HELLO EVERYBODY!
OMG! I've hit 35+ reviews! I feel SO loved! Hugs for all! And cookies too! I hope I can make you feel as loved as you have made me feel.
Smithy – Don't worry, I know how tough it can be. Well, kinda… I work at Bruno's. It's my first job and it can be a bit overwhelming at times. If you're off for the 4th of July, then I'm gonna call you lucky. Anyways, just super glad to have you back! Yes, scars are sexy, and he will have more. Hahaha!
Trinilee Greenleaf – Oh, don't worry, there will be plenty more torture to come. Unfortunatly, just not in this chapter. Here is the next chapter. By the way, just wondering… Where did you come up with the first part of you name? It reminds me of Power Rangers…
Geheimins – Glad to hear from you. I love new reviewers! Sorry about the cliffhanger and sorry it won't be resolved in this chapter. You'll just have to wait till next chapter. #evil smirk# Yes, I know I'm evil.
Sanquinedarkness666 – Typing spasms are understandable. I'm just glad you typed this for me. Bandcamp… Grrrrr. Die bandcamp! Die grumpy Faison! Die annoying Foster! And, yes, I agree. Everything is HAPPY! Hahahaha… Why are people staring? Oh, Abby word of wisedom from a Power Rangers fic. It's always better to shut your mouth BEFORE you slip up and let your girlfriend find out you've been cheating on her with her ex-boyfriend. Remember that.
Staci – No, you're not evil for liking to read about him suffering. It's normal. And what is everyone's deal about me using the term PICK-ON-ABLE? … Never mind.
Williz – It's wonderful to hear from you again! I love you! And your greed is endearing. Here is the next chapter.
Piglet12345 – Glad you like this fic. As a new reviewer, you have made my day. Here is chapter 6.
Daphnebandweenie – Band dorks rule! And you just "huggle" Will all you want, it won't protect him. Don't worry, I'm sure Abby will share Orli with you. But me and her are sharing Johnny. Sorry, but hands off. And how can I sound professional? It's Bruno's. Love you Bethany! BTW, I agree. Never Leave FanFiction Lying Around is hilarious. And yes, Hunter/Cam rocks! They're SOOO cute together!
Anyway, here comes the story. Hope you enjoy!
And Obliviongates, if you're out there, I hope you're okay.
That said, everyone PLEASE read and review. It makes me happy.
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BlackSword
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Chapter 6
"Uh, Jack. Jackie, can I talk to you?"
"Sure Captain Sparrow. What do you want? Is my dad back yet?" Jackie's voice held a hint of hope that made the pirate's heart break.
"That's… that's what I need to talk to you about," Jack said slowly. He was standing in his room staring at the boy that they'd put there.
Jackie's large brown eyes widened slightly. "What? What's wrong?"
Jack sighed and slowly knelt down before the boy. "Uh, Jackie," Jack paused slightly, "your… your father… he's not coming. He's… he." He couldn't bring himself to finish.
"What do you mean?" Jackie asked fearfully. The look on Captain Sparrow's face scared him.
"Will… he's… he's dead." Jack felt a sharp pang shoot through his heart. Never before had the death of anyone hurt so much, and every time he thought of his friend another pang shot through him.
Jackie just stared at him and blinked; clearly not comprehending what Jack had said. "Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean, he's dead. Blacksword killed him. He's never coming back," Jack said, his voice almost breaking. Somehow, admitting it made the pain in his heart worse. He closed his eyes in an attempt to keep from crying.
The little boy just continued to stare at him in shock. "Wha… what? No. No, no, no, no, no." He started shaking his head and as he did, tears started to slide down his face. "No."
It was almost more than Jack could stand, seeing the little boy burst into tears. His heart tightened as the boy's sobs echoed in his mind. "Jackie, I…"
"What are we going to do? What are mom and I going to do?"
Jack hadn't thought of that, but now that he did, he realized the seriousness of the problem. Most women with children who lost their husbands ended up with nothing. And knowing Elizabeth, she wouldn't accept charity; she was, and always had been, pridefully stubborn. "I'm not sure," he admitted, "but no matter what, I'll look after you and your mom."
Slowly, Jackie looked up. "How? You couldn't look after dad?" He didn't mean for it to sound the way it did, he especially didn't mean to cause the pain that he did, but it happened anyway.
Captain Sparrow felt his heart throb at the thought of what Will's son had suggested. 'He's right,' he thought miserably. 'It is my fault. Will-' his heart wrenched again at the thought of his name- 'is dead because of me.' He realized he didn't really have any right to offer to protect Elizabeth and didn't have the respectability to expect anyone to believe anything he said or promised.
A sudden thought occurred to him, one he hadn't expected, but one- considering what he was- wasn't surprising. 'With Will' – another sharp pang- 'out of the way, I could have Elizabeth.' Despite the fact that he had been with just about every lowlife and prostitute, and normally had no problems about taking someone's wife, he was strangely horrified at the thought.
'I can't take Will's' – another, even sharper pang- 'wife. No matter what else I am, I am not someone who will steal my best friend's wife. I owe him that much, if nothing else.'
"I'm sorry, Captain Sparrow," Jackie apologized. The apology sounded pathetic, especially with the sobs mixed in. "I'm sorry, I didn't think -" he couldn't continue. His sobs had tightened his throat and to breath he had to stop talking.
"It's okay, Jackie," Jack said quietly. "It's okay." He turned away and started to leave.
"Where are you going?" Jackie asked, voice rising in panic and his sobs subsiding. The child actually sounded afraid.
"I'm just going to the bar here."
"The bar!"
"Yeah, we docked. I need a drink so I'm going to the bar."
The eight-year-old jumped to his feet. "I'm coming with you." He quickly walked to his side.
Jack stared at him, "No, you can't come. If I let you, your f-" He stopped; not only had the thought of Will sent another sharp pang of sorrow, but this time, a twinge of guilt flashed through him for even thinking about taking Elizabeth. "Your mother would kill me," he quickly finished, hoping not to upset Jackie anymore.
"You can't leave me," Jackie cried. He suddenly latched himself to the pirate. "Don't leave," he sobbed.
Jack felt another wave of guilt, this time because he had wanted to leave the boy. "Come on," he finally relented.
He slowly led the boy off the Black Pearl and through the dark, dirty streets. Like most port cities, this one had two sides- the rich, clean, well-to-do area, and the dirty slums, which were full of pirates and other lowlifes. Jack was careful to keep a close eye on Jackie and make sure the boy stayed close. He couldn't help but notice the looks the two of them earned.
Jack stopped outside the bar and took Jackie by the shoulders. "Jackie, look, you have to stay close, okay? There are a lot of people in there you probably shouldn't be around, so don't wander off. And if anyone gives you any problems, tell me."
The boy nodded and, to Jack's surprise, took hold of his right hand. Jack rolled his eyes and started to shake the boy off, but then decided against it. Jackie had just lost his father, it was no surprise the child felt the need to latch onto him.
They stepped into the Faithful Bride- the best-known bar in Tortuga- and Jackie stopped dead. His brown eyes widened in the darkness; the dingy bar was like nothing he had ever seen before. It was dank and gloomy- at least in some areas, others, the drunkards were too out of it to be unhappy- and filed with smoke.
"Well, what do you think?" Jack asked, noticing the boy's shock.
"No wonder mom hates these places. Are all bars this bad?"
"No, of course not. Some are worse."
Jackie stared at him. "Are you serious?"
Jack nodded and led him deeper in. His caramel eyes spotted Miguel and Paul in the back. He walked to their table and pulled up two chairs. "So, where's my rum?"
Miguel smiled and passed him a large bottle. "I thought you were going to leave the kid? What happened?" he asked in Spanish.
Jack shrugged. He understood Spanish but he couldn't reply in it, and he didn't wish to let Jackie know what had been said. "Things came up," he said vaguely.
Paul shook his head, watching Jackie carefully. "So, kid, are you feeling okay?"
"Not really," Jackie admitted. He eyes flickered closed for an instant, and then he continued. "I feel… horrible. My back… and my ribs…. My wrist… It doesn't work. Plus, there's the fact that Captain Sparrow just told me my father's dead. So right now, I-" he trailed off and ended with a soft grunt and a shrug. Tears had formed in his eyes and threatened to spill down his cheeks.
Jack had felt the guilt and sorrow sweep through him as the boy said these things, both the fact about his father and that he'd- in his sadness- forgotten about the child's injuries. He thought for a second then got up from the table and went to the bar. A few seconds later, he came back with an empty cup.
Miguel, Paul, and Jackie watched the pirate captain. After a moment or two, Jackie shrugged and turned away, leaning against the table as best he could without aggravating his wounds on his back. The boy watched in fascination as the table next to theirs broke out in a large, loud argument.
Jack Sparrow watched Jackie, studying him. He then carefully pouted out a small amount of rum into the cup he's taken from the bartender. Once he had, he gently tapped the eight-year-old on the shoulder. The boy turned to him.
"Drink this," he instructed, pressing the cup of rum into the child's hands. Jackie blinked at him a few times.
"What is it?" the boy asked curiously. If nothing else, his curiosity distracted him from the pain of his wounds and the sorrow in his heart.
Jack hesitated, "Don't worry about it," he finally said. "Just drink it."
The child started to put the cup to his lips, but stopped as he caught a whiff of the sharp smell of the rum. He made a face, and then asked, "What is it for?"
"It will help deaden the pain," Jack sighed. The boy was asking more questions than the pirate was used to answering.
"Is it rum?" the child asked bluntly.
"Yes," Jack ground out reluctantly. That hadn't been something he wanted to tell Jackie.
Jackie's eyes widened slightly.
"Just trust me, Jack. Drink it," Captain Sparrow said.
The boy made another face then quickly drank the rum. The liquor burned all the way down the child's throat and he grimaced darkly.
Jack nodded in satisfaction, then took the bottle and took a few swallows before saying, "You know, if you were a little older and could stand the taste, you could make some money drinking rum." He noticed the look on the boy's face. "Not that I'm suggesting that," he quickly added.
About the time he finished, one of the barmaids had quietly sauntered close to them. "Hey, Jack," she said seductively. "Who are your friends?" She asked, noticing Paul and Miguel.
"Uh, hello, Roxy," Jack said slowly. "This is, uh, Paul Langley and Miguel Sanchez. They're part of my crew." The two men nodded towards the blonde.
"Hey, boys," she said, grinning. Then, turning to Jack, she said, "Did you come back to "visit" again? Or did you miss me?"
"Sorry, Roxy. I'm… not interested right now," Jack apologized, though he didn't really feel sorry about it. "Got the kid to look out for," he explained, nodding towards Jackie.
At first, her green eyes had grown angry, then as Jack nodded to the eight-year-old, she had suddenly changed from angry to amused.
"I didn't know you had a son, Jack," she said, her voice softly accusing. She looked the boy up and down. "Oh, he's so cute!" she exclaimed. Jackie stared uncomfortably at her as she gazed into his dark brown eyes.
"He's not my son," Jack said quietly. "His name is Jack Turner."
Roxy stopped running her hands through the child's dirty blonde hair. "Huh?" she asked in surprise, looking up at Jack.
"His parents are friends of mine," he explained. "I'm watching him right now." He didn't feel like saying why he was watching Jackie without the parents.
"Aawww, that's so sweet," she cooed. She continued to stare at Jackie. "Ohh, what happened to your lips?" Her fingers came up and gently toched them. "Poor baby."
"Blacksword hit me," Jackie told her darkly. "And I'm not a baby." His voice sounded slightly indignant. "I'm eight."
"Eight?" she repeated with a grin. Then she turned to Jack. "I'll… watch him for you tonight."
Jack's caramel eyes widened. "Uh, sorry, but no," he said quickly. It was bad enough he had brought Jackie into a bar, if he let a woman like Roxy be alone with Jackie, Will- a lance of pain and sorrow shot through his heart- would kill him, had he been alive.
Roxy pouted, letting her full lips quiver. "Please, Jack. I could teach him a few things."
"I don't want him to learn those things. He's too young."
The beautiful woman smiled, "You can never be too young to learn." She gently ran her fingers along the side of Jackie's face. The boy, now feeling very uncomfortable, flinched backwards, away from her. She looked insulted. "What? You aren't afraid of me, are you?"
"No, I just don't think you're trustworthy," Jackie informed her.
"I'm not trustworthy?" she asked incredulously. "What about him?" She pointed angrily at Jack Sparrow. "He's a pirate!"
"What of it?" Jackie asked. "Captain Sparrow is a good person. My dad told me so."
"Then your father was dead wrong!" she yelled. To her surprise, as she finished the boy burst into tears and ran.
"Miguel, go get him. Don't let him wander off," Jack instructed. He then turned back to Roxy, "You're mistaken. His father wasn't wrong, just dead." His voice was cold and angry.
"What?" she asked in surprise.
Jack lowered his voice. "His father was with me and died about a day ago. That's why the kid's with me. He will be until I can get him back to his mother."
Roxy's face turned red, "Oh, I didn't know. Poor kid."
Miguel came back; Jackie trailing behind him, tears still showing in his eyes.
Roxy couldn't look at him so she kept her eyes fixed on Jack. "Are you sure you don't want me to watch the kid for you, Jack?"
Jack shook his head. "I already told you, no!" He couldn't believe she was still trying to take advantage of Jackie. He had never before realized just how persistent this woman could be.
Roxy then turned towards Jackie, her eyes filled with longing for him. She honestly didn't care that he was only eight. "Well, it doesn't matter what you say, Jack. What do you want, little one? Do you want to come with me?"
Jackie shook his head vigorously. "N…no," he stammered fearfully. He didn't want to make her mad, but he didn't want there to be any misunderstanding between them.
She looked shocked at what he said. "I can see I'm no longer wanted here," she huffed. Se glanced at Jack, "Farewell Captain Sparrow." At that, she hauled off and slapped him across the face. "See you later, you two," she said to Paul and Miguel, waving slightly.
Finally, Roxy turned back to Jackie. "Are you certain you don't want to come with me? I could change your mind if you let me," she whispered to him, leaning in close to him. Her hot breath fell upon the child's face.
"I'm certain," Jackie said. He really didn't understand what this woman wanted with him; he just knew he didn't want to go somewhere without Captain Sparrow.
She stood for a moment, her eyes flickering as she attempted to control herself. Finally, she could contain herself no longer and she jerked forward, putting her hands on his face and pulling the boy into a kiss.
The move caught Jackie, Miguel, Paul, and even Jack off guard. The three men stood in shock, unable to do anything due to the fact that their bodies had frozen up.
Jackie was in shock as well, for a total of about five seconds. As soon as he realized what was happening, he started struggling, trying desperately to pull himself away from Roxy. Even uninjured, though, he wouldn't have been able to disentangle himself from her, so at the moment, injured as he was, it was out of the question. All his struggling gained him was to put more stress on his wounded body.
Jack was the next to recover and when he did, he acted instantly. Roxy had gone too far.
He lurched forward and grabbed Roxy and pulled her away from the small child, probably much more forcefully than he needed to. As soon as he had, he spun her around and shoved her back into the bar.
"What bit of "no he's too young" didn't you understand?" he snarled angrily. His eyes were blazing hotter than the Caribbean sun.
Roxy's eyes were huge and filled with terror. She had never seen the captain of the Black Pearl so upset and the fact that his emotions were directed towards her scared her deeply. "I… I just… wanted-" she began.
"You just wanted," he repeated, his tone sardonic. "You just wanted to rob an eight-year-old of his innocence after I explicitly told you no. And not only me, but he also said no." His expression was dark.
He had failed to protect Will, his closest, and not to mention only, friend. He had been upset but unable to display his emotions beforehand. Now, though, he had the perfect person to take out his sorrow and anger on and he had the perfect reason to do so. Jack was not about to let her off easily.
"I'm sorry," she whimpered fearfully. It was slowly beginning to dawn on her just how big a mistake she had made. Obviously, Jack had been quite close to the child's father; that was the only explanation- given Jack's attitude and tendencies- that was conceivable. There was no other reason for him to be so protective of the boy.
Jack started to retort but stopped when Miguel came up to him and placed a hand on his arm. "Let her go, Captain," he instructed quietly. He jerked his head towards Jackie. "You need to see to him. He's quite upset."
The pirate stood starting at his crewman, no doubt considering whether or not it would be worth it to pick a fight with Miguel. Slowly, he nodded. "Okay." He turned one final glare at Roxy, then turned and stalked back to their table.
Jackie was sitting down, eyes huge and unfocused. He was in partial shock, both from the kiss and the extra stress he'd placed on his already overloaded body, which was at the moment, shuddering convulsively. The slight spasms continued for several minutes.
"Jackie? Are you okay?" Jack asked in concern. He didn't understand why the boy was so freaked out, only that he was.
"Ki… kiss," he stammered. He really didn't seem to be focused on anything.
"Yes, I know. She shouldn't have done that," Jack replied. Slowly sitting down next to him. Uncertainly, he gently placed a hand on the child's shoulder in an attempt to comfort him. To his surprise, the boy relaxed and leaned back against him.
After a few minutes the child turned in his chair and took hold of Jack's hand and turned it over so the palm was facing up. He studied it for a second, then said, "You… you have the same… same scar dad did."
Jack eyes him in surprise. A few seconds ago, the child had been spasming uncontrollably. Now, the kid was calmly commenting that he had the same scar as Will.
He nodded, "Yeah, I got it about… five seconds before your father got his." At first, he felt a slight sense of achievement when he didn't feel a sharp pang run through him but he realized it was actually only a few seconds late in coming. When it came, though, it was just as strong as ever.
"How did you get it?" Jackie asked, curiously running a finger along the scar.
"Will didn't tell you?" Jack asked in surprise, doing his best to suppress the wave of sorrow that accompanied the mention of Will's name.
Jackie shook his head sadly. "He said he's tell me when I got older, but…"
The pirate captain understood, both the reason Will hadn't told Jackie and the reason Jackie had been unable to finish his sentence. "Do you want to know?"
The eight-year-old nodded. He knew that since Captain Sparrow had been involved, it dealt with pirates, and stories dealing with pirates had always been his favorite.
Jack smiled, "Well, how much do you know about Barbossa and his dealing with your mom and dad?"
"Nothing, except during the time they had to deal with him, they realized how much they loved each other and not long after his defeat they got married."
"Okay, so basically none of the violent stuff, huh? Well, anyway, Barbossa was a cursed pirate, savvy? Used to be my first mate but he mutinied against me. Anyway…" So Jack proceeded to tell the boy about the adventure he had had when he had first met his father.
The story continued for an hour. Jackie sat in rapt attention and even Paul and Miguel listened in silence, for they had never heard the full tale.
"And so I threw the coin to Will; he slit his hand, put his blood on it and put it in the chest. As he did, I shot Barbossa. Of course, Barbossa didn't realize the curse had been lifted," Jack said, beginning to wrap up the story.
"Anyway, he died and your parents went with Commodore Norrington and I sailed off on the Pearl," he said. He really didn't feel like telling the boy the real ending; the fact that Commodore Norrington had almost hung him and Will and Elizabeth alone had prevented it from happening was not the most glorifying ending he could have come up with.
Jackie had started to nod off close to the end of Jack's tale. Now though, he had fallen completely asleep, leaning heavily against Jack's side. The child was nestled in his arm, his head resting against the pirate's chest.
Jack shook his head slightly and was about to wake the child up but decided against it. He glanced up to Miguel and Paul. "Guess it's somebody's bed time."
Miguel grinned and nodded. "So it would seem." He nodded towards Jackie. "Want me to take him back to the Pearl?"
Jack shook his head, "I'll take him. Do you want to come or would you prefer to stay here longer?"
"I'll come with you. I would like to take a look at the boy's injuries, to make certain he's okay," Miguel said.
His captain nodded then turned to Paul. 'What about you?" Paul had remained silent so far, which wasn't much of a surprise; Paul normally was a quiet person.
"I think I'm going to go find that friend of yours. What was her name? Roxy? I'd like to "talk" to her."
"Just make sure you get your money's worth," Jack said with a smirk. "We're leaving in the morning, so if you're not on the Pearl, you'll be left behind."
Paul nodded then left to go find Roxy. Jack gently shifted Will's son over so he could carry him. Standing up, he cradled the boy against his body and quickly left the bar, Miguel trailing after him.
Once they reached Jack's quarters, the pirate captain laid the sleeping child on his bunk. "Miguel, what do you think?"
Miguel knew what he was talking about, so he answered, "I don't know. I need to take a good look at him."
Jack nodded, "Since he's asleep, now would probably be the opportune moment to check his injuries."
Miguel must have agreed because he gently began to undo Jackie's shirt so he could examine his wounds. As Jack watched, the Spaniard slowly stripped the bloody shirt off him. "Uh, Captain? Why didn't you treat his injuries earlier?"
The pirate's face reddened slightly, "Honestly? I forgot about them. I was so upset about Will that Jackie's injuries completely slipped my mind."
Miguel nodded and grimaced slightly as he caught sight of the ugly bruises crossing the boy's abdomen. He lightly ran a hand over his ribs, feeling for broken bones. Sure enough, there were two. "The kid was right. He does have some broken ribs."
Jack sighed slightly. He had been in charge of Jackie's well being since they had rescued him from Blacksword and he had let the boy's injuries go unattended for this long.
Miguel- finishing his analysis of the boy's front side- glanced up. "Captain, could you help me? I need to check his back."
Quietly coming up beside him, Jack- being surprisingly gentle for the pirate he was- rolled the boy over. Miguel gasped softly as he caught sight of it.
Jack- hearing Miguel's sharp intake of breath- glanced down at Jackie's back and froze as well. The young Turner child's back was covered in criss-crossing welts. It wasn't necessarily the severity of the wounds that alarmed them, but more the amount. There wasn't even an inch of skin that didn't hold at least one ragged welt.
Miguel, slowly coming out of his shock, turned and picked up a soft, wet rag, and then walked back to the child's side. He handed the cloth to Jack, "Here. Wash his back while I go to my room and get something for those gashes."
As the Spaniard left, Jack tenderly began to wipe the blood and dirt from the boy's back. The cloth soon became covered in blood and he was forced to wash it off in the bucket Miguel had brought in for just such a case. Silently returning to the task at hand, he tried to block out all other thoughts in his mind. When his hand brushed lightly against one particularly nasty welt, Jackie- still fast asleep- hissed softly, flinching away from the pirate.
The captain of the Black Pearl bit down on is lip. He hated this; not necessarily helping to clean the wounds but the fact that Jackie was merely a child.
That, plus, he had promised to protect Jackie and Elizabeth if anything happened to Will. So far, he had not done a very adequate job- at least in his mind. "Damn it, Will. Why'd you have to do this to me?" he muttered sadly to himself.
A sharp wave of pain washed through him, forcing him to stop what he was doing. Tears stung his eyes, threatening to cause him to break down on the spot. Jack closed his eyes, unable to stop the few tears that squeezed between his eyelids.
Angrily, he rubbed at his eyes. He was a pirate! He wasn't supposed to cry. And yet her he was, on the verge of hysteria. 'It's not like he's the first person I've known to die.' He told himself, trying fruitlessly to control his emotions. 'No,' he admitted finally to himself, 'but he's the first real friend I've ever had that died. Hell, he's the only real friend I've ever had.'
At this thought he corrected himself. 'Well, I guess that's not entirely true. His father died as well, but… I didn't know he was my friend beforehand.'
The momentary distraction from Will didn't help much, because when his mind floated back the feeling caused an incredible sense of hopelessness and guilt.
'I couldn't protect him. I should have been able to," Jack thought to himself. 'All of this, simply because Blacksword was jealous of Will's skill with a sword. I never should have let him come.'
To his surprise, he felt tears falling down his face. 'Look at me. Crying like a little kid.' Sudden, hot anger flashed through him. 'May God have mercy on Blacksword, because I won't.'
He stood up suddenly, the boy in front of him now completely forgotten. He felt ridiculous, crying as he was. 'You're going to rot in hell Blacksword, for what you've done to Will and his family.' He let himself slowly sink to the floor on his knees, tears still running down his tanned cheeks.
"I swear," he whispered out loud, though for what he knew, no one was there to hear him, "I will kill Blacksword for what he did."
Unknown to him, Miguel had returned from his room and come to the door in time to see his captain sink to the ground and hear him swear to avenge his friend. He was shocked into silence; he had never expected to see the legendary Captain Jack Sparrow on his knees, crying.
Miguel quietly walked over to Jack. "It's okay Captain. It wasn't your fault," he said, his voice soft.
Jack jumped and quickly got to his feet. "Miguel? How long have you been here?" he demanded. "Don't do that again."
The other man simply stared at him. He wasn't afraid of Jack, especially in the state he was in. "You really cared about Will, didn't you?" he asked softly. Miguel wasn't sure of Jack's reaction to the question but he was ready for it, whatever it was.
Jack closed eyes and a few more tears slipped out. "He was my only real friend. I don't think I ever even told him." He then opened his eyes and stared at Miguel. "I didn't get the opportunity to apologize for saying that stuff to him."
"I have the feeling he knows you didn't mean those things," Miguel told Jack. "And I know that he realized he was your friend."
"Hoe can you be sure? About either of them?"
"I talked to him before… before the two of you went aboard the Assassin," Miguel informed him quietly.
Jack blinked in surprise, "What? You… you talked to Will about our argument before he died?"
Miguel nodded, "I saw him and I was curious as to why the two of you weren't talking." He then shrugged, "He wasn't really mad at you, but he was unsure about your feelings. That's why he didn't say much to you. But he knew you thought of him as a friend."
The Spanish man lowered his voice slightly, "The only thing pertaining to your friendship, was why. He didn't know what he had done to gain his trust."
"That's just about the reverse for me," Jack said quietly. "I could easily give him more than ten reasons why he has my trust. Yet I can't imagine what on Earth I did to earn his friendship." As he said this he hung his head, "It doesn't matter now, though. I'll never get to tell him anyway."
Perhaps you will, Captain."
Deep, sad, caramel eyes met his. "How?"
"You'll meet up with him again, eventually." Miguel didn't know what Jack believed, but he was willing to venture his opinion.
The pirate gave a derisive snort. "No. Unless something is completely screwed up, I'll never again see him. I shall end up rotting in whatever version of hell there actually is, while he won't. Blacksword was right about that, if nothing else."
Miguel sighed; he could see this conversation was still emotionally upsetting for the other man, so he decided to change the topic. "Let's finish on the kid."
Relief showed in the clear eyes and Jack nodded, "Okay," then went back to what had been his task before his emotions had gotten the better of him. His eyes drifted closed, his thoughts going to Jackie. 'Kid,' he thought fiercely, 'I may not have been able to protect your father, but I made a promise to him. I will not allow anything to happen to you.'
TBC
And in the next chapter… Back to the Will torture. Yay!