Disclaimer: Pirates of the Caribbean and all related characters belong to Walt Disney, Gore, Jerry, Tony, and Terry
Setting: Takes place right after Curse of the Black Pearl.
Characters: Norrington, Gillette, Groves, Anamaria, Murtogg, Mullroy, Marty, Will, Elizabeth, Jack Sparrow, Tia Dalma.
Parings: Will/Elizabeth, Norrington/Anamaria
Chapter 17: Negotiations.
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“I do not wish to cross swords,” James half lied this was the same man who had attacked an innocent ship carrying people like young Daniel and his grandfather. “Lower your blade and we can talk.”
“There will be no discussions,” the prince narrowed his eyes.
“You can’t talk with him in a civilized manner,” Gillette said. “Pirates like them attack and kill the innocent.”
“We rarely attack unless it is to plunder,” the Prince turned his gaze to Gillette. “We don’t kill unless out of defense.”
“Liars,” Anamaria snarled.
“Father wouldn’t lie about that,” Lenore frowned.
“I see we are going nowhere fast,” James sighed. “Perhaps we should negotiate in my cabin?” He didn’t care how long it would take. He just knew it would be more comfortable to have a meeting and discuss a compromise while enjoying a good meal. He stared at the man who called himself the Prince of the Sea, trying to determine what the man was thinking by studying his expression on the other pirate captain’s face. The Prince’s eyes were stoic, his mouth set in a frown under his mustache.
“There is nothing to discuss,” The prince lowered his sword slightly.
“We are not going to get much further by just standing here,” James explained. He glanced briefly at Lenore who stood in between the two men. Her arms were spread to make sure they would not try to attack each other. “My cabin is clean. I make certain everything is in order.”
“Hard to imagine a pirate who believes in cleanliness,” The Prince folded his arms across his chest.
“Father, you keep things clean,” Lenore turned to him and this is Captain Norrington. He has a moniker as well. He is called the Gentleman Pirate. A Gentleman has to be clean.
The Prince pursed his lips. “I had thought the Gentleman Pirate had died over forty years ago.”
“Then I would be the second to hold such an honorable title.” James knew of the man the Prince was speaking of. He was probably one of the pirates Elizabeth had read about when she was a child and thus had fueled her fascination with them. “I try to uphold that image.”
“We have heard of you,” Anamaria spoke up; her voice was harsh. “Certainly you have heard of James.”
“I have heard of such a name,” the prince had nodded. “And I have also heard of Captain James Norrington.” His lips pulled up into a smirk. “You are not much of a pirate, from what I have heard.”
Anamaria stepped forward. Her hand was raised, ready to slap the visiting captain and would have if James and Lenore hadn’t grabbed onto her wrists. “He is one of the most skilled sword fighters in the Caribbean. The shot from his pistol never misses its mark. He can navigate a ship to a simple sand bar on a foggy night. He can outwit the Royal Navy.”
“I do not doubt his fighting skills or his sailing ability,” the Prince did not flinch. “He does not behave like a pirate.”
“Unlike you,” James narrowed his eyes. “But I do not wish to discuss your pirating skills. We are to discuss young Lenore and I feel it would be better in my captain.”
“Please father,” Lenore stared up at her stepfather with pleading eyes, her bottom lip had pooched out. “I’m a feeling a bit peckish. Mr. Mullroy can prepare some treats for us. He cuts chicken wings in half and cooks them in a sauce made out of cream and lemon and pepper, and his butter scones are the flakiest. You have to try them.”
“I suppose it might be best to have something to eat and drink,” the Prince stroked the curled ends of his mustache.
“Mr. Small,” James commanded. “Have Mr. Mullroy prepare more of his chicken wings and butter scones and have the finest wine we own to be sent to my cabin.”
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James had waited until after the Prince had gotten himself comfortable before he pulled out a chair for himself. “Do you have another name, or should I just call you Prince?”
“I do have another name,” the prince removed his hat and ran his fingers through the crown of thick curls on top of his head. “Only a few call me by that name.”
“And I suppose I shall not be one of the few?” James accepted the hat and the adorned coat from the other captain.
“Those only few are in this very room,” the prince nodded at his two crewmates. His first mate was a wiry Spaniard with long dark hair and a fake talon on his right hand. The other man was the quartermaster. The hair near his temples had gone gray and most of his clothing was green in color. “And I shall share it as long as your two companions swear to not repeat it.”
“I swear,” Anamaria was on of the two.
“I promise on behalf of my father,” Andrew was the second.
“My first name is David,” the prince said. “I shall not give out my surname so easily.”
“Your first name is enough, David,” James placed the coat and hat on hooks. “Please take a seat.”
“Shall I light a candle?” Lenore was the seventh person in the room. She served neither side.
“You do not need to ask,” James pulled out a chair and sat down. “Lenore you do know we are talking about you. Let me know if it makes you uncomfortable.”
“I am her father,” David pulled his seat in.
“I am comfortable,” Lenore said as she brought a small flame to the wick of a candle. “And I know what you are going to discuss. I have made up my mind, father. I want to go to Port Royal.”
“Port Royal?” The Quartermaster sputtered the name. “The heart of the British Navy? Are you mad?”
“You are not taking her anywhere,” David placed his hands on the surface of the table. “She is to return at once.”
“But I want to go father,” Lenore pouted. “I want to meet Miss Swan and Mr. Turner and I want ride the horses.”
“How many times have I told you the world is dangerous?”
“Every time I asked if I may leave,” Lenore folded her arms and stuck her nose in the air. “But I have read all about the world. I know what to avoid.”
“Reading about facts about everything and experiencing it is not the same.”
“Exactly,” James’s fist struck the surface of the table, causing it to wobble. He blinked at what he had caused before he slowly lowered his arms. “Sorry.”
David stared briefly at James before he turned to Lenore. “There is still a chance you could get hurt, or even worse.”
“But I haven’t gotten hurt here.”
“Then what is this?” David touched her bandaged hand.
“That happened in Eden,” Lenore replied in the sweetest voice James had ever heard and he still could detect the same type of snide attitude he had once heard Elizabeth use in a conversation with her father.
“It was because of them,” David pointed at James’s side. “They have hurt you.”
“It was a ferret and he only bit me because I hurt his master.”
“Now you see why I leave guards at home and traps all around the land?”
Andrew leaned over and whispered into James’s ear. “We are not going to get far in our negotiations.”
“Not if we don’t cut in,” the quartermaster added. He had leaned across the table while father and daughter continued to argue. “Carlos and I agree with ye in what ye were trying to accomplish and why. It was just none of our business to mention it to the Prince.”
“I have gotten hurt and sick at home,” Lenore nearly shouted. Her face no longer held the sweet innocent expression as it had before and turned crimson. “I have tripped over the legs of chairs and tables and earned several bruises. I have pricked my fingers from sewing and burned my hands while cooking. I have spent days in bed because of fevers. That is the worst that has happened and it would be the worst that will happen.”
“It is far more dangerous out here. You are going back home and that is final.”
“I don’t want to go back,” Lenore
sat back down, defeated in her argument. “I have lived more in the past few
days than in all my years at
“Then you shall,” James smiled at her. “You are no longer a child, nor are you a prisoner.”
“She was never a prisoner,” David said.
“Yes she was,” Anamaria said. “She was kept inside a dwelling with no means of leaving and limited, almost no freedom.”
“I’ll let my hair grow long,” Lenore removed the pins that kept her hair in place, allowing her brown tresses to fall past her shoulders. “Very long and another brave man shall come to Eden and I will throw my hair out the window.” Her eyes regained their roundness and her voice took on a dreamy far away tone. “No. I will have it grow long and I will cut it short. Then tie one end to a table and throw the rest out and I will climb out, and I won’t be afraid. I will listen to music again.”
“We played for her,” Andrew explained. “We brought out our instruments and played a song for her.”
“You,” David pointed a finger at James. His voice was slow and ice cold. “This is your doing. She would not defy me in the past. You have put these ideas into her head.”
“And caused her to think for herself?” Anamaria chided.
David rose to his feet first, followed by James and Ana. Carlos and the Quartermaster rose half way and grabbed their captain by the arms and tried to pull him back down.
“Did we come at a bad time?” Murtogg asked from the entrance. He held onto a large steaming pot. Groves was behind him carrying to large trays along with Calvin who carried bowls, plates and silverware. Marty held onto a large and dusty bottle and several glasses.
“You have come just in time,” James noticed the gleam in the quartermaster’s eyes and Carlos licked his lips. Lenore had brightened at image of the food and even David had sat down again.
The steaming pot contained a simple soup made from carrots, potatoes, onions and spices. Murtogg ladled into the several bowls while Theodore and Calvin served the chicken and the scones and Marty poured the wine.
“Mullroy wanted to make sure you have gotten several vegetables into your system,” Murtogg explained once everyone had been served.
“Tell him I appreciate the fact he was thinking ahead,” James said before he took a bite from his scone. They were still warm.
“Isn’t this wonderful?” Lenore asked. She daintily nibbled onto her chicken.
“Delicious,” Carlos used the golden claw to slice a scone into three smaller sections and he dipped one into his soup. “Can we persuade this Mullroy to join our ship?”
“You may try to bribe him,” Gillette said before he swallowed a spoonful of soup. “Use all of the riches on your ship. You can even offer him positions of power, but he will not leave our crew. We are all loyal to our Captain.”
“And my men are loyal to me,” David said. “And they should be assisting in the negotiations.”
Both the first mate and quartermaster rolled their eyes at each other before they returned their focus to their meals.
“Ah negotiate,” James said slowly. It almost seemed they had all forgotten why they had agreed to stop fighting each other and enter his cabin so he could try to convince the Prince to continue on his way.
“There is no negotiations,” David said. “Lenore is returning with us, and I will take back my family’s bracelet.” He paused to drink from his glass of wine. “You thought I had forgotten that part.”
James gritted his teeth. He had hoped the other captain would have forgotten it. He had hoped he could convince The Prince would allow him to take Lenore To Port Royal. Correction, he wanted sail to Bermuda, have Rosemary set things right and his other self take the young woman to Port Royal.
“You can’t have it back,” Lenore said. “You can’t because you gave it to me as a gift. It was mine.”
“It does belong to you,” David nodded. “It should be in our family.”
“It is mine to do as I wish. I want Captain Norrington to return to his world. He can’t because he is cursed. I gave the bracelet back so the curse can be removed.”
“Lenore, dear.” David inhaled. “The bracelet is part of our family. It was stolen from my great grandfather by a witch.”
“She may not know of the family history,” Andrew brought up. “She just knew who had it and wanted it returned.”
“And you cheated,” Lenore wagged her finger. “You shouldn’t have cheated to get it back.”
“Your father is a pirate,” the quartermaster brought up.
“But can’t a pirate be an honest gentleman?” Lenore asked.
James felt himself pause. His spoon hovered over the half eaten bowl. He had heard the same question before; right before Rosemary’s double served him the wine, and he had refuted her question.
“Yes they can,” Anamaria rubbed her hand against James’s arm.
“She put a curse on you?” Carlos asked. “She puts a curse on a man she had never met, just so she could get a piece of jewelry back.”
“He needs it,” Lenore said sadly. “I will return willingly father, if you let him go home.”
“No,” he was not going to allow anyone to sacrifice his or her happiness for him. He did not force Elizabeth to marry him so he could be happy with her. “Miss Lenore should not be forced to give up her life so I can remove a curse.”
“She is not going to die,” David stared at him strangely.
“To live is more than breath. To live is to experience the world. She wants to breath the air and feel the sun. I am offering her a chance to live.”
“I have explained the dangers.”
“And she has pointed out there is danger even in paradise.”
“I can’t allow her to leave.”
“She is an adult. It is no longer for you to decide.” James wondered why the others were not talking. They were all eating, while trying to avoid eye contact
“I am her father.”
“Any father wants the best for their daughter.”
“I cannot.”
“Why not?”
“Because,” the thunder vanished from the man’s voice with a single word. “I promised her mother.”
Now the truth was revealed. “You have kept the promise, but she is no longer a child. Her mother would want her to live in the world and not be trapped in it.”
“Eva,” the Prince closed his eyes, but it wasn’t quick enough to keep a tear from rolling down his cheek.
“You did everything you could,” the quartermaster gave David a reassuring pat. “You even captured a few doctors to make her better.”
“It is not forever,” Lenore reached out to grab David’s hand. “Is that what you fear? I will come back here, but I want to live and attend tea parties and go to concerts. Captain Norrington is friend’s with the governor’s daughter.”
“You know the Governor of Port Royal?” Carlos pointed at him.
“Yes,” James nodded. “He may not care for me, but his daughter and I are on friendly terms as well as Miss Swann’s fiancé. They would show her around. Elizabeth will think of a reason to have Lenore live at the mansion. She is quite a clever woman.”
David stared his food, not saying any word for several minutes. Everyone stared at him, barely eating or drinking.. “A mansion is like a palace.”
“From what James had described of the place, yes.” Andrew nodded.
“I promised Eva a palace. I created Eden. A fine mansion would be better for her.” David stared at his hands before looking up at Lenore. “She would be well protected.”
“Will you let me go?” Lenore asked.
“Only if you promise to write and have the letters sent to the Faithful Bride on Tortuga.”
“I will sign it the Light of Eden and have it addressed to Father Prince.” Lenore removed herself form the seat.
“I am going to miss you,” David pulled her into an embrace. “Although I will feel it would be better if we traveled along with Captain Norrington to Jamaica.”
“First we will go to Bermuda,” Anamaria said.
“Captain,” Marty tore into the room. “One of the prince’s crew had sighted a ship coming near us, a Navy ship.”
“Bloody hell,” James grumbled. If it were not one thing it was another.
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