Lost...!

A Pirates of the Caribbean One-Shot

(And also the some-what sequel of One Step. Two Step.)

888

"Baby steps..." I reminded myself as I pushed the longboat onto the shore. Ever since I had promised to be Elizabeth's friend and not try to woo her, I visited whenever I could. She told me it was the "mate thing" to do. I could she was getting bored of waiting on the island with not much to do or anyone she could really talk to, but she still stayed waiting faithfully for Will.

Now that was the definiton of true love!

I glanced around. Elizabeth was no where to be found on the beach. Usually, she would be out here, watching little William play in the water. But there was no Elizabeth or little William. I began to walk, the sand crunching beneath my feet as I did.

Worry began to build up inside me. What if something terrible had happened to both of them? But I told myself not to worry. Elizabeth was strong and independent. She could take care of herself.

At least I hoped...

I followed the path up the sea cliff towards Elizabeth's hut. Me and the crew had come together to build it for her. It was sort of a wedding present for her. As I walked farther up the path I saw little William. Relief washed over me. Why I had I been so worried?

"You still love her..that's why!" a voice echoed through me head. I ignored it.

Little five year old William ran towards me, smiling. "Uncle Jack!" he exclaimed. He wrapped his arms around my legs, hugging them. I was quickly taken back, not expecting a hug from him. I smiled and patted his head.

"Ello William." I said. I got a better look at him. There was dirt smeared across his face. There was mud and sand all over his bare feet. He was tan from the Caribbean sun. His hair was blonder than it was the last time I visited, but he still had Will's haunting brown eyes. Looking into those eyes still made me remember watching a sword pierce Will's heart. I still made me shiver.

"Where's your mum?" I asked. He pointed to the hut.

"She's inside and she's upset! She won't tell me what's wrong!" He told me.

"Well I'll ty to cheer her up for you, mate! Now run off and go back to doing...errr...whatever you do!" I shooed him off and William hurried down the path.

"Be careful around the water!" I yelled after him.

"You're not his father..." voice told me.

"No..." I thought. "But I am his some-what uncle!"

The door to the hut was cracked open. I heard footsteps inside.

"Lizzie?" I called as I stepped inside. Elizabeth turned and stared at me. Tears running down her face.

"Oh, Jack! It's gone!" She cried.

"What's gone, love?" I asked in the best comforting voice I could.

"Will's heart!" She replied, wipping a tear from her eye. "I don't know where it could be!"

I froze. I knew how important Will's heart was to Elizabeth and to Will himself! For Elizabeth, it was the only thing of Will's she could hang on to while he was away. And for Will, it ws his beating heart...

"Where's the key?" I asked.

"Right here." She pointed to the necklace around her neck. There hung the key.

"Jack..." Elizabeth whispered. "What do I do? Will gave it to me...intrusting me with it...saying it had always been mine...and now, it's gone."

I crossed the room and stood next to her.

"It can't be too far. I mean, you're the only one who lives on this island! It's not like someone can come and take it! From here, you can see everyone who comes near this island. I'm the only one who comes to visit you...who could have taken it?" I comforted her.

She turned and looked at me. "You could have..." she said quietly.

"What?" I said.

"You could have taken it! You could have needed it for one of your misadventures!" She exclaimed.

"Elizabeth...I did not take Will's heart! I don't need the whelp's heart! Besides...I don't have the key." I explained.

"That didn't stop you from taking it from Davvy Jones." she argued. She sighed. "No, you couldn't have taken it...out of all the things you've done to me and Will you would never take his heart! You wouldn't shoot that low."

"No, I wouldn't..." I replied. "I do have some-what of a moral standard."

"But what about all those times you put Will in danger? He could have gotten himself killed! Sending him aboard the Flying Dutchman, letting him get captured by Barbossa..."

"Hold on a minute!" Jack interupted. "William Turner, the only son of Bootstrap Bill brought that upon himself! Will was the one who jumped aboard the Black Pearl with a gun to his head!"

"But when I wanted to save him, you said it was a lost cause!" Elizabeth agured.

"There was no way we could have gotten off that god forsaken piece of land in time!" Jack yelled.

"But we did! No thanks to you!" Elizabeth yelled back!

I sighed in frustration. Elizabeth had a point, and she knew that I knew that! All those times that I had made Will do those daring, stupid deeds, I knew that he would make it out of them alive. Why? Because he knew that he needed to be there for Elizabeth. He knew that they loved each other. And he knew that they needed to be thogether always. And if died, all of that would end and Will was not about to let that happen.

And in the one stituaion where Will could not save himself, I saved him so that he could be with Elizabeth.

And also if needed him for leverage again...some day...

"Elizabeth...when the world took Will away from you, I gave him back to you. Why would I take it away again?"

She sighed. "You're right, Jack. But you're always right in some twisted way or another."

I smiled. "Thanks, love. And besides, you're not in love with Will's heart, you're in love with Will 'imself! And no one can ever take that away from you. You can count on that, love."

"You're right!" she whispered. "It's only a symbol of our love, not the source of our love!"

"And I think I know where it is..." I told her. She stared at me.

"You do?" she asked.

888

We found little William playing in the sand on the beach. He waved to us.

"Look it! Look it! I'm Davvy Jones and I'm going to burry my heart in the sand!" William was digging a giant hole in the sand. And there was the chest that contained Will's heart, sitting on a rock.

Elizabeth turned to me. "How did you know he would have it?"

I shrugged.

"I think he's heard the story of Davvy Jones one too many times! Elizabeth laughed. She turned to me.

"Thank you." she said.

"For what, love?" I asked her.

"For showing me what was really important." Elizabeth answered.

"But the heart is important, it's just that if you had the key..." I was trying to explain, but Elizabeth jumped into my arms, hugging me.

I quickly pulled her off of me. "You're not going to kill me now, are ya love?" I grinned. The last time Elizabeth had come that close to me was the time she chainned me to the mast of my ship to be eatten by the kraken.

Eizabeth smiled. "Oh, Jack!"