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"Trust me, Joshamee. You'll enjoy this." Jack Sparrow was all smiles, but
Gibbs was dubious. In the damp, golden twilight of Tortuga, the gentle mist
fell and the noise level rose in the various alehouses.
"It don't seem at all natural, if ye take my meaning, Jack," he
demurred, backing away down the puddled street. "I'll just go an' wait for
ye in the tavern as usual..." but Jack grabbed his arm and forced him along,
bodily.
"I said trust me. If you don't trust your own Captain, who can
you trust? Besides, it's good for morale." He steered the older man into the
doorway of his preferred establishment.
"You realize that I've never been to one of those places, Jack? Not in all
my years as a sailor?"
"Aye, I gathered that was the case, Josh."
~~~~~~~~~~
Soon the coin had been given over, and the room secured. Jack snicked the
latch shut behind him, and waved an expressive hand. "Right, then. Don't be
shy. Take down your britches."
Joshamee Gibbs just stood and stared around the room. "Jack, I don't know
'bout this. Seems bad luck to be doin' such a thing..." His voice trailed
off in trepidation.
"Nonsense!" Jack laughed at the other man. "What, do you want me to go
first, just to show you?"
"P'raps that'd be for the best, Captain."
Jack snorted. "This is hardly the time to be standing on ceremony," but he
began to untie his sash and loosen his shirt. "Come on, we'll do it
together! Then you won't have cause to feel so self-conscious." Jack reached
for Gibbs' neckcloth and removed it with a deft flick of his wrist.
"Seems to me as though you've done this many times before, Jack. You've been
here with others, haven't you?" Gibbs had pulled away, and was struggling to
remove the remainder of his clothing without any further assistance from his
eagerly helpful captain.
"You have no idea," Jack said.
After a few more minutes of struggle with various items of clothing, Jack
looked up and down at his companion standing nude before him. A low whistle
escaped his lips. "Josh, I had notion of what you were hiding under there.
Perhaps after we're done in this room, we'd best get a second one? Let's get
started immediately." Sparrow rummaged through the pockets of his discarded
coat, looking for the paraphernalia he had brought for this event.
Gibbs' eyes flew wide when he saw the little blue bottle, and the item held
in Jack's other hand, longish and rounded on the ends. "Jack, is that
really... necessary?"
"How many times am I going to have to insist that you trust me? Here, take a
sniff! Finest lavender, imported directly from France." Jack uncorked the
flask and let Joshamee smell the contents. "See? Nothing to be afraid of!"
"I... I never thought I'd..." Gibbs stammered.
"Believe me, you'll be glad of the oil, soon enough," Jack reassured.
Gibbs pointed to Jack's other hand. "What exactly is that, Jack?"
Captain Jack Sparrow was silent for a moment. "Do you honestly not know,
Joshamee?"
Gibbs shook his head in sincere confusion.
"Bloody hell. I should have done this to you years ago!" and with
that, he pushed Joshamee backwards into the brim-full, steaming bathtub.
"It's SOAP, you filthy wretch! SOAP for BATHING! You rub it on your surfaces
to remove that brown crust you've got there, and you pour the oil in the
water to make your skin smooth and fragrant!"
Joshamee pondered the captain's shouted words for a moment and then quietly
inquired, "But... why?"
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