Disclaimer:  All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Disney and the Pirates of the Carribean franchise.

The Other Side

It was the squawking of birds that had awoken him that morning. The bright rays of light shining in his face through the small circular window did not help either. One eye opened groggily before the other followed, dark eyes quickly adjusted and focused on the wooden ceiling of his cabin. A large yawn escaped his mouth followed by the stretching of his limbs.

This was when he first noticed something was wrong. His bed was rather cold and he distinctly remembered some form of warmth tucked to his side last night. A frown marred handsome features as his outstretched hand began to pat the space beside him only to find nothing. This caused the frown to deepen. This was something new. He was quite sure he did not go to bed alone last night. It wasn’t some rum induced hallucination, he wasn’t that intoxicated. So did that mean…?

Captain Jack Sparrow abruptly sat up in his bed, the trinkets in his hair clicking against one another in his jerk movement. His dark eyes quickly scanned his cabin, just to make sure he wasn’t mistaken in his assumption. It was empty, just as his bed was, and an unfamiliar feeling filled him. He felt almost…used? Wasn’t it supposed to be he who was to awaken first and creep out before the other opened their eyes? Yes, this was something new and he found it didn’t sit well with him one bit.

The captain of the Black Pearl tossed the thin covered from his form and exited his bed. He quickly gathered and put on his boots and jacket topping it with his trademark hat that was resting on the desk.

“Well let’s see…”

The crew was already upon the deck performing the various tasks assigned to them. They greeted them in their usual fashion while he responded in his famous flamboyant manner. His heart wasn’t into it at the moment though. He was on a mission to find a certain crew member.

“Gibbs!”

Gibbs glanced towards the Captain over his shoulder, temporarily turning his attention away from the task at hand.

”Aye, Captain?”

“Where is Anamaria?”

Gibbs quirked a brow but said nothing about the strange manner his captain was acting. After all he’d have to be a fool not to know when something was off after being around Jack for so long. Instead he jerked his chin towards the helm of the ship.

“She be steering the boat.”

Well he supposed that was a bit obvious. Whenever he was below, Anamaria tended to take charge of steering his beloved Pearl. He didn’t mind for if there was anyone he trusted his ship too, it was Anamaria. In surprisingly smooth strides for him, Jack made his way up to the helm already seeing the peak of Anamaria’s dark hair from the stairs. She didn’t acknowledge his presence at first. He could only surmise she was so intent on steering that she didn’t notice. She did jump though when he placed his hands on her shoulders from behind and gave a light squeeze. Her large brown eyes glanced up over her shoulder towards his face briefly meeting his eyes before diverting them back towards the see.

“Aye, what is it Jack?” She questioned shrugging her shoulder in an attempt to remove his hands.

“Cap-“

“Captain Jack.”

“Right. Ye know the strangest thing happened this morning. There I be lying in me extremely comfortable bed alone. When I was quite sure that was not how I went to bed. Ye wouldn’t happen to have any idea how this came about would ye love?” He moved from his position behind her to the side to have a better view of her face.

He expected her to get offensive, a slap in the face, or even too blush. What he didn’t expect was only the slight huff that escaped her lips and eye roll accompanying it.

“Unlike ye, Captain, I rather not be lazing about till the sun is high in the sky. What of it?”

“Anamaria -“

“Jack,” Again she cut him off, already sensing what was to follow her name, “Ye need not use flowery words with me. I understand there is no commitment, only fling material ye are. Savvy?”

It took him a moment to gather his words. A lot of first were occurring on this day and just when he believed he’d seen everything.

“Aye, well… carry on then love.”

She nodded in affirmation and continued her previous task. Jack removed his hands from her figure and took a step back, grateful she couldn’t see the confused expression on his features. Jack didn’t know whether to dance for joy at the freedom or feel offended that he was only ‘fling’ material as she so eloquently put it.

It was an odd feeling he didn’t understand nor had he ever had to deal with. Most women he became intimate with tended to get attached and wanted him to settle down with them. Everyone knew his first love was the sea and the Pearl though. He could never give them up. So while it delighted him that Anamaria wasn’t looking for anything more, he couldn’t help but feel a bit…rejected. How could she be treating this so casually! This was soon followed by even more outlandish thought…he wanted to prove her wrong.

The Captain of the Pearl turned to make leave and find some rum to help correct his train of thought. When he reached the steps, the call of his name caused him to turn around, swaying, to once more face the woman of the ship. There was a mischievous twinkle in her eye and a slight upturn of her lips.

“Perhaps ye be up for another romp sometime.”

There was that used feeling resurfacing. Is that how he sounded when he greeted the whores in Tortuga? Even so, he flashed his trademark grin.

“Do ye know who ye talking to love? I’m Captain Jack Sparrow.”

With that he continued his way down the steps, the grin diminishing with every step into a contemplative look. Those peculiar thoughts of his were very persistent. Yes, some rum was in order. This would not do.

Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of Disney and the Pirates of the Carribean franchise. 

Coming To Terms

He still did not understand why she wanted her own ship. Yes, he owed it to her, but he didn’t think being under his command was so terrible. Who wouldn’t want to be abroad the infamous Black Pearl under the Captain Jack Sparrow? Apparently, Anamaria didn’t by the looks of it.

Jack watched as she ordered her new crew about getting ready to separate from them and while part of him swelled in pride that she was so capable, the other part was filled with dread at the inevitably parting. Whether it was because he was losing his first mate or something more he didn’t care to mentally dwell on it.

They never talked about their…arrangement. He supposed that’s what it was called. It happened once then occurred time and time again whenever convenient though he promised himself he’d put a stop to it. It was all causing him to begin to think very un-Jack like thoughts. However every time she looked at him with those large brown eyes under long dark lashes and full lips that curled into that dark smirk…well he was a man after all, he’d have to be batty to resist it.

Now though he was beginning to notice things he shouldn’t have been taking notice too. Like the way she threw her head back and released unrestrained laughter, or the way she always slept with her mouth in a slight pout making him want to…Jack shook his head lightly to clear himself of unfamiliar territory. It was merely because he hadn’t been to port in a good while and she was the only female around, he rationalized.

Now that she was going on her own ship these ridiculous thoughts would vanish. He would admit he’d miss her though…as a crew member of course. She could measure up to the best of them and he knew she’d make a fine and formidable captain.

He noticed that she had vanished from his line of sight from the helm. So far gone in his thoughts he failed to notice that both her crew and his had gone below. He could hear them singing obnoxiously loud, more than likely drinking rum before their new friends sailed off for the first time under Anamaria. Jack made move to join them but was stopped by the soft steps of another. Glancing to his side, he found Anamaria standing not to far off from him looking out fondly over the Pearl. She turned her head towards him with a smile, genuinely happy.

”Thank you for the ship, Jack. I honestly didn’t think you’d come through.”

“Now I said I’d get you a new one, I keep my word. Besides you slapping me over it was getting rather old, not that I didn’t enjoy the kinky twist my dear.”

Anamaria rolled her eyes at his innuendo but said nothing in response, more than pacified by the fact she finally had her own ship. They settled in silence, enjoying the salty winds, blue seas, and setting sun. He watched her eyes bounce back and forth between her own ship and the Pearl, though hers was a bit smaller it was still a good ship if he did say so himself. It was quite an easy steal from the Royal Port, it was meant to be the Interceptor II, but under Anamaria it was now the Rojo Dama or Red Lady in English.

“The Pearl will miss you love,” he murmured.

“I will miss her too, she truly is one of the best,” she responded, the adoration ringing clear in her voice.

Jack watched her for a moment longer, the setting sun causing her silhouette to dark with only light outlining her form. When he found he may have been staring for a little too long, he diverted his gaze out towards the desk.

“The crew too will miss you Anamaria.”

Anamaria’s eyes brightened as she released a laugh, a sound that seemed to touch more than just his ears now. She shook her head and waved her hand as though to brush his words away. Then her eyes took on a mischievous look.

“It’s Captain now, Captain Anamaria,” she teased, “but in all seriousness Jack, I’m not dying or anything. I just got my own ship. Now let’s go join the crew before they drink all the rum.”

She turned on her heel ready to make leave but something possessed him to stop her. He slipped his hand around hers as nimble as a thief applying enough pressure to make her pause. She glanced back at him expectantly with an arched brown and for once Jack’s quick wit failed him. Maybe he should have had some more rum before now. What exactly did he want? Well rum and the Pearl were a given but was there nothing else?

“Why don’t you stay around the Pearl love? That’s more of an honor than captaining your own ship.”

Anamaria snatched her hand from him as though he had burned her. She appeared disgusted by him even uttering those words.

“What are you saying Jack?” she hissed, her eyes narrowing in her fury. “You, of all people, should know how it feels to be Captain, to have your own ship that you understand and understands you in turn, to feel the life beneath your hands as you steer her.”

The worst part of it all was that she was completely right. He did know better than anyone. How many times had he chased after the Pearl, his heart aching to be reunited with her and once again feel her under his hands? In a moment of seriousness, he sobered up choosing his next words carefully and playing them close to the chest.

“Anamaria…it won’t be the same without ye.”

He was almost surprised when her expression almost immediately melted into softer expression. Her lips curled into a fond smirk and she took a step towards him, a bit closer than he’d like, and placed a firm hand on his shoulder looking into his eyes.

“Jack, ya know you’re one of me greatest mates. It’s not like this be the last time we see each other.”

And while the words should’ve been reassuring, they weren’t. He didn’t like the way she touched him as though they were just mates. They weren’t just mates. What they had was something deeper. A deeper understanding of each other that almost rivaled that understanding they held of their own ships. A frown began to knit his brows as he was hit with all the feelings he had been pushing aside. Jack was fond of Anamaria, more than fond. It was more than his usual fleeting infatuation. It wasn’t because she was only the female around. It wasn’t because they had become sexual partners. It was because she was her. He almost wanted to curse himself out loud for allowing these feelings to penetrate. When did she become so close?

“Perhaps while you watched her sleeping mate,” whispered a voice that never seemed to leave him even after Davy Jones’s locker.

”Or when she dragged you to bed every time after you got utterly smashed,” injected yet another.

“Jack.”

Anamaria’s voice reached out interrupting whatever mental argument that was ensuing in his head. He focused back at his current situation and found much to his dismay after realizing his feelings Anamaria looked completely different in his eyes. Her hand had fallen from his shoulder back to her side and she was looking at him with a slight frown. When he said nothing to her inquiry, a scowl made its way to her lips.

“Well fine, be a baby then you daft man. You have got-“

“Anamaria,”

“What!?” She snapped.

He closed the gap between them even further to the point where Anamaria had to tilt her head all the way back to see him. Even though her irritation with him was strong, she couldn’t help the curiosity that filled her eyes. Jack flashed a grin, unpracticed and completely real before wrapping an arm around her waist and pulling her up into a searing kiss, completely different from the playful and lust-filled kisses from before. Anamaria weakly pushed against his chest in protest but he refused to let her go only reacting by placing his other hand behind her head tangling his fingers through her hair. After a few moments he finally released her lips, only parting slightly. He watched her through half-lidded lids as her closed-eyed expression. Slowly she opened her eyes and uncertainty stormed through them.

“What was that…?” she whispered clearly confused on how to handle to the situation.

“If you can’t figure it out, love, perhaps I should show you a bit more,” he murmured huskily and went in for the kill once more.

He’d never admit his feelings outloud, but he knew she knew him well enough to understand what he was trying to convey to her. When they part again she could reveal she didn’t have similar feelings for him, or she could confirm that she did but still walk away for her ship. Regardless, she was here now in his arms, his alone, and he’d enjoy it for every moment and not think about the impending future.