Cal… Oh, Cal, Cal, Cal… First of all, I'm glad your computer is up and running again. And second, I do so apologize at the slight of my subconscious mind… I meant, in NO way that this piece was crap or considered anywhere near it! I love this piece! As I do Purgatory (although, a few others seem to disagree with me on that point which makes me sad) and all of my other pieces... I meant it only as a lighthearted comment (so I guess I'll have to Ana-slap myself), but I can see where it would be misread. I can also blame it on the fact that I don't take flame criticisms well from reviewers or others alike. And I think the word 'crap' came from a conversation with a 'friend' of mine that dismissed the fanfiction genre as something of a lesser import. A waste of time and (in some cases) talent, if you will… I was quite upset by that as well. I, sadly, didn't Ana-slap them since everyone's entitled to their opinions. It just saddened me that my time and my hard work on something that I really love was belittled in such a manner (even though it wasn't intentional, really). I think that 'situation' really explains why this last part was full of angst. A writer's piece is kinda like a mood ring, I guess. My black mood kinda fit the dark mood of the update. But thank you for the wonderful review! It lightened everything considerably. And don't worry, I always think JackAna, JackAna, JackAna... And I thank you for your novellas… they are my chocolate in this web-world. And now that I've written you a novella… I take my leave. Adieu (for now!)…
Jackroks… Another new reviewer! I really love you guys… New reviewers make me giddy… And "some" idea is good. I'm glad I have "some" idea… it's better than no idea at all. And I've read stuff like that… it's not so fun. :( Thanks again, and enjoy!
ShanniC… Good to see you back again! And wow! Your favorite, huh? I'm absolutely honored to have you say such a thing! I really hope you like this next part! Let me know if you don't… or do, for that matter. I love reviews! Thanks for the huggles, you get your share in return for reviewing! And I like the idea of a Norry back story as well. Must finish this first, and foremost. Right? Ta for now!
Wyte-tygre… You're right, it wasn't blackest of black angst… but hard-lived angst is more believable and less apt to make a reader want to tear their own heart out after reading it. Those types of pieces get difficult to read after a while. I love 'em, but they're difficult. And the Jack/Norry scenes are probably some of my favorites. They are two wonderful characters (so different, yet so alike… it's fascinating, really). Thanks for the review and I'm glad you likey… :) Hope the next part meets your expectations!!
As a treat to all you loyal readers, this here is a long one, folks… so break out the No-Doze and coffee. But please don't get used to it… It was my birthday (good ol' 23) this last weekend… so my gift to myself is posting this for all of you! Yay! Please let me know what you think! It'll make the hard work worth it! And yes… this is a shameless begging for reviews! ;)
The journey back to Port Royal took a long three days. Three ships sailing in tandem, with captains who didn't make it a habit to do so, took longer than they all anticipated. It was that frustration that added to Ana's seeming displeasure. She knew that the reason they sailed in a make-shift fleet – the Renegade situated between the other two – was because they didn't want her 'running off' in the confusion. It was almost an insult of sorts from the people that claimed to know her. With a frown at no crew member in particular, Ana set her mind to steering. The sun was shining and a late summer breeze carried the three ships over the water. Port Royal's harbor was just now visible with the naked eye. Just as she was about to make the call for docking preparations, she was caught off guard as the Pearl sailed along side the Renegade. After a moment or two of staring, Ana's attention was snapped to the man now swinging his lanky frame across the rails and onto her ship. The man stood, hair ornaments clacking, and gave her a healthy grin as he dusted off his hat and placed it on his head.
"Greetings, luv…" Jack said. Ana's eyes narrowed.
"What are you doing aboard me ship?" she asked, letting go of the helm and stepping up threateningly to the other pirate. Jack ignored her and let out a whistle, calling his crew's attention to him.
"All of me's aboard, mates! Sail her off, but don't drop anchor too far from my sight," he called to an attentive Gibbs and Cotton. Ana watched in a slight panic as the Pearl started her drift off to the west of them.
"Aye – all of ye's aboard, Cap'n… but ye may not be in a few moments!" Gibbs called back as he noted Ana's glare. When Jack turned back to look at her, he felt the familiar sting of her hand. He couldn't help but grin as he brought his hand up to rub his newly sore cheek.
"I know I didn't deserve that… may I ask what it was for, luv?" he asked.
"What makes you think that you're welcome to set foot aboard me ship whenever it fits your fancy?" she asked. Jack walked past her and to the helm. He let his fingers graze over the wheel lightly.
"Oh? And you have all the rights in the world to steal upon mine in the middle of the night? Consider this a return favor," Jack told her. Ana crossed her arms and impatiently awaited his undoubtedly wordy explanation.
"I may have the good Commodore among my list of allies, luv… but that by no means indicates that I am in such good standing with the good Governor. Every man aboard the Black Pearl is a wanted man in Port Royal. Norrington does not have the authority to change that. And since I have not set foot in said metropolis since my scheduled hanging and a quick, unscheduled stop to pick up some friendly baggage, it would be wise to be wary for me crew's sake, would it not? So, I won't be sailing me Pearl into a port where there are plenty of well-to-do city-goers to recognize it, savvy?" he asked her. Ana glared at him but nodded. Jack leaned against the wheel and gave her a grin.
"Wonderful. Then we're crew mates again, luv… you being Captain, o' course," Jack placated at the woman's angrier look. Ana gave him a heavy shove away from the wheel and stepped up to it. Then, she leveled him her patented glare yet again.
"Of course I'm the captain, you bleeding idiot. If you'd said any different, I'd have gutted you like a trout, hung you over the aft and had the sharks nipping at your loony head," she said before turning back to her position at the helm. The familiar bickering had Jack's heart lightening.
"That wouldn't have been very pretty now, would it luv?" he asked with a wink. Ana didn't rise to the bait this time. Rather, she continued to watch the port ahead of them become larger.
"Well, then…" Jack said as he sat himself down and leaned against the railing. "Let me know when we've dropped anchor…" With that, the pirate lowered his hat over his eyes and relaxed. Ana would have none of that as she stomped over to Jack. After a swift kick to his lazily crossed legs she snatched the hat off his face.
"Get up you scabrous laze-about! If you're to be a crew member on this ship, then you will be a crew member and help prepare for docking. I am the captain and I don't dwell on dawdlers. I throw them overboard…" she growled. Jack lifted a finger to say something as he climbed up to his feet, but Ana tossed his beloved hat down the main deck.
"Go you addle-brained nitwit…" she said. Jack's eyes followed his favored leather head-wear sliding across the lower deck before he turned to Ana.
"Forgive me, luv. I don't often find meself in positions of a subservient nature…" he said with a sly smile. "And since it's usually the other way around, me bein' the captain and you bein' first mate, it'll take some getting acquainted with…" Ana let out a huff.
"I seem to have a bit of trouble remembering that situation… and you seem to have a bit of trouble remembering to tell me about it," she said, looking straight ahead and watching as the Intrepid slowly passed through the gate-like mountain of rock that shielded Port Royal from the ocean's baser elements.
"Ahhhh… we'll, I'll get to it at one time or another," Jack said with a non-committal shrug. Ana looked at him out of the corner of her eye.
"Preferably before we all pass on to old age," she muttered. Jack grinned.
"Have pirates ever made it to old age?" he asked, his fingers rubbing over the braids at his chin. Ana looked at him again.
"You be closer than most… you tell me…" Ana said, causing Jack to frown slightly – but it was only a mock frown, since he very much enjoyed the verbal sparring coming from the woman at the helm. He was about to say something indubitably witty back, but Ana stood straight and gave a yell.
"Prepare for docking and dropping anchor!" she cried to the clamoring crew as they made their way into the harbor. Jack muttered something about women having to have the last word as he trudged down to the main deck to retrieve his hat. Ana couldn't help but smirk…
The Zephyr…
"She'll be to Port Royal by now… with those damnable bastards," Damien said as he stood at the bow of his ship. Jonesy stood off to his side. And it wasn't the first time the ship's jack-of-all-trades wondered about the true nature of his captain's sentiment toward the woman that had once been in their company.
"Aye, that she be, Cap'n. What's we to do about it?" the large man asked curiously. Damien's ice blue eyes turned to his crew member.
"We conclude our business here in Puerto Rico. The girl is important, Jonesy, but not important enough to alter our set course. After… we shall pursue our quarry. Commodore Norrington has yet to suffer my ire… There will be a visit to Port Royal before too long… but not right off," the captain noted, dispelling any false notion of a fairer emotion lying within his depths. Revenge is what the captain wanted, and he'd travel through Hell and high water to get it… if he hadn't already. "Send word for the Falcon to sail ahead and prepare our business dealings there…" Jonesy smirked.
"Aye Cap'n…" the man said before turning to disembark the ship and make his way through the busy streets of Boqueron to find the captain of the previously mentioned ship. It would be a day to finish their 'business' and another two before the Zephyr and its captain would begin their pursuit of a mad sort of justice.
Port Royal
…A pit of nerves had taken over Ana's stomach the moment they dropped anchor at the Port Royal docks. She helped secure the lines as threatening clouds rolled in the sky above the Jamaican city. It was going to storm… but that wasn't what had Ana's nerves in a twist. It was the uncertainty of having red-coated soldiers marching around that had her anxiety especially high. Damien's voice of warning rang through her head. You may be sailing under my colors, but the King's Navy will not hesitate to hang anything of a seeming piratical nature. Ana's eyes roamed over her ship. Despite the escort of the renowned and gallant Intrepid, the Renegade certainly 'seemed' of a nature that was less than reputable. And this knowledge seemed to be shared by the rest of her crew. As she stood straight, a large oak of a man stepped next to her.
"Cap'n," he greeted her with a serious look on his leathery tanned skin. "How ya be knowin' that these friends of yourn won't be turnin' us in fer coin?" Ana's gaze strayed to the other captain aboard the ship as he started in her direction.
"We don't, Rog. We be watchful and wary. They say they are friends… but we've just walked into the lion's den with them," she said. As Jack came closer, Ana couldn't help but think that this man – who'd almost been hung in the very city – seemed unusually at ease. It made her think that maybe she'd been a mite more trusting with him and his friends than they really warranted.
"Well, luv… we've come to the end of the line… for the moment," Jack greeted. Ana didn't say anything. Damien's voice whispered in her head again. Trust no one but yourself. As if he'd heard that same voice, her crew mate let out a grunt as he crossed his large arms in front of him, staring menacingly at Jack. The dark-haired pirate leaned a bit closer to Ana, as if sharing a secret with her… never taking his eyes off the large man.
"A visually appealing specimen, that," Jack said with a wink at Ana as he pointed not so covertly at the frowning man next to her.
"We call him Jolly Roger," Ana said, looking to the angry man. Jack smiled good-naturedly… or placatingly… whichever way it was taken. Ana turned back to him.
"He's not so jolly," she added, the man in question narrowing his eyes only slightly. And then, suddenly, a metal tip dangled precariously in front of Jack's face. His eyes crossed slightly as he focused on the point for a matter of seconds. Then his eyes flicked back to Ana, suprised. She deftly maneuvered the sword point under Jack's chin. It was then, to state the fairly obvious, that he realized that the woman he'd known before was not standing in front of him. He'd come close to forgetting that in their familiar dealings with each other over the past few hours.
"What's your business in this part of the Caribbean, mate?" she asked… demanded. Her eyes were hard as she set her question to the heart of the matter. Ana wanted to know Captain Sparrow's connection to the Navy and if the man she'd come to trust would betray her. Port Royal and the cities surrounding it were ripe with military. It would take but moments to have the crew of the Renegade sitting like ducks in a row waiting for their turn at the gallows. Jack almost let out a little pout.
"And I thought we were gettin' along so well," he said with a sad, overdone sigh. The optimism he'd felt earlier waned slightly.
"You'd best start talking, Captain Sparrow," Ana warned, eyes narrowing. He brought his hand up to draw her weapon away from his neck, making a silent note to himself that it wasn't that difficult.
"Me business here, luv, is that I haven't any. Port Royal is Will and Elizabeth's place of habitation. I happened across them in my acquirement of a ship…" he said. Ana looked at him warily, the tip of her sword raising slightly.
"You didn't have a ship?" she asked, her mind on the Pearl and the story he'd told her a few days ago. Jack gave her a quick smile.
"I needed a ship to sail after me ship. Can't bloody well swim after the Pearl, now could I? And the boat I sto… borrowed… from you wouldn't have been sufficient against the Pearl… So, I came here to commandeer one," he said. The sword tip dropped completely to the ground.
"I had a ship? Before I was first mate on yours?" she asked. Jack held up both hands.
"I didn't say it was a ship… I said it was a boat. A filthy little scrap of one… with a hole in it… You were better off aboard the Pearl," Jack defended. Ana contemplated all of this for a moment.
"Fine," she said with a huff. "But you've stories to tell me Captain Sparrow. Stories that better not be avoided much longer. Now tell me, what's our purpose in Port Royal?" Jack shrugged his shoulders as he started his way towards the gangplank.
"A little of this, a little of that. Let's be off before Will and Elizabeth leave us behind," he said with a little wave of his hand. Ana stayed where she stood.
"Sparrow… you're going to have to give a bit more before I step off this ship," she warned him. Jack turned to her halfway down the narrow piece of wood.
"Alright then," he said. "The good Commodore knows of a few physicians of good standing in this town. It would be a good idea to have one or all of them take a look at your head." It was more honest information than she'd expected out of him after all the circles he'd talked himself in before.
"Me head is where it's supposed to be… on me shoulders. I don't need anyone to tell me that," she snapped. A serious look came over Jack's face as he re-traced his steps to stand in front of her again. She knew it was coming, but the touch of his hands on her shoulders gave her a start anyways.
"I know your head is where it was put… but you've been injured. I'll allow that you're better off than most in your situation. But you don't remember who ye are. It's something that needs to be figured out, luv. And with the Commodore's help, we can figure it out sooner rather than never, savvy?" he asked. Ana rolled her eyes.
"Fine. We'll go see your doctors. I really don't know what help they'll be, though," she said. Jack grinned.
"Good. Now… to Port Royal. I need me a good drink before we impose on Mr. Turner," Jack stated before he disembarked to the dock.
"What he needs is a good drowning," she muttered for her own benefit. With a sigh, she gave watch over to her first mate and descended the ramp to where Jack was waiting.
One hour later…
Walking around the docks always turned out to be an interesting interlude. And this time was no exception. Jack had successfully imbibed enough alcohol to kill a whale, but strangely showed no effects of it. Ana herself had only partaken in a tankard or two of ale. So, out of the two of them, it was Ana who'd brought their minds back on track and towards the goal of reaching Will's lodging. Jack stood from the bar, much to the bartender's woe, and staggered in his usual gait to the door with Ana following behind.
"Thank you, luv, for the subtle reminder of our purpose," he said, rubbing the back of his head. Ana frowned as they made their way up one of the many cobble stone streets. There was a gathered crowd outside one of the numerous taverns and a chorus of loud, drunken, off-tune voices singing a variety of songs. Jack, being the curious one, weaved his way into the crowd with Ana grudgingly following behind. The two stood within the gathered crowd and watched, with amused eyes, a couple of drunken sailors and their wenches for the evening fluttered about exaggeratingly with the clothes from what was obviously a ship's fine cargo. One hideous couple was twirling a gross misrepresentation of a reel while the other equally appealing couple stumbled through what looked nothing like a minuet. Jack leaned against a barrel of what appeared to be ale and grinned as he looked over to the woman at his side.
"I've a mind to join them, luv," he said with his usual leering smile. Ana watched the twirling, stumbling faux dandies for a second longer and contemplated her companion's seriousness.
"Only if you wear the dress," she said back, a purely Anamaria look firmly in place on her face as she assessed him head to toe. "It would look better on you anyway – you've the legs for it…" With that said, she turned and began walking away – throwing in an exaggerated Jack hand gesture to elaborate the insult. Jack stood silently and watched her melt into the dank dark of Port Royal night with a grin slowly forming. There was a light wink of gold in the wan light of the streets as the hope he'd lost earlier returned rightly to him and he resumed a thought that crossed his mind more than once a day. The woman that just walked away was his Ana… she only had to remember it… And it was that very reflection that had him hurrying off after her.
Will's house…
"Get your bloody hands off me you filthy sod!" Ana's voice cried, accompanied by a crash. The door to the room she was borrowing was thrown open and a huffing, stout man was pushed out. With a cry of alarm, the very man dodged out of the way of a flying medical bag. It hit the wall behind him, sending all of his instruments and supplies over the floor.
"And take those tools of torture to hell with you!" she cried again before slamming to door closed. The portly little doctor heaved a beleaguered sigh as he bent to pick up his fallen items. Then, with another sigh he descended the stairs to where three men were waiting. The one with the multitude of braids and a slightly crazy look about him stood.
"What say you, man?" he asked. The doctor reached down and rubbed his sore shin, hoping to relieve the stinging pain.
"The girl is a traumatic experience… but more to the point, she has quite obviously had one. The memory loss and the scarring tells me as such. Her memory may return in time as she comes to term with what happened to her. But physically, she is on the mend. There may still be a sickness in her, by my guess, to which I suggest a bleeding…" the small, hefty man standing in front of Jack said. The pirate was silent as he thought over the doctor's words. Then, without warning, his fist struck out and clocked the bespectacled man across his slightly chubby face. Norrington and Will both rushed forward – one to hold back another blow from Jack and the other to help the medically trained man back to his feet.
"Bloody hell, Jack," Will said as he gripped the doctor's arm. Jack, for his part, looked impassive except for the slightly pained look on his face and a quick shake of the hand that had met the doctor's face.
"Don't normally do that," the pirate commented before he turned and sat himself down at the table. "Now, we've had two of Port Royal's best physicians check Ana over. They both say the same thing… she went through some sort of torture and has yet to heal from it in her mind. I understand that. But what I don't bloody well understand is this fixation with bleeding the girl! Me guess is she's lost enough as is!"
"Calm yourself, Jack," Will said. The physician huffed off Will's assisting arm and turned to the young man.
"This house is of an aggressive sort," he condemned. "I suggest you do not call upon my services in the future, Mr. Turner…" And with that, the man left, rubbing his cheek and limping slightly. Jack watched him leave with a murderous glare before he turned and made his way upstairs. He didn't bother to knock as he pushed the door open. Ana was pacing the length of the small room with Elizabeth watching her with a concerned look. She smiled at Jack before she quietly left the two pirates alone.
"Have you another leech to bleed me?" Ana asked with a wry twist of her lips. Jack smirked.
"Not at this particular moment… but I can go look for another one if you'd like, luv," he said in jest. Ana couldn't help the small smile that crossed her features.
"No, no. Two's more than enough," she said as she went to the window. "I'll be honest and say that it frightens me somewhat that I may never remember who I was… but I know I can survive not knowing." Jack nodded.
"Aye, you've proven you can survive with the not knowing. But it'll haunt you," he said. Ana let out a humorless laugh.
"Oh, aye, it'll definitely haunt me. There are things that will remind me of what, in my mind, never happened," she said as she went to the bed and sat on it, curling her legs under her. There was a question weighing on Jack's mind, and it took him a moment to finally ask it.
"The doctor said something of scarring… what scarring is there?" Jack asked. Ana stayed silent, looking at her feet. Jack gave a slight sigh as he crossed the room and sat at the foot of the bed she sat on. She made no move to answer him in any way.
"Ana… you need to tell me what those bastards did to you," the pirate said, a gruffness entering his voice as his mind contemplated the possibilities. Ana suddenly moved, whipping her legs around so that her feet found the floor. With the angry momentum, she stood and started to pace.
"What those bastards did to me?" she asked harshly. "I don't know what those bastards did to me, all right? I remember in bits and pieces… and they aren't many bits and pieces. All I remember is being strung up from the ceiling and beaten with an inch of consciousness. Sometimes they used their guns, sometimes they used their fists and their feet… I can remember their hands, but I can't remember their faces!" Jack's jaw tightened at her reigned in anger.
"Ana…" he started. The soft way he said the name that she couldn't remember being hers was her undoing. The anger washed away and instead came a sadness she didn't know she could feel. A single tear slipped out of the corner of her eye and down her cheek.
"Stop," she ordered him. "I don't want your pity or your apologies… I don't want anything from you." As she stepped by the small bed to make her way downstairs, Jack reached out and grabbed her wrist to stop her. The contact sent a flash of memory through her. She struggled against the weight of two men holding her body down as another man took a rough hold of her wrist. He pulled her arm out and across the table that sat next to the bed. The man turned her wrist so that the soft, sensitive flesh of her underarm was exposed.
"Now, my lovely… we will do this every day that you don't answer our questions. You failed to give up where the Pearl makes berth. And in doing so, you have hindered our… quest… So, you will have to be given a bit of incentive to talk…" the man growled. Another man stepped forward brandishing a cutlass that was glowing with the heat that had been applied to it. Ana's eyes widened as the weapon came closer to her.
"Do it," the man holding her wrist ordered. Ana tried to kick and punch her way free, but the three men held her firm. With a cry of helplessness, she watched as the steaming metal approached her unmarked skin. Then, without warning, the metal was laid on her arm, sizzling and steaming as it marked the smooth flesh. The pain muted her screams so that she could barely hear herself. The writhing stopped as all her muscles protested the heat being applied to her body – but they didn't let up. There was a fierce burning from her fingertips to her shoulder… and it lessened insignificantly as the cutlass was raised from her bleeding, blistered skin. Ana saw black spots mingling in front of her eyes as she tried to focus… but she knew that eventually the darkness would take over. It always did.
"Now, my dear," the voice said. "Tell me what I want to know…" Again, she said nothing. Fingers suddenly dug into her wound, causing her back to arch as she screamed again in pain.
"Tell me!" the voice roared. The black spots became bigger, but still, the darkness was held at bay. Finally… Ana's lips moved, unheeding the voice in her head telling her to keep still.
"Port… Royal…" she hissed out on a very light breath. It was so quiet that she was sure no one heard. But one man did.
"Wonderful… now see how easy that was?" the man said almost gleefully. Then after a beat, he gripped her arm again firmly and looked to the man standing with the cutlass. "Give her another…" She'd thought herself too tired to scream any more, but she was proven wrong…
Suddenly, Ana snapped back to the present to where she was being held tightly in the embrace of Jack Sparrow. Tears had flooded over her cheeks and her throat felt raw. She looked up into the concerned eyes of the pirate that held her, and at a noise she looked over his shoulder. Norrington stood at attention in the doorway to the room, a white-knuckled hand gripping the door frame. Elizabeth stood just inside with Will, a hand over her mouth to cover the pained cries she'd given at seeing Ana in such a state. Will's dark eyes were concerned, his face slightly pinched as he held onto Elizabeth.
"We heard you… scream…" Will choked out as he observed the pair that was seated on the floor. Jack didn't let his gaze waver from Ana's face as she reached up and roughly wiped the tear trails from her face. Ana made a move to stand up, but the exhaustion she'd been holding at bay finally set in and her head dropped to Jack's shoulder. To all in the room who had witnessed the strong, spirited woman in the past, the moment Jack stood with her in his arms and sat with her on the small bed was silent testimony as to what torment she had been through. After being still for a few tense, silent moments, Ana gathered her strength and stood slowly from Jack's hold.
"You wanted to know what scars there were…" she said in a dry, crackling voice. Jack was about to protest, but the woman lifted the sleeve of her shirt. All along her arm there were varying degrees of burns laid into the skin, each slightly wider than a man's wrist, in a strategic lined pattern. After she rolled up the sleeve completely, they could all see that the wounds stretched on the inside of her arm from shoulder to wrist. And without a word, Ana rolled up the other sleeve. On this arm, the scars only stretched to the tender skin that sat inside the elbow.
"They – whoever 'they' are – only got so far before I was saved," she muttered. Elizabeth and Will both had to look away from the welts on the other woman's skin, each imagining the pain each one brought. But Jack's eyes, as well as Norrington's, were transfixed by the scars. Finally, Norrington released his grip on the door frame and stepped further into the room.
"Saved? By whom, if you don't mind me inquiring?" he asked softly. Ana's gaze, which was previously stuck on the floor, snapped up to his. There was a moment of hesitation as she thought over the consequences of telling the naval officer the name he asked for.
"Deverill. Damien Deverill saved me," she said finally. It was deathly quiet as everyone thought over the implication of Ana's choice of words. Unable to control the anger that the last sentence caused in him, Norrington turned on his booted heel and marched back downstairs to pace in Will's modest living area. Will, knowing that he was to be of no assistance in the conversation to follow, left Elizabeth and Jack to join the agitated Commodore. Elizabeth cleared her throat gently as she entered the room further and crossed the room to sit next to Jack on the bed.
"What, exactly, do you know about this Damien Deverill, Ana?" the young woman asked, broaching the long awaited subject. Ana frowned for a moment, wondering where this conversation was going.
"Not much… just that he's a trader, a bounty hunter for hire, and used to be in the Royal Navy… and he saved me…" she imparted warily. "Why?" Elizabeth fiddled with her fingers as she stood up to face the pirate woman.
"Well… to be truthful, he's not a good man. Far from it, actually," Elizabeth said. "We believe that it was he who took you… and tortured you. He's… well, he's a monster." Both Jack and Elizabeth watched the woman closely as Ana drew herself up, a menacing look crossing her face at the new information.
"I don't believe you," she said. Elizabeth stepped forward, reaching out a pleading hand to the woman, but Ana slapped it away.
"Ana…" the young woman tried again, but the pirate shook her head.
"No! I can't believe you… he helped me, took care of me… gave me a ship! He's not what you say!" Ana spat out. Then, her eyes went wide in a misconstrued understanding. "I know what you're doing, now! You lot are after him. I'm the pawn in your little game, aren't I? You're no friends of mine. It all makes sense… you're all in league with the Commodore. He's after Damien and you're to use me to get to him. Well, I'd rather hang than betray a man's trust…" It was almost laughable to Jack, the irony of the situation. Painfully laughable. Ana believed them to be using her as a pawn to hunt down the saintly Damien Deverill when, in reality, it was the other way around. He'd thought Ana to be beyond the mistrust of him… or working past it, anyways. But Deverill had done his storytelling well and it hit Jack where he least expected it… his heart.
"Do you know who hurt you, Ana? Do you know who tortured you mercilessly until you couldn't remember who you are?" Jack asked suddenly. The woman flinched at the question, but met the pirate's gaze.
"You know the answer to that… you know very well that I don't," she gritted out. Jack nodded once.
"Aye, I do know the answer. And it's your honorable Damien Deverill… He tortured you and then convinced you to thinking that his almighty self saved you," Jack said harshly. Elizabeth started slightly at the anger in Jack's voice. It was rare that the pirate ever showed his tempered side. At least Elizabeth herself had never seen it. And knowing Jack's unrealized feelings for the woman standing in front of him, she knew that the anger at something he couldn't control was justified. Yet, a part of her knew that some of that anger was probably a little bit of jealousy… With that in mind, Elizabeth laid a calming hand on Jack's arm to silence him.
"We know that you won't believe us or that it's hard to… you don't even know us," Elizabeth conceded to the bristled woman. Jack let out a nasty curse, but the young woman had Ana's attention. Elizabeth stepped closer to the prickly pirate, but didn't touch her.
"But we know you. We all fought side by side with you. So, please, let us help you. You don't have to believe us now. But give us a chance to prove to you that you are our friend," she pleaded softly. Ana eyed the girl carefully and when she saw the earnestness etched onto her face, the pirate let her guard down slowly.
"Prove it to me then," she said softly. Elizabeth and Jack shared a look, neither one knowing what to do now. Finally, Elizabeth smiled.
"We can prove it to you by letting you be for now," the English woman said as she turned towards the door. "If you need anything, you've only to ask." Elizabeth left the room with a last, pointed look at Jack warning him to let her alone. He gave her a nod and then turned back to Ana. She didn't look angry anymore… or sad. She just looked confused. And tired.
"It must be hard not knowing your life," he commented as a way of making peace with her. Ana didn't say anything but nodded slowly.
"It must be harder still to not know what was done to you and by who…" he continued, stepping close to her to lay a hand on her shoulder. Again, Ana nodded. She was silent for a few seconds as she thought over the past few days and all the people she'd met. She may not trust this man standing in front of her completely… but she did trust one thing. Herself. And her instincts told her one thing as she looked into his dark eyes…
"All I know… Captain Sparrow… was that it wasn't you. And at this point, I can only be grateful for that," she said softly as she stepped back from the man. Jack smiled gently, but didn't press her.
"I can be grateful for that too," he said, causing her to look up at him and smile back. "I'll let you rest…" With that he turned to leave the room.
Jack couldn't sleep. Oh, he'd tried for quite a while. But the conversation with Ana kept ringing in his head. At least she seemed to trust him enough to stay put. That, in itself, was a gift. What he needed now was a carafe of rum to aid in his search for sleep. It didn't take much to slip past the slumbering Will. Elizabeth had long since departed for home, as did the Commodore. The pirate hummed a few lines of his favorite song as he made his way down to the nearest tavern. Just as he was about to push the door open, a hand gripped his arm and pulled him into the shadows. Not in the least bit concerned, Jack pulled his pistol and aimed it.
"Calm yerself, Cap'n… it be only me," a voice said. Jack pocketed the pistol with a shake of his head.
"Ye should be more careful, Mr. Gibbs… I could've left a hole you," Jack said. "Or you could end up with your neck stretched…" Gibbs gave his captain a grin.
"Couldn't let ye have all the fun now, could I?" he asked. Jack grinned back as he stepped further into the shadows.
"What takes you from me Pearl and brings you ashore?" he asked. Gibbs leaned closer to Jack.
"A ship sailed through but a few hours past. It goes by the name of the Falcon. Cotton has been keeping a sharp eye on it. Then, just a moment ago another ship sailed through. Thought ye might want ta know that the Zephyr docked next to the Falcon… I've had some boys sail ashore and check the logs. The Zephyr is logged in for supplies and scheduled to be gone by sunup. It be the same for the Falcon…" the quartermaster said. Jack looked thoughtful for a second as he pondered the implications.
"Has there been anything unusual?" Jack asked. Gibbs smirked.
"O' course… both captains have disappeared… along with the captain of the Châtiment. Me guess is they took to the docks, quiet like," the large man said.
"Curious," Jack muttered to himself. Then he shot to attention and faced Gibbs again. "Get yourself and the rest of the crew back to the Pearl. If there be trouble, I don't want you or me ship put in the middle. I'm off to investigate…" he said. Gibb's voice stopped him.
"Without any help, Cap'n?" the loyal quartermaster asked. Jack thought for a second before tossing a smirk back to the man.
"Oh… I'll have help," he said before taking off. A few twists and turns later, Jack found himself looking at Will's quiet home. The pirate quietly entered the house the way he exited… through an open window. Young Turner slept on the floor, having given up his bed to Ana, and Jack stepped silently over the lad to make his way to the stairs. He crept silently into the small bedroom and approached the bed. Just as silently he reached under the pillow and removed the dirk he knew was there. No pirate left themselves without a weapon at hand… especially when sleeping. Then, he laid a hand over Ana's mouth to quell the shriek that he knew would accompany her sudden waking. The woman's eyes shot open and her hands came up to ward off whatever awoke her. Jack used his free hand to grip the wrist of the hand closest to him to keep it from clocking him. Leaving things to chance, he removed the hand from Ana's mouth.
"What the bloody hell?!" Ana's voice said suddenly as she sat up.
"Quiet, luv…" Jack hissed. "Don't want to wake the whelp!" Ana frowned as she stood up.
"Why don't we want to wake the… whelp?" she asked suspiciously. Jack grinned.
"Cuz we're off to have a bit of adventure, savvy?" he said.
"We are off to have an adventure?" she asked, concerned. Jack just grinned again.
"Trust me," he said as he went to open the window. Looking down, he saw a lower level roof that they could both stand on and then jump from there. Ana watched as Jack threw a leg out the window and then proceeded to climb out.
"Come on out, luv. Don't dawdle," he said.
"I'm not dawdling… I'm question whether or not I should follow you into something that's sure to be trouble," she noted as she made her way to the window. She watched again as Jack walked to the edge of the roof and carefully lowered himself to the ground. With a sigh and a roll of her eyes heavenward, Ana climbed out the window as well and followed Jack's lead.
"Why aren't we taking the whelp on this adventure?" she asked as they finally made it out to the street. Jack rolled his eyes.
"Because the whelp has occasional bouts of foolishness and an impudent impatience in waiting for the opportune moment," the pirate answered, thinking of all the bouts and impatience he'd suffered in dealing with Barbossa.
"And where are we going?" she asked.
"We're not going anywhere in particular at this precise moment, luv. We're looking around a bit, first," he answered as he held them up and peeked around a corner. Seeing no one, he ambled on, motioning for Ana to follow. Then, as quickly as he'd started walking, he stopped. Ana ran into the back of him with an angry grunt. Without much thought the pirate turned and rushed the two of them into the tavern just behind them.
"What is the problem?" Ana cried indignantly, looking around the raucous bar room. Jack grinned.
"Nothing…" he said in a way that meant there was something going on in his head. "Buy yourself a drink at the bar… I've something to look at…" And with that, Jack left Ana standing at the door. Not knowing what he was up to, and not all that certain she wanted to know, Ana took his advice and went to buy herself a drink. And that was where she sat, nursing a tankard of rum for a few long minutes until she saw him rush back in the door. There was a pleased look on his face.
"What have you found?" she asked as he came to her. Jack didn't say anything but picked up her half empty glass and drained it in a drink.
"Come on, luv. We're wasting daylight…" he said as he took her hand and pulled her after him out of the tavern.
"In case ye haven't noticed, Captain Sparrow, in that befuddled head of yours… it's dark out. And I won't take kindly to being pushed and pulled about for no reason that's been revealed to me," Ana said primly as she pulled her hand from Jack's grasp. The pirate stopped walking and spun around to look at her.
"Ana… will you kindly cease your rambling and be quiet?" Jack asked, his hands waving slightly in the air, before he started walking again. Ana took off after him again.
"No. I will not cease me rambling… you woke me up in the middle of the blasted night and told me to trust you! And now you won't tell me why you've dragged me out onto the docks…" she ranted, noticing that Jack seemed to pay no attention to her at all. After they turned another corner, the pirate slowed and turned to address her over his shoulder.
"I'll advise you to be silent… seeing as this is going to be a slightly covert operation," he said. Ana's eyes narrowed as she watched him duck behind a pile of crates and barrels and shuffle about behind them. Realizing she was going to get nothing else from him, she approached where he stood cautiously and ducked down as well.
"What are we doing, Captain Sparrow?!" Ana hissed to the man next to her. He waved a hand at her to be quiet as he peeked over the crates. There, as Gibbs had predicted and Jack himself had searched out moments before, stood the impeccable Captain Damien Deverill. There was a quick intake of breath as Ana realized what was happening and what Jack was trying to show her. Jack grinned to himself at the fortuitous timing as he took a quick look at the woman hunched down behind him. What would the dashing Captain be doing on the dark docks alone at such an hour if it didn't include something disreputable?
"Quiet, luv," he whispered as he sat forward again to take another look. This time, Captain Deverill had a companion… and Jack's grin slipped off his face completely when he realized who was in the rogue captain's company.
"Oh my God…" Ana softly exclaimed. "Is that…" Jack nodded.
"Aye, luv. It is," he affirmed. "There be the Fleau des Espagnois… or The 'Flail' to those who fear him… which would be everyone."
"L'Ollonais…" Ana muttered the mystery man's name from her memory, surprising both herself and Jack. "What would Damien be doing with such a degenerate? Such a monster?" The two watched as Damien shook hands with the other man.
"Having a tea?" Jack asked. Ana glared at him before she leaned forward for a closer look. Then she gasped. Jack's eyes went to what she was seeing. The two men were now surrounded by their counterparts. And being passed between them were shackled, beaten men.
"Those… those are the men that Damien met while we were in Port Antonio… his 'business'…" Ana struggled to get out, the memory of the poor Spanish boy dying in her arms burned into her memory. She looked over to Jack to see his eyes narrowed in thought. He startled her when he reached out and gripped her hand. Without a word, he stood up and dragged her along behind him. Ana watched the back of his head questioningly, almost stumbling over her own feet as he kept a bruising, yet slightly tilted pace.
"What are you thinking? What are we going to do, Jack?" she asked quietly. Jack started at the informal use of his name. Ever since they'd found her, it had always been 'Captain Sparrow'. Never anything else. Ana's own eyes went wide when she realized her slip of tongue. Then her eyes turned to survey something else and remained silent as if to make no big deal out of it. With a smile to himself, Jack tightened his grip on Ana's hand as they continued through the docks of Port Royal. Ana didn't resist being pulled along behind him, but she was far from following him.
"Captain Sparrow," she said impatiently. Jack held up his other hand.
"Quiet, luv… I'm thinking," he said, not turning around to address her. Ana frowned at him.
"Oh, aye, and what an involved process it is, too," she commented. "Where you be takin' me?" Jack gave her a smirk over his shoulder.
"To a place where we can do some more thinking, savvy?" he answered. Ana rolled her eyes, but ceased resisting being tugged behind the eccentric man. Instead she quickened her pace and matched his stride to his to walk along side him. They turned a few more corners and came to a complete halt as they heard the unmistakable sound of pistols cocking behind them. Ana turned to see Jonesy, along with other members of the Zephyr's crew, pointing a weapon at Jack… but he was looking at her.
"Ms. Marie… what in God's name ye be doin' running about with this murderous fiend?" he asked, a look of horror and betrayal on his rotund face... but the charade fell short as the look on his face melted into one of pure wickedness.
"Jonesy…" Ana said. The man nodded to two of his crew and they ran forward, gripping Jack by the arms.
"The cap'n will be right pleased to see ye unharmed, miss. And what a surprise it'll be to see this blighter in yer company…" Jonesy said as he came forward and took Ana's arm. She tried to pull her arm from his grip, but he held firm. Steel gray eyes that had once been friendly were now dark and soulless.
"What are you doin', Jonesy?" Ana asked, confusion marring her brow. There was a menacing smirk as he the barrel of his gun up to touch under her chin.
"I be takin' advantage of an opportunity presented to me, missy," he said gruffly. When Ana turned her head, her heart jumped to see the two other men holding up a limp, unconscious Jack Sparrow.
"They were telling me the truth all along, weren't they? It was Damien… and you…" she said, her eyes wide in sudden comprehension. A memory came back… as well as a face… We'll let her heal a bit before we give her another round… we'll get nothing out of her while she's unconscious.
"Cap'n Dev'rill will be pleased to hear that he made such an upright impression," Jonesy said as he started to pull her along with him. Ana struggled in his grip, only to be stilled when another crew member stepped forward to take her other arm.
"I'm not going with you!" she yelled helplessly. Jonesy and a few other men let out vicious laughs.
"Oh, I be thinkin' ye don't have a choice, missy," he told her, the chuckle still in his voice. The man on her other arm brought his pistol across her face brutally and all she saw after that was black.
Whew… that was a long piece of work! I really hope y'all liked it, cuz if you didn't… well, I honestly don't know what I'd do! And if you find something wrong with it… I apologize. I read through this twice and I kinda got sick of looking at it. So if you see something blaringly obvious that's wrong… be kind and review… heehee… shameless!
History lesson from the author… in this part, I introduced a character named Francois L'Ollonais. He, in fact, was a very real pirate in the mid 1600's, leaving behind a wake of terror to give him the honor (or dishonor, however you see it) of being one of the cruelest pirates in the Caribbean. The reason I included him was that I was so horrified by some of the stories about him that I found him too intriguing to not have a cameo in my story as a sideline baddie. So intriguing that I suggest further reading on him… Francois L'Ollonais, nee Jean David Nau… or The Flail of the Spanish as he was sometimes known. It's an interesting read, I promise you…
Châtiment French for 'Retribution'