Ch. 12

Jack watched as Blackbird and Will prepared a boat to go into the cave. "You sure you don't want to come along, Jack?" Blackbird asked.

"No reason to," he replied. "The only reason we're here is so you and Will can go pay the blood debt. Besides, I'd rather stay with the Pearl. I don't like having Barbossa's son here without me to watch him."

Blackbird just shrugged. "Suit yourself," she said, starting to climb down to the boat. "We'll only be a couple of minutes."

---

Blackbird looked around as they silently rowed into the cave. "Isn't this fun?" she muttered to Will, stepping out of the boat and making sure it was secured.

He just nodded absently. "Something's wrong…" he murmured.

"I feel it too," Blackbird agreed. "It feels like we're being watched." Making her way over to the stone chest, she picked up the knife. "Might as well get this over-" Before she could finish speaking, the knife was shot out of her hand. Turning to the sound of the explosion, she saw Nathan standing there, pistol in hand.

"Raven, Raven, Raven," he said condescendingly. "Did ye really think I'd let you get away with that?"

Blackbird stared at him. "What are you doing here?" she asked tonelessly.

Nathan just smiled. "You never did figure out that part of the curse, did ye, luv?" he replied. "Being neither living nor dead, we don't really exist in this part of reality, so the rules of this reality don't always apply. In simpler terms: I can be anywhere I please. I only let you think you were keeping me in that cell. Even as we speak, my men are killing everyone onboard the Black Pearl. And you two are going to have to live forever knowing that you could do nothing to stop me."

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Jack paced back and forth across the deck, ignoring the full moon that was out. Something wasn't right. His thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of gunshots and yelling. Moments later, a swarm of skeletal pirates ran on deck, brandishing weapons.

"What happened?" Jack shouted to Gibbs as they rushed to fight.

"I don't know, Cap'n!" Gibbs replied. "One second, they were in their cells; the next, they were out and fighting! How'd they manage it?"

"I dunno, let's ask them!" Jack said sarcastically. Gibbs just stared at him blankly. "Less talking, more fighting!" he shouted tersely.

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Blackbird sat down on the edge of the chest and looked over at Nathan. "So your only plan is to keep us here, huh?" she said. "What do you accomplish by that?"

Nathan smiled eerily. "Revenge," he said simply. "I can't kill you two without putting myself at risk of death, but I can do the next best thing. By the time I am done with your lives, you'll wish I had just killed you." As he turned around to continue pacing, Blackbird caught a glimpse of something sticking out of his belt.

Glancing quickly at Will, she suddenly stood up and approached their opponent. "Nathan…I've been thinking about everything you said, and…you're right. It was all my fault. I was selfish to think that I should control your life, and I realize now that I was in the wrong. I was a horrible wife. I-I know you probably want nothing to do with me now, but…could you ever forgive me?" she asked, gently wrapping an arm around his waist and leaning on his chest. As he looked down at her, too surprised to say anything. Taking advantage of his hesitation, Blackbird reached up to plant a kiss right on his lips, at the same time gently slipping the coin out of his belt. Apparently he noticed the motion, because he immediately pushed her away.

"Wench!" he shouted angrily. "You tricked me! I should have known you couldn't be trusted!"

Blackbird drew her sword and shrugged. "Pirate."

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Jack pushed his way through the chaos, his sword a constant blur of motion. Turning around, he saw that one of the pirates had cornered Elizabeth. He groaned in exasperation. Is she bloody trying to get herself killed? He pulled out a knife and hurled it at Elizabeth's attacker's back, delaying the pirate only long enough for him to reach them. Knocking the man unconscious with the hilt of his sword, Jack glared at Elizabeth. "Go back below deck," he ordered sternly.

"I can fight!"

"Not right now!" he insisted. "Think of your children, Elizabeth! Think of Will! There are other ways to prove yourself!" Not waiting for a response, he turned and went back to fighting.

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Blackbird whirled around and stabbed at Barbossa. He screamed in pain and retaliated, only to be met by Will. The twins worked in perfect tandem, fighting more as one unit than two. It took all of Nathan's effort just to keep up with them. "I'm impressed, Raven," he said, breathing heavily. "This is the best I've ever seen you fight. Clearly I've made ye angry."

"There's an understatement," Blackbird replied through gritted teeth. "Emily was your daughter, Nathan! I never asked for much, but still you found it necessary to take everything from me." Lashing out suddenly, she stabbed at Nathan again.

"Are you really that stupid?" he sneered. "Surely you've figured out by now that I can't die."

Blackbird pulled out Nathan's medallion and wiped it in the blood on her sword. "I didn't intend to kill you," she said grimly. She sliced her own hand and tossed the two coins to Will, who was standing by the chest. He dropped them into the chest along with his own.

Nathan stared blankly at Blackbird. He started slowly backing away as she pulled out her pistol. "N-now, love," he stammered, speeding up his retreat. "You don't really want to kill me, right? I mean …after all we've b-been through…"

Blackbird just leveled her pistol at him and took a step forward. "It is all we've been through that makes this so easy. I only wish I could make you suffer as much as I have." Hesitating only slightly, she fired.

As he collapsed at her feet, Blackbird shoved the gun roughly back into her belt. "Until death doest part," she muttered tonelessly. She turned to face Will, her expression still blank.

"Blackbird…" he began hesitantly.

She held up a hand to stop him. "Don't. I know what you're going to say, and don't. What's done is done."

"Fine," Will said, tossing the knife into the chest. He reached out to close the lid, only for it to snap shut on its own. Jumping slightly, he looked down at it in surprise. "Let's just make sure this doesn't happen again, alright?"

---

Will packed down the dirt with the back of his shovel. Scattering some of the treasure to cover the mound, he stepped back to survey his work. They had decided to bury the chest this time, just in case anyone else happened to wander across the dreaded Isla de Muerta. "We should probably head back to the Pearl," he said quietly. She just nodded absently, still staring at the grave they had dug for Nathan. Sighing, he went over and hesitantly put a hand on her shoulder. "Blackbird…are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said brusquely, turning away abruptly and pushing off his hand. "He's been dead to me for years now. I'll be fine. Let's get going. I'm sure Jack's wondering what happened to us."

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As they climbed up the side of the Black Pearl, they were met with a dismal scene. Most of the men wore bandages as they worked to clean up the mess, and everyone's expressions were numb. Blackbird walked through it all without registering much, but Will stopped to pull Gibbs aside.

"What happened here, mate?" he asked in a low voice.

Gibbs shrugged. "I don't know," he said plainly. "One second they were in their cells; the next, they weren't. You should find Jack. He'll be glad to know the two of ye are back safely." Will nodded and headed below deck.

---

When he finally found Jack, he saw that Blackbird had already located him. He was about to go up to them when Blackbird buried her face in Jack's shoulder, her shoulders shaking. "It's alright, love," he heard Jack mutter, stroking her hair. Deciding that it wasn't the best time to interrupt, Will just nodded to Jack and went off to find Elizabeth.

He finally found her in the room adjacent to the galley, tending to some of the more severely wounded. Coming up behind her, he grabbed her hand suddenly and pulled her into a passionate kiss.

"Will!" she said in surprise. "I was beginning to worry!"

"I'm alright, love," he replied, resting his chin lightly on her head. "How are the children?"

Elizabeth shrugged. "Fine, I guess. I locked them in our cabin as soon as I heard the battle."

"What are the numbers?"

"Three dead, a few more that might not make it," Elizabeth said wearily. "Barbossa's men had the element of surprise, and that put them at an advantage."

"Not to mention they couldn't die," Will pointed out. "That generally helps in a battle."

Elizabeth smiled half-heartedly. "I need to go check on the others soon," she said reluctantly. "I hate being this close to suffering, though… Speaking of suffering…how is Blackbird?"

"I think she'll be alright," Will said slowly. "She had to face a lot of personal demons on this journey that she had thought were behind her. Knowing Blackbird, she'll be quiet and withdrawn for the next few days, then go back to her usual sarcastic, extroverted self. It's just her way of doing things."

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Blackbird sat on the handrail, staring absently out at the rising sun. Will came up next to her silently and handed her a plate of food. "Thought you might want this," he said quietly.

"I'm not hungry."

"You have to be hungry, Blackbird. You haven't eaten in almost three weeks," he insisted. "Or are you forgetting that we are once again capable of dying from starvation?"

Blackbird took a bite out of the bread. "There. Happy?"

"Eat it all," he said in a mock-serious tone. "Am I going to have to treat you like Marie and send you to your room until you decide to finish it?"

"Yes, please," she said quietly. Her tone was serious, but he saw the corners of her mouth lift a little.

"A smile!" Will exclaimed, pretending to be surprised. "I haven't seen one of those around for a while."

She hit his arm roughly. "Shut up, Will." Will just laughed and looked out at the sunrise. After several minutes, Blackbird sighed and looked over at him. "Thank you," she said quietly.

"For what?"

"For everything. For understanding that I needed some time alone these past few days. For knowing when I needed some cheering up. For just…being there."

Will smiled. "Hey, I'm your brother. That's my job, right? To be there?"

"Yeah, I guess so," she said absently. "For once, I'm ready to be back in Tortuga. Too much stuff I want to leave behind on this journey."

"I couldn't agree with you more."

A/N: Okay, so this one was really really long to make up for the previous short one, plus it just had a lot of stuff that needed to be in there (since it's kinda the climax). I promise I'll make the next one close to normal length:) Review, please!