Summary: Jack and Elizabeth find comfort in one another on the night of his rescue. Spoilers for The Price of Freedom book and the first three films. Takes place during AWE. Sparrabeth.
Through & Through
The moon was high in the starry night sky, the calm water reflecting them. It was a beautiful sight. It would be more so if the crew of the lone ship didn't know they were in Davy Jones Locker.
There was only one living being on the deck of the Black Pearl- Elizabeth Swann. She crept quietly across the wooden planks, which creaked softly under her feet. She knocked on the door of a cabin- the captain's cabin.
She wasn't going there for a friendly visit; She was going there to make amends with the captain- her friend, Jack Sparrow. The reason they were in the Locker was because she'd chained him to the very ship they were on, leaving him as Kraken food. He was one of the nine Pirate Lords, who were currently due to meet in Shipwreck Cove to discuss the ever-growing threat of Cutler Beckett from the East India Trading Company and of Davy Jones, the captain of the Flying Dutchman and the owner of the Locker.
When no one answered the door, she knocked again. Exasperated at the lack of response, she tried the handle herself, only to find it indeed unlocked. She pushed it open, entering the dark cabin. She was glad that Captain Barbossa had a different cabin than Jack, for she'd rather not encounter him.
She closed the door, trying to adjust her eyes to the dim light. She traced the source of the light to a dying candle that sat on a table in the middle of the room. At that same table, she spotted the silhouette of the pirate captain. One arm was hanging partly off the table, hand flat on Sao Feng's round charts. His other arm lay at full length, his head resting on it. A bottle of rum was tightly clutched in the hand. His eyes were closed, his face peaceful, and his breathing deep.
Jack was sound asleep.
"Jack." Elizabeth whispered his name, gently shaking his shoulder.
"Studyin' charts. Go away." He mumbled, not stirring.
"Studying charts?" She scoffed quietly to herself. "Hardly."
He clearly didn't mean to fall asleep, She told herself, amused. She gave him a hard jab in the ribs, pulling back as he shot up with a growl. His eyes flickered around until they landed on her, his body relaxing as he realized there was no immediate threat. He raised his eyebrows at her in mock greeting, turning back to the maps.
"That's not very nice, love." He told her, yawning.
"What are you doing?" She asked.
"Studyin' these 'ere charts." He replied, voice containing mild confusion as he fought sleep from his head. "They got the lot o' ye 'ere in the first place, they'll be our ticket out."
"You're sure?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at him.
"Aye." Jack assured her. "Now what are you doin', love? It's the middle of the night."
"I came to apologize for what I did."
"Forgiven."
"Really?" Was all she could manage out through her shock.
He took a swig from his bottle, shrugging. "I've had a lot o' time to think 'bout it. Y'know, I forgive people too easily, I reckon. Probably should've left Barbossa behind...didn't. But, ye're a whole other story, Lizzie."
"I am?" She asked, almost timidly.
He nodded. "Ye're a pirate, like I said, but for all the wrong reasons. Almost like me, but I did worse. Ye explained yourself to me- I didn't even deserve that much- and then bloody even came back. Reckon I didn't deserve that either."
"How did you become a pirate, Jack?" She wondered aloud.
"Now, I can answer that one two different ways." He sounded thoughtful for a moment. "I was born into it, truthfully. Tried to run from it. Ended up in the East India Trading Company."
"You in the East India Trading Company?"
"Aye. Served them for a solid five years. Then, one voyage, my captain was killed. Bein' first mate, I had to step up an' report to Beckett myself. He gave me my own ship, the Wicked Wench. Eventually, even though I'd said things against it, he gave me a ship-full of slaves. I freed them. Couldn't- an' still can't- stand to see people own people. I freed them. But Beckett didn't like that. He caught up with the Wench. Branded my first mate an' I pirate. Then they set the ship on fire. I ordered the first mate to go, while I went back for the ship. She was far too gone when I reached her, so I tried to save what I could. The fire trapped me in my cabin. The smoke was so damned thick too. Woke up in the mid-place between life an' death. Summoned Jones an' made a deal with him."
"The deal that nearly got us all killed?" Elizabeth asked, an eyebrow raised. "The one to captain the Black Pearl for thirteen years?"
"Ye could say that." Jack nodded. "I had Jones raise the Wicked Wench from the depths, on the condition that she was renamed. And so she became the Black Pearl, hull and sails black to represent the fire that sank 'er."
Elizabeth felt a new respect for both Jack and the Black Pearl. He and the ship had gone through so much together; they'd risked so much together; they'd been sunk to the depths together- twice. And here they were, still fighting, unyielding to death.
"So I was right." She said.
"'Bout what?" He asked, glancing up from examining his pirate brand.
"About you being a good man." She responded.
He snorted in disagreement. "I was, once. That time has long since passed. I'm a pirate now, through an' through."
"That doesn't make you bad." She told him.
"'Cause ignorin' the law's good." He pointed out sarcastically. He sighed. "Beckett, Jones, all of this...we're not all comin' out o' it alive, love."
"What makes you say that?"
"Experience."
Elizabeth didn't reply, understanding full well what Jack meant. His own words hit too close to home, as earlier that evening she'd seen her own father deceased and lost without Jones' doing his duty as the Dutchman's captain. She felt tears threaten to spill, but she held them back. She was done crying. All she could do now was move on and avenge him.
The pirate captain had gone back to studying the charts, wearily turning the circles to match up the shapes. His eyelids were drooping again, the dark orbs glazed in drowsiness. Deciding to help him- for she was certain he wouldn't be able to interpret anything he found being that tired- she stepped up to the table, on his left.
"'M sorry 'bout your father, by the way." He told her quietly.
"It's alright." She replied softly. "If we kill Lord Beckett, he'll be avenged."
"Easier said than done." He mumbled, rubbing his face with one hand. "These blasted charts are makin' me head hurt."
"Or the lack of sleep is." She suggested.
"Might be. But I'd rather blame the charts."
"Why don't you get some rest?"
"'Cause someone needs to keep searchin' these charts. There has to be somethin' 'ere." He argued lightly.
"You'll be asleep in five minutes." Elizabeth pointed out in kind amusement. "Get some rest, Jack, I'll go over the map myself."
"I believe I was, but ye woke me up." Jack shot back. "Though I ought'a thank ye for that."
She sighed. "Jack-"
"Love, I'm not movin'. Feel free to help, but I intend to figure out how to leave this bloody place before I rest."
She huffed in silent defeat, watching him turn the charts again. "Do you even know what any of it means?"
"Only the 'flash of green' part." He admitted. "'Cause the Fountain of Youth definitely isn't goin' to help 'ere. Ye already came 'over the edge', so that's bloody useless. An' the sunrise does not set. Swear I read 'up is down' earlier, but that doesn't make any sense at all. 'S like sayin' North is South."
"Let me look." Elizabeth swatted his hands away from the map, watching his fingers twitch. She began to adjust the circles of the map herself, feeling his gaze on her. Sure enough, she found the words "Over the edge. Over Again", "Sunrise sets. Flash of green", "Up is down"- much to her confusion, and "Aqua de Vida". She shook her head. "Seems like some sort of riddle."
"Probably is a riddle." Jack muttered.
"Then we need to interpret it, not look for more nonsense." She pointed out.
"Or,"He suggested,"We keep lookin' an' eventually we find somethin' that clears it up."
"You seem intent on staying up all night."
"Wouldn't be the first time, love."
"I'm sure it's not." She agreed.
She stretched her aching legs each in turn to loosen them up a bit. Unfortunately, the pirate was occupying the only chair. He seemed to notice her will to get off of her feet, for he gently wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her onto his lap. She didn't protest, her legs reminiscing in the release of her weight upon them.
In fact, she had to admit that she was quite comfortable. Jack's body was warm, comforting her against the coldness the world had been treating her with. It helped that he wasn't treating her with the same distance that Will had been as of lately. She leaned back into his chest, feeling his chin rest on her shoulder.
"Any better, Lizzie?" He asked softly.
"Yes." She murmured. "Thank you, Jack."
"You're welcome." He actually sounded English for a moment.
Elizabeth turned to face him, curious. He'd rarely ever sounded so vulnerable to her. Their eyes met and she searched deep into his. Past the weariness and contentment, she could see something that equaled to that which she had been feeling since she'd killed him. Loneliness and uncertainty. The Locker had deprived him from interaction with others, she was sure. She could only imagine how relieved he'd been when he realized that they were actually rescuing him. It would've felt similar to how she'd felt when she saw him coming over the sand dune on the Pearl's mast.
"I'm sorry." She whispered, tearing herself from the depths of his dark eyes. For killing you, for the Locker, for everything.
Jack seemed to understand. She could only guess that he'd looked deeper into her as well. One of his hands reached up to gently stroke her cheek, a small half-smile forming on his face. "So am I."
Before she could talk herself out of it, she turned so that she straddled his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his lips to meet hers. It was a slow kiss, but it was full of so much emotion all the same. His lips tasted of rum and the sea, a sweet flavor to her. When she pulled back, she pressed her forehead to his for a moment. Then he tucked her head under his chin, his arms wrapped tightly around her.
"You're still a good man." Elizabeth murmured.
"An' a pirate." He added, not disagreeing with her this time.
"Yes." She chuckled softly. "Through and through."