A/N: I recently took another glance at this story and realized how poorly written it was. So I've decided to polish it up one piece at a time. I don't know if anyone is still reading it, but for my sanity, I am going to retool it chapter by chapter. Maybe I will be struck with new inspiration and finish it.

Disclaimer: I own neither Pirates of the Caribbean nor any of it's characters, names or locations. This is a simple exercise in creativity that I will not try to sell or profit from. All credit goes to Disney.

Noise from the crew still at dinner leaked out through the wooden boards of the wall crept across the deck to where Anamaria was leaning on the railing. They were having a party of sorts, Ana knew, to commemorate the "anniversary" of the addition of Hayden to their crew. It had been a month since the boy had come on. He proved to be an excellent sailor. He already was strong and had his sea-legs about him from his work on the docks. Ana had noticed that he had taken an instant liking to her sister. Laura seemed to be warming up to him as well. She was happy for her sister, she truly was. But Laura's newfound flame was throwing into sharp relief the absence of her own love life. Except absent wasn't really the word for it. The source of her constant torment and burning desire was sitting in the galley, loudly leading a rousing chorus of a song he learned in Singapore. Ana hadn't felt up to faking a smile. So she had eaten as quickly as possible and hurried outside to find Solace. Laura hadn't noticed. She was still inside laughing and sitting in close proximity to the boy who was quickly becoming her best friend. Ana didn't mind. She wanted to be alone.

The pristine silence of the night was broken only by the sounds of the waves sloshing up the hull of the ship. Ana closed her eyes, enjoying the coolness of the breeze on her skin and the way the sea smelled. This was home. She'd been young the first time she had ever been on a ship. At the tender age of 14, with her 9 year old sister in tow, Ana had stowed away on a merchant vessel, carrying the two of them away from the foster home and into Nassau Port. Her love affair has begun that day. She fell in love with the way the ship rocked her to sleep, the clean air, the myriad of stars that dotted the indigo sky. She and Laura had picked their way around the Caribbean, earning the odd living until Laura was old enough to decide that she preferred land life to sailing. So Ana made money by fishing and Laura sold her catch along with homemade rum to hungry pirates at night. It was there she had first met Jack. He swaggered up to her stand, free of the trappings he was decked in today. Clean shaven with shiny dark hair, Jack Sparrow had been trouble wrapped in a pretty package.

He had scarcely changed today, just a slight bit more successful. And of course, he and she weren't what they had been…

"Ana!" She was startled from her deliberations. She turned around to see none other than Jack walking toward her. "Love, what are you doing out here by yourself?" his voice, normally so loud and jovial, had softened to a tone she hadn't heard in a long time.

"Just enjoying some quiet," she responded.

"Watching the waves?" he said simply. She nodded. "I like to come out here sometimes and just look at it. Reminds me of why I got into this business in the first place."

"Same," Ana admitted, gracing him with a tiny smile.

"You know Ana, we haven't had the chance to talk in a while. What happened to those old times?" he smiled wryly, dumping the contents of the bottle of rum he held into the ocean.

"They changed Captain." she sighed.

"It's Jack. And they didn't have to." he dropped the bottle and reached out for her. Ana let him, shivering at the way his fingers brushed hers. He caught her hand in his own, pulling her close. Time seemed to slow down as he lowered his face to hers, gently brushing lips against her own. For a moment, Ana allowed herself to be transported back. The moment was broken when the crew broke into a fresh round of song. Ana pulled back suddenly. "What happened to us, love?" Jack whispered with a sigh.

"You did, Jack. You happened to us." she pried her hand away from his.

"Ana, you don't understand. I--" he stopped as the crew burst out of the galley, drunkenly supporting one another. Laura and Hayden brought up the rear. They too, looked tipsy, but Laura sobered when she saw her sister.

"I do understand Captain. I understand all too well," She allowed some of her bitterness to seep through her heart and into her words, all the while reverting to the formality she so often addressed him with. "I'm off to bed, Captain. Enjoy the rest of your night." she gave him a curt off and made her hasty escape to her quarters.

Laura watched her sister, then turned her eyes to Jack. Unless it was some trick of the light, she thought she saw what could be a flicker of sadness in his eyes.

"Is she alright?" Hayden whispered to her from his place on her right. The rest of the crew was too sloshed to have noticed anything unusual and were already trying to shove another bottle of rum into his hands. He smiled weakly at them all, then roused another chorus of song. The crew happily obliged him, taking the party to the deck under the stars. Gibbs was the only other one who seemed to notice something was off, but Jack waved him off.

"I don't know." Laura admitted. She was feeling a bit tipsy herself, and was much slower in the process of evaluating the situation. The ship gave a perilous rock and she lost her footing, slipping over into her counterpart. Hayden caught her round the waist to steady her. She found herself distracted by him for a moment. He pulled her to her feet again, and for a moment the two of them were extremely close. Laura but her lip and her breath hitched. Hayden regarded her for a moment, swallowing a lump in his throat.

"Are you going to go see what's wrong with her?" he said at long last. Laura was brought to her senses by his comment. She shook the feeling of disappointment off.

"Yeah, I should go," she agreed. Hayden let go of her waist.

"Alright. I'll--" he trailed off, trying to ignore the way his heart was rattling against his chest. He was saved as a crew member beckoned him to the celebration.

"I'll talk to you later." Laura assured him.

His lips pulled back in a smile, revealing rows of white teeth. "I'm looking forward to it."

Laura couldn't hide the huge smile that split her face.