Much Too High A Cost, ~James Norrington <3

[Esmeralda]

Continued from here!~ http://z3.invisionfree.com/fantasmic/index...opic=5030&st=15
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Esmeralda looked at him and searched his blue eyes; he was hurting in some form, but it wasn't physical. The way he would gaze off and how he would catch her eyes sometimes, led the dancer to come to her own conclusion. He was suffering from a broken heart. Esmeralda touched her side as she winced, but made no sound of pain. "She wasn't the one." she said gently as blood seeped between her fingers."You don't strike me as being one to show true emotion when it is personal. But I see a strength in you which is outmatched by no one." Esmeralda said as she too stood up. "I will go with you- on this island, we may need to cover each others back. However, I will ask for something of you."[color] A smirk upon her features as her eyes twinkled a bit.

~~~~~

It had not been her soul intention to make the Commodore uncomfortable, then the fact of the matter required her to tend to the wound now, to make sure it would be clean before the rum could burn away any infection she may have gotten. And since he had offered his assistance, Esmeralda found it only wise to accept it. Taking him to the same waterfall where she had fallen, Esmeralda turned and looked at him, [color=red]"I must clean this wound a little...Im loosing to much blood without tending to it now. So...I need to keep watch for me." Esmeralda said without a waver of concern in her voice; it was simply a fact.


Turning to the waters edge, Esmeralda began to untie her corset, and placed it on the ground, before the jingle from her sash indicated that she was taking it off as well. Soon, all her clothes were on the rock beside her, before she slipped into the cold water once more, naked as the day she was born. Esmeralda had no shame in what she was given, but she never ever gave herself to anyone. Her virtue was her own. It was not her fault men were so easy to please!
Slipping into the water, she went near the fall, to grant some space between them, not wanting to make this more uncomfortable for him. Working the water gently to clean out the wound, Esmeralda did the most uncomfortable task of placing her fingers gently into the wound; it was deeper then she thought, and hissed as she withdrew her bloody fingers.

Swimming back to the shore, Esmeralda looked up at Norrington, and used in a finger like motion to have him turn around; his cheeks were red, and it made her smile if even a little. He was so prim and proper; and yet there was this side to him which was so...adventurous and if not devious in a way. It made the gypsy dancer ponder why he would hide such an exciting side.
Removing herself out of the cold water, Esmeralda took her pink sash out of her wet hair and wrapped it around the underside of her chest, hoping to stop the blood a little longer from spilling. Dressing to the best of her ability, Esmeralda then came before him when she was fully clothed. "Its deep...deeper then I thought and without needle and thread, Im afraid it might become infected. Lets hope your right about there being a pile of rum hidden somewhere on here." Esmeralda said, flipping her hair over her shoulder and continued walking again.

[James Norrington]

James' senses were startled, he offered no response, it was not out of rude intention but simply because he did not have one in his possession. It was all so fresh in his mind and personal, this shock was still new to him. A bigger mystery presented itself; why the gypsy woman would even care about his troubles. As it appeared, she did not need him to contribute to her own. Esmeralda spoke as if she knew him, and very kindly, it could have been considered almost comical considering it was only an hour before he was trailing her as if she was a criminal. He wouldn't admit it it at that moment but her words were a great comfort, James couldn't reflect when he had been glorified this way, well when it wasn't a younger man serving under him. A slight frown sat above his green eyes, while the slightest smile escaped his lips. After a moment of silence, James agreed they did need to other for the best chance of survival before his men found them. He arched a questioning brow, "And what would that be, Madame?" he wondered.

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James fell a step behind her, keeping himself alert as she led the way back from the little scene where they had come to an understanding (for the time being). It should have not shocked him since it was only the logical and hygienic path for her to take it. He stood for a moment before her, carefully thinking of how to articulate his next words. "Of course," was the only way it could not be read as more than a gentleman's gesture. He offered a nod then turned his back to her. She didn't seem intimidated at all that a man she hardly knew was going to be present while she was bare, he was a little impressed by the boldness, though she didn't have many other options. The gold medallions clinging together let him know it was not time to turn around. He could feel the magenta in his cheeks while his brow furrowed and took a sharp breath while pressing down his discomfort. Of course James remind himself he was merely fulfilling a duty to a lady, nothing more. So why was he feeling so tense....? Brushing off the questions pressing he looked for a distraction, a tropical bird adorned with bright multi-colored feathers and a long yellow beak served the purpose. Yes, the bird was certainly lovely and rarely did he just take in the beauty of something so wild and exotic...

He inhaled sharply once more, keeping his features solid, though his face was still rose in color. He couldn't bring himself to relax and his temporary distraction was broken as he remembered he needed to actually "keep watch". He turned back to make certain she would not go into shock from the blood loss and drown, or lose consciousness. Esmeralda was lovely, though he was not letting his mind go further than the task at hand, he folded his arms to his chest to feel some sense of dignity and control in the situation. When she swam towards the shore and signaled for him to turn once more he offered another nod, though felt somewhat childish for not responding verbally.

"Its deep...deeper then I thought and without needle and thread, I'm afraid it might become infected. Lets hope your right about there being a pile of rum hidden somewhere on here."

James followed behind her and still kept a careful eye on her person. "The Royal Navy is searching for us, I have no doubt they will come to our aid soon, for the time being I will strongly suggest you leave the physical tasks to me since you need your strength." he insisted, though he imagined she would still do as she as saw fit.

"Now I have patrolled this area before rum runners favored it, but this precise island isn't resonating in my memory well. Though a common finding for rum runners was that they tended to become more and more creative with how they would hide their cargo." he explained as they walked through the wood to the beach. He picked up a spare piece of drift wood and began to walk, tapping it like so against the fine pebbles. The sound was just the wood meeting the sand, and then it was interrupted as it met the sound of hollow wood. He knelt to the ground and ran his callused hand to find the crease, there was a clicking noise and he opened the trap door. "And we have found the rum." he said very please it wasn't more difficult than that. He reached in and pulled a bottle out, rising to his feet he walked over to Esmeralda, extending the bottle to her. "Should the weather change again the storage shelter would be the safest place to stay." he rationed. The winds found bitterness and the cold became more evident in the air. James slipped his blue over coat off and offered it to her. "If you would like to use it."

[Esmeralda]

Esmeralda could still see a bare line of crimson, etched across his features, as the gypsy dancer took the bottle from in front of her, and smirked, if only to ruffle his tightly wound feathers. "You blush so easily Commodore, have I put you in an awkward position?" Esmeralda teased, as she removed the cork from the rum and took a good swig before pulling back, and coughed a little. Oh, that was very strong for her taste; it must have been here forgotten, for quite some time to have that much affect on ones person.
Esmeralda looked down into the storage, and could see that it was a small tight fit, but Norrington was right; this would prove to be a much better shelter then any, should the weather turn for the worst.

As if on perfect cue, the wind picked up and rain could clearly start to be felt, as the sky grew dark and grim. The gypsy dancer placed her hand on her good side and cocked her hip, "You did that on purpose." Her voice was playful, of course, since she knew no one had any control over the weather itself, but he was such a tightly wound piece of string, Esmeralda though it would be best to try and loosen him up a little. The man could use a little break from being such a tight ass the entire time.

Accepting his jacket, Esmeralda grabbed his wrist and drew him into the safety of the cellar, and closed the top, just as thunder echoed above them, and lightning so bright it lit up the entire sky. It would be a storm for sure...
Esmeralda hunkered down as best as she could, not wanting to ruin his jacket with her blood, as she sat in one corner. It was so dark, she could only make out his outlined form; not to mention, after years living in the Court of Miracles, she had amazing eye sight in the dark; almost like a jungle cats.

"Since we may be here for a while...I might as well as; your eyes are very haunted from a past relationship...why do you linger??"

[James Norrington]

"You blush so easily Commodore, have I put you in an awkward position?"


James arched an eyebrow, mentally curing himself and his complexion which seemed to have no ability to hide embaressment. "Well, its not you...." All right, a lot of it WAS her. "... so much as the situation...." He didn't take offense to her teasing, there's was nothing in her voice to indicate ill-feelings. He offered a small smile, "That will help with the pain but to kill the infection it needs.... direct contact with the wound."

It appeared God was in an ironic mood that day and within minutes of uttering a word about the weather is when the skies darkened and the rain invaded once again. "Apparently, I have a hidden talent." James jested in return while quickly assessing the potential danger, which did not take long. James waited until Esmeralda was inside the cellar and followed as she urged him forward, when the door above them was secure he sat. Some of the rain seeped in between the cracks of the door, as expected. James hoped the door would hold. He believed it should be fine since it must have been able to withstand many storms. A bit bitterly he hoped Sparrow's ship would meet the eye of this storm since there was now at much less of an advantage of catching the man. Even what James knew there was something much greater than a bumbling rouge he was chasing after....



"Since we may be here for a while...I might as well as; your eyes are very haunted from a past relationship...why do you linger??"


He somewhat admired the amount of confidence she was placing in him. As much as they could trust one another at the moment, James still knew it was best to err on the side of caution. He was feeling more for her then he should be, he knew it to be true. The difficult part was that nothing about her seemed disingeniune. She was mysterious and bold but even then she still seemed very graceful and kind with how she carried herself. He sighed, still not sure why she insisted on knowing. He ran a free hand to slick back the ash strands clinging to his forehead, hoping his eyes could cut through the darkness more. "There is nothing to tell. I loved someone, I thought it was the right decision but it wasn't. I don't linger." the last of it was a lie. He just didn't know what to do with himself. Perhaps he had wasted more of his life than he realized. What did he really even know about Elizabeth? Was it an actual person or the idea of her he had feelings for. He sighed again, "I made a very dangerous and very reckless choice in my career and now I doubt I'll be able to rectify it at this point." he confessed. He had to damn himself once more for telling so much to a near stranger, the darkness helped provide comfort, as if he wasn't telling anyone. He was though, and it angered him. How this woman spoke to him made James feel all right with the decision he made, and he was not prepared to let himself off the hook so fast. "I shouldn't be speaking of this, I said too much....."

[Esmeralda]

"The great thing about being a gypsy; we are very good at keeping secrets." Esmeralda said, uncorking the rum with her teeth, as she set to the painful task of disinfecting her wound. She hissed and muttered a curse as it seeped into her skin and body, but it would do the trick for sure, though she would have preferred some red wine instead. Listening to the rain drip through the cracks, Esmeralda could still make out his face in the darkness as she said, "Norrington...sometimes, we have to take chances- even if they lead us no where we intended to. No road is ever set in stone in life; there was twists, turns...discoveries to be made. We all win, and lose in life, but it is up to us to define what is worthy of being remembered for. She said wisely as she handed to him the bottle of rum.

"You say you do not linger, but a broken heart, does mend in time..if it was meant to be, it was meant to be. We can never understand why people change, but they do...love is a mystery to be uncovered, and if it as simple as black and white; well, that would be quite dull wouldn't you agree?" Smirked the gypsy dancer, as she felt the rain tickle down her bare shoulders and neck. Toying with the end of her pink sash, when he said nothing, Esmeralda tried to comfort him. "Nothing is ever lost; not even your job. From what I have gathered by listening to your men, is that you are after a well known pirate, but you lost him...by my fault I digress." she sighed, knowing that there were more dangerous, and REAL criminals out there then she...honestly, she was the LEAST of his concerns if Frollo had not blown her story out of proportion.

"If you want something bad enough James, you will work hard for it, no matter how high the walls may seem...there are always cracks to help you climb up, or a hidden door waiting to be uncovered."