Open RP; The Unpopping of a Navy Man

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

((ooc; Permission given by all Pirates- muns. As a note, I'll be playing Norrington from the end of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End so ye be warned. Here be spoilers. Also, PotC has a not-entirely-historically-accurate interpretation of the British Navy and its functions, as found on its wiki, and I shall be following that. Open rp in the hallway! Please do pop in.))

James Norrington awoke with a start (though he wasn't convinced "awoke" was the right word and disliked the imprecision of it) and schooled himself into stillness until he could decide where, exactly, he was. He took the time to remind himself of who he was (James Norrington; Admiral in his Majesty's Royal Navy (though he did not deserve the title); former Commodore, Captain, Lieutenant, and midshipman; and former scourge of piracy in the Caribbean- though sailing through a hurricane and a deeper acquaintance with the rum bottle soon robbed him of that, as well as any sense of self- respect or any last shred of his honor) and the state he was supposed to be in (i.e. post- mortem).

Logically speaking, he had to be dead. One of Davy Jones's sailors had stabbed him through the torso and Davy Jones had asked him if he feared death. As the answer had been (and still was) a resounding "no" and due to the fact that the popcorn room in no way, shape, or form resembled a ship, Norrington found it safe to assume that no, he was not on The Flying Dutchman. He tamped down on a momentary twinge of irritation. He hated not knowing his environment and not knowing what to expect. For example, why was he in a castle? Why was it suddenly cold, after the heat of the Caribbean? Why did the room appear to be populated with kernels of corn? Was he in some sort of purgatory? He very much doubted that he would make it into any imaginable heaven and, though bizarre, his surroundings were not particularly hellish.

When no answers immediately presented themselves, Norrington focused on the fact that he disliked hat he was covered in butter. It made no sense and happened to be an incredibly uncomfortable experience. Who knew that brocade absorbed oils so well? With a cursory attempt at cleaning himself off, much hampered by the fact that his handkerchief was similarly dripping with butter, Norrington squared his shoulders, straightened his posture, adjusted his hat and wig, and walked out of the room. He could not shake the feeling that he had yet more penance to perform.

Comments

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

Carrie was being a little more careful in the hallways since her collision (http://community.livejournal.com/hogwarts_hocus/1340450.html) with the big orange creature. Fortunately the smell of butter alerted her to Norrington's presence well before she saw him.

"Hey," she said with a shy wave.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

((I'm going to say that he mysteriously has, to go on with the whole redemption motif.))

Norrington turned quickly, having clamped down tightly on the inital, unthinking urge to draw his sword- just in case. He had no idea what to expect here.

It was a considerable relief to find a young lady waving at him. Norrington bowed very properly. "May I help you in some way, Miss?"

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

"Was gonna ask you the same thing. You look a little lost. An' a little -" she gestured around the tip of her nose, mirroring the spot where butter was rolling down his nose.

Then she glanced to his side. "Hey, I got a sword kinda like that. Guy name'a Turner made it for me. Haven't seen him in a while though."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"Oh." Norrington ineffctually wiped at his nose with an equally butter-soaked glove. "My apologies for my current state of, ah... dishabille. I was under the impression that I was dead and this-" he gestured at the castle after a hpless flick at the butter on his sleeve "-comes as rather a shock."

The woman's following statements threw him for a loop. "Turner? A Turner who makes swords- this would not happen to be William or Will Turner by any chance?"

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

"I know, I've done it. The dead-then-not part, not the butter part. I really didn't expect - " she stopped and looked away suddenly.

"Yeah. Will, I think he went by. Wasn't here very long, though. Makes real nice swords though." She drew out her wand, concentrated on picturing the route between her room and that spot, and said "Accio sword."

The scabbarded sword, standing up vertically in the air like a stick figure, came flying into her hand. "Wanna see?"

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"He made mine as well," Norrington replied, with a wry smile that was not exactly a smile. "Mr. Turner appears to be a very popular blacksmith-"

Whatever else he had intended to say on the subject vanished entirely from his mind as he saw the woman in front of him pull out a stick and cause a sword to fly into her hand. He briefly allowed his momentary shock to show (though, admittedly, once one has fought undead pirates and been Davy Jones's commanding officer, very little phased you) in his expression before regaining his grip on his self control and assuming a politely curious look. "I should be glad to, Miss...?"

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

"Carrie. Carrie White." She held the sword flat, as if on a tabletop, and pulled the blade from the scabbard about six inches. "See? Same sort'a workmanship. Mine's smaller an' lighter, though. I'm not as good with it as I'd like to be, but I'm tryin'."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"May I?" Norrington asked, taking off his buttery glove and holding his hand over the hilt of the sword.

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

Carrie looked him over closely, now that he was leaning in a bit closer to examine the sword. After a moment, she nodded and held it a little higher.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Norrington pulled the sword out smoothly and stepped back. He held it up as if saluting someone before a duel and deftly brought it down and sent it spinning behind his back, catching it once more. "Perfect balance. Excellent as always. Turner has a good eye for swords and a considerable grasp on their construction."

He offered it back to her, blade first. "If you wish to know how to use it, I should be more than happy to assist you, Miss White."

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, 'tis. When I hold it, it feels like it should all be easy. I'd like that if you can put up with a beginner, Mister - umm - " She ducked her head, embarrassed.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"James Norrington," Norington replied, with a flash of a smile. "As of late, Admiral Norrington, though I do not entirely deserve the position. It would be no problem, Miss White. I doubt that you are any wose than the midshipmen I have had to teach in a past. You, at least, appear to be aware of which end of the sword you hold."

[carri3-whit3.livejournal.com]

Carrie smiled back. "Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Norrington. Or should I go with Admiral, if you're not easy with it?"

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"I leave it to your judgment, Miss White,"Norrington replied with a slight bow.

[tomatohacker.livejournal.com]

[[glomps Norrie]]

Ed was merrily somersaulting around Hogwarts when she smelled popcorn. She shut her eyes and followed her nose to the source of the smell. She stopped, and opened her eyes to see Norrington.

"Hi, Popcorn-person! Ed is Ed!"

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

((Norrington is glomped!And secretly enjoys it, repressed Britishman that he is.))

Norrington, vaguely unnerved, rested his his hand on the hilt of his sword as he bowed. "Forgive me, miss, but you have the wrong person. We have never met, and it is impossible to get the moniker 'Ed' from 'James Norrington'. I am so sorry to disappoint you, but there it is."

[tomatohacker.livejournal.com]

"Noooooooooo, Popcorn-person, Ed is Ed!" she said, pointing to herself. "Ed smelled popcorn and Ed followed her nose, and Ed found Popcorn-person!"

[[can she glomp IC pleeeeeeese? *puppy eyes*]]

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

((Sure! Go right ahead.))

"Ah. Forgive my confusion, but I am not accustomed to people referring to themselves in the third person. I must correct you, however in the matter of my being a... 'Popcorn-person', as you so quaintly phrased it. I am Admiral James Norrington, late of The Flying Dutchman."

[tomatohacker.livejournal.com]

"But Jamie-person smells like popcorn. But Ed doesn't care, Ed likes popcorn, and Ed likes Jamie-person!" she said, jumping up and giving Norrington a biiiiiiig hug. Which anime people would say is a glomp.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Norrington jerked back in surprise, not quite able to get himself free of his attacker. "Madam," he said frostily. "You will get covered in butter. Release me."

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

Every so often, Archie would come to the Popcorn Room, hoping to see Horatio or Bush or even Clayton there. Course, they'll go through sorting if they ever come, but he didn't know that.

None of them, but there was an officer there. High ranking too, from the looks of the uniform. What rank, specifically, Archie wasn't sure.

"Good afternoon, sir," Archie saluted, thanking God he was in his uniform today.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Norrington returned the salute, feeling himself relax slightly at the sight of another sailor. "Good afternoon. May I inquire as to your name and rank?"

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

"Lieutenant Archie Kennedy, sir. Formerly of His Majesty's Ship Renown. Gryffindor."

[[Based on what's said in the Wiki, Archie comes from a time after Norrington, so he may have heard of him.]]

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

((Go right ahead if you want to!))

"Admiral James Norrington, formerly of His Majesty's Ship Endeavor and more recently still the Flying Dutchman." A wry expression close to a smile flitted across his face. "It was a bit of an unexpected posting, as well as an extraordinarily unusal ship, but she was a beautiful ship."

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

"Norrington? I think I read of you once. About how you fought and defeated a pirate ship...The Black Pearl, I think? It was only a mention in passing, I could be wrong. Sir."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Again, the wry almost- smile, though it lasted a bit longer than the previous time. "You are correct, Lieutenant. That was when I was Commodore on His Majesty's Ship Dauntless. I did not think it had made its way into the papers."

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

"Well, I read about it in one of Lieutenant Hornblower's naval history books, sir. I can't say if it was in the papers, it was before my time."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"Before your time?" Norrington asked. "Ah, will.. to some extent, that does make sense. Purgatory is outside both time and space, so it would be possible to meet someone from the future."

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

"Quite, sir. From what people have told me, we are in the year 2007. Begging your pardon, sir, but we're the ones out of place here. Among others."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Norrington allowed himself a moment to absorb this information. "Ah. Not the afterlife after all. There are... others from our time period, Lieutenant?"

[traitorormartyr.livejournal.com]

"There was one lady, from around our period. Whether there are more, I do not know."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"Ah." Norrington thought this over. "My thanks to you, Lieutenant, for the information."

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

I'd been scouring the Popcorn Room like it had never been scoured before. Okay, I'm a stalker. So sue me. But I was hell-bent on getting to the bottom of this room, dammit. People randomly turning into popcorn. People randomly showing up, no longer kernels. This was worse than Pirates of the Caribbean, only talking about snack food instead of swashbuckling.

That was a really bad metaphor. ... I think I just wanted to mention Johnny Depp in eyeliner.

But, hello, speaking of pirates. Some guy dressed up like he'd just stepped out of the fourteenth century or something. Damn, he had the wig and the sword and everything. I lowered my camera, fixing this newcomer with an odd sort of look.

"Poll: As an ex-piece of popcorn, do you remember anything?" I asked out of the blue, doing that thing where I cocked my head that Weevil always made fun of me for doing.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"No," Norrington replied. "I am as one newborn in the world." Then, with the flash of the smile to show he was being sarcastic: "I distinctly recall my own death, but I cannot enlighten you on anything but my own personal history, none of which has any relation to popcorn."

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

'As one newborn in the world'. Nice. Oddly poetic. Also, that deep, manly, British accent? Guh. I'm a total sucker for foreigners. Particularly those of the English persuasion. ...Come on, what teenage girl doesn't fangirl over accents? "Up until now, of course," I offered, a bit weakly, a sympathetic smile tracing up the corners of my mouth. "Death?"

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"As you guessed," Norrington said dryly, with a lipquirk of a smile. "I do find myself at a loss as to the recent link between life and popcorn and to the fact that I am covered with butter." He gave a quick, neat bow, hampered slightly by the fact that he was dripping butter onto the floor. "One ex- James Norrington at your service, former Admiral of His Majesty's Navy."

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

The butter? Way not perturbing. I knew exactly how hard it was to pull off suave when you were kind of dripping head to toe with the stuff. And he was actually doing a much better job than I was. Of course, he wasn't trying to sponge himself off with moist towelettes either.

"Most people don't," I replied with a bit of a grimace, folding my arms over my sweater (http://www.omiru.com/wp-content/images/sweatervest_042306.jpg) and cocking my head to him. "Lots of memory loss, up in this here popcorn room." Ooh, bowing. Way too cool. I had a strange urge to curtsy in return, and definitely tried, but it was a little hard to pull off in jeans. "Admiral?" I asked with a lopsided grin. "Impressive. Veronica Mars, here, your friendly neighborhood investigator."

My very first fourteenth century popcorn victim.

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

Norrington smiled, which was quite the rare occurance. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss Mars. May I ask... why are we in a... popcorn room? And where exactly is this?" a brief expression of uncertainty flitted across his face. "This is... the afterlife, is it not?"

((ooc; Thank you! And, along those lines, reposted for a more appropriate icon.))

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

Miss Mars. Oh my. The propriety was going to be the death of me. "Veronica's fine, J... Am I supposed to call you Admiral? How does this work?" Maybe it was something like other titles. Like Dr. Howser and Mr. T. "Anyway. This is... actually, in Scotland. And, you know. I'm from America, and that is a long way to go!" Judging from his accent, I'm supposing it wasn't so far for him. "It's not the afterlife, no. I don't think. Unless I died somehow and I really wasn't informed of it."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"You may call me Admiral Norrington or James at your disgression," Norrington replied politely. "Norrington works just as well."

Her subsequent information proved baffling. "Scotland?" Perhaps he was in hell, then. He so disliked the cold. "Ah. And I am guessing that a significant lapse of time followed between my death in the eighteenth century and my subsequent reanimation here." He tapped his gloved fingers on his trouser leg a moment. "I think I need-" no rum! "-a large brandy in order for this to make sense."

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

Huh. The last name thing. No Jimmy? I had to ask in my mind, but then I figured with a man such as himself, even a chick like me calling him 'James' was pushing things a bit. "James it is," I replied with a nod.

Lapse of time? I offered another sympathetic smile, letting my shoulders slump a little. "Just a bit, yeah, if my clothes and this funny contraption we like to call a camera," I wiggled the thing in front of him a bit, "are any indications. Although you might want to be looking for a shower before you go jumping into the booze, Admiral. Could get a little messy otherwise."

[boundbythelaw.livejournal.com]

"A.. shower?"

Norrington looked at her curiously. "It appears I have much to learn. Why am I in need of one?"

[earthto-mars.livejournal.com]

...O~okay. He didn't know what a shower was. Right. Lack of indoor plumbing then, I suppose. I opened my mouth and shut it once, trying to figure out a good way to describe to this man the wonderful ways of bathing and hot water.

"Showers. Bathing? Water comes down from this... spigot thing." I waved vaguely upwards, raising my eyebrows and hoping he'd get this somehow. "To, you know. Get rid of some of the butter."