A/N: Thank you so much for all the reviews!

Disclaimer: Disney owns POTC.

Chapter 38

Jack sat on the edge of a large, crystal glass bed, holding Elizabeth's hand, staring at her intently, as if his stare, if intense enough, could wake her.

The bleeding has been stopped, and the wound was dressed, but somehow she was still unconscious.

Governor Swann bustled around the room, his face tightened from worry, his breathing shallow.

It has been at least three hours since the unfortunate incident, when the room's door opened, and the Poseidon's secretary slipped in hesitantly.

"If there is anything you need", he spoke in a solemn tone of voice. "His Majesty has ordered-", he trailed off, meeting the Governor's icy stare.

While it was remarkably true that Poseidon's reaction to what had happened was more than they could have reasonably expected, the fact that he manifested his remorse with astounding sincerity did not, however, in any way affected the fact, that Elizabeth did not regain consciousness yet.

"He nearly killed my daughter!", exclaimed the Governor knitting his eyebrows.

"His Majesty is truly sorry", rather timidly observed the secretary.

"Sorry?!", Governor Swann stared at him angrily.

"He had forewarned you that he was in a bad mood...", to the Governor's absolute astonishment pointed out the seaweed-haired man.

"Bad mood?!", the Governor blinked, stupefied. "He stabbed an innocent girl, because he was in a bad mood?!"

"Well-", the secretary did not really know how to tell the Governor that it was, indeed, the case. "Actually", he suddenly remembered something, "His Majesty did not want to stab the girl... He wanted to stab him", said the secretary pointing to Jack.

Jack did not even turned around to look at him. Probably, he did not even hear him. He just stared at Elizabeth, stroking her hair, and wishing for her to open her brown, sparkling eyes, and looked at him. It should be him, not her. She should not have done it. Not for him. Not for anybody. Lizzie Lizzie...

He lowered his head, resting it against her hand.

"Jack?"

He looked up immediately. "'Lizbeth", gasped Jack, hardly believing that she was really awake.

"Elizabeth!", the Governor rushed toward her, sighing with relief.

The secretary sighed with relief as well, but did not dare to interrupt, so he just quietly slipped out of the room.

Elizabeth smiled faintly, trying to sit upright in bed.

"No, no, no", Jack stopped her in mid-action. "You should rest, lay down, don't move", he attempted to tuck her up in a tulle blanket.

"I'm fine, Jack", said Elizabeth throwing back the blanket. She looked at Jack smilingly. She has never seen him that nervous before.

"Please, Elizabeth, don't do anything, just rest", insisted the Governor. "Mr. Sparrow is right", he added after a pause with some hesitation.

Elizabeth looked at her father pleasantly surprised. It was the first time when he actually attempted to pronounce Jack's name, instead of muttering a variety of (im)personal pronouns.

And she only tried to suppress laughter, noticing Jack wincing briefly, as he inaudibly mumbled the correction: "Captain. Captain Jack Sparrow." But the Governor did not notice it.

"I'm fine", repeated Elizabeth firmly.

"No, you're not", countered Governor Swann.

"Lizzie, listen to your father", concurred Jack, putting his hands on Elizabeth's shoulders, and trying to prevent her from getting up.

Elizabeth stared at them both frustratedly. "What kind of conspiracy is this?!", she frowned, crossing her arms over her chest. She sighed heavily, and then suddenly grimaced, as she felt a piercing pain in her right side.

Jack quickly sat right next to her, and hugged her. "See, luv?"

Elizabeth closed her eyes, and nestled her head into his chest. "Maybe you're right...", she whispered, waiting for the pain to ebb.

"'Course I am", nodded Jack. "We are", he corrected himself, glancing at the Governor.

"You should drink something, Elizabeth", said Governor Swann, taking a look around the room. "Where's this man... Well... I will go bring you some water... You are thirsty, aren't you?", he asked, looking at her concernedly.

Elizabeth nodded weakly. "A little", she said under her breath.

The governor stood there yet for a while, and then walked out of the room.

Jack leaned his head on Elizabeth's, and gently stroked her hair. "You scared me, Lizzie", he sad in a low tone of voice.

Elizabeth propped up her head, and looked at Jack. He stared somewhere into the distance wrinkling his forehead. Elizabeth cupped the side of his face, and turned his head forcing him to look at her. Knowing that even if worrying about others itself was in his nature, then admitting to being worried undoubtedly was not.

"You shouldn't have done that", he said seriously. "Never, never do anything like that again, Elizabeth. You must promise me that." He looked at her solemnly.

Elizabeth gave him a small smile, and kissed him softly on the mouth. "I am sorry, but I can't make that promise", she said quietly, and leaned to kiss him again, but he tilted his head back, and framing her head in his hands repeated firmly:

"Promise me, Elizabeth."

"Can you promise that you wouldn't do that for me?", she asked him after a moment's thought.

"Ah", Jack tucked a loose strand of Elizabeth's hair behind her ear. "A crafty plaything", he smirked. "No, no", he shook his head, wagging his finger at her. "There will be no putting the cart before the horse, Lizzie. You promise first, and then we'll see."

"No, Captain Sparrow", countered Elizabeth. "You promise first, and then we'll see", she smiled challengingly.

"Lizzie", whispered Jack quasi-menacingly. "Don't make me make you make that promise. Just make it."

"No", she pouted, pressing her lips against his. Jack deepened the kiss feverishly, but to Elizabeth's disappointment pulled away very quickly.

"Promise", he gasped. Elizabeth sighed, and averted her eyes from him. "Elizabeth Swann. Promise me right now that you will never ever under any whatsoever circumstances put yourself deliberately, or intendedly, otherwise purposefully in any possible, or probable danger."

Elizabeth sighed again. She was not going to make that promise. She did not know whether she should tell him that she had not done anything special. In fact, she merely repaid for what she had done before... She had killed him. And now she saved him. And she felt better. But somehow she suspected that this explanation would upset him. He has been telling her repeatedly that he did not care. That he had forgiven her. That he had forgiven his pirate bonnie lass.

Nevertheless, she has never told him that she had troubles with forgiving herself. Still.

"Jack!", she suddenly exclaimed, hit by a certain idea. "Why didn't you tell me about the black pearl?", she asked, happy to change the topic.

"What?", asked Jack, raising his eyebrows.

"My ring!", said Elizabeth waving her hand before Jack's eyes. "You didn't tell me that this is the black pearl! Not the ship, as Beckett had thought."

"Aye", grimaced Jack. "It was not for you to worry", he said blankly. "Plaything", he added narrowing his eyes, and smiling mischievously.

Elizabeth pursed her lips, annoyed. "It will not work this way, Jack. You ought to be telling me the truth. Always", she almost shouted, wrinkling her forehead.

"Always?!", exclaimed Jack disbelievingly.

Elizabeth shot him an impatient look, thinking that he was not being serious. But to her half-astonishment, and half-amusement, she soon realized that he actually was serious.

"Jack!", she leaned towards him, looking him straight in the eyes. "You must always tell me the truth!", she stated resolutely. "I'm your... wife... almost", she added hesitantly.

"Yes", nodded Jack with a glint of mischief in his eyes. "It's this almost that bothers me most."

Elizabeth looked at him, trying not to smile, but failing in doing so. "Oh, does it now?"

"Aye", grinned Jack, entangling his fingers in her hair. "It does", he muttered, and attempted to pull her into a kiss, but Elizabeth drew back.

"He had said that you have been here before, Jack. What was that all about?", she inquired interestedly.

Jack rolled his eyes. Never-miss-a-thing-Lizzie-luv, aye... Mrs. Captain Sparrow, that is. He smirked.

"What are you smirking at, Jack?", asked Elizabeth with a frown.

"I've been here once, long time ago", replied Jack, ignoring her latest question. "When I myself thought that the Black Pearl is the black pearl", he explained, wrapping his arm around her. Elizabeth rested her head against his shoulder.

Elizabeth listened to the story. Listening to the story reminded her of the stories she has read in her childhood. The stories of wild adventures, convoluted maps, hidden treasure. The stories of pirates, and far-away lands, tropical islands, lost cities, dreary towns, white-sand beaches. The stories of Captain Jack Sparrow...

"So... Poseidon had spared your life, even though it had seemed as if you'd cheated, because you had offered him the ship instead of the jewel", Elizabeth tried to put it all in order in her head.

"Aye. He was in a good mood, then", he observed, hugging Elizabeth close.

"He is the sea, so he has moods, just like the sea", she said quietly.

Jack tilted his head back, to look at her intently. "What a comment, Lizzie. You're becoming a man of the sea. That is", he corrected himself, "a woman... of the sea."

Elizabeth smiled. "But how did you find the real pearl?", she asked, bringing her hand before her eyes. She looked at the ring, and touched it timidly with her fingertips.

Jack hesitated for a moment before answering. "Well-", he started, and Elizabeth shot him a quick look, sensing a Captain Sparrow's kind of truth about to be presented.

"How did you really find it", she cut in resolutely.

Jack turned his head to look at her, putting a hurt expression on his face. He grew pensive, and kept stubbornly silent for a moment. Elizabeth waited patiently, stroking his face with the back of her hand, realizing how difficult it must have been for him to actually tell her a not-so-grand version of one of his adventures.

But she wanted the non-grand version. She wanted the truth. She wanted him. She wanted for him to know that to her he did not have to embellish anything. The reality was good enough. Even if only because it was his reality. It was him. And she did not want nothing more.

"I found it on the Pearl. In Captain's Quarters. In a drawer", mumbled Jack at last, staring at the floor. "Accidentally", he added with a sigh, disgusted.

Elizabeth smiled, forced him to look at her, and kissed him passionately.

"What was that for, luv?", asked Jack, reluctantly breaking the kiss for a moment.

"Guess", she smirked, and kissed him again.

They did not even notice when the crystal door opened, and somebody came into the room.