Disclaimer: Still don't own the Pirate hunk from the movie, damn it.

AN: I'm really glad that people like the story! Thanks so much for your reviews; they really mean a lot to me. Thanks to you, I get my inspiration and will to write more! I love you all! Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 4: Plots at Sea:

Two weeks after she had been brought onboard the Pearl, Elena began running out of ways to avoid the attentions of Captain Jack Sparrow. Actually, she hadn't been able to avoid him at all; he was the captain, after all, and had access to the entire ship. However, he was kind enough never to enter the "women's" cabin, as it was now dubbed. In fact, all of the men stayed away from the room the two women shared (probably because Annamaria had threatened to make a eunuch out of anyone that dared to break in). Jack had even put a wooden bolt on the door to make sure that the two ladies weren't bothered at night, just so they could have some 'private time' to themselves.

However, despite the seclusion of her shared cabin, Elena found it nearly impossible to find ways to avoid him. The annoying captain was everywhere Elena was when she wasn't in the galley cooking a meal, and that was a great deal of time. After all, she didn't have to spend all of her time cooking, especially when she had an assistant in the form of Annamaria or Mr. Cotton (minus the bird because it always got feathers in the food). All in all, Elena didn't spend more than six or so hours of the day, total, in the galley.

In her free time, Elena was often in her shared cabin, in the store rooms below deck, or walking around the top deck, enjoying the sights and smells the sea had to offer. Then, no sooner had she been by herself for a few moments than Captain Sparrow would be next to her, pestering her. Elena would mostly roll her eyes in annoyance and avoid his vulgar questions and comments, but would turn and glare at him whenever he made a flirtatious complement on her looks and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her. At that point she would go to her cabin or the galley to be alone, for no one, not even the Captain, dared to pester the cook when she was in the galley. Yet the dashing captain sometimes stayed in her mind. His voice and smile made her feel all soft and strange inside, and it made her feel special.

As those feelings descended in her heart, Elena always crushed them, remembering Tommy's advice: Jack Sparrow goes through women like sailors go through drinks. No, Captain Jack Sparrow would not win her heart, and there was no way in the deepest realm of hell that she would grace his, or any man's, bed unless she was sure of his heart and future intentions. No, Elena Marks would never be made into a pirate's one night stand, not if she could help it!


Jack was practically tearing his hair out with frustration. The red-haired woman was driving him towards insanity! She positively refused to be around him, or to even flirt with him! She didn't even call him by his first name like he ordered her to! The blasted woman was going to drive him absolutely mad before the month was out!

Jack leaned back in his chair in his cabin, focusing his thoughts on the wall above his desk, gathering his scattered mind together. He needed to figure out a way to win the lass over. He didn't know why, but the way she refused to respond to his advances was irritating. It was probably because no woman had managed to put him off for long, even after they had learned about his reputation as a "ladies' man." They were usually much more responsive at the end of two weeks, and yet this one was avoiding him like a plague! He just couldn't figure out how this woman worked! Sighing, Jack buried his face in one hand.

Suddenly, an idea hit him and he sat straight up, a smile gracing his face. Annamaria was close to the gal, and if he could subtly get some information on the lovely red-haired Elena from her, he would be able to figure out how to win the lass over!

Still smiling, Jack stood and swayed over to his door and out of his cabin, searching for only other female crewmember on the Black Pearl.

"Jack, what part of 'no' do ye not understand?" Annamaria said, crossing her arms over her chest.

Jack had found the woman in the cabin she shared with non-present Elena, and had been trying for the past half hour to get the female pirate to talk about the lass. Annamaria, however, had no intention of giving up the information given to her by her close friend.

"Come on, Anna, I just want to know some things about the girl!" Jack said, putting on an innocent face. "Where's the harm in telling me about her?"

"If ye want to know about her, go and talk to her yerself!" Annamaria snapped, placing her hands on her hips while glaring at him.

"I've tried, but she just runs away from me," Jack said, annoyance creeping into his voice.

An eyebrow cocked on Annamaria's face. "Really, now?" she asked, a smile tugging on her lips. "That's the first time I've heard of a girl running away from the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow, and not to him!" She chuckled.

"It's not funny, Anna!" Jack said, pacing around the cabin. "I can't figure out why she won't talk to me! I've tried everything, but she doesn't want anything to do with me!"

"That's because she isn't a whore, Jack," Annamaria said, rolling her eyes at him, as though it should have been obvious to him. "She's from a higher class, or haven't ye learned that from the way she talks? She's got more learning in one hand than the entire crew has put together! She's not used to all of the crude talking that ye usually do with the wenches in Tortuga. Ye have to speak to her like ye speak to a lady and not use a lot of dirty jokes and words when ye talk to her!"

Jack stopped pacing the cabin to look over at her. "Of course!" Jack exclaimed. "Annamaria, yer a genius!" He clapped the woman on the shoulder and left, leaving her staring at place he had once stood.

As he walked back to his cabin, Jack alternated between mentally congratulating and mentally slapping himself. He was proud that he had gotten something out of Annamaria, but was slapping himself for not treating Elena with the proper respect worthy of a lady. It should have been obvious that she wasn't of the same social class that he and the crew were from; it was all in the ways she spoke and acted, and it was all with a sense of class and an air of dignity.

As he went to his cabin, Jack quickly formed a plan on how to get the red- haired cook to talk to him, and maybe even to like him, if only a little bit. After all, a little thing could turn into something much bigger!

Still grinning, Jack shut the door to his cabin and began to carry out his ingenious plan.


Meanwhile, on another part of the ship, Elena was beginning to get worried. Captain Sparrow hadn't been around to bother her for several hours, and she had been on deck, alone, all that time. He would usually be there mere moments after she had made herself comfortable at the bow of the ship, but today he hadn't even shown up! Elena should have been relieved at the peace and quiet, but for some reason, she was on edge. Jack Sparrow was up to something, she was sure of it. She didn't know what, but it disturbed her greatly.

Shaking her head, Elena realized that she was being paranoid. After letting the wind blow her thoughts away, she headed below to make dinner for the crew.

As the crew inhaled their dinner, consisting of roasted herbed meat and potatoes, Elena was beginning to get worried, for Jack hadn't shown up for the evening meal, per usual. The pirate captain normally had breakfast in his room because of his drinking habits, but always ate lunch and dinner with the crew. Perhaps he was ill? Her heart tinged with worry at the thought as she began putting together a tray to deliver to the Captain.

"Ye shouldn't have to do that, lass," Mr. Gibbs said as he came into the galley, bearing his dirty, and very empty, plate. "The Captain can come down and eat for himself. Ye don't need to put together a special tray for him."

Elena smiled as she finished the tray. "Oh, it's no trouble. I've already eaten, and I know how he would enjoy a hot meal, especially after a long day of work."

Mr. Gibbs grinned at her. "Ye know, lass, I think that ye might be a good thing for the Captain," he said. "He's always missed meals in the past, but after ye came onboard, he hasn't missed any, what with ye delivering his breakfast and all."

"Why, Mr. Gibbs, I do believe that you like having me onboard! And I happen to be a woman, too!" Elena exclaimed, giving him a teasing smile.

Mr. Gibbs simply rolled his eyes and returned her teasing smile. "Don't let it go to yer head, lass," he said. "Ye just happen to be the best cook that's ever been on the Pearl, that's all." He smirked. "And ye might be one of the best things to happen to the Captain in a long time." He then turned and walked away, leaving a puzzled Elena behind him, still holding the dinner tray.


Jack was taken completely unawares when someone knocked on the door of his cabin. After a quick glance in the mirror and a look around his cabin, he approached the door and opened it, revealing the reason he had missed supper that evening. Then again, considering the sight, perhaps he hadn't.

There stood Elena, complete with a dinner tray and a glass of wine, all of it just for him. Well, he hoped that everything in front of him was just for him, at least in his mind; if anyone else wanted the lass, they'd have to go through Jack to get her.

Putting that thought aside, Jack realized now was the perfect time to put his plan into action! Out loud, he asked, "I suppose that dinner's for me, luv?"

Elena smiled. "Of course!" she exclaimed. She stepped into the cabin, and froze in shock. The entire room was spotless! Everything had been cleaned up and neatly put away; it had even been dusted! She turned around and saw that Jack was smiling at her.

"Are ye going to set that tray down so I can eat, or what?" he asked, motioning to the desk. She noticed a large piece of paper on top and nodded at it, silently indicating the paper standing in the way. Jack followed her gaze and raced over to it, snatching it away and hiding it within the confines of the desk. After it was put away, Elena set the tray on the desk, and Jack immediately sat down to eat, waving at a chair next to him, indicating that she should join him.

"Thank you," she said, "but I should go. I've got dishes that need to be washed."

"Come on, luv," Jack said. "I tend to get lonely without someone to talk to while I eat. Why do you think I like to eat with the crew so often?"

Elena sighed and took a seat. As Jack ate his meal, Elena surveyed the cabin. There were numerous books on the shelf, all of them very impressive; there was Shakespeare, Homer, Ovid, and all sorts of other great authors.

"Ye like the books that I've got?" Jack asked, finishing his meal. He waved towards the selves. "I've been collecting them for years."

She looked at him in shock. "Do you actually read them?" she blurted out before clamping her hand over her mouth. "I'm sorry, that was rude of me," she said, blushing at him while avoiding his eyes.

Jack simply smiled. "No hard feelings, luv," he said. "And I do read, how do ye think I pass the time on this ship when I'm not on deck?" He grinned at her. "Ye look pretty when ye blush, luv, do ye know that?" She blushed even more and Jack grinned even broader.

Elena quickly stood and took the now empty tray from him. "I need to get this back to the galley," she stuttered, still blushing. "I'll talk to you later, Jack." She then raced out the door, leaving a grinning Jack behind.

Jack watched the blushing woman go out the door, still grinning after her. She had actually called him by his first name! He was thrilled. Jack then stood up from the desk and headed over to the bookshelf. He picked out "Romeo and Juliet" and headed out of his cabin, towards the one the women shared. He then went straight into the cabin, knowing that Elena was in the galley and Annamaria was on duty at the helm. He then left the book on Elena's bed, knowing that it would be the only neatly made bed in the cabin. Afterwards, Jack headed back towards his cabin, impatiently waiting to see her reaction tomorrow morning when she brought him his breakfast.

Later that day, after all of the dishes had been washed and stacked, Elena entered her cabin and undressed. After she finished, she saw a book on her bed. Picking it up, she saw it was Shakespeare and realized that the book was from Jack's collection. Suddenly turning thoughtful, Elena began to think that perhaps Jack Sparrow wasn't so bad after all. The problem was that she didn't know if that was a good thing, or a bad thing.


AN: I know that this is a rather fast update, but I've just started organizing my schedule so that I can try and update faster and more often. Unfortunately, it's time for mid-terms, so I won't be able to update for a while. I'll do what I can, though! Anyway, please be kind and leave a review! Thanks!