Jamie, Chelsea and Alex: EMILY KAITLYN ZIMMERMAN, WE'RE GOING TO KILL YOU!
Emily: Guys! HIDE ME!
Courtney: Nuh-uh, you deserve it for nuking Keeper's computer with a virus and losing the entire completed Veterans story. She now has to start over from scratch!
Emily: But, but...
Natalia: Run.
Emily: But I came up with an awesome twist to this chapter's song!
Fallon: *face-palm* You are oh-so clever. Now run.
"Here we go, come with me, there's a world out there that we should see. Take my hand, close your eyes, with you right here I'm a buccaneer, let's fly." -Rocketeer, Far East Movement
"This is either madness or brilliance," Will's echoed from behind Fallon.
"It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide." Emily said, grinning while Jack sent her a weird look. She only smirked until her foot brushed a trap made of sticks. "Oh, watch out, there's a-"
Crunch!
"Trap."
"Sorry," Will blushed.
It actually turned out to be incredibly helpful, as they used it to climb onto The Dauntless. Only Jack and Will wanted to confront the crew, but Emily managed to convince them to let her join as well. Poor Fallon was left to hide. "This is what I get for being Divergent and choosing Dauntless.
"Ha, ha."
"Everyone, STAY CALM! We are taking over this ship!"
"Aye, avast!"
"What he said!"
The crew laughed. Fallon groaned and face-palmed, silently thankful that she wasn't there.
"This ship can not be crewed by two men, let alone two men and a she-pirate. You'll never make it to the bay." The lieutenant said, his brows raising obnoxiously as his nasty, hungry eyes gazed fondly over Emily's body.
Emily's jaw dropped and she punched him, relishing the pain in her knuckles from the contact—it meant that he was feeling it so much more than she. "You stupid, sexist son of a-"
"Easy there, lass," Jack said calmly and raised his gun to the lieutenant. "Son, I'm Captain Jack Sparrow; and she is not to be trifled with."
"Commodore Norrington," The Commodore turned to the all-too familiar voice of Courtney Grace who walked up with Robbie holding her hand. "Something's not right." She nodded to the Lieutenant and crew men in a dinghy whose shouts were just out of ear shot.
"Miss Grace, about earlier-"
"Don't," She warned, holding her hand up. "Just protect my family." Without another word, she left.
"Turner and Sparrow! They're taking The Dauntless!"
"I think I'm going to maul that sexist bastard." Em muttered.
"Here they come," Will informed them, after helping Fallon out. Jack smiled.
Finally, The Interceptor caught up and just as it was being boarded, Jack held Emily and they swung over as well as Will, holding Fallon. Will cut away the ropes, Em and Fallon raised the anchor and off they went. Emily smiled and Fallon laughed as Jack shouted, tipping his hat, "Thank you, Commodore, for getting us ready to make way! We'd have had a hard time by ourselves!"
Gun fire ripped through the air and the four fugitives ducked.
They had done it.
"When I was a lad, living in England, my mother raised me by herself. After she died, I came here, looking for my father." Will narrated.
"Sheesh, let me call the wambulance." Emily whispered to Fallon who rolled her eyes.
"My father, Bill Turner? It was only after you learned my name that you agreed to help. Since that's what I wanted, I didn't press the matter. I'm not a simpleton, Jack, you knew my father."
Fallon stood beside him; Emily was lounging by the wheel, watching the scene unfold. "I knew him. Probably one of the few who knew him as William Turner. Everyone else called him 'Bootstrap' or 'Bootstrap Bill.'"
"Bootstrap?"
"Good man, good pirate. Move, love, I'm steering." Emily begrudgingly moved. Fallon knew what was about to happen, but did not move aside when cruel words were exchanged. "I swear, you look just like him."
"It's not true, he was a merchant sailor. A good, respectable man who obeyed the law!" Will defended.
"He was a bloody pirate, a scallywag!"
"My father was not a pirate!" Will unsheathed his sword.
Jack sighed, "Put it away, son. It's not worth you getting beat again." Em gestured with her head for Fallon to move, but she did not.
"You didn't beat me, you ignored the rules of engagement. In a fair fight, I'd kill you."
"Will..." Fallon warned.
"That's not incentive for me to fight fair, is it?" Jack turned to them, then abruptly turned the wheel, causing a sail to swing towards them. Fallon shoved Will aside and the sail slammed into her instead. She gasped for the air that was knocked out of her and clutched desperately to the beam. Jack took up Will's sword which had fallen in his surprise and held it towards him. "As long as she's just hanging there, pay attention. The only rules that really matter are these: what a man can do, and what a man can't do."
Will cast a concerned glance at Fallon, who was now grasping for a better hold on the beam. Emily watched silently, concealing her fright.
"For instance," Jack continued. "You can accept that your father was a pirate and a good man, or you can't. But pirate is in your blood, so you'll have to square with that someday. Now, me, for example, I can let her drown and get rid of you when you try to save her. However, I can't bring this ship to Tortuga by me onesies and I doubt she'll help me after I rid myself of you two, savvy? So!"
He swung the beam back and Fallon fell on to the deck. Will went to help her, but was stopped by the blade. "Can you sail under the command of a pirate?" He flipped the sword so the handle was towards Will. "Or can you not?"
He accepted the blade, then helped Fallon up. "Tortuga?" He asked.
"Tortuga."
"Remind you of anything?" Emily asked as they entered the pirate town.
"Yeah," Fallon muttered. "The Pirates of the Caribbean ride."
"Don't be such a stick in the mud!"
"Look where we're standing."
"Fair enough."
Jack ushered Will around. "It is indeed a sad life that has never breathed deep the sweet, proliferate bouquet that is Tortuga. What do you think?"
"It'll linger." Fallon rolled her eyes and Em resisted smacking something.
"I"ll tell you, mate, if every town in the world were like this one, no man would ever feel unwanted. "Scarlett!"
Scarlett smacked him.
"Not sure I deserved that."
"Oh! Me next!" Emily exclaimed. "Where does the line start?"
A blonde walked up and Jack said, "Giselle!"
"Who was she?" She asked, the slapped him.
"I may have deserved that."
Emily slapped him, "You'll find a way to deserve that."
The night drew on as they looked around for Gibbs. Fallon felt the weight o the world in her eyes, but did not complain. In fact, she was rather silent.
When Gibbs was found (using a pig as a pillow) A knife came out and he exclaimed, "Curse you for breathing, you slack-jawed idiot!" His eyes widened happily when he saw Jack. "Mother's love! Jack! You should know better than to wake a man when he's sleeping. It's bad luck."
"Fortunately, I know how to counter it. The man who did the waking buys the man who was sleeping a drink. The man who was sleeping drinks it while listening to a proposition from the man who did the waking."
Gibbs was confused for a moment then grinned, "Aye, that'll about do it."
Will tossed another bucket on to Gibbs. "Blast, I'm already awake!"
"That was for the smell."
"Em-" Fallon's eyes rolled back and she collapse. Will dropped the bucket and caught her, pulling her into his protective arms. Emily bent down and checked her pulse.
She sighed, "She's alright, just a little tired. I'll take her back to the ship, you can stay here."
"No, I'll take her, you make sure Jack doesn't go off on us."
"Whatever."
Will had laid Fallon on a bed when she woke up. "What happened?" She asked, her voice hoarse.
"You fainted, I took you back to the ship so you could rest."
"Thank you, but I'm fine, really-"
"You know Emily from your past, don't you?"
The room fell silent. She whispered, "Yes,"
"Why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't think it was important-"
"Not important?! You're on a first name basis with a pirate! I thought I could trust you."
"Please stop," Her voice was so weak, he could not help but feel ever so slightly guilty.
"Alright, then what about your dream? You said you were a coward because you would not face your fear, why can't you?"
Tears bubbled in her eyes, "A few years ago, a sister, a cousin and three of their friends disappeared. We thought they were dead and I had left on bad terms with Brooke. In my dream, her and her friends were living either a horrible life and they blamed me or a wonderful life and they tortured me. It was too much of a burden to bear each night, and then someone broke into my house and I...I-" Her own sobs interrupted her and she attempted, vainly, to brush them aside.
Will looked away, unable to see what he had made. "I'm sorry." His apology lingered in the air like death.
"Did you know this would happen?" Elizabeth demanded as she paced their cabin. "Did you know?"
Natalia took a breath and nodded.
"How dare you-"
Pintel and Ragetti entered their quarters, baring two dark dresses—a red one for Elizabeth and a blue one for Natalia. "You two'll be dining with the captain, and he requests you wear these."
Natalia took hers without question, but Elizabeth remained stubborn. "Well, you may tell the captain that I am disinclined to acquiesce to his request."
Dumb and Dumber 2.0 snickered. "He said you'd say that. He also said that if that'd be the case, you'd be dining with the crew and you'd be naked." She sent a glare in Natalia's direction, then snatched it. "Fine."
Natalia ate the food slowly, but did not touch the wine or the apples. After a few bites, she could not stomach any more and bowed her head while Elizabeth devoured her food and spoke with Barbossa. You're going to vomit later.
"Do you know what this is, Miss?"
Natalia looked up, having been listening to the prior conversation, she knew Barbossa was speaking to her. Oh, screw it all-
"It's Aztec gold, one of 882 identical pieces delivered in a stone chest to Cortez. Blood money. Cortez was to greedy, so it is said that the gods placed a terrible curse upon the gold, so that any mortal who removes a single piece from the stone chest will be punished for eternity."
"My, so you're the smart one. This one claims to not believe in ghost stories, but you...we found the treasure, Miss Turner, though we thought nothing of the curse. We spent 'em, traded 'em and frittered 'em away on drink and food and pleasurable company. The more we gave 'em away, the more we came to realize, the drink would not satisfy, food turned to ash in our mouths and all the pleasurable company in the world could not slake our lust."
Natalia really hoped he couldn't see her quivering.
"We are cursed men, Misses, compelled by greed, we were, but now, we are consumed by it." Jack, the monkey started jumping and screeching so Barbossa went to comfort it. Elizabeth hid a knife. "There is one way we can end our curse; all the scattered pieces of Aztec gold must be restored and blood repaid. Thanks to ye, we have the final piece."
Elizabeth cast a concerned look to Natalia. "And the blood to be repaid?"
"That's why there's no sense to be killing you. Yet." He held out his hand. "Apple?"
Elizabeth knocked it aside and raised her knife. Natalia ducked under the table and closed her eyes, pushing back the tears as Barbossa cackled, "I'm curious, after killing me, what is it you were planning on doing next?" Elizabeth ran outside.
Barbossa slowly knelt in front of her, eying her maliciously. "Now, you seem to know what you're doing. Tell me, who told you about the curse?"
She said nothing. He shrugged, dragged her to their cabin, then, eventually, Elizabeth ran in as well.
Well, shoot.
