Sorry again! I had to think about where I wanted this chapter to go =P Enjoy!

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Chapter 8

Pocahontas sat on the bed in Jacks' cabin, which was currently serving as her bedroom, staring moodily out the window at the night ocean. She had not lit any candles, so the only light came from the glint of the full moon on the water. Her arms were wrapped around her legs again. The curtain of her hair camoflauged perfectly with the black of the window behind her. She sighed deeply, mourning for the sea serpent. There had been no reason to kill it, not unless it had attacked them first. Upset as she was that the creature had been killed, she knew Jack had been right. The Pearl had been lucky she hadn't sustained any more damage. Imagine what it would have done if it had pursued them! Try as she might to justify the slaughter, Pocahontas still thought it was cruel and unnessecary.

The door squeaked open and closed. A low curse reached her ears as her visitor stumbled into what sounded like one of the dining chairs. She smiled slightly, but her smile fell as quickly as it had appeared.

"Why are you sitting in the dark, love?" Jack asked, lighting the candle in the holder that hung from the post at the foot of the bed. Pocahontas looked up at his smiling face as he shook the flame off the match. The smile faded as he lowered himself down on the bed next to that post. By the time he was sitting, he was eyeing her with concern. It was the first time in a while that he had shown her any sort of emotion like that. It made her feel slightly embarrassed. She looked away, out the window again. He persisted, "What's wrong? You've been sulking in here all day."

"Nothing's wrong," she said without looking at him.

"A likely story." Unfortunately, now that the lantern was lit, she saw his grin reflected in the window instead of the calm ocean outside. "Come on. Is it because of that beastie we killed earlier today? Hm?"

"There was no reason to kill it." Pocahontas turned back to him. "If it had attacked us first, it would have been in self-defense. But it didn't want to fight, it was just trying to scare us away because we invaded its' territory."

"If it had attacked us first, who's to say it wouldn't have sunk us?" Jack countered. "Would you be as upset? Would we even be sitting here discussing it?"

Pocahontas shrugged, "Maybe, maybe not. And yes, I would still be upset... just not as much. It was slaughter and it was wrong, what you did today."

Jack was silent for a moment, looking at her. "It upset you that much, did it?" When Pocahontas nodded, he replied, "All right. I'm sorry. I was only doing what I thought was appropriate at the time. From now on, I'll let the beastie try to eat me before I fire the cannons."

Pocahontas giggled, "Thank you, Jack." They sat in silence for a while, surverying each other. Pocahontas wondered what he was thinking about. It was hard to tell with him. Jack was secretive, an enigma, whereas John was an open book. They were different as night and day, this pirate and the man she loved. Still, Pocahontas felt a bond growing between her and Jack. Her initial distrust in him had vanished after the day he had let her borrow his compass. Though she had remained wary of any dishonesty since then, nothing had happened, and she gradually started letting her guard down. Jack was hard to understand, and abrasive at times, but then sometimes he would do something kind for her out of the blue - like right now.

As if he sensed the turn her thoughts had taken, Jack asked, "I'm a sight different from your John Smith, huh?"

Pocahontas nodded, "Yes... but you do have one thing in common." Jack looked at her quizzically, and she reached out with her right hand and stroked his face. "You're a good man, Jack Sparrow. You and John Smith both."

Jacks' eyes closed, as if letting her words wash over him. His hand reached up and clasped hers, which still rested on his cheek. He gave it a small squeeze and whispered, "I'm not as good as you might think, love." He opened his eyes and abrubtly stood up, dropping her hand. Without one glance at her, he strode out of the cabin and banged the door shut behind him. Pocahontas stared after him, her mouth agape. The flickering light from the candle played shadows across her face. After a moment she blew it out and lay down to try to sleep despite the strange feeling of bereftness.

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The next couple of weeks aboard the Black Pearl passed without incident. Most days were sunny and clear, some overcast and rainy, though she was lucky enough to avoid any storms. The crew was generally in good spirits. A few tussles erupted over card games and valuables filched by Cottons' thieving parrot, but no one was seriously hurt. The damaged rail from the battle with the sea serpent had been patched up the best it could. A proper repair would have to wait until they docked in London. Until then, the men were careful to avoid the spot, lest a fellow crewmember sneak up on him and push him overboard through the patchwork rail.

Jack and Pocahontas had been distant with each other ever since that night in the cabin. They didn't avoid each other - the confines of the Pearl made that impossible - but neither did they seek each other out. Pocahontas, for her part, was confused. She didn't understand what made Jack run from the cabin. She agonized over whether or not it was something she had done or said. The only thing she could think of was her mention of John. Perhaps in comparing him to Jack, she had insulted the proud pirate. She felt that she should apologize, but it seemed an awkward thing to apologize for.

Then there was that feeling of abandonment and rejection after he left. Pocahontas couldn't puzzle that out, either. It felt too much like a memory from her childhood: the time she was six and had confessed her affection for her eight-year-old friend Maracah to him. He had managed not to laugh in her face, but she'd later overheard him guffawing about it with his friends. The strange stew of emotions she felt now were remniscent of that time. She told herself firmly that these were two completely different situations. She liked Jack, yes, but he was her friend. He didn't mean to her what John meant to her at all. While that was certainly true, she couldn't help feeling that Jack was starting to feel like more than a friend.

One foggy afternoon found Pocahontas in Jacks' company. Her boredom had lately driven her down to the kitchen, where the cook was greatful for her enthusiastic help. She had been busy that morning helping him prepare a hot supper for the men working on deck in the damp chill. Cook insisted after a few hours that Pocahontas take a break, so she took some hot cider up to Jack, who had been at the wheel all day. She stood next to him as he sipped his drink, his right hand still on the wheel.

"It's so quiet," she murmered to no one in particular, surveying the swirling gray fog. "It feels like it swallows up noise." Indeed, what little racket the crew was making seemed to come from miles away.

"Aye," Jack agreed, taking another sip from his mug. "Swallows up time, too. With fog this thick, you've got to go slowly, unless you want to run into another ship. Or another sea serpent." He looked at her and grinned.

"It was a clear day and you still couldn't see it." Pocahontas smiled back, to let him know she was joking. "Maybe you're just a poor navigator, Captain Jack Sparrow."

"Who was in the crows' nest that day? Maybe you and Cotton were too busy making eyes at each other to spot the beastie, eh?" He turned his head slightly to watch where he was steering and raised the mug to his lips to drink again, still smiling.

"Jack!" Pocahontas exclaimed, scandalized. She burst out laughing. "Me and Cotton? You're crazy! Either that or jealous." A look of shock passed across Jacks' profile, the mug nearly touching his lips. Pocahontas kicked herself. This was the most they had talked in days, and she had to go and ruin it with that remark. She had meant it as a joke, but she hadn't thought of the weight of that phrase, particularly after what had happened. Stupid! she berated herself.

"Me? Jealous of Cotton? Rediculous. What's there to be jealous of?" There was a bitterness in the way Jack scoffed. Scowling, he paused to gulp at the cider.

"Jack, I -" Pocahontas began beseechingly.

"Nevermind." He said shortly.

"But -"

"I said nevermind. Here," he thrust the now-empty mug into her arms, "I'm finished. Thank you." He didn't look at her, but out into the fog as if he could see something unpleasant through it.

Pocahontas recognized the clear dismissal, but she wanted to stay and make amends for the night in the cabin. She needed to know that it wasn't her fault. But she also knew there was nothing left for her to do but turn and make her way back down to the kitchens. To her surprise and frustration, tears stung the back of her eyes. She pushed them back as she descended the stairs.

"Ship on the starboard side!" called the man from the crows' nest. Pocahontas, who had just opened the trapdoor to go belowdecks, snapped her head up to look. It was so hard to see through the fog... she flung herself at the rail as the crew stopped the ship. She squinted as she clung to the worn, damp wood. A faint light shone feebly through the mist. As she looked, more lights appeared, outlining the dark sillouhette of a ship. It was coming at them from the south. It looked for an awful moment as though it would collide with the Pearl. Almost at the last second, the strange ship swiveled around so she faced west, back the way the Pearl had come. The two ships floated 10 tense yards apart.

Suddenly, a large something rose up from the other ship, resting on their rail. It then fell and came down at Pocahontas. She gasped and sprang backwards, the mug dropping from her hand. A wooden plank rested on the rail in the spot she had been standing seconds before. By now, most of the crew had dropped whatever they had been doing and were gathered on deck, examining the visiting ship. They all watched in amazement as four more planks, two on each side of the first, planted themselves on the Pearls' railing. Men balanced on the planks, walking over from the other ship to leap down on the Pearls' deck. The two parties eyed each other with caution, some with hostility, though no one moved. The tension was as thick as the fog.

The sound of another pair of feet walking over one of the planks rang out, clear and somehow ominous. The crew of the Pearl shrunk back a little, while their visitors grinned menacingly. A man wearing a big, feathered hat drawn down over his face materialized out of the fog. His boots thumped down the middle plank and landed somewhat heavily on deck. He drew himself up to his full height, slowly revealing a white beard, a long, weather-worn face, and cold hazel eyes. Several of the crew gasped.

"Barbossa!" Jack exclaimed. Pocahontas glanced up at him, where he still stood at the Pearls' wheel. It was perhaps the first time she had seen him genuinely surprised... and was that fear on his face, too?

"That's right, Jack," Barbossa called up to him, in a tone that might have implied they were sitting down for drinks. Jack, and several of the crew, looked as though they couldn't believe their eyes. "I've come to take back what's rightly mine... that'd be the Pearl, see. However, I think we ought to make a trade. To make sure you play fair. Something you hold dear versus something I hold dear... which would be the Pearl, o'course. So what'll it be, Jack? What do you prize above all else?" His unfeeling eyes traveled down the line of the crew before him, as if he could read the answer from one of their minds. They then rested on Pocahontas, who stood directly in front of him. He grinned, a frighteningly feral gesture.

"I think she'll do, won't she?" His men laughed coldly. Barbossa snapped his fingers. Two of them walked forward to try to seize Pocahontas. Her friends pushed her behind them and formed a wall in front of her. Barbossa just laughed and gestured to the rest of his crew. The two masses crashed against each other. Pocahontas stumbled back, confused and frightened at all the fighting. She tripped over a coil of rope and fell backwards into a pair of arms. At first, she thought it might be one of her comrades, but then a hand clapped itself over her mouth. Her eyes widened and she started to fight and kick, but the arms held both of hers tight behind her back.

"Jack!" She tried to scream, but it did no good; the hand on her mouth caught the sound. The man was dragging her up and across the chaotic deck to the planks. Still Pocahontas fought, trying to call out, but still to no avail as he carried her over to oblivion.

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Wow, that was a long one. xD Please review and look out for Chapter 9!

P.S. To find the website I got Maracahs' name from, search wicocomico-indian-nation . com, then click "Dictionary" on the left hand side. It was the only one I really liked... it has a nice ring to it, don't you think? =P