*Disclaimer* All titles and names property of their respective creators. This is a non profit fic(meanin' I ain't gettin' paid, so neither will you!!) meant strictly for recreational use only. Not for children under three as small parts may be a choking hazard, and those with weak constitutions may want to leave the arena! Do not read if you are or may become pregnant as it may cause such birth defects as Captain Jack Sparrow-Titus. So Vo-Do-De-O-Do and Scoddy-Woddy Do-Da-Da! Thank you. On with the Fic!!
~*~ Lloth
She moved with the grace and stealth of a fox, her movements so fluid that the dragon's hoard of jewelry about her person made not a sound. Her large almond shaped eyes scoured every shadow, every crevice of the dank stone building for concealed hazards. A sultry male voice sang softly a bit further down the corridor, the source locked in one of the many filthy cells Luskan's prisons were notorious for.
"We're devils and black sheep and really bad eggs...." He sang, seemingly oblivious to his grim situation. She smiled slightly and darted over to his cell, glancing about cautiously. The song was a little known pirate shanty, but she was very familiar with it. It *was* her captains favorite song after all.
"Drink up me 'earties, yo ho.." She sang softly in reply, tossing her flaming orange hair. The man, who had been sitting on the ground with his back to the bars, turned slowly to regard her, his grin dappled with gold teeth.
"Ah, Brid, glad ta see ye, Luv! Come ta spring me?"
~*~*~*~
Nimh 'Falconeye' Danu gazed around at her handiwork as she sheathed the fine blade she had 'permanently borrowed' in Waterdeep. Yes, she had a right to be proud of herself. She had single-handedly taken out four of Luskan's watch, and without killing a single one, just as her captain had ordered. They would spring him tonight and be back on the ship before dawn. Nimh, a tall, lithe woman with long sand colored hair and fierce golden eyes, was a pirate. And, her dress spoke clearly of her character; daring, colorful, and alluring. It wasn't long before she was joined by another member of the crew, the ships resident mage, Annwn of Shadowdale. She was slight of build, almost ethereal, with smooth porcelain skin and fathomless gray eyes. She dressed in robes of deep blue, embroidered with intracate silver glyphs and symbols. Her black hair was shot through with streaks of purple, blue, and red, said to be the result of a spell gone awry.
"The fog is in place." She said softly, gazing toward a nearby flight of stairs, one that lead to where prisoners condemned to death were kept. "And, nobody heard a thing." She added with a sardonic grin, in remarks to the silence spell she had put on the outside of the building. "What do we do now?"
"We wait," Nimh said simply. "and let the fox do her job."
Nimh followed Annwn's gaze to the stairs, where the third member of their party, Brid 'The Fox' Tuatha De'Dannan had gone, silent as a shadow.
~*~*~*~
"Aye, Cap'n" Brid said, smirking. "Word 'round Luskan is ye're to be sent of to the prisoner's carnival come the morn."
"Yes, well, that *is* an engagement I'd rather avoid." He murmured secretively. Brid studied him a moment, amused, as usual. He was tall and straight, with mysterious dark eyes and long raven hair, beaded and braided at random intervals. He had a roguish grin and a sway to his gait and stance, as well a mustache and a beard split in twain and braided. He was a pirate and dressed the part. He couldn't have been marked more clearly if he had a jolly roger sewn into the back of his faded maroon vest. Brid smiled softly to herself and produced a ring of keys she had pilfered from a sleeping guard.(one she had left for Nimh)
"C'mon, Cap'n." she said, opening the cell and watching as he collected his personal effects, a compass, a saber, Coat, and hat. "The others are all waitin' fer ye at the Cutless, 'cept fer Nimh and Annwn, they're coverin' the getaway."
"Good girls." He said approvingly, casting a lewd wink the fox's way. He then followed Brid up back down the corridor with his trademark swagger, hands weaving before him as if he were telling a particularly interesting tale.
"Took ye long enough." Annwn said with a wry grin as the odd party made their way into the street under the cover of the mage's conjured fog.
"Ye could've stayed with Bootstrap." Brid hissed, much to the amusement of her captain and Nimh. The captain smirked, his arm snaking around Brid and Annwn's shoulders.
"Aye," he agreed. "She cozied up to 'im right away, didn't ye, Annwn?" He asked as they made their way into the Cutlass, Dock Street's most Infamous Tavern.
~*~*~*~
Drizzt Do'Urden sat quietly in the back corner of the Cutlass, a glass of fine red wine cradled before him as he watched for the pirates he had been hunting for the past few tendays, working once again with captain Duedramont aboard the Sea Sprite. With him sat the good captain himself, neat and well dressed as always, as well as Robillard, the ship's ill-tempered wizard, who seemed very interested in removing nonexistent lint from his robes. A group of four caught the drow ranger's lavender eyed gaze, a group of four pirates, there was no mistaking them. The man who seemed to be the center of attention swayed as if drunk as he made his way to the bar, loudly ordering a round of rum for himself and his crew. It seemed the only thing that kept him upright was the fact that he had his arms around the waists of two women. It was not long before they were joined by a round, grizzled looking man who sipped from a leather flask of whisky, as well as a young man with shoulder length brown hair and a slight mustache. He wore a wide-brimmed hat atop his head and a red cape was draped over his shoulders. Drizzt scowled in disgust and Robbilard gave a derisive snort, sipping from his own glass of wine. Captain Duedramont's sentiments were written clearly on his face, and they were shared by those at his table. They held no love nor tolerance for pirates. But, they could not act, not now. They had given no proof of their profession nor their identity, and Luskan had a way of turning a blind eye, even protecting the pirates that prowled the waters of the sword coast.
"Do you know them?" Drizzt asked softly from the shadows of his cowel.
"I know *of* them." the captain admitted. "We've been trying to catch them for quite sometime now, before you ever came aboard the Sea Sprite."
"They always seem to get away." Robillard added resentfully
"Who are they?" the drow pressed, eying the pirates warily.
"They are the crew of the Black Pearl." Duedramont began, his tone grim. "That man with the dark hair and drunken demeanor is Jack Sparrow, the Black Pearl's captain. Some say he Isn't worth spitting on, others say he's the best pirate to sail the Sword Coast. All I know is any who've ever crossed him have found out that Captain Jack Sparrow does not fight fair."
"And, the rest?" Drizzt asked glancing warily at the bar where the pirates stood.
"His inner circle.The big man is Jack's navigator, Mr. Gibbs, and the lad with the Feathered hat is Bootstrap Will Turner, Jack's first mate. He used to be a blacksmith and Waterdeep, but threw his hat in with Jack and the Pearl."
"The boy's got a keen blade and a sharper wit." Robillard assured the drow ranger solemnly.
"The tall lass with the scarves in her hair is Nimh 'Falconeye' Danu, best eyes in the Sword Coast. She's almost always in the crow's nest, part of the reason nobody can catch the Pearl. Rumor is her father was a noble, but she up and decided to take to sea aboard the Black Pearl rather than stay in Waterdeep. The young lady in the blue robes, the one Bootstrap has his arm around, is Annwn of Shadowdale. She's said to be a former apprentice of Elminster himself, though she soon grew tired of taking orders, and the lass Jack is kissing up on is Brid 'The Fox' Tuatha D'dannan. Not much is known about her except she's sly, swift, and nigh uncatchable. Said to be as good with a blade as yourself."
"Not likely!" Robillard scoffed, nearly choking on his wine.
"We will soon find out." The drow ranger stated grimly, marking the pirates well for the battle he knew would come. But neither he nor the good captain could act, not now. There was a very specific code of conduct for capturing pirates in Luskan, a city known for turning a blind eye on, even protecting the buccaneers that prowled her waters. They had to wait for proof of either profession or identity.
~*~*~*~
With her back to the bar, Brid was able to study Drizzt with the same intensity he and his companions studied her and her crew.
"Bloody hell..." she mumbled, taking a swig of rum. She nudged Nimh and pointed discreetly in the drow's direction, her expression dark.
"You have to be kidding me!" The golden eyed woman hissed in exasperation. "We got the Sea Sprite on our tails now?!"
"Seems like it." Brid grumbled. By now, Gibbs, Annwn and Will were also aware of the situation, but the captain continued to speak animatedly with the barkeep, Arumn Gardpeck, before noticing his Crew's forbidding silence. He turned to Brid, his expression curious.
"Why so glum, luv?" he asked, rum bottle in hand.
"Cap'n, the Sea Sprite's on to us!" Nimh pointed out irritably.
"Ah, but we've dealt with pirate hunters before." He said, not in the least bit concerned.
"Not like them, Jack." Brid admonished. "the drow an' his friends took out The Bloody Keel in *one* day!"
"So, That's what happened to ol' Sheila Kree." the captain mumbled, studying his rum bottle as if it would do something extraordinarily interesting at any given moment.
"Jack," Gibbs said warningly. "Them's the ones that took out Pinochet."
"But we're no friends of Pinochet!" the eccentric pirate captain pointed out triumphantly.
"What makes you think that'll matter to them. It hasn't before, Cap'n." Annwn pointed out derisively. Jack stared blankly around at them for a moment, though that didn't last long.
"Because, luv," Jack said, a sly grin spreading across his lips. "I'm *Captain* Jack Sparrow!"
The crew groaned slightly, hands flying to the hilts of their weapons as Jack grinned at them, not understanding their dismay until it was too late.
~*~*~*~