Authors note: Hey! I hope ya'll enjoy this chapter, I had a major bout of writers block but I think it's over with now. So please review!!!!!!
Disclaimer: Sadly, don't own
Anna woke up with a headache and a throbbing pain in her arm.
"What I wouldn't give for an Advil." She mumbled, groggily sitting up and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. The morning light shown through the small pothole, illuminating a part of the wooden floor. A tiny dark object caught her attention and she leaned closer to get a better look. Anna's eyes widened in shock as the object scurried across the floor and ducked into a hole.
"Ewww, there's mice!" She screeched, pushing herself up against the headboard and hugging her legs.
"Of course." A voice said from the corner. Surprised, Anna lit the oil lamp that was sitting on the bedside table, a task she'd learned how to do. Her room filled with light and there was Jack, lounging in a chair with his feet propped up on the desk.
"Jack! What are you doing here, get out!" She yelled, clutching her blanket. The Caribbean was hot, even at night, so she had gotten into the habit of sleeping in only a shirt.
"Captain, is that really so hard to remember? And I was waiting for you to wake up." He told her, not moving.
"Oh, sorry," She said sarcastically, "Captain Sparrow, what do you want?"
"It's not what I want, deri, but what you need, and that is a dress. Which we would have acquired last night if it hadn't been for that little fight you started." He said.
"The fight I started, I didn't start it, if anything you started it-" Anna stopped arguing when Jack held up his hand.
"Lets not get into who did what and why the who did the what. Even if the who that did the what wouldn't be here right now if it wasn't for the who that didn't do the what stepping in and saving the who that did the what from a certainly dreadful man. Let us instead buy you a dress." He said. Anna frowned and tried to figure out what he was saying, but once again, she came up short on the logic of Jack Sparrow, so she decided to just agree.
"Alright, whatever you say." Anna then proceeded to get up and get ready, but what she had forgotten during his little spiel, was her state of undress, that is, until Jack raised his eyebrows appreciatively as her sheet fell to the floor.
"Stop looking." She commanded, grabbing the blanket back up and wrapping it around her waist. Jack grinned and stood up.
"As you wish, but it really wasn't a bad view." He said before walking out the door. Anna groaned and ran a hand through her hair.
"Stupid, bloody, idiotic pirate." She mumbled under her breath as she hunted for her pants. After she'd pulled them on, she noticed the hat Jack had given her the night before. She smirked and picked it up, feeling the smooth leather under her hand.
"Pirates life for me." She said as she put it on. She tied her hair back with a black ribbon in a vein attempt to cool down. Once she looked presentable, she walked out onto the deck.
"Finally," Jack said, walking over to her. "I don't understand what takes women so bloody long."
"I was only in there maybe five minutes!" Anna exclaimed in disbelief.
"Five more than you needed." He grumbled as he led her down the gangplank.
The streets weren't to busy, and Anna might have enjoyed the short walk to the dressmakers if it hadn't been for the smell. She couldn't place it, but knew it had something to do with this time, because she hadn't smelt anything like that in 2004. When they came to the small shop, a welcomed burst of air met them when they opened the door. Anna let out a breath she didn't know she was holding and took a few moments to let her eyes adjust to the dim light.
"Hello." Said a soft voice from the corner. Anna turned around to see a young lady sitting at a table with some fabric in her lap. She set that aside and stood up to greet them more formally. "My name is Mary." She introduced herself. Before Anna could return the favor, Jack stepped in front of her and held out his hand.
"'Ello, my name is Smith, and this is my fiancé, Annabelle." He told Mary, stopping any interruptions on Anna's part by squeezing her shoulder.
"Hello Mr. Smith." Mary shook his hand and nodded towards Anna.
"We seem to be in need of a dress, we don't have much time, so an already made one would be necessary." Jack explained, offering the girl a bag of coins. Mary nodded and took it from him. She fingered a few pieces and looked back up.
"Alright Miss. Annabelle, please follow me." Mary instructed. Anna did as she was told, but before she left she whispered to Jack.
"Fiancé?"
"Luv, it wouldn't be proper for me to be buying you a dress unless we were related." He said.
"You could be my father." She hissed back, running to join Mary before Jack could think up a comeback.
Mary led her through what Anna assumed to be a small kitchen, with a tiny wooden table set for one crammed into the corner. Mary took her through a door and the women entered a medium sized room that would be larger if it wasn't for the massive amounts of fabric that were scattered everywhere.
"Alright Miss Annabelle, what kind of dress are you looking for?" Mary asked, grabbing what looked like a tape measure like thing off a pile of other odds and ends.
"Um, I really don't know, a fancy-ish one maybe." Anna suggested, knowing she sounded like an idiot. Mary bit her lower lip in order not to laugh and nodded.
"Have you ever bought a dress before?" She inquired, then taking in Anna's appearance, she added "Or worn one." Anna smiled and shook her head.
"Not one like any of these." She told her, pointing to a yellow, puffy, dress that was hanging near them.
"Well, it's really simple. What are you planning to wear it for? A ball, a carriage ride, everyday?" Mary threw out a few ideas for Anna to consider.
"Everyday, like if I go ashore at a higher-class port." She said, repeating what Jack had said the night before.
"Any Port in particular?" Anna thought about it and said the first Port she thought of.
"Like, Port Royal." She told Mary. The girl seemed shocked for a moment but covered it well.
"Alright then, I will need to take your measurements and then I can pick out a proper dress." Mary said. She wrapped the tape measure around Anna's waist first and muttered a few things to herself, then moved the measure to Anna's chest.
"Aren't you going to write them down?" Anna asked curious. Mary looked up from the tape frowning.
"I can't write or read." She said. Anna felt suddenly guilty. Of course she couldn't read, practically nobody could in these days.
"Oh, sorry." Anna mumbled.
"Can you read?" Mary asked astonished. Anna nodded and started toying with the hem of her shirt.
"Really?" Anna could tell Mary was amazed and she was starting to feel a little uncomfortable. Mary noticed this and looked at the ground.
"I'm sorry." She apologized.
"Don't be." Anna said. Mary finished taking her measurements nodded. She walked over to a part of the room that had finished dresses hanging on the wall and looked through them.
"Alright," She started, bringing a dress over to Anna. "Now it wont be a perfect fit, but it should be pretty close." Anna understood and waited for instructions.
"Will you be needing a corset?" The girl asked, gathering up other things for the outfit.
"No, no, no. I, ah, already have one of those." Anna lied. Mary caught this and laughed.
"I'll take that as a yes." She said and grabbed one of those as well. She brought her pile over to Anna and told her to remove her shirt. After Anna had done that, she slipped the first of many layers on in its place. Mary picked up the corset and wrapped it around Anna's waist.
"Take a deep breath." She told her. Anna did and, as Mary pulled on the ties, she felt her rib cage shrinking. Anna let out the breath, but she could only do so little by little.
"How does that feel?" Mary asked after a few minutes of tightening the garment.
"Oh, just fine." Anna said sarcastically, wincing in pain. Mary smiled and continued to dress her. At the very end, she finally put the actual dress on her. It was mainly white and silver, with a blue flowery pattern on it. The sleeves ended at her elbow and the rest was a mess of frills and lace. There was also a blue silk ribbon that tied around her waist with a bow in the back. In one word, it was beautiful. Anna walked over to a mirror in the corner, almost tripping on the skirt. Anna had never thought herself to be a classic beauty, black, stick straight, hair and eyes that were a muddy gray. In this dress though, she thought she was very pretty.
"You look beautiful. I'm sure your fiancé will love it." Mary acknowledged. Anna laughed dryly.
"Oh, I'm sure he will." She said sarcastically, tugging at her hair that hung ungracefully at her shoulders. She hadn't noticed that the ribbon had fallen out until now, and she had a bump in the back were it had been tied up. Mary cocked her head and thought about something.
"Would you like me to do your hair? I'm not very good, but I've done it before." She suggested.
"Would you?" Anna asked, grateful. Mary led her to a chair and picked up a brush that was lying around. First, she brushed through Anna's thick hair, trying not to hurt her. Even though it did actually hurt, Anna enjoyed the feel of her hair getting untangled. Mary then braided her hair neatly and tied a blue ribbon tightly at the bottom to hold it in place.
"There, not the latest fashion in London, but I think it will hold." Mary said.
"Thank you so much, my current residence is lacking in such amenities as a brush." Anna told her, standing up.
"You can show your fiancé the dress and talk about it, I'll be out in a few minutes for your decision." She said. Anna nodded and found her way back out to the main room where Jack was toying with one of the beads in his hair. He looked up when she entered.
"About bloody time," He started to say before he actually noticed what she looked like. "Oh." For the first time in his entire life, Captain Jack Sparrow was speechless.
"What, I don't look that bad do I?" Anna asked, starting to feel self-conscious. Jack shook his head and stood up.
"Not at all, luv." He told her, walking over. "What do you think of the Dress?"
"I love it, I've never had a dress this fancy before." She admitted. I've never had a dress that weighed more than me before, she added to herself.
"Well, you do look ravishing. But might I inquire as to the reason your hair looks slightly different than when I left you in young Mary's care?" He asked, touching the plait.
"She was nice enough to fix it for me, seeing that the Pearl is not exactly conducive for a woman." She told him. He grinned and stepped closer.
"That is known to happen when said woman is thrown into an area made up entirely of people of the male persuasion." He said, stepping closer still.
"Captain." She warned, leaning back. He ignored her and continued to advance.
"You have yet to grace us with your story as to why you ended up on that male infested ship in the middle of the ocean as it were. I would enjoy hearing it." He told her, placing his hand on her shoulder. She felt her heart skip a beat and breathing quickened, an annoying thing when wearing a corset.
"Jack." She said, switching tactics to a shock factor. Jack, however, was undaunted. He leaned in and she could feel his breath on her face. Her mind was telling her to jump back, to punch him, to do something other than let this happen, but unfortunately she wasn't listening to her mind. The idea of being kissed by Jack Sparrow was overriding her common sense. Jacks lips were just inches from hers and in a few seconds he would be kissing her. A sound in the corner snapped her out of her reprieve and she quickly stepped back and after a moment to collect her thoughts, anger rose up inside her.
"Jack Sparrow!" She yelled, "I am not some prostitute you can pick up and will allow you to kiss her! I have never been so insulted!" She clenched and unclenched her fists, subduing the urge to slap him.
"You seemed to enjoy it enough luv." He commented, appearing unfazed. That did it; she threw her self-control out the window and let her hand fly.
"Oh, you! You wouldn't have even thought of kissing me unless I was in a dress! Well sorry to disappoint Mr. Sparrow, but this is the last time you'll ever see me in a dress!" And with that, she stormed away. Jack just stood there, rolling his eyes. In so doing, he noticed a figure standing in the corner.
"Ah, young Mary." He greeted with a slight wave. Most people would have been embarrassed if someone had witnessed someone slapping them. However, Jack was no stranger to having an audience when said thing occurred, which it did quite often to him.
"That wasn't a smart thing to do Mr. Smith or whatever your name is, you should apologize to her." Mary told him, and then went to attend to
Anna. Jack frowned.
"Women." He huffed as he sat back down.
Anna was sitting in a chair, muttering under her breath when Mary came back.
"Are you alright?' She asked cautiously.
"No!" Anna yelled, causing Mary to flinch. "Sorry, he just makes me so mad." Mary nodded and motioned Anna to stand up so she could undress her.
"You two aren't really engaged are you?" She asked as she removed the dress. Anna sighed and shook her head.
"No. Actually, I'm a passenger on his ship. I was lacking what he considered the proper attire so he insisted I get a dress." Anna explained.
"Ah, so you two have no feelings towards each other whatsoever right?" Mary asked. Anna turned around.
"No, none." She stated defiantly, though in the back of her mind she couldn't shake the feeling of how she felt when Jack was about to kiss her.
What am I doing! A. I've only known the man for less than a week, granted I know slightly more about him from the million times I watched that stupid movie, but still. B. He's Captain Jack, Bloody, Sparrow! A totally made up imaginary man thought up be Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio and brought to life by Johnny Depp. She explained to herself, pulling her pants and shirt on. Mary folded her dress and placed it in a cloth bag before handing it to her.
"Thank you." Anna said, turning to leave.
"No, thank you. And Miss Annabelle, don't be so hard on the man. He seems to care about you if he is buying this dress for you." Mary said. Anna sighed and walked out to meet Jack.
Well, there it was, hope you liked it.
