A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who reviewed the last chapter! As always, I'm very honored that you all took the time to tell me your thoughts. I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Chapter XIX

I awoke to water being poured on top of my head. It was the most distressing, disturbing, and terrifying feeling I have ever experienced; like a surge of lightening had passed through my body. For a brief moment, I thought that I might transform in the presence of… the presence of… the presence of whomever I was with.

But it was just my face and hair that was drenched, to my great fortune.

"Mother of pearl!" I shrieked automatically.

"Rough night?" Sparrow asked cheerily. He looked particularly crazed from this angle.

I turned my soaked head to my left, and then to my right. I hadn't the faintest idea where I was, but I appeared to be outdoors. Next to Wentworth. Entangled with Wentworth.

"Up, up," he instructed, "Or have the pair of you forgotten what day it is?"

"What day is it?" Wentworth asked, groggily stretching out his arms.

"Why, today is the day we set sail, lad. Now get up. Do I have to douse you a second time? Believe you me, you don't want to be coming in contact with that water again if you can help it…"

"We're up!" I insisted, standing abruptly.

As soon as I was on my feet, my vision began spinning and my head felt as if it were splitting wide open. I rushed to a nearby barrel and attempted to steady myself. The air around us was putrid, and I came to realize that we were in some sort of farm area, though I had no recollection of how we'd gotten there. I could do nothing to stop myself from retching up the meager contents of my stomach. I coughed at the sour aftertaste in my mouth and weaseled out of Wentworth's coddling grasp. The last thing I felt like doing was dealing with him, that was for certain.

Jack scrunched up his nose in disgust, but looked at me pityingly nevertheless. "Well, now that that's out of your system," he started, "Might we get going?"

Still in shock from how horrendous I felt, I peered up to see Wentworth looking equally sickly. I wondered if he remembered what had happened the prior night…

As Jack began sashaying away, I ran to catch up with him. This was not a wise course of action, for I soon doubled over clutching my stomach once again. He did indeed stop walking, and watched my suffering interestedly.

"Not on my boots please," he whined.

"We need to talk," I grit out once the wave of nausea had passed.

"Now?"

"Yes. Peter, go ahead. I'll catch up with you."

The other man looked at me quizzically; his expression was one that I hadn't seen many times. He wore one of – dare I say – betrayal. "Alright," he replied skeptically. "If you're sure that's what you want."

"It is," I affirmed. I felt… guilty. But the sentiment passed as soon as he was out of sight.

"Now, what was it you wanted to talk about, love?" Jack asked with a smirk. He was smug, almost as if I'd chosen him over Wentworth.

"Um – er – well, it's about last night."

"Last night? Oh, last night. Might it have to do with your little rendez-vous with dear Wentworth outside the tavern?"

"Jack, it's not –"

"It's not what I think? On the contrary, love, it appears that I am spot on. You found it curious that I should need to take my conversation with Ms. Daggerdale outside – that I should need privacy, as it were – so, you took it upon yourselves to investigate. Darlin', I realize that you and I both know a bit more about each other than the other would like, but I think I've been fairly scrupulous in the amount of information I've released, wouldn't you say? So, the fact that you decided to follow me isn't the problem. The problem is that you brought dear Wentworth with you, and now he's a liability."

"Honestly, Jack, I don't think he remembers any of it – "

"But you can't be sure of that, can you? The answer, if I might be so bold as to reveal it, is no."

"What are you going to do?" I asked, petrified. "You're not going to –"

"Kill him? No, not if it can be avoided. But y'see, love, we're now in very dangerous waters; and once again, it's thanks to you. Don't make me regret – sorry, further regret – my decision to allow you to stay on board."

"It really was a mistake…"

"I don't doubt it; just don't make any more of 'em. It's not often that I regret things, and I simply detest the feeling."

I bowed my head repentantly. I hated this… this disappointment. For some reason, I couldn't stand the thought of Jack regretting my presence.

"Lookit you," he commented lightly after a moment. He brought one sullied hand to my chin and raised my face to meet his gaze. "You really are sorry, aren't ye?"

I didn't reply, but my sea-colored eyes searched his desperately.

"You're a strange one, alright… Beautiful, I'll give you that, but awfully strange." He soon released my chin, but I stayed where I was, staring up at him.

"One could say the same about you, Mr. Sparrow," I finally replied. He raised his eyebrows beneath his bandana and grinned at me. "About being strange, I mean," I quickly corrected.

"I get that quite often," he replied gruffly. Another moment passed. "Never met one like you, though," he thought aloud.

"Well, that's saying something, then, isn't it? I imagine you've met many a woman in your day."

"You know that's not what I mean, love."

It was now my turn to raise my eyebrows. "You've met others?"

"A few. Here and there. Know a girl called Marina?" [1]

"You and Marina?" I exclaimed in disbelief.

"Long time ago. I was young, but I do believe she was younger. Only lasted a day or two, though, and it didn't end well… Pity… In any case," he continued on a very different note, "we must be getting to the docks. They seem to have sped up the reparations on the Jewel."

"That wouldn't have anything to do with the arrival of the Daggerdales, would it?" I asked slyly.

"No, of course not; don't be absurd," he replied with a wink.

"Wait, one more thing before we go," I interjected. He gazed at me expectantly and I squirmed under is full attention. "This – this person who wishes to speak with you… What was his name again?"

"Teague?"

"No, that's not it…"

"Barbossa?"

"Yes! Yes, that's the one… Is he going to be there? At Shipwreck Cove, I mean."

"Well yes, of course… Why?" he asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

"Erm – uh – well, I might have come in contact with him before…"

"Come in contact with…? Oh – oh, I see. He's the one whose ship you stowed away on, isn't he? That certainly clarifies quite a bit…"

"Yes, about that…"

"Does he know what you are?"

"Yes, I'm sorry…"

"No, no don't be sorry," he said eagerly, "In fact, this could be played quite to our advantage… It's always nice to have an ace in the hole, as it were. He's sure going to regret giving you up once he sees you're with me, the old devil…"

"So I have to see him again, then?"

"Aye, ye do. But really, we must be going…"

Once we were at the docks, I laid eyes upon the man who I presumed to be Jansen Daggerdale for the first time. He was… not what I had expected.

Firstly, he was impossibly tall; probably at least six and half feet high, if not more, and was without a doubt the tallest man I had ever seen. He was also lean, but with sturdy, broad shoulders and a very muscular physique. His unfashionably short hair, despite being naturally blonde, had been so bleached by the sun that it appeared almost white. In fact, the overall appearance of his face had been greatly shaped by the affects of the sun; his skin probably would have been very fair, but years of exposure to the hot Caribbean climate had damaged it to the point where it was freckled and tough. Like the hair on his head, his eyebrows, eyelashes, and stubble had been bleached by the sun and now resembled wispy threads of gold. In terms of his facial structure, he had an oddly shaped nose, a high forehead, and pouted lips; his irises were sun-strained and almost colorless. He was incredibly handsome (in my humble opinion), but wore an expression of great seriousness and dignity as he spoke to the shipbuilder beside the Jewel.

Mr. Daggerdale's outfit was not nearly as ornate as it could have been, which made him even more striking, if possible. He donned a simple but dirtied white chemise, which was open from the waist up and revealed not only his toned chest, but also an enormous, jagged scar, under a crisp, blue frock. On his legs, he wore stained calico britches that had several patches of mismatched material and leather, fold-over boots. He held a minimal tricorn, also made of leather, tucked under his arm. The only embellishments he had made to his plain ensemble were two large belts, one around his waist and another across his chest, several intricate rings on his fingers, and a blunderbuss pistol with a gold effigy of a face on the butt [2].

"He doesn't like to be stared at," Jack whispered to me as we neared the other man, "And do not – I repeat do not – call him by his nickname."

I couldn't help but ask: "What's his nickname?" despite the fact that Jack was most definitely baiting me.

"Jansen the Giant." … And now, I couldn't get the name out of my mind. Excellent.

"Ah, Jack," he greeted with a heavy accent as he saw us approach. As the two men stood across from one another, I marveled at the height difference. If he was that much taller than Jack, then he must have been nearly a foot and a half taller than I was.

" 'ello, Janny. I take it everything's in order?"

"Aye, it is. We're ready to set out when you are, my friend."

"Is your charming wife already aboard?"

"Yes, as is the rest of the crew… Now, who, might I ask, is this lovely woman at your side, Sparrow?"

"This is Cassiopeia, another member o' the crew."

Jansen took my small hand in his enormous one and brought it gently to his lips. "A pleasure to meet you, my dear," he said suavely. He smiled slightly, and I saw that his teeth were much nicer than any other pirate's I'd come across so far.

"Remember, mate, you're a married man," Jack said with a grin, wagging his index finger teasingly.

"But of course," the other man replied with an apologetic flourish. "Let us step on board."

We did, and soon saw that Gibbs and Natalie were arguing viciously over who should give the orders.

"I'm First Mate," Gibbs snarled coarsely.

"Well I'm Natalie Daggerdale, ye old cad. Do ye understand what that means," she hissed back, drawing her cutlass.

"Now, now," Jack said, putting his arms up to stop the dispute, "no need to quarrel, your captain has returned." He subsequently straightened his tricorn pompously and meandered up to the helm.

" 'ello, love," Natalie greeted happily upon seeing her husband. Her foul temper seemed to be extinguished immediately.

"Hello, my dear," he replied with a dashing smirk.

I watched the exchange between the two sneakily, before taking my place on deck. I was inexplicably fascinated by the idea that two such people – two pirates – should decide to get married. It seemed against the very nature of the freedom that piracy was meant to entail. But who was I to judge?

I soon was able to observe Wentworth quietly going about his duties as well. He looked rather sullen, so I approached him and inquired, "Is everything all right?"

He turned to me rather abruptly and replied, "Hm? Yes, yes of course. Everything is fine. Why wouldn't it be?"

He tried to return to his task of knotting one of the lines, but I wouldn't allow it. "How much do you remember from last night?" I asked.

"Enough," he replied.

"Specifically?" I pressured.

"Look, Cassie, I remember what happened between us."

That hadn't been what I was driving for, but it was useful information nonetheless. If he remembered that far into the evening, then it was a safe bet that he remembered what we'd overheard as well. "Peter, we'd both had very much to drink… We really can't be held accountable for our actions…"

"I understand. You think that what happened was a mistake, you made that quite clear this morning."

"Surely you think it was a mistake as well?"

He shot me a pained glance, but said, "Of course."

"What else do you remember?" I continued.

"The rest is a bit foggy… Something about Shipwreck Cove, I believe? That is where we're headed right now, after all… Another detour…" His tone was uncharacteristically peevish.

"Well," I started quietly, "You mustn't mention the treasure in the presence of the Daggerdales, do you understand?"

"Why not?" he asked bluntly.

"Because the quest will only be complicated by more people. The smaller the party, the better."

"Alright, I suppose that makes sense. Do you think that they can't be trusted, is that it?"

"I don't know, but they are pirates, after all. It's best to be on the safe side. We're just dropping them off in Shipwreck Cove and then heading on our way."

"Really? Is that what Captain Sparrow said?" I'd never heard him sound so bitter.

"Peter, what's gotten into you?"

"Nothing, nothing, I'm sorry I snapped at you," he quickly rectified, "I'm just not feeling well, is all."

"Yes, well, neither am I…" I replied, eyeing him carefully. I wanted the conversation to end before he could demonstrate any more hostility towards me. "I'll talk to you later," I said coolly.

Wenworth was cross with me, it seemed. This was certainly a bit of an issue.

A/N: [1] In a deleted scene from On Stranger Tides, Jack is seen getting slapped by a mermaid named Marina. Just thought it'd be funny to add this in... Cassie's hardly the first mermaid he's ever met. It's also interesting that in the movie the mermaids leave him alone when he's in the water with them. A little odd, no?

[2] This was something I'd read about years ago, but I thought it was an interesting tidbit to add: some pirates used to use pistols with unique carvings on the butt, so that when they clubbed their enemies the imprint would remain. This would effectively allow pirates ot leave their own personal marks on their victims.

I'd also like to give another shout out to a fellow PotC author, Evangeline Crystal. You should all read her story, The Secret REVISED EDITION. It's about everyone's favorite pirate, Captain Jack, and a wonderful heroine named Felicity. It's quite fairytale-like and set in modern times!

Anyway, and I hope you all liked this chapter! What do you think of Jansen Daggerdale's characterization, by the way? I tried to be descriptive, but I fear that I might have gotten a bit carried away. I have no idea why I could so easily imagine how this character looks - it's very strange actually, and a bit unsettling... I'd be elated if you'd please review! :D