It was mid-afternoon when Norrington received word of the fire. Gillette rushed into the Commodore's office and announced that there was smoke and reports of a fire near the center of town.

Norrington stood up so quickly he knocked a pen to the floor. "Where?" he demanded.

"The printer's shop," Gillette said. "I've already sent several men to assist, but we may need more."

Norrington quickly crossed the room, then he and Gillette hurried through the streets towards the source of the smoke and commotion. Norrington made his way through the crowd of curious onlookers as politely as he could without wasting time until he had an unobstructed view of the burning building. Smoke was drifting from the windows, door, and roof of the printer's shop. The windows flickered orange and yellow from the light of the flames inside. Men - both marines and townspeople - carried buckets of water into the shop in an effort to stop the fire from spreading.

Norrington turned to Gillette. "Keep these people back," he ordered, then stepped forward to take charge of the situation. He glanced around for one of his marines to ask for a report about the situation, but he was intercepted by Will Turner.

"Commodore," Will shouted, appearing at Norrington's side. The blacksmith's clothes were dirty and wet in places from where water had splashed out of the bucket he carried. His face was slightly flushed from the heat and activity. "We need men on the other side to keep the fire from spreading," he said. He pointed to the back of the burning shop where the flames threatened to engulf the building next door.

The Commodore called over the nearest marine and relayed the instructions, then looked back to Will for a more thorough appraisal of the situation.

"I noticed smoke about an hour ago," Will said. He used the inside of his sleeve to wipe sweat and soot from his face. "A few others noticed it, too, and we've been doing our best with water from the well, but it's not going to be enough. That shop's full of paper. We'll be lucky to keep it from spreading."

"Any idea what caused it?"

Will hesitated. He looked towards the burning shop for a moment, then faced Norrington again and said, "I don't think it was an accident."

Norrington frowned, watching the blacksmith's eyes. There was an alarming seriousness there that didn't waver. "Based on what evidence?"

"I saw a man," Will answered. "I didn't see his face, but he was dressed in black and standing in that alley behind the shop, just watching as we all came to see about the fire. I saw him leave when the crowd started to gather."

"That doesn't prove - "

"And I found a brick, a burnt torch, and a broken window," Will continued. "It's probably burnt up now, but I know what I saw."

Norrington studied the other man's face. Turner was an honest man and clearly believed what he was saying, but he was also known to act without thinking, and it was a very real possibility that he had placed too much importance on two minor, unrelated events. "Thank you, Mr. Turner," he said, dismissing the blacksmith.

Will stood his ground. "You don't believe me."

"I would like to avoid jumping to conclusions before I have had the chance to examine the situation for myself."

"I know what I saw," Will said again. He walked resolutely back towards the burning building to continue with the firefighting effort.

Between the men with their buckets of water and the limited supply of dry fuel inside the shop, the blaze was eventually subdued. Nearly two hours after the fire had started, Norrington paced across the dampened floor of the blackened shop, searching for any sign of lingering embers that could reignite. The shop was destroyed. The walls and frame were still standing, but the roof was burned through in places and crumbling in others. Norrington didn't linger in the shop any longer than was absolutely necessary, fearing that the damaged roof could collapse at any moment.

The crowd had begun to disperse, and at first Norrington assumed it was because the excitement was over, but then he saw a carriage pull up and Lord Beckett step out. The townspeople, unaccustomed to the imperious newcomer, gave him a wide berth and began drawing their conclusions from a safe distance. Beckett frowned slightly and glanced up at the smoky air, sniffing it. Then he walked straight to where Norrington was standing. "Everything under control, Commodore?" he asked.

"I believe so," Norrington replied, stiffly keeping a mental barrier between himself and the other man. "We've had a fire, but it's been put out now. I'll establish a watch to be sure it doesn't start up again."

"Oh dear," Beckett said, letting his demeanor take on a hint of melodrama. "Has the culprit been caught?"

"I have no reason to believe the fire was started intentionally." Norrington was determined to keep Beckett as far away from the situation as possible.

Beckett seemed determined to do just the opposite. "Oh really?" he said. "Because one of my men informed me that someone here claims to have evidence that suggests otherwise."

"There is no cause for - "

"A man in black," Beckett continued. "Has a party been dispatched to search for this man?" He read the answer off of Norrington's face, and raised his eyebrows slightly. "No? Why the oversight, Commodore? Have you no interest in ensuring the safety of this fine town?"

"I should think tending to a burning building proves otherwise."

"If you're not going to look for this criminal, then I hope you won't mind if I conduct a little search of my own."

"That won't be necessary."

"Oh, I think it will, Commodore," Beckett said, in a tone that made the words into a threat. "I will not stand for this kind of lawlessness."

Norrington could see that he had no choice but to let Beckett search the town, and by sunset, it was impossible to walk down any street or stop in front of any store without seeing one of Beckett's agents. They were searching, scrutinizing every inch of the town. No citizen was above suspicion, it seemed, until Lord Beckett found his alleged culprit. Norrington stationed two marines near the burned building to keep watch, both over the smoldering remains of the shop and over the town. And, though he was reluctant to accept that the fire had been caused on purpose, he also told the men to be on the lookout for the man dressed in black. Then Norrington returned to his own house for the first time in nearly two days.

Ruby was there waiting for him with a smile and a brandy. "I thought you could use this," she said, handing him the drink.

Norrington didn't tell her she was right. He just accepted the glass and dropped into a chair, feeling the weight of the sleep he had lost the night before. Ruby sat in another chair and he told her about the fire. She had seen the smoke and wondered what was going on, and was glad to hear that no one was seriously hurt. When she asked what had started it, Norrington hesitated.

"I saw nothing that suggested it was anything other than an accident," he said, after a moment.

Ruby frowned slightly. "But...?"

Norrington sighed. "Mr. Turner believes it was started on purpose," he admitted. "He believes he saw evidence in the building, and he claims to have seen a man dressed in black lingering in a nearby alley when the alarm was first raised."

"Don't you believe him?"

"I don't know," Norrington said. He leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes, but told himself that he wouldn't fall asleep. "Perhaps I should have. Lord Beckett stepped in when I declined to search for this supposed arsonist, and now he's taking advantage of the opportunity to scour every inch of my town."

"But what about the man in black? You've got to catch him."

Norrington opened his eyes and looked over at Ruby. "I'm not convinced he's involved, if he does, in fact, exist."

Ruby frowned and just looked back at the Commodore. She looked at him strangely, then said, "Don't you remember?"

"Remember?"

"When my father's house burned down in Tortuga, I saw a man like that. A man dressed in black, watching the fire burn."

Of course. Suddenly Norrington did remember. He and Ruby, surrounded by smoke and heat and flames, nearly trapped in her burning house. Ruby had seen a man dressed in black, carrying a torch, watching the house burn to the ground. That fire had been started on purpose. At the time, Norrington had considered the fire a direct attack against Ruby or himself, or both. The man dressed in black. Now he had burned the printer's shop. Why hadn't he thought of it before?

Norrington cursed and put his face in his hands. He wanted to break something, or kick something, but was too tired to go to the effort. "I'm a fool," he said.

Ruby stood up. "I'll get you another drink."

The fire at Ruby's house is a reference to the last chapter of The Alliance, for those of you who haven't read it. Reviews are always appreciated!