Pearl's Beginning

Secret Affairs

Now that the rum had been restored, everyone was happy. I had never drank so much in my life but everyone insisted that I joined in. Not wanting to be pushed out of the group or be a spoilt sport, I did as they said; if was either a result of peer pressure or just wanting to have fun...maybe both.

It had been three days since we left Tortuga. We'd all been doing our duties, becoming used to the lifestyle that sailing brought us. We were still oblivious to where we were actually going, but after the fight that had occurred in Tortuga, I wasn't so sure that we would be doing much exploring; Jack had some sort of plan that we were going to have to help out with. However, I didn't want to admit this, I pretended that we were all on a big adventure.

I was sat with half of the crew below deck. There were some men lying in their hammocks, the rest sat on crates as they formed a circle. I was sat upon Tricks' lap, as there were no seats left and I didn't trust most of the other men quite yet. Lenny and Peter were in the middle of a game, called Liars Dice. It was very interesting, I had never watched anything like it. There would be eruptions of laughs, chanting and then silence as the two men concentrated.

"Come on, lads! One of you needs to speak up!" A man shouted, nods of agreements coming after.

"Shut up, this takes a lot of skill." Peter snapped, taking the game way too seriously.

"Please, will one of you just lie? Or tell the truth? It gets boring if you leave it for too long." I moaned.

"If you're bored, go up to the Captain's cabin. I'm sure he'll keep you entertained." Lenny bluntly said. Some of the men were smirking, others kept a straight face.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I spoke up, the attention now off of the game.

"You know very well what it means." He sat up straight, taking a swig of his rum.

Tricks tried to stop the foreseeable argument."Ok, let's stop and-"

I got off of Tricks' lap, stomping over to Lenny."I'm not some prostitute like the one in Tortuga. I'm as much a part of this crew as you are."

"The only reason you're on this ship is because the Captain wanted someone to share his bed with on lonely nights." He stood too, towering over me

"I came on this ship for an adventure, to explore the world as much as I could. No one is going to use me, I'll kill them first."

"Well, it seems like we'll have a few men missing then, won't we?"

"What has gotten into you, lad?" One of the men asked.

"There is no need for a woman on board!"

"She's fine, the lass is able to do the work, a good laugh-"

"No, no! You're missing the point."

We all waited for him to answer. He looked at us all as if we were all stupid. Finally, he screamed, very irritated.

"SHE'S A WOMAN FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!" No one understood him."She is no use to us."

"And why is that, lad?" Another voice came from the stairs. Everyone turned to see the Captain. Our eyes glancing between he two men.

Lenny started to stutter."B-because, she's-"

"Yes, she is a woman, a female, a girl, a different gender, opposite to us." Jack now stood in front of Lenny."I think we've established that already."

"Captain, she'll keep us behind schedule."

"Will she? How so?"

Lenny remained silent.

"You know, Lenny, I'm starting to understand what's happening." He circled the man."You're upset that a woman is better than you."

"What? Better than me?"

"Yes. She has made friends with the rest of the crew easier than you, she works harder than you, she's fiercer than you and definitely a better fighter than you. Face it mate," he stopped and looked him straight in the eye,"you'll always be one behind Miss Pearl."

Lenny growled before unsheathing his sword, but the Captain was quick. He was able to block Lenny's attack before he could make his move. Everyone scrambled away from the fight as their swords collided, scared that they would get hurt in the process. We all watched as the two fought valiantly. No one was sure whether to get involved or to just hope for the best. It was hard to pick who we wanted to win as we didn't want neither to die. Punches and kicks were being thrown here and there, swords almost cutting skin.

Not too long after the fight had started, Jack finally started to have an overall advantage. Kicking Lenny in the stomach, he placed his sword to Lenny's neck.

"Look, mate, I'm not going to kill you. But we all need to respect each other on this trip. I need everyone to work together in order for this to work." Jack said seriously. He threw Lenny's sword to the ground next to him before walking out of the room.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

The next day, everyone was tense from the night before. We all got on with our work, not wanting to question the Captain nor start a conversation in fear that a fight may occur again. The men who had been on watch duty were confused and were only given a brief explanation. But they too knew that it wouldn't be wise to say anything more.

The sun was beginning to set, some of the men returning to their hammocks for a peaceful night. I had caught glimpses of Lenny that day, his face bruised, limping around the place. He too went below deck, not accepting help from anyone else that offered. He had too much pride.

I took Lenny's place on watch, sitting on a barrel next to the wheel. Luckily, Tricks was steering us through the night, so I had someone to keep me company whilst on duty. We were in the midst of a conversation about the previous nights events. Jack appeared from below deck, walking around freely. I excused myself from Tricks before hopping down the steps and onto main deck.

Pulling my shawl closer around me, I stood next to the Captain. He was leaning against the railing, his figure only just being made out by the moon.

"What is it, Miss Pearl?" He asked, still looking out towards the sea.

"Thank you for last night. I mean, I could have handled it but it was nice that someone stood up for me." I admitted to him.

"Now you owe me two favours."

"Two!? No, if anything I only owe you one."

"No, it's two. I gave you your own room and I good up for you. I've done two things for you, now you do two things for me."

"Once again, you're wrong! I saved your life the other night."

He tried to act stupid."When?"

"In Tortuga! You had a sword to your throat and I stepped in to save you."

"Fine." He pouted."You owe me one favour."

"So, Captain,"I sighed,"where exactly are we going?"

"I can't tell you that."

"Why not?"

"Your fragile ears would not understand it."

"You know why I came on this ship. I'm risking my life to be a part of your crew."

"I'd be putting you at more risk by explaining everything."

"So what we're doing and where we are going is dangerous?" I smiled.

"I'm starting to like you even more."