Disclaimer: I am in no way administratively involved with POTC the movie, any company promoting piratey merchandise (though I do buy piratey merchandise), nor am I involved with any of the characters. At least not in reality. ::sniffle::Jack::sniffle:: Basically, it is not my place to be manipulating these characters and settings at my will, but I've never been one to be bound by my place in society. Therefore, I have created a story! (Wheee non-conformism!)
I hope you enjoy this story; new chapters have been written but are yet to be posted--they are (in my opinion) better than the first, but I guess you'll just have to check back later and judge for yourself, eh? (I began writing from Ch. 2, then went on almost to the end, then came back to the beginning.)
It had been two days, Stella counted, that she had lain in this dreadful cell. It had been just a week into their voyage when the pirates had attacked her fiancé, Norrington's ship, with her and several crew members aboard. It was a voyage planned weeks before their engagement, some government business or whatever, she didn't know. Norrington had begged her not to come, but eventually relented. "Stella," he had said, "there are certain dangers on the seas, especially with this voyage, I cannot in good conscience allow you to come aboard!" Well, he was right, Stella thought ruefully. Her fiancé had been locked in another cell on this lower deck, but it was so pitch dark that she couldn't see where he might be. She had called out for him, but had received no reply. She was very worried that first night, unable to think about anything but whether or not he was alright. By the second night, however, her tired mind had wandered to other issues, such as what might become of her. She had begun to question the decisions she had made in her life, as many people who feel that death is eminent tend to, but the thought crossed her mind, "The decisions of my life, did I even make them?" A product of high society, she had never been bothered with decisions and such, she was simply told what she was and was not to do. She felt that she did love Norrington, but remembered that it was her father's idea, not hers, to marry him in the first place. "Shameful, shameful," she muttered out loud into the dark, appalled that she should doubt her parents wishes so.
"And what would it be that you're so ashamed of?" came a voice from the darkness. She gasped in surprise, then backed slowly towards the wall behind her as she heard the rough sound of a match being struck. A flame emerged from the blackness of the room, and light trickled onto her face. In the faint orange light, she could make out a dark shadowy figure. His face, thin but pleasant, greeted her with a smile, glinting with...gold? Perhaps it was just the light. Stella was torn between relief and terror, as she had craved someone to talk to, but was not sure if this was the company she wanted. After all, he could just as easily be her killer as her savior. She remained in the back of the cell, suspiciously eyeing the man as he stood at the bars. "I didn't know anyone was down here, love, perhaps they forgot about you?" the man said, laughingly, though it wasn't the cruel laughter like she had heard emanating from the upper decks the night before, obviously the result of quite too much rum.
"My...well, there was a man with me, is he also here?" Stella said, almost on impulse. It was her duty, she thought, to be concerned.
"Ah, let's take a look," the man said, craning his neck and holding the light far down the hall, "No, don't see anyone," he started to turn back towards her, then said, "Oh! You mean Norrington, oh..." his voice trailed off.
"And," Stella demanded, "Where is Commodore Norrington?"
"The Commodore is meeting with the captain at the moment I believe. Probably negotiating to get you two back to safety, away from the scary pirates!" the man laughed nervously, making ghostly sounds for effect. "So, what is your name, love?"
"Stella," she said quietly.
"I'm Jack," he said, "A pleasure to meet you." He held the lantern up close to the bars, and motioned for her to come closer. She hesitantly moved forward, after all, there were bars, it seemed a safe situation. He quietly lifted the lantern to her face, and a dazed look washed over him. "You are, you're beautiful, it's such a pity..." again his voice trailed off and he placed his hands on the iron bars. Stella jumped slightly as a deep bell tolled on the upper deck.
"What was that?" she asked, "What is the bell mean?
Jack bit his lip and rested the lantern on the bars. "The bell means," he hesitated, "the bell means there's to be an execution." He looked at Stella, his eyes yielding a better explanation of the situation than his words
"As in me? As in Norrington?" She stuttered, in shock.
"I assume so." again, his eyes conveyed the truth. He knew it was them. Stella slid limp down the bars, gazing off to the dark recesses of her cell. Would this be the last landscape she would see? Jack sat on the rough wooden floor, level with Stella, and set the lantern on the floor. "I'm so sorry...it's not my doing, it's the captain...I promise if it were my choice you'd not be in this situation." his futile reassurance was nothing to her, as it couldn't change her reality and the eminence of death. She lay her head against the bars as tears fell off her cheeks onto the floor. With each tear he silently watched fall from the innocent girl's cheeks, Jack's anger grew within him. The captain, their supposed wise leader, was cruel and unjust. And Jack felt helpless. Not only could he not change what was to happen, he couldn't even comfort her enough to stop the tears. "Tell me about yourself." he quietly requested.
"What?" Stella confusedly asked. How was this the time?
"What is your story, how did you come to be here?" Jack explained, almost wishing he hadn't said anything. He just wanted to know the story behind the beauty, to get to know her before the unfortunate events that would come with the dawn. Also, perhaps talking would distract her from concentrating on the short future.
Stella shifted back against the sidewall, still leaning her head on the bars. She coughed, brushed the tears from her cheeks, and began. She told him all about her childhood, her favorite nurse who never left her side, her years in boarding school in England, and her engagement to Norrington. She paused, certain Jack would be bored by now, but he still remained mesmerized, gazing towards her in the lamplight. She continued, and found herself rambling on and on about the very things that she had been discussing within herself that day, questioning her relationship with Norrington, and her loyalty to her family. Jack seemed completely enrapt, nodding understandingly as she went. When she had said all that she could possibly find within herself, she said, "I suppose that's all. Not much of a life, true?"
Jack sighed and replied, "Quite a life. Quite a valuable and lovely life..." He smiled softly and glanced at the near dark lantern. "I suppose I must take my leave now," he sighed, pulling up on the bars. His hand lay on Stella's as he slipped away from her, becoming nothing but an orange glow in the dark.