been handling it previously from his duties.

She walked around the deck for a bit, breathing in the air every time she began to feel unwell.

"Saw you weren't feelin' too well earlier…how're you now?" a soft voice spoke behind Lorraine. She turned around to see a rather lean, cheerful man standing just behind her.

"Oh, Mr.…" she struggled to remember his name. She was sure that the captain had pointed him out to her a few days ago…

"Mr.? Nah, that's too posh for me. Bootstrap or Bootstrap Bill will do jus' fine." He replied, smiling. Lorraine nodded: he was the one that had said something about navigation or direction, or something.

"Well, I'm feeling a bit better now, thank you."

"Good to hear." He said happily. "So, how long've you been aboard now?"

"Umm…four, five-" Lorraine counted the days on her fingers, "Six…six days today."   

"And what've you been doing?"

Lorraine shrugged. "Not much…tidied some cabins."

"Well, since you're aboard a ship, I'll teach you some handy things. If you want to, that is."

She nodded; it wasn't as if she had anything else to do.

*****

"Now this, this is a normal Sailor's Knot, strongest knot there is, you know. You loop tha' around to the side there, and then you get this piece, and that goes over tha', under there and then back out across here-" he intertwined the two pieces of rope in all sorts of places, and Lorraine struggled to keep up with her own two, thin pieces of rope. "-and then it goes under there, you pull it tight, and you're done. Easy."

Lorraine furrowed her brow and stuck her tongue in her cheek as she fiddled about cluelessly with her rope, trying to repeat what he had done.

"No…now what you've done there is part of a Clove Hitch, ye don't want to be doing that for this type o' thing. You have to put that piece under here-" he pulled the rope out from under one of the loops "-and then you can pull it tight." She did so, and it faintly resembled his accurate, neat example. 

"Not bad for a starter…" he reassured her as she sighed, pulling the rope apart and handing it back to him. "but maybe it's not your kind of thing…" You really think so? She thought sarcastically. "Well, you're a girl…can you sew?" Lorraine nodded and Bootstrap dashed below deck to get a needle and thread.

*****

There was a sharp intake of breath and Lorraine quickly shook her hand in the air before clutching her finger with her other hand.

"You okay?"

"Mhh." She winced as a thin trickle of blood dribbled out of the prick on her forefinger.

Bootstrap tore off a short length of material from his sleeve and tightly wound it around her finger. Lorraine thought this unnecessary; it was only a small prick, not a gaping slash across her arm.

"Ye'd be surprised at how much mud and dirt and grime can get into a small wound like that. You get ill quicker than you think on a ship out at sea." He said, as if in reply to what she was thinking.

The kind, brown haired man leant back and peered around the ship, before his eyes finally came to rest at a little basket hanging at the top of the mast. He considered his options for a moment and then turned to Lorraine.

"You can't really go wrong in the Crow's Nest…what d'ye say?" he suggested. "You only have to look out and shout if ye see any land. S'easy enough."

She was beginning to feel as if she couldn't do anything by now, so she took up his offer since looking at the sea sounded simple enough.

*****

She looked out from where she stood, and the view was far and vast. The wind was a lot stronger up her than down on deck, which was good for her since the freshness made her feel a lot better. It was a hot, stuffy, humid day even though the sky was overcast with a thick, never-ending blanket of pale, grey cloud. There was a bright, shapeless object hanging in the sky, which was probably the hidden sun trying to release its light upon the world.

Everything seemed relatively quiet; it was one of those lazy days where everyone's got a bit fed up of the recent sweltering heat, so they just lie about in the shade or wander around aimlessly.

Lorraine folded her arms and leant forward on the edge of the wooden, bucket-shaped Crow's Nest. It was boring up here. Very boring. But unless there was anything else she could do, she guessed that she would be up here for quite a while.

She watched the crew doing their daily things; scrubbing the deck, mending the sails, running about sending messages to other members of the crew, navigating etc. Captain Sparrow was at the wheel of the ship, standing proudly as he slowly steered the ship through the calm, rolling waves.

The clouds seemed to be much darker ahead on the horizon, it was probably going to rain later.

*****

"Righ', ye can come down now!" Bootstrap called up to her after about two hours of solid boredom. She clambered out of the basket and gradually made her way down to the bottom step-by-step on the rope ladder.

"So, did you see anything?" he asked her as he helped her down the last part of the ladder and onto the deck.

"No. Just clouds and lots of water all around. Didn't see any land." She replied, wiping her dress down of some dust, even though it wasn't as if it looked out of place on her frayed clothing.

The sky was gradually getting darker; there would have been a pleasant sunset if it weren't the mass of clouds covering the heavens above. The air was still thick and stuffy, but it gradually became cooler as the early evening approached.

"I 'ave to go below deck to check the maps. I'd best take ye to the captain." He led her to the front end of the ship and then left her as he went down the steps off to the side; Lorraine smiled and nodded at him as he raised his hand in a wave just before he disappeared below. So that was yet another kind pirate. That Bootstrap Bill was very good-willed, he was almost like an uncle to her.

"So, 'ave ye had a good time?" Captain Sparrow called to her as she slowly walked up to the wheel where he stood.

"Yes, thank you." She replied as an almost automatic response. There was a silence as neither of them knew what to say next and Lorraine stared at her feet as she shifted about.

"Do you want a go?" Sparrow asked as he glanced over at her.

"What?"

"Do you want a go? Steering the ship, I mean."

"Oh, um…yes, alright then." Lorraine replied. She trotted over to the wheel smiling; she had never steered a ship before, let alone a large pirate ship. The wheel was rather big and came right up to her shoulder, so she could only just see clear over it. Sparrow guided her hands onto the right places on the wheel and helped her to turn the heavy object.

Lorraine felt as if she was in charge; she decided which direction this ship went in, she could steer it all over the world if she wanted, she could go anywhere she liked. She could see straight ahead out to the darkening horizon, she could see the waves the ship was about to gracefully sail through; the wind was blowing through her hair and the adrenalin rush was making her feel thrilled and excited.

"Ye havin' fun?" Sparrow whispered into her ear as bent down behind her, tucking a few strands of her hair behind it. Lorraine suddenly felt uncomfortable, and did not reply. She could feel his hands on her shoulders and even though it was a casual position, she didn't like the way it felt.

After a few more minutes, the captain gently pushed her to the side and took charge of the wheel. Lorraine frowned; why did he have to take over already? Well, it was his ship, but still…it was such fun being the 'captain' for a bit.

She stayed for a bit longer and then left to go back to her cabin as the evening wore on. Lorraine knew her way around quite well by now, and had no trouble finding her room at all. She opened the wooden door and went in; it was dark, so she found a match in one of the drawers and lit some of the candles around the room.

Lorraine laid down on the bed and leant on her side, propped up on her elbow. She traced the patterns on the sheets with her other hand, then got up to go to the mirror and noticed a little box containing a black power rather like soot, but thicker and more creamier. It was smudgy, as she soon noticed when she poked a finger into it. She glanced back up to the mirror and then stepped up close to it before smudging some of the black kohl onto her eyelid, just above the roots of her eyelashes, and then a bit just underneath her lower lashes. Lorraine observed her reflection and soon decided that she didn't like it. The black lining around her eyes made her look like one of those tavern-girls – a look she definitely didn't want. Sarah Tillcot and Jane Kinswell, two girls that lived a couple houses away from Lorraine, always wore eyeliner to impress the older boys on the main street – they were always flirting. Lorraine never wanted to be like them. But then again, they were really pretty; they had perfect, glowing skin and perfect, straight hair that shone in the light. They had bright, blue eyes that sparkled and great, healthy, full figures, not scrawny like Lorraine.

Her gaze had wandered to the table, and she though she saw something move out of the corner of her eyes. She glanced back up at the mirror and saw Sparrow leaning against the doorframe, his arms folded, the corners of his mouth turning upwards as a smile crept onto his face.

"Ye trying to steal the Captain Jack Sparrow charm?" he smirked as Lorraine quickly turned away, blushing furiously. "What? I think you look pretty."

Lorraine scoffed. "Not with this on…" she murmured, desperately trying to rub the kohl off.

"You're goin' to need water for that, darlin'. Come on, I've got some in my room." He took her hand and pulled her out of the cabin as she tried to hide her face with her other hand.

Sparrow took her to his cabin and when the arrived, he waved a hand to the bed and Lorraine sat down on the sheets as he opened a door into a smaller room attached to his own. Within a few moments he came back with a small bucket half-full with water and a small piece of cloth. He grabbed her chin to make her face him properly, and she reddened with embarrassment; she must've looked a right fool. Sparrow dampened the cloth with the water and then slowly rubbed the thick, black powder from Lorraine's eyes. Her eyes darted this way and that: first she looked up, then down, then side to side, just anywhere away from the captain's face because she was sure that if she looked at him, her cheeks would go bright red.

"There, all gone. Although, I do think it suited you…" Lorraine remained silent. If that was the type of look he liked, then he'd definitely like to get to know Sarah and Jane. It was a shame, Lorraine was beginning to think him quite the decent gentlemen.

He patted her hair which was dry with the salt from the sea spray and lightly pulled at her long, loose curls. "You really should have a bath soon, love. I've got enough water up 'ere for you to use…" Lorraine bit her lip. Could she trust him to allow her some privacy? But she did feel pretty grimy and sweaty with the heat from the past few days, maybe if she asked him politely.

"Alright then, but only if you don't come into the other room." She said sternly. He winked at her and she responded by glaring at him, to which he nodded.

"Ye should wash ye hair too...you can get changed in there. There's some linen that you can wrap around yourself in that room. Tell me when you're done changin' an' I'll help you with yer hair." He motioned her over to the small room he had been in earlier to fetch the water. She went in and closed the door, finding a chair and pushing it up against it, just in case he tried to sneak a peek. Lorraine quickly pulled off her dress and stared at it, upset with the filthy state it was in now. It had looked so beautiful when she got it on her birthday.

She tied the long blanket of linen around herself, feeling a bit nervous. Lorraine called to Sparrow to say she was ready and she pulled the chair away to allow the captain to come in. Lorraine stood oddly, and she kept shifting from one foot to the other whilst staring at the floor, beginning to blush again. She felt rather self-conscious, showing her bare shoulders in front of the captain.

He simply stood and stared at her. She was so fragile, so delicate, so beautiful. Her dark hair hung over her face and past her smooth, pale shoulders, and the linen material outlined her small waist and the faint curves of her hips.

After a few speechless moments, he motioned her over to a chair tucked underneath a table. He pulled it out for her and turned it around so that the back was against it before placing the bucket on the end of the table. Lorraine sat down and Sparrow gently pulled her hair back so that it hang behind her shoulders. He found a piece of soap and she leant her head back as her dipped the lengths of her hair into the cold water. He rubbed his hands with the soap and then patted it into her hair, massaging it into the roots and the ends.

Now this was odd. This was a maid's job, not for the men to do. Why did he want to wash her hair in the first place? She could have done it perfectly well by herself. His hands were so gentle though, even the maids at home pulled and tugged when they tried not to hurt Lorraine's scalp. She relaxed and could almost feel the heavy weight of the unclean matter that had collected in her hair wash away in the soapy water.

The captain pulled her hair out of the water and twisted it, letting the water drip out before dipping it in again to rinse it.

"There you go, love." He said as Lorraine held her head back up and ran her fingers through her wet hair.

"Thank you." She replied politely as she stood up. Her hair was a very dark brown, almost black, colour because it was wet, and it hung down to her waist because the weight of the water pulled the loose curls straight.

"You can go get the rest o' yerself washed now. I'll take ye back to your cabin when you're done." He left the small bathroom and closed the door behind him.

Lorraine quickly wiped her arms, legs, stomach and back with a wet sponge which she had dipped into the soapy water and then dried herself with the linen, which she wrapped around herself again. She couldn't put the dress back on, not now when it was so dirty, so she bundled it up and scrubbed it with the sponge in the bucket of water.

When she was satisfied that she wouldn't be able to get it any cleaner in these conditions, she squeezed out as much water as she could, waved it around a bit to air it and then folded it up so that she could carry it out. Lorraine opened the door into the captain's cabin and he immediately got up and led her back to her cabin without saying a single word, yet watching her every small movement eagerly.