Next long awaited chapter!! Enjoy!!

Chapter 2: Cry

Jack carried Celeste back to the Pearl and down to her room. He sether on her bed.

"I'm goin' to go an' get some bandages for you, savvy?" Jack told her. "I'll be back in a moment." Celeste nodded and Jack left the room.

He met Will who was waiting outside.

"Is she alright?" Will asked concernedly.

"Aye, she's alive, anyway." Jack replied.

"So, would he... have..."

"Aye." Jack replied abruptly.

"He didn't, though, did he?" Will asked.

"No." Jack said bitterly. "But 'e did enough to make me wring 'is bloody neck when I catch 'im. Celeste said that 'e was keepin' some girls back at 'is 'ideout. She wants us to save 'em."

"Well, of course." Will replied. "That sounds dreadful -- I'll be glad to help."

"Thanks, mate." Jack told him and headed off to the cargo hold.

A few little while later, he came back to her room, pulled a chair next to her bed, and sat down. Suddenly, Celeste's eyes widened and she sat up and grabbed onto Jack's shoulders.

"Jack!" she exclaimed. "He took it! He--"

"What, darling?" he asked. "What did 'e take?"

"The necklace!" she cried. "The necklace you gave me!"

Jack's heart sank. What he had done to get that... How long he had spent searching for something perfect -- something beautiful enough for her.

"Well, we'll get it back." he assured, helping her lie back down. "We'll catch 'I'm an' get it back. I promise." He leaned over and made to kiss her, but--

"Don't!" she exclaimed, shielding her lips. "Don't. Black, he--" she stopped. "My mouth must be filthy now."

He looked caringly at her. He pushed the hair out of her face, leaned over, and kissed her.

"Never, darling." he said softly into her cheek. "Tha's jus' what Black wants you to think. Don' let 'im get to you, love -- don' let 'im defeat you." She sighed. He sat back up and began to bandage her upper arm. She winced.

"Jack..." Celeste began, "how did you know I was gone?"

"I don' know... Me stomach felt funny." he told her. "Like somethin' bad was 'appenin'... So, I got up to check on you -- bein' me first priority -- an' saw that you were gone."

"Well... how did you know where I was?" she asked.

"I figured it'd be in the slums. I knew Black grew up 'ere in the London slums, an' you can do whatever you want down there an' no one cares." He finished bandaging her arm and started on her wrists.

"Well, thank you." she said sincerely. "Thank you for coming just when you did. Any later and... I... don't know what would've happened..."

"Anytime, darling." Jack replied. "I wouldn' let anythin' 'appen to you if I could 'elp it. ...Seems I... 'aven' done a very good job of it..."

"Oh, Jack, that's not true." she told him. "It could've been so much worse... I'm just lucky to have you."

A few moments later, he finished bandaging her wrists and removed her boots for her. He sat back down.

"Alrigh', I'm goin' to bandage your stomach now." he told her. "'ere, sit up an' put your arms around me neck."

She did so and he began to bandage the wound on her stomach: it was fairly deep, but not too severe. She rested her head on his shoulder and buried her face in his neck.

"Thank you so much for coming to my rescue, Jack..." she said. "Thank you..."

"O' course, darling." he told her. "I can't live without you, now, can I?" He finished bandaging and helped her lie back down. He pulled the covers on her bed up to her stomach for her. "Do you feel alrigh'?" he asked.

"Yes... Now that you're here..." she replied.

"Is there anythin' I can do for you?" he asked her.

"Uh huh." she nodded.

"What?" he asked.

She turned on her side towards him, grasped his hand in both of hers, and pulled it close to her. "Stay with me until I go to sleep..." she said. "After that, it's only proper that you leave -- you are in a lady's room, after all -- but until then... stay with me..."

"O' course, love." Jack replied. "Anythin' else?"

"Yes." Celeste replied. "Tell me a story."

"A story?" he asked.

"Yes." she said. "One of your pirate stories. I know you have tons."

"Aye, I do." He leaned over and rested his forehead against hers. "I love you, Princess."

"I love you, too, Jack O' Lantern." she replied. She painfully closed her eyes and put a hand on the back of his head. He put his hand on her cheek and stroked it with his thumb, closing his eyes as well. She began to cry.

"Go ahead, darling." he told her. "Cry all you want. Get it all out." He kissed her.

"I was so scared, Jack." she sniffled. "He said he was going to take me to his hideout... I was afraid that I'd never see you again..."

"I'd never let that 'appen, darling." he said. "I'd die before I'd let you leave me." She sniffled. "Anyway, you're 'ere now. An' now you're safe." He sat up and wiped the tears from her face. "Now," he began. "'ere's a good story..."

And just before she fell asleep, she heard, "...an' then they made me their chief."

Seeing that Celeste had fallen asleep, Jack slowly slipped his hand out of her grasp and left her room. He went up on deck in need of some fresh air. He sauntered gloomily to the side of the ship and gazed out into the nighttime and the moonlit ocean.

"Jack." Anamaria said from behind him.

He turned around. "Oh, 'ello, Anamaria." he greeted dispiritedly.

"He didn't do anything to her, did he?" she asked urgently.

"Nothin' drastic... but 'e beat 'er up pretty badly." he told her. "Cut 'er arm an' stomach an' obviously 'it 'er a lot."

She sighed. "She's okay, though, right?"

"Aye, she should be fine." Jack said emptily. "I don' even know what I'm doin' up 'ere, I 'ave to go to 'er--"

"Are you going to sleep at all, Jack?" she asked.

"I'll do it later." he replied and started to walk off as rain began to fall.

"Jack." Anamaria said; Jack stopped. "I'm glad she's alright."

He looked back at her and smiled. He then walked down to the galley and got a pitcher of water and a glass to pour it in, in case Celeste got thirsty. He then went back to Celeste's room, sat down in the chair by her bed, and set down the pitcher and glass on the beside table.

Suddenly, thunder sounded.

"AHH!" Celeste cried, awoken by the storm, and sitting up sharply.

"It's alrigh', darling." Jack comforted, placing his hand on her shoulder. "Jus' a thunderstorm." He helped her lie back down.

Her brow furrowed; she glanced at the window and saw rain beating on the glass. Lightning lit up the sky and thunder boomed. She flinched and returned her gaze back to Jack.

"Haven't you had any sleep, Jack?" she asked concernedly.

"No." he replied. "Don' need any. You're my priority righ' now. I got to stay up an' make sure you're perfectly fine."

She smiled. "Thank you, but I do think that you should get some sleep. I don't want you to die of exhaustion."

"I'll be fine." he told her.

She sighed. "Suit yourself." she glanced around the room. "You know... I'm kind of thirsty..."

"Thought you would be." he said, pouring water in the glass. "I know you only too well, love." He handed the glass to her and she weakly took it. She took a sip and handed it back to him.

"Thank you." she said.

"O' course, love." he replied, setting the glass on the bedside table next to the pitcher. "Well, 'ow are you feelin'? Any better?"

"Yes, a little." she replied. "Now that you're here, anyway." she sighed. "I promise I'll never take you for granted, Jack, I promise. I never have and I never will... You know... I never thought that your voice would end up being the sweetest sound to my ear... It is... My knight in shining armor..." He smiled and returned his hand to her.

Thunder sounded again and she flinched.

"Oh, I hate thunderstorms." Celeste said, burying herself into the covers of her bed, and tightening her grip on Jack's hand.

"You, know, they're nothing to be afraid of." he told her.

"Easy for you to say, Captain Jack Sparrow, pirate legend known for your bravery." Celeste said.

"Stop it, darling, you're embarrassin' me." he joked. "Anyway, thunder is really jus' the clouds talkin' to each other. They mus' get bored sometime jus' sittin' up there an' all."

"Well, I've never heard it put that way." she said with a smile. "Is that another pirate story? A myth or something?"

Jack paused. "No... Somethin' me mum used to tell me when I was a kid..."

"Oh..." Celeste said, slightly awkwardly, "well, I think it's very comforting. I'm sure I won't be scared--" Suddenly, thunder sounded once more and she didn't flinch. "See?" She smiled, trying to cheer him up a bit. He smiled a feeble smile, memories from the past plaguing his mind and tearing at his spirit. She looked up at him. "What is it?" she asked gently.

"Nothin'. Jus' thinkin'." he replied.

"About what?"

"Jus'... years ago... Me mum an' all that." he told her. "...She... died when I was fairly young..."

"Oh, Jack, I'm sorry--"

"There's nothin' anyone can do -- don' be." he said, though she could tell that he was still a little down. He sat in thought for a moment. "I can't believe Black would do this... I mean, I can, but... I didn' even fathom..." he sighed. "I keep puttin' your life in danger... an'... somethin' worse could 'appen next time..."

"Jack, you're not the one who puts my life in danger." she told him. She sat up on the edge of the bed and put her feet on the floor. "I am. I left home. I became a pirate. I fell hopelessly in love with the charming captain of the Black Pearl. Jack, you didn't start it, I did. Don't feel guilty in any way because you caused none of it." He still looked a little guilty. "Look... come sit next to me." He moved from sitting in his chair to sitting next to her on the bed. She hugged him. "I couldn't ask for more. I couldn't want more than just... this." He put his arms around her. "I would go through anything a hundred times for one moment with you." He kissed her head.

"Well, o' course, now you realize that I can never let you go ever again." he said. She smiled.

"I have no qualms with that." she said, feeling content in his warm embrace. She looked up at him. "Kiss me."

"I 'ave no qualms with that." he told her with a smile and leaned in and kissed her.

A few moments later, Audra opened the door and peeked in to check on Celeste. "Whoops." she said. "Sorry." And she quickly left. Jack and Celeste both laughed.

"You know, we should both get some sleep." Celeste suggested.

"Aye, we should, but are we going to...?" he said doubtfully.

"No, really, we should." she said, laughing.

"Alrigh', but let me 'old you jus' a little longer, savvy?" he asked. "You were only gone for a few hours, but it feels like you were taken away from me forever."

She smiled. She closed her eyes and almost fell asleep in his arms.

"Alrigh', love, I'll let you sleep." he said a few minutes later.

"No, I don't want to move." she told him, pouting a little. He raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"Well... I suppose you don' 'ave to..." he said. "Jus'... let me... situate meself 'ere..." He let her go, moved back, and leaned back against the headboard, pulling his legs up onto the bed. She moved next to him, resting her head on his chest.

"I feel safer now." she said. He put his arms around her and stroked her cheek with his thumb.

"Good. 'cause I won' let anythin' 'appen to you." he told her.

She sighed. "You're so comfortable, Jack..."

"An' you're so soft, love." he said gently.

"I love you, Jack." she told him.

"I love you, too." he replied.. "...Nigh', Princess."

"Good night, my love." she sighed.

Aww! I love my characters. I have such a sick emotional attachment! Yay! Anyway, hope you enjoyed! Please review!!!

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