The Eaglet of the Sparrow

Chapter 1: An Unknown Surprise

Disclaimer: Well you probably know the rigmarole (story), but I'll say it anyway. most of the places, people, or things in this story come from Pirates of the Caribbean. They are not mine.

Summary: post PotC. Ceara's distrust for Jack Sparrow was not quite the adoration and full trust she head for her mother, Elizabeth, but trust and respect was growing in the middle of the sea of distrust she felt for her father. Only time would tell if the trust and respect would win against the adoration.

Background: This starts some four and a half years after Jack Sparrow goes to sea with the Black Pearl. Here he has just stopped a ship going to Tortuga.

Note: I may have gotten some facts wrong, and if I did, and you notice, please tell me and I will try to change it asap.

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Jack Sparrow pressed his sleeve to the cut on his forehead and winced. "As soon as those other land-lubbing swabs," he pointed over his shoulder to the other crew members carrying luggage up from the Sundancer, the ship the Pearl had 'detained', "get over here with the rest of the booty, shove off. I'm going to be in my cabin."

"Yeah, those women can pack quite a swing with those hatboxes of theirs." one crewmember of the five or so Jack was addressing chortled.

"If she had only known that I was Captain Jack Sparrow-" "captain of the Black Pearl, the pirate ship that leaves no survives and is worse than hell, she would have hit you harder with her trunk." the crew laughed heartily.

Jack waved a dismissing hand at them, "You idiot sea dogs had better let your captain rest from the grievous wound he received in a vicious sea battle." the crew laughed harder. Jack gave up and retreated to his cabin.

He had just closed the door behind him when, SLAP! "Wha-?" he broke off as his dark eyes met the angry brown of Elizabeth Turner. "Elizabeth?" he was at a complete loss. "What are you doing here?" SLAP, "Now wait one blasted second!"

"No! You wait Jack Sparrow. You deserve that and much, much, much more." she was so angry that her voice was quiet, "Four years and six months ago we were trapped on that island together. Jack, tell me the truth, what happened that night?"

Jack put up his hands in self defense, "Now Elizabeth," he started, "Dammit! Don't 'Now Elizabeth' me! Did you or did you not sleep with me?" she was anxious to know.

Jack looked down at the floor and rubbed his hands together, "Well..." "Just tell me Jack." "Yeah..." his voice was a whisper and he sounded genuinely sorry, "You did agree though." he quickly added.

"Damn you Jack Sparrow. I remember next to nothing about that night." she moved to a window and stared out it for a few seconds, her back to him. He came up behind her and slowly put his hand on her shoulder. As soon as he touched her, she whirled around and spat at him, "You knew that if I hadn't hadn't been that drunk I would never had agreed! You screwed me some four years ago Jack, now I'm screwing you."

"You're what?" Jack jerked back and could not have been more shocked than if she had punched him.

"Three months after we parted, it became apparent I was pregnant. Will had been courting me this whole time, I had no marriage for it to be the cause of; I knew it was you, it couldn't be anything else." Slowly Elizabeth pushed Jack backwards until he was against a table. Jack hurriedly moved to put the table between them but Elizabeth leaned over it and continued, "I left to go visit my cousin in America for three years and six months. I had the child and raised her. I was now going to Tortuga to find you, but you saved me the trouble."

"Wait, find me,. her?"

"Yes Jack Sparrow, you cost me some four years to wait to marry Will. Now I can. And she is 4 years old next November 11, and her name is Ceara."

"Well why don't you raise the kid in a proper home?" Jack asked still in shock that he was a father and hoping desperately he wouldn't be placed in the position he could see coming. He backed up against the rows of windows behind him, Elizabeth swept around the table, never letting her stormy brown eyes leave his scared dark ones.

"I'm not hurting Will. He cares about people, especially ME. It would kill him if I brought back a child, especially one that is half yours and pirate. I will not hurt him. He cares; unlike you Jack!" she poked him in the chest to emphasize the point.

Jack held up his hands as if to ward off the cutting remark, "That was a low blow Elizabeth!"

"Then let me give you a physical one to go with it," and with that she stepped forward and kneed him in groin. Jack wasn't quite sure how she did it with her skirts but he was in too much pain to care.

"Jack, I trust the little good I know is buried deep inside you somewhere and in the crew to raise her right. Don't forget, her name is Ceara, good- bye Jack; maybe we will meet again. "

"Good-bye? Wait-" but a candlestick descended out of no where and hit him on the head. Jack's eyes rolled up into his head and he fell flat onto the floor.

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When Jack awoke he rubbed his head and groaned. By the looks of the sun several hours had passed by. He looked around groggily and saw a small girl asleep in a chair by the windowsill. Her small head was on her hands and the sun shone on her long slightly curvy dark, brown hair.

Jack Sparrow got up and swayed uprights until the dizziness passed. He walked sideways so he could keep a cautious eye on the slumped form. When he reached a mirror, he kept watching his newfound daughter out of the corner of his eye as he felt his head and eyed the tender lump on his head distastefully.

He then cautiously crept near the girl, his expression wary. He stood slightly crouched and tilted behind her, staring at her for a while, ready at a slight moments warning to leap back and away form the unknown source in front of him.

After a while he reached forward and poked the girl in the arm. She moaned in her sleep moved her head so she was facing him and went back to sleep. Jack leapt back but after Ceara quieted Jack went forward again, looking at her. Her long hair fell across her face and down her back. After seeing that she wasn't waking he stood upright gave a sigh of relief and walked out of the room.

Once out side he gratefully leaned against the doors and sucked in the fresh sea breeze. Then he straightened up and with his usual swagger, the hips pronounced like that of a drunken man and arms waving, he walked up to the wheel.

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An hour or so later, at the end of the afternoon, Jack was disturbed from his almost complete conviction that the whole mornings escapades was a dream; when his daughter walked out of the cabin.

Elizabeth had taken the hidden Ceara out of a closet and Ceara had pleaded with her mother not to leave her on this horrible pirate ship, but Elizabeth insisted and told Ceara that she was to stay in the cabin until she was gone. Jack Sparrow, the captain, was her father and she was to trust him, but not too much. After the final hugs and good-byes, Ceara had watched her mother leave the cabin and had heard her through the partially closed doors greet and talk with the old sailor and the black woman who dressed as a sailor explain who she was and plead with them to treat her well and then depart. Elizabeth was helped over a plank between the two ships onto the Sundancer and then stood at the railing, watching.

The mother and daughter watched each other through the cabin's windows until the Sundancer had disappeared form view. The Little Sparrow-Swan child had fallen asleep at the window watching, and had woken up to find her 'father' was not on the floor. She left the cabin to find him and was intensely scrutinized by crew of the Black Pearl.

She walked near the edge of the ship to get out of the crews way. With her back against the edge, and her chin held high to try and disguise her fear, she started to edge along, her eyes riveted on the sailors going about their jobs. Then she came to the cut section where the gangway was and she suddenly found herself griping air. She wind-milled. Her small voice cut through the air in a shriek of panic.

Jack had been glaring at the girl but when she started wind-milling his eyes opened and he yelled out "Watch out!" But it was too late, Ceara was flying through the air and landed with a splash in the water. Jack didn't dare let go of the wheel, the boat might be blown over and right on top of her, but he doubted she knew how to swim. Yet they were leaving her behind!

"Anna Maria! Take the helm!" He hardly waited for her to grasp the wheel. "Take her around and get us on the other side!" and with that he took off running. He threw off his coat, hat, and belt with his sword, pouch, and pistol on it. They fell onto the deck but Jack was already leaping over the side of the high deck and diving into the water. Once in, he swam frantically for where he throught Ceara had fallen in. He dove beneath the water and saw her tan colored dress just started to fade into the dark sea.

He dove for her. He just managed to catch her underskirts as his lungs were on fire for air. He hauled her and himself up to the surface, how he never knew, but he did. Once there he caught her beneath her arms and managed to hold her light body, heavy with the dress, and keep her head above the surface until the Pearl swung around and back to them.

A rope was thrown overboard and he tied it under her arms and she was hauled up. It took awhile because they had to wait until the waves crashed just right with the ship to haul her up.

Once up, the rope was thrown back down to Jack who grabbed on, and between him climbing up and the sailors hauling, got up quickly. Once up, he immediately fell beside Ceara, who was coughing up water. "Blankets," he gasped and blankets were thrust into his arms.

Anna Maria ripped off the girls dress and underskirts until she was in her shift and quickly wrapped her in the blankets. Once Jack saw that Ceara was wrapped, he too wrapped himself in the blankets to fight off the chill of the sea.

He sat down on the deck in the sun and Ceara was placed beside him. The sailors went back to their posts and Anna Maria took the helm back form Gibbs. Ceara looked at Jack, her 4-year-old forthrightness obvious, "What?" Jack finally asked, his irate voice angered.

"Your not as bad as I thought you were, but your still a pirate." And with that pronouncement, Ceara snuggled into the blanket and fell asleep again, tired after her traumatizing experience. Jack stared unbelievingly at the girl and then banged his head backwards against the deck side he was leaning against. "These Swan women." he mumbled before he too fell asleep.

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Hey! Well here's the first chapter, what do you think? If anyone wants to help me in beta reading or with ideas I would love the help.

Preview chap 2: Ceara grows up and learns many things, from Jack Sparrow, hmm.. wonder how she is going to turn out.

~Kit ;)