Alright, folks, the devil is the longest seam of a ship, the very bottom (but still inside) and it's in a like… 2 foot tall thing… hard to describe. And paying is putting tar on it, it's what they used to caulk. So. Paying the devil isn't another curse yet.(-: )
Chapter 10
Will Turner was probably very right to not quite trust Jack with a lady. But he never stopped to consider whether or not he trusted Elizabeth with a pirate, or which of the two could do more damage. He felt somewhat settled, though, knowing that The Pearl would within shouting distance in front of the Interceptor for the whole four-day trip back to Port Royal.
At least that's where he assumed they were going. And in that assumption, he was very, very wrong.
"Elizabeth, darling," Jack said, opening the door to his cabin to see Elizabeth sitting at his charting table. "Did you manage to hurt yourself on that little adventure?"
She stared at him openly before quietly answering, "No."
"Oh good," Jack said and waved his arms a bit before noticing that she was looking at him intently. He looked behind him and then concentrated on her again. "What?"
"Why aren't I on the Interceptor?" No one thus far had been brave enough to question the Captain's orders, but rather carried them out without a comment.
Jack grinned at her, and his eyes seemed to laugh. "The Pearl's a much larger ship, more guns and better armed- in the case that anything should happen." He stated lowly and folded his arms in front of him.
Ms. Swann continued to stare at him, and let her gaze remain on his back as he turned and walked away from her, out his dark door and back onto the deck. She didn't know what to make of this situation, and she was slightly scared, but most importantly she couldn't shake the feeling that this was exactly where she wanted to be.
Jack Sparrow grinned to himself as his feet took him across the deck at even paces. The sea was where he belonged. The tossing and turning of the ship against the water calmed down his feet, making them feel completely at home instead of hopelessly lost on the solid ground. With Mr. Gibbs at the wheel, he took a few moments to relish in the feeling of home his ship brought him, and placed his hands behind his back while looking out to sea.
He wasn't surprised in the least when Ms. Swann approached him several minutes later. She stood close to him, staring at him as he stared at the water, waiting for him to falter and look at her. Jack's lips parted and he gave a grin before turning and gazing down his nose at her.
She started under the intensity of the look, and thought to herself, 'I'll never get used to that...' "Jack?" She asked, with an empty tone- she had nothing to add to it.
"Aye?" He asked and she kept a firm jaw and never moved her gaze. He served her with a smile that stretched lazily across his face before leaning back a bit and returning his eyes to the dark waters. His hand found its way to her neck, burrowing through her hair to find her soft warm skin. "No worries, Love."
She had heard him say this before, and, now and here, it brought her a great sense of safety. "Is what you did," She started and swallowed, her eyes closed. "earlier... What did you," Elizabeth stumbled on her words, but Jack offered no help in finding the right thing to say.
As if realizing for the first time that The Pearl was not alone in the waters, Elizabeth spun around, effectively removing herself from Jack's grasp, and peered at The Interceptor. If she looked hard enough, either her eyes or her imagination showed her Will Turner, standing at the railing with his hands latched onto the lines, watching her intently. She swallowed the guilt that rushed to her heart, and turned back around to face Jack.
With a gentle nod of her head, she silently asked him to go back to his cabin, out of sight, and within minutes, she was sitting on the edge of his bed waiting for him to join her. Jack loved anticipation, and made sure to take his dear time checking over all components of the Pearl.
Before the two ships had left the bay outside of the cursed caves, the severely under-staffed pirate ship received new sails. The things were treacherous, if only in Jack's mind. The blasted things were white. They had been stored in the hold, all the way the in the deep hold, below the devil, and had been stumbled upon as Jack was checking damage from the battle with the Interceptor. So, as every soul on the ship helped string up the new sails, leaving only seven black, torn sheets up in the end.
The Pearl, no longer reaching its top speed with no curse to push it along without good sails, suffered minimal damage below the waterline, aside from the protective layers of copper sheathing and paint to keep the critters away. Most of the damage was already in the process of being temporarily repaired by Moises, a rather skilled carpenter, and several other hands. Poor Marty, in punishment for being a mere three feet tall, was Paying the devil, a chore for which Jack apologized before even assigning.
Jack stood momentarily on the quarterdeck, aware of the three men up in the rigging working to keep the sails in the best possible condition. The poor wood of the railing may never be what it once was, but he was sure that he could restore it a bit.
Feeling that he had kept Elizabeth waiting long enough, Captain Jack Sparrow turned animatedly on a heel and walked towards his cabin with his hands behind his back.
Elizabeth's patience had just about been worn through entirely, and she was quite near livid when Jack Sparrow opened the door to his own cabin with all the cheerfulness in the world. After having sat in silence for nearly a half an hour, Elizabeth stood up immediately and took a defensive stance before the captain.
"What do you want from me, Captain Sparrow?" She asked him in a even tone, her eyes nearly threatening him.
Jack laughed, his cheeks raising up in a manner that reminded the woman in front of him of a toddler. He turned his head to the side and let the expression melt into a grin before facing her again. "Why Ms. Swann," He said stepping to her side, and wrapping an arm around the small of her back. "It's what you want that matters."
Elizabeth's entire body tingled in such a way that made her hands form into fists as the Captain of the Black Pearl kissed her neck softly.
Jack smirked at the reaction, mistaking it for disgust, and was pleasantly surprised when the young girl, barely a woman by his standards, turned to him and offered herself up to him. Jack's shocked mind let his body run on instinct as she wrapped her arms around his neck and stood up on her toes to reach him. Their mouths met in a kiss that was so much more than the single one they'd shared before, much more than could ever be put into words.
The Pirate and the Lady moved together in the Captains Cabin, and Elizabeth was finally sure for the first time of what she wanted.
FIN.
Ok so i revised this to be the end. I'm just too happy with it where it is. Thanks to everyone that read and reviewed!
Spanks so much for all the hits and reviews! You all ROCK.
