DISCLAIMER: Don't own PotC, and probably never will :(
Chapter 9- Understandings
Darkness lay all around her. Her arms and legs felt heavy and although she was afraid, she was unable to run. Something brushed her arm. Looking down Alexis saw a fragile hand; her mother's. She smiled down at her, the creases around her blue eyes displaying years of laughter. "Mum!" Alexis exclaimed reaching up to hug her. A cruel laugh sounded to the left of her and Alexis turned her head sharply, squinting into the infinite black.
Fear struck her again, and Alexis looked back to the comforts of her mothers' arms. She met a mass of black air. Her mother was gone. "Mummy!" Alexis called, her voice sounding small and feeble in the dark surroundings. "Daddy?"
Again she was greeted with another ruthless laugh that seemed to echo all around her. A cold shill swept through Alexis', and she cried out for help to the empty place in front of her.
Drenched in sweat, Alexis gasped as her eyes flew open. The gloom in the cellar was broken by the faint glow of a torch that was lit in one corner. Her body ached all over and as she reached up to touch her sore face, found that her hands were tightly bound. The horror of her nightmare seemed all too real as Alexis remembered where she was and, with a stab of anger, why she was there. As her injured arms protested to being moved, her fury quickly dissolved. A soft shuffle next to her, alerted Alexis to the presence of Jack.
"Ye alrigh' love?" he asked her cautiously. Bracing himself for a slap, Jack remembered her hands were still tied. When Alexis answered him, Jack was surprised at her quiet demeanour.
"Tell me," she replied, her voice hoarse from both lack of water and deep emotions, "Why did you do it?"
Jack looked at his crew lined up along the wall. Their eyes were closed, but his instincts told him Will was awake and listening intently. Deciding there probably would never be a perfect time to tell her, Jack began his long story, fully aware that expressing emotions was not the way of a pirate, especially not for him.
"We 'eard about the treasure of Yakora, ye parents treasure, from the people of Sarften village. It was all any of 'em could talk about. None of 'em knew where ye parents had disappeared to, but they did know about the i'land they supposedly hid their loot," he stopped for a brief moment, considering how to speak of the mutiny against him. "I was the Captain, Alexis. I chose to set sail 'ere. But me crew had other ideas. Barbossa took o'er The Pearl as we approached the shore."
Alexis turned her sore neck to look at him. Jack faced straight ahead, but in his dark eyes, she could see how hard the loss of his ship had hit him. Alexis felt a pang of sorrow for Jack, her own pain forgotten as he continued speaking. "The crew got off and began searching for a sign of the treasure," a slight smile played on his lips as Jack said, "I slipped away into the trees. That's when I met ye parents."
Her brows furrowed as Alexis asked, "Did you warn them?"
"Aye, I warned 'em," Jack replied looking at her intently, "They didn't wanna know anything 'bout it. Then it was too late. Barbossa's men found us."
Alexis stared back at him as she began to realize how wrong she'd been. Jack hadn't ordered the killing of her parents. In fact, he didn't have anything to do it with it at all. Jack had tried to save them, but there was something Alexis still couldn't understand. "You knew about me though. How?"
Again, Jack seemed pained as he answered, "I saw ye."
"You...saw me?" she repeated slowly.
The beads in his hair jingled as Jack nodded. "Couldn't forge' the look on ye innocent face when Barbossa murdered ye parents."
Pausing and looking away once more he added, "That's why I came back."
Silence fell between them for a long time. Each reflecting on their misfortunes brought about Barbossa. "Do you know what it's like, Jack?" Alexis whispered breaking the stillness, "To be without hope? To be alone for ten years, just waiting for someone to come for you? But knowing in your heart that there isn't anyone..." Her voice broke, and, at last, she felt the release of her emotions that had been locked away for many years. Tears rolled down over the dirt and blood on her face.
Jack glanced sideways at Alexis trying to think of something amusing to say to cheer her up. Surprised and frustrated that he couldn't think of anything clever to brighten the mood, Jack averted his gaze to the rough cement floor.
The pain and sorrow was too much for Alexis. The loss of her parents, the years spent all alone, and her fear of Barbossa's return. Wrapping her bound hands around her legs, Alexis buried her face in her knees and wept until restless dreams took her once more.
Day finally broke, but for Jack, his crew and Alexis, it was still night in the small cellar they had been thrown into. The thud of heavy boots on the wooden steps indicated they had visitors. Six of Barbossa's men appeared through the gloom. "The Cap'n is ready to go now!" announced a pirate with a gold ring through his nose. With that, they were each pulled to their feet and guided back up the stairs to the cave. The contrast of the bright, early morning sun with the dark room hurt their eyes as they stepped out onto the grass.
Leaning close to the pirate called Ragetti and gesturing with his bound hands, Jack said quietly, "Just so ye know, ye left ya eye downstairs." Ragetti lifted a grubby hand to his face, and feeling the empty socket there, turned quickly and hurried back inside the cave almost tripping over his feet in his rush. Grinning to himself, Jack noticed Alexis watching him. He opened his hand enough to let her see Ragettis' fake eye inside. An amused smile crept across Alexis' face, but Jack could still see a sadness behind the facade.
The distraction was cut short as Barbossa stepped next to Alexis. "It's time, girl," he told her.
Author's Note: Thankyou to my 'beta-writer' Antonette again! Sorry this chapter was a bit slow, but I need to fill- in- the-blanks so to speak :) Next chapter will have a bit more action, promise!
Mystic Moon Maiden- You'll have to wait and see if they get away or not! Hehe, Thanks so much for reviewing! Your wonderful! P.s. Can't wait for you to update on your story:)
Tiffany Sparrow- You don't have to apoligize for not reviewing! Hehe, it's fine! But thankyou so much for pointing out that I'd gotten Ragetti and Pintel confused! I even checked up on it before I uploaded that chapter, and I still made a mistake! Hehe, hope you can forgive me for that:) Thanks for the review!
SpectralLady- Aww, another cold? I hope your over this one now! But I know how you feel. I've been sick with a cold lately too :( And it's ok, Jack isn't so bad after all:) Thanks for reviewing!
Daftlilme- A mutiny is basically what happened to Jack on PotC as well. He use to be the Captain, but then his crew, led by Barbossa kicked him from that position :( Hope it was explained a bit better for you this chapter! Thankyou for reviewing!
The Future Mrs. Jack Sparrow- Hehe, nice name! Throws a rock at Barbossa too Hehe, you'll have to wait and see if they get out of this situation! Thanks for reviewing!