Disclaimers: I don't own POTC nor it's characters.

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'Sir, the men have stopped working' said Lieutenant Pardy one morning.

Norrington looked up from the charts with eyes wide with stupefaction.

'Why is that, Lieutenant?'

'I don't know, Sir; they wouldn't tell me…'

'Alright, I'll see to it then; thank you, you have the helm, Pardy.'

The members of the crew had gathered on the main deck; some wore sly smiles, others angry faces.

'Gentlemen' said Norrington with a composed voice, 'May I know what this is all about?'

A study looking man stepped up, his arms crossed over his chest.

'Why are we going to Africa, Captain? We never signed up for such a dangerous journey. It's wasn't what was planned!'

'Indeed it isn't where we were supposed to go; but we have to go wherever the Pearl is. I understand your disappointment, and I am not so pleased either to sail so far away… Now, is there something else I can do for you?'

'Turn round and go back to Port-Royal' another shouted.

'You know I cannot do this… If there is nothing else you wish to say, I must go back to my post.'

James left under whispers of discontent and angry looks. 'A mutiny is the last thing I need right now' he said to himself as he went to the quarters' deck. He needed to speak to Lawrence, to tell her about this incident; she would know how to comfort him.

Knowing that the Commander was on the top deck, he softly knocked on Johnson's door and entered.

'Lawrence, do you have a minute to spare?'

She raised her tired eyes circled by dark circles, and gave him a small smile.

'Of course James!' she rose up, cracking her back.

'You're working way too much for Commander Johnson, what does he do to you in return?' he asked, worried.

'I'm happy to help him… So, what did you want to talk to me about? Is there something wrong?'

James leaned on the table, his brow furrowed.

'The crew has stopped doing their tasks assigned; they are blaming me for the turn of events. They want to go back to Port-Royal… In all my years spent at sea, I have never faced a mutiny before; what do I do, Lawrence?'

'There will be no mutiny, James; don't worry. James, look at me' she said cupping his left cheek with her hand. 'You are the best man and the best officer I know; everyone reckons it, so don't worry, everything will be fine. There will be no mutiny' she stroked his cheek once then withdrew her hand.

Her stroke sent shivers down James' spine; in that instant he wanted to take her in his arms and never let go; but he heard footsteps approaching so he did no such thing.

Commander Johnson entered his quarters and saw the Commodore and the young Ensign physically close to each other.

James walked away and saluted briefly the commander before leaving the quarters watching over his shoulder to give Lawrence a quick smile.

The commander eyed them suspiciously and looked at Lawrence.

'Not getting into any trouble I hope?'

'No sir, the Commodore was merely asking me a question about the course of our previous journey.'

Johnson nodded, still unsure.

'You would tell me if there was any problem between you and Commodore Norrington? I know his high rank may grant some powers but there are things he ca-'

Lawrence was shocked by his insinuations. 'How could he think such things, how can he think of James in such a way?!' 'Commander Johnson, I assure you, you must be mistaken, there is absolutely no problem.'

The commander wasn't convinced but left it to it and said before leaving his quarters:

'Alright then, hum… I'm needed upstairs; keep on the good work, Reynolds.'

This night, she was too tired to see James in his quarters but she went anyway; her friend needed to be cheered up, so she regaled him with stories of her childhood. Due to the recent events, she had preferred not to tell him about her feelings at the moment; for now he needed a friend, and she was here for that. She also decided not to tell him about Johnson's insinuations for fear of James' reaction; she knew there was a certain kind of anger within him that could be very devastating, and she wasn't sure how she would handle it if it burst out.

In the meantime, Doctor Hunter, Commander Johnson, and Lieutenant Pardy had gathered to share their suspicions about Norrington and Reynolds' behaviour; to them, there was something going on. They had noticed that the young Ensign often went to the Commodore's quarters in the evenings, while they only were invited once a week; so they decided to caught them red handed on whatever it was they were doing by sending Lieutenant Pardy to Norrington's quarters this very night.

James and Lawrence were both surprised to hear someone knock on the door past 2200. James looked at her astonished and went to open the door.

'Lieutenant Pardy? Is something the matter?'

Pardy looked around, expecting to catch them in a compromising position but notice that Lawrence was quietly sat at the table, her face emotionless.

'Err, yes, Sir; there is something I must say to you, privately…'

James raised an eyebrow and showed him the way out.

'Maybe we should talk about it on the deck then.' Then he turned to Lawrence to tell her to stay, he didn't want their evening to be shortened by Pardy's intervention. 'I'll be right back, Ensign Reynolds.'

Lawrence nodded, wondering what it was all about.

'I'll just rest my eyes for a while, that way I'll be more awake when he's back' she said to herself once the door was closed, lying her head over her arms on the table.

As it turned out, Pardy had nothing to ask to James, and merely invented a last minute excuse about the course they had to follow, much to James' exasperation. He dismissed him very calmly and went back to his quarters.

Lawrence was soundly sleeping on the table, her lips slightly parted. James shook his head at the sight and smiled.

'You work too much, Lawrence…' He sighed and slid an arm under her knees, the other under her arms, and carried her for a few strides to his bed, where he delicately laid her to sleep in his beddings. He took off her boots, put them on the floor, and smoothed her hair. His chest felt so warm, he couldn't help smile at the sweet sight; he leaned his head and kissed her brow before smoothing her hair.

'Sleep well, Sweet Lawrence.' He smiled again and fell asleep in his chair a few moments later.

When Lawrence woke up the next morning, she looked around, her eyes narrowed, thinking she was still asleep.

'Why am I here? Why am I sleeping in James' bed? And… where is he then?'

Still unsure about what was real and what wasn't, she rose, put on her boots and her jacket, and went out.

'Ok, it looks rather real to me… so that doesn't explain why I was sleeping in his bed.'

She saw him walking down the main deck, exchanging a few words of encouragement with the men who had refused to work the day before.

She decided to play him a trick and followed him as silently as she could, using the position of the sun to her advantage so that he wouldn't see her shadow.

When she saw no one was around, she touched his shoulder with the tip of her fingers. James startled at this unexpected touch and furtively grabbed her wrist and yanked her over so that she faced him, his chest touching hers. Lawrence, who wasn't expecting his reflexes to be so sharp, lost her balance and half fell on him.

'Lawrence!' James smiled, amused to see her feel so dizzy.

'My God, James, are you trying to kill me? Imagine if I had fallen over board!'

He shrugged.

'I would have jumped to rescue you of course…'

'Oh, aren't you sweet?' she gently mocked him, smiling back.

'Yes, I do reckon I am, indeed!' he laughed. 'How did you sleep by the way?' he said, giving her a mischievous grin.

Lawrence narrowed her eyes, biting her cheek before replying.

'So it wasn't a dream then… Why did I sleep in your bed?' she asked, embarrassment and incredulity rising crescendo.

James answered her, his voice low.

'You fell asleep, so it was either my bed or the table.'

'But… where did you sleep? You could have woken me up, instead of… oh Lord, did you carry me?' Her cheeks coloured instantly.

'Yes I did, like a blushing bride.'

'What?'

'James!' she smacked his forearm. 'Don't say such things…' 'What is going on with him? Why is he saying such ambiguous words, especially considering the situation?' She looked at his eyes and noticed they were shining with warmth. 'Why is he so joyful and open lately?'

James rolled his eyes, and warned her before continuing his tour:

'Be careful not to startle me too much, next time I might throw you overboard and I wouldn't be very pleased by taking a cold swim in this weather.' He pointed to the sky; indeed the wind was blowing rather fast.

'Right. Hum. Thank you anyway, for… last night; you really shouldn't have but… I'm really touched, thank you once again.' She bowed and returned quickly to her quarters to change her clothes and wash her face; this charged atmosphere was driving her mind crazy, she was afraid she might do something stupid, such as kissing him in front of everyone, or even giving a mere hug.

Around noon, Lawrence came to the crew's quarters to see how Mr. Harish's wound was healing; on her way, she heard men mention Norrington and the other wigmen; sensing something was up, she remained in the darkness and decided to eavesdrop. She wasn't disappointed by what she found out, the men were plotting against James! She didn't hear what they were planning to do, but that didn't sound good. Seizing her courage with both hands, she stepped out and faced them.

'May I ask what this is all about, gentlemen?'

'None of your concern' replied one of them in a threatening manner.

'Oh, but I do think it concerns me if what I heard is true… What exactly are you reproaching our Commodore of doing?'

'Like he hasn't told you yet!' sneered another.

'You do realise that Commodore Norrington is doing everything he can to accomplish this mission successfully as fast as he can? He isn't pleased either to sail this far away from home just to catch a pirate; but it is an order he must follow, no matter how he personally feels about it.' She looked at each of them right in the eyes, knowing how tiny she looked compared to their large built. 'He is just like you; we are all in this together and must do our best to finish it in the best way possible, without trouble of any kind. Do you think many captains of ships are as considerate as he is with their crew? I know for a fact that he is one of the rare exceptions, and one day you will look back with pride on the time you spent under his command, for he is a just and honest Captain.' She cleared her throat, her face still emotionless. 'That being said, I hope you will take my words into consideration. I wish you a good day.' She slightly bowed and went out, forgetting about why she had come here at first.

'Ship ahead!' shouted the man in the crow's nest. 'Sir, it's the Black Pearl! We've found them!'