PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN

THE CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL

CHAPTER TEN

Over the next few hours, Millicent couldn't help but feel the leering eyes of the crew on her form as she walked across the deck of the Black Pearl. Honestly, she was used to it from her past, from living in Tortuga. The last few years it has lessened while she has been living in Port Royal under the guise of Miss Goodwin. But right now in the light of day, it was uncomfortable feeling the gaze of these men, their eyes raking over her body, hungry and waiting. It made sense, they haven't been able to have their way with a woman the way they wanted in nearly ten years, and they were starving for it.

"Don't you have a job to be doing?" Millicent snapped at Twigg, as he watched her walk past him towards the steps to the helm. He was doing nothing but stare at her instead of working. She didn't know what he was supposed to be doing, but obviously, he was slacking just to stare.

"How's about once the curse is broken," Twigg started, ignoring her question and following her a few steps, causing her to stop and look back at him. "We catch a drink at Tortuga?" The way he phrased it, it was implied that drinks were only the beginning of what he wanted the two of them to do together.

Millicent gave an exasperated sigh and rolled her eyes, going to walk up the stairs towards the wheel of the helm. Twigg followed, much to her displeasure. At the helm were the same two men navigating the night before, as well as Hector, who eyed the two newcomers of the helm curiously before he went back to looking through his spyglass.

"Don't tell me you've got a lad back in that good for nothin' town we found you in." Twigg scoffed, leaning towards her. "You ain't goin' back."

"Can't you just go away already, Twigg?" Millicent then asked, annoyed with his presence next to her.

Unexpectedly, Jack the monkey leapt from Hector's shoulder onto hers, facing Twigg and screeching in his face. Twigg scowled at the creature and then walked back down the stairs, the monkey now chattering contentedly, playing with Millicent's black hair. Confused, she looked from the monkey towards Hector for an answer.

"He must like you." He shrugged, an amused smile on his face.

"Shut up." Millicent growled, rolling her eyes at him before looking around on the horizon. So far, there was not much to see, just the deep ocean waters far and wide. In her peripheral vision, she saw Hector hand her something. In front of her was the spyglass.

"Go ahead," said Hector, giving her an expectant look.

Taking the spyglass in hand, she put down the dagger she has been carrying and put the telescope to her right eye, closing her left for a better look. Millicent looked across the horizon once more very slowly, as to make sure she didn't miss anything. Finally, she was able to spot the pinprick in the distance. In the waters were the shipwrecks she recognized from a few days ago, and the landmass she knew as the cave of Isla de Muerta. As far as she knew, they would make it by dusk, looking at where the sun was now in the sky and how strong the wind was blowing in the torn sails.

"D'ya think the capt'n has a thing for her? An' that's the reason he keeps her around?"

Millicent could hear the whispers down below on the main deck, and she opened her left eye, taking the spyglass away from her face. A small group of three men were gathered together just in front of the Captain's Cabin. Somehow, they thought their whispers were quiet enough in that they couldn't have been heard by Millicent. Or even their own Captain.

"Get back to work!" Hector barked at them, causing the three to nearly run off into the hull. When Hector looked back at Millicent, she raised an eyebrow at him, her own amused smile threatening to form but she forced it down into just a twitch of the lips.

"Your entire crew are nothing but a bunch of slackers." Millicent commented while handing him back the spyglass, making sure to say nothing about what they were talking about. Frankly, she didn't even want to think about it, herself. He scowled and snatched the spyglass out of her hand, Jack the monkey crawling off of her shoulders and jumping onto his.

While he went back to gazing through the spyglass briefly, shouting orders here and there to the crew, Millicent began to think. She was starting to feel conflicted. And honestly, she didn't even know why anymore.

"Do you?" Hector then suddenly asked her after a few moments of silence.

"Do I what?"

"Have a man back there?"

She was slightly taken aback by the question, leaning her head back when she looked at him in confusion. Of course, Millicent knew he was revisiting Twigg's question to her, about having someone that was left behind in Port Royal. It was just unexpected coming from Hector.

"Does it really matter?" Millicent frowned at him. Not once in her entire life has she ever even considered settling down, the thought left a foul taste in her mouth. When Hector didn't answer her, she sighed and looked away. "No, I don't."

For a moment, Millicent considered the whispers of the crew. That Hector had been planning on keeping Millicent to himself this whole time, not just for sailing the ship. He was a greedy man, after all, that in itself was obvious. However, she quickly dismissed the idea, because she would do everything in her power to make sure that once the curse is lifted, he dies.

Hector needed to pay for everything he has done to not only her, but everyone. And the only way to pay would be for him to pay with his life. Millicent was determined to make that happen, despite her confliction.

As she watched Isla de Muerta grow closer in the distance, she equally watched the sun descend along the horizon. Time was beginning to run out. Hector made his way down into the hull of the ship, probably to retrieve Will for the ritual. As soon as Millicent saw him walk away, she made sure she had her dagger. Not having a belt to place it in, she has had to only carry it around in her hand the entire time. She would also give anything to no longer be wearing this damn dress and back into, at the very least, her old skirt that she could easily move around in. And so Millicent made her way down to the Captain's Cabin to quickly change, finding her old clothes right where she left them.

Comfortably back in her shorter, easier to move in skirt and leather vest, Millicent emerged from the Cabin just in time to spot Will being brought up from the hull.

"Millicent," Will struggled in his bindings once he saw her. The pirate holding onto Will's arm, Pintel, roughly pulled him forward to get him to stop.

"Millie," Hector held a hand out towards her as she approached. "Time to go ashore."

Millicent glanced over towards Will, who had stared on in a mix of confusion and betrayal as she placed her hand into Hector's, being helped down onto the lifeboats. She shared a boat with Hector, the Bo'sun, Will, Pintel, and Ragetti. Will's vicious glare on her was enough to leave a physical burning feeling on her skin.

"I can't believe you." He spat. "Why are you doing this?"

"I'm sorry, Will." That was all Millicent said to him. She didn't want him to die, but for her to succeed in her revenge and if they didn't want the risk of the curse to not be lifted, it would have to be the only way. Of course, she doesn't want him to hate her, far from it. They were great friends, and it pained her for him to think she was betraying him.

"Elizabeth told me you were a pirate before working for her. I thought that meant you would have changed. You were lying this whole time."

She wasn't lying. Anything but lying. If anyone knew at this point how truthful she was being, it was Elizabeth, since they had the exact same talk. But this was not the right place nor the right time for this conversation. Millicent tried to tell him that through her eyes, but he looked away, ignoring her. She noticed the medallion now resting against his chest, knowing that they must have placed it on him in a similar sense that they had Elizabeth.

Millicent sighed and looked away from him, as well. Suddenly, she felt a wave of shame and guilt come over her. Things were a lot easier when she didn't feel attached to anyone, back when she was younger.

Entering the cave with the crew, Millicent walked behind Hector, ahead of the Bo'sun so that she was guarded on each side. As far as Will could tell, however, she was walking with them since she wasn't bound by rope like he was. Behind them was Pintel, guiding Will through the cave, Ragetti next to them with a torch.

"No reason to fret." Pintel started, pretending to sound as if nothing bad was about to happen to Will. "Just a prick of the finger, a few drops of blood."

"No, mistakes this time." Twigg came up behind them and placed his hands on Will's shoulders. "He's only half Turner. We spill it all!" He pushed him forward with Koehler.

"Guess there is reason to fret." Pintel snickered with Ragetti as the rest of the crew filed into the cave.

This time, Hector gave no speech. Millicent once again stood at the base of the mountain of treasure the chest stood upon, staring up at the scene before her. The entire crew was chanting for blood, Twigg and Koehler pushed Will forward so that his neck was over the chest of gold coins. With the ceremonial knife in hand, Hector held his hand up.

"Begun by blood," Millicent closed her eyes, not wanting to witness her friend's death. "By blood un…"

Hector's voice trailed off and he stopped. The chanting had gone silent, only the echo remained. Curious, Millicent opened her eyes and looked up. Hector was staring right in the middle of the crowd, as was Will.

"Jack!" Will exclaimed.

Millicent whipped her head around and saw him. Once again, Captain Jack Sparrow had defied death and escaped the island he had been marooned on. This gave her hope that Elizabeth had also had a chance to leave and she smiled, a huge weight lifted off of her shoulders.

"It's not possible." Hector breathed in disbelief.

"Not probable." Jack continued his approach, walking between everyone.

"Where's Elizabeth?" Will asked, standing up straight, Jack then being stopped by the Bo'sun placing a large hand on his shoulder.

"She's safe, just like I promised." Millicent let go of the breath she had been holding, glad to hear that Elizabeth was alive and okay. "She's all set to marry Norrington, just like she promised. And you get to die for her, just like you promised. So we're all men of our word, really. Except for Elizabeth, who is, in fact, a woman."

"Shut up!" Hector interrupted, pointing towards Jack. "You're next!" He placed the blade on Will's neck as he was pushed forward again.

"You don't want to be doing that, mate." Jack said carefully, sending Millicent a sideways glance before looking back towards Hector. What was he up to? Millicent wanted to ask, but knew it would be a good idea not to. It must have had something to do with how he got here, to Isla de Muerta.

"No, I really think I do." Hector replied back.

"Your funeral." Jack shrugged, unbothered.

Hector visibly hesitated and then looked back towards Jack, asking, "Why don't I want to be doing it?"

"Oh, because," Jack started to step forward, but couldn't because the Bo'sun was still holding onto his shoulder. So he slapped his hand away and slowly approached the mound. "Because the HMS Dauntless, pride of the Royal Navy, is floating just offshore, waiting for you."

Oh no. Millicent's eyes widened and she looked up at Hector, the pair of them sharing a brief look of panic in their eyes. The Pearl's curse wasn't broken yet, so they would be fine. But Millicent is no doubt known as a pirate by the Commodore at this point, and she doesn't share their immortality, nor will she be free by the time she gets back to Port Royal with her true identity revealed. Originally, when she wanted to get Elizabeth back home, she would have left once she made sure was safe. Surely, she would hang if the Commodore were to find her now. As much as the Governor liked Millicent, she knew that he wouldn't be able to pardon her being a pirate and lying while living under his roof for eight years. Hector was able to hide his emotions well, but Millicent was quite obviously frantic and her mind was running a mile a minute.

"Just hear me out, mate." Jack said once he was on the mound next to Hector and the chest. "You order your men to row out to the Dauntless. They do what they do best." He gestured towards the crew and they all grinned and muttered in agreement. "Robert's your uncle, Fannie's your aunt. There you are with two ships. The makings of your very own fleet. 'Course, you'll take the grandest as your flagship, and who's to argue? But what of the Pearl? Name me Captain. I'll sail under your colors. I'll give you ten percent of me plunder, and you get to introduce yourself as Commodore Barbossa. Savvy?" Millicent could tell that Hector was thinking about it because he had a thoughtful look for a moment.

"I suppose, in exchange, you wanted me not to kill the whelp?" Hector asked, looking at Will.

"No, no, not at all. By all means, kill the whelp. Just, not yet." Jack looked towards Will, who looked a little confused, but starting to make sense of what Jack was saying. "Wait to lift the curse until the opportune moment. For instance," Jack looked back at Hector, reaching into the chest to take out a couple of coins. "After you've killed Norrington's men. Every." Clink. He dropped a coin in the chest. "Last." Clink. Another. "One." Clink. The last.

"You've been planning this from the beginning, ever since you learned my name." Will seethed, glaring at Jack.

"Yeah." Jack said.

This didn't seem right to Millicent, Jack usually never acted this way. She must have been missing something, something more to his plan. But it has been ten years, people do change. She looked at Hector before looking back to Jack as they negotiated.

"I want fifty percent of your plunder." Hector said.

"Fifteen." Jack countered.

"Fourty."

"Twenty-five." Jack had caught him, Hector was considering it. "And I'll buy you the hat. A really big one. Commodore."

"We have an accord." Hector agreed, placing his hand out for the two of them to shake on it. When they let go, Hector went to order the crew out fight the Dauntless, but Jack beat him to it.

"All hands to the boats!" Jack looked at him apologetically, bowing his head. "Apologies. You give the orders."

"Gents," Hector grinned at the crew. "Take a walk!"

"Not to the boats?" Jack asked, confused as he watched the majority of the crew shout and make their way out of the cave.

Millicent wrapped her arms around herself and watched them go. Could things get any more complicated?

As some of you know, I normally don't like to post these things. I like to keep updates and Author's Notes over on my profile, but I know those are hard to see when they are updated. However, I just wanted to give a huge thank you to all of you reading. Thank you for favoriting and following the story. And thank you for reviewing. I appreciate all kinds of support, it means a lot to me that you are all enjoying this story. When I write things, I typically write for myself, so it took a lot to post this initially. I was always so scared and never liked what I wrote. Sometimes I'm still not proud of the finished product, but I post it anyway because I think I would never be happy with it. (In fact, I am always editing and reposting the edits as small as they are.) But you guys seem to like it anyway and that in itself is great, it's excellent. So I mean it, from the bottom of my heart, thank you.

-NeverEndNeverland, Jenn