Okay, through reviews and private messages, the majority of you voted for Mr. Wont. Alright then, on with the story. Were you guys right?

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"The killer," Jack went on, slowly. "Is none other than Marie Radford herself."

"What!" Will was shocked. "No it's not…it couldn't have been…wouldn't have killed the baby, too…there's no reason…why…not possible, Jack, just not bloody possible!" Will stuttered as he caught his breath.

"No, it actually makes sense," Jack said, smirking. "After a run in with one of… what did she call them- ah yes- her clients, she was pregnant- oh, you do know the facts of life, I daresay? Good, now I don't have to give you that talk." Jack wiped imaginary sweat off his brow as he went on. "Anyway, her husband, Radford, came home. I guess she figured that she could pretend like nothing was wrong for a few days until after he was gone. Then she could probably have the baby and then abandon it with no one the wiser. Unfortunately for her, Radford decided that he would like to stay, leaving Marie shocked and with a child that was not his. What was she to do?

"The answer," Will said slowly, beginning to understand, "was suicide. She found the gun that we had lost and decided to kill herself. Radford probably walked in from a night on the town and found her dead."

"Then I woke up and heard a scream and saw Radford running. I burst into the room, picked up my gun, and then the officials walked in on me," Jack concluded. "I had thought the scream had come from Marie, but it really had come from Radford, when he saw her dead body. And the gun was lying on the ground- he must have dropped it when she fell, dead."

"So no one really was out to get you at all, Jack!" Will exclaimed happily. "We can get you off the hook!"

Jack shook his head. "No, we cannot. We have no proof of that at all and no one will believe me- they hate me- and no one will believe you. Oh, don't look at me like that- you're wearing a dress, Will!"

Both men thought for a while about the situation at hand before Will smiled a little and said, "Jack, I have a plan."

"Fine, Jack replied. "Just as long as it doesn't involve me cross dressing as a woman. Somehow, I'm not as comfortable with that as you seem to be, mate."

Will gave a mock shrug. "Your loss; these dresses are quite comfortable, actually."

Jack gave a small groan. "That's fine Will, but close your legs! We can see very clearly that you have no undergarments on!"

Will's ears went slightly read as he crossed his legs under him and hastily changed the subject. "Do you want to hear about my plan or not, Jack?"

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The doctors were in distress. Elizabeth's temperature had climbed to record highs by the next morning, Saturday it was, and the doctors could find no way to bring it down. They tried ice, rum, water, a bath, a ritual performed by the minister (didn't quite work) and now they were out of ideas.

The lady that had bathed Elizabeth had long since gone home to her husband. It was quite a pity; she might have come up with a few useful suggestions for what to do.

"What do you think we should do?" one of the doctors asked the other.

"Quite frankly, I'm not sure."

"Well, do you suppose we should let her family pay last respects?"

The other doctor snorted through his nose. "Family! If this girl had any family that loved her, she would not have stolen away on a ship."

The other man nodded his head in agreement. "At any rate, the townsfolk will me much more interested in the hangings today than in the quiet death of a sick girl."

"Quite true. Who's condemned today?"

"That murderer, Jack Sparrow. He killed both Marie Radford and her baby, you know! Thought he could get away with it, I bet! Too bad he has no little friends to go crying to now, eh?" The doctor from the town grinned stupidly as he dripped a mixture of cool water and brandy down Elizabeth's throat.

"I shall not speak ill of the captain," the other man replied stiffly as wiped down Elizabeth's forehead. He stopped to take the bottle of spirits from the other man's hand. "Don not drink this. I daresay you've had enough alcohol for one day."

The town doctor put up a short fight before surrendering the drink. "Fine, but when she's dead and we get blamed, we will need all the rum, ale, and brandy we can lay our hands on."

The other man drank to that with a sad sigh and a lazy "Aye, doctor".

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The guards came in to release Will. He heard their footsteps approaching before giving Jack a quick pat on the hand and a wink that said, "Don't worry. You'll be out of this soon enough."

The captain grew quite bored once Will was gone. He had abandoned his key in frustration, but now found it and began reworking it. He had no hope that the lock would open, but he needed something to do.

One by one, the other prisoners were led way, crying, praying, and swearing. With the hanging of each one outside the courthouse, Jack heard excited shouts from the bloodthirsty spectators. At long last, it was his turn.

He was cuffed, a burly man grabbed his arm, then roped his hands behind his back. He was shoved onto a small platform and a noose hung round his neck. He glanced down and felt a lurch in his stomach- he could see the trapdoor that would fall and make his neck snap. He gulped.

A man in a red hat began to read off Jack's crimes, which included thieving, lying, and, of course, the murder of Marie Radford and her unborn baby.

They looked like they were going to let the trapdoor drop, but Jack cleared his throat loudly. "Don't I get any last words?"

The man looked at him for a few moments before growling, "Fine. What does the famous Jack Sparrow have to say for his crimes?"

Will had slipped under the platform and stuck a small knife in the heel of Jack's shoe. Jack, seeing this, rose his shoe up behind him like he was going to scratch his leg, but grabbed the knife instead. "Sorry, small itch,' Jack apologized as Will worked on nailing up the trapdoor as quietly as he could.

"I am innocent," Jack proclaimed and a couple of people in the crowd sniggered. "I did not kill Marie Radford- She killed herself. She was pregnant and didn't want her husband to know, so she found my gun in an alley and shot herself." Jack worked on stalling as he frantically worked on the roped that bound his hands. "Radford, sadly, would not vouch for me that I wasn't there, as I haven't seen him since. Have any of you? No? Well, too bad then. Marie Radford shot herself to protect herself, her baby, and her husband from sadness and pain. It was all she had left."

"Have you any proof?" one of the guards asked, amused. "No," Jack Sparrow admitted. "But I have to say one thing. Actually, I am letting you all do something. I am letting you remember."

"Remember?" the crowd buzzed, confused. "Remember what…bloody hell…what's he on about…nutter…I just want to seen someone hung."

"You all can remember this as the day that you almost caught Captain Jack Sparrow." With that, he reached his hands up swiftly and made a clean cut through the nose as the executioner tried in vain to open the trap door.

Jack did a somersault in midair over dozens of onlookers and tore for the dock. His hands now untied, he placed the knife between the layers of his shirt. He took a last look at the city and the growing mob, inhaled deeply, and dove into the water, Will close behind.

They sunk down for a bit, then began swimming as far away from the people as they could manage. Boats were being sent out at that moment, so they didn't have much time.

The doctor of the Pearl (after having rudely pushed the other doctor out onto the shore) gave a shout for Jack and Will. The pair cut through the water and emerged, dripping, on the side of the boat. Most of the crew was already there.

"We all came back as soon as we saw ye on that platform an' Will sneakin' below it. We knew ye was going to be alright an' in need of a lift." Gibbs said to them. Jack nodded, then Gibbs gave the orders, "Full speed ahead men! We've got to outrun them!"

The Black Pearl tore through the water quickly, foam spraying up at her sides.

Jack and Will turned, concerned, to the doctor. "What about Elizabeth? Won't this be bad for her and the men?" They asked, worried.

The doctor was grim. "Aye, but she should be- um- gone by tonight, if you know what I mean."

Both men were deeply saddened by this, but were determined not to cry. Secretly, Will knew that he would hate Jack again in the morning.

"Would you like to see her and pay last respects?"

Will and Jack nodded and walked off to her cabin. "Not in there," the doctor cut in. "We had to move her, because of a fire. She's in your old room, Will."

The two men walked to below the chip and found Will's quarters. Elizabeth was laid upon a makeshift bed, her pale, grayed hair spreading out in all directions on her pillow. Her lips were thin and cracked, and both men felt the sudden urge to kiss her and make them full again.

Will knelt on the right side of the bed; Jack took his place on the left. They each grasped one of her hands tightly in their own and spoke quietly to her.

"Ye are a good lass, Lizzie. Rather smart, could outwit me at any time. Remember with that bloody Kraken? That was real nice," Jack said, sarcastically. "But you were- are- beautiful. I'm such a bloody sucker for a pretty woman. An I don't know if you can hear me in there, but I actually maybe kind of sort of might have considered for a while about marryin' ye. Maybe. And I don't say that about a lot of women, tha's fer sure."

Will went next. "You saved my life once, Ms. Swann, when you spotted me in the water. I only wish I could repay that debt. It's such a bloody shame that you called off the engagement; I would have wanted nothing more than to marry you, Elizabeth." He gave her a kiss on her right cheek.

Jack gave her a quick peck on her left cheek. Both men knelt beside her and watched with bated breath as her eyes fluttered open slightly.

Elizabeth saw only the grim, handsome face of Will Turner and the rather serious, mystifying face of Captain Jack Sparrow before she closed her eyes again.

Elizabeth felt weightless. She felt as if she were drifting from something that had been holding her back. In her mind, she saw scenes from what she realized was her life flash before her eyes. She saw herself finding Will in the water… meeting Captain Jack Sparrow…fighting Barbossa… kissing Jack and chaining him to a pole… the Kraken…the compass… going to Tia Dalma's house… calling off her engagement… kissing Jack again…thinking Jack was dead…getting stabbed.

Elizabeth saw all of this, then something new appearedwhile the world as she knew it faded away. It was a bright light that shone out of the darkness, getting bigger and bigger, brighter and brighter until it was the only thing she saw. As it engulfed her, she slipped into what she could only guess to be the deepest, sweetest, and longest sleep she would ever experience.

Fin