A/N: HALLO! Yay, another chapter! Sorry it didn't come out as quickly as the first two. ;) Mmmm, pirates.

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Chapter 3

Jack and Will were hoisted up onto the Black Pearl and met with cheers and overly excited pats on the backs.

"Yes, well!" Jack swatted at the surrounding hands. "I trust you remember our old crew."

"How could I forget," muttered Will, staring at the midget.

Jack followed his gaze. "Ah, yes, the little one!" He strode over to the short man. "What was your name again?" He rubbed his chin in thought. "Ah, yes, Barbara!"

The midget looked around. "Actually--"

"Nonsense. Your name is Barbara." The short man made to reply but Jack added, "Who here is the captain?" He leaned over threateningly, succeeding only in having his compass fall out.

Will raised an eyebrow and glanced at Gibbs, who rolled his eyes.

Jack grumbled and recovered his compass. Suddenly he spotted someone. "And who might you be?" he demanded, narrowing his eyes.

All eyes turned to a slightly old, nearly hunched man with graying red hair.

"Oh, we picked him up right before you arrived, captain," said Gibbs. "Said he wanted to join the crew."

Will leaned and whispered to Jack, "He looks...old."

Jack put a hand on Will's shoulder and whispered loudly, "Looks can be deceiving."

"My name is Jarrod," said the old man in a wavering voice. "I am at your service, captain, if you would accept me."

"You can start by fetching us all some rum." The pirate stuck his hands in the air and spun in a circle. "Drinks all around!"

The crew cheered and a few men went to assist the newcomer, who wore a look of satisfaction that he hoped nobody noticed...not yet, anyway...

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Will lay sprawled on the bed of his private cabin. Bloody pirates, he thought, not for the first or the last time. He vowed never to touch another bottle of rum ever again.

Suddenly the cabin door flew open and Will winced at the sound, clumsily raising a hand to rub at his temples. He didn't have to look up to know who it was.

"I'm cap'n Jack Sparrow!" the pirate announced at the doorway, rum sloshing as he waved a bottle in the air.

"Ohhhh," was all the blacksmith could manage.

"Come join the par--the party," Jack stumbled into the closest wall and added, "The night is still young!" It didn't matter, of course, that the rest of the crew was sprawled around the deck, much like Will.

Will managed to turn on his stomach and hide his face in a pillow, falling fast asleep.

Sighing melodramatically, Jack made his way to the bed (politely greeting a nightstand on the way) and plopped down next to Will. He silently promised himself to move once the room stopped spinning.

"Oh my," he said, his eyes wide as he saw a nearby lamp starting to come towards him. Finally giving up, he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

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Hours later Jack awoke with a hangover that could have sunk the ship in its intensity. But there was something else, too...he felt something heavy and warm cover half of his body. Looking down, he saw Will's right leg and arm sprawled across him, with the young blacksmith's head resting on his chest. Slightly alarmed, Jack looked up at the ceiling.

"That's interesting," he whispered. Then, to his surprise, he found that concentrating on Will's warmth was helping to ease his hangover. Slowly, carefully, he wrapped his arms around Will's middle and rested his cheek on the top of Will's head.

Finally Jack felt the young man stir in his arms. "Ohhhh," came the painful groan.

"You need a bigger vocabulary, mate," said Jack softly.

Startled, Will lifted his head to find Jack's face mere inches from his own. "Huh?" His hair fell loose from his ponytail and covered the pirate's eyes and nose.

Mildly irritated, Jack lifted a hand and brushed the stray locks into place behind Will's ear.

"I, uh--" Will stuttered, suddenly blushing. When was the last time he was touched like that by anyone but Elizabeth?

"Yes, you definitely need a bigger vocabulary." Jack's mouth lifted at the corners and he narrowed his eyes. "Barbossa's monkey has a bigger vocabulary than you."

Will glared at Jack. "I hate that monkey."

"So do I," came a voice from the doorway, amused at the position of the two men on the bed. "You two are better friends than I thought!"

Startled, Jack and Will hurriedly scrambled off the bed and stood.

"Greetings, Barbara! Fancy meeting you here!" said Jack.

The midget rolled his eyes. "Why 'Barbara'?"

"Because," supplied Will with a smile, "he's Captain Jack Sparrow!"

"Good!" Jack clapped Will on the shoulder in approval. "You're learning!"

"Captain, the crew wants to know where we're going," the midget said.

"Going? Hmm?"

"The ship. Where do you want to sail the ship?"

"Ah, the ship!" Jack glanced at Will. "Forgot about her for a moment. Tell Gibbs to start her in the direction of the Isla de la Muerta."

"That island again? With the treasure?" Will asked. Last time he was there he hoped never to return.

"Precisely. We don't want to be sailing the high seas without some gold at our disposal." Jack shook in a mock shudder. "That would be...terrible!" Composing himself in an instant, he rubbed his chin. "Now...where's that rum?"

The blacksmith and the midget watched, with their jaws to the ground, as Captain Jack Sparrow strolled away happily in search of more rum.

"I don't understand him," mumbled Barbara.

Will touched his hair where Jack's fingers were a moment ago. "Neither do I, Barb. Neither do I."