It had been almost a month since the demise of Captain James Hook. Life in Never Land was relaxed and mellow. The pirates were scarce, the mermaids were friendlier, the Indians hunted more, and the faeries came out more often. The Lost Boys were the only ones that seemed to change.
"Peter, what do we do now that there's no pirates to chase?" Slightly asked his leader.
"Well, we can go fishing." Peter suggested, looking at the Lost Boys from his position on his hammock. They were all loafing in their home under the ground, bored as they could possibly be. Slightly was flopped on the floor beside the hammock, Curly leaned against the wall, The twins were sitting on a protruding root, Tootles was sitting on a toadstool, and Nibbs had fallen asleep on the rug by the fireplace.
"We did that yesterday." Yawned Tootles.
"We could go swimming." Peter recommended.
"It's too cold." Replied Curly.
"We could go hunting." Peter tried again.
"We don't need any more meat." Answered a twin.
"We could play a game." Peter offered.
"What game?" the other twin asked.
"House?" Peter asked.
"It's no fun without Wendy." Sighed Slightly.
"That's true…" Thought Peter.
Meanwhile, in the Lagoon on the other side of the island, the pirates had just been deciding what they should do next.
"We should set sail, get ourselves away from this damned island!" Bill Jukes declared.
"We've been anchored here as long as anybody can remember. Let's get away from here and sail to Tortouga." Suggested another pirate. This suggestion was met with hearty cheers.
"Aye! To Tortouga!"
"But wait, who is our Captain?" Noodler asked. The other pirates pondered this.
"Well, who owns the ship?" someone asked.
"Hook did." Another answered.
"So whose is it now?"
"I dunno. Did he leave a Will?"
"Ionno. Let's have a look-see." Bill Jukes led the crew into the Bridge. They gazed at Hook's desk.
"Where would it be?" asked Noodler.
"Prolly in a drawer, noodles-for-brains." Jukes said, and began ruffling through the contents of the desk drawers. After about fifteen minutes of tossing papers about, he found James Hook's Last Will and Testament.
"What's it say?" the pirates asked.
"It says that the treasure is to remain buried," he began. The other pirates laughed.
"Treasure? His only treasure was a few worthless gold coins and some second rate jewels!" the scoffed.
"The ship in question is to be left to…" he squinted at the parchment. "The paper's botched up, I can't read the name," he said, holding it up to the light. "It looks like it said… Well I'll be damned, Hook has a son!" He said, and the pirates gasped.
"What?!" the pirates were shocked to find out this bit of information.
"He has a son? Who is it? Does it say his name?" they asked frantically.
"It says his name is," Bill squinted at the damaged paper. "Jack. Jack Sparrow."
"Jack Sparrow? Who the hell is that?" Noodler asked.
"I've heard of him! He used to be the captain of the Black Pearl!" someone exclaimed.
"The Black Pearl? That ship is legend." Bill spat.
"It's real, I've seen it!" declared the pirate.
"You've seen a ship with black sails, manned entirely by the undead?" Bill raised an eyebrow. The pirate didn't falter.
"Yep. It was fast. Real fast. Faster than the Royal Navy, even."
"So you're saying our new captain is going to be the ex-captain of the legendary ship of the undead?" Noodler asked.
"Seems so." Said the young pirate.
"Where would we find him?"
"Let's sail to Tortouga, then we'll figure out where to go from there." Jukes said, and the pirates returned to their positions, and set sail.
Young Jack Sparrow had just landed in Tortouga. It was a cloudy night, and the moon was not visible. It was chilly, but he thought nothing of the wind as he strode down the street and into the pub. There were hookers and pirates, musicians and drunks. The smell of alcohol, dirty bodies, and something a little more fowl was heavy in the air. Jack surveyed his surroundings, then sat down at the bar.
"Barman, a pint." He ordered, and a frothy stein slid down the counter to him. He took it, and drank a generous gulp. The course liquid burned his throat, but it felt good. Anything felt good after getting off that bloody island.
"Jack! What are you doing here?" a floozy woman sat down beside him.
"Well, Lillina. I haven't seen you in a while." He said, and tipped his tri-corner hat.
"I thought you were the captain of the Pearl?" she asked quietly.
"There was a mutiny; I was marooned on an island." He replied, drinking more of his beer.
"That's horrible!" she said. A man tapped her on the shoulder, and held up some gold coins. "Well, business calls." She said, and disappeared with the man.
Jack continued to drink his beer.
Peter and the boys decided to go for a walk. It was not very entertaining, but at least it got them out of doors.
"Peter, where are we going? This is boring." Slightly said.
"Let's visit the mermaids. Maybe something new has happened." Peter said, and walked determinedly ahead. The Boys shrugged and followed.
They arrived at the lagoon, and Peter whistled to the mermaids. Nadia and Ursula came up to the rock where the boys were kneeling.
The mermaids whistled and clicked, and then swam away.
"They say the pirates have set sail! They're going to Tortouga!" Peter translated.
"Portugal? Why?" Nibbs asked.
"The mermaids said that they are going to find a new captain. And guess what?"
"What?" Tootles asked.
"Hook has a son." Peter whispered. The boys were so shocked, they nearly fell off of the rock.
"No!" they said in disbelief.
"Yes. And he is a legendary pirate. He was the captain of the Black Pearl."
"Jack Sparrow!" Nibbs exclaimed.
"You know of him?" Peter asked.
"I almost became cabin boy on that ship. That's why I was in Tortouga when you found me." Nibbs replied.
"You were going to be cabin boy on a pirate ship?" the others asked, looking horrified and fascinated at the same time.
"Yes, but Peter saved me. I'm glad of it, or I would be in serious trouble."
"What kind of trouble?" The twins asked.
"The Black Pearl is the fastest ship to ever sail the seas. It has black sails, and is said to belong to Davy Jones."
The boys stared in fixation.
"The ship made a voyage to an island somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, and found cursed Aztec treasure. They were doomed to sail the seas forever as the undead. When the moonlight hits them, they are viewed in their true forms."
The boys stared, mouths gaping.
"WHOA!" Tootles said at last.
"Well, that's enough for right now, let's go home and eat dinner, shan't we?" Peter said, wanting to end this conversation as quickly as possible. He led them all home. "Boys, go fix dinner." He said, and went into his private bedroom. He sat on the edge of his bed, and thought.
"If Hook had a son, how come no one knew? And the Black Pearl? Is that what we're up against? The undead…?"
The Pirates had set sail, and were well on their way to Portugal. The sky had darkened to night, and lanterns on the ship were burning brightly. Bill Jukes was in the bridge, cleaning the room and reorganizing the desk. The pirates wanted to make the best impression for their new captain, and they hoped he was smarter than James Hook.
"I guess his last name was Sparrow. Or perhaps the boy changed his name…" Bill thought to himself.
"LAND HO!" cried Noodler from the Crow's Nest. They had reached Portugal.