Disclaimer – still not mine, although December 2nd is coming up pretty quick.  Don't own anything, not even the characters.  But I do own the ships . . . except for the Pearl . . . that belongs to Jack.  All OC's belong to themselves.  If you don't believe me, ask them yourselves.

Author's Note – chapters are going to be a bit on the short side until I'm further into the story and have a better idea of what I'm doing. With any luck I can update on either Thursday or Friday.

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"We're going to have to do something about that dog."  Winn, half asleep after spending a morning wasting time abed in the company of her husband, simply sighed.

   So it might be true that Pigeon might be a tad bit . . . outsized.  In truth, the pup had grown in the promise of the oversized paws she had possessed as a puppy.  Winn grinned at a stray thought that passed through her endorphin hazed mind.  "Maybe I should have named her 'Albatross,' and then we could call her 'Albie.'  Pigeons aren't big, but albatrosses are."

   Jack looked askance at the woman lying on her stomach at his side.  "Love, what does that have to do with anything?"

   "Umm . . . nothing?"  Winn yawned.  "I can't think right now."  Suddenly, the impact of Jack's earlier statement dawned on her.  "What do you mean, 'we have to do something about' Pige?  What's wrong with her?"

   "Was I the only one in this bed a few minutes ago?"

   Winn smiled and buried her head in her husband's shoulder, embarrassed.  "I think I was . . . busy . . . with other things at the time."

   Jack gave an 'oh yeah' grin at the implication in her statement, but then remembered his original complaint.  "That dog is just too big."

   Raising her head from his shoulder, Winn prepared to defend her companion.  "No she's not.  She's just a tad energetic."

   "She just attacked me!" 

   The look of righteous indignation on Jack's face was too much.  Winn tried to suppress her amusement as she said, "Because she's loyal to me.  I'm sure she just thought that we were playing."

   Jack rolled over and wrapped his wife in his arms securely.  Nuzzling her neck, he whispered suggestively, "We were.  That was the problem."

   Before things could progress any farther, the couple was interrupted by a rather loud banging on the door.  "Capt'n!  There's a ship in sight, sir!  She's in distress!"

   "So am I," muttered Jack.  Winn tried to laugh quietly, but Jack merely gave her a near lethal glare in return for her pains.  She shrugged unapologetically and kissed him under his chin.

   "What are your orders, Captain Sparrow?"

   Still glaring at his rather unsympathetic wife, albeit without much actual malice, Jack called out to the waiting crewman, "I'll be there shortly.  Tell Mr. Gibbs to prepare the ship and hoist the flag."  The sound of retreating footsteps was the only answer to these commands.

   Rolling off Winn rather reluctantly, Jack sighed, "Duty calls."  Winn nodded in agreement, and then got out of bed, groaning as she did so.  Watching from his prone position on the bed, Jack asked, "What're you doin', love?"

   Pulling on a shirt as she spoke, Winn replied, "Getting ready.  What does it look like I'm doing?"

   Jack rolled his eyes.  This was a constant debate between the two.  Jack wanted to keep Winn in this room where she'd be the safest, and she wanted to be on the deck where she would only be as safe as he could keep her.  Bloody woman is too stubborn for her own good.  The thought wasn't bitter though – he happened to respect her ability to hold true to a position.  Except when that position countered his, then it was an aggravating nuisance.

   "Winnie, can't you just stay in here and keep the bed warm?  I doubt that this is going to be difficult or time consuming.  I'll wrap things up quick as I can, then I'll come back here and we can continue to while our day away in dalliance and the pursuit of dissipated activities."

   Well aware of what Jack was attempting to do, Winn raised one eyebrow and asked, "Were you really planning on wasting the entire day in here, Jack?"

   "I'm not sure I'd call it 'wasting,' love.  There's usually some kind of regret associated with the act of wasting something.  I never regret time spent with you."

   The look of innocence on Jack's face and the blatant romance in his voice and words assured Winn that he was trying to manipulate her into staying hidden away while he took risks out there.  She had to admit that at times she enjoyed feeling protected by her husband, but being coddled was another matter altogether.  Especially when he saw nothing wrong with taking risks that he'd give her a thorough reaming for taking.

   "Near four years of marriage and you still don't trust me to take care of myself."  She saw Jack wince at the irritation evident in her voice.  She knew that it wasn't because he feared her temper, but because he was just as sick of arguing over the same material as she was.  "I happened to have done a pretty good job of keeping myself in one piece before I met you, Jack.  Even in the midst of firefights and careening drunks precariously swinging swords at the doubles produced by too much drink.  But why is it that the moment I step on this ship you no longer trust me to stay alive?  Even when you know how capable I am with a sword?  Or have you not noticed?"

   Getting out of bed himself, Jack replied, "I did notice, and I do trust you.  It's the other crew that I don't trust not to injure you.  You know what 'respectable' sailors think when they see a woman on a pirate ship."

   "Why should I care what strangers think?"

   "Because they won't treat you with the respect due a lady if they think you're a common strumpet."

   Winn gave him a look that was something along the lines of 'get serious'.  "Jack, you don't always treat me with the 'respect due a lady,'" she pointed out as she fastened the buttons of her breeches.

   "Yes, but I'm your husband."  It was Winn's turn to roll her eyes.  "Anyway, my point was that you'll be fair game to them."

   "Not if they're smart."  Winn walked to the bed and wrapped her arms around her husband's neck.  "And how is it different if I make myself fair game if you're the fish that they'd all love to catch?  Have you ever thought that maybe I like to keep an eye on you too?"

   Jack was starting to look uncomfortable with this conversation.  "I don't know what you're talking about, love."

   "We both know that you never let me out of sight whenever we've engaged another ship.  Even in the midst of the most chaotic fights you're paying more attention to me at times than the person you're fighting, which is, if you ask me, fair foolish.  Someday that inattention is going to get you into trouble, and then where will I be?"

   Exasperated, Jack pointed out, "If you stayed here, I wouldn't have to 'keep an eye on you,' and would therefore be better able to concentrate on my work instead of worrying about you."

   "If I stayed in here, not only would I go mad with boredom, but I'd most likely go mad with worry as well."  Resting her head against his chest, determined to win this round of the argument, Winn murmured, "Can't we just agree to keep an eye on each other?"

   Jack growled low in his throat, knowing that he was about to give in.  Grabbing her arms, he thrust her away from him until he could meet her eyes.  "Just because I happen to be inescapably emotionally attached to you, doesn't mean that you get to fight unfairly, Winnie.  That's my job.  You're supposed to appeal to my mind and better sense, and convince me with your undoubtedly flawless logic."

   Winn knew she had just won, and also knew that Jack was desperately trying to hide the fact that he'd do what was in his power to see her happy, even if it meant doing something he wasn't particularly fond of.  Snuggling back into his chest she said in a playfully innocent tone, "But I thought I was appealing to your mind."

   "I'd rather you appeal to the mind that doesn't want to keep you in bed for days on end, love," Jack said wryly.  Giving her a brief kiss, he let her go.  "We'd best get ready.  The ship may be in distress, but there's no proof that her crew is."

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Author's Thanks to: Savvy-Z, Niamh McNamara, bobo3, lilitaliandragon, jackfan2, captainsparrowsfeistylass, BeBe, eva, KawaiiRyu, Savvy Sparrowhawk, mooney, poppet, ari Greenleaf, siremaik, Ariandir