Hey Everyone. I'm really sorry that I haven't updated in so long but I kept on procrastinating. I hope you guys aren't too mad. (
Chapter 13 (Transformation)
The days had passed quickly. The crew still couldn't quite trustmelodybut she could tell that they were coming to terms with her presence.
Meldoy had soon spotted land not too far away. There Jack had promised to fit her with a new wardrobe. She couldn't be happier, the baggy clothes that she was wearing now was growing more and more uncomfortable with each passing day.
"You ready miss?" Asked Ana Maria as she walked up next to her. She turned to her and smiled. "Course… for what?" Ana laughed. "We'll be docking soon, Jack wants me to find ye somethin' more suitable."
"Of course but I thought that Jack was going to do that." "Ye would think so lass but ye have a lot ta learn."
She nodded and turned her attention back to the stretch of land at the horizon.
The Pearl had finally docked and the crew was ready to make their way onto the streets of the small island. Melody followed Ana Maria into the town square. She passed many shops with dresses in the window. Her heart would slow down in disappointment as she realized she wouldn't have a need for such refinement.
Analead her towards an alley. Why an alley?Melody thought as she walked down the dark and narrow cobble stoned street, if that's what she could call it. Ana smiled at her in comfort before knocking on an old rusted door. Melody shifted her weight nervously, her fingers meeting cold metal as she placed her hand on the sword that Jack had given her.
She hoped if worst came to worst that Will's training would pay off. After a moment a somewhat of ashort bald man answered the door. He smiled at Ana Maria. "How are ye there luv it's been awhile since I've seen ye last." "It's good ta see ye to Eral." "Come in, come in." He said cheerfully as he held out the door.
Melody gave him a small smile as she passed him. Once they all had stepped in Melody noticed her surroundings. A small table sat in the middle of the room, a fireplace ablaze not too far away, providing the only light in the dim lit area. She was so busy looking at her surroundings, she jumped when she felt something warm and wet on her hand.
When she looked down she noticed a small brown dog. "Don't worry about 'im there lass 'e'll do ya no harm." She smiled as she bent down and scratched him behind the ears. "We're 'ere on account of this 'ere lass. Jack wants 'er fitted wit a sea worthy outfit." Said Ana to the man who must have been a friend of hers and Jack's.
He gave Melody a once over before nodding. "Might 'ave something' in de back." He said then tilted his head to the side before adding. "Small little ting isn't she?" He couldn't help but think that she was just another one of Jack's floozies but knowing Jack he wouldn't have gone through the trouble of fitting her worth with clothes.
Ana produced a small pouch full of coins from her pocket and handed it to Eral. "Right then." He said before walking away through a door which must have been where he kept his storage. "So… Ana who exactly is this man?" She was bold enough to ask. "A good friend of Jacks, he keeps supplies that a regular merchant wouldn't dare keep in his shop, he's sort of like a black market man." "Oh." Melody nodded in little understanding.
The two of them stood for a few moments in silence before Eral walked back in the room with a small bundle in his hands. He walked towards Melody and handed it to her. "If ye'd like lass ye may go in de back and change, see how day fit." "Thank you." Said Melody before walking towards the door he had just appeared from.
As she passed through the door she looked around awkwardly. The room was full of shelves which held many different things ranging from weapons, clothes, even food. Melody saw a barrel and placed the bundle of clothes on top of it. First she put on the breeches, which came up a little above her knees. She judged that they might have once belonged to a young boy considering that they were a little frayed at the hem of each leg.
But all the same they fit like a dream, it wasn't baggy or loose in any areas it just fit perfectly. Then she slipped on the shirt. She was surprised a little by it's length considering that it came just above her midriff. The shirt wasn't loose but one of the short sleeves hung off her shoulder. "Well at least it's almost my favorite color." She said to herself. It was a blue color almost dark enough to be black but still it was blue.
The man had been nice enough to have given her, her own jacket. It was just almostaslong as Jack's but fit her more, unlike Jack's which was 5 times her size. Before slipping on the jacket she placed on her effects and then took a deep breath. She wondered what Jack would think of her new wardrobe. Hopefully it was more suitable for him.
She picked up the clothes that she had shed moments before and walked out of the room. Ana and Eral looked towards her direction and smiled. "Well now I've gone and out did meself eh?" He said laughingly towards Ana Maria. She nodded calculating Jack's reaction to Melody's transformation in her head. "Ye sure did."
Chapter 14 (Memories)
Jack sat at a table, empty glasses of Rum surrounding him. He had Ana Maria take Melody to an old friend of his. He was a little disappointed that he wouldn't be seeing her loosely fitted in his clothes. Many members of his crew were scattered around the tavern, most running off to find pleasurable company.
Jack sighed as he drank his Rum, this was the life for him. But his happy thoughts began to slide as he thought of Richard, the bastard. He hated him with a passion and now that he had his Pearl back he was going to make sure he dealt with him, he shuddered as he thought of his past.
FLASHBACK
Jack laughed casually with bootstrap. They had just finished splitting a small treasure they had just found, amongst the crew and themselves. "Jack!" Came an angelic voice. Jack's laughter stopped short as he turned his head, his smile never leaving him.
"Angie?" He said with surprise etched in his smile. "Did ye miss me Jack?" She cried out happily as she stepped onto the deck. She then ran towards him and embraced him. "O' course, who wouldn't miss ye." He said with a laugh as he stroked her jet black hair.
FLASHBACK ENDS
The memory of her was driving him insane. He took a long sip of his drink before closing his eyes tightly wanting the image in his head to just disappear. He pulled his hat over his eyes so no one could see them brimming with tears. He forced down the rest of his Rum before reaching for another glass.
FLASHBACK
"Jack! Help!" Angie screamed as she was being pulled roughly by Richard. "Richard let 'er go!" Jack called out . "I warned ye Jack about crossing me." Angie was whimpering in fear. Jack pulled out his pistol and aimed it at Richard.
"Let 'er go!" He shouted his heart pounding as he saw the look of fear in her eyes, her small gentle frame trembling under Richards strength. Richard stopped and laughed. "Jack ye wouldn't kill me you old bilge rat." "Don't test me." Said Jack through gritted teeth.
"Put the gun down Jack." He said calmly but firmly as he pulled out a pistol of his own and pointed it to Angie's temple.
FLASHBACK ENDS
What had happened? Richard had once been a very trustworthy and honorable companion. It wasn't fair. He could still hear her gentle laughter, it echoed through his very core, he was supposed to have protected her. He shook his head as if trying to shake the past away.
Then the large door to the tavern swung open. Ana Maria strode across the room towards Jack. "The deed is done." She said flopping into a chair. He looked up and turned his head in the direction that Ana had just appeared. His heart stopped and then slammed against his ribcage.
Melody's hair fell loosely around her shoulders in waves, parts of her hair tied up by a blue bandana. A brown jacket covered a midriff shirt that was dark as the night sky. The black breeches she was wearing definitely looked better then his. It clung in all the right places, it practically looked like a second skin.
She walked towards him with a smile plastered on her face. "So what do you think?" Jack's mouth practically hung open. "I'll take that as a compliment." She said with a small giggle. "You definitely look the part." He said closing his mouth. She took a seat next to him almost tempted to reach for his Rum but controlled herself not to.
After a few days they were out at sea again. Melody leaned against the rail and watched the sails billowing in the wind. She was happy training with Will, thankful that she was a fast learner. She even came close to winning a duel with him. Walking towards Will she smiled. Will sighed before reaching for his sword. This was the third time this afternoon that she had wanted to train.
They both began quickly, each of Will's blows were matched with her own, making sure to incorporate it with some of the fancy foot work that he had shown her earlier. Will's grin grew larger, he was proud of himself, he knew he had trained for a long time but never had thought he could actually teach another.
It also helped when she was such a fast learner. It looked like she was going to learn everything in less then half the time. Will spun around knocking her sword out of her hands quickly, making it slide across the deck. "Ah, I see that we still have a lot to work on." He said while trying to control his smile with a serious look.
"Seriously Will, it's like you enjoy trying to find imperfections." "But Mel, you know I have to, once I took charge of your training I also took on the responsibility of your welfare.. If you were killed it would be on my head for not teaching you to master your new skill."
She didn't say anything, you knew he was right. "Good now lets begin again but this time…"
Will ducked as he avoided an almost fatal blow from Melody's sword. He seriously hadn't taken her fast learning that much to heart. She was matching his skill with perfection, it seemed like she had used the foot work that he had shown her hours before.. for years in fact.
Soon he was cut off guard when she tripped him, his sword flying out of his hand. She grabbed the handle before pointing both ends of the swords at his throat. "Looks like I win." Said Melody with joy as she helped him up. "It would appear so but never let your guard down, there's always a chance the opponent can get the upper hand." She nodded still happy that she actually beat Will.
"Well I guess I've accomplished what you needed to know. I'll go and inform Jack." He said before walking towards the helm. Melody felt truly special, it had only taken her close to two weeks to complete her training where, for others, it would take years. She looked towards the helm and saw Jack walking in her direction.
He took out his sword and pointed it towards Melody. He didn't have to say anything she knew that he wanted to test her himself. Melody stood in attacking position and soon the two of them were fighting. He found it of no use to go easy on her considering that she wasn't letting him.
The commotion that they both had caused had gathered some of the members of the crew to watch on in awe. He was slowly backing her up towards the rail. She quickly spun around him before kicking him forward. He rubbed his backside and gave her a look that would put a puppy to shame. "Why so 'ard luv?" He asked jokingly.
She laughed and suddenly an idea formed in her head. She charged at him, making him jump out of the way, as she had planned, soon she was backing him up toward a discarded crate that she had been using moments before. 'Just a little more.' She thought, biting her lip a little. As long as he kept his eyes on her, her plan would work perfectly.
Will laughed as he watched as she and Jack were in her own little world. It was amazing how good she was, it was one thing to actually fighther but to watch it,Melody's quality could be seen from every angle, which was very good. Will then noticed that she was changing Jack's course of direction.
'That was smart..' He told himself, then he noticed the crate not too far behind him. "Very smart indeed." He said out loud, his arms folded across his chest.
Jack edged closer to the crate, Melody's heart beating with each passing second. Next thing you knew Jack was tumbling backwards, landing on his backside. She stood over him and giggled as she held the sword to his throat. She could here the crew snickering as they saw their captain sprawled out on the ground. She didn't even see it coming when he quickly kicked at her legs making her topple over, landing on top of him.
"Jack!" She said in surprise. "Always 'ave to be prepared luv, didn't Will teach ye anything 'bout letting yer guard down." She huffed getting up into a sitting position on his stomach. "Yes but… your enjoying this aren't you?" She said looking at him through her eyelashes as he had a grin spread across his face. "What kind o' man wouldn't?"
She was about to get up when he held she firmly by the waist. She lifted a brow looking at him. "Get back ta work!" He yelled out sensing that the crew were busy looking instead of working. "Jack?" She asked, a little confused as to why he wasn't letting her go. "Are you enjoying the hard wood floor of this deck Jack?" He just smiled. She couldn't help but smile back.
He might have been annoying but she had to admit that he was very charming. "I realize luv that I don't know a lot 'bout ye so why don't we sit somewhere an' talk." "Aren't we sitting now?" "Not really luv, yer the one who's doin' most of the sitting." She couldn't resist saying no to him so she slide off of him and outstretched her hand, he took it and pulled himself up. "Now where should we talk?" She asked. "Were ever ye want luv." "Ok I guess it would be more private in your quarters." She said walking in that direction.
He followed after her. Once Melody entered his cabin she sat on the bed. "So what do you want to know?" "Lets start from the beginning luv." He said grabbing a bottle of Rum from his desk while plopping down onto a chair, propping his feet up onto the desk.
She then began to tell him the story of her life and after about two bottles of Rum later, she decided to ask him a little about himself. "So Jack.. Since I told you about myself why don't you tell me a little about you." He took another swig from the bottle before answering. "What do ye want to know?"
"Well why don't you start with theman who attacked us." "Richard Lawrence, we were close once." "What happened?" His eyes darkened, the grip on the bottle tightening. "Ye may say we fell out of sorts in a way." He quickly finished the rest of the Rum in the bottle.
Feeling uncomfortable with the new silence she changed the subject. "Who was the girl you were fighting with?" "Ah Raven." He said with a small smirk. "Is that her name?" He nodded. "It really looked like she disliked you." "She's just angry." "Over what?" "The lass and I were once what ye'd call good friends."
"Oh.. Well.. What happened between you two?" "I' toll started when the ship had gone under an attack and we had to stop for repairs. We had come across an island and once we stopped, some members of the crew, Raven and meself went in search of fresh water."
He paused as he looked into the now empty bottle. He got up and searched for another. Once he settled back down he began again. "We came across a cave full of treasure." He said as he popped open the bottle. "But we were soon caught by some natives, I pulled out me pistol and fired at them."
"How did you escape?"Asked Melody as she watched him in wonder.
"Well when I fired me pistol I had frightened them so much that they made me their chief."
"Their chief?" She said in surprise and a little disbelief, laughing as she thought of Jack as a chief of a native tribe.
"I soon gave the crew the signal to load the treasure onto the Pearl, the natives soon caught on and we had to make a run for the ship, Raven at the time, we had thought that she was caught by the natives, we stuck to the code and left her behind."
"And sometimes the code should be broken.. Don't you think?" She said shacking her head. "I suppose." He said remembering the way he had felt when he thought that she had died. He had felt bad for less then a week before he was back to his normal self. "I'm quite tired Jack I think I'm going to sleep now." Jack nodded and watched her from under his hat as she moved behind him to change. He sighed in disappointment, she knew him already.