The Price of ƒ я e e d o м
A PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN FANFICTION

The Price of ƒ я e e d o м © xoxoMyRealityIsFiction
Pirates of the Caribbean © Disney
Ayisha/Amenirdis © A.C. Crispin

Scene Five:
There's Something Addictive About Captain Jack Sparrow

Ayisha felt too out in the open without her cloak; the loose ends of her clothes gingerly flapping in the breeze as she jogged behind Jack and Will out from beneath the fort. Pressing her body against the stone wall just as Jack abruptly held his arm out in the air, Ayisha could feel her heart pound in her chest, her chest steadily rising up and down in silent pant. Just then, a few navy soldiers walked past their hiding spot obliviously, and when the coast seemed clear, Jack motioned for both Ayisha and Will to follow him.

"You two seem as if you do this all the time. Do you?" Will whispered from behind Ayisha, the only other sound coming from the light splashing of the pitter-patter of their feet against the damp ground.

Ayisha smiled guiltily at Will from over her shoulder, but then turned her attention back ahead of her when they came to a hill. The same hill in which she and Jack were caught in the first place for saving Miss Swann: the governor's daughter; and slid down the muddy side, the bottoms of her white trousers becoming caked in mud.

"I've made this deduction before, but, you do not seem like one to have become a pirate. How is it that you have become one?" Will grunted out, also, sliding down the side of the hill.

"Ayisha is not a pirate, lad. Never make that assumption again." Jack suddenly intervened, glancing back at both Will and Ayisha from leaning against the stone wall of the bridge they were currently hiding under.

"If she is not a pirate, then how is it that you two have met and are traveling together?" asked Will.

"It's a long story," Jack muttered in response, turning his attention back to the private docks where the ship he had his eye on was.

Ayisha smiled weakly at Will, hoping that it would satisfy his curious mind, and then crept up alongside Jack. Her eyes fixated on the many navy soldiers rushing up and down the dock of the Dauntless. She frowned and began to think up ways on how they could sneak past the soldiers and take the Dauntless without anyone knowing; but she came up with nothing. There was too many of them, and she, Jack and Will could not take them all on, no matter how skilled at fighting they were. They stood no chance against the navy soldier's muskets' if they were all aimed at the trio at once.

Will came up from behind Jack and Ayisha. "We're going to steal the ship?" He seemed surprised to ask, but when Ayisha lightly shook her head side to side with her lips pursed, Will switched his gaze from the Dauntless to the Interceptor still drifting about a mile away from the shore. "That ship?"

"Commandeer," Jack corrected, and Ayisha rolled her eyes. She still saw no difference between stealing a boat - oops - ship and 'commandeering' one. "We're going to commandeer that ship." He pointed to the Dauntless. "Nautical term. One question about your business, boy, or there's no use in going." Jack spun around to face Will, eye to eye. "This girl – how far are you willing to go to save her?"

"I'd die for her," Will didn't hesitate to answer, and puffed out his chest so that he stood taller than Jack, his eyes going a shade darker at the mention of Elizabeth Swann.

"Oh, good. No worries then." Jack quipped and refaced the Dauntless, scanning the area surrounding them. "Come, I think I know of a way that we can sneak onboard undetected." Jack began heading towards the beach that was a good distance away from the Dauntless's private dock.

The soft smile wiped clean off Ayisha's lips at Jack's response to Will's love for Elizabeth. She locked her jaw in place, in anger, and roughly pushed past Jack in a huff. "…Ayisha? …love?" Jack called out to Ayisha, jogging to catch up with her long strides to the beach; but Ayisha didn't answer any of his calls. "What? What did I say?"

Ayisha stuck her nose up in the air, away from Jack, refusing to answer his ridiculous question, and then gestured for him to show her and Will what he had planned to sneak them onboard of the Dauntless. Just as she reached the beginning of the beach; some navy soldiers were still walking along the sand strip.

"Women. I'm never going to understand them, no matter how many I get." Jack muttered towards Will, and, again, Ayisha silently huffed in anger at Jack's words.

Was Ayisha being selfish to only stay with Jack because she loves him, and she didn't want to leave him? Or was she just being naïve to stay with him because she loves him and would let him get away with anything because of that said love, and he knew it? Which is why he always assumed that she would do whatever he asked without hesitation; but, then again, he wasn't that wrong. So far, since they have been together, Ayisha always did whatever Jack asked of her.

Why was she thinking of all of this barely now? Why was she just beginning to question the reasons for staying with Jack? Ayisha felt unnerved about her sudden rush of emotions and gazed at the back of Jack, watching him go through his plan by flipping over one of the dinghies that were along the edge of the beach, her mind drifting to some of the memories she shared with him that she didn't particularly like,

Ayisha silently sighed to herself, snapping the book she was trying to read shut, and then leaned against the head board of Jack's bed in the captain's chambers of the Black Pearl. Jack had confined her to his quarters while he and the rest of the crew were on shore leave in Tortuga; and he didn't like her to go into the town without someone to watch over her; and since no one wanted to stay with her (besides Barbossa –which she declined– and Bootstrap –which she also declined because, he, of all people on the crew, needed a break from watching over her all the time–), Jack told her to stay in his room –with the door locked– until he came back the next morning.

Ayisha felt her heart drop when she found herself thinking of the reason why Jack said that he wouldn't come back until the next morning. He didn't even try to hide the fact that he was sleeping with other women. Why should he? He's a pirate. And Pirates don't stick to just one woman. Why; when they could have lots?

Shaking her head clear of her thoughts Ayisha decided to do something, besides reading, to get her mind off of what Jack could be doing while in Tortuga. Eyes veering to the locked door in temptation, knowing very well that she was ordered to stay in the room for her own 'safety,' she licked the corner of her mouth and then bit down on her bottom lip. It wasn't like she couldn't take care of herself. She was taught to defend herself even back when she was in Kerma. Again, Ayisha's heart dropped at the thought of her home. She missed her island, her people, and her family. But she gave it all up. Her life on Kerma, her throne – all for love. All for Jack.

Sliding her legs off of the side of the bed Ayisha unlocked the door to Jack's room and then poked her head out, scanning the empty deck of the Pearl. Slowly stepping out, hesitating because she was disobeying Jack's order, Ayisha tentatively crept out onto the main deck and then looked off of the side, hearing the laugher, gunshots and music coming from the town of Tortuga.

Ducking behind one of the barrels on the main deck at the sound of drunken laughter, Ayisha saw some men of the crew stagger onto the Pearl and then down below the deck. Well, that solved the 'who was going to watch over the Pearl' question, since Jack didn't like to leave the Pearl unattended.

Ayisha slid past the barrel and jogged down the plank, wrapping her white cloak around her body and then pulling the hood over her head. Another rule that Jack put upon Ayisha, was that if she ever went into Tortuga (with an escort of course) that she was to have her cloak and hood on at all times, because if any man had a clear view of her face and body, they would try to take advantage of her. At least this rule Ayisha planned to listen to; she didn't want to run into any trouble while she could avoid it.

Reaching the heart of Tortuga, where the drunken pirates and music seemed to be the loudest and the worst, Ayisha soaked in her surroundings in awe. Tortuga was a lot different without an escort, since she was only allowed to roam the outskirts of Tortuga. Smiling at the sight of a few pirates dancing merrily to the music emerging from the tavern nearest them, Ayisha clapped along with the others, cheering for the dancing and singing to continue.

Hearing a crashing noise, followed by shouts, two men literally flew out of the tavern nearest Ayisha, both men rolling around on the ground, fighting. Ayisha noticed that one of the men was a part of the crew for the Pearl, and she switched her gaze back to the tavern, the sounds of a brawl still continuing from inside. Going inside, barely dodging another pair of fighting men, Ayisha stood to the side, wondering why no one was trying to stop the brawl. The rest of the tavern's occupants simply continued with their drinking and badgering of many women.

From the corner of her eye Ayisha saw something that she wished she hadn't. Her heart shattered into a million pieces, when, at the corner of the tavern, sat Jack with a woman on his lap, and said woman looking as if she were eating his ear off. The woman was blond, and wore a blue tattered dress that showed more cleavage than Ayisha thought possible. Wasn't clothing mean to hide such assets? Ayisha knew that Jack had been with other women since she ran away from Kerma, but seeing it first hand was much worst than picturing it in her head.

Backing away, her head tilted down towards the floor, Ayisha backed into someone and sharply turned around, the hood of her cloak falling due to the sudden movement. She gasped when she saw who she had bumped into. She had never seen a man so…large! The man looked down at her, grinning a toothless smile, the rest of his teeth rotting through, and roughly brought Ayisha to his large belly by grabbing her around the waist.

"Why, 'ello there darlin', ye new here? 'Cause I would remember a fine lady such like yeself." The man eyed Ayisha in such a way that it made her nearly vomit in her own mouth. "How 'bout I buy ye a drink, ey?"

Ayisha shook her head side to side vigorously, because she knew when to keep her mouth shut, and backed away from the rather large man only to bump into a table, the contents rolling off of the side and shattering onto the wooden floor, the men and women sitting at the table shot up, shouting in displeasure at Ayisha.

Beginning to regret that she left the safety of Jack's private chambers, Ayisha spun back around so that she could run out of the tavern and back to the safety Pearl, but then her eyes locked with the very man whom she wanted to avoid. Ayisha remained in eye contact with Jack, seeing him push the woman off of his lap and rise from his seat, and then thought that, that was the perfect time to run. And she did. Ayisha ran faster than she had ever done before, shutting and locking Jack's door behind her.

Jack never let Ayisha off of the Pearl without an escort ever again.

Climbing up the side of the Dauntless and then jumping over the thick wooden rail, Ayisha remembered that she didn't have any weapons on her, and let Jack and Will do the threatening while she trailed behind them as they jogged down the wooden steps, towards the crew. Will unsheathed his sword and was poised for attack.

"Everyone stay calm! We are taking over the ship," Jack announced, and the crew turned around to face him, Will and Ayisha.

"Ey! Avast!" Will exclaimed soon after, and the crew began laughing. Even Ayisha couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at Will's choice of words. Did he really think that pirates spoke that way? Well, some did, but only the ones that were less…smart.

Lieutenant Gillette, the man that arrested both Jack and Ayisha, took a brave, arrogant step forward. "This ship cannot be crewed by two men…and a woman," Gillette eyed Ayisha, and Ayisha barely noticed that her white ensemble had turned transparent from being in the water, and tried to cover her body, stepping over and hiding behind Will's tall form.

"Eyes off my lass and on me, mate," said Jack to Gillette.

Gillette switched his attention back to Jack, an arrogant smirk on his thin lips. "…you'll never make it out of the bay," he stated pompously.

"Son," Jack sighed, expertly drawing his pistol and pointing it straight between Gillette's eyes. The click of the hammer being pulled back caused Gillette's face to visibly pale. "I'm Captain Jack Sparrow. Savvy? All right, ye and your crew on the dinghy over there." Jack flicked the barrel of his pistol in the direction of one of the dinghies on the side of the Dauntless, and Gillette was more than willing to oblige.

– X –

While Jack was busy talking to Will about running a ship, and Ayisha went below deck and into the armory room. Red coats, muskets and swords were cluttered in various places, as if someone had just thrown the supplies in the room without care. Huffing, because she didn't have much time before Jack said that they would make the switch to the Interceptor, Ayisha began rummaging through the various weapons, trying to find something that fit her fancy. A weapon that she could actually use and hide within her clothes. Pushing aside a curtain of red coats Ayisha blinked in shock at what she found buried behind a stack of swords that were leaning up against the wall.

Tentatively moving aside some of the swords, so that she wouldn't nic herself on the sharp blades, Ayisha wrapped her fingers around the smooth wood and then was careful in pulling it towards her. Eyeing the beautiful bow, running her fingers against the polished wood, Ayisha then began searching for arrows to go with it. She means, why would they have a bow in the armory, if they didn't have arrows to go with it? And even though Ayisha couldn't exactly hide a bow within her clothes, and she still would prefer something along side of a dagger, but she was an expert marksman when it came to actually using the bow and arrow. It was the main source of weapon on her island besides a spear and dagger, and of course, she wanted to be taught how to use it.

Finding a leather quiver, only having about six spare arrows, Ayisha slipped her arm through the thin rope and let the quiver rest on her back.

"Ayisha, now is not the time to let your curiosity get the best of you. We've got to be prepared for the Interceptor's approach," Jack called from above, and Ayisha's head perked at the sound of his voice.

Quickly spinning around to leave the armory something else caught Ayisha's eye that made her practically beam in happiness. A black cloak, much like the one she left in Will's shop, was the only clothing material that hung on one of the hooks attached to the wall. It most likely belonged to the Captain of the Dauntless – Gillette; and that made Ayisha want to take it for herself all the more. Snatching the cloak from the hook and tying the strings around her neck, letting the cloak cover the bow's quiver, Ayisha jogged back up the stairs and onto the main deck.

Jack was rubbing off on her, and more than he would probably like.

"Where did you get that?" Ayisha faced in Jack's direction, Jack standing by the helm of the Dauntless; obviously spotting the bow still in Ayisha's grasp.

In response Ayisha rolled her right shoulder, so that the cloak could move out of her way, and slid the bow into the quiver, and then let the cloak fall back into place. Looking away from Jack, still mad at him, and to Will. She frowned when she saw that he was waving ropes around like a crazed man.

Jack was making Will do all of the work. Work that didn't matter because for as long as she was onboard of the Black Pearl, Ayisha never saw any of the crew do what Will was doing.

Hearing footsteps come closer towards her, Ayisha didn't remove her gaze from Will's form, knowing that it was Jack. Who else would it be? They were the only ones on the boat – ship. "Something on your mind you wish to speak to me about?" Jack mumbled low, probably not wanting Will to hear their conversation. He was Captain Jack Sparrow, and Captain Jack Sparrow does not have lady problems. Ever.

Ayisha faced Jack, face stoic, though her eyes were filled with hurt. "Love is something that should not be taken for granted. It is what is keeping me here with you. Will went against everything he believed in because of his love for Miss Swann, and you used it against him for your own advantage."

"I did it for the both of us, Ayisha. If I hadn't done what I done, than we would have been sent to the gallows right about now," Jack stated firmly.

"You are going to help him, right? We are not just going to leave him once we get the Interceptor?"

"Of course I will, I said I would, didn't I? And when Jack Sparrow makes a promise – he keeps it."

"If yours and Will's positions were switched and it was I who had been taken by Barbossa, would you have done what Will had done?"

"In a heartbeat. Except I would not need Will, like he does me," said Jack, making Ayisha feel somewhat better about her fickle emotions about her and Jack's nonexistent relationship. "What brought up those questions? You've never questioned my motives before."

Ayisha remained silent.

"…you're not thinking about leaving me, are you?"

"No," Ayisha replied swiftly and smiled softly at Jack, with a light shake of her head, "Never." Though when she spoke that single word, she could feel that her entire heart wasn't in it.

Jack shifted uncomfortably, clearing his throat. He had always been uncomfortable with Ayisha's show of affection towards him. He knew that she loves him, and he did ...feel... for her in return; but he had yet to actually say those three words. If he were in her position, he would have left himself a long time ago. "Well, good, because I would hate to lose the last faithful person on me crew." Jack went back to pirate speech.

"Here they come." Will nodded behind Jack and Ayisha, taking long strides towards the pair.

Following Will's line of sight Ayisha spotted the Interceptor set sail and begin to head towards the Dauntless. Jack then lightly waved at both Ayisha and Will, in a 'shooing' manner, and then said, "Take your places."

Ayisha crouched low and ran as fast as she could in the position she was in and then pressed her body against the side of the ship, where Jack calculated that the Interceptor would settle next to. Noise could be heard from over the wooden rail, and Ayisha craned her neck up towards the sky to see if anyone came overhead.

Men swung over and onto the Dauntless, but neither Ayisha, Jack nor Will made a single move, because Jack had said to wait for his signal before switching over to the Interceptor. Ayisha switched her attention from the skies, to Jack, and waited intensely for his signal to be made. And then it came. With a simple flick of his wrist, all three of them sprang up from their hiding spot, and Ayisha wrapped her fingers tightly around one of the ropes a soldier most likely used to swing onto the Dauntless. Pulling herself up, to stand on the thick wooden rail, Ayisha wrapped the rope around her wrist for extra security, in case she lost her grip, took a deep breath, and jumped off of the Dauntless, her lose hair whipping around her face at the gust of wind.

Landing on the weather deck of the Interceptor, her body rolling upon impact as she let go of the rope, Ayisha quickly lifted her head to face the Dauntless. Jack, after landing soon after her, immediately rushed to his feet and went straight for the helm. Will had cut the ropes tying both of the ships together, and soon the Interceptor was on the move. HA! Take that Gillette: two men and a woman can sail a ship on their own if Jack Sparrow were their captain. Which he is.

Arming her bow with an arrow, just in case if a sailor would try to come back onto the Interceptor, Ayisha watched vigilantly as Commodore Norrington began ordering his men to attempt to get back onto the Interceptor – none of them being successful, and falling into the sea instead.

"Thank you, Commodore, for getting us ready to make way. We'd have had a hard time of it by ourselves," Jack provoked from the helm of Interceptor, waving his hat in the air in a thankful manner.

The sailors opened fire, and Ayisha ducked in a lame attempt to dodge the bullets. Even though she knew that Jack had done something to the Dauntless in order for the commodore not to follow them; she still was wary that this wouldn't be the last time they will cross paths with Commodore Norrington. When the gunfire ceased Ayisha lifted her head and saw that the Dauntless remained motionless, not making any moves to follow the Interceptor.

"Ayisha," Jack called from the helm, and when Ayisha turned her attention to him, he nodded at her. "You know what to do. See if anyone is still onboard, and if so, bring them to me."

Ayisha nodded and obediently prepared her bow for use, just in case, and went below deck. Though the bow and arrow was only meant for long range attacks, she didn't have much of a choice. Hopefully she could find the armory room on the Interceptor, and with luck, she would find a weapon that she could use.

Checking every room below deck Ayisha lowered the bow and disarmed it, placing the arrow and bow back into the quiver strapped to her back. Retracing her steps, back to the armory she found, Ayisha, again, began snooping around for anything that she could conceal within her clothes. Only finding two daggers, one, which she slid into the sash she made out of a red navy coat strapped around her waist, and the other in the her right sleeve. About to go back up to the deck, the ship suddenly jerked to the side, causing Ayisha to roughly collide against the wall in the narrow hallway; and then after she steadied herself, ran up the steps to see Will on the ground, and Jack acting as if nothing happened.

Confused, Ayisha was about to question about what happened, but then Will bustled back onto his feet and stormed past her and down the steps. Following Will's retreating back until he was out of sight, Ayisha turned her attention to Jack and placed her hands on her hips firmly; pursing her lips.

"What? I know that look and I didn't do anything," Jack immediately defended himself. "All I did was tell him the truth about is father. He was the one who brought it up!" Ayisha silently sighed. Will, most likely his whole life, thought that Bootstrap was some outstanding citizen. She knew because sometimes Bootstrap would talk about Will sometimes, and how much he didn't want Will to know what he did in order to keep food on the table for his family.

Once upon a time piracy was legal, but then some 'pirates' took it to the next level, and when they began to do horrible, inhuman things – did the leaders make piracy illegal. Bootstrap turned into a pirate when it was legal, and once it was turned illegal, did he not want Will to know what he did for a living. Bootstrap was a good man. A very good man.

Going back below deck Ayisha found Will sitting on a low stool in the soldier's chambers. He was hunched over, his hands covering his face, and Ayisha took it upon herself to try and talk to him. She found that venting was good for you, instead of bottling them up. Which is way Jack would snap or rant to Ayisha when he got frustrated. She could take it. With her he wouldn't be judged or called weak because he showed his emotions.

Ayisha sat in front of Will silently, waiting for him to speak first – which he did. Will took in a deep breath and lifted his head up, not looking into Ayisha's eyes, but keeping them directed to the floor. "…did you know my father?" he asked, his voice sounding distant.

Ayisha nodded.

"Was he really a…a pirate?"

Ayisha nodded, but placed a comforting hand on Will's knee. "He was a good man," she said.

"If he was a good man, then why did he become a pirate?" Will snapped, swiftly rising from the stool, and the small wooden furniture was kicked back at the sudden movement. "Why did he become one of the most hated beings in the world? …why did he lie to me?"

"You were a child," said Ayisha. "Would you tell your son that you were a pirate if you were in his shoes? He spoke of you greatly, and he only did what he did because it was profitable. It kept you and your mother in a home, right?"

Will remained silent, staring off into the distance, and then looked down at the still sitting Ayisha. "What about you? Jack says that you are not a pirate, yet he is one? How did that come about?"

"I owe Jack my life. He saved me and my people from slavery, and I feel that it is my duty that I somehow repay him."

"By becoming his own slave?"

Ayisha was shocked at Will's observance. "N-no, nothing like that," she stammered out.

"It looks like that to me. You do everything that he asks without second thought. He orders you around, and you obey. Does that not sound like slavery to you?"

"No, it does not," Ayisha murmured, slowly rising to her own feet. "I call it love…"

"Love? You love Jack?" Will asked, flabbergasted. "Why?"

"For many reasons that you may not understand." Ayisha smiled to herself softly. "Yes, from an outsider's point-of-view it may seem like I am a slave to Jack; but it is the exact opposite. It is I who needs Jack more than he needs me. Without him I am…I feel…empty. Like a piece of me has been ripped out of my very soul. Do you not feel that way for Miss Elizabeth?"

Will's mouth opened and closed as if he were a fish out of water. "…y-yes. I do." he nodded.

"Then you must know exactly what I mean. You would go through lengths for Miss. Swann – you are now! And I would do the same for Jack if I were ever in such a position as yourself, even though he does not feel the same as I."

"And what makes you think that he does not?"

"You do not know him like I do." Ayisha smiled solemnly. "He is not the kind of man who loves. He is a pirate, and he wants to be free. Free from any attachment. I go where he goes simply because if I don't he would leave me."

Will continued to stare at Ayisha, and Ayisha shifted her eyes to the floor, trying to contain the emotions wanting to burst out.

"…I am sorry," murmured Will.

Ayisha nodded stiffly, chuckling. "That is what I get for falling in love with a man that I cannot have."

(A/N) Authors Note: I combined two chapters on this update. I felt that the original chapter I was going to put up was too short, and a bit of a tease. I've put a lot more description about Ayisha and Jack's 'relationship', if you even call it that.

Oh, and go check out the banner .S Y N T H E T I Cperfection. made for me! And, girl, your photoshop skills are like suh-weet! I love the banner, and, please, by all means, whenever your bored go ahead and make me a banner for this delightful story - I won't mind ;)
I love artwork fans make for me.
I think the banner catches the image of Ayisha very well. She's hidden underneath a cloak, concealing her face; and in a later chapter, you guys will read why Ayisha wears a cloak all the time.

Reviews make me want to update faster :D
...so leave one, pretty please.

AddictedToJohnny: (Since you are the only one who doesn't have an account, and I can't PM you) Thank you. All I do is watch lots of kung-fu movies ;) And, you recognized that? Man, you're good. lol. I wanted to do something a bit different from the other girls entered into the movie. Ayisha did a selfish thing by leaving Elizabeth behind just so she wouldn't be recognized by anyone from the Black Pearl.

P.S: I wanna cave! I want to post another story up, but I don't think I should. What do you guys think? Do you guys love Bradley Cooper? Especially in 'The Hangover'? I have an idea for a fanfic for that, that has lots of Drama, Romance, and Family. It would follow the movies (of course) but I would add my own spunk to it. I hate going by the script - as most of you know. So. Are you guys interested; or no? I just had this idea forming in the back of my mind ever since I heard that they're making a third movie. Third!