Disclaimer: Pirates of the Caribbean and all associated characters belong to their respective owners. I just play and give back. All I can lay claim to are the OC's in this story – and not even them. They own themselves, alright? I guess I come out with nada. Sadly.

Author's Note: Well, I've got loads of good news for y'all. Firstly, Diia has returned from the exotic Canadian wilderness and she's been writing up a storm. We wrote about 4 pages that'll come somewhere toward the middle/end of this story, but I'm not complaining – any writing is good. And once we got that idea down in good writing, she was kind enough to finish this chappy for y'all! Yay!

The second piece of good news is that my grandpa went in for surgery this morning to scrape out the cancer. From what I've heard, the surgery was successful, grandpa is doing good, and the surgeon is thinking they got most—if not all—of the cancer out! So thanks to all who have been praying for him.

Chapter 5 – On the Prowl Again

Ana flinched irritably away from the damp cloth running across her forehead. Despite her attempts to avoid its cool touch, the cloth returned and continued wiping itself against her warm skin.

With some effort Ana opened her eyes and managed to glare at the figure holding the cloth. The damp feeling quickly retreated and Kole pressed himself as far back in the chair as he could go and dropped the cloth, looking for all purposes like a trapped mouse. Ana sighed heavily, closed her eyes, and groggily dragged herself into a sitting position.

"How are you feeling?" Kole ventured hesitantly.

Ana rubbed the remaining moisture from her forehead and fixed a gentler gaze on Kole. "I've been worse. Now, git out an' close th' door after yerself."

Kole froze where he was, tense and unsure of what to do next. Ana's gaze focused into a glare, daring him to do anything but what she had ordered. "Now," Ana snarled, the dangerous lioness once more.

The chair legs grated against the floor as Kole pushed himself away from her and moved toward the door, attempting to hide his haste. The door slammed shut behind him and Ana grinned to herself.

She stood stiffly and stretched, absently wondering how long she had been abed. To remain standing took quite a bit more energy than she previously remembered, but she ignored this fact as she crossed to the chest at the foot of her bed and drew out a set of clothes. She slipped out of her nightgown and donned her sailor's garments slowly, wincing every now and again when a stiff muscle protested its use.

A knock sounded on her door and she spun to face it irritably. "Enter," she called, somewhat curious to see who it was.

The door slowly edged its way open and Gibbs poked his head in cautiously. When he saw that she was decently attired he opened the door all the way and entered with Kole following him much in the same fashion as a nervous puppy.

"Well?" Ana snarled, irritated that neither of them was Jack and at the same time grateful for the fact.

Gibbs cleared his throat. "You feelin' better, Anamaria?"

Ana raised one eyebrow and shrugged. "Good enough. Where's Jack?"

"Outside careening with the crew," Gibbs answered slowly, fearing to withhold information from her but at the same time wondering if not telling her would be for best.

Ana simply nodded, then pushed past the men and stepped out into the hall, heading for the stairs at a controlled pace. Her even footfalls were more frightening than the sound of her running would have been.

ZzZzZzZzZzZ

Ana stepped out into the heat of the Caribbean midday and took a deep breath of the salty air. Not far down the beach laid the dark figure of the Black Pearl, pulled ashore and tipped onto her side. Pulleys fastened to strong tree limbs carried limp ropes strung into the ship's rigging and many barrels littered the beach near the tree line. The men swarmed about the Pearl's exposed hull like ants to a nest, many with their own hammer and scraping iron. Some opened the seams on the ship's hull that were badly damaged and packed them full of tar-reinforced oakum fibers.

As she approached, Ana squinted against the bright sun and sought out her prey.
"Anamaria,"

Ana jumped at the closeness of the voice and spun to face it. Her hand went up and made contact with flesh other than her own, resulting in an echoing smack. Jack took a step back, one hand pressed to his sore cheek, and winced. He raised his other arm automatically in defense.

Ana quickly hid her surprise beneath a mask of cold indifference and planted her fists on her hips. "Captain Sparrow," she greeted professionally.

Jack gingerly lowered his arms and worked his jaw, checking the functionality of it. He quickly blinked a few times and met her gaze with his composed expression once more, though a hint of mischievousness glowed in his eyes. "I see yer doin' better, lass. Good t' know yer up and movin' and…slappin'."

Ana smiled wryly. "Serves you right for sneakin' up on me."

Jack returned the expression. "Who was sneakin'? If I were sneakin', you wouldn't have gotten the chance to slap me." Ana pointed a finger threateningly at him and his arms went up in defense again.

When no attack came after a moment, Jack lowered his arms and a severe expression appeared on his face. His eyes were black and impassive, but the set of his jaw told her she would not like what he had to say. When he took hold of her arm and pulled her away from the ship and crew, the feeling of dread doubled.

He pulled her into the shade on the tree line and sat himself down, pulling her down to the sand with him.

"What is it, Captain?"

Jack fixed his frighteningly serious gaze on her and she felt herself go cold. "Ana, are you sure you should be up and about? You had…uh…Thomas very worried."

Ana raised a brow in question and the chill of fear left her. "Yer being over-protective, Captain Sparrow." With that she pulled her wrist from his grasp and rose. She didn't even bother wiping the sand from her breeches before she joined the men in their tasks.

Jack watched her go with a solemn expression.

ZzZzZzZzZzZ

"Gibbs!" Ana called as the elder approached the doorway after the evening meal.

Gibbs stopped short of the door and turned. "Aye? What is it, miss?"

"Have you seen the Captain anywhere lately? He wasn't at dinner."

"Aye, he said something about going out to visit Caciques; told me to keep a sharp eye on Kole…who seems to have disappeared also."

The pair stepped aside to allow the rest of the crew to filter through the doorway and up to their sleeping quarters.

"I see," Ana said quietly, her eyes becoming unfocused. She nodded her thanks to Gibbs and moved toward the doorway.

"Ana," Gibbs called, stopping her, "take it easy. You really had us worried."

"So Jack claims," Ana snarled bitterly. She took another step toward the door.

"He was worried most of all. He'll have my hide if he knows I told you this," Gibbs muttered.

Ana turned back to face him. "What?" The dining hall was empty, save for the two of them, and Ana's voice echoed eerily.

"He refused to leave your side the first two days and nights. When he dropped from exhaustion, we locked him in his room to get some rest. After that, we convinced him to stick to night shifts and get some rest during the day. Even so, he hasn't gotten much sleep. Frankly, I was against him going out tonight, but he'd have none of it."

Ana was silent for many moments, taking the information in. When she met Gibbs' gaze again, there was a determined glint in her eyes. "I'm going after him, Gibbs."

"I know you are lass. But you didn't hear any of this from me, right?"

ZzZzZzZzZzZ

Moonlight claimed the gently rolling sea, gilding it an eerie silver. Firelight danced across the beach and the edges of the waves rubbing against the sandy shore. Sounds made by primitive instruments and voices pierced the night and Ana paced purposefully toward the dancing light.

"¡Parada!"

"Permita que mí pase," Ana growled at the darkness in a dangerous tone. She heard faint noises as the guards lowered their weapons and she proceeded stalking toward the large fire.