BACKGROUND: Lilith was used in a trade. Her for the pirates' freedom. Jack was quite diggin her, and promised he'd get her back somehow. But then all the stuff happened, so he was a bit delayed. Lilith and Cutler had been married for a while. He fell in love with her, but she still resented and greatly disliked him. As a result, she kept her distance and was often rather uncivil with him. This made him feel bad, though he tried not show it. He started to treat her better, and did stuff to try and win her affections, but I didn't work so well. And so now, they're at the part where they meet on the nice little spit of land for some "good business."

Lilith watched and waited as Barbossa, Jack and Elizabeth approached. She had never been happy about her forced marriage to Cutler Beckett, who was standing beside her. William and herself had come up with a devious plan for vengeance, and she was itching to put it into motion. She had known for some time that her husband had developed true feelings for her, and a part of her felt guilty about using that to her advantage. But another part of him still hated him for everything he had forced upon her. After some bargaining, Will had been traded for Jack. As Will started to walk away, he turned to Lilith.

"Come with me."

"You know I can't…"

Will walked back over to her and grabbed her hand, pulling her forward. The others glanced around at each other in confusion. Not one of the other 4 had any clue what was going on, but Elizabeth already knew she didn't like where this was going, as did Cutler.

"I won't leave without you! Not again!"

"But Will, I…"

"I love you, and I always have. And I refuse to leave you behind again!"

Before she could react, he pulled her close and kissed her passionately. Perhaps a little too passionately for something that was just an act. Elizabeth's jaw dropped as she stammered with rage and sadness. How could they?! She clenched her fists tightly before turning once again and storming away. Jack looked rather stunned for a moment, but soon caught on to what was happening. 'Good job, mate…' he thought to himself, while still trying to look stunned. Jones and Barbossa simply sneered before turning away again.

Cutler lost composure for only a brief moment before regaining it, and straightening himself out. He did his best to seem angry that his wife would betray him in front of others, but it came across as ineffective as he looked away. In actuality, he was crushed. Absolutely devastated. Never before in his life had he felt so broken and lost. He knew Lilith wasn't keen on him, but he never suspected she was actually in love with someone else. He wanted to do or say something, anything, to stop what was happening, but he knew he was powerless. When the kiss was broken and Will began to pull Lilith away, he spoke in his normal calm, collected manner.

"Then you shall die, as well." With that he turned to go back to his ship. It hurt him even more to say that, but he couldn't let anyone know he actually had some feelings for another living thing. After they returned to the Pearl, Lilith and Will explained everything to Elizabeth, who was overjoyed to hear that it was all a farce.

That evening, the rain came down hard and heavy. Cutler watched for a while out the window, but he couldn't concentrate on much of anything other than his beloved Lilith. Even though he had tried to reconcile his cruelty over the last few weeks by showing her more kindness than usual. He didn't want to seem too overly lax, so he contained his acts of generosity to when they were alone. He knew that nothing he could give her would ever make up for what he did, but he was hoping to at least earn her favor a little. He slammed his pen on the table as he stood and made his way out onto the deck. Few others out there because the heavy rain made it somewhat dangerous, not to mention wet. He leaned over the rail and watched the choppy water churning below. What was he going to do? He could have her taken captive and brought back, but that would, of course, make her even more miserable. He wanted her to be happy, but he knew that as long as she was with him, she never would be. He loved her so much, and wanted nothing more than to be able to feel her in his arms, but even after nearly a year of marriage, he barely went near her, except when she was asleep. She would never allow him to get close. Ever. When she slept, though… He often watched her, pushing pieces of hair out of her face, placing soft kisses on her skin, and praying that she had good dreams. He knew it was a bit creepy, but it was the only time he could be near her. He closed his eyes as the rain poured down his face, making it impossible to tell if any tears were mixed with it. He knew the battle was soon upon them, but at the moment, he didn't care. He only cared about one thing, and it was his wife, whom he knew he would soon be losing forever. By death or otherwise, he knew that soon their bonds would be broken forever, and there was nothing he could do about it.