Anything or any one you recognize from the movie is not mine and I have no claim to them. Anything that is new is mine and mine alone.

Chapter One: Night Falls in Tortuga

Night never fell quietly on Tortuga. If anything it crashed with such ferocity that Adelaide Withers was amazed that the town survived each night to see the dawn. She knew the streets and their secrets like the urchins that had lived there their whole lives, but she hadn't. She had lived her whole life upon the sea, running along the decks of her father's ship, climbing in the rigging with the sailors, learning the life of a pirate before she hit puberty. She had never in her life spent longer then two months together on land. And she was glad for it. She could not imagine her life any other way. She loved the ship. She adored the crew, for the most part. But there was one thing she needed from this kind of life that she could never get on land, Freedom.

So, intent on finding a way to keep it, she shifted out of the shadows and entered the tavern called The Bride. This was where she was to meet her informant. She wanted all the information she could find on this pirate that called himself, Captain Jack Sparrow. She was determined to replace him as the Caribbean's most famous and successful pirate. She knew that her ship was faster than his Pearl. She just needed a chance to prove it. Hopefully, tonight she would get that.

She pulled open the door to The Bride with little effort. Apparently, the night before, one of The Bride's patrons had gotten thoroughly sloshed and decided to try and throw another patron out the door while it was still closed. She wondered how many times the door had been re-hung or replaced in the time that The Bride had been in business, Probably too many to count. Taking a deep breath she squared her shoulders and stepped into the tavern.

She had dressed to make a statement. And her statement had effect. All actions within the tavern ceased when she walked into the room. Literally, all actions stopped. Many of the men even forgot to breathe. Her eyes scanned the room. The bartender was so surprised that he was spilling ale into the lap of a patron. The patron was so surprised that he did not notice the ale. Adelaide scanned from one edge of the room to the other and back again before giving her hair a toss and striding toward the bar. There was an audible inhalation for many as if time had stopped and restarted suddenly.

It was not as though women were never in The Bride, just never women that looked like her. She was clean. She was dressed in tight dun colored trousers, high shiny coal black boots that ended just above her knee. Her shirt was a man's, stark white with lace at the neck and cuffs. Her coat was blood red, trimmed in gold. It too was cut very much like a man's. It ended just far enough down her back to cover her ass but short enough to give a man a good idea just how tight the pants were. She had a sword strapped to her waist and rested one hand on the hilt with the ease of one who knew how to use it. But once a person got past the clothes, even with the quality of the clothes they would eventually get to her face, nothing changed. People were still in awe.

Her hair fell like midnight against the white lace of her shirt. Its tight little ringlets bounced with even her slightest movement. Her skin was a contrast to both the shirt and her hair. It was a dusted gold. It looked hot to the touch even though it was winter outside. Her lips were deep red to match her coat. She had made sure of this by rubbing cranberries on them before leaving her cabin. Her eyes were emerald green and to many they looked like the jewels them selves. She had accented them with koi before she left the ship, leaving her with sphinx eyes. This addition made her eyes not only dramatic but striking. It deepened the effect they had normally, making her eyes the dominate feature on her face.

After all this, a person's eyes were drawn to her jewelry. Her ear rings looked like blood drops from her ears. Bold stones but with delicate gold filigree design. The chain of her necklace was simple. It was the stone that deserved all the attention of everyone in the tavern. A blue diamond of at least 20 carats hung splendidly in a bed of rubies and emeralds. Over all, the pendant was as big as the palm of her hand. Like her hair, it swung with her every movement. The light from the lanterns fractured off the stones and danced across the room. Shortly, it blinded the bartender as she approached. He lifted his hand to block the light and when he lowered it she was leaning against the bar.

"Wha—," for the first time in his life that he could remember the bartender had lost his ability to speak. This was a man who instilled the fear of god into brawling pirates. And he couldn't get up the nerve to talk to a mire slip of a girl. He shook his head slightly to try and set his wits to rights. At this movement, the edge of her mouth lifted wryly. He struggled but managed to ask for her order. "What's yer pleasure, darling?"

She leaned forward and said in a low purr, "Whiskey, Irish. Leave the bottle."

She threw down enough gold to pay for at least four bottles of the whiskey that he normally served. He had some new stuff that had come fresh off one of the boats this morning. It had been commandeered days before on the way to the Bahamas. Since it was a relatively new label and she was a young one, he decided that she would not have known the difference. He reached down below the bar, pulled the bottle out and set it one the bar in front of her.

Adelaide studied the label silently. Jameson's, she thought annoyed, He is trying to stiff me…to bad he doesn't know that it is his own gold I am paying him with. she almost laughed at the fact that it had been her ship that had brought this shipment in. and the ironic thing is she had kept the best cases for her crew's disposal. With her hands she signaled for two shot glasses. When he set two mugs down as she anticipated she leaned forward. He thought she might be ordering more so he leaned forward as well.

In a movement you would have to blink to see, Adelaide had the blade in her right sleeve out and against his neck. Her left hand had hold of the cloth around his collar pulling him closer so that she could whisper in his ear. Her eyes no longer sparkled. They glinted. His breath went cold in his lungs. Maybe she wasn't as young as he assumed.

In a low voice, more like a growl compared to the earlier purr, she talked into his ear so no one else would hear, "The money I put down should pay for a case of this not a bottle. I know that because I am the one sold you the shipment. The only reason I am not slitting your throat now is that I feel that every one is entitled to one mistake with out consequences. But count that, one. Now, I will take this bottle as a show of gratitude for not spilling your cheating blood all the way down this stinking bar. Next time a person orders a kind of liquor and is willing to pay for it what are you going to do?"

The bartender made a barely audible squeak. Her eyes narrowed even further. "What are you going to do?"

"Give it to 'em." He croaked. With that Adelaide, let him go, sightlessly slipping the dagger back into her sleeve. She retrieved her money, picked up her bottle and turned to face the room. Most of them had yet to say or move since she had began with the bartender. Spotting an empty booth in the corner, she headed that direction.

Okay. Please review. And be kind this is my first time writing for people I don't know.Redmond