Summary: "'The lad's not half bad. He'll be enough for her.'" Barbossa can see Jack's feelings for Elizabeth. But they both know how the story'll end. One-shot. One-sided Sparrabeth. Implied Willabeth. Set during AWE.
Prompt: "The hardest part isn't finding the treasure. It's letting go."
Love's Sacrifice
Jack Sparrow, the sole captain of the Black Pearl, stood beside the helm of his ship, watching the figure down by the bow. The figure of the young woman who killed him. The figure of the young woman he, regretfully, had come to love.
He could remember the sound of her sobs, for they still echoed in his ears hours following the discovery that her father had been killed. She hadn't slept that night. And now, as the first traces of dawn peaked over the Locker's horizon, she remained in her silent vigil. She hadn't said a word to anyone since it had happened, nor anyone a word to her.
He frowned as he spotted his rival and former first mate Hector Barbossa climb the stairs to the quarter deck. He had just about enough time to wonder what the man was up to before Barbossa stopped at Jack's side, placing a hand on Jack's shoulder.
"The hardest part not be findin' the treasure. Nay, that'll be lettin' it go."
"What?" Jack glanced at him, baffled.
"Ye're no fool, Jack. Surely ye know exactly what I be sayin'."
His eyes narrowed and he shrugged his companion's hand from his shoulder. "This doesn't concern ye, mate."
The older man ignored him. "When all this finally be over, she an' Master Turner are likely to leave this life behind an' ne'er return."
Jack sighed, looking back at the woman by the bow longingly. "I know. It's a hard thing to accept. She won't let William go, an' I respect that. Might not agree, but I respect it. The lad's not half bad. He'll be enough for her."
Barbossa nodded, seeming to understand that sentiment.
They watched silently as the sun began to rise above the horizon. As the sky lightened and the sun bathed everything in a gentle glow, the young woman looked over her shoulder at them as if snapping from a trance. She wiped at her tear stained cheeks, frowning at the unlikely pair. She took a step in their direction, as if planning on speaking to one of them, but instead turned and vanished below deck.
Jack sighed.
"She'll come around." His companion's voice lowered with a note of sympathy. "She's got some sense in 'er little head."
"Aye, she does. I suppose that's true." He couldn't help a small frown. "An' that's why William's her first choice. We both know how this'll end for me, Hector."
The two men fell quiet again as the light of day became stronger. They continued to stand there, watching as the sun rose higher and higher, casting an orange hue upon everything in sight, until at last it reached the top of the horizon, and the crewmen roused to begin another long day. There was work to be done if they were to ever escape the Locker. And even at such an early hour, their captain knew that they would need to move fast if they were to succeed.
His own problems would have to wait.