AN (9/18): Woah. I actually had a cliffhanger ending (although it wasn't too cliffhanger-y). Are you proud of me? And to explain the whole cat thing from the last chapter...well, they're based off my families' kitties. The brown one (and mine) is named Simba, and she really does look like she has tan kohl around her eyes. The black one is Wicket, the white one with the black spot is Patches. There's a reason why I'm catgirlutah.
Chapter 12: Eight
"Take you with me?" Jack repeated, frowning instantly. Not a good idea. "Rebekah, luv, ye really don' wan' t' come aboard me ship. I'm afraid me men would...well, ye know."
Rebekah frowned, indignation shining in her brown eyes. "Captain, I can't help you unless you take me with you," she insisted. "And I refuse to decipher this map." She folded her fairly thin arms across her chest, her left hand picking mindlessly at her sapphire blue dress. She seemed slightly nervous, though her voice tended to indicate otherwise.
Jack frowned and slightly rolled his eyes. He had no choice but to bring her along now. But he didn't think his crew would approve. And they probably would try to take advantage of her. "No," he stubbornly replied. "Too risky. I don' wan' yer mum t' get mad a' me." He really didn't want that elephant of a woman mad at him-she could probably kill him by sitting on his lap like many strumpets enjoyed doing. In the next room, he could hear her mother's heavy breathing, and it was really making him uncomfortable.
"Captain Sparrow, I'm the only one who will be able to show you to my grandfather's treasure," Rebekah insisted. Her voice was full of pleading, and Jack realized she probably didn't like her mother either.
Jack shook his head faintly, but said, "Very well," in a quiet voice. Loudly, he said, "No, Rebekah. I'll jus' 'ave t' forget abou' this whole idea." The breathing in the other room stopped for a moment, and Jack was fairly sure that her mother was waiting for Rebekah's response. Either that, or the pig had died suddenly and without any noise. Jack frowned as the brown cat jumped onto his lap again, resuming its purring as though it hadn't been disrupted in any way.
Rebekah pouted for a moment, gradually catching onto what he was doing. "Very well, Captain Sparrow. I'd like the map, to remind me of my grandfather." As Jack noisily handed her the green sheet, she smiled and lowered her voice to just above a whisper. "I'll be up at the top of the street at eight."
Jack nodded, wondering exactly what she meant by the top of the street. "I'm sorry tha' it couldn' work out, Rebekah. It is jus' too dangerous for a woman t' be aboard a ship." He stood up noisily (after brushing the cat off his lap) as the breathing in the other room intensified. "G'day, Rebekah." He put his hand out, winking slightly to show he'd heard what she'd said.
"Good day, Captain Sparrow," Rebekah replied, standing as well. She took his hand and firmly shook it, a faint blush creeping to her cheeks.
Jack sighed inwardly to himself-it seemed that the key to getting the treasure had a bit of a crush on him. Oh well, he could exploit that to his advantage. Rebekah's obese mother entered the room and nodded towards Jack, a hooded look in her deep gray eyes that told him to get out of the house as fast as his legs would carry him. He did just that after bowing graciously towards the behemoth, quickly retreating to the white door and stepping outside.
Once outside, Jack breathed in deeply, smiling as the fresh air entered his lungs and expelled the rather rancid air out. He started brushing at the brown fur now covering his lap. Jack couldn't understand why people would keep animals that shed so badly and smelled up the house. They just didn't seem worth it. Then again, Jack didn't understand how people could stand living in one town their whole life. Whistling an old sailing tune, Jack decided to meander around Portobello some more until it was eight. It was only a few hours away, after all, and it wasn't like he'd get into any sort of trouble with the locals.
As eight o' clock loomed ever nearer, Jack was getting quite anxious. What if Rebekah's mother saw her sneaking out? What if Rebekah was just pulling his leg and really wouldn't help him find the treasure? What if the treasure wasn't really anything important? It could be some sort of wild goose chase Rebekah's grandfather decided to put people on. What if Rebekah refused to help him when she learned he was a pirate? Sighing, Jack continued walking aimlessly down the street, though he'd turn every once in a while and walk back the way he came. He wanted to keep the disgustingly cheerful house in his sight so that he'd know when Rebekah left her home.
The neighbors around Rebekah's house seemed not to notice him pacing, and Jack wondered if such a thing were common place. Perhaps Rebekah snuck out of the house all of the time to meet gentlemen callers. Or maybe this neighborhood was just very uncurious about the going-ons of their neighbors. Jack doubted that. One of the major flaws in human nature was curiosity in matters that didn't pertain to them. Perhaps there was just something going on that involved most of the town. Sighing, Jack stood next to a brick building a few houses down from Rebekah's, leaning against the bricks in a manner that suggested he was bored. He sighed again and decided to wait right here.
Jack glanced sideways at the dusty red bricks as he waited for eight o' clock. There seemed to be one brick that hadn't been put in properly-it was sitting straight out, almost daring Jack to try and correct its perpendicular position. Jack frowned at the brick that was out of place, turning his dark brown eyes back towards the ugly house. He shouldn't fix someone else's mistake. Yet as the minutes slowly faded away, Jack couldn't help but keep looking back at the incorrectly placed brick. The stupid thing needed to be fixed, or Jack knew it would drive him insane. With a heavy sigh in the silent air, Jack walked over to where the brick was, slowly pushing it back in. Surprisingly, it moved with ease and soon matched all of the bricks around it. Wiping his dusty hands with pleasure, Jack surveyed the work he'd done. Perhaps he should've been a brick mason. Not that he'd really done anything that a brick mason does, for the brick slowly popped back out of place. That wasn't what caught Jack's attention, however.
A deep rumbling in the wall made Jack's ears prick up and his head turn to the left. For a brief second, Jack thought he was hallucinating as a door miraculously appeared. He frowned slightly as the door swung inward to reveal a small room with lots of cobwebs and a staircase leading down. Should he go in? Glancing up at the sun, Jack decided he should. It was only about five, after all. Still plenty of time to go explore some creepy secret passageway that really shouldn't be explored. Judging by the cobwebs, however, Jack reasoned that the passageway hadn't been used for a long time and it didn't matter if he did go exploring. Probably wouldn't find anything.
As Jack stepped inside, he was faintly aware that he was being hypocritical. He disliked people's curiosity towards things that didn't matter to them, yet here he was going to snoop through other people's property to fulfill some sort of desire he had to find out what was going on. The average person didn't have secret passageways into their home from the street. When Jack started walking down the first step, the door abruptly shut itself and it was dark. He couldn't see a thing. "Smooth move," he commented to himself, "Coming in'o a secret room wivout a torch." Sighing, he put his hands on the sticky walls and started walking down the winding staircase, trying not to be creeped out as all manner of insects and arachnids climbed over his hands as he walked.
The wall stopped turning, and a small window near the end of the corridor let in some light. It diffused into the whole room, making everything somehow look bathed in blue light. Faint outlines of a few tables and mirrors could be seen in the rather small hallway. It was probably only wide enough for one woman with her massive skirts to walk down. Frowning slightly, Jack stepped further into the corridor. There appeared to be a door at the end of the hallway, and underneath said door, there was a faint dancing orange light underneath. It probably meant there was someone inside the room with a fire of some sort. Jack cautiously pulled out his pistol as he neared the door and the small window. It was much better to be safe than sorry. As he reached for the doorknob, Jack glanced up at the window, wondering how in the world it could bathe everything in a blue light. His question was answered when he saw the colored glass. It was made out of several different shades of blue glass, almost looking like the sea. Rather, how the sea would look in a stained glass window in some church somewhere.
Jack slowly twisted the doorknob to the left and pushed the door open, cocking his pistol as he stepped inside the room bathed in orange light. There was a fireplace on the opposite wall, a cheerful fire cackling over several logs. A chair in front of the fireplace cut off some of the joyous light like a dark cloud. Jack wondered if there was anyone in the chair, for the rest of the room seemed empty. Perhaps the fire had just been lit and then forgot about. He doubted that, though. Taking a few steps into the room, Jack nearly jumped when he heard an ancient voice say something.
"I've been expecting you for some time now," the voice said, coming from the general vicinity of the chair. "Sit down."
Jack obeyed almost immediately, wondering how such an old voice could be so commanding. The person sitting in the chair near the fireplace was probably mistaking him for someone else, anyway. Why did he listen?
"Jacob, we have a few things to discuss," the voice continued, apparently able to tell that Jack was sitting down.
Jack's eyes seemed to try and jump out of his eye sockets. How in the world did this man know his real name? "Who are you?" he asked with a hint of confusion, awe, and surprise.
"That doesn't matter," the voice responded. "I need to warn you about someone." His voice had an authoritative sound to it, as well as one of slight impatience.
"Who?" Jack asked warily. It was probably Barbossa. Jack had the feeling the man was up to something, though he wasn't entirely sure what that something could be. It was just too much of a coincidence that the Spanish ship had been heavily armed when Barbossa said it was an easy pick.
"I'm not allowed to say." There seemed the slightest twinge of sympathy in his gravelly voice.
"Of course no'," Jack replied bitterly. They never did get to say straight out what was going to happen. Perhaps that's because these 'mystics' or 'psychics' were just pulling people's legs. Yet, Jack wanted to believe this man. He'd known his first name. His real first name. It still creeped Jack out.
"They will be making another move this coming month, Jacob. Watch out for the rectangles that shimmer. The rain will not make everything clean, avoid it at all costs. Remember 1365. You'll need it several times throughout your journey. Avoid the bushes." The voice stopped talking and the fire abruptly went out.
A very confused Jack remained sitting in his wooden seat. That sounded like a whole bunch of gibberish to him. He shook his head a few times, wondering how the man had known his name and how the fire had disappeared. Standing slowly up and feeling his heart beat in his chest, Jack approached the chair. He glanced over the side of the massive armchair, somehow not surprised that there was nobody sitting there. Feeling like he'd just spoken to a ghost, Jack quickly left the room, running up the stairs and finding a lever to open the imaginary door again. Once back outside the building in the fresh sunlight, he clutched at his chest and breathed deeply. Even that was too weird for Jack Sparrow.Once he'd regained his normal composure, Jack glanced back over at the brick that had been standing out so prominently. To his great surprise, he realized that none of the blocks were sticking out at all. They all looked like they were securely fastened with mortar. He blinked a few times, slowly edging away from the building. He would wait somewhere else.
At 8 o' clock, Jack noticed Rebekah slink out of her home like a weasel. He followed her up the street as she paused to wait at the corner of Hope and Charity. The names of the streets in this town were blindingly Christian. And rather annoying. After Rebekah started to seem anxious about ten minutes later, he let his presence be known. "Are you ready, Rebekah?" he asked to her side.
Rebekah jumped, clearly startled. She nodded, blushing slightly. "I am ready," she pronounced indignantly, playing with the handle to her small satchel and glaring at Jack with her brown eyes. She was very good at displaying two contrasting emotions at once. "Well, then, le's go," Jack replied. "Got t' get back before me crew cause too much trouble." He smiled at her, amused when she tried not to smile back. "Le' me take tha' bag of yers, luv." He held his arm out expectantly. Rebekah frowned, though it was mostly because he'd called her luv. She did hand him the satchel, however. "Alright, Captain Sparrow, I want to know exactly what sort of ship you captain." She was fairly sure he was a pirate, but wanted to make sure. "Well, 'er name is the Black Pearl," Jack said thoughtfully, trying not to grunt. The pack was a lot heavier than he'd expected as he grasped it with both hands. "I've got abou' thirty in me crew. Mos' of them are solid hard workers. We be pirates, of course, bu' don' spread tha' around." He chuckled easily. "I see," Rebekah replied. "Well, I wasn't expecting you to be from the Navy. I suppose a buccaneer crew will be alright. But, Captain Sparrow, do you know where I'll be sleeping? I have the feeling that most of your crew will be rather lewd. Men often are at sea, and it will take a while to reach the island because of all the tacking you'll have to do." Jack hadn't put any thought at all as to where Rebekah would be staying. Of course it wouldn't be safe to but her with the general crew. Or anywhere without a lock. Jack knew a lot of his crew were about as restless as he was, but didn't act chivalrous towards women not in the profession of pleasing men. However, the only room with a lock was his own, and Jack didn't want her to stay in his cabin either. His area was very sacred, at least in his mind, and only Barbossa and Bootstrap had a key to get in other than himself. "Well, ye could bunk wiv me," he said slowly. Rebekah seemed both disgusted and intrigued by that option. Before she could finish, she slapped his left cheek. "Get your mind out of the gutter." Jack opened his mouth indignantly, rubbing at his cheek with his free hand. "I didn' deserve that. I meant ye could sleep on the bed an' I'd sleep on the floor. Tis the only room wiv a lock. I suppose if tha' still bothers ye, I could sleep down wiv me crew." It was agonizing for him to allow Rebekah into his room. Once she was out of his hair, he'd have to spend a good deal of the money from Butler's map to get the room thoroughly clean. "Sleep with the crew," she insisted. "I refuse to sleep with a man in my room. Even the captain. It won't hurt you to socialize more, anyway." Jack sighed heavily. This was going to be a very long trip, especially if she thought she could get him to do anything. "Very well. Ye can stay in me room, an' I'll sleep wiv the crew. Bu' I won' allow any more favors."Rebekah smiled, clearly sure that she would, in fact, be able to garner more favors from Captain Jack Sparrow. "Very well, Captain," she replied cheerfully, a new bounce in her step as she walked towards the docks.
Courtney- Merci! Tis been a long while since I've seen you last, poppet...what are you up to?
Alteng- I never doubted that you would! And I know. I keep running out of titles, so I pick random words from the chapter. And of course I do. They have to be on the ship at the time of the mutiny...should be interesting for ickle Jack to see them again. Poor Ragetti. He's just such a sad character, yet he manages to be so optimistic about things.
PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack- Thanks! I'm just experimenting with making things more interesting...
sunkist3208- Tis like a disease that we have or something. And 'writing buddies' are great! I need me a slinky...and I'm glad that I clarified it for you. And summer was like a break for me, or what have you. And I do have 5 AP classes. Dunno how I manage to put it all together. Thanks for leaving me another big review.
Daisy- So it is. Glad that you liked this particular cliffhanger. And why don't you get the cat thing? The black one was Wicket, the white one was Patches, and the brown one that kept bugging dear Jack was Simba. But you can have the cookie for shaving your armpits.
DragonHunter200- It took me a while to figure out what you meant by the whole hitchhiker thing. But I'm okay now. And the lady was supposed to be scary. Very scary. That's why I wrote her like that. And I hope I churned this one out to your satisfaction. Tell me if you like the unexpected twist.
Jack- I hope that I got you all straightened out. Perhaps I just like to confuse people, though. Only four characters in this chapter...
Laura- Kitties do make everything better! Glad you liked it. And the Nathaniel you were thinking of is Nathaniel Dennis, the man Jodi married. Nathaniel Butler was an actual pirate (which shows that I do some research). Jack's brother-in-law was technically a captain as well, though over more than one ship.