Hey everyone. Firstly, I want to apologize for how long it's taken me, my computer crashed two months ago and I finally have it back. I'm sorry! Second, I had many emails and reviews asking me if Morgan really was Jack's daughter, so, here is the chapter that will clear everything up! Enjoy and please read and review!
Chapter 7
Jack's Dreams
The day had been long and grueling but night had fallen and the sun was sinking low, almost touching the tossing blue Caribbean water. Jack Sparrow leaned upon the Black Pearl's wheel, sighing contentedly as he stared at the dying sun. Anamaria had been watching him for a while now, as he slowly slipped lower and lower, now leaning at such a strange angle that it could not be comfortable in the least. He had such a contented look, however, that she couldn't bring herself to rouse him.
Gibbs had been watching Jack too, but not in the same way as Anamaria. He wended his way through the working men and came to her side. "I think yr should be relieving the Cap'n." He said quietly, glancing over at Jack again. The pirate had slipped another inch or so down the wheel, still staring at the horizon. Anamaria turned to Gibbs.
"You're betting on us again, aren't you?" She asked, her tone icy. Gibbs straightened, surprised and a shifty look stole over his features.
"Maybe." He said. "I'm down for you two sleeping in the same bed tonight…that is if you're not still fighting." He kicked the side of the Pearl moodily. "Yer not still fighting, right?" Anamaria ignored him and looked over his shoulder. Jack was striding towards them.
"Mr.Gibbs." He said gruffly. Gibbs jumped and spun around, alarmed. Marty had the wheel…he was so small that there might as well had been no one steering. Jack glanced over his shoulder, mumbled, "I need to find him a box." Before turning back to his friend. "Kick my ship again and yer ass will be over board. Savvy?" Gibbs gulped.
"Savvy, Cap'n." Jack looked relieved and moved off towards his cabin gratefully. Anamaria watched him for a moment and then resumed her work.
Her back was aching, her stomach lurching but she wouldn't quit…not yet. She had to wait until Jack's departure had been saturated from the minds of the crew before she followed him into the deep shadows of the captain's cabin.
When all seemed calm and she was unwatched, she set down her work and discreetly followed Jack's steps, disappearing inside the Lion's cave virtually unnoticed. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the gloom inside.
Jack was standing beside a cabinet in the corner, a bottle of rum in one hand and a glass in the other. He smiled but didn't look up as she entered.
"I was beginning to think you wouldn't show up, luv." He said, tipping rum into his glass. Anamaria latched the door behind her and crossed the room slowly, pulling off her long coat and throwing it into the bed. Jack glanced up as she took the glass from him and drained it in one go.
"We have a lot to catch up on." Anamaria whispered, tipping the bottle's contents into her glass until it was full. Jack's hand remained on the bottle and, as she let go, he tipped his head back and drained the rest.
Making a weird chocking sound, he dropped the bottle on the side of the cabinet where it tipped and fell, shattering into shards of glittering glass on the floor. Anamaria giggled and grabbed his hair, pulling his lips forward onto her own.
Still holding her empty glass, she pulled him non-to-gently towards the bed. When the back of her legs made contact with the softness of his mattress she tipped backwards, falling onto the bed with Jack landing on top of her, his heavy warmth engulfing her. Jack grunted painfully and pulled away. Anamaria felt it to, the hardness between them, separating them from each other. Separating them from completely giving away to their lust.
The hilts of their swords (What were you all thinking, huh?) were grinding together. "That your sword, or mine, darling?" He asked, rolling off her. Anamaria set the glass down amongst the sheets and blankets and began stripping off her sword belt and throwing in into a corner with Jack's.
"Now where were we?" She asked, rolling over on top of him and nibbling his neck. The warm…kinda scratchy skin sent weird tingles over her lips that made her want more.
"You forgive me then, I'd wager?" Jack whispered in her ear, his voice lilting with pleasure. Anamaria pulled away and smiled at him. His deep brown eyes held her own quite steady, never wavering.
"Yes." Anamaria answered, biting her lip. Jack raised an eyebrow and she smiled at him. "What now, ye fool?"
"Do ye have any questions you wish to ask? Because I know you do." He said seriously. Anamaria looked away, staring out the window and concentrating on the setting sun.
"I…um…" She wished the mention Morgan to him, wondering if he was in a good enough mood to answer. His eyes bored into hers, still steady and Anamaria shook her head, laughing. Suddenly he rolled over and gripped her hair, pulling her head back and burying his face into the crook between her neck and shoulder.
Anamaria reached up and gripped the pillow, ready for whatever he was about to throw at her when her hand gripped something hard and round beneath it. She pulled it out slowly and raised it above his head, staring at it as he traced the skin on her chest with his rough, thirsty lips.
It was a dagger she held now, in a hilt made of rough brown leather. It had a round circle on it, painted silver. It almost seemed to dazzle her. A girl's face was drawn beside it, her skin pale, hair jet black. The artist had made her so sad looking…
"Jack?" Anamaria whispered. He instantly looked up and cracked the back of his head on the heavy dagger hilt.
"Oowwhhh…." Jack exclaimed, pulling a hand from her neck and rubbing the back of his head. Anamaria showed him the dagger. A strange expression crossed his face and he smiled. "Well, if you like it like that, I guess we can make it work."
Anamaria felt heat creeping up in her face. He thought she liked it kinky…well, maybe later. "Do you always sleep with weapons beneath your pillow?"
"Would that like you even more?" Jack asked slyly. Anamaria slapped him on the shoulder and allowed him to slowly take the dagger from her grasp. Rolling off her, he laid down on his back and held the dagger up to the dying sunlight, examining the weapon hilt.
"I got this from…my father." He said simply, sighing and rolling over to gently place the dagger on the floor beside the bed. Anamaria rolled over, facing him and propped her head on her hand. He had never really talked about his past before. Anamaria knew little bits, like Will being Jack's nephew and such.
"Will's grandfather?" Anamaria asked quietly. Jack, who had been staring at the ceiling, looked over at her slowly and shook his majestic head.
"No…the man I called father…he raised me, and my mother loved him." Jack smiled slightly and rolled over on top of her again, playing with her shirt buttons. "Now, where were we?"
"Wait." Anamaria whispered, placing her fingers on his lips. Jack grinned, expecting a treat. Not wanting to disappoint him, she got slowly from the bed and moved over to his cabinet and dresser, pulling off her clothes as she went. Jack leaned on his elbow and grinned, watching her.
"You're tantalizing me." He said softly, watching her seductive movements with a grin. Anamaria glanced over her shoulder and smiled playfully before knelling down next to the cabinet and tugging open a bottom shelf. "I wondered what that was for, not for my own use I knew."
"Oh, so you had a sneak peak?" Anamaria laughed over her shoulder, pulling out a Spanish silk dressing gown. The piece was more feminine then usual but Anamaria knew she wanted to feel special at least once during her nights with Jack…if not all the time. She'd picked it out of a chest in the room of a wealthy Spanish Dona not long ago and had been dying to show it off for ages. Why not now?
"I was curious as to what I owned that was lime green and silky. You have to admit, it's not quite my style, luv. I didn't know it was yours, either." Anamaria gave him a look over her shoulder that shut him up instantly. Jack grinned and lay down among the rumpled sheets, flat on his back, staring at the water spots on the wooden ceiling. Anamaria had moved off to the second room where he couldn't drool over her form.
Deciding he needed a drink, he rolled off the bed and moved back to the cabinet and pulled out a bottle of rum. Not even worrying about a glass, he tipped the bitter, disgusting liquid into his mouth, grinning inwardly when he thought of what his mother would say, should she see him now…or, he shuddered to think…his wife.
A creak behind him made him turn. Anamaria was standing in the doorway, one hand on the frame. He had to admit, as his eyes swept up and down her body, clearly visible through the thin fabric hugging every curve and outline…he wished she dressed like this more often.
"Wow." He said, swallowing the rum in his mouth with a little difficulty. It, of course, wasn't the first time they had been together but this was something completely different. Jack smiled, trying to regain his composure. "Um…you look nice." He held the bottle of rum up to his eyes and shook it so the liquid sloshed dangerously. "Maybe I should lay off a little, eh?"
"Ha Ha Ha." Anamaria said, walking towards him slowly. "Maybe I should go ask the crew what they think." She went to move past him but he set the rum down and grabbed her, pulling her close to him. She was pressed against him so tightly that she could distinctly make out the outline of a hidden dagger tucked into his shirt.
"Or maybe you can show me more of your…hidden talents?" He whispered in her ear. Anamaria laughed, pulled away and led him to bed.
The sun slowly sank beneath the waves and the only interruption they experienced during their passion was when Jack rolled over on the empty glass, which broke and embedded small silver splinters into his skin.
Hours later, the sun had sank below the horizon and extinguished itself in the sea. Anamaria woke with a start, the same dreams of her late husband plaguing her and, yet again, Marko intruded. He was still out there somewhere, she knew it…out there and waiting. She had to find him, and kill him.
Yet, his parting words still haunted her…his words about her being the one. What did that mean? Rolling over, she stared into the moon washed face of the man she loved. Jack's bandana had been discarded some time ago, his skin a tinge lighter where it covered then the rest of his face. The kohl around his eyes was smudged down his cheeks, almost as though he had been crying…
Well she had certainly cried. She'd cried out so loud she was sure the whole ship had heard. Damn Gibbs and his knowing mind…and damn the crew should they mention it.
Anamaria reached up and removed a long string of brown hair from Jack's cheek making his eyes flutter. He moaned slightly and turned his head, sleeping on. He seemed oblivious to her, so close to him that his warm breath caressed her face.
He was beautiful, a work of art, and yet she still couldn't believe how close she'd come to losing him five years ago. Oh, if life had been one inch to the left or right…
Jack cleared his throat and rolled over onto his back, his brow furrowing and then unfurling, as though what he saw upset him. Small beads of perspiration broke out over his skin, crystal in the night light. He was dreaming something upsetting, she knew. For how else could he sweat when she was so cold?
The window was open across the room, sending in cold wafts of night air. Anamaria shivered and pulled the covers up higher on herself before worrying any further about Jack. His naked torso lay still with the bed covers down to his waist and she didn't want him to get cold.
Pulling on the discarded night gown, she got slowly to her feet and padded noiselessly across the room, stepping carefully in a vain attempt to avoid broken glass from the smashed bottle on the floor. The window stuck, as windows always do when you desperately want it closed and, after a few minutes of tugging, she managed to snap it shut. Whatever she had done had woken Jack who bolted upright, screaming.
"Jack!" Anamaria yelled, startled. She ran across the floor, pushing any thoughts of glass from her mind and leapt into bed at his side. He screamed and pulled away from her, seeming to shrink into the shadows of the room. He was absolutely terrified, which terrified her in the same. "Jack!"
"No, don't touch me Emily!" He screamed, slapping her hand away. He was still asleep, trapped in a waking dream. Suddenly his voice grew soft and he reached out, cupping her face with a quaking hand. "Oh, Emily…" He whispered, tears falling from his eyes and spattering her wrist as she placed a hand on his chest. "I left her. I'm so sorry."
"Left who?" Anamaria asked, curious. Jack stared at her blankly and then his eyes moved over her shoulder. He stared at nothing and wasn't even startled when there was a loud pounding on the cabin door.
"Cap'n?" Gibbs' voice was muffled but worried. Anamaria pulled away from Jack who leaned against the wall the moment her contact was broken and lay huddled against the wall, sinking into what ever dream he was having still.
Anamaria moved around the bed, shook him roughly with a, "Come on Cap'n, stay with me. I still want to know who you left." And opened the door. In her fright, she'd forgotten about what she was wearing but it all came back to her as Gibbs, and some of the crew behind him, instantly let their eyes fall down her frame and sweep up again as though she were a treat they too wished to sample.
"What are ye standing there gawking about?" Anamaria snapped, wrapping her arms around her chest. "The Cap'n needs spiced tea, the strongest ye got and step on it!" Gibbs stayed put as little Marty rushed off to the galley. The others watched her intently for a moment before Gracen moved towards Gibbs and handed him a coin.
"You win again." He said before moving off, giving Anamaria a quick once over first. The other men grudgingly spit up their coins and headed off to. Gibbs smiled at the last but when he looked back his face fell into a frown. Anamaria had her right hand extended for the money, the left held the dagger from under Jack's pillow. Even though she was in a very feminine dress, her hair was tangled and she smelled of sweet Jasmine, rum and sweat, she was still far more dangerous then the men he had to pay in the Port. He'd take on those cut throats any day of the week.
"Here." He said grudgingly, tipping the coins into her hand. As he made to move off she cleared her throat and raised an eyebrow. With a sigh, he dropped a hidden one into her hand to join the others. "How did you know?" He asked.
"I sleep with Jack, the master trickster, remember?" She said coldly before retreating into the room and shutting the door in his face. She'd wait for Jack's tea in the safety of his room.
Jack's dreams were more memories then anything else and though he sat up, staring into the nothingness, he saw nothing around him but the sitting room of his old home in Britain. Anamaria was gone, and the only other person that remained was a man around his height with medium brown hair pulled back in a ponytail. His head was adorned with a red bandana and beads hung in chains from strings in his hair.
Key Sparrow, the man Jack's mother, Ruth, had loved all his life, watched his adopted son stride around the room, his head bowed, eyes narrowed as he strained his ears to hear what was happening upstairs, even the faintest sound.
"You may as well sit down, John." Key said dully. Jack bristled at his name but remained silent, standing at the foot of the wide, sweeping spiral staircase with his arm resting on the banister. "It could be a while yet. You're a young man, wouldn't want to strain your heart to much."
"Please…" Jack whispered, slapping the railing with his hand and starting his relentless pacing again. "Leave me be."
"Are you really that worried?" Key asked, tilting his head to the side and stretching out his long legs. He was dressed in such pirate garb as to be unbelievable that he made it through the security on the dock. Jack gave him a disapproving once over with his eyes before sitting down heavily on a bench across from him. "You may as well accept it." Key replied to his look. "I'm a pirate, your brother, Billy is a pirate…your mother loved her dirty men."
"Shut up." Jack hissed. Key continued as though there had been no interruption.
"Pirate is in your blood so you'll have to square with that someday." Jack gave his father a look that plainly told him to shut up. "Hell, you yourself were a pirate when you were younger. All those years…until you saw that light."
"Things change a man. Emily, changed mine." Jack replied scathingly. Key raised his eyebrows and leaned back in his seat with a sigh. Before he could answer, the doctor and Emily's sister began to descend the stairs.
Jack sprang from his seat and positively ran to them. Margot flung her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder, weather in joy or sadness he couldn't tell which.
"There was complications." The Doctor said quietly, his lined face grey and grim. "The baby is fine…but, your wife…"
"She's dying, John." Margot whispered in his ear. "Emily's dying." Margot choked and began sobbing harder, positively howling in misery. Jack was numb. Every fiber of his being seemed to be on fire. He didn't know what to think or feel, he only could stand there with his sister-in-law hanging off of him and his adopted father's hand on his shoulder.
After what seemed like forever, he found his voice. "How long does she have?" His voice was amazingly strong, for one in such grief and denial but he used it anyway. The doctor's eyes dimmed further. He'd known Emily since she was a child and loved her as much as Jack did.
"An hour or so, depending. She doesn't know. I hadn't the heart to tell her." The doctor said, shaking his head. "Poor child." He took Margot into his arms and held her as Jack pulled away and began moving up the stairs.
Their bedroom was quiet when he entered. A basket sat on the table, inside his child. The joy that filled him at the sight came with a terrible price. Emily lay in the bed, her eyes vacant as she stared out the window at the stars twinkling in the heavens. They were amazingly bright tonight, so bright that not even the light of the lamps around the room extinguished them.
She smiled as he approached and turned her head slowly to take in the sight of him. "John," She reached out her hand weakly, beckoning him onwards. When he reached her side, he fell to his knees and kissed her hand. "John, it's a girl. A baby girl."
Jack smiled warmly at her and nodded. "Yes. You did great." Emily shook her head.
"No, we did good." She whispered. "She's beautiful." Jack nodded and sniffed slightly, wiping his cheek with the back of his hand. He couldn't show weakness now.
"I want to name her after your sister." Emily said simply. Jack shook his head.
"That name is cursed." He answered. "No, I wish to name her something more powerful. Something strong."
"Strong." Emily smiled, closing her eyes. "Stronger then me, I fear." Jack cocked his head in confusion for a moment before the cold truth sank into his heart.
"You know." He said quietly. Emily opened her eyes, smiled and nodded. "No." Jack whispered a little more firmly, raising and sitting on the bed. "You've always been strong, you'll live through this. We'll be together, free."
"On the sea, you mean?" Emily asked slyly, raising her chin to take in the whole sight of him. "I've seen the way you watch it. Maybe you'll take her with you."
"No, that is not your life, nor hers. She will never live on the sea." Jack's voice held such conviction that it seemed to convince her. "On my oath, she will never know that life. We'll look after her."
"John. Bring her to me." She said. Jack stayed by her side for a moment before rising and going over to the basket. It was the first time he had held a child, not even having seen his nephew, Will jr. he didn't know what to expect.
She was gorgeous, with hair the color of his in soft whips over her small head. Jack smiled and gently lifted her from the basket, cradling her head in the crook of his arm, holding her small body with his other. She seemed too small to be allowed, sleeping peacefully in his arms.
Walking carefully, he moved to the bed and placed the small child in his wife's arms. The baby cooed, rolled its head to the side and slept on, unaware that these last moments were the most precious it would ever know for years to come.
Jack crawled into the bed next to his wife and placed his head almost nose to nose with her on the pillow, staring into her tear filled eyes as if lost. She watched the baby for a while before smiling up at him.
"Morgan." She grinned. Jack's brow furrowed. "Pirates we will always be. Henri Morgan is your friend. He's strong, fought slavery and is now ranging the open ocean."
"Henri is an idiot." Jack replied. Emily laughed quietly. They stayed like that for hours, until the sun began to rise. Jack didn't know when he had fallen asleep but, when he awoke at dawn him and his daughter were the only people left in the room to wake up.
Months passed and still he stayed in the house where his wife had left. Margot had remained, caring for baby Morgan and Jack, who was in no shape to care for himself. He sat in the bedroom all day and well into the night, staring out the window at the ocean below. Friends, mostly pirates came in and out to see him, even Morgan himself who was delighted at the name of Jack's daughter. It all came for naught. Jack didn't acknowledge any of them and soon, visitor were only Margot with Morgan, and Key himself.
"Your brother is coming." Key said one day, sitting on the bed, watching his son stare out the window. Jack blinked but remained quiet. "Will jr is five now, you know. Bill was telling me in the letter." Jack remained silent.
Margot entered and placed a tray of tea on the table, Morgan balanced precariously in her arms. She gave Jack a worried look and left. Key looked him over to. He was thin and pale, his ragged brown hair sticking out in odd places. Key shook his head and moved from the bed to the window.
"John." He leaned down next to him and placed both hands on Jack's right arm. The young man neither moved nor made any sign that he felt him there. "John…Jack?" Jack's eyes flickered and slowly he focused on his father's face. "Look at you."
Jack let out a shuttering breath and looked away. Finally he spoke, his voice holding the crackle of one who hasn't been used in months. "I have to leave."
"Leave?" Key asked. "Leave, where?"
"I have to get out of here. Morgan will be safe with Margot…she'll be okay. Only for a few months, leave with Bill when he comes…leave on the ocean just, sail away." His face shook, as though he was trying to contain the misery raging inside of him. "I need something to latch onto, to pour myself into."
"Another woman?" Key asked. "A ship? John, you have a daughter! You need to worry about her right now."
"Don't give me that!" Jack yelled springing up. He threw the chair across the room where it smashed against the wall. Key didn't move. He just seemed to be resigned to the fact that Jack was a child or something. "I loved her! I did…I do! This is for her, not for me."
"Bullshit!" Key growled, grabbing Jack and throwing him onto the bed. Jack lay there, surprised and his eyes widened when Key sat down on his stomach and held a knife to his throat. "Do what you have to do but don't say it's for Morgan." He growled. Jack winced as the blade scraped his skin. "Don't blame her, either." Jack's eyes narrowed. He seemed to forget his father was a pirate, angry and had a knife to his throat.
"I'm not blaming her." He said, his head rolling to the left. He stared at the window again which just made Key even angrier.
"I blamed you for the longest time when your mother died." He said. Jack's head whipped back to stare at his father. "Then I realized I love you to much to punish you for something beyond your control. Do the same for Morgan, make her proud." He slipped off his child and resheathed his dagger.
Jack breathed deep, able to draw in breath again. He sat up and watched Key cross the room and move to the door. "If you really must, leave. But don't look for my forgiveness when you realize you've made a mistake." And with that, he left.
Margot was the same. Jack didn't tell her about his intentions until Bill had turned up, looking bed ragged and somber. He'd expressed his deepest sympathy, surprised at the state Jack had fallen into. After a week in Jack's house, he'd left for his ship, to wait for his newest crew member while Jack stayed behind for a few minutes with his sister-in-law and a daughter he had only held twice.
"I'll be back before you know it." He said sincerely. "You can bet Key will be around sometimes, to check on her while I'm gone." Margot gave him a worried look.
"I don't like you leaving with…them." She said. Jack sighed.
"I'll be fine. Back before you know it. I'll be in the Caribbean for a few months and then I'll come home." Margot raised a finger to admonish him but her placed a hand on hers and lowered it. "I won't drink." He smiled. "I promise."
Morgan's basket was in the corner, on a table. Inside, she squirmed around, trying to pull o her blankets and suck her toes. Jack leaned over the basket and looked down at the child he could have loved. Kissing her cheek, he whispered, "I love you." In her ear before disentangling his hair from her grip and leaving…never to look back.
Back in the present, Jack woke slowly, Anamaria's hand on his forehead. Her voice was soft and soothing, trying to wake him without getting hit. Jack blinked and stared around, trying to get his bearings. Anamaria was wrapped in his long coat, her provocative night dress covered. She looked worried as she held a cup of steaming liquid to his lips.
"Are you awake?" She asked tentatively. Jack shook his head trying to clear it and sat up a little straighter in bed. When had he fallen asleep?
"Yes." He said, blinking rapidly to clear the fog in his brain. The pain in his back from the glass shards was nearly unbearable but not as bad as the pain in his heart. "Morgan."
The whispered word brought tears to his eyes as though he had just left her again. He'd never gone back…and he had no one to tell or complain to.
"What?" Anamaria asked sharply, leaning closer. Jack shook his head and allowed her to raise the cup to his lips. It was spiced tea…he hated tea.
"No, please." He pushed her hand away and turned his attention to Gibbs who was standing off to the side watching them both, looking grumpy and shooting Anamaria dirty looks. "What happened?"
"We couldn't wake you up." Anamaria answered, still holding the tea. "You were yelling so loud, that little girl came up on deck with her mom and asked what happened." The words, 'little girl' rattled him. He got out of bed, pulled on some pants, ignoring Gibbs who had turned around and faced the wall the moment he moved the covers. When he was a little more decent he pulled on his boots and left, moving out into the cool night and hissing as the cold air whistled through the holes in his back.
Marty was still there, asleep, entwined in a very peculiar way with the wheel. They were about a mile off course and Jack wasn't happy. After sending the little man off to bed, he took the wheel himself and began moving his ship back to where she should be.
This had been it, the thing he had poured himself into. He'd left his daughter and used the Pearl as his pain outlet, his ship and his rum. They were all he had left. Staring up at the stars, he could feel Emily's disappointment with him more clearly then ever before.
"Gibbs!" He called. Gibbs came to the captain's cabin door and looked out at him. "Bring me rum and hurry." He had to drown the sorrow again.
Hey everyone! I hope you liked it. I've been convinced to continue with author responses so, here goes:
Blackmagic: Hey! Yeah, that girl died. It wasn't a stupid question at all, I didn't say I don't think. Yes, she died. Sad, really. I've taken many POTC quizzes, their awesome! Anyway, keep reading.
Oocssuck: LOL, well, I'm still alive…I think. Anyway, yes, Bill will feel icky when he realizes this is his brother's daughter on board. You'll find out more about Morgan's past later and why she dropped off the map from her family. Well, Jack never looked back, but one of her family did keep an eye on her and you'll see who later. LOL. Thanks for the review and I hope your still with me.
TO ANYONE I MAY HAVE FORGOTTEN OR ISN'T REVIEWING, THANK YOU TOO.