Chapter 5: 1717 Those three things I love!

Jack woke up due to the pulsating pain coming from his shoulder. It increased when he tried to move and so he decided to better stay calm. He tried to remember what happened, but all he was able to memorize were blurry fragments. However, this was neither the deck of a ship nor was it his narrow berth aboard the "Eagle's Wing".

No!

This room, this bed, the absence of the constant rocking and swaying of the sea. 'No', Jack told himself: 'I must be ashore, not at sea...'

Someone pushed the curtains aside and opened a window. The scent of roses and jasmine sweetened the air and a light breeze carried the smell of the sea over from the open ocean. Both mingled with another fragrance, the fragrance of fresh baked bread and of a beverage Patrick brought along from one of his preys along the South and Central American shores: Coffee...

Gotten curious, he finally opened his eyes just to see a familiar girl sitting by his side, whose friendly grey eyes gazed at him full of fondness.

Caithleen sat on his bed her legs crossed, her hands laxly rested in her lap: "Welcome back amongst the living." She leaned back against the foot of his bed and smiled in amusement when she got aware of his puzzled mien: "Do you feel better?"

Her smile was so much more able to revive his spirits than any scent or smell on earth imaginable...

"Of course, love", he replied unwilling to admit that he still felt weak and sore: "Why should I not?"

All in high spirits and eager to prove to her that he was strong enough to get up, he tried to sit up, but when he wanted to lean on his hand it gave in due to his weight and a white-hot pain ran through his body. "Oi!" Jack grimaced and hissed through gritted teeth: "Maybe, I do not..."

Caithleen shook her head and grinned: "Try not not overdo! After all, it took you almost two weeks to claw back to life. We really thought the fever would burn you from the inside out. You did not eat and we had to force you to drink." From one moment to the next she was all stern when she went on: "You seemed marked by death and I feared I'd lose you..."

"What happened?" Slowly, it came to him that there were really just pieces he were able to remember: That they got attacked out of the blue, that Rosalind entrusted him her ship and her crew, that she got severely wounded, that he tried to fight against the unknown enemy and that a weird stranger would have loved to watch him die...

Caithleen bent over to him and caressed his cheek: "Bill Turner found you and this eerie fellow the moment when he reached out to push a second blade through your other shoulder. He shot him just in time, but it was almost too late. When Bill brought you aboard the 'Stream' you lost consciousness due to heavy blood loss. Patrick was shattered. He feared you would not make it. Rosalind lost half of her men in battle and the 'Wing' won't be able to set sail for quite a while. So, there was no guarantee that we would wake up together, today."

Jack lowered his head: "It was all my fault! Rosalind should not have named me captain." This time he succeeded in sitting up using is sound arm to support himself: "I failed her!"

"You did not", Caithleen disagreed: "Rosalind is still convinced she made the right decision. She's proud of you, Jack. She believes that, without you, she would have lost her ship and all her men..."

"She's alive, then..." Jack's eyes lit up in relief.

"Yes, you loveable fool, she is and still in one piece and apart from all the black and blue marks, the countless cuts and scratches, her broken wrist and her broken leg, she seems to feel fine. However", she added with a knowing smile: "it will take a while until she and Patrick will keep us company up here, again."

"Means...?"

"Jack Sparrow, you own a keen mind. Do you really want to make me believe you're not in the know about what this means?"

"Think it over, love, two weeks within the claws of death, neither dead nor alive. Don't you think as well something deep inside my innermost could have sustained heavily damage, eh?" Jack cocked his head tried to look all innocent. Caithleen rolled her eyes and he added: "So, it means the cottage is ours as long as they stay aboard the 'Stream', aye?"

"That's exactly what it means! And no one will hear what's going on up here, means, no one will care about the things I will do to you if you'll continue driving me mad..."

"Who? Me? Impossible, love!" His eyes were sparkling in the morning sun and his smile told her its own story when he whispered: "There is only one way of use to me to drive you mad. It's the same you already used to drive me mad with more than once and I can assure you, lass, it will be of no meaning to me if they could hear me while I'm doing so..."

He grinned when he got aware that she blushed up to her ears. It was then that he discovered the tablet on the nightstand and realized that his body had other needs, right now, but causing his lass some other worldly pleasures. The bread was still warm and the fresh butter, the honey and the smell of fresh brewed coffee also had their part in letting him feel ahungered. That was why he asked: "Tell me, love, did you carry all this up here because you want me to just look at it or am I allowed to eat from it?"

Caithleen laughed: "It's all yours..."

They kept silent while they were enjoying their breakfast, but Jack wasn't able to take his eyes off of her. She looked tired and he asked himself if she really meant 'we' when she told him that they tried to make him eat and drink or if it should actually be 'she'. He didn't ask, but grasped her hand and dragged her over to him. Some drops of honey still stuck to her fingers and he had a deep look into her eyes when he led them to his lips and started to kiss the sweet delights away from them. Caithleen leaned in on him and Jack dragged her closer bravely ignoring the pain coming from his shoulder. His fingers traced the fine lines of her face and they stroked her cheek before he buried them within her hairline. Their lips found each other and they melted into a kiss. Gentle, first, then deeper, forced to always keep in mind not to move too exaggeratedly. They weren't able to bear it all too long before their kiss got deeper and much more passionate and they were both panting for air when they finally broke it. Without saying a word, Jack pushed the blanket aside. Caithleen hesitated for a second before she crawled under the blanket by his side. He wrapped his arm round her tender waist and held her close while she buried her head within his sound shoulder to nestle up against him.

Cuddled up to each other, they lay still for a while until Jack whispered close to her ear: "Do you know what I felt when that weird fellow told me that he wanted to watch me die? I wasn't afraid of death itself. What really scared me was to know that I would die and that the last thing I would get to see on earth would be the icy look of that stranger. He enjoyed it, Caithleen, he really enjoyed it..." The memory let him shiver and he dragged her closer: "Being all alone within this moment felt as if someone tried to tear my soul out of my body..."

A few weeks later the idyllic bay where Patrick and Rosalind found shelter many years ago seemed to buzz with excitement. The whole settlement got graced and ornamented with flowers and coloured ribbons, the lanes got cleaned up and everything looked tidy and inviting. The same applied to all the ships and boats anchoring within the bay. The masts of the "Wing" and the "Stream" were flagged over their tops and both ships were decorated with flowers and ribbons. The skull and crossbones remained lowered today. No one had in mind to leave for a prey...

The damage the "Eagle's Wing sustained during the attack of that eerie and unknown opponent got mostly mended and as soon as her captain would be able to return aboard, she'd set sail.

Until it was as far as, Patrick and Rosalind chose the "Silver Stream" as their home. Rosalind still wasn't able to fully strain her leg and as long as it would not be completely healed, she and Patrick knew Jack and Caithleen would enjoy this little present of staying alone within the cottage. They agreed that there was no reason to betray them of this pleasure as it got more and more obvious that there was much more they were bound together by but just their being curious about exploring each other.

The reason for the hustle and bustle all around the bay was something totally different, though. Patrick had in mind to finally honour the promise he had given Bill Turner on this beautiful summer day. He wanted to make use of his right as a captain to marry his first mate and his bonny lass and so it happened that the announced festivity caught the attention of the whole settlement and that all of its inhabitants seemed to be a bit beside themselves.

Patrick decided to use old rituals, those old rituals fishermen and sailors used for ages to invoke the blessings of the sea and the winds for their trips and journeys round the seven seas and they did not miss to leave a deep impression when he used them to invoke these blessings for Bill Turner and his adorable bride Elianor Cole.

Jack and Caithleen decided to stay apart from the ceremony. They sat on a quay wall and watched the spectacle from out of a certain distance. It did to them that the wind carried Patrick's words over. In the face of the breathtaking surroundings and the wild beauty of the landscapes they seemed to include something magical, something which left no one untouched and still it seemed as if Jack's thoughts were wandering about another place. Since his encounter with that weird stranger, who also seemed to have been the captain of that foreign vessel, something did change within him; almost as if he had lost a part of his youthful innocence and light-headedness. And even though the wound did heal well and quickly, it seemed as if something left its mark on him.

More and more often they would find him sitting on the cliffs high above the bay, staring at the sea, his gaze lost somewhere at the horizon. A deep longing got mirrored within his eyes, a deep longing, a haunting restlessness, an unsatisfied desire and a deep rooted pain, which he desperately tried to hide not only from Pat and Rose but also from Caithleen. He knew that she knew, anyway, and when she leaned back against his chest he wrapped his arms around her tightly. Jack knew she struggled as she knew the day to draw closer where she'd have to make a decision – between leading a life at sea together with him or leading a life ashore without him. Caith knew which life she wanted to live and, still, she hoped that this day would remain a day in a far distant future.

"What are the two of you waiting for?" A familiar voice dragged them both out of their thoughts and daydreams. Patrick stood in front of them smiling like a gingerbread horse. He pointed at the tavern and went on: "Tonight is supposed to become a long night because it's dead certain that our dear Bill Turner is not interested in allowing the whole crew to stand around him and his beloved wife during their wedding night. However, I think, he should allow the two of you to keep an eye on it: You might get to see some nice positions you did not try, yet." Jack and Caithleen both blushed up to their hairlines and Patrick burst out laughing: "Oh dear, as it seems this shot into the blue hit its aim!"

The tavern was crowded to the brim with all those who wanted to celebrate the young couple and those who were just fond of a proper drinking bout. Beside the bar sat a handful of musicians using bodhrán, flute, fiddle and mandolin to play dances and to keep the whole company in good humour while singing drinking songs and shanties. From out of the kitchen it smelled of countless delicious allurements able to please even the pickiest eater and rum and beer poured out of the barrels without cease.

The taproom was filled with dancers and laughter resounded all around the place while back in the rear part of the tavern the men told each other the most fantastic stories of terrifying beasts from the deep sea, of enchanting but deadly sirens, of storms, preys, vanquished opponents and what else ever came to their minds being worth to be told on a frolic day like this.

"Hand me two fresh beakers, please, Master Blake!" Caithleen leaned against the counter, cheeks reddened and brow sweaty. She panted for air and took off her bandana. It had taken her some effort to cleave through the taproom and to avoid all those desirous looks and touches several men tried to catch her attention with.

"Miss Caith! Don't you think you had enough?" The innkeeper beheld her from her head down to her shoes and back.

"I'm not drunk, Master Blake, I just enjoyed dancing!" She interrupted herself, thought about something and grinned: "Well, perhaps you're right and I'm a little bit drunk, but that's not because of your beer..."

"I already got that, lass. It's because of that pretty lad Patrick brought here, am I right?"

"Yep! You are!"

"Well, in this case, you're not in need of two fresh beakers, Miss Caith. You should better follow him..."

"Why?" Caithleen frowned.

"Because your young friend made his exit while you were dancing."

"Did he say where he'd go to?"

"No, only that you'd know where to find him..."

"I understand! Well, then you better hand me a bottle of rum..."

The innkeeper grinned when he handed her the bottle and gave her a wink when she sneaked out of the back door.

It was dark, outside, a beautiful starlit full moon night, and Caith knew where Jack would wait for her.

Caithleen found him sitting at the peak of the cliff: A slender silhouette against the pale moonlight, his arms wrapped around his knees and his brow rested on them. She took her shoes off and walked over to him on bare feet. Thick layers of moss damped the silent rustle of her steps, but Jack's senses were alert and trained enough to notice as she approached him. He reached out for her hand and dragged her down beside him. He didn't say a word, but the way he kept hold of her hand told her enough: He was glad to have her with him.

Far below them rolled the waves ashore and broke at the foot of the cliffs, their steady whoosh a sound like the breath of the sea, a sound filled with stories so different from everything the men at the tavern told each other tonight. The waves told them about adventures and expeditions, about undiscovered islands and about hidden treasures of the deep depths. They told them about magical creatures, about secrets and riddles waiting for to get solved and about long lost cultures and civilizations - and they promised them a life in freedom far away from all the rules and bonds enchaining their longing dreams to the land. The bright full moon got mirrored by the sea and while the tireless waves broke and reflected its pale soft light it seemed as if the sea and the sky melted and blended into each other far, far away at the horizon.

Jack pointed at the spot where it got impossible to say where the sky ended and the sea began and whispered: "Did you ever ask yourself what's behind the horizon, love? I mean, something must be hidden there, right? Something different, something unexplained, something no sea-chart is able to lead us to..."

"You mean those old stories about mermaids, ghost ships and legendary treasures? The fairy tale about eternal life and immortality?"

"Aye, love, that's exactly what I had in mind. Imagine what we will be able to explore as soon as we'll have a ship on our own..."

"Eternity?" Caithleen asked with a grin.

"Think of it, Caith: The immortal Captain Jack Sparrow! How does it ring? Not so bad at all, eh?" He grinned and as many times before she felt disarmed and overwhelmed in a very strange and adorable way.

She beheld him and a wave of affection ran through her whole body. He was a dreamer. She loved his dreams. And she loved him...

Jack did change since they first met and even more since that unexpected attack on the "Wing": The slender boy had become a bonny young man and Caithleen asked herself if he even knew how much of a heart-throb he had become. She shrugged the thought off and wrapping one of his curls round one of her fingers she asked: "Why did you leave?"

"Because, I wanted...no, because, I wished you'd follow me..."

"Here I am..."

"Yes, love, here you are. And you've no idea how glad I am you are." He scanned her face and all of a sudden he added in a hoarse voice: "Are you actually aware how beautiful you are, Caith Stevens?"

"I..."

Jack brushed some strands of hair from her brow and traced the fine lines of her face to finally lift her chin until their eyes met. Hers were dark and filled with longing, his were looking at her in awe. Her slightly opened lips: A single invitation. A promise. One, he couldn't resist.

Jack breathed one feathery kiss upon her lips then a second and, alas, she tasted of sweet wine and candied rose petals. Dragging her closer, his kiss got more passionate and more demanding and while she afforded this to him, her lips parted willingly under his kiss. She closed her eyes and surrendered to all the feelings he was able to arouse within her.

Caithleen's hands ran down his shoulders and further down his back until they reached his hips. She tugged at his shirt until she was able to feel his soft warm skin under her fingertips. He winced when she felt for the scar on his shoulder, but he'd neither let her out nor would he break the kiss. His hands felt for her belt and loosened it leaving a trace of torrid heat on her body when his slender fingers slipped under her shirt and when they met the chilled skin of her back. Caithleen inhaled sharply when his hands found a way to sneak under the bandage she used to wear under her shirt and when he started to caress her youthful breasts.

"Admit it, love, this is an annoying piece of cloth", he whispered close to her ear, his cheek nestled up against hers and his lips fondling the soft skin of her earlobe. He chuckled when a sigh of relish escaped her lips in response and when her body reacted to his touch - a mirror of his own desire.

Jack beheld her – the same enthused and still astonished about how intense and filled with passion she was. She removed both for him, the shirt and also the bandage, and the moonlight silvered her slender figure and her lovely womanly roundings. Alluring, she was, alluring and innocent at the same time and it didn't matter, any more, if all the others still treated them as children, he knew, he loved the young woman, she had grown into - and he desired her like crazy!

"I should have searched for a lady, lass! That kind of girl wearing dresses and skirts", he teased her while he tugged at her pants impatiently.

"Would have been better – without any doubt..." Caithleen replied laughing...

She sat up, pushed him back and her fingers answered his astonished look when they started to open the riband holding his pants closed, in return.

Caithleen leaned back into the moss and she enjoyed his puzzled mien when she ran her foot down his legs, pushing off his pants, this way. His revenge was sweet and his eyes darkened from passion when he bent down on her to kiss her fierce and keenly. His lips were reddened when he broke the kiss to let them run down her tender body until they'd reached the delicate tips of her breasts. He enjoyed to hear Caith moan under his touch and he enjoyed when her hips met his all ungallantly. She longed for him and he for her and he did not hesitate any longer. Too much did he enjoy the moment when they both got carried away by their youthful curiosity...

Some time later, they both lay still upon the mossy cliffs high above the bay, tightly embraced, covered with sweat and panting for air; their fingers still buried within each others hair, their lips still melted into a kiss and her legs still wrapped around his hips. They held each other close, nestled up against each other, afraid to let go of each other.

It was then, when Jack breathed a kiss upon her temple and while his gaze got lost at the horizon, once again, he whispered: "There are three things on earth I really love: My freedom, the sea and – you..." He hesitated for a moment, then he added: "You're like the sea, love, deep, mysterious, beautiful and wild. Free and full of life. And if the sea means freedom, so do you..."