tampered | Log:Ongoing

"My vocation, indeed, would suggest a man rather lacking in morals, but as an agent of your nation's government, should yours not be just a shade higher?"
Mentioning that he doesn't commonly rape, at least not in the strictest sense, would be a rather moot point, so Jack keeps it to himself. He also realizes that a position of upholding the law, does not come with a requirement of strong moral character. He scowls as he leans against the arm of the couch to listen to Sands continue.

The bastard is annoyingly good, and honestly has Sparrow considering that he may be sincere. It's the simplest trick...he's just being told what he wants to hear, but he does so want to believe it. Certainly, Sheldon is mad and quite clearly not to be fully trusted. However, it seems possible that Jack could be his only true friend in this place. Surely, aside from those from his own world, Jack has grown closest to Sands. They are alike enough not to offend each other's sensibilities (or so it had seemed), yet different enough to keep the other interested.

"When I deal in tangible, unquestionable wrongs, mate, I need to know exactly what it is I'm stepping into before the game's got too far. Savvy? Play me for a pawn and make a move in my name without my knowledge again, and I'll have your head mounted from the bowsprit before you so much as know you've soured my mood." Jack's tone does not suggest that this is simply an idle threat. He has been betrayed too many times to let any man wrong him twice. He lets his words hang in the air a moment, hands readied over his weapons, should there me argument.
A voice -which may be something like 'reason', but that is a thing long warped in Jack's mind- screams out to be heard; to be heeded. The best course of action is to deny offers of friendship or favour and return to his ship. The Captain is more than aware of this. But that isn't what he wants to be the answer.

Sands needs and likes Jack. This is as sincere as he gets when he's trying to manipulate them. Jack's comment about his career and morals sends him tittering. He cuts himself off quickly but damn that was a trip coming from Jack.

He's not sure at all what a 'bowsprit' is but understands Jack will kill him and not warn him first. He fights to keep his face blank though he wants to spit. That got home to him. Not insisting anymore that he had no idea Jack would be upset about his plan (which is true) he nods and agrees.
Holding out the coat to Jack again his face is placed back in the pitiful and sorry mask. He's pissed as hell at the threats but he's won so he does nothing.
"I apologize. Please forgive me, Jack. I have opium for you as well."
He doesn't care that his attitude is odd. He's rolling over like a dog and expecting Jack to see that.

The kicked puppy act from Sands is about as natural as an oral bowel movement, but Jack also knows how damn far the agent is lowering himself to play this game. He took a threat, and a strong one, and didn't retaliate. Whatever Sands is up to, he truly wants close to Jack again. No doubt, there's some advantage in it for Sands, but it's possible that some of it is a legitimate desire for forgiveness.

"Bugger..." Sparrow finally accepts what he's going to do and snatches the coat from Sands with a resigned huff. "Gimme my presents, then, you bastard."

Sands gives him a beatific smile and offers the bag of opium from his pocket. He's found Jack's line and he wont cross it unless he's prepared to end their friendship. Quite possibly one of their lives.

"And I love you as well, you prick."
He's so pleased with himself he's nearing a state of giddiness. Sands smacks a loud kiss into the air knowing he's succeeded.

"No call to be so bloody proud about it." Jack takes the bag from Sands and gives the contents a good sniff before pocketing it. If his forgiveness is to be bought, it's important that the pay is decent. He then slides out of his usual coat, laying it on the couch while he tries on the new.

"I trust you did try this first? Of course, you're smaller..." Not that this is on a level that's noticeable or a big enough difference to matter. Jack just feels like being a dick. It makes it feel less like he's giving in.

There's some amount of blessing in the fact Sands can't see how damn fruity Jack looks checking himself out in the new coat.

He makes no effort to wipe the smile off his face when Jack complains.

The size comment interests him. At first it seemed like Jack was just saying it for the sake of insult. But there's something in his voice that says he believes it. Now Sands is interested. They were very close physically at the circus and he never noticed. He feels the pirate is delusional.
"I'm I really?"

He looks smug again. Though he'd be both horrified and entertained at the image of Jack The Great Sea Poofter he's busy being amused at Jack's view of himself.
"That coat is what sailors from my time wore. The stitches will hold longer, I'm sure."

There were no real expectations of Sands meeting the request to stop his grinning. Jack knows he wouldn't, were the positions reversed.

"Yes. Slighter by a bit." Jack has a bit more muscle and, most likely, eats a bit more heartily, but he's wiry, so it fails to make much of a difference in their build. Likely not something easily noticed while clothed.

A few buttons are done up...then quickly undone. The coat is pushed back, then allowed to fall. "I don't know if the length is quite adequate, but it's warm, I'll give it that." He'll also be damned if he's giving it back.

Sands still doubts it. For the exact same reason Jack would make it a point to let him how he's a tad smaller. They both employ large men as subordinants. Being a thin build puts them at a disadvantage and makes them seem a lot smaller. Though not short by any means at 5'10 they are men. Things like that matter.
He tilts his head at the pirate wondering how he can figure out the truth for himself.

"Complain complain. I give so much and receive so little in return. It will keep you from getting frost bite where the bacteria ate through your clothes. And we look good in black."
He's just assuming on Jack's part.

It is for the reason of a bit of leverage that Jack bothers with mentioning it, as well as leaving it vague and playing up the difference in size where he can. Exaggerated truths will always be a thousand times more useful than full lies.

"Black's jus' a bit boring, an' awful in the sun. I've always preferred blue." Still not giving up a nice gift. Not a chance. "And jus' what is it you expect in return? I thought my forgiveness...such as it is...was worthy payment enough." He won't be in debt for the fancy coat, however. Maybe if it was a bit longer below the waist and a size or two larger to fit more loosely....

"Black is not boring. It is traditional. Remembering Mexico- I would have to agree with you about the sun though."

"Your forgiveness was all I was after." He holds his hands up in surrender.
"I'm just worried about the both of us. You never told me if you took the mother to Jones like the girl and I wonder what plan to come up with to save us from this. Your ass is my ass after all..."

"I say, then, that you shouldn' worry so terribly over whot I choose to do to said jointly shared arse, and trust my judgment." He laughs to himself, enjoying the multiple possible implications. Still...there is the matter that's been raised, and he doesn't look forward to the reaction.

Jack sighs and takes a seat, heavily, on the couch.

"Nothing, mate. I did nothing with the mother. ... I don't know if anyone in that street was clearminded enough to see straight, so at least our worry of witnesses is limited. Should question be raised, Alice...to some degree...serves as my alibi, and I as yours. Should she or any choose to point blame, I wager it shall fall -as you well predicted- with me, which should do little to worry you.... And what great harm could they do in lynching me, eh? Ha..."
His voice doesn't sound nearly as confident as he'd like, but a great deal more than he is.

Stay calm. Do not yell.
"Jack. I think it's a mistake to leave Alice. She's be hysterical- blaming..."
No wait. Blaming herself more then anyone. Perhaps Jack is right. No witnesses. Jack was with the mother when Sands took the child. She never saw him and considering the shame she feels over how she lost her child it's very possible Jack is the last person she would be telling people about.
But it's a 50/50 chance.

"If they do come after you they wont be far behind with pitchforks for me. Maybe taking the mother this late would be a mistake. The two disappearing at different times would look so much worse then just the girl wandering off and then getting taken. But at least agree to find the woman and do a little surveillance. Find out what she's doing before you decide to trust everything will work for us."
Sands has reached the end of his diplomatic stick.

Slumping a bit where he sits, Jack nods. Damn Sands for being right.

"Fine. I will keep an eye on her. Probably for the best. Besides, it would do to keep up the image that I wish to help her, if I can manage. Though...tha's a think to be moved towards with care, else have it all go pear shaped before I have her trust again."

He raises his head, eyes narrowed at Sands.

"You are not -you realize, of course- without blame here, Shel. I do so hate to bear bad news."

Sands is very calm about this- speaking like a patient adult with a particularly stubborn and stupid child.
"Now, Echo. I thought you knew what I had planned from nearly the beginning. And I would have told you everything in spanish had you come with us instead of staying behind to fuck mommy in a dirty ally. This was just a miscommunication."

One, in his opinion, that is totally Jack's fault. This conclusion is easy to come up with when one sees nothing wrong with taking the child in the first place.
"Now give us a cuddle."
He smiles holding his arms out. Sands wants a hug so he can compare size. Otherwise it will drive him mad.

"I'd still be a bit lost on it. My Spanish is somewhat lacking." Though his French is excellent when he doesn't get it muddled with bits of other languages. It's this sort of problem that makes his Spanish so flawed. It usually ends up with a great number of French and creole words mixed in.

He picks at his nails, trying to work his way around feeling remorse for fucking Alice. In the past, he's never had to regret sex unless he caught something from his partner. Even if the liquor faded and his choice of temporary lover turned out to be less attractive than he remembered, it was still sex and no use feeling badly over it. This time he actually feels he's wronged a woman by shagging her. It's unpleasant. Not to mention, maybe it did cause a lot of the complications here...

"Besides...if I'd just taken my leave of that woman when you fucked off, it would have looked more than a little suspicious -you understand- with the way armed and aimed against her hip at the time."
There. A fair excuse.

"Cuddle?" Jack laughs and leans back on the couch. "Look, mate, you're as far forgiven as you're going to be. You can give it a rest now."
Sands has no real interest in him or men at all, so far as Jack has seen. He's not getting up to hug another man if it isn't to empty his pockets or get a bit closer to dragging him to bed. Sands isn't even drunk, so the second option is clearly out.

"Dutch. Afghan. Gay Pirate. Whatever other language you speak I would have found it. That's not the point.
Though- I will admit leaving Alice suddenly might have been a bad idea. I asked you to flirt with her. Not rub your dirty little bits against her hip. You do see the difference, yes?"

Sands lets his disappointment show on his face as he lowers his arms. Fine then. He'll just ask around. Dropping into a chair he pouts at Jack's phrasing, expecting to be fully forgiven and drug buddies again. Never having friends he's unaccustomed to being on their bad side. It's no fun.
"I spent the night with Ran."
There. The one subject that brings them closer no matter what mood the other is in. Rangiku's breasts.

"Well, I wasn't exactly holding out much hope for you to be in the mood after your games were through..."
Ugly motivation, perhaps, but a large part of the truth. The parade had Jack incredibly damn randy and his options were a little limited unless he wanted to put real effort into searching out someone to get his rocks off. He wasn't going to run back to Tia. He doesn't want to be that dependent or that loyal. It's boring.

Nothing has been said as to whether they're still drug buddies. Jack could use somewhere to go to get high aside from his quarters and someone to keep him company for it. Tia seems to be worrying about his habits more and that's troubling.
He watches Sands sit and pout at him and wonders if it looks that childish when he does it. (Likely more so, really. It's just something in Jack's demeanor.)

"Did you? About bloody time, mate. If you dragged your arse on the matter much longer, I was going to be forced to do the gentlemanly thing and fill in for you."
The tone says the pirate is strictly joking, but Jack truly had considered sleeping with Ran. It's something he's avoided, in large part, out of respect for Sands. He would do it now, not only because he wants to, but to hurt his twin. The idea, truly, hasn't been entirely given up.

"If you had just asked for that instead of knocking me out you would have had a better time. As is, you missed your change when leaving me unmolested while out cold."
Oh, they both know he would have ripped the pirate apart if Jack had tried. And Sands thinks the pirate prefers the cooperation anyway. While the promise of sex is given when the opportunity presents itself, Jack is right as far as his interest in men go. There is none. He'll shoot them before fulfilling his other obligations.

He gives a still proud grin at his friend when commended. Even the threat of taking the situation in his own hands doesn't ruin it for Sands. He's in a rather good mood. The pirate is staying no matter his sulking and he slept last night. A wondrous thing he gets little of.
"I haven't had her yet. I don't even need to at this point. Though if I could have I would, trust me on that. But since I can't- it's like having your plans canceled and finding a wonderful afternoon just dozing on the porch. Deck. What have you. We slept through the end of the blizzard naked in bed. Best night I've had since-" He waves a hand signifying his old life where he had a job, eyes, a girlfriend, and plans for a small private island.
"-before. Insert threats of me coming on board to spit in your mouth as you sleep if you touch Ran blah blah- So how is your love life, Echo?"

"Who's to say I left you unmolested, Shel?"
He grins, though he now rather wishes he had thought to sully Sands' unconscious form. He was in no mood at the time, but it would have served as decent enough revenge for the moment. Still...it only matters what Sands thinks happened. Jack, for his part, however, doesn't even notice he's back to the informality of nicknames.

"Don't need to, eh? Perhaps you're a stronger man than I." The pirate can't even imagine laying nude beside a woman that exquisite and doing nothing more than sleeping. It's an impossible task as far as he's concerned.
"As to my -love life, you called it? heh- I've not been left to polish my own knob, and that's all I truly ask." In all honesty, Jack is happy to have sex available when he wants it, but it's getting a little like monogamy and that's upsetting. At this point in his life, even the limitations of just having one city full of women is a bit boring for him. He likes variety.

"I wasn't bleeding from the ass, had a bad taste in my mouth, or soreness in the eye socket. I'm betting you tied me up and dropped me off without even thinking about it."
Privately Sands thinks that better be the case. Or Jack will spend a long time in a steel cage at the bottom of the ocean.

"You have a useless crew of questionable women and a swinger girlfriend. Don't play it down so much." Sands (for the most part) is a one woman kind of guy. He flirts a lot but his wild oats were sown already. He would never understand.
"And there's a lot to be said for jerking yourself off. I miss that first tug in the shower. You should appreciate it a bit more."
He takes out a pack of cigarettes, lighting two of them and passing one to Jack.

"That would all be a little obvious, wouldn't it? Shows no skill or technique."
Best to keep him guessing. And it's fun. Jack doesn't bother seeing where he should stop pressing his luck.

"I dare not think of them as useless. They most certainly have their uses. Though, Ran has been claimed for you, now hasn't she? Unfortunate. I'll need to recruit again, I should think."
It's not that Jack is promiscuous for show, and he doesn't have anything against masturbation. There are simply things he needs in sex that he can't achieve alone. It's the close company and the total focus that he's after. Alone, his mind wanders.

He gladly takes the offered cigarette and takes a long drag. He's getting a little more accustomed to the filter.

"Bull shit." Sands knows Jack is trying to get his goat. Still there is a tiny nagging in his brain that will bug him.

"As far as you and me are concerned she's mine. Just don't say shit to her about it. Don't fuck with me on this. I am not the smaller animal."
He stares at Jack through the blindfold and holes in his head. He'll say what he has to to keep Jack from touching her. Anyone else he's fine with. But not his clones.

Jack grins, satisfied. That nagging worry planted in Sands' mind is all he wanted.

"I could make the argument that you owe me, but I shall not, for now. She's yours and I'll keep my hands to myself. I can't promise to refuse advances, I'm only human after all, but I shall refrain making any of my own."
He plans to keep to this. However, he's not very clear on the numerous things he qualifies as a woman 'making advances'. So many go unaware that they flirted with Jack first.

Sands considers his wording. It's not as if Ran didn't have plenty of chances. And he sure can't picture Jack turning her down no matter what threats he gives. Knowing that's as good as it will get he nods, tapping his ash out.
"Okay. Do we spit on our hands before shaking or some other pirate like thing?"
He's not sure if pirates did that or not.

"To make the agreement truly official, I believe we shall need to drop our trousers and shake one another's pricks. Only way to be really sure of a bond of trust."
Sometimes, it's just fun to see how far you can go. 'Some pirate like thing', indeed. It makes Jack snicker to himself and he's glad Sheldon can't see his grin.

Log:Ongoing

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