Sighing, Elizabeth folded her arms over her stomach, looking out at the port of Tortuga. "I thought we were sailing at dawn," she called over her shoulder.
Will laughed. "My dear, it's not even midnight."
She turned enough to fix him with a look. After giving Annemaria enough coins to have her take Elizabeth back to the ship, he had seized Mina's hand and the two of them had disappeared, in his words, "for a talk long overdue."
He grinned, sliding his arms around her and kissing her neck. "Do you know what, Elizabeth?"
"Probably more than you think," she said slyly, turning around in his embrace and slipping her arms around his neck.
Will raised an eyebrow. "Tomorrow night this place will be crawling with pirates. Tonight, however, I see only one person with me on this deck."
She cocked her head, smiling and pretending not to understand. "You can count to one, Mister Turner. I believe I was the one underestimating you."
Instead of a reply, Will pulled her closer and kissed her, effectively ending that – or any other – conversation for the rest of the night.
* * * * *
Mina ran ahead of Jack, kicking off her boots and splashing through the shallows before starting to jump from rock to rock out to sea. "I see you haven't grown up at all," he muttered fondly, not bothering to take anything off as he had a longer stride.
"And you?" She turned, smiling slightly but completely radiant. "Have you grown up, Jack Sparrow?"
He hopped forward another step, balancing on two rocks in front of her as he took her hands. "Do you want me to grow up?"
She leaned her head forward until their foreheads touched. "I want you be to you."
He wrinkled his nose. "'s a lot to ask, love."
"Oh, Jack." Mina laughed it softly, kissing him sweetly before pulling away, heading back to shore. "I still don't believe it," she said when she heard him splash in a small wave behind her.
Jack slipped his arms around her waist, resting his head against hers. "I never really loved Meredith," he said after a pause.
"What?"
"Meredith. I never really loved her."
Mina turned, dropping to sit on the sand as he positioned himself beside her. "You never loved her? Jack you spent the better part – no, over a year, trying to win her favor!"
"I know. And I was a fool."
Her mouth twitched. "That is my personal opinion, yes."
Jack shrugged, looking out into the harbor. "I needed her. After running away that last time, I had nothing left."
"You've been a pickpocket as long as I've known you," she pointed out, though he had rarely spoken of the home she knew he had tried to leave many, many times.
He winced. "Yes, I nicked those things from home and sold them for much less than they were worth."
"So, what, you needed her so you could go lifting her knickknacks from the mantelpiece?"
"Now, stop." Jack lifted a hand to put a finger to her lips. "I needed her to try to forget you."
Mina was silent.
"Honestly, love. Look at it: you were barely more than a child, locked up in some abbey, and she . . . she was supposed to make me forget." He shook his head. "I couldn't have you, so I needed someone."
"Drown yourself in a woman's pleasures, is that is?"
"Mina." He grabbed her chin. "The sound of your voice insulting me is sweeter than anything she might have offered. And believe me when I say she was a proper lady and didn't offer much."
She pulled out of his grasp, hugging her knees to her chest. "Would you have taken it, had she offered?"
Jack closed his eyes, leaning back on his hand. "The truth, love? Yes. Yes, I would have taken it, and regretted it the most the next time I saw you. Actually," he continued, turning his face away, "I probably wouldn't've been able to face you again."
"Because of course I would have known."
He ignored the fact that she tossed her head and rolled her eyes. "I would have known, and that would have been more than enough."
She was silent a moment, gathering her thoughts. "Jack?"
"Yes, love?"
"I . . . I tried to forget you, too."
He blinked. "What's his name? And address, too, I'd really hate shooting the wrong man, honestly isn't worth it . . ." Reaching out, he made as if to pinch her cheek. "Smile, lass. It's a joke, promise."
"I know, just . . ." She caught his hand. "I almost did it."
Jack's eyebrows rose. "I see . . ."
Mina laughed. "Not that, you idiot," she admonished, going to punch his shoulder and accepting his embrace, leaning her head on his shoulder. "I almost took my oath the year I turned eighteen."
"Oath?" He pulled back so he could look her in the eye. "You mean my Will almost became a nun?"
"Well, I obviously didn't think I was your Will at the time!"
"Huh." He cocked his head. "What stopped you, then?"
Mina took a deep breath, snuggling against him and wriggling her bare toes in the sand. "The fact that it wouldn't ever make me forget you. It would just mean that I couldn't really dream any more, because I'd be taking away the chance I never really thought I had."
Jack kissed her hair. "Well, I didn't think I'd have a chance, either, not the way I'd messed things up."
"And so you wanted treasure." She fixed him with an appraising look. "Did you really think I could be won?"
He smiled with chagrin. "No, I just thought you might need convincing that I was serious."
Mina laughed, really laughed, throwing her head back and getting tears in her eyes. "Honestly, Jack, I think throwing two prostitutes at me was a bit more effective."
"Hey, I didn't arrange that," he protested, holding up his hands. "Pure dumb luck, that."
"Good luck, you mean," she corrected, cupping his cheek in her hand. "Very good luck."
"I'll say. Now I've finally got a lass I don't have to lock outside the room!" He dove at her, kissing her roughly as he pinned her hands to the sand.
"Hey!" Mina protested, laughing, when he allowed her to breathe. "I may be your Willemina, but I'm still catholic, even if I'm not a nun."
"Ah, but you're a pirate," he pointed out, nuzzling her neck.
"A catholic pirate, then."
"My catholic pirate." He raised an eyebrow, beads swinging across his forehead at an obscure angle.
"Mmmm." She closed her eyes. "That seems to be a contradiction, if you think about it . . ."
"Then don't think about it, love." He winked. "Just take it as it comes."
"Oh, you!"
"What?" He did a horrible impression of looking innocent. "Is there a problem, love?"
She bit her lip, trying not to laugh. "Yes, although he does happen to be a good-looking one . . ."
Jack made a show of looking up and down the beach before deciding that, yes, he must be the good-looking one, as there was no one else in sight. "So does that excuse the problem, then?"
"You!" Mina cried, acting more exasperated than she really was as she shoved him over onto his back, crossing her arms on his chest and resting her chin on them. "That depends."
"On what?" He grinned, teeth flashing in the distant lights from the port. "And I really pity you if you think keeping me like this is any sort of torture."
"Mmmm." Turning her head to the side, her eyes closed again. "Good, 'cause I'm about to fall asleep."
Jack shifted slightly so he could take her in his arms. "Go right ahead, love," he whispered, smiling as he knew that, unlike in his dreams, she would still be there when he awoke.
* * * * *
"You really should get some sleep, sir," Norrington said respectfully.
The governor shook his head. "I can't sleep, Commodore. I keep being haunted by this dream . . . Elizabeth's in trouble." He turned haunted eyes on the younger man. "I fear I'll never see her again."
Swallowing, the commodore forced a smile. "Now, that's no way to talk. Our five fastest ships are out there, looking for the Redemption at this moment. A ship like that can't hide forever. Besides," he said consolingly, "we're bound to catch word from the captain: who lead the mutiny, commandeered his crew, and if he has any inkling as to where they were headed. Really, sir, there's no reason to fret. If Elizabeth could survive the Pearl, then regular, mortal, and uncursed pirates can hardly present a problem."
Governor Swann seemed to think this over slowly before he nodded. "And Will is with her. He won't let anything happen to her."
"That's the tune you should be singing, sir," Norrington agreed heartily. "Captain Torrington will surely attest to the fact that he refused to leave her side, no matter what the situation."
As the governor left, satisfied, Norrington turned back to his maps, wishing that he felt half as confident as he felt, praying that someone would find Torrington soon.
Many miles away, Torrington opened his for the first time since the storm, clear-headed and sure footed.