Disclaimer: I tried to lure Jack into my house with rum, but Disney got in my way, so he's not mine.

AN: Guess who shows up in this chapter? Or you could look at the title and see for yourselves. Either way, I hope that everyone has fun reading and reviewing, since I worked so hard on it (hint, hint). Here is the link to Rose's outfit: www (dot) hinab (dot) com (slash) sarees (slash) s3 (dot) htm. Thanks, and enjoy!

Chapter 7: Meet the Turners:

Once again I felt as though Jack were hiding something from me. It wasn't that I hated surprises, per say; it's merely the fact that I'd had many bad experiences when it came to being surprised.

Many of those horrifying surprises had come from the hands of my mother, who had deemed it her duty to give me things she thought I wanted or needed while growing up. Ever since I was a little girl, numerous corsets, gowns, facial paints, and hair combs had been bought for me throughout my life as an aristocrat, and all of them had been in terrible taste. Mother had always chosen the most expensive and gaudy-looking things she could find, and I had hated them all. My wardrobe had been full of dresses that were full of lace and bows, all of which I detested because they were so heavy and thick. The corsets had always left me gasping for air, the combs had always dug into my scalp, and the facial paints had made me look like a blushing ghost. My days were constantly filled with pain and misery.

Thankfully, my father had not been one for surprises. If I had wanted something, I'd only had to ask for money for it, or for him to purchase it for me. As spoiled as it sounds, it saved me from the disastrous gifts my mother tended to give me. The first (and last) time I had been surprised by my father had been before Jack had found and rescued me; that particular surprise had been my arranged marriage to an English lord, which I was now quite safe from.

This, in turn, brings me back to the fact that I didn't really enjoy surprises. But one thing was different this time, and it was this: Jack's surprises were usually an attempt to cheer me up.

That's why I was so willing to forgive him, when a few of his old friends unexpectedly showed up at Jan's house, two weeks after Jack's letter had been sent out.

It was amazing how quickly time can fly by when you're not thinking about it. Just like before, Padma and I spent half of our days together in the gardens, chatting about anything and everything that came to mind. Mostly, though, she asked me about my relationship with Jack, and whenever I told her about how sweet, yet roguish, Jack could be, Padma would burst into giggles. Once she calmed down, she would begin telling me about her husband, who obviously loved her very much.

It was wonderful listening to Padma talk about the man she'd married not too long ago. He had a name I couldn't possibly pronounce, so I decided to call him Sam (which was the first part of his long name). Padma had laughed when I told her the nickname I had given her husband, and decided that she liked it because it sounded sweet. She then continued to describe how good Sam was to her.

Apparently, Sam was fifteen years older than Padma, but she had fallen in love with him years ago, when she had been a child and Sam had been a new business partner of her father's. She had spent a great deal of time and effort to get his attention, and after she finally managed to get his attention and making him fall in love with her, she'd had to wait for him to get the courage to propose; when he did, the entire town had celebrated with an extravagant wedding ceremony and party.

"I have to admit, compared to your relationship with Jack, my courtship was long, but it was still quite similar to yours," Padma retorted while I was laughing at her stories about Sam.

I snickered once more, but was spared from having to answer her by a servant approaching us through the lush garden foliage. The servant bowed and spoke to Padma in the Hindi language, which I thought was quite beautiful. Padma made a quick reply and the servant bowed once more before leaving. Once he was gone, my friend abruptly stood up.

"We have visitors that are here to see Jack," she declared.

My eyes merely stared blankly at her. "Who?" I asked. "Who could possibly know we're here?"

Padma shrugged. "I do not know, but we must head inside at once. Jack has been summoned, and my parents are trying their best to entertain these new guests."

Also rising, I stopped for a moment to dust myself off before meeting the guests. Today, my outfit was a beautiful, silky crème color with a great deal of colorful embroidery. The edge of the outfit and the sari was trimmed in red, and there were flowers in every shape and color imaginable decorating both the red edges and the entirety of the veil itself. It was simple, yet extravagant at the same time, and must have taken the seamstresses days to finish.

Once I had finished straightening myself out, I went inside, pulling my veil onto my head and wrapping it properly around my face, shoulders and body, following only a few steps behind Padma, who already looked properly ready to greet the guests. We headed through the front doors, walked through the large entry hall, and then entered a room I had never been in before. It very much resembled what the English would call a parlor or sitting room. The interior was white, to fight off the heat of the day, but the theme (furniture, drapes, etc) here was silvery-blue. It was soothing to look at, and the painted designs on the walls, combined with the blue curtains over the windows, almost reminded me of the sea. This instantly became my favorite room.

To the right side of the room sat Nidhi and Jan (though they looked a bit flustered for some reason). Jan sat closest to the door while Nidhi sat on his right; to her right stood a pair of empty chairs. Across from them sat what appeared to be a young English couple, both of whom appeared very excited about being here to see Jack. The young man sat directly across from Jan while the young woman sat across from Nidhi.

"Ah, there you are!" the hostess exclaimed, rising from her seat. "Padma, Rose, come sit by me."

Padma and I quickly did as we were bid. Once we were seated, I took a closer look at the couple who sat squirming in their seats.

The man was tall and quite handsome, his dark-brown hair cut an inch or two above broad, muscular shoulders. His eyes matched his hair, and he had a very well-sculpted face that was tanned from being in the sun for hours a day. The woman was beautiful, with long hair that was a light brown color, but which had become highlighted with blonde coloring, probably from being exposed to a great deal of sunlight. The two of them were dressed in breeches, and from the slightly weathered look of their faces, they were, to be sure, sailors.

'No wonder they know Jack,' I thought in amusement.

"Honored guests, may I introduce my daughter, Padma," Nidhi said, and Padma nodded slowly and politely to them. "And this is Rose, who is also a visitor of ours and a close friend of Jack's."

"Actually," a voice said from the door. "Rose is the reason I summoned the two of you here. Hello, Elizabeth…hello, Whelp – I mean, William."

The young man rolled his eyes in annoyance, though he did have a smile on his face. "Thank you, Jack," he said sarcastically. "It's good to see you, too."

Meanwhile, I watched in stunned surprise as the woman leaped up and ran to hug my fiancée. Then Jan, Nidhi, and Padma all excused themselves, leaving the room for the four of us to use privately. As Jack chatted with the new arrivals, I was stunned because I knew exactly who these two people were.

'Will and Elizabeth Turner,' I thought to myself, letting my jaw drop behind my veil. 'She was the governor's daughter that Jack helped to rescue while he was trying to get the Black Pearl back! And he was the blacksmith that was in love with her!'

"Rose, luv, don't be shy." Jack's voice brought me back to Earth. "Come and meet the people I've told you about."

I was hesitant to obey, but I did as he asked, rising from my chair and moving over to Jack's side. When I was within reach, Jack's right arm snapped out and grabbed me, pulling me close while his hand rested on my hip. I could feel him grow tense as an air of possession formed around his body.

"Rose, meet the Whelp, also known as William Turner," Jack introduced. "And this is his bonny wife, Elizabeth."

I nodded politely to each of them. "It's nice to finally meet you," I said with a smile that they couldn't see. "Jack's told me all about you, though I really don't envy the horrifying adventure you all went through together."

Elizabeth laughed. "Well, it was quite exciting, though I can honestly tell you that it was indeed terrifying."

Will smiled at me as he put his arm around his wife, mirroring Jack's action and pose. "I'd have to admit, though, it was worth it," he said, smiling down at his wife.

A smile graced Elizabeth's lips before she turned her eye back towards me. "And who are you, exactly?" she asked before focusing a Look at Jack. "Your note to us was unusually brief on the matter, though we were so happy to hear from you we decided to overlook it until we saw you again."

Jack gave them a broad grin. "Will, Lizzie, I'd like you to meet Rose." He patted my hip while his other arm encased me in a warm embrace. "She's my fiancée."

The look on both the Turner's faces was priceless.

"Fiancée?" gasped Elizabeth for the tenth time. "I don't believe it…"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Lizzie, you've been saying that for the past fifteen minutes…give it a rest!"

Will shook his head as he glanced over at the woman sitting beside his friend, her eyes dancing with amusement from behind her veil. "Well, it's still a bit of a shock, Jack. After all, we never saw you as the type to marry and settle down."

"Oh, we aren't settling down," Rose chirped as she reached out to grasp Jack's right hand in her left. "I'm a member of the Pearl's crew, so we'll be sailing the seas together!"

Jack grinned as he watched his friends stare at him and his fiancée. "Well, I made her a crewmember long before we fell in love and got engaged, so of course we'll sail together," he said, pretending to be offended. "What would I do, kick her off the Pearl after we're wed and chain her to land?"

"You'd better not kick me off," Rose retorted, glaring at him out of the corner of her kohl-painted eyes. "The men would never forgive you, Mr. Gibbs and Mr. Cotton in particular."

He sighed. "Aye, they'd never forgive me for getting rid of the best-looking cook in the Caribbean."

Rose giggled and squeezed his hand, a pleasing gesture that warmed him down to his toes. Using his thumb, Jack began caressing several of her fingers and her palm, making good use of his delicate touch to arouse the lovely woman sitting next to him.

'And she is particularly lovely today,' he thought, inwardly smirking as Rose's eyes half-closed as he continued to caress her hand.

The crème-colored silk made her tanned skin stand out, though he would dearly love to see her face. So, while she was distracted, he reached up and gently pulled the sari off of her face and head, revealing her full, true beauty to the world.

Through my half-closed eyes, I felt Jack pull back the veil I had on and welcomed the cool breeze that accompanied it. Opening my eyes, I smiled at the Turner's, both of whom were looking at me in surprise. Clearly they did not expect what they saw.

"You're not an Indian woman!" Elizabeth gasped. "You must be English; I can see it through your tanned skin!"

I smiled at her. "Well, actually, I lived in a port town across the English Channel," I explained. "Everyone there was of so many mixed backgrounds that no one knows exactly where they came from. I do speak English, though, since it was mostly English ships that went through the port."

"Speaking of ports," Jack said, holding my hand tighter. "How did the two of you make port here to quickly? Did you fly your ship here?"

Will laughed and shook his head. "No, we were here in India already," he said. "A few hundred miles away, though, which is why it took a few weeks for us to get here. A trader in the Caribbean found out that I had once been a blacksmith, and they wanted me to come here make their business a few swords and weapons. I made a great profit doing it, and might consider doing it again."

"Oh, forget about all that!" Elizabeth said. "We have a wedding to help plan!" She looked at me, excitement sparkling in her eyes. "Are you getting married here?"

"Of course we are!" Jack answered for me. "More colors for the bride and groom to wear, and this is where all of our friends are, so why not?"

This was exactly what I wanted to hear. "Oh, Jack!" I cried, squealing in delight while throwing myself at him. My arms wrapped around him in a tight hug, which he returned.

"It's no trouble, luv," he whispered so only I could hear. "No trouble at all, my Rose."

Later that night, after a delicious curry supper and fruit desserts, Jack, his fiancée, and their friends all gathered in a room to chat, all of them savoring the pleasant, cool evening air. The women were all gathered in one part of the room, chatting up a storm about the upcoming wedding. The ceremony wouldn't take place for weeks, but evidently, it would take that long to make all of the preparations come together for the Big Day.

"I never knew it took an army to put together a bloody wedding," Jack muttered as he drank from his bottle of rum. "You'd think we were going to be the last wedding to happen on Earth!"

Will laughed before sipping his tea. Apparently, the Whelp had no fondness for alcohol, making him the perfect husband for the rum-burning Elizabeth.

"For the women, it feels like they are putting together the final and most spectacular wedding on Earth," William said with a grin. "I know that Elizabeth wanted an elaborate wedding dress, a grand ceremony and feast, as well as hundreds of guests attending, but it was not to be."

In spite of himself, Jack's curiosity was perked. "Why not?" he asked. "I'm sure her father could have provided for it with no trouble."

The young man sighed. "Well, by that time, it was too late," Will replied while glancing over at his wife. "A few months after your escape, the Commodore had become upset about losing both you and Elizabeth that day. He was going to arrest us both for aiding an outlaw and a pirate. Governor Swann found out, helped us escape by giving us a ship, and we've been sailing off-and-on ever since."

"So where and when did you to get married?" Jack asked. "Not that I was invited, after all, but I'd like to know what happened."

Will shrugged and took a last drink of tea before putting down his cup to refill it. "Well, since I was captain of my own ship, I performed the ceremony on the deck of the Horizon's Flame about six months after you sailed away on the Pearl from Port Royal."

Jack grinned at him. "You see, I made you a pirate after all, just like your father," he said.

"Yes, I am both a good man and a pirate," Will retorted, raising his up to toast. "Cheers to that!"

The two men clanked their drinking vessels together and drank. Once they'd finished, they looked over into the corner and rolled their eyes as their women squealed over one thing or another.

"Dresses," Will muttered under his breath. "Elizabeth only squeals that way when she's talking about how wonderful or glorious a dress is going to be." He sighed.

It was Jack's turn to sigh when he saw Rose clapping her hands excitedly. "Well, at least she's happy," he said, smiling in spite of himself.

To tell the truth, he was happy to see his beloved all excited about the upcoming wedding. Her wonderful face seemed to glow as she and the other women planned out her gown, recommended flowers to use, and debated over what jewelry would suit her best. In his eyes, though, Jack knew that Rose would be the fairest bride the world had ever seen.

"Care for some marriage advice, Jack?"

The pirate captain rolled his eyes. "Whelp, I don't need advice from you on how to keep a woman happy," he retorted. "The day I ask for advice is the day it snows in hell!"

Will merely laughed and shook his head before indulging in more tea. "Well, I still think that…"

"No! No, no!" Jack emphasized. "It's not going to bloody happen!"

"But wives are different from ordinary women, Jack," Will said. "They know you better than you think, and even though we think we know them, too, that's not always true."

Jack sighed. "As much as I appreciate your concern for me and my future married life, dear William, I would like to be able to figure things out for myself," he said while leaning back in his seat. 'Besides, I do so love a challenge…especially when it comes to Rose!'

As I headed up for bed, I kept going through all that I had learned that night. Nidhi, Padma, and Elizabeth had all insisted on helping me plan the wedding, though it felt like I wouldn't be able to do anything at all. Nidhi insisted on helping plan the food and drinks for the reception while Padma was going to help the seamstresses design the dress (as I liked it, of course). Elizabeth wanted to help with the flower arrangements and the gifts that would be handed out to all the guests, each guest getting a customized gift made just for them. This left me with absolutely nothing to do for my own wedding.

Sighing, I entered the room I shared with Jack and was relieved upon seeing the room was empty. Jack and William had gone out for a walk while I'd been chatting with the ladies, so I was finally alone with my thoughts. I immediately went for my personal wardrobe and was shocked to see a very revealing nightgown lying inside with a note on top of it.

Wear this tonight to tease your man of what will be his in a few weeks' time. – Padma

I shook my head, but did as the note asked. I quickly tossed the note into the trash before pulling the nightgown on and going to examine myself in the mirror. The garment was of the finest silk, the neckline plunging into a daring V-shape, the point of which ended just below the valley of my breasts. I felt rather scandalous, but had no chance to change, since Jack chose that moment to walk into the room. Whirling around to face him, I saw him swallow hard as he closed the door and locked it. Watching his face, I saw a large smile form on his lips.

"What a wonderful sight to come home to," he muttered, eyeing me up and down.

Walking towards me, Jack started tossing aside his hat, coat, effects, sash, and belts before stopping a few feet in front of me. After pulling off his boots, he moved closer, our bodies nearly touching as he stared down at me.

"Care for a bit of…cuddling before bed, luv?" Jack asked, his voice turning husky as he reached for me. "I promise I won't go any further unless invited."

I merely smiled and wrapped my arms around him. "You promise, hmm? Well, cuddling does sound like fun."

Jack chuckled as he pulled me close. "And we both know how much fun I can be, now, don't we?"

AN: The wedding will be coming up in a few chapters; for now, it's just planning. I'll post a link for Rose's wedding dress on the chapter, too, so that people can see it. Please review! Thanks!