Lightning
Title: Lightning
Author: nelliedances/Miss Ruby Tuesday
Rating: G
Pairings: Jack/Elizabeth
Warnings: Wee ones for DMC and arachnaphobes beware.
Disclaimer: Sure I own it; I also have a great bridge for sale in Brooklyn, if anyone's interested.
Summary: Everyone's afraid of something, redux. Written for jacksmermaid
Status: Complete, companion piece to Spiders.
It had been a week and Jack was still waiting for the other shoe to drop. He’d expected some ribbing, at the very least, about his fear of spiders, but she hadn’t said a blessed word. He’d finally started to breath easier, figuring she had chosen to be merciful. Unfortunately, merciful was not a word often used in conjunction with Elizabeth.
He’d woken up on a dreary, grey morning to find her already out of bed. He’d gone to roll over, where the sheets were still warm from her body, when something brushed against his face. His eyes snapped open to find a large, black mass that very much looked like it had legs staring him in the face. He yelped like he’d been stung and vaulted himself out of bed, panting and shaking. Then, he heard it.
Laughing.
She stood, in the corner, grinning like a skull, and practically cackling with delight. “Oh, Jack, your face was priceless! It’s just a harmless bit of yarn.
He stared at her. “You…” He shook his finger at her, contemplating how quickly he could wrap his hands around her pretty little throat. “I despise you.” He dressed quickly and stalked out of the cabin, sulking.
He’d, in turn, driven the crew insane with his faces and grumblings all day. When Jack was miserable, he had the propensity to make everyone else in the crew just as unhappy. Gibbs had tried to talk to him earlier, but had quickly grown frustrated with him. He’d tried his hand at talking to Elizabeth, but he’d gotten no where with her, either. They were like a pair of stubborn old goats.
Sometime around three bells past last dog watch, the weather had taken a turn for the worse. The sky, grey and heavy all day, had taken on an ominous dun and black cast and the water had picked up a bit of a chop. The weather somehow was able to accomplish what no one else was able to do. It cheered Jack, and he’d taken the helm, humming to himself and grinning at the sky like a madman.
The winds had started to pick up just as dusk hit and Jack had ordered the sails reefed to ride out the storm. The crew had faded away just as the first drops of rain began to fall. Jack turned his face up to the sky, letting the rain wash away the last remnants of his bad mood. He could see the tips of the spars lit with Saint Elmo’s fire and laughed out loud. The Pearl needed a good storm to get her under way.
Elizabeth crept out of the cabin, determined to make her way to the helm. She had quite a bit of time to think about the trick she’d played on Jack and, in all fairness, it was not nice. The tendrils of guilt had grown the longer he’d ignored her and she was ready to apologize. The storm had begun to kick up the first time she’d thought about it and she’d gotten distracted when Jack gave the orders to batten down.
The weather had her all on edge. This certainly wasn’t the first storm she’d seen at sea, but they never seemed to get easier. She could smell the metallic tinge in the air the second she hit the decks. She shivered.
Jack, on the other hand, seemed wholly in his element. Rain streamed off his hand and soaked his clothes as he grinned into the coming storm. She could see the glint of his gold teeth in the fading light. For a moment, she even fancied him as part of the storm itself. She clung tightly to the rain as the Pearl dipped and rolled in the churning sea.
“Jack!” she yelled, hoping he’d hear her above the storm. He looked over the rail at her, clawing her way up the slippery steps.
“Come to give me another nasty surprise?”
“I came to apologize.” The grin grew even bigger as she reached him.
“Always good to see the lovely Miss Swann humbled. Let’s have it dearie.”
She made a face at him, but continued. “I’m sorry I put the bit of yarn in your bed. It was a nasty turn-“ She would have continued, but at that moment, a bolt of lightning split the sky, followed in quick succession by a loud clap of thunder. Elizabeth jumped like she’d been struck and stared out at the sea, wild eyed.
“Liz?”
She didn’t answer him, but he could hear her breathe coming in shuddering little gasps. Her hands tightened on the rail, knuckles going white as she leaned down a little. The next flash and boom sent her skittering into his arms, shaking and crying. She wound her arms tightly around his waist and he wondered for a moment if she could crack his ribs that way.
“Hate storms,” she cried through chattering teeth. “I hate bloody thunder.”
If Jack was a less man, he would have laughed at her, an experience pirate, fearing a little noise. Any man worth his salt knew it was the lightning that was to be feared. But Jack decided that it would be best to take the high road in this situation.
“Darling,” he said soothingly. “It’s just a bit of noise. The long nines are louder and they’ve never frightened you.”
“’S not the same,” she whispered, pressing her face against his chest. “It reminds me of the crossing from England.”
“What’s this now?”
“We ran into a storm…” Another clap of thunder made her jump and mould herself even more tightly against him. “We ran into a storm, just after we saw the Pearl. A tempest blew up out of no where. It took out the main mast. It all happened at once and I couldn’t get out of the way fast enough.” She leaned back enough to pull her shirt aside, showing him a large, thick scar. “I was hit with a splinter from the mast.”
Jack’s brow furrowed and he was immensely glad he’d chosen not to taunt her about her fear. “Oh, pet…” He kissed her eyelids and her trembling mouth. “Must’ve been terrible.”
She nodded, so absorbed in her memories that she didn’t even notice the rain softening and the lightning becoming content just to flit from cloud to cloud.
“Let’s get you inside, eh? And out of those wet clothes.” His grin returned, as he tied off the wheel with his free hand. “Suppose it didn’t matter if you had crushed that beastie the other day. Your storm found us anyway.”
She looked at him, pale and tear-stained. “Actually, Jack, I smashed one in the cabin just today.”
The grin fell from his face. Bugger.