A/N: Sorry if the story is moving slowly, that's how I see it, but anyways. And how do I address Jack? Do I say "Sparrow", "Captain", or just leave it at "Jack"? What say you? Okay, on to the story. And btw, I might change the points of view in this chapter, just for some variety.
Blood was clouding Victoria's vision. An acute pain was plunging into her arm. She didn't want to feel it, but it would be bliss to lose conscience. So she did.
Back at the beach, Sparrow stood with his bottle of rum, watching the surface.
"I can't see the lass. Can you?" he said to the other men. They shook their heads. "Just wait a bit longer, you don't want to upset the lass if you go after her," one of the men said, dropping his empty bottle and taking another one. For ten minutes longer, they stood in silence, waiting to hear the triumphant "HA!" from Victoria.
"All right, I'm going after her. It's been too long." He put his bottle of rum down on the sand and stepped into the water tentatively. "Don't drink that, I'm coming back for it," he said, pointing at the half empty bottle. He held his breath and plunged in. Once he was under, he opened his eyes. Though it was dark, the silvery moon was reflecting light into the water. He had a clear view of everything. Fish darted around him as he searched for Victoria. Jack kicked back to the surface to breathe and returned to his search. Adjusting to the blurry view of being beneath the waves, his burning eyes scanned the sandy floor. Suddenly, he noticed a dark lump a few yards ahead of him, suspended in the water. He nervously swam to it and touched it. It was soft. Silky brown hair floated around it, mingled with blood. He realized that it was Victoria, unconscious. He locked his arms around her middle and he started pulling her up. She was limp, making it difficult for him to lift her. His lungs were about to collapse as he struggled to pull her to the surface. Quickly he dropped her, letting her body dangle, lingering near the chain from the ship. He made his way to the surface and took another gratifying breath before going back down. His arms locked around her and he used all his strength to pull her up. But he felt a snag when he pulled. More blood escaped Victoria's arm as he finally noticed the rusty chain of the anchor sliced into it.
"Come on!" he said, bubbles escaping his mouth. Her dress and her blood floated around him, tangling in his belt and shirt. Jack quickly ripped off Victoria's dress and gently pulled the chain out of Victoria's arm. Then he heaved her onto his back as he paddled to the surface awkwardly. His head surfaced, Victoria still lying unconsciously on his back. He swam back to the shore, where the rumrunners waited anxiously. Jack pulled Victoria and laid her on her back. Her eyes were still closed.
"Victoria, wake up, love," he said, taking his shirt, which had been laying in the sand and wrapping her arm. She was bleeding profusely. Jack shook her hard. Suddenly, she awoke, coughing up water.
"What the bloody 'ell did you think you were doing?" he groaned, relieved. She looked up at him, breathing heavily.
"Thank-thank you," she sputtered. Victoria shivered, looking down and noticing that now her dress was out in the water and she was in a loose slip that became see-through when wet. She crossed her arms and eased herself up, limping back to the other side of the island. Jack watched her carefully until she was nothing but a small bleeding dot, shrinking into the distance.
The next morning, the weather looked very bleak. Victoria was asleep in a pile, covered by her dress and Jack's shirt.
"Wake up, love. We're setting sail today," a voice said. Victoria moaned as she turned on her side. It was sore from last night. Jack chuckled, picking her up and standing her up.
"Here," he said, handing her a full bottle of rum, "this ought to stop the pain, love. Now we best be going, 'fore the rumrunners leave us." She wobbled for a moment then followed him, carrying the clothes. A man assisted Victoria into a rowboat, Jack getting into another one. They rowed out to the ship where Victoria had tried to swim the previous night. She boarded, as they showed her to her room, which she was sharing with Jack. She stared uncomfortably at Jack, who was looking at the bed with a sense of wonder.
"It's alright, milady. I'll sleep on the floor. I'm gentleman enough," he said, quickly noticing her expression. He sat on the floor to show her. Victoria nodded tiredly, tumbling onto the bed. Jack remained for an hour, sitting on the floor until all he could hear was her rythymic breathing that told him she had fallen asleep.
A/N: Like it? Hate it? Tell me what you think of the change. Make sure to tell me if it's AU, though. But please, NO FLAMES! That's why I delayed in writing this, because I was trying to get over a piece of criticism that I maybe took too sensitively. Nonetheless, it made me really edit this chapter, so let me know if it's any better. How? Click on that "GO" button next to Submit Review, and type away, me 'earties, yo, ho! ^_~