Hey, one and all! Okay, yes I am in a good mood, and quite frankly I'm not sure why, but oh well. . . . I'd better get to it before I start blabbering . .

jackslittlefriend – Hey, girlie – miss ya! Oh, c'mon, I had to say it 'coz it's true! I'll definitely check out your story soon as I can – two chapters in one day, wow! I tried and it didn't work. Oh, well. Nobody's called me in a long time. . I feel isolated. Ha! (Blonde moment.)

cornishxxxpixie- Thank you for the concern, it's really appreciated. Things are going pretty well for what they are. Yeah, Jack and Alex have some chemistry – what can I say, I have trouble keeping them apart (Lol). Anyhow, I'll let you get on with what you're really visiting this story for.

Oh, by the way, for anyone looking for a bio on my part, I've been trying to get something ready and really don't know what to put in it. I'm starting to think me and my life are pretty boring . . . suggestions are defiantly appreciated. And someone please tell me I'm not the only one who got confused by the revamp of this site . . . Maybe even just a little bit?

Chapter six: Confusing You

Jack greeted Gibbs, Will, and Alex the next morning with a large breakfast – Alex might have sworn it was better food than she had ever had if she hadn't have been in Tortuga. It hadn't taken her long to grow tired of the small town . . . She longed for freedom and excitement, yes, but violence was something that, in her opinion, should be held for only the most extreme instances, not used over wenches and rum. Jack seemed to notice her anxiousness and grew bitter over it. After awhile of trying to find the kindness he had shown her the previous day, Alex chose to ignore him, and it seemed to take some effect, though whether for the best or for the worst, she could not yet tell.

Just as the sun began to rise, Gibbs left to assemble the crew. He had instructed Jack to come to the docks at midmorning, but the pirate seemed unconcerned with the time as the sun began make its appearance. Instead, Jack walked from store to store, buying what he called 'necessary' items for the journey – a barrel of rum, a large ham, a few apples, and a few bananas. From the way Jack and Gibbs had acted, Alex assumed they had made some sort of proposition. No doubt it includes Will, Alex thought sourly.

'C'mon, yeh two, we've gotta meet up with Gibbs,' Jack stated suddenly. Alex gave him a strange look, and he furrowed his brows. 'What, missy?'

'You're just noticing we have to meet him?' she asked in disbelief and sarcasm.

'Yeah, so?'

'We were supposed to meet him an hour ago,' she said, crossing her arms over her chest. Jack cocked his head to the side and looked up at the sun.

'I suppose yeh're right,' he muttered, then took off at a jog.

'I can already see what kind of pirate you are,' she muttered as she followed him, and Will snorted with laughter.

'Makes you wonder, doesn't it?' Will whispered.

'You have no idea.'

Gibbs was defiantly on the impatient side when the three appeared. There was a line of very unusual people by his side . . . Some of them noticed Alex's scrutiny, but said nothing, probably thinking her opinion didn't matter, because she was a woman. It probably doesn't matter anyway, she thought, if Jack gets his way.

Jack was still carrying one of the bananas, and every time he'd swing his arms about it would become a thing of curiosity for everyone, and not just Alex, for which she was relieved.

Alex looked around suddenly, her brows furrowed in concentration and confusion. Was someone watching her? It certainly felt like it. She hoped she was just being paranoid, and turned back to the line of men in front of her.

'Feast yer eyes, Cap'n; all o' them faithful 'ands before the mast – every man worth his salt, and crazy t' boot,' Gibbs stated as Jack began to move down the line, surveying every person from the top of their head to their toes.

'So this is your able-bodied crew,' Will stated in disgust.

'Don't judge 'em too much just yet, Will,' Alex stated quietly, and suddenly all eyes were on her. 'You never did believe I could sail, did you?'

'True,' he stated. 'But still . . .'

'Yeh, sailor!'

'Cotton, sir,' Gibbs supplied.

'Mr. Cotton, do you have the courage and fortitude to follow orders and stay true in the face of danger and almost certain death?' Jack asked suddenly. When the old man didn't answer, Jack grew angry. 'Mr. Cotton, answer man!'

'He's a mute, sir,' Gibbs explained. 'Poor devil 'ad his tongue cut out.' Cotton displayed the old wound, and even Jack cringed. 'He trained the parrot to talk for him. No one's yet figured out how.'

Alex looked away, both in disgust and because the feeling someone was watching her had returned. Suddenly, Jack rounded on her.

'Pay attention, missy.'

'I am paying attention, Captain,' she growled. Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, she saw her surveyor. It was the man she had slept with on the night Elizabeth had been taken, he red hair hanging loose and unkempt around his face. She took a sharp intake of breath, and Jack turned on her again.

'What?'

'That man, do you know him?' she asked quietly. Jack followed her nod and shook his head.

'Nah, can't say that I do.'

'Shit.'

'Watch yer mouth.'

'Jack, there could be trouble,' she muttered as he walked off, and this time he ignored her.

'Mr. Cotton's parrot – same question.'

'Wind in the sails! Wind in the sails!' the parrot squawked, and Alex rolled her eyes. He's not serious. He can't be, she mused.

'Mostly we figure that mean 'yes',' Gibbs stated.

'Of course it does,' Jack said, turning to Jack and Alex. 'Satisfied.'

'Well, it proves they're mad,' Will retorted.

'And what's the benefit for us?' a gruff but feminine voice asked from somewhere at the end of the line. Alex studied the person – she had dark skin and a large, floppy hat pulled over her eyes.'

Jack crept over cautiously, and pulled the hat off her head. Sudden recognition danced in his eyes. 'Anamaria.'

She drew her hand back and slapped him hard against the cheek. Alex, who had mixed feelings about there being another woman on the ship, felt some sort of pride. Well, at least I can do better than slapping, she grinned inwardly.

'I suppose you didn't deserve that one either,' Will filled in sarcastically.

'No, that one I deserved,' Jack stated, and Anamaria nodded with a curt smile.

'You. Stole. My. Boat,' she said through clenched teeth.

'Actually –' She slapped him again. 'Borrowed - borrowed without permission, but with every intention o' bringin' it back.'

'But you didn't!'

'Yeh'll get another one!' he stated in a hurry, and she held out a finger. Jack backed away slightly in obvious fear.

'I will.'

'A better one,' Will said, for once deciding to help Jack. Jack smiled and nodded in hasty agreement.

'A better one!'

'That one!' Will said, pointing at the Interceptor.

'Will!' Alex hissed. 'And what do you think we'll do once Jack's finished with us, eh? You know pirates, all they do is what profits them – not that that's bad –' she added hastily to the line, 'but we certainly don't profit him, and if Barbossa's still alive then he certainly won't strike up a deal!' Will only shrugged. All he cares about is Elizabeth, Alex reminded herself, her shoulders slumping. They'll probably start up a family on Isla de Muerta if they have to. I've got no one.

'That one?' Jack growled, and Will nodded. 'Aye, that one. What say yeh?'

'Aye!' the line-up shouted in unison.

'Anchor's away!' came the lone parrot's cry.

'No, no, no, no, no, it's frightful bad luck t' bring a woman aboard, sir,' Gibbs muttered.

'And what do you suppose I am?' Alex snarled.

'It'd be far worse not t' 'ave 'em,' Jack muttered, glancing up at the sun.

'Well, if that's what you want me for, I'm leaving,' Alex stated.

'What d'yeh mean? Alex? Alex! Miss O'Conner, get back 'ere!' Jack jogged after Alex, spinning her around to face him when he caught up with her. 'What d'yeh mean, missy?'

'When you were marooned on the island, you went three days alone – you looked up at the sun . . .' she trailed off, biting back tears. 'I'm not gonna be your whore, Sparrow, and by the looks of it, neither is Anamaria.'

'Alex, that's not what I meant –'

'It's what you were thinking, and you know it! You're a pirate, you're all the same!' She turned away from him, hastily wiping the tears away that had escaped her control.

'I'm sorry, Alex.'

'No, you're not.'

He sighed and laid a hand on her shoulder, and slowly turned her to him, letting her cry on his shoulder. 'I know this is rough fer yeh, lass, stayin' aboard a ship with nothin' but men fer two days, and then havin' t' deal with more pirates 'n more men for longer . . . Listen, miss. Yeh can trust me . . . t' some extent. I'm not gonna 'urt yeh, 'n I'm not gonna leave yeh once I get me Pearl, if I get it back at all. Yeh've helped me get this far – yeh've trusted me 'nough t' let me help yeh get this far . . . trust me a little more, alrigh'? Aye, I considered a lady's company on the island, but most of my thoughts don't amount t' much.' She laughed softly, and he ran a hand through her hair. 'That's better. I don't want yeh unhappy with me – if yeh 'n Ana both turn on me I'm a dead man.'

'Not dead, maybe just a eunuch,' she smiled, and he looked horrified by the very thought. 'Jack, what makes a woman a whore?'

'Why? Yeh're not afraid yeh're one, are yeh?' he asked, and she nodded slightly. 'A whore's a woman who wears skimpy clothes and sells herself for profit. Yeh've had some fun when yeh were drunk, but that's it. No money earned, no harm done. Yeh're no whore, Alex. Now, tell me somethin' – d'yeh mind sharin' a room, or d'yeh want one t' yerself?'

'What!'

'Not with me, calm down,' he grinned, and she rolled her eyes and sighed in relief, 'with Anamaria. D'yeh want a room t' yerself, or d'yeh mind sharin' with Ana?'

'I don't care.'

'Alrigh', I'll leave the decision up to Anamaria, then, 'n don't say I didn't ask you.'

'Jack?'

'Yeah, missy?'

'You're going soft,' she grinned, walking past him. He stood there, completely confused, until he figured it out and shouted after her, 'Am not!'

There we go, the chapter's done. I wanted to explain the whole 'blonde moment' thing at the top of the page to sooth any hurt feelings. I am blonde, and I have these 'moments' where I act like the dumb blondes in the movies and such without meaning to, and it's a joke between me and jackslittlefriend. I didn't want there to be any misunderstandings and hopefully now they're all cured.

LiM