The Sparrow and the Rose
By Latanya
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Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own anything to do with Pirates of the Caribbean though I'm almost certain that Captain Jack Sparrow has a strong hold on my poor soul now… he won't let me have a moment's rest. This is my second POTC fic though I'm slowly planning and drafting out a third, which is an alternate reality one. I own anything that is not already owned, the plot belongs to the main characters and the ships belong to their captains. NOTE: Morgance is a Celtic name meaning 'sea-dweller' and I chose it because of the meaning.
Chapter One: The storm is coming.
Staring at the dark clouds building on the horizon, the pirate captain turned to her first mate and shrugged. He raised an eyebrow, nodding once before racing off to help the rest of the crew prepare for the storm. Turning back to observe the storm for a little longer, she took a deep breath and hoped that it didn't turn out to be as serious as it looked to be. Already the wind had picked up, causing the ships sails to billow and the ship to travel that bit faster. Taking her place at the helm, the captain took over the job of fighting with the wheel and gave the man who'd been doing it for her a chance to have a break.
"Morgance!" Her best friend and first mate mad his way over to her, his brown eyes filled with worry. "Lass, that storm's blowing us towards the reef. Our best chance is to try and swing around towards Tortuga."
She growled, "Ye want me to bring the Wave Dancer into the area where the Black Pearl is often to be found? How many times has Barbossa tried to kill me? He doesn't want any ship around that is easily as fast as his own."
"But ye'll lose the Wave Dancer to the reef! We can't safely navigate through the rocks to safety and our best bet is to change course now. Tortuga is the closest port to our position." He grabbed her arm and shook her.
"No Angus, I can't do that."
Angus shook her again, "Ye have to! None of us wants to meet the Black Pearl and her cursed crew but anything is better then certain death if we hit those rocks and the reef."
Taking a deep breath again, Morgance nodded, "We'll try for Tortuga then Angus, I don't want to loose me ship or me life or the lives of me crew. I just hope that Barbossa is somewhere else when we get there."
Shouting out orders to the crew, Angus smiled at her, "Ye made the right choice Morgance, and I hope ye know it. Life means more then death."
"Let's just hope the royal navy isn't waiting for us before we reach Tortuga. Commodore Norrington holds a good long grudge and our little attack on the Interceptor last year didn't have him in a good mood." She returned the smile, fingering the plain gold pendant hanging from a chain around her neck.
The pendent was a flat gold disk with a picture of a sparrow flying over a field of roses engraved on it. Morgance's father had had it made for her sixteenth birthday, the day she decided to become a pirate like her mother's brother was. That was fourteen years ago and her father was long since dead, leaving her the sole heir to the Rosewater estate and their fortune. Her full name was Lady Morgance Rosewyn, a Duchess of England though she was known among the pirate circles as Morgan Rose, captain of the Wave Dancer. Her crew was mainly Irish and Scottish with a few Spaniards and Frenchmen and one or two buccaneers from Tortuga; and the Wave Dancer was an enigmatic ship that very rarely preyed on anything in the Caribbean area.
Many people said it was because Morgan Rose had had a large number of run in's with the royal navy of the area but a handful of people knew the truth. Captain Barbossa of the Black Pearl didn't want a ship that rivaled his own in the Caribbean and if the Wave Dancer was sighted in the Caribbean, her was soon on her tail with cannons ready to blow her down to Davy Jones Locker. What the captain and crew of the Wave Dancer didn't know is that the original captain of the Black Pearl was back in control and that Barbossa and his crew of miscreants were all dead. If they had known, they would have soon taken over the Caribbean.
Looking at her, Angus could tell that she was thinking about something, "A shilling for ye thoughts Capt'n."
"I was thinking about Tortuga and what she'd have to offer us this time. Hopefully the crew won't get into any fights I can't get them out of and hopefully the royal navy hasn't managed to move in and take over like they did with Port Royal." She replied distantly.
He knew it was hard for her to think about the changes that had been made to Port Royal since her uncle Richard had been a pirate who had sailed out of Port Royal. Making a noise, Angus hurried off, leaving Morgance to control the ship's direction. The entire crew had a lot of faith in her skill and Morgance knew their lives depended on her legendary skills as a sailor, as a navigator and as a captain. Their faith resided not in god but in their loyal captain.
Humming an old sailors song to herself, Morgance kept her eyes directed towards their destination. If she had it her way, the storm would blow itself out before they reached Tortuga so that they wouldn't have to dock at the infamous pirate port. Every single time one of the crew approached her, Morgance told him or her – being that there were a total of five women sailors aboard the Wave Dancer – that everything was fine so long as the ship held out in the right direction.
When the edge of the storm reached them, the crew was ready for it. They were far enough away as not to have to worry too much about the reef that they'd been concerned about before. Morgance's skill and determination had saved them from total destruction though the storm still did some damage.
"Morgance, ye be a true wonder!" Angus came over and gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek, "Ye 'ave reinforced the crew's belief that ye are invincible. Well done. Now if we can only reach Tortuga without taking any more damage to those sails, we should be fine."
Her brown eyes were glittering with joy at having avoided the reef and the main destructiveness of the storm. "The Dancer will hold up that far Angus and ye know it. My ship is a tough girl who's taken worse beatings in her life and no doubt she will take more beatings in what remains of her life."
"If ye refer to the Black Pearl, then ye know that the Dancer has just as much fire power and is just as fast if not faster. She's a younger ship then the Black Pearl and yer a smarter captain than Barbossa." The first mate gave his captain a knowledgeable look.
"Of course I refer to the Pearl Angus. And I know as well as ye do that if it came down to a square on fight, neither of us would win. But Barbossa has been sailing longer than I have and he's got more experience."
Shrugging, he took control of the wheel from her, "Morgan Rose, ye 'ad best go and rest a little like half the crew is. We're clear of the storm and of danger so ye can rest easy. Get some food and some sleep then come back up here in a few hours so I can get some as well."
She nodded, closing her weary eyes for a moment before trudging her way down to the galley where she was given a bowl of stew and some bread and rum. Eating it as quickly as she could, Morgance fought back sleep the whole time until she reached her cabin and managed to take off her boots and lay down. Drifting off to sleep moments after her head touched the pillow, the woman didn't have a single dream.
When she woke up, Morgance changed her clothes and re-braided her long black hair. Studying her reflection in the mirror she had as one of her few luxuries, she had to admit that the life of a pirate suited her well. She was slender and petite but well endowed with womanly attributes. Her brown eyes reflected her mind, clearly showing the intelligence she possessed and her black hair with it's lighter brown streaks caused by the sun came to her waist, which was something that she was proud of – besides the trims she had done by Tara, who one of the other women on the ship; Morgance had not cut her hair significantly since she became a pirate. She was also well tanned, with a strength that most people wouldn't think she possessed.
Heading up on deck, Morgance glanced up at the clear blue sky and muttered curses at the unpredictable nature of the weather. Once Angus had seen her, he gave a sigh of relief and rushed off down to the galley to find himself some food before going for a sleep. The only thing that would wake him up was another storm or if they reached Tortuga soon.
"Tara!" Morgance called up to the woman who was in the crows nest with a telescope. "Any signs of Tortuga yet?"
The younger woman called back down, "Nope but she ain't that far off methinks. Shouldn't be to much longer before she appears on the horizon."
Murmuring to herself, the captain shook her head, "If we still had the main top sail and the main fore sail, we'd be making better time. Well, I should remember to carry spare sails with us next time. I hate weather."
Someone laughed behind her and Morgance turned around to smile at Xavier. He kissed her cheek lightly before pointing off in a westerly direction, "Capt'n, are they black sails I spy?"
"They appear to be Xavier but I'm hoping they're not the Black Pearl. All sails look black when they're in the distance." She shook her head again worriedly. "Everyone in good health? No one was hurt by the storm were they?"
"Nothing that a little rum can't heal Morgance so don't ye be worrying yer pretty little head too much. We can't afford to loose such a good captain." He was one of the few people who called her Morgance.
Morgance chuckled, "How does one worry their pretty little head off Xavier? I 'ave always wondered at that."
"Ye 'ave no idea do ye?" His eyebrows were arched. "Savvy 'cause neither do I. Tell ye what, if I find out before ye do, I'll tell ye but if ye find out before me, ye 'ave to tell me how one worries their pretty little head off."
"My guess is they do it with a sword and rather than worry, it's hack their pretty little head off." She gave him a wide grin before she burst out laughing.
Shaking his head, Xavier had to admit that the captain had a good sense of humor. She could find the light side in most thinks except the Black Pearl and Barbossa. His eyes lit up when Tara shouted out that she'd spotted land ahead in the distance. Squealing, Morgance gave him a quick hug before calming down and taking charge again.
"Yer a good captain Morgance Rosewyn and I'd not want to sail under any other. Barbossa does well to fear ye." Xavier said softly to himself as he walked away from the helm.
She watched him go thoughtfully. He was a loyal man, Xavier was and she couldn't think of anyone she'd rather have at her side in a fight. He was cool and calm, knowing what to do and when. Without him, she'd be lost. However, the same could be said about Angus except Angus was much less willing to take risks than Xavier was. Either way, the two men where the closest friends she had and she'd sooner kill herself then see them harmed through some fault of hers. Morgance rubbed her bare arms, trying to get rid of the chill that had just settled down on her.
The wind was blowing hard and the Wave Dancer was making the best of it though she was missing two main sails and several others had a few rips in them. On the top of the crew's to do list when they reached Tortuga was to have the sails repaired and two more made to replace the ones lost during the storm.
As Tortuga came closer, Morgance's feeling of uneasiness grew and she wondered where the Black Pearl was. The sails that Xavier had pointed out were still on the horizon though they didn't seem any closer or any further away. She would have loved to know if they were truly black or if they were white. Sending a man down to wake Angus and the rest of the crew who'd gone down for a rest, Morgance was glad when she could see Tortuga clearly with her own eyes.
It wasn't a port she particularly liked but when she'd just been through a storm and received damage to her ship, Morgance welcomed Tortuga with open arms. Any port would have served well at that point in time… unless of course, that port was Port Royal. She'd sooner sail with a few less sails then to risk the necks of herself and her crew to the royal navy. Commodore Norrington would have to find himself some other pirates to hang because the crew of the Wave Dancer was not for him.
Angus came on deck, rubbing his eyes warily. "Morgan, we'd better be entering the bay now else I'll kill ye for waking me up too soon."
"Yer not the only one who'd kill for some more sleep Angus." She replied in a bantering tone of voice though her brown eyes were totally serious.
He looked towards Tortuga and sighed, "Aye, we're close. Should drop the anchors soon and row ashore. We don't want anyone sending word to Captain Barbossa that we're in Tortuga."
"We have to take her in to the docks Angus, how else will we make all the repairs that are needed?"
"Yer right there Morgance, but what about Barbossa?" Angus asked.
Morgance looked at him coldly, "We'll just 'ave to hope he doesn't find out before we're ready. But then, we can always hope that Norrington has caught him and that Barbossa is 'anging from the end of a noose in Port Royal."
He shook his head, "Somehow I doubt that Morgance and I know ye do to. Norrington couldn't catch Barbossa if his life depended on it. He might be a smart man but the Commodore isn't at all level with the ball."
"He's always a few steps behind when it comes to the game plans, I'll give that to ye Angus but don't underestimate the royal navy as ye never know when they might show themselves." She replied.
Nodding, Angus hurried off at a glance from her and started ordering the crew to be ready to bring the Wave Dancer into dock. They picked one of the docks that was closer to the mouth of the bay and therefore closer to escape if they needed to get out in a hurry. There were natives and locals' watching them curiously for the Wave Dancer was not commonly known in those parts though stories about her had reached them even there.
Calling the crew together, Morgance gave them their shore money and reminded them to back there tomorrow so that they could start repairs on the ship. It was the least she could do for them after such a hard time. Several of the men and three of the women nominated themselves to stay behind while Morgance, Tara, Xavier and Angus made their way to one of the nearby taverns.
There was one thing that the captain reminded her crew about. She told them all, "Do not forget to find out any information about the Black Pearl and her crew that ye can. I don't want any surprises that could cost us our lives and our ship."
Little did they know that the Black Pearl would be docking later that day not far from them or that Barbossa had been dead for at about six months. How could they know? They'd been sailing else where at the time.