Not Who You Thought

Chapter Six

The beach Gillette had found was indeed perfect. The sands were white and soft and free of conch shells and mussels. There was dry wood for bonfires and plenty of wild fruits. The sailors brought out instruments and, accompanied by the extra rum, proceeded to whip up a lively jig to which the newly wed Mr. and Mrs. Norrington danced. The sailors also got to dancing after a few drinks and soon there was quite a party. The cook broke out all the stores, being two days from home and all, and prepared a wedding feast like none other. The sailors also found that rum mixed with the milk of the coconuts was delicious. All in all it was quite an evening, all thoughts of the strange circumstances of the marriage were gone, with the help of rum, and they were replaced with a warm contentedness of having little work and dry land under one's feet.

Emmy and James staggered away from the big fire. They had been dancing for what seemed hours and the heat of the fire was too much to bear any longer. They were laughing and hanging on one another.

"That was intense," Emmy gasped, holding her side.

"It certainly was. Most fun I've had in a great while," James agreed.

They reached the equivalent of the kitchen and were handed a coconut full of the rum drink.

"I'm going to go for a walk to cool down. You want to come?" Emmy asked.

"You go ahead. I have to talk to Gillette while he's in a good mood."

"Okay. See you back at the fire."

"Don't go too far," James said, kissing her.

Emmy set off down the sand, the water lapping at her toes and the warmth of the fire seeping away as the ocean breeze drifted in. She turned towards the palm trees and headed back when the fries were just little orange dots, sipping at her rum and coconut milk. The noise of the wind in the palm fronds was soothing and she began humming a sea shanty to herself, all thoughts of her impending doom forgotten. She had just gotten to the line when the sailor fell in love with a mermaid when the rustling in the trees changed.

"Evening luv," a voice said from the darkness.

Emmy stopped walking and peered into the trees. A golden grin glinted in the distant firelight.

"I'm not afraid of you," Emmy said defiantly.

"Oh, I'm sure you're not luv. You do appear to be a tad drunk though, maybe you're not speaking truthfully." The form of a man detached itself from the darkness. He was clearly a pirate but that did not intimidate her.

"Ever met a pirate before luv?"

"Oh yes, many."

"Really?"

"Yes. And I'm serious when I tell you I'm not afraid of you. I could kill you if I wanted," Emmy said. To counter her point she staggered, spilling the contents of the coconut. The figure caught her.

Out of the shadows she could see his face clearly. He was most certainly a pirate. Beads, braids, and dreadlocks were held in place on his head by a weather worn bandana. He wore coal around his eyes and the gold gleamed in his smile. His attire was a motley of garments, stolen and collected over the years. A sword, pistol and compass were tucked securely in his sash and a bottle of rum rested in his hand. To top it all off, he was gorgeous. Had she been a...loose woman she would have been in his arms in an instant. But she wasn't and she looked upon this encounter as a challenge to her name, even though this man didn't know who she was.

"So what's a beauty like you doin' all alone on a remote beach in the middle of the night?" he asked casually.

"What makes you think I'm alone? I merely took a walk away from the fires." She indicated the bonfires down the beach.

"And who might they be?" he asked, still holding her.

"The Royal Navy," Emmy said, shrugging him off.

The smile on his face faltered. "All I need do is scream."

"What do you want then?"

"Who are you?"

"Jack Sparrow. Captain Jack Sparrow, if you please."

Emmy's eyes widened. "You're Captain Jack Sparrow?"

"Aye. You heard of me?"

"Of course I've heard of you. You and your ship are legend. I've been hoping to meet you."

"What? You with the Navy and all?"

"I haven't always been with the Navy," she said.

"Who are you?" he asked.

"If you've heard of me at all you would have heard me called Emmy Burns, formerly captain of the Red Death," Emmy said.

It was Jack's turn to be surprised.

"What?"

"You don't look nearly as fearsome as the stories paint you to be."

"Neither do you."

"Aye, but I'm a man luv. I don't need to look fierce for people to know I can kill."

"Well maybe this just isn't my night. I'm not really in the killing mood."

Even in the dim light he could see her blushing.

"Something embarrassing luv?"

"No."

"Then what? Honor amongst thieves, I won't make fun."

"I'm not really of this profession anymore Jack. I got married this afternoon."

"Where? This is the middle of nowhere."

"On the Dauntless, anchored in the bay."

"The Dauntless!"

"Do you know it?"

"Aye, a bit."

This seemed an uncomfortable subject. They stood silently. Jack raised the bottle to his lips and took a swig. Then he filled her proffered coconut.

"Cheers."

"So, who's the lucky bloke?" Jack asked, taking a seat on the sand. Emmy joined him, sipping her rum.

"Probably not anyone you'd know."

"Try me. I'm quite infamous among the Royal Navy."

"Commodore James Norrington."

Jack spat out his rum.

"You know him?"

"Tried to hang me a couple of times. Can't blame him though. I did make a mess of things."

"I've made quite a mess of things myself. He's supposed to hang me when we return to Port Royal but he'll find a way out of it."

"He married you and he's going to hang you for piracy?"

"No. He's not going to hang me. That's why he married me."

Jack still looked confused. Emmy recounted her story for him, leaving out more...intimate details.

"Well, I've certainly changed my view of the man. Do you think he'd still hang me?"

"Probably. I don't think his opinion of pirates has changed much. But he's so different around me you probably couldn't tell. God I'm glad all this has happened." She watched the fires wistfully. "I want to get back. It was nice meeting you." She stood and finished her rum.

He rose after her, turned her towards him and kissed her. She smiled at him.

"I would have killed you for that a week ago," she whispered in his ear. "Good night."

When she returned to the fires she was directed to a tent and sleepily lay down on the sand next to James, who wrapped his arms around her.

"You were gone a while. Everything okay?"

"Oh yes. Just a bigger beach than I thought."

No, this is not going to develop into a triangle, so stop hoping.