Hey readers! Here is chapter 2 (finally). Had a bit of writer's block. Hope you like it so far! Don't be afraid to leave comments. Every time I see another read, add, vote, anything I do a little happy dance. :) oh, and I threw in some Jack pov haharrgh!!!
************************************
I awaken with a start as the ship jolts sideways, throwing me from my bed. Wait, didn't I fall asleep on one of the deck hammocks? I realize that Captain Jack must have brought me inside. I scramble to my feet, and try to steady myself on the pitching ship. I grab onto the bed post and look to my window. Raindrops pound against it, and lightning illuminates the darkened sky. No wonder I slept like a log. I always sleep best in storms. I make my way to my cabin door, wondering why Father hadn't woken me to help. Braving a storm on the sea is no easy task. And we barely manage it with just the two of us. I take my long, brown leather coat off its hook on my door and shrug it on, fastening the buttons down the front. I don't take the usual second I do to admire the intricate red design around the cuffs, button line, collar, and knee-length tail. I heave my door open and squint into the dark hallway. I rush down it, toward the deck, and open the deckway door.
Rain immediately lashes at my face, soaking me all over. I step out into the dark, raging storm and shut the door to keep water from rushing to the sleeping quarters. I glance around to see what needs to be done. I see Captain Jack struggling to pull a sail up. It's at least a two-person job. I run over to him, my leather boots sloshing through the water that has collected on the deck. I have to shout to make myself heard over the rain.
"I'll climb up and tie them fast," I suggest. But he grabs my arm and shouts into my face.
"Enna, what on earth are you doing out here? You'll get thrown overboard!" He's worried for my safety, when the Pearl could capsize at any second from the swells raging around us.
"If I don't help you, we'll both be overboard, and the ship will capsize! Just pull the sail up. I'll tie her off." With that, I climb up the rigging and onto the first beam. Once Captain Jack has drawn the rope so the first half of the sail is up, I wrap the rope around it three times before tying a sail knot to keep it secure. Then I carefully maneuver myself along the beam to the opposite side, and do the same thing to the other half of the lower sail. I signal to my Father to start bringing up the second lower sail. I stand with a wobble, and wrap a rope around my forearm, then swing to the other lower beam. My boots struggle to grip the wet wood, but I eventually make it onto the beam to tie off the sail like the first. Captain Jack is making quick work pulling the sails up for me to tie. My hair is sticking to my face with the rain, and I wish I had donned my hat before coming out. It would keep at least some of the rain from running into my eyes. My hands are shaking with cold, but I can't let up now. We still have the high sails to do. Father hates me tying the high sails, especially when there's a storm like this, but I'm not strong enough to pull the sails, so it's either climb up and tie them off, or climb down and leave them be. Either way, it's a risk, with either my life, or both our lives on the line. I look up to determine my best route, straddling the beam with my thighs.
The rain stings my eyes as I look around. There isn't any rigging connecting the lower beam to the upper beam, the way it connects the deck to the lower beam. So its either attempt to climb the mast free-handed, or use daggers to hoist my weight up. In this weather, either is dangerous. and I'm already weak from exertion. I decide to use the same method I used earlier today, and take advantage of the holes Captain Jack made earlier with his own daggers. I pull the small weapons from my belt, and find the first hold. When the dagger is resting securely in the wood, I raise the other to the second hold, and begin my ascent. Earlier, I was somewhat able to use my feet as leverage, but the rain running down the wooden mast makes it too slippery for my boots to get a decent grip. I'm forced to only use my arm muscles to hoist my weight up, my legs swinging uselessly below me. I'm fatiguing quickly, and my arms tremble with each pull upwards. I let out a cry, hoping that it will somehow give me a mental boost to keep going. I'm halfway up the mast from the first beam, which makes me three-fourths of the whole way up. The mast is roughly ninety feet above the deck. So if I fell from here, it would be about seventy feet. I gulp, and squint down at my Father. I raise my dagger again, reaching for the next hold, and burying the blade into the wood. I clear my mind, focusing on one thing. Reaching the top. Stab and pull up, stab and pull up, stab and pull up. Over and over and over, until finally, my arms limp with effort, I collapse myself onto the upper beam.
But there isn't any time to waste. I can feel the tilting of the ship more powerfully up here. And the wind is stronger, as well. When I attempt to sit up, a heavy gust hits me hard, and I stumble. My boots slip, and I begin to fall. Before I can fall to my death, I manage to grab a hold of a rope, and grip it tightly. The fibres cut into my hands for a short time, before I come to a sudden stop. Panting from the brief rush of adrenaline from almost dying, I heave my waterlogged body up the rope and back onto the beam. I scoot toward the end of the sail, and tie the rope around it tightly. I carefully ease myself to face the other way, and scoot forward to the other end to tie off the other half of the sail. After finishing the first upper sail, I still have one more to do. I find a rope and grab onto it, spiralling it around my forearm, and swing over the deck to the other upper beam. I use the same maneuvers as before, laying on my stomach, with my arms and legs wrapped around the beam, inching forward. The wind howls in my ears, whipping my wet hair around my face. This whole time, the storm has only gotten worse, and it's getting harder for me to stay on the beam. Finally, I finish, and all that's left is for me to go down to the deck. I grab a rope, and swing out away from the beam. I hear a deep rumble emanating from the rolling clouds, and a loud crack splits open the sky as a bolt of lightning strikes and erupts into the sea just a few meters away. Another bolt emerges from the sky and I look up to see it strike on the attachment for the rope I am swinging from. I gasp as I feel the tension in the rope disappear, and look down as the sea comes up to meet me. I let go of the now useless rope, and fold my body over midair, so that I will enter the water headfirst. I extend my arms in front of me, and point my toes in my boots so that when the next wave comes up to swallow me, I dive straight in. The cold water closes over my form, and I begin swimming upwards.
************************************
Captain Jack Sparrow's POV
I watch, helpless from the deck, with horror, as a bolt of lighting illuminates the sky, and hits the anchor for the rope that Enna swings from. "No!!!!!" I shout over the howl of the storm. My daughter flies through the air, discarding the rope into the skies, before getting into a diving position. I run over to the edge of the ship, just to see a wave swallow her small form. I race back across the deck to fetch the life ring, then rush it over and toss it into the water. Time slows as I wait for my little Sparrow to surface. I count the seconds in my head, trying to remember how long she said she could hold her breath. "Come on, Enna," I whisper. "Where are you?" My eyes scan the waves. God, I hope she didn't get keelhauled. Ocean waves are hard enough to swim through, without worrying about where a ship is so you don't get dragged under it. And with the storm tossing the ship about the way it is... Finally I see a figure emerge from the depths. "Enna!" I want to throw myself overboard to help her, but then I couldn't pull her to safety. She paddles through the choppy sea to the life ring I tossed out, and pulls it around her. I begin pulling the rope in, working faster than I ever have. I feel more weight on the other end, and I know that she has been lifted out of the sea. I have to heave a little harder, but it will be worth it when I have my girl safe beside me on deck.
"Father?" I turn to see Enna gripping the side of the ship, and quickly tie off the life ring rope before rushing to help her aboard.
"Enna," I say, taking her into my arms and pulling her weight over the wall. She's shivering with cold, and fear too, no doubt. I set her down on the deck, but her legs give out underneath her, and she crumbles to the ground. I settle myself with her, allowing her to lean her wilted body against my own. I hold her to me, stroking her soaked hair. "Are you okay, little Sparrow? Are you hurt at all?" She gives a weak nod.
"Sore...all...over," she rasps, her voice small and tired. "Sails are secured, Cap'n," she says before starting a coughing fit, her coughs sounding very hollow and chesty. When her coughs subside, she shudders against me, and I lift her into my arms, and lift her up, carrying her towards the sleeping quarters. I open the door, and go down the hallway to her door, and open it, carrying her inside and setting her on a chair, not wanting to soak her bedding. I fetch her a dry set of clothing, which is really just a nightgown, along with a towel. I crouch near her, and begin unfastening her coat buttons. Her breathing is shallow and she is still shuddering. Once I peel off her coat, I close my eyes and pull off her thin, white shirt. With my eyes still closed, I pick up the towel and drape it over her trembling shoulders. She is able to work her pants off herself, but just barely. I still have my eyes closed, but I pick up the nightgown and settle it down over her head, and she slides her arms through the sleeves. Once she declares she is decent, I open my eyes and towel the excess water from her short hair. I scoop her up again, and carry her to her bed. I pull back the blankets and lay her down upon her pillow, then pull the blanket back over her. She curls up into the comfort, and I smile down at her with tears forming in my eyes. My sweet girl almost died tonight. I couldn't let her get that close to death again. I vow then and there to find a crew, so that she isn't forced to put herself in danger any more. Though, with her earlier confession, who knows how long she'll still be with me?
I take her wet things and hang them upon the drying rack in her room. Then I move the chair she was in a few minutes ago right next to her bed, and settle myself into it. Enna is already sound asleep, her body still giving a small shudder every few moments. I smile down at her peaceful face. I'm not leaving her side tonight. The storm has finally let up a little bit, so my attention isn't needed as much right now. I shut my eyes, and Enna's confession from earlier burns in my mind. Is she really not happy? Am I going to lose my little Sparrow again?