Look at the Stars, Look How They Shine for You

"This is amazing..." Will breathed, watching me lift the entire contents of the bucket. I was teasing him by hovering it over his head. We'd been working together for the past three days, and although I was miles away from being able to 'save the world', I was getting better. I could control larger amounts of water from farther away, and I'd even been experimenting with wind. But I was still working hard on finding that perfect connection, and knowing how much of myself to devote to the powers and my normal self.

"A, B, C, D, E, F, G," I sang, reciting the alphabet while I morphed the water into different shapes. It didn't feel so foreign anymore. Slowly, I was beginning to thoroughly enjoy doing this. The control I felt was fantastic. And I figured, the more I practiced the better I'd be. I mean, by the time I was need I'd be able to do magnificent things, like-

BANG!BANG!BANG!

The water splashed onto the bed beside Will as three loud knocks came pounding on the door. We looked at each other, and he went to open it. Jack came in, flustered and panicky. He looked frantically between the two of us.

"We need you on deck, love." He said nervously. My heart sank.

"W-why?" I asked, just as scared.

"Beckett's sent one of his little hounds and I'm not particularly fond of fighting when there need not be a fight, savvy?" He said, coming over and pulling me off of the ground where I sat.

"Jack-" Will protested, but it was pointless.

"Leave it Will." I said, breaking free of Jack's grasp and grabbing a hold of Will's hand. I dragged him with me up the stairs, trying to calm myself the entire way. When I got on deck, my stomach squirmed madly. Everyone was running about, doing odd tasks and some even getting out weapons. I looked ahead at the ship. The ship that had about three times as many cannons as the Pearl, and was headed straight for us.

"Bad luck havin' a woman aboard..." Mr. Gibbs muttered as he walked past us, taking a drink from his flask.

I pulled Will up to the helm, going to the very edge of the bow before I stopped. I released his hand, but made him stay near. I did a few breathing exercises to calm myself down, but they didn't work half as well as I would have liked. I closed my eyes, trying to get in tune with the mass of water surrounding both ships. In a little corner of me I could feel the two different vibes from the Pearl and whatever our enemy's ship was called.

But there was so much water. So much possibility for error. For failure. Again and again I tried to focus, but it was so difficult. My brain was trying to catch everything that happened, instead of blocking out the unnecessary things. Everywhere around me people were yelling, commanding, clanking, running, slamming, cracking, and breathing so loud. I pushed myself to ignore it, to keep my attention on the only thing that mattered- the ship coming closer. It would fire within a minute. Sixty seconds. Not enough time.

Will knew to be quiet, having spent so much time watching me try to control these odd powers. He knew when he could speak, how to speak, but most importantly what to say. Jack on the other hand, did not.

"Any chance of blowin' said enemy to bits?" He asked hopefully. I groaned, my stomach turning once again. I could feel Jack, I could smell him, and if I turned ever so slightly I could see him. What I couldn't do was focus.

"Tell them all to shut the fuck up!" I yelled, anger beginning to bubble in me as the clock ticked away. Will didn't hesitate for a moment, turning around and immediately ordering everyone below deck. They would no doubt look at him as if he were mad, seeing as they needed to be above deck. There weren't enough cannons to defeat them by gun power alone. They would need to board and be boarded.

But they complied, and finally the only noise was the oncoming din of orders being barked from the enemy. One deep breath. Two deep breaths. Three- this was a waste. I threw my boots off, and climbed up onto the railing.

"What are you doin'?" Jack said, appalled.

"This isn't working." I muttered, before jumping into the ocean. I grabbed a deep breath on the way through the air, but the sudden icy temperature forced it out of me. Not good. I struggled to pull myself up to the surface again, knowing it would be seconds before my lungs began to burn with a dire need for oxygen. But when it didn't come I paused. I didn't need to breathe? That seemed off. I touched my neck quickly to make sure I didn't grow gills, and was satisfied when my neck was smooth.

I'd think about it later. My eyes wretched open, somehow unaffected by the salt of the ocean waters. I saw the ship, no more than a few hundred yards in front of me. I took a minute to let the water mold around me, to let the molecules slide into my pores and to relax me completely. Here, it was quiet. No sounds could penetrate the blinding silence of the sea.

And so I could focus. Putting my hands out in front of me like a child blasting invisible laser rays at an opponent, I forced a stream of water towards the ship. It started off minute, merely slowing down the ship. But as I pushed, and gave more and more, it stopped all together and began going in reverse. I fueled more into the stream, giving it power and speed, crashing new streams at the sides of the ship. It was shaking side to side, rocking like a cradle.

In an attempt to slow them permanently, I exhaled the water in my lungs and threw it into the path of the jet stream I'd created. I sped across the waters and punctured three massive holes into the side of the ship. I coerced the water into spilling in faster than usual, getting a good head start on the sinking process before I allowed myself to float back to the surface. The Pearl was farther away than I realized, considering the fact I failed to see it pass me at all.

But it was done. The weight of the world was lifted off my shoulders, and I was suddenly sympathetic to Atlas. I knew what it felt like now. I resurfaced, taking in a few gulps of oxygen. And then I sighed, watching as the men scurried to get off of their sinking ship and into their safety boats. I hoped they wouldn't see me as I swam back to the Pearl.

I was more than thankful when a rescue boat was lowered into the ocean, and Will came my way. He helped me into the wooden contraption, and I was dripping like mad into the bottom of the boat.

"Are you alright?" He asked, handing me a blanket. I wrapped it around myself, thankful for it.

"Yeah." I said quietly, as he began to paddle us back to the Pearl.

"You gave Jack quite the fright when you didn't resurface." He remarked, trying to lighten the mood. It worked, and I laughed.

"A heart attack might do him some good." I said sarcastically. We reached the Pearl, and I ascended the ladder up the side of the ship, grabbing Jack's outstretched hand when I got to deck level. I rung out my hair, ignoring any looks from crew members who no doubt thought I fell into the ocean. How wrong they were. How ignorant too, I had just saved all of their asses.

"Thanks for savin' me ship, love." He said, and I nodded my head. He held out a bottle half full of what I assumed was rum, and offered it to me. I gladly took it, walking back to my room while drinking it down. The reality of what I had just done had yet to sink in. I had been lucky to be under water while the ship sunk. My ears were immune to the screams the honest sailors no doubt unleashed as some fell to their death in the icy waters.

I kept trying to convince myself this was all for the greater good. The balance. Stupid fucking balance. I was quite content with just being here on the Pearl and sailing the sea. I had no need for pirate wars and prophetic destinies. I sighed, wrapping the blanket tight around my form as I sat down on my bed. My feet were still bare, so I tucked them under me to keep them warm. A knock came down on my door.

"I'm changing..." I said distantly, eyes glued to the floor. But they flew to the door when it opened, revealing Jack. I was about to express my outrage when he explained himself.

"Two things wrong with that statement, love." He said immediately, holding up his hands in defence. "One, ye have no other clothes to change into. And two, if that was true ye would 'ave locked the door." He smirked, and I rolled my eyes.

"Or there's option three, and I made up an excuse because I wasn't exactly in the mood to talk to anyone." I offered sarcastically, raising an eyebrow.

"You alright, love?" He asked. My eyebrows squished together, because his tone sounded almost...honest. It made me hesitate before responding.

"Yeah, just a little...out of it. It's kind of hard to stay connected to two things at once. This...thing doesn't have an on or off switch." I said lightly, he looked confused.

"On or off switch?" He asked, and I mentally face palmed myself. Of course he didn't know what that was.

"Basically it takes time for me to get into 'the zone'." I said, using air quotes. "And out of it, for that matter."

"I see." I replied, staring at the ground. I took another large gulp of rum, wincing slightly as it burned down my throat. I didn't like this conflict that was beginning to grow inside of me. I had been trying to avoid Jack as of late. I had been telling myself that it was just because I needed to practice, and I was more comfortable with Will. But some tiny part of me knew that was just a cover for the truth. I was just scared to allow myself to get attached to him. He was a good friend (at least, that's what I thought) but the total opposite of anyone I ever imagined myself with. Why then was I so attracted to him? And not figuratively, of physically. Literally. Like a magnet.

"Well, I'll let you be then." He replied, snapping us both out of a daze and walking towards the door. I didn't watch him as he left, my mind too focused on other trains of thought. I heard his footsteps exit the room, only to momentarily come back. He dropped something at the foot of my bed before speaking. "Thanks again, love." He said, closing the door behind him. My eyebrows furrowed as I looked at what he had left.

He let me keep his boots.