Yes, I am well aware of how long it has been since I updated and I apologize for keeping you all waiting. Since it has been so long, I will keep my Author's Note brief and just offer a thank you for anyone who is actually still reading...my faithful readers. Try not to be too harsh, but keep those reviews coming in!

Chapter Twenty

Anamaria woke early the next morning and rolled over to study Jack's slumbering features. He had opened up to her last night, really opened up to her, for possibly the first time in their relationship. His story had touched a chord inside her and she felt a sadness for him as well as a desire to tell him her feelings. But she couldn't do that, it would be the last thing he would want to hear from her. She had kept them to herself for so long now and she supposed that it was part of the reason she wanted to be on her own again.

She needed the time away, time on her own again to grow and be herself and not rely on Jack for things. It would be good for her. She hadn't really been on her own since she had lost her arm and she wanted to prove to everyone, and to herself for that matter, that she could do it.

She studied him for several minutes more, trying to memorize everything; moments like these were going to become rare now that the two had separate ships. She would miss feeling the warmth of her captain beside her.

She gently shook his shoulder, but Jack snored on. He managed to look so innocent as he lay there by her side. He mumbled some nonsense and she chuckled to herself as she watched his whiskers twitch.

There was a knock at the door and then she heard Mr. Gibbs, "Captain Sparrow, the crew is ready to set sail sir."

Anamaria smiled to herself. The captain had not heard a word, but was still sound asleep at her side. She wondered how he would ever manage to survive without her taking care of the small details, such as making sure he was up on time.

"Jack," she said, shaking him slightly harder than the first time.

He shifted positions, but did not open his eyes. She proceeded to shake him harder and finally the pirate awoke.

Blinking back the sleep from his eyes, he managed a smile, "Good morning."

"Good morning," she returned, lowering her lips to meet his in a brief kiss before adding, "your crew is ready. Get up and get dressed. It's time to set sail for Port Royal."

Jack pulled her down into another kiss, "But this is so much more fun."

Anamaria straddled him, indulging his kisses a moment longer. He moaned under her and she gave him one last kiss.

"But you have to get up," she said, pulling away. "I have to start searching for a crew and you need to check on Will and Miss Elizabeth."

Jack pouted as he watched Anamaria putting on her clothes and then drug himself across the room to pull on his pants and shirt.

In less than half an hour, the Black Pearl was weighing anchor and making way for Jamaica. Despite the fact that he was leaving Anamaria behind to find a crew for herself, he was looking forward to seeing the young Turner family again. Perhaps Elizabeth would be kind enough to give him another bath. He smiled to himself as he remembered the reward that had brought him the last time. Then almost as quickly he was reminded of the events that had occurred that next day and he dismissed all the thoughts at once. Maybe a bath would not be such a good idea after all.

At that moment Jack wondered if giving Anamaria her own ship had been the right thing to do after all. He sighed heavily as he watched the details of his favorite port city fade away. Right or wrong, it really didn't matter; it had been what she had wanted and in the end she would have gotten her way whether he had helped her or not.

The trip to Port Royal without her was going to prove to be a long one. He guessed he should probably begin to get used to it though. Now that they had separate ships, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that eventually Anamaria would decide to truly be on her own. He wasn't sure that he would ever be ready for her to leave his side. He needed her, even if he was hesitant to admit it.

The trip to Port Royal was rather uneventful. Jack spent most of the voyage in his cabin brooding over the loss of his former first mate.

As he had done the last time he had chosen to visit, he did so under the cover of darkness. Unlike the last time, he went straight to the Turner's house where a slightly agitated Will greeted him. However as soon as the blacksmith recognized the pirate he immediately broke into a grin.

"Jack!" he exclaimed, pulling him into a rather uncomfortable and strong hug.

Jack reluctantly hugged him back before breaking away as he saw Elizabeth walk into the room.

"Jack!" she exclaimed, rushing to wrap her arms around him.

He accepted this hug much more gratefully, pulling her tightly into his chest and burying his face in her hair. He breathed in deeply, enjoying the smell of her. The girls in Tortuga never smelled like this. It was a cleanness, a healthy smell and he knew he should take advantage of it while he could.

Just then there was a cry from their bedroom and Jack was instantly reminded of the baby. Elizabeth broke away and rushed into the other room.

Will smiled, "I don't think he ever really stops crying. He just takes a moment to breathe every now and then."

Jack gave a small smile and Elizabeth appeared from around the corner with the child in their arms. She was bouncing him gently on her hip and for a split second, Jack was staring in awe. He couldn't believe that the baby he was looking at belonged to them. Elizabeth and Will had actually had a child, had actually brought something alive into the world. It was a little miracle.

"Jack," Will moved to take his son from Elizabeth and give a proper introduction, "this is the new love of mine and Elizabeth's life. Meet Thomas."

Will took the baby's tiny hand in his own and made a small waving gesture towards the pirate. Jack felt himself soften inside for a brief moment and smile at the child who grinned toothlessly back at him.

Jack did not notice both of the parents crack small smiles at seeing his reaction to the child. Elizabeth brought an end to the small spectacle by moving across the room to get a stuffed bear for the baby. She held it up in Thomas' face and shook it gently. The child's tears were beginning to dry and despite the bear dangling in his face, he still seemed distracted by the odd-looking stranger that was now in their house.

Elizabeth reached to take her child back with a simple explanation, "I'm going to go feed him now Will."

She gave her husband a small kiss on the cheek and took the baby into the other room. Jack thought it was a strange thing to think, but he found himself wishing he could peek in on the feeding session that was about to take place. He shook his head in an attempt to clear the thoughts he was having about his good friend's wife and moved to sit down in a nearby chair.

"Well, mate," Jack said, wiping his hands on the thighs of his pant's legs.

Will was still smiling broadly as he sat down near Jack. "He's beautiful, isn't he?" he asked.

"He looks just like you," Jack said.

"He has Elizabeth's eyes," Will said, his eyes twinkling as he spoke.

"I didn't actually notice that mate," Jack said.

"He's amazing. He's just great. You should see him, the little things he does around the house. The way he smiles and giggles at the things Elizabeth and I do. He's perfect."

Jack nodded, trying to appear interested. The fact of the matter was, now the child wasn't in the room, Jack no longer felt entranced by him and he was ready to move on to other topics of conversation...such as Will and his future in Port Royal.

Will hesitated for a moment. "I'm sorry Jack. I got so caught up, I failed to ask how things were going on The Pearl."

"Things are fine, good actually," Jack said. "You're speaking to a commodore these days."

Will looked shocked for a second, "What?"

"Anamaria has 'er own ship now...a nice one at that. If I didn't 'ave The Pearl I believe I'd 'ave to be jealous, but as you know, nothing beats The Pearl."

Will gave a small smile.

"So we're sailing with a fleet now. Two large three masters with able-bodied captains and crews. 'ow can we go wrong with that?"

"I'd venture to say you can't Jack. Things must be going well. Mr. Gibbs is your first mate these days?" Will asked.

"Aye. He's not as good as Ana...and definitely not as good looking...but he's loyal and those are the kinds of men I choose to be around these days."

Will nodded, "I see."

"But there's always room for you mate. I could use another good friend on board," Jack began.

Will started to shake his head almost as soon as the words came out of Jack's mouth.

"Now that the baby's been born you're going to need more money Will. You've got a family to support. This is the perfect way to do that. Do you know 'ow much gold you could earn?"

"Business at the smithy is going well now. People in town are beginning to recognize my work. I'm being appreciated and hired out to do more work. I told you the last time you came that Norrington had been commissioning jobs for the Navy. That's good work Jack, honest work."

Jack feigned anger, "What are you saying? Are you saying that I'm dishonest?"

"Jack, you're a pirate!" Will said.

"And a good man," Jack added, so that Will would know he was joking.

"You are a good man Jack, but you know as well as I do that you aren't making an honest living..."

"And why would I when I can do what I love and make more profit," Jack interrupted.

"And it's fine for you. You don't have a family. You don't have anyone you're accountable for."

"I beg to differ," Jack stated, "I've got an entire crew I'm accountable for."

Will sighed heavily, "I can't go with you Jack."

"Please," Jack lowered himself to begging.

"No," he said, holding his ground.

The only thing that kept Jack from begging further was Elizabeth entering the room.

"Where is Thomas?" Will asked.

"I put him to bed. He sleeps more soundly after he's just eaten, you know?" Elizabeth crossed the room and sat in her husband's lap. She lowered her head and gave him a brief kiss on the lips.

Had they not been his close friends, Jack thought he might have gagged at how cute the two were together.

"Jack here was just telling me that he's become a commodore," Will explained to Elizabeth.

"Really? Jack, that's wonderful, congratulations," Elizabeth said, her arms still around Will's neck.

"Thank you," he said.

"Who are you sailing with?" she asked.

"Anamaria," he answered simply. "She's got her own ship now, The Sea Wench."

Elizabeth looked slightly surprised, "So, she's a captain now?"

"Yeah," Jack answered.

"Does that happen often?" she wondered aloud, "Girls pirating ships of their own? It seems like such a dirty place, not girly at all."

"Well, Ana's not all that girly to begin with," the pirate started. "She's one of the best pirates I've ever met though. It's not that it's common but it's not unheard of."

"Oh, of course," Elizabeth nodded.

Will kissed her neck right under her ear. Jack gave a small chuckle and Will smiled and winked at his friend.

"What's so funny?" Elizabeth asked.

"Nothing sweetheart, it's just hard for us both to envision someone like yourself at sea," Will answered.

"You both ought to remember that I handled myself very well at sea, thank you," she stood up for herself.

"You're absolutely right darling," Will kissed her briefly on the lips.

"I know my way around a ship as well as any man. I was practically raised on one."

"It's one thing to know your way around luv and another altogether to live on a ship. You're not the seafaring type. That's all William and I were implying."

"If you say so Commodore Sparrow," Elizabeth responded.

"So, how long will you be staying with us Jack?" Will asked, trying to draw his wife away from the subject at hand.

"A day or so. I need to be back on my ship tomorrow night. Last time I left 'er out at sea alone too long and let's just say what followed was not good," he answered.

"We actually heard something about that," Will commented. "We didn't know for sure at the time if it was The Pearl or not. Norrington came by the smithy and said something about a couple of his Navy ships being in trouble with pirates. He asked me if I knew anything, but I told him that I didn't. So it was you..."

"Well, Anamaria sunk the first one," Jack said, "but yes, the second one was mine." He lowered his head and dropped his eyes to his hands. "Anamaria lost her arm that time," he mumbled in a low voice.

"Her arm?" Elizabeth repeated, unable to hide the disgust of his implications.

Jack coughed in an attempt to clear his voice. "Yeah, right under the shoulder," he paused briefly before looking up to meet their eyes again, "It's been a pretty rough time since I last saw you two."

Will shook his head, "I'm sorry Jack."

"Is she going to be ok?" Elizabeth asked. "How will she captain her own ship like that?"

"Anamaria is more competent with one arm than most men with two are at sea. Sailing comes natural to her," Jack explained.

"That's impressive," Will commented.

Jack nodded, his mind still focused on thoughts of the pain he knew he had caused her.

The friends spent several more hours catching up. As usual, time passed by quickly when they were together. When they had grown tired, Will and Elizabeth went to their room and left Jack alone to sleep by himself on the sofa. He had already drifted off to sleep when the soft sound of feet padding across the floor awoke him. He tried to wake himself up quickly and then the weight on the sofa shifted as someone sat down beside him.

"Jack?" he heard Elizabeth whisper softly.

He knew that her husband was in the other room and that he should let her know that he was awake, but the simple fact was that he was enjoying feeling her lean over the top of him. He was enjoying smelling her clean, fresh scent so close to him. None of the girls he came in contact with on a regular basis were like this.

She leaned closer and this time he could feel her hot breath in his ear, "Jack?"

He shifted as if he was just waking up and opened an eye to peek at her.

"Elizabeth," he said softly. "Did you finally decide to leave William and go to sea with me?"

"Jack!" she punched him softly on the shoulder.

"I was wondering if you had forgotten about our night on the island," he joked with her, pretending his feelings were hurt.

"Jack, if you keep saying that people are going to think something actually happened," she whispered loudly.

He sighed softly. "Fine, I won't tell anyone else," he said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"You are impossible," she said, rolling her eyes at him.

"What do you need luv?"

"Will said that you were asking him about sailing with you," she began.

Jack wasn't sure whether Elizabeth saw that as a bad thing or a good thing and so he remained quiet.

"How dare you come to our house and ask my husband to leave his family." She seemed to be getting angry now and Jack felt uncomfortable.

"You don't have to worry, he's not coming with me," he said. "He wouldn't even entertain the idea."

"Because he belongs here," Elizabeth said. "His place is with us, his family."

Jack did not feel like arguing with her. All he really wanted was to go back to sleep, but he sat up on the sofa to talk to her better.

"Look Elizabeth, I don't see why it matters so much to you since he's not going anywhere."

"Because he looks up to you Jack. He wants you to approve of what he's doing and he feels like you don't."

"It's not that I don't approve. I just thing that he could do better," Jack defended himself.

"He owns his own smithy Jack. What are you talking about?" Elizabeth asked. She was having a hard time listening to Jack criticize Will.

"I know and that's great, but he's a good sailor. Pirating is in his blood Elizabeth. He could become rich quickly, make a name for himself."

"So he can be sought after by the Navy? So he can always be on the run, wondering if he'll be caught and hung? He's made a name for himself here." Elizabeth looked as if she was about to cry.

Jack rubbed Elizabeth's arm gently, hoping to comfort her before she broke down. He couldn't stand to deal with girls crying. It never failed to make him feel very awkward.

"He's not going with me," Jack said again.

"But you want him to," Elizabeth muttered, the first tear slipping down her cheek.

"Yes, I want 'im to. He's an excellent sailor and a good man. I trust him with my life and men like that are hard to find these days. 'e could make a lot of money, very fast, and be able to make sure that you and Thomas are extremely well off. It's not that I'm not thinking about you, Elizabeth, I am. You're used to a certain type of lifestyle. It would take a fool to not realize that William is never going to be able to provide you with that. Pirating could give you those things again."

"It's not about the money," Elizabeth said. "I love him. I just want to be with him."

Jack leaned back, "And that's why he's not going."

It was quiet between the two for a moment and then Elizabeth sighed, "I just don't want you to bring it up anymore."

Jack put his hand to his head, "Fine."

"If you want to sail the world and pirate then that's a fine lifestyle for you and we love to have you visit Jack, but don't try and bring William into it."

Jack nodded and Elizabeth went to stand.

"Please, keep this between you and I," she requested. "I will see you in the morning. Goodnight Jack."

"Goodnight Elizabeth," he said, lying back down. He propped his head up on the pillow, but although he was tired, sleep was a long time coming this time around.