Yes! Reviews! Success: For a while, I thought you guys have forgotten about me. But, you came back and that's all that matters. Yay!

She-Elf4: You're right about Jack not really caring. I changed it, hopefully it's better. edit: i think i changed it. i dont remember. hehe

Ava had been on board The Mighty for 3 days. She hadn't spoken to anyone other than Andrew and occasionally herself, when she wanted to reassure herself that everything would turn out alright.

On the third day, around the afternoon, Ava was sitting in her small room, reading a book on different types of knots. Oh, she didn't find ropes or knots interesting at all, but there was nothing else to read. Andrew had snuck a few books for Ava to read while they were going..somewhere.

Ava just got the most exciting part of her book: how to tie knots for sails! Just then, there was a soft knock on the door. Ava, relieved, looked up and beckoned whoever it was to come in. Slowly, the door opened and it was Andrew.

Ava smiled and put down her book. Andrew came over to her table and sat on it.

"Hey."

Ava smiled more and said hello back.

Andrew motioned his head towards her book. "Which book is that?"

"The Guide to Knots. Thanks for lending it to me. It really is..fascinating."

Andrew chuckled and shrugged. "Yeah, sorry about that. I was in a bit of a hurry."

"No, it's fine. Better than sitting 'round and doing nothing. So, what are you up to today?"

Andrew shrugged again. "Not much. Helping the crew with military business. Quite pointless, really."

Ava nodded. Then there was an awkward silence.

"Care to walk me around the ship for a while?"

"Oh, I can't, Ava. I'm sorry. I have a meeting with the rest of the army. I just came down here to see how you were."

Ava's face fell. She had been awake for 6 hours and all she had done was read about knots. She certainly didn't feel like walking around the ship by herself. Not with all the military around who haven't seen a woman in maybe more than a month.

"Don't be sad, Ava. I'll walk with you later tonight, perhaps. Oh, that reminds me. Hawethorne, our captain, wants to have a chat with you after dinner."

Ava raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

Andrew shrugged. "Don't know. It probably has to do with where we're going, I suppose."

Ava nodded and picked up her book again. Andrew began walking towards the door. He looked at Ava who had started to read her book again.

"It's good to see you again, Ava."

Ava looked up and smiled and said, "You, too."

He smiled to himself and left the room. Ava went back to her book.

XXX

It was 7 in the evening. Ava was in her room, sitting idly on her bed, staring at the wall in front of her. She began to hum a tune. No tune in particular, just a song she made up from the top of her head. She then began to tap her feet against the floor.

Just as she was about to sing aloud, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in, Andrew."

The door opened slowly but who she saw at the door was not Andrew, it was some officer.

Ava immediately stood up and looked flustered. "Oh, sorry. I thought you were someone else."

"No. Uh, Miss Benford, Captain Hawethorne wishes that you sup with him."

Ava started to straighten out the dress she was wearing with her hands.

"Yes, I've heard."

"Meet him in the Captains Quarters as soon as you finished preparing yourself."

Ava nodded and the officer returned the gesture and left. She sighed and started to fix her hair. She didn't want to look like a street rat when dining with someone of the British navy.

As Ava was getting ready, she wondered what Hawethorne wanted to talk about. Probably about where she wanted to go next. Ava thought about that. She didn't know where to go. She couldn't go back. How odd would it be that Ava disappears for a while and all of a sudden returns as if everything was normal? No, she couldn't go back there. Her life wasn't there. In fact, she didn't know where she was supposed to be. When she was younger she had hoped that she had found a proper suitor. But, that was before her father lost everything. Now, all she wanted was a place she can really call home and a moment to do something extraordinary. A moment to be a part of something great. Seeing how things were coming along now, chances were that she wasn't going to get that moment. She was close; she found Andrew.

Ava looked in a small mirror she brought with her. She sighed again and headed for Hawethorne's cabin.

As she walked towards his cabin, she passed the room where all the crew members ate. She saw Andrew with a group of his friends, laughing and drinking.

Apparently, Ava was staring for a while because Andrew looked up at her and smirked. A group of the soldiers turned around and smiled mischievously. Ava snapped out of her daze and quickly walked away. The soldiers who turned around turned back to Andrew and started to tease him about his "girlfriend". Ava heard this and chuckled to herself.

Suddenly, she found herself face to face with a tall and muscular soldier. He slowly looked down and said in a deep voice, "You must be Miss Benford. Captain Hawethorne has been waiting for you."

Ava nodded with some fear. This man could crush her! He stepped aside and opened the door for her. She stepped inside and felt a gush of air as the door closed behind her.

Ava found Hawethorne standing behind a table that was covered in food and delicacies.

"Miss Benford, please, be seated."

Ava gulped and sat down. Hawethorne sat opposite of her and smiled a cold smile.

"How has your stay been on this fine ship?"

Ava's eyes shifted. "It's been fine, sir."

He nodded. "Shall we dine, then?"

Ava sat there and nodded slightly. She picked up her fork and knife and started to eat some chicken.

After about half an hour of eating 3 courses, Ava leaned back in her chair and sighed. She was so full. She felt like she couldn't eat ever again.

"It was a fine meal, wasn't it Miss Benford."

Ava sat back up again and nodded. "Yes, sir. Very delicious."

There was another silence between them. Ava wasn't sure what she was doing here. She hadn't talked to Hawethorne about anything other than the food.

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking, what was the purpose of you asking me to dine with you?"

Hawethorne cocked his head. "I want to welcome you with a proper meal…"

Ava nodded. "Well, sir, thank you very much. It is late and I must be heading back to my cabin. I'm very tired."

She had started to get up when Hawethorn spoke, "Sit down, Miss Benford. I have more to say to you."

Ava sat back down, with a cautious look on her face. He planned something, she was sure of it.

"I can see through your lies."

Ava started to get nervous. She felt her palms get sweaty. "I don't know what you're-."

"You know very well what I'm talking about! Living in Tortuga? Taking a walk? I've never heard such rubbish in my life."

Ava sat, silent. She was unsure of what to do or think.

"Just what was so important about you being there that made you lie to me?"

"Nothing..sir," said Ava, quietly.

"Answer truthfully, madam! I have no tolerance for those who lie in front of an important figure of the English Royal Navy."

"I did as I said, sir. I was taking a walk."

Hawethorne leaned forward and nodded, still looking at Ava with cold eyes. "So you were just taking a walk, is that right?"

Ava nodded slowly.

All of a sudden, he stood up, making the table shake. Ava was taken aback.

"Then why is it that I saw you walking out of a bar?"

"I was thirsty, sir. When I tried to get away, I was thrown back against the wall. That's why I was seen leaving a bar."

Hawethorne had a disgusted look on his face. "Oh, do you really think that I'm that stupid to believe your story? A story from some bar wench?"

Ava stood up with anger. She made the table shake just as much as Hawthorne.

"How dare you! I am not a wench!"

Hawethorne took a sip from his goblet and mumbled, "Well, you don't do a very good job showing that you're not."

Ava slammed her hands on the table.

"Captain Hawethorne. You have taken this interrogation too far! Let me set the record straight for you. One, I am not a wench! I could have you arrested for insulting a woman with more status and apparently more sense than you! I was more wealthy than you, sir, so you better watch how you use that vile attitude with!"

"You had wealth. Now, you are nothing more than some poor woman with no voice in anything. Not that you had a voice to begin with."

Ava marched towards Hawethorne and felt the urge to spit on his face. She got very close to him and began shouting at him:

"You, sir, have no right to insult me in any way whether I am rich or poor! You want to know what I was doing in Tortuga? I was with a crew getting supplies to go to the Tresoro de Almas! There! I've said it! You've gotten what you've wanted out my 'poor' soul!"

Hawethorne chuckled. "Oh, Miss Beford. I haven't gotten everything from you, yet."

Ava backed away and looked at him, puzzled. "What do you mean?"

"I'm assuming you've heard the story of the Treasure of Souls, so I wouldn't need to waste time explaining it to you."

Hawethorne paced around the room with his hands behind this back. Ava stood where she was, calming herself down from her rant.

"I'm going after that treasure. The man who takes it shall be wealthier than the king himself! I'm willing to risk anything to get it, even my title as Captain. I won't need that after I get what's mine. But of course, it isn't that simple. You know what needs to be done, right? I'm sure your pirate crew told you all the myths about it."

Ava searched her mind. What happens? Suddenly, a conversation she had between Jack and Will came to her mind. "Oh, stop being such a sissy, Will. Sure there are some risks such as being sacrificed to a certain god that I haven't mentioned or fallin' 'to booby traps but it's not like anythin's goin' to be a surprise to you anymore…eh?" Sacrifice! She was the sacrifice! Her eyes widened with fear.

Hawethorne chuckled. "I see you've realized what your purpose here was.

"You're going to kill me just for some treasure?"

"What's the world's use for a woman like you?"

Ava's breath started to come out quickly and in short breaths. She started to sweat a lot.

"Better go back to your cabin, madam. You said you were tired."

Ava started to back towards the door and hit her back against it. She felt for the doorknob and turned it. She whipped around, trying to run away, but hit the tall officer standing in front of it. Ava pushed him aside and ran to her cabin, passing the room where the other soldiers were.

As Ava ran past the room, crying, Andrew was listening to a story one of his friends was telling. He heard heels in the distance and looked up. He saw Ava running with her face scrunched up in despair. He stood up and walked towards the door.

"'Ey, Andrew, where you goin', mate?" said one of his friends in a thick cockney accent.

"I'll be right back."

That same soldier turned back to his friends and said, "Seems like he's gonna go comfort his lass, eh?"

The table laughed. By then, Andrew was already half way to Ava's room. He walked up to it slowly and knocked on it.

"Go away!" said the voice inside.

Andrew slowly opened the door. He saw Ava sitting on her bed with her knees at her chest, her arms wrapped around her legs. She was sobbing loudly.

"Ava, what's wrong?"

He went in and shut the door behind him. He rushed to Ava's side, sat down on the edge of the bed, putting his hand on her knee and the other hand on her back.

Ava sobbed more.

He rubbed his hand against her back, hoping it'd help her calm down.

"Ava, tell me. What happened?"

She looked up, her face stained with her tears. Her eyes were red and watery.

"Your captain! He's crazy!"

Andrew was puzzled. "What? What do you mean?"

"You've heard of the Treasure of Souls, right?"

Andrew nodded. "It's a myth, that's all I know about it."

Ava shook her head. "No, it's not. It's real. We're going there now."

She took several deep, quick breaths and continued, "You know how there's a sacrifice involved, right, Andrew?"

Andrew gasped and looked into Ava's eyes. "You don't think that-."

Ava held up a finger. "No. I don't think, I know. I know he's going to use me as sacrifice. He told me."

Andrew let out a sigh that sounded a bit like a chuckle. "But-but, he's captain. He wouldn't do anything like that. He couldn't."

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"No, no. Of course I do. You've never lied to me before."

Ava wiped her eyes with her hand and sighed. "Andrew?"

He looked up at her, after soaking up whatever she just told him. "Yes?"

Ava looked into his eyes. "I'm scared, Andrew. I'm not ready to leave everything I've worked hard for behind."

Tears started to fall from her eyes once more.

Suddenly, Andrew felt more confidence than he ever felt in his entire life. He hugged Ava. She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight, never wanting to let him go.

"Ava, nothing, I mean nothing is every going to happen to you. I won't let anything happen to you. I swear."

Yep there you have it! Sorry it took me ages to update. Hope you guys like this chapter!