Title: First Impressions
Author: SlayersGrl
Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters from the movie. I'm just "borrowing" them…

Summary: A young woman and her brother find themselves in the midst of a pirate attack. Katherine realizes she must do anything to protect her little brother, even if it means facing one of the most feared pirates on the open seas, Captain Jack Sparrow.

Author's Note: Wow, I never really expected to get any responses to this… Um, anyway, I felt inspired to continue the story, even though I originally planned to leave it as one chapter. And, on a totally different note, why did Will's name have to be Will?! It's seriously screwing with Microsoft Word's grammar checker!

Reviewer Responses:

Silverdracowolf: Glad you liked it! I wasn't going to continue it, but then I thought up a half decent plot, so… what the heck! Why not write some more!

Radicalifis: Yay! I kept Jack in character? He's so hard to write too!

PeleAmelika: Good to hear you liked my Jack and my OC. I was really trying to avoid making her a Mary Sue… I think she turned out ok.

u-ne-korn: Nice name! I'm happy you enjoyed the first chapter!

GiveMeTheWind: That's funny that you mention having younger brothers… I'm actually the youngest in my family and so I'm sorta winging it on the whole little brother thing… Jacob's based on my ideas of what it would be like to have a little brother (and somewhat based on my older brother…even though the roles are reversed…)

morph: Yeah, Jack is a little darker here… but even though he may not seem like it sometimes, he's still a pirate. I just wanted to show that all pirates have to kill sometimes, although Jack doesn't seem like the type to do it unless he has no other choice.

Shanelover1: Ah yes, lucky Katherine! Too bad she doesn't see it that way…

Lip Balm: Thanks for adding this to your favorite stories list!

Chapter 2: Moving On

The aftermath of the attack was rather anti-climatic. Order was restored relatively quickly. The first mate claimed control of the ship and got the remaining crew reorganized. All of the victims of the attack were given a burial at sea and within a few hours, the only sign that there had even been a confrontation was the dried blood staining the wooden planks of the main deck and the nearly empty store rooms below.

Thankfully, I found my brother exactly where I had left him, underneath the small cot in our room. At the sound of my voice frantically calling out his name, he jumped out and ran to wrap his small arms around my waist. "Katherine! I thought you were never coming back!" he said with tears streaming down his face.

I felt the familiar feeling of hot tears streaming down my own face as I quickly returned the embrace. "I told you I can take of myself. I wouldn't leave you here alone Jacob."

I'm not sure how long we stood there like that, simply savoring the fact that we were still alive. But for the next few days, we rarely left our cabin. Like the other few passengers, we were worried about another pirate attack. I don't think I've ever felt as happy to see dry land as I did when our ship finally pulled into the docks of Port Royal...

It's been three years since my face to face encounter with Captain Jack Sparrow. My life has since become much more…uneventful. Jacob and I have settled in with our father among the other wealthy and influential citizens of Port Royal. My days are usually filled watching over my little brother and having tea with the other socialites of the town. Sometimes I'd rather skip the socializing part since most of the women seem incapable of having any real thought-provoking discussions. However, there are a few exceptions, such as the governor's daughter, Elizabeth Turner. She is one of the few people I have met who seems to have any understanding of the real world outside of the stuffy, polished mansions of the quiet port town.

"Miss Scott?" a voice called from outside my bedroom door. "Your father is waiting for you downstairs."

I took one last look in the mirror to make sure my attire would meet the standards required for one visiting the governor's home and then hurried out the door to greet my father. I was somewhat surprised to see that my brother had arrived before me, since he was forever rushing around to finish getting ready. Then I noticed the ruffled state of his clothing and realized that his earliness was due to being rushed instead of actually being ready to go.

"Good evening father." I said as I reached the bottom of the stairs.

"You look absolutely beautiful Katherine," he replied as he leaned forward to give me a small kiss on the cheek. My father was always quick to offer a compliment to a woman, especially if that woman happened to be his daughter.

I smiled and then leaned down to straighten Jacob's jacket collar. "Ready to go?" I asked, addressing the question to both men.

My father nodded and gestured towards the door. "We really mustn't be keeping the Governor waiting."

There was a carriage waiting outside and within fifteen minutes I found myself standing at the door of the large mansion that was the home of the Governor of Port Royal. We were greeted at the door by one of the servants and were soon seated in the spacious living parlor just off to the side of the main entranceway.

"Ah, Mr. Scott!" a soft voice called from the doorway leading to the dining room. "What a pleasure to see you again! I'm so glad you could make it for dinner." I turned to see Elizabeth enter the room, followed by her husband Will.

The usual greetings were exchanged and then repeated when Elizabeth's father entered the room moments later. Finally, the Governor and my father excused themselves to discuss business leaving Jacob and myself alone with Will and Elizabeth.

The two men had barely stepped out of the room when Elizabeth turned to me with a wide grin on her face. "So, Katherine, how are the lessons going?"

I couldn't help but blush in embarrassment at her question. The "lessons" in question had originally started as almost a joke. I was sitting with Elizabeth one afternoon while we watched Will try to teach Jacob how to use a sword (a wooden one, of course). After several very amusing attempts, I couldn't help but burst out in laughter at my poor brother.

He, however, did not find it at all amusing and immediately insisted that I give it a try. I foolishly accepted the challenge and took the wooden sword from him. "Honestly! It can't be that hard!" I then took what I hoped was a defensive stance and waited for Will to make the first move. His first swing from the right was quite simple to block, along with the following swing from the left. What I didn't expect was the sudden forward lunge that came next and found myself stumbling backwards to get out of the way. I ended up tripping on my long skirt and fell backwards onto the soft grass. My would-be teacher then offered a hand to help me up and said with a grin, "Looks like you could use a few lessons yourself. Not quite as easy as you thought, is it?"

So, from then on, whenever Jacob and I would visit the Turner's in the afternoon, Will would give us each a small sword lesson. I was quite surprised when Elizabeth occasionally volunteered to join in and was even more surprised to find that she had some skill with the weapon. However, she was now inquiring about the status of my lessons since she had had prior engagements and was not around to witness my last few pitiful attempts.

"Katherine has to be the worst swordsman I have ever seen! She can barely defend herself let alone actually attack with a sword," my brother quickly responded.

I glared at him as I rushed to defend my lack of fighting skills. "Well excuse me if I can't seem to master the art of gracefully swinging a large hunk of metal through the air in hopes of mortally wounding another person."

Will chuckled at my response. "Don't worry. You'll get the hang of it eventually. Everyone should be able to at least defend themselves, should the need arise."

"Well I personally think I did quite fine defending myself without the help of a sword." I replied, referring to the confrontation three years ago.

"Yeah, but didn't you use parley?" Elizabeth asked while still smiling. "They couldn't have hurt you even if they wanted to."

Everyone in Port Royal knew about the pirate attack. The crew was quick to spread word of their harrowing escape from the Black Pearl. They, of course, claimed all responsibility for fending off the attack and only Will, Elizabeth, and my father knew about my role in the whole incident.

I could not think of a witty response and instead decided to change the subject. "Oh, did I show you what my father brought me from his last voyage?"

After seeing the young couple shake their heads no, I reached up and lifted the small gold chain from around my neck. On it was a beautiful, golden medallion with the imprinted image of a phoenix in flight.

"It's beautiful Katherine." Elizabeth exclaimed after examining the item.

All further conversation was halted by the appearance of one of the butlers in the doorway. "Pardon the interruption, but I have been sent to inform you that dinner is served."

The rest of the evening was spent socializing and I was truly disheartened when the time came to leave. The Turners walked us to our waiting carriage and my brother waved his arm out the side as we left.

On the ride home, I noticed that my father was being unusually quiet. Usually he would join in on our conversation, but this night found him simply staring at the passing landscape. I decided not to question him in front of Jacob since my father would probably just avoid my questions so as to not upset him. That didn't mean I wouldn't question him later, however…

After arriving home, I made sure Jacob was settled in bed and then went downstairs to confront my father. I was determined to find out what had him so preoccupied. Predictably, he was exactly where I had expected to find him: in his study.

He didn't notice when I quietly entered the room, so I tentatively asked, "Father?"

"Oh, Katherine!" he exclaimed, finally realizing he wasn't alone in the room. "Did you need something?"

I sighed. The man was as stubborn as his children, me included. He always refused to admit when something was bothering him. "Daddy," I began, choosing to use the informal title in hopes of coaxing him to open up, "I know something is bothering you. You barely said two words on the way home tonight."

"It's nothing. I was just thinking about a business deal that's coming up. It's really nothing you should be concerned about," he replied, choosing to study one of the books on his desk instead of looking me in the eye.

"I know that's not true! It has to be more than that to have you so concerned."

This time my father finally looked up at me. "Katherine, I can't discuss this with you right now. It's business. You understand."

As I tried to ascertain more details simply by meeting my father's stare, I suddenly noticed the pile of papers and log books sitting beside him on the desk. "When are you leaving?" I asked, my voice barely louder than a whisper.

"In the morning."

I stared at him accusingly. "Were you even going to tell us?!"

"Of course I was. I just didn't want to upset you and Jacob before we went to the Governor's. I shouldn't be gone more than a few weeks." He paused, as if waiting for some further reaction on my part. I chose to simply stare at one of the ornate tapestries that adorned the walls of the study. I was suddenly surprised to feel his strong arms embrace me in a warm hug. "Please don't be angry with me," he whispered into my ear. "I don't want to leave. But I have to. Please say you understand."

I considered his words and then slowly returned the embrace. "I understand. But I don't have to like it."

My father chuckled at my reply. "Aye, that you don't. Now off to bed with you! I still have some work to finish before I leave."

Jacob took the news of my father's departure better than I had anticipated. He simply refused to say anything while my father finished his preparations. Then he surprised me by running up to hug him and said, "I won't let you leave until you promise to come back."

My father leaned down so he could look his son in the eye. "Jacob, I promise you I will return as soon as I can. In the meantime, you have to listen to what Katherine tells you and behave yourself like a gentleman. Can you do that for me?"

Jacob simply nodded. Then he climbed into the carriage and was whisked away towards the docks where the ship awaited to carry him off to some distant port town.

"Come on Jacob. Let's go eat our breakfast. Then maybe we can head into town to check out a few of the shops." My plans for the day offered my little brother the perfect distraction and he was soon babbling about all the stores he wanted to visit.

I spent the rest of the morning and part of the afternoon walking around the busy streets of Port Royal gazing in shop windows with Jacob. Occasionally we would spot something interesting in the window and go into the shop for a closer look. But, by the end of the day, our only purchases were a few sweets from the bakery and a new hat for my brother.

"Can we go down to the docks? I wanna see the new ships that came in to port this morning!" my brother asked exuberantly. He always loved going to see the ships, although it always made me a little nervous. I just couldn't help but be reminded of my fateful meeting with a certain pirate captain… Normally I would insist we go find some place else to entertain ourselves, but upon seeing the happy expression on Jacob's face, I relented and agreed to go down to the docks with him.

I allowed myself to be dragged from ship to ship as my brother tried to explain how the rigging and number of masts helped to determine which kind of ship it was. I honestly couldn't care less, but I tried to at least appear interested. My attitude suddenly changed when I noticed an ominous ship at the last pier. It didn't really look suspicious, but I couldn't help the feeling of dread that raced down my spine upon seeing it. There was just something… wrong… about it, like it didn't belong among the other navy and merchant vessels that populated the small cove.

I quickly grabbed Jacob's hand before he started off toward the strange ship. "Come on, I think it's time to go." Before any arguments could be voiced, I continued. "We need to return to the house before we miss lunch."

The mention of food was enough to force all question from my brother's mind and we were soon on our way home. As we left the docks, I couldn't help but glance one last time at the ship, before shrugging off my concerns and returning my thoughts to how to entertain my brother for the rest of the day.

AN: I know… not much action right now… This is more of a transition chapter. I promise, more action in the next one! Oh, and look for Jack to be making another appearance very soon…