AN: Hello there my lovely readers! I'm so sorry about not updating for a long while. I had to do lots of projects for school and couldn't find the time to do the story. But no worries. I'm still working with the story so expect more chapters to come. For now, read, review and enjoy!
"Please do me another favor and don't talk about it with me right now. I'm not in the mood to discuss plans and ideas after doing nothing but that for the past week. I just want a moment to myself so I can grieve and be sad properly." - Sharpshooter Marine
Chapter 10 - A Moment of Silence
Gibbs ordered the other men to start moving as he caught sight of two rowboats headed their way. He also noticed someone lying down on the boat and called for the ship's surgeon. Ropes were slung over the yard and fell overboard to where the rowboat stopped a few minutes later. A ladder was thrown to the hull's side as well. Elizabeth and Carrie climbed up the ladder while Jack tied the rope to the rowboat. At his signal, Gibbs and some of the men pulled as hard as they could. The rowboat was slowly and carefully brought up at the deck's level. Once he was able to, Jack carried Marine gently and stepped out of the rowboat. The firstmate got a good look at the person Jack was carrying and widened his eyes in surprise.
"Mother' love! It's Marine." The rest of the crew looked at each other and whispered animatedly. They had never expected to see Marine after so long and were worried at the fact that she had come drenched with blood and with a dagger stabbed to her chest. The surgeon of the Black Pearl moved even quicker than before and was about to take Marine into his arms when Jack swatted him away and moved towards his cabin as fast as he could.
"That's not necessary mate. Go back to your other duties. Elizabeth come with me. Gibbs, as soon as the whelp and the others get on board I want you to make a heading for Tortuga. Don't let them come into my cabin unless I say so." He added. Gibbs nodded and began shouting orders to Jack's crew while Jack, Elizabeth and Carrie went into the captain's quarters. Once Will, Jones and Norrington climbed aboard the Black Pearl and the rowboat was stowed away for future use, the ship sailed even farther away from Port Nassau. The three men stood there dubiously while the rest of the men on board moved about with purpose. They saw Gibbs at the helm shouting orders from time to time and walked up towards him.
"Gibbs." Will called. "Where are Jack and the others?"
"The Captain's at the cabin with Miss Swann and the other lady. They're attending to Marine at the moment so you can't go inside. Captain's orders." Gibbs told him. Will looked at the other two incredulously. They were so confused with what was currently happening.
"Marine? But it was the other man who got injured. Patches was his name I think." Jones said. "Marine actually threw the dagger at Patches. She's at Port Nassau now, probably preparing to catch up with us. She can't be here aboard the Pearl with us." Gibbs shook his head at him.
"I saw it with me own eyes lad. Sharpshooter Marine was being carried by Jack himself, with a dagger stuck on her chest. Blood was all over her coat dripping on the floor." Norrington narrowed his eyes and made his way towards the cabin. Just as he was about to open the door, someone from the inside opened it. Carrie came out and closed the door behind her with a loud click. She looked up at the Commodore and frowned at him.
"Jack knew you were going to do this so he told me to stay here and keep you from going inside." She said. Norrington frowned back at her.
"Why am I not allowed to go inside? That pirate over there claims he's seen an injured Sharpshooter Marine being led into this cabin. I deserve to know what is happening here and I demand to know it now." He said. Will and Jones had caught up to Norrington and were looking at Carrie expectantly.
"Yes. It was Marine. She disguised herself as a pirate called Patches and came aboard the impostor's ship to keep me safe. She was the one who helped me out of prison. She knocked out the pirates who were going to burn the church. She risked her life so that everyone could escape. She is not the Marine who kidnapped me, burned your ship, and attempted to blackmail Jones. There. Are you happy now?" She spat. "As soon as you're satisfied with that, Captain Jack Sparrow orders you to help out the crew. So do it before he decides to throw you out into the water." Norrington's eyes gleamed with fresh anger and his hands clenched into tight fists. But he made no other move to get into the cabin. Instead he turned around and walked away. Carrie's shoulders slumped down as she heaved a sigh of relief. Will and Jones still looked at her in confusion.
"What on earth is going on here?" Will asked to no one in particular. "How can there be two Marines at the same time?" Carrie shook her head.
"I'm just as lost to that as you are Will. But I believe that this Marine is the real Marine. The one you met before this happened." Will looked behind Carrie at the door, as if seeing something else, and shook his head slightly.
"I don't know what to believe anymore. All I want is to go home, forget all this, and get married to Elizabeth." He said. Carrie gave him a sympathetic look and was about to open her mouth when the door opened once more. Jack and Elizabeth came out of the room bearing bloody towels and saw the three looking at them expectantly.
"She will be fine." Elizabeth told Carrie. "It was a deep cut, but Jack managed to sew it up and bandage it firmly. She's asleep now so let's not disturb her." She said. Carrie smiled and heaved another sigh of relief. Jack passed the towels he held to a pirate who was passing by and moved past them all towards the galley. Elizabeth handed what she held to the pirate as well before following Jack together with the others. Norrington saw them headed downstairs and after tying up a rope firmly, made his way there as well. Jack opened one of the cupboards and took out a bottle of rum. He uncorked the bottle and took a large sip before sitting down on one of the chairs. The others sat in the midst of Jack and looked at him.
"What do you plan on doing now Jack?" Jones asked.
"Marine has requested me to make a heading for Tortuga so that's where we're headed." Will and Norrington widened their eyes in surprise and spoke up at the same time.
"You're not planning on breaking your word are you Jack?"
"Since when do you take other's requests for no reason at all?" Jack sighed and rolled his eyes at the two of them.
"Don't be so uptight about it! I promised to take you back to your lovely abode and I will. But I get to decide how we're headed there. I agreed to take you aboard my ship but I never agreed to take the three of you to Port Royal immediately." Both Will and Norrington frowned at this, knowing that Jack was right. "You have nothing to worry about being delayed in your lovely wedding William. You will make it in time. Trust me." He added with a sly grin. The blacksmith still doubted it, but made no comment about it. Jones looked at Jack curiously.
"Marine told you to take us to Tortuga?"
"Aye."
"Then she knows." He murmured. "She probably listened to me while I made my deal with the other Marine at the Sailor's Cove. She must be mad!" Jones cried as he stood up and paced the floor. "How could she be so foolish as to go to the very place the other Marine would likely find us? She should be trying to find a way to hide, not to go after whatever it is the other Marine's after." He said. Jack looked at Jones with an interested look on his face.
"What did the other Marine ask from you? What was your deal with her?" Everyone else looked at Jones curiously, awaiting his answer. Jones bit his lip nervously then sighed and hung his head down reluctantly.
"She gave me a very large bag of gold and asked me to go with her to Tortuga. When we got there I was to use my thieving skills and steal a certain map from this man who lived in the outskirts of town. She gave me no reason as to why I should steal it or where the map leads to. She just told me to do it and promised more gold if I did. I wasn't about to decline her offer then. It was a simple task and the money would help me out so I agreed to do it." Jack rubbed his chin thoughtfully and drank from his bottle of rum. Norrington narrowed his eyes and crossed his arms.
"I say we forget this trip and head for Port Royal now."
"Whoah, whoah there mate! I'm the captain of this ship so it will be my word we be following, savvy?" Jack interjected, waving his arms about flamboyantly. "And I say we let Marine explain her reason for going to Tortuga before we make any real decisions. The way to Tortuga is close to the way to Port Royal so we can still change our heading if we should ever change our minds. See? No need to make such hasty decisions now Commodore." He said. Norrington glared at him but nodded in agreement. Jack grinned and stood up after finishing his bottle. He left it on the table and moved towards the stairs while everyone still sat there and stared at him.
"I shall be at the helm if anyone needs me." He said. "Why don't you go up and help the crew with their duties? That ought to make things sail smoother and probably faster." He added to them before disappearing above on the deck. Norrington and Will stood up from their seats and moved to go up as well while Jones sat there casually. Elizabeth and Carrie looked at him in confusion.
"Aren't you going to help them out?" Carrie asked. Jones grimaced as he grabbed the empty bottle and threw it outside the window.
"Me? Help out in sailing a ship?" He gave out a chuckle at that. "I'm a landlubber, not a sea lover. I know nothing about sails, riggings, mast and all that stuff. Get me to steal something and I'll do it. But making me help them sail a ship would be pretty pointless." He explained. "I'll just go ask Jack where the extra rooms are. I've gotten tired after all that running and fighting." He said as he moved to go up as well.
The priest's words as he dictated his lines in a monotone voice barely registered in Marine's head as she stared at the coffin in front of her. She looked around her in confusion as she saw people she knew and loved crying or murmuring in low, mournful voices. She didn't understand what was happening. Her parent's funeral had already ended didn't it? From what she remembered, they had already been buried. She turned to face one of her co-workers and reached out a hand to him as she opened her mouth to ask him a question. She got the surprise of her life when her whole hand passed through him. She drew her hand back in panic and stared at it. She held it with her other hand to make sure it was solid. While she inspected her hand she didn't notice someone coming up from behind her. A strange feeling ran through her whole body as she actually felt someone pass through her. She stared at Carrie, dressed in all black, crying loudly as she walked up to the coffin. She opened her mouth and tried to call out to her but couldn't find her voice. She widened her eyes as she listened to Carrie talk.
"Oh why did you have to die Vanessa? Why did you leave me here now?" She cried. Marine wanted to shout, to tell her that she was alive and was standing right there. But it was as if her voice had been taken away from her. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make a sound from her throat. She couldn't believe what was happening. She wasn't dead. She couldn't be. She saw Carrie look at the coffin and cried aloud as she sunk to her knees. She stared at the coffin, and didn't realize until later that her legs began to move towards it. The priest was still talking but his words were lost to Marine. She only saw the box and the open space that revealed the face of the corpse. Her legs began to shake as she came nearer and nearer to the coffin. Her hands trembled as she touched the edge of the coffin and leaned her head to look inside. She saw her own pale face inside the coffin. She was in her best clothes with her hands lying on top of her chest. Marine stared at her own body incredulously and almost fell to the ground in shock.
This...this is impossible.
The corpse's eyes suddenly shot open. It stared at Marine and its lips curled into a sadistic, twisted grin as it laughed a maniacal laugh. No one noticed what was happening; everyone was still listening to the priest and mourning for her. Both of the corpse's hands appeared out of the coffin and grabbed Marine's throat. A silent scream escaped her throat as she grabbed the corpse's wrist and tried to pry it away from her. All around her she could hear the same evil laugh echoing throughout the room. The last thing she could remember was the corpse as it spoke to her.
"Hello Vanessa."
Marine opened her eyes and gave a loud gasp as she shot up from the bed she was lying on. Her chest moved up and down quickly and her hand flew straight to her neck as she tried to regain her normal breathing rhythm. Her breath shook together with her whole body as she forced herself to recover from the nightmare; the feel of the corpse's hands on her and the sound of its laughter was still fresh in her mind. Beads of sweat fell from her forehead down to her chin where it fell and landed on the sheet that covered her. She closed her eyes and tried to remove the frightening image of her dead corpse out of her mind. When she felt a little bit better, she tossed the bed sheet to the side and placed her feet on the wooden floor. She could feel the whole room sway in a slow beat and deduced that she was on the Black Pearl. When she looked around the room she saw the black coat she had taken and worn lying on the chair while her black high-heeled shoes lay below it. At seeing the shoes she grimaced and rubbed her feet; and decided against wearing it. She got out of the bed, took the coat from the chair, and walked out of the room into the dark night.
Jack was walking back from the crew's quarters, where he had just reprimanded his crew for giving Norrington a hard time (not as seriously and as genuinely as Norrington would have hoped), and was headed for his quarters and check up on Marine. He walked with a bottle of rum in his hand and a frown on his face, the swagger lost in his irritation. Last night was hard on him since Marine was injured and shouldn't be moved about. He couldn't sleep on his own bed and so had to deal with sleeping on his chair or out on the deck. That night he decided to take charge of the helm so he could do something aside from trying to fall asleep. He wanted Marine to wake up so badly so she could go and sleep together with the crew or with Carrie and Elizabeth who were sharing an extra cabin on his ship. Then again, having Marine sleep in his cabin would be a good thing; if she was awake and willing that is. At this thought Jack couldn't help but make a sly grin.
He reached his own cabin and went inside to find his bed empty. It took him a few seconds before he realized that Marine was awake and was gone from his quarters. He grumbled some more and went back out to look for her. He stopped right below the crow's nest and looked up in consideration. He knew that it was her favorite spot on the ship but also knew that Marine was still too weak to climb up. He silently debated on whether to go up or not and decided to go and check anyways. He placed his bottle of rum beside the mast and grunted as he hoisted himself up higher and higher from the ground. When he reached the crow's nest he saw that it was empty to his annoyance. He went back down on deck, grabbed his bottle, and went to the galley to get some more rum. He came down into the dark and saw Marine's form sitting on one of the chairs with a bottle of rum in her own hand.
"You could have told someone that you were awake you know." He said, making the female pirate turned her head towards him sharply. "You were asleep for the whole day yesterday and made everyone assume the worst. Letting us know that you're still alive would make the rest of us feel less worried about you. And I wouldn't have had to waste my time going up the crow's nest to look for you." She sighed and stared at her bottle of rum.
"I'm sorry. I just didn't feel like talking to anyone at the moment."
"Well too late for that love." Jack said as he moved to the seat beside her. He drank the bottle of rum until there was nothing left in it then threw it out of the small window in the room." As a pirate you should have known that there is no such thing as privacy. If we, say for instance, go to my cabin and have our dastardly way with each other, the whole crew would know about it the next morning." He continued. Marine laughed at that and smiled at him.
"I'm sure you'd love to do that, don't you?"
"Perhaps." Jack replied with a shrug. "Or we could sit here and talk to each other like respected, civilized individuals of high society." He added with a hint of noble mockery in his tone. "Not that I would mind doing the first, of course. The first choice is always the better one."
"I'm sticking with the second." Marine muttered. Jack clapped his hands cheerfully.
"A wonderful idea! Let's sit here and talk about considering the first choice. How about that?" He suggested with an innocent grin. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and sighed as she shook her head at him in disbelief. She took another huge gulp from her bottle of rum before putting it down and heaving a heavy sigh. "Norrington's not happy about the fact that we're headed for Tortuga now. Will's not angry, but he's not happy either. He's impatient to go back to Port Royal and prepare some more for his wedding with Lizzie." He told her. Marine sighed and rubbed her forehead.
"Please do me another favor and don't talk about it with me right now. I'm not in the mood to discuss plans and ideas after doing nothing but that for the past week." She murmured. "I just want a moment to myself so I can grieve and be sad properly." Jack looked at her incredulously.
"That doesn't sound right. You want to be sad and to grieve? Properly?" He asked. Marine looked ahead of her with sad, mournful eyes.
"Yes. They deserve that much from me at least. I found out that my foster parents died when I came back to my own world." She explained. "They were robbed and killed. When I went to the funeral, the police-or guards for your better understanding-came and wanted to speak to me. They were suspicious of me because of my disappearance and Carrie's sudden disappearance when I reappeared. Then I was brought back to this world right after they were buried. I feel so bad for being so rude to them after all they've done to me. I even dreamed of myself as a corpse during my own funeral." Jack placed a hand on her shoulder and smiled at her sympathetically.
"Don't be so hard on yourself love. If they knew about all this I'm sure they'll understand."
"Doesn't mean it will make everything right."
"It doesn't. It just helps you feel better. A little bit." Jack grabbed her bottle and took a drink from that before continuing. "You don't have to force yourself to be sad or to grieve for them. Your parents wouldn't want you to do that. They'd want you to be happy and free and all that. Explore the world, drink rum, get treasures, have fun." He said, waving his hands wide and almost hitting Marine. She ducked as his hand flew past her and narrowed her eyes at him.
"Just because you run away from all your troubles and pretend that they never existed doesn't mean that I should do the same." She said with anger. "What would you want people to do if you died?"
"Why remember me of course! But I wouldn't want any of them to cry their hearts out for me." He replied. "Just because I'm dead doesn't mean everyone has to feel so down about it. And moving on with your life doesn't mean you're running away from what has happened. What about you? What would you want people to do if you died? What would you want Carrie to do?" He asked her. Marine took a drink from her bottle then looked down at the floor.
"I'd want her to move on. I wouldn't want her to bring herself down just because I died."
"It normal for people to feel sad about the ones they love. But it's also normal for said loved ones to wish the best for the people they left in the living. So why not just do what your love ones wish for you as a last request for them? I don't understand why you're making such a big deal out of it." He muttered then realized what he said and winced. Marine glared at him with hatred and stood up from her chair, leaving her half-empty bottle of rum on the table. Before she could walk away Jack got out of his chair and grabbed her wrist.
"Let go of me Sparrow." Marine spat angrily without looking at him.
"I'm sorry about what I said earlier love. It was just a slip of the tongue. I never meant for that to come out." Jack said apologetically.
"The fact is, you thought of it. I knew you were a cold-hearted bastard, but it's only now that I realized you have no heart at all. Leave me alone and pretend that I never existed. That's what you usually do when things don't go your way right?" She jerked her hand away from his grasp and took another step before Jack grabbed her wrist again and pulled her back. Marine turned around to face him and opened her mouth to shout at him when Jack covered it with his own. Marine widened her eyes in shock then quickly recovered as she tried to push Jack away while he wrapped his arms around her even tighter. The pirate had a strong hold on her and she was too weak to get out of his grip. She surrendered to the kiss after a while just as Jack pulled away. She was breathing hard as she glared at him. Jack stared back at her with sincere eyes.
"I truly am sorry for what I said. I can see how your parents mean so much to you and although I don't feel the same for my own, I understand how you feel about losing something that you love." When Marine didn't try to pull away or get away from him he continued. "Not to offend you or anything, but I had thought your practicality and your dislike for crying and sad thoughts would let you realize what I said earlier about not being too depressed."
"Sometimes it's better to think with your heart rather than your brain." She answered him. "Else you'll go mad or worse." Jack grinned at that.
"Is that so? Well that explains it." He said in a teasing manner. Marine narrowed her eyes at him but Jack saw the gleam of amusement that twinkled in her eyes and knew that she wasn't as angry as she wanted to be.
"Explains what Sparrow?"
"That you're just as daft as I am of course!"
"I'm taking that as an insult." She pointed out with an angry pout. Jack chuckled and brushed her cheek with the back of his hand.
"Sure you do love, sure you do." He mumbled. Marine could feel her heart going up her throat as she felt his calloused hand on her skin. Her arms and her back tingled with a strange sensation and her stomach did flipflops and somersaults. That was when she realized how close she was to Jack and stepped away from him in embarrassment. A tinge of pink decorated her cheeks and she fought hard to keep it from showing. Jack stood there and sensed her discomfort. He moved past her towards the stairs and looked over his shoulder as he stepped on the first step.
"Come with me to the helm. Since you're not planning on going to sleep, you might as well do something." He told her. Marine watched as he walked up on deck and followed him out. She smelled the fresh, salty air and closed her eyes in relaxation.
"I love the sea at night. It feels so peaceful, so tranquil, so perfect." She said as she stood beside Jack. The pirate looked at her and smiled.
"I love it better when I stand behind the wheel and watch as the sun comes up over the horizon. The sky and the clouds glow a wonderful shade of red and orange and makes the sea glitter and shine brightly as the waves continued brushing against the ship." He said. Marine looked at him and raised an eyebrow in amusement.
"I never thought you'd appreciate things like that. For a moment there you actually sounded poetic." She teased. Jack scoffed at her as he moved towards the helm and placed his hands firmly on the wheel. Marine felt a bit more cheerful after her episode with Jack earlier and skipped happily towards him. "Sparrow's got a soft spot! Sparrow's got a soft spot! He's such a romantic, sensitive and emotional man!" She cried then laughed aloud to herself. Jack narrowed his eyes at her and turned his head away from her.
"That's Captain Jack Sparrow to you love."
"As long as you call me love, I call you Sparrow. Besides, you didn't oppose me when I addressed you as Sparrow while we were on the rowboat. You seem to actually like it if I call you Sparrow." She said with a smug grin on her face. Jack blinked and furrowed his brows as he tried to remember when he did that. When he remembered, he pushed the thought aside and pretended not to recall.
"Alright then. I'll call you Maria." That made Marine freeze in her tracks. Jack looked at her curiously as his lips curled wider and wider into a very large grin.
"I've been wondering if Marine was your real name. Now I know that Maria is." He said. Marine narrowed her eyes at him and crossed her arms.
"And what makes you so sure that it is my real name?"
"Your reaction proves it! You're real name is Maria. Why try to hide it otherwise?"
"I'm not hiding it because it's not my real name. If you want to know my real name, it's Vanessa Silvestre."
"That's the name you take in your own world. I want to know your real name here in this world."
"It's Marine!"
"No it isn't, it's Maria. And from now on, I'll call you Maria just because you don't want me calling you that." Marine gritted her teeth and tried to swat Jack with her hand. But Jack saw it coming and ducked away from her before he got hit. He stood in front of her with a large grin on his face. "Don't be so upset Maria. It's not such a bad name." He said. Marine gave one low growl before chasing Jack around the helm and laughing as she did. The two of them ran around then fought swords with each other before falling to the ground and breathing heavily. They leaned against the rail and looked up at the sky peacefully. Marine let her head rest on Jack's shoulder and gave a soft sigh. Jack's eyes glanced at her sideways as he inconspicuously placed his hand around her waist.
"My father, Black Jack, used to tell me that the people who love you the most; those who have passed on to the afterlife, are right there, among those stars, watching over you and guiding you." She said, either ignoring Jack's closeness or accepting it. "I believe him and I hope that when they all look at me now, they would be happy of what I've become." Jack stayed silent as he looked up at the sky as well; his mind beginning to wander off to thoughts about his own parents. Marine sensed his deep thinking and looked at him in concern.
"Are you alright Sparrow? You don't look well." She said. He jerked back to himself as he heard Marine's voice and glanced at her with a surprised look.
"'Course I'm alright! Why wouldn't I be? I'm Captain Jack Sparrow." He said proudly. Marine rolled her eyes at him but kept quiet. As if to assure her and himself that he was fine, Jack pointed up towards the sky at a certain direction.
"Speaking of stars, do you see those group of stars over there? If you connect some of them to form a picture, you'll see the figure of a hunter standing against the black sky. That is the constellation Orion." He explained. Marine looked up at the sky at where Jack was pointing and squinted her eyes. Then she frowned at him.
"It doesn't look anything like that. How would you know if it was the constellation Orion?" Jack smiled at her in amusement and raised a finger like one who is about to give a lecture to his student.
"I know because I have been taught how to look at the stars in a certain way. Like that one over there" He said, pointing at another direction. "That one has two persons holding hands together." Marine tried to look and imagine the picture formed by the stars then frowned and sighed when she still couldn't see it.
"I can't see it but you're most likely talking about constellation Gemini."
"Aye Maria, that it is." Jack then looked at Marine with one eyebrow raised curiously. "How would you know that if you couldn't even see what it is?"
"I live in the future Sparrow. I know all about the constellations. Especially the constellations of the zodiac. They're famously known around the world in our time by attributing each one to the month that you were born in. Then we have fun and pretend to see what the future holds for us through the positions of the constellations of our zodiac and the zodiac of that specific month. For example, I was born around the third week of February. Therefore I'm an Aquarius. When's your birthday Sparrow?" She asked him, tilting her head to the side in curiosity. Jack scratched his head, grinned innocently at her then pointed up at the sky.
"There's Aquarius over there. And that's Leo on the other side. And Scorpius. We can't forget that." He began. Marine narrowed her eyes and scooted away from him. She enjoyed lying on his shoulder and feeling safe and protected in his arms-though she denies that fact to herself greatly-but she wasn't going to let him push her around. Marine didn't notice a frown that quickly passed over Jack's face as he felt her move away from him.
"What's wrong with telling me when your birthday is? What do you think I'll do with it? Curse your month and make you unlucky for the rest of your life?" She asked rhetorically. Jack shrugged his shoulders at her.
"I've seen worse, unbelievable things happen to me before. There's a likely chance that it will happen." He said. "Or worse, you'll plan one of those 'surprise' parties for me or something similar to that." He added softly to himself. Marine rolled her eyes at him.
"No I'm not going to curse your month. If I was capable of cursing I would save myelf the trouble and curse you instead of your month." Jack frowned but Marine didn't let him speak up. "So tell me when your birthday is so I can tell you what zodiac sign you are." She said. She wasn't going to stoop to begging him for the answer. Begging to know something as trivial as that was something her pride won't let her do. Jack pursed his lips and tapped his head to his finger in thought then smiled at her.
"I coincide with the constellation of Virgo. That's all I'm saying." He said. Marine raised an eyebrow suspiciously.
"You probably just said that because Virgo is the symbol of a virgin. And that zodiac appeals to you the most." Jack feigned a look of surprise.
"I did not! I had no idea that a beautiful, innocent virgin would be the symbol for Virgo." He said with obvious mockery. Marine tried to frown and look angry at him but failed to keep it that way. Her lips kept twitching into a grin as she looked at him. Jack saw her smile and smiled back at her. Finally the female pirate gave up being mad at Jack and stood up from the ground.
"Well I'm tired of just sitting around and doing nothing after sleeping for more than 24 hours. I'll take the helm now. You can go to your own, beloved, warm and comfy bed in your own quarters. You were probably forced to sleep elsewhere ever since I came here. I bet you'd love to have your own bed and your own cabin all to your onesies again." She said. Jack stood up as well then looked at her mischievously.
"What I would really love would be for you to go to my cabin with me and keep me company the rest of the night." He said as he wriggled his eyebrows suggestively. Marine wrinkled her nose and stuck her tongue out in disgust before speaking to him.
"Get lost Sparrow." Jack chuckled in amusement before walking down from the helm and moving towards the captain's quarters. Marine stood before the wheel and shook her head in disbelief before watching him walk away with a smile on her face.
Carrie woke up just as the sun rose up from the horizon. She blinked as she adjusted to the light in the cabin and rubbed the eyes from her sleep. She sat up from where she had slept and looked around. The other bed where Elizabeth had slept was empty and made up already. She tossed the blanket that covered her to the side and got out of the bed. She had forgotten where she was and almost tripped as she lost her balance from the sway of the ship. She brought her hand to the wall and steadied herself. Once she was sure that she wouldn't fall down, she pulled back her hand from the wall and walked out of the cabin into the upper deck.
Everyone was out working or moving about when she went out of the cabin. She saw Gibbs at the helm, steering the wheel and giving commands to the rest of the crew from time to time. As she looked around more, she noticed that Jack and the others were nowhere to be found on deck. A look of puzzlement came on her face as her head swiveled around in search of them. The pirate named Carter saw her while he was working on his duties. He passed a rope to one of the other men and walked up to her.
"The capt'n and the others are down at the galley miss." He said. Carrie smiled at him gratefully and thanked him before walking down the stairs below deck. When she arrived at the galley she saw everyone sitting around a table with some plates of food. What caught her attention was Marine who was sitting beside Jack and trying to grab the bottle of rum that Jack had. She widened her eyes as she stared at her dumbly. Marine sensed someone looking at her and turned around to face Carrie with one eyebrow raised.
"What?" Carrie blinked as she came back to her senses. She rushed towards Marine and hugged her tightly.
"Vanessa!! I'm so glad you're alright! You didn't wake up the whole day yesterday so I thought you were going to die and I was so worried about you. Everyone was just as worried about you, you know. I can't believe you would do such a crazy and stupid thing like that! How could you make everyone worry so much like that? If things didn't turn out the way they did I would have beaten you up for being so foolish! How did you manage to escape the evil Marine's clutches and rescue me from her? Everything is so confusing and I want to know answers now." She said almost all in one breath as she shook Marine violently. Jack, Will, Elizabeth, Jones and Norrington stared at Carrie as she spoke with Marine. The female pirate grabbed Carrie's wrist and pulled them away from her.
"Slow down Carrie! You're going to kill me if you keep doing that." She said as she placed the other woman's hands on her sides. "I was going to talk about it with everyone here but we were all waiting for you to come." She explained. Carrie blushed a slight tinge of red when Marine said that. She finally took notice of everyone who was still looking at her and smiled at them nervously.
"Uh...oops. Sorry about that." She moved to a vacant seat in between Elizabeth and Marine and smiled gratefully at Jones who passed her a plate. As she ate in silence, she listened to the conversations of the others. Norrington began as he looked at Marine expectantly.
"So let's start off with you answering some of our questions. How did you manage to get on board that ship without that pirate knowing of it?" He asked. He wasn't planning on letting his guard down around the female pirate. Even though there was enough proof of the fact, he still couldn't believe that there are two Sharpshooter Marines roaming around the Caribbean. Marine grinned at him and crossed her arms smugly.
"Well that's an easy one. I was at Port Royal the whole time you know. I never left it at all. So let's see...one month passed after Jack and I escaped the hanging. I saw Carrie and Elizabeth being taken by a pirate, tried to save them but failed to and ended up being thrown into the brig of a ship by guards. Then I saw you and Will and talked with the two of you." She laughed as she saw the reactions of Will's and Norrington's faces. "John Knightley was pissed off at the fact that he wasn't released from the brig. He had to go through a lot of trouble to get the guard to go inside the cell. Then he hopped into the other ship and pretended to be part of the crew just as Marine and the others cornered the two of you. Now isn't that interesting?" She told them. "Any more questions?" Norrington glared at Marine and was about to open his mouth when Jack raised a finger at him.
"Tut. Tut. As your captain I order you not to speak badly of our lovely Maria. After all, if it wasn't for her, we would all be under the evil Marine's command now." He pointed out. Norrington's anger softened but didn't disappear. Jack drunk the remaining contents of his bottle of rum and threw it out of the window again before looking at Marine. "I have a question for you Maria." Marine twitched at the name but ignored it and let Jack go on. "What's the purpose of our lovely trip to Tortuga? It wouldn't happen to involve Jones' deal with the other Marine would it?" He asked. Marine's irritation on Jack disappeared as she looked at him in confusion.
"Jones' deal? I don't know anything about that deal except for the fact that they had one. I asked you to take me to Tortuga because I was going to find someone and speak with him concerning this matter." She said. "Why? What was the deal about?" She looked at Jones as she asked this.
"I was to go to Tortuga and find this man who owned a map. I was to steal it from him and give it to the other Marine." He explained. Marine frowned as she let the information sink in.
"This just gives me all the more reason to go to Tortuga and find the man I'm looking for. He has been through a lot over the years. His knowledge on the supernatural and everything else on that subject is impressively profound. I would like to know more about it from him." She said. Norrington couldn't keep to himself any longer and glared at her even more intensely.
"Have you no consideration for the people who want to have nothing to do with you or our plans? I do not wish to be part of whatever it is you plan to do now or in the near future. But because of you and your selfish goals, Sharpshooter Marine will know where we are and try to kill us all." He said. Will and Elizabeth looked at Norrington in disapproval. They wanted to go back home as much as Norrington did but they still felt sympathy for the female pirate. Marine clenched her hands into fists and gritted her teeth as she glared back at him.
"Look, I'm not going to ask you to do something that you're not willing to do. I never planned on bringing you or anyone else along with me. I'm no idiot. I know how dangerous it would be for you and everyone else if you joined me in my attempt to kill off this impostor. I just want to be dropped off at Tortuga that's all. Do you have any problems with that you pompous ass?" She hissed at him. Jack placed an arm in front of Marine; afraid that she would attack the Commodore viciously if he didn't.
"There shall be no fighting on my ship unless I say so is that clear? Now I want everybody to listen to me; the Captain of the Black Pearl if anyone can still recall. We shall go to Tortuga, let Maria do her business there then bring the Commodore and the others back to Port Royal. Afterwards I shall do my best to assist Maria in every possible way." He said, smiling at her and giving her a wink. Marine widened her eyes and stared at him in surprise.
"You're...you're going to help me?" She asked him incredulously. She narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "What's in that head of yours Sparrow? What do you want to get in return? You never agree on anything without having some sort of plan on your own." Jack looked at her innocently, which was obviously not authentic.
"One Maria is enough for me. I want to help you kill this impostor." He said. The suspicious expression on Marine's face never disappeared while Jack grinned at her in silence. Finally Marine sighed and shook her head slightly.
"Fine. I'm not going to press further on that. So are we all settled in heading for Tortuga now?" She asked, giving Norrington a spiteful glare. Everyone nodded in reply; even Norrington himself, although his was with reluctance. Jack smiled at everyone as he stood up from his chair and rubbed his hands dry.
"Well then. If there is nothing further to discuss, I believe this ship needs a captain to 'captain' it."