High Flier

Chapter 1 - Running Away From The Circus

~Pirate Rhi

Well, here I am with a brand new story that I said I'd post about a month ago…heh heh…call me slack…call me lazy…but tell me in a review…=) lol. This story's been my baby for so long, I've spent ages writing it and perfecting it and I'm quite proud of it. I hope you guys like it.

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She climbed up the seemingly endless ladder, step by step, until she reached the small platform at the top, climbing onto it with no assistance from any handholds. She straightened herself up and grasped the wooden bar in front of her, releasing the ropes holding it in place and awaited her cue.

"Now, what you've all been waiting for, folks! The safety net has been taken away! The most dangerous performance of the night will be done by…" the booming voice of Basil filled the huge tent, building up the excitement in the audience. "The amazing…the graceful…the lovely…Alexandra!"

This as her cue, Alexandra jumped off the platform, grasping the wooden trapeze bar, swinging out of the shadows and into the brightly lit centre of the ring. After swinging a couple of times to build up speed, she hooked her legs over the bar and let go with her hands so that she was swinging upside down. Looking behind her, she could see Dickon swinging towards her on the other trapeze. She outstretched her arms, and at the exact right moment, she swung her legs off the wooden bar, grasping Dickon's arms. His hands tightened around her arms at the same moment. The tension from the audience filled the tent as they gasped at this move.

Dickon and Alexandra swung one more time, building up some speed before the final trick. When they reached the peak of the backwards swing, Dickon let go of Alexandra's arms, and propelled her high into the air, where she did a perfect double somersault in the air before she felt her arms being grasped by Otto. She tightened her own hands around his arms, and he helped her hook her legs onto the double trapeze next to him, where she swung upside down, waving at the audience, who were clapping and cheering. If there was one thing that she really enjoyed, that was performing. She loved the audience's reactions to her performance.

Marty was standing on the platform, and he hooked the trapeze with a long rod with a hook on the end, and pulled them back in, where Alexandra flipped herself off, before climbing down the ladder and stalking out of the tent towards her caravan, wanting to get away from everyone as quick as possible.

Alexandra heard footsteps close in on her, and an arm snake around her shoulders. He leaned in and smelled her dark blonde hair, which she'd pulled out of its bun. "That was a good performance tonight." Dickon crooned in her ear.

Alexandra pushed his arm off her shoulder. "Don't ever touch me again, Dickon." She hissed. "I'm not putting up with your crap anymore. Go away and leave me alone!" She reached her caravan and entered it, slamming the door in Dickon's face. She collapsed on the bed, falling into a fitful sleep, wishing that she were anywhere but here.

* * * * * *

The next day, Alexandra made her way to the stables where all the animals were kept. She nodded her greetings to Mandy, who was changing the hay in the horse's stalls before making her way down to the largest stall at the end. This was the stall where Heidi was kept. Heidi was Basil's Travelling Circus's only elephant after her male counterpart, Gustav, had died two years ago.

Alexandra often visited Heidi, pouring out her troubles and thoughts to the elephant, because even though she'd been with the circus for over 10 years, she hadn't allowed herself to get close to anyone else. As a result of these almost daily visits, Alexandra was the only person, besides her trainer, that Heidi tolerated in her stall.

"Good morning Heidi." Alexandra greeted the elephant, rubbing the elephant's big ears, which she knew what the elephant really liked. The elephant responded by gently wrapping her big trunk around Alexandra's body and lifting her onto her back. Alexandra leaned forward onto the elephant's big head, spilling her heart to her big grey friend.

* * * * * *

"Captain. We hafta dock now. The Pearl ain't gonna hold up much longer. It's leakin' water all into the hold. We'll sink down to Davy Jones' locker if we don't get it fixed now." Gibbs informed Jack, who was standing, as per usual, at the helm of the Black Pearl, keeping the wheel steady with one hand.

"Fetch me my maps." Jack instructed, as they were in unfamiliar waters.

"Aye, sir." Gibbs said, hurrying off to Jack's cabin, grabbing the map of the area off the table, bringing it back out to Jack, who mentally worked out their bearings, tracing their path so far on the map. He placed his finger on the map at the place where the Pearl was now, then pointed to the nearest port town, where they could get repairs. "This looks good enough." He said. "Port Collins."

"Aye, sir."

"About sail to Port Collins! Get to work you scabberous dogs!" Jack yelled to the crew as he checked his compass and turned the ship in the direction of Port Collins.

* * * * * *

Alexandra swung around on the low practise trapezes, perfecting new techniques, and practising her existing routines. She was often found in the practise area, as she could easily lose herself in the exercise, not having to think about her life for once, because she had to concentrate on what she was doing. She remembered one time when she wasn't totally concentrating, and that was when she made the mistake. She fell awkwardly and injured her ankle. Basil was angry, to say the least. It was their final show that night, and she wouldn't be fit to perform. She was his best trapeze artist, he had said, how were they supposed to bring in the money if she wasn't performing? She had learned her lesson after the show late that night. Basil had taken to her with his whip, cracking the thing over her back 10 painful times. She still had the scars, which served as a reminder to never lose concentration.

Finishing with the trapezes, she moved onto the tightrope, which she occasionally performed on, if Marissa was unavailable. Sometimes they also performed together, if Basil wanted a spectacular show. She also used it to improve her balance. Climbing up the stepladder, she stepped carefully onto the taut rope, catching her balance before working her way down the rest of the rope, practising some of the fancy steps that Marissa had taught her.

"Alexandra." The commanding voice of Basil filled the practise tent.

Alexandra jumped off the tightrope, placing one hand on her hip as she regarded Basil cooly. "Yes, Basil. What do you want?"

"Dickon has complained about you. He said that you're being cold to him for no reason at all. Alexandra, you have to start interacting with people."

"You? Worried about my social life? I don't think so. I don't interact with people because I don't like them. Dickon can complain all he likes. I know what he wants, and I'm not giving it to him."

"Have it your way. I give up on you. You're a great performer, but you're a hopeless person." Basil said, before turning and stalking out of the tent, leaving it quiet and empty. Just the way Alexandra liked it.

Putting the encounter to the back of her mind, Alexandra continued with her practise, pushing harder and harder, in an effort to drown out her thoughts and her life.

* * * * * *

The Black Pearl docked at Port Collins in the early afternoon. Captain Jack Sparrow instructed his crew to go ashore for the night, but to be back at the Pearl bright and early the next morning, as the repairs would be finished by then.

Jack casually made his way to the nearest tavern, where he ordered a mug of rum, leaving the boat under the watch of Will and Elizabeth, who had joined his crew, deciding that they enjoyed the pirate life too much to go back to Port Royale. He made a mental note to acquire some more rum before leaving Port Collins, as they'd run out.

Taking a gulp of the rum, Jack smiled, this was the best rum he'd tasted in a while…actually, it was the only rum he'd tasted in a while. He could almost feel his taste buds rejoicing.

* * * * * *

Seeing as there was no show that night, Alexandra practised for longer than she had ever before. By the time she had finished, the sky had grown dark, her muscles were aching and her stomach was growling in want of some food.

Wiping the sweat off her forehead with a towel, Alexandra made her way over to her caravan. She opened the door and entered it, searching around in the junk tray for her matches so she could light the lamp hanging from the roof.

Preoccupied by her task, she didn't hear the gentle footsteps come up behind her. The first she knew of someone in her caravan that didn't belong was when one arm snaked around her waist and another covered her mouth. She tried to scream, but she couldn't make much of a noise with the intruder's hand over her mouth.

"I wouldn't if I were you." A voice hissed in her ear. She knew that voice.

"Dickon." She mumbled through his hand.

"That's right. And now you're gonna give me what I want."

Dickon threw Alexandra down roughly on the bed, keeping his hand over her mouth, before exchanging it for his own mouth, kissing her roughly. Alexandra tried desperately to push him off, tried to scream, but to no avail. Her hunger and her sore muscles forgotten, she instead worried for her life. There was no telling what Dickon would do. Dickon slipped his tongue into Alexandra's mouth, which gave her an idea. She bit down on his tongue as hard as she could, drawing blood. Dickon leapt off her and slapped her hard.

"You bitch!" he growled.

Alexandra put her hand up to her stinging cheek and scrambled off the bed quickly, while Dickon was preoccupied by his bleeding tongue. She punched him in the nose and kneed him in his privates for good measure before turning and bursting out the door of her caravan.

Alexandra started running, not knowing where she was going. It was all too much. Far too much. It was not, by any means, the worst thing she'd been through, but it was the straw that broke the camel's back as they say, and she had to run.

Alexandra ran blindly, tears blurring her vision. She vaguely knew where she was. The smell of the sea was getting stronger and she knew that she was somewhere down near the wharves.

This is rather ironic, normally people run away to the circus, here I am running away from the circus, she thought, bursting into hysterical laughter, which soon turned to loud, gasping sobs instead. She kept on running until she suddenly crashed into something, knocking her to the ground. She soon realised that the something was actually a someone, when the person knelt down next to her and started talking to her.

"Are you all right?" a male voice asked her. Strangely enough, the voice calmed her down a bit.

Alexandra pulled her knees tight up under her chin, hugging them to her. She shook her head. "No." she mumbled, hiccuping.

"Anythin' I can do to help?" the man asked again.

"No." Alexandra mumbled again. She wiped the tears away from her eyes and took a look at man kneeling beside her. He was wearing rather scruffy clothes, and he had long black hair, matted into dreadlocks, with beads and other trinkets braided into his hair, topped off with a tricorn hat. He was obviously a pirate. "Not unless you want to kill Dickon for me."

"Dickon, eh? I'm guessin' he's the cause of this."

"You could say that." Alexandra said, sniffing and wiping her eyes with her sleeve. "I just want to get away from all this. I hate Dickon, I hate Basil, I hate the bloody circus."

The man lifted a finger to his lips and appeared to be thinking. "I could offer you a place on my ship. I need a new crew member. You gotta be willin' to work though."

Alexandra looked up at the man's face, seeing the concern in his eyes. She was good at reading people. But why would someone she'd just met like this want to help her? Could he just genuinely be a nice guy? Nah, there was no such thing, was there? Remembering the life she'd hated so much at the circus and looking at the man in front of her, she made her decision.

"Okay. I'll join your crew." She said. "But I don't even know your name."

The man removed his hat and did a small little bow. "Captain Jack Sparrow's the name."

"I'm Alexandra."

"Alexandra, eh? Mind if I call ye Alex?"

"Not really. Why?"

"Well you try yelling out a long name like that in a hurry. I once had a guy called Michaelangelo, now that was a mouthful." He said, enunciating his speech with hand motions, which were rather comical.

* * * * * *

Jack looked at this girl with interest. He wasn't sure why he offered her a place on his ship, but he could see that this girl was incredibly upset, and there was something in him that wanted to make it right for her. He felt strangely protective of her. Jack wondered why he was doing this, but he knew that deep down, behind all the stories and the crazy walk, he was a good guy, and here was a girl in need and he'd be damned if he didn't help her.

"Come on then, luv. I'll show you to the Pearl."

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So, what did you think? Good, so-so, sucky?

Next chapter should follow within a week, so look out for it.

~Rhi