Disclaimer: Me: I own many wonderful things, including an epic poster of one Jack Sparrow -
Jack: Oi! That's Captain to ye!
Me: My apologies, Captain Jack Sparrow, but I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean, or (unfortunately) our favorite Captain himself. So, on with the story...
"No one is going to be killed! You're mad!" Emily has her pistol aimed at Adrienne; her hand is steady, her expression cold in a way that is unlike her, even as fear threatens to overwhelm her.
She has had more than enough of Adrienne, and it's showing.
"Am I?" Adrienne asks, standing stiffly nearly the railing of the ship where Emily has backed her up. She speaks slowly, seeming to choose her words carefully. "You cannot tell me you haven't thought about this. About what is really going on. Unless, of course, the Captain has told you. She tells you everything now, no?"
Emily doesn't answer, contemplating what the other girl has just said. Adrienne smirks.
"Ah, I knew it. You don't know what is going on here anymore than the rest of us do!"
"I'm sure the Captain has a good reason." Emily replies finally, sounding two times more certain that she feels.
"And what might that be, hm? What if she is leading us into danger?"
Emily is reminded of the dream she's been having repeatedly for the past few nights. Adrienne has a point, and she knows it.
She glances up and around, and the crew watching their exchange seems to be wavering. They are not stupid. They too can see that Adrienne has a point. However, none of them seem too inclined to intervene on her behalf, either.
Emily trusts Ana, that is for certain. And Adrienne is really, really, really starting to make her angry.
Stupid plan on Adrienne's part, ticking off the girl with the gun.
Emily wonders where the Captain is, anyways. She is a bit perturbed, really, because by now Ana would no doubt have realized something was up, right?
"And we've all seen how snappy she's been with you." Adrienne goes on. "Why do you think she made you first mate, hmm? Probably because she knew you are a coward and would not go against her!"
"Stow it!" Emily snaps at that, her grip on the pistol tightening. "Just – just stop it!"
Adrienne eyes the pistol, as if just realizing it is there.
"You wouldn't shoot me…"
"Wouldn't I?"
Adrienne doesn't answer, and Emily can see the fear in her eyes. For a moment, a brief moment, she does consider actually firing the pistol.
Saner heads prevail, yet again. She's not sure she could kill like that. She has another idea, though.
"Jump."
"What?" Adrienne seems startled.
"Jump. Or I'll shoot. Take your pick."
The men around them start to murmur a bit, a few speaking up.
"But what about…"
"Maybe ye should…"
"Maybe we could…"
"Ye can't just…"
"She's talking mutiny, I'm first mate, Captain can't be bothered to come out and see what's happening, I'll do what I bloody well like." Emily responds, cocking the pistol. "Suppose you'll have a better chance of surviving if you jump, Adrienne?" Her tone is mocking this time.
It's so strange, the look Adrienne gives her. The fear in her eyes subsides and she looks almost… almost approving of Emily's actions. But Emily has no time to think on it further, because Adrienne does indeed jump…
~Three weeks earlier…~
"About yer visions. Are they usually of the future?" Alex sits himself next to Emily as she eats her breakfast.
"Often, yes. Why do you ask?"
"That vision you had about the Pearl the other night, it can't have happened any time in the past several days."
"Why not?"
"Because the ship we took on yesterday – they were all talking about the Black Pearl and its latest ventures."
"Oh. Well. Makes the question of why I was shown that all the more pressing, does it not?"
Alex just shrugs.
"Just thought you'd find it interesting."
She does find it interesting, especially when figuring in the Captain's reaction to her dream when Emily finally got the chance to tell her about it. She'd very suddenly decided that they there was no rush anymore, and they'd since gone back to 'business as usual', as it were. Emily hadn't been the only one to notice how strange this all was. She's tried asking the Captain what is going on, on behalf the crew as much as for her own curiosity, but Ana still refuses to tell her.
She is beginning to wonder why the Captain had bothered with naming her first mate, anyways.
On the other hand, she's had more money as of late than she knows what to do with on her own, and is planning to send it off to her brother the next chance she gets.
"Emily? Emily, love, are ye even listenin to me?"
"What?" Emily turns to Alex, and he scowls at her.
"I asked if you'd seen much of Adrienne in the past few days. Just don't want ye two to go back to fightin –"
Adrienne comes by just as he says this, and it is a very strange coincidence indeed when she seems to spontaneously 'trip' and fall forward, causing the large bucket she is carrying to go flying – and the water inside it to soak Emily.
A very strange coincidence indeed. Either Alex is very, very bad luck, or Adrienne hasn't decided to leave well enough alone.
Emily rather thinks it is the latter.
"Je suis une femme! Je refuse! Je ne veux pas!" Adrienne shrieks at Emily. They are in the galley, and Emily has just given her, with no small amount of satisfaction, a particularly grueling task for the day.
With some help from little Charlie, who has begun teaching her what certain things meant, Emily ss beginning to understand French. To an extent. Although goddess knows she'd probably never be patient enough to learn how to speak it.
"Lady? Are you joking?"
"More of a lady than you are, that is for certain! Why don't you do it?"
"Because believe it or not, I have other things to do. You are good for little else besides cooking."
"Why should I be made to do anything else!"
"Because I said so!" Emily says, unable to think of a better reply, taking a step toward Adrienne and trying to appear threatening, if that's even possible.
A short staring contest ensues. Emily wins, and she isn't sure why Adrienne gives in so easily, but she certainly isn't complaining.
Adrienne glares at her, begins muttering French curses under her breath, picks up the bucket of water and the brush next to it, and stomps out of the galley.
"Emily." Alex asks some time later.
"Yes?"
"I have to ask…" He hesitates.
"What?" Emily asks.
"How exactly did you manage to trick Adrienne into scrubbin the deck?"
"What makes you think I tricked her?" Emily asks, sounding somewhat indignant.
"She would never have done it willingly. Ye didn't threaten her or something, did ye?"
"Alex!" Emily really sounds indignant now.
"I'm only askin! She's not like you, ye know." Alex blurts.
"Not like me." Emily narrows her eyes.
"I-I just mean she's, well, that she's… she's a girl! She doesn't handle workin on a ship so well to begin with! I know she dumped that water on ye yesterday, but…"
"Alex. I'm a girl. You act like you know her so well…"
"Well, suppose I ought to, we…" He trails off again, blushing. "Well, she's me friend."
She's giving him one of her looks now. Alex only shrugs sheepishly.
"What are you doing?"
"What you just told me to do!"
"Why do you want to learn how to use a sword anyways? I thought you were a 'lady'?" Emily attempts to mock Adrienne's accent on the last word, and Adrienne scowls at her.
"Well, being a lady does not seem to count for very much out here." Adrienne pauses, her shoulders slumping slightly, her voice softening. "It makes me nervous at times, being on a ship with so many men, and I tire of it. Since you do not seem to have a problem with it, I thought perhaps this," she holds up the light foil made for fencing practice, "would help."
"Oh." Emily replies. "I see." She pauses as the annoyance she's been feeling towards the other woman diminishes a bit – she could understand it, the way Adrienne was feeling. "Alright. Fine. Let's try again..."
Beautiful creatures, they were, at least at first. Emily has never heard such beautiful singing.
"My heart is pierced by cupid…"
She could easily see how they drew people in.
"I disdain all glitter and gold…"
It takes her a moment to realize that it is Alex sitting in the long boat, along with two others.
She wonders whose stupid idea this will be, and hopes it isn't going to be Alex's.
"There is nothing can console me…"
She supposes she can't entirely blame Alex when he is the first to lean over the side of the boat, towards the creature, hoping for…for what? A kiss or something?
"But my jolly sailor bold."
He gets one, but Emily has no time to be jealous in anyway as the creature begins to pull him down into the water, and soon he is flailing, trying desperately to get away.
She can't see what actually happens, as it takes place beneath the rippling waters, but that's ok because she hardly needs to. There is blood, and that is all she need see.
Alex's blood…
Emily wakes with a gasp, shooting up to a sitting position.
For the first time ever, she is more than certain of why she's been given her most recent vision. Whatever reasons the Captain would have for taking them to those awful creatures, Emily is to make sure it doesn't happen.
She just hopes her Captain will listen to her.
"What, ye mean like mermaids?" Alex raises both eyebrows as she tells him about her dream the next morning.
"Huh. Hadn't even gotten far enough to put a name to them until now, actually. Mermaids. Suppose that is what they were – are – er, are going to be?"
"Are ye sure it was a vision? 'Cause it sounds perfectly mad to me."
"Oh yes, and I know things are bad when you're telling me I'm mad."
"Oh, so he finally figured that out? I knew that from our first meeting." Adrienne's voice cuts in. She'd apparently been just passing them buy, on her way to clean up some other tables in the room they were in.
"I wasn't talking to you." Emily grumbles, turning to glare at her.
"I heard anyways. I simply had to say something." Adrienne smirks back at her.
"Don't you have something to go clean?" Emily asks – more like spits.
"Shouldn't you be out helping to repair that sail? We all know how you enjoy climbing the rigging like some sort of singe."
"Oi, I've 'eard that word before!" Alex says suddenly, looking a bit proud of himself. "Means monkey!"
Emily's glare turns even harsher; if looks could kill, Adrienne would surely have been long dead. It takes Alex a moment to catch up with this one.
"Oh. Oh! Emily, er, maybe we should…" He stands and grabs her arm, trying to tug her along gently.
She resists the urge to slap Adrienne and follows him out.
"No! Please, don't!" Emily reaches for the little gold ring desperately, nearly sending herself over board in the process.
"What? Such a silly little thing, cannot be that important?" Adrienne smirks.
Emily had nearly fallen from the rigging some time earlier. She had managed to catch herself, but not before she'd wound up upside down, and her mother's wedding ring, which she wore around her neck at all times, slipped off. It had landed on the deck below her, and Adrienne, well…
"N-no, you don't understand, I…" Emily has no time to get anything else out. Another crewman walks by and bumps into Adrienne, quite by accident, but causes more damage than he knows.
Adrienne is jerked forward and goes to catch herself on the railing of the ship, losing the ring in the process.
Emily almost dives in after it, but thinks better of that at the last minute. She watches instead, quite helpless, as the ring sinks into the water and is lost forever.
Then she rounds on Adrienne.
"That ring was my mother's wedding ring. My father wore it around his neck until the day he was taken and killed! It was all I really had of them!"
Adrienne's face is pale, and grows paler with each word that leaves Emily's mouth.
"Je suis désolé! It was an accident! I was not going to actually drop it! It was an accident!"
"Accident?" Emily shrieks. "It wouldn't have happened had you just given it back!"
"Je suis tellement désolé." Adrienne repeats. "I am sorry."
Emily just shakes her head and brushes past Adrienne as she stalks towards her cabin.
"My heart is pierced by cupid…"
The dream is exactly the same. Alex is in the long boat with some other men, the mermaid is singing.
"I disdain all glitter and gold…"
Alex is leaning over the side of the boat.
"There is nothing can console me."
Emily looks away, because she has no desire to watch this happen again.
"But my jolly sailor bold."
Emily wakes with a start and simply stares ahead for a moment, trying to get her bearings. This is the fourth time she's had that dream.
She decides to talk to the Captain as soon as she can.
"Captain? May I come in?"
Ana doesn't answer Emily immediately, and the long pause is slightly puzzling. Several moments pass before Ana finally opens her door and allows Emily in.
"What is it, Emily?"
"It's about these visions I've been having. Well, vision really."
"Just one?"
"Aye, several times over." Emily pauses, trying to figure out how to go on without sounding too far-fetched.
"Well, come on girl, out with it." Ana coaxes.
"Mermaids, Captain." Emily says finally. "I've been dreaming about mermaids. And they aren't very pleasant dreams, either."
"No, I don't suppose they would be."
Something about the tone of her voice sends off a warning for Emily.
"If I may ask, Captain…what do you know about them?"
"You shouldn't ask so many questions." Ana almost snaps at her, and Emily's eyes narrowed.
"With all due respect, Captain, you've been so secretive ever since you decided I should be first mate, and I'm beginning to wonder why you did so at all. You don't seem to trust me very much."
Ana seems angry for a moment, and Emily tenses, ready for whatever the older woman is about to throw at her.
"I'm sorry." Ana sighs, surprising Emily. "I trust you fine, more than I do anyone else on this ship. I will explain myself, just not now. I'm asking you to trust me."
Emily doesn't like this, at all, but this is her Captain; more than that, Ana has become something like a friend (almost like a mother to her, but Emily refuses to actually think of anyone else as her mother). So, she simply nods.
"Of course I trust you, Captain." She says calmly, and decides to leave it at that for now.
"Alex?" Emily opens the door to her cabin and stands for a moment, staring at her friend. "Not that I would usually be too inclined to care, but where have you been?" Her question is prompted by his disheveled (at least, more so than usual) appearance and distinctly flushed cheeks more than anything else. They are at Tortuga (again) and Emily had opted to simply stay on the ship this time, having no desire to deal with anyone, much less the rowdy drunks in Tortuga. "You reek of rum." She scrunches up her nose.
"Been wif Adrienne." He slurs almost absently, staring at her with a strange look in his eyes as she narrows hers at him. "Ye're kinda pretty when ye're angry."
"You're drunk!" She states the obvious. "You must be to call me 'pretty'." She adds under her breath.
"Well, not jus' when ye're angry, mean ye're kinda pretty all the time."
"I'll bet this is her doing, getting you drunk, and then…"
"I mean really pretty! Ye're really, very pretty all the time!"
"Alex, what were you doing with Adrienne?"
"Nothin." His brows furrow. "What would I've done?"
She rolls her eyes and pulls him further into her cabin, closing the door as he stumbles forward unsteadily. She eyes him, not sure of whether to feel amused or annoyed or disgusted.
She settles on some combination of all three.
"Alex." She takes his arm and leads him over to a chair. "Perhaps you should sit down. Before you fall down."
"M'alright." He murmurs, but does as she'd told him anyways. She pulls up the other of the two chairs in the room and sits across from him.
"Mhm." She hums, eyeing him again. "So where exactly have you been all night?"
"Told ye. With Adrienne."
"And I suppose Adrienne was the one shoving the rum at you."
He shrugs innocently, and she gives him a look.
"Don' give me 'at look." He slurs. "Could've stayed with 'er ye know."
"Could have?"
He nods.
"She got a room. Offered for me to stay with 'er." Here he gave Emily a big, genuine smile. "Told 'er Emily wouldn' like that. Told 'er couldn' 'urt my Emily like that."
"Alex." She says skeptically. "Really? Did you really tell her that?"
"Sure I did! Knew ye wouldn' believe me." And then he crosses his arms and pouts and it is so ridiculously adorable that she just can't stay mad at him.
Instead, she leans forward and places a kiss right on his pouting lips.
He doesn't hesitate to let her in this time around. His lips part immediately, as do hers, and then Alex brings up a hand to brush against her cheek.
For a moment her own head begins to spin as she gets lost in the distinct taste and smell of rum and the shivers that run down her spine at Alex's light touch.
And then he is staggering to his feet and pushing her back towards her bed in the process, fumbling with all her affects…trying to get her blouse off.
She very, very nearly lets him. Really, a large part of her wants this as much as he does.
However, she does not want it to happen like this.
"Alex…not like this…stop, please…" He isn't listening, and she is at a loss for what to do. "Alex!" She brings up a hand impulsively and slaps him.
That seems to sober him a bit. He stops and just stares at her for a moment, startled, before stumbling backwards a few steps. He runs into the chair he'd been sitting in before, and it screeches as he half falls into it.
Neither of them say anything. The silence is deafening.
"Right." Emily is the first to break it, taking a breath. "Well. I think you've had enough fun for one night."
"Em'ly…"
"You can have my bed, I suppose, I don't think I'm much in the mood to help you get anywhere else."
He murmurs something about not needing her help, and she raises both eyebrows and crosses her arms as he stands and takes a few less-than-steady steps.
Actually, he seems even less steady on his feet than when he first knocked on her door. She smiles inwardly at what will be her punishment; she won't be kind about waking him in the morning.
She helps him take off his sword, belt, pistol, and he lays down on her bed comfortably.
"Em'ly…" He murmurs sleepily. "M'sorry."
"I know, I know." She rolls her eyes at him. "Don't worry, you're too handsome for me to stay angry with you."
He is asleep only moments after his head settles itself on the pillow – he probably hadn't even heard her.
She sighs.
"No harm done anyways." She moves towards the end of the bed to take of his boots. "I'd better get a proper apology in the morning, though –"
She brakes off with a slight gasp as something strikes her; suddenly she isn't in her cabin on the Sea's Queen anymore. No, she is home now, and a little girl again, and it is her Papa lying passed out before her on the bed, not Alex.
She'd been about to take off Alex's boots for him; she can remember having done the same for her Papa on occasion.
First she feels disgust, then she feels anger, and then…and then both feelings bleed away at the realization that Alex is not her Papa; this is the first time Alex had ever even been properly drunk as far as she knows.
Really, it isn't fair of her to be angry with him.
She closes her eyes and shakes her head before finally slipping Alex's boots off for him. Then she stands and slips quietly out of the room.
"I'll go…"
The dream is a bit different this time. She's watching Alex and herself, still on the Sea's Queen. Ana is standing nearby, watching them.
"Someone has to, right?" Alex says.
"No, not right, not right at all! This isn't going to work." Emily whirls around to face Ana. "Captain, please, this isn't worth it!"
No one listens. Alex gets into the long boat, a few others joining him hesitantly.
Emily feels like screaming for all that she does not want to watch this again.
"I disdain all glitter and gold."
Alex leans over the side of the boat.
"There is nothing can console me…"
She turns away, like she has the past few times, but it doesn't help, she can still hear.
"But my jolly sailor bold."
Emily wakes with a start yet again and this time freezes completely for a moment, trying to remember why she isn't in her own cabin. Then she remembers, and heaves a deep sigh of relief, because everything is fine for the moment.
Alex is passed out in her cabin. Alive. And well, more or less.
"Captain, please, listen to me!"
"I am listening, Turner!"
"Then you have to believe me, whatever reason you could possibly have for taking us to these mermaids…to these creatures, it can't be worth it, it just can't."
"You wouldn't say that if you knew why."
"Then please, tell me why!"
"No!"
Emily closed her eyes, trying to calm herself.
"If I tell you why – I just need you to keep your head, Emily."
"That's why you're afraid to tell me what you're after? You're…you're worried I'll want it too."
"I know you will. That's why I'm after it."
"I don't understand."
"You will, soon, very soon I think."
"Very well." Emily sighs, shoulders slumping a bit. "I-if, uhm, if you'll excuse me Captain," her mind flitters to Alex, who is undoubtedly still sound asleep, "I have something to take care of."
"Go on. And Emily? Let me know if you see any other ships out there. Any others, do you understand?"
"Aye Captain." Emily replies before slipping out of Ana's cabin…
…And stopping dead in her tracks when she sees a certain someone standing just beside the door.
"Adrienne?"
The other girls eyes are wide as she stares at Emily.
"Adrienne, what are you doing right outside the Captain's cabin?"
"I heard…"
"Everything?"
"Enough!"
"Oh, goddess." Emily says, because she has no idea what else to do.
Adrienne turns and begins to scramble up the steps, and Emily chases after her, reaching for her pistol as she goes.
"I know what I heard down there! You were talking – talking about mermaids!"
"Adrienne, please, you don't know…"
"I know where the Captain is going to take us! She's going to get us all killed!"
"No one is going to be killed! You're mad!" Emily has her pistol aimed at Adrienne; her hand is steady, her expression cold in a way that is unlike her, even as fear threatens to overwhelm her.
She has had more than enough of Adrienne, and it's showing.
"Am I?" Adrienne asks, standing stiffly nearly the railing of the ship where Emily has backed her up. She speaks slowly, seeming to choose her words carefully. "You cannot tell me you haven't thought about this. About what is really going on. Unless, of course, the Captain has told you. She tells you everything now, no?"
Emily doesn't answer, contemplating what the other girl has just said. Adrienne smirks.
"Ah, I knew it. You don't know what is going on here anymore than the rest of us do!"
"I'm sure the Captain has a good reason." Emily replies finally, sounding two times more certain that she feels.
"And what might that be, hm? What if she is leading us into danger?"
Emily is reminded of the dream she's been having repeatedly for the past few nights. Adrienne has a point, and she knows it.
She glances up and around, and the crew watching their exchange seems to be wavering. They are not stupid. They too can see that Adrienne has a point. However, none of them seem too inclined to intervene on her behalf, either.
Emily trusts Ana, that is for certain. And Adrienne is really, really, really starting to make her angry.
Stupid plan on Adrienne's part, ticking off the girl with the gun.
Emily wonders where the Captain is, anyways. She is a bit perturbed, really, because by now Ana would no doubt have realized something was up, right?
"And we've all seen how snappy she's been with you." Adrienne goes on. "Why do you think she made you first mate, hmm? Probably because she knew you are a coward and would not go against her!"
"Stow it!" Emily snaps at that, her grip on the pistol tightening. "Just – just stop it!"
Adrienne eyes the pistol, as if just realizing it is there.
"You wouldn't shoot me…"
"Wouldn't I?"
Adrienne doesn't answer, and Emily can see the fear in her eyes. For a moment, a brief moment, she does consider actually firing the pistol.
Saner heads prevail, yet again. She's not sure she could kill like that. She has another idea, though.
"Jump."
"What?" Adrienne seems startled.
"Jump. Or I'll shoot. Take your pick."
The men around them start to murmur a bit, a few speaking up.
"But what about…"
"Maybe ye should…"
"Perhaps we could…"
"Ye can't just…"
"She's talking mutiny, I'm first mate, Captain can't be bothered to come out and see what's happening, I'll do what I bloody well like." Emily responds, cocking the pistol. "Suppose you'll have a better chance of surviving if you jump, Adrienne?" Her tone is mocking this time.
It's so strange, the look Adrienne gives her. The fear in her eyes subsides and she looks almost… almost approving of Emily's actions. But Emily has no time to think on it further, because Adrienne does indeed jump.
There is a loud SPLASH moments later.
That, Emily allows herself to believe, is the end of that.
Sorry, sorry, SORRY it has taken me so long! I really have no excuse. I did write you an extra, extra long chapter as an apology, though. :)
French:
Je suis une femme! Je refuse! Je ne veux pas! – I am a lady! I refuse! I will not!
Je suis désolé! – I'm sorry!
Je suis tellement désolé. – I'm so sorry.
On an entirely different note, flames will be ignored as soon as I realize what they are, so why bother writing them? And for that matter, why keep reading my story if you hate it? Honestly, leaving flames for EVERY chapter is a bit excessive. I got it the first two times. The third was getting a little annoying. The fourth just plain ticked me off, and it was all downhill from there.
That said, thanks to everyone who has favorited and left nice reviews, you're the ones who make my day. :)