Disclaimer: The characters of PotC are not mine in any way, shape, or form. They belong to Disney and Gore Verbinski.

Ch. 3: The storm

"Commodore! We need your assistance!"

"How is she, sir?"

"She's still breathing…thank the Lord." Her eyes still tightly shut, Hannah heard voices – she recognized the last one as James Norrington. A wet hand brushed the hair from her face.

"Take her to my cabin, Groves." Once she felt someone pick her up, she decided that she should let them know she was awake.

"No, I'm alright," she said weakly, groaning as she opened her eyes. The side of her head throbbed painfully where she'd hit it against the railing. Standing in front of her was a very worried looking Norrington and his lieutenant. The sailor set her down gently, and then ran to help secure the rigging. The storm raged on…it had gotten worse during the few minutes that she'd blacked out. Rain pounded on the deck, and the raging winds ruffled the sails, which were starting to break loose.

"How do you feel?" Norrington asked her, his pale features illuminated during the frequent flashes of lightening that brightened the otherwise dark sky.

"I'm fine…I wasn't hurt too badly." She winced as he touched her injury. The ship lurched again, but this time she grabbed on to him to keep from falling into the sea.

"Go…your crew needs you," she pointed out. The Commodore hesitated, not wanting to leave his hurt fiancée but he knew his duty was to command the ship when it was in danger.

"Commodore! Gillette just reported that we've sprung a leak…water is now filling the hold, sir!" Groves called over the howling wind. "What are your orders?"

Sailors were being flung into the sea like rag dolls; and to Hannah it looked like the men were beginning to abandon their posts. The Commodore gritted his teeth, and ordered the men to toss chairs, doors, crates overboard…anything that could be used as a floatation device. Hannah knew from the distraught look on James' face that the Interceptor wouldn't last long with a leak that size.

"Good luck, men. It's every man for himself," the Commodore announced as the ship was once again tossed by the angry sea. Suddenly Hannah thought of Jack, trapped in his cell below where the water was leaking in.

"James!" she cried. "We need to free the prisoner…let me have your keys." He shook his head no.

"There's no time…he's a pirate for god sakes and he's set to die anyways." But before he could react, Hannah grabbed the ring of keys from Norrington's side anyway and sprinted to the stairway.

"Hannah! No…he's not worth it!" James' voice was lost in the storm…not that it would've matter if she'd heard him. For she begged to differ; pirate or not, Jack was her friend and he deserved to have a chance at survival. Holding up her skirts, she dashed down the steps, clutching the key ring so tightly that it made an imprint on her skin. As she neared the lowest deck, Hannah saw seawater creeping up the last few steps. Splash! She jumped into the water and swam her way over to Jack's cell.

He'd been sitting in the corner of his tiny prison, feeling the freezing water raise up to his waist, calmly waiting for the inevitable. But when he saw her coming towards him, he felt an unexpected burst of hope and leapt up to greet her.

"I didn't think anyone was going to remember me!" he exclaimed. Hannah almost laughed out loud in relief; she wasn't too late.

"Shut up you, and help me figure out which key it is!" She yelled trying a large silver one that, predictably, was too big for the lock.

"It was a black one," he said in a rush, and she tried one of those next, to no avail. The water was up to their chests now, and Hannah was beginning to panic. She just had to get him out of there! She had only three black keys to try…then two…then one, but by that time the water had rose above the lock.

"Are you sure it was a black key?" she screamed.

"Pretty sure," he answered, treading water in his cell. Taking a deep gulp of air, Hannah dove beneath the water and fumbled around with the last back key, trying to get it to fit in the lock. To her surprise, it was a perfect fit. With all her might, she turned the key and the lock sprung open. She quickly stepped back out of the way and Jack pushed the barred door open. He swam over to her and embraced her shivering form.

"Thank you for saving my life," he said solemnly.

"Honestly, Jack!" She shook her head at his doubts. "Did you think I'd leave you down here to drown? You're my friend…friends don't let friends drown."

She reluctantly pulled away from his embrace and swam towards the relative safety of the stairway. Sprinting up the stairs, she looked back to see if Jack was following, and indeed he was. Her stomach filled with dread – what would Norrington say when he found out that she freed a pirate? She saw him approaching from the other side of the deck and braced herself.

"Hannah! What have you done!" Damn…so that's what he'd say, she thought. Hannah had just about reached the end of her rope with Norrington. Jack, clearly unaffected by the rocking of the ship, greeted the Commodore like they were enjoying a nice sunny day.

"Good evening, Commodore! It's so good to see the man who captured me again."

"Why in heaven's name did you free him!" James hissed at Hannah. "I have enough on my mind as it is…we're about to sink into the crushing dark oblivion that is the Atlantic and you're freeing pirates!" He yelled that last part, which sent her over the edge.

"I'll have you know, James, that he's been a better friend to me over the past few weeks than I've ever known anyone to be," she angrily informed the shaken Commodore. "At least when he talks the topic of conversation is about something interesting!" Jack was watching their argument unfold, a smirk forming on his handsome features.

"I don't have time for this," Norrington glared at her. "I must try to salvage the ship."

"You never have time for me, James," she said, sadly as he pushed past her. "That's why we never would've worked." To Hannah's amazement, Jack followed the Commodore, sneaking up behind him as he took the wheel.

"If I may give my professional opinion, you should drop canvas. If you do, the ship has an excellent chance of surviving until morning. I've had plenty of experience in this situation and it seems like the smartest thing to do. We'd have a much better chance of finding land in the daylight, eh mate?" The startled Norrington snarled at the pirate, but Jack firmly held his ground.

"I won't be taking nautical advice from a pirate," he sneered, glancing at Jack as if he were pond scum. Jack shrugged.

"Suit yerself then, Norrie. I didn't realize you had a death wish." Hannah caught up to them just in time to hear her fiancée refuse Jack's help. Why won't he listen to Jack? She thought desperately. Can't he put his ego aside – it's a matter of life and death!

"C'mon, Jack," she said quietly, taking his hand. "I'd rather take my chances with you than with someone who doesn't give a damn about me." Without hesitating, Jack and Hannah ran hand in hand to the bow of the ship to get as far away from Norrington as possible. In her haste, Hannah didn't see the broken planks in the floor ahead. She would've tripped if it weren't for Jack's strong arms grabbing her at the last second.

"Thanks for that," she breathed, her mouth just inches from his.

"You're welcome, luv," he said, helping her back on her feet. "Here, grab on to that." He handed her a long rope, which she gratefully clung to. Jack grabbed another rope that was near hers, and they stood close together, trying to shelter each other from the blowing rain. It didn't really work, as they were getting drenched by the minute but Hannah wasn't complaining.

Suddenly, a huge wave crashed against the ship, knocking Hannah and Jack against the side. She clung to him, knowing he wouldn't let her fall into the sea. Once they'd found their footing, Jack grimly pointed out that the ship was listing to the port side. It was then that she knew there was no way the ship would stay afloat.

"Jack…I can't swim!" she told him frantically, watching as sailors all around them were falling into the sea. He stared at her incredulously, and for the first time, he looked a tad worried.

"Just stick close ta me, luv. I'll help you swim," he promised her, holding her close to keep her from falling, of course. It wasn't long before another large wave rattled the ship…and this time, the force broke the main mast in two. Hearing a loud crack, Hannah and Jack looked up in horror to see part of the mast falling straight towards them.

"Jump!" Jack yelled, and holding on to each other's hands, they leaped from the deck together into the ocean.

Smack…the force of their bodies hitting the water greatly aggravated Hannah's head injury. Completely disoriented, she didn't know which way was up and started to sink into the depths of the ocean. Hannah thought it was all over until she felt strong arms lifting her head above water. She took a huge gulp of air, coughing a bit as she'd inhaled some seawater.

"Jack…I don't…feel…so good," she managed to tell him before going limp in his arms. Hannah couldn't keep her eyes open any longer but she could feel Jack carefully holding her as he swam through the freezing waters.

"Hannah, luv! You've got to wake up," Jack worriedly poked her side.

"Mmmph," she moaned, enjoying the feeling of being in his arms even though her temple ached horribly. Hannah tried to open her eyes, honestly she did, but she couldn't manage it. Before she lost consciousness, all she could remember was Jack's fading voice encouraging her to 'hold on'.

End Ch. 3

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