Sisters of Insurrection {Chapter One...Rules of Rum}

Jack opened his eyes with difficulty, blinking fiercely into the morning sun. The sea was calm...too calm, he noted as a cool breeze blew through his hair and rustled through nearby trees.
TREES! There were certainly no trees on the Pearl. Where was the Pearl? Where was he?
"Oh bloody hell," he murmured as he turned his head, spotting a very pretty woman next to him. Memories of the night before, vague as they were, came flooding back, making Jack's head swim.
Rum...he certainly knew rum was involved. Too much if he was on this bloody island again. He stumbled to his feet. Why was the island swaying? Carefully, he picked up his companion, lifting her over his shoulder, and headed for the shade. Sunlight, in his current state, was a cruel thing. Although he couldn't remember who the woman was, he thought she was pretty enough to be spared a bright awakening.
Jack collapsed in the shade, the woman landing in his lap, her head resting on his shoulder. Her warm breath tickled his neck, sending an unexpected shiver through him. Who is this woman?
Jack turned his head to get a better look at her. Her eyes were closed, framed by black brows and long, black eyelashes. A faint flush graced her cheekbones. Her lips, slightly parted, were lightly shaded a rosy pink color. She sighed in her sleep, nuzzling closer into Jack's neck. Before he knew it, his arm was round her waist, gently tracing the curves of her sides. His hand brushed up against a familiar object. The lass had a sword belt on and a pistol at her side. From her worn trews and loose fitting shirt, Jack doubted she was a fine lady of society. Indeed, her sword belt and callused hands suggested that she had seen her fair share of the sea.
...
A murmur drew his attention from her hands to her face as her eyelids fluttered open and a hand brushed back the bandana that hid her hair. Dark waves with a few curls intermixed, tumbled down to her shoulders as she ran a groggy hand through her tresses before rubbing her eyes.
"Good God," her voice broke the morning silence. "Where am I?"
"Don' know, luv," Jack answered her.
She started at the sound of his voice, her golden-green eyes meeting his dark ones.
"Wait, who are ye?" she looked up at Jack.
"I'm Captain Jack Sparrow, luv," Jack replied with an arrogant smirk.
The woman took in the surroundings before banging her head on Jack's shoulder in frustration.
"Not again! Again! On this forsaken spit of land!" She attempted to rise, noticing Jack's arm lingering around her waist. "Are ye sure ye want to be doin' that Captain? Ye don' even know my name," she smirked up at him with a wicked gleam in her eyes.
"Was just getting' te that, luv," Jack matched her smirk perfectly. "So what is yer name, lass?"
"Jane Gold, at yer service Captain," she answered, tilting her head to one side.
"Jane Gold?" Jack's eyes widened. "Of the Freedom?"
"Aye, that's me," she smiled brightly. "Ye've heard of me. I'm flattered, Captain Jack Sparrow."
Something in her tone drummed up the replay of the night before. The Black Pearl had docked in Tortuga for supplies and fun. Jack had entered a familiar tavern, creating quite a stir, especially from the numerous ladies of the evening who hoped to be spending the night with the handsome pirate. However, his eye was caught by a woman seated at a nearby table--the very Captain Jane Gold who was still in his arms--and he decided that his curiosity about this lass required more satisfaction that his expectations of the other women present.
They had chatted, even flirted, bantering with expert ease and practice up until they were invited to partake in a card and drinking match with some other sailors.
...
"Look luv," Jack began, his hands resting lightly on Jane's waist. "Can ye remember those chaps we played cards with?"
"I'll run 'em through , the lot of 'em!" Jane raged as she attempted to jump to her feet, only to fall back into Jack's lap, her hand at her throbbing temples. "On second thought, revenge can wait til the island stops moving."
She winced, closing her eyes against the sun.
"Well, me thinks we could take advantage of being the only two people here," Jack suggested with a wink.
"I take it ye've been on this spit of land before," Jane laughed quietly, careful not to disturb the little devils who were hammering away inside her head.
"This be me third bloody time. Twice marooned by me own crew. Once with a rather snobby lady of class."
"And this time?" Jane teased.
"Oh, the company is infinitely, infinitely more pleasing than last time," Jack wound his finger around a stray curl. "And I must say the view--" he paused noting that Jane was wearing a shirt similar to the one Elizabeth sometimes wore. However, Jane would never have to concern herself with being compared to an adolescent boy. Her curves gave her away too easily.
"I do believe I know where that remark o' yers is going, Captain," Jane interrupted, noticing Jack's not-so-secret stolen glance at her chest. "But we best be thinkin' of how to get off this island. Tis no longer a rum stop, not since two years ago when I was here."
"But is the rum gone?"
"I don' know."
...
That night, they sat on the beach watching the waves crash on the shore, a small fire burning nearby.
"Ten says the Pearl rescues," Jack said, taking another long draught of his rum before stealing a glance over at Jane. Her hair seemed almost a deep red in the firelight.
"Twenty for the Freedom," Jane wiped her mouth on the back of her hand. She held her up her rum bottle. "To the Freedom!"
"To the Pearl!" Jack clanked his rum bottle with hers a little too hard, shattering her half-finished bottle. It spilt all over Jane. Ignoring her wet clothes, Jane let out a sigh, looking at Jack.
"Ye spilt me rum," she stated simply.
"Well, someone has to make sure I don' do anything...stupid" Jack answered, raising his bottle.
Jane quickly reached out and stole Jack's bottle from him, taking a long draught before swallowing and returning the bottle to her lips. Jack grabbed his rum back, holding onto it possessively. Jane turned toward the small fire and spit out the alcohol, causing the flames to erupt.
"What'd ye do that for, luv?" Jack asked, making sure to keep his precious rum out of Jane's reach.
"No one will see that fire. Tis too small."
"Well, ye won' be burnin' any more o' me rum," Jack told Jane, his eyes staring deep into hers, challengingly.
"Then we'll be here forever," Jane stared back into his eyes. They seemed to draw her in and she felt like she could almost drown in them. "And if we be rescued by me Freedom, I'll buy ye all the rum ye can drink."
"Is that so, luv?" Jack leaned into Jane, his breath warm on her face, smelling sweetly of rum. His strong hand encircled her wrist. "Do ye promise?"
"What is tha' worth? The promise o' a pirate?"
"Depend on tha' pirate," Jack pulled her even closer. "But on this matter, I trust ye."
"Then I can burn yer rum?" Jane's lips grazed his ear.
"Yer a very persuasive lass, Captain Gold," Jack answered, biting back a moan as her lips left his ear. At this point, he couldn't decide which was more intoxicating: the woman staring into his eyes, her hair falling across her face, or the copious amounts of rum he'd ingested.
Jane smiled as she took Jack's rum from him and pitched it into the flames.
He stared at her in wide-eyed disbelief.
"I didn' think ye'd actually do it!"
"Ye should learn to expect the unexpected, then, Captain Jack," Jane laughed as she lay back on the sand, her eyes closed, listening to the waves crashing on the beach. She could feel Jack's eyes glaring at her as he sulked over his lost rum, yet she paid him no mind, letting the calming surf lull her to sleep.
...
Jack woke first, his eyes meeting the dying embers of the fire.
"Bloody good waste o' rum," he muttered to himself, cutting his glance over to the still dreaming figure beside him. "Still, she is a pretty creature," he added.
Jane let out a sleepy moan as she shifted to her side, pillowing her head on her arm. Her eyes moved underneath closed lids. Jack hoped she was dreaming of him...he was Captain Jack Sparrow after all.
His gaze drifted over the calm sea. Off in the distance, he spotted a ship. The Pearl! It had to be the Pearl. None of his crew ever kept the bloody code anyway. However, on a second glance, he noticed the sails were red. For a moment he wondered why his crew changed the color of the sails. Then he grimaced and glared down at Jane, wrinkling his nose. He rolled his eyes before shaking her awake.
"What the--" Jane sat up, her face very near to Jack's. She could still smell the rum from last night.
"What color are yer sails?" he demanded.
"Red, why?" Jane pushed past Jack when he didn't respond. Immediately she saw the ship on the horizon. "Oi! There's the Freedom! Twenty to me, Captain. Pay up!" Jane jumped to her feet, extending her hand.
Grudgingly, Jack dug out the gold and roughly placed it in Jane's small hand.
"First the bloody island, then it's the bloody woman..." he muttered under his breath.
"Well, this bloody woman is getting ye OFF this island," Jane teased, tossing her hat in the air like a schoolboy. "Unless ye want to stay, Jack--" she finished, a smirk set on her lips, her golden eyes sparkling mischievously.
...
Jacquelyn clasped her captain's shoulder as Jane was hoisted onto the deck of the Freedom. She was glad to be back onboard her ship, with her crew cheering for her safe return. They all fell silent when Captain Jack Sparrow followed behind her.
"I'm sure ye all recognize Captain Jack Sparrow o' the Black Pearl," Jane raised her voice so each member of her crew could hear her. "And, tonight, drinks all around for rescuing us!"
Cheers erupted from the decks and riggings of the Freedom as Jane clasped Jacquelyn on the shoulder and nodded toward the helm. Once Jacquelyn resumed steering the ship, Jane turned to Jack.
"Do ye have any idea as to where we can find the Pearl?"
"Tortuga. Always Tortuga," Jack answered, his attention following the crew of the Freedom. He had to admit he was surprised at the first mate being a woman. The only woman who ever set foot on the Pearl...besides his lovely hired company, was Elizabeth, and that was only because Will whined like a small child whenever Jack refused to let Elizabeth onboard. Jane's first mate, Jacquelyn, was slender with fair, freckled skin and dark hair like Jane's. If it weren't for the vast difference in their facial structure, the two pirates could have been mistaken for sisters.
Jane ignored Jack and his musings, making her way to the galley. Her stomach was rumbling and needed immediate appeasement. She began opening cupboards as she searched for something she wished to eat. Footsteps echoed down the stairs and she turned to see Jack resting his hands on the overhang of the doorway as he leaned forward.
"Don' suppose ye care to share, luv?" he smirked. "Ye did steal me rum--you owe me."
"I suppose. But what I owe ye is rum, Jack, not breakfast." Jane winked at him and returned to her rummaging through the cabinets.
"That's not fair!"
"Do ye want some food, Jack? If so, ye should come see if there's anything ye want to eat." Jane rolled here eyes, stating the obvious as she beckoned Jack over to the cupboards.
Jack, instead, opted to stand beside her, wrapping his hand around her waist and watching her profile.
"Do ye see anything ye want?" Jane was busy searching for her breakfast and didn't pay any attention to Jack.
"Yes." He didn't move his gaze from her.
"For breakfast, ye dolt," Jane pushed him off of her, lightly.
"Oi, Captain!" Jacquelyn called down from the deck. "There be need for ye up on deck!"
Jane left the breakfast alone and ran up on deck, her sword belt and pistol hitting against her hip as she climbed the stairs. Jack watched the gentle sway of her hair across her shoulders before turning to finding breakfast. In his search, he found the one substance he truly wanted...Rum.
...
Bottle after bottle was tossed against the far wall as Jack diminished the stores of rum aboard the Freedom. He quickly lost all concept of time. When he staggered back up on deck in search of Jane, night had already fallen; the stars twinkling over the beautiful Caribbean waters. Jane sat on an over-turned barrel starring at a compass in her hand. Jacquelyn was at the helm, taking directions from her captain. The rest of the crew, mostly men, were scattered about working on relaxing from a hard day of sailing.
Captain Gold's dark hair fell from behind her shoulders, hiding her face from Jack's view. He didn't mind though. Drunk as he was, he could still recall her features. He sauntered over, reminding himself that drunk or sober, Captain Jack Sparrow could get any woman he wanted. And right now, that woman was a rather arrogant little pirate captain sitting on an over-turned barrel. He sauntered drunkenly over to her and plopped down in a most ungraceful manner at her feet, resting his head on her leg.
"'Ello, luv," Jack slurred, staring up into golden eyes, or rather that was the idea. What he ended up staring at was her chest.
"And why are ye drunk already?" Jane asked, straightening up to give him less of a view.
"Cause I found yer rum," Jack held his arms out, splashing some of the bottle's contents onto the deck. "And if I remember correctly, ye stole mine."
Jane decided to ignore him. After all, she had a ship to captain. She left her over-turned barrel and headed to the helm to speak with her first mate. Jack followed.
"Now, what ye want to do is point the bow of the ship in the direction ye wish to go," Jack patronized. "The bow is the front of the ship."
"Thank you, Sparrow, but I know what a bow is," Jane cut her eyes at him. He was quickly losing his charm.
"Ye know, there's a saying that women on a ship is bad luck," Jack told Jacquelyn, leaning over the wheel.
"Then it's a good thing I am not superstitious!" Jane yelled, frustrated at this drunken idiot she suddenly found herself with.
"Yer a pirate, o' course yer superstitious," Jack shook his head. "An' don't worry lass, there's certainly women on ships these days...a man's gotta have something to occupy his nights with."
"What are ye saying Sparrow?" Jane faced off with him, her temper flaring.
"Lasses be only good for one thin'," Jack dug himself deeper into the hole he was already in.
"And what might tha' be Sparrow?"
"Wenchen."
"Yer a wretch Sparrow, and I ain' no wench."
"Sure 'bout tha'? I'm sure I could prove ye wrong," Jack leaned in, trailing a finger along Jane's jawline, his breath smelling strongly of rum.
"If ye want to get back to tha' island, be me guest," Jane's tone was low and warning.
"The only place I be wanting to go is yer bed, lass," Jack pulled her closer.
Without the slightest warning, Jane's fist made contact with Jack's eye, one of her rings scratching his cheek. Jack, although intoxicated, could feel the full effect of her punch and reeled backwards, falling over backwards, tripping up on the barrel Jane was just sitting on.
"Let me tell ye something, Sparrow," Jane stood tall above him. "Ye will never be in my bed." She turned on her heel and marched off, her crew shrinking back to their duties and Jacquelyn following close behind her captain.
...Did Jane just say Jack would NEVER be in her bed??? Are you NUTS?!

Don't worry, Juliet is in the next one!
Rate and message if ye choose!
~Jane and Juliet