DISCLAIMER: I do not own Captain Jack Sparrow, nor do I own any other characters from Pirates of the Caribbean, despite the fact that I traded Legolas to one of my classmates in exchange for Jack. Jack can't be owned; he's rather like a cat in that respect. Also, I merely created Lyn, Tom, Katie, and Nick; I don't own them. I don't own Lyn and Tom's house, although I did live there at one point. I think I own the plot of this story, what there is of it. There's definitely more plot in this one than there is in the sequel, which I am deliberately keeping plot-free so that it can go on forever.

Prologue:

The wind sighed though the branches of the palm trees that shaded the steps leading down to the beach. Down below, waves pounded against the sand, their rhythmic roaring a sweet music to the ears. Yet the two laughing children hardly noticed any of it; they lived on the beach, and had long ago become accustomed to every sight and sound.

            The children were named Lyndsay and Tomas Astra. Lyndsay—or Lyn for short—was currently wearing an outfit she'd gotten from Goodwill, which (not coincidentally) very closely resembled the outfit worn by Jack Sp—Captain Jack Sparrow in the movie "Pirates of the Caribbean." Tomas (called "Tom") was dressed like Will Turner, from the same movie. However, at the moment he wasn't pretending to be Will; rather, he was playing the part of Barbossa.

            Clash! Clash! Clash! The children's swords beat against each other every few seconds with a loud ringing sound. Shortly after they reached the bottom of the steps, the boy tripped and fell backwards, landing against the dunes that marked the edge of the beach. "What now, Jack Sparrow?"

            "Captain Jack Sparrow," his sister muttered.

            Tom rolled his eyes. "Are we to be two immortals, locked in epic battle until judgment day and trumpets sound?"

            "Or you could surrender." Lyn's voice was an almost perfect imitation of the pirate Captain whom she was pretending to be.

            "Lyn! Tom!" their friend Nick cried, running up the beach. He stopped short when he got close enough to see their swords. "How the blazes did you get those?" he demanded.

            "Will Turner gave 'em to us," Tom replied, casual as you please.

            "What?" Nick demanded. "Who gave them to you?"

            "Will Turner. Bootstrap's son," Lyn clarified.

            "What?!" screeched Katie, who had been a few steps behind Nick. "However did you manage to meet Will Turner?"

            "Long story, love," Tom told her. "We'll explain later."

That evening found them gathered around a campfire, watching the dancing flames as they waited impatiently for Tom and Lyn to begin their story. "Well," Lyn said finally, "it began about a week ago, present time, although for us it was several months...."

Chapter One: From the Pearl to the Dauntless

Their adventure began on the evening of Friday, February 13, 2004. Lyn, who was born on a Friday the 13th, well knew the type and extent of raw power present on that day. She and her brother had just finished watching "Pirates of the Caribbean" for the 13th time when they went outside to act out some of the scenes. They took with them a pair of plastic swords Lyn had acquired from one of her teachers. The plastic swords were much better than the curtain rods they'd used before, which kept getting tangled up to the point where it was nigh impossible to manage the part where Jack runs his sword along Will's.

            "Well, you know what you're doing, boy, I'll give you that," Lyn said, just as Tom tripped. "Excellent form," she managed to gasp before she doubled over with laughter. Tom leapt to his feet and the fight resumed, but as she turned around he whacked her over the head. She fell down, jamming one of the fingers on her right hand. "Damn and blast!" she swore, shaking her hand. At that moment, something did blast. The two ran back up the path from the beach to the relative safety of their house on 13th Avenue.

            Not long afterward, the pirates broke down the door and entered the house. The children exchanged an ashen-faced glance. "Well, mate," Lyn whispered, "do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?" Moments later, when the pirates entered the room, Lyn and Tom were not caught unprepared. "Freeze!" Lyn said, holding up a can of pepper-spray. Lyn's cat leapt at one pirate. The other pirate looked at her quizzically.

            "You look like the Captain. Minus the beard an' the mustache."

            Lyn returned the questioning glance. "You seem somewhat familiar. Have I threatened you before?"

            "You sound like the Captain!"

            Lyn's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "The Captain, you say. You wouldn't be referring to Captain Jack Sparrow, would you?"

            "Why do you ask," grunted the first pirate, gripping the struggling cat and trying to keep it from scratching him.

            "I've always wanted to meet Jack Sparrow."

            "'E won' like 'avin' a landlubber aboard 'is ship."

            "Son," Lyn said, placing her thumb on the spray mechanism, "I'm Lightning Lyn Astra. Savvy?"

            "Fine then. Come with us. But the cat stays."

            "The cat comes. Give 'er to me."

            With a sigh, the two pirates led the two children (and the cat; don't forget the cat) to the Black Pearl.

"Who are you?" Jack demanded upon seeing the two children. "And what is that?"

            "Name's Lightning Lyn, an' this is me brother, Tornado Tom. An' that, my friend, is a curtain rod."

Days later (or centuries earlier), the Pearl was cornered by four Navy ships, one of which was the Dauntless. "Damn that man," Jack swore. "Why can't he just give it up already?" He sighed. "I suppose I'm in for it this time, eh love?"

            Lyn shrugged. "Pretend we're yer 'ostages, if ye wan'. Make the Commodore agree to let you go in exchange for handin' us over."

            Jack gave her a look that bordered between awe and gratitude. "Bloody brilliant! Oy, Gibbs, run up a flag o' truce, would ye, mate?"

            The flag of truce went up, and the Dauntless pulled up alongside the Pearl. "What is it?" Gillett demanded. "Speak quickly, pirate. The Commodore isn't one to put up with stalling."

            "Well, you can tell the good Commodore that I have two wonderful children aboard me ship, an' this lovely lass is one of them." He grabbed Lyn and pointed his pistol at her head. The pistol had only one shot, although he could have gotten more than that; he just preferred having to stop to consider whether it was worth shooting.

            Lyn screamed. "Quiet, girl," Jack ordered roughly, loudly enough for Gillett to hear. Lyn subsided to soft whimpers and trembles. It was really hard to keep up the act, but she managed. Finally Norrington emerged, and an agreement was reached. Lyn, Tom, and the cat boarded the Dauntless, and the Pearl sailed away. Jack went to sweep off his hat, but it wasn't there. He looked at the Dauntless, and realized that Lyn was wearing his hat. "Bloody girl." He settled for simply waving his arm. "Always a pleasure doing business with you, Commodore!"

            Norrington grimaced. "What are your names, children?"

            "Firs', we're not children. We're young adults," Lyn informed him, waving a finger under his nose. "Second, we ain't tellin' you our names. You can call me Lightning. Me brother would be Tornado."

            Norrington looked at them dubiously. "What were you doing aboard the Black Pearl?"

            "Er," Tom said.

            "Er," Lyn supplied helpfully.

            "Stealing Jack's hat?" Tom suggested with a gesture toward said article of headwear.

            "Yeah. Aye," Lyn confirmed. "We were stealing Jack's hat. An' now we're stolen Jack's hat, so we'd be much obliged if you'd drop us off at Port Royal."

            "And what do you plan to do in Port Royal?" Norrington asked.

            "Actually, it is my intention to commandeer one of the ships, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder, and otherwise pilfer my weaselly black guts out."

            "The truth, please."

            "That was the truth." She waited to see if he'd fall for it.

            "If that were the truth, you wouldn't have told it." Yep, he fell for it.

            "Unless of course I knew you wouldn't believe the truth even if I told it to you."

            Norrington sighed. "I do believe Jack Sparrow has been a bad influence on you."

            "Captain Jack Sparrow," Lyn corrected.

Thar it is, mates! The firs' chapter, finally up! Now, if it's not too much trouble, I'd be much obliged if ye'd give me a review. Savvy?