Author's Notes: Yup, you guessed it. Another *Flashback* chapter LOL
As always, I am eternally grateful to my reviewers. Without you (plus PG Tips tea, maltesers and Mayfair cigarettes LOL) I would probably have given up around chapter 6 (ish) and stopped writing. I'm so glad I got talked around though, because this is becoming quite fun :-) Also wanted to say thanks to brokeassproduc for pointing out the mistake in chapter 7. Otherhawk: nah, you win that title hands down. You already have 20 chapters of one story up, and more to come :-)
Jack:
Yer sound like yer accepting an Oscar or something!
Norrington: You wait, she'll be crying with joy in a
minute
Me: If you two don't be quiet, you'll be the ones
with tears in your eyes... after I remove certain bodily parts!
Jack: Hey, play nice!
Me: I will when you two do...
Anyway, my deepest apologies if anyone gets confused by this chapter, as it switches between three "scenes" which all take place at roughly the same time. The Halcon/Norrington bit is just clarification of how the Governor sees his niece. Oh and the young lad mentioned is a very young Lt. Gillette :-)
Jack:
Gillette? Isn't that a razor?
Me: Jack... shush!
Jack: Explain how I *get* me girl, in graphic detail, and I'll
be quiet
Me: *sigh* the words "mind" and "gutter"
just suddenly popped into my head then
Norrington: I wonder why?
Me: Norrington, stop being sarcastic. Jack, NO
graphic details, savvy?
Norrington: Ha! She means it. She underlined it and everything!
Me: OK, on with the story *ignores Jack as he starts singing
"Gillette, the best a man can get" totally off key*
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#9 – For Freedom
Captain James Wolf was at a loss for words, which was quite an event for a man who usually had a great deal to say on most subjects. Several hours had passed since young Ashanae had made her request, but he still had not given her an answer. At first, he had simply told her he needed to carefully consider her request, and its implications. Having thought about it, he realised that the situation was far more complicated than she, or Jack, understood. Just because the Captain had no problem with her being aboard, didn't mean his crew felt the same. He had seen, first hand, how a serious disagreement between crew and Captain could end. Either the crew abandoned ship, or they mutinied and took the ship for their own. That was a situation Wolf was not going to risk being in.
"Even if they agree, she'd still have t' prove her worth," he said, speaking quietly to the darkness of his stateroom. He knew there was more than that simple task which worried him. If she was allowed onboard, and proved her worth, they still had the problem of the Governor Halcon, and the Royal Navy. By sunrise the day after the discovery of Ash's body, the crew had returned and they set sail with extreme haste. The crew had all returned with stories; some had the captain of the Island Breeze kidnapping Ash, while others said that she had never made it to the ship, but been killed on her way to the docks. The Captain and First Mate had tried to explain the situation, but they refused to believe it; it wasn't until several of them had been allowed to see her, that they finally believed the truth. They knew she was alive, but were all blissfully ignorant of the danger they were in.
Whether he granted her request or not, her Uncle was still going to be looking for her. He had seen the greed in the Governor's eyes when the exchange had been made; Halcon saw his niece as nothing more than property he could sell, and he'd want to make sure he recovered his goods. There were only two options that Wolf could see which would grant the girl her freedom; death or marriage. Either her family must be led to believe she was dead, or she would have to marry someone to void the previous engagement she had been sold into. It would be a difficult decision for her to make and, if she chose to 'die' it would be an even greater task to fake her death. Firstly though, he had to have the agreement of his crew to allow her to stay with them. With a deep sigh, Wolf got to his feet and went to speak to his crew.
*********
Governor Thomas Halcon angrily paced the length of dining room, his fury growing with every second that Lieutenant Norrington kept him waiting. His meeting with Captain Petersen had gone very well; the naval officer was dispatching two ships on the dawn tide to look for Ashanae. Before they left however, the Governor wanted to give his own instructions to the young Lieutenant he had arranged to marry his niece. A knock at the door pulled him from his scheming, and he appeared composed as his butler escorted James Norrington into his study.
"Ah, Lieutenant, I'm glad you're here. I wanted to speak with you before you set sail."
"Of course, Governor," Norrington said, stopping a few feet from the older man.
"I want you to make sure you find my niece, at all costs. Even if she has met with a tragic end, I want you to bring her back," Halcon stressed.
"Of course. I will do everything in my power to return your beloved niece to you."
"You'd better. She is more valuable than you can possibly imagine. If you are successful in your task, it is within my power to expedite your advancement. Do you understand?"
"I return your precious niece, you get me promoted?" James asked, careful to keep his tone neutral.
"Precious? Ha! But yes, you get her back here, alive or dead, and I'll get you the rank of Captain." The disgust in his voice was clear as he spoke of the missing girl.
"There is always the chance we won't find her alive..."
"I don't care if she's dead, Lieutenant. Her fortune is greater than even she knows. If she dies, it all goes to me, her legal guardian, and I will make sure you are compensated accordingly. But she lives, she must be returned here and married within the next three months. If not, it... I mean she, will be lost to us forever."
"Why did you choose me to marry your niece, Governor?" James asked suddenly, his feeling of unease growing by the second.
"Because you don't have any money! My sister's husband was a well respected, and very rich, man. His only daughter would require a large dowry for her marriage. As you don't have any money, it would have been taken from her fortune and paid to her guardian," Halcon explained, his patience beginning to wear thin. "I didn't go the trouble and expense of arranging an unfortunate accident to befall her parents, just to be foiled by a stupid, spiteful girl who refuses to do as she is told!"
"The death of her parents wasn't an accident?" Norrington's blood froze in his veins as he stared in disbelief at the man before him.
"No, it wasn't. But don't think you can repeat that information Lieutenant, because I will deny it absolutely. And, as I am a well respected Governor, and you are a lowly sailor, who do you think the authorities will believe?" Halcon asked, his tone menacing.
"Indeed. If that is all, Governor, I will take my leave. There are many preparations to make before we set sail at dawn." Without waiting for a reply, James Norrington bowed to the older man and strode from the room. Waving hello to the young son of the HMS Valiant's First Mate on his way, he headed towards the docks and considered his options. If he did as he'd been asked, and the girl was alive, a murderer would have half the fortune of his victims, and James would have a wife who hated him. If he disobeyed and spoke to his superiors, he risked court-martial for making false claims when the Governor denied all knowledge of, and involvement in, murder.
"If three months pass before we find her, his plans will be ruined," he murmured to himself, as a sudden thought occurred to him. "It would be a terrible shame if it took that long, wouldn't it?" he laughed quietly. With a smug half-smile playing on his lips, James Norrington boarded the HMS Valiant and made ready for a long voyage...
*********
Jack Sparrow stood at the bow of the Intrepid Explorer, and stared out to sea, lost in thought. The crew had agreed to allow Ashanae to join the crew, as long as she proved her worth, and disproved their superstitions. It had been unanimously agreed, however, that if the fortunes of the crew took a turn for the worse, Ash would have to leave. Her agreement to this stipulation had surprised Jack, but he had wisely remained silent on the matter. So the crew knew exactly what they were agreeing to, Wolf had told them of the two choices open to the girl, and asked for any other suggestions to resolve the situation. No-one, including himself, had been able to think of another avenue of escape; she would have to chose to either die or marry. Every man on board, except Jack and Captain Wolf, had offered to be the lucky husband if she chose that route; the looks they'd cast her had made Jack's blood boil. It was only the gentle pressure of her hand on his that had stopped him from doing something stupid.
"So, what do you think of all this, Jack?" Ashanae's softly spoken question pulled Jack from his musing, and he turned to face her. A timid smile on his lips, he looked at her for a long moment, carefully considering his reply.
"It be yer choice. I can't make it for ye," he told her. "But, if ye choose marriage over death, I'd be a good husband. I'd always treat ye right an ye'd not want for nothin." The declaration was out of his mouth before he could think what he was saying. A feeling of anxiety gnawed at him as he waited for her to reply; should he have said what he had, or remained silent and waited for her to suggest the pairing?
"I know you would, Jack. If that is the path I choose, I would have chosen you above all others," she admitted. A small sigh escaped her lips as Jack waited for her to continue; he sensed there was more she wanted to say, but was unable to say it.
"Why did ye do this? Why did ye run?" he asked suddenly, realising she hadn't given a reason for her impetuous behaviour.
"For freedom," she answered simply. Smiling sadly at the young man beside her, she continued. "The thing is, the choice I have to make is not one I relish. If I pretend to be dead, my fortune goes to my legal guardian. I can't let that happen. I cannot prove it, but I believe he had a hand in the death of my parents. Yet, on the other hand, I ran away because I did not want to be forced into a marriage not of my choosing. It is an impossible choice, but one I have to make nonetheless."
"Whatever ye choose, I'll be with ye," he assured her, drawing her into his arms. He smiled to himself as she nestled her head against his shoulder. Neither spoke as the gentle breeze caressed their skin, and the spray of the sea fell lightly upon them. Jack knew the woman in his arms would tell him once she had made her choice, and he would support that decision completely, as he had promised...
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So, can anyone
guess what Ash's choice will be? Tune in next time to find out. Oh yeah,
and please, please, please review :-) Look, 24 reviews! Woo-Hoo!!!!!! Well,
guess I'd better get back to my studying LOL