Mates! It has been a twenty-four hour update! This is the fastest I've ever done one, and it's really all thanks to the encouragement (annoyance) of one SamanthaSparrow. Let's all give her a round of applause and rum, aye? What say you? AYE!

SamanthaSparrow: You're a new reviewer, and already you've sparked both a friendship and a once-in-a-lifetime one day review. Kudos! And RUM! Too bad you don't like cliffies...

marauder4ever: Thanks, here's the update. Hope ya like it!

Little Miss Sparrow: Freaky. "Jack Sparrow! I always know de wind was goin' blow you back to me someday..." Tia Dalma speaks a broken English that many Jamaicans, and probably Caribbean natives speak. Her accent is strong, but if you open your ears, you can understand her.

Authoressinhiding: ANGSTY FANGIRL! ANGSTY FANGIRL! NUUUUUUUUUU! o.-

Disclaimer: I've got a jar of di-irt! I've got a jar of di-irt! ...And if I owned PotC, don't you think there'd be something inside the jar of dirt? -trips, rolls, falls down steps...- I've still got it!

Enjoy. It may take a while for an update, though. I hafta recharge after such a prompt update!

Chapter Fifteen: Dealing With Demons...Teenager Style

Without thinking, Jack pulled out his pistol, about to fire when James grabbed the barrel and stopped him. "Are you mad? It's fog—what effect would a bullet possibly serve but to possibly hit Amy instead?" Jack's eyes widened at the prospect, and he quickly put his gun away.

But we have to do something! He squealed, throwing up his hands in aggravation and frustration.

Norrington read his body language like a book. "Well for once will you just try thinking before acting?" Jack put a finger to his chin in thought, then took out his pistol again. He pulled back the hammer to the first click and removed the shot, leaving only the gunpowder inside. He then swiped up a handful of dead plantlife from the ground and attempted to organize it so that they were all facing the same direction. James watched, arms crossed, amused in spite of the current situation. Jack, upon having achieved adequate organization of brush, pulled back the hammer to the second click and, holding the flintlock to the top of the handful, pulled the trigger, thus igniting it. With that, he took off toward the fog, makeshift torch waving madly before him. James, eyes growing ever larger, followed hot on his heels.

With a yell, the two disappeared into the fog. Where the torch burned, the fog cleared away. However, it still seemed to take twice as long as it should have to get to where the girl had been. But when she finally came into view, they saw her kick something about waist-height, still fogbound, and seemingly on contact, the fog dissipated, and they saw before her just what she saw: a fairly young man doubled over in pain and clutching his lower stomach. She then proceeded to kick him in the shins, demanding, "Tell. Me. What. You. Did," with each kick.

"Amy," gasped James, rushing over and holding her back. "Hardly proper."

"But highly effective," she replied, breathing heavily and trying to stay calm. She raised her voice so that the 'young man' could hear her. "So go on! Why did you do it? Tall me how we can reverse whatever it is you've done!"

"What's in it...fer me...if I tell?" wheezed the demon. In answer, Jack whipped out his pistol and cocked it, pointing it at the unfamiliar figure. They heard him laugh as he straightened. "A mere shot? You forget that I am immortal." He fixed his golden animal gaze on the pirate, who met it without flinching.

Jack glanced at Amy's booted toes a moment. And you forget that you are male. ...Or are you?

"It would be wise not to irritate me, cad, if you at all value yer life." Jack stared back, somehow unsurprised that his equine noises had been understood. "Oh. But perhaps it is not your life that you value." He smiled maliciously, circling the girl and Norrington. "Perhaps...it is the lives of those closest to you that you value. It would be shame to lose that..."

What do you want? Jack asked, lowering his gun.

"To see you suffer."

For what?

"I was human once. Can you tell? I imagine you can. And I had an older brother of ill mentality. We were especially close, we brothers. But it was a horse he had. His greatest friend, even closer to him than myself. And one day, ruining our lives of peace, bereft of all violence, your ship attacked our town. Pirates never came to our port, and they have not since then. We have little of value, except a safe haven from the weather. ...You killed his horse that night in your attack. It drove my brother over the edge, and he committed suicide months later. I promised him I would avenge both his horse and his life." The demon's hands balled into fists, eyes becoming misty. "But he told me to never kill. Killing was what had brought all of this peril upon us. He told me to make this evil man who had destroyed him just understand. Make him appreciate the life he physically destroyed." The redheaded figure began to pace. "But how? Turn him into a horse, that much was obvious...but how to do it? So I sold my soul to the devil to find out how to fulfill my dear brother's final wish. And the answer...lay in the Eohippus fruit. All I needed to do was plant the right seeds in the right places...and wait."

"But how come only I can see the pond with the plant?"

"One of the properties retained by the plant itself is that it and its location can only be seen through a child's eyes. However, once the fruit has fallen from the plant, it is visible even to the pirate scum of the Earth."

"How long ago was this attack?" James asked. He had a hunch.

"Seven...Eight years ago."

The three exchanged surprised expressions. 'Barbossa!' they all said in one voice.

"That wasn't Jack's fault!" cried the lass. "About thirteen years ago, Jack captained the Black Pearl. But his crew mutinied and marooned him on a desert island. So for ten years, his mutinous first mate Barbossa was the 'captain'. They sacked every ship and settlement they came upon for the next ten years, before Jack finally killed Barbossa and reclaimed the Pearl for his own. If anyone killed that horse, it was Hector Barbossa. The kind of man who gives even pirates a bad name."

"Dead?"

Aye. But, ah...he's alive again...or at least, he was last I saw of him. James looked at him oddly. You know. The whole Davy Jones adventure.

"Where is he?" demanded the demon.

I don't know. We lost touch with him after a while.

The demon had him by this shirt front, eyes blazing. "Where. Is. He." Jack swallowed uneasily. "Tell me. I promised my brother, and I will not let this opportunity slip through my fingers!"

Whoa, now, mate. Was not the object to take a pirate and make him look at something in a whole new light? Cause mate, it worked. I appreciate what I've never given much thought to before, I understand things I never would have thought of. And it has probably stopped me from making a similar mistake, savvy? The young man released him. Now, we're all very sorry for your loss, but we really must be going, so if you'll be so kind as to tell us how to undo all of this, we'll be on our merry way.

"I'd be happy to." Ames smiled victoriously. James crossed his arms, shaking his head in disbelief. And for good reason; "Just as soon as you give me the location of this 'Barbossa.'"

How do I know we can trust you? A demon can never be trusted.

"No, but perhaps his former humanity can be."

He has no humanity!

Ames ignored him. "I challenge you to a battle of blades. ...Er, metal blades, just so we're specific...oh heck, I challenge you to a sword fight, no demonic powers or anything, just human stuff, all's fair, et cetera. If I win, you tell us how to undo the Eohippus' work."

"Aye, but what'll the prize be when I win, hmm? If I win, you must take me to Barbossa."

"Amy," James pulled her aside. "You've only just learned how to sword fight. Do you really think you can take on a man with a much experience as he may have? Let one of us do this, if at all!"

"I can do this, James."

Ames, it's not worth it. He could kill you, and I am worth no such price. Please, just think like the sensible girl you are this one time!

"I know I can do this! I have this feeling."

"Amy—," James began, but Jack cut him off, laying a restraining hand on his shoulder. He turned around to face the pirate.

Let her act on her feelings. You may be surprised. James' jaw dropped, but he quickly acknowledged the inevitable and nodded his assent.

"Thank you both," she whispered, bringing them both into their first ever group hug.

'Good luck,' they both murmured, stepping back.

She nodded and saluted them, turning to face the demon. Simultaneously they both drew their blades, hers a cutlass, his a rapier. The 'Wheel of Fortune' track began to play in her head. And the demon jumped at her. She parried and dodged his next strike, countering with a thrust which was parried also. He jumped out of her reach, what with her blade being shorter than his. She parried his next thrust and lunged past him, into the trees. They exchanged strikes and parries before she dodged behind a palm tree. She dodged back and forth, from one side of the tree to the other, parrying his strikes as they came, before jumping on the opportune moment for a powerful strike, which he was barely able to parry before beginning a long string of powerful blows. She backed up with their strength, parrying those that she could and dodging those that she could not. "So...where'd you learn your swashbuckling?"

"My father. He taught me the basics." He parried on of her blows. "After that, I began to practice for several hours during the week," she parried his stream of strikes, "whenever my brother gave me time to."

"Ah?" She dealt another powerful blow with a grunt. She suddenly turned tail and ran into the jungle, twisting around to parry his blows as he caught up to her. "Go on?'

"After he died, I practiced nonstop, in the hopes of finding my revenge."

"Nonstop, eh?"

"Aye."

She absorbed his next blow with her cutlass. "You need to find yourself a girl, mate! Or," she parried his next strike and countered with several of her own, " perhaps it's like Jack said: 'Or are you!'" And with that she released a furious string of critical strikes. He parried most of them, though one found its way to his forearm, but it seemed to have no effect. Enraged at her insults, the demon struck out with more force than ever. Barely managing to parry them, the strength of each blow had thrown her off balance. Just when she thought he had finished, there came one blow from which she received a slice to the left upper arm. She grunted and bit her lip, but threw off his blade before it could get deeper.

'Amy!' the spectators cried. But she heard them not. For before her eyes, she saw red. With a scream or fury, she shrugged off his blows with suddenly effortless parries and instead thrusted powerfully for his heart. With a grunt, he blocked most of her attacks, dodging a few. But the string was unending. She began to force him back toward their little clearing, and with a powerful blow, he stumbled several feet out of her range. She lunged toward him, but overestimated the distance and ended up going past him. He was regaining his feet quickly.

"Vault!" she cried to a nearby James, who cupped his hands. She stepped up and vaulted off them, twisting horizontally through the air, parrying the hopeful strike the off-balance demon had dealt, before landing behind him and dealing another blow. He dodged it, but she had been prepared for this. She blocked his next blow, but lost her sword in the process. "It's not over yet!" And she somersaulted between his legs to dodge his next blow. Twisting and turning, she continued to dodge until she reached her sword. Limbo-ing under a powerful swing, she grabbed her cutlass and lunged back at him. They parried again, her blows once again forcing him back. In one moment of confusion, their blades were caught against one another, pulling them closer together. For a moment, they glared at each other, eyes blazing. Then, realizing their proximity, she brought up her knee as hard as she could. He collapsed, coughing, and she kicked his rapier out of his grip, catching it in her own hand and pointing both blades at him. He scooted back, exhausted, until he found himself trapped between those blades and a rather large rock. He put up his hands in surrender. "Now...it's over. Savvy?"

"You cheated."

"Teenager," she replied.

"Amy, wonderful job!" James rushed over.

Aye! Learned from the best, she did!

"Told ya I could...could do it," she replied exhaustedly.

"Amy! You're bleeding!" It was true. Her entire sleeve had become soaked with red. She watched the liquid drip to the ground with an odd amusement before looking back up at James. Sighing, she collapsed into him, sweet, sweet darkness closing in around her. "Amy!" he cried frantically, catching her and giving her a light shake. But she couldn't hear him. She couldn't hear anything. He hugged her close.

Aww...Is this the end? Only one way to find out. REVIEW!