Disclaimer: I disclaim ownership of Pirates of the Caribbean and/or any of its other associations. I do, however, proudly own Anna Swann, so I'm not so bad off!
TO ALL THOSE WHO REVIEWED MY LAST CHAPTER, THANK YOU VERY MUCH! I AM SORRY THAT I CANNOT NAME ALL OF YOU. I NO LONGER HAVE A COMPUTER AT HOME WITH INTERNET SO I HAVE TO USE A CYBER CAFÉ. PLUS I GOT MARRIED, SO I HAVE LESS TIME TO BE UPDATING. SORRY.
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"Feast your eyes Captain." Gibbs announced rather proudly as he showed Jack the line of men he'd deemed worthy to be their crew. "All of them faithful hands before the mast. Every man worth his salt. And crazy to boot."
Sharing a sideways glance with Will, Anna frowned, wondering if Gibbs believed that one had to be insane to want to embark on this endeavor.
Will glared at one of the men who were staring at Anna, and he placed a protection arm around her shoulders. Turning to Jack, he made up his nose in disgust. "So this is your 'able-bodied' crew?"
Much like Will, Jack didn't seem very impressed with his options. Ignoring the comment he walked down the line, staring the men in their beady eyes, and finding a bare spot he looked down to see an ugly midget staring back up at him through the glare. Giving a little sigh he randomly picked out an old man from among the crew with a large bird on his shoulder. "You, sailor!"
Gibbs nodded. "Cotton, Sir."
Anna wondered what sort of self-respecting, fierce and frightening pirate named himself 'Cotton'.
Jack didn't seem to have any qualms with the name as he addressed the man. "Mr. Cotton, do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?" There was a moment of silence, causing Jack to narrow his eyes. "Mr. Cotton! Answer, man!"
Suddenly remembering a fact he'd deemed unimportant until that moment, Gibbs stepped up once more. "He's a mute, sir. Poor devil had his tongue cut out. So he trained the parrot to talk for him." Ignoring Jack's wince when Mr. Cotton opened his tongue-less mouth, Gibbs concluded his explanation with these words. "No one's yet figured how."
Anna looked away from the spectacle, her stomach giving a jolt. All of a sudden she wasn't so sure of this plan.
For a moment Jack seemed as if he would walk away, then, turning back to Mr. Cotton he cleared his voice. "Mr. Cotton's parrot." Seeing the bird straighten and stare him uneasily in the eyes, Jack cleared his voice once more. "Same question."
The bird immediately flapped his wings eagerly and squawked: "Wind in the sails! Wind in the sails!"
That sinking feeling in the pit of Anna's stomach was getting worse by the minute.
Seeing everyone's confusion, Gibbs looked mightily sheepish. "Mostly we figure that to be a 'yes'."
"Of course it does!" Jack announced and then turned a glare on Will. "Satisfied?"
Shaking his head, Will seemed far from it. "Well, you've proven they're mad."
Before Anna could say something very sarcastic, a woman's voice was heard calling: "And what's the benefit for us?"
Jack's eyes widened when he heard that voice and he crouched slightly, hurrying down the line of men until he reached one wearing a leaf-hat that covered the whole face. With a wince on his face he pulled the hat off of the person to reveal a beautiful dark woman glaring daggers at him. Recognition shone in his eyes. "Anamaria."
The sound of a loud slap resounded through the air.
Anna sighed and rolled her eyes, slapping her forehead softly.
Will shook his head. "Well I suppose you didn't deserve that one either."
"No." Jack groaned, still wheeling from the blow. "That one I deserved."
Anna, suddenly feeling more hopeful now that Jack was finally owning up to his mistakes, made a face. "What in the world did you do to her?"
"He stole my boat." Anamaria hissed.
Finding the courage to look at her once more, Jack opened his voice. "Actually--." Yet his face was once more brought into contact with her hand, and it swung dangerously. "Borrowed. Borrowed without permission! But with every intention of bringing it back."
"But you didn't!" She screeched, causing Jack to take a couple of hurried steps backwards and to run into an annoyed Will.
Taking a step forwards as to not be on top of Will, Jack gave her a charming smile, which she ignored. "I never meant to sink it." He announced in a nervous voice.
"You sunk it?" The ebony beauty screeched, readying to harm Jack. "It took me many years of back-breaking work to save up money for that ship and in a week you sink it!"
Seeing the danger he was in, Jack gave a yelp and dove behind Will and Anna.
Feeling for Jack, yet understanding Anamaria's wrath, Anna suddenly smirked. "You'll get another one."
Anamaria was right in the middle of pulling up her sleeves and marching towards Jack when she heard that. Stopping in her tracks, the elder woman gave Anna a long stare, measuring her up, and then raised an eyebrow with cautious interest. "Go on."
Taking his arm from around Anna's shoulders, Will looked behind him at the slightly hopeful, cowering captain, and an evil smile lit his face as he turned to Anamaria. "A better one."
Jack noticed was that Anamaria's wrath was starting to cool off, so he immediately nodded his head quite enthusiastically, peeking from between Will and Anna. "A better one!"
Anamaria sent Jack a glare and rested her eyes solely on the younger woman. It would seem that she had deemed her the most trustworthy of the three, so she anchored her hands on her narrow hips and cocked her head to the side. "Which one?"
Seeing the dice roll in her favor, an evil smile appeared on Anna's face as she pointed to the Interceptor and announced: "That one."
Will, following Anna's gaze, suddenly broke into a toothy grin. Jack was going to have her hide for this. "Yes, that one."
Jack's eyes widened in horror and he turned to look at Will. "What one?"
Anna smiled rather mischievous, pointing to the Interceptor once more. "That one."
Everyone turned to look in the direction of the marvelous ship, and Jack's face grew slightly red as he turned Will, whom he apparently believed was responsible for Anna's rebellion, and growled. "THAT ONE?" Seeing the smug expression on Will's face, and how everyone was now watching his every move, Jack swallowed back his desire to wipe that expression off the lad's face and he turned to Anamaria with a very false cheery expression. "Aye, that one." Seeing the way Anamaria contemplated the ship, he grew slightly more confident. "What say you?"
"AYE!" Anamaria immediately called, and the other crewmembers did the same. They then marched towards the boat, all ready for adventure and mayhem.
Anna stood rooted to the spot, suddenly realizing how Elizabeth-like she had just been. She'd never thought that she could have a cunning little streak in her, but then, as she remembered her mother, she had to admit that it was a trait that had been passed down to her. If only she could be more like her mother.
Like her mother?
All of her life Anna had been trying to live down her mother, so why was it that a couple of days on the sea had changed her mind? Why did she want to be like Nancy?
It wasn't that she didn't like her mother, no. She hadn't really known her, but there was a link between them, and many times Anna felt as if she only had her mother with her. Why was she so ashamed of her mother? So what if she had been a…
"Anna?"
Jerking slightly, Anna turned to see Will looking at her quite worriedly. She smiled slightly and turned once more to look at those aboard the Interceptor. "Do you think Elizabeth's alright?"
"Of course. Miss Elizabeth is probably giving them hell." Will smiled compassionately, once more placing his arm around her shoulder, much to Anna's delight. It was as if he had forgotten the wall he himself had placed around them. It was as if she belonged to him. "When we reach them they'll be begging us to take her back."
Laughing softly at that thought, Anna sighed and leaned her head against Will's s shoulder.
"WILL YOU TWO GIT OVER HERE?" Jack's voice was heard hollering all the way from the Interceptor.
Will growled. "Sometimes I--."
"Let's just go, Will." Anna smiled softly at him. "Someone has to protect him from Anamaria."
With a smirk on his face, Will nodded, and they walked quietly towards the ship.
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They had locked her and the 'confounded mutt' below decks, and the Governor's daughter wasn't very happy about it. Not even Anamaria, her roommate, had sided with her on this one. There was a heavy storm brewing up above and they had ordered her not to move from the Captain's Quarters unless the ship was sinking—in which one of them would come to retrieve her.
Growling, Anna shook along with the ship. Elizabeth wouldn't have allowed them to do this to her if she were the one with them. She would have found some way to get out, would have done some heroic act, saved the crew, and gained their respect.
But I'm not Elizabeth.
Benji whimpered and scooted closer to her—as if it were possible. The poor dog was so terrified that Anna had to keep herself calm just to try and be of some reassurance to the creature.
"Well, if you had stayed in Port Royal you wouldn't be suffering this, you know." She softly chastised the animal as she ran her fingers through its hair. After having bathed the animal and used one of Jack's brushes to comb out its tangles, Anna had discovered a beautiful creature underneath all of the mud and tangles and smell. If she ever made it back home in one piece she was going to keep it as hers.
Then again, even if she did make it back to Port Royal she probably wouldn't have a home to go back to. She would be in disgrace. She'd ran off with two men, one a blacksmith and the other a pirate. Her father had most probably disowned her already.
I'm doing this for you, Lizzy.
Hours seemed to pass by, yet the storm stayed with them and was growing even more violent. By now Anna was hugging Benji to her, as frightened as the dog. Why didn't Will come down and see how she was doing? She needed to see him and know that he was alright! She needed to know that he hadn't been thrown overboard.
Yet he never came down, and soon, everything grew dark as night.
The omens weren't good. They weren't at all.
Sitting back up, Anna shook with the ship, yet she managed to get off of the bed and stumble onto the ground. Benji followed her rapidly, and would have gone to lie down on her lap if she hadn't begun crawling towards the basin of water that had fallen and wet the wooden floor. Eyes the color of the sea looked at the direction of the water as it glided over the surface of the floor, seeping in slowly into the wood. She remembered something she had heard as a little girl, and she stared at the water, trying to wait until it had soaked up into the wood.
By the time that the water had seeped through, Benji was whimpering on her lap and the bottom half of her body had gone asleep. Yet the young woman didn't notice that. All she noticed was that the water had stained the floor in the rough shape of a bird in flight.
A dove symbolized peace and hope, yet then again, a raven symbolized death and sorrow.
Cursing herself for having listened to the tales of her nursemaid, Anna urged Benji off of her lap and she wriggled her body, wincing as the feeling started to return. It felt like millions of tiny needles sticking into her flesh, and at the same time she was highly sensitive to the wind as it tickled her skin.
The door opened wide to reveal Will. He was drenched from head to toe, yet he seemed more worried about her. "Anna! What are you doing on the floor? Did you fall?"
"No—I."
"I shouldn't have left you alone so long." He berated himself as the ship gave another violent shake. Steadying himself, he came towards her and helped her to her feet. When her knees buckled under her, a concerned looked flashed through those dark eyes, and before Anna could explain that her legs were asleep, Will had picked her bridal-style.
Blushing, Anna closed her eyes and leaned against him, her arms around his neck. He was wetting her, but she couldn't have cared less. What was a little water when her dreams were suddenly coming true?
Placing her softly in bed, Will made a face when Benji immediately jumped up as well and went under the covers even before Anna could. "I'd like to see Jack's face if he knew that the mutt is sleeping in his bed and between his sheets."
Allowing Will to wrap her although she wasn't cold or sleepy, Anna smiled dreamily up at him. "What is going on up there?"
"Fiercest storm I've seen." Will announced, looking slightly embarrassed now that she was in bed. Taking a couple of steps backwards, he cleared his throat. "I asked Gibbs how we're supposed to find this mysterious island if Jack's compass doesn't even work."
Anna winced, since she'd momentarily forgotten that little point. "And what did he say?"
"That the compass wasn't broken, it just didn't point north. He then announced that we weren't looking for north, were we?" It was obvious that that answer hadn't sat too well with Will.
Anna gave a weak little smile as she pulled the blankets closer. "We're going to die, aren't we?"
Will snickered good-naturedly. "Well, according to Jack we're catching up to the Black Pearl. He says that we should be reaching them within an hour or two."
Her eyes widened. "Are you sure he said that?" Seeing Will nod, she smiled happily. We're coming for you, Elizabeth. Just hold on a little longer. We're almost there.
"I must go to help the others, but I will come down again to make sure that you're alright." Will announced as he stumbled towards the door and opened it.
"Will, be careful." Anna whispered from where she sat, her excitement giving way to nerves.
Looking back at her, he smiled. "Always." And with that he closed the door behind him on his way out.
Anna then lay down, hugging Benji with a smile on her face. She never gave the stain on the floor another thought, nor did it occur to her that it was shaped suspiciously similar to the tattoo on Jack's wrist.
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Sometime later she stood on the deck, frowning as she watched on. There the ghostly masts she had seen ten years ago flapped in the wind in the distance, and only Will and Jack were going to go onto the blasted island. Why weren't more people going aboard? Why were everyone so afraid? And why wouldn't they let her go? She wanted to help save her sister!
"Don't be daft. Ye'll only git in the way." Anamaria had said in her blunt fashion when Anna expressed her desire to go on the island, yet the ebony woman said it with compassion, for against her good judgment she liked this aristocrat.
"Don't look so worried." Will smiled softly, placing his hands on her shoulders before chucking her chin tenderly so that she was looking into his eyes. "Jack and I will return with Miss Elizabeth. The pirates will probably pay us gold to take her back."
"This isn't a time for jokes, Will." She chastised him softly, willing herself not to cry. "I need you to watch your back. I—I need you to come back alive…Please."
Moments passed in silence as his dark eyes bore into her watery ones, trying to tell her something that she couldn't understand. The wind blew his hair into his face, and the second Anna's fingers brushed it away, those dark eyes closed in evident pleasure.
"I—ah--." Ashamed at her brazen behavior, Anna tried to quickly pull her hand away.
His hand caught hers before she could pull it away from his face, and his eyes were more serious than she had ever seen them before. The moment that he opened his mouth to say something, Jack's calling for him interrupted.
Sending a glare in Jack's direction, Will let go of Anna's hand rather reluctantly as he returned his attention on her. "Anna, when I come back, I need to tell you about something I should have said a long time ago." And with that, he left.
Anna watched him as he left, wondering what he had meant with that.
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(Momentary Interlude)
Jack didn't like it, he didn't like the way that Anna and Will were so close. It wasn't that he didn't deem it proper. There was most probably a storage house in heaven that held all of the books wherein were written all of his improper deeds. Now that Jack thought of it, his only chance at entering through the pearly gates would be if Satan himself refused his entrance into hell.
I'm getting sidetracked again.
"You might as well say whatever is on your mind. You've been boring holes into the back of my head ever since we entered the cave."
Will's whisper frightened him slightly, the guy must have eyes on the back of his head! "Well, if ye most know, I don't much appreciate the way ye suffocate the young trumpet." Seeing Will turn towards him with a glare, he quickly raised a finger. "Ah ah ah! No interrupting!" Seeing that Will remained reluctantly silent, he ignored the gold at the bottom of the passageway, and continued. "Also, I've been a thinking lately. Anna is very pretty, not beautiful in any way, but not sore on the eye either. Yet, no, don't give me that look. Just listen to what I'm trying to tell you, you little whelp." Sighing, he tried once more. "I've been counting figures in my head--."
"Did it hurt?"
He sent Will a glare. "—and everything adds up. Which is dangerous for Anna. If you love her as much as you believe you do, then you better keep her under lock and key and don't be so lovey dovey, especially in the open."
Blushing, Will narrowed his eyes, going quite defensive. "You won't tell me what to do! Anna is---."
"In danger if Barbossa sees her!" Will growled, causing Will to go quiet. "Listen to me ye son of a sea-sick cabin dog! She looks too much like her. She talks like her and walks like 'er! If it wasn't that she's so young I'd think she is 'er!"
"Who?"
A ghostly expression crossed over Jack's eyes as he muttered two syllables in a mournful tone. "Nancy."
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CLIFFHANGER! JACK KNEW ANNA'S MOTHER!
WHO WAS NANCY?
…
Stay tuned for the next episode…