Chapter One
Hi! Yoshiko-Rae here. Just reminding you this is my first PotC fan fiction,
so please go easy on the flames. Constructive criticism is fine, and
reviews are always welcome! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: (Sigh) I don't own PotC or any of the characters. If I did I would be hanging with Jack and Will all day instead of writing fanfics. But I do own Captain Valiquette, The South Sea Sunset, and all of the crew. So don't be taking me crew, my hearties! And as Captain Jack Sparrow once said, "Welcome to the Caribbean, love!"
Colleen Valiquette leaned over the ship's side, letting the salty sea air whip her auburn hair around her head. She closed her eyes, letting the rough tumble of the schooner take her away into a world of her own, where sharks and scurvy and pirates did not exist. Pirates. she thought, laughing slightly. Ever since her ship The South Sea Sunset left port in England, she and her crew had been tormented by the constant attack of bloodthirsty buccaneers. Fortunately, most of them were not a real threat, just young men trying to make a living, however dishonest it may be. She and her first mate made shark chow out of most of them, and her crew was able to finish off the rest. However, some of the Jolly Roger crews they had encountered were not so easily rid of. Just last week another schooner had approached The South Sea Sunset and made off with two weeks' supply of food, a large amount of golden doubloons, and the lives of seven of her crewmates. Alas, living on the sea was no easy thing.
"Captain! Captain Valiquette!" called James. Colleen jerked out of her dream world. She turned to her first mate, James Tobias. "What is it James?" she asked, pulling her sea swept hair out of her face. His expression was a worried one. "Look at the clouds. I don't like the color of 'em. Barely half past six and already blood red," he said, pointing to the morning sky. As Colleen followed his pointing finger to gaze at the color of the clouds, she thought jokingly of the old poem she and her men used to tell whether or not it was going to be a good sailing day. Red at night 'tis a sailor's delight. But red in the morn, sailors take warn. And indeed it was a truly scarlet dawn. It would not surprise her if a storm was just hours away. She directed her first mate, "Rouse the crew. We need every hand on deck if a storm's a comin'."
And sure enough, it was only an hour after the whole of the crew had awoken that a storm hit. The crew ran around frantically, releasing the sails. Colleen took the helm for the first hour of the storm, but she gave it up to her helmsman Peter so she could help with storm-proofing the rest of the ship. The crew finished up mending the ship. The precautions they had made let the crew think that The South Sea Sunset would make it through this storm without any misfortune. But alas, that was not to be the case. The storm was almost over when a huge wave rocked the ship suddenly and threw one of the crewmembers overboard. "Phillip!" Colleen screamed into the wind. Phillip was the ship's cabin boy, but he was also Colleen's younger brother, and her only living sibling at that. She grabbed a rope and tried to toss it to him, but the wind swept the end away before it could touch the sea. "Shit! James! Hang on to this rope and don't ye ever let go!" Colleen commanded as she tied the other end around her waist. "I'm going in! He can't die like this!" she yelled as ran over to the edge of the ship. Before James could argue, she plunged into the waters of the Caribbean Sea and began swimming toward her brother. "Colleen! Help me!" 12 year-old Phillip wailed. Damn. Shit. Don't worry, I'm coming!" thought Colleen frantically. She finally reached him. He wrapped his arms around her and the rope. "Sister, I don't want to drown!" Phillip cried into her neck. "Hush, we're not going to drown. James has the other end of the rope. He's going to make sure we get back on the ship." And Colleen spoke the truth. With the help of her second mate Angus and helmsman Peter, James pulled them to the edge of the ship. He handed the rope to Angus and threw a ladder down over the side. "Climb up!" he shouted to Colleen. She and Phillip clambered up the ladder and threw themselves on the floor of the ship, gasping. Immediately, the crew began to help their captain up, but she shook them off. "I can get up myself. Look after Phillip. He needs more help than I." Her men hesitated, but then did as their captain ordered and began to help Phillip. Colleen struggled to get to her feet, but fell back down. James hurried over with a wool blanket. "Sit down, captain. You need to rest, and stop worrying about Phil. He's gonna be just fine." Having been reassured by her most trusted shipmate, Colleen pulled the heavy material around her shivering body and closed her eyes, falling into a deep slumber. Captain Valiquette woke to the sounds of gull's laughing. She pulled herself from her bed. Bed? But I fell asleep on the deck. she thought. Just then, James clambered down the steps to Colleen's chambers. "Ah, you're awake Cap'n! Glad to see you're okay," he said, sitting down on her writing chair. "Is Phil okay? How is the ship doing? How long have I been asleep? Why I am in bed?" burst out Colleen. James laughed. "Boy, ye sure are resilient. Barely a half-day after ye were conked out and you're already as right as rain. Phil's doing just fine. Still asleep, but fine. The Sunset's only taken the normal beating from a storm like that. I've got yer crew working on that right now. You've only slept in for about four hours longer than usual, and I put ye in bed 'cause ye looked pretty uncomfortable on the hard grain of the deck." Colleen sank back into her mattress. "Thanks, lad." This was a joke between the captain and first mate, for James was several years senior to Valiquette's minor 18 years. "Now out with ye. I've got to get dressed. A captain can't order the crew around in a night dress," she said, jumping back up and shooing James out of her chambers. After securing the door from prying men, Captain Valiquette proceeded to get dressed. On most days she would bind her breasts as to not be considered a target to marauding pirates, but today they were nearing port. She had to create her image for her father, whom she was meeting at the dock. Colleen opened her chest of drawers and pulled out a tortoiseshell comb that had been a gift from her mother before she died of scarlet fever. Thanks mum. she thought while brushing the tangles out of her waist length hair. After successfully detangling her locks, Colleen pulled out her silk blouse, petticoat, corset, and favorite skirt. "Much as I hate these damn corsets, Daddy thinks every proper woman needs to wear one," she said out loud. She stepped into her petticoat and then tied the cursed corset around her waist. "Damn.thing.why.must.you.be.so.DIFFICULT!" she grunted, trying to get the stays to, well, stay. After wrestling with it, she finally got it in the right position and pulled on her blouse. She then got into her navy blue skirt and tied the sash. "Why must getting dressed be so damn hard for a woman?" she asked herself, looking into her full-length mirror. Call her vain, but Captain Valiquette couldn't stand not having a mirror. When she looked at her reflection, she noticed two things missing. She grabbed her medallion and tied it around her neck. Colleen had gotten the gold piece after they took a pirate ship by surprise. The authorities had been so pleased with her that they let her crew keep some of the booty. The other thing that was missing was her older brother's cutlass. After he had been killed in a raid, Colleen took the sword and promise to avenge him by killing the pirates who had murdered her hero. Plus, the sword was just a nice sword to begin with. Captain Valiquette strapped the sheath to her sash and took one last look in the mirror. "Not too bad," she mumbled to herself. She laid her brush on the bed and walked up the stairs to the deck. Captain Valiquette was greeted by her crew with shouts of "Hey Cap'n!" and "Glad to see yer awake Cap'n!" and "Hey, yer looking pretty darn good Cap'n! Going to the fair, are we?" Colleen smiled and shook the compliments off. "Men." she laughed. "All right boys! Listen up. We're heading to port today, so get ready to take a little vacation. We'll stay there for 'bout a week. Make sure ye have a little fun and a little rum!" The crew cheered. Colleen started talking again. "But we're not at port yet boys. So be ready to work like the dogs ye are!" She put on a mock serious face, which didn't last for long as the crew started laughing. They knew their Cap'n would never work them to their death. Colleen took the helm from Angus while the rest of the crew went back to work. As Captain Valiquette steered the ship, she noticed a dark shape approached from the distance. "Peter, grab me my telescope. I want to see what in the devil is coming up to us from the south," she ordered, still staring at the dot on the horizon. Her helmsman ran and got her telescope for her. Colleen grabbed it and stretched it out to its full length, peering through it. After a few moments, she dropped it and gasped. "Heaven help us!" she cried. The rest of the crew stared at their captain with puzzling looks. "What it is Cap'n? What in the name of hell could scare ye like that?" asked Ryan, another one of the crew. Colleen trembled as she spoke. "I saw a ship with black sails. It can be none other than the dreaded ship from hell: The Black Pearl."
So, what do you think! Please review, and keep your eyes open for the next few chappies within a week!
Hi! Yoshiko-Rae here. Just reminding you this is my first PotC fan fiction,
so please go easy on the flames. Constructive criticism is fine, and
reviews are always welcome! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: (Sigh) I don't own PotC or any of the characters. If I did I would be hanging with Jack and Will all day instead of writing fanfics. But I do own Captain Valiquette, The South Sea Sunset, and all of the crew. So don't be taking me crew, my hearties! And as Captain Jack Sparrow once said, "Welcome to the Caribbean, love!"
Colleen Valiquette leaned over the ship's side, letting the salty sea air whip her auburn hair around her head. She closed her eyes, letting the rough tumble of the schooner take her away into a world of her own, where sharks and scurvy and pirates did not exist. Pirates. she thought, laughing slightly. Ever since her ship The South Sea Sunset left port in England, she and her crew had been tormented by the constant attack of bloodthirsty buccaneers. Fortunately, most of them were not a real threat, just young men trying to make a living, however dishonest it may be. She and her first mate made shark chow out of most of them, and her crew was able to finish off the rest. However, some of the Jolly Roger crews they had encountered were not so easily rid of. Just last week another schooner had approached The South Sea Sunset and made off with two weeks' supply of food, a large amount of golden doubloons, and the lives of seven of her crewmates. Alas, living on the sea was no easy thing.
"Captain! Captain Valiquette!" called James. Colleen jerked out of her dream world. She turned to her first mate, James Tobias. "What is it James?" she asked, pulling her sea swept hair out of her face. His expression was a worried one. "Look at the clouds. I don't like the color of 'em. Barely half past six and already blood red," he said, pointing to the morning sky. As Colleen followed his pointing finger to gaze at the color of the clouds, she thought jokingly of the old poem she and her men used to tell whether or not it was going to be a good sailing day. Red at night 'tis a sailor's delight. But red in the morn, sailors take warn. And indeed it was a truly scarlet dawn. It would not surprise her if a storm was just hours away. She directed her first mate, "Rouse the crew. We need every hand on deck if a storm's a comin'."
And sure enough, it was only an hour after the whole of the crew had awoken that a storm hit. The crew ran around frantically, releasing the sails. Colleen took the helm for the first hour of the storm, but she gave it up to her helmsman Peter so she could help with storm-proofing the rest of the ship. The crew finished up mending the ship. The precautions they had made let the crew think that The South Sea Sunset would make it through this storm without any misfortune. But alas, that was not to be the case. The storm was almost over when a huge wave rocked the ship suddenly and threw one of the crewmembers overboard. "Phillip!" Colleen screamed into the wind. Phillip was the ship's cabin boy, but he was also Colleen's younger brother, and her only living sibling at that. She grabbed a rope and tried to toss it to him, but the wind swept the end away before it could touch the sea. "Shit! James! Hang on to this rope and don't ye ever let go!" Colleen commanded as she tied the other end around her waist. "I'm going in! He can't die like this!" she yelled as ran over to the edge of the ship. Before James could argue, she plunged into the waters of the Caribbean Sea and began swimming toward her brother. "Colleen! Help me!" 12 year-old Phillip wailed. Damn. Shit. Don't worry, I'm coming!" thought Colleen frantically. She finally reached him. He wrapped his arms around her and the rope. "Sister, I don't want to drown!" Phillip cried into her neck. "Hush, we're not going to drown. James has the other end of the rope. He's going to make sure we get back on the ship." And Colleen spoke the truth. With the help of her second mate Angus and helmsman Peter, James pulled them to the edge of the ship. He handed the rope to Angus and threw a ladder down over the side. "Climb up!" he shouted to Colleen. She and Phillip clambered up the ladder and threw themselves on the floor of the ship, gasping. Immediately, the crew began to help their captain up, but she shook them off. "I can get up myself. Look after Phillip. He needs more help than I." Her men hesitated, but then did as their captain ordered and began to help Phillip. Colleen struggled to get to her feet, but fell back down. James hurried over with a wool blanket. "Sit down, captain. You need to rest, and stop worrying about Phil. He's gonna be just fine." Having been reassured by her most trusted shipmate, Colleen pulled the heavy material around her shivering body and closed her eyes, falling into a deep slumber. Captain Valiquette woke to the sounds of gull's laughing. She pulled herself from her bed. Bed? But I fell asleep on the deck. she thought. Just then, James clambered down the steps to Colleen's chambers. "Ah, you're awake Cap'n! Glad to see you're okay," he said, sitting down on her writing chair. "Is Phil okay? How is the ship doing? How long have I been asleep? Why I am in bed?" burst out Colleen. James laughed. "Boy, ye sure are resilient. Barely a half-day after ye were conked out and you're already as right as rain. Phil's doing just fine. Still asleep, but fine. The Sunset's only taken the normal beating from a storm like that. I've got yer crew working on that right now. You've only slept in for about four hours longer than usual, and I put ye in bed 'cause ye looked pretty uncomfortable on the hard grain of the deck." Colleen sank back into her mattress. "Thanks, lad." This was a joke between the captain and first mate, for James was several years senior to Valiquette's minor 18 years. "Now out with ye. I've got to get dressed. A captain can't order the crew around in a night dress," she said, jumping back up and shooing James out of her chambers. After securing the door from prying men, Captain Valiquette proceeded to get dressed. On most days she would bind her breasts as to not be considered a target to marauding pirates, but today they were nearing port. She had to create her image for her father, whom she was meeting at the dock. Colleen opened her chest of drawers and pulled out a tortoiseshell comb that had been a gift from her mother before she died of scarlet fever. Thanks mum. she thought while brushing the tangles out of her waist length hair. After successfully detangling her locks, Colleen pulled out her silk blouse, petticoat, corset, and favorite skirt. "Much as I hate these damn corsets, Daddy thinks every proper woman needs to wear one," she said out loud. She stepped into her petticoat and then tied the cursed corset around her waist. "Damn.thing.why.must.you.be.so.DIFFICULT!" she grunted, trying to get the stays to, well, stay. After wrestling with it, she finally got it in the right position and pulled on her blouse. She then got into her navy blue skirt and tied the sash. "Why must getting dressed be so damn hard for a woman?" she asked herself, looking into her full-length mirror. Call her vain, but Captain Valiquette couldn't stand not having a mirror. When she looked at her reflection, she noticed two things missing. She grabbed her medallion and tied it around her neck. Colleen had gotten the gold piece after they took a pirate ship by surprise. The authorities had been so pleased with her that they let her crew keep some of the booty. The other thing that was missing was her older brother's cutlass. After he had been killed in a raid, Colleen took the sword and promise to avenge him by killing the pirates who had murdered her hero. Plus, the sword was just a nice sword to begin with. Captain Valiquette strapped the sheath to her sash and took one last look in the mirror. "Not too bad," she mumbled to herself. She laid her brush on the bed and walked up the stairs to the deck. Captain Valiquette was greeted by her crew with shouts of "Hey Cap'n!" and "Glad to see yer awake Cap'n!" and "Hey, yer looking pretty darn good Cap'n! Going to the fair, are we?" Colleen smiled and shook the compliments off. "Men." she laughed. "All right boys! Listen up. We're heading to port today, so get ready to take a little vacation. We'll stay there for 'bout a week. Make sure ye have a little fun and a little rum!" The crew cheered. Colleen started talking again. "But we're not at port yet boys. So be ready to work like the dogs ye are!" She put on a mock serious face, which didn't last for long as the crew started laughing. They knew their Cap'n would never work them to their death. Colleen took the helm from Angus while the rest of the crew went back to work. As Captain Valiquette steered the ship, she noticed a dark shape approached from the distance. "Peter, grab me my telescope. I want to see what in the devil is coming up to us from the south," she ordered, still staring at the dot on the horizon. Her helmsman ran and got her telescope for her. Colleen grabbed it and stretched it out to its full length, peering through it. After a few moments, she dropped it and gasped. "Heaven help us!" she cried. The rest of the crew stared at their captain with puzzling looks. "What it is Cap'n? What in the name of hell could scare ye like that?" asked Ryan, another one of the crew. Colleen trembled as she spoke. "I saw a ship with black sails. It can be none other than the dreaded ship from hell: The Black Pearl."
So, what do you think! Please review, and keep your eyes open for the next few chappies within a week!