AN: Sorry for the delayed update, a nasty predicament called school has popped up recently, and most of my engeries have been focused on keeping afloat amongest the flood of homework assignment. I hope you enjoy this next chapter; it seemed to drag on in my mind, and was rather frustrating to write, so tell me what you all think, and what could make it better.

The last week of traveling had passed, and I was about ready to shout hosanna for joy. One reason being that I would get to have a least a day on land, blessed land, but most importantly, we would have a crew.

I did not think it was possible, but was ecstatic that soon, there would be other persons on the sloop, pirate or not, I really could have cared less. Why? They would be able to act as a buffer between Jack and I. His attentions would not, for a change, be focused solely on me.

Ever since the last…incident with Sparrow, there was created an underlying tenseness in our interactions. Yes, we talked, yes, we worked together, but whenever I was with him, a definite feeling of uneasiness always swept thru me. I had never fully trusted him before, but now I didn't trust myself around him, and I hated it. Consequently, I attempted to avoid him, if that can be done on a ship.

Of course, he was perfectly aware of how I was feelings, and subsequently, made sure to be by my side when possible. He didn't bother making anymore awkward advances; he didn't need to. All it took was a touch or a pointed look, and my insides would erupt with annoyance and apprehension. I was sure it was to annoy me, mostly because, well, it was annoying me.

But when I stepped onto the dock in Tortuga, my gladness quickly disappeared into the air as I surveyed the scene before me. Whores were strewn across landscape like straw, and an equal amount of customers were strutting around. The air hung heavy with alcohol, smoke, and gunfire, and the noise of screams and raucous laughter nearly blinded all my senses.

"So, luv, what do you think?"

"I think…this is the seventh circle of hell," I finally choked out.

Jack frowned, clearly insulted at my comment. "Now, luv, that's a little harsh…"

"Call me 'luv' or 'darling' one more time, and I will kick your rear end into next week," I said in my most threatening voice. Heck with manners and polite behavior; I did not want to be here, and knowing that I had to be here quickly shortened my temper.

Sparrow had the courtesy to look mildly regretful and worried at my comment. "No need to be scratching eyes out…Finn. It's not like anyone is out to get you." I let my gaze wander to the right of where we were walking, and to my horror, saw three different men giving me a good looking over, sneering and cat calling the whole time. Looking down, I noticed I was still in my nightdress from when we had run off from Port Royal. Jack seemed to have noticed the men as well. "Well, at least no one is out to kill you…can't be so sure about everything else…but have no fear, stay close to ol' Jack, and no harm will come to you."

For once, I honestly believed what he said, though I did give a icy glare when he brought his arm around my waist. Deciding to ignore the action (and the butterflies flittering around in my stomach), I said, "Captain, I'm going to need some new clothes. I can't very well go waltzing around in my nightdress for much longer. I look worse than a whore."

Jack seemed on the verge of saying 'Why not?', but instead nodded his head. "I shall see what can be done in the morning. Can't have the crew eyeing you up and down, won't get any decent work out of them otherwise."

Grimacing at the thought of having grimy, dirty, un-groomed pirates staring at me, I allowed Jack to lead me into a tavern, only to snatch me to the side as a bottle of beer was thrown in our direction. It appeared a small brawl had broken out, and was quickly turning into a full-scale battle. "Surely there is a safer place?" I pleaded, ducking behind his arm to avoid another bottle.

"If only. Unfortunately, there is a very certain man I am trying to find, and this tends to be one of his haunts."

I curled my lips in disgust, following Jack closely as he made his way thru the crowd. "If this is one of the places he bothers to spend his time, I can't say I think highly of him."

"What happened to that stately behavior you so continued to follow? Manners and the whatnot?" teased Jack over his shoulder. "Or am I being too bold to assume that I have finally changed you for the better?"

I blushed, but decided not to answer, as I really had nothing to say. Maybe it had been unfair for me to judge this man before meeting him, though if he was anything like the specimens I saw before me in the raging pub fight, then I was sure my opinions were not far off the mark.

The two of us managed to navigate the remaining distance to the back door in safety, only to appear in front of a small shack with pigs in front of it. Feeding the pigs was a man with sideburns to rival those of the Civil War era. He was graying, and aging lines stretched across his forehead and neck. All in all, his appearance merited that of a pleasant personality, if not a little rough around the edges.

After Jack had conspicuously cleared his throat, the man looked up and smiled widely. "Jack Sparrow! I didn' think I'd be seeing you again for another ten years!" he laughed heartily; apparently the comment was suppose to be some type of joke, though Jack did not seemed particularly amused. "No matter," muttered the man after a moment. "What you doing here in Tortuga?"

"Hiring a crew. I'm chasing after the Pearl again. Why don't we go in a have a drink while discussing the matter?"

"Again? Jack, my friend, after losing a ship twice to the same man, I'd almost say give up. It's not worth you life."

"Ah, but you see, that means he wins. I simply can't allow that." The two men grinned at each other, until the man noticed me.

"Hello there, lass." He furrowed his brows together as if in deep thought. "I haven't seen you around before. You new?"

"No…" I looked toward the tavern, finally catching his meaning. Anger boiled up inside of me, but the best I could do was stand there in shock, mouth open, and shaking in rage.

The man immediately realized his mistake. "Oh, I'm sorry, miss…it's just when I saw you with Jack…"

I spun around, preparing to unleash my fury on Sparrow. "So, this man sees me with you, and just assumes that I'm a whore?" I stood there, moving my mouth like a fish, but no words came out. Instead I raised my hand and slapped him across the cheek as hard as I could.

He went reeling backwards from the force, and emerged cradling his jaw tenderly. "I don't think that was entirely called for, Finn."

"Are you joking?" I seethed.

"No, I'm not. For once, I have done nothing to so much as portray any illegitimate relationship I might be having with a women, other than the fact that I was standing next to you." He stared at me pointedly, obviously expecting some sort of an apology.

My anger was quickly defusing, once I accepted that what he said was true. Jack hadn't done anything, though it did appear his reputation proceeded him. Swallowing, and blushing like a cherry, I let out a small, "Well then, I'm sorry for slapping you." He put his hands together and bowed slightly. "Though, in my defense, the reaction was more of a reflex. I don't appreciate being compared to...well..."

"I tend to awaken that reflex in women quite often," smiled Sparrow, apparently satisfied with my apology. "Now, let's put this unfortunate incident behind us, and step inside and have us a drink."

I followed the two men, who were bantering good-naturedly, blushing still and ashamed. It had been years since I had let my temper get the better of me in public. Though I wanted to blame the man and his comment, something inside me had squirmed at the thought of being labeled as a whore, particularly with Jack Sparrow. It was the uneasy feeling again, and I didn't like it one bit.

The two men wandered around for a moment, trying to find a table that wasn't near the ongoing brawl. They finally chose one that was off to the side in a small room no one else was in there, and it had a slight breeze blowing thru, making it a more or less pleasant place to be. "Finn, why don't you go get us all a drink? Rum preferably." suggested Jack as soon as he and the man had sat down. He handed me a pistol when I began asking not to. "Don't be shy about using it either." With that, he waved me off impatiently, and I went to go do his bidding with a sour look on my face.

The pistol itself probably wouldn't have been much help seeing as I had no idea how it worked, but most of the men in the area were too engrossed in the fight that I was able to get to the bar and retrieve two mugs of rum without mishap. After fishing my way around the remaining crowd, I approached the door, only to halt at the sound of faint mutterings.

It was then that it occurred to me that, maybe, just maybe, they had sent me away to talk without my intrusion. One part said to ignore it and just give them the drinks, but another part insisted that I listen in. If one thing was crystal clear, it was that Jack was hiding something from me, and I didn't like the idea one bit. Tiptoeing to the door, I leaned softly on the wall and began to eavesdrop.

"--has one of them. So, I came up with a plan." It was Jack's voice, and he was sounding very smug, as he usually was.

"Barbossa is not going just give up the ship for information."

"No, but I have a certain…leverage."

"Lever---oh." The two men chuckled together. "Well, then. To leverage!"

"To leverage! Though it appears we have nothing to toast with. Where did that little minx run off to?"

I paused a moment, a little piqued at his new name for me, and then walked in at a brisk pace. "That place is a mad house," I huffed in a frustrated tone, hiding the fact that I had just been overhearing their conversation. "Count yourselves lucky you even have drinks." I plopped the two mugs in front of them, making sure to spill a little as if to magnify my pretended anger.

Jack grumbled in annoyance at the spilled rum, but quickly took a long draught. Sitting down on the third chair, I watched to two men drink wordlessly. "You don't have one," commented the other man after emptying his own mug.

"I don't drink." After having all of those lessons on how alcohol can affect your brain, and then watching it happen to some of my friends, I had avoided alcohol like the plague. The man shrugged and tried to drain the last drops from his cup before leaning back, satisfied.

"What's your name?" I blurted out. The silence was becoming awkward.

"Gibbs," he muttered sleepily. "Joshamee Gibbs. Jack already told me who you were."

"Right."

Jack slammed his mug down on the table loudly, making me jump. "I don't suppose you could be a dear and get me another bit of rum?"

"Do you have money to pay for it?" I challenged.

He fished around in his jacket, then in his pockets, then his sash, then his bandana, a frown forming on his face the whole time. He held out his hands in front of him, empty. "I don't suppose you have some?"

"If I did, I wouldn't be giving it to you."

He turned to Gibbs, a pleading look in his eye. "Sorry, Jack."

Jack sighed resignedly and leaned back. "Oh well."

"Out of curiosity, how do you plan to hire a crew without money?" I asked.

"That's Gibbs job," he mumbled, tipping his hat over his eyes.

Another long silence. The two men seemed perfectly content to sit there and fall asleep, but after looking around, I decided that I most definitely wanted a safer place to rest. I poked Jack slightly, waking him from his doze. "What is it, luv?" he mumbled softly.

"I don't suppose we could go back to the boat?"

He blinked, trying to wake up. "Why don't we just rent a room here instead."

"You have no money."

"Oh, right." He stood grandly, waving his arms around, and tapped Gibbs on the shoulder. "We're going to be leaving now, mate. Just meet me by the docks in the morning, hm?" Gibbs waved him away with his hand, showing he had heard and wanted to be left alone. Jack took me by the shoulders and led me through the tavern, which was still as lively as ever.

Tortuga didn't seem to know what sleep was either, for when I stepped out of the building, the screaming and laughing was just as loud. Wincing, I let Jack take me back to the sloop, tiredness taking over my body. I just barely managed to get to my hammock and collapse into it.

The morning was bright and cheerful, opposite of the sight I had watched the night before. Jack was on the dock, viewing the men Gibbs had collected, most of whom appeared at least middle aged. Sparrow was waving his hands around while asking questions, which was intimidating more than one poor fellow.

I had opted to say on the sloop and enjoy my last few quiet moments. Last night had not allowed for me to think about what Jack and Gibbs had discussed before I arrived, but now I was turning it thoughtfully around in my head.

First off, someone had something. It was too bad I had come too late to catch the name, but it was obviously important; though I had a feeling it was Barbossa. Secondly, Jack had said something about leverage for having the Pearl returned to him. Before that, Gibbs had said something about information. What was it that Jack knew that Barbossa would want to know? It was all so confusing, yet I felt as if the answer was just out of my reach. There was more to this, and I knew the rest, I just didn't know what. In a sense, I had all the pieces to the puzzle, I just couldn't seem to put them together.

I had always hated puzzles.

"Finn, darling, why don't you go up to helm while we prepare to cast off?" yelled Jack from the docks.

I leaned over the railing to see at least forty pairs of eyes gaping at me. A few of the younger men began to grin suggestively, making me blush furiously. "I don't suppose you have those clothes you promised me?"

"Ah, yes." Jack pushed his way thru the crew after picking up a small bundle, and boarded the sloop, handing it to me. "Gibbs couldn't convince any of the ladies here to part with their dresses, but he was able to put his hands on some breeches and a shirt."

"That's fine, I like pants better anyway. Thank you."

Jack left, and I entered his cabin so I could change privately. The shirt was a little big, but lightweight. The breeches were actually a pretty good fit, seeing as I actually had hips. I fished around the cabin and was able to find a strip of fabric to act as a sash so as to stop the shirt from billowing around me. Stepping out, I was met with awed stares and dirty faces.

"Get to work men!" ordered Jack gruffly when the action had stopped. They complied, and soon supplies were once again being loaded. I looked up at Jack as I made my way to the helm, a little frightened. For once he was not a cocky, annoying pirate that managed to get on my nerves; he was a confident captain who was ready to lead his ship out to sea. I wasn't really sure how to deal with the new Jack Sparrow, and that made me nervous.

I stood to the side for the remaining hour it took to cast off, fidgeting and lonely. I caught Jack looking toward me a few times, but otherwise, he just ignored me. Believe it or not, this irked me quite a bit, but I pushed it aside. He needed to get this ship out of port, not talk to me.

And thus started my great adventure.