Author's note: Just a wee little tidbit, this chapter. A bit dark at the end - finally fluff minimisation. Let's hope I'll manage to keep it up for a little while ;-)

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It turned out that Jim and Hank were eager to show her around the Enterprise and they didn't even object to Barbossa accompanying her. He had kept discretely in the background and she harboured the suspicion that he was immensely enjoying the show she put on. On board she made the acquaintance of Charles and Edward, two other Navy Officers. It wasn't too hard to convince that drinking on duty wasn't such a bad thing.

That night she learned two things about mankind. First: the human species wasn't as superior as it liked to claim and second: men reacted to certain signals a woman sent out. She had once believed, like most of her contemporaries, that reason dominated man's actions, but tonight she experienced something that disproved this theory. It was a simple equation of cause and effect. A smile from her made them say silly things and behave foolishly.

She watched them coolly as they took swing after swing from their bottles and dived deeper and deeper into inebriation. Josephine would have lied if she had said she didn't feel any sympathy for them. As a matter she did. They were very lonely men. As she was told, some of them had just arrived from England to strengthen the number of the garrison. They were far away from their country, from their families and just looking for something familiar to hold on to in this strange new world. The sweet deceiving masque, briefly slipped from her face, but no one noticed, because they were already too drunk at this point.

Josephine motion Barbossa, who stood behind her, to come closer with a gesture of her hand. "Is this really necessary?"

"Scruples, Miss Beckett? At this point? Don't you think it be a little too late for that?" she didn't have to turn around to know there was a derisive smile on his face. The tone of his voice sufficed to make her sure of it.

She remained silent and just stared ahead, unable to answer his questions. Like a malicious little voice inside her head he continued talking, "The question is not whether you've got scruples, Josephine, but whether your will is strong enough to go through with the plan. I don't presume to know your motivations, but whatever it is that you want, you should ask yourself if you want it enough."

"I want it very much," the young woman said after a brief moment of hesitation. The flickering light of the candle threw a warm light on her expressionless face, while the laughter of the four oblivious men sounded over the deck.

"Good girl, now go and get the others," he ordered.

Josephine got to her feet slowly, but before she walked away she turned around to look at him sternly, "Are you an honourable man, Barbossa?"

"Honour…is a quality a man with ambitions shouldn't cling to too rigorously," he looked at her taxingly.

"I know you are capable of murder," she told him straight to the face. "But don't do it this time."

"Why?" he towered over he superiorly, his head cocked to the side.

"It would be an unnecessary act of cruelty and it would make you sink in my regard."

"So you think I care about your opinion of me!" he raised his chin challengingly. "Need I really remind you? I'm a pirate, Missy."

"Do you honestly think that they will remember our faces tomorrow! They spend more time ogling my breasts then looking me in the eyes," she gesticulated exasperatedly, pointing at the four men who could hardly managed to keep upright in their chairs anymore.

Barbossa let out an amused laugh, "And who could blame them….," when she glared at him angrily, he raised his hands defensively, "Alright, Miss Beckett, I relent to your reasoning, just this once."

"Your hand on that," she held out hers and looked at him challengingly. He stared at her sourly, but finally shook it. Her fingernails dug painfully into his skin in the process, he grimaced, but still didn't let go. "I think that will help you remember your promise until I return," Josephine told him in a cold voice. When she withdrew her hand there were four red crescent shaped markings on his palm.

Barbossa watched her walk away with a grin. He liked the girl. Unlike Miss Swann she truly had a dark streak to her character which made him wonder just how far exactly she was willing to go in order to get what she wanted.