All The Stars (Jack Sparrow)

13

Catherine's fingers flipped another cream colored page of her book. Her hazel eyes skimmed the words on the page. Before she realized it, her eyes met the last line of her book she had only started...how many hours ago?

Closing the book, the young woman blinked, lifting her arms to stretch out her back. Not once did she move from her spot since she first opened the book. She was comfortable, but her back was stiff and the book needed to be put away. The moment Catherine rose from her chair, she immediately missed its comfort and warmth. She was much sleepier than she originally realized. The book made it ways back into the bookshelf she kept beside her plush chair. Her fingers pushed the book into its respected place then paused on the spine of it. Her hazel eyes trailed along the spines of the thirty books she owned on the Black Pearl. By now, she had only six books left to be read. Soon she would need to make port somewhere to buy more books.

Book shopping was Catherine's personal alone time from Jack and the crew. Her husband didn't like to read, but he supported his wife's book-loving heart and funds to do so. He always made an effort to stop in a location where she could easily buy books from...if not then acquire in a more criminal way. Catherine would take a solo trip into whatever town to find a bookshop. Sometimes Jack would surprise Catherine with books when they would make port in places she had no desire to get off at.

Unfortunately, Catherine knew there would be no gift of books from this current stop in Tortuga.

It suddenly dawned on the red head how long Jack and his men had been gone for. She turned to look at the clock that was on his desk. It almost had been almost four hours since the men had left. Taking in a deep breath, she tried to remain calm and to not think of the worst possible situation that Jack may be in. There have been many times Jack would stumble back hours later, drunk out of his mind. On a rare occasion, if it had gotten too late then Catherine would have to play the role of savior and get her husband and men back.

However, tonight felt much different.

With everything going on with Davy Jones, being away from Jack made her very anxious. She had some relief in knowing that Jones couldn't step on land once every ten years, but that may not be able to stop his men. Who knows what a mad man such as Davy Jones would be able to do if he truly felt provoked?

Catherine let out a sigh, closing her eyes for a moment to collect herself. She wrapped her arms around herself, taking in a deep breath and then exhaling it. When she opened her eyes, she turned to move to her full length mirror. The image in it made her tilt her head. Her red waves hung above her burgundy robe that reached her knees, the bell sleeves hanging around her fingers.

She felt like she looked significantly older, more mature and defined in her features. There was a hardness to her face. The kind that warned men not to mess with her. The kind that made her seem almost regal, powerful. She liked how she looked now more than ever. No longer was the girl she was from Port Royal.

But Catherine did miss Port Royal and her family. She missed the life she had, but she wouldn't give up who she was or where she was now.

Now, she was finally home.

Men began shouting and rushing about on the ship causing her to snap her head towards the closed door. Relief ran through her body, making her physically relax. She checked her appearance once more, not bothering to put on actually clothing before moving to open her door.

The sound of men rolling barrels and moving crates grew louder as she came closer to the deck. She knew without asking they acquired more rum and food, thankfully. And as she finally stepped out on the deck, more men. There didn't seem that many. It made her nervously bite her lip.