'P' IS FOR PIRATE
By : mirkwood-elf-2931 & Thala

CHAPTER 12

A rope, one that had been previously tied to the rear railing of the Pearl. Immediately, Jenny's hands flew to her neck, as she tried to squeeze fingers between it and her skin to create space, but it had constricted so tight there was no getting even something as small as her pinky under it.

With no other options, she did the only thing she could think of at the time. Using all the strength she could muster, she shoved him backward with her own body. Once his back was against a solid wall, she managed to turn at least halfway around, seeing that her attacker was a man half again her age. At his release on the rope, she gasped, throwing it aside and backing away, she drew her gun, pointed and pulled the trigger without a second thought.

The man flinched at the sound the shot had made, in this shock he didn't realize he'd been hit, then the pain came a sudden rush as the rest of him began to catch up with his brain. Attempting a step forward, his sense of balance failed him and fell forward right into his shooter.

Jenny tried to keep her footing and push against his weight, but it was too awkward for the movement of the ship and the level of the railing behind her, so over they went for the waves of blue below.

The short bang from a pistol clearly cut through the fresh breeze of the mid afternoon.

Charity turned with a jolt in the direction she thought it had come. The Black Pearl was too far ahead for it to have come from there, this sounded much too close. She looked around to see if the only other one who carried a gun was in sight, but she was nowhere. Beginning to panic, she turned to who was nearest. "Will, have you seen Jenny?"

The blacksmith shook his head. "No, last time I saw her we were swinging over from the Pearl."

"I haven't seen her either." Elizabeth put in, showing she had overheard.

Charity's face displayed much alarm to only what might have happened. "I'm going astern. Stay with Elizabeth and mind the helm." She told Will, taking hold of her gun and running for the rear most part of the ship.

Jenny sighed, looking back at the railing, just after re-boarding the rear deck. Somehow, after going over it, she had caught and hung onto the wide ledge, dangling the man below her with her other hand.

The man that had just tried to take her life, who was now unconscious or dead, she wasn't sure. But now that they were back up safely, she was unable to check him, for in the next second, her hearing picked up on the cocking of a gun somewhere close by.

"Jenny?" Charity stepped cautiously around the corner of the bottom ledge of the rear of her boat. She looked to the floor only to see a form lying propped against the railing. But it wasn't her friend; it was a man, one of whom had stolen the ship. She bent down to check him. He was dead; the gunshot they'd heard had killed him.

Peering over the railing, she could see nothing other than the waves crashing against the wooden sides of the merchant vessel. She gulped in slight fear, as only visions of what could have happened to the older woman ran through her mind.

And as she turned away from it, she was left to flinch from the sight that had been behind her. She was looking down the barrel of a familiar pistol.

"Jenny!"

The red head breathed deeply, bringing her weapon quickly down. "Charity," If anyone had stopped to think on it, this was the first time Jenny had ever called her friend by her real name when no one was around to hear it being used instead of 'Iron'. "I thought you were another one of them." She motioned over toward the deceased thief.

"It's all right. Are you okay?"

Jenny nodded. "Except for almost visiting Davy Jones' Locker! Blaggard took me over the railing with'im!"

She grinned, walking over toward the man. "Will you help me get him overboard then?" Her question came through clenched teeth, already trying to lift the body herself.

"Sure," Jenny holstered her pistol and bent to pick up the man's legs.

Soon, they had him thrown over into a watery grave like the rest of his comrades, then together they returned to the main deck.

"Jenny? What...?"

Jenny's mouth dropped half way, and she turned her back on the rich girl to glance at her friend. "Secret's out." She whispered, holding her left hand sideways against her right cheek; walking passed Charity and basically leaving her to explain this to Elizabeth.

"Uh, her name isn't Jenny Easton...it's 'Madd' Jenny Kidd. She lived on a pirate ship with her father, but it wrecked. That's why she was stuck on that island."

Elizabeth's eyes were huge. "So, in other words, it's a bit like your story...?"

Charity smiled. "Right,"

The younger girl also finally smiled. "For the last eight years Jenny has worked in my house, and I had no idea. And now there's two of you..."

But in a weeks time, following the event of Charity getting her ship back, everything came to an abrupt end, as in the middle of their work she and Jenny were drug from the mansion without any explanation by members of the Royal Navy and taken straight up to Fort Charles.

Somehow, their secrets were no longer safe.

Norrington was furious with that fact that he had let this happen at all. He had no idea that eight years before they had been rescuing a girl, who, when she grew older would recall her 'pirate ways' and wait for the right moment to rob and or kill the wealthiest figure of the town, after so long of gaining the trust of he and the entire household.

And now a new one had shown up? Merely quit her six-year job of trading just like that and moved there to be a maid? Yes, he had looked into their backgrounds before taking action. No doubt, most everyone thought, that the two had probably been scheming together all this time and no one would ever have realized, until it was too late.

While waiting to be dealt with, Jenny stared up at the men around her, fumming with rage. In another part of the fort, Charity was 'getting what she deserved' and Jenny had faintly, but clearly heard her cry out, though only once.

It was easy to see that the commodore's conscience was leading him to be out of control and there was only one person who could stop him.

"Norrington!" Elizabeth shouted, running through the gates and inside to the surrounding rock walls of the fort, Will right behind her. But they soon found out that he had already taken their friends up to the jail to become official prisoners.

At once, they found him there, where he had only just finished locking the two up in separate cells. But before she spoke, Elizabeth looked for herself to see Jenny standing at her cell door seemingly unharmed, but Charity was sitting in the middle of hers where she had been shoved down to, holding her right arm and appearing quite pale. "How could you do this! They have done noth...!"

"They are pirates!" Norrington cut her off with her own loud tone. "They could have done something! So, they will be treated in that way all the same!" Ending the conversation, he tried to simply walk past her, but she wouldn't have it and swiftly grabbed his right forearm jerking slightly back on it.

He stopped right then, glancing down at her hand, his eyes flashing as he looked back up at her.

"What are you going to do with them?" She let go, but kept her voice lowered to an anger-laced whisper.

"What do we usually do with pirates, Miss Swann?" He almost smiled.

Tears welling in her eyes, she stared horrified at the man she thought she knew better than this, only to see that he was being completely serious. "Y-you wouldn't...please, you can't...!"

"Fine, what would youhave me do then?"

"Let them go." Suggested Will quickly.

"That I will not do, Mr. Turner. Though perhaps...in a way I can. If not death, then the next best thing would be exile. Yes, they will not even need a trial. Do either of you have your own ship?" He folded his hands together behind his back, facing the convicted pair.

"I do," Charity answered softly, not bothering to look up at any of them.

"And its name?"

"The Drifter."

"Good, then in a day...or two, your things will be loaded on that ship and you will both be escorted to it, free to go wherever you want. But, if you ever set foot in Port Royal again, you will be immediately hanged and no pleading from anyone," At this word, he glanced at Elizabeth. "Will help you in the slightest. Good day." He said insincerely.

And after he had gone up the stairs behind them, the couple sat down on the bottom step, Will putting an arm around Elizabeth as her tears over-swelled and began to roll down her rosy cheeks. "I can't believe him. I'm so sorry, you two. I don't know how anyone could have found out!"

"It's alright, some things just aren't meant to be kept secret, ye know." Said Jenny, who had went over to stand on the single bed of her cell to peer out its window.

"That's right," Charity came to her door, her arms hanging over the waste level bar. "No matter what it is, who's keeping it, or where you are. Guess we should have realized that sooner and got out of here." She looked over into her friend's cell.

Elizabeth and Will were nearly too stunned to say anything having seen the fresh 'P' carved in Charity's arm, when her sleeves had been lifted by sliding them on the horizontal bar.

"No," Will finally disagreed. "It's not either of your fault. You were young and brought here by Norrington himself." He said to Jenny. "And it was my idea for you to come live here." He looked back at Charity.

"It's not your fault either, Will. Don't worry about us; we were on our own at an early age." Charity shrugged. "We'll manage again."

Yes, they would manage, but how exactly?

"I don't know what to do now." Charity confessed, watching the land fade away, as they left Port Royal behind for good. "I'm sure they'll be alerting other towns regardless of what they say." Then she realized who else would know; Ethan, who would finally know her true past and most likely be cautious if she showed up. "I can't go back to my first job either...or visit my former boss, like I promised." Maybe this was all meant to happen, she faintly thought. Maybe meeting Jenny, and Ethan giving her the Drifter was a sign that their piracy secrets were bound to be found out.

"Hey, Iron, what do you think about gathering a crew?"

She glanced over at her half Irish friend hesitantly.

"You know we can't keep managing this ship just the two of us. Come on, pirate is in my blood, and even if yer story tells otherwise, ye can't deny the feeling ye get when out at sea. Ye love this ship. Remember, once a pirate, always a pirate. And no offense, but I hate to tell ye to take a look at yer arm, cause ye really are one now..."

"Yeah, wait till Jack sees it." She shook her head. "But me a captain of others?"

"Sure, why not? I think ye'd make a great commander of a crew. Ye do seem the strong leader type."

"Really?" Charity pondered the suggestion. Perhaps being given the Drifter was a sign that something like this would happen. What else could they do? "Well then, Quartermaster, perhaps we should."

Jenny grinned widely at the thoughts produced by the title given her. "Now yer talkin'! But uh, Captain, ye do know where we'll have to go for this, doncha?"

There was only one place she could think of to gather a group of people who knew what they were doing on a ship. And whether anyone was looking to join a crew or not, they knew some lads and lasses would gladly come if they asked.

Charity sighed. "Tortuga."

TBC ...

mirkwood-elf-2931 :
And that's what I meant when I said that the title of the story would be something our characters would have in common. We both have 'P's for pirate now! LOL
Ahhh! I'm soooo sorry I haven't updated this in so long! Well, it's just been since late April, but I never usually go that long without updating any of my fics. However, I was working on getting up my fourth Lord of the Rings fic and my first Trigun and Samurai Deeper Kyo ones! If you like any of those, please go read them! Thanks!