Disclaimer: I don't own PotC. And I'm not making any money off this, so the
Disney execs can sleep soundly tonight knowing they aren't losing a penny
of their millions. And I will sleep less soundly wondering how I'm going to
pay for college.
AN: This is my first fanfic ever, so please be gentle! Any comments/criticism welcome, just please don't flame me! This may turn into a romance, not quite sure yet, but will update as I figure things out!
Chapter One
The night was fair. Stars glittered like diamonds over the seaside town of Tortuga. A light breeze was wafting in from the docks, bringing with it the smells of merchant spices, and the inevitable saltiness that comes from being only a few meters from the sea. Despite this, Nora Williams was dejected as she wandered into one of the noisy, brightly-lit taverns and took a seat at a table in the corner.
No one paid her much attention, which was as it should be, she thought. She was wearing her usual attire of a white linen shirt, big enough to hide.well, to hide the fact that she was a woman. Which wasn't all that difficult, considering she wasn't very well endowed. Trousers, ending in large boots completed the outfit. Her fiery red hair was tied up in a worn linen bandana, with a floppy hat, which served to shade her bright green eyes. She wasn't terribly attractive, being a little skinny and her face was long, her nose was just a little too big for her face, and she was deeply tanned.
She had been in Tortuga for nearly a month now, and she felt she was slowly going insane. Normally, she didn't mind being here. The life that flowed through every street, which you could taste in the rum, flowed in her veins as well. But there was something stronger there, a love of the sea, which had been her home for as long as she could remember. She had grown up on board the Iron Maiden. Unfortunately, the ship had been attacked by rival pirates 6 weeks ago, and had been lost. Nora had been the only survivor. A fisherman had found her and given her passage on his small boat to Tortuga. Without a ship, there was nowhere for her to go, and she was stuck in this Godforsaken town for who knows how long, she thought as she dejectedly downed her mug of rum.
As she sat there, drowning her sorrows, a group of rowdy drunkards took up a familiar song:
We pillage, we plunder, we rifle and loot.
Drink up, me 'earties, Yo Ho!
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot.
Drink up, me 'earties, Yo Ho!
Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life for me!
She smiled to herself. It was the song her father had taught her, and hearing it sung always reminded her of him. The great Robert Williams. Even today, years after his death, the mere mention of his name was enough to strike terror into the heart of the most weathered and experienced pirate. Of course, he wasn't really her father. He had told her the story of how he had come upon her at a very young age. He had been one of the most infamous pirates alive, but he had a good heart, and couldn't let the toddler drown like that, so he took her in and raised her as his own. When he had died over a decade ago, Nora had taken over captainship of the Maiden.
Nora got up from the table, threw a few coins down, and stepped out of the tavern into the darkness beyond. As she walked slowly, away from the docks, she sang her favorite verse of that old song:
We're rascals, scoundrels, villains and knaves.
Drink up me 'earties, Yo Ho!
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs!
Drink up me 'earties, Yo Ho!
Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life for me!
She let her thoughts wander, her guard down, as she walked farther away from the docks. She was completely absorbed in memories. The bastards that had attacked the Maiden six weeks ago were at the forefront of her mind. She knew the first thing she would do when.if.she got a ship and crew: hunt them down and kill them, every last one.
If she had thought about it, she would have realized that she wasn't following her own advice. Always keep one eye open she would say. But she had spent so much time in Tortuga that she didn't think twice. It was almost her undoing.
She came to herself with a start. She realized that she was in an unfamiliar alley, and then wondered what had made her come to her senses.then she heard it again. A stealthy footstep, slowly coming up behind her. Then a voice, low, rough, slurred with drink.
"'Allo, me lad. What be ya doin' 'ere?"
Nora spun around and found herself looking at a big, burly sailor.no, she thought, not a sailor. A pirate. She had no time to react, however, because another big, burly man grabbed her from behind. Now she was mad. Her hat had fallen off, and her hair was coming loose, so that even these sodden drunks could tell she was no lad, but that didn't seem to perturb them much. Fortunately for Nora, she knew how to handle herself in this situation. She writhed in the big man's grip, and as the other man came forward, her foot shot up to his groin so quickly that he hardly knew what hit him.
The other man loosened his vice-like grip a little in surprise at her action, and she used this to her advantage, wriggling free of him, pulling out her pistol by its barrel and hitting him over the head with the butt with all the force she could muster. He was knocked out. The other man had stood up, and she dispatched him with just as much ease.
Nora kneeled down by one of the men, and conducted a quick search of him. She found a few coins, which she kept, but more important to her was information. Why had these men been after her? Finally, she found what she had been half-expecting: a small tattoo on the inside of the man's wrist. A small black heart, stabbed through with a cutlass.
"Billy Blackheart. Of course. I should've known." Billy was aptly titled, and had hated Nora's father more than anyone. All of the men who worked for him had this tattoo on the inside of their left wrist.
Nora spat on the ground in disgust at the low tactics of her enemy, and wondered why on earth he was trying to have her killed. Could he possibly know.? She asked herself. Now, however, her senses were on high alert, unfortunately for the unknown person who started following her about ten minutes later.
Bloody Hell! What is this town coming to? She thought to herself angrily. This time she spun around, pistol drawn, and aimed it right between a pair of intense, kohl-lined brown eyes, with a mischievous glint, now glazed slightly with what smelled like bad rum. The mouth, frozen in a leering half-smile, showed glints of gold. The deeply tanned face, goateed, with long, thick hair, was not one that was easily forgotten.
"Jack Sparrow" she said evenly and without emotion, never taking her eyes- or her pistol- off him. "Fancy meeting you here."
"Captain, it's Captain Jack Sp-" he began, but was cut off, as Nora lowered her weapon and gave him a hearty slap across the face.
"That," she said, "was for your cowardice. And this," she said, once again pointing her pistol between those eyes, this time cocking it, "is for killing my father."
AN: This is my first fanfic ever, so please be gentle! Any comments/criticism welcome, just please don't flame me! This may turn into a romance, not quite sure yet, but will update as I figure things out!
Chapter One
The night was fair. Stars glittered like diamonds over the seaside town of Tortuga. A light breeze was wafting in from the docks, bringing with it the smells of merchant spices, and the inevitable saltiness that comes from being only a few meters from the sea. Despite this, Nora Williams was dejected as she wandered into one of the noisy, brightly-lit taverns and took a seat at a table in the corner.
No one paid her much attention, which was as it should be, she thought. She was wearing her usual attire of a white linen shirt, big enough to hide.well, to hide the fact that she was a woman. Which wasn't all that difficult, considering she wasn't very well endowed. Trousers, ending in large boots completed the outfit. Her fiery red hair was tied up in a worn linen bandana, with a floppy hat, which served to shade her bright green eyes. She wasn't terribly attractive, being a little skinny and her face was long, her nose was just a little too big for her face, and she was deeply tanned.
She had been in Tortuga for nearly a month now, and she felt she was slowly going insane. Normally, she didn't mind being here. The life that flowed through every street, which you could taste in the rum, flowed in her veins as well. But there was something stronger there, a love of the sea, which had been her home for as long as she could remember. She had grown up on board the Iron Maiden. Unfortunately, the ship had been attacked by rival pirates 6 weeks ago, and had been lost. Nora had been the only survivor. A fisherman had found her and given her passage on his small boat to Tortuga. Without a ship, there was nowhere for her to go, and she was stuck in this Godforsaken town for who knows how long, she thought as she dejectedly downed her mug of rum.
As she sat there, drowning her sorrows, a group of rowdy drunkards took up a familiar song:
We pillage, we plunder, we rifle and loot.
Drink up, me 'earties, Yo Ho!
We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot.
Drink up, me 'earties, Yo Ho!
Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life for me!
She smiled to herself. It was the song her father had taught her, and hearing it sung always reminded her of him. The great Robert Williams. Even today, years after his death, the mere mention of his name was enough to strike terror into the heart of the most weathered and experienced pirate. Of course, he wasn't really her father. He had told her the story of how he had come upon her at a very young age. He had been one of the most infamous pirates alive, but he had a good heart, and couldn't let the toddler drown like that, so he took her in and raised her as his own. When he had died over a decade ago, Nora had taken over captainship of the Maiden.
Nora got up from the table, threw a few coins down, and stepped out of the tavern into the darkness beyond. As she walked slowly, away from the docks, she sang her favorite verse of that old song:
We're rascals, scoundrels, villains and knaves.
Drink up me 'earties, Yo Ho!
We're devils and black sheep, really bad eggs!
Drink up me 'earties, Yo Ho!
Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate's life for me!
She let her thoughts wander, her guard down, as she walked farther away from the docks. She was completely absorbed in memories. The bastards that had attacked the Maiden six weeks ago were at the forefront of her mind. She knew the first thing she would do when.if.she got a ship and crew: hunt them down and kill them, every last one.
If she had thought about it, she would have realized that she wasn't following her own advice. Always keep one eye open she would say. But she had spent so much time in Tortuga that she didn't think twice. It was almost her undoing.
She came to herself with a start. She realized that she was in an unfamiliar alley, and then wondered what had made her come to her senses.then she heard it again. A stealthy footstep, slowly coming up behind her. Then a voice, low, rough, slurred with drink.
"'Allo, me lad. What be ya doin' 'ere?"
Nora spun around and found herself looking at a big, burly sailor.no, she thought, not a sailor. A pirate. She had no time to react, however, because another big, burly man grabbed her from behind. Now she was mad. Her hat had fallen off, and her hair was coming loose, so that even these sodden drunks could tell she was no lad, but that didn't seem to perturb them much. Fortunately for Nora, she knew how to handle herself in this situation. She writhed in the big man's grip, and as the other man came forward, her foot shot up to his groin so quickly that he hardly knew what hit him.
The other man loosened his vice-like grip a little in surprise at her action, and she used this to her advantage, wriggling free of him, pulling out her pistol by its barrel and hitting him over the head with the butt with all the force she could muster. He was knocked out. The other man had stood up, and she dispatched him with just as much ease.
Nora kneeled down by one of the men, and conducted a quick search of him. She found a few coins, which she kept, but more important to her was information. Why had these men been after her? Finally, she found what she had been half-expecting: a small tattoo on the inside of the man's wrist. A small black heart, stabbed through with a cutlass.
"Billy Blackheart. Of course. I should've known." Billy was aptly titled, and had hated Nora's father more than anyone. All of the men who worked for him had this tattoo on the inside of their left wrist.
Nora spat on the ground in disgust at the low tactics of her enemy, and wondered why on earth he was trying to have her killed. Could he possibly know.? She asked herself. Now, however, her senses were on high alert, unfortunately for the unknown person who started following her about ten minutes later.
Bloody Hell! What is this town coming to? She thought to herself angrily. This time she spun around, pistol drawn, and aimed it right between a pair of intense, kohl-lined brown eyes, with a mischievous glint, now glazed slightly with what smelled like bad rum. The mouth, frozen in a leering half-smile, showed glints of gold. The deeply tanned face, goateed, with long, thick hair, was not one that was easily forgotten.
"Jack Sparrow" she said evenly and without emotion, never taking her eyes- or her pistol- off him. "Fancy meeting you here."
"Captain, it's Captain Jack Sp-" he began, but was cut off, as Nora lowered her weapon and gave him a hearty slap across the face.
"That," she said, "was for your cowardice. And this," she said, once again pointing her pistol between those eyes, this time cocking it, "is for killing my father."