Brethren of the Pen; Challenge VI
Barbossa special
Bewilderment
Barbossa had no idea how he came here. Normally he wouldn't enter a tavern in Tortuga likely –what was the use of a visit if he couldn't enjoy its carnal pleasures- but now he found himself hanging on a bar with a mug of rum in his hand. He noticed some men looking at him in secret, whispering behind their hands. Without actually having the intention he raised his hand and waved at them, while at the same time he surprised himself by smiling. This wasn't very funny at all.
Someone tabbed him at the shoulder. A woman wearing heavy make up and pushing her low-necked dress nearly onto his nose stood behind him. "Where have you been lately?", she complained at an annoying tone of voice, "You said you would come and pick me up on your ship as soon as you could…" Not even if you were the last woman on earth, I would… were Barbossa's thoughts, but instead he heard himself saying: "My lady, of course I will. But momentarily I'm captain of a ship that just isn't good suitable for you. And we don't want you to feel unhappy, do we? Patience, love. Patience." And why did he kiss her hand? "Ow, my Romeo…", she drooled and left the scene, immediately followed by another –even more gaudy- woman. "Who was she!", the shrew informed at a high-flown manner. Before Barbossa could even try remembering what possible mistake of the few he made in his life this woman could be, she slapped him in the face and turned around to trot away.
Barbossa staggered from his stool. Good thing he didn't feel any pain, but he felt the humiliation nonetheless. He decided to leave the tavern and to go for a stroll on the docks before returning to the Black Pearl. It was right after he went through the tavern's door when he bumped into another man. "Hold on a moment. Captain of the Black Pearl isn't it?" Barbossa was stunned to find out he had walked straight into the arms of the law that is Commodore Norrington. What were the chances in the world of that! Only a loser would encounter that luck, wouldn't he? Yet for some reason he kept calm and merely smirked when irons were clapped around his wrists. "You will all remember this as the day the Navy captured one of the most fearsome pirates of the ocean", Norrington proudly uttered to his men. "The most fearsome pirate. Not just the ocean, the entire world.", Barbossa nearly choked by correcting the man, but the urge to do so was irresistible. Why was he acting this frivolous? And what took his men so long to free him?
At that very moment Twigg and Koehler appeared. "Well, well. Look what we have here. Captain of the Black Pearl. His fortunes haven't improved much!", was their only comment and roaring with laughter they entered the tavern, simply leaving him. Barbossa's head swam. His world was shattered. How could this be happening to him! This kind of things were only supposed to happen to the worst pirate people had ever heard of. He saw Norrington's affable smile and had to grab a pile for he felt like he was going to faint. A little glimpse at his hand rocked his world to its foundations even more, made him look up to the sky… Yes, there she was; the moon! But why… but how…! The timing couldn't have been worse. His hand was fleshy.
Gasping for breath and sweating like a horse Barbossa suddenly sat up. Thank heavens, he was in his cabin. Safe at the Black Pearl. For a moment he sat thinking about this unbelievable nightmare and things became clear to him. Who would have thought this to be one of his fears. A life like Jack's… never. A life like that wasn't worth living. He viewed his captain's quarters and his eyes fell on the bushel of apples with the one Jack took the other day missing. Was it really not worth living?
