5Okay, this isn't my first writing, so I'm kind of starting to expect creative critisim! Oh, and those of you who have read this before, I hope you enjoy the rewrite! I personally like it better. (You know when you first write something and think it's great, then go back to it later and think it is so cheesy you want to die and burn it? Yeah. That's me before I edited this right now.)
yawn It's too dang early in the morning for this!
Disclaimer: Yada yada yada I don't own anything, SHUT UP, Arabella, Laura, and all the original POTC characters belong to Jerry Bruckheimer. (I will refuse to acknoledge Disney! I don't think they wrote any of this!)
The HMS Dauntless. A ship. A ship carrying a young girl. A young girl and her parents. The authority. A young girl surrounded with people and sailors of stature.
"Yo-ho. Yo-ho. A pirate's life fer me. We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, we loot-"
"Cursed pirates sail these watas." clamped a hand on the girls cold shoulder. "Want to cell 'em all down on us!?" hissed an older sailor. The young sailor spun around with a bounce of her dark red curls and looked up. She couldn't respond before-
"Mister Gibbs. That will do." Mister Gibbs turned around while Arabella stared passed him to see the Lieutenant Norrington, glaring at the older sailor with Laura by his side.
Gibbs didn't care who was around with his lieutenant or the new family of rank or any authority on board! "The young Miss Smith be singin' 'bout pirates! Bad luck to do so in an unnatural fog as such that surrounds us...Mark my words."
"Consider them marked." Norrington responded in a fresh, British accent. "Don't you have some loading of the cargo yet to manage?"
Norrington stood his ground and let the hold inspector mutter away. "Bad luck to have women on the board...'specially the miniature ones." Arabella perced her lips and changed her warm eyes to an icy glare. Lieutenent Norrinton smile wry to Arabella. It probably didn't matter to him or her at the moment, for that same sweet smile and hard eye combination was sent to Laura.
"Tell your daughter to watch it."
They were yet inches away, scowl in their eyes, venom on the mistress's mouth. "Will do, sir." She walked towards the bow and he to the quarterdeck, still watching.
Arabella was toying with the sleeve lace of that blasted yellow dress and stared to the ground. Her mind had wondered away.
'cursed pirates sail these waters.'
Her mother took brisk, clicking steps towards her. Arabella snapped out of her daze. "I think it would be rather exciting to meet a pirate!"
"Think again." Laura said sternly in Arabella's eyes. "Vile and dissolute creatures, the lot of them...They pillage and loot, while all the while searching for myths and treasure ceasing to exist." everything lightened up. Leaning over the railing, her eyes and her smile focused on the sea. Young Bella looked up at admiration. "Mutinying upon their captain for greed. Some so black hearted,-" Laura paused.
She was getting carried away. Wrong message. She looked down towards Arabella, amazed and tranced with how much her mother knew about pirates. Oddly maybe proud. Some where. Laura sighed and straightened her figure. "Won't it be exciting to become a part of high society? You will have servants, you'll be able to further your studies-"
"I suppose so..." Arabella said dutifully, trailing off. Her turn to look at the sea. "But I still think it would be exciting to meet a pirate." Arabella added getting excited again. Laura bit her lip, a terrible habit she picked up when she was younger. Even in the warm weather they were entering her lips were still red and torn.
"At least try to adjust." Laura ordered trying to give a sympathetic look. She may not be able to get through to her, but she did understand her personality...restless. Laura walked away, partly because she was finished talking, and for Arabella to think of her proper future.
Laura smiled meakly as she walked toward the stairs to the cabins, "Never gonna settle."
Arabella turned to look back out to the sea. This time, she spotted a...lone parasol drifting past the ship? She continued her gaze further out. Another, much larger item floated into view, escaping the fog. Arabella leaned over the rail squinting. She couldn't believe her eyes.
"Look!" she cried. "There's a boy in the water!"
Arabella's cries caught Norrington's, her mother's, and most of the crew's attention. They all rushed over to the rail. Commotion rose from the sight of the boy, lying on a small piece of wreckage.
"Hall him in!" bellowed Norrington. The rest, apart from Gibbs, scrambled to fish him out. Gibbs was in his own world of thoughts and curses and a vexed girl.
"Mother of all that's holy..." He trailed off as he stared deeply into the fog. A flaming ship came out of practically nowhere. Burning debris flying through the air. Valuable possessions long lost and sinking into the depths. This wasn't just an accident.
"Search for survivors! Lower the life boats!" ordered Norrington. Half the crew currently working to grab the boy, rushed over to the other lifeboats and began to lower them. As soon as they lowered the boats, the others had managed to rescue the boy and lay him on a cot brought up from one of the sailors.
"What on Earth could have happened?" asked Laura, concerned and huddling over the cot with Norrington.
"I will tell you our discoveries in the morning, Mrs. Smith." said Norrington. Laura reached in to feel the boy's pulse...Still alive. Wait, the morning? she thought.
Laura opened her mouth to argue. "I shall escort you to your cabin with Governor Smith, interrupted Norrington before Laura could disagree. There was really no point in arguing, a lieutenant will and always empower a woman.
As the two turned around, they noticed Arabella standing by the rail, away from the commotion yet still very involved with the hassle and conversations taking place.
"Miss Smith, I am putting it to your charge that you watch over him." he ordered. Arabella nodded anxiously. She took no hesitation to stride over to the cot as the lieutenent ushered the mistress's arm 'n' elbow below decks. She was a bit more reluctant.
Arabella sat on a crate and placed her hand on the boy's forehead. His skin was pale and his lips were blue. To confess, he looked dead to her.
Arabella brushed a black lock of hair away from his face. It was fiercly skattered. The sailors had no apparent interest in safety for anyone not a sailor. He couldn't have been much older than herself. Just innocent. Her eyes scanned down his body. She was just afraid to touch anything...Except what caught her eye.
Around his neck was an icy pendent.
"You're a pirate!" she whispered, oblivious to the fact it could've been just jewelery. She fingered it delicately.
Arabella's head slowly rose as did her body. No way-
A grand black ship sailed away from the clearing...Or into the fog. However you want to look at it. She did a few double-takes from the boy back to the scene. Did nobody just see that! Arabella's head shot a look around. Nope.
Fine. Maybe she was right with the pirate thing...
But she took caution looking back at the boy. She gave a light touch to the back of his head.
The boy jolted upright coughing out water...right in Arabella's face. She turned away quickly. Not a fan of gagged-up water.
"...Nice to meet you too..." she greeted flatly while his coughing finally died down. He lay back down on the cot, blinking his dark eyes as if regaining his senses and recovering his memory.
"My name is Arabella Smith. What's yours?"
"Jack Sparrow." he managed to whisper, looking into her hazel eyes before slowly falling asleep. His head shifted, as did his neck, as did his necklace. The latch broke and the pendent rolled to the floor. It rolled in circles before it finally stopped by the force of Arabella's foot. It made a loud 'clack.' Shifting her gaze just a little, she saw another foot too.
She looked up hurridly, Lieutenent Norrington looked now timidly, Jack lay on the cot...motionlessly.
"Miss Smith." Norrington said loud and boldly, startling Arabella. "Did he speak?"
"No, sir." she stated more than calmly.
"Right then." he responded. He eyed her warily. Something isn't right with that daughter of his. The lieutenent turned to the rest of the crew.
"Lieutenant Norrington, sir!" called a sailor who had just arrived back from the small pillage. "We have retrieved some survivors and some items of value!"
"Coming!" Norrington shouted back. He began to walk away. "Oh! Miss Smith," he remembered suddenly.
Arabella directed her attention back to Norrington from Jack. "Watch over the boy." Arabella nodded as the two men walked away, and she turned back.
"I'm watching over you, Jack."
The HMS Dauntless. Carrying a young girl surrounded. Past.
Chpt 1 complete! Anybody have suggestions, etc? What I really need is help on Will's upcoming personality aaaaand the summary. Seriously, somebody give me a better summary.
Now, click that little lavender button (it's lavender, deal with it) and review!