Chapter 12
Amelia stood on the ship. Sunrise was long gone, and as much as she longed to get some rest, she could not fall asleep. Whenever she would close her eyes she saw Jack's face. He was haunting her mind and even though she loved him, he was really starting to piss her off. Of course, after seeing him she would abruptly re-open her eyes only to find herself looking at the ceiling of the cabin.
She groaned and then moved onto her side, looking at a wall. 'Why does it have to take so long?' she asked herself. All she wanted to do was sleep, and of course be with Jack. Why is life so evil? Her mind was teasing her, making her think of Jack and his smells and kohl rimmed dark brown eyes and his deep voice and great body...
Her thoughts went on like that for hours. The thing that bothered her most was that she didn't know if wherever Jack was if he was thinking about her as well. For all she knows, he could be back at Tortuga that very moment sleeping with some random strumpet. That one thought suddenly made her very angry and the fact that she got angry made her frustrated. Why did she feel that she should be allowed to get mad at Jack if he was with someone else. It's not like they were ever together or that she ever let him know that she cared about him. It was one thing for her to love him, but that didn't mean he had to love her back.
And what if he didn't love her? Then she would be doing all this for nothing. She would have to return to Port Royal, yet again, and request to be taken home. When she got home she would have to explain everything to her uncle and aunt. She was sure that they would be mad at her response to the commodore and then they would probably make her marry some other white wig weirdo.
She felt something licking her feet. At first she freaked, it could have been anything. She jumped up, with one loud shriek, and then looked at the bed to see what it was. If she wanted to see then she would have to pull off the thin white sheet. She stepped closer to the bed, and with one quick movement pulled the sheet off, only to reveal one little dog.
"Nevado!" she said, picking up her dog and hugging him. With all of this going on she completely forgotten about the faithful dog who scampered after her as she went off to find her love. "How could I have forgotten about you?"
The dog licked her cheek in reply. His tail was wagging a mile a minute because he was so happy to get some attention. Many people had been ignoring him lately, so it made sense that he was so content after being hugged and petted.
The door to the cabin Amelia was in opened. In came a worried Elizabeth, holding a mop like it was a bat. "What's wrong?" she asked, looking around the room to see if anyone was going to pop out and try to kill her. "I heard a scream."
Amelia set down Nevado and turned around to face Elizabeth. She put a smile on her face and laughed at the fact that she had screamed loud enough for people to hear from up on deck. It was even funnier when she thought about the reason why she had screamed in the first place. "Everything is fine. I thought Nevado was something else."
"Oh." Elizabeth replied, looking disappointed. "Want to come on deck with me? The view is nice and we could use your help."
"Sure." Amelia said, following her out of the room and watching her dog walk besides her. They walked up the stairs leading to the deck and stood in the middle. The sun was beaming down on the ship like a spotlight. It was definitely sometime around midday.
"Will says we should be arriving soon. Excited?" Elizabeth asked, seeming somewhat excited herself. She was happy to help another woman find love like she has with Will. Also, although she would never admit to it, but she did miss having adventure in her life.
"More like nervous." Amelia replied honestly. She felt like she had a million knots in her stomach. Her heart told her that she was doing the right thing by going to find Jack and her head told her that she was acting crazy. Doing this was like flipping a coin, she didn't know which side it was going to land on. Hopefully it would be heads, which would be him loving her back.
"There's no need for you to be nervous. He loves you too, it's so obvious." Elizabeth said. She had become good at reading people and she knew that the expression she had seen on Jack before he left was that of sorrow and angst. Much like the one Will had when she agreed to marry Norrington.
"Are you sure?" she asked insecurely.
"Positive." the woman replied with a smile. She believed that she was right, but if Jack decided to act stupid and break Amelia's heart then she would awful about having previously assured her. So she decided to change the subject. "You were right you know."
"Right about what?" Amelia was confused. What was she talking about?
"Right about Will. He does know what he is doing. I feel bad that I even doubted his abilities. He is a great sailor and pirate." she answered, looking over at the helm where her husband was standing concentrated on his task at hand.
"Oh, right. That he is." she commented. She had completely forgotten about that conversation earlier, seeing as at the moment her thoughts were submersed with Jack. Yes, that makes her sound like a pathetic little obsessed woman, but it was not her fault that she felt that way. It was not like she fell in love willingly. She had even tried to pretend like it was not there, but now she knew that it was and it was not going to go away.
The two women then went off in separate directions in order to help out around the ship. Their tasks were normal sailing things, but for them it was a challenge. Amelia did not notice how her hands were blistering from the ropes though, she was too busy with other thoughts.
Will stood at the helm. He wasn't tired, even though he hadn't slept for a day and a half. It was his first time actually steering the ship, but he was doing well and having fun in the meantime. He liked being on a ship, with the spray of the sea and the wind blowing lightly. He could get used to days like that.
It was a big change from the hot and stuffy blacksmith shop he owned. Not that he didn't like being a blacksmith, he was particularly good at it and people were starting to go to him for whatever they required. Most of his customers were rich, many of whom know his wife and father-in-law. He wasn't sure if they went to him because they liked his work or because they felt bad for Elizabeth being married to a blacksmith. He liked to think it was for the first reason.
He kept his mind concentrated, looking out into the horizon. Before he knew it, he could see the land ahead. They were approaching the famous pirate haven. He was going to call it to the attention of the two women, but then he saw that they already noticed. Amelia looked very anxious and Elizabeth looked as if she was happy to be getting off the ship.
They finally docked the stolen ship and Will rowed them all to shore, with Nevado in Amelia's arms. Since it was still day, the town appeared as if it was a normal one. People were walking about, buying supplies and whatnot. There were many ships there, some just getting there and others that had been there for some time.
Will and Amelia, having been there before, knew what the town was like at night and were not surprised at the normalcy of the day. Amelia had even had a scary run-in with a drunkard, which only Will had the privilege to know about. He kept his word and never told Jack. He felt bad enough for her after hearing about her first day on the ship. Plus, he knew how Jack could get when people disobeyed his orders.
Elizabeth, on the other hand, had never stepped one foot in Tortuga before. Will had described it to her, and she was shocked to see that it was really nothing like he told her. Yes, it was dirty and she could see that the inhabitants of the town were seedy looking, but she didn't see or hear any prostitutes, fights, gunshots, or any of the number of bad things he illustrated.
Both Will and Amelia noticed Elizabeth's reaction to the town. Amelia would have said something, but then that would be admitting to the fact that she had been in that town before at night and she did not want anyone else to know about that incident.
So, Will said something for her. "It's different at night." he told Elizabeth in a low tone. He eyed his surroundings suspiciously and thought to himself, 'If I know Jack's crew, and I like to think I do, then they would be at a tavern even at a time of day like this'.
He lead the women through the town, keeping one of them on each side so that nothing would happen to them. Luckily, they had no problems. He was trying to remember where the tavern that Jack took him to before was. Then he spotted the sign, 'Faithful Bride'.
They made their way through a crowd, and Amelia accidentally bumped into someone. "Watch yeself!" a woman's voice yelled, turning around to see who it was that bumped into her. "Amelia?"
"AnaMaria!" She saw an expression of surprise on the pirate's brown skin, which then turned into a smile. AnaMaria was one of the only pirates on board the Pearl who had been friendly with her, even after the cook fiasco.
"What are ye doing here? I thought Jack was taking ye back." AnaMaria asked, confused. She remembered Jack and Gibbs explaining the situation to her and leaving her in charge of the pirates who stayed behind while they dropped off the girl. What was going on? Her captain left to return this girl, why would she back in Tortuga?
"It's complicated." Amelia replied. "Where is Jack?"
"Don't ye know?" AnaMaria asked, getting even more confused. "He hasn't come back yet. I thought he was still off with ye."
Amelia was shocked. Where could he be if he was not here? "Thanks." she said, turning to face her companions and letting AnaMaria go off to wherever she was headed. "What should we do now? He's not even here."
"Yet." Elizabeth added, trying to cheer up her friend. "He's not here yet."
"We can wait in the tavern for him." Will suggested, also trying to help the situation. "He always goes to the tavern first. You know how much he loves rum."
So, with that said the trio entered the Faithful Bride. The women found a table at the side of the room. Amelia faced the wall and Elizabeth, who took the seat across from her. They had found that there were more people in the tavern then they had expected, even at that time of day.
Will came back from the bar juggling three mugs of ale. He set down one mug in front of each woman, and then took his seat at the side of the table. After taking a swig of the ale in his hand, he set down the mug on the table and looked around the room. He saw several familiar faces, pirates from Jack's crew.
Meanwhile, Jack was still on his ship standing at the helm. After he returned to his ship he took his spot there and let Gibbs go off and busy himself with other tasks. He was trying to get back to Tortuga as fast as possible. Not bit of him was insecure, worried, or nervous. He had a permanent grin across his face, and did not move from his spot at the helm once.
There was no reason for him to feel anything then utter contentment. He suspected that Amelia was at the pirate haven, after all where else would she go to look for him. Besides, she probably remembered that he left half his crew back there, so she knew he would have to go there first. Plus the fact that she would even go looking for him meant that she loved him, which was enough for him at the present moment. How was she getting there anyway?
The commodore had not given him any details. For all Jack knew he could have been lying, but right now he was not thinking of that possibility. But his previous question was a good one. Merchant ships do not set sail at night, and he doubted that any would have taken Amelia to any pirate town. Also Amelia could not sail a ship by herself, and he knew she did not even know how to sail a ship at all as well. So, she would have had to get someone to help her.
Oh well, he would find out soon enough. The only thing that bothered him was that he had missed her by so close, not to mention how he never got his chance to beat up that stuck up commodore. Every extra moment they spent apart from each other, he knew, would make it all the better when they eventually found each other.
This new feeling inside of him, which he now figured out was love, he found strange. He had never loved anyone before, besides his ship of course. The only thing he could compare this feeling with was how he felt when he was desperately trying to get back his ship. But still those two emotions were far from being the same. This time he felt a desire to be with someone and he finally could admit to why he couldn't stop thinking about Amelia.
This captain, Captain Jack Sparrow, had finally cracked. He was letting love take over his thoughts and actions, something that he thought he would never do. It was if he was a completely different person. Amelia had changed him.
Of course he was still the rum-loving tough pirate captain that Amelia had grown to love, but one thing changed. He let himself get attached to another person. That was one thing that most pirates did not, or could not do, seeing as they were always on the move and never settled down. Relationships were not for people like him. What made him think this could work anyhow?
Well, he had let her stayed on his ship before, this would not be too different. Except she would be sharing a cabin with him and he would have to train her how to protect herself. Unless she wanted him to marry her and then stop being a pirate, which he would refuse to do. He decided not to think about that topic any more and just focus on getting to where he wanted to be.
Soon they arrived at Tortuga, most of the crew getting into two boats to row ashore and leaving a couple men on board to protect the ship as always. The men were changed every so many hours, so that everyone would have a chance at having a good time on land.
The other men got out of the boat first, happy to be back on their break. They were glad to help out their captain, but they still were looking forward to spending more money. The pleasures in their life stemmed from the money they picked up being a pirate, which they spent on strumpets, food, and alcohol.
Jack jumped out of the boat, and stood for one second taking in the atmosphere of his favorite town. He heard music, people laughing, and numerous other sounds as he closed his eyes before opening them again and setting off into the town.
"Uh," Elizabeth said, trying to think of something nice to say about the place. "good ale." She fake a smile and took a sip of the ale.
"I know." Will responded, still looking around the room. He was aware that the tavern, and town for that matter, would not be the best place for people like Elizabeth and Amelia who grew up rich and in a completely different environment. He glanced at Amelia. She had her head in her hands and an expression upon her face of boredom and anticipation. "Don't worry. He'll be here."
"I'm not worried." she lied. She did not feel like being around a whole bunch of people, especially being squashed into a tavern with lots of dirty, not to mention smelly, people. It was loud in there and she could barely hear the response Will gave her. Her head was beginning to pound, and her eyes were sore from lack of sleep. She came to the conclusion that she must look as bad at she felt.
Nevado was at her heel. He would bark at random people who passed by, but he never moved from his spot by his owner's side. Amelia leaned down to pet him and sighed. This was going to be a long day. They had been there for several hours already, and she was getting bored of waiting, which didn't help when she was already tired to begin with.
She took one last drink of the ale, swallowed it, and looked up at her companions in the dim lighting. "I'm going back to the ship to lay down." she said, standing up and smoothing out her dress before picking up Nevado.
"I'll go with you." Elizabeth said, standing up as well. She did not think it was a good idea for one of them to walk around that pirate haven alone.
"No, I'll be fine." Amelia insisted. She just wanted to be alone. She finally convinced them to stay there together, and she made her way through a crowd of people. When she was outside she took a breath of fresh air, or at least the closest thing she was going to get to fresh in that town, and looked around. She remembered turning, so she took a right out of the tavern and headed down the street.
Jack found his favorite tavern in a flash, he could have walked there with his eyes closed and still end up in the right place. A grin swept across his face as he entered the pub and looked around. He saw many of his crewmembers there, all drinking and having a good time. Strumpets walked by him, some even tried to get his attention, but he was not interested.
He surveyed the room, and sure enough found the table he was looking for. Will and Elizabeth were sitting there, looking very much out of place, but where was Amelia?
Will had already seen Jack standing by the front door and was motioning from him to go over there as he yelled, "Jack! Come here!"
Jack walked over to the table at the side of the room in his usual hip-swaying manner. Normally by this time he was already on his second mug of rum, but for the first time he was in that bar for a different reason other then he typically had. He bent down, placing his hands on the table and looking up at his two friends. "Where is Amelia?"
"You just missed her." Elizabeth answered. "She left several minutes ago, to go back to the ship."
'AGAIN?' he thought, annoyed. He was always missing her. 'Can't that woman ever stay put in one place? Not only that, but they let her go by herself. They must be mad. Wait a minute, she just said something about a ship'. Then he asked with a look of curiosity upon his face, and while lifting up his hands from the table in front of him, "What ship?"
"The ship we commandeered in order to get here." Will responded, as if it was a known fact. That would be about the second time he had ever commandeered a ship. "It's next to a ship called 'El Infierno'.
Without a word Jack turned and started walking towards the door. He stepped outside into the busy street, drunk men on his left and prostitutes on his right. He ignored his surroundings and set off in order to find Amelia.
Amelia, in the meantime, had found herself lost in the town. She could have sworn this way the way they came, but the ships were no where in sight. She retraced her steps, finding herself yet again lost in a bust Tortuga street. Frustrated, she brushed her fingers through her hair and stood there for a moment, looking around. She decided to ask someone for directions, but after looking at the people around her she changed her mind. She did not want to talk to any of those grubby people.
Then she heard a man's voice behind say, "Lost hun?" She turned around to see who the culprit was. It was a tall man, dressed up nicer then many of the other men she had seen there. He had black hair that was slicked back and a mustache curled at both ends. He looked strong and his face had a certain roughness to it.
She was not sure how to respond to a question like that, so she simply replied, "I was just looking for the docks." She began to walk away, but he grabbed her arm. Nevado starting barking at him, but he ignored the little white puppy.
"I'll take you there." he gruffed, squeezing her arm with his strong grip and leading her down the road.
For some reason she got the impression that he was not just being a helpful person, he wanted something. She squirmed, and tried to break free from his grasp. "I can manage on my own, thank you." she protested, hoping that he would let her go.
At this statement, his grasp tightened even more, and he replied, "Surely this town is no place for a woman such as yourself to wander it alone."
She knew by his response that he was not going to let her go. So, once again, she did what she always did in a tight situation. She screamed, as loud as she could muster. People in China could probably have heard her, that is how loud she could screech. Of course this scream hurt the man's ears, but instead of letting go of her arm to cover his ears, he took out his gun and pointed it at her head. He was clearly threatening to shoot her if she continued with her yelling, and so she stopped. Her breathing got heavier and she was trying her hardest not to faint.
All of a sudden the man dropped his gun on the ground and let go of Amelia. She was confused. What had just happened? What would cause this predator to drop his weapon and let her go. Was he testing her? Then she heard a voice, familiar and deep. The voice that she been looking forward to hearing for the past day.
"Leave her alone." It was Jack's voice! She turned around abruptly to see Jack standing several feet away with his pistol aimed that the man who had threatened her. Jack put away his pistol by sticking it in his sash and let the man saunter off into the town.
Amelia and Jack stood there for a minute, staring at each other. They were close to the docks, and most of the people in the town were further inward, so they were practically alone, except for the loud noises, which both of them were ignoring.
"Jack!" She hugged him cheerfully and then let go to look him in his dark brown eyes. "I came here looking for you. I have to tell you something."
"Aye, I have t' tell ye something as well." He replied. Finally he found her and all he wanted to do was hold her and never let her out of his sight again. Besides, whenever he did let her out of his sight she was always getting in trouble. Trouble seemed to follow this woman around wherever she went.
"I love you." She blurted out. Yes, she was risking a lot, but she could also gain a lot from letting out this small piece of information. Not to mention she could not hold it in any longer. She thought back to the time in his cabin, when she had secretly wished that he had kissed her. She felt sort of the same way now, except back then she was not willing to admit her feelings and now she just did.
"Now ye had to go 'n use me line first." he truthfully joked. He couldn't believe that he was actually going to say this. "I love ye too, luv."
Amelia smiled. She could not remember a time when she had felt happier. The truth was that she did not expect a reaction quite like this.
Jack pulled her back to him, putting his arms around her waist and grinning. He leaned over and Amelia stood on her toes. They both leaned in for what was to be the best kiss either of them had ever had.
The kiss felt like it had in the dream that Amelia had not too long ago. It was if the only people on the face of the earth was them two and that they were floating on air. Neither of them resisted the feeling, and they savored the moment.
Eventually, they had to stop and they looked down at the dog who was sitting there watching them. Amelia laughed, and Jack lead both her and the dog to where his ship was anchored. Jack rowed them to the ship, neither of them saying a word, and they walked by the two pirates whose turn it was to guard the ship. The pirates just looked at them, both knowing what they were up to, and returned to their conversation.
The next morning Amelia woke up in the captain's cabin. The warm body holding her was that of Jack and so she laid there for awhile content. She slowly turned around so she could see his face. Her movement must have woken him up, because he soon opened his eyes and grinned at her.
"Good mornin' luv." he said to her before he pulled her over to him and kissed her.
"Yes it is a good morning." she replied. Then her thoughts turned and her mind began to think. They had no plans for the future. She would have to tell her aunt and uncle so they don't think she just went missing or worry and she didn't know what Jack and his crew were going to do after this break.
"What is it?" Jack asked her, realizing that she was thinking something as her pretty smile turned into a apprehensive frown.
"Jack, what are we going to do, after we leave Tortuga?" she asked after a short period of silence on her part.
"Well, there is something I've been meaning to find. I figure ye can just stay aboard with me and me crew." Jack replied. "Don't worry darling, I won't let anything happen t' ye."
"Do you think we can stop by Port Isabel? I have to see my guardians, so when I don't come back home in a couple of months they won't wonder where I am. You'll get to meet my uncle Mort and aunt Mary." she said. She knew Mort wouldn't approve of him, but Mary would most likely take her side as always.
"I can't wait." Jack responded, forcing a smile along with the reply. 'This is going to be fun' he thought to himself. She was going to take home a pirate to her relatives. This was definitely a first for him and especially for the governor of whom he was going to soon meet.
"Me either." she said, getting on top of Jack. "They'll have to love you, because I already do." With that she kissed him and all thoughts of anything other then what they were doing left their minds.
THE END
Selena
Dreaming Of You
Late at night when all the world is sleeping
I stay up and think of you
And I wish on a star
That somewhere you are thinking of me too
Cause I'm dreaming of you tonight
Til tomorrow I'll be holding you tight
And there's nowhere in the world I'd rather be
Than here in my room dreaming about you and me
Wonder if you ever see me and
I wonder if you know I'm there
If you looked in my eyes
Would you see what's inside would you even care
I just wanna hold you close but so far
All I have are dreams of you
So I wait for the day (wait for the day)
And the courage to say
How much I love you (yes I do)
I'll be dreaming of you tonight
Til tomorrow I'll be holding you tight
And there's nowhere in the world that I'd rather be
Than here in my room dreaming about you and me
Late at night when all the world is sleeping
I stay up and think of you
And I still can't believe
That you came up to me and said I love you
I love you too
Now I'm dreaming with you tonight
Til tomorrow and for all my life
And there's nowhere in the world I'd rather be
Than here in my room
Dreaming with you endlessly
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A/N: Finished! I couldn't resist throwing some love song in there, lol. I think I'm going to write a sequel, so check my profile in about a week if you are interested in reading it. So, they finally ended up together! Yay, celebration. Please review! Thank you!
Phoebe- hehehe
TriGemini- Yup, thanks.
Lauren- It's ok, thanks for reviewing. Yeah, the evil cliffhangers. Couldn't resist.
LoLoMo- That's ok. I'm glad that you like the story and characters.