So, a moment of silence for how wonderful my reviewers are. The fact that
you followed over from my other story makes me feel
Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreat!!! I love you guys so much and appreciate everything
you have to say. You guys are my fuel. The more you say, the more my
imagination goes wild and I could write forever. I've already got the
whole premise of the sequel worked out.
Now for some house cleaning. After our last chapter jackfan2 has requested a punishment, compliments of our favorite captain. Wish granted. Jack sends word that he will meet you down at the Faithful Bride tonight at 8:00. Wear something comfortable.
A warning for captainsparrowfeistylass. Sad chapter ahead, but with all promises that it will get cheery soon. And PineAppleLint, I think Julianne would appreciate if we spent more time on Jack's mishaps than on hers, but perhaps she needs to be humbled.
Thanks again all!!!
****************************************************************************
For most of the following day, Julianne and Jack let Dipst and some of the younger sailors steer the ship while they went over the things they wanted to buy in Port Royale and other various matters. Around dinner time, while Jack went down to dinner with the Turners, Julianne went up to the helm where she found Dipst.
"I'll take 'er for awhile mate, go get yerself somethin to eat."
The first mate nodded and obeyed, heading for the galley as fast as his legs would carry him. Julianne stood at the helm alone for awhile, guiding the ship through the calm waters as the breeze blew softly in her face and through her hair. Gazing out over the decks of her ships, she smiled to herself at all the young sailors milling around, talking and laughing with each other. Among them were Will and Elizabeth just up from dinner, who by now had assimilated so well into the group they could almost be sailors themselves. Almost.
Upon noticing the captain's presence at the helm as opposed to Dipst, Elizabeth quickly abandoned the scene on the main deck and headed up to the helm anxious to hear more about Jack and Juli's adventures.
"How about finishing that conversation then", she said cheerily as she reached Julianne.
"We seem to be missin a few people doncha think", she asked with a grin.
"Ehh, we can live without them", Elizabeth responded with a laugh.
"Well, what d'ye want to know then?"
"I don't know, anything."
"Fine, then how bout this. You tell me yer favorite from yesterday and I'll stick to those kinda stories."
Elizabeth examined her for a moment, unsure of whether she should really say which she liked best.
"Go on then", Julianne prompted, sensing her insecurity.
"Well, my favorite was the last one."
Julianne sighed, she had expected that answer. "Hopeless romantics the lot o' you", she said with a huff.
"It was sweet is all. But if you don't want to stick to those kinds of stories that's fine", Elizabeth reassured. "I just never would have expected something like that from Jack."
"Well, as much as I hate to give him the credit, when it comes to things like that, Jack is very reliable", Julianne responded.
"How do you mean?"
"There hasn't been a single time he wasn't there when I needed him. Even when I was a jerk to him or he was an ass to me."
"Really?"
"Yes really", Julianne retorted matter-of-factly. At this, Elizabeth did not go further. Not meaning to have been so harsh with her last comment, Julianne continued in hopes of making up to it.
"Ye want to know what happened next?"
Elizabeth looked at her questioningly.
"I mean after Jack and I parted ways."
Elizabeth nodded, and Julianne sighed.
"Well let's see. After out little bout out at sea, I took me crew on quite a little excursion. We hit up some of the lesser travel islands then headed over to Europe for a bit o' fun. Was about seven or eight months before we headed back to Tortuga."
~~~
The Renegade pulled into Tortuga after a several month exploit that had taken the crew all the way to Europe and back. It had been a successful campaign, and the ship's stockhold at Santa Croix bulged to capacity. The crew was satisfied and content at the moment, happy over their recent success and relieved to be returning home after so long. All thoroughly exhausted, they looked forward to spending some time on land, and to fretting away their earnings on some of their favored pastimes.
Looking around, Julianne was not surprised to find several other ships docked in the harbor. It was approaching storm season, and in light of this most captains were wisely beginning to pull their ships into harbor for extended stay. This was Tortuga's busiest and most profitable time of the year. It was also its most dangerous, the population nearly quadrupling its normal numbers, notoriously leading to increased violence and conflict.
Surveying available docking space within the harbor, Julianne settled on a spot large enough to dock the enormous ship easily, and pulled her into place. It was also located conveniently far from the Black Pearl. It had been 7 months since she had last seen Jack. Seven months since she sailed away from him, leaving him with naught but a name and a note. He had followed her, but to no avail. In the end, the reason for the Renegade's long journey was not so much for riches and reputation, but for her to escape and forget the other captain.
"Have fun boys", she yelled to the crew as they finished up their tasks and assembled on the main deck in front of her. "And you too ladies", she added with a wink for her two female sailors. With no immediate future plans there was no need for further orders and just as soon as Dipst settled issues over the guard schedule, the crew ran madly for the shore. Laughing to herself at their sheer immaturity, Julianne headed down to her cabin where she changed clothes and threw some things into a bag before un- boarding.
She walked slowly down the dock, in no particular hurry, and wondered to herself where Jack could be at the moment. A part of her wanted very much to avoid running into him at all. Not likely on such a small island, but after seven months she had successfully managed to deceive herself into believing that she no longer cared about him and wanted to keep it that way. Of course though, there was always that other part of her that desperately hoped and knew she would eventually run into him. Annoyed at herself, she quickly pushed these thoughts out of her mind as she began the ascent up the hill to where her and her father's house stood.
When she finally reached 'Number 13 on the Hill', she scanned the house's exterior with suspicious eyes. Something was amiss. She couldn't quite put her finger on it but something was definitely not right. Rummaging around in her pocket frantically, she pulled out the skeleton key which opened the front door. Stepping inside she called loudly for her father.
"Dad! Dad ye here?"
No answer. *Must be down at the tavern* she thought to herself, though for some reason she did not believe it. Looking around, she was surprised to find everything perfectly in its place, and a thin layer of dust coating the entire place. Her heart beginning to pound furiously, she dropped her bag and ran to every room in the house only to find the same thing. Coming back out into the kitchen, she found an envelope sitting on the table bearing her ship's emblem. Having not noticed it earlier, she now tore it open wildly. Inside she found a set of folded papers which she promptly tore into also. It was her father's will.
Julianne's eyes grew wide with shock as she learned that he had left everything to her. On the last page of the packet she found a letter from her father, and read it as tears began spilling from her eyes.
My darling Julianne-
If you are reading this, then unfortunately I am no
longer with you. Not long after you sailed from
Tortuga I took very ill. As we both know, there are
no doctors here, but thankfully Anamaria's mother
has been taking care of me these last few weeks.
There is much I wish to say to you my daughter,
far more than I could ever express in this letter.
But above all I want you to know that I am very
proud of you. You have worked your way up from
the very lowest depths of life, never once letting
anyone tell you that you could not achieve your
dreams because you were a woman. I love you
very much darling, but remember that I will always
be with you.
-Your Father
"Take what you can, Give nothing back!" -R-
As she finished the letter, all of Julianne's composure was lost. The stern demeanor that she typically bore collapsed into a fit of bawling and rage. Before she knew it, Julianne was no longer standing next to the kitchen table, but instead was moving throughout the house toppling furniture and destroying everything in sight. She cried uncontrollably, threw things across the room, and occasionally punched the wall. In the middle of the living room she tore a huge tapestry with a ship woven onto it from the wall and proceeded to punch out the window that it covered with her fist.
Bleeding from the broken glass, Julianne suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her tightly, pinning her arms down to her sides. Turning to look over her shoulder, she caught a glimpse of Jack, but knew who it was even before them from touch and smell alone. She screamed, and struggled to break free but his grip only tightened around her. Thrashing in a wild rage, her efforts were thwarted when Jack pushed forward and they both landed hard on the ground.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING? LET GO OF ME!", she screamed and kicked.
Jack now wrapped his legs around hers leaving her almost completely immobile.
"JACK SPARROW, GET OFF OF ME THIS INSTANT!"
"Not until you calm the hell down", he answered firmly.
"CALM DOWN? YOU EXPECT ME TO BE CALM?"
"No", he said grabbing her by the chin and pulling her face to look at his. "But destroying everything ye own isn't going to make it any better."
She opened her mouth to argue, but closed it knowing he was right. Defeated, she rolled herself over, buried her head in his chest and cried until she had no tears left.
"I didn't even get to say goodbye", she sobbed.
"Shh. I know luv, I know", he soothed.
For who knows how long, the two of them lay there on the floor, Jack holding her close and running his fingers through her hair until she fell asleep. After that, he gently picked her up and carried her to her bed, then spent the night in the room's rocking chair watching over her.
***
Julianne awoke the next morning feeling awful. She had a headache, and dark circles under her eyes that stung from her salty tears. Rolling over, she found Jack still in his chair watching her. Slowly getting out of bed, she dragged herself over to where he sat. He looked up at her questioningly but did not speak, unsure of what to expect all things considered. Without a word, Julianne sat herself down on his lap, straddling his body, and wrapped her arms around his neck. Putting her face against his so that their noses touched, she kissed him lightly on the lips then rested her head on his shoulder.
"Thank you", she whispered softly into his ear. In response, Jack pulled her close, and any doubts either of them had about their future were soon forgotten.
~~~
Julianne finished her story in barely a whisper. Elizabeth looked from her to Will, who had joined them in mid-story.
"What are we all so somber about?" Jack's quirky voice sounded, breaking the awkward.
"Just continuing with our conversation from last night", Elizabeth answered.
"Without me?"
"Don't take it personal Jack, they started without me too", Will reassured with a laugh.
"Well then, what did I miss?"
"You 'aven't missed a thing", Julianne answered when both Turners fell silent. "Where would ye like to start then Cap'n Sparrow?"
Now for some house cleaning. After our last chapter jackfan2 has requested a punishment, compliments of our favorite captain. Wish granted. Jack sends word that he will meet you down at the Faithful Bride tonight at 8:00. Wear something comfortable.
A warning for captainsparrowfeistylass. Sad chapter ahead, but with all promises that it will get cheery soon. And PineAppleLint, I think Julianne would appreciate if we spent more time on Jack's mishaps than on hers, but perhaps she needs to be humbled.
Thanks again all!!!
****************************************************************************
For most of the following day, Julianne and Jack let Dipst and some of the younger sailors steer the ship while they went over the things they wanted to buy in Port Royale and other various matters. Around dinner time, while Jack went down to dinner with the Turners, Julianne went up to the helm where she found Dipst.
"I'll take 'er for awhile mate, go get yerself somethin to eat."
The first mate nodded and obeyed, heading for the galley as fast as his legs would carry him. Julianne stood at the helm alone for awhile, guiding the ship through the calm waters as the breeze blew softly in her face and through her hair. Gazing out over the decks of her ships, she smiled to herself at all the young sailors milling around, talking and laughing with each other. Among them were Will and Elizabeth just up from dinner, who by now had assimilated so well into the group they could almost be sailors themselves. Almost.
Upon noticing the captain's presence at the helm as opposed to Dipst, Elizabeth quickly abandoned the scene on the main deck and headed up to the helm anxious to hear more about Jack and Juli's adventures.
"How about finishing that conversation then", she said cheerily as she reached Julianne.
"We seem to be missin a few people doncha think", she asked with a grin.
"Ehh, we can live without them", Elizabeth responded with a laugh.
"Well, what d'ye want to know then?"
"I don't know, anything."
"Fine, then how bout this. You tell me yer favorite from yesterday and I'll stick to those kinda stories."
Elizabeth examined her for a moment, unsure of whether she should really say which she liked best.
"Go on then", Julianne prompted, sensing her insecurity.
"Well, my favorite was the last one."
Julianne sighed, she had expected that answer. "Hopeless romantics the lot o' you", she said with a huff.
"It was sweet is all. But if you don't want to stick to those kinds of stories that's fine", Elizabeth reassured. "I just never would have expected something like that from Jack."
"Well, as much as I hate to give him the credit, when it comes to things like that, Jack is very reliable", Julianne responded.
"How do you mean?"
"There hasn't been a single time he wasn't there when I needed him. Even when I was a jerk to him or he was an ass to me."
"Really?"
"Yes really", Julianne retorted matter-of-factly. At this, Elizabeth did not go further. Not meaning to have been so harsh with her last comment, Julianne continued in hopes of making up to it.
"Ye want to know what happened next?"
Elizabeth looked at her questioningly.
"I mean after Jack and I parted ways."
Elizabeth nodded, and Julianne sighed.
"Well let's see. After out little bout out at sea, I took me crew on quite a little excursion. We hit up some of the lesser travel islands then headed over to Europe for a bit o' fun. Was about seven or eight months before we headed back to Tortuga."
~~~
The Renegade pulled into Tortuga after a several month exploit that had taken the crew all the way to Europe and back. It had been a successful campaign, and the ship's stockhold at Santa Croix bulged to capacity. The crew was satisfied and content at the moment, happy over their recent success and relieved to be returning home after so long. All thoroughly exhausted, they looked forward to spending some time on land, and to fretting away their earnings on some of their favored pastimes.
Looking around, Julianne was not surprised to find several other ships docked in the harbor. It was approaching storm season, and in light of this most captains were wisely beginning to pull their ships into harbor for extended stay. This was Tortuga's busiest and most profitable time of the year. It was also its most dangerous, the population nearly quadrupling its normal numbers, notoriously leading to increased violence and conflict.
Surveying available docking space within the harbor, Julianne settled on a spot large enough to dock the enormous ship easily, and pulled her into place. It was also located conveniently far from the Black Pearl. It had been 7 months since she had last seen Jack. Seven months since she sailed away from him, leaving him with naught but a name and a note. He had followed her, but to no avail. In the end, the reason for the Renegade's long journey was not so much for riches and reputation, but for her to escape and forget the other captain.
"Have fun boys", she yelled to the crew as they finished up their tasks and assembled on the main deck in front of her. "And you too ladies", she added with a wink for her two female sailors. With no immediate future plans there was no need for further orders and just as soon as Dipst settled issues over the guard schedule, the crew ran madly for the shore. Laughing to herself at their sheer immaturity, Julianne headed down to her cabin where she changed clothes and threw some things into a bag before un- boarding.
She walked slowly down the dock, in no particular hurry, and wondered to herself where Jack could be at the moment. A part of her wanted very much to avoid running into him at all. Not likely on such a small island, but after seven months she had successfully managed to deceive herself into believing that she no longer cared about him and wanted to keep it that way. Of course though, there was always that other part of her that desperately hoped and knew she would eventually run into him. Annoyed at herself, she quickly pushed these thoughts out of her mind as she began the ascent up the hill to where her and her father's house stood.
When she finally reached 'Number 13 on the Hill', she scanned the house's exterior with suspicious eyes. Something was amiss. She couldn't quite put her finger on it but something was definitely not right. Rummaging around in her pocket frantically, she pulled out the skeleton key which opened the front door. Stepping inside she called loudly for her father.
"Dad! Dad ye here?"
No answer. *Must be down at the tavern* she thought to herself, though for some reason she did not believe it. Looking around, she was surprised to find everything perfectly in its place, and a thin layer of dust coating the entire place. Her heart beginning to pound furiously, she dropped her bag and ran to every room in the house only to find the same thing. Coming back out into the kitchen, she found an envelope sitting on the table bearing her ship's emblem. Having not noticed it earlier, she now tore it open wildly. Inside she found a set of folded papers which she promptly tore into also. It was her father's will.
Julianne's eyes grew wide with shock as she learned that he had left everything to her. On the last page of the packet she found a letter from her father, and read it as tears began spilling from her eyes.
My darling Julianne-
If you are reading this, then unfortunately I am no
longer with you. Not long after you sailed from
Tortuga I took very ill. As we both know, there are
no doctors here, but thankfully Anamaria's mother
has been taking care of me these last few weeks.
There is much I wish to say to you my daughter,
far more than I could ever express in this letter.
But above all I want you to know that I am very
proud of you. You have worked your way up from
the very lowest depths of life, never once letting
anyone tell you that you could not achieve your
dreams because you were a woman. I love you
very much darling, but remember that I will always
be with you.
-Your Father
"Take what you can, Give nothing back!" -R-
As she finished the letter, all of Julianne's composure was lost. The stern demeanor that she typically bore collapsed into a fit of bawling and rage. Before she knew it, Julianne was no longer standing next to the kitchen table, but instead was moving throughout the house toppling furniture and destroying everything in sight. She cried uncontrollably, threw things across the room, and occasionally punched the wall. In the middle of the living room she tore a huge tapestry with a ship woven onto it from the wall and proceeded to punch out the window that it covered with her fist.
Bleeding from the broken glass, Julianne suddenly felt a pair of arms wrap around her tightly, pinning her arms down to her sides. Turning to look over her shoulder, she caught a glimpse of Jack, but knew who it was even before them from touch and smell alone. She screamed, and struggled to break free but his grip only tightened around her. Thrashing in a wild rage, her efforts were thwarted when Jack pushed forward and they both landed hard on the ground.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING? LET GO OF ME!", she screamed and kicked.
Jack now wrapped his legs around hers leaving her almost completely immobile.
"JACK SPARROW, GET OFF OF ME THIS INSTANT!"
"Not until you calm the hell down", he answered firmly.
"CALM DOWN? YOU EXPECT ME TO BE CALM?"
"No", he said grabbing her by the chin and pulling her face to look at his. "But destroying everything ye own isn't going to make it any better."
She opened her mouth to argue, but closed it knowing he was right. Defeated, she rolled herself over, buried her head in his chest and cried until she had no tears left.
"I didn't even get to say goodbye", she sobbed.
"Shh. I know luv, I know", he soothed.
For who knows how long, the two of them lay there on the floor, Jack holding her close and running his fingers through her hair until she fell asleep. After that, he gently picked her up and carried her to her bed, then spent the night in the room's rocking chair watching over her.
***
Julianne awoke the next morning feeling awful. She had a headache, and dark circles under her eyes that stung from her salty tears. Rolling over, she found Jack still in his chair watching her. Slowly getting out of bed, she dragged herself over to where he sat. He looked up at her questioningly but did not speak, unsure of what to expect all things considered. Without a word, Julianne sat herself down on his lap, straddling his body, and wrapped her arms around his neck. Putting her face against his so that their noses touched, she kissed him lightly on the lips then rested her head on his shoulder.
"Thank you", she whispered softly into his ear. In response, Jack pulled her close, and any doubts either of them had about their future were soon forgotten.
~~~
Julianne finished her story in barely a whisper. Elizabeth looked from her to Will, who had joined them in mid-story.
"What are we all so somber about?" Jack's quirky voice sounded, breaking the awkward.
"Just continuing with our conversation from last night", Elizabeth answered.
"Without me?"
"Don't take it personal Jack, they started without me too", Will reassured with a laugh.
"Well then, what did I miss?"
"You 'aven't missed a thing", Julianne answered when both Turners fell silent. "Where would ye like to start then Cap'n Sparrow?"