Cold As Glass

Sequel to Heart of Glass

A Pirate Lord's Adventure

Chapter 19

Like Tortuga's usual jolly self, everyone was firing their pistols, getting drunk, having nightly orgies, and plenty of souls to go about.

But tonight, I did not take pleasure of the sights of Tortuga, instead I found myself hiding in the corner of my mother's tavern, and trying to look like a man.

I had spotted my mother looking my way once, but only to send over Giselle, thus obviously she thought I was a male. But quickly I sent Giselle away claiming that I was homosexual in nature and did not feel like contracting a venereal disease.

She didn't like that. And guess what, I got slapped.

Boy, Jack had fun with that.

"And what makes you think you're worthy to crew the Black Pearl?" Gibbs asked again, with a serious tone-being the actor I knew he was.

A nearly blind old man answered, as he leaned against his staff," I've never sailed a day in me life. I figure I should get out, see the world while I'm still young."

Gibbs then paused to think for a dramatic moment, before announcing," You'll do. Make your mark. Next!"

I sighed, while I looked over at Jack, who sat next to me, shaking his compass. Then opening it again, obviously trying to make it point straight.

"My wife ran off with my dog, and I'm drunk for a month, and I don't give an ass rats if I live or die."

"Perfect! Next!"

I looked back over at Jack, while I took a sip of my ale. Only to see him pinching his eyes shut, and chanting under his breath, as if he were almost praying," I know what I want. I know what I want-"

"Me have one arm and a bum leg."

"It's the crow's nest for you."

Yet Jack continued," I know what I want!"

"Next!"

Jack pushed open his compass's case, only to look disappointed.

"Ever since I was a little lad, I've always wanted to sail the seas…forever."

How ironic…

Jack slammed the compass closed again, before he took a long, oddly sobering, drink of rum.

"Sooner than you think! Sign the roster."

"Thanks very much!"

Jack slowly looked over at Gibbs and inquired, in a hopeful tone," How we going?"

"Including those four, that gives us…four." Gibbs answered in a surprisingly happy tone.

But Jack ignored him and began shaking his compass.

"And what's your story?"

I looked up only to see the devil himself standing there. James Norrington.

Upon instinct I pulled back my upper lip to snarl at him, turned my hands into fists, and felt the cutlass at my side and pistol hanging off of my waist burning to be used.

"My story?" James began, in his deep tone," It's exactly the same as your story, just one chapter behind. I chased a man across the seven seas.-"

"What's the matter with you?" Jack inquired to me, only to stop and spot my glare. And I saw him stare in shock as well, as we both starred at the tarnished shell of the former Commodore James Norrington.

"The pursuit cost me my crew, my commission, and my life." He then took Gibb's rum and took a long sip of it, still keeping it in his dirty hands.

"Commodore?" Gibbs murmured, squinting his eyes obviously to double check.

"No, not anymore." Snapped James," Weren't you listening? I nearly had you all off Tripoli."

Jack began pulling a palm of a large tree in front of him, obviously to hide his face away from James, while James continued to rant," I would have, if not for the hurricane."

"Lord," Gibbs paused, in shock," You didn't try to sail through it?"

"So, do I make your crew or not?" James asked, leaning forward, obviously drunk and out of his mind.

Gibbs cleared his throat, only to have James rudely inquire," You haven't said where you're going. Somewhere nice?!"

He then pushed Gibbs and his table over, causing Gibbs to fall onto the group.

Instantly I jumped up, while Jack began to slink away, with a palm in front of his face, thinking it would hide him. But it made him stick out like a sore thumb.

I stood up and marched towards James, while he shouted in a deranged manor," So, am I worthy to serve under Captain Jack Sparrow?"

The crowds split and showed Jack walking away from James, with the palm leaf still in front of him.

I remained upon the edge of the crowds, ready to dive in at a moment's notice to kill James.

James pulled out his pistol, balancing Gibb's rum in his other hand, and aimed his gun directly at Jack, who froze in his steps. Instantly several women gasped in the crowd.

"Or should I just kill you now?"

Jack moved back and forth from behind a wooden beam and his palm leaf, testing James, whose gun just kept following him.

Jack the stopped and smiled," You're hired."

But James still kept his gun up, and smirked," Sorry. Old habits and all that."

With that I ran forward and jumped up onto James, beginning to squeeze his throat with all my might.

"Easy sailor!" And another much stronger man ran up and pointed James's pistol upward. "That's our captain you're threatening!"

But the gun went off, and I heard glass break.

The brawl had begun.

But I remained latch upon James chocking him, as he struggled to break my legs off from around his hips, where my ankles were tightly locked upon his back.

"Get off you…you…you boy!" James cursed at me, chocking slightly, before suddenly I felt someone rip me off of James, and I was thrown upon the ground.

I laid there for a second in a daze, before I snapped up, only to find James long gone, fighting someone else.

With that I began my fight back towards James, and I fought everyone in my path.

But what kept my adrenaline pumping, besides the image of James actually being dead, was the merry jig that the band was playing upon the stage in the corner of the room, just at the edges of the fighting.

And with my experience at bar fights before, I knew how to work my way threw them, and how to use other's people's weaknesses to your advantage.

Two women suddenly rolled across the ground in front of me, pulling at each other's hair-which I easily jumped over-and kept making my way to James, picking up bottles as I went, smacking people with them. And they fell like flies.

Then I saw James and quickly me-and another young looking fellow-jumped in to fight James.

But as we fought, I grabbed the neck of a broken glass bottle, and kept it behind my back, as I fought (or danced with swords) against James.

Suddenly everything went to a halt, as James stood with his back towards be shouting," Come on, then! Who wants some? Form an orderly line, and I'll have you all, one by one. Come on, who's first?"

It was then I noticed the young boy I had entered this brawl with was standing right next me.

He reached over and grabbed James's bottle he had in his belt loop, obviously to silence him.

But I stepped up in front of the boy, and hissed in James's ear," This is for my husband!"

And I smashed the glass bottle against his head, instantly rendering him unconscious and falling down onto the ground.

The other pirates looked at me curiously, before smirked and announced, in a low voice Sirius had told me to use, when I needed to pretended to be a guy," I just wanted the pleasure of doing that myself!"

All of the pirates cheered at my answer, making me smile, before I saw someone run out of the crowd, with his sword raised.

"James!"

But then my heart stopped and the remains of the glass fell out of my hand and onto the ground, next to James's broken body.

There before me, in the same outfit I had last seen him in, stood my husband, looking extremely disheveled, dirty, and ready for a fight.

And he wanted to fight me for injuring James. James Norrington of all people!