Pirate, Extraordinaire // Sequel to Take Off Your Dress, Pick Up A Sword

a witch

bonus chapter this week to celebrate me finishing writing this story!! updates will continue once a week after this, but i'm so pumped right now that i wanted to get more words out here for y'all to read. <3

It wasn't long after the dreary ceremony that the expedition to Tia Dalma's lair began. Leaving Ho-Kwan and Lejon with the Black Pearl, the leftover pirates (and Will) piled into two longboats, aiming to reach the mysterious swamps as night fell completely.

As Joanna dropped into her assigned boat, she fixed a heated glare to the space between Jack's shoulder blades. Perhaps if she stared hard enough, those dreads would catch alight and she would succeed in winning his attention.

"What is it?" Will asked unobtrusively, joining Joanna, Gibbs, and Pintel in the second longboat.

Joanna ceased craning her neck to see Jack's insufferable figure. "Jack will be Jack," she replied in a murmur. Why did you ask Will about Davy Jones? Why do you need to see Tia Dalma? What's wrong with your hand? Why are you afraid of the sea? These were all questions Joanna would like to pose to her captain, but he had made himself very scarce since their altercation belowdecks.

"I can't argue that," Will returned.

"Who could?" Gibbs cut in with wry amusement, having overheard their discussion. Without preamble, he shoved the oars in Pintel's direction. Pintel, already on thin ice, began rowing with naught but a scowl.

They coasted toward the mouth of the Pantano River in relative silence, broken only by the sluggish drawl of oars through water. Joanna, left with nothing to do but think and observe, noted the strange tension that hung over the crew. It had been a terrible few days, to be sure, but the sprout of that tension grew more from the incongruous attitude of their captain.

Joanna's trailing thoughts led into sudden remembrance. She asked Gibbs, "How faired Jack's little adventure, while I was away?"

Gibbs' expression flickered with irritation at the reminder. "Successful enough for Jack's peculiar taste. We were waitin' outside that Turkish prison for three days for 'im, and he returns with a useless piece of paper." Gibbs shook his head at Jack's apparent idiocy.

Joanna blinked. "The paper, like...with the key on it? That paper?"

Gibbs nodded long-sufferingly, tired of hearing questions about the useless piece of paper.

There was a pause. Joanna murmured, "I'm surprised he would risk the crew's favor like that."

"Aye," Gibbs concurred vehemently. "I was busy those three days, let me tell ye."

"Jack's lucky to have you, Gibbs," Joanna apprised the quartermaster with a smile.

"Ain't that the truth." Gibbs grinned, unashamed to admit it.

By that time, the longboats had reached the shade of the tree canopy. More bugs, Joanna ascertained, slapping at a few with distinct resentment. Now, all life is precious, Anna, Jack would say, if he was beside her -- and then she'd slap him, too.

"Gibbs," Will piped up questioningly. His expression was one Joanna rarely saw on William -- guileful and a little scheming. "You said the paper is useless?"

"'Tis," Gibbs groused. "I imagine Jack's true motivations regardin' infiltratin' that prison were information."

Joanna's ears perked up. "Information?"

"On what?" Will added.

Gibbs looked cornered. But if Gibbs had one thing in common with Jack, it was a flair for the dramatic. He delineated to Joanna and Will in detail, "Well, if ye believe such things, there's a beast that does the bidding of Davy Jones. A fearsome creature -- with giant tentacles that suction your face clean off! -- and drag an entire ship down to the crushing darkness."