Misery and Unease

1743

The next few months were some of the most miserable and mundane days of Flora's life.

Since her promise to Grandfather Albert, she had been forcing herself to focus more on her classes, and less on her lingering thoughts and dreams of the sea. The results were catastrophic for her mentality. Oh her headmistress was happy that she wasn't drawing sea monsters or writing sea shanties anymore, and Albert was pleased that she was paying attention to her lessons in politics and trying to converse with the nobles during teatime, but it left Flora deeply depressed and empty inside. Not all of her lessons were bad, in fact she rather enjoyed learning about history and how to sew, but for the most part she felt trapped. Unable to escape the cycle of sheer apathy and frustration she had placed herself into.

"Is everything alright, Miss Flora?" Marion asked her one evening.

Flora collapsed onto her bed in an exhausted heap. She wanted to scream. She wanted to scream so badly it almost hurt, but of course she didn't. It wasn't the right place or time and, more importantly, it wasn't proper. "I'm alright," Flora growled irritably before turning towards the window. She didn't want to deal with Marion and her superstitions right now.

Marion raised a brow at Flora's answer and eyed the window she was looking at. "Very well, miss..." She watched over the clearly distressed child for a brief period of time before moving on.

Lord only knows what's on her mind… Flora thought as Marion's footsteps drifted away. Once the housekeeper was gone, Flora reluctantly took out her locket, opened it, and blew out the candle on the table next to her bed. As much as she wanted to go out to the sea, she simply didn't have the strength to make the trek tonight. Or for the next few days.

To make matters worse. Gretchen Bastian has had it in for Flora ever since the fight from a few months earlier. Every time the chance arose, the she-beast would pester Flora to no end as though trying to goad her into another conflict. "You realize of course, the only reason why you are here is because Lord Albert took you in," Miss Gretchen sneered during a writing lesson at school one day. "If he didn't, you would be a peasant on the streets, since your mother and father clearly didn't want you."

It took every ounce of willpower on Flora's part not to give in to Gretchen's wretchedness. It's what she wants! she repeated frantically to herself as she tried to focus on her writing. Don't give in! Just imagine her choking on those pearls around her neck!

When the headmistress's back was turned, Gretchen licked her lips and whispered vilely into Flora's ear: "Just hand the settlement over to my father when the old man is dead. The Company is more worthy to run this place than a wild girl from the-"

Flora's quill nearly snapped in two as she shot Gretchen the most horrible glare imaginable. "Do not test me, Gretchen," she growled, "I am in no mood to deal with your wickedness right now."

Gretchen recoiled; intimidated by Flora's flashing eyes and ominous tone of voice, but then she leaned back in with a smirk on her face. Before either of them could start another anything, the headmistress came back around and the two quickly-and reluctantly-resumed their work as though nothing happened.

Flora thought of reporting Gretchen to her grandfather, but decided against it. Both of them knew Gretchen was the daughter of a high-ranking officer in the East India Trading Company, and he was just as eager to see Flora fail as Gretchen was.

He's probably encouraging her to get at me more than anything else. Flora contemplated when the day's lessons were over. She glanced at the path to the tide pools, her heart aching. How she longed to go back to the cave and hide from the world, to get away from all of the expectations and stress…Flora's lip quivered as she forced herself to turn away. If she did that right now, then Albert might think she was living in her fantasies again. Worse, he might believe she was plotting to escape!

With a heavy heart, Flora walked back home, slipped some boots on, and made her way to the stables. At least she had some time for herself here.

She greeted each of the horses in their stalls as she passed them by until she reached Mildred, her favorite. The only one Flora felt she could talk to aside from Stephen the crab.

She patted the dapple gray on her neck, made sure she had plenty of fresh food and water, and then pressed her head against the stall and screamed.

The horses reared up in alarm at Flora's scream, while Millie nickered and looked over her master in apparent confusion. "I can't take this anymore, Millie. I've been away from the sea for so long, I feel like I'm losin' myself!" Flora turned around and sat on the floor, not caring if she was getting muck all over her dress. "This is what grandfather Albert wants, and I'm doin' all I can to help and please him, but it's not what I want. It's not who I am…"

Not who I am… Flora squeezed her eyes shut and sniffed. She had uttered the words, and yet she didn't even know who she was!

I'm not the heir to this island. She could say for certain even if it worsened the ache in her chest. Just saying the words felt like a betrayal to her grandfather. And I am of the sea…but in what way? Flora wiped the sorrow from her face and drew out her locket. "…Mother and father would have known…"

She rested her forehead against the locket and gritted her teeth. For a moment, she wondered if her parents weren't lost at sea, and if they really did abandon her...

"No! That's Gretchen talkin'!" She quickly withdrew the thought from her head. "Th-they wouldn't-they wouldn't leave me…I can feel that. They wouldn't leave…"

How do you know? The inner part of herself asked. Do ya really feel that, or are you desperate?

Hot breath snorted onto the back of her head, followed by her hair slowly lifting up and chewed on. Flora's eyes widened, and she leapt to her feet. "Millie!" She had almost forgotten she was in the stables! "Is that how ya try to cheer someone up?!"

The horse whinnied as though she were laughing, which caused Flora to laugh dimly back. "I-I'm alright, Millie, don't worry." She sniffed again before pressing her forehead against the mare's, and closing her eyes. "At least, I hope I will be alright…"

It was that moment when the feeling came.

Flora lifted her head, while Millie suddenly jolted back with a nervous bray. It wasn't just Millie either. All of the horses were suddenly neighing in distress, with some of them bucking and kicking at the doors to their stalls. An uneasy sensation grew in Flora's chest and hovered there like a dark storm cloud. She felt it too. Something was wrong.

"Stay here, Millie." She addressed the gray quietly, even though the horse had nowhere to go, and made her way out of the stables. She paused when she noticed a familiar face by the door. "Stephen?"

The crab blinked up at her in greeting, "were you there the whole time?" Not wanting to wait for answers she would never get, Flora scooped the crab up into her arms and carefully held onto it as she headed back outside.

"Strange…" A chill ran down Flora's spine as she looked around a darkened sky, and an eerie fog slowly seeping in from the sea. Judging from how far it was, it would reach the settlement within a few hours.

Flora stiffened and turned towards the town. Everyone was walking by as though nothing had changed. She furrowed her brows. "Do they not notice this?" She glanced at Stephen, then at the nervous horses in their stalls, and then back at the distant fog. It was coming from the horizon, as though it were being summoned from beyond. The unease tightened. What did this mean? Was something coming…?

"MY PEARLS!"

Flora leapt back as the high-pitched shriek of bloody murder wailed out from somewhere in town. "Sorry, Stephen!" She quickly retrieved the crab after dropping it out of shock, and tried to endure the look of severe displeasure it gave her. "It was an accident!" Flora insisted as she placed the crab on her shoulder, just as a squad of red-coated soldiers raced down the trail from the barracks nearby. Flora blinked. What the hell was going on? Is this the reason of her unease?

Lifting her skirts and keeping her distance, Flora trailed after the guards, and something exploded from a nearby house. Flora dove between some bushes and barrels, yelping in alarm. Was that a grenade?!

A flock of chickens suddenly burst out of the now smoking house, followed by a dreadlocked man wearing a red bandanna who immediately jumped to the roof of the neighboring house, not noticing the chicken stuck on his back. Flora rubbed her eyes, and gaped in sheer bafflement. Where did that man come from and where was he going?! Did he know he had a chicken on his back?

Ignoring the angry snapping and chirping Stephen was making, Flora climbed out of her hiding place, watching as the soldiers took position on the road and fired their musket rifles. The man flailed as he tried to evade the gunfire and continued leaping from roof to roof, making his way to the harbor. One pair of soldiers managed to run ahead of him, but before they could do anything, the man finally realized he had a chicken on his back.

He paused for a quick moment, then pulled the distressed avian off, grimaced, and then threw it down at the soldiers. The sky filled with feathers as the two men fell to the ground, screaming like young school girls as the chicken attacked. It would have been hilarious if Flora had any idea what was going on.

She finally got a small hint when she passed by a sobbing Gretchen down one street. "Gretchen, what the bloody hell is going on?!"

The bully looked up at Flora, her face was a gruesome smear of makeup and tears."Th-that pirate st-stole m-my pearls!"

Pirate? Pearls? Flora glanced at Gretchen's neck. Sure enough, the same pearl necklace she had daydreamed of strangling Gretchen earlier was gone. A barrage of gunfire caught the girls' attention, and Flora abandoned Gretchen and joined the many onlookers as they gathered around the seaport. The soldiers were positioned all across the docks, firing at a pathetic looking dinghy boat with a single black sail to no avail. It was already well past the range of the guns, carrying the man in the red bandanna along with it.

Flora could only stare along with everyone else. How on Earth did he get out there so fast?

The man took out a weathered tricorn hat, placed it on top of his head, and then waved at the crowd in a rather feminine fashion with a single hand. The same hand holding Gretchen's precious pearls, and what appeared to be a map. "Ladies and Gentleman!" The man called out, "this is the day you shall always remember as the day that you almost caught: Captain Jack Sparrow!"

"Jack Sparrow?!" A few ladies within the crowd began to swoon while everyone else started murmuring excitedly amongst themselves. Nearly every one of them had heard of the infamous pirate and his legendary adventures, and Flora was no different. Flora gaped as Jack Sparrow made his escape. Even without a proper ship or crew, the man carried an air of dignity as he sailed off for his next adventure. So the legendary Jack Sparrow has managed to reached our shores. She thought with a bit of a smile, and he has the freedom to do it and whatever else he wants!

The captain and commander of the soldiers immediately began barking orders, recruiting as many sailors and guards within the area as possible, and marching them toward one of the ships anchored nearby. It was the HMS Greyhound, the only non-trading vessel in the port. They'll catch Jack Sparrow, if its the last thing they did!

Flora, for once, did not notice this. She was busy watching Jack with an envious look in her eyes as he disappeared over the horizon, even when the crowd began to disperse.

It wasn't until Stephen nudged her by the neck did she finally snap out of it. "What?" She turned to the crab. It was looking at her with a severely displeased and angry expression. She frowned, and was about to ask what was wrong when the unease came again.

Flora stiffened, and immediately turned back to the sea with wide eyes. A little to the left of where Jack Sparrow had gone was the fog. It was closer now, carrying an unusual green tint as a storm began to form around it. Flora's heart raced, and she quickly grabbed a hold of her locket out of comfort. No, Sparrow was certainly not the source of the darkness she and the horses felt. That was no ordinary fog ahead, and that was surely no ordinary storm.

Something else was brewing out there, slowly but surely making its way to the island...

Not much action in this chapter, but I promise that will change with the next one. I hope the cameo from Captain Jack Sparrow will make up for that. His brief appearance will be important for what's coming.