A/N: Thank you everyone for your patience regarding this story. I've finally returned to a suitable place to publish from, the lack of internet made it impossible to update. Please read and review.
The ride home from dinner was quiet. Matt, Jake, Nick and Norman had gone out to one of the local bars. Edgar had told Natalie that he wanted her to come back to the boat with him. He of course hadn't bothered to give her any details and Natalie had assumed he needed a treatment for the slipped disc in his back. Sig was driving and the mood in the car was kind of tense. No one spoke for most of the trip, then as if sensing the silence was becoming oppressive Sig asked Edgar a question.
"So, what do you think about pulling out some of the old maps and going a little off the grid this year?" he asked.
"How far off the grid?" asked Edgar warily.
Traditionally when the Northwestern attempted to go it's own way it was either a great success of a complete bomb. There was no middle ground. Edgar considered the pain he was in most of the time and grimaced at the thought of long hours pulling empty pots as they followed Captain Ahab towards his white whale.
"I was thinking just a little farther north than we usually go, you know really take it to the edge" said Sig.
The excitement in Sig's voice was recognized by everyone in the car. What Natalie took to be a positive, Edgar realized would be nothing but pain and anguish.
"Whatever you want to do" replied Edgar. "You're the captain."
"You're right, but I like to get the input of the crew...occasionally" said Sig.
"What do you think Natalie?" asked Sig.
"I have no opinion" said Natalie.
"I thought you were in a better mood" said Sig.
"I am, but I can't tell you my opinion because I don't have one. I've never been on a fishing boat, I don't know what going off the grid means to you" said Natalie. "I defer to those with more experience."
"I guess that's fair" said Sig.
The dock loomed in the distance. Sig slowed as they began to drive across the wooden boards. They passed a huge processing barge and Natalie could see people standing outside smoking. They were so far up she could only make out their silhouettes and the glowing cherries of their cigarettes.
"What does that boat do?" asked Natalie.
"It's a processor" answered Sig.
"Ok, but what does it do specifically" said Natalie.
"It takes the crab when we offload, cleans it, cooks it, freezes it and packages it" said Sig. "The floating processors are vital in the chain of getting crab from the ocean to the table."
"How many people work on one?" asked Natalie.
"Hundreds, probably more" said Sig.
"And they live at the docks?" asked Natalie.
"No, they usually go near where the fishing is taking place and allow the boats to tie up to the side and offload their catch while still out to sea" said Sig.
"That's crazy" said Natalie.
"It's a huge industry" said Sig proudly.
"Amazing" said Natalie to herself.
They arrived back at the Northwestern and Natalie climbed out of the car and onto the boat. She'd definitely improved her ability to get on deck without falling. Sig and Edgar both mentioned her skillfulness. Natalie smiled at the compliment and walked back to her stateroom feeling a glow of accomplishment.
"Well that cheered her up" said Sig.
"Yep" replied Edgar. "Antha wants me to call her so she can talk to Natalie."
"Oh yeah? Why?" asked Sig.
"Who knows? Girls stuff probably" said Edgar with a shrug.
Natalie was laying in her bunk listening to her ipod when Edgar walked in. He was holding a cell phone out to her. Pulling out her earplugs she took the phone and was delighted to hear Samantha's voice.
"Hi Antha" she said happily.
"Hi Nat, how's it going?" asked Samantha.
"It's ok" said Natalie.
"Is Edgar standing there staring at you?" asked Samantha.
"No, he just handed me the phone and walked out" said Natalie.
"Then are you alone?" asked Samantha.
"Yeah, the other guys are out" replied Natalie.
"Then you can be honest. How's it going? Are they driving you bananas yet?" asked Samantha.
"It's kind of hard" said Natalie.
"I know. I've been there" said Samantha.
"It's a hard adjustment, they are so" Natalie searched her brain for an appropriate adjective but came up empty.
"They're idiotic boys" said Samantha helpfully. "If you treat them like little boys then what they say and do won't be so offensive."
"I'll try that" said Natalie.
"Trust me, it will help" said Samantha. "At least it helped me."
"You must have done more than that because you actually married one" said Natalie.
"Yes, well they can be charming at times" said Samantha.
"I'll have to take your word for it because I've seen no example of that thus far" said Natalie.
"Good luck sister" said Samantha. "Call me anytime, Edgar will show you how to use the SAT phone."
"Roger" said Natalie.
"Wow, you're learning already" said Samantha with a laugh.
Natalie hung up the phone and went in search of Edgar.
Edgar and Sig were in the wheelhouse looking at some maps that looked like Columbus himself may have used them. The edges were crumbling in their hands and they seemed to be disintegrating before Natalie's eyes.
"I just think it's a long way to go on untested grounds" said Edgar.
"They aren't untested. Dad got plenty of numbers when he fished there" countered Sig.
"That was 30 years ago, lets be realistic. We'll probably go out there and get nothing. It will waste fuel and hours on a pipe dream" said Edgar.
"I want to try it, if we get nothing will pull up stakes and head back to the tried and true" said Sig.
"Why the hell do you even ask me my opinion if you are just going to do what you want anyway" said Edgar angrily.
"I take your opinion seriously but in this case I'm going with my gut" said Sig.
"Your gut sucks" said Edgar pushing past Natalie as he walked out of the room.
"Well that went well" said Sig rubbing his temple.
Natalie walked over to his hunched form and lightly touched his arm.
"Sit down. I can probably get rid of the headache" said Natalie.
Sig reluctantly sat on the bench seat and allowed Natalie to stand in front of him. She placed her fingers softly on his forehead and rubbed small circles out towards the edge of his hairline. The touch was soft and soothing and before Sig could stop himself he closed his eyes and moaned. Sig had always experienced tension headaches, he even remembered getting them as a child before tests. The only way he'd been able to relieve the pain was through medication. Natalie's touch was melting the pain away, the cooling touch of her fingers seemed to draw out the tension leaving nothing but a profound sense of relaxation. Natalie watched her patient for the standard cues of relief, slowed breathing, relaxation of muscles and the tell tale sigh. She'd received all three signs the moment she'd touched Sig. She smiled internally, proud that her touch worked just as well on Sig as it did on Edgar. The Hansen brothers seemed to have an almost instinctive knowledge of how to draw as much relaxation as could be taken from healing touch. To Natalie it seemed as if they felt the tranquility and had an intrinsic need to pull every ounce out as fast as possible just in case it stopped suddenly. She attributed it to the life they led while fishing. It was always moving, they dealt only in extremes, highest highs and lowest lows all on little to no sleep. Exhaustion causing their bodies and spirits to work too hard leaving them weakened shells. The time off between seasons should be a time to replenish what is lost or given up yet it's never completely refilled. So each season there is a little less in the tank to start out with and it reaches empty earlier and earlier. Natalie stopped her internal musings when she realized that Sig was almost asleep. Deciding that he could probably use the rest she guided him to his stateroom. Once there she casually tucked him into bed, leaving him completely dressed only removing his shoes.
Jake, Norman, Nick and Matt stumbled back to the boat in the early hours of the morning. They'd closed down the bar and were feeling no pain. The TIme Bandit crew had been out and the two crews had swapped stories while they drank together. The news of Natalie's arrival was already filtering through the fleet. The Northwestern was now known as the cushiest boat in the fleet. Jonathan had said the massage therapist had put even their sauna to shame. He vowed to win her over to the dark side if he got the chance. She'd been the topic of conversation for most of the night. Her comings and goings were discussed in great detail as well as most of her physical characteristics. A promise had been extracted from the Northwestern guys that they would bring Natalie out the following night to the Time Bandits annual costume pub crawl. Norman reluctantly agreed hoping that Natalie wouldn't be too bothered by the idea. Finally back on the boat the guys stumbled into the galley, hungry for a late night snack. Natalie was sitting in the corner braiding her hair. Once again she was listening to something on her ipod therefore completely unaware of the guys presence, until Jake tripped over a case of apples left on the floor and fell. Natalie's head snapped up and for a moment her eyes were wide with fear.
"Sorry to scare you" said Norman. "We thought you'd be asleep."
"I couldn't sleep, there are too many weird sounds" said Natalie.
She separated another section of hair and braided it.
"That's an interesting hair style" said Matt.
"It helps me to keep calm" said Natalie.
"What scared you?" asked Nick.
"I don't know, it's a weird sound, like something is breaking or cracking" said Natalie. "Every time I heard it I thought we were going to sink."
"Weird. Let's find out what it is" said Norman.
He took Natalie's hand and led her to the stateroom they shared with Edgar.
As they walked into the room the smell of eucalyptus filled the air. Norman sniffed before turning a questioning look at Edgar's sleeping form. He was face down on his bunk in just pajama bottoms. Norman's questioning look shifted from Edgar to Natalie.
"I gave him a massage" explained Natalie. "The smell is just the oil I used. Does it bother you?"
"No, it's a nice change from dirty sock and ass that the room usually smells like" said Norman.
Natalie wrinkled her nose at the thought and Norman chuckled at the horrified look on her face. As he was laughing Natalie froze her body going rigid. Norman stopped what he was doing and listened. It was faint but he heard the distinct sound of the ropes tightening.
"Is that the noise?" he asked.
"Yes, what is it?" asked Natalie.
"I'll show you" said Norman.
He led Natalie out to the bow of the boat. It was bobbing up and down in the gentle lapping waves of the harbor. Outside the noise was louder and Natalie became slightly skittish.
Sensing her concern Norman grabbed her hand.
"It's just the ropes" he said pointing to the bow lines.
"Why does it sound like wood breaking?" asked Natalie.
"Honestly, it doesn't sound like that to me, but that's probably because I know it's rope. The rope is being pushed and pulled by the tide, it's nothing to be worried about" said Norman reassuringly. "They are made to expand and contract even in cold weather. The ropes are perfectly safe."
Natalie nodded. The boat shifted again and the ropes emitted the cracking sound causing Natalie to squeeze Norman's hand. Norman shook his head and squeezed her hand reassuringly.
"Lets go back inside, it's late and Sig will probably have us up early loading pots" said Norman.
"He'll probably sleep in a little" said Natalie.
"Why do you say that?" asked Norman.
"Because I helped him with a tension headache and he was fast asleep when I left him. Which seems like something none of you guys do very often" said Natalie.
"Not out here" said Norman.
"Well with noises like the ropes I'm not surprised" said Natalie.
"It's not the noises that keep us from getting a good nights sleep, it's constant work" said Norman.
There is a certain order which things need to be done on a crab boat for maximum efficiency. The crew of the Northwestern had prepped for Red Crab season so many times that this order was completely ingrained in the psyches. Natalie watched in amazement as the ballet of loading bait and pots went on around her. She stayed as far out of the way as possible in order to avoid being crushed by flying pots. The first layer of pots were on the deck and Sig ordered those to be patched before a second layer was added. Natalie planned to keep herself far away from the action but Edgar had a different idea.
"Come over here, I want to teach you something" said Edgar.
Natalie walked over to Edgar and got a quick lesson in repairing holes in the pots. Her small deft fingers were ideal for the task and before long she was going faster than the guys. Sig watched her from the camera in the wheelhouse and because she was going so quick he came down to do some quality control.
"Hey Natalie, lets just check your work" he said. "Just because you can go fastest doesn't mean it's the best."
"Check all you want, there is nothing wrong with my work" said Natalie hotly.
"Don't get your panties in a bunch" began Sig. "Any hole in a pot has the potential for us to lose serious money. I check everyone's work."
"Oh yeah?" said Natalie
"Yep, he likes to know who he can yell at when the pot comes out empty" said Jake.
Sig ran his hand over the pot Natalie had just strung, he couldn't even tell where the patch job started. She'd done a perfect job.
"Well?" prompted Natalie.
"It's fine, keep up the good work" said Sig.
"Such glowing praise" snarked Natalie.
Sig smirked and walked back up the wheelhouse leaving everyone on deck to their work. A few hours later a white van drove up to the Northwestern.
"Oh no, let the bedlam begin" said Edgar.
"What's going on?" asked Natalie.
"That is the Discovery crew, they are going to rig the boat for the show" said Edgar.
"What does that mean?" asked Natalie.
"It means we are going to have 5 extra guys on deck rigging electrical wiring and cameras all over the place" said Edgar.
"How are you going to stack more pots on with them rigging all their gear?" asked Natalie.
"Very carefully" said Edgar.
The next 10 hours were completely chaotic. Natalie moved off the deck and up to the wheelhouse for her own safety. She'd helped as long as she could before she just became another thing to stumble over. There were far too many people on the crowded Northwestern deck. She sat with Sig watching Chris rig the captain camera. Sig took turns alternating between annoyed and excited.
"So what are you going to dress up as tonight?" asked Chris.
"What are you talking about? What would I be dressing up for?" asked Natalie.
"The Time Bandit always has a Halloween pub crawl" said Chris.
"It's October 13th, Halloween isn't for another 18 days" said Natalie.
"They do it now because they are usually out at sea when the holiday actually rolls around" explained Chris.
"I didn't know I was invited" said Natalie.
"Everyone's invited" said Chris.
"Are you going?" said Natalie to Sig.
"Sure, why not" said Sig.
"What are you going to dress up as?" asked Natalie.
"Captain Sig" replied Sig.
"How original" said Natalie disdainfully.
"Oh yeah, well lets see what you end up dressing up as" said Sig.
Natalie stood abruptly and started towards the wheelhouse door.
"Hey, where are you going?" called Sig.
"I need to work on my costume" replied Natalie.
Natalie hopped back on deck a few hours later, her return wasn't noticed by anyone. The work on deck had continued nonstop after she left and was still going strong. She took two steps and promptly stumbled over a huge coil of wires.
"Watch you step" said one of the Discovery guys.
"Thanks, I'll try" said Natalie.
She picked her way across the deck being careful to watch where she was stepping. Since her head was down she missed the interested looks the crew was giving her.
"Natalie, what's in the bag?" asked Matt.
"My costume for tonight" replied Natalie.
She picked up her head to smile at Matt and once again tripped over a camera.
"Oh shit" she replied. "Sorry about that, this place is a death trap."
"No problem, really that's not the worst that's going to happen to that camera" replied Chris.
Natalie looked at all the work which had been done on the boat. Another layer of pots had been loaded and the deck was strewn with equipment. Cameras were mounted on most of the higher structures of the boat and the rigging equipment was taped to the deck. There was a row of camera lined up on deck in different housings. Chris noticed where Natalie was looking and smiled sadly.
"You know most of those cameras are going to be ruined before the trip is over" said Chris.
"That's got to be expensive" said Natalie.
"Very, but it's worth it" said Chris.
"It must be" said Natalie.
"So, did you get a costume for tonight?" asked Chris.
"Yes. Which was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be" said Natalie.
"Yeah Dutch Harbor isn't really known for it's variety of shopping options" said Chris.
"No kidding, I can't believe I couldn't find a decent pair of heels in this whole city" lamented Natalie.
"I think the word city is maybe being a little generous" said Chris.
"You're right. I guess I'll have to say town, outpost, hamlet" said Natalie.
"Either of those are probably an accurate description" said Chris.
"Well I'm off to get ready" said Natalie with a wink.
"Oh I can't wait to see what you're going to be" said Chris.
Natalie spent the better part of the evening sewing her costume with a tiny kit. By the time the guys were finishing up on deck she was pretty much done. Sliding into the kitchen between a huge roll of wire and a stack of tapes she started to make dinner. Her plan was to make some chili but she noticed a couple of chickens out on the counter and realized that a suggestion had been made about what was for dinner. Washing her hands she got to work. The chickens were in the oven in less than 10 minutes and she started to work on the sides. The camera guys came in and out of the galley grabbing wires and cameras. The smell of roast chicken drew everyone into the galley a few minutes before the food was ready. The flurry of activity came to a grinding halt when the Natalie announced dinner was ready. Everyone sat around the small table or stood at the counter. The hard work of the day had given everyone a tremendous appetite and before everyone knew it the platters were empty. Natalie went to get into her costume while the guys did the dishes.
She reappeared in the galley half and hour later and was unrecognizable to the guys. Her hair was curled and she had glittery make up on. She was dressed in a short black dress with a small white apron, a feather duster completed her costume.
"Wow" said Jake.
"You can dust my feather anytime" said Chris.
"That is the lamest pick up line I've ever heard" said Natalie.
"So far. Just wait until you go out in that" said Sig.
Natalie shrugged her shoulders and went to grab her coat. As she reached up to remove it from the hook the skirt raised giving everyone a great view of her bloomers.
"You can't go out in that" said Sig suddenly.
Natalie turned around at the pronouncement. Everyone else in the galley looked at Sig in surprise. His outburst was completely out of character and unexpected.
"She'll be fine" said Matt. "We'll keep an eye on her."
"We better" said Sig.