Disclaimer: I do not own POTC! I only own my OCs (Annaliese and Nikko)!

Enjoy chapter 5!

He hastily dropped on his knees next to the lifeless woman while his crew dragged her attacker away from her. A little black and white goat was nudging her with its nose and bleating frantically. There was blood streaming from a large and apparently deep cut on her upper arm. He noticed the color of her fair skin was slowly paling. She was losing blood fast… and if she did not attain proper treatment, she would very well die in a matter of minutes.

"Bugger…" the pirate mumbled, realizing there'd be no turning back now. He quickly removed his coats, slid his arms underneath her body, and effortlessly lifted her off the ground. Something unexpectedly rammed into his shin and caught him completely off guard.

"Ow! What the-" the goat had butted his shin and was bleating furiously at him.

"Agh!" the pirate exclaimed, managing to dodge yet another blow from the angry goat.

"Cap'n!" his first mate called as he approached him swiftly. "We've knocked 'im unconscious! What be ye orders now?"

"Get my coats…and catch that damn goat!" the captain cried as he hopped around with the woman in his arms to avoid the animal. The first mate did as he was told before lunging for the goat. He snatched it up off the ground and held it to his chest with difficulty, as the goat squirmed frantically and bleated at the top of its lungs. The pair hurriedly took off down the street.

"Men!" the captain called over his shoulder to his crew members. "Back to the Pearl!"

"Aye, captain!" they all replied in chorus and followed.

"Um…cap'n," the first mate asked nervously over the goat's cries. "She's a woman…"

"She is indeed," the captain rolled his eyes, knowing what was coming next.

"You an' I both know it's frightful bad luck to bring a woman aboard a ship..."

"And never once has it discouraged me," the captain replied matter-of-factly. "If you have failed to notice, this particular woman is, in fact, injured and requires the proper care!"

"Well, when ye put it that way…" was all the first mate said before transferring the struggling goat to underneath his arm.

Annaliese's eyelids fluttered open. As if her eyesight wasn't blurred enough, she had to squint against the bright light that immediately met her eyes. And did she seem to be rocking from side to side, or was it just an effect of her lightheadedness? She blinked consistently and her surroundings became clear.

She realized she was lying on a very comfortable four poster bed in a large room. The bed was positioned against the wall and had a plain white comforter. A nightstand was next to it while a dresser, cheval mirror, and vanity stood opposite of it. The double doors leading out of the room were closed. At the other end of the room, a long dining table with many chairs rested beneath a large fancy lantern, which hung from the ceiling by a chain. A big closed cabinet stood against the wall near the table. There were three large windows and two portholes on the wall behind her. On the other side of the nightstand was a chair that was set in front of a desk blanketed with quills, parchment, candles, and odd tools. A chest and an aged globe sat on either side of the desk.

Where am I? Annaliese wondered anxiously.

As she stared around the room, she suddenly recalled what happened on the island before she had blacked out. She looked down at her left arm to find the cut properly bandaged with gauze. Annaliese tried to sit up, but ended up wincing ferociously and inhaling sharply when excruciating pain surged through her arm.

A split second later, Annaliese felt the mattress move near her feet. She automatically looked down and her eyes widened with shock.

"Nikko!" she exclaimed delightedly. The goat bleated ecstatically as he pranced toward her. He licked her face uncontrollably.

"Oh Nikko! You're here!" Annaliese elatedly petted his soft fur as he plopped down and snuggled up against her.

Annaliese smile disappeared in a flash at the sound of one of the doors opening. She gasped in shock when a man poked his head inside.

"Ah! You're awake!" he remarked in a surprised tone. He spoke in an English accent, just like Annaliese. The man strode into the room and closed the door behind him.

Annaliese only stared as she took in his strange appearance. He was average in both height and build with a dress style that projected an air of flamboyance and a touch of the dandy. He wore a pair of long sea boots and linen trousers. A pistol was stowed in a knotted striped-red sash that was tied around his waist. A belt with a decorative buckle held both his hanger sword and what looked to be a compass. He wore a long brown coat over a worn blue waistcoat and white undershirt. Annaliese noticed the left cuff of his undershirt was ripped and he had slipped his thumb through the hole. Underneath his faded black tricorne hat, a red bandana was wrapped around his head. He had tanned skin and his dark brown dreadlocked hair was adorned with a few beads and trinkets. He also had a braided goatee beard that was divided in two and was adorned with a couple of little beads.

"Who are you? Where am I?" Annaliese asked him nervously as he walked across the room to the desk, where he placed a bundle of cloth.

"You'd be aboard the Black Pearl, luv…" the man explained good-naturedly. He strolled over to the cabinet and obtained a bottle of golden brown liquid from it.

He faced her once again. "…and I am none other than Jack Sparrow, captain of this notorious and magnificent ship!" Annaliese only stared in confusion as if he had spoken in a foreign language. She was shocked to realize he was a pirate…an actual pirate was standing before her and she had, once again, been brought aboard a ship!

Captain Sparrow uncorked his bottle and took a few sips from it before ambling back over to the desk and removing his coats and hat. He then turned back to Annaliese, but his eyes widened in alarm.

"Agh! No!" He exclaimed, rushing forward and waving his hands at Nikko in a shooing motion.

"No, no, no, no! Down! Off the bed!" Nikko reluctantly stood up, swiftly walked around Annaliese, and hopped off the bed.

"Bloody thing!" Captain Sparrow remarked crossly before dragging the chair from the desk to the bed.

"I'm sorry," Annaliese apologized. "I didn't realize he wasn't allowed on the bed."

"Oh, no matter," he said dismissively as he sat down in the chair. "Now, what be yer name, luv?"

"Annaliese," she answered.

"That's quite a name," Captain Sparrow remarked.

"Well, thank you," she replied.

Captain Sparrow then shot a look at Nikko. "And what 'bout yer animal?" Annaliese felt rather offended at his question: her animal?

"His name is Nikko," she answered firmly, "and for your information, Captain Sparrow, he's more like a son to me than a pet, as I am more of a mother to him than an owner!"

"My apologies, darlin'!" he said, "And you should call me 'Captain' in front of the crew, but in private you can call me 'Jack'. Savvy?" Annaliese nodded at him in understanding.

"How long have I been out cold?" she asked him curiously.

"Since last night," he answered, setting his bottle down on the floor. He gently took hold of her arm and lifted it up, making Annaliese gasp and wince at the severe pain. Jack immediately looked up worriedly.

"It's alright," he reassured her softly before continuing. "You were quite lucky me and the crew were out and about last night."

Annaliese's eyes widened. "You fought off that…" She suddenly felt sick to her stomach at the thought of last night's incident. "…that man?" She finally finished her sentence.

"Aye…but me crew helped, of course." Annaliese watched him in silence as he unwrapped the gauze. She noticed he had four different rings on his fingers. The first of these was a silver skull ring set with a single green emerald which he wore on the index finger of his right hand. The second was a silver and jade oriental dragon ring that he wore on his left thumb. His third ring, a gold and amethyst Greco-Roman, was on his left index finger. The final ring was a gold onyx Spanish flower ring.

"You had fainted once we finally knocked him out," Jack went on, "so I brought ya aboard the ship. It was bloody difficult gettin' ya 'ere, though. That little devil—er, Nikko went utterly ballistic the moment I laid a hand on ya."

"Yes, we're quite protective of each other," interrupted Annaliese with a smile. "He didn't hurt you or anything, did he?"

"Bruised me shins up a bit, but otherwise, I'm perfectly fine," replied Jack. "My first mate managed to catch and carry 'im back to the ship, but after we got 'im in 'ere, he wouldn't leave yer side for anythin'! And every time I came in 'ere to check on ya, he's always on the bed, in spite of removin' 'im each time!"

"I'm sorry," Annaliese apologized again. "He's just very concerned about me."

"No worries, luv," stated Jack understandably. "Well, after I got ya all cleaned up…" He finally reached the end of the gauze and removed it from her skin to reveal the gash. Annaliese gasped at the sight of it, for it was completely clean of blood and had been efficiently stitched together!

"You did that?" Annaliese gaped at him in astonishment.

"Every stitch, luv," nodded Jack rather pompously.

"Thank you…" said Annaliese appreciatively. "…for everything."

"'Twas nothin', luv," smiled Jack as he rose from his seat. "Ah!" He quickly strode over the desk and picked the bundle up. "I was also able to get the blood out of yer rather extravagant outfit…" Annaliese's eyes widened as he held up her clothes, which were free of red stains but were still quite damp. She automatically looked down at herself and realized for the first time that she was only wrapped in a white sheet. Infuriation filled her as she stared at him: he had undressed her while she had been unconscious!

"How dare you!" she seethed at him through gritted teeth. "You-you-you…perverted scoundrel!"

"Pirate, luv…" Jack reminded her as he displayed a mischievous smile on his tan face.

Annaliese couldn't think of any retort to his excuse, so she laid there speechless while glaring at him as he pulled his coats back on.

"Now if you'll excuse me," said Jack, strolling over to the door, "I must fetch another roll of gauze and I'm certain you and Nikko are quite famished from last night's occurrence." Without another word, Jack left the cabin, leaving Annaliese to boil in her rage.

Jack was still smirking as he walked out onto the deck with his bottle of rum in hand. He squinted against the bright afternoon sun as his eyes scanned the ship for his first mate. Meanwhile, the rest of the crew members were hard at work keeping everything in order while the Pearl sailed along the calm waters.

"Ah!" Jack finally located his first mate; he was conversing with the quartermaster at the helm. He rushed to the staircase and hastily began to climb it.

"Mr. Gibbs!" called Jack once he reached the helm.

"Aye, cap'n?" replied Mr. Gibbs, turning around to face his captain.

"She's currently conscious," declared Jack as he approached him, "and both she and her miniature beast are in much need of both food an' water."

"Aye…" Mr. Gibbs nodded and obediently started toward the stairs. Jack took another quick swig of rum before following him down into the galley, all the while trying, but failing miserably, to keep his mind distracted from all thoughts of her…

Bloody hell! I'm a pirate! What was I thinking, bringing that wench aboard my ship? She's going to be nothing but a distraction now…a rather entertaining distraction, at that…

Oh, what a rare beauty! Such an angelic face…and that spectacular body I was fortunate enough to observe! The long strawberry hair! And those eyes…the most beautiful and iciest of blues! I've never seen such a gorgeous color in all my life!

Bugger! No, no! Don't do this! I'm a pirate and she's nothing but trouble and now I'm stuck with her! I should just drop both her and her bloody pet off the next time we make port and forget I ever laid my eyes upon her!

Regardless, Jack detached his compass from his belt and hastily opened it. The needle immediately spun around and pointed at none other than the bottle of rum in his other hand. He smirked as he took another swig from it. Afterward, the needle pointed in the opposite direction. Jack looked up at where the needle was aiming and raised his eyebrows in bewilderment before snapping the compass shut.

I hope you like my interpretation of Jack… It was a rather difficult task getting into his head and coming up with responses that sounded like him!

TO ALL OF THOSE WHO REVIEW: I will send you a preview for the upcoming chapter (once it's available) to show you how much I appreciate it!

Thanks for reading and reviewing!