The Hearts of Men (1x1 with Eternal Chronicler)

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


Jack chuckled at the thought of a price on his head; he had lived through far worse than a bounty on his life. He did however let Tessa help him back to his ship. His eyes searched Tessa's face with concern upon hearing her sigh. His gaze dropped away after a moment and he in turn sighed, although at a different reason. He leaned against the railing and looked out over the open ocean, the crescent moon weakly shining on the cresting waves.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

"Jack?" Tessa asked after a moment, "Is something the matter?"
She knew the obvious answer; something was always the matter, but she figured Jack had been through more than enough for one day, and she simply had to ask. "Are you alright?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


"Alright?" Jack asked, looking to Tessa with a glint of amusement in his eye. "Since when am I ever? I am mad, no?" He chuckled and looked back to the sea. "I was merely thinking about us being stuck here, instead of out there." He swept his arm towards the horizon. "The world used to be far larger...and have less irritating people though..." He murmured.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

Tessa leaned over and wrapped her arms gingerly about his shoulders, but when she dropped her head to his shoulder she felt her temptations rise, but all the same she didn't quite care. "Jack, let me ask you something; am I irritating to you?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


"If you were irritating love, you would not be wearing your wedding ring." Jack said, giving her a side glance with a small grin on his lips. He tapped his head against hers gently and restrained a wince. "Now on the flipside of that argument, I can hardly understand why you do not wish to kill me dear. Not only have I infuriated many of your associates time and time again, but I have driven you to leaving me once. How is it that I am fortunate enough to find you by my side again?"

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

Tessa paused for nearly a whole minute, unable to piece together a response though her mouth opened several times in an attempt to voice what simply wasn't there. This in turn left her feeling horrible, but the moment she thought back to the time when she had abandoned Jack, she realized it all boiled down to a simple case.
"In the desert, Jack. Who was it that during a moonlit dream rose above the occasion and circumstances to save the life of what may as well have been just another girl? At Isobel's cave shortly thereafter, who was it who managed to gain favor with Waeran Seriel herself and wield her blade? Who of course was it when, at the exclusion of all possible odds, made the more noble sacrifice even at his beloved's expense when it was in fact what she had hoped for in the first place? Who was it that when said beloved ran free from him stumbled by sheer chance upon her and made a daring case that tested the very limits of mortal sympathy in retrospect?" She took a step away, with a hand angled off of her shoulder in a passive flick of her wrist. "Who was it who then proposed, and in the face of almost certain annihilation rose to the challenge of saving her soul from an endless despair?" She turned back and set her eyes to his own. "Do you mean to tell me you forgot all this?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


"I never forgot darling." Jack said, stepping to Tessa again and wrapping his arms around her. "It doesn't change the fact that I am in fact, an unpredictable, stubborn, and selfish man." he murmured in her ear with a slight chuckle. He kissed the side of her head before looking to her eyes. "And I promise not to call you irritating as long as you don't leave again. I forbid that." He said with a joking smile, touching the tip of her nose with his finger.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

"Fine by me," Tessa said simply with a slight shrug into Jack's arms, "But the thing about unpredictable, stubborn and selfish is that you never know what to expect. Too many people waste their lives away looking for their so-called perfect other, well the good news is unpredictable falls right in with perfect for me. Something new on a persistent basis. That Jack, is why I stayed. Because you've changed, and I love what I see."
Her eyes crossed on his finger, and she playfully half-bit at it without a single tooth revealed, to be sure she didn't wind up causing any more bleeding. She looked around at the night sky with a sigh. "Well it's late out and I'm in no particular mood for sleep after I just woke up. Will you be alright?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


Jerking away his finger in a teasing, playful way, Jack chuckled and pulled Tessa tighter to him. "Please Tessa, I hardly need sleep. I'm a vampire, remember?" He asked, biting her neck gently as if to prove his point. "I'll be fine," He murmured in her ear with a smile. "I haven't been broken yet, have I?" Jack asked, shifting his hands to Tessa's hips. "And it is unlikely that I will be broken any time soon. Is there any particular way that you would want to spend the time?" He asked with a smile, tracing Tessa's collarbone with a finger.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

Tessa winced slightly at the feel of fangs on her neck again, but all the same she didn't have too much to lose in that regard anyway, so she didn't let it bother her. Still Jack and his ways had her going again. She brought her hands about his wrists and drew his hands around behind her, keeping them level to where they had been as she stepped slightly forward to him and kissed him lightly on the neck. "I think my plans are usually best acted upon indoors," she said with a slightly uncharacteristic moan - the second sign of her acquired nature taking its hold, "Don't you?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


Jack chuckled and nodded, although the touch of his mother's hand on his shoulder made him scowl, and her reddened face made his feel rather foolish and he took a half step away from Tessa.

"I'm going ashore, I thought you'd might, ah, want to know." Calypso said, and Jack nodded, waving her away impatiently. The goddess departed and Jack stepped back to Tessa.

"Where were we now? Oh yes..." Jack said before scooping Tessa up and heading to the cabin, setting her down on the bed with a grin.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Tessa Cortez

The fear of the many,
the price of the truth.

The next morning was almost as uneventful as could be expected, but Tessa rose particularly early with a watchful eye out at sea. The sun rose, and with it quite quickly so did her sense of alarm. Only a small splash and the barely-visible figure of Tessa diving over the ship's edge marked her departure, but when she came back on board through the docks she had a young girl with a violet-and-crimson coat loosely fitting to her figure and dark pinkish hair laid in her arms, clearly unconscious. She set the girl against one of the masts and made to give Jack notice. Suspecting he was awake enough already to hear her voice after the door's opening itself she simply stepped right in. "Jack, it appears we have a recently-overboard guest. No heartbeat, but alive. Friend of yours perhaps?"

The Wisdom of the Slaughter,
forever drowning...

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


Jack scooped up his wine glass and headed out the door, pausing to loop his free arm around Tessa's waist and pressing his lips to her forehead, before continuing out on deck, curiosity rising. His gaze fell upon the unconscious girl and he shooed Mr. Porter away, standing and sipping at his wine with a ponderous expression on his face. After the glass was near three quarters empty, the pirate held it out and dumped it on the girl's head, attempting to rouse her with the act.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]
 

[Kares-Eternal Chronicler]

Kimberly Sarani

My mother was a Vampire, my father was an Angel.
I am definitely not what you'd call "normal".

The girl was upright and on her feet in an instant with a sharp gasp and a hand to her chest, looking back to Jack with a look of slight alarm. "Was that necessar-" she paused, measuring her surroundings, and calmed down. To the best of her memory she had no reason whatsoever to be where she was, and as far as she could tell, she was at the mercy of some crewman who had been either kind enough or rude enough to rouse her, but... it was certainly not the ship she had seen before she had passed out, but...
"My apologies," she said more calmly, "Where... where am I?"

Vampiric? Sure. Unholy? In a way.
But unholy doesn't define a person.

Order Of Chaos:
 

[The_Scarlet_Lark]

Jack------------------------------------------
------------------- Cortez

Of Blood and Gold I know,
of the freedom of a ship,
and only the wind holding you back.


"You are aboard the Scarlett Duchess Miss." Jack said, offering a hand to the girl. He looked back to Tessa, raising his eyebrow slightly to convey his slight confusion before looking back to the girl. "I am Captain Jack Cortez. We are docked in the Pirate Courts." He explained more thoroughly, shooting a wary glance to Mr. Porter.

This is what I loved...And lost.
[OutrageousObliviousCats: ---]