Title: Forgive and Forget

Genre: General

Rating: T

Pairings: Some Ragetti/Pintel if you squint real hard

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the main characters. I don't own the idea or anything relating to PotC. It all belongs to Disney.

Summary: My take on how Pintel and Ragetti met, and how they ended up under the authority of Jack.

A/N: My first PotC fanfic, indeed my first fanfic in about 3 years. I'm just warning you now. :P

Prologue

Jack Sparrow pored over a map of the Caribbean contemplating, a bottle of rum in his hand. His new female companion for the time being Elizabeth Swann sat with much distaste beside him, giving him bearings via a strange looking compass in her hands. Never once did it point North but even so Jack seemed satisfied with the young woman's answers, leaning back triumphantly with his bottle of rum once she had finished and stood up to leave. She paused at the doorway.

"Are you sure this compass'll lead me to Will?" She asked, slightly suspicious for she had known Jack longer than she would rather admit and knew that his word usually didn't reveal what he truly meant.

"'Course, my dear Elizabeth." Jack answered, a little louder than necessary, after a large gulp of rum, then to himself, "'ventually."

Elizabeth caught this add-on but Jack had already returned to poisoning himself with the rum and seemed unwilling to elucidate. She dropped the matter. Something else had been on her mind for quite some time and, as Jack seemed sufficiently preoccupied, it seemed the best time to voice the query.

"Jack?"

A loud spluttering cough from the man in question as he choked on his rum indicated to her that he was listening.

"Jack, I've been wondering. How come your crew mutinied against you in the first place? Do you know?"

The Captain didn't look up but still he answered, staring deeply into the now half empty bottle of rum.

"Guess they 'ad their reasons." He muttered.

"But don't you know?"

"Well they 'ardly bloody lined up te tell me one by one!" Jack burst out, flushing with anger. Elizabeth shrank back a little at the outburst. Calming himself he continued. "Each pirate 'ad 'is own excuse, either by choice or by force from another. Some are easy t' get. Barbossa wanted power. Bo'sun would do anything Barbossa asked o' 'im and Turner most certainly went by force."At an enquiring look from Elizabeth Jack corrected himself. "Bootstrap. Anyways. There are others I 'aven't a clue about. Marlow fer one. Never seemed to 'ave anythin' against me that lad, yet 'e spat a' me when I walked the plank."

"What about those two?" Elizabeth asked, nodding towards the door where, outside, Pintel and Ragetti were busy swabbing the deck. "They were part of your crew, mutinied against you and are now in your crew again. Ever think what they've got against you?"

"No." Jack said bluntly. "I pr'fer not te dwell on the past and they seem 'appy te le' bygones be bygones."

On this note Jack slumped back on his chair with his rum firmly in hand, a signal that pleasantries with Elizabeth Swann were over for the time-being. She left sullenly, leaving Jack to his thoughts.