Author's Notes: OK, this one is *Present* time. There will be more mention of Norrington's actions in the next chapter.
Norrington:
It's about time!
Me: Indeed!
Norrington: Hey, that's my line, not yours
Jack: Yeah, yer supposed t' sound like me, not bloody
Norrington!
Me: Whatever!
Anyway, as I was trying to say, before I was rudely interrupted, Norrington will appear next chapter. And yes, brokeassproduc and sierra, I will be exploring what happens to Governor Halcon in a chapter coming very soon. Let's just say, his 'desperation' to get Ash back has to do with more than just money...
Jack:
Yeah, it also has to do with... *muffled sounds as hand is clamped over Jack's
mouth*
Me: Jack! Stop trying to give away plot points!
Norrington: Ah, that what I like to see. Jack Sparrow forced
into silence.
Me: Both of you be quiet! Otherwise, I will very shortly make
it so that you'll both be singing soprano for the rest of your lives!
Thank you once again to all the lovely people who have reviewed. 27 reviews! Yay! This chapter is a bit of a milestone for me, I've never got to 10 chapters before, nor topped 20,000 words LOL Also, Otherhawk... you were right. Taking a little time out to write does help. My studying has been going better now I've figured out I need to take an hour or so break every night :-) Anyway, as they say in the theatre...on with the show... or in this case, the story :-)
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#10 – More Questions Than Answers
The crescent moon had begun its slow descent back towards the horizon, the pale light it cast across the ocean fading slowly. The stars shone brightly overhead, their brilliance seeming to increase as the moon's light dimmed. One, low on the horizon, shone more brightly than the rest. Jack used it to navigate by; if he kept it in line with the bow of his ship, he always ended up in Tortuga. No matter where in the world he was, if he followed that star, it always led him home. Standing at the helm of his beloved Black Pearl, his hands resting lightly on the smooth wood of the ship's wheel, Captain Jack Sparrow frowned slightly in momentary annoyance. The flicker of emotion across his face was not missed by the Pearl's First Mate, Joshamee Gibbs. The older man watched his captain for a few moments, before he too frowned and turned to look at the horizon. The wind had developed a slight chill as they had been talking, and the air around them had begun to feel distinctly heavy. Dark clouds could be seen building in the distance, a sure sign of trouble ahead.
"There's a storm comin," Jack murmured quietly, confirming his friend's suspicions.
"Aye, that there be," Gibbs agreed.
"It might miss us, if we're lucky."
"Aye, if Lady luck be on our side, we'll be in Tortuga afore it hits," the older man confirmed. Turning his eyes from the horizon, he fixed his bleary gaze on Jack. "So, anyways, ye were sayin...?"
"Oh, yes. Wolf allowed her to remain on board, and the crew agreed to let her stay. If she proved her worth, of course." The younger pirate chuckled, remembering the complicated, and often cruel, trials the girl had been put through by the crew.
"An did she?" Gibbs wasn't sure he entirely believed his friend, but he wanted to hear the rest of the story nonetheless.
"Aye, she did."
"What did they make her do?" There was a note of sympathy in his voice that made Jack look at him curiously. Gibbs had often expressed the belief that women on ships brought bad luck, yet he seemed to have a strange compassion for Ashanae; it was as if he knew how cruel others who held the same belief could be, and didn't really approve of it.
"Everythin. Haul lines, climb the shrouds, mend sails, the lot. Captain Wolf and I taught her to fight, both with a sword and unarmed. She was a bloody quick study, mind you. She used to practice with the crew, to hone her skills as it were. Poor lass was covered in bruises for the first few weeks, til she learned to duck faster," he explained, his tone carrying a mild amount of distaste at those last words.
"They'd hit her? I mean, really hit her, like ye'd hit an enemy in a real fight?" Gibbs exclaimed, horrified. Although he knew men who would, Joshamee had never hit a woman in his life, and would never do so.
"Aye, they did. After about five weeks though, she could put any man aboard flat on his back every time. Once she learned to fight dirty if she had to, in order to win, every one of them apologised." A brief look of pride flickered across Jack's face, but was gone so quickly that anyone else, except Gibbs, would have believed they'd imagined it.
"Ah. So by takin their punches, an learnin from em, she earned their respect then, eh?"
"Exactly. She became one of the most dangerous people I know. Not only could she fight in any way which allowed her t' win, but she often used her gender as a way of gettin the upper hand. There was many a time when we lost the fight, but won the battle, cause of her "helpless maiden" ploy," he laughed, recalling the gleam in her eyes after one such incident.
"How'd ye mean?"
"She'd pretend t' be a poor, defenceless woman, held captive by uncouth ruffians," he mimicked Ash's voice and accent with amazing accuracy. "Usually, the Captain 'rescued' her from us, only to later discover his mistake. He'd be left in his cabin, bound and gagged; while she strolled into the hold, let us out of our cells and we'd take the ship without too much of a struggle. She only ever killed one of them, after she discovered he wasn't as much of a gentleman as he'd appeared. After what that bastard did, I would have killed him if she hadn't..." His voice trailed off as Jack vividly recalled the injuries she had returned with that day. It had taken several days to get her to tell him what had happened; when she had, his fury at the dead man had frightened her greatly. It was the only time he had ever seen fear in her eyes when she looked at him, and he had sworn it would never happen again. For nearly a week afterwards, she had avoided being alone with him, and it had taken a lot more time for her trust in him to be restored.
"So, ye said she had t' make a choice. Pretend to be dead, or marry. Did ye marry her?" Gibbs asked, cleverly changing the subject away from such painful memories. It was a well known fact that Captain Jack Sparrow, although apparently a madman, seemed to go out of his way to avoid killing people. Unless it was absolutely necessary, he would much rather incapacitate his enemy, or render them unconscious. So to hear the younger man admit to wanting to deliberately kill a man was something of a shock for Gibbs. It made him realise that Jack's tolerance only stretched so far; whatever the dead man had done to Ashanae, it must have been very bad indeed. The hatred hidden in those dark eyes gave him an idea of what must have happened, and Gibbs found himself agreeing with his Captain. If the dead man had done what he suspected, then he had deserved to die.
Jack looked at his First Mate with mild surprise; he had not considered the older man in possession of such keen insight, nor such compassionate understanding. The hard look on Gibbs' face, and the angry set of his mouth, told Jack that his friend had some idea of what had happened. He did not need to know the details; those would remain a secret between him and Ashanae forever. This rare night of complete honesty, without pretence or show, was teaching both men things about the other they had not previously known. He watched his friend silently for a few moments longer, then nodded slowly.
"Aye, I did. We both knew her uncle was going to spare no effort to get her back, though at the time we didn't know why. An we had no idea that Norrington was going to delay the search, allowing her to reach her twenty-first birthday before he found her. If we had waited, it wouldn't have been necessary, but we were ignorant of that small fact, at the time."
"Cap'n Wolf did the honours?"
"Aye. It was a simple ceremony, witnessed only by the crew. I used a little of the ransom we got from her uncle to buy her a ring. It wasn't much, just a simple band, made of three strands of silver woven together. An she gave me this," he said. Holding up his right hand, he showed Gibbs the silver ring which adorned his index finger. "It was her father's, one of the few things she'd been allowed to keep after his death." The same flash of pride appeared on his face for a brief moment, before his mildly insane smile returned to replace it. Lowering his arm, his hand came to rest on the compass tied to his belt.
"So Norrington caught up with ye then?"
"He did, not long after Ash's birthday. We were already married by then," Jack confirmed. "Course, by this time, she was ready to defend her freedom, at any cost..."
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It's not a cliff hanger. Really. Honest.
Jack:
Don't think they believe ye darlin
Me: Sure they do.
As always,
please review :-)