Jack stood proudly at the helm of his ship, one hand on the wheel, enjoying
the feel of the wind as it ruffled his hair. His dark eyes were trained
thoughtfully on a rising bank of grey cloud approaching them from the east.
He'd already signalled to Will that a storm was coming and had received a
very imaginative insult via the signal flags, given that no curse word had
ever been translated into a signal by any navy the world over, along the
lines of 'I know what I'm doing, thank you very much'.
A soft smile appeared on his face as he glanced over his ship, his gaze passing over the sailors to return to the contemplation of his wife where she sat with young Harry. The lad had taken a tumble from the fighting top a couple of days beforehand, almost breaking his leg when he landed. Luckily for him, though, he had landed on Cotton, who had been hanging about beneath him just in case he fell anyway.
Jack watched Marin carefully as she spoke softly with their cabin boy. She'd been in a peculiar mood as of late, somewhat pensive and almost sorrowful when she had moments to herself. He'd seen her running her hand over the Pearl with an oddly bitter smile, only to set her shoulders and wipe the unpleasant expression from her face. Not able to convince himself to confront her about her moods, Jack had let her be, trying to wait until she chose to tell him what it was that bothered her.
He was roused from his thoughts by Gibbs, who wandered to his side, his own eyes on his captain's young wife.
'The lass has something on her mind, there's no mistaking it,' he said, ignoring the withering look he received for this statement of the blindingly obvious. 'Maybe she needs to talk about it.'
Jack rolled his eyes.
'Gibbs, are you trying to tell me to go and talk to my own wife?' he asked.
The stocky first mate frowned, straightening his shoulders.
'Me? I'd never presume to tell me captain anything,' he protested, adding, 'But the cousin is getting a little concerned.'
The cousin. Jack sighed, glancing over at James where he sat, also watching Marin, though not as openly as the two men by the helm. Having the dear commodore aboard was a mixed blessing, he'd decided. On the one hand, it meant that James and Marin were growing closer, becoming more like a real family every day, and on the other hand, it meant Jack had to watch what he said to his wife in front of her cousin in case he took offence on her behalf. It was a tricky business being married.
'So what you're saying is I should go and talk to her, but you'll not tell me to,' he said pointedly.
Gibbs pondered this for a moment, before nodding.
'Yes.'
Jack gave him a long look, before his gaze returned, inevitably, to Marin.
'Thing is, mate, I don't want to venture into anything when I don't have even an inkling of the cause,' he admitted candidly, knowing if anyone could tell him that, it would be Gibbs. No matter what had been said where, Gibbs knew about it the morning after at the very latest.
'Well, ordinarily I'd be happy to tell ye, Jack,' he said awkwardly. 'But I'm afraid this could be something ye've got to work through yerself.'
Jack turned incredulous eyes on his first mate.
'You mean you're not going to even hint at anything?' he said, absolutely aghast at the thought of entering a conversation with no knowledge of what would be said. 'Nothing at all?'
Gibbs nodded.
'Look, I'm fond of both of yer,' he said placatingly. 'I'm not going to put either friendship in the brig over getting involved in something that's just between ye two.'
He winced, and Jack knew he'd given something away.
'Just between us, eh?' he mused. 'I wonder . . .'
His kohl-rimmed eyes returned to Marin to find her leaning against the side, gazing out across the ocean towards the clouds that were growing ever closer. He hated to see her melancholy, he realised, especially now Gibbs had mentioned that it was at least partially his fault. He nudged his first mate.
'Take the helm, would you, mate?'
With a quick nod, Gibbs took his place at the wheel, at the same time glaring at any stray members of the crew to warn them to stay away from the captain and his lass for the time being.
Jack sauntered down to where his wife stood, unable to resist wrapping his arm about her so she couldn't turn to face him, but had to give in to his nuzzling at her neck. Marin laughed, a little half-heartedly, as the braids in his beard tickled her skin, a stark contrast to the softness of his lips as he tasted her. He pulled back a little, laying his chin on her shoulder.
'You alright there, love?'
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew this was the wrong way to go about getting the answer he wanted. Jack suppressed the urge to correct himself, waiting for her to reply.
She sighed softly, never once taking her eyes from the ocean.
'I'm fine, Jack,' she murmured, not sounding at all convinced in herself that this was the right answer.
Jack tightened his arms about her, drawing her closer.
'Are you sure, love?' he asked. 'Only you've been away with the fairies a fair bit the last few days.'
Marin smiled faintly, amused by his description of her dark thoughts. She had not been able to shake the feeling of jealousy that surged through her whenever she saw Jack gaze out at the sea, or run a gentle hand across the timbers of his ship. Where did she fit in his heart, with two such established rivals?
'It's nothing for you to worry about,' she told him, lying through her teeth and hoping he wouldn't notice.
Her hopes went unanswered. Jack turned her about in his arms, lifting her chin to look into her steely grey eyes.
'Elias never told you what a bad liar you are, did he?' he asked her gently, an amused glow lighting up his dark eyes. 'You blush whenever you tell a falsehood, did you know that?'
Marin rolled her eyes in dismay.
'No, I didn't know that,' she muttered, unable to raise her eyes to his at this unexpected revelation.
He smiled fondly down at her, brushing his fingers across her cheek as the flush faded slowly.
'It's sweet,' he murmured, lifting her chin once more. 'Tell me what's wrong, love, please.'
Marin sighed again, just as softly as before, but with a more sorrowful note as she let her feelings show in her face.
'I've had a few things on my mind, that's all, Jack,' she told him. 'I'll get over it.'
Jack held her gaze for a while, his eyes burning into hers as he searched for what he should say next.
'Anything you want to talk about?' he asked. 'Something I could help with?'
She smiled sadly up at him, letting him kiss her forehead gently before she turned away again.
'Maybe,' she murmured.
They fell silent once more, both gazing out across the water in near identical states of agitation. Jack wanted so much to make things better for his wife, but without knowing the source of her obvious unhappiness, he couldn't do much to cheer her. Still, at least she had admitted that there was something wrong. It was a start.
'Why did you marry me?' Marin asked suddenly, turning to face him with clear eyes.
Jack blinked slowly, excruciatingly aware that, as soon as she said that, all intelligent thought had fled his brain. Frowning, his mouth worked for a moment before he blurted out the first thing that came into his head.
'I promised,' he said. 'Elias. I promised old Fitz that I'd look after you.'
Marin shook her head.
'You didn't have to marry me to do that,' she told him calmly. 'And we both know that James would never have made good on his threats, so that's not the reason either. Why, Jack?'
Desperation warred with panic in his mind as he sought for an answer that would satisfy her. For some reason, the words he so wanted to say were hiding in the recesses of his mind, refusing to come out. Now, why now of all times did he have to lose his grasp on exactly what he felt for her? There was no way he could come out and say it, she'd think he was making excuses. He groped for the only other reason he could think of.
'There's always the treasure,' he said off-hand.
Marin's expression hardened, her eyes turning to unforgiving flint under his gaze. She tensed, stepping out of his arms with a tight smile.
'The treasure,' she said slowly. 'Of course. No self-respecting pirate would do anything that didn't offer a profit to him.'
Jack, thinking he was home and dry, shrugged carelessly, grinning down at her with only the slightest hint of worry.
'Well, it's the code, innit?' he said brightly.
She held his gaze, radiating icy hatred from her core.
'So that's the reason you married me, is it?' she asked, her voice brittle with hurt and disappointment. 'For profit? For my family's gold?'
Jack held up his hand, sensing the sudden hostility between them with the air of a man who knows he is about to be slapped.
'That's not what I meant,' he started, but she cut him off.
'Isn't it?' she spat. 'You are the best pirate the Caribbean has ever known, why shouldn't you marry for profit? It fits perfectly with your character. Tell me, Jack, just when were you planning on saying something? Before or after you broke with me for the gold?'
Jack sighed, grimacing as he realised the damage he had done with a single panicked sentence.
'Marin -'
Her hand cut him off, smacking against his cheek with a resounding crack. He reeled backwards, his head spinning. No matter how many times he was slapped, it never ceased to surprise him.
'What was that for?' he protested.
She glared at him, uncaring that most of the crew was witness to this argument.
'You know what!' she snapped. 'I can't believe I let myself get in so deep with you!'
'Now hold on,' Jack grasped her arm, preventing her from turning away. 'Will you let me explain?'
Marin's tone was back to the scathing cadence she had used in their first words together, all those months before.
'I don't know, are you able to?'
He glared down at her, somehow as angry as she was, though he had no idea why. He drew in a deep breath, trying to calm himself. From the corner of his eye, he saw James standing off to one side, his expression strangely neutral.
'Last time I tried, you slapped me,' he said calmly, letting her go as she wrenched her arm from his grip.
'Twice,' Marin told him.
He frowned, confused.
'Once,' he corrected her, and realised his mistake almost at once.
The second slap was a lot harder than the first, and sent him stumbling sideways into several members of the crew who had unwisely stood just that bit closer than the others.
'Don't argue!' she snapped at him, turning on her heel and stalking away, down onto one of the lower decks.
Jack stared after her, shocked. He hadn't realised that one simple mistake could upset someone so much. Or that his little wife could get so angry so quickly. He glanced about at the crew where they stood around, staring at him in barely concealed horror.
'Alright, you lot!' he barked, quickly assuming the role of captain once more. 'Show's over! Storm coming, get on with it!'
They hurried to obey him, no one wanting to cross the captain after what they had just seen. James slipped past him, intending to clamber up into the rigging as the ship began to pitch in waves that grew increasingly rough. Jack grasped his arm.
'What's wrong with her?' he asked the other man.
James looked down at him with something approaching sympathy.
'I don't know,' he said truthfully. 'But then, I'm not her husband.'
Letting him go, Jack swore, clambering up the stairs to the poop. Whatever was wrong would have to wait until after the storm to be resolved, he thought. And hope to God no one got hurt.
A soft smile appeared on his face as he glanced over his ship, his gaze passing over the sailors to return to the contemplation of his wife where she sat with young Harry. The lad had taken a tumble from the fighting top a couple of days beforehand, almost breaking his leg when he landed. Luckily for him, though, he had landed on Cotton, who had been hanging about beneath him just in case he fell anyway.
Jack watched Marin carefully as she spoke softly with their cabin boy. She'd been in a peculiar mood as of late, somewhat pensive and almost sorrowful when she had moments to herself. He'd seen her running her hand over the Pearl with an oddly bitter smile, only to set her shoulders and wipe the unpleasant expression from her face. Not able to convince himself to confront her about her moods, Jack had let her be, trying to wait until she chose to tell him what it was that bothered her.
He was roused from his thoughts by Gibbs, who wandered to his side, his own eyes on his captain's young wife.
'The lass has something on her mind, there's no mistaking it,' he said, ignoring the withering look he received for this statement of the blindingly obvious. 'Maybe she needs to talk about it.'
Jack rolled his eyes.
'Gibbs, are you trying to tell me to go and talk to my own wife?' he asked.
The stocky first mate frowned, straightening his shoulders.
'Me? I'd never presume to tell me captain anything,' he protested, adding, 'But the cousin is getting a little concerned.'
The cousin. Jack sighed, glancing over at James where he sat, also watching Marin, though not as openly as the two men by the helm. Having the dear commodore aboard was a mixed blessing, he'd decided. On the one hand, it meant that James and Marin were growing closer, becoming more like a real family every day, and on the other hand, it meant Jack had to watch what he said to his wife in front of her cousin in case he took offence on her behalf. It was a tricky business being married.
'So what you're saying is I should go and talk to her, but you'll not tell me to,' he said pointedly.
Gibbs pondered this for a moment, before nodding.
'Yes.'
Jack gave him a long look, before his gaze returned, inevitably, to Marin.
'Thing is, mate, I don't want to venture into anything when I don't have even an inkling of the cause,' he admitted candidly, knowing if anyone could tell him that, it would be Gibbs. No matter what had been said where, Gibbs knew about it the morning after at the very latest.
'Well, ordinarily I'd be happy to tell ye, Jack,' he said awkwardly. 'But I'm afraid this could be something ye've got to work through yerself.'
Jack turned incredulous eyes on his first mate.
'You mean you're not going to even hint at anything?' he said, absolutely aghast at the thought of entering a conversation with no knowledge of what would be said. 'Nothing at all?'
Gibbs nodded.
'Look, I'm fond of both of yer,' he said placatingly. 'I'm not going to put either friendship in the brig over getting involved in something that's just between ye two.'
He winced, and Jack knew he'd given something away.
'Just between us, eh?' he mused. 'I wonder . . .'
His kohl-rimmed eyes returned to Marin to find her leaning against the side, gazing out across the ocean towards the clouds that were growing ever closer. He hated to see her melancholy, he realised, especially now Gibbs had mentioned that it was at least partially his fault. He nudged his first mate.
'Take the helm, would you, mate?'
With a quick nod, Gibbs took his place at the wheel, at the same time glaring at any stray members of the crew to warn them to stay away from the captain and his lass for the time being.
Jack sauntered down to where his wife stood, unable to resist wrapping his arm about her so she couldn't turn to face him, but had to give in to his nuzzling at her neck. Marin laughed, a little half-heartedly, as the braids in his beard tickled her skin, a stark contrast to the softness of his lips as he tasted her. He pulled back a little, laying his chin on her shoulder.
'You alright there, love?'
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he knew this was the wrong way to go about getting the answer he wanted. Jack suppressed the urge to correct himself, waiting for her to reply.
She sighed softly, never once taking her eyes from the ocean.
'I'm fine, Jack,' she murmured, not sounding at all convinced in herself that this was the right answer.
Jack tightened his arms about her, drawing her closer.
'Are you sure, love?' he asked. 'Only you've been away with the fairies a fair bit the last few days.'
Marin smiled faintly, amused by his description of her dark thoughts. She had not been able to shake the feeling of jealousy that surged through her whenever she saw Jack gaze out at the sea, or run a gentle hand across the timbers of his ship. Where did she fit in his heart, with two such established rivals?
'It's nothing for you to worry about,' she told him, lying through her teeth and hoping he wouldn't notice.
Her hopes went unanswered. Jack turned her about in his arms, lifting her chin to look into her steely grey eyes.
'Elias never told you what a bad liar you are, did he?' he asked her gently, an amused glow lighting up his dark eyes. 'You blush whenever you tell a falsehood, did you know that?'
Marin rolled her eyes in dismay.
'No, I didn't know that,' she muttered, unable to raise her eyes to his at this unexpected revelation.
He smiled fondly down at her, brushing his fingers across her cheek as the flush faded slowly.
'It's sweet,' he murmured, lifting her chin once more. 'Tell me what's wrong, love, please.'
Marin sighed again, just as softly as before, but with a more sorrowful note as she let her feelings show in her face.
'I've had a few things on my mind, that's all, Jack,' she told him. 'I'll get over it.'
Jack held her gaze for a while, his eyes burning into hers as he searched for what he should say next.
'Anything you want to talk about?' he asked. 'Something I could help with?'
She smiled sadly up at him, letting him kiss her forehead gently before she turned away again.
'Maybe,' she murmured.
They fell silent once more, both gazing out across the water in near identical states of agitation. Jack wanted so much to make things better for his wife, but without knowing the source of her obvious unhappiness, he couldn't do much to cheer her. Still, at least she had admitted that there was something wrong. It was a start.
'Why did you marry me?' Marin asked suddenly, turning to face him with clear eyes.
Jack blinked slowly, excruciatingly aware that, as soon as she said that, all intelligent thought had fled his brain. Frowning, his mouth worked for a moment before he blurted out the first thing that came into his head.
'I promised,' he said. 'Elias. I promised old Fitz that I'd look after you.'
Marin shook her head.
'You didn't have to marry me to do that,' she told him calmly. 'And we both know that James would never have made good on his threats, so that's not the reason either. Why, Jack?'
Desperation warred with panic in his mind as he sought for an answer that would satisfy her. For some reason, the words he so wanted to say were hiding in the recesses of his mind, refusing to come out. Now, why now of all times did he have to lose his grasp on exactly what he felt for her? There was no way he could come out and say it, she'd think he was making excuses. He groped for the only other reason he could think of.
'There's always the treasure,' he said off-hand.
Marin's expression hardened, her eyes turning to unforgiving flint under his gaze. She tensed, stepping out of his arms with a tight smile.
'The treasure,' she said slowly. 'Of course. No self-respecting pirate would do anything that didn't offer a profit to him.'
Jack, thinking he was home and dry, shrugged carelessly, grinning down at her with only the slightest hint of worry.
'Well, it's the code, innit?' he said brightly.
She held his gaze, radiating icy hatred from her core.
'So that's the reason you married me, is it?' she asked, her voice brittle with hurt and disappointment. 'For profit? For my family's gold?'
Jack held up his hand, sensing the sudden hostility between them with the air of a man who knows he is about to be slapped.
'That's not what I meant,' he started, but she cut him off.
'Isn't it?' she spat. 'You are the best pirate the Caribbean has ever known, why shouldn't you marry for profit? It fits perfectly with your character. Tell me, Jack, just when were you planning on saying something? Before or after you broke with me for the gold?'
Jack sighed, grimacing as he realised the damage he had done with a single panicked sentence.
'Marin -'
Her hand cut him off, smacking against his cheek with a resounding crack. He reeled backwards, his head spinning. No matter how many times he was slapped, it never ceased to surprise him.
'What was that for?' he protested.
She glared at him, uncaring that most of the crew was witness to this argument.
'You know what!' she snapped. 'I can't believe I let myself get in so deep with you!'
'Now hold on,' Jack grasped her arm, preventing her from turning away. 'Will you let me explain?'
Marin's tone was back to the scathing cadence she had used in their first words together, all those months before.
'I don't know, are you able to?'
He glared down at her, somehow as angry as she was, though he had no idea why. He drew in a deep breath, trying to calm himself. From the corner of his eye, he saw James standing off to one side, his expression strangely neutral.
'Last time I tried, you slapped me,' he said calmly, letting her go as she wrenched her arm from his grip.
'Twice,' Marin told him.
He frowned, confused.
'Once,' he corrected her, and realised his mistake almost at once.
The second slap was a lot harder than the first, and sent him stumbling sideways into several members of the crew who had unwisely stood just that bit closer than the others.
'Don't argue!' she snapped at him, turning on her heel and stalking away, down onto one of the lower decks.
Jack stared after her, shocked. He hadn't realised that one simple mistake could upset someone so much. Or that his little wife could get so angry so quickly. He glanced about at the crew where they stood around, staring at him in barely concealed horror.
'Alright, you lot!' he barked, quickly assuming the role of captain once more. 'Show's over! Storm coming, get on with it!'
They hurried to obey him, no one wanting to cross the captain after what they had just seen. James slipped past him, intending to clamber up into the rigging as the ship began to pitch in waves that grew increasingly rough. Jack grasped his arm.
'What's wrong with her?' he asked the other man.
James looked down at him with something approaching sympathy.
'I don't know,' he said truthfully. 'But then, I'm not her husband.'
Letting him go, Jack swore, clambering up the stairs to the poop. Whatever was wrong would have to wait until after the storm to be resolved, he thought. And hope to God no one got hurt.