CHAPTER SEVEN: The Black Pearl
The Empress and the Troubdaour set sail as a pair just as the sun rose. Many of the crew had dastardly hangovers and were not best pleased to be forced from their hammocks so early, but Teague told them in no uncertain terms that the deck could do with a good scrub if they felt like they were no good for sailing. Katie was with Moss in the kitchen as usual, preparing a stew that would last for the next two days of meals. They were getting low on supplies again, and Katie was expecting griping from the crew about the fact the stew was all vegetables.
"How is married life going?" Moss grinned as the pair of them peeled potatoes.
"Oh, wonderful." Katie responded sarcastically. Moss laughed but Katie didn't seem in the slightest bit amused. He recalled that she had drunk rum again the previous night, though in a far lesser quantity than the night in Tortuga.
"Most of Captain Swann's crew seem convinced, anyway," Moss offered, in a bid to cheer her up, "We were all telling them how loved up you both are, and how it turns our stomachs." Katie did smile at this, though it was a slightly rueful smile, based on the irony of the fact Jack barely seemed to speak to her these days. Moss didn't realise this though, and instead was too busy thinking how pretty she looked when she smiled. "It should take us no time to locate the Dutchman now though."
"Yes but it's risky for two pirate ships to be in one place in this part of the sea." This thought had occurred to Katie the moment she realised the plan was for the two ships to remain together until they found the Dutchman. It seemed peculiar to her that the more experienced pirates hadn't seen the flaw in the plan. "And by and by there will be four ships, if you include the Dutchman itself and the Black Pearl." Moss was impressed she had thought of this.
"I'm sure Captain Teague knows what he's doing. He can't half move this ship if he needs to." Katie nodded. She was confident in Teague as a Captain, but not so much in Elizabeth. The Dutchman could do a disappearing act, of course, but she and Jack would be manning the Black Pearl alone until Tortuga- assuming that he hadn't decided he'd rather leave her behind. She wasn't completely sure what had transpired between the pair that night, and she feared she'd never know. Moss stepped towards her, one hand extended slightly.
"We'll be alright," He said, misinterpreting her silence as further worry about the pirates drawing attention to themselves. Katie slapped his hand away as he made to touch her and Moss recoiled in shock. They stared at each other.
"I'm… sorry." She whispered, and hurried from the kitchen.
Katie didn't stop until she had reached the other side of the ship. She was gulping large lungful's of fresh sea air, her heart pounding a thousand times a minute although there was no reason for it. It was as if Moss' attempt at physical contact had triggered some sort of panic attack, a feeling of absolute dread. Several crewmembers had noticed her symptoms, and were moving away warily: It looked as if she might cry, and none of them were any good about crying women. Another person who'd noticed Katie's sharp exit from the kitchen was Jack. He took a step in her direction, hesitated, and then continued on his way, his eyes flickering towards the Empress, which was slightly ahead of them. As he arrived behind Katie, she was almost doubled over, still hyperventilating. Gritting his teeth, Jack placed a hand on her back, spreading the warmth of his touch to her.
"Katie." He said firmly, "Katie, stand up."
"I- can't- breathe." She said, not wanting to turn her tear-stained face towards him. She'd sworn she would not cry all the way back in London. She supposed that vow was broken now, and all because of stupid Moss.
"You can. You can breathe. Come on, love, in through the nose an' out through the mouth. That's it." She tried to do what he said but she was still refusing to look at him and still bent over, clutching the wooden railing of the ship as if her life depended on it, as if she might fall off the edge of the Earth otherwise. Jack rolled his eyes at himself as he placed one strong arm around her waist and pulled her body back against his, forcing her to stand, though not to turn around. The idea of Moss touching her had merited a slap and latterly this, the beginnings of a panic attack. But somehow Jack's strong grip was reassuring. She leant back into him, still breathing shallowly. Jack reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief, handing it to her. She accepted it silently and wiped her tears away, moving her hair out of her eyes. After several minutes, when she was just hiccupping, he spoke to her again:
"How're you feeling now, darlin'?" Jack had not removed the arm from around her waist, fearing still that she'd collapse. But he couldn't help but note that it was as if their bodies had been designed to fit together, the curves of hers fitting his. And with that thought, he let go of her as if she had just burned him. Katie finally glanced around in surprise at this, but Jack didn't leave her completely, though his feet were itching to run. He merely stood beside her instead.
"I'm… better." She said. And then, "Sorry."
"What're you sorry for?" He asked, flashing her a grin. She smiled a little back.
"I'm never usually such a… well, a girl." She explained. Jack chuckled.
"I'd gathered as much, by now." It was one of the things that had made him like and respect her, the fact she wasn't tearful and afraid of everything.
"Thank you, though, for… you know." She gestured awkwardly before looking hastily back out to sea.
"What're friends for, eh?" He began to walk away, glad that Katie was no longer tearful, but as he glanced back he saw her slim shoulders drop a little. "Are you gonna tell me what that was all about?" He asked, again stilling his shifting feet almost against his own will. Jack watched her shoulders as she squared them again, as if to support a massive burden. But when Katie turned around to face him once more, her expression was hard and blazing.
"I'm fine, now." She said, not exactly answering the question. Jack squinted at her for a moment.
"You sure?"
"Positive." She replied, and Jack nodded, walking away across the ship in his usual flamboyant manner. Katie didn't watch him go, instead walking towards some loose rigging that needed tightening as the wind crept up. If she had watched, she would have seen Captain Jack Sparrow politely opening and closing the kitchen door. Invisible to everyone, however, was the fact that immediately on the other side of that door, he drew his sword and held it out, the edge of the blade cold against Moss's neck.
"Whatever you're doin' mate, it stops now, alright?" Jack growled at the cook. Moss had been taken aback by this greeting and so hadn't reached for his own sword.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" He cried.
"Oh you don't? Then explain to me why Katie just came tearin' out of 'ere in a state!" Unknown to Katie, this was not the first crew member Jack had threatened on her behalf; whenever one of the crew made an inappropriate comment about her, Jack warned them off. He had let them know in no uncertain terms that if they lay a finger on her, it may be the last thing they ever did. They were to treat her with respect. For most of the crew, they needed no more than to be told; they had grown to like Katie and wouldn't dream of hurting her. But a couple of them had become all too acquainted with what the barrel of Jack's gun looked like. He had been avoiding talking to her these weeks, mainly because he felt as if he were getting too close to her. She knew all his secrets, knew more than anyone else knew about who Jack Sparrow was underneath it all. And while he was no less fond of her for it, he was unused to it and was clinging to his personal space, his privacy, although she never invaded it. This evasiveness, however, did not mean that his policy of treating Katie with the same respect he was treated with had changed.
"I don't know! I was trying to reassure her that the navy weren't going to capture us and she- well, she just ran out of here!" Jack glared at Moss some more, but he saw the truth in his eyes. He hadn't done anything intentionally, at least. Jack slowly lowered his sword, sheathing it without looking away from Moss, who was now looking slightly relieved.
"Any fool can see you like 'er, mate." Jack said, matter-of-factly, "An' yer a decent bloke, at least. But if I 'ear you've made 'er uncomfortable in any way…"
"I won't! Because I…" Moss reddened.
"Pass me the sick bucket, lad." Jack interrupted, grimacing. Moss looked at him confusedly, "I don't wanna hear any professions of love. Anyway, Katie isn't like most 'nice' girls. She don't flutter her eyelashes for attention, so I don't think you fussing her and treating her like one of them will win 'er heart."
"I… I was just going to pat her arm, that was all. Nothing untoward." Moss had, after all, had his own arm patted by Katie plenty of times. She was that sort of person. Jack looked strangely interested to hear this, though.
"Right… well, if she don't like it, don't do it again, savvy?" As Jack exited the kitchen, he glanced toward Katie. She seemed to have recovered at least mostly and was waving across to Elizabeth on the Empress. She didn't notice him looking. Something told him he was getting closer to the truth of what she was running from, somehow, although he hadn't really been trying. Now, Jack was going to try. He had to know, now.
Elizabeth was proven correct that her presence alongside the Troubadour would bring about the Flying Dutchman's appearance much more quickly as, a few days later, with an aggressive burst of water, it surfaced between the two ships. Elizabeth squealed, grabbed a robe and swung across and into its Captain's arms before anyone on the Troubadour had even fully registered what was going on. The Dutchman was angular and intimidating, though Katie did not know that under its latest Captain it had become slightly more welcoming in appearance- particularly because the crew no longer had fish-like mutations affecting their appearance. Katie watched the young married couple kiss and found herself glancing sideways at Jack, who was nearby. He was watching them with a slight smile, which seemed uncharacteristic- but then, Elizabeth had told her about Jack's role in their getting together, finally. She looked back at them and then heard Teague call out:
"Captain Turner and Captain Swann, board the Troubadour for convention!" Although Elizabeth was also technically Captain Turner, she was no longer correcting people as it was easier to tell who one was referring to if she used her maiden name. The couple swung over together, clutching each other as they crossed the deck, unable to take their eyes off one another.
"Sorry to spoil the reunion, but this is important." Teague growled.
"We'll have plenty of time together later." Will murmured huskily in Elizabeth's ear, though everyone nearby heard it.
"You know who else is married now?" Elizabeth asked her husband breathlessly, her cheeks a little pink. "Jack!" Will looked around in surprise at the pirate. Jack showed his gold teeth in a grin as he held out a hand to Katie. She took it and the two began again the act that they'd become so skilled in.
"Meet Katie." Will scanned her quickly with dark eyes before offering her a slight bow.
"You must be a very formidable woman to be married to Jack." He said. Jack grinned.
"Oh she's very scary, aren't you, love?" He put his arm around her shoulders. Katie felt goosebumps erupt on her arm; she had caught a whiff of Jack's aroma, something like the sun and the sea mixed together. She managed a smile for Will's benefit.
"It's nice to meet you, Captain Turner."
"I'm sad to have missed the wedding." Will said. He was slightly incredulous at the idea of Jack being married, but he noticed the slight blush Katie had when Jack touched her and the way Jack presented her the way he might once have presented a bottle of rum.
"We all missed the wedding," Teague said, "They eloped"
"Oh, well we still owe you a wedding gift, I think. If it wasn't for Jack, I wouldn't be here at all today." Will said. Jack squeezed Katie sharply and she looked around at him, surprised, but then understood what he meant when she saw his expression.
"Actually, there is something that would be wonderful if it isn't too much trouble… you see, we'd like our own ship. I intend to sail with Jack, but we can't really be alone… that is… the Black Pearl is in a bottle and only you can bring it out…" Katie managed to sound both coy and pleading at the same time, sensing this was the way to handle Will. Sure enough, he glanced from Katie to Jack for a split second, and then at Elizabeth, who nodded vigorously, before he replied.
"I'd be honoured." He said. As soon as the words were out of Will's mouth, Teague produced the aforementioned bottle seemingly from nowhere. Katie had never actually laid eyes on it before, and had no idea how Teague had come into possession of it. Jack looked equally surprised, but masked it quickly.
"You know what to do?" Teague asked, as Will took the bottle. He nodded whilst looking at it, holding it up so that they all had a view of the ship within. It was smaller than the Troubadour, but distinctive with its black sails. Katie knew from tales of it that the Black Pearl made up for its size in it's speed.
"Davy Jones' would've had you pay another debt for this, Jack." Will pointed out. Jack swallowed. "You're lucky this is a gift." Without further ado, he smashed the bottle against the side of the Troubadour. The broken glass of the bottle that felt to the floor turned black and disappeared in a wisp of smoke. Will had caught the ship, and now he flung it out to sea. Jack hurried anxiously to look over the side of the ship, where it had been flung. There was a long pause, and then…
The full-sized Black Pearl, fully repaired and darkly beautiful, erupted from the sea. Katie watched the water crash back into the sea below it, hearing the amazed gasps of everyone who was there to witness it. Jack was gazing at his ship joyfully, frozen for a moment. Katie looked around and saw Elizabeth and Will smiling at her.
"Oh… Thank you!" She squeaked. She was glad Jack had what he really wanted, but she was also a little apprehensive; now, she would be leaving with him alone, to return to Tortuga before heading to Shipwreck Cove. And as relations between them had been somewhat strained… She felt a hand on her shoulder and turned to find Teague looking her squarely in the eyes.
"Katie, you look after my boy." His tone was teasing but there was truth in his gaze.
"I will… thank you for everything." She mumbled, and she knew he sensed her nerves.
"Take this," And again, he produced an object from apparently nowhere, though this time it was a pistol, "You never know when you might need it. We'll be seein' you soon, at Shipwreck Island." Katie nodded and accepted the pistol. Jack had not looked away from his ship since it had surfaced, almost convinced that if he looked away it would disappear again. The Pearl was loaded with enough supplies to last the pair until Tortuga, where they could restock and hire a crew. It was only around an hour later that Katie and Jack found themselves aboard the Pearl, sailing in the opposite direction from the other three ships. Neither of them spoke at first.
Jack was at the helm, and Katie made her way into the Captain's quarters. There, she found a chest full of clothes. She found a pair of boots which had probably belonged to some poor lad before which fit her feet, a pair of faded black breeches, a shirt and a belt, into which she tucked her pistol. She managed also to tie her hair back using a piece of twine and checked her appearance in the reflection of the window. She had expected to feel uncomfortable in these clothes, but she didn't: dresses had been inconvenient and besides, these clothes were actually quite clean, which made a change.
Jack was not a fan of women in men's clothing, but when Katie approached him on the helm just as they lost sight of the other ships on the horizon behind them, his lips formed a smile. With her hair off her face her green eyes stood out, and she looked tougher, much more like the Katie he knew she was on the inside.
"You look wonderful, love." He said.
"You seem happy." Katie noted, not knowing how best to respond to his unexpected compliment.
"I'm home."
A/N: I'm going to be honest and say I'm not a fan of this chapter. A lot happened that needed to happen, but I found it really difficult to write. I hope it came across okay! Thanks to those who have reviewed, you make this so much more worth it. Please don't hesitate to drop me a line telling me what you think!