Disclaimer: Same as before, mates!
A/N: Me again! Nothing much going on except watching PotC many times over on my computer (joy!). Hot, hot, hot Captain Jack Sparrow (drool). I've been reading two REALLY good PotC angst stories and LOVE to do angst as well but I've been trying really hard to keep this one a bit more peaceful and humorous. Let's see how it goes shall we?
::Jukia Wolfcall:: Don't worry. Jack isn't thinking about "Brian" in that sort of way (not that there's anything wrong with that) it's just that he prefers the opposite gender in my story.
::Eradwyn:: Yo Ho Ho, A Pirate's Life for Me, and Fifteen Men on a Dead Man's Chest are two different songs (and you were right, Elizabeth did teach Jack the first one on that island).
::Brandyllyn:: Thanks for the info on Bo'sun, I would've never known that due to being a landlubber all my life :)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Cursed Souls
"The gold in the ch… chest was under umm… w…wa…"
"Water."
"Oh right." Jack quickly found his spot on the parchment again and traced the bold lettering with one ringed finger. "The gold be… beeelonged to the pirate." He grinned at Brianna. "That bugger better not touch the gold. Nothin' worse than a scallywag stealin' another pirate's hard found treasure that's for sure, eh?" he said referring to the character Brianna had made up in her head for the Captain to read about.
They had been reading verses for over an hour now, Bri amazed at just how much Jack had improved over the last week with her tutoring. For the first three days she had been sure that the pirate captain had not even been listening to her while she had gone over the basic alphabet, pronouncing the sounds each letter made and making him trace over the letters that she had scrawled out on some loose paper they had found among the odds and ends in the cargo hold. Jack had seem distant and uninterested in her little lessons, having either stared out of the window in his room or paced about the floor while coddling a bottle of rum. She had almost given up hope for him until on the forth day Jack had surprised and shocked her by writing out what he had wanted for dinner that night in complete sentences. Brianna had held the paper in one hand giving him a perplexed look. Jack had merely given her another one of those confident grins and shrugged his shoulders, telling her that he had a knack for picking up on things quickly.
Quickly wasn't really the best term he should have used, more like 'at an insane rate' fit better. Sure his writing was a bit crude and there were a few spelling errors but it was quite legible. Brianna had noticed, with some humor, that Jack had replaced the my in 'for my dinner' with a me, but she decided against correcting him. There was nothing in her outline of duties telling her to teach the Captain grammar skills as well as the basics.
"Are you sure you didn't know how to read and write before my lessons?" she asked him as he completed yet another paragraph with only a few minor problems.
"Aye. The only thing I knew how to write before was me own name," he told her. "That and numbers."
"Keep this up and you won't be needing my help anymore," she mumbled, half to herself and half to Jack.
"But by then you'll have turned pirate for your sake," he replied nonchalantly continuing to draw out rough letters with the quill pen she had fashioned. "Otherwise you'll be findin' yourself adrift on the ocean or alone in some port, wherever I decide to put you that's not an inconvenience to me."
Finally he had mentioned the fear that had been gnawing away at the back of her mind for the past while. Good news only lasted so long before it was followed by the harsher reality of her situation. Pirates didn't take on lowly stowaway boys just out of the goodness of their own hearts, there was always a profit to be made out of their actions no matter how small they seemed.
"There's no place on the Pearl for a free ride and the chores you do now lad were getting done long before you came along, savvy?" he said with a gold toothed grin.
"Aye, Captain."
Jack didn't miss the flicker of fear in the lad's big eyes and knew it was the fear that would be the final motivation to make his young cabin boy prove himself and become a full fledged pirate; one that Jack as well as the rest of his crew acknowledged.
"Good, we understand each other then."
Of course there was always the fact that the lad knew how to speak those other languages but translators could be found at almost every port for a few silver coins so it wasn't as if Brain was indispensable to the Black Pearl.
A rap on the door interrupted the two from the lesson and Bootstrap poked his head in.
"Captain, Barbosa spotted a plantation a few leagues off the starboard side. Shall we pay them a little visit this fine evening?" he waggled his eyebrows in anticipation. Jack lazily got to his feet and stretched his hands over his head, earning a loud crack from his back. He slapped his triangular hat over his matted black hair and stood in front of Brianna with a smirk showing off the metal fillings in his mouth.
"There's no time like the present to begin proving yourself, eh lad?"
Brianna jumped to her feet, her hand enclosing the handle of the dirk nestled in her belt eagerly awaiting his next words.
"First lesson of bein' a pirate," he said picking up his pistol and placing it within the sash at his waist, "is plunderin' on unsuspecting folk." Jack turned to Bill. "Ready the cannons incase we be needin' them and snuff out all manners of light, we're goin' in silently."
"Yes sir!" Bootstrap ran off to give the orders to the rest of the crew, Brianna tailing him after getting a nod from Jack for her to leave. As soon as she set foot outside his cabin she was swept up in the excitement of the preparations for their attack. No one spoke though above a whisper as the few torches scattered around the Pearl were extinguished with seawater casting the ship into darkness, the only light coming through the thin haze of clouds covering the quarter moon. The water lapped softly against the hull as the distance between the Black Pearl and the small island homestead shortened. Brianna clung to a side railing, leaning over the dark water watching the plantation buildings for any signs of movement. All seemed quiet on the island, the residents most likely finishing their evening meals and readying for bed. No one was out surveying the surrounding ocean for threats; a plus for the pirates.
Brianna felt a hand on her shoulder and she turned to see Bill standing next to her. He handed her a pistol,
"That there little blade of yours won't be doin' ye' much good in a fight." The weapon felt abnormally heavy in her small hand and Bri swallowed hard at the thought of using it on anyone. She stuck it in her sash beside the knife and murmured a soft thanks.
"You'll be goin' in after the mates in the first boat are done. Safety precautions and all since you're still fresh at our game. Then you'll be free to grab a hold of any loot you come across and bring it back to the boats."
"What kind of loot? Coins?"
"Basically anything shiny, lad." Bill grinned, exposing a set of perfectly white teeth. "You come from a wealthy background; you should know what's valuable and such. Just remember though as soon as the horn sounds you be back on the boats quick as lightning. Any pirate that falls behind gets left behind."
Oh yes, can't forget the pirate code now can I? she thought dryly. She had no intention of falling under that particular part of the code just because she was the newest and youngest member of the crew, left behind to face the anger of the plantation owners once the skirmish was over and of course the ever present threat of a noose around her neck.
Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Jack had reclaimed position at the Pearl's wheel with Barbosa at his side. He signaled orders to his men to launch the boats, the ship having reached the closest possible distance without it becoming too visible to the island folk. This would be a quick hit and run venture mainly to restock on fresh drinking water and food and add a few more valuable trinkets to their already full hold and Jack really didn't feel like postponing their little rendezvous in Tortuga any more than they had to.
The longboats dropped silently into the water and the men piled in. Bri was ushered into the same one as Bill and she thanked her lucky stars that she had at least someone familiar close by her. There had formed a sort of friendship between her and the handsome gentleman pirate, one that wasn't spoken but they seemed to understand each other along with sharing common interests; besides the womanizing that Bootstrap constantly brought up at every possible moment much to the delight of the other male pirates. She just listened quietly as he chatted away about this such tale and that such night adding a few "uh huh's" and "you don't say" between the pauses.
Jack watched from the helm as the Pearl's crew reached the shoreline and disembarked. He caught a few glimpses of the small lad as Bootstrap led him up to the main courtyard, the two disappearing between the tall slender trunks of some palms.
"I thought ye' said you would be needin' the lad in Tortuga, Jack," Barbosa commented. "Won't do ye' much good if he dies on this night while stealin' some mere trifles."
"I ordered Bootstrap to keep an eye on him tonight just to make sure that he returns all in one piece. Besides, if there had been a risk I wouldn't have let him go now would I?" Jack retorted regarding his first mate with a frown. Barbosa took the hint and shook his head,
"No sir, ye wouldn't 'ave."
The sound of gunfire echoed off of the rock walls surrounding the island inlet. Jack turned back to the beach and matters at hand, smelling the faint fumes of smoke as his crew began to torch the smaller buildings of the estate. He heard Barbosa move away from him calling out to Simbakka, the master gunner, to bring them a spyglass so they could watch the action more clearly.
* * *
Bri huddled silently in the shadows concealed by some large ferns. People rushed by her hiding place in panic, screaming or crying, carrying both goods and children in their haste to escape the oncoming pirates. The pistol sat in her right hand and her dagger in the left as she waited for a signal from Ragetti, who had moments before gone in through a garden entrance into the main house with Pintel. She had been told to stay behind until they had cleared the building, allowing her full access to loot without getting shot at. Since the two pirates loved blood sport and she still had yet to learn how to use a gun properly and accurately, it had seemed like the best choice. Bri could hear yelling beyond the glass doors as the two whooped and hollered as they ran down the few maids and butlers left behind in their master's wake. One woman's screams were particularly loud and Bri felt bile rise in her throat at the cries of pain.
Don't worry about her, Bri, she thought to herself. You can't help her; you can't stop what's happening to her. Just let it be or else you'll be the one to end up in hot water… Just wait for the signal from Rag—
She jerked back her head as her eyes caught sight of a quick wave from an upstairs window. There's the signal…
Bri ran across the open space to the doorway and stepped inside. The room was pitch black and she allowed a moment's pause for her eyes to become accustomed to the dark surroundings. The room was all but bare save for a sofa lining one wall. Nothing valuable could be seen so she headed into the next room which turned out to be a ballroom of sorts. Silver cutlery adorned a few of the tables and Bri gathered as much as she could and bundled them in one of the white silk tablecloths making a crude sack, which she slung over one shoulder on her way through the rest of the house. Purses of coins, jewelry from the master bedroom, gold letter openers, and bolts of fine cloth were also added to the sack.
Bri hesitated as she came across slender bottles of French perfumes knowing that the liquids were very expensive but the crystal of the bottles made them easily breakable and the lids would come off if they were bounced around with the rest of her stolen goods. Deciding that the perfume was too expensive to ignore she crossed over to a clothing chest and sorted through the material coming up with a man's dark blue jacket with large pockets on the front. Bri put on the garment rolling up the sleeves, which were a good four inches longer than her fingertips, and lined the pockets with strips of cloth she tore from a dress. The perfume sat nicely within the jacket, snuggled tight and secure with no possibility of breakage unless of course she fell directly on top of the bottles.
Satisfied with the result Bri grabbed her pack and turned to leave when suddenly her gaze caught sight of a small form hidden behind a large wooden desk. A young boy sat curled in the corner against the wall, knees drawn up to his chest, his head buried in the folds of his arms. The boy was shaking and small whimpers escaped from where his mouth was pressed against the creases of his shirt. Bri cautiously approached him not knowing if the child was injured or just scared. At the sound of her footsteps the boy looked up with wide eyes and his mouth dropped open upon realizing that a pirate had found him.
Bri stopped quickly and waved her hands in front of her. "Shh, it's okay. I'm not gonna hurt you, lad," she began in a low voice. Wait a minute… that's not a very pirate like thing to say… There was always the possibility of another crew member lurking about, one that was in hearing distance and she couldn't take too great of a chance at giving them a reason to be suspicious of her. Bri cleared her throat, "I won't hurt you… as long as you tell me where this place's valuables are kept. Savvy?" she added, imitating Jack as best she could hoping to sound intimidating. It worked and the boy's eyes widened at her words and he pointed a shaking finger across the room. Bri followed its direction to a large painting of a horse hanging on the far wall.
"Behind the canvas?" she asked.
The lad shook his head yes and hugged his knees tighter against himself.
She backed up to the painting keeping her front facing the boy and lifted its edge. Behind it was a small panel and she slid it open to reveal a decorative box with a metal lock holding the lid hatch closed. That was easy. The box was heavy as she took it out from the cubbyhole indicating that there was indeed something inside but since there wasn't a key to open it with there was always a chance that whatever it held was worthless. Children weren't the best at deciding value of items anyway, especially boys…
"Since you helped me boy, I'll let ya' live but you have to stay where you are and don't move until us pirates are gone. Got it?" The boy nodded.
A horn sounded off in the distance signaling the crew to return to the Pearl and Brianna shifted at its blare, turning her head towards its origin. This caused her newfound jacket to swing open and the boy's eyes set on the black pistol held within her belt. He let out a stifled yelp of fear and all of the pirate's promises of leaving him unharmed flew from his mind. It was escape now or be killed…
The wood floor creaked behind Brianna and she turned back puzzled to the boy only to see something sailing at her head. She didn't have time to duck as a hard object connected with her temple sending her to her knees in a daze with stars dancing before her eyes. Bri barely made out the boy as he ran screaming from the room, his weapon of choice clattering on the floorboards beside her.
"He hit me with a bloody candleholder," she mumbled groggily. "Bloody hell that hurt!" It was a lucky thing that the boy had been so young and weak or else her head would've cracked open like an egg all over the place. Bri picked up the fallen item and studied it in the faint moonlight. "A gold candleholder… oh well…" In it went with the rest of the loot and she stood swaying slightly before taking off back to the boats as fast as she could, not wanting to be left behind.
A form moved out from the shadows where it had been watching the young pirate and Bootstrap shook his head and sighed. The lad seemed to have the most uncanny of luck. First being taken under Captain Jack's wing as the new cabin boy instead of being tossed out to sea or becoming a play thing for the others, second finding a lot of loot on the first try and a strange locked box which could be holding only god knows what. Thirdly only getting a wack on the noggin that would give him one hell of a goose egg come the morning rather than a shot through the chest had the other boy been armed or perhaps a man instead of a child who could have killed him with one good strong blow while Brian's back had been turned. Bill shrugged and decided that the lad was in need of a talk later on since luck eventually and always ran out…
The siege on the small island had been worth the stop in Jack's agenda. Every one of his crew returned unharmed and almost bursting with glee at the fun they just had and, another for the plus side, was the large pile of stolen goods growing steadily at Jack's feet. The plantation had turned out to be wealthier than Jack had first thought as he eyed over some of the golden statues and coins. He made a mental note to write down its coordinates for future visits once the owners rebuilt their miniature empire.
"We've got a lot of pieces of eight 'ere, Jack," Barbosa commented, biting down on one of the pesos testing its durability. "Should cover all the new sails and trim ye' be wantin' for th' Pearl."
"Aye, and a hefty number left over to buy all you lads all the drinks and trinkets and pleasurable company you be wanting, eh?!" Jack shouted over the din of his crew, failing his arms about. His words were met with cheers and hoots of "bloody right!" and "on to Tortuga!" as the men slapped each other on the back congratulating themselves on a night's work well done.
"Hey hey!" shouted Ragetti, "Let's see wa' our newest member done got tonight!" He grabbed Brian by the shirt and dragged him out into sight of all the others, the boy holding tightly onto his own bag.
Jack grinned down at him and leaned against a railing. "I see you had success in bringing something back from your first pillaging experience, let's see now if it's worth anything," he smirked, refraining from using the boy's name since it still left an odd taste on his tongue. Brianna hastily opened the tablecloth and dumped the contents onto the deck making sure not to break anything in the process. Jack's eyes scanned the items before he knelt and rooted around through the pile.
"Cloth, rings, forks and spoons…" He tossed a few of the objects into the other, much larger pile as he dug deeper. "A golden candlestick."
"That be a special candlestick, Captain Jack," Bootstrap interjected. "Our young lad here was knocked silly on the head wi' it by a lad even tinier than he is but still managed to grab it and bring it along!" There were howls of laughter from the men as Ragetti grabbed Bri in a headlock and inspected her temple.
"Aye it's true! He's got a lump the size of a chicken egg startin'!" Ragetti ruffled Bri's hair playfully as she struggled out of his grasp. She rubbed her neck casting Bill a befuddled look. He simply gazed back at her, humor dancing in his eyes.
Bri coughed from the hold and suddenly remembered the perfumes. "Oh yeah, I also have these," she managed to wheeze. She brought out the bottles from her pockets and held them before Jack. "Wasn't sure if you could fetch a price for them or not."
Jack grabbed one and uncorked it sniffing the pungent liquid inside and promptly sneezed. "Bloody hell that's strong stuff!" He passed the bottle to Barbosa who also inhaled the scent, only more cautiously than his captain. "Aye, we use stuff like that there for bartering and such when in port. Gold and silver aren't the only valuables in this world, lad. Clothes, tobacco, spirits, and spices can sometimes be worth more than doubloons."
"The lasses especially like that stuff!" called out one of the mates.
"Always looking for more of that fancy shit to get their greedy 'ands on!"
"Makes 'em 'appy and then they repay ya' in the best way how!" laughed another. The crew snickered and nodded.
Barbosa capped the bottle and shoved it into his jacket. "Even if we can't sell it we can use it ta' make the brig smell like flowers, eh? Maybe keep th' prisoners from bitchin' so much," he joked sarcastically.
The crew was on a roll right now, snorting and chuckling with hilarity. Brianna found herself smiling along with the retorts.
"Or we could smell it till the morning and get one hell of a lift; some of that stuff packs a punch even better than ale!"
More nods and 'ayes' from the group.
Brianna laughed. "Or we could use it to cover Pintel's stench!" The words came out of her mouth before she could stop them. For a heart pounding second she felt as if the world had collapsed under her. What have I DONE?!? she panicked fearfully.
Her thoughts were immediately eased though as Bootstrap howled with laugher. "He's got ya' there, mate!" he roared at Pintel, clutching at his sides. Ragetti whacked his friend on the back his own laughter joining in with Bill's and everyone else's. Barbosa exaggeratedly rolled his eyes while Jack toyed with his beard, grinning like an idiot. Pintel frowned before plucking a part of his shirt between two fingers and sniffing at it. He made a face and bobbed his head in agreement and thumped Bri in the shoulder good-humoredly with a fat fist. She almost fell over by the force, being so tiny and all, but quickly composed herself. It was amazing how much closer she felt to the rag tag band of pirates at the moment. All the seriousness and formality had melted away; it was like being among a big family.
A family with a strict set of rules, but a family nonetheless.
For once in her life Brianna felt as if she belonged. Never before had she fit in with others, her schooling associates having nothing doing with her since she had always acted so different from them. All the playing rough, dressing for comfort rather than style, daydreaming and fantasizing about adventure and danger had made her stick out like a sore thumb back at home. This was a nice change…
Jack's attention was brought back to the treasures when he spotted the small locked box Brianna had found. He picked it up, shifting it from one hand to another, inspecting the latch.
Bri noticed and shrugged apologetically. "Sorry Captain, I didn't find a key for that. Don't know what's in it."
"I have my own keys, lad." He took the knife from his belt and stuck it in the back edge between the box hinges. An audible crack sounded as the hinges snapped away from the wood as the knife pried open the two parts.
"Well now, what have we got here?" Jack lifted up a necklace for the crew to see. It shone in the moonlight, made up of golden discs each with a blood red ruby stuck in its center. In the middle of the necklace sat a diamond as large as Brianna's thumbnail with small blue sapphires imbedded along its edge in the gold. It had to be the most beautiful piece of jewelry she had ever seen in her life.
"Beginner's luck," mumbled Bo'sun.
"Yes… luck that seems to work for us as well." Jack's eyes ran over the necklace hungrily before he tossed it to Pintel. The man yelped as he managed to catch it just in time and cuddled it close to his chest as if the small fortune would slip from his fingers if not protected.
"You," Jack pointed at Pintel and then Bri and Ragetti, "take the booty down to the hold. We have an engagement to make still and time stops for no man."
"On to Tortuga!" bellowed Bo'sun, getting the nod from Jack to make way.
The pirates dashed away to their posts leaving the trio alone with the Captain.
"Give me that coat," Jack ordered Brian.
Bri complied immediately and handed it to Jack. He ran his hands over the fabric testing the quality and fingered the plain wooden buttons on its front. Finding the clothing of insignificant value he tossed it back to Brianna. "Keep it if you want."
He strolled off back to the helm to get the Black Pearl back on course and she tugged on the jacket and joined Pintel and Ragetti in storing their newfound riches.
Once everything was safely stowed away Brianna bid her two shipmates goodnight. One last chore had to be done before she could ready for bed and a get well needed sleep and she walked down to the armory getting out her blade to make that small victory chip in the pillar. It felt satisfying as the metal cut into the wood making a neat little mark beside the others. She sighed happily and turned to go only to find Bill standing in the doorway.
"I want to talk to ya' about something, lad," he said.
Uh oh. She couldn't tell by the tone of his voice if it was something good or bad.
"Back there at that house you made the mistake of turning yourself around away from the boy. You're lucky you ain't dead right now."
She opened her mouth about to comment that the child too young and small to have hurt her let along kill her but snapped it shut. Whatever Bill was getting at she would listen patiently, after all the man had been a freebooter* for a LONG time and probably knew very well concerning the profession.
"Once you go down the path of piracy there's no turning back," he told her. "People now see you as a pirate and will always see you as a pirate and will turn on you without a moment's thought; either to save their own hide or profit from the law who would gladly pay to put a noose around your neck. I like you lad, you've got the soul of a scallywag in ya' and it would be a shame to lose you so soon."
She tilted her head to the side, studying Bill in the torchlight. "Thanks."
He grinned and waved a hand in the air. "Don't be takin' that as an openin' to begin lollygaggin' on your duties though. Get outta line and I'll discipline ye' myself and not too kindly either, eh?" His face took on a wistful look as he looked at her. "Just ye' remind me of my son. A good lad he is…" His words died off and they stood in silence for a moment before Bill shrugged and jerked a finger in the air. "That's some fine luck you have their, mate! Let's hope it continues and you'll be sailin' them calm waters like there's no tomorrow." Bootstrap clapped her fondly on the shoulder. "And next up, Tortuga!"
"Aye, Tortuga…"
A/N: I know, I know, not much Jack in this chapter but don't worry. He'll have a bigger role in the next few (yay!). So what lies ahead for our young pirate in training? Well I can't tell you or else I would ruin it but I can assure you there's lots of fun and more pirating and danger and just plain craziness (and of course more of yummy Jack Sparrow). Also I'm not sure exactly how fast a full grown man learns to read and write but let's just say that Jack is a fast learner (very fast if I'm WAY off).
*freebooter is another term for a pirate