Author's Note: AHHH!!! This is my longest chapter so far! YAY! Tell me if you like it or not…I mean the length of the chapter.
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Gwyneth stood there for a moment before someone grabbed on her hand and started pulling on it. She looked down to see Rebecca. "Becky! Did you like the picnic?"
"What's wrong, Aunt Gweny?"
She sighed, looked at where Jack disappeared and looked at her niece, "Nothing dear, just a shock. Let's go help your mom get the stuff in." The little girl nodded and they went to the picnic area. When they walked up, everyone was talking but stopped once they noticed Gwyneth. She narrowed her eyes as Rebecca let go of her aunt's hand. "What were you guys talking about?"
"The fact that Jack Sparrow just asked you out," Caitlin said bluntly.
"And that Captain Jack Sparrow doesn't look like a pirate anymore…more like a confused gentleman," Mark added, crossing his arms.
"I had always imagined him…taller." Edward put in.
Gwyneth looked at all of them, "You only invited him to…check him out? To see what he was like?" No one answered. "You're pitiful!" She said with a smile.
"So, did you say yes?"
Gwyneth looked at Trevor, "Yes to what?"
"To Jack!" Caitlin said, thoroughly excited.
She paused, "I don't think it's any of your business." She said walking with Edward and Faith, leaving the children behind, whining. They ran to catch up with the adults, in the house and starting putting things away. "C'mon Aunt Gwyneth! Tell us! Please?" she heard from all of the kids.
She sighed happily and shook her head, even though inside she wanted to cry. Why is he doing this? I don't want to go out alone with him… Edward finally told the inquiring offspring to cut it out and go find something to do. Once the whining was no longer present, everyone heard a crashing sound from upstairs. Gwyneth looked at her brother, "I will pay for whatever she is breaking." And then they heard a loud scream. She rolled her eyes and ran up to Brenda's room.
***
When Brenda's door opened sharply, she pointed her pistol at the intruder and then lowered it. "Sorry Gwen, I didn't know it was you."
"What did you do to this room?" She asked, surveying the damage. The entire bookshelf was knocked over, the cushions on the window seat: thrown across the room, the bed was messed up horribly, the drawers in the vanity were also across the room and the mirror was cracked.
"I was mad." She said plainly.
Gwyneth stared at her, then looked at the dagger on the floor, "I think you have an anger management problem."
"I live with Jack Sparrow…what do you expect?"
"Why are you bleeding?!"
Brenda looked down; blood was seeping through her corset. She growled, "How is it that I can cut myself with that bloody dagger but I can't cut the corset?!"
Gwyneth sighed, "You need help?" The look Brenda gave her was more than enough for an answer. She nodded and turned her around; "Once I get it off, I'll fix up the scratch…" she paused, seeing a familiar tattoo on her shoulder blade. "Is this a real tattoo, Brenda?" Gwyneth asked.
She nodded. "Dad gave it to me when I turned thirteen. He told me that I was a woman and I need to carry the Sparrow name proudly." Gwyneth eyed the tattoo, the same one that was on Jack wrist, of a sparrow in flight.
She untied the corset and Brenda quickly went behind the changing wall. Gwyneth sighed as Brenda started to change, "Brenda, why did you destroy your room?"
"I told you…I was mad."
Gwyneth rolled her eyes, "And that's a good reason to destroy a room that doesn't even belong to you?!" Brenda sighed, seeing the woman's point. "I'm sorry Gwen."
"That's fine…now come out here so I can look at your wound."
Brenda grinned, "Wound? I'm not mortally wounded…I've scratched myself before…"
"I realize that…but I want to make sure you're okay." Brenda sighed and followed her directions. She lifted up Brenda's shirt far enough to see the scratch and to see indeed, it was only a scratch. This is what it must feel like to have a mom...
"Why were you mad…?"
Jeez! She's worse than dad! Brenda sighed, "Dad…he said he was thinking of staying with Rick…"
"Well, that would make sense…Will and Elizabeth can't keep him forever."
Brenda put her shirt down and looked Gwyneth in the eyes, "Stay with him…endlessly."
Gwyneth's eyes widened, "He's not going to go back to the Pearl?" Brenda shook her head, "Maybe you should tell me everything that's been happening with Jack…"
She sighed and walked over to the window, "There's nothing to tell, Dad's lost it…and there's nothing I can do about it."
There was a sharp knock on the door before Gwyneth could respond. "Who is it?"
"Edward, is it decent in there?"
Gwyneth looked around, no, not really. "Just a sec, Eddie, I'll be right out." She paused and looked at Brenda, knowing the young woman wouldn't talk until she was ready. I hope she'll tell me though…even though pirates aren't known for their heart-to-heart talks… "If you need me…" She saw Brenda nod as her eyes seemed to glaze over as her focused turned to something else other than the ocean that lay in the distance. Gwyneth noted this and quickly left.
"What is it you want to talk about, Eddie?" Gwyneth asked once she was outside Brenda's room and the door was shut.
He took in a deep breath, "Let's talk in the drawing room, shall we?" She eyed him and nodded. They walked down the stairs; he opened the door for her and then went in himself and shut it behind him. He took in another breath and faced his baby sister. "Gwen…we need to talk…"
"Just come right out and say it Eddie, we're both adults, right?"
"Yes, of course, and I don't want to offend you Gwen, but you can't go with him."
She stared at her brother for a minute, drawing a blank about what he was talking about. "Eddie…please be more explicit."
"You can't go on this 'meeting' with Jack Sparrow."
Like this whole thing isn't hard enough… she said, her defenses going up, "Pray tell, why can't I, a woman of thirty nine go have lunch with Jack Sparrow?"
He paused, "Gwen, don't take this the wrong way- just believe me when I say it won't be safe."
"Both of us are adults, Eddie! He asked me to go have lunch with him and I said yes! I'm going."
"It won't be a big deal if you cancel."
"You're right, because I'm not going to cancel! There's no reason to. And there's no plausible reason as to why this lunch will be unsafe for me!"
"Save for the fact that he's Jack Sparrow!"
"Minus the pirate Captain part, Eddie. Did you not see him this morning? He does indeed look like a confused gentleman. If he was who he was fourteen years ago then I would be a little more hesitant to do this…but he's different."
"You sound…not pleased with that fact…"
She raised an eyebrow. I'm not going to get into that with him, "I'm going Edward. There's nothing you can do to stop me. Now, if you excuse me, I'm sure Steven and Jill need to be fed and Suzette needs to be walked."
***
Jack sighed and closed his eyes, the sound of the ocean soothing him more than he had expected. He was outside Will and Elizabeth's house, on their porch swing, the beach in walking distance. It's been so long… he thought to himself. The waves crashing against the water reminded him of his own life. He leaned against the back of the bench and swayed a little bit.
A few minutes later he felt someone sit next to him, figuring it was Elizabeth he said, "You can't help me this time, Lizzie."
"Why not?"
Jack paused, that voice wasn't Elizabeth. He slowly opened his eyes and looked at the girl sitting across from him on the bench. "Cassandra…" Boy, she looks like her mother. She has a ton of freckles…I wonder if Lizzie ever had freckles…
"What's wrong?"
"Did your parents send you out here?"
She shook her head, causing her dark brown curls to waver. "This bench is used a lot…especially when someone is having a problem. We always know not to come out here if mom and papa are sitting here."
Jack nodded and looked out onto the ocean again, "You like the ocean?" she asked. He nodded. "Didn't you used to be…" she stopped. He looked at her, motioning her to continue, "…a pirate?"
He sighed, "Aye…Yes, I did."
"What happened?"
He looked at the little girl, "Something that couldn't be fixed."
Cassandra nodded, knowing that when adults got tricky in their language, they didn't want to tell you. She sighed, "Are you going to see your daughter tomorrow?"
He shook his head, "I'm going out to lunch with Gwen."
"You mean Gwyneth. Nobody except her brother calls her 'Gwen'."
He looked down at her, "Has your father ever told you about me?"
She nodded, a beautiful smile spreading quickly across her face, "Momma did. She told me all your wild stories about Nassau Port and even here, in Port Royal…you led an exciting life."
He nodded, looking back onto the ocean, "Sometimes I wish I didn't."
"Why not?"
"Because it gets me into trouble."
"With that Rick fellow?" she asked, knowing she hit the target when she saw him close his eyes and then open them slowly. He never answered though. "Well, I better get going…I'll see you later…"
"Call me Jack," he said, never moving his eyes.
She nodded, "I'll see you later Jack."
***
The nerve of him, telling me that I can't be with Jack. It hasn't even gone that far and he's going so far as telling me I can't have lunch with him! Gwyneth growled under her breath as she paced her room, the sound of Suzette's paws following her. She had opened the window to hear the sounds of the far away ocean and the sound of the trees as the warm, Caribbean wind brushed past them like a blanket.
The walk hadn't helped a lot, but the anger had died down. As if this isn't hard enough… She sighed. She wasn't sure why she kept saying that over and over to herself, but it had something to do with their past. Do Jack and I even have a past? A romantic past? She paused in her pacing and turned to her bed. She sighed and bent down and reached her arms underneath until they hit something hard. She pulled out a handmade, wooden box and blew off the dust. She opened it like it was a door to a church and took out the piece of paper that hadn't been disturbed for a long time.
She unfolded it and read over it quickly.
Gwen,
Understand luv, that this is my first letter- don't be too judging. Your letter brought a smile to my lips. Thanks luv for doing such a thing to Brenda's hair. But the thing that caught my eye is that it will make me think of you. Which is something I'm happy for.
I wish you happyness with your life in Port Royal. You won't be seeing me for a while luv, and I would like to tell you something. Something I hope you will always remember- our time together won't be forgotten and I do in fact…care deeply for you luv. I hold you in my heart.
-Jack
She sighed and looked out her window, the green grass, blue sky and seemingly endless houses filled her vision. She tried to remember what went through her head when she first read this. She remembered how she smiled when she read the word 'happyness', how she felt a peace sweep over her the minute she read this. It was closure on the whole event.
So much for closure.
There was a knock on her door and she paused, "Just a sec!" she quickly stuffed the note back into the box and slid it underneath the bed again. "Come in!" she yelled.
The door opened to reveal all five of her nieces and nephews. She sighed and smiled, somehow they always know how I'm feeling… "Come on in." she said. Rebecca and Caitlin climbed on the bed, calling Suzie up to them, Jonathan and Mark took the window seat and Trevor, he leaned against the wall, crossing his arms and looking so much like a man.
She looked around the room and sat at her vanity. "Well go ahead, I know you want to say something."
All the children looked at each other and then at Trevor. He sighed and looked at his aunt, "Is there anything between you and Jack?"
She paused, "We're only going to eat lunch together! Why does everyone make such a big deal about it?!" They all paused. She took in a deep breath, bad form, Gwyneth. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have yelled…"
"It's okay, we know you're stressed." Caitlin said.
"And in love," Rebecca added. Gwyneth laughed half-heartedly. The room grew quiet again and Mark's eyes widened, as did all the children's as the reaction to Rebecca's comment left an impact on Gwyneth. "I am not in love with him…" she said, sounding as if she was trying to convince herself.
"You're in love with the Captain Jack Sparrow!" Mark said, standing up, getting excited.
"No…no I'm not!" she said, a smile making it's way to her mouth and shaking her head, "I haven't seen him in fourteen years!"
"You did blush when he asked you out…" Jonathan said, also getting up and walking towards her. The girls on the bed giggled as she shook her head more.
"You guys! No! Jack is…Is…"
"Love!" Rebecca shouted.
Gwyneth's mouth dropped as they got closer. She stood up, trying to maintain the 'Aunt' image. It wasn't working that well. "Alright!...Alright…now maybe Jack and I had a…relationship but nothing more. You five need to keep your thoughts and dreams to yourselves. Jack and I will never…"
"Get married?" Trevor asked, he was still leaning against the wall, looking calm. Gwyneth eyed him, making eye contact with him.
"Yea…get married."
***
After dinner Brenda had made a run for it. She said she needed some air and was going to walk down to the town to get a drink. She had told Gwyneth not to wait up for her. I'm surprised Edward and Faith didn't throw a fit when she said she needed a drink. Gwyneth thought to herself as she climbed the stairs to the boys' room. She wanted to talk to Trevor, but he was leaving soon to go out with his buddies. I just hope Trevor and Brenda don't go to the same place.
She knocked on his door and he opened it with a, "Yes?"
She half smiled, "Can we talk?" He paused and then nodded, opened the door and let her in. She thanked him and looked around, the room was empty. "Where's Jonathan and Mark?"
"They went to go look at the history books in dad's library…hoping to find more information about Jack Sparrow…and possibly Brenda."
She nodded, "That display in my room this afternoon…" He looked at her, like he didn't know what she was talking about. "About not wanting to marry Jack…"
"You mean you do?"
"No! No…it's just you acted as if…"
"I knew?"
She eyed him, "Your mother told you, didn't she?"
He nodded. "But she said that she had your permission to! That when I asked…she asked you."
Gwyneth frowned, "I vaguely remember that…I guess it's alright. So I guess she told you everything…"
He nodded again. "It's alright, I don't care. It's dad that cares about what happens between you and Jack."
She grimaced, "I know…But nothings going to happen. Nothing."
Trevor stared at her.
"Nothing! It's like something between you and Brenda…no. He's a…well a pirate…kinda…and I'm not. I'm a 'landlubber' and we will never be together."
"Do you want to be with him though?" he asked, going over to his desk and picking up a comb for his hair. She looked away but didn't answer. He sighed, "You know, he could…retire here."
"Pirates don't retire…they just take it a little easier…" she said mindlessly. Trevor put down the comb and sighed again, staring at his aunt who obviously had her mind elsewhere.
"I'm sorry…I won't bring up Jack around the others again…" he said, keeping his eyes on her but walking to the door.
She looked at him and nodded, "Thanks."
"But I can understand how you feel about Jack…" he said and then disappeared through the door, leaving Gwyneth completely clueless.
***
"Yo ho…hup…yo ho, a bottle of –hup- rum for me…No wait, that's not –hup- the right words." Brenda sighed. Hiccups are a bloody nuisance. Whoever created them should be shot. She was stumbling up the long hill to Gwyneth's house. It was a miracle she (literally) bumped into someone who knew where the house was, and pointed her in the right direction.
She had been hearing footsteps behind her, but wasn't quite sure if they were real or just a figment of her…drunken imagination. But I can defend myself…dad says I can shoot pretty well even when I am drunk! She sighed contently, happy with herself that she could still shoot a pistol even in her current position.
I shouldn't have drunk so much…but that was really good. And there were some interestin' people there… She hiccupped again. She growled at the hiccups and kept walking. "I sure wish I had someone to help me…" she paused and turned and looked behind her, "Hey you! Is there a you out there?" She heard something sigh heavily. "Ha! I caught you, you yellow-belly coward! Come out of the shadows and help me!" The person walked closer and who was it, but none other than Trevor.
"Oh! Devil boy! Nice to see you."
He rolled his eyes, "What are you doing?"
She wavered back and forth and grabbed on to his arm to keep from falling over, "I'm walkin' to Gwen's house. What are ye doin'?"
"Going home." He said jerking his arm away and walking further.
"Hey! Hey! Come help me!"
He turned, "Are you seriously asking me for help?"
She pointed a finger at him, "Never have it be said that Brenda Sparrow ain't afraid t'ask someone for help when drunk…" she swallowed, "Recklessly drunk…" she hiccupped again and fell over on her backside. She moaned as Trevor walked to her and knelt down. "Get away from me, Devil Boy!"
"I thought you said you needed help!"
"Not from you…you'll probably roll me down this hill."
"And you'd probably shoot me in the back if I didn't help you."
"Nonsense! I wouldn't shoot you in the back. I'd make you turn around."
He sighed and held out his hand. She stared at it and then looked at him, "What?"
"Get up."
She frowned and took his hand, hoisting herself up. He put his arm around her waist and walked with her, "How is it, that all of the sudden you can't walk?"
"Because the wooden fence I was holdin' on to ended back there, lad."
He nodded, I hope mom and dad aren't up…I'm not sure they would like to see this… he got both of them up to the door, Brenda babbling the whole way. Once he got to the door he turned her to face him, "Now, you need to be quiet, I don't want to wake up the whole house."
She frowned, "Aww…I'm not that loud, am I?"
"Yes, yes you are."
She sighed and her head dropped, "Oh man…I shouldn't have drunk so much."
"No…no…no. C'mon, stay awake!"
She rolled her head onto his shoulder and moaned, "Thomas…I can't…"
"It's Trevor."
"Whatever…" she said, fading fast.
"Does this always happen to you?"
"Yes…But usually I'm in my bed when it does…"
What? Is this a drinking disease? He sighed and said, "You can make it, c'mon."
"No…I can't…" she said and then fell. Trevor caught her fast, her body limp in his arms. He sighed and picked up her legs and carefully opened the front door. He didn't get far without noticing Gwyneth asleep on the couch in the front room. He sighed and told himself he'd get her next. She was probably waiting for Brenda…she really cares about this girl. He looked down at the young woman in his arms and sighed, shaking his head and walked up the stairs.
Gwyneth wasn't sleeping though. The light sleeper she is, she woke up when the door creaked open. But not wanting to cause a scene, she kept her eyes practically closed, with little slits to see if Trevor was going where he was supposed to go. She must've been drunk. That or he poisoned her.
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Author Thanks
Dawnie-7: Yes! I know! Rick is a dubious person isn't he? But yea, the bet will turn… well difficult sooner or later
Bitty-Buffy: lol…thanks. I was kinda worried at first but then I still got reviews so yea.
Dragonflygirl: Yes, I like 'bean' too.
Piper8188: Nice long review! YES! Uh the Jacks sick thing…I said he was 'ill' because he's not to everyone else, he seems ill in the head…you know? Like he's not alright 'up there'. Well from the last story, Gwen told Faith everything that had happened…so yea…I'm not sure what you're exactly talking about but I hope that might've helped. The reason to Brenda not liking him but Jack liking him…that'll be explained later… Right on! You're a Christian too? Nice.
Vicki Turner: Yea, it's awesome…I'm glad you liked my chapter
