Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I own nothing related to Pirates of the Caribbean. That belongs to Jerry Bruckheimer, Disney, and a bunch of other people. Only original characters and plotlines are mine.

AN: Hola, everyone! Quick note with this week's update: I will be on vacation next week, so there will be no update for another two weeks. Thanks for being patient, and I promise that it will be worth the wait!

Chapter 13: Conflicts and Interests:

Since I had returned so late from my day ashore, Anna decided that we could put off doing the sorting in the galley until the next day, preferably after we had spent some time together exploring the town, just the two of us females.

Since a day on shore with Anna sounded exciting, I agreed, and the two of us had settled in for a quiet evening in our cabin, with her telling me all sorts of odd tales of the sea until it was time for bed.

Unfortunately, I did not get another chance to explore the town before we left.

Early the next morning, as we were getting ready to go ashore, Jack had declared that we would be leaving on the noon tide, and we had a lot of work to get done before then. The men had grumbled, but agreed. It was time to get back to sea and earn a living.

As such, I had to help Anna-Maria take a final inventory of goods in the galley and the supplies, in case we had missed something earlier. It took some time, but when we found that there were a few things unaccounted for, Gibbs made a special trip into town to find out why, and returned just before castoff with not only what Anna had asked for, but a few extra spices and food items as well.

"Turns out the shop owner had – mistakenly – lost part of our order, and was more than happy to make it up to us," he said, grinning rather savagely.

Anna laughed. "Well, let's hope that the fellow learned his lesson about cheating his customers," she replied, taking what he'd brought. "Come on, Rina, let's get these taken care of before we sail."

We also began the soup for lunch, only this time we used chicken instead of seafood, since a chicken had been with the supplies Gibbs had brought onboard. Anna put in a few chopped up sausages and several fresh vegetables from those extra supplies as well, to give it extra flavor and thicken the soup. When she finished and set it to cooking, it smelled absolutely delicious!

Apparently the crew agreed with me. When I went up on deck for my sword lesson with Jack, the men seemed thrilled at the meal they were going to have, because they worked on their chores with a great deal of cheer and excitement.

Only Jack remained untouched by this cheerfulness that had come across the crew, for he seemed unusually focused on teaching me my lesson and on nothing else until he returned to his cabin afterwards. My instincts told me that it was because of the kiss we had shared, and that he was unsure of how either one of us felt about this whole matter. I knew that he had enjoyed the kiss, but he was clearly confused about the whole thing.

But there was nothing I could do about that, not now at least. I would have to wait until he approached me to raise the matter, and until then, I would let him sort out his thoughts and feelings before dragging my own heart into it.

When my morning sword lesson was over, I tried to ask Anna about the soup through gestures, which made her laugh. "They're just happy I made this special soup, Rina," she explained. "It needs specific ingredients if it's going to taste right, and since it's been a very long time since I made it, they've every right to be thrilled."

She reached for a spoon and offered me a taste. The mixture of spices burst on my tongue, and the rich thickness was hearty and promised to be very filling. I smiled and nodded at her as my mouth began to heat up a little, but not overly so. With the heat lingering in my mouth, it was actually quite pleasant.

"There, now, you see why the crew likes it so much?" she teased as I nodded. "Well, it won't be ready for a little while, so why don't I start you on a reading lesson?"

Anna grinned at my surprised expression. "I saw you looking at my books, but it was clear you can't understand what's written there. We'll start at the beginning, and move on from there."

And so began another set of lessons for me. Anna managed to teach me all of the letters that made up the language we were speaking, which was English, and I was surprised at how some of the letters resembled symbols I had seen in sunken Greek ships. My mother had taught me what some of those meant, and said that the Ancient Greek civilization had influenced other lands, but the meaning behind these symbols were different than what she had taught me.

By the time the soup was finished cooking, I had started reading two- to three-letter words and writing just a little, which surprised Anna-Maria to no end. "I'm guessing someone started you on reading and writing, but apparently didn't get very far," she mused as I pointed to the letters she asked me to. "Since you're mute, your family must have thought that this was all you could learn."

It wasn't that, of course. In my eagerness to learn to read, I had begun plucking things out of her head so that I could learn them faster. Hopefully, in a matter of days, I would be able to read as well as she did.

Thankfully, she merely shrugged it off. "Well, we'll move onwards before and after you've had your afternoon sword lesson with the Captain. Right now, it's time to eat."

Everyone ate their lunch with relish, savoring every bite of it until our bowls (and the pot) was empty. With our stomachs full, I joined Anna for another brief lesson in reading and writing until Mr. Cotton had finished cleaning the galley. I then began the evening's meal, which of course would be seafood stew, but with the shelves holding new or restocked spices, it was going to be a fine one.

My afternoon sword lesson wasn't as uncomfortable as the morning one had been. Jack was in a far more relaxed mood, and was gentler with me than earlier. However, with him being so warm with me, it was harder to think of him as a teacher, and a touch of his hand caused me to remember our kiss. Merely by laying his hand on mine did he make my heart beat faster, and the memories to return.

Finally, during the final part of our time together, Jack asked me to attack him. "Just come at me, Marina," he said, hefting up his sword. "I promise you won't hurt me. Come on."

Biting my lip, I paused, thinking carefully. When I'd gathered enough of my courage and formed a small plan of attack, I raised my weapon and did as he asked: I attacked.

It's always gratifying for a teacher in weaponry to let their student attempt things on their own, and Jack was no exception. He wanted very much to see how Rina would do in a fight, so he'd asked her to attack him.

To give her credit, she didn't do what most people did: raise her weapon and run right at him. She didn't cower in fear, either, or panic and stand there dumbfounded. Instead, she looked at her weapon in thought, as though she were considering all of her options, and only when she was sure did Marina raise her sword.

She didn't lunge at him, like he had expected. Rather, she swung her blade, clashing with his, but gently, as though she were merely "testing the waters." He quickly countered, and was surprised when she swung again, this time from a different direction, and with a bit more force. Again, he countered. Soon, the rhythm of their swords were clashing grew swifter, with Marina shifting her stance and her feet as she fought, forcing him to move around the deck.

He grinned, admiring his partner in this dangerous dance. For all that she had been clumsy when they'd first started, it was clear that she had been practicing her stances, even if she wasn't doing it consciously. She was still a bit slow and shaky, both with her feet and her hand-and-eye coordination, but she was doing rather well, for a beginner.

When he could tell she was beginning to tire, he swiftly brought the fight to a halt, sending her sword flying with a flick and twist of his wrist.

"Very good, Rina," he said, smiling. "We'll finish this up tomorrow morning, aye?"

She nodded and went to retrieve her weapon before heading down below decks. Free until dusk, Jack headed to his cabin to do some very serious thinking.

He had been a little distant and formal during his morning lesson with Rina, and he'd no doubts about the fact that she had noticed. Through his great knowledge when it came to women, Jack guessed that she sensed that his 'distance' was due to their brief kiss the day before. She had been rather somber, and more focused on her efforts, but there were no other signs that she could sense what lay behind his behavior.

In the time between then and their afternoon meeting, Jack had come to decide that being cold towards Marina was out of the question. She had done nothing to deserve it, and he would be a poor human being to treat her in such a way when the poor girl was innocent of any wrongdoing. He would be as he always had been to her, and slowly probe to see how she felt about him.

"Alright, I admit it," he grumbled to himself. "I've grown more than fond of her." Anything beyond that, he would not say.

And when it came to this sort of – situation – the only thing a man could do was move slowly, and wait to see what the outcome would be. Patience was what he needed. It was just a pity that he'd never really been a patient man.

I woke to the sound of shouts above deck, and groaned. As my thoughts had been preoccupied with Jack all night, I had not slept well, and did not want to get up and prepare the noon meal just yet. From my sense of time, and the fact that Anna-Maria was still abed, it was too early for me to wake in the first place. Why were the men so excited, then, at this time of day?

The commotion soon woke Anna, who looked just as frustrated as I felt. "What the bloody hell is going on up there?" she snapped, tossing back the covers. "You stay here, Rina, while I go find out. It'd better be good, for there to be so much commotion this early."

We both pulled on our clothes, but I remained behind while Anna went up on deck. While she was gone, I sat and fretted, wondering why the commotion suddenly became louder as my friend's distinctive voice joined those of the men. It must be important or terrible, for her to yell like that.

It felt like an age until she returned, and when she did, she looked worried. "We've spotted a ship, Rina," she said, giving me a pointed look. "You need to stay here, and promise to keep your weapons handy, just in case. This one looks a bit more heavily armed than we're used to, so you need to be careful. Understand?"

I nodded and grabbed my knife and sword, both of them drawn –my knife in my left hand and my sword in my right. Anna beamed, her face full of pride as she shut the door, locking it tightly for my protection.

Not long afterwards, I heard cannon fire, and knew that we had engaged the other ship. Soon, I heard guns going off, and feet rushing about as the battle progressed, weapons clashing above my head as I tightly gripped my weapons.

Fighting was still going on as footsteps came down the stairs leading from the top deck, slowly shuffled about, then came towards the cabin door. I swallowed in fear as someone tried the latch and found it locked. A man cursed, and began to kick at the door as my heard leaped up into my throat. I knew I had only seconds to prepare before he came through and tried to kill me.

I raised my sword just as the door burst open, and a large man stood there, an angry look on his withered face. His hair was greasy and brown, and his clothes, which were clearly old, matched his hair and face. A long scar ran up the left side of his face, and his mouth was missing a few teeth. I bit back a wince as he noticed me, his mouth turning up into a smile, revealing the gaps in his face.

"Looks like the pirates keep a wench here for fun while they're at sea," he drawled. The thoughts that flowed from his mind were revolting, and I knew what he planned to do to me if I did nothing to defend myself.

Raising my sword, I gripped my knife in my left hand and bent my knees in a stance, just like Jack had taught me. The man raised an eyebrow, then laughed loudly. "Aw, the little thing thinks she can fight, hmm? Well, we'll see, little mouse."

He drew his weapon and raised it high, apparently trying to bring his weapon down on me in a show of strength. It was a stupid move, as it gave me enough time to swiftly kick him in the gut. Down he went, gasping as he fell to his knees. Knowing that he was merely winded, I hurried and kicked him in the face, causing him to lurch aside and grip his face in pain. The door was unblocked, and as he sat cursing and bleeding on the floor, I ran outside, still griping my sword and knife.

I raced up the steps and onto the deck, away from the confines of the lower decks. There was no room to fight down there, and up top it was much more open, even if there were men (and Anna) fighting everywhere. I didn't stop to take in what was happening, though, because my enemy was right behind me.

When I was far from the steps, I turned and crouched again, readying my sword and knife as the man saw me and growled. "You'll pay for that, missy," he snarled, lifting his own weapon.

The man was taller, stronger, and more skilled than I was; I had only been training for a short time, and had not the strength to defeat him. However, what I did have was the ability to read his thoughts and therefore know what he was going to do next.

It was difficult, reading his thoughts and trying to counter what he was going to do. He often tried to distract me, but my moves changed when his thoughts did, and I was able to at least keep him at bay. I could see in his thoughts that he was furious that I, a small female, was able to hold my own against him, and that anger made him stronger and very unpredictable, even to someone like myself.

All around me, the sounds of battle faded as the Pearl gained the upper hand, and soon, I could sense that it was just me and my enemy battling with each other. We kept fighting, and I felt that I was weakening under the constant attacks he was making on me. His strength was greater than mine, and under the strain of not only his physical attack, but also trying to keep pace with the flow of his growing insanity, I hesitated too long, and felt the sword in my hand fly out of it.

I didn't even have a chance to use my knife, for the next thing I knew, something struck me across the face, knocking me to the deck. My eyes were filled with stars and my face stung like mad, but none of that mattered when I heard someone shout out in anger. When I looked up, the most incredible sight met my eyes.

It was Jack, and he was attacking the man who had struck me. He looked absolutely enraged, even more than his opponent, and the way their swords clashed together told me that Jack would not rest until the other man was dead.

The fight raged for no more than a few moments, but it seemed to me that it went on forever. Jack was slightly smaller than his enemy, but his fury gave him strength when he needed it, particularly now that the other man was surprised at the change in opponents. The stranger had also used all of his anger on me, someone he considered inferior and who should not have been able to hold my own against him.

Jack, however, was another matter. Here was a pirate who had many years of skill, and who the man considered a 'worthy opponent.' The anger in the stranger had left, to be replaced by a mad kind of joy at being able to fight someone he considered a challenge. He didn't think about winning or losing –he was just thrilled at the prospect of a good fight.

I watched closely, holding my breath as the two battled, wondering what was going through Jack's mind as he pushed the man back and quickly disarmed him before sliding his blade into the man's stomach.

The battle had been won, and all that had remained was to bind and gag the fighters off of the merchant vessel. This ship had been more heavily armed and guarded than usual, and it had taken a good deal of fighting and bloodshed to subdue them. Luckily, no one from the Pearl had been killed, or hurt fatally. There were wounded, of course, as was to be expected, but it wouldn't take long to treat them and get those who needed a doctor to the nearest port for treatment.

Just as the battles began to ebb and the other ship flew its flag in surrender, Marina appeared, a hulking brute of a man trailing behind her, the man clearly bent on hurting the poor girl. Jack had to admire the determined look on her face, but since she was a good deal smaller than her opponent, and incredibly inexperienced, he instantly feared for her life.

For a while, Marina somehow managed to hold her own against him, though Jack didn't know how she managed to do it. It was almost as if she knew what the man was going to do the same time her opponent thought it, and was able to counter each attempted swing of the sword, even if the man tried to fake a move or step.

Unfortunately, Rina was smaller, weaker, and unskilled when it came to long battles, and it wasn't long before she began to tire under the relentless attacks she faced. As she weakened, the man had an upper hand, for he had his anger to fuel him and skill to help him win.

Then Jack had seen the villain send Marina's sword flying, and one massive hand swung, striking Marina across the face. That was when Jack felt his blood boil. If there was one thing he hated, it was a man who hit an unarmed woman.

Crying out his rage, Jack raced across the deck, sword drawn as Rina hit the deck, a dazed look on her face. The fight was a senseless blur to him, and when it was over, all Jack could remember was the feel of his sword sliding into his enemy's belly, killing him.

To his admiration, Rina didn't even flinch as Jack pulled his sword from the dead corpse and cleaned the blade on the man's shirt. His deed done, Jack ordered Gibbs to load the other ship's goods onto the Pearl, and commanded Anna-Maria to take the wounded down below for treatment. Mr. Cotton was to take the helm until Jack could relieve him, and Perkins was to keep a watch on their prisoners until they could be returned to their ship.

"Don't release them from their bindings, though," Jack reminded him. "We'll just set them adrift as the bound dogs that they are."

As the crew rushed to follow his orders and the wounded were taken down below for treatment, Jack bent down and scooped Rina up in his arms, one arm slipping beneath her knees and the other around her back. "You alright, luv?" he whispered, looking at her frightened, dazed face. She nodded, but he could tell that she wasn't.

Holding her tightly, he carried her to his cabin and kicked the door shut behind him. Jack then set her gently down on a chair, leaving her side just long enough to fetch a bottle of rum, a bit of soothing balm, and a rag. His tools in hand, he returned to her side, though her attention was not on him, but rather elsewhere.

"Marina," he whispered, causing her to turn towards him. "I'm going to treat your wound, alright? It shouldn't take but a minute."

She nodded and closed her eyes, which he considered a blessing –Jack didn't like to see those blue eyes glazed in pain, especially when she didn't deserve it.

In a wink, he'd cleansed the bruise that was quickly spreading across her right cheek, as well as the area around it, with the rum. The rum was followed by a smear of the balm, which would reduce the coloring in a few days rather than weeks, and a dab of the rag cleaned up any remaining drops of rum or drips of balm.

Stepping back, Jack admired his work, but bit back a wince at the sight of her lovely skin being marred by that bruise. If the fellow had been wearing rings of any kind, Marina would have a horrible gash on her face, one that would no doubt turn into a scar later.

Seeing that she was looking at him, he pasted on a reassuring smile. "You are either a very brave girl, or a foolish one, taking on a bloke like that," he teased, earning a small smile from her. "But I am proud of you for holding your own like that."

She flushed; her blue eyes sparkling with a shyness that only made her look adorable to him. He wouldn't admit it aloud, but Jack couldn't stand the thought of what might have happened if she had failed in protecting herself today. The mere thought of her lying bleeding and broken on the deck (or worse, dead) struck him like a cold knife to the heart.

He knew that he shouldn't care for her like he did, but it was too late to go back now. It wasn't the right time to tell her, either, not when she was so shaken and on the brink of tears. As always, Jack would wait for the most opportune moment to reveal how he felt, and that was not today.

"Come on, luv," he said, holding a hand out to her. You can rest in my bed while I'm up at the helm."

She smiled brightly at this suggestion, and happily accepted it. As she lay curled up atop his mattress and sheets, dozing peacefully, Jack gave her one last look before going on deck, happy that she was safe and sound, and in his cabin, where she seemed to belong.

AN: Whew, longer chapter this time! Thanks so much for reading, and please don't forget to review!