Title: A Pirate's Life
Author: jeanandthen9
Fandom: Glee (A/U)
Pairing(s): Dave Karofsky/Kurt Hummel, Kurt Hummel/Blaine Anderson
Rating: PG (for the time being)
Warnings: None (yet lol)
Spoilers: None – this is totally and completely A/U.
Summary: When Kurt is kidnapped by the mysterious pirate captain of "The Fury", it's up to Commodore Anderson to rescue him. But by the time he does, will Kurt want to be rescued?
Prelude
The first hanging Kurt witnessed was when he was nine years of age. His father insisted it would teach him a valuable lesson.
"What lesson is that, Father?" the child inquired curiously as the carriage hurried through the streets of Port Wright, a small, quaint town in North Carolina where law was practiced by every citizen and their pet.
"You will learn in due time," Kurt's father, Governor Burt Hummel, replied sternly. Although the Governor made sure that the King's law was clearly established and followed within his town and in his own home, he was warm and loving towards his only son. Kurt did an impressive job of always doing what he was told and following directions without questioning them. Governor Hummel would bring Kurt along to some of his important meetings, as well as to dinners and dances with other important figures in the upper class as a way of helping him understand the world they lived in.
That day, Kurt was going to learn about the much darker, more serious dangers of the world.
"Father," Kurt continued, trying to break the awkward silence as he carefully pushed back some of his chestnut colored hair behind his right ear, "why do we hang people?"
"Oh, we don't hang just any person, Kurt," corrected the Governor. "We only hang the criminals who pose a threat to the King, his law, and others, such as ourselves."
Kurt's eyes widened in shock. "There's bad people who want to hurt me?"
"Not unless we stop them before they do. That is what a hanging is for, Kurt."
"But who is 'they', Father? Who wants to hurt me?" At this point, Kurt was thoroughly frightened. All his life, he believed that his father and he were safe and protected. Suddenly, his father was telling him otherwise, and the feeling of safety quickly felt distant and hard to reach.
"There is no need for worry, Kurt," said Governor Hummel as he wiped his sweaty forehead. "You'll learn soon enough, but you must be patient." Kurt nodded, and tried to relax in his seat. If his father said there was no need to worry, then there clearly was no need to be worried, and yet that awful thought of how vulnerable he was kept creeping into his mind. "Oh, your friend will also be attending." That bit of news pushed the awful thoughts out of the young boy's head right quick. "I figured you would be more comfortable if he was there with us, so I invited him and his family." Kurt was calmed down substantially.
Blaine Anderson was the one and only friend Kurt had, older by only one year. Their fathers knew one another because Blaine's father was a captain in the British Royal Navy. Governor Hummel and Captain Anderson worked closely with one another even before their sons were born. Blaine and Kurt often had playdates with one another whenever their fathers had private meetings. The two would spend lazy afternoons talking about what their lives would be like once they grew up. Blaine would go on and on about how he would protect the seas, while Kurt daydreamed of becoming the next Governor, planning all the silly new rules he would try to convince the king of making into law. He was fairly certain his rule of allowing men to wear dresses and for the ladies to wear trousers would pass into law. Although Kurt's own father insisted that he join the Navy when he was of age, Kurt had little interest in doing so. Even Blaine kept bothering him about it, but Kurt would have none of it. He was much too fragile to be in battle. Strong boys like Blaine and Captain Anderson belonged in the Navy.
"Ah! Excellent! We're here!" Kurt looked out his own carriage window to clarify his father's announcement. The stone walls of Fort Louis towered over him. He strained his neck to see the soldiers that stood at the very top of the fort, their guns slung over their shoulders, serious looks upon their faces, always prepared for any sign of trouble. There was only one other time in Kurt's life that he had been to Fort Louis, and that was for his mother's funeral four years prior. That was also the first and only time he had ever seen his father cry.
The carriage slowed to a stop, the door was opened, allowing for the Governor and his son to step out into the warm summer afternoon with the sun shining brightly over the town. What unusually happy weather for such a grim event, Kurt observed silently as he followed closely by his father's side. They were escorted through the stone fort towards an elevated area specifically reserved for them. Kurt broke into an enormous and uncontrollable smile once he spotted a familiar boy with curly black hair and thick nearly-perfect-triangular eyebrows. He refrained from calling out Blaine's name, though, for he felt it would be improper behavior, so the smile quickly disappeared as he quietly stood directly behind his best friend.
Kurt carefully tapped Blaine on the shoulder so as not to startle him too badly. The older boy turned to face whoever was trying to call his attention, grinning from ear to ear when he, to his delight, discovered it was none other than Kurt. However, before the two boys could exchange proper greetings, both of them felt their respective fathers' hands firmly grip them by the shoulder, calling their attention away from one another and instead to the scene before them.
A tall, raised, wooden platform was positioned in the center, a black hooded figure standing on one side, next to a tall lever, and a man Kurt recognized as one of his father's friends stood on the other side, a scroll of parchment held in one of his hands. In the dead center of the two figures was where a rope tied into a loop hung above on a beam.
"That's where the hanging will be taking place," the Governor whispered into his son's ear. "It's the stage, if you will. The man in the hood is known as the executioner. His duty is to pull the lever once the drums stop. You recognize Mr. Jacobson, no doubt. He reads the crimes that were committed out loud so that others will know of the criminal's misdeeds. The rope you see is called the noose. The executioner wraps it around the neck of the criminal, and once the drums stop, the lever is pulled, the platform the criminal is standing on drops, causing the criminal to fall through, which in turn tightens the noose and…well, what happens when you can't breathe?"
Kurt instinctively wrapped a hand loosely around his own neck, swallowed hard, and replied shakily, "You die."
"Precisely. Such is the fate for any person who chooses the life of piracy. Such is the fate for a pirate."
"A… pirate?" Was that the name of the awful people wanting to hurt him? Kurt jumped when he heard a whole chorus of drums begin to beat. He watched as all heads in the crowd below turned to face the left-hand side of the fort, where he saw two soldiers holding on tightly to a cuffed man between them by his massive arms. Even from a distance, the man emitted a dark, ominous presence by just the way he stared at the other townspeople as he slowly passed them by. He swore he could see the man grinning wickedly, showing off his missing teeth. The Governor's son began to fidget in place nervously, rubbing his shoes together and pulling down on his coat. He didn't want to take his eyes off the man, for he feared that if he did, even for a split second, something bad would happen.
Blaine, sensing Kurt's distress, carefully wiggled his way out between his father and mother and quietly stood to his friend's side. Kurt started to relax, but the man, now standing center stage, still made him uneasy. It felt as though the criminal—the pirate was staring directly at him…
"It's alright," Blaine quietly said. "If you wish, you can hold my hand." Kurt looked to see his friend holding out his hand for him to take, and, without hesitation, he quickly slid his hand into Blaine's. The two of them exchanged looks; Kurt still looked worrisome while Blaine remained calm. "I promise you, Kurt," Blaine continued, "that as long as I'm alive, I'll do anything to try to protect you from the evil pirates, but you must also promise me something in return."
"Anything!" Kurt responded, trying his hardest to keep his voice low.
"You must promise me that you will be brave. You must never show pirates that you are afraid. You must have courage, Kurt. Do you understand?"
The Governor's son nodded. "I promise." Both boys returned their attention towards the pirate, watching as the executioner securely tied the noose around the man's thick neck, the drums pounding more fiercely and rapidly. It was at that point, Kurt felt much more secure, much braver than he was only minutes before. He knew that all pirates, like the man before him, would pay the price for sinning. In just a few seconds, there would be one less pirate in the world. Kurt had hoped that every single pirate would be caught and properly executed.
Pirates do not deserve a place in this world. They all deserve to die.
The drums stopped. The lever was pulled. Kurt closed his eyes and firmly squeezed Blaine's hand as tight as he could as he listened to the plank drop, the rope tighten, and the pirate breathe his final breath.