CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: Feronia

Katie was happy to be back at Shipwreck Cove. As much as she missed the sea when she was away from it for too long these days, the situation over the past few days of the voyage had become nearly unbearable; with no water and very little rum, crew members had been fighting like cat and dog and there had been several small injuries suffered in fights that had broken out. Jack had been at the end of his tether with everybody as a result and his mood hadn't been the best anyway since the day on land at Oak Island. She wished he had never had to see Angelica- it pained him, not to mention a part of her was still terrified that he would go back to the Spanish woman if he had the chance.

Jack was also uncharacteristically relieved to be putting into port. His dreams had been decidedly disturbing since seeing Angelica and being chased by vanishing water, and more than that he was worried about Katie. The poor nourishment and hydration of the past few days could not have done her any good, and indeed she had developed a nasty-sounding cough. She insisted she was fine but he only hoped it was nothing serious.

Teague seemed to share his thinking as soon as he heard that cough. Over Katie's head, his eyes met Jack's and before Katie knew what was happening she was being forced into bed by father and son with a hot toddy.

"It's just a cough!" She insisted, nullifying her point slightly by succumbing to a fit of said cough. "It'll pass in a few days! It's just the cold air!"

"An' it'll pass quicker if you're in bed warm and rested." Teague told her sternly.

"But I'm so sick of being stuck in bed all the time! I want to help with the notes from the Brethren Court!"

"A lot of help you'll be if yer-" Jack retorted angrily, but Teague stopped him:

"Jackie." Jack closed his mouth, looking down into Katie's emerald eyes.

"-If yer ill." He finished lamely, though she could tell that was not what he had meant to say.

"Now drink that and don't strain yerself." Teague commanded her. Katie looked as if she'd like to argue but then thought better of it. Her eyes flickered back to Jack's before she nodded. The two men left the room and were several floors lower down into the fortress before Teague decided to speak. "You've finally realised, haven't you?"

"Realised what? I haven't realised a thing!" Jack answered quickly, never liking his father to be right about anything. Teague knew this and merely shook his head.

"Don't mess this up, boy. She's like the daughter I never had."

"I'm yer actual son!" Jack reminded his father, not for the first time in his life. They stopped and faced each other. Teague raised one old, strong hand and gripped Jack's shoulder with it.

"Aye, that ye are. But she's the daughter I don't have, right?"

"Right." Jack agreed, not fully understanding what Teague meant, though that was nothing unusual.

"Well, let's go an' find Elizabeth an' take a look at those minutes. Think it might be a bit of a job."

Shipwreck Cove once again became a place full of pirates trying to decipher ancient myths and legends. Davy Jones had tricked Calypso into coming on land in her human form, and the nine Pirate Lords had bound her. That was the part of the story everyone knew, but the magic it involved was an unknown quantity. The minutes that Ramsay had hidden noted 'a blooming love the value of more souls than Jones can ferrey', 'a stagnante hearte as unmovable as lande' and 'nyne pieces of eight to holde the goddess' spirit within'. It also listed a ritual. They had known all along they would need Will Turner and nine pieces of eight, but where could they find a stagnant, unmoveable heart or a love more valuable than the souls Will ferried to the other side?

"A blooming love must be a new love. One that is forming now." Elizabeth said, frowning. "Which discounts myself and Will, and Katie and Jack." Jack had moved uncomfortably in his seat when she said this. Teague had fixed him with a piercing look, though neither of them said anything. Jack had noted that since they'd arrived back at Shipwreck Cove his father had been keeping an even closer eye on him than he had when Jack had been a delinquent teenager fond of running away.

"We all have stagnant hearts here, how do ye find the most stagnant?" Gibbs questioned. "We're pirates!"

As everyone else discussed these things at length, Katie was holed up in her and Jack's room trying desperately to get better. The cough was not as aggressive after a week or so but Jack was not happy to have her up and about.

"I wasn't supposed to strain myself," Katie gasped through the darkness one night. Jack's hands were everywhere they ought not to be, as they were whenever he had a chance to put them there. Katie had long since stopped feeling shy or guilty. "Remember?"

"Well, I'll do all the work, love." Jack growled, dragging his nails down her back.

"I don't know…" She teased, rolling so that she was on top of him. He enjoyed this new, more assertive side of Katie in the bedroom department. Her straightforwardness in the day to day was starting to come through in the most rewarding way possible for him and he could find no reason to complain. It was long after their pleasure had subsided and both were almost asleep when Katie brought up the question that'd been bothering her since they'd gotten back:

"Jack," She whispered through the darkness.

"What?"

"Are you ever going to tell me why you panicked so when I got this stupid cough?" There was a pause before he answered.

"Are you ever gonna tell me why you were panicking so the night I met you and then left stupid London?" It was a brave stab at his usual cockiness, but she heard an edge to his voice. Katie sighed. She had promised him, but it never felt like the right time…

"I'll tell you." She replied stiltedly.

"An' when you do, maybe I'll answer your question." There was another long silence. It was so long that Katie thought Jack had probably fallen asleep. Nonetheless, she whispered again through the darkness:

"I'm sorry, Jack." Miraculously, he reached out across the bed to her and pulled her to him, her heads resting on his chest, his arms holding her securely. He breathed in the smell of her hair.

"I tried to be stubborn and insist you tell me before you were ready an' I lost that battle, love. Don't apologise for me bein' a sore loser." Katie smiled to herself, her fingers reaching down and lightly tracing the scar the bullet had left on his thigh. In response he felt his blood supply heading south and, tired as he had been a minute before, he began again the exploration of her body.

Between planning the binding of Calypso, including the unravelling of the clues and passages given in the minutes of the first Brethren Court and the usual debauchery that came from the pirate lifestyle, Katie found herself alone quite a lot. Jack didn't often let her out of his sight, and she still didn't understand why he was so concerned over a mere cough. His general behaviour was a little strange- stranger than usual, that is- and in turn Katie became concerned for him. His sleep was often disturbed and he was quiet during the day. She was curious what Angelica had said to him, and even more curious about what had gone on in the Money Pit. Even Elizabeth seemed a little shaken whenever anybody asked, and Katie knew from this that there was something they weren't telling people, but he evaded the subject whenever she brought it up, the same way he was also evading the subject of why she had to be bed bound for a common affliction.

This affliction was getting better already, and the cabin fever began to drive Katie insane. One evening, while Jack was out drinking, Katie finally had enough. She'd been shut up for a week now, ever since they'd gotten back, and the cough was barely a rattle in her chest. She needed fresh air. Wrapping herself up in her coat, she broke her promise to Jack to stay put by creeping out of her room, through the fortress, and outside.

The air still had a little of a chill in it, but all the storm had gone out of it, leaving it feeling crisp and refreshing on her face. Katie walked towards the docks, though she stopped before where most of the ships were moored, and gazed out onto the shady horizon. There wasn't a single cloud in the sky and she could make out every star. A smile crossed her face; the way their silver glimmer illuminated the various shipwrecks that gave the island a name had a sort of dark glamour to it. It reminded her immediately of Jack, whose allure lie in much the same realm.

She stood there for quite a long time and zoned out for a while, thinking about everything, how far she had come, when an enormous ship rose directly out of the water before her. Her heart pounded pugnaciously in her chest as she took in its stark appearance, before she recognised it as The Flying Dutchman. It did not come any closer to the island, but she could see Will at the hull and she raised her hand to wave at him cheerfully. He lowered the telescope he was peering through to wave back and Katie smiled to herself, turning to go back into the fortress and find Elizabeth: she would be overjoyed that Will was so close.

When she entered the fortress however, it was to find utter chaos. A lot of drunken pirates were staggering around in search of something. Most of them looked confused, some annoyed, some had given up and had returned to drinking rum.

Making her way through the place, watching the men running around like chickens with their heads cut off, nobody stopped her and though she stopped by Elizabeth's room she found it empty. Shrugging and putting down their behaviour down to an overly aggressive game of hide and seek, she made her way back to her and Jack's room. When she pushed open the door, Jack span around from where he had been looking out the window. Panic was written across his face.

"Jack," Katie began, her smile fading at his expression, "What's wrong? What's happened?"

"You!" He yelled, running over to her and hugging her tightly into his chest, "Where did ye go, love?"

"What? Oh, I just went for a walk." Katie answered, nonplussed, as he let go of her to look into her face. Her green eyes were wide with confusion. "Where did you think I went?"

"I've had them all searching for you! I thought- I thought-"Jack stuttered. Katie frowned at him.

"I was hardly two minutes away outside, did you not think to look out there?"

"Well the fortress is big enough as it is…" He mumbled, looking embarrassed. This just caused Katie's frown to deepen and she folded her arms across her chest, tapping her foot on the floor. Jack had seen enough angry women to know what this body language translated to.

"You cannot keep me locked up in here forever, Jack. I don't know what you think is going to happen to me, but I assure you that it is nothing. I've had a bit of a cough which is clearing up and I feel completely well." Her voice was shaking with frustration and temper now. Jack stared down at her for a second.

"Nothing will happen? Right, because nothing happened last time you went off on your own here!" He reminded her sarcastically.

"History isn't going to repeat itself!"

"You can't know that!" Jack's voice was rising now. "You can't know anything these days!"

"Then neither can you!" They glared furiously at each other for a long moment. "Jack, I don't know what happened to you in that Pit but whatever it is, you have to stop letting it mess with your head!" Jack's angry expression changed to one of surprise then.

"Who said anything about that Pit?" His voice was slightly higher pitched than normal, as it was whenever he was trying to act innocent about something of which he was very guilty. "Nothing happened down that Pit!"

"Did you kiss her?" Katie asked quietly. Bafflement spread across his features then.

"What?"

"Angelica. Did you kiss her? I won't be angry, I'd understand…" Of course she wouldn't be angry, Jack knew that. No, Katie would be devastated. Had he really been acting so strangely that this was the conclusion she drew? He took both of her hands quickly, lifting them up in his and kissing the knuckles on each one.

"Darling. I would never." He felt a pang when he saw her disbelieving expression. "Katie, I'm not lying. I've never lied to you!"

"You're lying to me right now, Jack. Because I'm not stupid: I know something happened in that Pit. And if that wasn't what happened, something else did, something Elizabeth won't talk about either." Jack looked into her eyes for a long moment before seeming to decide something. He dropped one of her hands and instead pulled her by the other out of their room. "Where are we going?" She questioned. He didn't answer, and didn't speak to her again until they were outside. She asked again where he was taking her but he ignored the question, leading her all the way around the edge of the island and mountain, past the cave they had taken refuge in during the storm and into the trees. After walking for at least twenty minutes, he led her off the main path that had been trodden there and pulled her around to face into a small clearing. It was hard to make anything out in the darkness of the night, but in the centre of the clearing there was a small white marble stone sticking out of the ground.

Jack had let finally let go of her hand, and Katie bent down to look at it. It was indeed what she had thought it was; a headstone. The words engraved on it were simple: 'Feronia Sparrow. We will miss you forever.'

Katie ran her fingers over the lettering, feeling a strange sense of stillness within her. Slowly, she stood and turned back to face Jack, who was examining the fingernails of his right hand and determinedly not looking at her. She didn't know what to say.

"My mother died of pneumonia when I was eight." Jack mumbled, when Katie didn't speak. "There are stories about her dying in a great battle against the French navy. But the truth is, she was ill." He glanced up at her quickly, but then went back to looking at his fingernails. "It started with a cough." Katie's mouth dropped open. She recalled Teague's reaction to hearing her cough, and everything dropped into place. "She kept sayin' she was alright, but she was out of breath all the time. Then she couldn't get up at all, it tired 'er out too much, she 'ad a fever."

"Jack…"

"Dad came out one day an' said, 'yer mother's gone to sleep'. I asked when she'd be up, an' 'e just looked at me. An' then 'e looked at me some more. An' then 'e hugged me. Only time in me whole life he's hugged me." His voice was becoming rough, and Katie could see how difficult he was finding it to talk about all of this. "Funny thing is, I don't remember me Mum much. I only really knew 'er in the end, right before it 'appened. But I knew I was like 'er. I'm not like Dad." He finally looked up at her. "You understand why I can't 'ave that 'appen to you?" Slowly, Katie nodded. "I don't wanna fight, Katie. Especially not about Angelica. But if I'm gonna fight you on anythin', it's yer health."

Katie walked over to Jack and hugged him. It might be one of many hugs, not singular like the one he'd once received from Teague, but she could almost see the little boy who'd lost his mother standing before her. He wrapped his arms around her in return and they stood silently for a moment.

"Your mother was really ill when she was supposed to have died in a fight." Katie murmured, "My mother was supposed to have died of an illness but really she died in a fight."

"Yer mother's dead?" Jack held her out at arm's length to look at her. She had only ever mentioned her mother's Irish ancestry before, but not anything else.

"She was a Catholic, and she was hounded down for it. My father was a lawyer and couldn't associate with her anymore. They separated and as a precaution he had her put into an asylum. It wasn't the sort of battle where you fight hand to hand, but she died all the same. By her own hand."

"I'm sorry." Jack told her.

"What on earth for?"

"I dunno… it's just what you say, in'it?" He shrugged. Katie smiled up at him and he smiled back tentatively. "You are a lot better now, love. I probably did overreact a bit…"

"You think?" She raised an eyebrow as she took his hand and began leading him back towards the Cove. "You know, Will is here." She informed him as they passed the cave again.

"Oh no, not the Whelp." Jack pouted.

"He's your friend." Katie laughed, "I don't know why you pretend he isn't."

"He's too annoying to be my friend."

"You're too annoying to be my friend…" The pleasant bickering lasted all the way back to the fortress, smiles on both faces, their fight long forgotten much the annoyance of the pirates that had still been searching for Katie the entire time the pair had been away.

A/N: The last chapter was short so I tried to make this one a bit longer and less eventful so we can really explore Jack and Katie's relationship in the current state it is. Next time we'll be back to some plot stuff, which is important. Thanks for reading, and please remember to drop me a review too!