Night Two: The Black Pearl

Angelica sat at her window, elbows on the windowsill, looking out into the streets of Seville. The sky had darkened into that of the night long ago. Yet the pirate she'd met the previous night wasn't there. She didn't know whether to feel worried or betrayed that Captain Jack Sparrow hadn't come yet. But she knew that she did feel something.

As the town bell struck midnight, she sighed sadly. He wasn't going to come. She thought back to the conversation they'd had the previous night. Something about his ship. The Pearl. Maybe if she snuck out and found her way to the harbor, she could locate the Pearl and speak to him. Within moments, she'd made up her mind.

She changed into something that would be easy to move around in before climbing out her window as she had the previous night. She made sure to be extra careful as she snuck along the ledge, grabbed the tree branch, and swung over to it. Jack wasn't there to stop her from falling, nor to catch her if she did happen to fall. She slowly, cautiously, climbed down to the ground; to the streets of Spain.

Angelica walked up to a nearby woman. In Spanish, she spoke to her. "Dónde está el puerto?"

In response, the woman pointed in the direction opposite the Convent.

"Gracias." She smiled to her.

"De nada, senorita." The other woman replied.

As she walked, Angelica tried to keep track of the streets she turned down compared to the direction she wanted to go. A few streets away, she could see the masts of ships towering over the buildings. She could hear captains shouting to their crews and the crewmen to each other. She could taste the salt of the sea in the wind.

After making a few more turns, she could easily see the port down the road. She walked towards it. Only a few ships were currently docked. One of them had to be Jack's ship. The Pearl, as he'd called it. She continued down the cobblestone road, towards the docks. She reached them and tried to find a way to walk around to view the names of the ships on the back of the hull of each. The second of the ships was the closest she saw to The Pearl. It went by the name of The Black Pearl. She came to the conclusion that Jack called it the Pearl for short. This was his ship, she knew it.

Angelica stood back, away from the ship, as she watched the men on the deck. She heard a door creak open and then slam from a cabin aboard it. She saw a man who resembled Jack walk up to one of the men. The man had black dreadlocks. That was the only difference than him and the pirate she had met last night.

However, his voice gave it away. "Where's Barbossa?"

"Dunno, Cap'n." The sailor responded.

Jack let out a scowl. "When was the last time ye saw him an' where?"

"Down below, sir, in the galley." The man replied.

The captain vanished below deck and Angelica hid behind some crates from the dock, where she stood. She took a moment to gather her thoughts. She came to the conclusion that the crew hadn't been very cooperable and that the captain had stayed behind to watch them. That's what it seemed, anyway. Understanding that now, she wasn't too upset that he hadn't showed up in her Convent window. Just mildly disappointed.

A few minutes later, Jack re-emerged on deck, with a shorter, bulky man at his side. The man had a grayish brown scraggly beard and long untidy hair of the same color. He seemed to be maybe a decade or so older than Jack, maybe even two. The two men seemed to be arguing over something and she listened hard.

"Hector, ye're me first mate for a reason. Ye need to keep the crew in line when I'm busy or out in Seville." Jack was saying.

"I 'ave been, Cap'n." The so-called Hector responded. "They listen for the most part, minus a select few o' 'em."

"Then get them to listen, mate." The captain growled. "I don't care what ye do to make them, but do it. Even if ye have to throw a small lot of them in the brig, keep the ship in order. We can't have a crew that doesn't listen, savvy? That leads to mutiny, an' we can't have that."

"Aye, Cap'n." The man nodded. "We definitely won't be needin' a mutiny. I'll do what I can."

"Ye'd better." Jack told him in a menacing tone. "Now I'm goin' to do what they couldn't."

The captain snatched a knife from his companion and jogged over to the edge of the ship. He grabbed onto the ropes that formed the rigging and began to climb up, the blade between his teeth. He ascended at a decent pace, never hesitating nor faltering. He stopped when he was at a certain height, moving sideways on the ropes. He reached the edge and the rigging twisted slightly at his weight. Looking slightly nervous, he reached around onto the underside of the rigging. Once he was completely on that side, he hooked his knees through a couple of the holes, securing them. Then he let go with his hands, taking the blade from his mouth.

Jack reached out with his free hand and grabbed ahold of a loose rope, that should have been holding the sail to the mast. He used the knife to cut off a twisted, untangleable knot, which he carelessly dropped to the deck. He put the knife in his teeth again. With one hand, he snatched the corner of the sail. He managed to move his head close enough to use the knife to poke a hole big enough for the rope to go through. He strung the rope through, wrapped it around the mast, and tied the ends into a knot back at the sail.

He released it, examined his work for a minute, and then a satisfied expression crossed his face. He carefully sidestepped across the rigging after freeing his legs. He reached around onto the upside of it and begun to descend. He didn't go down as fast as he had up, making sure neither of his feet didn't miss the rope with each step downward. Within a few moments, he'd reached the deck again and handed his first mate his knife back.

"After stayin' up nearly two days straight, I'm goin' to be gettin' some rest in me cabin. Hector, stay up till the crew's gone below, then ye're relieved for the day." The captain told him, before walking out of her sight.

Angelica waited until she could no longer see nor hear anyone on the ship's deck. She crept over to the rope on the side of the ship and climbed up. She walked over to what looked like the captain's cabin and walked around the side of it, watching through a window as Jack stripped down to his trousers and climbed into a bed. He shifted around for awhile, as if unable to get comfortable. Then he sat up abruptly, as if having remembered something. He put his heads in his hands for a moment, before lying back and looking at the ceiling. He seemed as if he'd had a rough day. She could tell he was tired, but he seemed unable to sleep.

Jack turned onto his side, but Angelica didn't have enough time to move away from the window before their eyes met. She could see that he was pretty surprised, yet amused as well. He sat up, looking at her for a moment. A small grin appeared on his face as he got to his feet and walked over to the window, which he opened.

"Well then, look who snuck out." He greeted.

"Why didn't you come?" She asked curiously.

"Exhausting day." He admitted. "How long you been watching me now?"

She gave a small shrug. "Since a little before you climbed up and tied the rope."

"Ah." The pirate sighed. "That's what happens when the crew doesn't listen; I have to do the work myself."

"Is it hard?" She questioned.

"Only if you're inexperienced, or if there's a storm." He told her. Then he rolled his eyes, adding,"Or if you have to do it yourself because no one else is."

"Can I help?" Angelica asked him.

Jack shook his head. "You're not supposed to be out here. And we're sailing out Sunday morning anyway. The crew gets rowdy when we're docked somewhere for too long."

"Will you come back?" She asked quietly, not wanting him to sail away.

"One day, of course." He told her, before explaining,"I never go somewhere only once or twice."

"When would you come back?" She was worried of when she'd see him next.

"Whenever I'm not doing anything crazy." He answered, giving a soft chuckle.

Not very often. She had to make up her mind. Am I going to go with him or stay here? "What if I wanted to come with you?"

"I'd very well let you." The captain told her. "Jus' remember that you have a lot of things here that you're very unlikely to get out on the sea. It's dangerous out there. Consider that before you make a decision." He seemed to know how she felt; to know that she was conflicted inside. His voice was soft as he said,"But, remember, it's your choice. And I'm not going to make you choose one or the other."

Angelica nodded. "I understand."

"Go get some rest, we stayed up all last night." He chuckled at the last part. Then he grew serious once more. "I myself will do my best to get as much as I can tonight. I will stop by tomorrow night, I promise you that."

She nodded again. "I will. Good night, Jack."

He smiled in return. "See you tomorrow, Angelica."

She turned and began heading to the main deck of the ship, hearing the cabin's window close behind her. She sat down, not content on leaving quite yet. She sat there for a long while, listening to the water splash against the hull of the Black Pearl and the others sounds of the night; crickets chirping, horses snorting, dogs barking. She sighed in awe. How could the nuns of the Convent keep her from beautiful things such as this? It must be a sin to do, some way or another.

After a few more minutes of peace, she got up from her position sitting on the planks of the deck. She walked around to the window of the cabin, peeking inside. He seemed to be asleep. The expression on his face was peaceful. She found herself smiling for a moment, deciding it'd be a good idea to go back to the Convent moments later. At that thought, the smile faded and she made way back to the docks.