WARNING: This chapter gets a little touchy-feely towards the end. I was in the mood for a little "fun" so I'm warning you guys about it beforehand . Enjoy!

Chapter 16: Saying Goodbye

Two months passes; the two ships were stuck in doldrums. The sails barely twitched and the ships barely moved. At night, the vessels glided through dark, glassy waters. A few days of such calm winds and waters put a few of the crewmen at each other's throats. Cleo, upon hearing of the unrest on her ship, ordered that six barrels of rum, two cannons, and three kegs of gunpowder be lost in an attempt to lighten the ship and give the crew something to do. Barbossa ordered them to run out the oars and row until they were told to stop. At his order, some of the crew scoffed and looked at him oddly. A glare from their captain got them going again. She planned to give them a lesson in authority on her ship. Jack followed Cleo's lead, but refused to have his precious rum lost to the sea.

Cleo's crew rowed on into the night until they reached a place where the wind began to pick up and carry the ship forward without assistance from the oars. The captains of the two ships ordered their crews to rack the oars. The warm wind filmed the sails with great force; it carried the large vessels forward at a high speed. Cleo could be found on the bridge, staring out at the waters ahead of the ship. Barbossa made sure the vessel continued to operate smoothly and stayed on course.

Jack often found his first mate staring at Cleo with a look of longing in his eyes. Jack saw how much he still loved her, but he saw that Gibbs was sacrificing his happiness for hers. He had always thought a lot of his first mate, but this act showed Jack that Gibbs had more of a heart than he had once thought. Gibbs knew that his captain was watching him, but he didn't care. He felt for Cleo like he had never felt for anyone before. He knew better than to think that he could win her back from Barbossa. He would let her go if she would be happier that way.

Barbossa watched Cleo stare out at the horizon. She had her hair tied back in a braid. He wondered what was on her mind; it seemed that something was bothering her. He ascended the stairs to the bridge and took her into his arms.

"The royal navy isn't done with us. Once they find out who set you free they will come for us."

"I have already thought of this. Let's not discuss that now, Cleo. What be on yer mind?"

"I do not want you to be taken back to prison, even if I would be taken with you. I remember the days we spent sailing the seas together."

"I remember those days as well. They be hard to forget. I wondered how a woman such as yerself came to be such a fierce pirate, but then I realized that ye were only copyin' me. When ye began to learn from me I knew I had a rare find on me hands."

"You knew I was different…"

"Aye, that be why I wanted yer company. I never thought that ye would become someone I care deeply for."

"This sort of talk is unlike you."

"Ye need to hear this from a man who has loved ye for longer than he can remember. I came so close to losin' ye, and I ne'er wish to test ye that way again."

Cleo was not accustomed to such sweet words coming from the fearsome pirate. She turned her face away, watching the little monkey climb the ropes of her ship.

"Are you proposing something, Hector?" she asked, her voice softening a bit.

"That all depends on what ye'll be agreein' to, Cleo."

"I'll agree to almost anything you throw at me."

"Sail with me again. If we survive this, stay by my side until the very end."

"I cannot refuse you now. My fate and yours are forever joined as one."

"Artful speech for a pirate..."

"I wasn't always who I am today. I wouldn't trade this life for anything."

"You and I will make a formidable pair."

"We always have…"

Cleo turned back to him and smiled. Looking past him, she spotted a solitary figure standing on the deck of the Black Pearl. The figure seemed to be shaking violently with anger or sadness. She wanted to know who it was and what was going on.

"Hector, go into our cabin and prepare a couple of glasses of rum. I'll be there shortly."

"As ye wish, me beauty."

She let his hand slip from hers and reached for the grapple that lay on the deck. Cleo took aim and tossed it upwards. It held fast on a rung that allowed one to climb to the crow's nest. She threw herself off the side of her ship and landed a short distance away from the man.

"What's the trouble, sailor?"

He did not speak; Cleo began to recognize the sound of sobs coming from the sailor before her. She took his shoulder and made him look up at her.

"Joshamee…?"

He nodded.

"What's got you so worked up?"

He tried to answer, but he choked on the words. She sat on the railing on which he leaned and allowed him to lean into her. She stroked his hair for a while before lifting his face up again.

"Cleo, I never wanted you to see my pain. I only want you to be happy."

"If I am happy, then you should be too, Joshamee. It isn't as if I said that I never want to see your face again. If that were the case I would not be here. Let me go, luv. Like I once said, I am as changing and unpredictable as the winds that fill the sails. "

"I know, Cleo, but it still hurts."

"Let's get you into bed, Joshamee. Come on now."

She took him down below and got him into one of the hammocks the crew slept in. She left him once he was asleep and returned to her ship. It was terrible to see him in that state, but it wasn't as if it would make Cleo go crawling back to him. He had even said that he wanted her to be happy. Nevertheless, it made her feel guilty knowing that she had caused his state of emotional distress. Cleo shook her head and joined Barbossa in their cabin for rum.

The next morning, an island appeared on the horizon. It was a small spit of land, but large enough to be called an island. The two ships split up to get around the island safely. The Angel got to the other side just fine, but the Pearl made no appearance. Cleo ordered that the ship go around to the side Jack had chosen to go around to see what was happening. As they approached, sounds of cannon fire could be heard. A ship of the Company had caught up to them somehow and had commenced firing on the Pearl. The Angel was positioned behind the Company's ship.

"Let them have the triple guns…"

"The triple guns, Miss Cleo?"

"Isn't that what I said? The four triple guns on the bow of this ship are to be fired at them. Now, do as I say!"

The crew nodded, afraid of what she would do to them if they disobeyed. The four triple barreled cannons on the bow were loaded and aimed at the ship of the Company. Barbossa went below to instruct those who manned the guns. The Company's ship didn't expect a thing; they were too involved with getting the Black Pearl to surrender. The sound of cannons repeatedly firing came from the bow of the Angel; twelve shots were fired, nine hit their target. The sound of glass and wood breaking off from the ship followed the shots. Cleo laughed manically as those on board the Repulse scrambled to assess the new entrant into the battle. As the Angel neared the stern of the Repulse, the four triple guns were fired again, producing more holes in the ship and ripping apart its innards. The extra distraction gave Jack and his crew time to reload their cannons and fire a volley of cannonballs into the side of the Repulse. The Company's ship was overpowered by the Pearl and the Angel. The officers who surrendered were spared and given a place on one of the crews; those who did not surrender were sent to Davey Jones's Locker. Once the crew and what was left of the destroyed ship's supplies were divided up, the two ships continued to sail together.

That night, Cleo retired early and sat in her cabin drinking rum and looking at one of her many maps. Any who laid eyes upon her could tell that she was deeply troubled by something. Barbossa entered, interrupting her thoughts.

"What's on your mind, me beauty?"

"Nothing important. Why?"

"I feel like you need cheering up, Cleo. Am I right?"

She shrugged and grinned. He picked her up and deposited her on the bed. Barbossa allowed her to remove his coat and shirt, but roughly cast her onto her back and did not allow her to remove any more than that. She lifted her hand and traced the many scars on his chest. She knew the story behind most of them. Cleo heard him gasp at the touch of her cold fingers. Barbossa busied himself with the task of unlacing and removing her dress. Once the white garment was discarded on the floor, he pinned her hands above her head.

"Allow me to be yer captain tonight…"

"Anything you wish, Captain Barbossa."

Those were the words he had wanted to hear. He roughly pressed his lips to her neck and nibbled a bit. He didn't get much of a response from that so he moved down. His free hand toyed with her left breast, which got more of a reaction out of her. She grabbed his hat in frustration and tossed it to the floor along with the bandanna he wore under it. Cleo ran her fingers through the long auburn hair; she had only wanted the hat and bandanna off so she had something to tangle her fingers in. He sighed and shook his head; he continued and gently flicked his tongue over her nipple. He felt her grip tighten and groaned. It had been so long since he had felt her against him like this. She tugged his face up level with hers.

"Teasing isn't every nice…"

"I never told ye I was nice."

"Please, Hector, I'm only patient with you and that patience is running thin at the moment."

He sighed, nodded, and undid his breeches. Barbossa groaned as the tip of his manhood rubbed against her dripping wet entrance. She wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him into her. He groaned loudly and gripped her waist with his rough hands; she gripped his shoulders and arched her body towards him. Barbossa began to thrust slowly at first, but it was short-lived. His thrusts became harder and rougher than before; his mouth pressed to hers roughly.

"Angel…" he called out.

After a few final thrusts, he collapsed on top of her. She smiled and gently stroked his hair until he fell asleep. She lay awake, smiling about his use of the name he used to call her. She also began to think about Jack and the Pearl.

We must say goodbye to them soon…