AN- Here's Chapter Seven! Thank you for all the feedback and I really appreciate it! Posted on Ao3 and on Tumblr. The profile names are in my bio.
With extreme difficulty, Ellie managed to reach the shore. A perplexed Lizzie had to half drag her as Ellie felt quite dead on her feet. She sat down on the beach trying to catch her breath as she was gasping quite pathetically while a concerned Lizzie began rubbing her back soothingly.
"Ellie? Ellie? What's the matter?" asked panic stricken Elizabeth looking at the gasping woman.
"Give…me…a few minutes" rasped out Ellie.
Ellie focused on her breath. She inhaled and exhaled deeply a couple of times concentrating on the lapping of the waves. She noticed Jack making his way towards her, concern written all over.
"You alright love?" he asked quietly.
"Yes..yes. Give me a moment." Ellie looked out at the sea, the Black Pearl out in the distance. Her erratic breathing subsided but she still felt dead tired.
"That's the second time I've had to watch that man sail away with my ship." voiced Jack, disappointment lacing his face.
They waited for a couple of minutes on the water's edge till Ellie felt alright. Elizabeth was burning with curiosity as to why Ellie felt so exhausted but decided against asking her. Hand in hand, the girls followed Jack.
"You were marooned on this island before, weren't you?" questioned Lizzie. "So, we can escape the same way you did then!"
Jack rounded on Lizzie. "To what point and purpose, young missy? The Black Pearl is gone, unless you have a rudder and a lot of sails hidden in that bodice…"
"Jack…" Ellie began warningly.
"Unlikely…Young Mr. Turner will be dead long before you can reach him." Jack walked away from them and began tapping on a coconut tree.
Ellie felt a foreboding sense of dread at this.
Lizzie did not give up. "But you're Captain Jack Sparrow! You vanished from under the eyes of seven agents of the East India Company! You sacked Nassau Port without even firing a shot! Are you the pirate I've read about or not?" Jack and Lizzie stared at each other. "How did you escape last time?" asked Lizzie quite firmly.
"Yes Jack. Not that I doubt your capabilities but that story with the turtles…" Ellie paused, trying to put it in words. "…isn't it a bit implausible?"
Jack looked at the two, hesitant to speak. "Last time…I was here a grand total of three days, all right? Last time…", he bent down and opened a trapdoor. "….the runners used this island as a cache." Jack went down into the dark and dusty cellar. "They came by and I was able to barter passage off. From the looks of things, they've long been out of business." Lizzie looked at Jack incredulously. Ellie was not surprised when she heard the clanking of bottles. "You probably have your bloody friend Norrington to thank for that." Jack emerged carrying three bottles of rum.
"So that's it then? That's the secret, grand adventure of the infamous Jack Sparrow!" Lizzie spat out, disappointed. "You spent three days, lying on a beach, drinking rum.
Jack shrugged it off. "Welcome to the Caribbean, love." He pressed a bottle into Lizzie's hands and gave a bottle to Ellie with a smirk.
Ellie took the bottle without question. Where's the harm in a little bit of rum? She grinned to herself.
We are devils
We're black sheep
Drunken singing echoed around the otherwise quiet atmosphere punctuated by the crackling of a bonfire. The singing became progressively out of pitch and tune as the singers became drunker. Ellie had long discarded her coat and boots and was now sitting near the bonfire, the wind blowing her now loose hair. She along with Jack and Lizzie were belting out this sea shanty at the top of their voices while taking an occasional gulp of rum. Elizabeth had hitched up her skirts and was drunkenly dancing along with Jack. After dancing for god knows how long, Ellie had decided to sit this out.
We're really bad eggs
Ellie quickly took a gulp of rum from her now almost empty bottle and belted out the song with the other two, laughing loudly. She felt extremely heady and exhilarated, partly due to the rum and partly due to the sense of freedom she was feeling at this moment.
Drink up, me hearties
Yo ho
Jack stumbled towards Ellie and pulled her up to her feet. He linked her arms with his and they began dancing and laughing.
Yo ho, yo ho
A pirate's life for me
They drunkenly belted the finale of the song. "I love this song!" Jack exclaimed quite gleefully, making Ellie let out a fit of giggles. Jack then linked Lizzie's arm and the trio twirled in a circle, more laughter following it.
"Really bad Eggs!" Jack exclaimed quite joyfully. He flopped down onto the sand, pulling Ellie and Lizzie down with him.
"When I get the Pearl back, I'm gonna teach it to the whole crew, and we'll sing it all the time!"
"Hear! Hear!" exclaimed Ellie, clinking her bottle with Jack's.
Elizabeth chimed in. "And you will be positively the most fearsome pirate in the Spanish Main!"
"Only the Spanish Main?" questioned Ellie, chugging down some rum. "Why not the entire ocean!" she joyfully exclaimed, throwing her arms out.
"Aye! The entire ocean! The entire world! Wherever we want to go, we go." Jack pointed out to the sea, the water glittering under starlight. He continued, "That's what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails. That's what a ship needs. But what a ship is…What the Black Pearl really is…is freedom."
Lizzie mirrored Ellie and leant against Jack's shoulder. "It must be really terrible for you to be trapped on this island."
"Oh,yes. But the company is…infinitely better than last time, and the…scenery has definitely improved."
Ellie let out a peal of laughter at Lizzie's outraged look.
"Mr. Sparrow! I'm not sure I had enough rum to allow that kind of talk."
"I know exactly what you mean, love.
Lizzie raised her bottle in a toast. "To freedom"
Jack and Ellie raised their bottles. Lizzie's eyes widened with surprise seeing Ellie's bottle almost empty. She glanced at Ellie. She did not look close to being that drunk as Jack but still looked a bit tipsy. The only outward signs were her flushed face and the carefree attitude she was displaying.
"To the Black Pearl" they toasted in unison and clinked their bottles.
Lizzie faked a sip and looked at the other two. Jack and Ellie drained the remaining rum in one gulp.
Dawn was just breaking when Ellie was shaken awake by a very excited Lizzie.
"I am awake Liz…" groaned Ellie, sitting up slowly and clutching her head. Drinking the whole bottle of rum after a long time was a bad idea. She blinked her eyes, ignored the headache and listened to what Lizzie had to say.
"What if we pile up all the boxes on one corner of the island and set fire to it. It can easily send out a massive signal."
Ellie sat up straighter, all traces of fatigue leaving her. She jumped to her feet and ruffled Lizzie's hair. "You absolute genius Lizzie! Marvellous! Come on! Let's get started before Jack wakes up. He's bound to throw a hissy fit." She saw Jack sprawled out not far, dead to the world.
"Goodness! Not so fast Ellie. Don't you have a headache? I saw the empty rum bottle by your side." questioned a slightly worried Elizabeth, half expecting Ellie to sway and collapse on the spot.
"Don't worry dear. I might or might not have a higher tolerance towards alcohol. I have a slight headache but hopefully it will go away soon." Ellie winked and smiled at Lizzie. "Shall we get started?"
The two girls managed to quickly pile up the barrels and boxes. They started a fire with little difficulty, helped by the sea breeze and the rum. The sun had fully risen when a corner of the island was set ablaze. Ellie felt a pang of guilt run through her when she saw the coconut trees on fire. Smoke was steadily rising up in massive plumes.
Ellie jumped up violently when she heard an explosion. "Careful now young lady!" she called out to Elizabeth. "That will be quite enough. The signal is an odd thousand feet high."
An anguished 'No' was heard. Ellie turned around to see Jack running up to them, a pained look on his face.
"What are you doing? You've burned all the food, the shade…the rum!" Jack looked absolutely horrified.
"Yes, the rum is gone Jack." Ellie deadpanned.
"Why is the rum gone?!" Jack turned towards Ellie. "Ellie I did not expect this…"
Elizabeth interjected, "One, because it is a vile drink that turns even the most respectable men into scoundrels. Two, that signal is over a thousand feet high. The entire Royal Navy is out looking for me. Do you think there is even the slightest chance they won't see it?" She glared at Jack.
Jack looked perturbed. "But why is the rum gone?!"
Elizabeth sat down on the sand. "Just wait, Captain Sparrow. You give it one hour, maybe two, keep a weather eye open, and you will see white sails on that horizon."
Jack looked absolutely infuriated. He took out his pistol wanting to shoot Elizabeth.
"Jack? Put that down now will you?" Ellie called out in warning. Jack scowled at Ellie, tucked his pistol and stormed off throwing a fit.
"He will be alright." Ellie sat down next to Lizzie and began to contemplate what on earth she would tell James, should he be the one to spot the signal.
It was their luck (or somewhat bad luck, thought Ellie) to be rescued by James. Jack had come running right back almost as soon as he left informing them that the Dauntless had arrived. Ellie and Jack collected their things and the bedraggled trio was escorted to the Dauntless.
Ellie started to pick on her nails, which was almost immediately prevented by Lizzie who took her hands in hers. Ellie was touched by this and squeezed her hands slightly in return.
"Don't worry Ellie. I will be by your side." Elizabeth smiled reassuringly at Ellie.
The row boat moved steadily and within no time they were being hauled up to the Dauntless.
They made it safely on board and Ellie let out a nervous breath. Elizabeth was swept up in a hug by Governor Swann, who looked extremely relieved to have his daughter safe and sound. James was standing a few steps away and Ellie caught his eye. She could only bear holding eye contact for a few seconds and quickly averted her gaze.
James was extremely relieved to see Eleanor. She seemed to be devoid of any injuries. Eleanor sensed him looking at her and they held eye contact for a few seconds before she averted her eyes which left James slightly disappointed. Apprehension and slight guilt were present in her beautiful blue eyes. She began wringing her hands, a nervous gesture noted James.
"We've got to save Will!" cried Elizabeth, snapping both James and Ellie out of their thoughts.
"No! You're safe now." Governor Swann responded. "We will return to Port Royal immediately, not go gallivanting after pirates!"
"Then we condemn him to death!" Ellie stated making Governor Swann glare at Ellie who firmly stood her ground.
Elizabeth noted this and stood right next to Ellie. Governor Swann sighed and stood next to James whose face was quite stony.. "The boy's fate is regrettable… but then, so was his decision to engage in piracy. You should have known better Eleanor!" He looked at Ellie once more who refused to look away.
"It was to rescue me! Ellie and Will. It was to prevent anything from happening to me!" beseeched Elizabeth, standing in front of Ellie quite protectively.
"If I may be so bold as to interject my professional opinion," Jack interrupted. "…the Pearl was listing near to scuppers after the battle. It's very unlikely she'd be able to make good time. Think about it." Jack addressed James. "The Black Pearl. The last real pirate threat in the Caribbean, mate. How can you pass that up?" Jack grinned.
"By remembering that I serve others, Mr. Sparrow, not only myself." James gritted out and turned away.
Elizabeth immediately began protesting but Ellie interrupted and addressed James directly.
"Commodore, I beg you. Please do this." Ellie followed James up the stairs. "You would be condemning an innocent lad to his death." Ellie directly pleaded to his morals. She definitely knew James would not abandon someone who needed help. He stopped in his tracks and looked at her. "Please." Ellie implored once more.
"Commodore, You cannot be serious…" Governor Swann asked incredulously, noticing James's resolved look.
"That's some admirable valour, Commodore!" Jack grinned. "I know. 'Clap him in irons', right?" Jack held out his arms.
James came down the stairs and walked towards Jack. "Mr. Sparrow…you will accompany these fine men to the helm and provide us with a bearing to Isla de Muerta." James looked at Ellie and Lizzie who looked relieved and grateful. "You'll then spend the rest of the voyage contemplating all possible meanings of the phrase 'silent as the grave'. Do I make myself clear?"
"Inescapably clear." Jack was then grabbed by Murtogg and Mullroy and dragged to the helm.
Ellie noticed James looking quite closely at Jack and then at her. James finally approached Ellie and asked her. "So you've had a merry jaunt, haven't you Eleanor?"
"Oh I would not exactly call it 'merry' Commodore Norrington." Ellie smiled at him, her nerves easing a bit when she noticed the barely there humour hidden in his tone.
AN- It is not as long as the previous chapters but hope you all enjoy reading this. Let me know what you all think about this chapter. Favourites, Follows and Comments are welcome.