Spun

Part Three

by : epiphanies



Aurolyn had absolutely nothing to do on this island. One could either be thieving or whoring. The day was treated as the evening, as to everybody sleeping. By three o clock she was the only one walking the roads.

She hummed to herself, picking up her skirts as to keep them clean from the dusty paths. She heard something stir behind her; she spun around and saw nothing. Her eyes narrowed.

She didn't like this. Not the noises, not the heat, not this island, not the Caribbean. She could barely force herself to like her father for bringing her here.

She eyed the swinging door to a tavern.

Perhaps it's just the wind, she thought.

Perhaps not.

She climbed the step and swung open the door to see a lone man with his back to her.

She'd seen him enough in the past day to recognize him without a second glance.

She cocked her head and rolled her eyes as she joined him on the stool next.

He noticed her and smirked, "Curiosity killed the-"

"Pirate," she glared at him. He rolled his eyes a bit,

"Why are you so rough up on pirates, love?"

"One robbed me once."

His eyebrows rose, "In London?"

She nodded defiantly, "And he most definitely was a pirate."

"Could have been," he agreed, "Where most pirates come from."

Her brow creased, "London?"

He nodded, "Aye, London. Where I'm from."

"You're not serious."

"Born and raised."

The bartender slapped two tall glasses of rum in front of them. She eyed it and then the bartender, and took a swig.

When she finished, the pirate was sitting facing her with his hand out.

"Captain Jack Sparrow," he offered, and she noticed that his hand was the dirtiest she'd ever seen. It must have been the rum. She shook it.

"Captain of what, this puny island?"

He glared at her a bit and then puffed out his chest, "Nay, a ship, my dear. A ship called the Black Pearl."

Her eyes widened considerably, and he grinned.

"You're not serious," she said quietly, "That's only from fairy stories."

"You want to see it, Miss...?"

"Siskin. Aurolyn Siskin."

"That's a lovely name, Aurolyn," he tipped his hat and winked, "A little bit ladylike, isn't it?"

She was about to take his arm so that he could show her his "ship" when she stopped and stared at him.

"I'm a lady!" she exclaimed, and he pouted a bit at her.

"Are you sure?"

He slung his arm about her and she shook him off, "Of course I'm sure!"

"Then why, my dear Aurolyn, is there a pistol stored in your garter?"

She nearly fell over.

"How," she hissed, pulling him close to her by the scruff of the neck, "Did you know that?"

"Outline by your dress and the way you're walking, love," he shrugged, his eyes widening as she let go. He touched his neck.

"That was sure ladylike."

"Jack, was it?"

"Aye, love."

"You're obviously smarter than you look. So, please, consider that indeed, I do have a pistol lodged in my garter."

"I am."

She squinted at him as they emerged into the sunny deserted town, "Are you sure?"

He stopped her and opened his frock to reveal his own pistol. She saw a hint of an amused sneer in his face, "Most definitely."

She smiled at him and continued to walk.

"Darling, why do I get the feeling there is something about you that I should know?"

She shrugged, "I don't suppose that I know, Captain."

He seemed to relish in the latter word, allowing her to think a moment about her own mother. For it hadn't been until the evening before that she could even remember anything about her. Actually, it had been in her dream. And Aurolyn hadn't remembered her dream until she had learned Jack's name, nay, the name of his ship.



****

Aurolyn was sitting in a room with magnificent tapestries, but it wasn't an ordinary room. It was rocking. Somehow she knew that she was on a grand ship, a ship called the Black Pearl. She found herself in a magnificent ebony dress and had silver all about her wrists. She glanced into the looking glass and found herself wearing a different nose. Her skin was darker. Her eyes were older. But other than that, she was the same.

"Rose."

She whipped around to see a dashing young man with dark eyes enter the chamber. Aurolyn gasped ; he had called her Rose! But who was Rose? And who, who was he?

"Are you worried about them, Jack?" she found herself asking, and she thought to herself, 'I sound like Rose.'

"Worried about who?" he asked roughly, sitting down next to her and taking off his tri-cornered hat.

"The crew. Barbossa has been looking gleeful lately," Aurolyn said gently, and her hand was touching his leg in an all-too-familiar way.

"Rose," he placed his mouth on her neck, "I could kill them all."

"No, Jack," she pulled away, and she felt the tears in her eyes, "You couldn't."

He looked away from her, outside to the moonlight.

"I'm dropping you in Tortuga tomorrow."

"What?" Aurolyn cried, "No, Jack. They'll kill you! I won't leave you."

"You're going back to the island," he growled at her, then stood and left the chamber with the slamming of the door. Aurolyn felt hot tears cascading down her cheeks and heard her mother's thoughts....

'Oh, please, don't let them kill him....He can put me on Tortuga but he can never make me go back to London, never...'











****



They ended up at the beach, sitting on a pile of rocks. Her hair was whipping about and hitting Jack in the face.

Aurolyn knew that it was the exact same as her mother's.

She watched him carefully, and the third time her hair stuck in his mouth, he blinked.

"Jack?" she raised her eyebrows at him as he stared at her.

"I..." he squinted, then shook his head and turned away.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," he frowned at his hands, and wrung them together, twisting the rubied rings and watching the gold sparkle, "nothing."

She watched the sun set and wondered, despite herself...had her mother loved Jack? Why had Jack approached her in the bar? What had happened after that night, the night that her mother had cried herself to sleep? Did she get dropped in Tortuga? Did she go back to England? Where did her father come into play?

Her world had been so easy only a few days before.



****