A/N: Still no reviews? Alright, mates. You drive a hard bargain. First reviewer gets the awesome pirate hat AND a monkey named Jack. Who could pass up that offer?
Chapter 4: Conversations
It is no secret that pirates love parties. From the moment Jack and Jane return to the ship from Isla de Muerta, the rum never stops flowing. Some musicians from Ana Maria's crew bring out their fiddles to add to the fesitvities. Old friendships are renewed, and old fueds are forgotten, and nearly everyone surrenders to joyful abandon.
The two captains are not to be found on deck with the others. Ana Maria has Jack cornered in his cabin, and there is no hope of escaping her while she is sober. His soltuion is to give her a bottle of rum and wait for the oppertune moment. Sadly for Jack, he has forgotten how well the female pirate holds her liquor.
"So what happened to yer ship?" he inquires. "It looks like it's been to hell and back!"
"I haven't been to hell, but I've been attacked by the devil," she replies bitterly.
"What colors?"
"Red with a black skull. I've never seen it before. But if I ever see it again, so help me! I will take every crew member and blow out their brains! I will have their captain keelhauled and burned beyond recognition! I will -"
"Erm, so anyway," Jack says, interrupting her tirade, "How'd they beat you so badly? Your Neptune is nearly as good a ship as my Pearl."
Ana Maria gazes darkly at the bottle, as if trying to shatter it with her mind. "I do not know. We had them outgunned and outmanned, but our shots never seemed to hit home. They crippled us in a matter of minutes, boarded us, and robbed us blind. But this is the queer part," she pauses, listening. Suddenly the door is thrown open by a drunken sailor singing loudly and incoherently about his bonny lass. The captains just sit there staring at him until he finishes the verse and stumbles off. Then Ana Maria continues her story.
"Later we found a man overboard and fished him out. He said he belonged to the other ship, the Royal Henry, I think he called it. He said it was impossible for any mortal captain to defeat. I said he was daft and locked him in the brig. I haven't yet decided what to do to him," she adds, sounding thoughtful.
Jack is now sitting up straight in his chair and gripping the arms with white knuckles. "Did you say the Royal Henry?"
"What's wrong, Gibbs?"
"Nothin', miss. It's nothin'."
She rolls her eyes. "There must be something bothering you. Your hammock shakes like a palm tree in a hurricane. Quit tossing and turning and get it off your chest."
He sighs loudly. "Well, ye've persuaded me. Jack says yer very persuasive."
"He does?"
"Aye. And a good listener."
"Really?"
"Aye. What's botherin' me is this: I get a bad feelin' every time we get near this island. Sure, I know the curse is lifted, but it still shivvers me timbers, if ye know what I mean."
"The curse? What, you mean Jack's wild stories about the skeleton pirates were true?"
"Aye, missy. As true as my name's Gibbs."
Her eyes shine round and bright in the darkness, and her hand goes instinctively to her chest where the medallion is still hidden. She mumbles some reassurances to the old pirate, and soon he is fast asleep.
Jane wraps her cloak tightly around her body and creeps up onto the deck. Luckily, the few men on deck are passed out cold. The fog drifting off the sinister little island seems to have dissapated, leaving the waist of the great ship drenched in moonlight. She fleetingly wonders if the clearness of the night is due to the stiff breeze. Slowly removing the cloak, she lets it fall to the deck, and then looks down at her body and nearly screams. The clothes are ripped and tattered and look as though they spent years in a grave, and her tanned skin is replaced by white, fleshless bones. The sight nauseates and fascinates Jane as she raises her arms, turning her hands over in the moonlight. She does not hear the footsteps behind her, or even guess that anyone else is on deck besides herself until a hand - a skeletal hand - is clapped over her mouth and she is dragged into the cabin and out of the moonlight.
She whirls around and is about to scream for help when she realizes who her assaulter is.
"Jack! What's going on? What has happened to me?"
Hands still on her shoulders, he directs her to a chair, forces her to sit, and shoves a rum bottle to her. Sitting down opposite her, he leans across the table and stares intensely, punctuatig every phrase with arm motions.
"Weren't you listening to me? Any bloody mortal that takes a bloody piece of gold from the bloody chest is cursed. And you are a stupid bloody mortal, are you not?"
"No, I suppose I'm not anymore."
He throws up his hands and waves them about angrily. "Why couldn't you be a good little girl and keep your hands off the gold? There's probably more pirate in you than bloody stupid Will!"
"I don't see why you're so angry. I can just put it back."
"No, you can't, because we've slipped our cable. Isla de Muerta is leagues behind. Haven't you noticed the fog was gone? Never mind, don't answer that," he adds as an afterthought. "We can't turn back. If we waste any more time the Royal Henry will be gone and so will her treasure, and my men will not be very happy, savvy? So if you could just kindly stay inside once it gets dark I'd be much obliged. Pirates are superstitious as it is without having a cursed woman running about."
"You seem to forget that you're cursed too," Jane responds indignantly. "Won't they notice that their captain refuses to come out after dark? Plus, Gibbs is already suspicious. He told me so tonight."
Jack sighs, and suddenly looks very tired. "What would you have me do? Let you sleep in here with me?"
She tilts her head to one side. "That could work."
"Oh no! NO, NO, NO, NO, NO! I didn't mean that!"
"What's the matter Captain, afraid I have cooties?"
"There's another part of the curse I forgot to mention," he says hesitantly. "But maybe I shouldn't be telling you any more about this. I can't trust you, but . . ."
"You can always count on a dishonest person to be dishonest," Jane supplies helpfully.
"Right. I'm starting to like you anyway. But herein lies the problem, luv. When you're under the curse, food and drink do not satisfy. And neither does, erm, pleasure."
Jane trys to stifle a laugh. "You thought I wanted to sleep with you? Have you never shared your cabin with anyone?" Seeing his befuddled expression, she continued more kindly, "I will sleep on the floor or something. After we're quit of the curse, we'll see. How's that?"
He smiles slowly. "That's good."
"Good then. All I need is a blanket and pillow."
With these things supplied, Jane falls asleep. She is surprisingly calm despite the curse.
Jack is more restless. Now there are two pieces of the treasure to worry about, an attarctive woman on his floor and not in his bed, and the bet with Gibbs is still on and now much more difficult to win. No point doing something if you can't enjoy it, he thinks to himself bitterly. But I do kind of like her, if I could ever get the truth out of her. In truth, she is beautiful, but not like Elizabeth. Jane's dark hair and complexion betray her gypsy heritage; she is no English rose. But her self-assurance, the confidence of knowing she will always land on her feet, and even her sarcastic sense of humor all appeal to Jack more than he would care to admit.
The Royal Henry, the curse, Jane - it is all too much for one poor pirate to ponder.
A/N: Don't forget to review! Pirate hat and monkey named Jack up for grabs here!!