I unfortunately, own no characters in this story other then Jessie, Elinor, Mary, Harmony and various others I might make up as we go along. This takes place before the first movie. BUT, since I'm horrible at timelines, I might not get every single detail right. Excuse that. Anyway, Jack is Captain of the pearl, not yet mutinied. Barbossa's his first mate, Gibbs isn't a pirate yet, the crew isn't immortal and the crew of Barbossa in MOST of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is still Jacks. Oh, and Norrington isn't Commodore. Elizabeth, Will, Governor Swann, Lieutenant Norrington and Mr. Gibbs just made there way from England to Port Royal. And that's it for now!
Elinor looked out of her bedroom window to see Jessie playing in the alleyway by the house. Jessie had on a dirty looking white shirt on, which was way to big on her. The shirt was tucked messily into the britches she wore which also were too big for her. Then she had the britches tucked messily into her brown boots. To top it off Jessie braided her long ebony colored hair into one long braid. But she covered most of it with a red bandanna, that was also big for her, and the excess dangled to her back. "JESSICA ANN SPARE!" Elinor yelled, when she caught sight of the wooden sword in Jessie's right hand. Jessie dropped the sword immediately and looked at Elinor, her shirt flying open a bit, but showing nothing. "Yes, mother?" Jessie said, in a shy and little voice.
But Elinor wasn't Jessie's mother. Jessie's mother was Willow Sparrow, her father, Grant Sparrow. Willow was young when she fell in love with Grant Sparrow, the pirate. Elinor, Willow's sister, never could understand Willow. She had given up everything she had, wealth; power, just to be with a pirate of all people. Pirate, just that word makes Elinor cringe. Willow lived on the seas with her beloved, but when she found out she was pregnant, everything changed. She went back to land, and lived a semi-normal life. Even though she was still wed, but never saw her husband, who was off gallivanting as a pirate. She didn't have wealth, power, or even freedom. She rarely left the shack she called home. And she let her son, Jack, do all the work. He seemed eager enough to do it, as long as she continued to give him a small allowance. She never knew what he bought with it.
One day, she woke up to see no Jack. She waited, but he still didn't come home. He had run away from home. She sent a letter to Grant, explaining everything that had happened. She thought maybe he didn't care about her anymore, but he came, eventually. He tried to be kind, trying to act like a normal husband. But it didn't work. Willow demanded she come back to the sea, because that was where her home was. But Grant didn't agree, he said the sea was not a woman's home. And so he left, that was the last time she saw Grant. But, then, Jessica was born. Willow died just a few days after Jessie's birth; a broken spirit and a broken heart did the trick.
News carried and soon Elinor heard of the tragedy. Elinor wasn't the least bit sad Willow died, that was the path she had chosen. A tear or two might have passed her snow-white cheeks, but that was all. She chose to adopt Jessie as her own. She could raise her to be a lady, and never know of her heritage. She would be raised as a Spare, not a Sparrow.
Jessie had different ideas. She kept her 'pirate' clothes under her bed. She played with the orphans in the alley by the mansion, as she called it. And heard all the tails of the infamous Jack Sparrow and The Black Pearl. When asked to promise something, she'd always say "On Captain Jack Sparrow's name", and she practiced her sword skills and pirate talk every day. She wasn't as talented with a cutlass as many. She relied on her wits and tried to outsmart her enemy. Or, in her case, the kids she was practicing with. She wasn't under the constant glare of her Aunt all the time. Elinor clearly thought she had taught Jessica to be a lady, not a dirty scoundrel of a pirate. Elinor surely thought wrong.
Jessie waved to her only real friends. Not the stuck-up snobs Elinor thought were Jessie's friends. Then she picked up her wooden cutlass and put it in its scabbard. If only I could get my hands on a real cutlass, Jessie thought to herself. Then she made her way around the alley and to the house, the big marble doors taunted her and she pushed them open and stepped inside the house. Just to see her Aunt staring at her menacingly from the top of the stairs. She softly shut the doors and looked at Elinor, not saying anything.
She's fifteen; she should be off and married by now. And she's acting like a p-p-pirate! Elinor thought, she cringed a bit and stared down at Jessie. "Come along now, we have to find you a dress. A dress for the ball." Elinor said, turning around and walking slowly towards Jessie's room. Jessie quickly ran up the stairs, unlady like and clumsily. If Elinor had seen her, Jessie knew she would have scolded her. Jessie followed Elinor, and finally opened her mouth. "What ball?" Jessie asked in a surprisingly loud, rough and unlady like tone. She cleared her throat before Elinor looked back, "I mean, what ball?" she asked again, her voice pristine and strained, just like Elinor liked it. "A ball held in your honor of course, your fifteen now, you need a husband. You don't expect me to take care of you until you're my age, do you?" Elinor said with such pride, Jessie couldn't help but roll her eyes. Jessie didn't say anything, only followed Elinor close behind.
They finally made it to Jessie's room. Elinor pushed open the closet and pulled out a corset that was at the back of Jessie's closet. She also pulled out a shift and a beautiful burgundy gown that Jessie didn't even know she had. Jessie looked at where Elinor pulled out the corset and gown and saw it was in a small closet inside her closet that Elinor never told Jessie she had. "Mary, Harmony" Elinor yelled and soon two maids ran into the room. "Take this awful scum off Jessica and put her into that" Elinor said, and then pointed toward the gown, corset and shift and then walked off.
Jessie looked at Mary and Harmony, "I 'an do it myself, ye know" Jessie said, letting the natural words come out of her mouth instead of the proper ones. Mary and Harmony looked at Jessie pitifully, but continued to do there job. They seemed horrified once they took the 'pirate' clothes off. Even though they insisted, Jessie helped, even though she dreaded gowns. The corset was very snug around Jessie's waist, but it almost fell off her at the top. She was as flat chested as a man. The maids ignored that and next put the shift on which just draped off of Jessie's shoulders. The Gown was next. It took both of the women to shove the gown on her. Guess I grew out of my mother's expectations, Jessie thought, knowing this dress was way to tight on her. The corset shaped the dress so Jessie looked normal in it. But Jessie didn't feel normal. The dress pushed the corset even tighter around her waist. The wind was knocked out of Jessie once the maids pulled the dress on her all the way. But Jessie remained standing and conscious. The bandanna had fallen on the floor and Jessie kicked it under the bed. The maids then had to undo her braid and comb the knots out. Even after Jessie insisted many times she knew how to do it. Finally the ebony colored hair was straight and draped over her back like the bandanna had. She slowly walked out of her bedroom, and stood at the top of the stairs.
"Oh, Jessica, how lovely you look. Since your already dressed, why don't we make the ball tonight? It's only still the morning. Excuse me while I find a way to get to each one of the guests" Elinor said proudly and scurried off. Is this what my life's going to always be? Gowns, balls, tea and possible future husbands? Jessie thought to herself glumly.