"Here's the plan. As nice as it would be for the Black Pearl to simply go into the port without any troubles from Norry's men, I highly doubt that that would happen at present." - Captain Jack Sparrow

Chapter 14 - Port Royal

Marine felt the wonderful sea breeze kiss her face and blow her hair in all directions as she stood behind the rails of the Black Pearl and watched the small island of Tortuga slowly disappear in the distance. The bright yellow lights that came from most of the taverns and inns blinked until the darkness of the night engulfed them. Carrie and Elizabeth were at their cabin, taking a good night's rest after a very eventful trip ashore. Will and the others were about the ship as well, getting their well earned rest. Her mind came back to the ship as one of the crewmembers slapped her back in a friendly manner and made a soft grunt of apology. She forced a smile on her face before letting it form into a frown as the man made his way to the crew's quarters.

She gave a loud sigh and propped up her elbows on the railings once she was sure the last of them had left. She was glad of the sudden increase of crewmembers on the ship-heck Jack was ecstatic to find out that he was going to have at least 10 more people running his ship under his commands-but the manner in which they had come to the decision was both amusing and puzzling.

Norrington had been ordered by Jack to go to the ship and tell the crew to assemble themselves by nighttime. They planned on leaving when there was a lesser chance of anyone seeing the Black Pearl leave the docks. Everything had been settled, Cornelius had packed his belongings, and everyone had finished having their dinner. They left the air bubble that was Cornelius' home and made their way to the port as quietly and as quickly as they could. But before they could step onto the Pearl's gangplanks, it was blocked by a large group of men.

All of the men, except Jones and Cornelius, plus Marine, stepped in front of Elizabeth and Carrie protectively as they placed hands on the hilts of their swords or on the grips of their pistols. The men were just as equally armed and were looking at the small group with snarls and growls. Marine had finally had enough and stepped one step further towards the other group. She narrowed her eyes at them and placed her hands on her hips.

"I have had it with the likes of ye! What the hell do ye want from me?" She shouted.

"You promised us gold and treasures and adventures ye lying wench!" One of the large men shouted back. "Ye came to Tortuga with that swaggerin' arrogant pride of yours and told us that if we promise to become your crewmembers that ye'd give us all what we want." Jack stepped right beside Marine and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"If it's adventure and gold and treasures ye be wanting, then you're all welcome to join the Black Pearl under my command of course!" He said, giving Marine a wink before speaking before the group of men once more. "We be under a very dangerous and life-threatening adventure at the moment. 'S nothing Captain Jack Sparrow can handle though so there's no worries about that."

"There has been a very big misunderstanding among you and Marine." Jones added, shrinking back a little when all of the men looked at him. "You actually spoke with a clone. An impostor and one who should have regretted not picking you as a fine and mighty crew. The woman you see before you is the real Shaprshooter Marine and she would never lie to men such as yourselves." The men looked at each other doubtfully until Jack caught their attentions once more.

"What say ye mates? Join my crew and I shall give you everything you want and probably more." He offered with a grin on his face. One of the men raised his fist into the air and gave a loud 'AYE' that made everyone else in that group follow and shout and cheer.

"A penny for your thoughts?" At first Marine thought it was Jack who had interrupted her thoughts once more. Then she recognized the figure of speech in the words and knew that neither Jack nor anyone else in that timeline would have used a phrase like that. She turned her head to the side and watched as Cornelius walked up beside her and leaned his elbows on the railings. She gave a small smile before looking ahead of her, at the empty and silent deck.

"Just thinking of what happened back there. These men aren't that scary once you spoke with them properly." She said. Cornelius chuckled and nodded in agreement, knowing what Marine was talking about.

"Yes, let's just be glad that they're considerate enough and nice enough to understand your situation and believe in our story of clones as unbelievable as it sounded."

"It's Jack Sparrow. Everything concerning him is either strange, unlikely, or downright impossible. The stories about him would see to that."

"Speaking of Jack Sparrow," Cornelius looked at her curiously as he spoke. "I remember you mentioning something about them being in a book or a story or something like that."

"Oh that. Well...your thinking that this is a different time is not wholly true. Actually, this is in a different alternative world. Because in our own world, Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and the rest of them are in a movie called 'Pirates of the Caribbean' which is in turn based on a book about Jack Sparrow himself. I can't tell them that because it would only make them even more confused about all this." She explained. Cornelius raised his eyebrows with understanding and gave a slight nod of his head to tell her that he understood.

"I see...that explains it. Who knew huh? That you'd watch something similar to this and find yourself in the world itself. I wonder what it would have been like supposing your father and I met up with Jack Sparrow and were a part of his adventure."

"You probably have met Jack or his parents without him knowing it. Barbossa killed my father after all, and he used to be Jack's first mate. It's a small world. And after everything I've been through, I've come to realize this even more." She said. "I mean, who knew that I had a supposedly twin sister who is in fact an evil clone because I came here with a cursed coin that looks a lot like the cursed coin Jack and his first crew went after years ago." Cornelius chuckled and patted her head softly.

"Your mother and father would have been so proud of you. You've grown into a very fine young woman." He told her. Marine grimaced.

"A fine young woman who's stuck in a very tight, life-or-death situation." Cornelius frowned as he looked away from her.

"I'm sorry that you and your young friend had to go through all this. If we had not discovered that treasure; if only we had told your mother not to come along with us, then you would not be experiencing these troubles." He said. Marine shook her head and moved in front of him so he could see her smile.

"Don't be sorry about that. If you hadn't done everything you did in the past, I would be the person I am right now. And I wouldn't have met Jack or Will or the rest personally." She looked at the captain's cabin, where she knew Jack was sound asleep in. "I've gained as much as I've lost through everything that's happened to me so don't feel so regretful about it. You did what you did because you were young and very talented researchers. I'm just glad I got to know a little bit more about my mother." She said with a sad smile. Cornelius brought her face to his and felt a tear fall from his eye.

"You look so much like your mother Marine. So beautiful, so kind and friendly. But you've got your own tiny spark; that lovable charm that would get men falling head over heels for you. I suppose your father being the bold, arrogant and witty fool that he is should be thanked for that." He muttered. Marine laughed and at the same time felt a blush come to her cheeks at the compliment.

"So...where did you get that cool bubble dome thing and how did you manage to make it breathable under the lake?" She asked him to change the subject. Cornelius laughed and smiled at her mysteriously.

"I've been here for years lass. And my passion for research has got gone away ever since. Most of what I've discovered I discovered while I was going on adventures with your father on his ship before you were old enough to understand piracy and the fights. You father, being your father, told a lot of pirates and commoners stories of our little trips. This has made people think of me as someone very specialized in the supernatural and the like." He explained. Marine furrowed her brows then widened her eyes in surprise.

"You're the man who has so much knowledge in that kind of things? You're the supernatural person?" He gave an offhand shrug.

"I'm not too proud about having a plain title like that but I'm not denying it either. So yes, I'm that man." He told her. "I find it ironic how you've searched all throughout Tortuga for a man with profound knowledge in the supernatural and a man named Cornelius Gashnet. Instead, you find a man who tried to kill you, thinking you were someone else. Then finally, when you find that man who tried to kill you, you realize that you were looking for one person the whole time." He chuckled after he said it and smiled at Marine.

"Very ironic." She agreed with a smile in return. "Guess fate has a way of making things go their way even if it doesn't seem so at first." A few seconds after she spoke she found herself yawning sleepily in front of him and gave an embarrassed, apologetic look. Cornelius smiled kindly and made a shooing gesture at her.

"Go on to bed. It looks like you need it badly." He said. Marine smiled again and nodded slightly. She turned around and after bidding Cornelius a good night, began to head to the cabin she shared with Elizabeth and Carrie. She stopped after walking a few steps and turned her head around to look at him. Out of a sudden impulse she couldn't explain, she ran up to him and threw her arms around him. Cornelius took a step back and almost fell over the railing as he placed his hands on her waist to steady the two of them. Marine was hugging him tightly and he could feel his shirt become slightly soaked. He patted her head and hugged back, silently apologizing to her all over again for everything that she's been through.

After a short while Marine let him go and with an embarrassed smile, headed towards the stairs without a second look back. Cornelius leaned on the railing and watched her as she went down below deck. He watched her and looked up at the stars in the black velvet sky, imagining the two young couple smiling down at him. He smiled back at them and wiped another tear that fell from his eye.

"If only the two of you could see how much your daughter has grown."

"Land ho!" One of the men shouted from the crow's nest as he pointed at something ahead of them. Jack, who was standing at the helm before the wheel at the time, took out his looking glass and placed his eye over it. He could see the small island slowly growing larger as they came nearer to it. The winds were on their side, blowing them towards their destination quickly. He replaced the telescope back in his pouch and called for Gibbs to take the helm. Then he moved to the side and made his way to Will and the others who were standing close to the bow and looking at said island. He stood beside Will and Norrington and placed one arm around each one to the other two's annoyance.

"I can see that you want nothing more than to set your landlubbing legs ashore but I can also see how sad you will become as soon as we part our ways." He commented. "You must be so envious of the whelp for his chance to go on a grand adventure with the Captain Jack Sparrow. But as much as you want to be under my command on the greatest ship on earth, I cannot take you away from your own little life as Commodore." Norrington snorted and was muttering to himself while Will rolled his eyes. Elizabeth turned to face Jack and raised a finger at him. She was about to open her mouth but Jack did it first.

"Yes Lizzie love, I will be at your wedding looking very clean and as proper as a pirate like myself can get. And I will be on my best behavior while I'm at your wedding." He added before Elizabeth could say anything else. The young woman frowned at Jack but gave him a satisfied look.

"You better do so Jack." She looked at Carrie and Marine with a giddy, excited face. "Oh I can't wait to see what has happened to my wedding and what father has done to it while we were away."

I can't wait to get a nice, warm, refreshing bath after more than a month without it! Marine thought to herself. Carrie was thinking along the same lines as she looked at Port Royal eagerly. Will made a nervous face as he listened to his soon-to-be wife speak of their wedding with enthusiasm.

"I told your father to go on with the preparations of the wedding while we were out getting you back but I had no idea if he planned on actually doing it..." Will said. Elizabeth looked at him.

"I'm sure he did so. My father trusts you to keep your word." She told Will, placing a comforting hand on his and squeezing it tightly. Will smiled back at her before his attentions went back to Jack who still had not removed his arms from them.

"Here's the plan. As nice as it would be for the Black Pearl to simply go into the port without any troubles from Norry's men, I highly doubt that that would happen at present. Therefore, we're going to let the crew stay a few miles away from Port Royal while the rest of us who wants to go to land ride on one of the lifeboats." He turned to Jones and Cornelius in question, who both shook their heads in reply.

"Thanks but no thanks. I'm not comfortable being in big events and large crowds. I'll only be a nuisance and a distraction to the wedding even if I did go. But I congratulate the two of you and wish you all the best in your marriage." Cornelius told Will and Elizabeth with a smile.

"Same here." Jones muttered. Jack looked around, waiting for anyone else to speak up. When no one did he removed his arms from Will and Norrington and looked at the crew.

"Prepare two lifeboats men! And Gibbs, make sure you and the crew keep an eye on any Navy guards who think they can take the Pearl without its captain." He ordered them. The men gave nods before bustling about with energy. Two small boats were prepared and dropped to the sea within a few minutes of the captain's orders. The ladies hopped into one while the men rode on the other. Together, they rowed as fast as they could towards shore.

Norrington was the first to notice the large group of guards waiting at the docks with their rifles aimed at them. He stood up to make his presence known and once they were close enough, ordered them to withhold their guns. The guards looked at each other before reluctantly lowering their guns and waiting for the two boats to strike land. Marine could see Norrington's annoyance and Jack's amusement at the situation. Who would have thought that the Commodore would order his men not to aim their rifles at a pirate and to tell them that said pirate was supposed to be unharmed and not arrested while they were in Port Royal. Marine grinned at the thought and couldn't wait to piss Norrington even more. Elizabeth had probably seen the look because she poked Marine's arm and gave her a warning look.

Once they got out of their boats, Governor Swann appeared before them and rushed to his daughter. He gave her a tight hug and blabbered a lot about how relieved he was to see that she was safe. The others walked up to them in silence with Norrington in the lead. The guards surrounding them were a bit wary of Jack and Marine but made no move to aim their rifles at them. Governor Swann stopped hugging Elizabeth to look at the group with a frown.

"What is the meaning of this Commodore? I want you to arrest these three scoundrels and send them to the gallows as soon as possible!" Elizabeth looked at her father with a look of horror.

"No! I won't allow that father! Carrie is not a pirate and she was not part of my kidnapping. In fact, she was what the pirates wanted, not me. And I won't allow you to take Jack and Marine as prisoners. Jack is the reason the Commodore, Will and I are still alive at present. He had the kindness to take us aboard his ship while the Accelerator was about to blow up in flames. Marine on the other hand is not the person who kidnapped us. Commodore Norrington and Will were mistaken when they assumed that before." She explained to him. Governor Swann looked doubtful as he glanced at the three but one look from his daughter made him concede with a regrettable sigh.

"Very well. They shall not be arrested. But I want them out of Port Royal at once!"

"I won't allow that as well, father. I have invited Jack Sparrow and Marine to my wedding and nothing you say will change that fact." She told him determinedly before the older man could put in a word of his own. "I will give you my promise that they will be on their best behavior as long as they are under me. In return I demand that no guard will arrest them and no harm should befall them while they are here." Governor Swann took in a deep breath as he rubbed his face. Marine felt sorry for Governor Swann. As much as she liked Elizabeth, she wasn't going to like having a daughter like her.

"All right. I will allow them to stay here unharmed just this once. But I want them gone as soon as the wedding is over." Elizabeth smiled and rushed to hug her father happily. Governor Swann gave a heavy sigh but smiled at his daughter lovingly. Marine swore under her breath that she was going to be on her very best behavior during her stay at Port Royal. Governor Swann had no idea that Elizabeth intended on going along with them for the whole ride and she felt bad for making it hard for the old man. She moved closer to Carrie and muttered under her breath.

"I pray to god that I won't have a daughter like Elizabeth. Should I be given that opportunity." The other younger woman chuckled and gave a slight nod of her head.

"You said it Vanessa." Elizabeth turned to face them with a bright and happy smile. Fortunately for the two women, Elizabeth had not heard them speak of her that way. She grabbed both women's arms and began pulling them deeper into town. Marine and Carrie had not expected the sudden drag and almost stumbled on each other as they tried to follow Elizabeth through the growing, morning crowd.

"The girls and I shall be out looking for dresses then. See you all in the evening!" She cried. Marine felt her face pale as she heard Elizabeth and wanted nothing more than to run as far away from the young woman as possible.

"Evening?!"

Elizabeth was laughing as she brought Carrie and Marine into the first store selling gowns and dresses. The female pirate narrowed her eyes at Elizabeth with her arms crossed while Carrie simply looked from one to the other in amusement. Elizabeth picked out one of the dresses and looked at Marine with an amused smile.

"I was kidding Marine! You don't think I am capable of looking for dresses from morning until night do you?"

"I've seen and met a lot of people who could." Marine muttered under her breath. Then out loud, "Perhaps. I wouldn't know. You were part of an adventure story, not a chic-flick."

"Chic-flick?"

"Never mind. So that should look pretty good on Carrie..." Marine began, moving towards Elizabeth and taking the dress from her hands. Carrie coughed as she hid her laughter from the two and followed them through more stores as they looked for clothes that the two women approved of. Marine had a very amused and large smile on her face as she walked together with Elizabeth throughout town. People kept looking at them from left to right, whispering to each other and looking at the pistols that hung on the female pirate's holsters warily. She especially liked the way the Navy guards looked at her as she passed by them freely and openly. Carrie wasn't appreciative of this though, and tried to act friendly to those they passed by. No one wanted to go near them and rushed off as fast as they could to Carrie's disappointment. A small child looked up at Carrie and Marine with wide, innocent eyes and took a brave step closer to them. Carrie saw this and crouched in front of the young child with a gentle smile on her face.

"Hello there. Are you lost or something?" The child said nothing and simply continued to look up at Carrie in curiosity. Carrie was about to open her mouth and say something else when she heard a woman scream loudly. She stood up and watched as a woman walked up to the kid and hugged him close to her. The woman began to move away from Carrie while narrowing her eyes at her with so much hate.

"What do you think you're doing with my son you filthy, dirty pirate? Just because you're free to roam about like you own the town doesn't mean that you do. Stay away from my son or I will call the guards and tell them to arrest you for assault." She shouted angrily while clutching her son close to her. Both Carrie and the young child were surprised with the sudden turn of events as they looked at the hysterical woman. Carrie tried to take a step forward, reaching out a hand to the other woman.

"I wasn't doing anything to harm him. I was just..."

"No. I don't want to hear it. You pirates are all just the same. Lying, stealing and kidnapping people just to get money and to get whatever it is you want. Why don't you just go back to your pirate ship and make some other town suffer with your pirate ways?" The woman shouted as she took a step back from her, avoiding the hand that reached out. Carrie widened her eyes and opened her mouth to give an angry retort when Marine appeared at her side and grabbed her shoulders firmly. Without waiting for a reply or a word from Carrie, she began to drag her away from the woman and her child.

"Yes that's right! Leave this place before you bring more trouble for us innocent bystanders! Filthy pirates should be hanged to death instead of walking around town freely. What are these navy guards thinking of..." Carrie felt hurt, angry and ashamed as she was forcefully pulled to where Elizabeth was standing worriedly. Marine said nothing as she pulled Carrie away from the crowd but Carrie didn't plan on staying quiet.

"Stop dragging me Vanessa! I want to go back there and give that woman a piece of my mind."

"And what do you expect them to do? To listen to you? To start trusting you?" Marine asked as she let go of Carrie and looked at her. She saw the hurt expression in Carrie's face and softened her own with a heavy sigh. "You should remember that people during these times don't think too lightly of pirates. In this time and age, pirates are feared and hated by villagers; with good reason. Not everyone's like Jack Sparrow, Carrie; and Jack is still a lying pirate like it or not. You should keep in mind that these pirates aren't the heroic characters you read in books or watch on movies or TV."

"But Vanessa..."

"No. There are no buts. Even I have to admit that I'm one of those filthy pirates she's talking about. Here in this world that is. You can't make an excuse for stealing or plundering Carrie but it's the true essence of being a pirate." Carrie frowned and looked down sadly but made no more move to object or complain. Marine closed her eyes and took another deep breath. She wanted her to let go of her fantasies of becoming a pirate but she didn't want Carrie to get hurt so hard and so harshly. Not knowing what else to say, the female pirate turned around and called for Elizabeth who came walking up to them still with that worried look on her face.

"Is everything alright? What happened?" She asked, looking from one female to the other. Marine shook her head at Elizabeth, not bothering to hide her feelings.

"It's nothing serious. Just a case of being hated as pirates by people." She replied. Carrie was still looking down as Marine spoke and didn't bother to lift her head up. Elizabeth sighed and rubbed her forehead. She moved to Carrie's side and led her through the streets while Marine walked behind them alone and close to her own thoughts.

"I'm so sorry about what happened Carrie...but you musn't let that bring your spirits down." Elizabeth said as she tried to comfort Carrie. She looked over her shoulder at Marine who was busy pondering on her own thoughts to notice them. She looked back at the younger woman with a small smile. "It's not like being a pirate's the most important thing in life. I mean, I'm not a pirate but I'm perfectly happy with Will." Carrie stayed silent as she walked together with the other two. Although it didn't look like it, Marine had been listening to Elizabeth and walked up to the woman's other side when Carrie still didn't reply.

"Give her time to recover from the shock. I'm sure it's a harsh blow to her belief and ideals of pirates."

"I know what people think of pirates in this time! I'm not an immature idiot who thinks pirates are cool and heroic and do nothing but save people and do good deeds." Carrie burst out angrily as she turned around to face Marine. The female pirate stopped and looked back calmly at her best friend. "I know how bad pirates are. But...but I just want to think that maybe there are still some pirates out there who can be good. I'm not saying that every pirate should be good. I just know that there are. And I believed that people knew this as well. I guess I thought wrong in so many ways." She said before turning around and running away from the two women. Elizabeth tried to stop Carrie but held back and took a deep breath.

"She needs this time alone to breathe doesn't she?" Marine shook her head and nudged Elizabeth forward.

"Right now more than ever, Carrie needs someone there to comfort her. I'm not the right person at the moment it seems. But can you please do it for me? I'll go back to your mansion and wait there." She said. Elizabeth looked at Marine with a sad smile before nodding to her and running after the younger woman. Marine watched Elizabeth's form grow smaller as she chased Carrie through the streets. Once she was sure that the two women where nowhere to be seen, she began to make her way back to Elizabeth's mansion with her hands in the pockets of her breeches.

Jack was hanging around the Swann's sitting room looking at the artifacts and other valuable things displayed around the house. The only person with him was Will, who had gotten tired of trying to keep Jack from breaking anything and ended up just relaxing on the couch. The two heard someone enter the house and looked to see Marine walking towards them and falling to the couch beside Will ungracefully. The two men looked at each other in silence before looking at the female pirate.

"Where are Elizabeth and Carrie?" Will asked.

"Somewhere out there." Marine muttered softly. "Carrie was being friendly with a woman's kid and the woman immediately panicked and told Carrie to get away thinking that she was a pirate too." Jack raised an eyebrow in confusion while Will frowned. Between the two men it was obvious that only Will had an idea of what was happening.

"I don't get it. What's so special about a kid and his mother?" Jack asked. Marine sighed and looked out the window, watching the harbor move about with energy and activity. She didn't feel like answering Jack's question and decided to stay quiet. Jack either sensed that it wasn't the right time but didn't care or he had no idea about what Marine was feeling then because he pressed on. "What wrong with that? Don't tell me that Carrie is making a big deal out of something so little as that. Come on Marine, speak up." Marine gave a loud and heavy sigh as she looked back at Jack.

"No it isn't a big deal for you...or for me for that matter. But it is for her. She regards pirates very highly. She thinks they're heroes and that it would be a great thing to become a pirate. What she doesn't know, what she can't accept, is how bad life will always become if you're always getting into danger or into life-death situations." She said. "She thinks people should believe that as well and felt upset when these people told her that they hated pirates." Jack fell silent, having no idea how to answer that. He knew that making a humorous comment at the time would only get Marine to threaten him or beat him up seriously.

"It doesn't matter what others say though." Will said to no one in particular. "As long as you know what you're doing and are happy with it, then other people's opinion shouldn't have an effect in you."

"That's what I'm afraid of." Marine spoke so softly that the two men almost didn't hear it. "I don't want her to be encouraged to become a pirate. I don't want her getting hurt physically...and spiritually. It hasn't sinked in her how dangerous and intense pirating is. I'm confident that once she does, that she's going to get hurt even worse. But I also don't want to crush her spirit like a bug. It's just too harsh." Jack moved to sit on the arm of the couch by Marine's side and began to wave his hands around as he spoke.

"Pirating isn't all that bad..." When Marine gave him a strange look, he raised up his hands in defeat. "Okay so it's bad. But it doesn't necessarily have to mean that she's going to become one of us. Let her do whatever she wants. And when things go bad, live with it. It's a part of learning. And since you're there to guide her a little bit, I'm sure nothing too bad's going to happen to the lass." Will was pondering on what Jack said and when Marine looked at him, he gave a shrug.

"It makes sense. It's Jack, but it sounds sober enough to be true."

"Speaking of sober, I need rum." Jack was about to walk away from the sitting room when Marine spoke the dreaded words that made Jack want to run away from Elizabeth's house as fast as he could.

"I don't think they have rum." Marine watched with amusement as Jack pivoted around with one leg and looked at Marine with a horrified expression on his face.

"No rum?! What kind of horrible creatures live in a house with no rum?" He cried. Marine couldn't help but chuckle and smile at Jack as she watched him worry exaggeratedly over his problem. Will was equally amused and placed his arms behind his head casually.

"A lot of houses don't keep rum in their pantry. It's not really as important as water after all."

"What do you mean it's not important? Of course it's important! It's rum!" Jack argued. Then after a short while he paused and furrowed his brows in deep concentration. Then he widened his eyes and looked at Will. "And what about the wedding? Don't tell me..." Marine couldn't keep her laughter in anymore and threw her head back as she burst out in cheerful gales of laughter. Will put a hand to his mouth and was coughing horribly as he tried to hide his own laughter.

"I'm sorry to say this Jack, but there's no rum in the wedding. Only water, wine and tea would be served." Jack walked back to where he sat and plopped down on it with his arms crossed like a stubborn, disappointed child who had just heard that he could only get dessert after dinner.

"Lizzie better be glad I'm doing this for her...no rum! What has the world come to?..." He grumbled. Marine took in a deep breath and exhaled as the last of her laughter died down. She looked at Will and found herself laughing all over again. Will began to chuckle softly as he listened to Marine laugh. Jack wasn't very happy about their reactions and began to mutter softly to himself. Then he stood up with a frown on his face and began to walk away. With nothing to do and in fear that Jack would cause more trouble for them, Will stood up from the couch and followed after Jack out of the house. Marine didn't want to be alone in Elizabeth's house and decided to go after them as well.

"What are you planning on doing Jack?" Marine asked him. Jack turned around to face Marine with a strange look.

"Find myself a tavern that serves rum of course! And since we're headed there anyway, we might as well give the whelp one last chance to experience the freedom of being free from the chains of a wife. Especially if the wife is a woman like Elizabeth." Jack muttered the last sentence softly while he looked about as if afraid that Elizabeth would suddenly appear in front of him. Marine raised an eyebrow as she looked at Jack incredulously.

"You can't be serious! The only thing Will's going to get from this little celebration of yours is a hangover in the morning and a scolding from Elizabeth. The only comfort in that is that you'll get an even worse scolding from her." Will's face broke into an amused grin while Jack grimaced. Then his eyes lit up bright as he looked at her and pointed.

"And that is why you're coming with us. To keep us from getting a bit too ahead of ourselves." He said. Marine widened her eyes in surprise and was about to open her mouth to say no when Jack grabbed her arm and dragged her through the streets. She tried to struggle with him but Jack was stronger and was more determined that she was. Then she heard him mutter something about inviting Norrington to the little 'party' to make things even more interesting and was even more horrified than before. Will walked up to her side and leaned his head close to hers.

"Don't worry. I'm sure that it's not going to be that bad." He said optimistically. Marine sighed as she began moving in Jack's pace in defeat.

Where's Elizabeth when you need her?