This is my first POTC story, and I'm hoping it goes well. Thanks for reading, and reviews are much appreciated.
Dislaimer - The Black Pearl, nor most of it's crew, nor Jack Sparrow were created from my imagination. The only character I own is Clara, and the ships she finds herself on. Thank you!
Oh, dear me! A bit of mud on my brand new shoes - whatever am I to tell mother? Clara thought perversely. Her shoes would be ruined, and, while she could practically see the disdainful look on her mother's face, Clara just couldn't bring herself to worry about such a trivial thing. They were shoes. Did her mother expect her to worry about shoes? Really, if they were so important, they wouldn't be worn on feet.
"I thought the cap'n said we was goin' to Tortuga?"
"We are goin' to Tortuga. We just had to stop here for supplies, see? Stupid glock..."
"Yeah, but why'd we have to stop here? This place is crawlin' wif lawmen. I swear I can smell 'em..."
"We'll be back to the Banshee in no time. Just relax."
Clara slowed her step, listening intently to the two men talking. They passed by, barely acknowledging the girl. They smelled absolutely horrid, and their clothing was in tatters, their faces streaked with dirt, and, possibly, a bit of blood.
Pirates! Clara thought. Her heart was already pounding, her eyes widening. This had to be her chance - how often were pirates in town? She looked back and watched the two men disappear around a corner. As soon as they were out of sight, she bolted. Her long, black tresses bounced against her back as she sprinted toward the shore. Sliding to an abrupt stop at the port, she walked hurriedly down the docks, seeking out the Banshee.
And there she was. She wasn't anything special, that was for certain, but she was a ship nonetheless. A pirate ship. A real, mighty pirate ship. Her eyes sparkled as they slowly ran over the length of it, taking in the sight. This was it. It had to be Providence. Now she just had to find a way to sneak aboard...
I suppose, in light of the moment, this would be a good time to stop and fill you in on some history, so as to give you more of a feel for the characters you're being introduced to. The most obvious, of course, would be our Miss Clara, whose life you have just been so unceremoniously thrown into. So, let's get started, shall we?
Clara Anne Gray had always been an ambitious creature, right from the get-go. 'Dream' was a word she always refused to use, as it suggested that a notion or aspiration was impossible to achieve, and Clara would not hold to such constricting rules. There were no dreams, in Clara's eyes. Only ideas, whether they might be simple or wild, and a certain amount of effort being put forth to reach your intended goals.
On the island she grew up on, Clara was part of an extremely average family - her father was a merchant sailor, and her mother was a school teacher. From a very early age, she showed a great deal of interest in ships, the ocean, and - most notably - piracy. Her father was around ships a good deal, and was thrilled at the chance to teach his daughter about them, despite his wife's shrill and frequent protests.
As Clara grew, so did her intense love for the sea. When she wasn't reading the text books that her mother constantly forced upon her, it was rare not to see her down by the docks, enjoying her view of the massive ships that were regularly moving in and out of port. There was little to know of ships that Clara wasn't already fully aware of. Unfortunately, it was not only a subject of great interest to Clara, it was also a subject of great irritation for her mother.
Whenever it was brought up, Clara's face would dawn a dreamy look of pleasure, and her mother would instantly start raving about the inconveniences of sea life, and how unrealistic such a setting was for a girl. Clara's voice would adopt the sarcastic tone she had inherited from her father and defend herself, her voice laced with sharp wit. This battle became almost a daily routine for the Grays, and Clara was fast growing weary of it...
Rough, calloused hands close around Clara's slender wrists and within moments, she was dragged from her hiding spot and into the brilliant light of day. The sea shimmered in every direction, with no sign of land in sight. The miscreants were no doubt expecting the young girl to be screaming, but she could only smile. Sliding her wrists out of the grasp of the tall man that had grabbed her, Clara hurried to the railing to get a full view of the open ocean. Grinning from ear to ear with excitement, she was barely listening as the crew called for their captain to inquire what was to be done with her.
She could only guess that it must've been about two days since she'd slipped aboard the vessel and stowed away. Down in the dark, damp cranny she'd hid herself inside of, she could hear the sound of running feet and voices calling to one another on deck as the crew prepared to set sail. She could hear her heartthudding fiercely in her chestas the ship moved away from her home. Curled in a ball, she had had two days to contemplate exactly what it was she would say when she was discovered, as she knew she soon would be. She, unfortunately, was not going to be receiving the warm welcome she had hoped for.
"You, girl!" a voice called, and Clara spun around. She was suddenly shockingly aware of her surroundings, and her eyes fixed on theone that she immediately took to be the Captain of the ship. He was a menacing man, of alarming height, but Clara stood her ground. Being intimidated would do her no good in this situation. She took a cautious step forward, taking in the sight of him. He was a fairly young man - certainly no older than 30, with short, gnarled black hair, and more than a few scars littering his tanned face.
Clara opened her mouth to speak, but was instantly silenced with a quick gesture from the Captain.
"I made it quite clear that our stop on that island was solely for supplies." the Captain's voice was livid and boomed over the crew. Clara was slightly taken aback. "I said that there were to be no misdeeds until we reached Tortuga, or at least until we were back on the ocean. And, yet, it seems that one of you felt the need to intentionally disobey my orders and shanghai this young girl. Well? Which of you was it, then?" he raised an eyebrow, and gazed expectantly over the dozen-and-a-half faces that made up his crew, awaiting a cnfession.
"Um, Sir..." Clara said loudly, and the crew's heads all turned as one to look back at Clara, with a slight look of shock, as though, in wake of their leader's exasperated words, they had forgotten she was there at all. "I wasn't kidnapped...I stowed away. You see, I've always loved the o-"
"Stowed away?" the still-nameless Captain said, with a dumbfounded expression on his face. "You stowed away on our ship? Girl, do you have any idea who we are?"
"You're...Well, you're pirates, aren't you?"
The man's look of confusion deepened into a stare of absolute bewilderment. "You knew we were pirates, and you snuck aboard our ship?" he asked, then let out a harsh laugh. "That's positively the most moronic thing I've ever heard!" Clara raised her eyebrows in offense. "Do you have a score you're trying to settle with us, darling?"
"Well, no, but -" she tried.
"Then what would motivate you to do something like that? I don't know that anyone's ever intentionally snuck aboard, let alone a girl! You really must be raving mad to expect anything less than death from a large group of pirates, in the middle of the ocean, with no one to rescue you, at all." he laughed once more, and, at this point, the crew joined in.
"Wait, but please, you don't understand! I want to be out on the sea -!"
"She's all yours, men." the Captain laughed, then turnedhis back towalk away to his cabin, as the rest of the crew smirked, and pulled out their swords, closing in on her.
"No, no, no, no, no!" she shrieked as they moved closer. "Please, don't! Just give me a chance! I know ships, I can help! Don't do this!" she begged, but they refused to listen to her pleas. This was going to require some quick thinking. She was a young girl, unarmed, in the middle of a group of dangerous, pirate men, who were looking to kill her, but quite possibly not before doing a few unspeakable things to her.
Eyes dashing over the seemingly endless faces, she tried to spot a weapon. Caught up in her thoughts, she didn't realize that one of the closest men had reached for her and grabbed a handful of her hair. She squawked in surprise, and a long slur of obscenities poured out of her mouth. She elbowed him sharply in his round stomach, and he stumbled backwards, dropping his sword.
Clara had time to think How unprofessional - dropping your weapon at a time like this. Before snatching the weapon off the deck and holding it threateningly in front of her. She'd never picked up a blade, but it felt unusually natural in her hand. She let it swing gracefully outward towards her foes, and, when she pulled it back,was shocked to see she had managed to slice through the skin on one man's face. It left a deep gash. The crew seemed equally surprosed, as thewhole crowd went silent for a moment, eyes widened, realizing what she'd done. Her eyes darted back and forth, not sure what to do next, then made a dash across the deck and toward the helm. After a moment's confusion, the crew followed.
A hand grabbed the hem of her skirt and, with a yelp, she fell forward onto her face. She felt someone's sword bite deeply into her leg, and she gritted her teeth against the sting while scrambling back to her feet. She faced the crew, who now all looked perfectly furious with her. Gathering together all her courage, she made a few quick jabs with her sword, and managed to draw some blood from four more men. Surprised with herself for even having made it this far, she turned to run again, and, before the crew could catch up with her, had thrown herself into the Captain's cabin, much to his surprise.
Locking the door behind herself, she looked back to the Captain who's face was tangled with anger, confusion and incredulity. She was breathing very heavily, and blood was flowing down her leg. A bruise was already blossoming on her forehead where she'd hit the floor.
"Captain." she panted. "If it's quite alright with you, I'd like to negotiate."