A/D 7 days to AWE!!!

Spoiler: Bye-bye.

Disclaimer: Disney owns Jack, Elizabeth, Will, etc. (Though I heard that after May 25. they're going to sell Will at e-bay...)

Chapter 24

Elizabeth sat motionlessly in the chair, dazed and stupefied, listening to her heart racing, still breathing with difficulty, keeping her eyes closed, feeling as if the room was spinning around.

She just wished for Jack to be back, so she would be freed from the necessity to fight all these second thoughts which were clarifying themselves in her mind, as she was gradually calming down, and regaining her common sense.

She sighed and opened her eyes, leaning her head against the back of the chair. There she was. In his cabin. In Jack's cabin. In the middle of the night. And not long time ago she would slap anybody who would even vaguely suggest that.

But it felt so incredibly wonderful to be in his arms. It felt safe.

Safe. Elizabeth straightened up in the chair, feeling suddenly uncomfortable. Safe was the word she usually associated with Will. He was going to make her feel safe. Life with him would be safe. He would make sure she was always safe. What was more, with Will she did not need to worry about... morality. Will was no threat to her honor. He never made her feel so helplessly giddy. He never managed to pin her with his gaze. He never made the world disappear with his kiss. Not that he ever really tried. They spent countless hours together walking, talking, sword fighting... Yes. Sword fighting. Sometimes she felt that it was the only thing she could do with Will without feeling apathetic about it...

But she did not want to think about Will anymore. Especially after he lied to her, and after he tried to actually trade Jack to Harness... Elizabeth cringed. She almost forgot about this last incident! Enough of Will. He was not worth feeling guilty about all the time.

Besides, she had better things to think of. A smile flickered across her face, as she thought about Jack. Jack. This brought her to asking the question where he actually was right now? Shouldn't he be already back by now?

Elizabeth stood up, and looked around the cabin. It was dimly lit, and not too large, but rather cozy. In the middle of the cabin stood a wooden table covered with maps, and other papers. Elizabeth moved towards it. When she started to walk, she noticed that her dress was slipping down her shoulders. She blushed remembering that Jack actually began unfastening her dress. She suddenly felt rather embarrassed. She really should not let him... But he just had such an overpowering effect on her. It was sweet and it simultaneously scared her.

Elizabeth tried to fix the dress, but could not really do it, as she was unable to reach the straps and buttons on the back of it. Bloody dress.

She sat down in Jack's chair by the table, and ran her hand over everything that was lying there. She wanted to touch everything that he has touched... It was strange, but somehow it was making her feel closer to him. She could feel Jack in this cabin. Surprisingly, the cabin was rather neatly kept. She would think Jack was rather disorganized a person, but it seemed that she might have been wrong.

Elizabeth stood up, noticing Jack's coat on the floor. She did not even remember pulling it off... Her heart was beating faster once again, as she thought about him. She used to hear so many things about love. Her mother warned her once that it was not like in the books; that in real life it was different. And she was right. It was not like in the stories she has read. Elizabeth smiled to herself. No. It was better.

The coat was somewhat heavy, and she noticed something sticking out of the pocket. It was a pistol, but it was not Jack's pistol. It was the pistol from Philip Fairwood, the pistol with which Jack shot Harness.

Elizabeth took it out and not really knowing what to do with it, she put the pistol on the table.

Turning around, she discovered a door , that she has not seen before. She hesitated for a moment, but then smiled, as it crossed her mind that as Mrs. Captain Jack Sparrow she will have a right to go wherever she wanted on the Black Pearl. The ship was going to be her home, so she may as well start getting to know it better already. She pressed the knob, and walked in through the door.

"Are ye going to talk or try to kill me again? I'm just curious", asked Jack with mild irritation.

"Kill you? That's amusing. I thought you were the one trying to kill me all the time", observed Will bitterly.

Jack looked sincerely hurt. Will sneered.

"You wanted to trade me to Barbossa, then you hoped to have me eaten by those cannibals, not mentioning tricking me on the Flying Dutchman. Unless it wasn't you, of course", he said staring at his sword for a moment, and then hesitantly putting it away.

"I didn't mean to hurt yer feelings", replied Jack, hoping to promptly conclude the conversation."Besides, in most of these cases ye actually... volunteered." Will raised his eyebrows. "So it wasn't my fault, really. However, if ye consider it necessary for yer mental health to assume my responsibility for those unfortunate accidents, be my guest", said Jack with a smirk. "See ye in the morning", he added, swiftly turning around.

"It wasn't what I wanted to talk about", said Will with grim determination.

Jack sighed loudly, and turned to him.

"What do ye want to talk about then?", he asked staring at him impatiently, his mind fixed on an image of Elizabeth waiting for him in his cabin bugger bugger.

"I want you to tell me what do you want from Elizabeth", recited Will, his face suddenly expressionless.

"Ye keep asking this question...", started Jack in a suddenly serious tone of voice. "And the fact that ye keep asking this question indicates that ye wouldn't understand the answer even if I'd give ye an answer which I shall not as ye'd not understand an answer to the question ye asked, because ye asked it. So..."

"Don't waste your time on these elaborate replies, Jack. Maybe they impress Elizabeth, but they don't impress me."

A smile flickered across Jack's face, but he said nothing.

"Do you want to disgrace her? Why? Why are you doing this? Can't you just leave her alone? Leave us alone?", said Will sharply.

Jack chuckled at "disgrace", but tried to keep a straight face.

"And may I enquire as to who puts such funny ideas in your head, William?"

"And what exactly do you call a funny idea?", asked Will coldly.

"Us", replied Jack, knowing that perhaps he should not be saying this, but for some reason just could not resist saying it. "There's no us. I don't think you should be referring to yourself and to my fiancée as us."

"This is the absolute height of impudence!", exclaimed Will, his face going as white as a sheet. "How dare you!", he continued, his sword drawn out already. "You were hunting for her from the very beginning!", shouted Will, walking towards Jack with his sword threateningly aimed at him.

Hunting?! Jack rolled his eyes in exasperation, and resignedly reached for his sword.

"I pieced it all together now! At the very beginning, you agreed to help me with Barbossa, after I told you that they had taken Elizabeth!"

"Actually-", Jack was about to add something, but Will's sword flashed right before his face, so he broke off.

"Then, on that cannibal island, you were going to let them eat me. You didn't even seem to recognize me. Not until I told you that Elizabeth was facing the gallows!" The blade of Will's sword whistled past Jack's nose fo inches.

"Ye exaggerate-", observed Jack, walking backwards, and suddenly finding himself on the upper deck.

It was rather dark, and the deck was empty, dimly lit by the light of the moon. Not a perfect setting for a duel. Unless one wished to be killed in the process.

"And then...", Will hesitated.

"Then I tricked ye on the Flying Dutchman", offered Jack promptly. "Ye've already said that", he added in a slightly annoyed tone of voice.

Will gave him a hard look, and kept silent for a moment.

"Just admit you wanted her from the beginning. You planned it!", he said morosely.

"Planned it?", exclaimed Jack, almost with disgust. "Ye think I planned her to fall in love with me-"

Will stroke out so fast, that Jack hardly managed to stop Will's blade with his.

"She is not in love with you", breathed Will angrily.

"Ah. And do ye know where she's not in love with me right now?", asked Jack, really attacking for the first time, as the question was followed by an unexpected hit that nearly caught Will off guard.

"So? Where's she?", sneered Will, stepping forward.

Jack stepped forward as well, more actually tired than angry, but nevertheless, for some reason quite irritated. As he was moving closer, he said in a low, yet firm tone of voice, what sounded almost like a threat:

"Ye know exactly where she is."

The sound of clinging metal echoed strangely across the night.

Behind the door, there was yet another room, but smaller than the other. In the middle of the room stood a bed, covered with colorful, orientally embroidered blankets, which Elizabeth found very beautiful. She could not help sinking into the soft covers and pillows, the very sight of which was making her feel drowsy. She laid down, holding Jack's coat tightly, and closed her eyes.

It was strangely intoxicating, laying in his bed, surrounded with what belonged to him. She could feel his scent on the coat, and on the pillows. He was everywhere. He was everywhere around, and he was in her mind, in her heart. Elizabeth closed her eyes, and breathed deeply. She wanted to surrender to that feeling, no matter what it might bring. No matter what would happen. No matter how senseless, how perilous, how mad it might be.

Where are you. It was not a question. She was too tired to ask questions. It was just longing. A desperate longing. A longing that hurt. She missed him. Even though she knew he will be back soon, she still missed him as if a hundred years passed since she last saw him, and another hundred was there for her to wait. Time was painful. And vicious. Time was doing wicked things with minutes, turning them into what seemed to be years. She could almost scream. Love was not only sweet. Love was hell as long as he was not there.

Elizabeth was slowly falling asleep, images flashing before her eyes. Jack. Jack. Images of him. Jack. As if there was nothing else to imagine. Nothing else to remember. Jack. She needed not anything else. She did not want anything else. I love you...

She fell asleep.

It merely surprised him, the way Jack was handling the fight. He thought that it would be easier, than it actually was. As if Jack only pretended before to be rather a clumsy, and chaotic sword fighter. Yet another side of Captain Jack Sparrow, Will could not help thinking with bitterness. He felt exhausted. Not physically, but emotionally. Jack was defending himself with his sword almost effortlessly. And what was terrifying, was not so much the fact itself, but rather the novelty of it. Will subconsciously considered himself to be a better sword fighter, although he never thought about it explicitly. But now, even this vague conviction was not that certain. He was lying even about that.

"Are there not enough wenches in Tortuga?", asked Will, his eyes as cold as ever. "You have to turn Elizabeth in one of them too?"

Will fell. His sword slipped out of his grasp. At first, he did not know what happened, he just felt something warm, and wet streaming down his face. Blood. Blood from his nose. He did not know whether his nose was broken or not, but it was certainly bleeding. Will blinked, feeling slightly stupefied, as he came to the realization that he did not get hit with a sword. Jack did not strike him. He punched him. He punched him in the face.

"You really overstepped the mark this time", said Jack in a low voice. There was this solemn look in his eyes that Will remembered from the pirates cave, when Jack shot Barbossa. "I want you out of this ship by tomorrow", he added, putting away his sword.

Will stared at him in silence. Jack took a few steps to where Will's sword was lying, and picked it up. Will followed him with his gaze.

Jack looked at the sword for a while, and then, without a word, threw it overboard. Will cringed, but said nothing. Jack shot him a pensive look, and yet before walking away, said in a fairly quiet, but resolute and unequivocal tone of voice:

"Elizabeth - is mine."