3:41 AM. A very good morning, I bid to you-- you who are most likely slumbering peacefully in your beds. Another long addition to my story, and I hope you find it fullfilling. Too tired to make any other sort of witty comments at the moment, so I'll leave you to it. Oh, the only note would be that for some reason the 'ruler' function wasn't working as I posted this, but the time lapses should be apparent anyhow. So here's the part where you read, review, rant and generally do what you do.
...TanzFieber
"RISE 'N SHINE, DEARIE!"
Kelsea Sparrow's deep chocolate eyes shot open in alarm, latched onto the flashing gold smile looming just above her, and immediately closed again tightly. "Ughh…" she mumbled, pulling the pillow down over her head.
Captain Jack Sparrow chuckled to himself and bent over his daughter, relieving her of the pillow so that the bright sunshine pooled on her face. "Half th'day gone already, whelp, c'mon! Stir yeself!"
Kelsea rolled over and pulled the blanket over herself with a harrumph. Oh, she knew that he wouldn't leave her alone, but at the time those few more moments of rest seemed worth the struggle-- but then the blanket was also stripped away. "Alrigh', alrigh'!" the dark-haired girl opened her eyes and sat up with an annoyed grimace. "M'up! What d'ye want?"
The pirate captain with the red-bandana and the kohl-lined eyes grinned. "T'see yer lovely face, darling." Secretly he thought that the look shot back in response could have frozen the Caribbean Sea, so he continued on quickly. "An' also I wanted t'be th'first t'say… 'Appy Birthday!"
Now sitting up, the teen cocked an eyebrow at him in mild confusion. "Birthday." she repeated blankly with quite the deadpan stare. "Since when do I have a birthday--?"
"I would imagine since th'day ye were born, Kelsea, eh?"
She rolled her eyes-- He really could be quite infuriating when he put his mind to it. "Oh c'm'off it!" Kelsea chastised him, snatching the pillow back and biffing him with it.
"Ahem," Jack pursed his lips and took a moment to readjust his bandana that had been knocked askew. "Kindly refrain from doin' that, Luv. S'not worth ye getting' beat again." He was referring to the night before…
APPROPRIATE FLASHBACK…
"C'mon Dad, would ye stop starin' at that broken thing fer two bloody minutes?" Kelsea was swinging idly back and forth in the usually-unused hammock, her gaze on the hunched back of a certain pirate captain.
Jack didn't respond , merely leaned over and tapped the compass sharply three times. The needle wavered, pivoted left and then… continued spinning. He sighed theatrically before finally glancing over at his swinging daughter. "Not that I would 'spect ye t'know, whelp, but as Captain, I am currently undertaking the complex an' infinitely important matter of steering this ship. Additionally, said navigatin' of said vessel relies unyieldingly upon the information that only this 'broken thing' can provide. Therefore, 'tis advantageous in fact, t'be starin' at this 'broken thing' fer as long as necessary." He paused after this soliloquy for dramatic effect before adding that one aggravating line. "Savvy?"
The girl rolled her eyes and let her head drop back against the woven hemp of the hammock with an exaggerated groan. "Ohh, well in that case… I'll jus' stay over 'ere an' be quiet an' bored outta me bloody mind whilst ye fiddle endlessly wiv yer beloved malfunctioning compass."
Smirking and shaking his head, Jack Sparrow turned his attention back to the device, which was still having problems making up its enchanted mind. "Good idea, Luv. You do that."
Kelsea didn't answer, and after a few silent moments Jack became suspicious and turned to check what she was doing. As he did, a pillow caught him full in the face and sent his hat spinning. Clutching at the pillow, the pirate slowly lowered it, revealing a dangerous smile. "Now that wasn't very nice," he said softly, getting to his feet and stalking over to where she was hanging. "Shouldn'a done that, darling…"
Sitting up and rolling out of the hammock, the dark-haired teenaged piratess-in-training quickly snatched up another down-filled weapon and took up a fighting stance. She grinned nervously back as he advanced menacingly. "I'll have ye, Cap'n Sparrow!"
"Ye don' want t'be doin' that, mate."
"No, I really think I do!"
And as soon as he was within range, Kelsea swung her feathery weapon in a barn-storming arc straight at her adversary's head. However, Jack saw it coming and blocked it with one hand, slamming her in the unprotected gut with his own pillow at the same time.
"Ooof--!" The air rushed from her lungs and her eyes bugged out in surprise. Of all of Captain Jack Sparrow's illustrious skills, she hadn't expected pillow fighting to be on the list!
"Keep yer guard up, lass." God, he was SO annoyingly unpredictable and so annoyingly… annoying!
She regained her breath and met his incensing smile with her own. "Try it again!"
He did. She ended up on her back on the bed. The small pillow war continued on for some immature minutes, and basically consisted of Jack Sparrow giving his teenaged daughter a rather humbling pillow beat-down. Every move that she tried, he was one step ahead and would clock her good in return. Finally, father and daughter collapsed on the bed gasping.
"Bloody Hell…" Kelsea murmured, letting her head fall back on the cool sheets--Her face was red from the exertion and also from the blows she had taken. Jack patted her knee and cracked his knuckles smugly.
"My thoughts exactly, Luv. Perhaps next time ye should cheat, like ye do when we duel-- seems t'work out better fer ye…"
Suddenly the pirate captain found himself flat on his back, lying next to his daughter-- as the girl had just managed to land her first solid blow of their skirmish right across his face.
BACK TO BIRTHDAYS…
Kelsea thought about the drubbing she had received the night before, and gamely decided that he was right. Letting the pillow drop back into her lap, Jack noticed this and nodded indulgently.
"That's what I though'."
"Yeah yeah… Jus' tell me what this whole birthday thing is about," she turned to face him again, wondering what on earth he was talking about. Never before had anyone ever told her 'happy birthday'…
Jack thought for a moment, twirling his beard in his fingers for a moment, before answering. "Well… 'Tis currently th'dry season!" he reasoned, to which she just raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "So… since I… er… acquired yer lovely self…" the pirate noticed the obvious wince at his choice of words and barreled on hastily. "Any'ow, t'was during th'beginning o' th'wet season an' since Gibbs reckoned ye were nary more'n two months old at th'time, only stands t'reason that yer birthday was in the dry season. T'day seems as good a day as any for a bit o' celebration, eh?"
Kelsea considered his logic and gave him a sideways glance. "Alrigh' then. How old does that make me?"
"Fourteen years t'the blessed day, Luv."
Fourteen years… Bloody Hell. This was the general gist of what was running through both of their minds-- neither able to imagine it had been that long. Either way, however, it was the girl who spoke up again.
"So… since it's me birthday… don' that mean I get presents?" she asked hopefully, and Jack rolled his eyes good-naturedly.
"S'pose it does, yes." he racked his mind for a moment before snapping his fingers. "Ah, well since we're due t'drop anchor in Tortuga this very day, why don' we go ashore an' ye can pick out whatever takes yer fancy, eh?"
Kelsea smiled up at her father, gratitude and affection shining in her dark eyes. "I like it-- Simple 'n easy t'remember. Sounds like a fair plan t'me, Cap'n!"
RIDING AT ANCHOR IN TORTUGA…
Jack Sparrow stood at the helm of the Black Pearl, an agitated look upon his normally taciturn features. The thing was, Marty the dwarf had just announced that there were soldiers of the Royal Navy combing the port for him-- which of course made it generally impossible to go ashore. He sighed, knowing that he would have to call off the birthday excursion that he had promised his teenaged daughter. What would he tell her? Well, the truth would probably be best--
"All present n' accounted for an' ready t'go, Cap'n Sparrow!" Kelsea, who had just come up onto the deck, snapped her heels together and saluted smartly. The smile upon her bright face immediately faded though, as she laid eyes on Jack's expression. "Oh… we're um. We're not goin', are we." It was more of a statement than a question.
Jack sighed, but shook his head no. "Lissen, Kels… S'not that I don' want t'go wiv ye, but I've jus' been told that there're soldiers in Tortuga lookin' fer yours truly…"
"An' ye don' want t'be hanged, I know." the girl finished his sentence, and as he nodded, she only gave him a half-smile. "Don' worry about it, I'd feel bad if ye got lynched on account o' me."
The pirate captain put a hand on her shoulder, grateful for her understanding. "Aye. Well, 'ow about this, then: th'redcoats don' know you, so ye can go ashore an' get whatever it is yer pretty heart desires." he tossed her a jingling pouch of gold. "Savvy?"
Secretly Kelsea wished that he were going with her, but grinned and nodded all the same. "Aye aye, Cap'n!" She turned to make her way off of the ship when he called after her.
"Kels--!"
"Hm?"
"I… Er…" Jack stammered, wanting to tell his daughter to be careful, but not wanting to seem like a paranoid mother hen. "Well, jus'… Keep a weather eye, lass."
She smiled and saluted again before continuing on. "On me oath, Dad!"
Jack's grip tightened a bit on the helm of the Pearl as he watched the tawny frame of his fourteen-year-old daughter grow smaller as she traversed the long pier. Oh, it most definitely wasn't nervousness that was clenching his stomach like that… It wasn't fear or worry or anything weak at all. No, no, it must have been that he hadn't had his daily breakfast of rum-- yes, that was it.
Still, whatever the reason was, there was no denying the uncomfortable feeling that lay in the stomach of Captain Sparrow. He hadn't told her what time to return--! Well, she was an intelligent lass, no need to worry. No need to worry. No need to worry…
FROM ANOTHER POINT OF VIEW…
Meanwhile, Kelsea Sparrow was traipsing brightly through the bustling streets of Tortuga, taking in everything around her through wide eyes. Leaping agilely to the side as a brawl went roiling by her, the girl surveyed the surrounding chaos. Men everywhere were drunk, sleeping, fighting or chasing women… and yet even the fighting ones seemed generally happy! Tortuga was rank with unsavory happenings, and yet possibly the gayest location the girl had ever encountered. What a FANTASTIC place!
The teenaged piratess breathed deep of the rum and sweat-soaked air, and smiled. Yes, it was safe to say that the daughter of Captain Jack Sparrow's first impression of the buccaneer port was quite the favorable one.
She spent her first hour or so picking her way carefully through the pulsating masses, absorbing everything around her-- the sights, the sounds, and the smells. However, it did seem that one could only be enraptured by so many brawls, or so many drunken shanties, so it wasn't too long that the pouch of gold in her pocket began yearning to be spent.
Just what would she buy..? Kelsea wondered, knowing full well that she had more money than most strapped to her belt. Just to make sure, she ducked into an alleyway to count it-- and her expressive eyes grew even wider as doubloon after doubloon clinked out into her small palm. She could buy the whole port! Well… maybe not the WHOLE port… she reconsidered after a moment, but she COULD buy whatever trinket caught her eye. Despite the fact that she had never purchased anything in her life, the girl knew that having gold coins to pay with would certainly help her bargaining power. So, after carefully retying the pouch into her sash, she re-entered the flow of people towards what seemed to be a marketplace.
Necklaces, toys, candies, swords…Each item looked more appealing than the last, but Kelsea Sparrow thought of a reason that none was the appropriate birthday present. Necklaces were pretty enough, but would never be worn for fear of being lost overboard; toys were fun, but she would never have time to play with them between duties; candies were short-lived; and swords… well, she already had a perfectly good sword that meant more than one from a random stall would. And so she pressed on, eyes roving over the merchandise of each stand in search of the perfect gift.
POSSIBLY FOREVER LATER…
How many stalls full of dresses and bracelets could there be--? Kelsea rolled her eyes as she passed yet another merchant extolling the virtues of silk gowns. Bloody Hell, she had been walking for HOURS it seemed…She glanced up at the sun and did her best to judge the hour. Yep, just as she had suspected, the sun was well past its zenith and currently was beginning to dip towards the horizon…Clearly she had been trudging around that bleeding marketplace for the entire afternoon.
And yet, nothing seemed fitting. She had seen what she assumed to be every single type of trinket there could ever be in the entire world-- to no avail. Ugh, her feet were beginning to hurt after all of the walking, especially since she was far more accustomed to walking on a ship's rolling deck than on the land. The dark-haired girl stopped for a moment to catch her breath, and realized with dismay that if she didn't find something soon, she would have to return to the Pearl empty handed. Thoroughly unhappy about that particular prospect and having found herself at the end of the street, she plopped herself down on an empty crate that sat off to one side. What would she tell Cap'n Jack, who would surely be wanting to see her newest purchase..?
"An' what kin I be doin' fer a young lassie such as yerself t'day, eh?"
Kelsea jumped at the grating voice that sounded just to her right, and jerked her head around. She found herself looking up at a particularly ancient, rat-faced character who was leaning against a crudely constructed counter of sorts. Apparently this was some sort of shop, although much less refined than the rest… being at the run-down end of the street.
"Oh, m'sorry sir… jus' wanted t'rest fer a moment… didn' mean t'intrude…" she apologized quickly, making to get up. However, a surprisingly strong hand clapped down on her shoulder before she could move.
"Arr, what be th'rush, missie? M'sure we could find somfin t'suit ye… Welcome t'Tristan's Tattoos! I be Tristan, at yer service."
Whereas she had previously been working out away to break his pincer-like grip, Kelsea immediately perked up at his words. Tattoos..? Her mind's eye immediately latched onto one of her favorite images… the sparrow that graced her father's right forearm.
Many was the time when she would absently trace her fingers over the simplistic, yet beautiful design as Jack told her some probably fabricated legend that always involved himself as the hero… and now, the solution to her birthday problems seemed clear: she would use the money to get the sparrow tattoo! Now… how to ask about it?
"Mr. Tristan, sir… ye make… tattoos?" She asked tentatively, glancing over at the various instruments that were strewn across his rickety table. The old piratey man smiled a mostly toothless smile and waved a gnarled hand with flourish.
"Aye, lassie, that I do. Well, craft 'em is more like it… Tattoos is an art, after all, an' I, Tristan, be yer artiste!" he leaned closer, breathing rummy breath into her face.
Trying not to wrinkle her nose, Kelsea Sparrow stood her ground. "Alrigh', well jus' so happens that I know of a picture that I'd like right 'ere…" she indicated her right forearm, just above the wrist.
"Well I'll be needin' ye t'draw it out fer me, then… So I knows what it is ye be wantin'!" The man called Tristan rummaged around in his things for a moment before producing a scrap of paper and a nub of charcoal. Taking the implements from him, the girl closed her eyes and pictured her father's tattoo before beginning to draw.
The image she ended up with was pitifully done at best, for she had never been much with drawings, but the man's eyes lit up as soon as he set eyes upon the crudely sketched bird in the arc.
"Avast--! I remembers every one I ever inked, an' that one… That one was somfin special, mark me words-- Jack Sparrow's tattoo!" He grabbed the piece of paper and examined it closer, before casting an eye over the girl who had drawn it. "What be this tattoo to a young lass like yerself, an' how is it ye know exactly how t'was done?"
Realizing that this would certainly not be the opportune moment to reveal that the reason she wants said tattoo is to be just like her daddy, in true pirate fashion Kelsea quickly invented an excuse. "Well I read a book once wiv that tattoo in it… an' me name means 'Little Sparrow' as I've been told… so I thought this one would be… er… pretty." She nearly laughed aloud at the thought of what Jack's reaction would be if he ever heard her call his tattoo pretty, but managed to hold her tongue.
Tristan contemplated her reasoning for a moment before shrugging. "Alrigh' lass, s'long as ye've got th'gold t'pay…"
The girl quickly jingled her pouch of money, and the man chuckled.
"'Tis settled, then! Step inta me shop, missie, an' sit yerself down!" Before she could, however, he gave her a hard look. "I'll give fair warnin' though… 'tis not a pleasant thing, gettin' tattooed. Mayhaps ye should consider th'pain involved, bein' a liddle lass, an' all…"
Fourteen-year-old Kelsea hesitated for a moment, her eyes racing over the non-sterile and dangerously sharp looking implements on the table, before resolutely steeling herself. She was going to do it, no matter what! Taking a deep breath, the girl sidled back over to where the crate was and sat down, carefully rolling up her sleeve. "Jus' do it, mate!"
JUST AS THE SUN SETS…
Bloody Hell an' fer th'love of th'virgin mother--! Kelsea Sparrow was chewing at the inside of her cheek as she walked doggedly on, trying desperately not to think of the words searing and flesh and raw. However, the more she tried to ignore the pain, the worse it seemed to get-- her right forearm was on fire!
Tristan had definitely not been exaggerating when he had mentioned that getting a tattoo was a painful process… in fact, he had drastically underplayed the side-effects of his art. The raven-haired teen glanced down at her wrist, and groaned inwardly but at the same time felt grim satisfaction. The skin was a bit swollen and red, yes, but also there was a perfect replica of a certain bird dipping it's wing in the waves-- The Jack Sparrow tattoo.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANGGG!
The sound of the Black Pearl's bell rang out clearly through the Caribbean evening, and Kelsea's heart jumped into her throat as she heard it.
Damn it all t'the depths, what TIME was it--? The redness to the sun indicated that the day was almost out, and also that she was late in her return to the ship. Bugger, Jack would certainly not be happy… With nothing else for it, the girl pushed all pain and tiredness from her mind and began to run haphazardly down to the docks.
ABOARD THE PEARL…
Captain Jack Sparrow stood at the railing of his ship, one hand up to shield his eyes against the crimsoning sunlight that sparkled across the waters of the harbor. Where WAS she--? He thought, worry rising in the back of his throat so that he could taste it. True, he hadn't told her exactly when to be back, but surely if she was alright she would be back before dark, or at least when she heard the bell--? Kohl-lined eyes carefully scanned the docks for the familiar figure, but so far to no avail. What if the worst had happened--?
All of the crew-members of the Pearl filtered aboard, some in better shape than others, except for one small girl. The captain asked each of them if the had seen her, but every man shook his head. Just as Jack was about to throw his caution about the Navy to the wind and disembark to look for his daughter, Marty threw up a shout.
"There she be, Cap'n!"
Jack whirled around wildly to look, and felt relief physically course through his body as his eyes fell upon the form of a girl jogging along the pier towards them. Kelsea. Thank God she was safe… As she got closer, however, the assured smile became a scowl. How dare she worry him like that!
For her part, the previously missing girl was panting as she finally made her way up the gangplank. She knew she was in for a good scolding, but at this point was far too tired and in too much pain to care. "All present an' accounted for, Cap'n Sparrow…" she managed to gasp out, bending to get her wind back. "Apologies fer keepin' ye waitin'…"
Overcome by the urge to both berate and hug his daughter all at the same time, the pirate captain settled for staring down at her frostily. "Ye kept th'entire crew waitin', whelp!" he accused, and she nodded in reluctant agreement.
"Aye, Cap'n."
"Ye made us miss th'evenin' tide!"
"Aye Cap'n."
"Ye could've been th'cause of me capture, had th'Navy decided t'poke 'round!"
"Aye Cap'n."
Each bombardment was met with the same resigned answer, and finally, Jack just sighed and shook his head. By the sight of her, the girl was apologetic, and he didn't really have any more reason to be upset now that she was back. Besides, he reasoned, it was her birthday, he could afford to be lenient. "Alrigh' well… Why don' ye tell me why yer so late, eh? What was it ye got fer a present?"
Keslea glanced up at her father with a tentative smile. Could he really be letting it go so easily..? The easy glance she got in return only confirmed her hopes, and the grin widened. She couldn't wait to show him-- he'd be so surprised!
"Well… couldn' find anythin' fer most o' th'day…" She began, reaching down to re-roll the sleeve that had come down during her jog to the ship. "But then I ended up meetin' this man named Tristan… an' he offered t'give me this--" the girl finished pulling up the fabric and proudly pointed out the still red-tinged image that was engrained in the skin. "Jus' like yers, Dad!"
Jack froze as his eyes fell upon the design. The… the Sparrow tattoo… on her arm… clear as day… He reached out and took hold of her wrist, wordlessly drawing closer to examine the mark. She had… The same as his own… His mind whirled, unable to latch onto a thought.
On the one hand, there was some sort of fierce pride in this new thing that linked them together… but a much stronger emotion was that of uneasiness. This tattoo… it sealed her identiy-- not only as his daughter, but as a pirate. Could he live with the knowledge that pillaging was to be her life--? Sure, it was HIS existence of choice and he knew that she enjoyed it… but that didn't mean he wanted the same hardship and pain and danger for his little girl…
"Daddy… Say somethin'..?" It wasn't very often that the teen called him that, especially since she was now coming into her own, so the title snapped him from his thoughts.
"Ye… ye've… Kelsea Sparrow, are ye out of yer bloody mind--?" Jack hissed, and of all the reactions she had been expecting, this certainly wasn't one of them.
"W-wha--?"
"D'ye know what ye've done? Ye've permanently marked yerself as a bloody pirate! Those don' come off, whelp! I though' ye had more sense in yer head 'n that!" he ranted, waving his arms about in agitation.
Kelsea cowered back, tears threatening to spill down her cheeks as she roughly pulled her sleeve back down, hiding what she had done. The skin was still very tender and it stung horribly. "I-- I… I thought…"
"No, ye DIDN'T think! How could ye do somethin' so bloody daft--? I tol' ye t'get a trinket, not a bloody brand! Fer th'love of mercy, Kelsea… Ye've really done it this time…" Jack Sparrow by this point had become flustered to the point of no longer being able to coherently form sentences. How could she do something like that..? Shaking with shock and anger and worry, the pirate captain could think of nothing else to do besides that which he normally did under such circumstances-- he turned on his heel and stalked off the deck to his cabin.
Confused and upset, the birthday girl stood rooted to the spot, her arm burning like the fires of hell and her stomach twisted into knots. What had she done that was so wrong..? She had only wanted to be like him… to wear the Sparrow tattoo… the one just like Jack's.