CHAPTER NINE: MIDNIGHT CONVERSATIONS

Switching from gazing at the compass to readjusting the wheel, Jack navigated the ship through the calm waters with ease, revelling in the silence the night carried with it. It was late and he'd wager a good portion of the crew was already fast asleep, the rest getting ready to do the same. It had been an especially trying day, with the wind not picking up until well in the afternoon. The men were forced to handle the oars, rowing themselves into fatigue for hours on end.

Thinking back to their bald 'guest', he was surprised to admit that the man had done quite an impressive job for one that didn't make career on the sea. This had his mind wandering back to the mysterious couple. He knew nothing of them, that was for certain, except for the fact that they were both hiding something. In all honesty, he was curious as to what this great secret was, but patience was something he had an abundance of. He had never been impatient, not over anything. Not even reclaiming the Pearl, which was just as well considering it took him ten years. No, he would always wait for the uppertune moment and it always seemed to come around if one was with it enough to see it. Not that it really mattered any way you looked at it, since he would be rid of them soon enough.

Storing the compass away, he grabbed the bottle of rum from where it had been stuffed behind his belt and tipped it up to take a swig of it when some movement caught his eye. Glancing in that direction, it was just in time to see someone emerging from below-deck and he squinted to make out the person's identity. Recognizing the whisps of blonde hair, a wolfish grin spread out across his face. He secured the wheel, feeling safe enough with the easy weather not to give it a second thought as he descended from the helm and started making his way towards the figure.

Closing her eyes, Chloe tried to clear her mind, listening to the waves softly crashing against the hull of the ship. The rythmic motion managed to sooth her somewhat, but was unable to get her thoughts away from home. It had been three days now, and she couldn't help but wonder what her father was doing right then. Was he at the police station, being questioned as to why his daughter may've been tempted to run away from home? Had her friends told Gabe where she had gone right before disappearing? Would they find out what happened to her and Lex?

All these questions and more were running amock through her head, but the one that plagued her most was 'Will I ever get back?'

Letting out a sigh, she lowered her head a little to watch the full moon reflect off the water's surface.

"Can't very well 'ave one o' my men sulking, now, can I?" a slurred voice cut through her haze.

With a start, she turned to see Jack leaning against the railing next to her and silently scolded herself for not having heard him approach. "I'm not a man and most certainly not yours," she bit at him, doing nothing to hide the scowl twisting her lips.

She knew he didn't deserve her bitchy attitude, but it was his own fault for inviting himself to a deep and meaningful conversation with a very annoyed and sleep-deprived Sullivan. Especially when said Sullivan was stuck in the 17th century with Lex-bloody gay-Luthor.

'Where is Lex, anyway,' she wondered idly, before dismissing it just as quickly.

While his hat obscured his face from her view, Chloe's breath hitched momentarily as an almost wolfish grin peeked out from under the wide brim, rendering the girl speechless while he raked his gaze down her body. "I know."

Before she could pull her eyes from him, he turned back to the waters, bowing froward as his elbows rested on the railing. She couldn't tell for sure, but she thought she saw his grin widen even more, if possible, and cursed herself for having been caught staring.

"Though ye're wrong about the latter," he spoke up again, making her raise an inquistive brow. "Ye're on my ship, an' therefore, yer life rests in me very capable hands." He winked at her, but only received a scoff.

"Nice line, buddy," she told him, scrunching up her face with something akin to disgust. "But could we please refrain from discussing your bodyparts. I don't even want to think about where your hands have been." Thinking back to when she'd overheard him and Lex going at it in the Captain's cabin, she shuddered.

"I know where I'd like them to be."

Resisting the urge to gape at him, she wondered how the hell he delivered that line with a straight face, a little impressed.

Silence reigned as both kept quiet, seemingly lost in thought, til the reporter broke it. "Where are we going?"

He took a moment before answering. "Tortuga."

'Huh?' "Tortuga?"

"Aye," he affirmed, hands talking along with his mouth. "We'll drop ye and yer friend off there an' we'll all be on our merry ways."

Nodding, she thought about what she and Lex were gonna do when getting to the mainland. Tortuga didn't sound so horrid, after all, it was named 'Turtle' in Spanish, how bad could it be. Maybe they could find some sort of a way back to their own time and continue on with their lives like normal people. Not that there was anything normal about their lives, but that was beside the point. The point was... was Jack drinking?

She watched as he swallowed another large portion of the rum he'd almost forgotten he had trapped in his belt. The ease with which the liquor flowed into him like it was water alarmed her somewhat, afraid he was going to throw his tight, drunken ass off the edge and have the crew blame her for killing their oh so charming Captain.

Noticing her eyes on him, he moved to face her, holding out the bottle. "Care for a sip, luv?"

She grimaced, pushing a stray lock of hair out of her face. "Maybe in fifty years or so when I'm old and bitter and raving about cars and dishwashers and flushing toilets to poor, unsuspecting people on the streets of ancient, boring England."

Staring at her for a long moment, he tried to figure out what she had just said before shrugging and lifting the bottle to his own lips again. "Ye know," he started, his hands beginning their less than graceful dance through the air again. "Where were ye going b'fore the mut'ny again?" His voice had started slurring even more and as she glanced at the almost empty bottle, she could see why.

Choosing her words carefully, she ignored Jack as he swaggered over to a decent sized barrel and sat down on it, kohl-rimmed eyes watching her intently. "England. Our families live there and we haven't seen them for so long, so we paid the Captain of the..." she paused before making something up. "Rising Sun to have us tag along. Things didn't actually work out as planned and, well..." Pressing her lips in a thin line, she made a wide gesture with her hands as if to say "Here I am".

Instead of aknowledging what she'd said, he just watched her, a pensive expression on his face. 'God, he's hot,' flitted through her mind and she silently cursed God for robbing women around the world of such a fine male specimen. 'Guess it's true what they say: "all good looking guys are gay". Especially certain sexy, pirate Captains and evil, playboy, billionaires.' A frown furrowed her brow as a thought hit her. 'Think Bruce Wayne is...?'

A voice stirred her out of her musings again. "Sit down, luv, all yer swayin's makin' me dizzy."

Looking up, she debated wether or not to tell him that it was in fact his head that was swinging from side to side, but ruled against it. Even in the short timespan she'd been on the Black Pearl, she was convinced that she was already starting to get sea-legs just because she didn't get smacked down on the deck with every single wave. It was just a start, but she and her health were glad enough for it.

Finding herself stiffling a yawn, Chloe decided to go back to Anamaria's cabin and get some sleep when Jack caught her arm, halting her from leaving. "An' where might ye be off to?" he questioned, a disarming grin playing on his lips.

She just rolled her eyes, clasping her hand over that of Sparrow and removing it from her arm. "People tend to refer to it as 'sleep', but I suppose you're more familiar with the term 'passing out'," she shot at him along with a glare. 'Poor Lex.'

Standing up, he swayed omniously before regaining some sense of balance. "What, luv?" he questioned, mocking bafflement. "An' leave my vivacious company?"

The incredibly adorable pout on his lips did nothing for her irritation. "Vivacious?" she snorted. "I doubt you even know how to spell it."

His mouth opened to actually proof her wrong, when he caught himself. Sligtly put out, he frowned. "I find tha' an insult to me intelligence!"

"What intelligence?" she threw over her shoulder as she began walking towards the staircase that would lead her to the cabins. The laughter that boiled up behind her managed to surprise her, but she just kept on walking, careful not to bump into anything in the dark.

"Ye wound me!" he shouted dramatically at her from across the deck, bringing both hands over his heart. The large grin remained on his face as she disappeared from sight, not wavering a bit as he dangerously made his way towards the helm once more, arms stretched out to his sides to keep what remained of his balance.

Almost tripping at the top of the stairs, he managed to catch himself with an 'Oompf'. "Bloody 'ell," he muttered, finally arriving at the wheel and gripped it with both hands. As this didn't work, he looked down to see that he was still holding the bottle and immediately threw it overboard.

After having calmed down a little, he peered into the darkness with unfocussed eyes, trying to make out what he was looking at, but to no avail. With a heavy sigh, he gave up and let his mind wander back to the strange blonde.

"We like 'er, don' we," he slurred, grin back in place as he stroked the wheel lovingly, talking to his beloved Pearl.

"Chloe....."

TBC