tampered | Log: Complete

Log: Complete

When; late night, August 30-31
Rating; PG-13 for now?
Characters; Rangiku

13_year_captain
Summary; Ran and Jack have another chat
Log;

The brocade of the cheongsam she’s wearing gives her fingers something to skim as she slides through the night, careful to follows Jack’s directions. It’s the first time she’s ever been out past where Jack keeps his ship, but the trip is so very worth it. The night air is still warm enough to be comfortable against her skin, and the sand is still so much warmer under her bare feet. It would be so easy for her to just appear by his side, but she’s not in the mood for it, even though she enjoys startling people most of the time.

It doesn’t take long for her to find herself spying firelight, so she wanders on until she’s lit by the flames. “Good evening, Jack.”

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Driftwood and fallen palm fronds have built been arranged into a small, high peaked blaze. A few feet away, a blanket is stretched across the sand with a well aged bottle of wine and two gold chalices stuck down in the sand at the blanket's edge.
Jack Sparrow lays upon the blanket, his frock coat off and folded under his head and his hat tipped forward to cover his eyes.

When he hears Ran's voice, Jack smiles, tips up the point of his hat and rises (with a surprising amount of grace for someone who's usual gait suggests he's only barely winning a war with gravity) to his feet, doffs his hat, and bows.

"It most certainly does seem to be improving."

She can't help but chuckle at the sight of him, stretched out on the blanket. It's something unusual for her, seeing a human that seems to be so at ease in his own skin. With another laugh, she moves closer, her hands on her hips.

"Does it now? You might want to hold judgment on that until after we've talked."

Her conscious pokes at her for wanting to forget the talk, but she knows business first. Then, if he's still amiable, fun later.

The ease with which Jack adapts to new places and circumstances comes, in large part, from being entirely comfortable with himself. He knows who and what he is and he accepts all of it; good and bad. Few ever bother to be so well versed in their own nature. ... That's what troubles him about Sands lately. Seeing things he never imagined in his twin have made Jack question himself. Only one other has been able to do that in many years.

"Oh, but I thought that I had your assurances that our talk was 'nothing bad'? I do hope this was not all just a clever trick.. seems a waste of the wine."
He offers a mock pout and fills the glasses.

"Shall we sit, at least?"
Jack offers Ran a glass and then lowers down to sit again on the blanket, leaving a clear space beside him for her to join.

With a wamr smile and a polite nod, she accepts the glass. "Well, I am a woman. It's in my nature to be a little tricky." She gracefully moves to sit, opposing him so they can talk face to face. Her fingers want to smooth away the pout she sees on his face, but she doesn't dare touch him. Not yet.

"It isn't bad, necessairily. I just need some information, if you have it. It's about the parade recently..."

Blue eyes carefully keep watch on his expression, knowing that most men would be easily read by the set of their eyes.

He had expected someone would ask him about it sooner or later. Jack would much prefer it not be Ran to be the first to ask. Ah well. It really would have been a wonderful evening.
The trick in being caught off guard, is to read yourself; to know what you look like and how it comes across. Mostly, he's surprised at the question, and so he follows that. Holds that wide eyed look and carries it into a forced confusion. Jack's emotions are exaggerated, but he keeps them that way at all times to make it that much harder to know when he's lying.

"The parade? What of it? I was not, I must admit, expressly involved, but the noise and crowd did raise interest enough for me to watch the spectacle. ... Quite odd."

He's nervous. Jack smiles more when he's nervous and his laid back demeanor becomes a show rather than simple nature. Some part of his mind wants to tell her the truth, or this wouldn't be so hard.

One slim eyebrow curves up as she listens to Jack. With a smile, she leans closer to him, knowing full well that her ample cleavage is visible though the keyhole sewn into the cheongsam.

"Calm down, Jack. I don't know details... all I know is that there are rumors of something valuable going missing at the parade, and that someone in solid black took it." She was avoiding naming the 'item' stolen, not wanting to sound accusatory.

"Jan saw Sands there, dressed in black. I just thought that, if he was involved, that you'd have heard something. I know he talks to you quite a bit."

One of her hands traces absent fingers around the rim of the glass before she lifts it to her lips, carefully taking a sip of the rich liquid.

"I"m just wondering. That's all."

The conveniently placed opening in the fabric does not go unnoticed at all. How very clever. Jack's eyes move down over the smooth, pale valley of Ran's breasts and back to meet her gaze.

"Ah...seems I'm a popular one to come to when things of value go missing." A slight grin, though there's something about referring to Lucy as a 'thing' that makes him feel ill. "It was quite a crowd with more than one in black. D'you think it was Sands? I don't think he was from my sight for much time at all.
I'd gone to keep him company for the evening, you see, when the rather unexpected festivities began in the streets."

There is no reason to dig this hole for himself. No reason except a ridiculous attachment to a fake brother.

She doesn't miss the motion of his gaze. It makes her smile even wider than before. "Hmmm... well, you're a pirate, dear. What do you expect? It's a stereotypical reaction, just like the fact that people think I'm stupid because I'm a blonde."

After setting the glass back down in the sand, she maneouvers herself a little closer to the fire (and convieniently, closer to Jack), still facing him.

"I don't know if it was him, but Jan thinks it was. Jan's never lied to me before, even if he's pissed me off a few times... I didn't expect you to come out and tell me anything if you did knew. He needs to be more careful... if he keeps going like this, he's going to be needing my professional services. Sooner than he'd want, I'm sure."

After a long silence, her gaze flickers up the brilliant sky above them. For a brief moment, she could swear she's back in Seireitei, sitting on the rooftops with her fellow vice-captains under a star-studded sky much like the one she's staring at. A pang of homesickness runs through her, but she pushes it down, hopefully before it can show.

"So beautiful..."

"Ah, but you are immensely intelligent and I...well... I suppose I'm dishonest, thieving, and a rogue. Blast."
He grins, but accompanies it with quite apologetic puppy-eyes. He can't help being a pirate.

"Lying is not always entirely necessary in spreading false information. It requires only a certainty that your misbegotten facts are the only truth.
I agree, totally and completely, however, that Sheldon must learn to be more careful. As I told you before, he's become a danger to himself and others, I fear. He's losing his hold, though I can hardly blame him in this city."
Jack lowers his eyes, finally, as it doesn't betray his lies, only actual concern. He takes up his own glass and drinks deeply from it.

"I am most certain, luv, that what's gone missing on such a busy night shall no doubt turn up before long. None the worse for it."

Sparrow doesn't follow Ran's gaze up to the twinkling heavens. He looks only at her shining hair -shades like the sunset with its strong yellows and whisper of something more red- and the line of her profile.

"Incredibly so."

Ran's eyes drop back down to meet Jack's. Her lips curl up in a warm (and lately rare) smile. There's a pleasant warmth that runs though a woman when she notices a man looking at her. She's old enough to have felt that many times, but never with his 'twin'. She finds she misses that appreciative look...

"Flattery, Jack, will get you everywhere."

The wine glass ends up back in her hand, and she empties it, but not before a few stray drops escape. Very carefully, she licks at her lips so none of the wine goes to waste, because she's not one to waste good alcohol, no matter what it is.

Jack feels certain Sands was looking at Ran just the way he does when he worked to send the woman's image to him. He knows he has the advantage in being able to see, but a great deal of what he finds beautiful about Ran has nothing to do with her appearance.

"So I have been told, though I've always preferred testing such things for myself."

Not to be outdone, the pirate raises his glass to see to emptying it as well. Though, this may also be an effort to cover the risk of his jaw going a bit slack watching Ran. It surely would be a waste to see that wine go to waste... The slow movement of her tongue is hypnotic.

It's obvious she has his attention secure, so she leans even closer, draping herself almost over his legs to reach the open bottle of wine. It's a stretch, but it's a worthwhile one. She shakes her hair to the opposite side as she moves back, the bottle firmly in her grasp.

"Did you want some?"

Oh, she has his full and undivided attention. Conversation has moved on from distressing topics and Jack has relaxed a great deal.
He leans back and watches close as she leans over him and his grin is careful and wicked as she holds the bottle up for refilling.

"Oh, most decidedly. Yes."

Jack lets his eyes drift over Ran, making clear just what he wants, before holding his glass up for refilling.

Still holding onto the bottle, she shifts her legs a little bit closer. Being a drinker, she's spent plenty of time pouring for friends, so none of the precious liquid is spilled as it fills Jack's glass, then her own.

Her smile moves to match his; wicked and full of promise.

"You've got good taste, Jack. I'm not usually a wine drinker. I prefer... stronger poisons."

"I should have known better than to treat you as I would any other woman. You're far more to my taste... We could have had strong rum and raucous laughter rather than the soft words and wine so many fancy."

Jack raises his glass, so expertly filled, and toasts to Ran's common interest in powerful drink.

"I do hope you'll forgive my misjudging you... I often forget just how good my taste is." He smiles and leans a bit closer. Jack runs fingers through Ran's hair, tilting his head to silently ask permission.

"Soft words and wine are a good thing to all women, Jack, but some of us just have a wider appreciation for many different things." The fingers in her hair make her hum lightly, tilting into his touch.

It isn't a far reach for her to brush her lips over his, murmuring, "I'll have to remind you, then..."

He meets her eyes and smiles against the soft touch of her lips. "That I might never again forget..."

Jack closes the small, remaining distance and kisses Ran slow and firm. His fingers work farther into her hair and press her closer to him.

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