FOR YOUR EYES ONLY

CHAPTER 2—A Caged Sparrow

DISCLAIMER: Jack'n'Lizzie etc. do not belong to me. I make no money from the writing of this story.

A/N: Hello all! Thank you so, so much for the reviews, you guys are awesome!

I completely meant to dedicate this story in the last chapter, but I forgot, so I'll do it now! I dedicate this story to driver picks the music, for her wonderful reviews and for letting me bounce ideas off of her. Thanks, darlin'!

And one more thing. Instead of using the dialogue from the movie (as we've heard so many times), I used the dialogue the way it was originally written in the script, with a few changes here or there. That way, the general point of the story is still conveyed but there's a fresher take on things for anyone who hasn't read the original script. This only applies to the dialogue in the first part of the chapter. The rest is all from me noggin'!

Now, without much else to say, on with Chapter 2!

Much to Jack's chagrin, it was the one-and-only Commodore Norrington that lead the shore party. At the first sight of the man's white powdered wig, he was tempted to run and hide, something he thought himself to be quite good at. He also surmised that death by starvation and dehydration in paradise might be just slightly more appetizing than returning to a cold, dark cell before hanging in front of a crowd dressed in their Sunday best. At least here, his death wouldn't be a spectacle, some sick form of entertainment for the dull lives lead by those in Port Royale.

However, the instant Norrington's foot hit the sand, Elizabeth turned to look at him and smiled, and for some reason that was completely foreign to him, coherent thought seemed to flutter away. There was a twinkle in her tea colored eyes, something that said "trust me." Trust did not come easily to Jack, for many varying reasons, but something here was different. Elizabeth was not a hardened, crusty sailor whose every action had a differing motive. So he did his best to smile back and followed her down the beach.

The reunion was awkward, to say the least. Jack knew that the commodore had definitive feelings for the lass, as did she for him, however different they may be. But it seemed that neither of them really knew how to act in front of each other. He helped Elizabeth into the longboat, something Jack might have attempted to do himself, but it was quite apparent that Norrington was dissatisfied with the fact that he and the girl were breathing the same air, let alone allowing him to touch her. Jack smirked to himself the entire, silent trip back to the Dauntless. He wondered how Commodore Fancy-Pants would react if he knew that his precious Elizabeth had pressed a kiss to his lips just moments before he arrived.

As the longboat drew closer to the ship, which was hardly one to compare to Jack's prized Black Pearl, he could see a pompous gray wig pacing back and forth, clearly that of Elizabeth's father. The words "shoot him!" flashed through his mind and he gritted his teeth, reminding himself a swift punch to the older man's mouth would do anyone little good. It might make him feel better, though…

"Elizabeth!" Governor Swann poked his head over the ships railing as the longboat tied off. His own father was never that frantic. He would have likely smirked at his son, given him a pat on the back and made some smarmy comment about how there was no harm done. Certainly not the fussy type of father Jack saw now.

Elizabeth smiled up at her father, as she was the first to begin the climb up to the main deck. Norrington simply grunted and pointed, indicating Jack to follow. Jack wondered if the man thought that's how pirates communicated, through grunts and hand gestures. He said nothing though, remembering the feel of metal shackles clasped around his ankles, and followed Elizabeth up the ladder. He tried not to stare at her backside as she went. He might have had a great deal of respect for the lass, but he was, after all, a human... and a pirate, at that.

"Elizabeth, thank heavens you're alright! I was so worried about you." the governor continued. He stuck out his hand and helped his daughter aboard. When he saw Jack climb aboard behind her, however, his demeanor changed and he pulled his daughter close to him, as if afraid Jack would snatch her right out from under his grasp. He could hardly blame the man, but he couldn't help but roll his eyes. It wasn't like he was going to cut her up and eat her, for Christ's sake! "Clap him in irons!" he ordered. "And behind his back, this time!"

"Father…" Elizabeth was clearly annoyed and Jack grinned, proud of his little rose. "You can't do that."

"You're speaking up for him again?" Norrington asked as he stepped aboard. He quickly motioned his head towards two soldiers and Jack's eyebrows cocked in exasperation as the two he recognized from the docks appeared at his side. Despite Elizabeth's plea, a pair of irons was slapped around his wrists.

Elizabeth's eyes fluttered over to Jack and suppressed another smirk, for the twinkle of mischief that he was beginning to secretly adore appeared again. He could tell she was thinking quickly, the makings of a fine pirate-lass. "He can locate Isla de Muerta," she said, "but I doubt he'll be willing to help us from the brig."

"Not bloody likely," Jack scoffed, folding his arms over his chest. Both Norrington and Governor Swann shot daggers at him, but he could care less. In fact, he rather enjoyed getting a rise over this people who though themselves his oppressors.

"Elizabeth, darling," Swann continued, looking at his daughter curiously, as if she'd bumped her head and was confused. "We are bound for Port Royale, not Isla de Muerta."

"No!" she shook her head, her eyes going wide. "The pirates have taken Will—"

"With all due respect, Miss Swann," Norrington interjected. "Your father, as well as myself, has been frantic with worry for you. Our mission was to rescue you and return home. That is what we shall do." His face fell slightly, seeming genuinely concerned. "Mr. Turner's fate is regrettable. But so was his decision to engage in piracy." He shot Jack a glance as he spoke his last sentence and Jack was tempted to give him a swift kick in the arse.

"Commodore, please!" she begged. Her wide eyes, beginning to glisten with tears, shot over to Jack. His brow furrowed at the distraught look on her face and he nodded, ever so slightly, as if silently assuring her there was no need to fret.

"Think about it, mate," he spoke up, earning Norrington's attention. The man looked aggravated simply by his presence, but he went on anyways. "The Black Pearl… its crew and its captain…" He thought of Barbossa. "…'specially it's captain… the last pirate threat in the Caribbean. How can you pass that up?" He flashed him a grin, a gold glimmer reflecting in the sunlight.

Norrington narrowed his eyes into slits. "By remembering that I serve others, Mr. Sparrow, not only myself."

"Captain Sparrow," Jack grumbled under his breath.

"James, please!" Elizabeth took on a more human approach as she broke free from her father's embrace. Jack winced when she took his hand in hers. Her pretty little fingers looked so wrong wrapped around the commodore's palms. Her voice lowered to just above a whisper. "I beg you. Please do this. For me?" She paused and looked away, her voice nearly breaking. "Consider it a wedding gift."

Jack groaned audibly, earning irritated glances from nearly everyone who surrounded him, excluding Elizabeth, whose eyes remained at her feet. He cleared his throat and looked at the ground himself.

Norrington looked back at her. "Elizabeth?" His voice was soft and Jack could scarcely believe it was the same voice at all. Not very Commodore-like of you, he wanted to say, but he kept his mouth shut. "Am I to understand that you will accept my marriage proposal on the condition that I rescue Mr. Turner?"

"Not as a condition… a request." When Elizabeth spoke again, she had forced a smile onto her face, yet it didn't meet her eyes. Jack wanted to break free from his confines and shake the bloody commodore by the shoulders, asking him if he was bothering to look into her eyes, if he saw her sadness.

Norrington said nothing, however, and instead looked over his shoulder to Murtogg and Mullroy. "Free Mr. Sparrow and prepare to come about," he said. "He'll give you our heading." Mullroy looked perplexed, but did as he was told. The two began to lead Jack away, pausing briefly before the newly engaged couple, as if oddly sensing his desperate need to speak.

"Congratulations to ye both," was all that he could muster, his eyes trained on Elizabeth before he was lead up the stairs towards the quarter deck. He could hear Governor Swann's gleeful congratulations as they approached the wheel.

Jack's freedom was short-lived, though he was hardly surprised. The floor of the Dauntless' brig was not nearly as "saturated" as the one in the Pearl had been, but damp and cold nonetheless. He had unraveled a trinket from his hair and was tossing it joylessly from hand to hand when he heard muffled voices from above. Within moments, the heavy creaking of the brig's door sounded and light from the world above spilled into the dark, cramped space. He grinned when he saw his rose, now dressed in men's clothing (for her last garment was undoubtedly deemed un-proper by her father, her fiancée, or quite possibly both). She looked at her feet and fiddled with her hands before speaking.

"I asked them to release you and give you a proper cabin," Elizabeth said quietly, her eyes briefly flashing to his.

"I s'pose then I wouldn't be wrong in assuming their objections," he chuckled, tossing the trinket across the small brig, watching as it landed in darkness. His back was against the front part of the cell and he shifted uncomfortably, the metal bars cold and hard, even through the thin padding of his shirt.

"They don't trust you," she sighed. He looked up at her as she leaned her back against the bars, sliding down to the floor so she was closer to him. "Not like I do." He was silent at this, surprised by her declaration of faith to him. She turned to look at him, her eyes full of questioning. "Why did you do it, Jack?"

He immediately knew what she meant. "Well…" he sighed. "The way I see it, we could've both died on that miserable little island… or… we attract attention from a passing ship, however risky it may be, with the hope of survival."

"But you only prolonged your death," she said, her voice still small and sad. "James has agreed to rescue Will, but once we return to Port Royale—"

"Lizzie," he interrupted, "there's no one to say I won't make me way out of 'ere before then. Don't worry, I'll think of something."

"You always do," she sighed. Several moments of silence passed between them, though they were comfortable ones.

"Answer a dyin' man this, then, 'Lizabeth," Jack said, letting his head lean against the bars so he could capture her eyes with his. "The kiss." He paused. "Why did ye do it?"

"I don't know," she answered truthfully, looking away from him for a moment before looking back. "You've saved my life twice now, Jack. It seemed a reasonable way to thank you, I suppose."

"Ah." He nodded, acting as though he were satisfied with her answer, though he'd been secretly hoping there was more to it than that. "Well, I s'pose if I'm to die in a few weeks time, havin' a kiss from Governor Swann's only daughter is not a bad memory to take with me to the next life."

"You're not going to die," Elizabeth said, her voice suddenly firm and resolute. He looked up at her with a furrowed brow as she rose to her feet. "Wait here, I'll return shortly." He said nothing as she retreated, a brief flash of sunlight filling the brig.

"As if I could wait anywhere else," he muttered.

"Come in."

Elizabeth pressed her form against the cabin's wooden door, cautiously poking her head inside to see James sitting at his desk. His had had been removed and he was rubbing his temples as if he had a headache. She wondered, as she crossed the room towards him, if said headache was caused by Jack or herself.

"Elizabeth!" When he looked up and noticed it was his future bride who had entered his quarters, he quickly rose to his feet, nearly knocking the chair over as he did so. He edged out from around his desk and took her hand in his, pressing a chaste kiss to her knuckles before releasing it again. The same glimmer in her eyes that Jack Sparrow had noticed, he noticed as well, though to him it meant something different. "Has something happened? Is something wrong?"

"Yes, something is quite wrong," she said gravely, trying her hardest to persuade him. If he knew how deeply troubled she was by Jack's situation, it could work to her advantage. He was another man with feelings she could not reciprocate, but she figured since she was destined to marry the man, she might as well use them for her favor. It might make her just as cunning and deceitful as any pirate sailing the seven seas, but if it meant saving Jack's life, it was worth it. The man had risked his own life to save hers, twice now, and she would be damned if she were to watch him hang for it.

"Come, then." James guided her towards a small seating area, placing her in a plush chair while he paced back and forth quite dramatically. "Tell me your thoughts, my dear." She tried not to wince. He was so good, yet so earnest, and she hated that she was using him the way she was.

"It's about Ja—Captain Sparrow," she corrected herself. She had planned her whole speech out in her head on her way to his cabin, but her desperation got the better of her and now she'd forgotten every last word. "Oh, James… there has to be something you can do!"

"What do you mean, Elizabeth?" He was genuinely concerned for her, which made asking him to do her this extraordinary favor all the more heartbreaking.

"He's rescued me twice now, and yes, I know he's a pirate, but I owe him my very life. If I can get him to agree never to return to Port Royale again… isn't there some way you could spare him? For me?" She knew this was a lot to ask, considering he'd already agreed to change course to Isla de Muerta to save Will, but she was determined.

James sighed. He cared deeply for this girl and were it solely up to him, he would do anything she asked, gladly. But… "I'm afraid it's out of my hands," he said, his voice firm, yet quiet.

"But—"

"The warrant for Mr. Sparrow's capture and execution has been ordered by the King himself, Elizabeth. You know that. There's nothing I can do, it's out of my hands."

"I see," Elizabeth nodded as her eyes fell to the floor, her voice just above a whisper. She forced herself to look at him again as she rose to her feet. "Thank you, James." She ignored his apologies as she headed for the door, closing it behind her. Time was short, with not a minute to waste. She had to think of something, or Jack would hang.

The familiar cry of the brig door and the sound of quick footsteps stirred Jack from his ill-fated attempt at sleep. He was now sitting on the rickety bench in his cell and he popped his eye open when he heard Elizabeth whisper to him.

"Jack!"

"Back so soon, luv?" He closed his eyes again. "No need to whisper, we're the only ones 'ere."

"Jack," her voice was louder now, albeit slightly irritated.

"Aye?"

"I've thought of something," she told him as she began to pace. Jack opened his eyes to watch her as she spoke, clearly proud of her own cleverness, which in turn made him proud. He grinned. "I'm to go to Isla de Muerta with you and the commodore. Barbossa was quite… suggestive… when I was on the Pearl and I think I can use that to my advantage to work arrange for your escape."

"You'll do no such thing!" he huffed, rising to his feet and stalking across the cell towards the bars where she stood. She jutted her bottom lip out at him and crossed her arms.

"I will so and you're not stopping me." Her stubborness was equally intriguing as it was annoying.

"Elizabeth!"

"Jack."

"You listen to me," in one, quick motion, he shoved his arms through the bars and took hold of her shoulders, gripping them firmly, yet not hard enough to hurt her. "Hector Barbossa is not like other pirates. He'd nastier, dirtier and many other things that you've never read about in your little books or sang about in your little song. He will hurt you, at the very least, and you're a daft strumpet if you think I'm going to let you go anywhere near him ever again."

A silence passed between them as she stared at him with wide eyes. She was trying to be brave, to not show the slightest trace of fear, but he saw right through it. He hadn't intended any of what he said to come out the way it did, but it had, and there was no taking it back. Maybe it made him look weak, maybe it revealed his soft-spot for the girl, but if it saved her from the clutches of that man, then it was worth it. Barbossa would take his rose, despite how her thorns would sting him, and pluck off her petals one by one before smashing her under his boot. Jack would rather scare Elizabeth half to death than have her test that fear on her own.

"You're… you're wrong," she said defiantly, wiggling free from his grasp. "You saved my life, Jack, and whether you like it or not, I'm going to save yours." She turned and began to walk away.

"Lizzie…" he called, watching her go, completely helpless to stop her. "'Lizabeth!" His face was bathed with sunlight before it quickly retreated, the door slamming behind her. He growled in frustration, gripping the bars.

So she'd come up with a plan to rescue him, then, had she? He breathed in deep through his nostrils and returned to his seat, crossing his arms and allowing the wheels in his head to begin turning. He smirked. He'd just have to come up with a way to stop her from carrying out said-plan. He might be locked up, but he'd certainly think of something.

After all, he was Captain Jack Sparrow.

A/N: So that's it for Chapter 2! I hope you guys liked it. Thanks for reading, now go review!

See you all at Chapter 3!