What do I do when I can't sleep? Succumb to publishing shameful plot bunnies. Never thought I'd be writing a Jack&Daughter fic…but hey, whatever tickles the rabbit's fancy, eh?
I haven't planned this out, it's just a random story that popped in to my head and begged to be written before I could shift my focus back to my other fic, Shipwrecked. Meh.
What you are about to read is an event that happens before the true story begins, savvy?
Estela Ortega arrived in Tortuga alone, afraid, and with no knowledge of the English language. As she stepped off the questionable merchant ship into wild pirate territory, she began regretting her hastily-made decision to leave Spain behind. There was chaos everywhere. Dirty children were running rampant in the streets, strumpets were parading around wearing enough rouge to paint a house, and drunken men were carousing as they pleased, rioting, looting, fighting, shouting, vomiting, passing out...some men even looked to be dying, if not dead already.
Not to mention the horrific stench of human waste, sweat, rot, and alcohol. It was almost unbearable. It made Estela want to turn around, board the ship, and head directly back to Spain. But she couldn't go back there... Not after the whole Garcia family catastrophe. Holding her head high, ignoring her instant headache from all the noise and craziness around her, she ventured into the city to find suitable lodgings for herself.
Outside every tavern, shop and inn she passed there was some kind of commotion happening. Either a bar fight or a rowdy drinking game, a robbery, a fire, a shootout, and even—Estela cringed—a childbirth or public 'intimacy'. Clutching her flimsy shawl tightly around her shoulders, she hurried through the streets, avoiding the hungry looks from the men and the jealous looks from the women. By now she was fearing for her life. What a mistake she had made in coming here!
It was a miracle that she happened upon The Faithful Bride. Outside, thankfully, there were only a couple of ladies of the night, calmly talking to each other as they waited for someone to approach them. Estela slipped past them trough the open doorway into a candlelit bar, where men of all types sat drinking rum from bottles or mugs and a trio of musicians played a jaunty tune on the accordion and fiddle. Barmaids strolled around the room with trays of food and drink held high above their heads, collecting money from the patrons before serving them.
Though the atmosphere was calmer than that of the city outside, it was still quite loud and
boisterous. Estela approached a counter in back and stood there, waiting for the man behind it to finish filling up mugs of rum for a waiting barmaid. The woman watched her approach with curiosity.
"New to Tortuga?" She asked, looking at Estela's clean dress and innocent visage with a smirk. Not comprehending, Estela shrugged her shoulders helplessly.
"No sé Inglés..." She said. It was true. She didn't know English. Not one bit. The barmaid, a buxom blonde, raised her eyebrows in amusement.
"A Spanish lass, eh? And one that can't speak English, oh what a shame! Oi, Thomas, this girl can't speak English." She said to the bartender, jabbing a thumb towards Estela. The man looked up, scrutinized the blonde for a moment, and then turned towards Estela.
"Ya? Wot's that got to do wif me?"
"I don't know, maybe you know someone who can talk to her? She obviously needs something."
Watching the exchange curiously, Estela sat down on a stool to rest her sore feet.
"I'm busy Janey. If ye want 'im, you'll have ta get 'im yourself."
"Well point him out then, will ya?"
The bartender motioned to a shady corner in the back of the bar where someone, their face obscured by shadow, boredly played with the handle of their mug.
"Really? He knows Spanish?" Jane asked, her tone doubtful.
Estela had no clue what they were talking about. Was it her? Their own business? She decided it was time to take control of the situation, even if they couldn't communicate with her properly. She pointed to herself as she began speaking.
"¿Puedo dormir aquí?"
The blonde looked at her in confusion.
"What? Oh, hold on a minute honey, I'll go get someone who can talk to ya." Jane said, placing a gentle hand on Estela's arm. The bartender finished filling up the mugs for her tray and she took off with it, delivering a round to a bunch of noisy sailors by the door. Then she hurried over to the table in the corner and stood there for a long moment, conversing with the man in the shadows. Estela watched with great interest as Jane brought a tall muscled man over to the counter and sat him down on a stool next to her.
"Alright Antonio. Here she is."
Estela looked at the man with lots of curiosity and a hint of fear. He had many tattoos up his arms and a vicious looking scar down the side of his cheek. Why had the woman brought him over to her?
"...Hola señorita..." He greeted, giving her a sly grin.
Estela was so relieved at hearing someone speak her own language that she didn't care that he looked a little shifty. She hurriedly launched in to an almost tearful conversation with the man, explaining her unfortunate situation. She needed a place to live and work, desperately. When she was finished her speech, the man turned to the bartender and the barmaid, who were watching the events unfold with interest, and gave them a hard look.
"I can handle this." He said brusquely, grabbing Estela by the wrist and hauling her off the bar stool. In Spanish, he told her to calm down and that he knew who she needed to talk to. Nodding in understanding, Estela let herself be taken across the room, up a set of stairs, and down a corridor to a shabby looking door marked by a stylishly painted '7'. The man didn't bother knocking, he just pushed the door open and guided Estela inside. An older woman stood near a mirror, helping a very young, very thin girl into a tight corset. Out of courtesy, Estela looked away. Antonio didn't bother.
"What do you want, you giant lumbering oaf?" The old woman asked, glaring at Antonio through the mirrors reflection as she harshly tightened the strings of the garment. To the girl she said "Suck it in, Marcia. More."
"There's this woman here, she doesn't understand a word of English, and she needs some place to live and work." Antonio said, that same sly grin spreading across his face.
"Oh?" The woman asked curiously, her mood improving slightly. "She doesn't know what we're saying right now?"
Antonio chuckled darkly and shook his head.
"Not a single word."
The older woman finished with the girl's corset and turned to grab a revealing green dress off the bed. She paused, held it up, and then threw it back down, unsatisfied. She went for another, a pale pink number.
"Here, put this on and get to work. I don't want to see you back tonight unless you've brought me payment, you hear?" She said, shoving the dress over Marcia's head with little care.
"Yes mistress." The girl replied weakly, tugging the clingy fabric down over her body. She quickly adjusted it in the mirror and then scampered out of the room, sparing Estela a worried glance. Estela watched her go, confusion rolling over her in waves. What was going on?
"Do you remember what we did with Marguerite, Antonio?" The old woman said after the door had closed, raising an eyebrow at him. She turned and looked Estela up and down, seemingly assessing her.
"She was our French delicacy…oui?" She joked cruelly, pinching Estela on the cheek.
"This one is Spanish." Antonio said, his grin widening.
"Hmmm..." The two stood in silence a moment as the older woman thought for a long moment.
"What are you thinking, Eleanor?" Antonio finally asked.
"...I think we've found ourselves a lovely Spanish flower."
Antonio laughed loudly and turned towards Estela, throwing an arm around her shoulders.
"¡Bienvenida a la familia!" He said joyfully.
Estela's eyes widened in shock. Had they really accepted her so quickly?
"¿Estoy trabajando para usted?"
"¡Sí!"
Estela was told by Antonio that she would be working in The Faithful Bride as a barmaid. What she was not told, however, was that not only was she expected to take money in exchange for drinks, but she was expected to take money in exchange for sexual favors. Unknowingly, Estela was dressed into a revealing red dress, assuming it was a uniform, and told to go downstairs and deliver drinks from the counter to men who ordered them. Antonio had her practice a specific line in English several times before she went downstairs. She had no idea what it meant, but Antonio assured her it was necessary.
"Do you want a night with an exotic flower?"
It sounded strange coming from her lips, covered in a thick Spanish accent, but she was told to say it as many times as she could to any man she encountered. If they accepted—Antonio told her they would nod or say yes— then she was to bring the man upstairs to room 7. Nodding as she looked at herself in the mirror, Estela tried the line again and again, trying to get it perfect. She didn't want to mess up on her first night, after all. Finally, Antonio sent her off downstairs with a final word of encouragement.
"A donde fueres haz lo que vieros."
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Except in this case, it was when in Tortuga, do as the Tortugans do. With a smile on her face and a bounce in her step, Estela descended the stairs and headed to the counter. Thomas gave her a tray of drinks and pointed in the direction of a table that ordered. She hurried over, eager to do her job right and prove her worth. As she set the drinks out and collected the money, she turned to a man in a tri-corn hat and smiled kindly.
"Do you want a night with an exotic flower?"
The man looked up at her with a saucy grin.
"If that exotic flower is you love, then I'm mighty tempted to take you up on that offer."
No sé Inglés - I do not know English
¿Puedo dormir aquí? – Can I sleep here?
Hola señorita – Hello miss
¡Bienvenida a la familia! – Welcome to the family!
¿Estoy trabajando para usted? – I'm working for you?
Sí – Yes
A donde fueres haz lo que vireos – When in Rome do as the Romans do
Well…is it obvious I'm not Spanish? I took a class, but we didn't go too in depth. Most of what I've written here was put into a translator, so I apologize to any Spanish speaking people if I've completely butchered the language...Sorry. SO...Any guesses to who the mysterious man is?