A/N: Hey guys! To Juliana: Thank you for promising to review my Return to the Labyrinth fic. Everyone else: be like Juliana. And Williz; thanks for saying Jack's character is dead on. I try in all my stories to stay true to him but he's such a complex character it's anything but easy.
And now for the disclaimers: don't own anything but Stacey. (bark!) And Murray.
warning: I'm giving Jack a mini makeover in this chapter. He's still going to look like his wonderful self minus one small detail. Don't flame me. (At least I gave a warning, some fics just throw Jack to the makeover machine without a second thought) Besides, i made up for it with a "Jack takes his shirt off" scene!
And finally, this chapter is dedicated to the city of New Orleans. The music will return.
peace, love and lipgloss,
Mlle. Fox
The next morning, with the sun rising on the horizon and the Turners sleeping in the backseat of Stacey's jeep. Jack was studying a map of the south when Stacey asked him while keeping her eyes on the road,
"So Mr. Sparrow, what do you do for a living?" He looked up and thought a second before answering,
"I'm the Captain of my own ship, Milady."
"Oh so it's Captain Jack Sparrow! Huh, when ya say it like that it sounds so natural! As if that was how it was meant to be!" reflected Stacey.
"I've always thought so!" said Jack folding up the map.
"And what is this thing you are seeking in New Orleans Captain?" she asked.
"Right now it's just a really old house in a swamp. A plantation really, but it was really run down." said Jack.
"Yeah, there're lots of those in the south. Seems like the only houses like that get restored to their former glory if they are in Georgia or if some big rich family owns it." said Stacey with a sigh.
"What caused so many plantations to get abandoned?" asked Jack. Stacey gave him a curious look,
"The Civil War of course!"
"Of course! And who won again?" asked Jack trying to sound like he had heard of this war. Stacey furrowed her brow and said ,
"The South..." Jack nodded,
"Ah! Of course! That's it! And that one general led the south into victory..." While he snapped his fingers "trying" to remember, Stacey said,
"General George Washington!"
"Good ol' George!" said Jack with a smile.
"Yeah, good ol' George!" said Stacey smiling to herself.
"And why did you sound so sad when you spoke of the old southern homes?" asked Jack. Truthfully, Stacey said with a smile,
"You ever felt like you belonged in a different time?" Jack shook his head,
"You have no idea!"
"Anywho, my grandma raised me on stories about southern belles who wore big ol' hoop skirts and dashing young southern gentlemen with drawling voices in these gorgeous old mansions. It sounded so romantic. I felt like I was born too late. There was even this old plantation down the road from Grandma's house, and I would walk pass there everyday dreaming about what it must have been like to live there. To not have to worry about money or hand-me-downs from the thrift stores...must have been a beautiful life." sighed Stacey.
"It probably was, but those born to privilege...don't always think there lives are perfect. Some born to privilege felt like...a more simple life without fuss and frills was for them. A life where one could go where they could go and do what they could do and not worry about what society thought of them...A life of freedom, with every new horizon." said Jack looking inside himself. Stacey met his eyes and smiled,
"That sounds beautiful too."
"Not as beautiful as some southern belles I know!" said Jack smoothly. Stacey smiled brilliantly at him while in the back Will and Elizabeth stirred awake. Looking down at his wife in his arms, Will said sweetly,
"Good morning Mrs. Turner!"
"I guess this counts as sleeping together!" giggled Elizabeth with her head tucked under his chin.
"Anyway you wake up in my arms is fine with me!" said Will. Stacey gave Jack a dry look and asked,
"Newlyweds?"
"What gave you that idea?" asked Jack dryly. Stacey turned her attention back to the road ahead and smiled saying,
"Ya'll woke up just in time!" She pushed a button by her seat and all the windows came down much to her company's surprise.
"We're coming up on New Orleans!"
"Why did you make the windows go down?" asked Will.
"Listen Mr. Turner...Listen to New Orleans!" said Stacey. And they did listen. And they heard a wonderful joyful sound that was loud and random, toe tapping it's way into their souls. The music was unlike they had ever heard before. It was as if someone took the horn section and percussion section of a symphony and had the Muses created a new faster sound for them. They came upon the center of an old section of New Orleans, that resembled somewhat the old colonies they knew, but with golden statues that turned to moving people on the corner, jugglers and acrobats, fortune tellers and painters around a massive garden with an old Catholic cathedral watching over everything. They stopped by a bustling cafe next to the water front for a stoplight, watching a small group of musicians play outside the cafe. Elizabeth exclaimed trying to look at everything at once,
"This is amazing!"
"What's a beignet?" asked Will reading the sign on the cafe.
"A French pastry with powdered sugar!" answered Jack. While the Turners wondered how he knew that, Stacey told them,
"And the Cafe Dumonde makes the best in all Nawlins!"
"Everyone looks like their having fun. Doesn't anyone work?" asked Will.
"Maybe. But as they say in New Orleans, 'Laissez le bon roule!' "laughed Stacey.
"Let the good times roll!" translated Jack leaving the Turners more curious about Jack. Stacey parked the jeep in the parking lot overlooking the Mississippi. When they got out, Jack jumped at the loud noise coming from the paddle boat called Natchez. Shaking it off, Jack said,
"Right then, maybe if we go to the library, we can find a map or a book talking about old New Orleans mansions Savvy?" Jack and the Turners walked off, but Stacey leaned against the jeep rubbing Murray's ears and counting,
"One, two, three, four, five..." Jack returned and asked sheepishly,
"Where...would...the library be Luv?"
"What kept you?" she asked.
&&&
They were walking towards the library, taking in the sights, when they passed by a secluded garden in an alley way.
"Oh how beautiful!" gasped Elizabeth stopping.
"Yeah there're lots of those in New Orleans." said Stacey.
"And we don't have the time to stop and smell them Savvy?" said Jack ahead of them irritated. Then they heard,
"Tell your fortune Miss?" They turned and saw a beautiful middle aged woman with wild curly brown hair. She was eccentrically dressed in wild colorful clothing and she was smiling as if she knew something. She sat at a round table in the middle of the garden with a crystal ball on top. Jack stepped forward and said,
"You seem somewhat familiar have I threatened you before?"
"I think we've met in another...time...Captain!" she said. Jack sat down and said,
"You couldn't be the old gypsy woman!"
"Jack, who is this?" asked Will.
"What you seek Captain is not in a book but in Gracey manor." said the gypsy.
"Gracey Manor?" asked Stacey turning slightly green. Elizabeth said,
"Gracey...that was the family that father sold my old toys to!"
"The other half of the mirror is the key to your return. Find it before the descent of the full moon."
"The mirror must have gotten mixed up in the box!" said Will.
"What mirror?" asked Stacey. Jack stood and said,
"I'll tell you later. Where is Gracey Manor?" But no sooner had he turned back to the gypsy, he saw the gypsy and her table gone.
"Where'd she go?" asked Elizabeth. Murray barked as Stacey said,
"Ask that about me two seconds from now!"
"Alright, let's go. Stacey do you know where this Gracey Manor is?" asked Jack as they started to leave the garden.
"No." said Stacey avoiding his eye.
"Right then, let's find a map or directions to this old Gracey Manor Savvy?" said Jack walking out.
&&&
"Right!" said Elizabeth following him and Stacey out. Will looked around the empty garden once before leaving behind them.
That night, Stacey lead them to an old run down building, with a long line in front, and the sounds they now knew as Jazz inside.
"Why are we here? We should be getting on to Gracey Manor before the full moon!" Jack asked Stacey as they walked past the crowd.
"It's Thursday! The full moon ain't till Saturday! Relax." Stacey told him.
"Yeah Jack, can't we enjoy New Orleans a little bit?" asked Elizabeth.
"We shouldn't if you want to get home!" said Jack. Stacey whispered to Elizabeth.
"Lordy, ain't he the party pooper!"
"Actually Jack is a lot more fun and easy going when he wants to be, but when he gets focused on something he's impossible!" whispered Elizabeth back.
"I can work with that!" said Stacey. They came to the front and recognition lit on the ticket takers face. He nodded to Stacey and let them all in ahead of everyone. The room was packed, with posters and people, standing room only to listen to the group of older men play their instruments with master skill.
"What is this place?" asked Will filling the electricity in the room.
"Preservation Hall. Oldest jazz hall in all New Orleans!" answered Stacey shouting about the music. The black man on trumpet wearing a smart vest stood from his stool and began to sing,
"Oh when the Saints...go marchin' in! Oh when the Saints go...marchin' in...how I want to be in that number...when the Saints go...marchin' in!" Stacey gave Jack a wink before stepping forward, belting out and interrupting the singer,
"Oh when the sun! Refuses to shine! Oh when the sun refuses to shine! Oh how I want...to be in that number! When the sun refuses to shine!" The musicians lit up happily shouting a collective
"Hey!" as they continued to play, each going into a solo routine. The trumpet player gave Stacey a big bear hug before he pulled back and he and Stacey sang together,
"Oh how I want...to be in that number! When the Saints...go...march...'in...in!" The audience exploded in applause while the trumpet player shouted,
"Hey we're gonna take a break we'll be right back!"
&&&
"Well Ramsely? Was she home?" asked the young master in his chair before the fire.
"No sir. Her daughter answered. She and her...husband...went out to dinner with some clients." answered Ramsely.
"Husband hmm? This could complicate things. But I have faith it will work out for the best. Try again tomorrow night Ramsely." said the master.
"Very good sir!" bowed Ramsely.
"Where could she be?" asked the master.
&&&
Sara Evers felt like she was in the deepest circle of hell. Usually, she enjoyed going to dinner with clients, but when the clients were the Coleman's who would not stop fighting, she felt like sticking her knife through her hand to ease the pain. She whispered to her husband,
"You better have something good planned for tomorrow night!" Jim, grinned trying to make the best of things,
"This is fun! We're having fun right, baby?" She whispered to him irritated,
"No, this is not fun Jim! This is dental surgery! That's fun!" Jim followed her nod to the loud large group a few tables over, laughing in hysterics. Jack, who happened to be in this group asked the trumpet player while wiping tears from his eyes,
"She didn't?" The trumpet player laughed,
"Oh, yeah Stacey did that sure nuff!"
"But a grasshopper?" asked Will trying to control himself.
"Yes William. A grasshopper! Now could we please stop telling embarrassing stories from my childhood?" asked Stacey dryly and irritably.
"Aw come on Stacey! Don't be such a 'party pooper'!" said Elizabeth with a snort. Jack stood and said,
"I'm going to get another drink, don't embarrass Stacey without me!" Stacey shot him a look, to which he replied with a wink before heading up to the bar.
"I'll have another Captain Morgan my man!" Jack said to the bartender. While he waited, Jim came up beside Jack and asked the bartender,
"Can I have two more ginger ales please? Thanks." While both men waited, Jim smiled at Jack and said,
"So, your table looks like it's having a blast!"
"Yeah, those old Preservation Hall musicians sure know how to spin a good yarn!" commented Jack.
"Wow, Preservation Hall huh? Those guys are legends!" said Jim.
"I know the feeling!" said Jack.
"Yeah...So do you own your own home?" asked Jim. Jack looked at him and asked,
"Beg your pardon?"
"Let me tell you something. When I look at you I see a man's man! I'll bet you're envied by men and desired by women am I right?" asked Jim.
"It's been known to happen, yes!" nodded Jack.
"Yeah, and a man's home is his castle right? So, if you ever need a castle my friend, just give me a call. Excuse me!" said Jim giving him his business card before returning to his table with the ginger ales. Jack looked at the card before taking his rum and asking himself,
"What if with twenty-first century men giving away their calling cards?" He returned to his table to hear Stacey stand and say,
"And on that humiliating note! I'm going to commission us a hotel!" Jack tucked the business card into his coat pocket saying,
"Right we should start turning in!"
"Oh can't we stay a little longer?" asked Elizabeth.
"Oh sure sugar! Ya'll stay here, Sam will tell you where I'll be, I always stay at the same hotel!" said Stacey leaning on Jack's chair as Jack sat down.
"Night cher!" said the robust black bass player as Stacey went round the table giving out hugs.
"Take care of yourself sugar!" said the white piano player with gray hair.
"Visit anytime!" said the black clarinet player.
"Night!" said the white banjo player.
"Night Stacey sugar!" said Sam the trumpet player while Stacey and Murray walked out.
"Nice girl!" said the clarinet player.
"Make a man a good wife one day!" said Sam winking to Jack who blushed slightly.
"So why are you folks and Stacey here in New Orleans Mr. Turner?" asked the piano player lighting his cigarette.
"Stacey is going to take us to Gracey Manor." answered Will. The players gasped with the bass player rocking back and forth saying,
"Lord no Lord!"
"What's wrong with Gracey Manor?" asked Elizabeth warily.
"Nothin' Missus 'cept a devils curse!" answered the banjo player.
"Curse?" asked Jack in confusion.
"Yeah man curse! About a hundred some odd years ago, the heir to the mansion had this fiancé who killed herself because she couldn't marry him! Then the heir done strung himself up in the bell tower till he was dead!" explained Sam as Elizabeth gasped covering her mouth in horror. Sam continued,
"The next day, all the guests of the manor disappeared. All nine-hundred and ninety nine of them! Now Gracey Manor is cursed with all those lost souls trying to find the light."
"You mean ghosts?" asked Jack skeptically.
"Don't sass me boy! That place got more spooks than hell itself! Didn't Stacey tell you?" asked Sam.
"Stacey failed to mention it!" said Will with a hint of anger.
"Shoo, she probably knows the story of Gracey Manor better than anybody! She lived down the road from it with her Grandma, God rest her soul." said Sam.
"What?" asked Elizabeth.
"Her grandma told me that when Stacey was about nine, she went in there but ran back out so fast and so pale it took the whole night to calm her down. Nobody goes in Gracey Manor and lives to tell the tale!" said Sam.
"Except Stacey." said Jack quietly thinking.
"Jack you don't think Stacey would try to back out on her deal to help us do you?" asked Elizabeth. Jack rushed to check his coat pocket before standing and running out,
"I'd bet me life on it Luv!"
Stacey skidded to a stop by her jeep in the darkened parking lot. She opened the door and climbed in depositing Murray on the passenger seat exclaiming as she took out a business card,
"Murray! We did it! We got our ticket to fame and glory without havin' to go in no haunted mansions thank you! Aw! Now all we've got to do is get to Tennessee and call Mr...Jim Evers of Evers and Evers Real Estate?" Then she heard a tap on the glass and turned her head to see Jack holding up a second business card saying,
"Forget something?" Stacey sheepishly picked Murray up and got out of the jeep with her head weighed down with guilt as Jack said,
"You know if you wanted to steal the right business card, you should have taken it before I returned to my seat Savvy?"
"But people would have seen me!" said Stacey pouting a little.
"Why'd you lie about Gracey Manor Luv?" asked Jack seriously.
"Well why'd you not tell me you were from the past?" asked Stacey. Surprised Jack blinked,
"Come again?"
"The south didn't win the Civil War, the north did. General Robert E. Lee led the south, not General Washington. Good ol' George was our country's first president back in seventeen seventy six. When I realized you didn't know who George Washington was, I figured you either had a really bad education or ya weren't around to hear of him. And since Europeans speak better English than Americans do, I figured you were from the past before the revolution." she said. Jack smiled amazed,
"Glad to hear you are so willing to believe in time travel Milady!"
"Well when you get the bejebbus scared outta ya by ghosts you're more willin' to believe in anythang!" said Stacey.
"Speaking of which, about taking us to the manor..." said Jack getting back on track.
"Oh please, please don't make me go back there Jack! I don't want to have to face that again!" begged Stacey.
"What exactly frightened you so, Luv?" asked Jack rubbing her shoulders comfortingly.
"Oh it was awful! I went there to play pretend, that I was a southern belle in hoop skirts right? I was on the front porch pretending to sip a mint julep when I went round the conservatory and saw this huge graveyard!" she cried.
"Darlin' there isn't anything scary about a family graveyard Savvy?' said Jack.
"Ohh no! This wasn't your ordinary, 'Here lies Aunt Muriel'! This was acre after acre, as far as the eye can see, dead people! But that wasn't the worst part! Then I turned around and saw a big blue ghost ball floating by my shoulder! I screamed and ran outta there faster than Jeff Gordon at Indy! I still have nightmares! So, please Jack...PLEASE don't make me go back there, please!" begged Stacey with tears in her eyes. Jack felt like wrapping his arms around her and promising that she would never set sights on Gracey Manor again, just to see her beautiful smile, but he kept a straight face as he walked to the side of the river and said,
"Very well. Guess I don't need this anymore!" Just as he was about to flick the card in the mighty Mississippi, Stacey rushed forward and held his arm crying,
"NO!" With Stacey half lying on top of him, Jack looked down in her face and said,
"Well make up your mind Luv. Are you going to take us to Gracey Manor or aren't ya?" She hesitated before grunting out,
"Fine, FINE! I'll take ya'll to Gracey Manor!"
"Wonderful! I knew you'd see things my way!" said Jack smiling victoriously. But his smile faded the more he realized just how close his lips were to hers. After wondering how soft they were Jack cleared his throat and stood up straight saying,
"Right. Let's find Will and Elizabeth and get settled in for the night Savvy?" Stacey nodded as Jack went to put the card in his coat pocket, but then he thought better of it and tucked it inside his front pants pocket.
"Just in case you get any ideas Luv!" he said with a wink.
"You wish!" she said walking ahead.
After checking in to the only hotel in New Orleans that accepted dogs, the group was being led to their room by the bell hop with Elizabeth saying,
"You know Stacey we don't blame you for trying to duck out on us. We've had a brush with the undead ourselves!"
"Ya mean ya'll dealt with ghosts before?" asked Stacey. As he was escorting her down the hall, Jack commented without looking at her,
"For about ten minutes, some of us were ghosts!" Stacey wondered what he meant when the bellboy stopped by two rooms and opened the door saying,
"Here you are Mr. and Mrs. Turner. Our finest suite!"
"Oh, no Mrs. Turner will be rooming with Miss St. Claire tonight!" corrected Will.
"No, Mrs. Turner shall be bunking with you, Mr. Turner!" said Jack guiding Elizabeth in the room.
"But Jack you and Stacey aren't married! It isn't proper!" protested Will.
"No, it isn't proper to delay a man and wife from their wedding night! Goodnight!" said Jack pushing Will in the room. As Jack shut the door in his face, Will protested,
"But Jack!" Jack locked the door and shouted to the increased poundings,
"You'll thank me later Whelp!" He turned round to Stacey who said dryly,
"Murray is trained to protect me you know!" Jack stepped forward and looked down at her saying with lust in his eyes,
"But who will protect me Milady?"
"Ah-hem!" coughed the Bellman interrupting their gazes at each other. Turning his head towards him, Jack said,
"About your business man!"
"Jack he wants you to tip him!" Stacey told him. Jack looked at her, before stepping forward and pulling the wad of money out, trying to find a five dollar bill muttering to himself,
"Highway robbery that's what it is..."
"Thank you sir! Enjoy your evening!" said the Bellman taking the five from him.
"I'm trying to, Mate!" said Jack sarcastically. Then they both heard a click. Jack turned to see the door to his room closed and Stacey gone. The Bellmen stifled a giggle while Jack shooed him away before turning his attentions to the closed door. He tried the knob and sure enough, it was locked. He sighed before kneeling by the door and taking a lock pick out of him hair singing to himself,
"And really bad eggs...drink up me hearties yo ho!" Meanwhile, Will and Elizabeth were sitting on the bed their nerves causing them to tremble. Will said crossly,
"Bloody pirate! I just hope he acts like a gentleman!" Elizabeth sighed,
"Well I for one, didn't marry a gentleman..." She squeezed his hand and said with warm desire,
"I married a bloody pirate!" Will smiled and caressed her cheek before drawing her in for a deep passionate kiss, to which Elizabeth pulled him back on the bed.
&&&
When Stacey stepped out of the shower, she did her semi-dry hair in pig tails and dressed in her music note pajamas. She got out of the bathroom to find Jack reclining on the bed, his jacket off, his shirt untucked and his boots off. As he rubbed Murray's tummy, making Murray very happy, Stacey asked dryly,
"What kept you?"
"That wasn't very nice Luv!" he said making Murray jump for a little jingle ball. Stacey went over to the vanity mirror saying,
"Yeah and neither is taking folk to haunted houses that caused childhood traumas, but there's nothing we can do about that either!" As he watched her poke at her eyeball, Jack asked in discuss,
"What in the world are you doing?"
"I'm taking my contacts out! Their like little spectacles you put on your eyes. I only need them to read, but it's easier to hang on to than a pair of reading glasses!" explained Stacey putting her contacts up. Jack stuck out his tongue and looked away saying,
"Well it looks ruddy disgusting!"
"You are one to talk about looks!" said Stacey cleaning the oil off her face.
"Now what's wrong with my looks Missy?" asked Jack.
"Nothin' cept those goofy little braids on your goatee!" said Stacey.
"I'll have you know Milady, I take great care in my image!" said Jack.
"Well the braids are just plain silly!" said Stacey matter of factly. Jack looked down at the bed and asked,
"Ye think it's a bit much?" She looked at him in the mirror and said,
"Just a tad!" Jack stood and said pulling a chair from the table,
"Fine. Cut them off!" She turned to him,
"Excuse me?" He sat flicking his goatee,
"Shave my plaits off!" She crossed her arms,
"You trust me with a razor near your throat?"
"Yeah!" nodded Jack. Stacey shrugged retreating to the bathroom,
"Alright!" When she returned, she had to recompose herself, for she was quite taken aback when she saw Jack's bare chest, hardened and developed by years at sea, with a few tattoos and just as many scars describing his infamous career. He grinned wickedly,
"Like what you see Luv?" She pointed her chin in the air saying,
"I'm just going to shave the goatee off. I like the beard and mustache!" As she set down the shaving cream and razor on the table with a towel, Jack commented suggestively,
"Among other things!" Ignoring that, she lathered his face up, but when she touched the razor to him, Jack gasped causing her to say,
"Hold still or I'll nick ya for sure!" But Jack was remembering the words of the old gypsy,
" the one who will take your breath away..." Before he knew it, Stacey was done and she told him,
"Take a look!" Jack stood and saw in the mirror a neat military beard and trimmed mustache. He stroked it saying,
"Not bad..."
"Now if you don't mind, I'd like to get some sleep!" said Stacey turning back the covers of the double bed. Putting his shirt back on, Jack said,
"I'm right behind ye Luv!" At this, she quirked an eyebrow before he added,
"Providing I sleep on top of the covers and you sleep under them!" Stacey climbed in muttering,
"Just don't try anything!" Jack laid on the bed saying,
"All I ask is the same Milady! After all I need my sleep!" He settled in the pillows when Stacey asked,
"Jack, where'd you get all them scars?" Jack sighed, haunted by bad memories,
"The one on my shoulder I got sacking Nassau without firing a single shot, the branded P is given freely and gladly by the East India Trading Company, and the scorch marks are from boiling oil in Singapore!"
"But you love your life don't ya?" she asked turning off the light.
"Very much. That's why I want to get back to the seventeenth century so bad! The Black Pearl needs me!" said Jack.
"Yeah, you wouldn't give it up for anything would ya?" Stacey yawned. Jack looked at her and said,
"Maybe for one thing..." Realizing she had fallen asleep, Jack contemplated wrapping his arm around her, watching her back breath in and out, when he pulled at his hair painfully, turning his head from her, shutting his eyes and thinking.
'Forget it Sparrow! The likes of you and the likes of her were never meant to be! You're from two different worlds not to mention times! You have to go back to the past or history might change! So what if she's beautiful...and sweet...and fun loving...and full of spirit? So what if she's the only person who has made you feel as alive as the Black Pearl does? You've lived without love before...and you must do it again!' Jack was ready to fall asleep, when Stacey rolled over in her sleep and snuggled into Jack's side, her head resting on his chest. Jack snapped his eyes open when he heard the gypsy's voice echo,
"...the one who will set your body aflame with desire..."
"I really hate gypsies!" muttered Jack hotly.