A/N: Sorry it took me a little longer. I had an essay to write and so this kind of got pushed to the background until I was finished with it. I'm still doing some editing on the paper though (a paper that's pretty darn good I might add). The process was slow with this chapter. Jumping from homework to this while I was stuck in my mothers' office didn't seem to totally ruin the story though, or so it seems. Well, enjoy!

Slayers and Curses

By: Embarr

Chapter 6: Things unsaid…

The actual act of commandeering was new to Buffy but she felt in some way that witnessing Jack Sparrow in the act was a rare and unique event. How they managed to get to the Dauntless without being seen was genius in its own right, but managing to steal an entirely different ship right under Commodore Norrington's nose was something to marvel at, Buffy thought. Jack merely smirked in satisfaction at his work and brushed his hands across the ships' wheel. Buffy watched that gesture, almost picturing the intelligent man underneath Sparrow's drunken swagger. He released the wheel though and the figure evaporated into the bright sun, replaced by a swaying pirate who sauntered towards her with a mischievous grin. She kept her eyes on him until he was beside her and then turned to look out at the water. His presence didn't leave her side. She'd nearly managed to fade into a lull with the waves and ignore his figure beside her when he spoke closely to her ear.

"See something you like, love?" His voice came out in a gruff, low tone. The sound brought her gaze back to him more than the words did and she found herself locking eyes with the pirate. A flicker of something familiar passed between them and she jerked her head back to face the large expanse of sea around them.

"Not really," she said with indifference. Jack gave a harrumph and Buffy couldn't resist the tugging at the sides of her lips. She looked at him again once the smile was under control and replaced with a stern frown and steel eyes.

"I just want to get something straight between the two of us, Jack. I'm here to help Will, not you. If you get in the way there will be serious ass kicking, got it?"

"Got it, love." He looked at her through heavy lids and then turned lazily to return back to his post. Before she could talk herself out of it though, she called to him. Jack turned, looking at her questioningly. The words burned as they came up her throat, but she found the feeling soothing rather than disturbing as it should.

"Call me Buffy, okay?" Sparrow stood there for a moment; perfectly still save for the gentle sway of the ship below him and the thoughts moving behind his eyes. He then gave her a short, quick nod and continued towards the ship's wheel with a lazy grin growing on his lips. Buffy felt her heart give a resonating pound and then settle to its normal pace in a split second. She ignored it and leaned carefully over the railing to look down at the bottomless waters. Will joined her after a few minutes and she took a moment to glance up at him in recognition. He stared carefully at her.

"Are you all right, Buffy?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" She gave him a half-hearted smile and tried to look away but he caught her with a stern look.

"You said yourself that we are friends. If that is so, I would like to think that we can speak to each other of our problems." He was stubborn, Buffy thought. She supposed that was one thing that made her like him so much. She sighed and broke eye contact with him.

"My problems are… complicated. It all has to do with the wacky and I don't think you want to hear it." She looked up to find confusion in Will's eyes and for a moment she laughed. "Sorry, I guess you didn't understand that."

"Does this have anything to do with why you wished to leave Port Royal so quickly?" Buffy considered his words for a moment.

"Yes… and no." She growled in frustration, resting her chin on her clasped hands as she leaned on the railing. "It's just that… I wanted to get away and now I'm running towards what I thought I didn't want. I don't know whether I should feel bad for wanting to back out or for giving in."

"Give into what?"

"Destiny." It took awhile to get the word out and every syllable sounded dead as soon as it left her lips. She once again found herself falling towards the ground, slowly watching her fate rush up to her. Buffy pushed herself roughly off of the railing and hurried below deck. Will did not follow her as she'd expected and when she glanced back briefly, she knew why. Jack stood in front of Will, their faces tense as the pirate stared down the blacksmith with a warning gaze. Buffy felt a smile of gratitude come to her lips at the sight. Jack turned around to look at her, but she had disappeared below before he had a chance to see the smile that was for him.

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She knew Will would come down to check on her eventually and thankfully it was at the moment she had herself under control. Her shoulders had begun to shake as soon as she'd reached a secluded piece of the ship but she didn't cry. She was grateful for this since it would have been harder to hide that from Will.

"Buffy?" He stood on the stairs to the storage area, looking towards the corner where Buffy sat on a barrel cross-legged. She patted the barrel next to her in invitation, smiling reassuringly to him. The time alone had helped a lot. She realized with a bit of annoyance that she had Jack to thank for that. Will sat carefully next to her and didn't say anything. He just looked at her, tense as if anticipating an attack.

"It's okay, Will. You can talk."

"I'm sorry if I upset you…"

"You didn't upset me. The conversation just brought up some bad memories that's all." He visibly relaxed but his gaze was unfocused. She had a feeling it had to do with something besides worry for her. When she caught his eye, a questioning look on her face, it was Will's turn to avert his gaze.

"There is nothing wrong with me, Buffy."

"Then why do you seem all pensive all of a sudden?" Will didn't answer, but rolled his eyes up to look at the planks above them that made up the ship. She had suspicion as to what he was thinking about.

"What did Jack say to you?" Will jolted, his eyes coming back to her. Buffy smiled knowingly and the young blacksmith squirmed uncomfortably on his seat for a moment. The silence pressed upon them for several minutes in which Buffy calmly watched Will for an answer.

"My father… was a pirate." Buffy didn't act surprised; she wasn't. It had been years since she could be completely surprised by anything. This though, she had seen in Jack's face when he'd suddenly changed his mind and decided to help them. The idea didn't seem to lie very well with Will though. His eyes were full of churning feelings.

"You aren't taking the news very well."

"No," Will replied. He examined the palm of his hand as he fell deeper into a brooding mood. "I've always thought he was a merchant, a respectable man and now…"

"You don't know what to think of him?" Will nodded, his gaze still on his hand as it tightened into a fist. Buffy placed her own hand over his and he finally looked up.

"Is it really so bad," she asked, watching him carefully. "He was your father."

"And a pirate. What does that make of me?"

"You're still the same person," He looked away from her and Buffy let out a sigh. "My father wasn't the greatest parent either, you know. He left my mom when I was sixteen and when she died he didn't offer to take me and my sister in. I didn't let that get me down though. You choose who you want to be."

A moment of silence passed between them, Buffy watching Will as he stared off into the shadows about them. The edges of his lips curled up into a weak smile as she watched and he soon turned to her once more.

"I suppose we should both take that to heart, choosing who we will be in the end." Buffy nodded.

"How 'bout we head back up to see if Jack needs any help?" They both rose from their seats and headed towards the exit. Jack was steering the ship, staring at a compass in his hands. He kept moving it about as if north wouldn't stay still. Buffy leaned towards Will, keeping her gaze on the pirate.

"He knows where he's going, right?"

"Yes… I think."

"Well…that's reassuring."

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Tortuga was familiar to Buffy. It both disgusted and energized her at once. The waft of alcohol and sweat caused her to crinkle her nose but her senses were open to the night air and what she saw there more than they had been in a long time. She picked them out immediately; it seemed so easy. A vampire stood in a corner with a young wench, another sat with a bottle hanging limply from his hand as he stared at the crowds hungrily, and a cluster of five moved through the people predatorily. They did not hide. They had no need here where it was full of unsavory beings and common for a man or woman to show up dead on the streets. This must have been a paradise to them.

"It is indeed a sad life that has never breathed deep this sweet, proliferous bouquet that is Tortuga, savvy? What do you think?" Will's face hid none of his emotions. He looked uneasy at his surroundings, a tinge of disgust creeping to the front.

"It'll linger."

"The smell or the images," Buffy asked feeling some of her old self seeping through. Jack looked up from the cane he had nabbed from a drunkard and frowned at Buffy.

"Now, now Buffy. Do you truly think that?" Buffy looked about her before answering.

"If this is your kind of paradise, I'd hate to see your version of heaven." Jack smiled at her words and leaned casually on the cane. His eyes got a far away look before he came back to himself. He stared at her playfully.

"Well, assuming pirating is indeed a woeful sin I won't be finding that out. I am, after all, a condemned soul as it were."

"You don't want to go to hell, believe me." The amused smile slipped from Jack's lips at her words and his eyes bored into her. Buffy chose to ignore this and looked back at the chaos going on about them. She noticed to her dismay that the vampire and his young victim had disappeared from sight but the drunken vampire and the group still remained. The group looked restless though and she knew if she didn't follow them now, they'd have a meal soon. She turned back to Jack and Will.

"I'll catch up with you guys later. I have things to do." She didn't give them time to say anything or to stop her. The vampires were leaving and if she didn't hurry they'd disappear around the corner and she'd lose them. This gave her no chance to see Will's confused face or the calculating eyes of Jack Sparrow.

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Her style was a bit rusty, but the results came out the same. Two vampires were dusted in mere seconds and the others, realizing what she was, came at her more warily. She could tell they were the older ones of the group but not by much. They knew a few things and had probably been decent swordsmen in their mortal days judging by how they handled their swords.

She spun, parrying the tallest vampire's sword coming down at her head and kicked out. It sent him flying into a nearby wall and Buffy took that time to deflect the other two vampires and return a few swings. The skinniest one (and ugliest she might add) stumbled when she darted out of the way of a lunging attack and she quickly decapitated him and turned to the others. The vampire she'd sent flying had returned to the fight by this time and she faced him along with the shorter vampire.

"You'll be a fine meal, slayer." Buffy cocked her head to the side, looking at the vampires with boredom clouding her eyes.

"You guys all have the same lines, no matter the century, don't you? What is there some rule book that says "All vampires must tell lousy jokes?" The vampire growled and dove towards her. She smiled glad that she'd gotten the reaction she wanted. Buffy used the vampire's tall figure and her small one to her advantage, crouching as his momentum brought him towards her and then over her. She stood up at the last minute to give him an extra shove that sent him flying once more. Her stake was out at this point and piercing the other vampire's heart. Then she turned to face the last one with a devilish grin.

Her smirk faded as, instead of facing a seething vampire, she faced a smirking Jack. He leaned casually on the cane he still had from earlier with his sword lowered from what had probably been a death blow to the vampire. Buffy slowly lowered the stake in her hand but didn't bother hiding it. She glanced around.

"Don't worry, I took care of the last one for you."

"Where's Will?"

"Back at the ship," Jack slowly made a few steps closer to her, closing the distance between them until he looked down on her and she had to tilt her head slightly to look in his eyes. She narrowed her own when she noticed the amusement gleaming in them.

"What are you doing here?"

"Came for the action, love."

"Don't call me that."

"Buffy." The way he said it sent a tremor through her and she regretted it. He slowly circled around her and she stood still, refusing eye contact with him. She listened as Jack stopped behind her with a scuffing of his boots and a soft tap of the cane. His voice came from right next to her ear, his breath caressing her skin with the closeness, but she didn't move.

"I've heard stories of your kind."

"My kind?"

"What was it that old man said," Jack came back around her, hand casually stoking his chin in thought. He hummed a few meaningless notes and then looked up at the night sky as he recited a memory. "One girl chosen to fight the vampires and forces of evil, chosen young, dies young. Is that how it goes?"

"I'm not dead yet." Jack brought his gaze back down to her, considering her words.

"Apparently…. I wonder though," he paused to catch her gaze inquiringly. "What a slayer would be doing in a place like Port Royal. Not exactly the ideal location for one such as yourself."

"Why are you so interested?" He slowly smiled, tipping his head slightly to the side.

"Curiosity." Buffy didn't say anything, only allowing herself to slip into a steady glare directed towards the overconfident pirate. After a moment of the staring session Jack let out a sigh but his smirk stayed skillfully in place.

"So that's how it's going to be, eh?"

"Yeah," Buffy replied, crossing her arms over her chest. "We should get back to the ship now."

"Right," Jack gave her another wistful grin before falling into a brood. She fell in beside him as they walked along the streets. She opened her mouth briefly, trying to find something to say but didn't know what. They walked the rest of the way to the ship in silence except for the brief moment before boarding. Jack stopped on the docks to look out at the dark waters and Buffy stopped with him, carefully watching him instead of the sea. Buffy took the moment to say something she didn't think she'd be able to later.

"Jack, thank you for helping Will. I know he appreciates it even though he doesn't show it," Jack's gaze came back to her, his eyes blank. "For a pirate, you're not so bad." A smirk came to Jack's lips, one that was becoming familiar to Buffy.

"Glad to help, although," he leaned in closer to her, their faces mere inches away from each other. His smirk seemed to grow and his eyes glinted as his voice became husky. "I find gratitude far more appealing in other forms, savvy?" He traced an invisible line up her arm, slowly until his hand rested on her shoulder. The other one came up to cup her chin. Buffy just considered him for a moment before a smile grew on her face. The grin on Jack's face broadened and he moved to close the space between them. Buffy backed out of the way at the last minute though and started towards the ship. She looked over her shoulder at Jack.

"I'll make sure to pass on the message to Will," she shouted to him. He grimaced and Buffy only laughed, leaving the frustrated pirate on the docks.

A/N: There it is. Are you happy now? Hardest chapter yet, I tell you! Hope you all liked it!