"Jack," Bill stopped the captain as the crew dispersed. Jack stopped and spun around, to face his friend,
"Aye,"
"D'y still need a quarter master?" Jack grinned,
"Technically no." He said, "But what's ever been technical about this ship?" Bill grinned back,
"Then ye may take that as confirmation that Bootstrap Bill be home,"
"I'll take it as conformation that William Turner be home." Jack said, offering his hand, which Bill shook, "As me only faithful crewman when Barbosa decided to mutiny, ye be a valued member of the new and improved crew."
"And it looks like this valued crewman is cutting in on somethin' y' don't want t' be missin' out on." Jack looked over his shoulder at Rosaline. Bill nodded in her direction, "Y' found yerself a woman?"
"Apparently," Jack agreed, his voice, and expression showing he shared the same disbelief as Bill,
"Never thought I'd see the day."
"You never thought y'd see the day?" Jack muttered sarcastically. He sighed, "Me life was plain and simple up till now Bill, and now… it's become excruciatingly more complicated."
"That's women for you," Bill said, Ana Maria approached the two and nodded to Bill,
"Captain, Gibbs is ready to set sail, it would help if we had a bearing." She encouraged Jack, who shook himself from his thoughts.
"A bearing? Right, back to Tortuga. I think the crew's going t' want some well earned spending time. Make sure every one gets an equal share. That includes Savannah, and Rosaline, whether she'll want it I don't know." Ana paused before carrying out her Captain's orders,
"Captain, what's going to happen about Rosaline?" She asked, cautiously, not wanting to provoke Jack, or cause him to think about something he hadn't yet. Fortunately for her, the question of what was going to happen between himself and Rosaline in the future was one that had indeed been playing on his mind.
"It's complicated." He confided in her, "There are so many questions regardin' that subject at the moment that I can't begin to make sense of it. "Me life, no matter how hard I try, will never be the same. There's the question of her family, of her lifestyle, of mine, of what decisions she will make, and…"
"And maybe when she's back with her own kind of people, with her own family and class of friends, maybe she won't feel the same way?" Ana received no answer, and did actually begin to question whether or not she had just voiced a point Jack hadn't wanted to mention, or that she had just added one to his train of thought that he had not yet thought of, and made the situation worse. "You worry too much about life's little complications, and they become larger ones," she pointed out, "Have you ever stopped to think that maybe this woman, while being a complication, may be a blessing in disguise?"
"I have no doubt that she's a blessing," Jack said quickly, "I'm not ashamed to admit that, but blessings can also come along with baggage, with ties that need to be severed, and with that come repercussions." Ana nodded,
"You'll make the right decision." She told him, "Because you're smart. You always come up with a plan to get yerself out of any situation, and this is no different." With this parting comment she went to relay the captain's orders to the rest of the crew. Leaving Jack alone on deck.
His eyes searched for Rosaline, who seemed to have disappeared with the rest of the crew, and stood still for a moment before heading to his cabin.
"This is how it should be." Marti said, grinning, "We're rich, we're free, and we're alive. I'm going to spend so much money when we get back on land." Ana smiled at her friend's glee. She had not seen her this genuinely happy for a long time.
"Are you staying onboard the Pearl?" She asked her. Marti shrugged, before changing her answer to a nod.
"May as well. Good reputation, good crew, good ship. All in all, I'd be a fool to pass it up."
"I'm going to."
"What?" Ana sighed and glanced at her share of the treasure.
"This, added to what I've… collected… since I joined this crew, is more than enough to buy a boat, or even a small ship of my own."
"You're leaving?" Marti was shocked. She hadn't been expecting this at all, "Who's going to be first mate? Who's going to help me gang up on Clay?" Ana smiled, knowing Marti was just skipping around the subject of Ana leaving her on her own on a ship full of men.
"I think you can handle Clay," She said, a knowing smile appearing on her lips, "And Jack's got plenty of people to be his first mate. There's you," Marti scoffed, "there's Gibbs, there's Bill, or if they decide to stay, there's Will Turner," Marti shrugged,
"It's not going to be the same," She moaned, "And Jack needs you."
"Jack has Rosaline." Ana said, without any remorse, or any hostility. She was merely stating a fact. "Jack confided in me, I'll admit. But I don't know everything, as everyone seems so eager to believe. Rosaline will be there for him, will provide him with plenty of problems to keep him occupied, but I know Jack. This is what he needs. Not a friend, like me, but some one to stand by him, some one who loves him. Like Rosaline."
"Love? This is about Love? Are you sure it's not just Jack being… well, Jack?" Marti asked sceptically, raising an eyebrow,
"Rosaline is in love with Jack." Ana told Marti, "And Jack is in love with Rosaline. Whatever happens, I think they will be good for each other. In the long run." Marti shook her head in disbelief,
"I can't believe Jack is in love." She sighed, "It doesn't seem like the type of thing he'd do."
"I don't think he was expecting it," Ana admitted, "And I don't think he's too happy about it. But it's something he's goin' t' have t' get used to."
Rosaline laid in Jack's arms, her eyes closed, but her mind very much awake. She hadn't known exactly what was going to happen when they returned to the Pearl, and that question that had been pestering Jack's mind had began to infiltrate hers.
She didn't exactly know what to say, but when she had reached Jack's cabin, she had been greeted in a way which hadn't required many words.
Jack's eyes were not closed. His right arm was wrapped around Rosaline's shoulders his left was draped across her stomach. He was watching her, laying there so peacefully. He knew perfectly well that they needed to discuss what was going to happen next, but he didn't want to be the one to spoil the moment.
His hand tickled her ribcage and her eyes slowly flickered open. She looked up and found herself met by his eyes.
"Hello." She murmured. She was having that feeling you get when you want to be happy, because in the present moment everything is perfect, but you have that nagging little feeling in your mind that keeps telling you there's a problem.
"Good morning," Jack said, his grin showing his gold teeth, "or rather, afternoon." Rosaline smiled,
"Is it really that late?"
"I'm not sure." Jack admitted, "I can't really be bothered to justify that at this particular moment." The nagging feeling in the back of Rosaline's mind had grown stronger,
"Is there any possible way we can stop time, and just stay in this moment forever?" She asked him, hopefully,
"Not likely," Jack knew exactly what she meant, "We could try, but I think eventually even this moment will become corrupted by the jaws of fate." Rosaline frowned,
"Have you been drinking?"
"No more than normal luv,"
"Then do you always put complex metaphors into every day conversation?" Now it was Jack's turn to be confused.
"Yes?" Rosaline giggled, and Jack grinned at her. He might not have had any clue what it was she had been talking about, but he had made her laugh, so it must have been something good.
Jack would never admit it, but he was extremely anxious about the increasingly warm and fuzzy feeling he kept getting every time Rosaline smiled. His anxiousness turned to determination, when he mentally forced himself to discuss the matter at hand. He wanted her to smile forever, but he knew that there would be an end to it, and indeed to their time together if they did nothing about the major problem looming over them.
"I hate to be the one to bring it up," Jack started, "But you an' I both know there's somethin' we need to discuss." Rosaline's smile turned grim,
"I know," She said, "I was hoping that it would just go away."
"Savannah has proven that ignoring your problems doesn't make them disappear," Jack pointed out, "And I am not endin' up as screwed up as her. Neither are you. We're goin' t' sort this out." Rosaline sighed,
"I don't know what to do." She avoided his eyes. Neither of them were mentioning England, or Tortuga, or anywhere for that matter. Jack looked out the window at the sea, and sat up, his arm leaving it's comfortable place around her shoulders.
"This ship is bound for Tortuga." He said, "And that's where I intend to take it. The crew needs a rest, and they need some time… after everythin' that's happened." Rosaline nodded,
"My mother and father must think I'm dead," She said, following Jack's example and sitting up,
"Then why change that?" Jack insisted, turning to her, "They think you died at sea, you can stay with me."
"It's not as simple as that Jack," Rosaline couldn't bring herself to look into his eyes as she spoke, "I can't just give up my life. Would you?" Jack was about to answer, but closed his mouth abruptly. He suddenly realised exactly what it was he was trying to do. Uproot Rosaline from her home, from her family and friends, from her life. If she asked him to leave the Pearl for her… to live on land, to live like she did… Jack shuddered. He could never do anything like that, no matter how hard he wanted it.
"You and I both know that the moment I set foot in England, I'd be sent straight to the gallows." He argued, "Even if I could…"
"I couldn't ask you to leave this." Rosaline told him, "To leave your friends, your family, your ship. This is your life. I know how much a captain's ship means to him Jack." Jack knew deep in his heart that Rosaline meant more to him than the Black Pearl. He loved her, he wanted to keep her.
Declaring his love to her was not that hard. It was the truth, and he had felt no regret from speaking those three words. But he was Captain Jack Sparrow, of the Black Pearl. He was a pirate, and his reputation made him who he was. Without all that, he wasn't himself, and if he wasn't himself, the words Jack Sparrow had spoken to Rosaline Jones would have meant nothing.
Jack sighed.
"Are you going to ask me to leave England?" Rosaline pushed, "To leave my home and live on a ship?" Jack shrugged,
"You can leave your home just as much as I can leave the Pearl." He said, knowing now that this conversation was not going to end well.
"Then what can we do?"
"There's nothing' we can do." Jack was resigned. He held Rosaline's face in his hand and wiped away the tear that trickled down her cheek. "If you want to go to England, to go home, then you shall go home."
"And you?"
"And I will take you there." Rosaline couldn't help the tears that had begun to flow from her brown eyes,
"I don't want to loose you," She whispered, "Not after everything…"
"I'm not leapin' for joy either Roz," Jack said, his voice was gravelly, and his words sounded harsh, if not for the true emotions expressed by his dark eyes, "If things were different…"
"But they aren't."
"I know." The couple sat lost within each other's eyes for a while, knowing that the longer they stayed close, the harder it would be to accept that it had to end, but neither had the strength to turn away.