Pirates of the Caribbean Oneshots

Hector meets Hector

The mongrel was skinny, tail tucked tight between bony hind legs as it darted into the shadows. Edward Teague approached the creature gently, trying not to startle it into fleeing. It sniffed the air and teeth flashed warningly out of the relative shelter of a broken crate where it lay.

Crouching, Teague dropped a handful of meat by the crate. "There ye go," he murmured softly, stepping back.

After a minute, the canine cautiously came out, wolfing down the food. He noticed a rope around it's neck, a crude collar. Evidently, at one stage, someone had owned the poor creature. Very gently, while the dog was still eating, he took hold of the collar. It obeyed the gentle pressure, walking quite tamely beside him back to his quarters.

Reaching the door, he opened it slightly, keeping a firm hold on the rope. "Roxanne, could you close the dogs into the bedroom please?" he called.

His wife appeared at the ajar door. "Wh-oh." She had noticed the dog, shivering against his leg. "Edward, what the bloody hell are you doing with that?"

"Look at the state of it, I couldn't leave it-him." A quick glance revealed the animal's gender as Roxanne studied it for a minute.

"Does he bite?"

"Snapped at me until he decided food was better. Let me take his collar an' walk him back here. Hasn't made any other aggressive movements."

Roxanne tentatively extended a hand for the dog to sniff. He growled, teeth showing. "Good boy," Teague murmured softly. "Good boy, she ain't going to hurt you, be nice."

After a moment the growls subsided and she was permitted to stroke him gently, then went to get food and water. Perhaps realising he was safe, he wagged his tail slightly while eating.

"He seems friendly enough, for having been a street mutt. Evidently owned at one point but definitely not recently."

Teague nodded in response to his wife's observations, wondering if the dog was housebroken. A short while later, after eating everything put in front of him and drinking a lot of water, it appeared the answer was yes, as he looked to go outside. Knowing full well that he could disappear, Teague opened the door and let the mongrel out.

Almost half an hour later, just as he thought the dog had disappeared forever, there came a scratching at the closed door. The mongrel shot inside once he opened it, promptly curling up in a corner.

"So, we've gained another dog," Roxanne stated dryly, going to make herself a cup of tea in the evening.

"We have. An' he's been stealing things all day when he thinks I haven't been watching. Carryin' them into that corner. I've thought of a name for him."

"Oh?" Roxanne raised an eyebrow, sitting down with her tea.

A grin played on Teague's lips. "Hector."

She fought the urge to laugh, looking at him in disapproval. "You can't call your dog Hector," she said firmly, knowing his reason for choosing the name.

He raised an eyebrow, a slight lift to his chin. "He called his monkey Jack."

Roxanne sipped her tea slowly. "Alright, that's a fair point actually," she conceded after a minute, regarding the dog. "Hector suits him."

"I'm aware."

"Oh shut up."

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The mongrel soon became, like every other dog seemed to be, utterly devoted to Teague. Apart from his complete lack of obedience to basic commands and tendency to steal things, Hector was a perfect pet, who coexisted quite happily with Teague's two Irish terriers. He did understand how to do one thing: retrieve, carry and present a few specific objects, one being the key that unlocked the Codex.

As a result, he was roaming around the Pirate Hall during a meeting of the Brethren Court, the key in his mouth when Teague was called to consult the book to see if an article had been violated.

A glance around revealed the mongrel was not in the immediate vicinity of the table where the Lords were gathered.

As the Codex was brought forward, Teague whistled softly. No dog. He whistled again, slightly louder.

"Come here," he called softly. A minute or so passed. "Hector, c'mon boy."

Across the table, a grin had spread over Jack's lips as he watched Barbossa's look of confusion.

"Can I help you?" The man eventually asked Teague, who merely called, "Hector!" again.

"Stupid fecker," the Code Keeper muttered, stepping away from the table briefly, leaving most of the Pirate Lords watching in confusion.

Barbossa made to follow. "I ain't talkin' to ye, as much as I think the description "stupid fecker" suits you perfectly on occasion," Teague said dismissively, eyes scanning the shadows.

He let out a sharp whistle upon spotting the hindquarters of the dog behind a barrel. "Get out here, you absolute nuisance."

Barbossa's hand twitched to his pistol, a deep frown forming on his features under the brim of his hat.

"Not a good idea," Teague said calmly, scratching the dogs ears before straightening with the Codex's key hooked over his fingers.

"You...the dog...is called..."

Teague unlocked the Codex. "The dog is called Hector, yes. Very observant. He's disobedient and steals things. Sound familiar?" His tone was light, mild, as his fingers flipped slowly through the book's vellum pages. "And," he continued casually, "should you point that pistol at me, I'll ensure it's the last thing you ever do."

His free hand touched the pistol at his hip, a subtle reminder that it wasn't an empty threat.

"You called the dog Hector," Barbossa stated, his expression unreadable.

Looking up, Teague gave an unconcerned shrug. "You called your monkey Jack." His gaze dropped back to the page he was reading.

"Code has not been breached. Continue gentlemen...ladies," he added, kissing Roxanne's head briefly in passing as he resumed his seat in the corner of the hall, returning the key to Hector and picking up his guitar again.

After a minute, the dog came to his side and lay down, key still in his mouth. "Good boy." Teague took the key and pocketed it. "Go find the girls now, your work here is done. This should keep Hector in his place for another while."

He patted the terrier. "Good boy, Hector." He said, slightly louder. Smirking wickedly as Barbossa's head turned in his direction.

Chuckling under his breath, Teague let the dog out of the hall. "God, I'm goin' to have fun with this..."