Trickstercaptain - Tumblr Posts

🪐 — lil starter for  @trickstercaptain​ 

        HUMANS GREW SO QUICKLY, sometimes they seemed to morph from a child to a man almost overnight.  &  this too seemed a measure of cruelty to the goddess; even humans could change from day to day, but her own body stayed stubbornly frozen, never so much as a day older or younger. it seemed she was trapped by time itself as much as by her very bones.

                                        but for all her lamentations, the boredom was eased somewhat by the humans as well. observing the mortals had always entertained her,  &  to watch them grow was as good a way to spend the years as any. while in truth it had likely been years since she saw the young jack sparrow, somehow it felt like only yesterday teague had brought the wild-willed lad to her swamp as a boy. he had changed since then, as they all did, but there was still a measure of youth to his face, still the same glimmer of mischief in his dark gaze.  ❝ did your father ever tell you that you have  your mother’s  eyes ? ❞  the goddess asked, examining his face with curiosity. there had always been something about jack, unseen threads of fate clinging to him. he would be important, though she could not yet say how.  ❝ a lucky break; you may yet escape repeating his mistakes. ❞

🪐 — test muse starter for  @trickstercaptain​​ 

         THE PORTSIDE TAVERN IS CROWDED with ruffians  &  rabble rousers of all stripes, each more fearsome to behold than the last. stede stands out in a place like this, his stark-pressed lace cravat nearly glowing white against the backdrop of salt-sprayed wool, cracked leather,  &  threadbare cotton. perhaps he should not be drawing quite so much attention to himself; many an eye follows him as he pushes his way through the tightly packed men,  &  even more heads turn to cast glares upon him when he accidentally elbows someone’s tankard of ale. even then, he barely manages an apology, his attention entirely fixated on the lone figure seated at a table in the corner. of course, he can’t be certain this stranger is the man from all the tales he’s heard, but he certainly looked the part.  &  as he draws near stede becomes all the more certain. finally, he reaches the edge of the table, only slightly ruffled from the ordeal of making it through the crowd. ❝ hello there good sir, i’m terribly sorry to interrupt you, ❞ he says one hand absently smoothing his silken jacket as pale eyes peer curiously at the other man. ❝ but you wouldn’t happen to be  jack sparrow,  would you ? ❞

🪐 — jack sparrow​ ;

      His memories of her from his childhood were surprisingly vivid: the strong… a young Jack could only describe it as swamp smell that clung to the very bones of this wooden shack, the pots and talismans and other assorted trinkets that he had always longed — and occasionally tried — to take home with him, the rhythmic quality to her voice that made any story she told sound like the most interesting thing he had ever heard. Teague had strange friends but Tia Dalma had always stood out.

       “ You knew her? ” There was no way her remark had been made by accident, but something youthful and hopeful leapt in Jack’s eyes nonetheless. But even as he leaned forward in his chair, a willing listener to whatever stories she cared to tell, he couldn’t help but spare a quick, wary glance over his shoulder. “ He… ” Teague wasn’t present here in Tia Dalma’s shack, but his mother had been the forbidden spectre of his youth for long enough that the habit had become difficult to break. “ Teague doesn’t really talk about her. ” Jack shrugged slightly, crossing his arms in front of him on the table. “ And I don’t really remember much. ”

       THE EYES IN QUESTION CAME ALIGHT at the mention of maria, though the goddess’s own sharp gaze did not miss the flicker of fear as they looked away briefly, ensuring they were truly alone before he spoke. but there was hope there, too. young jack could not hide his interest in the topic.  &  suddenly, calypso found herself a bit sad for the boy. their mortal lives were so unbearably short, after all,  &  she could see how he yearned for so much as a scrap of detail from the life that had given him his own. that his father would deny that to him seemed cruel — but that too was the way of men, she had found.                                           ❝ only briefly, ❞  she responds, moving away from her heavily laden shelves to seat herself at the table across from jack. ❝ your father brought her here once, before you were born. ❞ grimy fingertips play idly with the bones laid out before her, twisting them into new angles as she calls to mind the face he sought. the humans all began to blend together over time, but it is easier to remember maria with jack there before her; they really do look quite alike. a smile curls at one side of tia dalma’s lips, her knuckles rapping softly against the wooden tabletop. ❝ that a woman like her could handle captain teague was proof enough of her strength of spirit. ❞

🪐 — jack sparrow ;

      Jack didn’t spend this much time in taverns across both civilised and non-civilised ports alike not to know when there was some sort of disturbance in the usual behaviour of the crowd, and certainly with every brief glance upwards from the logbook on his table, the source of whatever ruckus this was yet appeared to be getting ever closer to his table. He didn’t notice the cause at first, not until one quick survey of the room drew his eye to a sudden flash of white — and even then he was content to dismiss whatever he’d seen as a trick of the light. It was unfortunate, then, that the next time he glanced up that so-called trick of the light had become a fully fledged, peculiarly dressed human-looking man, scrambling through the throng of patrons towards his table with a look of what could only be described as astonishment, as if he had suddenly become the most interesting person in the room. Jack could concede that in this moment right here, he was not. “ I… would happen to be, yes. ” Mouth open, Jack blinked a few times, before dragging his gaze slowly across the bloke’s entire visage, just to be sure. Nothing changed. He was still standing there. Dressed in that. “ But… I do not recall accruing any significant tailoring debts and, even if I did, those debts are, ” he made a show of poking his thumb through a hole in his shirt sleeve, “ not mine. ”

              THE GLEE STEDE FEELS  when his suspicions of the man’s identity are confirmed spreads across his face with no attempt made to stifle it. he breaks into a grin, his hands even clapping once together in delight. it wasn’t every day that one got to meet a pirate of such legend, after all  —  &  entirely by chance no less !  truly, this was his lucky day. but the next words confuse him, stede’s brow furrowing in bewilderment.  ❝ tailoring debts ? ❞  he repeats, eyeing the tatty edges of jack’s sleeves. even so, it takes him another moment to understand. but when he does, stede releases a chuckle, his hands smoothing the lapels of his elegant brocade overcoat.  ❝ oh no, my good captain. i’m no tailor — though i shall happily take your guess as a compliment. ❞  &  though jack didn’t seem to have any malice in his tone  — more abject astonishment  —  stede is still reminded once again that he stands out among these kinds of men. but he refuses to allow the thought to take hold of him, drawing himself up until his spine is straight  &  his jaw is set before he speaks again. ❝ i’m actually a pirate very much like yourself  — though i haven’t yet got half as many adventures under my belt as you do. ❞ his smile comes more gradually than before,  &  the lace trim of his sleeve flutters as he places his hand on the back of the chair opposite of jack’s seat in a clear request. to seat himself at a table without permission would be horribly impolite,  &  stede was still a gentleman, in spite of everything. ❝ in fact, i had wondered if you might be willing to recount some of your most daring tales for me ?  i should very much like to hear about your travels from a primary source, as it were. ❞ a moment’s pause, stede patient as he waits to see if jack will acquiesce to his presence. ❝  &  i’ll gladly see to it that you don’t go thirsty while you’re speaking, of course. ❞

🪐 — JACK SPARROW​  for  stede !

      “ Oh. ” It came out as a genuine exclamation of surprise; that this other man was a fellow pirate hadn’t even been a thought to cross his mind. He isn’t a pirate. Not yet, anyway. Perhaps new to life on the account, or just some mild-mannered fop who’d taken to the seas with fantastical, romantic notions of what such a lifestyle would consist of whose illusion hadn’t yet been burst, there was no way that this bloke had been at this sort of life for long. Not dressed like that, and most certainly not with courteous manners like those. Still, it took gall — if the stupid kind — to walk into a room of hardened cutthroats with an ensemble as loud and audacious as that, and Jack could concede that this fellow pirate had already won some fragile respect as a result. He watched the man move to gesture at the chair, asking for permission to sit, and cut a glance across the room. Predictably, every single eye in the tavern was on them. Some less friendly than others. And some, unnervingly perhaps, appeared to be waiting on his response to this entire spectacle. Jack knew full well that his name didn’t carry any clout in a place like this, but for that reason he also knew the dangers of a baying mob when he saw one. 

       Something peculiar rose in him — something that felt like but could certainly not be misconstrued as protective, not over a perfect stranger — and he finally turned back to his companion. With a sweeping gesture at the table, Jack offered an easy smile. “ I would be thrilled to correct the record, mate. ” He waved over a nearby barmaid, and made a point of closing the HMS Interceptor’s logbook on his table. Around him, the familiar low din of voices and cups and plates returned to the tavern. To afford tailoring like that, funds must not be an issue. Looks like i’m first up to exploit the gullible fool. “ But only if you first afford me an introduction. That, ” Jack made a gesture at the man’s spotless white brocade, “ is quite the look for a port as squalid as Tortuga. ”

      AT HIS GESTURE OF WELCOME,  stede feels a fragile bubble of tension burst. he almost hadn’t noticed its presence before, the silence that had fallen over the room. his own excitement over meeting a real pirate legend like jack sparrow had been the only thing on his mind as he pushed his way through the tavern. but now that he sweeps into the seat in a flutter of lace, careful as always not to snag the fabric on any splinter in the edge of the rough-hewn wooden bar table, he notices as the conversations slowly begin to pick back up.  &  he finds himself suddenly glad to no longer have every eye on the room on him. the attentions of a crowd can be a gift, but it could also be a weapon — this he knows from experience.  &  stede would far rather speak to this particular man one-on-one.                                                                ❝ you’re too kind. ❞  jack’s smile is earnestly returned on stede’s face, the trill of excitement that moves through him at the prospect of a conversation with jack sparrow hard to ignore. the recounting of some of the more mythical legends he has heard from someone who was actually present for them  —  at the center of them  —  was almost as exciting as he imagined having a real adventure of his own would be. but before he can introduce himself properly, a hurried barmaid makes her way to their table. stede asks for red wine for himself, before allowing his new companion to make his own request. it’s only after she moves away to fetch their drinks that he extends a hand from his spotless white lace  &  reaches across the table to offer of a handshake.  ❝ the name’s stede bonnet; captain of the revenge. it’s my pleasure to make your acquaintance. ❞ perhaps one day he might even be able to say that he  &  jack sparrow had been  friends,  &  wouldn’t that be something ! 

🪐 — JACK SPARROW​  for  calypso !

        Jack smiled faintly to himself at her words, casting his gaze down at the wooden table. Strength of spirit. There was something oddly comforting about that description: he’d always remembered her as softly spoken, preferring to never raise her voice if she could. Kind, which he now knew made her a rarity in this world. Compassionate. But there must have been something strong about her too, or else she would have never been able to handle a man like Teague. Jack’s smile turned sad. “ Sometimes I wonder what she saw in him. ” They’d loved each other once. He had to believe that. But whatever she’d loved in him had disappeared in the years since — had likely disappeared from this world the very same moment she had, if not long before.

       “ Did she seem happy? That time you saw her? ” Before he was born. He could not recall anything specific, could scarcely even recall what she looked like, but as a child he had never been able to shake the idea that sadness seemed to cling to her very being. No matter how much she smiled. No matter how many bright, happy memories of her he had. And, while he had never known why at the time, looking back in hindsight made him wonder whether his presence in their lives had been to blame. There were flashes of arguments in his memories, too. Shipwreck Cove is no place for a child. Jack absentmindedly picked at a groove in the table. He couldn’t help but wonder.

     THE BOY BEFORE HER  turns sullen when he speaks of his father.  &  calypso feels her body laugh softly in spite of the seriousness of his tone.  to her, it did not seem so long ago that teague first sat here in this very same shack, at this very same table.  &  he had been nearly the same age then as jack was now  —  at least, so she thought.  but then, it was still difficult to tell the age of the humans when they grew so fast  &  yet lived such short lives.  every time she had seen teague since that first, he had aged noticeably.  &  jack would do just the same.  it was a shame, the way that time had a way of turning curious, quick, handsome young boys into tired, embittered men.  perhaps one day, jack would be more like his father than he thought possible now.                            &  though the goddess had been surprised to find she actually enjoyed the boy’s company  — his quick wit  &  his curiosity helping the days pass just a little faster — she could only hope that she wouldn’t be present to see it. she would loathe to find herself still here in another handful of decades, seated at this same table  &  discussing whatever mortal woman who had caught jack’s attentions with the next in an infinite line of sons who believed themselves so much better than their fathers.         it’s a sour thought,  &  her attentions return quickly to jack as he is before her now  —  still scarcely more than a child himself, seeking solace for his grief.  comfort is something she of all beings is ill-equipped to deliver, but still there is an attempt at gentleness in her tone when she speaks.  ❝ take it from me, witty jack, you can never really tell from the outside whether someone is truly happy or not.  especially a woman. ❞  &  then she smiles wide enough that both rows of tia dalma’s blackened teeth show  &  gives a nod,  the many shells  &  beads in her hair clinking together softly with the movement.  ❝ but your mother chose her life  —  that is the most that any of us can ask. ❞

🪐 — JACK SPARROW​  for  stede !

        There was something irritatingly earnest in Jack’s smile too, something he wished would go away immediately. This would be easier if the only thought on his mind was in fleecing this undoubtedly rich, undoubtedly naive fool — but could he really be blamed for genuinely wanting to know more about him, too? After all, a man who had the audacity to walk into a Tortuga bar dressed like that was a man with either a spectacular lack of common sense, or a man who simply didn’t care for what other people thought of him. The second sentiment was something Jack could respect. Begrudgingly. He took a mental note of Stede’s drink order. Red wine. Definitely accustomed to the high life. Jack asked for his usual, go-to drink of rum before reaching out to shake the extended hand. “ The pleasure’s all mine, Captain Bonnet. ” There was no use introducing himself: both this Stede Bonnet and now the entire tavern knew that Captain Jack Sparrow was in port.

         “ The Revenge, hm? ” Curious name for a ship. An even curiouser name for a ship captained by a man who didn’t appear like he’d had a violent thought ever in his life. And that was without even stating the obvious: that this man wasn’t just a pirate, but a pirate captain. “ Revenge against what? ” It was an innocuous question accompanied by a small smile and a shrug, although perhaps Stede would surprise him with his response. Jack’s thoughts were rarely far away from the word, after all, particularly as of late. He craned his head to glance once more at the man’s outfit. “ Revenge against pointed shoes that civilised society insists are fashionable? You’ll find boots are so much more comfortable. Especially on board a ship. ” He stopped short of mentioning that he’d worn them himself in the merchant service for five years of his life and hated every minute of it.

    IT’S NOT EXACTLY A TRICK QUESTION,  the other captain seemingly having meant nothing by it aside from placating his curiosity.  &  yet stede finds himself unprepared for it,  &  he’s left grasping for what to say.  in truth, he had simply thought it sounded like a fearsome name for a ship, like the kind of thing that a true rapscallion of the high seas would name their vessel.  but even with his lack of real-life experience with pirates, stede was not naive enough to think that such an admission would be taken well.  amongst men like this, strength was respected above all else.  &  with no victorious stories of his own to tell as of yet, he stammers for a moment.                                           but at the mention of his shoes, stede’s gaze drops, grateful for the distraction.  ❝ what, these ?  no, of course not.  i actually find them quite comfortable  —  but perhaps i’m just used to them. ❞  after all, if he showed up to one of his high-society luncheons in a pair of plain old boots like the ones that captain jack donned, he would surely be laughed straight out of room  —  though stede had to admit, the soft well-worn leather looked far more appealing than the stiff shiny lacquer that encased his own feet.  perhaps he could consider this his first piece of official advice, captain-to-captain.  &  he gives a shallow laugh, that the break in the tension allowing him to formulate a response.         ❝ why, i seek revenge against the crown, of course !  don’t we all ? ❞  it’s only an educated guess, but surely england would be a suitable target of ire amongst men such as these, who lived their lives boldly outside the law.  ❝ the king’s navy thinks they can tell me what to do, but i tell you this now, i do not take too kindly to being made to follow orders. no sir, stede bonnet is a man who takes what it is he wants. ❞  never mind that in reality, he had only pillaged a single plant from a pair of poor fishermen thus far.

🪐 — @trickstercaptain  +  @shadowcovcn​  ( laszlo ) sent   a meme   for  nadja   :

69  —  hounds of love  by  kate bush   ▶︎

    ❝ WHEN I WAS A CHILD  i’d run in the night, afraid of what might be  — hiding in the dark, hiding in the streets from what was following me.  &  now the hounds of love are hunting me. ❞

🪐 — @trickstercaptain  sent   a meme   for  calypso   :

9  —  king  by  forence + the machine   ▶︎

   ❝ A WOMAN IS A CHANGELING,  always shifting shape  —  just when you think you’ve got her figured out,  something new  begins to take.  ❞

🪐 — @trickstercaptain​  sent   a meme   for  rahim   :

12  —  change  by  djo   ▶︎

      ❝ I SAID THAT when i moved here i’d interact more.  i used just to detach, but that always made it harder. ❞

🪐 — @trickstercaptain  sent   a meme   for  rae   :

28  —  crazy on you  by  heart   ▶︎

    ❝ WHAT CAN YOU DO  when  everybody’s insane ? ❞

🪐 — @trickstercaptain  sent   a meme   for  sarah   :

50  —  i'm fine  by  daði freyr   ▶︎

     ❝ I KEEP MAKING PLANS, but i guess keeping them really isn't my style. ❞

🪐 — spotify wrapped memes : @trickstercaptain for spanish jackie # 58 ▶ this is the last time by the national

DESPITE THE REPUTATION he enjoyed within the republic of pirates — & all the allowances that came along with it — everyone who was anyone knew that jack sparrow was far from a safe investment. it was true that he could always present his harebrained schemes in a way that made them seem all but foolproof; he was skilled that way. but jackie knew well that his talent for smooth-talking his way out of tight situations didn't always result in a reliable return on investment for everyone else. yet even so, she finds herself tempted by his arguments this time, & pauses to take a draw from her cigar as she thinks, smoke curling around her face. ❝ thing is, sparrow, ❞ she says around the exhale. ❝ you don't think before you jump. & i said i wouldn't get sucked in. ❞