It's quite clear at this point that both father and daughter are aware that they have some sort of yearning for the other's companionship... and are equally determined to squelch said feelings. Funny how things go, isn't it? Worry not, they'll figure it out... probably in the next chapter, hah!

...TanzFieber

Captain Jack Sparrow was trying not to think. He focused his gaze on the worn wheel beneath his hand, on the backs of his crew as they swabbed the decks, on the rigging pulled taut by the wind, on the sparkling Caribbean sea that ran out to the horizon. He stared intently at his compass, scrutinized the lapel of his coat, and finally took out his pistol to clean it of non-existent dust. Yes, Jack was trying not to think, and failing dismally.

He was trying not to think of the absence of Gibbs, he was trying not to think of the pain in his head/elbow/knees/etc, and he was especially trying not to think of a certain girl with dark eyes that matched his own. Unfortunately, all of the conscious thought dedicated to NOT thinking of those things kept them all the more prominent in his mind.

"Marty, see that th'sails've been mended!" He barked, glad to have something to shout about at last. However, the dwarf merely saluted and called out a disheartening answer.

"S'been done, Cap'n Sparrow!"

"Oh. Well check th'Pearl's hull for leaks!"

"Done las' night, Cap'n!"

"Pump th'bilge water from th'cargo hold!"

"Jus' finished this mornin'!"

Jack seethed for a moment, feeling more than a bit sheepish, before finally trying to salvage his pride. He nodded curtly and waved a hand airily at those below. "Right. Well… Well make sure th'decks are nice an'… shiny! I want t'be able t'see me face in 'em!"

"Aye, Cap'n Sparrow."

Murmuring darkly about an 'over-zealous crew,' the pirate captain was forced to resume trying not to think, and thereby, was forced to resume his thinking. Just then, the bang of a door caused him to look up, thankful for a distraction.

Kelsea Sparrow did her best not to notice the sympathetic and all around curious stares she was getting, striding purposefully out on deck with her chin stuck out defiantly. Sparing only a quick glance towards the helm and the man behind it, the girl determinedly began to go about her usual chores. Upon doing so, however, she discovered a problem-- the rest of the crew had already completed all of the tasks for her!

"Damn 'em t'the depths…" She mumbled under her breath, inwardly fuming, unaware that Jack had only recently finished his own mental rant about the 'too-efficient pirates'. However, short of re-dirtying the decks on purpose, there was nothing to be done about the situation. Finally, after wandering around aimlessly for a while, she decided resolutely that she would simply volunteer herself for the crow's nest. She liked being up there, and it would give her some time to be alone and sort out her thoughts.

What she didn't notice (or had been steadfastly ignoring) was that Captain Sparrow was watching her every move out of the corner of his eye. Yes, he may have appeared to be cleaning out his pistol, but he was really watching the young girl like a hawk. Therefore, it wasn't two measly seconds that she had been holding onto the first rungs of rigging before he had made a strangely panicked descent from the helm.

"OI! NOT GOOD! STOP!" He fairly shouted as he half ran/half hobbled to where the rather startled looking girl was hanging about six-inches off the deck. Jack reached her side in record-breaking time and immediately grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, effectively plucking her from the ropes. "What th'bloody hell d'ye think yer doin'?"

A thoroughly disgruntled Kelsea, now dangling by the shirt collar from the captain's grasp, looked at him as if he had lost his mind. "C-cap'n Sparrow--?" she managed to squeak out in question, her speech being inhibited by the fabric riding up around her face. The man doing the holding seemed to suddenly think better of it and unceremoniously dropped her to the deck.

"D'ye have a death wish, girl?" he demanded incredulously. The nine-year-old wrinkled her nose at him and sat up from the heap she had fallen into.

"S'jus' tryin' t'do me duties, Captain…" she replied almost indignantly as he contemplated her.

"Tryin' t'climb up th'rigging after nearly killin' yerself doin' just that not twenny-four hours ago?" Jack sighed and his shoulders sagged just a little bit. "Don' exactly fancy breakin' me other arm if ye decide t'try an' fly again. Savvy?"

Kelsea scowled at basically being forbidden to climb to the crow's nest, but it was clear that his tone brooked no argument from her. And yet, she proceeded to engage him in a staring contest for a few moments. The crew, who were all secretly employing that same peripheral spying technique that the captain had used earlier, held their breath as the Sparrow's faced off. Finally though, it was the girl who backed down, turning her gaze to his boots.

"Aye, Cap'n."

Jack breathed a heavy mental sigh of relief, nodding shortly. "Then get on wiv ye, whelp-- jus' do us a favor an' try not t'do anythin'… stupid."

So, 'tis back t'this… Kelsea thought bitterly as he turned to swagger back to the wheel of the ship. I'm the 'whelp' again an' now forbidden t'do anything! She tried to cheer herself up by making a few particularly terrible faces at his back-- and nearly bit off her tongue trying to recover when he suddenly spun around again to face her. Jack Sparrow smiled ironically, gold teeth glinting.

"Oh an' mebbe ye should try t'fix yer clothes if ye don' have anythin' else t'do… They're a liddle big, I've noticed, an' make ye look skinnier than ye are. If yer wanting t'stay aboard th'Black Pearl, I won' have ye lookin' like a weak gutter waif. Makes th'rest o' me crew look soft." he sneered, wondering at his own behavior even as he spoke. One minute he felt sure that he would try and be nice to the girl, and the next he was cutting her down. Certainly the mind of Jack Sparrow was a mystery-- sometimes as much to himself as it was to others.

"…Aye, Cap'n." the young girl tried not to appear as snubbed as she felt, quickly turning away from the crew and stalking back to the crew's living quarters. What was his problem, anyhow?

LATER THAT AFTERNOON…

Kelsea Sparrow's eyes were nearly crossed as she inspected her reflection in the none-too-reflective surface of a silver tray. Currently standing in the middle of Jack Sparrow's cabin, the child was looking a bit on the silly side-- she had kohl smudged all over her hands and, more noticeably, across her face; was wearing a coat pilfered from the captain's chest of clothing, this one far larger than the one she had previously worn; and sported one of his red bandanas, tied inexpertly about her head.

"ARGH!" She tried experimentally, scowling her meanest pirate-scowl. Discouragingly, it didn't do much in the way of intimidation… rather lending itself to apparent foolishness. Even more discouragingly, it was at that very moment that the door swung open.

"Whelp, are ye-- Mother o' God…" Captain Jack Sparrow stopped in his tracks as his eyes fell upon the girl standing in the middle of his room. With the coat hitting the floor, the bandana falling over her face and the kohl-racoon-eyes that she had given herself, she looked positively… ridiculous. He stood in the doorway and looked her up and down a few times while trying his damndest not to laugh. Placing his one good hand on his hip, he pressed his lips together to prevent a smile and gave her what he hoped was a skeptical stare. "I see ye've taken me advice about lookin' more fierce…"

Kelsea felt a blush creeping to her cheeks beneath all of that black oily make-up, and did the only thing she could-- she stood up taller under his scrutiny and gazed haughtily back. This expression only seemed to cause more hilarity for the captain, and subconsciously endeared her to him even further.

"Lass… What're ye doin' with my effects?" he asked haltingly with a not-well-concealed chuckle. Perhaps the most glaring oddity to her appearance was that it made her look uncannily like Jack Sparrow himself-- the only true differences being the skewed kohl and the absence of the tri-cornered hat.

"Nothin'." She replied eloquently, cursing herself for not having a better answer. By now she was aware of how ludicrous she must seem to him-- playing dress-up in (gulp) daddy's clothing. Jack only nodded, by now the amusement apparent in his eyes.

"So it is that ye want t'turn pirate, oh I see!" he exclaimed somewhat sarcastically. Just then, however, he noticed that her chin was quivering and that tears glistened in her eyes. Damn, didn' really mean t'make th'girl upset… "Oh come now, lass… I didn'… I jus'…" He stammered, hoping fervently that she wouldn't go to pieces on him.

The nine-year-old was hoping the very same thing, biting the inside of her cheek savagely and blinking back the water welled up in her eyes. Kelsea Sparrow was as stubborn and strong-willed as a girl could be, but the fact remained that she was only nine years of age and feeling humiliated was not something she was used to dealing with. As it was, she just managed to keep back the tears of embarrassment and quickly set about scrubbing at her face to remove the kohl. "Apologies fer touchin' yer things, Cap'n Sparrow."

Before he knew what he was doing, Jack strode across the room to her and stopped her violent rubbing. She looked up at him with anger in her dark eyes, and he cocked an eyebrow at her. "Ye know… Aside from bein' a lass an' that coat being slightly too big," he started thoughtfully with a smirk, "Ye don't make a bad pirate, whelp."

Kelsea, who noticed that he was still holding the hand she had been rubbing with, could only stare up at him with incredulity written across her face. He flashed her another of his trade-mark grins and stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"Somethin's missin' though…" he snapped his fingers. "Ah, I've got just th'thing!" Jack suddenly swept his beloved hat off of his own head and… dropped it grandly onto hers. "Ye'll make a scurvy scallywag yet, girl." with that, he turned and strode out of the room, leaving a very confused little girl in his wake.

He comforted her during the night, scolded her in the morning, and after scorning her not five moments before-- proceeded to encourage her by way of offering up one of his most prized possessions. Yes, Captain Jack Sparrow's volatile mood swings had struck again!

A/N: Confusing bugger, ain't he? Always glad of the reviews, dears-- thanks!