Chapter Seventeen: Lost and Found

~~ I sat up ever straighter and swung my legs over the side of the bed only to feel a sharp pain radiate from my stomach. I cried out in pain and hunched over, my hands pressing on my stomach. The door to the medical room was opened and a man I had never seen before strode into the room; he wore a large, white coat and black trousers with a black shirt and a strange, black band running 'round his head with a large, silver circle attached to the band; the circle sat in the middle of his forehead. It was pretty apparent that he was the boat's physician. I scooted back into the bed, away from the man and the man put his arms out before him, to show he meant no harm.

"It's alright, I'm a doctor; I'm here to help you." Said the man.

"Who are you?...Where am I?" I asked in a demanding tone. The physician came closer and I backed away, further, onto the bed.

"I am Doctor Montgomery and you are on 'The Verdict'. Captained by Raoul de Chagny." The physician replied; I paused and groaned, rubbing my face in agitation.

"How long ago was the fight?" I asked and the doctor appeared confused.

"There was never a fight, madam, so I'm told, 'The Black Pearl' ported and some of our crew snuck onto the afore mentioned ship and stole you away." The doctor replied; I shook my head, the cheater! He was such a coward that he had to kidnap me; he wasn't even man enough to face the Captain! Or, at least, fight him again!

"The coward" I hissed under my breath, and the doctor nodded.

"That he is, but, I get paid very well on this boat, so, I do as I'm told." He replied; I nodded and, just then the door opened and Raoul came striding in.

"Speak of the devil" I hissed and he turned to me, smiling.

"Good morning, star shine; I see you're well and more than clearly aware by the evil stare I'm receiving." Raoul said, I rolled my eyes.

"You're a coward, you're not even man enough to face the Captain again; you sent your crew to do your bidding, I feel insulted that my parents would ever agree to marry me away to...you." I hissed and Raoul turned to the doctor, nodding. The doctor nodded back and left the room, closing the door behind him.

"Well, sunshine, they did. We're engaged, lovely! You are my rightful property and-"

"I am not property! I am not a material object that can be sold for profit! I...I'm not yours!" I screamed, my anger bubbling to a dangerous degree (well, dangerous for me). My hands folded into fists which I clenched together; Raoul only smirked.

"You're so cute when you get angry. Like a kitten attempting to roar like a lion, but, ending up yawning; it's so adorable I just might die." He said mockingly.

"Go on ahead, I won't miss you." I spat, crossing my arms. Raoul smiled and walked closer to me, touching my waist and I immediately reacted; slapping, punching, and kicking whatever of his I could! But, I'm not the strongest, in all honesty, I have trouble lifting a gallon of milk, let alone fighting off a skilled man of combat who, indeed, weights more than just one gallon of milk. Raoul shoved me down, back onto the bed and held my wrists against the sheets whilst he sat on my legs and leaned down to my ear; just barely touching it with his lips.

"I know what the Captain's said to you, and I know that he hasn't laid a finger on your pretty little head. My dear, I am most certainly not like the Captain when it comes to love. So, if you wish to stay pure until marriage, I suggest you do what I say, for, pirates are not the only ones who hunger for the sickly sweet taste of a woman, Anna." Raoul paused and I felt him grin as the heat of his breath bared down upon my poor, little ear. "Oh, no, Anna, not just pirates, and, I can promise you that privateers are worse when it comes to that hunger, especially if they don't have a woman waiting on them at home."

Raoul finished and I grinned, I had a comeback. "How did you learn this? When they had their way with you because of your femininity?" I asked, it wasn't the best comeback, in fact, now that I've had time to think on it, it was completely terrible! But, it was the best I could do at that point; I wouldn't have had one at all, had I not met the Captain.

Raoul chuckled and shook his head. "No, dear, I can just feel it..." said he, trailing off; I had a better comeback this time.

"You know what else you're gonna feel?" I asked, he rubbed his body against mine and bit my earlobe; something hard poked my stomach.

"What, baby?" He asked with a groan.

"My foot, up your ass" I growled, kicking him in his genitals as hard as my leg allowed me to. He gasped quickly and his hands rushed down to his manhood, grasping it and making squeaking noises as he fell off of the bed. I smiled and sat up as he laid on the floor, curled up in a ball, gasping and squeaking; I smiled wider and slipped off of the bed, changing quickly behind a dressing screen, and walking out on deck, leaving him in fetal position grasping his penis. On deck, I hid from the crew, and, somehow, managed to release a dingy and get into it without being seen or heard, or, maybe I was and the crew was rooting for me to leave, who knows! Any who, in the dingy I sailed in the opposite direction that 'The Verdict' sailed in, in hopes of finding 'The Black Pearl' that way, since the doctor did say that they had been at a port and were hurrying away from confrontation.

** I hate sailing, I loath it with all of my heart. Having to constantly deal with the wind and the current and the waves, especially being in a small dingy; it's not fun at all! When night fell the waves became rougher, but, that was all, thankfully there was no storm or harsh winds or rain and the moon shone brightly from the sky; making it easier to navigate. It felt like millennia before I came upon a port! And, it looked vaguely familiar, at that. I pulled the dingy up upon the beach and walked up the beach, to the port and examined the boats; none of them looked even remotely like 'The Black Pearl'.

With a heavy heart that thumped sadly in my feet, I made my way to a bar, and, in that bar I sat down at a stool, when, my name was yelled! I glanced around quickly and saw no one I knew, figuring it to be a pigment of my imagination I went on drinking, when, it happened again! Only, this time, the voice was beside me, and, I turned to find that the voice belonged to an older woman; then, it hit me, this was the older woman that stood at the dock with a gun in hand the last time I was here.

This woman is the Captain's mother.

"H-How do you know my name?" I asked quietly and she cackled, ordering a drink after her laughing fit.

"Child, I speak with the first mate of my son's boat; I know all of what's goin' on there" she paused grinning; most of her teeth were missing and she was covered in wrinkles, her hair was turning white and her nails were long and quite comparable to daggers. "So" she began again as I drank, she turned to me and gave me a frank look. "How big's his penis now?" She asked and I spit out my drink; the people around us didn't even bat an eyelash.

"Excuse me?" I asked, wiping my mouth; her question was so abrupt and...off that it took me greatly by surprise! She laughed and enunciated her words, slowing them down.

"How big is his penis now? He was always worried about it when he was little! Holding it wherever he went, like it was a security blanket or-"

"Yeah, I really don't know because we haven't done anything like that." I interrupted, not wanting to hear the rest of her story. Now, she punched my arm and nearly shoved me off of the stool! I had to grasp onto the bar for stability!

"Oh, come now! I know how you two talk to each other! Willy sees the way you look at my son and the way my son looks at you!" Said she, drinking and winking to me; I sighed and drank a bit more.

"I have a question" I said quietly, and, she hit my elbow.

"Well, go on, ask it!" She cried, leaning closer to me.

"What's his real name? Your son, I mean." I asked, she smiled.

"Erik" she replied and I smiled, that's right! Blackbeard did call him 'Erik'! I thanked her and she laughed, punching my arm again. "I like you, you're a good little girl, so, tell me, why the hell are you here? Last time I checked, my son wasn't around."

Said she, and I told her what happened; she nodded and paid for our drinks, pulling me out of the bar and a few blocks away, to a small home in the slums. She sat me down at a small table and put tea on the stove, walking over to me and sitting across from me; taking out a piece of paper and writing a note down onto it. She knocked on a door and a little window opened to which she slid the note through and then rejoined me at the table. "I've sent him a telegraph; it should reach him, at the latest, tomorrow." Said she.

"Oh, thank you" I replied and she smiled.

"All you have to do in return is give me grandchildren, just, make sure they don't look like him. I much prefer your face to his." Said she, patting my head and smiling. "Tonight you can stay here if he's not here by then, but, I have a feeling he will." Said she, she pulled me away from the table and into the living area where I sat on a ripped and discolored couch whose cushions had lost almost all of their squishiness. "I know it's not what you're used to, being rich and all, but, it's all I've got." Said she, handing me a cup of tea.

"Oh, no, it's perfect! This is better than most of the couches I've owned; they're all so stiff, at least this one was able of being enjoyed, the ones at home I almost never sat on, save when guests came over. Otherwise I would just lay on my bed."

"Now, tell me truthfully when I ask this, okay?" She asked, I nodded and took a sip of the tea; it was extremely watery, but, I'd had worse. "If you had the chance, if he asked you, what would you say if he asked you to marry him?" She asked; I paused and lowered the teacup.

"Well, we've only just begun courting and-"

"So, that's a 'no'?" She asked, uncrossing her legs; I leaned forwards quickly.

"No, no! I never said that! I said nothing of the sort-"

"So, it's a 'yes'?" She asked, grinning; I paused and tapped the teacup.

"Well, I suppose so-"

"Do not suppose! Give me a straight answer, 'yes' or 'no'" said she, her tone becoming alarmingly demanding; like mother like son!

"Y-Yes, I would...I would...I would!..." I said with more certainty; if I had been given the chance, I would've said 'maybe', for, we barely knew each other! And yet, I feel as if I've known him for so many years...

~~ I was going to stay the night, we had gotten word that they were on their way as fast as they could go, but, it wouldn't be until the next day that they would arrive. My room was small, and, in stead of the bed there was a mattress lying upon the floor with a holey blanket and smelly, stained sheets and pillow cases. I was afraid to lay down on it, who else had slept on that bed too? That night I tossed and turned and was completely unable to sleep; I turned over, laying on my side, facing a wall, and closed my eyes when I felt a hand yank me onto my back! I almost cried out, but another hand was placed over my mouth!

"Shhh, sweet cheeks, I'm here, it's me, Captain" said a voice, and, sure enough, his features were outlined in the ghostly white from the moon; I threw my arms around his neck and yanked him down to me, hugging him hard. He ended up falling upon me and giving a quiet chuckle and hugging me back ever tighter and lightly kissing my ear, just brushing his lips against it. He smelt of sweat, sea salt, and a dash of his own cologne which consisted of vanilla, lavender, and some other thing I couldn't place a name to. He wrapped his arm beneath my legs and lifted me from the cot, carrying me out of his mother's house on tiptoe; running once we made it to the outside world.

~~ He laid me down in his own bed and sat down next to me, brushing his fingers through my hair. "So" I said quietly as I felt the boat begin to move forwards. "Your penis was your security blanket?" I asked with a smirk; he laughed quietly and sighed, laying down next to me and outlining his body to fit beside my own, laying his arm over my waist and kissing my neck.

"Maybe."