Upon a Painted Ocean - Part 6
Author: Daisy Sparrow
Pairing: Jack/Will, Will/Elizabeth
Rating: PG13 and rising
Summary: Jack is in pain, Will is confused, Elizabeth is cluless and Zeke really just want to do it right for once.
Disclaim: Pirate of the Caribbean isn't mine, I ain't making no money off of this, so don't sue. But Zeke is mine, touch him and die....or I'll put a voodoo curse on you. Credit for the title goes to P. Spear, who wrote the most wonderful Weiss Kreuz fic. Also special thanks for Darkdancer for the betaing.
Warning: Commodore Norrington finally make his entrance, and Elizabeth sounded really snotty in this one. I am not sure if Tortuga was British territory at the time. I am assuming it is for the sake of the story, I mean the English did pretty much own everything back then. Please R&R ^_^, otherwise there is no point in posting more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He could hear Elizabeth's demanding voice as he climbed the last few steps of the stair. "You know who attacked us, don't you? I saw you give Jack that medallion." Looked like the lass finally managed to corner Gibbs. "Well?" She put her arms on her hips.
"err...I...really don't know wha' ye are talking about, Miss. Elizabeth." She was starting to roll up her sleeves now.
He decided to take pity on the man. "Gibbs, I still need tha' supply report." Gibbs looked relieved and quickly made his exit. Elizabeth turned around and glared at Jack.
"Elizabeth, darling. Don't ye have other thin'gs to do?"
She took a step towards him, gritted her teeth and in a honeyed tone asked, "Jack, do you have something to tell me?"
He curled his finger around the braids in his goatee as if in deep thought. "Why, yes! Did ye know tha' sea water make yer breast shrink? Now if ye just le' me massage it wit' some sand an' oil...."
"JACK!" Her hands twitched. "I want...DEMAND to know who attacked us." Saw that he didn't budge, she tried a different tactic. She lowered both her shoulder and voice, "...please? I just want.... to know who has Will. And what are his chances..."
He sighed, leaned his back against the rail and motioned to the spot beside him. "They were subordinates of Edward Hensel Vann, the one who took yer medicine."
"...Vann, you mean he has more than one ship?" Her left hand twisted at the edge of her tunic.
"He is th' leader of the group called, Brotherhood of th' Hawks. They ar' not just pirates, they ar' also contract killers. They'd do all kind of dirty jobs: kidnappin'g, murder, robbery, anythin'g for money."
"So...in other words, someone else might be behind the abduction of that shipment."
"I don't see an'y use that a pirate would have with some herbs." Jack knocked his fingers against the wooden rail in a slow rhythm. "Ye can't do anythin'g for the lad now. If we catch up with Vann, th' rest of his gangs can't be far behind."
"You...know him?"
"By reputation only." That wasn't exactly a lie. He gave Elizabeth a quick glance. Her dread and anxiousness was becoming contagious. He rubbed his eyes tiredly.
The white house on the beach.
Fire.
Blood soaked the front of her dress.
Small hands grabbed his.
A hushed voice. Hide here.
His eyebrows knotted together in recognition. Beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. He decided a quick retreat would be in order.
"I know you are worried about him, too." Elizabeth said softly behind him, "I heard you called out his name last night."
He stiffened. "It's not weak to care about someone, Jack.... or to have friends." She told him.
She could not see his pain riddled eyes and did not hear his quiet whisper. "My friends all have th' bad habit of dying on me."
~~~*~~~
"You've made a pact with the devil."
Cane turned to Zeke as if noticeing him for the first time. "Is that your theory?" with an raised eyebrow he said, "do enlighten me."
"You smell like sulfur," Zeke deadpanned. "All devil worshippers smell like sulfur."
Cane paused then roared with laughter. "Ahhhaaa.....you are an interesting one as well." He inclined his head toward Will slightly, "you do attract the most fascinating people, Mr. Turner."
Will looked from Cane to Zeke; he didn't smell anything. Zeke was still staring at the priest intently; it was getting unnerving.
"Why are you doing this?" The question was out of his mouth before he could stop it. "What do you want out of all this?"
"What do I want?" There was a dangerous glitter in the priest's eyes, his cheek twitched and a low rumbling sound slowly began to surface from his chest. "What do I want. What is the highest pursuit of every man?"
"Freedom. The ultimate FREEDOM!" Cane's voice began to rise, the last word was almost a shout.
Will squirmed slightly in his restraints, the priest was making Jack Sparrow look like a sane and sensible man. "You...have freedom."
"NO! My freedom....our freedom is reflections of human actions and omissions. It is amended to social definitions. It is a mere shadow, a fragile illusion!!!" Cane was breathing heavily, his hands balled tightly at his sides. Will swallowed. After a few nerve wracking moment, Cane straightened his back and smoothed his white hair from his face. He gave a false polite smile towards Will.
"Well, as interesting as it might be. I am not here to discuss the philosophy of life." One well-manicured hand skimmed down Will's chest, an index finger hooked into the ring at the end of the silver chain. He brought the ring to Will's eye level and whispered.
"Tell me, boy. Do you know what this ring is?"
~~~*~~~
"Captain! we have a problem." Anamarie shouted from her place in the watch post on top of the main fan. Jack took out his telescope and looked toward the direction she pointed. There, in all her magnificence, was the Dauntless. Beside her, docked two smaller ships both with British flags; they were about the size of the Interceptor.
"Looks like it's yer old flame, lassie." He smirked at Elizabeth, "now, what would th' British navy be doin'g here?"
"Are we still going, captain?" Mr.Gibbs asked.
"We need those supplies. Bring her around, Gibbs. We will stop at the out rim of th' bay. Then split into small groups an' land by boats. Ye ar' with me, lassie."
Elizabeth's eyebrows were drew together in worry. "Is it wise....for you to go I mean. The empire still have a warrant on your head."
"This is Tortuga, th' island of th' pirates. The more cautious ye ar', the more suspicious ye'll be."
~~~*~~~
Fuck. Zeke cursed for the hundredth time inside his head. How could I have not known? How could I have not felt it? It was right beside me!!!
Will had been stealing worried glances at him ever since they were brought into this room. The blacksmith had tried to talk to him when the guards left. His mind was in pandemonium, and he hadn't bothered formulate a response. He had fidgeted back when his eyes caught the red glow of Will's ring. Goosebumps formed on the back of his arms in response to the mystical hue; he felt like a fly trapped helplessly in a spider's web.
Calm down. Take a deep breath. Just calm down.
Under normal circumstances, he would have been busily admiring the interior decoration. There were so many pretty and shiny....things. But at the moment, he couldn't stop the bile rising in his throat.
I am so fucked.
Due to ignorance....it has to be ignorance, Zeke did not want to entertain the other options. He had completely missed the presence of that accursed stone, or part of it anyway. Its magic had grown considerably weaker, and Zeke could only feel the tinniest repulsion, vibrating softly against his skin.
It's no big deal. It's just a useless piece of rock now.
He ground the heel of his boot into the wooden floor, in what Ursella had always called a 'juvenile' kind of way. I AM a juvenile, he had shouted back. He tried to steer his thoughts away from that depressing path.
The preacher had entered the room at sometime during his trip down the memory lane. He felt the fury slathered around Will, like a spiked armor, ready to strike. Halfheartedly, he directed his attention to the conversation.
"What do YOU think I've done?"
Isn't it obvious. "You've made a pact with the devil." But which one....I can sense the brand on him, but it's faint. Curious.
"Is that your theory. Do enlighten me."
"You smell like sulfur. All devil worshippers smell like sulfur." Ah, the sweet perfume of brimstone, I think I am getting home sick. The priest started guffawing his lungs out. All the crazy sorts found this type of activity essential. It's either a image thing or how they relieve stress, Zeke determined a long time ago, just like how a dog would hang out his tongue in hot weather. Then the priest started rambling about freedom. Talk about repressed, he snarled internally.
I'll grant you the ultimate freedom. Just say the magical word.
"Tell me, boy. Do you know what this ring is?"
Shit.
~~~*~~~
This, Elizabeth thought, had always been how she imagined a pirate captain would look like. Captain, or so he claimed, Johnson was perched on the stool in front of her. He had perfected the story book image down to the last detail. Great big beard. The peg leg. The eyepatch. The hook, which she suspected must be fake. And not to forget, the parrot, named Mrs. Phoebe, which is sitting on Johnson's shoulder and making very realistic gagging noises. The parrot was obviously not as dashing as Mr.Cotton's bird, whom she had affectionately dubbed 'blue tango'. This one was rather... round, Elizabeth observed, being naturally biased.
The pirate had been trying to woo her with his glamorous tales of adventure for the last hour, and was steadily edging his seat closer. After a large gulp of rum, he put his hand on top of her's and said in a sluggish voice, "..an' tha's how me lost me eye...." She held down the urge to introduce her fist to his other one. "Fascinating." She breathed out through clenched teeth.
Behind the pirate, Jack was swaggering towards her, two girls with colorfully painted faces were draping themselves all over him like some kind of squids with long tentacles. He stopped a few feet behind the other pirate, untangled himself from the girls. He then muttered a few excuses and waved disappointedly after the their retreating backs.
"Excu'se me..." He announced his presence. The pirate ignored him and continued to leer at Elizabeth. Jack shrugged and kicked the leg of the stool. The leg broke, took the pirate down with it to fall flat on his behind The pirate grumbled a few unintelligent words, and reached for his sword with his right hand, which quickly found itself to be the target of a descending heel. There was an audible crack. Jack smiled down at him sweetly.
"Do ye mind?"
"N....n...no....." The pirate answered through colorless lips and scrambled away on all fours.
Elizabeth watched the exchange with amusement. "I see you are in your natural element."
He gave her a dramatically little bow, "No one can resist th' charm of Captain Jack Sparrow."
"Certainly not the ladies." She pushed her glass away. It was still full, she hadn't wanted to test her luck.
"Certainly *not*."
A sigh. "Far be it from me to comment on your choice of companionship."
"Now, now, Elizabeth." Jack said in a rather patronizing tone. "Just because th' deed is upraised doesn't make it any less valiant. Wha' do you think would happen if there were shiploads of horny pirates runnin'g around."
"I can't imagine," She replied scarcely. "What have you found?"
"The ladies told me that th' navy was sent here to..... *reform* Tortuga." His tone clearly betrayed his view on the obscurity of the situation. "They also appeared to be lookin'g for someone."
"...oh, but nothing on Vann?"
"He didn't stop here."
"...what about the other ship?" Her hope was evident in her eyes.
"They wer' ahead of us. If they had been here, they are gone now."
"I see..."
"It would be best if we take our leave soon, th' crew ar' almost done with loadin'g the supplies."
"Yes, yes we should." She wanted to ask him to wait just a little while longer, there might just be something they missed....someone might have seen..... No. She told herself sternly. There was no point hanging on to false hope.
Jack gave a node to the bartender and offered Elizabeth his hand. She stood up reluctantly. Together they made through the messy crowd and toward the door. The last twilight just glided pass the rooftops. The street was beginning to blossom with drunkard, whores and the sound of night life. She paused at the door to adjust her jacket.
"Well, well, look what the cat dragged in."
Jack stopped at the taunting voice and the feeling of the barrel of a pistol at his temple. He turned his head a little and came face to face with Commodore Norrington.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author: Daisy Sparrow
Pairing: Jack/Will, Will/Elizabeth
Rating: PG13 and rising
Summary: Jack is in pain, Will is confused, Elizabeth is cluless and Zeke really just want to do it right for once.
Disclaim: Pirate of the Caribbean isn't mine, I ain't making no money off of this, so don't sue. But Zeke is mine, touch him and die....or I'll put a voodoo curse on you. Credit for the title goes to P. Spear, who wrote the most wonderful Weiss Kreuz fic. Also special thanks for Darkdancer for the betaing.
Warning: Commodore Norrington finally make his entrance, and Elizabeth sounded really snotty in this one. I am not sure if Tortuga was British territory at the time. I am assuming it is for the sake of the story, I mean the English did pretty much own everything back then. Please R&R ^_^, otherwise there is no point in posting more.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
He could hear Elizabeth's demanding voice as he climbed the last few steps of the stair. "You know who attacked us, don't you? I saw you give Jack that medallion." Looked like the lass finally managed to corner Gibbs. "Well?" She put her arms on her hips.
"err...I...really don't know wha' ye are talking about, Miss. Elizabeth." She was starting to roll up her sleeves now.
He decided to take pity on the man. "Gibbs, I still need tha' supply report." Gibbs looked relieved and quickly made his exit. Elizabeth turned around and glared at Jack.
"Elizabeth, darling. Don't ye have other thin'gs to do?"
She took a step towards him, gritted her teeth and in a honeyed tone asked, "Jack, do you have something to tell me?"
He curled his finger around the braids in his goatee as if in deep thought. "Why, yes! Did ye know tha' sea water make yer breast shrink? Now if ye just le' me massage it wit' some sand an' oil...."
"JACK!" Her hands twitched. "I want...DEMAND to know who attacked us." Saw that he didn't budge, she tried a different tactic. She lowered both her shoulder and voice, "...please? I just want.... to know who has Will. And what are his chances..."
He sighed, leaned his back against the rail and motioned to the spot beside him. "They were subordinates of Edward Hensel Vann, the one who took yer medicine."
"...Vann, you mean he has more than one ship?" Her left hand twisted at the edge of her tunic.
"He is th' leader of the group called, Brotherhood of th' Hawks. They ar' not just pirates, they ar' also contract killers. They'd do all kind of dirty jobs: kidnappin'g, murder, robbery, anythin'g for money."
"So...in other words, someone else might be behind the abduction of that shipment."
"I don't see an'y use that a pirate would have with some herbs." Jack knocked his fingers against the wooden rail in a slow rhythm. "Ye can't do anythin'g for the lad now. If we catch up with Vann, th' rest of his gangs can't be far behind."
"You...know him?"
"By reputation only." That wasn't exactly a lie. He gave Elizabeth a quick glance. Her dread and anxiousness was becoming contagious. He rubbed his eyes tiredly.
The white house on the beach.
Fire.
Blood soaked the front of her dress.
Small hands grabbed his.
A hushed voice. Hide here.
His eyebrows knotted together in recognition. Beads of sweat began to form on his forehead. He decided a quick retreat would be in order.
"I know you are worried about him, too." Elizabeth said softly behind him, "I heard you called out his name last night."
He stiffened. "It's not weak to care about someone, Jack.... or to have friends." She told him.
She could not see his pain riddled eyes and did not hear his quiet whisper. "My friends all have th' bad habit of dying on me."
~~~*~~~
"You've made a pact with the devil."
Cane turned to Zeke as if noticeing him for the first time. "Is that your theory?" with an raised eyebrow he said, "do enlighten me."
"You smell like sulfur," Zeke deadpanned. "All devil worshippers smell like sulfur."
Cane paused then roared with laughter. "Ahhhaaa.....you are an interesting one as well." He inclined his head toward Will slightly, "you do attract the most fascinating people, Mr. Turner."
Will looked from Cane to Zeke; he didn't smell anything. Zeke was still staring at the priest intently; it was getting unnerving.
"Why are you doing this?" The question was out of his mouth before he could stop it. "What do you want out of all this?"
"What do I want?" There was a dangerous glitter in the priest's eyes, his cheek twitched and a low rumbling sound slowly began to surface from his chest. "What do I want. What is the highest pursuit of every man?"
"Freedom. The ultimate FREEDOM!" Cane's voice began to rise, the last word was almost a shout.
Will squirmed slightly in his restraints, the priest was making Jack Sparrow look like a sane and sensible man. "You...have freedom."
"NO! My freedom....our freedom is reflections of human actions and omissions. It is amended to social definitions. It is a mere shadow, a fragile illusion!!!" Cane was breathing heavily, his hands balled tightly at his sides. Will swallowed. After a few nerve wracking moment, Cane straightened his back and smoothed his white hair from his face. He gave a false polite smile towards Will.
"Well, as interesting as it might be. I am not here to discuss the philosophy of life." One well-manicured hand skimmed down Will's chest, an index finger hooked into the ring at the end of the silver chain. He brought the ring to Will's eye level and whispered.
"Tell me, boy. Do you know what this ring is?"
~~~*~~~
"Captain! we have a problem." Anamarie shouted from her place in the watch post on top of the main fan. Jack took out his telescope and looked toward the direction she pointed. There, in all her magnificence, was the Dauntless. Beside her, docked two smaller ships both with British flags; they were about the size of the Interceptor.
"Looks like it's yer old flame, lassie." He smirked at Elizabeth, "now, what would th' British navy be doin'g here?"
"Are we still going, captain?" Mr.Gibbs asked.
"We need those supplies. Bring her around, Gibbs. We will stop at the out rim of th' bay. Then split into small groups an' land by boats. Ye ar' with me, lassie."
Elizabeth's eyebrows were drew together in worry. "Is it wise....for you to go I mean. The empire still have a warrant on your head."
"This is Tortuga, th' island of th' pirates. The more cautious ye ar', the more suspicious ye'll be."
~~~*~~~
Fuck. Zeke cursed for the hundredth time inside his head. How could I have not known? How could I have not felt it? It was right beside me!!!
Will had been stealing worried glances at him ever since they were brought into this room. The blacksmith had tried to talk to him when the guards left. His mind was in pandemonium, and he hadn't bothered formulate a response. He had fidgeted back when his eyes caught the red glow of Will's ring. Goosebumps formed on the back of his arms in response to the mystical hue; he felt like a fly trapped helplessly in a spider's web.
Calm down. Take a deep breath. Just calm down.
Under normal circumstances, he would have been busily admiring the interior decoration. There were so many pretty and shiny....things. But at the moment, he couldn't stop the bile rising in his throat.
I am so fucked.
Due to ignorance....it has to be ignorance, Zeke did not want to entertain the other options. He had completely missed the presence of that accursed stone, or part of it anyway. Its magic had grown considerably weaker, and Zeke could only feel the tinniest repulsion, vibrating softly against his skin.
It's no big deal. It's just a useless piece of rock now.
He ground the heel of his boot into the wooden floor, in what Ursella had always called a 'juvenile' kind of way. I AM a juvenile, he had shouted back. He tried to steer his thoughts away from that depressing path.
The preacher had entered the room at sometime during his trip down the memory lane. He felt the fury slathered around Will, like a spiked armor, ready to strike. Halfheartedly, he directed his attention to the conversation.
"What do YOU think I've done?"
Isn't it obvious. "You've made a pact with the devil." But which one....I can sense the brand on him, but it's faint. Curious.
"Is that your theory. Do enlighten me."
"You smell like sulfur. All devil worshippers smell like sulfur." Ah, the sweet perfume of brimstone, I think I am getting home sick. The priest started guffawing his lungs out. All the crazy sorts found this type of activity essential. It's either a image thing or how they relieve stress, Zeke determined a long time ago, just like how a dog would hang out his tongue in hot weather. Then the priest started rambling about freedom. Talk about repressed, he snarled internally.
I'll grant you the ultimate freedom. Just say the magical word.
"Tell me, boy. Do you know what this ring is?"
Shit.
~~~*~~~
This, Elizabeth thought, had always been how she imagined a pirate captain would look like. Captain, or so he claimed, Johnson was perched on the stool in front of her. He had perfected the story book image down to the last detail. Great big beard. The peg leg. The eyepatch. The hook, which she suspected must be fake. And not to forget, the parrot, named Mrs. Phoebe, which is sitting on Johnson's shoulder and making very realistic gagging noises. The parrot was obviously not as dashing as Mr.Cotton's bird, whom she had affectionately dubbed 'blue tango'. This one was rather... round, Elizabeth observed, being naturally biased.
The pirate had been trying to woo her with his glamorous tales of adventure for the last hour, and was steadily edging his seat closer. After a large gulp of rum, he put his hand on top of her's and said in a sluggish voice, "..an' tha's how me lost me eye...." She held down the urge to introduce her fist to his other one. "Fascinating." She breathed out through clenched teeth.
Behind the pirate, Jack was swaggering towards her, two girls with colorfully painted faces were draping themselves all over him like some kind of squids with long tentacles. He stopped a few feet behind the other pirate, untangled himself from the girls. He then muttered a few excuses and waved disappointedly after the their retreating backs.
"Excu'se me..." He announced his presence. The pirate ignored him and continued to leer at Elizabeth. Jack shrugged and kicked the leg of the stool. The leg broke, took the pirate down with it to fall flat on his behind The pirate grumbled a few unintelligent words, and reached for his sword with his right hand, which quickly found itself to be the target of a descending heel. There was an audible crack. Jack smiled down at him sweetly.
"Do ye mind?"
"N....n...no....." The pirate answered through colorless lips and scrambled away on all fours.
Elizabeth watched the exchange with amusement. "I see you are in your natural element."
He gave her a dramatically little bow, "No one can resist th' charm of Captain Jack Sparrow."
"Certainly not the ladies." She pushed her glass away. It was still full, she hadn't wanted to test her luck.
"Certainly *not*."
A sigh. "Far be it from me to comment on your choice of companionship."
"Now, now, Elizabeth." Jack said in a rather patronizing tone. "Just because th' deed is upraised doesn't make it any less valiant. Wha' do you think would happen if there were shiploads of horny pirates runnin'g around."
"I can't imagine," She replied scarcely. "What have you found?"
"The ladies told me that th' navy was sent here to..... *reform* Tortuga." His tone clearly betrayed his view on the obscurity of the situation. "They also appeared to be lookin'g for someone."
"...oh, but nothing on Vann?"
"He didn't stop here."
"...what about the other ship?" Her hope was evident in her eyes.
"They wer' ahead of us. If they had been here, they are gone now."
"I see..."
"It would be best if we take our leave soon, th' crew ar' almost done with loadin'g the supplies."
"Yes, yes we should." She wanted to ask him to wait just a little while longer, there might just be something they missed....someone might have seen..... No. She told herself sternly. There was no point hanging on to false hope.
Jack gave a node to the bartender and offered Elizabeth his hand. She stood up reluctantly. Together they made through the messy crowd and toward the door. The last twilight just glided pass the rooftops. The street was beginning to blossom with drunkard, whores and the sound of night life. She paused at the door to adjust her jacket.
"Well, well, look what the cat dragged in."
Jack stopped at the taunting voice and the feeling of the barrel of a pistol at his temple. He turned his head a little and came face to face with Commodore Norrington.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~