They were back on The Pearl, leaving the now fogged waters of Port Royal. Lydia stood at the back of the ship, watching as her old home became smaller and smaller the more and more they left the bay. It was like a disappearing memory, the last chapter before you closed the book, and Lydia didn't feel ashamed to see it go. She wasn't clutching at the edge of the beach, clinging onto it forever. Now she had let go and although it will forever be with her, it was still time to go. Trailing up behind her, Jack hung his chin on her shoulder, hearing her chuckle as he wrapped his arms around her.
"Where too miss?" Jack asked, spinning them around to the helm "I don't believe you have specified which lovely island we're going to yet."
"Have I not?" Lydia laughed, pulling away and holding onto his hands.
"No. Very secretive you are," He winked.
"Ha ha okay, we should gather everyone," Lydia said.
"Oi you lot! Wanna know where we're going?" Jack shouted out to the crew.
Silently, the crew looked to each other and shrugged before shuffling quickly up to the helm, gathering around Jack and Lydia as Jack called for a map. They layed it out in the middle of the now formed circle, Lydia gazing up only to find the huddle faces of the crew around her. The map was small but pictured the Caribbean, down to the tiny islands decorating the waters.
"So, my parents said it was the sixth island from Tortuga," Lydia informed them, examining the map on the floor "I assume um... That-"
"Wait the sixth island? There's hundreds of islands in this sea," Pintel interrupted, leaning in far to see the map.
"Yeah how do we know the direction in which the island goes?" Regetti joined.
Lydia scoffed and eyed the map again, flustered by the crew's impatience. Her parents liked to make it a struggle, they liked to make it as hard as possible to find whatever it is she had to find. The map was confusing, and Lydia understood why her parents taught her as much as they could before she left them. Although being just the Caribbean there were clusters of islands yet to be marked, new land was being discovered every day. Barbossa shoved his way through the group and had a look for himself, annoyed by Pintel and Regetti's pestering.
"Look at the map lads. Tortuga is in one long line of islands trailing across these waters," Barbossa brushed his finger along the map before halting at a particularly small island with no name "there. You see that weren't too hard now was it."
So we have our heading?" Gibbs wondered, the whole crew looking to Lydia.
"We have our heading," she threw her arms up, everyone cheering before getting to work.
••••••••••
As the day crawled through, Peter slumped by the side of the ship, watching the Pearl leave Port Royal. They were far enough so they couldn't be seen by the Pearl, but just close enough to watch them slip away. His knuckles were growing white on the railings, desperate to get to them. The smell of salt was being forcefully breathed up his nose, Peter's eyes twitching. Morning always seemed to be their easiest time to slip away. Maybe Peter needed to wake up earlier? Maybe if his Captain wasn't so slow he would have her by now.
O'Malley was watching them too, but his eyes always flickered back to Peter. He saw his outrage at the wait however this was always the game with O'Malley. He's waited so long he was not going to risk anything. While the rest of the crew worked their way around the ship, O'Malley strolled down the stairs to where Peter was standing.
"You must be more patient my boy," he warned, letting his eyes drop to where Peter was leaving handprints in the wood he was holding on so tight.
"How can I when they're right there? When she's that close," Peter said shaking his head.
"I've waited this plot for years, I understand your need for vengeance. But we must not rush it, let them believe they have nothing to worry about," O'Malley smiled "we will have what we deserve in no time. For now we follow them, they seem to be heading somewhere else."
"What about the annoying soldiers? I regret bringing them now," Peter let go of the railing to only prop his elbows on it.
"I'm sure you are they're waist of space," O'Malley bit "if they want to go home so desperately they can make their own way there, we've got them far enough."
Peter saw the gleam in his captains face and chuckled, storming away from him to find the two poor men. If they wanted to get there, they'll have to do it alone. No more aggravating him with dull stories of what's Lydia's favourite colour, which they didn't even know so they were just guessing based on what colour dress she wore most. Some emerald green one. Peter doubted that had to be it, especially after seeing her necklace. How he couldn't wait to steel it.
Once he found the two men he hastily grabbed them by their collars, yanking them after him and to the main deck. Murtogg and Mullroy squirmed and looked to each other confused, tripping over their feet as Peter pulled them along. As the crew saw them they smiled like hyenas, knowing exactly what was to go down, slowly stopping what they were doing.
"Sorry boys but I'm unfortunate to say that our time together is over," Peter charmed shoving them to the railing he was once stood by, O'Malley grinning at them.
"What do you mean? Port Royal is right there," Murtogg pointed out.
"Yes and I just remembered that this is a pirate ship and you are Navy men and in turn not allowed to step foot on this ship," Peter smiled, the crew gasping before turning evilly towards the two men "I'm terribly sorry but I frankly can't be asked to pull the plank out so... Goodbye."
Peter motioned to the crew and they shot forward and punched the two men off the ship, their screams colliding with the ocean below. Moving to the side, Peter watched and waited for them to resurface before giving them a kiss goodbye. He wasn't that terrible. O'Malley chuffed and headed back to the helm. As the crew sniggered to each other, O'Malley began to manoeuvre the ship, following after the Black Pearl.
"Men! Sharpen your swords and load your weapons, we're catching up!" He called, the crew cheering his name.
••••••••••
As she picked the map up from the floor, Lydia guided it over to the crate in which she always sat, laying it down before taking a closer look herself. This map was edged with tiny circles resembling the little islands they were to visit. One day she hoped to see them all, give them their own names until someone like the Royal Navy came to take them themselves. As they did in so many other lands. The edges of the map were torn and crumbling, loose threads hanging free. Perhaps it was time for a new one, but that came with the fear that those islands once unclaimed were now bought and habituated. That they no longer were individual, but part of one boring name, named after some rich Lord.
Jack had left Cotton to steer, trusting the older mans eye as he spun the helm. That would give him time to then sit beside Lydia, watching as she memorized every island they went past, imagining their ship gliding through the map. Her hair was beginning to resemble his more and more, tons of braids and beads through her long waves. It wasn't tangled like his however, Lydia still had soft smooth hair that Jack was growing jealous of. How she could keep her hair tangle free was beyond him, Jack feeling the clumps in his. But she resembled the image of perfection, and he thought of himself as anything but that. Next to her, he felt as though he was just a man. A handsome man, maybe, it would make him blush thinking of himself that way, but he didn't feel he was on her level of perfect. How could anyone?
"How long do think it will take before we get there captain?" Lydia asked, snapping Jack from his thoughts.
"Maybe a few days? I don't know," he smiled.
"You okay? You have that adorable grin on your face," Lydia said look back down at the map.
"Can I not have an adorable grin on my face?" Jack chuckled "must I frown?"
Jack pouted with sunken eyebrows, causing Lydia to laugh. She got up from her knees and sat on the crate with him, moving to sit crisscrossed.
"No. I just don't often see you like this. Thought something had to be up," she said.
"Ahh... Just thinking," Jack grinned again.
"About me?" Lydia raised.
"Always about you," he lowered his voice.
Lydia felt that familiar feeling of flutters up her spine and to her cheeks. Holding down a shiver she bit her lip, watching his smile grow as her cheeks reddened. He was as beautiful as the sea, and just as mysterious. He was free flowing and down his own path that Lydia wanted to ride with him to the sunset. His eyes were more beautiful than any from the likes of famous paintings. Perfectly shaped, like the gods wanted to taint the world with his perfection. Because there was no reason anyone should look like him, it was a crime to do so. Placing her hands on either side of his face, Lydia drunk him in, staining her mind with every corner of him, like she was doing so for the first time. Jack held his hands on her wrists, keeping her there. His heart skipped knowing she was doing exactly what he was only a few minutes ago. Memorizing his features like she did to the map, like he did to her.
To everyone else on this vessel, they appeared like to teenagers absolutely obsessed with each other. They had their own lovers also, but watching them up by the helm made them believe they were doing it all wrong. Barbossa would roll his eyes at the sight, but he still would find a twinge of jealousy inside him. So would the rest of the crew. How could they not? They forbidden their own lovers to join, so observing Jack and Lydia they couldn't help but want to just look away. Seeing them, seeing their connection, put the other men in a state they couldn't explain. They were over the moon for their captain, but who wouldn't feel that ache of jealousy seeing two people who were destined for each other, while you were off alone scrubbing the deck of a ship.
"We should tell him. It's obvious she's not tellin'," Regetti said to Pintel.
"If you do you'll be earning no respect from me. The boy is gone, so is O'Malley. There's no need to worry," Gibbs slapped his arms on the two men's shoulders "I'm sure she's already told him."
"Yeah. It's Lydia we're talking about here she wouldn't hurt us," Pintel agreed, taking his mop to another area.
Gibbs hoped that was true, gazing as the young lovers chatted together. If O'Malley was after them, he'd surely lost them now. They made an effort not to tell anyone where they were going, the crew even refusing to tell their closest friends back in Tortuga. Such an action would be criminal at this time. It was so hard to trust anyone anymore. Who knew who would be after them next.
They were isolated in the warm waters. Or so they thought. Because just far away enough, enough for the crew to be unable to see, a ship was trailing them. Even after the Pearl went about her journey, brushing past the churning waters, there was still a small brown dot on the horizon. But they hadn't seen O'Malley since that night, so Jack just assumed it was a lonely merchant vessel, setting sale for the perfect place to make Port.
Jack knew even if they were being followed, they had no chance of taking what wasn't theirs. The treasure only opened to the person who found Lydia first. And that was Jack. It was an odd tale of the lost pirate princess. You would read it but it seemed like too much of a fairytale, too impossible to be true. Because after the years of pirates actually looking, and all of them failing, everyone gave up. The tale became a book you would dump onto your coffee table, or one you would use to squash spiders. That book you bought thinking it would be impactful but it was actually just a fable. He was waiting desperately for this adventure to made into stories, for him to have another claim to fame in writing. He was waiting for that talented writer to snatch the chance, as it wouldn't be him. He could barely form a sentence on his own.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Writers note:
I know this is short but I wanted to skip waffle and get to the interesting part. Hope you enjoyed!
Happy reading ❤️