Disclaimer: None of it's mine, not even Jack. Unfortunately. –Sigh-

"Now what?" it was with a  heavy heart Elizabeth Swann watched the Black Pearl shrinking into the distance, one hand perched idly on her hip, the other shielding her brown eyes from the glare of the afternoon sun on the water.

            "That's the second time I've had to watch that man sail away with my ship." It was with an even heavier heart that Captain Jack Sparrow shook his head, eyes downcast- and Elizabeth couldn't help but be surprised. Was this the same man she'd met only days before? The swaggering, smirking pirate without a care in the world? It was the first time she'd detected even a hint of emotion other than blissful indifference. . . If she didn't know better, she thought he looked… miserable. But, in a moment, the flicker of emotion died away, once again masked by his usual lack of concern, and he walked off in his usual drunken manner, obviously in search of something.

            "I'm sorry, Jack…" she said weakly. True, she was partly offering her sympathies, but, inadvertently, she was apologizing Will's stupidity. Of course, it was unfair to blame Will… she herself had fallen victim to Barbossa's trick only the previous day. But now, standing on this island, Elizabeth felt hopeless, and placing blame made her feel a bit better, though it was of little compensation to know it wasn't her fault, at least. Waves of depression swept over her as she realized with a small cry of despair that she might never see her beloved Will again. The thought made her nauseas as the reality of the situation struck her like a slap in the face. It wasn't a dream, as much as she wished it were…

            Hopeless, utterly hopeless. Elizabeth dropped heavily on the sand, burying her face in her hands as she wept, mind focused on just how truly and inescapably hopeless the situation was. She was going to die here, starve to death on this Godforsaken spit of land, or else die of thirst from lack of fresh water. Alone… completely alone. Doomed to die forgotten and alone, save a dirty pirate who'd once again lost his ship.

            Once again… she sat up quickly as a sudden realization hit her. Jack had been on this island before… and he'd escaped! Of course… they'd just escape the same way he had before, save Will, and be done with this whole mess before the end of the week. Pulling herself to her feet, she made a bee line for Jack.

            "Jack…" she caught herself against the small palm he was currently knocking on as she nearly slipped in the sand. "Jack, we have to get off of this island!"

            Raising an eyebrow, Jack muttered something to himself, taking several long strides forward.

            "We can escape!" she repeated, and Jack back tracked, turning to face her.

            "To what point and purpose, lass? Your Will will be long dead by the time we reach him, and unless you have a rudder and a lot of sails hidden in that bodice…" he paused here to look her up and down, and shrugged. "… highly unlikely… there's no possible way of escape." Taking a few large steps forward once more, he began to jump up and down.

            "But there is!!" Elizabeth insisted. "We can escape the way you did last time! You're Captain Jack Sparrow! You completely vanished under the eye of seven agents of the East India Trading Company! Are you the pirate I read about, or not?"

            The way she looked at him, brown eyes wide in earnest, hands clasped at her breasts as it begging him to have the solution, caused Jack to pause mid-bounce, eyeing her warily. He almost felt bad, destroying the naïve image she had of him as a pirate. Almost.

            "Last time…" he grunted, leaning down and lifting up the sand as if it were a panel. Or, rather, a trap door, Elizabeth amended, watching the pirate as he disappeared down a creaky wooden staircase. "Last time, I was here a grand total of three days. The rum runners used this island as a cash trade, and I was able to barter my way off. But from the looks of things, they've long since been out of business." His words became less muffled as he emerged once more, holding two bottles of rum. "You've probably got your bloody friend Norrington to thank for that."

            Elizabeth looked as though she might cry, suddenly over come with anger and misery as she realized, yet again, that there was no escape. "…So that's it, then? That's the grand adventure of the brave Captain Jack Sparrow? You spent three days lying on a beach, drinking rum?"

            "Welcome to the Caribbean, love." Jack sort of shrugged, shoving a bottle of rum into her hands. Elizabeth's eyes narrowed, and if looks could kill, Jack would have been dead several times over. Sighing as she watched him walk off, she glanced at the rum, then smiled as an idea struck her.

AN: Okay, okay, I know it's short, I know it's crappy. But, please, R&R. More in the next chapter… Still haven't decided whether it'll be a lemon or a lime, or neither… Please, help me with it. This was just the beginning chapter, you know, the lil introduction thingymabopper. ^_^ LoL, Thanks for reading! Ja Ne!