Fic: The Pirates of Boeshane Chapter 8/16
Title: The Pirates of Boeshane: The Curse of the Myfanwy
Fandoms: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Pairings/Characters: Jack/Ianto, Tommy/Tosh, past John/Jack, one-sided John/Ianto, Owen, Kathy, Gwen, Mickey/Jake, Harold Saxon, Rhys/Andy, Martha, James Harper, Ross, Rory, brief mention of the Doctor/Rose, Donna
Author: backrose_17
Prompt: The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Summary: A Pirate Captain seeking to reclaim what was stolen from him joins forces with a young Blacksmith seeking to rescue his kidnapped best friend. Together they find more than just the adventures of their journey.
Rating: PG-15
Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood or Doctor Who.
Beta: royalladyemma
Written for Reel_Torchwood Round 5
Chapter 8
The next morning, warm sunlight streamed down on the docks of Tortuga Bay. Jack and Ianto, who was doing his utmost to act as though he were still ignorant of Jack’s true plans for him, were inspecting the crew that Owen had managed to round up.
“Feast your eyes, Captain. All of them, faithful hands before the mast, every man worth his salt. And crazy to boot,” Owen proudly told Jack.
“So this is your able-bodied crew?” Ianto questioned clear doubt lacing his voice as his eyebrows met his hairline.
Scowling first at Ianto and then at Owen, Jack stepped towards the first man in line. “You, sailor!” It hadn’t escaped Jack’s notice that Ianto was being short and testy with him and it worried about him; he wasn’t sure what was going on. There was a distance between them that hadn’t been there before and Jack feared that despite his attempts at secrecy, Ianto had indeed overheard him last night.
“Ross, sir.” Owen informed him, nodding towards the man who had taken a step forward.
“Mr Ross, do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?” When Ross stayed quiet, Jack allowed his frustration and worry about Ianto boil over. “Mr Ross! Answer, me!” he demanded loudly.
Owen took that moment to speak up again. “He’s a mute, sir. Poor devil had his tongue cut out, so he trained the parrot to talk for him. No one’s yet figured how.”
Jack took a single step to the side so that he was facing Ross’ parrot head on. “Mr Ross’… uh… parrot. Same question.” He rolled his eyes and hoped that the parrot didn’t notice; ‘I can not believe that I’m questioning a bloody parrot!’
The parrot preened under the attention and made a great show of fluttered his wings as he squawked loudly, “Wind in the sails! Wind in the sails!”
Ianto was actually quite surprised by how easy it was to understand the bird and he wondered what else Mr Ross’ parrot could say. With a shake of his head, Ianto brought himself back to the business at hand, and both he and Jack looked to Owen for answers. “Mostly, we figure that means yes,” Owen explained.
‘Seems logical to me,’ Jack thought with a shrug. “Of course it does,” without even trying to hide the sarcasm in his voice he agreed with Owen before turning to face Ianto. “Satisfied?” he asked the young Welshman; for some reason he didn’t understand and wasn’t prepared to examine at the moment, Ianto’s approval really mattered to him.
“Well, you’ve proved they’re mad, I’ll give you that much.” Ianto couldn’t help the bitter tone of his voice as he snapped out his words; he was still hurting over what he’d learned last night. ‘I really thought I meant something to Jack after the way he kissed me.’ Ianto’s lips tingled as he felt Jack’s lips against his again. 'I guess I'll never feel that way again.'
Surprisingly, hot tears prickled behind Ianto eyelids and he quickly blinked them away; if anyone asked he’d just say it was from having the sun in his eyes. Never in his life had a kiss felt so right and it hurt his heart more deeply than he could have imagined to know that Jack had probably only kissed him as a way to distract him and keep him around.
Jack saw the look of hurt flash through Ianto’s eyes and he really wanted to take the other man aside and talk to him in private; he knew he needed to clear the air with Ianto or he risked losing the young man completely. But before he could act on his thoughts, a new voice cut through the air.
“And what’s the benefit for us?”
A wave of fear filled Jack; he knew the owner of that voice and he wasn’t looking forward to seeing them again. With his head held high, Jack very carefully walked past each of the crew members. He paused briefly before each one before moving on until finally he came to a stop in front of a sailor who wore their hat so low that it covered their face.
Knowing exactly who he was going to find, Jack cringed as he carefully removed the hat and revealed to the assembled group the face of a dark-skinned woman. “Kathy!” Jack tried to sound happy to see her but the handsome woman merely glared at Jack before delivering such a mighty slap to Jack’s face that his head rocked back.
“I suppose you didn’t deserve that one either,” the laughter in Ianto’s voice was music to Jack’s ears and he risked peeking at the younger man. The obvious amusement shining brightly in Ianto’s eyes delighted him but he hid his smile.
“No, that one I deserved,” Jack muttered in surly confirmation before turning his gaze back to the fuming Kathy.
“You stole my boat!” Kathy growled in rage.
“Actually…” Before Jack could utter another word, Kathy delivered another powerful slap to the side of his head. “…borrowed. Borrowed without permission. But with every intention of bringing it back to you!” Jack struggled to explain his actions.
“But you didn’t!” Kathy pointed out succinctly.
“You’ll get another one,” Jack quickly promised and took a step back, not wanting to be on the receiving end of another slap.
Kathy pointed her forefinger at him. “I will.” Those two words carried a distinct promise of more pain to come if Jack didn’t keep his word.
Despite the immeasurable hurt that Jack had caused him, Ianto chose that moment to join the conversation; he just couldn’t stand to see Jack get slapped again. He offered Kathy his most charming and boyish smile as he said, “A better one.”
“A better one!” Jack quickly agreed, pleased to see that Ianto was still on his side, at least for the moment.
“That one,” Ianto pointed over Jack’s shoulder to the TARDIS.
“What one?” Jack followed Ianto’s gaze and when he realised what Ianto was doing, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had indeed hurt Ianto. “That one?!” he squawked in astonishment, but when he saw both Ianto and Kathy glaring daggers at him, he instantly agreed. “Aye, that one.” His shoulders slumped in defeat and he turned to the others. “What say you?”
“Aye!” The crew readily agreed and they quickly left Jack, Ianto and Owen standing on the docks as they headed towards the TARDIS. Ross’ parrot had the final word, calling out, “Anchors aweigh!” as they all trooped up the gangplank.
“No, no, no, no, no! It's frightful bad luck to bring a woman aboard, sir.” Owen quickly reminded Jack as he took a long drink from his flask.
Jack stared up at the blue sky, trying to imagine what Kathy would do to them, more importantly to him, if they even thought about leaving her behind. “It’d be far worse not to have her,” he muttered in a mournful tone before turning on his heel and heading for the TARDIS.
Ianto and Owen exchanged a resigned yet puzzled look before they both looked in the direction that Jack had been staring in but they saw nothing up there but beautiful, crystal-clear, blue skies.
*****
With a good crew manning her, the TARDIS was soon under way and flying along with her sails full of wind. They had smooth sailing for a while but as everyone who ever heard the call of the sea knows, the ocean is a cruel mistress who cannot be tamed. Just as the crew was getting settled in for friendly game of cards, a storm suddenly came out of nowhere. Gale-force winds and bow-crushing waves were upon them before they could pull in the sails and within minutes, the crew were fighting for their lives against the combined forces of Mother Nature and King Neptune.
“How can we sail to an island that nobody can find with a compass that doesn’t work?” Ianto found himself shouting to Owen, trying to be heard over the strong winds.
“Aye, the compass doesn’t point north but we’re not trying to find north, are we?” Owen pointed out to Ianto with a snarky grin before turning his attention to Jack. “We should drop canvas, sir,” he suggested shouting at the top of his lungs over the wind.
A grin graced Jack’s face as he shook his head. “She can hold a bit longer.” He didn’t appear to be at all worried that his ship might succumb to the combined forces of wind and water.
“What’s in your head that’s put you in such a fine mood, Captain?” Owen shouted back.
With his eyes locked on his compass Jack cheerfully declared, “We’re catching up.”
*****
On board the Black Myfanwy, Rhys was once again sent to fetch Tosh and bring her before Captain John Hart. “Time to go, Poppet,” he told her, although his attitude was a bit more respectful than the last time he’d been in her room. As he led the way up on deck Tosh tried not to react when he pushed her to stand in front of John. Wearing a feral grin, John placed the medallion around her neck and secured the clasp making sure to caress her skin with his fingertips. She fought back a shiver of disgust as she heard John take a long sniff of her hair before stepping back.
Tosh was no fool; she knew that as long as the pirates thought they needed her, they wouldn’t put their hands on her. She had a growing sense of impending doom that her safety would no longer be guaranteed once they learned who she really was.
After putting Tosh in a longboat, a small handful of crew remained onboard the Myfanwy to keep watch while the rest of them sailed bravely albeit a bit desperately into the cave.
*****
Having weathered the storm only a little worse for wear, the TARDIS sailed boldly into the lagoon while Ross’ parrot sang what was on all their minds: “Dead men tell no tales.” Ianto had an urge to strangle the bird, but then, 'Who'd speak for Ross?' He tried to find a wee bit of humour in the situation.
As the ship drew closer to the shore, the entire crew was on deck and their eyes were irresistibly drawn to the multitude of wrecks strewn everywhere in the water. There was broken masts and shattered hulls visible both above and below the clear water; it was indeed a sobering sight. “Puts a chill in the bones of how many honest sailors have been claimed by this passage.” Having delivered his grim words, Owen shivered slightly and took another long swallow from his flask.
Throughout the journey Ianto had found himself staring - sometimes longingly and sometimes quizzically - at Jack and he had often felt the captain’s burning gaze on his back. He watched as Jack checked the compass one last time before he snapped it closed with a nod and tucked it away in his pocket. Forcing his gaze off Jack, Ianto finally noticed that Ross was watching him with a knowing look in his eyes.
Forcing himself to look away from Ross, he turned instead to Jack’s right-hand man. “How is it that Jack came by that compass?” Ianto asked Owen.
Owen wanted to roll his eyes, knowing that Jack would be over the moon to learn that his boy was asking about him. ‘Honestly, would it kill Jack to keep it in his pants just once?’ However, on the other hand, Owen could not deny that Jack looked at Ianto in ways that he’d never looked at anyone else, be it man, woman or alien.
“Not a lot’s known about Jack Harkness before he showed up in Tortuga with a mind to go after the treasure of the Isle de la Muerta. That was before I met him, back when he was Captain of the Black Myfanwy.”
That startled Ianto. “What? He failed to mention that!”
‘Damn it, Jack! Did you forget to fill your boy in on that little fact?’ Rolling his eyes with annoyance, Owen took another drink. ‘I guess it’s up to me to fill Ianto in about Jack.’ With a deep sigh, Owen took another swig from his flask and tried to figure out just what he was going to say. ‘Ianto deserves to know what he’s getting himself into if he’s going to love Jack Harkness.’
“Well, he plays things closer to the vest now. And a hard-learned lesson it was. See, three days out on the venture, the first mate comes to him and says everything’s an equal share. That should mean the location of the treasure, too, so Jack gives up the bearings. That night there was a mutiny. They marooned Jack on an island and left him to die but not before he’d gone made with the heat.”
Owen’s words brought vivid images to Ianto’s mind, and his heart went out to Jack completely. ‘Now it's all beginning to make sense!' he thought. ‘Now I know why Jack is after the Black Myfanwy and how he knows where she is.’ “Ah,” Ianto murmured. “So that’s the… um…?” Feeling a little silly, Ianto did his best to mimic Jack’s remarkable yet odd mannerisms without mocking the other man too much.
Amused by Ianto’s antics, Owen shook his head. ‘He’s so bloody innocent! No wonder Jack wants to protect him.’ The man could see that Ianto had fallen deeply for Jack and he knew from past experience that things could only end in heartbreak. “Reason’s got nothing to do with it. Now, Ianto, when a man is marooned he is given a pistol with a single shot, one shot."
“Well, it won’t do much good for hunting or being rescued. But after three weeks of a starving belly and burning thirst, that pistol will start to look real friendly. But Jack? He escaped the island, and he still had that one shot. Oh, but he won’t use it, though, save for one man.” Owen paused for dramatic effect, enjoying Ianto’s wide-eyed look. “His mutinous first mate.”
“Hart!” Ianto breathed the name. He flashed back to the fight he’d had with Jack and how Jack had told him ‘...this shot isn’t meant for you.' Now he understood what Jack had meant. ‘Oh, Jack!’ Ianto wanted to rush over to his beloved pirate and offer what comfort he could.
Owen nodded his head. “Aye.” He saw the look of pain and sorrow for Jack clear in Ianto’s blue eyes and he began to wonder if Jack really would - if he could - trade Ianto for the Myfanwy. From the way Jack had so carefully kept Ianto in his line of sight, Owen was having serious doubts. ‘This is going to get bloody messy,’ Owen predicted gloomily.
Only one thing bothered Ianto, prickling at the back of his mind, and he finally had to ask, “How did Jack get off the island?”
It took all of Owen’s willpower not to smirk as he decided to tell Ianto the outrageous story Jack told him. “Well, I’ll tell ye.” With a very serious face, Owen casually explained, “He waded out into the shallows and there he waited three days and three nights till all manner of sea creature came and acclimated to his presence. And on the fourth morning, he roped himself a couple of sea turtles, lashed ‘em together and made a raft.”
Fighting to keep a straight face, Ianto just stared at Owen with pure disbelief written on his face. “He roped a couple of sea turtles?” He didn't think he'd ever heard anything so outrageous before in his life, and he was a lover of all tall tales since childhood.
“Aye, sea turtles.” Owen fought the urge to smirk; it seemed he wasn’t the only one who'd found it hard to believe in Jack’s tall tale.
Ianto’s brows furrowed together as he searched his imagination trying to think of just how Jack would have done something like that. “What did he use for rope?” he asked innocently.
“Human hair, from my back,” Jack whispered in Ianto’s ear as he came to stand behind him. It took all his willpower not to simply snatch Ianto and hide him away in his cabin until everything was finished. ‘He would so look good tied to my bed!’ Jack fought the urge to groan at the vivid images that danced before his eyes and he felt a wave of hot lust sweep through his body. ‘There’ll be time enough for that later,’ he promised himself.
“Let go the anchor!” As much as he would have liked to put Ianto first, he had promised the young Welshman he would help get Tosh back. More important than any promise he’d made was the score he had to settle with his ex-lover and former first mate, John Hart.
“Letting go of the anchor, sir!” One of the crew, Rory, if Jack remembered correctly - he was also the lover of Ross, the poor unfortunate mute with the chatty parrot - called out.
Jack turned his attention back to Owen. “Young Mr Jones and I are going ashore.”
It did not escape Owen’s notice that Jack had yet to remove himself from Ianto’s personal space and if he wasn’t mistaken, he had in fact moved in even closer. “Captain! What if the worst should happen?” ‘And let’s be honest the worst is going to happen,’ Owen thought bitterly to himself.
“Keep to the code,” Jack ordered briskly as he took Ianto by the hand and led him toward the longboats.
“Aye, the code,” Owen agreed immediately and then he looked at his flask in his hands. ‘I’m going to need a refill soon.’
Fandoms: Torchwood/Doctor Who
Pairings/Characters: Jack/Ianto, Tommy/Tosh, past John/Jack, one-sided John/Ianto, Owen, Kathy, Gwen, Mickey/Jake, Harold Saxon, Rhys/Andy, Martha, James Harper, Ross, Rory, brief mention of the Doctor/Rose, Donna
Author: backrose_17
Prompt: The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Summary: A Pirate Captain seeking to reclaim what was stolen from him joins forces with a young Blacksmith seeking to rescue his kidnapped best friend. Together they find more than just the adventures of their journey.
Rating: PG-15
Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood or Doctor Who.
Beta: royalladyemma
Written for Reel_Torchwood Round 5
Chapter 8
The next morning, warm sunlight streamed down on the docks of Tortuga Bay. Jack and Ianto, who was doing his utmost to act as though he were still ignorant of Jack’s true plans for him, were inspecting the crew that Owen had managed to round up.
“Feast your eyes, Captain. All of them, faithful hands before the mast, every man worth his salt. And crazy to boot,” Owen proudly told Jack.
“So this is your able-bodied crew?” Ianto questioned clear doubt lacing his voice as his eyebrows met his hairline.
Scowling first at Ianto and then at Owen, Jack stepped towards the first man in line. “You, sailor!” It hadn’t escaped Jack’s notice that Ianto was being short and testy with him and it worried about him; he wasn’t sure what was going on. There was a distance between them that hadn’t been there before and Jack feared that despite his attempts at secrecy, Ianto had indeed overheard him last night.
“Ross, sir.” Owen informed him, nodding towards the man who had taken a step forward.
“Mr Ross, do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?” When Ross stayed quiet, Jack allowed his frustration and worry about Ianto boil over. “Mr Ross! Answer, me!” he demanded loudly.
Owen took that moment to speak up again. “He’s a mute, sir. Poor devil had his tongue cut out, so he trained the parrot to talk for him. No one’s yet figured how.”
Jack took a single step to the side so that he was facing Ross’ parrot head on. “Mr Ross’… uh… parrot. Same question.” He rolled his eyes and hoped that the parrot didn’t notice; ‘I can not believe that I’m questioning a bloody parrot!’
The parrot preened under the attention and made a great show of fluttered his wings as he squawked loudly, “Wind in the sails! Wind in the sails!”
Ianto was actually quite surprised by how easy it was to understand the bird and he wondered what else Mr Ross’ parrot could say. With a shake of his head, Ianto brought himself back to the business at hand, and both he and Jack looked to Owen for answers. “Mostly, we figure that means yes,” Owen explained.
‘Seems logical to me,’ Jack thought with a shrug. “Of course it does,” without even trying to hide the sarcasm in his voice he agreed with Owen before turning to face Ianto. “Satisfied?” he asked the young Welshman; for some reason he didn’t understand and wasn’t prepared to examine at the moment, Ianto’s approval really mattered to him.
“Well, you’ve proved they’re mad, I’ll give you that much.” Ianto couldn’t help the bitter tone of his voice as he snapped out his words; he was still hurting over what he’d learned last night. ‘I really thought I meant something to Jack after the way he kissed me.’ Ianto’s lips tingled as he felt Jack’s lips against his again. 'I guess I'll never feel that way again.'
Surprisingly, hot tears prickled behind Ianto eyelids and he quickly blinked them away; if anyone asked he’d just say it was from having the sun in his eyes. Never in his life had a kiss felt so right and it hurt his heart more deeply than he could have imagined to know that Jack had probably only kissed him as a way to distract him and keep him around.
Jack saw the look of hurt flash through Ianto’s eyes and he really wanted to take the other man aside and talk to him in private; he knew he needed to clear the air with Ianto or he risked losing the young man completely. But before he could act on his thoughts, a new voice cut through the air.
“And what’s the benefit for us?”
A wave of fear filled Jack; he knew the owner of that voice and he wasn’t looking forward to seeing them again. With his head held high, Jack very carefully walked past each of the crew members. He paused briefly before each one before moving on until finally he came to a stop in front of a sailor who wore their hat so low that it covered their face.
Knowing exactly who he was going to find, Jack cringed as he carefully removed the hat and revealed to the assembled group the face of a dark-skinned woman. “Kathy!” Jack tried to sound happy to see her but the handsome woman merely glared at Jack before delivering such a mighty slap to Jack’s face that his head rocked back.
“I suppose you didn’t deserve that one either,” the laughter in Ianto’s voice was music to Jack’s ears and he risked peeking at the younger man. The obvious amusement shining brightly in Ianto’s eyes delighted him but he hid his smile.
“No, that one I deserved,” Jack muttered in surly confirmation before turning his gaze back to the fuming Kathy.
“You stole my boat!” Kathy growled in rage.
“Actually…” Before Jack could utter another word, Kathy delivered another powerful slap to the side of his head. “…borrowed. Borrowed without permission. But with every intention of bringing it back to you!” Jack struggled to explain his actions.
“But you didn’t!” Kathy pointed out succinctly.
“You’ll get another one,” Jack quickly promised and took a step back, not wanting to be on the receiving end of another slap.
Kathy pointed her forefinger at him. “I will.” Those two words carried a distinct promise of more pain to come if Jack didn’t keep his word.
Despite the immeasurable hurt that Jack had caused him, Ianto chose that moment to join the conversation; he just couldn’t stand to see Jack get slapped again. He offered Kathy his most charming and boyish smile as he said, “A better one.”
“A better one!” Jack quickly agreed, pleased to see that Ianto was still on his side, at least for the moment.
“That one,” Ianto pointed over Jack’s shoulder to the TARDIS.
“What one?” Jack followed Ianto’s gaze and when he realised what Ianto was doing, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that he had indeed hurt Ianto. “That one?!” he squawked in astonishment, but when he saw both Ianto and Kathy glaring daggers at him, he instantly agreed. “Aye, that one.” His shoulders slumped in defeat and he turned to the others. “What say you?”
“Aye!” The crew readily agreed and they quickly left Jack, Ianto and Owen standing on the docks as they headed towards the TARDIS. Ross’ parrot had the final word, calling out, “Anchors aweigh!” as they all trooped up the gangplank.
“No, no, no, no, no! It's frightful bad luck to bring a woman aboard, sir.” Owen quickly reminded Jack as he took a long drink from his flask.
Jack stared up at the blue sky, trying to imagine what Kathy would do to them, more importantly to him, if they even thought about leaving her behind. “It’d be far worse not to have her,” he muttered in a mournful tone before turning on his heel and heading for the TARDIS.
Ianto and Owen exchanged a resigned yet puzzled look before they both looked in the direction that Jack had been staring in but they saw nothing up there but beautiful, crystal-clear, blue skies.
*****
With a good crew manning her, the TARDIS was soon under way and flying along with her sails full of wind. They had smooth sailing for a while but as everyone who ever heard the call of the sea knows, the ocean is a cruel mistress who cannot be tamed. Just as the crew was getting settled in for friendly game of cards, a storm suddenly came out of nowhere. Gale-force winds and bow-crushing waves were upon them before they could pull in the sails and within minutes, the crew were fighting for their lives against the combined forces of Mother Nature and King Neptune.
“How can we sail to an island that nobody can find with a compass that doesn’t work?” Ianto found himself shouting to Owen, trying to be heard over the strong winds.
“Aye, the compass doesn’t point north but we’re not trying to find north, are we?” Owen pointed out to Ianto with a snarky grin before turning his attention to Jack. “We should drop canvas, sir,” he suggested shouting at the top of his lungs over the wind.
A grin graced Jack’s face as he shook his head. “She can hold a bit longer.” He didn’t appear to be at all worried that his ship might succumb to the combined forces of wind and water.
“What’s in your head that’s put you in such a fine mood, Captain?” Owen shouted back.
With his eyes locked on his compass Jack cheerfully declared, “We’re catching up.”
*****
On board the Black Myfanwy, Rhys was once again sent to fetch Tosh and bring her before Captain John Hart. “Time to go, Poppet,” he told her, although his attitude was a bit more respectful than the last time he’d been in her room. As he led the way up on deck Tosh tried not to react when he pushed her to stand in front of John. Wearing a feral grin, John placed the medallion around her neck and secured the clasp making sure to caress her skin with his fingertips. She fought back a shiver of disgust as she heard John take a long sniff of her hair before stepping back.
Tosh was no fool; she knew that as long as the pirates thought they needed her, they wouldn’t put their hands on her. She had a growing sense of impending doom that her safety would no longer be guaranteed once they learned who she really was.
After putting Tosh in a longboat, a small handful of crew remained onboard the Myfanwy to keep watch while the rest of them sailed bravely albeit a bit desperately into the cave.
*****
Having weathered the storm only a little worse for wear, the TARDIS sailed boldly into the lagoon while Ross’ parrot sang what was on all their minds: “Dead men tell no tales.” Ianto had an urge to strangle the bird, but then, 'Who'd speak for Ross?' He tried to find a wee bit of humour in the situation.
As the ship drew closer to the shore, the entire crew was on deck and their eyes were irresistibly drawn to the multitude of wrecks strewn everywhere in the water. There was broken masts and shattered hulls visible both above and below the clear water; it was indeed a sobering sight. “Puts a chill in the bones of how many honest sailors have been claimed by this passage.” Having delivered his grim words, Owen shivered slightly and took another long swallow from his flask.
Throughout the journey Ianto had found himself staring - sometimes longingly and sometimes quizzically - at Jack and he had often felt the captain’s burning gaze on his back. He watched as Jack checked the compass one last time before he snapped it closed with a nod and tucked it away in his pocket. Forcing his gaze off Jack, Ianto finally noticed that Ross was watching him with a knowing look in his eyes.
Forcing himself to look away from Ross, he turned instead to Jack’s right-hand man. “How is it that Jack came by that compass?” Ianto asked Owen.
Owen wanted to roll his eyes, knowing that Jack would be over the moon to learn that his boy was asking about him. ‘Honestly, would it kill Jack to keep it in his pants just once?’ However, on the other hand, Owen could not deny that Jack looked at Ianto in ways that he’d never looked at anyone else, be it man, woman or alien.
“Not a lot’s known about Jack Harkness before he showed up in Tortuga with a mind to go after the treasure of the Isle de la Muerta. That was before I met him, back when he was Captain of the Black Myfanwy.”
That startled Ianto. “What? He failed to mention that!”
‘Damn it, Jack! Did you forget to fill your boy in on that little fact?’ Rolling his eyes with annoyance, Owen took another drink. ‘I guess it’s up to me to fill Ianto in about Jack.’ With a deep sigh, Owen took another swig from his flask and tried to figure out just what he was going to say. ‘Ianto deserves to know what he’s getting himself into if he’s going to love Jack Harkness.’
“Well, he plays things closer to the vest now. And a hard-learned lesson it was. See, three days out on the venture, the first mate comes to him and says everything’s an equal share. That should mean the location of the treasure, too, so Jack gives up the bearings. That night there was a mutiny. They marooned Jack on an island and left him to die but not before he’d gone made with the heat.”
Owen’s words brought vivid images to Ianto’s mind, and his heart went out to Jack completely. ‘Now it's all beginning to make sense!' he thought. ‘Now I know why Jack is after the Black Myfanwy and how he knows where she is.’ “Ah,” Ianto murmured. “So that’s the… um…?” Feeling a little silly, Ianto did his best to mimic Jack’s remarkable yet odd mannerisms without mocking the other man too much.
Amused by Ianto’s antics, Owen shook his head. ‘He’s so bloody innocent! No wonder Jack wants to protect him.’ The man could see that Ianto had fallen deeply for Jack and he knew from past experience that things could only end in heartbreak. “Reason’s got nothing to do with it. Now, Ianto, when a man is marooned he is given a pistol with a single shot, one shot."
“Well, it won’t do much good for hunting or being rescued. But after three weeks of a starving belly and burning thirst, that pistol will start to look real friendly. But Jack? He escaped the island, and he still had that one shot. Oh, but he won’t use it, though, save for one man.” Owen paused for dramatic effect, enjoying Ianto’s wide-eyed look. “His mutinous first mate.”
“Hart!” Ianto breathed the name. He flashed back to the fight he’d had with Jack and how Jack had told him ‘...this shot isn’t meant for you.' Now he understood what Jack had meant. ‘Oh, Jack!’ Ianto wanted to rush over to his beloved pirate and offer what comfort he could.
Owen nodded his head. “Aye.” He saw the look of pain and sorrow for Jack clear in Ianto’s blue eyes and he began to wonder if Jack really would - if he could - trade Ianto for the Myfanwy. From the way Jack had so carefully kept Ianto in his line of sight, Owen was having serious doubts. ‘This is going to get bloody messy,’ Owen predicted gloomily.
Only one thing bothered Ianto, prickling at the back of his mind, and he finally had to ask, “How did Jack get off the island?”
It took all of Owen’s willpower not to smirk as he decided to tell Ianto the outrageous story Jack told him. “Well, I’ll tell ye.” With a very serious face, Owen casually explained, “He waded out into the shallows and there he waited three days and three nights till all manner of sea creature came and acclimated to his presence. And on the fourth morning, he roped himself a couple of sea turtles, lashed ‘em together and made a raft.”
Fighting to keep a straight face, Ianto just stared at Owen with pure disbelief written on his face. “He roped a couple of sea turtles?” He didn't think he'd ever heard anything so outrageous before in his life, and he was a lover of all tall tales since childhood.
“Aye, sea turtles.” Owen fought the urge to smirk; it seemed he wasn’t the only one who'd found it hard to believe in Jack’s tall tale.
Ianto’s brows furrowed together as he searched his imagination trying to think of just how Jack would have done something like that. “What did he use for rope?” he asked innocently.
“Human hair, from my back,” Jack whispered in Ianto’s ear as he came to stand behind him. It took all his willpower not to simply snatch Ianto and hide him away in his cabin until everything was finished. ‘He would so look good tied to my bed!’ Jack fought the urge to groan at the vivid images that danced before his eyes and he felt a wave of hot lust sweep through his body. ‘There’ll be time enough for that later,’ he promised himself.
“Let go the anchor!” As much as he would have liked to put Ianto first, he had promised the young Welshman he would help get Tosh back. More important than any promise he’d made was the score he had to settle with his ex-lover and former first mate, John Hart.
“Letting go of the anchor, sir!” One of the crew, Rory, if Jack remembered correctly - he was also the lover of Ross, the poor unfortunate mute with the chatty parrot - called out.
Jack turned his attention back to Owen. “Young Mr Jones and I are going ashore.”
It did not escape Owen’s notice that Jack had yet to remove himself from Ianto’s personal space and if he wasn’t mistaken, he had in fact moved in even closer. “Captain! What if the worst should happen?” ‘And let’s be honest the worst is going to happen,’ Owen thought bitterly to himself.
“Keep to the code,” Jack ordered briskly as he took Ianto by the hand and led him toward the longboats.
“Aye, the code,” Owen agreed immediately and then he looked at his flask in his hands. ‘I’m going to need a refill soon.’