Disclaimer: If I owned PotC, I'd be rich and not here. I only own Stiles Karver, Lord Jacob Karver, Wilford Hampton, and the HMS Lady Rose.

Chapter 6:

Someone calling his name roused Jack from his sleep. He groaned, propping himself up on his elbows, pain flowing through his back. Glancing toward the cell door, he was greeted with the sight of Norrington and Elizabeth.

The young woman looked back toward the naval officer, who gave her a nod. She opened the cell door, which gave a loud creak, and entered. The pirate didn't move, but he eyed her movements. She knelt down beside him, holding out what looked to be a bowl. Food.

He slowly forced himself to sit up, stretching as he did. He reached out and took the bowl from Elizabeth. He examined the contents of the bowl, unsurprised to find some sort of soup. He was handed a spoon. He scooped up some of the soup, raising the spoon to his lips cautiously. He tilted his head back slightly as he ate. Using the remains of his tongue as little as possible as he swallowed the soup down.

Jack sat there for a moment, brow furrowed, until it occurred to him that he could actually eat with minimum pain. A small smile slowly spread across his face and he resumed eating, quicker than before, feeling relief as his hollow stomach was filled. Maybe this won't be as bad as I thought it'd be.

He finished eating after a couple of minutes, handing Elizabeth the bowl and spoon back. He blinked gratefully at her. She smiled at him, the corner of his own lips curving upwards slightly. He rested his hand on the ground, leaning on his arm comfortably.

"How are you feeling?" Norrington asked him.

Jack shrugged, then nodded. "Better. You know, I really didn't want to go out from starving."

The other man nodded in understanding. "Well, I'm going for the night. I'll come in the morning, and we'll head to Governor Swann's from there."

"Sounds like a plan, mate."

"Get some rest, Sparrow. You've had a long voyage." And with that, the Commodore left him and Elizabeth, vanishing from sight.

"Well, he's gone then."

"Yes, he is." She agreed with a nod. She paused, hesitating for a moment. "What happened to you, Jack?"

He shrugged. "The Pearl was ambushed by four Navy ships."

"Four?" She gaped.

He nodded. "Aye, four. We sank three of them rather quickly, but I was bloody stupid and decided we'd board the fourth. I'd say that was the worst decision I've ever made."

"What happened?"

The pirate captain visibly winced. "I went and got myself wounded, that's what. Called Gibbs over to help me. By the time we turned to the rest of the fight, they had our crew cornered. I ordered retreat back to the Pearl and tried to clear a path. That's when I took a sword to the back and they caught me. Bloody stupid Gibbs tried to negotiate with them, but they wouldn't hear it. Their first mate flogged my head with the hilt of his sword. Knocked me out after three or four hits. Woke up in the brig of their ship on the way here, with Stiles showing up as a stowaway.."

"Did they torture you?" Elizabeth's voice was soft.

"You could say that. They whipped me, they beat me, cut out my tongue, half blinded me unintentionally." He shrugged. "They definitely tortured me, yes."

"What about that cut on your face?"

"Knife slipped when they were trying to cut my tongue out."

"Did it hurt?" She asked.

He nodded. Of course it bloody hurt!

"What are you afraid of?"

"No man should have to suffer what I suffered." He mused solemnly, eyes flashing in pain at the memories.

"What else did they do to you, Jack?" The young woman pressed.

Jack shook his head. "I'm not going to tell you. I can't tell you."

Elizabeth hesitated. "Did they...rape you?"

He shifted uncomfortably, biting his bottom lip. He didn't answer, grabbing his canteen and fidgeting with it. He didn't want himself to face the truth. It hurt too much, knowing that's what had happened to him.

"Jack…" She said more gently, reaching out to touch his forearm. "They did, didn't they?"

He let out a shaky breath he didn't know he'd held, shoulders sagging in defeat. He slowly nodded. "So they did. Wasn't a damned thing I could do against it either. I was weak, helpless. Still am. I hate it."

"I'm sorry, Jack." She murmured.

"When I've healed, I'm going to find Hampton and I'm going to kill him. Make him pay for what he did to me. And for what he did to Stiles."

"Your nephew?" Elizabeth asked. Apparently she'd met the boy. "What'd they do to him?"

"They only broke his leg and branded him. But he didn't deserve it. All he did was stowaway to save me. Shame he got found out."

She nodded in agreement. "He's a fine boy, Jack. I can see a bit of him in you."

Jack tilted his head at her. What do you mean?

The governor's daughter smiled a bit. "He told me how you stood up for him when Hampton talked about torturing him after you, on the first day. That you fought him over it."

"Ye are not touchin' that boy!" He'd fumed.

He blinked and then nodded. "Didn't end very well, but I tried. I wasn't gonna give in that easily, love. If I can spend ten years chasing Barbossa, I can stand up to Hampton."

"I know." Elizabeth assured him, taking his hand. "But Hampton did a lot more to you than Barbossa ever did."

He nodded. Hate to say it, but that's true enough.

"How's William?"

"Will's fine." She explained. "He and I discovered that our bond was more one of siblings than anything, so we're keeping it to that."

He nodded again. So they're not together anymore. Curious.

"And what of the Commodore?"

"I didn't marry him, if that's what you mean." She sounded rather bitter.

He shrank away from her slightly, not wanting her to go off on him.

"Sorry." She murmured apologetically, giving his hand a light squeeze. "It's been a long day."

Jack relaxed, grunting in agreement.

"I'm sorry that you got pushed in the street earlier."

"That's not your fault, love, and you know it."

"But I distracted you." Elizabeth pointed out.

He raised a bemused eyebrow. "And? I stopped in the middle of the street. That's my own fault that I got shoved over."

She didn't reply.

A void of silence overcame them. Jack began fidgeting with the canteen again, pulling his hand from hers. He shifted so that his back was against the wall, fighting the pain off.

"Jack?"

He glanced up at her.

"Will you be alright if I leave?"

He shrugged. "I'd prefer it if you stayed. I don't want to be left alone here."

"Then I'll stay." The governor's daughter promised. She moved to sit opposite of him. Seeming to sense that he was unhappy, she spoke up. "What's wrong?"

The fact that even Commodore Norrington is helping a good-for-nothing pirate, that's what.

Jack opened his mouth to speak, but remembered last second what a bad idea it'd be. He cringed, shutting his mouth and picking up the quill. "Why are you helping me? Why is the Commodore helping me?"

"Are you suggesting that you don't deserve our help?" Elizabeth asked, eyes narrowed in disbelief.

He nodded, suddenly feeling ashamed.

"Jack Sparrow, don't let me ever catch you even thinking that ever again!" She exclaimed.

He flinched against the wall, the corners of his lips curling in a nervous smile. That's the Elizabeth I know.

"Try to get some sleep, Jack." She urged. "I'll be here with you."

*X*

Norrington arrived a couple of hours after the sun rose. Jack was still sleeping when he approached the cell. Elizabeth, half asleep, mumbled a greeting to him and stood up. The naval man let her from the cell and closed it again. They stood side by side, looking in on the sleeping form of the injured pirate.

"How is he?" The Commodore asked softly.

"Not the Jack Sparrow I know." She murmured. "He's...depressed. He thinks he doesn't deserve our help because he's a pirate."

He sighed regretfully. "I was afraid he'd feel that way."

"But he does want revenge on the crew of that ship." The governor's daughter explained.

"I suppose that's a good sign."

"Yes."

"Did he say anything else?" Norrington asked. "Did he tell you why he's so timid?"

"He did, actually." Elizabeth admitted, feeling a pang of emotion in her chest at the look in his eyes when he'd written about it. "I asked him about it and he told me that no one should suffer what he did. I took a wild guess and asked him if they'd raped him."

"He said yes, didn't he?" He seemed to already know.

"He did." She nodded, feeling her eyes burn for Jack. "James, I can't imagine how hard it must've been for him on that ship."

"Neither can I." The Commodore shook his head.

"He's lucky they didn't kill him."

"There's only one reason why they didn't kill him."

"And why's that?" She felt a pit of dread in her stomach.

"Their captain just wanted his reward." He spat, voice cold.

"What!?" Disbelief and anger coursed through her. "They might as well be pirates!"

"I know. And I agree."

They fell silent as Jack started whimpering and tossing around in his sleep. Elizabeth couldn't even imagine what horrors he was reliving. Her heart hurt for him. Raped, beaten, tortured, tongue cut out...I wonder what else they did to him. Suddenly, she wondered how her companion knew what had happened to the pirate. She brought it upon herself to ask.

"James, how did you- how did you know what they did to him?"

"Last night, Captain Hampton brought it upon himself to visit the fort and attack him. He beat him, kicked at his ribs. He kicked Sparrow's back and he fell unconscious." Norrington explained. "I knew then that I had to look. A kick to someone's back shouldn't knock him out. His back is covered in lashmarks from a cat o' nine and a pipe. But that's not all I noticed."

"What else did you notice?" She asked.

In response, he opened the door to the pirate's cell and gestured her in. She did as he wished, following her before he closed it. He crouched down at the squirming man's side and undid the bottom layers of bandages.

Jack's stomach was covered in black-blue patches, but the more concerning ones were more of a purple-black color on his hips. They were hand shaped.

Horror and disgust towards Jack's former captors filled her, followed by rage and an ache of revenge. And to believe that those bastards are part of the Navy!

The Commodore carefully tightened the bandages again, Just as he pulled back, however, there was a gasp of fear. Jack had awoken. His eyes were wild in panic and he scrambled back to get away from them. Unfortunately, his arm slipped and his back slammed into the stone floor. A growl of pain escaped through his clenched teeth.

"Bloody 'ell…" He slurred distortedly, face twinging in regret immediately after.

"Are you alright?" Elizabeth asked.

The pirate captain nodded weakly, lifting his head up as he blinked sleep from his eyes.

"Time to go, Sparrow." Norrington announced.