Disclaimer: I don't own POTC
Chapter Four: Rachel Meets Captain Jack
The Caribbean waters were freezing when night fell, a drastic change from the daytime when the water was so warm.
When Rachel and Jack reached the Pearl, there were already two lines of rope waiting for each of them to be swung up on deck. They both grabbed hold of a rope and yelled to the crew to pull them up. They flew through the air so fast that Rachel secretly thanked God that she was just able to hold on, and they landed quite ungracefully on the deck, having to be helped up by the crew.
Gibbs and Anamaria placed blankets around their shivering bodies, but the minute Jack was up he was shouting orders to the crew to make way and made his way up the to the helm to steer his beloved ship once again.
At first, Rachel was unsure what to do until Jack called to her.
"Lass! Come up 'ere a moment," Jack called, trying not to let his eyes stray too much from his work.
Rachel walked up the steps, and before she could speak, Jack did.
"Are ye Miss Rachel Finch?" he asked, finally taking a moment to look her in the eye to find that her eyes were almost the same color as his own.
"Aye, I am. How did you know?" she replied, for the first time taking in all of the oddities of Jack Sparrow: the hair jewelry, the dreadlocks, the clothes, and most noticeably his kohl-rimmed eyes, meant to keep the sun out of them.
"I 'eard someone in th' crowd back at Port Royal say yer name," he said nonchalantly, his own gaze now taking in her own character, a little bit more noticeably than she had done to him moments before.
"Oh," was the only response she could come up with, gripping the blanket tighter around her as a cool breeze blew through the air. It did not seem to be that big of a deal; she had made a pretty big name for herself in the past 12 years of her life. The thought that someone had recognized her by just looking at her was a little disconcerting and she put it in the back of her mind, disregarding it until later that night.
"'ow much did me crew offer ye?"
Before she could answer, she was once again stopped short, this time by Gibbs, who came up to join them at the helm.
"Since we haven't much plunder lately, I offer'd 'er a share in th' treasure tha' we be goin' after, Cap'n." Gibbs said a little uneasily, hoping that Jack wouldn't get angry at sharing their plunder without his consent.
"Did ye now?" Jack murmured, his gaze never leaving Rachel, which was starting to make her a little uncomfortable despite her strong outer layer.
A thought dawned on her while Gibbs told Jack about her payment: 'These are pirates I'm dealing with. If they start to see me as a threat to come between them and their plunder, they could turn on me. I need for them to trust me one hundred percent.' She thought to herself. Jack's voice broke her thoughts.
"Well, I s'pose tha' we should go an' discuss yer share o' th' treasure, eh?" Jack said, snapping out of his daze and began to secure the course of the ship. "Gibbs, 'ave th' crew finish their duties before th' night's out and send 'em off to their quarters. Miss Finch, if ye would follow me." And with that, he turned and swaggered off below deck to his cabin. Rachel followed him, in very alert. No matter if she had just saved his life, he was still a pirate and he could try anything. 'I should know,' she thought to herself.
Jack sat at his desk and she sat in a chair opposite it. It was Jack who first spoke, and rather quickly.
"I sincerely want'd t' thank ye for doin' what ye did, espec'lly on such short notice, as Will told me. I was actually very surprised tha' ye came at all, I know I wouldn' drop wha' I was doin' to go off an' save some scallywag like meself. I owe ye one," he said with a sly grin coming across his face, trying to cover up that he didn't want to come off weaker than he already looked in his mind: a woman had to save him. Him! Captain Jack Sparrow!
At his smirk, Rachel's defense quickly rose up, remembering that a grin like that could mean only one thing, and the last time she saw a grin like that she wasn't exactly willing to comply.
"Don't mention it, Captain." Rachel said shortly, and broke eye contact to look around the Captain's quarters.
It was by far the biggest room in the whole ship, Rachel didn't need to go and look at the others before making that assumption. The large windows were covered in maroon curtains, matching the blanket covering Jack's bed. There was the biggest bookcase she had ever seen in her life, filled with books, 'probably about ships and piracy,' she thought. The desk Jack was sitting behind was huge, maps, papers, and quills lying all over it. She also noticed the hefty dining table where Jack ate, a dresser, and her trunk. There were what seemed to be hundreds of candles everywhere, which she did not remember seeing lit when she was changing before. Jack noticed her observing his cabin and positively glowed with pride at his beautiful room.
"Well then," Jack said, leaning back into his chair and placed his feet on the desk, crossing them at the ankles, "I shoul' prob'ly tell ye abou' th' treasure,"
Jack went on to tell Rachel what she had already known for a long time. The treasure was the Treasure of the Mayans. The Mayans had fled to a small, deserted island called Grenada and buried all their treasure underground because they were being attacked by another tribe called the Aztecs. They knew that they had to hide their treasure from being taken by another tribe. This information was recently discovered, and some drunk released the news, so now everybody was going to try their luck to find the island that was nearly impossible to find. He explained to her that he needed to get on The Dauntless to get the map to Grenada because there were very few maps of it, and he knew that there should be a map of the island on the vessel because it was the most important ship in the Royal Navy, now that the Interceptor was destroyed. The Dauntless had an extensive library of maps and cutlasses, which was right where Jack happened to find his map.
The only thing that Rachel didn't know that Jack decided not to share with her was the fact that there was something that the Aztecs wanted from the Mayans. That little something was supposedly buried with their treasure and meant to be kept away from the Aztecs when they invaded. Jack wanted it very badly. If he obtained the priceless object, he would most definitely be the most feared pirate in the entire world.
While Jack was talking, Rachel formed a plan, 'Maybe if I say that he doesn't have to pay me for saving him, and I somehow convince him to let me travel with him to the island, he'd trust me more, seeing as how I don't want his money... but how to make him take me with him without seeming too suspicious...' Her thoughts were interrupted when Jack asked "Savvy?"
Ignoring whatever he had just said, Rachel said, "You know what Captain Sparrow? Forget about giving me part of yer treasure," she smiled at his shocked face, confused at why she was denying gold. "Treasure doesn't matter to me, and I'm well off with me earnings from previous... jobs. Besides, I'm an assassin, not a hero. Why should I be paid for doin' somethin' that doesn't fit in me job description? Think of it as a favor, and maybe someday ye can save me own life," she half-joked, but figured that she would probably need that kind of assistance some day.
Jack sat there unmoving, not expecting her to turn down an offer to be paid. He blinked owlishly. At first he found that strange, but he shrugged it off, thinking nothing else of it.
"Well... alrigh' then," he agreed, not letting her take the chance to change her mind, "Let us give ye safe voyage home, an' for th' night ye can stay in me quarters... by yer onesies," he added quickly at the slightly suspicious look crossing her face, "as a thank ye for saving me neck."
"No, no I won't do that; tis not a problem at all. I'll just sleep with the crew; it's only for one night. If ye could just help me with me trunk, I'd be much obliged." She tried to smile innocently at him, grasping in her mind for any reason to try to get him to offer to help with the treasure hunting; the past 12 years of her life had been devoted for this once in a lifetime chance, and she needed to grab it.
Jack nodded and carried her trunk to the crew's quarters, where they all were still awake, either drinking or playing cards. He set down her trunk under the hammock nearest the door and turned to face her.
"Ye know, if it's company ye be wantin' to persuade ye to sleep in me quarters, it can be arranged," Jack said lowly, trying to entice her. 'I'm a pirate, I ca'n help it!' he thought, "and then I'll also 'ave repaid ye for savin' me."
"No, I don't think so Captain," she said, not missing a beat, and leaned closer to him, their faces close to touching. She locked eyes with him and slowly let her gaze drop to his lips, then back up again to his eyes. Using the same tone Jack had, she said, "Maybe some other time." 'Maybe if he thinks he'll be gettin' somethin' outta me, he'll ask me to sail with him.' And with that, she turned around to her trunk and got out a blanket to sleep with. She was lying down just as Jack was leaving, with a surprised look on his face. He had not at all expected her to say something like that; she had appeared so innocent! 'Let's remember tha' she 'as killed possibly 'undreds of men, looks can be decievin',' he thought as he bid the crew and Rachel good night and left for his quarters.
As Jack lay in his bed, he tossed and turned without sleep. He kept thinking about Rachel and how strange she had turned out to be. When she was saving him, she was a ruthless assassin, ready to kill any man who got in her way. But when she was in his cabin earlier, she had come off as such an innocent woman. What had made things stranger was that she had turned down his offer to pay her for rescuing him. Her pretty face kept haunting his thoughts. He couldn't stand it anymore, he had to go look at her one last time, and then he'd go back to sleep.
Jack got up quietly, walking slowly down the hall that was lighted during the night. He opened the door to the crew's quarters and stood in the doorway, moving slightly to the left so that the light from the hall streamed in to the room where he would be able to see her.
Rachel's blanket was only covering the lower half of her body now, and he could tell that at some point she had changed into sleeping clothes, but not a lady's sleeping clothes. She was still wearing trousers, but they were looser and more comfortable, and she wore a smaller man's blouse where she had cut the sleeves off and loosened the neckline, which gave Jack a better idea of what her figure looked like. She was sleeping peacefully, her thick chestnut hair strewn around her head. The length of her hair seemed to be shorter than how ladies usually wore their hair, past or reaching the middle of their backs, like Elizabeth. But Rachel's hair seemed to only be about 1 inch past her shoulders.
Jack frowned and took a step closer, noticing something. Her shirt had risen up on her body, a result of moving around while she slept. The shirt showed a bit of her stomach, about an inch and a half from her waist. It was what he had noticed on her stomach that intrigued him. There seemed to be a scar or tattoo that was at her navel and traveled up and down her torso.
As Jack got closer, he realized that it must have been a scar because it was a pearlish color. He reached his arm out, trying to gingerly raise her shirt to see what that marking was...
Suddenly, Rachel bolted upright, grabbing his arm with a gasp. It took about 10 seconds for her to realize that Jack was hovering over her and that she was holding on to him. She released him and jumped up.
"What's wrong, love?" Jack asked, trying to avoid the topic of why he was watching her while she slept.
"I had a nightmare about what you said... if those people know who I am then they'll know where I live! I ca'n go back to La Paz! They'll be waitin' for me! Turn the ship around, get away from that town!" she ordered Jack, who obeyed only because he was grateful that she didn't say anything about why he was in the cabin.
She rushed Jack to the helm and had him steer them away from La Paz before they got too close for the navy to catch sight of them and come after them.
Once in the clear, they both relaxed, Jack relieved that he had avoided that disaster, and she happy that her plan to travel with them had worked. But there really was truth to what she claimed, she really did have a dream and she really did think that the navy would be waiting for them. She was just lucky she thought of it just in time.
"Well then, guess yer comin' with us to find th' treasure after all," Jack said with a grin, hoping that she had forgotten the incident in the cabin, and secretly happy that she was joining them. He was starting to like the demanding lass.
"I suppose so... I just want to make it clear tha' I do not want any share in it. I figure tha' th' navy will be off our track by th' time th' treasure is found," she added, "so then ye can take me home once ye found this treasure of yourn."
Jack just nodded, and Rachel remembered what he had hoped she hadn't.
"Captain Sparrow! Why were you hovering over me while I slept?" she almost yelled, a little thrown off that she had almost not remembered to inquire as to why he was watching her.
Jack winced visibly as she remembered his odd act earlier, and praying to avoid any more embarrassment, he simply said, "Jest admiring th' view while it lasts, darling."
A/N: Thanks again to all my reviewers! You guys are so amazing, thank you so much for taking time to read my story – its been forming in my mind for ages and it feels good to get it out and have people enjoy it. and remember everyone – the more reviews the better so don't be shy on just saying one or two things, it doesn't have to be lengthy I just want to know if people even care so please keep reading and reviewing! Thanks again!
Chapter Four: Rachel Meets Captain Jack
The Caribbean waters were freezing when night fell, a drastic change from the daytime when the water was so warm.
When Rachel and Jack reached the Pearl, there were already two lines of rope waiting for each of them to be swung up on deck. They both grabbed hold of a rope and yelled to the crew to pull them up. They flew through the air so fast that Rachel secretly thanked God that she was just able to hold on, and they landed quite ungracefully on the deck, having to be helped up by the crew.
Gibbs and Anamaria placed blankets around their shivering bodies, but the minute Jack was up he was shouting orders to the crew to make way and made his way up the to the helm to steer his beloved ship once again.
At first, Rachel was unsure what to do until Jack called to her.
"Lass! Come up 'ere a moment," Jack called, trying not to let his eyes stray too much from his work.
Rachel walked up the steps, and before she could speak, Jack did.
"Are ye Miss Rachel Finch?" he asked, finally taking a moment to look her in the eye to find that her eyes were almost the same color as his own.
"Aye, I am. How did you know?" she replied, for the first time taking in all of the oddities of Jack Sparrow: the hair jewelry, the dreadlocks, the clothes, and most noticeably his kohl-rimmed eyes, meant to keep the sun out of them.
"I 'eard someone in th' crowd back at Port Royal say yer name," he said nonchalantly, his own gaze now taking in her own character, a little bit more noticeably than she had done to him moments before.
"Oh," was the only response she could come up with, gripping the blanket tighter around her as a cool breeze blew through the air. It did not seem to be that big of a deal; she had made a pretty big name for herself in the past 12 years of her life. The thought that someone had recognized her by just looking at her was a little disconcerting and she put it in the back of her mind, disregarding it until later that night.
"'ow much did me crew offer ye?"
Before she could answer, she was once again stopped short, this time by Gibbs, who came up to join them at the helm.
"Since we haven't much plunder lately, I offer'd 'er a share in th' treasure tha' we be goin' after, Cap'n." Gibbs said a little uneasily, hoping that Jack wouldn't get angry at sharing their plunder without his consent.
"Did ye now?" Jack murmured, his gaze never leaving Rachel, which was starting to make her a little uncomfortable despite her strong outer layer.
A thought dawned on her while Gibbs told Jack about her payment: 'These are pirates I'm dealing with. If they start to see me as a threat to come between them and their plunder, they could turn on me. I need for them to trust me one hundred percent.' She thought to herself. Jack's voice broke her thoughts.
"Well, I s'pose tha' we should go an' discuss yer share o' th' treasure, eh?" Jack said, snapping out of his daze and began to secure the course of the ship. "Gibbs, 'ave th' crew finish their duties before th' night's out and send 'em off to their quarters. Miss Finch, if ye would follow me." And with that, he turned and swaggered off below deck to his cabin. Rachel followed him, in very alert. No matter if she had just saved his life, he was still a pirate and he could try anything. 'I should know,' she thought to herself.
Jack sat at his desk and she sat in a chair opposite it. It was Jack who first spoke, and rather quickly.
"I sincerely want'd t' thank ye for doin' what ye did, espec'lly on such short notice, as Will told me. I was actually very surprised tha' ye came at all, I know I wouldn' drop wha' I was doin' to go off an' save some scallywag like meself. I owe ye one," he said with a sly grin coming across his face, trying to cover up that he didn't want to come off weaker than he already looked in his mind: a woman had to save him. Him! Captain Jack Sparrow!
At his smirk, Rachel's defense quickly rose up, remembering that a grin like that could mean only one thing, and the last time she saw a grin like that she wasn't exactly willing to comply.
"Don't mention it, Captain." Rachel said shortly, and broke eye contact to look around the Captain's quarters.
It was by far the biggest room in the whole ship, Rachel didn't need to go and look at the others before making that assumption. The large windows were covered in maroon curtains, matching the blanket covering Jack's bed. There was the biggest bookcase she had ever seen in her life, filled with books, 'probably about ships and piracy,' she thought. The desk Jack was sitting behind was huge, maps, papers, and quills lying all over it. She also noticed the hefty dining table where Jack ate, a dresser, and her trunk. There were what seemed to be hundreds of candles everywhere, which she did not remember seeing lit when she was changing before. Jack noticed her observing his cabin and positively glowed with pride at his beautiful room.
"Well then," Jack said, leaning back into his chair and placed his feet on the desk, crossing them at the ankles, "I shoul' prob'ly tell ye abou' th' treasure,"
Jack went on to tell Rachel what she had already known for a long time. The treasure was the Treasure of the Mayans. The Mayans had fled to a small, deserted island called Grenada and buried all their treasure underground because they were being attacked by another tribe called the Aztecs. They knew that they had to hide their treasure from being taken by another tribe. This information was recently discovered, and some drunk released the news, so now everybody was going to try their luck to find the island that was nearly impossible to find. He explained to her that he needed to get on The Dauntless to get the map to Grenada because there were very few maps of it, and he knew that there should be a map of the island on the vessel because it was the most important ship in the Royal Navy, now that the Interceptor was destroyed. The Dauntless had an extensive library of maps and cutlasses, which was right where Jack happened to find his map.
The only thing that Rachel didn't know that Jack decided not to share with her was the fact that there was something that the Aztecs wanted from the Mayans. That little something was supposedly buried with their treasure and meant to be kept away from the Aztecs when they invaded. Jack wanted it very badly. If he obtained the priceless object, he would most definitely be the most feared pirate in the entire world.
While Jack was talking, Rachel formed a plan, 'Maybe if I say that he doesn't have to pay me for saving him, and I somehow convince him to let me travel with him to the island, he'd trust me more, seeing as how I don't want his money... but how to make him take me with him without seeming too suspicious...' Her thoughts were interrupted when Jack asked "Savvy?"
Ignoring whatever he had just said, Rachel said, "You know what Captain Sparrow? Forget about giving me part of yer treasure," she smiled at his shocked face, confused at why she was denying gold. "Treasure doesn't matter to me, and I'm well off with me earnings from previous... jobs. Besides, I'm an assassin, not a hero. Why should I be paid for doin' somethin' that doesn't fit in me job description? Think of it as a favor, and maybe someday ye can save me own life," she half-joked, but figured that she would probably need that kind of assistance some day.
Jack sat there unmoving, not expecting her to turn down an offer to be paid. He blinked owlishly. At first he found that strange, but he shrugged it off, thinking nothing else of it.
"Well... alrigh' then," he agreed, not letting her take the chance to change her mind, "Let us give ye safe voyage home, an' for th' night ye can stay in me quarters... by yer onesies," he added quickly at the slightly suspicious look crossing her face, "as a thank ye for saving me neck."
"No, no I won't do that; tis not a problem at all. I'll just sleep with the crew; it's only for one night. If ye could just help me with me trunk, I'd be much obliged." She tried to smile innocently at him, grasping in her mind for any reason to try to get him to offer to help with the treasure hunting; the past 12 years of her life had been devoted for this once in a lifetime chance, and she needed to grab it.
Jack nodded and carried her trunk to the crew's quarters, where they all were still awake, either drinking or playing cards. He set down her trunk under the hammock nearest the door and turned to face her.
"Ye know, if it's company ye be wantin' to persuade ye to sleep in me quarters, it can be arranged," Jack said lowly, trying to entice her. 'I'm a pirate, I ca'n help it!' he thought, "and then I'll also 'ave repaid ye for savin' me."
"No, I don't think so Captain," she said, not missing a beat, and leaned closer to him, their faces close to touching. She locked eyes with him and slowly let her gaze drop to his lips, then back up again to his eyes. Using the same tone Jack had, she said, "Maybe some other time." 'Maybe if he thinks he'll be gettin' somethin' outta me, he'll ask me to sail with him.' And with that, she turned around to her trunk and got out a blanket to sleep with. She was lying down just as Jack was leaving, with a surprised look on his face. He had not at all expected her to say something like that; she had appeared so innocent! 'Let's remember tha' she 'as killed possibly 'undreds of men, looks can be decievin',' he thought as he bid the crew and Rachel good night and left for his quarters.
As Jack lay in his bed, he tossed and turned without sleep. He kept thinking about Rachel and how strange she had turned out to be. When she was saving him, she was a ruthless assassin, ready to kill any man who got in her way. But when she was in his cabin earlier, she had come off as such an innocent woman. What had made things stranger was that she had turned down his offer to pay her for rescuing him. Her pretty face kept haunting his thoughts. He couldn't stand it anymore, he had to go look at her one last time, and then he'd go back to sleep.
Jack got up quietly, walking slowly down the hall that was lighted during the night. He opened the door to the crew's quarters and stood in the doorway, moving slightly to the left so that the light from the hall streamed in to the room where he would be able to see her.
Rachel's blanket was only covering the lower half of her body now, and he could tell that at some point she had changed into sleeping clothes, but not a lady's sleeping clothes. She was still wearing trousers, but they were looser and more comfortable, and she wore a smaller man's blouse where she had cut the sleeves off and loosened the neckline, which gave Jack a better idea of what her figure looked like. She was sleeping peacefully, her thick chestnut hair strewn around her head. The length of her hair seemed to be shorter than how ladies usually wore their hair, past or reaching the middle of their backs, like Elizabeth. But Rachel's hair seemed to only be about 1 inch past her shoulders.
Jack frowned and took a step closer, noticing something. Her shirt had risen up on her body, a result of moving around while she slept. The shirt showed a bit of her stomach, about an inch and a half from her waist. It was what he had noticed on her stomach that intrigued him. There seemed to be a scar or tattoo that was at her navel and traveled up and down her torso.
As Jack got closer, he realized that it must have been a scar because it was a pearlish color. He reached his arm out, trying to gingerly raise her shirt to see what that marking was...
Suddenly, Rachel bolted upright, grabbing his arm with a gasp. It took about 10 seconds for her to realize that Jack was hovering over her and that she was holding on to him. She released him and jumped up.
"What's wrong, love?" Jack asked, trying to avoid the topic of why he was watching her while she slept.
"I had a nightmare about what you said... if those people know who I am then they'll know where I live! I ca'n go back to La Paz! They'll be waitin' for me! Turn the ship around, get away from that town!" she ordered Jack, who obeyed only because he was grateful that she didn't say anything about why he was in the cabin.
She rushed Jack to the helm and had him steer them away from La Paz before they got too close for the navy to catch sight of them and come after them.
Once in the clear, they both relaxed, Jack relieved that he had avoided that disaster, and she happy that her plan to travel with them had worked. But there really was truth to what she claimed, she really did have a dream and she really did think that the navy would be waiting for them. She was just lucky she thought of it just in time.
"Well then, guess yer comin' with us to find th' treasure after all," Jack said with a grin, hoping that she had forgotten the incident in the cabin, and secretly happy that she was joining them. He was starting to like the demanding lass.
"I suppose so... I just want to make it clear tha' I do not want any share in it. I figure tha' th' navy will be off our track by th' time th' treasure is found," she added, "so then ye can take me home once ye found this treasure of yourn."
Jack just nodded, and Rachel remembered what he had hoped she hadn't.
"Captain Sparrow! Why were you hovering over me while I slept?" she almost yelled, a little thrown off that she had almost not remembered to inquire as to why he was watching her.
Jack winced visibly as she remembered his odd act earlier, and praying to avoid any more embarrassment, he simply said, "Jest admiring th' view while it lasts, darling."
A/N: Thanks again to all my reviewers! You guys are so amazing, thank you so much for taking time to read my story – its been forming in my mind for ages and it feels good to get it out and have people enjoy it. and remember everyone – the more reviews the better so don't be shy on just saying one or two things, it doesn't have to be lengthy I just want to know if people even care so please keep reading and reviewing! Thanks again!