AN (9/14)-Well, Erica likes to be oblivious. Completely forgot to put into the last chapter that Jack's eye was still black. But that's okay. I really don't want to go back and fix it, seeing as I'm lazy...
Chapter 11: Felines
A wrinkled piece of greenish paper lay exactly in the middle of Jack's desk. There was nothing else on top of the oak piece of furniture, and it was exactly in the middle. Jack's head was slumped on the side of the table, trying to get a different perspective of the paper. He'd tried turning the map upside down, folding it in various ways, and even put it to steam; but nothing of the gibberish in English letters made any sense. And it was very frustrating. Especially because Matthew and Barbossa kept ask how it was going. Not that Jack really wanted to admit where the map said the gold was. He'd heard tales of how dangerous that could be, especially for captains with new crews. It wasn't that he didn't trust Barbossa and Matthew, it was just that he was uneasy. Besides-it was hard enough for him to see the pattern without them breathing down his neck.
Jack sighed for probably the thousandth time today, reaching over with one of his hands and slowly tilting the greenish paper to the left side. His chin was starting to hurt-the beads in his beard were rather uncomfortable to rest against. He really wanted to give up, but didn't want to face all of the hype from Barbossa, Matthew, and probably even Bootstrap. Plus, he'd be agonizing over how close he'd come. Holding the tilted parchment, Jack let his vision blur. Sometimes that helped him find patterns.
As Jack blearily glanced at the tilted paper, he suddenly saw the letter R as plain as day. Well, maybe it wasn't as plain as day-it was turned backwards. Trying to not get too excited, Jack continued his look over the paper again. Soon more letters became apparent. Some were backwards, others were upside down. Grabbing a sheet of paper from a drawer inside his desk, Jack quickly wrote down the letters in the order that made the most sense. When he'd finished, he let his eyes focus again so he could read what he wrote. The parchment underneath his arm read-"Rebekah, Portobello, 1367."
Apparently it was some sort of address to a woman named Rebekah. Jack frowned slightly-what if this treasure map had nothing to do with treasure at all? What if this Rebekah was considered by Butler to be worth money? Then again, this Rebekah character might be able to make sense of the gibberish. Or, perhaps she had the real copy of the map. Raising his head slightly, Jack picked up his bit of parchment and ripped it up into small shreds. He didn't want his crew to know why they would go to Portobello. He'd make it seem like he'd given up and they were just going to pillage around there. Didn't want their hopes for a whole bunch of swag dashed to pieces if it turned out Rebekah didn't know anything and wasn't even alive anymore.
Jack took the pieces of paper and stepped out of his cabin, walking with his curious step towards the railings of the Black Pearl and letting the papers fly freely down towards the water. He was breathing oddly as he watched the bits of paper swirl around. He'd finally caved in and had sought out medical attention after Simbakka, Nipperkin, and Koehler had cracked a few of his ribs. Now he was wearing a tight binding over his torso. His black eye was nearly gone, though, and Jack was glad for that. It was very painful to put kohl on a swollen eye. Not to mention the fact that his new crew members thought he was rather violent or something.
Once the last bit of paper hit the blue-green sea, Jack pivoted around on his left foot, heading towards the gangplank leading down to the docks. He had a crew of miscreants to round up. Couldn't sail very well by himself, especially not with his cracked ribs.
The journey to Portobello took about seven days because of favorable winds and Jack's new crew who wanted to impress their captain so they worked much harder than they'd be working in a few weeks time. The weather was starting to turn sour, almost like milk that's been warm for too long. Winds whipped Jack's hair into his face as he guided the Pearl towards the docks of Portobello. Barbossa was busy barking out orders for the crew to lash the sails down-the immense thunderclouds headed their way didn't look particularly inviting. Then again, it was the Caribbean, and every year the monsoons came and left their marks on both land and sea.
Before Jack really realized it (for he was wondering exactly what the numbers on the map had meant), the Pearl gently sailed into the harbor, floating amicably next to the docks after the anchor had been released with a splash into the sea. Jack took a moment to tell his crew all about what they'd be doing tomorrow-which included a rather risky raid on the governor's household, but that they could enjoy themselves tonight. After that rather fragmented advice of sorts, Jack left the Pearl, wondering where to start looking for this Rebekah. Just a house number really wasn't that helpful, and Jack realized just how many homes there were in Portobello as he started walking up and down all of the streets. It really amazed him how different everyone's social status could be in the same town. There were mansions up on the hill, frowning down upon the rest of the town. Some were bigger than a few cathedrals Jack had seen in England a few years ago. Some were so full of expensive stuff on their massive lawns that it seemed rather obscene. Just a few blocks away, homes were about the size of longboats with leaky roofs. They were made of simple wood, rather than bricks and marble, in some cases. Disgusting.
It really was boring walking all throughout the town. Not to mention rather embarrassing. Not for Jack, of course, but other people. Like a woman who happened to be partially nude in a home near a window saw Jack looking at her. She blushed a delicate shade of red everywhere. Not that Jack even noticed-he was glancing at the number next to her head. He grinned, and the woman blushed an even darker shade of red, hastily closing the curtains. That wasn't why Jack had grinned, though. The number on the house was 1365. That meant that the home next door was where he was supposed to go. Too bad the map had failed to mention that the house would be on Hope Street.
Still grinning, Jack seemed to walk with a greater bounce in his unique stride as he walked next door. In front of him was a respectable house-the lawn was very orderly, the flowers in bloom. The house itself seemed too cheerful for this particular neighborhood-it was painted an ecstatic yellow, and Jack got the distinct impression to throw up as he knocked on the rounded door. On top of the white door, the numbers 1367 were displayed in what appeared to be actual gold with some sort of flowery font. Despicable and very un-pirate like. As the door opened, Jack made his face emotionless so that he wouldn't betray his purpose for coming here. At least not yet.
In the doorway stood a fairly rotund woman with rosy cheeks as big as a small pumpkin. She seemed fairly tall-probably only one or two inches shorter than Jack, but probably weighed twice as much as he did, if not more. It was scary how well she filled up the doorway. Jack doubted he'd be able to force his way in if she stood there. "Yes?" her uncharacteristically deep voice with false pleasure asked. If Jack didn't know any better, he'd think the woman in front of him was a man based off her voice. The numerous hairy moles didn't help much. The only thing that tended to indicate she was a she and not a he was her dress and bosom. Men didn't generally wear dresses, nor wear make-up to hide blemishes.
Jack coughed uncomfortably. "I'm lookin' fer Rebekah, milady. Is she around?" He felt vaguely uncomfortable as she stared him up and down with a twinkle of excitement in her eyes and a suggestive grin on her face.
The woman nodded, batting her eyelashes as though she had something in her cavernous gray eyes. "I'll go get her, sir," she intoned with her deep voice, stepping back. "Would you like to come in?"
Jack really wanted to say that he didn't...but he needed to see this Rebekah. Hopefully she wouldn't look anything like this hairy woman that could be mistaken as a man. It didn't help that she had a few wrinkles on her face, and as she smiled, Jack really wanted to glance away and try not to let his lunch loose all over his shoes. "Aye," he replied, hoping his voice sounded sincere. Apparently it was close enough to being sincere, for the woman motioned him inside the home. Jack stepped up, frowning slightly at the woman's decorating taste. It was so cute, it was disgusting. Figurines of porcelain cats were everywhere, as were some of the largest cats Jack had ever seen. Two of them were sitting on the pink love seat. Well, it wasn't exactly pink. Jack was fairly sure that at one time it had been pink, but the black and white fur of the gigantic cats made it sort of a dusky rose.
"Have a seat, sir," the woman said, pointing towards the hairy chair next to the one the piles of fur with noses were occupying. "I'll be back in a moment." She took a few lumbering steps towards a staircase, shaking the whole house as she placed each barefoot down on the ground.
Jack stared at the seat with apprehension, but did as the woman asked, trying to ignore the hairs that flew up as he sat down. Both the cats eyed him warily, their green eyes clearly showing that he was not welcome here. Jack grinned apologetically, though he didn't know why, and the cats went back to their napping. Sighing, Jack waited for the woman to drag herself to the top of the stairs, trying to ignore the pungent smell of animal feces in the air. The room, for all of its cute figures, was incredibly filthy. Cat hair covered everything, and Jack was fairly sure one of the corners was full of discarded food. How people could stand living like this was beyond Jack, for he'd always been rather neat at home as a child.
Jack could hear a door open and the woman's deep voice as she talked to the girl named Rebekah. He sighed to himself, nearly jumping out of the seat as another cat jumped onto his lap and started purring. This one was fairly thin, with a whole smattering of colors gracing its mostly brown fur. Jack didn't exactly like cats, but as this one rubbed its head along his hand, he noticed the odd tan markings around its eyes. Almost looked like it was wearing some feline version of kohl. Jack smiled and pet the animal, feeling some sort of odd attachment to it as he heard the woman and someone much lighter clambering down the stairs.
As they reached the bottom step of the creaking staircase, Jack turned slightly to try and get a look at Rebekah. Though it really didn't matter what she looked like, Jack hoped she was at least fairly attractive. If she was anything like the woman who'd opened the door, Jack didn't think he'd be able to say anything more than hello to her. Unfortunately, the top of the chair was in his way and all he could see was the disgustingly low-cut peach dress the woman was wearing. Sighing slightly, Jack turned his attention back to the brown cat vibrating on his lap. Its hair was currently tickling his fingers as it stretched across his lap, kneading very sharp claws into his legs.
The woman shooed the two large black and white cats off the couch, sitting down with a resounding thud as she glanced at Jack. "What do you want?" she asked, motioning for Rebekah to sit down next to her.
Jack really didn't know what to answer. He hadn't expected to find the house, let alone someone named Rebekah living inside. He was about to make some sort of answer when Rebekah did as the woman motioned. She was a vision of beauty in this house, willowy (at least in comparison to the woman) and graceful. She floated down onto the chair, glancing at Jack with plainly visible curiosity in her brown eyes as she pushed a strand of winsome blonde hair behind one of her ears.
As both the woman and Rebekah stared at him, Jack somehow managed to find his voice as the cat dug its claws into his leg again. "Well," he started, wondering why he was here again. That's when he remembered he had the green map in his pocket. "I know tha' this is goin' t' sound incredibly odd, bu' I found a map wiv Rebekah's name on it an' this address." The cat hissed slightly as Jack shifted around in his seat, reaching for the map in his pocket. Once he'd found it, he pulled it out and showed it to both the woman and Rebekah.
The woman shook her head, clearly confused, but Rebekah sharply took a breath of disbelief. "Where did you get that?" she asked, her voice sounding correct for her generous curves. She glanced furtively at Jack and then back down at the map.
"One of me mates found it an' gave it t' me," Jack replied. "Do ye know anythin' abou' it?" This was a good reaction indeed-perhaps he would be able to get the map solved after all. Now that he'd gotten used to Rebekah, she really wasn't all that beautiful. In comparison to the woman sitting next to her that was bending the couch under her weight, she was a goddess.
Rebekah nodded, glancing at the woman next to her. "Mum, can I have a few words alone with this gentleman?" she asked softly, clearly not wanting to discuss the map in front of the biggest gossip in Portobello. "I promise that it will only take about ten minutes."
The woman frowned, clearly not liking that proposal. The look Jack had given her daughter was very disturbing, and she didn't seem to think it was hypocritical that she'd surveyed him in the same manner when first opening the door. "Rebekah, you don't even know his name," she reminded her, glancing over at Jack with a look of disgust.
Jack interjected, "The name is Captain Jack Sparrow, milady. I jus' want a quick word wiv Rebekah. Tha's all." The cat on his lap resumed its purring, kneading into his legs again as he absent-mindedly started stroking it again. Little hairs were flying around the chair, attaching themselves to both Jack's clothes and the chair.
The woman sighed and slowly stood. "Well, Captain Sparrow, if you so much as touch my daughter, I'll give you a whipping like you've never had before." With that, she slowly lumbered out of the room, nearly knocking down a dusty cupboard filled with those cat figurines. When she'd left, the white cat with a big black spot jumped onto the couch where she'd just been.
Jack had to struggle to keep from chuckling as he sneezed. Blasted cat hairs really tickle your nose, especially if you haven't been around animals for such a long time. The brown cat on his lap tensed as Jack prepared to sneeze, catapulting itself off when Jack expelled air with the force of a hurricane. Jack winced, glaring at where the cat had been. Stupid animal had used its claws to get an added boost of speed.
"Captain Sparrow," Rebekah started, standing up rather unexpectedly and grabbing the map. "This belonged to my grandfather, Captain Nathaniel Butler. Before I explain how to read it, you have to promise me one thing."
"And tha' would be?" Jack asked as Rebekah paused. He started rubbing at his legs, trying to get the massive amounts of fur the cat had left there off.
"You have to take me with you," Rebekah replied.
Laura: My action packed ones are better, aren't they? Oh wells...I try. Hope this one wasn't too boring. It is all leading up to a few action packed chapters in the future...And, yay! A crayon!
PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: I try to update at least once a week. Doesn't always happen...but I try. And if I wasn't updating anymore, I'd have something that said I'd given up or what have you. Thanks for leaving the review!
DragonHunter200: Oh, that's okay. I was just wondering if you were alright. I'm glad you enjoyed my last chapter. Hope you like this one. And I'd like to thank you for being such a faithful reviewer! I know I forget a lot...and the chappie before my last one isn't exactly how you play poker...tis something you really have to experience.
sunkist3208: Aye, your toughest critic is always yourself. Oddly enough, on the boards last night, I met someone from Rum and Tweed who didn't think she was good enough to join my board. Kinda odd...and the Titanic is spiffy! I'm jealous that you went to such a fun exhibit! I'm sorry that my last chappie was so confusing to you. And I hope you can get more free time eventually...all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.
Jack: You're welcome for the cookie. This time you get a brownie...and I'm glad you liked the tension between Jack and Bootstrap.
Daisy: Go multi-tasking! And armpits. Those are always fun to discuss. I always pull everything out of my armpit. My homework, my ideas for chapters...etc. I like armpits. And I'm glad that you shave your armpits...I was very worried for a while there. And you get a cookie if you can figure out the thing about the cats...