(Untitled)
The ocean's super highway is fascinating to oceanographers, nerdy children, and apparently horney dolphins. But to Sands it's just impressive on Jack's part. He wonders if the pirate understands the nature of the thing or just assumes the gulf exists to please him. It doesn't totally matter anyway. Sands is just killing time on a piece of driftwood
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"Stole it from me..."
He gives Jack more attention then, sits up suddenly and pulls a Jack trick of his own. The selkie sways ever so slightly with the raft catching Jack like a snake hypnotizing a bird. He's seen the pirate do that to people while he conned them. Sands never was sure if it was Jack concentrating too hard or trying to distract them but he's willing to bet the pirates brown eyes will follow him like he was a gold watch.
"Help me? Find my skin and all the treasure we've sunk is yours. Pirate. Son of man and water. Caribbean King."
Sands can be downright poetic when he wants to. Jack should hear the things he's written in his head about "El Jingles". He lays back down seemingly too tired for this.
"Don't let me die a man."
That's gotta be bad luck if Jack turns down a selkie, right? sailors are more superstious then baseball players.
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"S'alright, mate. We'll get you sorted. You've my word. ... Now, whot I need, is yours. Savvy? I'll need your sword word that my ship an' my men are safe in giving you passage an' 'elping you."
It will be hard enough getting the men to accept a selkie onto the ship. Gibbs will, doubtless, near soil himself over it. Still, a pet who can sink ships and the promise of every haul of gold he's ever sent to the deep... Well, it's too much for Jack to resist. As he sees the Pearl approaching, he works to quickly find the right words to convince his men to want what he wants this time.
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"Word?... No. Not for the ship"
He looks back at Jack.
"Your ship has already been taken. It's a ghost now. I can't sink it."
Jackie loves his ship and Sands may not know all the details, but he knows enough to look mystical about it and he doesn;t want Jack to think there's any threat to Pearl.
"What could I do to your men?"
They both know the threat here, that a selkie on board could get the men murdering each other for his touch. But that's a given and not going to change. It's in Sands' best interest they don't go fighting over him like new meat in a prison.
"I will not tempt or seduce your men... but they are selfish and wanting... as men are. If you protect me from them I'll protect them from all other ships."
The Pearl drops anchor and soon one of the long boats will be lowered.
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It would be easy for this creature to turn Jack's men against him and against each other. It will be bad enough without him trying. It's as bad or worse than taking a woman aboard.
"'Orright, then. We've an agreement. I'll see you're safe an' you'll do the same for m'ship. If someone in these waters 'as your skin, mate, we'll 'ave it back t'you."
Jack looks up to the deck of his ship and hopes that, for now, it just seems they're rescuing a man from a shipwreck. He'll need time to explain this and there's always the possibility that no man aboard would bring the long boat up if they knew there was a selkie aboard.
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"Not in these waters..."
He holds onto Jack's arms. Behind him a longboat is lowered with two men inside. The cook (closest thing to a sawbones they have) and one of the larger pirates in case the man they rescue needs to be carried.
"A pirate. He said I was his treasure now. He'll catch me again and I can't sink his ship with my skin on board. I sank the ship they took and came here."
It's tempted to call this thing the big wet super highway but he manages.
The men on the longboat have blankets for Jack and the man they're surprised to find alive. The sun is in their eyes and they're shielding for now. They can't see him shine.
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"Seems lively enough, jus' suffering from sun an' starvation."
So, there's a pirate somewhere up current with the creature's skin. Fine. They likely won't have to travel far before they come up against the bastard out searching for his lost prize. After all, the skin is worthless without the seal, himself. If possible, Jack plans not to go too far north. He doesn't care for the cold.
He sits with the selkie as they're raised, ignoring the questioning looks that seem to beg answers for why they're selfish captain felt need to save a stranger from the sea. Before they can speak, Jack begins issuing orders, calling out up to the men on deck.
"Ready a cot in my quarters an' warm something for our guest to eat. Adjust heading to the Nor'East. We've a new course."
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The crew are curious, but Jack never ever explains himself to them. Especially when it would be helpful. They'll have to wait for whatever little news Gibbs brings them later. The cook and the other sailor glance at each other on the way up. The cook knows so little of healing he's always glad when he's not needed for it. It's painful for the whole crew when he learns on the job. But they all know sun stroke so if the captain says it's not any more serious then that they wont offer any more.
"Yus Cap'ain"
Gibbs offers his hand to help Jack back on board, but the pirate beats him to it already over the side and helping his new selkie.
" 'E's alive then."
The other two hurry to get what Jack ordered, trying to catch a peek as they go by. Most of the crew are pretending to have business top deck. Entertainment can be rare. Sands is less comfortable with this plan now. These men are large, filthy... that parrot is giving him the stink eye. He's pretty sure those scabs the skinny one is scratching are scabies. He thinks about the time he tricked Jack into a bath with Mr.Bubbles. It was the cleanest the pirate ever was. Once he stopped trying to flee he was distracted enough to stay put while sands took a loofa to every inch of his body. Sands wants his loofa.
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Jack hooks a protective arm around the selkie's shoulders to help to hide him and lead the man to his quarters. He turns to his bo'sun as he goes.
"Master Gibbs, I trust yeh'll keep some degree of order on deck, aye?"
It's as much of a code as Jack bothers with. Between the orders and the look, Gibbs will know that Jack is not to be disturbed. He's taken with some new obsession and the nature of this new game is not something the crew is to be privy to just yet.
He takes the selkie into the darkened captain's quarters, the scent of rum and coconut heavy inside; clinging to damp wood and velvet. Jack pulls back the curtains of his disheveled bed and guides the selkie to sit.
"Y'can sleep 'ere for now. You'll not need t'go among the crew at all, if you wish. There's clean water 'ere. An' rum. I'll see t'your meals."
Jack's never had a pet, really, but it seems simple enough.
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When Sands presented jack with a top of the line ship and all the modern enmities he knew it would be an unthinkable palace to the pirate. What he underestimated what were Jack came from. This room fits the pirate so much more then the hotel or the yacht. The other two seem childish now and two dementional. Even though the pirate adorably collected anything not nailed down and made a sort of birds nest for himself out of what Sands gave him- neither of those places was really his home. He sees that now. This place smells so strongly of Jack. Every fabric and keepsake belongs. He doesn't try to hide his interest and wonderment at what he's looking at.
He lets the blanket drop off his shoulders and lays back on the layers of feathered pillows and velvet. Running water be damned, this is the sweet life. He'll be a good pet to Jack, though the pirate may want to change out his collar because that locket shows a different owner.
"It's soft."
There's an invitation in those black eyes, but when he pulled this trick on El he learned a few things. Sands isn't going to do any equivalent to opening his legs and inviting Jack to sample the fruit.
"... No chains?"
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"Aye. S'fit for a king. Should 'ope it meets your standards."
Jack smirks, knowing he's certainly never known another bed to be more comfortable than his own. He's hesitant to leave it to the selkie alone. He knows damned well that sharing the bed with the creature is inviting trouble, but it's deeply tempting. He hadn't yet had time to examine the the locket too closely. He knows better than to just take any treasure from the selkie without permission.
"Chains? Had no plan for it. ... D'you think they'd be necessary?"
He arches a brow, unable to resist being suggestive about it. He's not even sure the damn animal will get it.
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"He did..."
Jack has that same arrogant smirk he must have had when showing the pirate his pretty yacht. Sands sees now how annoying it can be and understands why people want to stick their gun in his mouth.
It's taking everything he has not to press a velvet pillow to his face and breathe in the smell of Jack's hair. He knows how pathetic he is when it comes to the pirate. The only thing keeping him from the same level of creepy stalker he was with El is the pirates mutual feelings.
"He chained me and called me Jack."
Sands takes this opportunity to hide in the covers. He can't keep from it any longer. The selkie burrows deep in the fabrics and just breathes it all in. Let Jack's wheels spin. Sands doesn't usually let himself be distracted from watching the play of emotions on his stoolies face, but when it's his own he can imagine it well enough.
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Then the hammer comes down. 'He chained me and called me Jack.' There was already an itch at the back of Jack's mind he couldn't quite define. Now he stares, a look of discomfort and slight disgust thinly veiled on his face, trying to get a better look at the Selkie in detail before the thing disappears under the covers. There's a short list of names in the pirate's head. Captains who would keep such a beast...and give it his name. 'Jack's a common enough name,' he tells himself, 'you're getting a bit paranoid, mate.' No use, though. The seed's been planted.
"Did 'e? Well...I'm not 'im, savvy? .... D'you know 'is name? The one what's absconded with your furry outers?"
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The agent smirks under his cave of pillows at 'furry outers'. Christ he missed this deluted weirdo.
"Yes... his name was Captain. That's the name they give pirates that collect soft things and chains."
He surfaces to look at Jack like he was dumb.
He sits up crossed legged and plucks at the heavy locket.
"He gave me this chain. It has it's spirit in it."
Still around his neck, he holds out the oval compartment by two fingers for Jack to see. The selkie seems uncomfortable with it.
Inside is a tiny oil painting of a young Barbaosaa. The locket is about the size of an infants palm. Sands had it made from an illustartion of the pirate that was attached to his criminal record. It's overly flattering, as the minature paintings tend to be.
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Jack looks over the locket. He tries to guess by the style choice just who's inside. Then he clicks the locket open and the game's given up and the picture revealed. Hector was never that pretty, even ages ago when Jack used to tell the scruffy old bastard that he was.
The selkie looks like him. Looks like he did when he was young and naive and thought Hector knew everything he didn't. Anger starts to fill the pirate's dark eyes as he realizes that Hector was keeping this beautiful naked thing and calling it by his name. Will he insist on naming all of his pets Jack?
He wants to rip the necklace off. His fist closes around it. Then he remembers he shouldn't anger this beastie. Jack grabs the chain with both hands and pops it behind the selkie's neck, then tosses it across the cabin.
"Better forgotten, aye?"
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"Aye."
However.. that locket is also his PINpoint. He always planned to lose it to Jack, it's just a matter of not losing it before he can go home and get the spare. The spare being the one that is not the locket or the backup up his ass. He's not getting stuck in this floating third world country like Mary Tyler Moore in Not Without my Daughter. Sands smiles and touches carefully under Jack's eyelid. His finger comes back with a smudge of kohl.
"When I was a child we told stories of men that sailed into the setting sun. Their skin turned dark and their eyes turned to ash. They stole new eyes from the bears and their eyes are the color of the land."
His voice is soft. He never could help putting on a show for his marks. He hooks a finger into Jack's shirt and peeks inside.
"You forgot the bear's fur. The other's have it. You're smooth. Like me."
His other hand slides inside against Jack's bare chest.
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