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The Map	By : Boshomengro Category: Pirates of the Caribbean (All) > General Views: 13226 -:- Recommendations : 1 -:- Currently Reading : 3
Disclaimer: I do not own the Pirates of the Caribbean movie series, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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It was pitch black in the room and Nell could hear snoring

It was pitch black in the room and Nell could hear
snoring. She closed her eyes again,
Sister Able was always snoring. She
turned over and settled into the softness of the pillows. She frowned slightly; her pillows weren�t
usually this soft. In fact she only had
one pillow and it was flat and filled with straw. With a gasp she remembered she was no longer
in the convent and she was no longer on the Rose either.

She listened carefully as fear settled over her. She struggled to remember how she had got
here; she didn�t remember much past falling asleep at the Captain�s table. He must have taken her to her cabin. She blushed at the thought of him picking her
up. She was at least still clothed she
could feel that.

Another snore brought her head up again. Lady Clarence could snore like a man she
thought and lay back down, tiredness washing over her. She settled her head into the pillows a sigh
escaping her lips. She was just on the
border of sleep when an arm was thrown over her waist.

It startled her to think she�d been lying with the woman,
but she was too tired to get out of bed and climb up into her own bed and it
did feel comforting. Being this close to
her; she felt safe and secure. She
closed her eyes again and fell asleep quickly.

When Nell opened her eyes again sunlight was just beginning
to peep through the window, casting the cabin in an eerie glow. Nell was aware she was tucked back against
someone, and then she remembered waking up in the night beside Lady
Clarence. She closed her eyes, there was
an arm around her waist and she was pillowing her head on Lady�s Clarence�s
other arm. Nell was certain she would
not be amused when she woke to find her so close. And then it hit her; the smell.

The smell was not Lady Clarence; who was rose water, sweat
and salt. No, this smell was rum, sweat
and salt.

Her eyes widen impossibly as she looked down at the arm
draped across her stomach. It was bare
to the elbow and a very dark tanned colour with streaks of dirt ingrained into
the skin. A leather bracelet was wrapped
around the wrist, someone had branded what looked like a �P� into the flesh
above the thong and then above that there was a tattoo. It was a Sparrow in flight, the same image
that was on the ships flag. Her eyes
travelled up the arm to the rolled up off white shirt and up to his
shoulder. She was lying on and with
Captain Jack Sparrow. Horror filled
every pore as she realised where she was.
She went rigid and turned her head ever so slowly to see his head lying
on the pillow next to her. His eyes were
closed and his mouth was partly open.
She tried to raise her head and almost cried out when her hair was
caught on something. She rested her head
back and turned it the other waShe She
saw her braid had come loose and his hand was fisted into her hair, strands of
her hair wrapped around his fingers.

She tried to loosen her hair and was aware of his grip on
her stomach tightening.

�Scarlet?� he mumbled in his sleep and the hand in her hair
unclenched. However the hand on her
stomach flattened out over her hip and travelled upwards.

�Scarlet.� He mumbled again and Nell held her breath. Her hair was loose but his hand was creeping
higher and higher. She could feel his
breath stirring her face and when his hands stilled just under her ribcage she
breathed out in relief.

She inched her hand down and lifted his wrist, his hand
hanging limply.

�Ah Scarlet� just let me�� he grumbled and he turned over
onto his back his wrist wrenching from her hand and flying out over his head. Unfortunately there wasn�t enough bed left
for him to lie on and he fell off and onto the floor with a loud crash.

Nell sat upcklyckly and looked down at him sprawled on the
floor.

He was awake and looking extremely mystified about being on
the floor until he saw Nell peering down at him with nothing short of horror on
her face, horror and fear. He frowned
trying to remember why she was in his bed and then he remembered coming back to
go sleep. He had expected her to wake up
and go rushing to her own cabin but she�d been so fast asleep that even when he
shook her she�d merely mumbled anuggnuggled down. He remembered shrugging and climbing in with
her. He wasn�t about to sleep on the
floor or his chair for that matter and he was far too tired to carry her back
to his room. Plus he really didn�t think
he could cope with what her ladyship would have said had he gone waltzing in
carrying a sleeping nun in his arms.
Besides, he remembered with a grin, she�d felt good to hold and she had
kept him warm.

�Now really luv, there is no need to throw me out like
that. You weren�t complaining last
night.� Nell heard his words and blinked as they sank in.

She looked down at herself but she was still completely
dressed and she would know if he�d tried something, wouldn�t she?

�I beg your pardon?� she decided to hide behind sharpness.

�You� all snuggled in my bed when I got here.� His voice was
slurred slightly with sleep still. �Just as well I�m an honourable man
otherwise no end of Hail Mary�s would
be paving your way back into the convent.� He nodded and got to his feet trying
to straighten out his crumpled clothes.
He�d taken off his waistcoat and his straps but his shirt and britches
were crumpled from lying in them. He
gave up and crossed to slip his waistcoat back on.

�Honourable?� she squeaked �You could have woken me up.� She
got off the bed and shook out her habit which was by now a real mess. Her hair tumbled free from the last parts of
its braid. She ignored it as it fell
around her shoulders in a tangled mess.
She knuckled her eyes to get rid of the last remnants of sleep.

�That I tried.� He stated and gestured to his cabinet �Look
in there and you might find something a bit more cleaner�
I think.� He frowned and shook his head strapping his sword and its sheath
round his waist.

Nell was grateful she could change the habit and without
wasting any time crossed to the chest of drawers that was built into the far
wall. Shened ned the top drawer gingerly
not certain what she was going to find.

�You were so fast asleep a hurricane wouldn�t have woken
you. I gave up, pushed you over a bit
and got in with you.� He grinned at her and wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Nell glared at him, relieved that at least he hadn�t taken
advantage of her. Perhaps he wasn�t
quite as bad as he made out. Then she
remembered the name he�d muttered. He
must have a woman in a port somewhere that he loved. Scarle�d c�d called her.

In his sleep he�d thought she was Scarlet, hence the
wandering hand.

She turned away from him and began sorting through the
clothes and drew out a pair of black britches and an off white shirt. She didn�t know what to say to him so she
turned holding the clothes in front of her defensively.

He looked at her and shaking his head in laughter he walked
towards the door.

�Get yourself changed and go down to the Galley, one of the
crew will show you how to prepare the grub so that it can actually be eaten.�
He went out and then came straight back in, crossing to the table to pick up
his hat. He plopped it on his head and
walked back to the door.

�Thank you for last night.� He said cheerfully and went out
whistling.

Nell growled and threw her armful of clothes at the now
closed doors. Insufferable man! Well she�d certainly make sure she didn�t end
up asleep in his presence again.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Ten minutes later Nell stood in his cabin feeling half naked
in the britches and shirt. The britches were too big and long for her and she
even after she found a length of cloth, and tied it around her waist, she had
to roll the bottom of each leg up slightly.
The shirt was too long and she had to roll up the sleeves and tie the
ends around her waist. The shirt covered
her well enough as she did it up to her neck, it would have to do. She picked up heoss oss and slid it over her
head, and then picked up her other cross and prayer beads. It suddenly struck her that she hadn�t prayed
or done any of her morning rituals. She
waited for the feeling of guilt that would have her on her knees praying like
mad. But it never came; instead she felt
a strange sense of release. Smiling for
the first time in a long time she slid the beads back into her pocket without
guilt. She really wasn�t cut out to be a
nun.

Fee ver very nervous she made her way to the door that led
out onto deck. She stopped short at the
sight of Lady Clarence stood mopping the deck, grumbling under her breath and
still in her dress. It was somewhat
crumpled now and showed signs of dirt.

Nell didn�t fancy having to answer a lot of questions at her
absence last night. Nell didn�t answer
to anyone anymore least of all Lady Clarence.

A sense of freedom washed over her, which she didn�t
understand as she was in fact far from free, being the captive of a ship full
of pirates.

She headed to the galley and climbed down the s
cs
carefully. She saw a lad of no more than
thirteen stood there. He was even
dirtier than the others and he had ginger hair that stood up in a shock of
untidy tangles.

He looked up at her as she came down and grinned disarmingly
at her.

�Ello miss.�
He said and it was cheerful and friendly �Capt�n
wants me to show yer �ow to
cook likee sae said and winked at her before pointing to the pot belly stove
that sat in the corner.

�That�s the stove.� He said and Nell cast him a sharp glance
to see if he was laughing at her, but he had already moved onto the pile of
wood in the corner.

�That�s the wood pile.
We got more in the �old when you run out. You put it in that �ole there and shut the
door.� He looked around and stuck his hands into the pockets of his dirty
britches and chewed on his lower lip.

�We don�t eat much cept fish,
turtles and the like and I�ll show you what we do with those
t�night.� He smiled suddenly �Biscuits�� he stopped
when she held up her hand.

�What�s your name?� she asked him
and he blinked at her owlishly and Nell saw a bruise the size of a coin behind
his left ear. Or was it dirt�

�Jimmy.� He said and scratched his head violently.

Nell shuddered to think what might be living in that thatch
of hair. Come to think of it she�d seen
Jack scratch at his own hair quite a bit and she�d had her hair on his pillow
last night. The thought filled her with
horror. She�d have to comb through her
hair well and hope to goodness she hadn�t picked anything up. Her hand went to her hair as an itch started
close to her hairline.

She shuddernd fnd fought to get her mind off it.

�What kind of biscuits do you make?� she asked him and
watched with growing horror as he lifted up a lid to reveal a jar of flour.

She stepped forward and saw the flour literally moving in
the jar.

�Why is it moving?� she asked quietly, not certain shanteanted to know.

�Fings get in there.� He replied
happily �Naught you can do about it� cooking kills them and they don�t hurt you
none.� He looked up at her �Appens� with the Salt
Beef as well, sometimes it gets rancid if we�re out �ere too long, not much you
can do about it �cept scrap off the beasties and �ope for the best. Capt�n won�t keep �ard-tack� on
board, said he would kill any man that brought it on board. We got limes and apples as well and we can
get Turtles sometimes too. They taste
just great. But the Capt�n
likes his bread and biscuits� so �e �ad this little darlin�
put on board last summer. Can�t leave �er lit untended or �e�ll �aulkeel ya.� He moved to one side
shoving the jar into her hands.

�We used to �ave �ens on board, gave us eggs and
then when they stopped layin� we�d eat �em. But the rats got
out of �and and got into our other food.
So the Capt�n stopped getting� more and we ate
the last one we �ad. Rats still �ere of
course, along with the �roaches, but at least we get to eat the food afore they
do!� he laughed but stopped instantly when she shoved the jar back at him and
covering her mouth ran full tilt up the steps.

She�d eaten that bread last night, which would have been
made with that flour�. She�d eaten the stew which had held meat as well as
vegetables. She made it to the side of
the ship and lost what little contents she had in there.

She was dry heaving when she was aware of someone stood next
to her. She looked up and saw Jimmy
peering at her.

�I don�t fink you should be doin�
the cookin� some�ow.� He
remarked �I�ll tell the Capt�n.�

�Cooking?� she whispered �I�m never eating again either.�
She slumped down onto the deck misery filling her as she buried her head in her
knees.

Jimmy looked at her in pity and scratched his head again.

Nell heard footsteps and she thought Jimmy had gone away but
then she heard his voice.

�Ello Capt�n Sir.� He said cheerfully.

�What�s the problem?� asked Jack indicating Nell with a
flick of his wrist.

Jimmy giggled and shook his head.

�I don�t fink she�ll be cookin�
for us Capt�n.
Found it a bit �ard to deal with.�

�Why?� he asked as if it was the last mystery to be
discovered.

Nell struggled to her feet and wished she�d stayed down when
she saw Jack look over her clothes and arch an eyebrow; he turned to look at
Jimmy, his head going back slightly so he could look down his nose at the
boy. He circled his hand and indicated
Jimmy to explain.

�She found fings in the food a bit
�ard to deal with, and I don�t fink I should�ve
mentioned the rats or �roaches, nor the maggots come to fink of it. Sorry Cap�n.� He
giggled again and Nell groaned as recognition flooded Jack�s face along with a
wicked gleam in his eyes.

�You mean you didn�t know before now?� he asked in delight
�What do you think you were eating aboard the �Rose�?�

The words sank into Nell�s abused brain and she screwed her
face up in horror. Another wave of
nausea had her turning to heave over the railings again. She coughed and choked as he roared with
laughter behind her. He indicated to
Jimmy to clear off and came to stand beside her.

�Think yourself lucky you chohe rhe right side of the ship
to be sick on.� He remarked calmly as he looked at her pale face. �Else you�d
be mopping it up now.�

�You do know I�m never eating again.� She whispered ignoring
his words as she clutched at her stomach.

�Aye you will.� He said confidently �It�s amazing just what
a body will do when it doesn�t have a choice.�

�NO, I will never eat again.� She denied,
certain that she wouldn�t touch anything while they were on board.

�Well it�s going to be a long four days for you.� He said
slowly and held out four fingers in front of her face. He wiggled them for emphasis.

�I�ve gone longer.� She said feeling a small amount of
relief to hear it was only four days to Tortuga where Port
Royal had been seven.

�Really?� he asked in genuine interest.

�I fasted for seven days once.� She shuddered as she
remembered.

�Why?�

�I�d been caught singing in my room. I was ten.� She shrugged �I was ready to eat
the bed covers but I didn�t.� she looked at him and saw something in his eyes
which he hid quickly and disturbed her greatly.
She had seen compassion and that just didn�t fit her idea of how pirates
were.

�Well we do have apples that are still relatively maggot
free.� He said with his usual flair. �You can manage that can�t you?�

She couldn�t help herself, she smiled at him. Not a half smile but a real one that felt
good and lifted her spirits.

�I can even do apples with maggots
in.� she said.

�Ah!� he stood up and slung his arm around her shoulder �But
which would you rather find; a whole maggot or half a maggot.�

Nell, for once didn�t try and move away, she�d seen him put
his arm around most of the crew at one point or other and she found that it
didn�t disturb her the way it had.

�A whole one.� She answered him
quickly. �Because if I found half a maggot I�d have eaten the
other half.� She laughed

He laughed and stepped forward taking her with him.

�Now tell me this, have you heard the expression �the devil
makes work for idle hands?� he asked and before she could answer he pointed to
a tub and some buckets with a pile of filthy looking rags beside it. �That will
stop the devil getting hold of your little hands.� He said and looked down at
her.

Nell snorted and stepped away from him.

�I would imagine then, that at some point in your life you
were very lazy.� She spoke without thinking.
Relief swept through her when he merely laughed.

�Not so staid now your not hiding behind your habit are you Sister Nell?� he said and moved to walk past her, he
suddenly stopped to look over his shoulder at her �You�re rather sharp tongued
when you forget where you are.�

He carried on and Nell felt her face flush as she sank down
beside the tub. She realised that had
not only had she felt comfortable with him but comfortable enough to answer him
back.

She shrugged and kicked at the pile of clothes to make sure nothing
living would come scurrying out.

�Fill yer bucket from t�sea!� came a shout and when she looked up she saw Hock
pointing to the bucket beside her.

She nodded and called her thanks to him. She looked over at where Lady Clarence was
still swabbing the same spot. She looked
strange with one hand on the mop and her other hand curled around the parasol
that was protecting her head.

She crossed over to her taking the bucket with her, her lip
firmly between her teeth.

Lady Clarence looked at her and stopped mopping.

�Are you fine?� Nell asked.

�As fine as can be
expected under such vile conditions, are you?� she asked her eyes travelling
over the clothes she was wearing.

She arched an eyebrow at Nell who blushed crimson at the
appraising look in her eyes.

�No time for chit-chat ladies, this aign�t
an outin� in the park.�

Nell turned to see Hock eyeing them with scorn. Nell shrugged at Lady Clarence and moved away
to get on with the washing. Nothing had
been said by either of them but Nell realised that Lady Clarence had missed her
the night before and she wasn�t na�ve.
She knew Lady Clarence thought she�d been forced to do a lot more than
just change out of her habit.

She stopped and turned back to look at her but she had
turned her back on Nell and was idly pushing the mop again.

She would have to explain to her later. Nell stopped in mid thought, suddenly aware
that there was no reason on earth that she should have to explain anything to
Lady Clarence. It was none of her
business. Nell couldn�t help grin at the
liberating feeling of not having to answer to someone.

She looked around her and her eyes fell on Jack stood at the
wheel, one hand holding the spoke the other resting on the handle of his pistol
at his hip. His head moved in time to some tune only he heard as he gazed out
over the sea. She didn�t even have to
answer to him, not really. He may be
holding her against her will, but she was her own person. For the first time in her entire life she was
answerable to only herself and it felt liberating. It felt good.

With a heart lighter than it had been in a long time she
carried on to the rail clutching the bucket.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Nell had the washing finished and hung over the rails by
mid-morning. She was soaking wet with
sweat and feeling muscles she didn�t know she possessed.

She turned to see two of the crew members watching her. She frowned as she ran a hand over the back
of her neck. They whispered to each
other and before she knew it they had a bucket of water each between them and
one of them emptied his bucket over her head.

She screamed as the cold sea water covered her. They laughed raucously and stepped back to
stare at her, wide grins on their faces.
She instinctively turned from them and got the second bucket thrown over
her, drenching her back and legs. She
turned, anger boiling up as she glared at them.

�What the devil do you think you�re playing at?� she
demanded angrily.

�Cooling you off missy!� they shouted, drawing a crowd of
pirates around her.

Nell looked down at herself and crossed her arms quickly to
cover her breasts, aware the wet water had made her shirt not only see-through
but stuck to her like a second skin.
Colour flooded her face as the anger was quickly replaced by fear and
humiliation.

She heard several ribald remarks and it turned her blood to
ice. What would they do?

�What�s going on!�
came a shout and she saw Hock pushing his way through the circle of men, he
took one look at Nell who was shivering and scared and he stood in front of
her, his back to her.

�Who did this?� he bellowed at them. All the pirates took a quick step back
leaving the two men still holding the buckets.

�You! Benjamin, Graves, explain yerselves.�

�She looked �ot, we thought we�d �elp and cool �er off.� One of
them leered, and smiled at Hock �She liked it, didn�t ya
girl?�

�As much as you�ll enjoy being locked in the brig I take
it?� demanded Hock,

Their eyes went wide and they backed up with their hands
raised.

�We didn�t mean no �arm.� One of them spoke again.

�Capt�n will decide that!� Hock
said coldly �Get up there now!�

The two men walked away shooting Nell angry glares.

Hock turned and looked down at Nell.

�Best be gettin�
yerself dried up.� He said and Nell nodded quickly at
him.

�Thank you.� She said quietly and hurried past him
thankfully.

�STOP!� he called loudly to her.

She stopped and looked over her shoulder at him, her eyes
still wide with fear.

�What�� he came to her and took her shoulder roughly in his
hands. He pushed her till her back was
facing him. She struggled instinctively
but his grip on her shoulders kept her in one place.

�Get to the Capt�n�s cabin and
stay there.� He said suddenly and pushed her forwards before turning to make
his way up to the Quarterdeck.

Nell did as he told her if only to get some dry
clothes. She hurried into his cabin,
aware of the leering stares she was getting but trying desperately to ignore
them. She went down the narrow corridor
and into his cabin, shutting thor bor behind her. She crossed to his chest of drawers and
riffled through for more clothes.

Her earlier feeling good mood disappearing under a blanket
of doom that settled over her.

She began to undo the ties on the shirt when the door opened
and Jack came striding through. He
looked around him spotted her and shut the door behind him.

�There you are.� He stated calmly and inclined his head to
one side to watch her.

Her hands stilled on the ties and she quickly crossed her
arms. Colour filling her face once more
as she tried to keep herself covered.
But he didn�t seem in the least bit interested as he swayed on the spot.

�My sincere and profuse apologies on the way my crew just
treated you.� He rolled his eyes in
exasperation, his hands dancing gracefully. �They will be punished
accordingly.�

�How?� asked Nell shifting from foot to foot. She was beginning to shiver again and he
noticed straight away.

�Denied rations for two days� please don�t stand and shiver
on my account, go ahead and change.� He waved his hand at her, his eyes
sparkling.

Nell�s eyes widened as she glared at him.

�With you in here?� she demanded, she had never undressed in
front of anyone, not even the other nuns as she had her own cell in the
convent.

�Well you see there�s something I need to discuss with you
and now is as good a time as any.� He explained mockingly making it clear he
wouldn�t be leaving any time soon.

�Turn around them!� she demanded and circled her finger at
him.

�I find myself unable to acquiesce to your request, luv.� He
said softly �My first rule of survival, never turn your
back to someone who would harm you as soon as look at you.� He shrugged his
face perfectly straight but his eyes gleamed.

�It�s highly unlikely that I would be able to hurt you even
if your back was turned.� She snapped �I�m unarmed and a good deal weaker than
you, considering I have never even picked up a sword and you know how to fight
with one.�

�Tis true.� He admitted �But I
still can not break my own rules. I will
sit over here with my eyes closed.� he crossed to the desk and sat so he was
sideways from her, he gave her a theatrical wink and closed his eyes tightly.

Nell stared at him in disbelief shaking her head.

�You expect me to believe you�ll keep your eyes closed.�

He turned his head and opening his eyes looked directly at
her.

�You expect me to peep at you?� he questioned her, his words
slurring htlyhtly �If it were her ladyship stood here I have to confess to the
urge to peep, but you�re not her, so�� he shrugged his shoulders �I can assure
you my eyes will remain closed.� He closed his eyes again and Nell
blinked.

He had just insulted her and put her down quite
obviously. He had told her in not so
many words that he found her completely unattractive and quite obviously
lacking as a woman compared to Lady Clarence.
Which, she had to admit was nothing but the truth, even though it did
sting.

Nell let the dry clothes drop to the floor with a sigh; she
should be glad that he didn�t find her attractive. So why then did it sting so to hear it? She tired to tell herself it was because no
woman liked to be viewed as unattractive no matter how true it may be. She couldn�t think of any other reason
anyway.

She shrugged and after one quick glance at his closed eyes
and bored expression she slid the ties undone and let it drop away from her.

Nell reached for the clean dry shirt and a piece of cloth
that would do to drrselrself on, unaware that closed eyes opened fractionally
and stayed that way.

�Hock tells me something interesting.� he said, careful to
keep any inflection out of his voice that would give away the fact he was now
admiring her full breasts. She drew a
cloth up and began to hastily dry herself, turning sideways from him but not
trusting him enough to turn her back. He
could feel himself stirring as he watched the cloth. He didn�t think he�d ever wanted to be a
cloth quite so much as he did now.

Shew oew on another one of his shirts and it crossed his
mind that he�d have to get the lass some clothes of her own. He watched; his breath catching slightly as
she drew the britches down her legs. He shifted slightly hoping she wouldn�t see,
but she wasn�t looking at him as she began to dry herself with the cloth. He watched as the cloth travelled over her
lower body and legs at speed as she hastily tried to dry her skin. He almost licked his lips, but just stopped
himself in time. He watched as the cloth
fell to the floor and he could see her properly. Slim waist, but not as tiny as some he�d seen. Hips that flared outwards to legs that while
were short were well proportioned. An
image of those legs wrapped around him drew another shift from him. He watched
as she slid her feet into the dry pair of breeches and up over her legs.

He�d been dishonest with her twice; he�d had no inion ion of
keeping his eyes shut and he was of the personal opinion that she was far more
attractive than Lady Clarence. He hadn�t
thought so when they�d first arrived.
He�d actually been quite taken with the well to do lady and had even
dallied briefly with the idea of seducing her, but then she�d opened her mouth
and his opinion of her went down hill as did his attraction to her.

He found it interesting though, that one carefully worded
put down would be enough to have Nell submitting to undressing in front of
him. She was obviously quite unaware of
her attractiveness, but she was also quite unaware of the way men ticked; she
obviously thought that men cared about that sort of thing. Which was certainly true if
a man was inclined to take a wife.
But most men, or at least the type of men she�d come across in Tortuga,
were only after release and would take it wherever they found it, despite the
outer packing. That would leave her not
only vulnerable but in some considerable danger if she were to leave at Tortuga. He decided then and there that he wouldn�t be
letting her go there even if he had to tie her to the mast to prevent her from
leaving. He would take her back to Port
Royal with her ladyship and leave her there.

�What did he say?� She asked. And it took him a moment to remember what she
was referring to.

�Hock?� he asked, pleased his voice wasn�t husky with the
desire racing through him. He was almost
relieved to see her slip on a pair of dry breeches. He watched as her fingers fumbled with the
fastenings before he closed his eyes fully, storing away that image for
later. He would need it if he was to get
any sleep that night.

When had he turned into such a lecher? An amused voice in the back of his mind told
him he�d never been any different. And,
in his defence, it had been six weeks since he�d visited Tortuga
and all it offered a man. And that made
him practically a saint, he thought smugly, especially with two females on board.

�I�m done.� She finally said looking across at his closed
eyes.

�Any longer and I�d have been undone.� He muttered under his
breath before making a big show of opening his eyes and blinking against the
sudden light.

�Mister Hock saw something remarkably interesting upon your
back.�

�My scars you mean?� she frowned at him.

�Mister Hock was under the impression that it was more than
just scars. I�d like to take a look
myself.� He was stood up and he crossed to her quickly. Shmpedmped back and he held his hands aloft
in a placating gesture.

�I�m not asking to ravish you luv, just peek at your back.�
He grinned wickedly, wondering how long he could play to her low self-esteem.

�To what purpose?� semanemanded �They are just scars, do
they hold some sort of morbid fascination to you?� She eyed him wearily.

�Aye, let�s just say they do.� He conceded cheerfully �Now
trust me.� He motioned with his hands to turn around.

�Trust you?� she blinked at him as if he�d just asked her to
walk on water.

�Aye, trust me. Have
I done anything so far to make you think you can�t trust me?� he asked her
placing his palms together and batting his eyelashes at her. He just hoped she hadn�t seen him peeping
earlier.

�Well no� apart from taking me in the first place.� she
frowned and hesitantly turned looking back over her shoulder.

�Well, it�s what I
do. I am after all a Pirate!� he offered
by way of an explanation as he held his arms wide.

He stepped forward and watched as her fingers began to pull
lacings undone again.

He had to literally keep his hands out wide to stop himself from helping her to remove it completely.

She pulled the shirt up at the back and he got a tantalising
view of the underside of her breast. He
nearly groaned, but he knew she was watching him over her shoulder. He smiled at her and reaching forward, kept his
right hand flexed out where she could see it, he used his left to edge the
shirt up to her neck. He lowered his
eyes from hers and down her back.

His eyes widened impossible as he looked at her. His mouth opened and he literally took a step
back from her, all thoughts of desire wiped from his mind. He let go of the shirt and it fell back down,
covering her.

She covered herself and turned to him angry at the look of
shook on his face.

�I�m quite sure they�re not so horrific that they make you
ill.� She spat refusing to look at him; for some reason she felt tears fill her
eyes and she wasn�t even sure why.

�Scars?� he looked at her and in that one moment he knew she
had no idea what had been done to her.
�Scars!� she spat and moved to push past
him to get to the door. He gripped her
upper arm to stop her passing him.

�It�s not scars upon your back darlin�.�
He said and she could hear the shock in his voice still, his eyes were
strangely vacant and she got the feeling he was far away in his mind thinking.

�What?� she frowned at him and pulled away, the movement
brought him back and he grinned down at her with delight.

�May I be so bold as to request another view of your
enchanting back?� he asked her dramatically and stepped back slightly giving
her space. He had recovered himself and
his reaction to her back.

�No.� she said and once again tried to get to the door. She had a strange feeling that she should get
as far away from him as possible and as quickly as she could.

�Not quite the reply I was looking for, but never mind.� He
shrugged casually and took her shoulders firmly and turned her around wrapping
his arms around her keeping her arms pinned to her sides.

He moved so fast Nell didn�t have time to react till she was
securely pinned back against him.

He leant his chin on hhoulhoulder and pressed his mouth to
her ear.

�Listen darlin�. I think I may have found the answers to a few
questions that have of recent times been unanswerable.� He whispered. �Both to myself and you.�

Nell felt his warm breath on her ear and shivered. It was a reaction that took her completely by
surprise. The feel of his warm strong
arms around her and his mouth close to her ear suddenly seemed to make thinking
hard. And it wasn�t unpleasant, it
actually made her feel� good.

�What are you doing?� she gasped and he chuckled softly, his
lips just beneath her ear. She shivered
again and tried to move away from him.

�ANo mNo moving till
you hear me out luv.� He whispered, letting his lips graze her ear. He had felt her instant reaction to him and
it had pleased him immensely. It proved
one thing; that while Nell may have been exposed to a convent for most of her
formative life she was still a woman under the layers of repression. And while her brain had absolutely no idea
why she was reacting this way, her body did.
And that was all that interested him.
Well, that and what lay upon her back.

�Please�just let me go.� She all but whined at him.

�SSH!� he pressed his lips to her flesh in a blatant kiss
and let his tongue snake out to taste the skin under her ear. She tasted like salt, sweat and something he
couldn�t define but made him want more.
But there were now far more important things at stake than getting a
kick out of her. He drew his head away
from her slightly but didn�t let her go; if he did all he�d get would be a
slap. Choosing his words carefully, he
unbalanced her.

�I have to tell you luv, the marks on your back are no scars
from a riding accident but are in fact Tattoos.�

Nell stilled in his arms, his words registering but not
making sense.

�What? Tattoos? Are you
drunk?� she demanded, but some of the fire had gone from her voice leaving
confusion instead.

He laughed and let his hands slide up her arms still holding
her tightly against him.

�Now while that�s a fine idea, it�s not applicable now.� He
said softly �I think that your guardian mislead you slightly as to what the
good surgeon was doing.�

�You lie.� She said shakily.

�I have been known to stretch the truth.� He said casually
�But not this time.� He caught her
wrists and turned her round to face him, careful not to let her go.

He looked into her face, she was as white as a sheet and her
eyes were big in her face. And for a few moments he felt a twinge of guilt, but
he quickly shrugged it aside, after all it wasn�t him that placed the tattoo on
her back.

�Look for yourself.� He said and turned her sideways and
indicated her to look over her shoulder in the mirror that rested on the
cabinet against the wall. He let go of
her wrists, careful to keep one eye on them just in case they got any ideas of
flying at his cheek.

But Nell was too stunned by his words to think of slapping
him. She looked over her shoulder and could see her back reflected; she looked
back at him and frowned.

He held his hands up high and moved slowly to stand beside
her. He reached forward and began to
draw her shirt up her back slowly. Nell
felt that telltale shiver run down her spine as his fingers brushed over her
skin. But what she saw in the mirror
dampened down any feelings in her. Her
back was covered in what looked like strange blue lines and writing.

�But I�� she stopped.
�But I�� she tried again and ground to a halt, her eyes were huge now
and her brain seemed to have halted all higher functions. In fact she didn�t even breathe as she stared
at it. The whole world seemed to grind
to a halt, even time seemed suspended around her. Everything else in the room, even Jack seemed
to shrink to nothing.

Jack could easily read her reaction and saying she was in
shock would be putting it mildly. He
placed his hand firmly on her middle back and watched satisfied as she took a
deep breath and her eyes lost the blankness that had entered them.

�What is it?� she demanded, unable to drag her eyes away
from the mess on her back.

�It�s a mix between instructions and a map.� He said honestly
and let go of her shirt. It fell down
obscuring her vision of the map but he didn�t remove his hand from her back
under the shirt.

She moved away from him to stagger to one of the chairs and
he let her go.

�Mister Hock saw it.� It sounded stupid even to her ears but
she couldn�t think of anything else to say.

�He could see the dark lines under your wet shirt and
thought it odd.� He said as he swayed his way over to sit in his chair. He put
his booted feet up onto the desk and eyed her as he reached for his bottle of
rum.

�Well we can safely say that is what your guardian is so
anxious to acquire again.� He grinned at her but Nell wasn�t seeing his face,
she was lost in memories.

�He told me that I had taken all the skin off my back. He said it would take months to correct. I had to lie on my back and�.� She leant
forward and covered her face with her hands; her elbows resting on his desk, as
anger started to filter through her numb mind make her shake.

He widened his eyes, there was no way he was prepared for
her to loose it.

�Here.� He pushed his bottle of rum towards her �It will
ease the shock.� His voice took on its usual drunken slur.

Nell looked up at the bottle and shook her head.

She reconsidered, nothing could be worse than the
overwhelming thoughts running around her brain.

She picked the bottle up and took a swig. It hit her like fire and she immediately
sprayed it back out of her mouth, all over his table and all over him.

He jerked backwards, but not before getting a face full of
rum.

�That is disgusting!� she cried out.

Jack looked at her in disgust as he wiped his face with his
sleeve.

�No luv; spitting it all over me is disgusting, spitting it
over my table is disgusting, and wasting it is bloody sacrilege.� He added and
took his bottle back before she tried it again.

Nell shrugged apologetically at him.

�Sorry, didn�t mean to spit over you.� She said quietly.

He gave her a disarming grin and shrugged right back, his
hands circling as he held the bottle.

�Well, makes a change from being slapped.� He said as he
inclined his head slightly, his grin faded �Not that I am encouraging you to
slap me!�

Nell bit her lip, her mind already back on his discovery.

�So if it is a map, what is it a map of and why is it on my
back?� she asked him suddenly.

�Let me have another look.� He said and slapped the bottle
down. He stood up and crossed to loom
over her.

Nell shook her head doubtfully at him. He smiled charmingly at her and held his
hands innocently before placing them together.

She sighed and rolling her eyes leant forward over his desk.

He licked his lips and just resisted the urge to rub his
hands together.

He took the edge of her shirt and lifted it up, all his
attention on her back.

He peered at it and squinted at it, getting so close at one
point she could feel his breath on her skin.

�Well?� she finally demanded getting cold and uncomfortable,
not to mention how vulnerable she felt with him stood behind her and her back
on display.

�Sit up Nell.� He
said quietly and let go of her shirt. He
had known the instant he clapped eyes on it what it was, but he had played foime,ime, working out exactly what he would tell her and what he wouldn�t tell her.

�Why did he do that?
What is it a map of?� she asked him interrupting his thoughts.

Jack regarded his rum for a moment or two and sat back down.

�Before James
Beaumont turned Privateer, before he was knighted for services rendered, he was
an ordinary pirate. He had a small ship,
and a fairly decent crew, the ship was called the Dormant.�

Nell paled and closed her eyes as it began to sink in he was
telling the truth.

�I take it you were brought across on the Dormant.� He said
and she nodded.

�Well, he wasn�t just friendly with the Captain, he was the
Captain, of course by the time he came for you he had already turned
Privateer.� He took a swig of his rum and then continued, his hands dancing as
he spoke, his eyes not leaving her face.

�Tale has it that about fifteen years ago, the Dormant had a
run in with a Spanish ship called the Tresorta. The
Dormant won and they plundered the ship and found a treasure so great they need
never pillage again. Problem being that
the Tresorta and all it�s wealth was on it�s way to
the British Crown.� His hands danced gracefully as he spoke.

�Now it�s not hard to understand but neither side was at all
impressed with loosing said fortune.
Ships were sent by both sides to regain the treasure. The Dormant decided to lie low, which was a
very wise move considering half if not all the British and Spanish fleet was in
these very waters, so they hid the treasure somewhere.� He took another swig of
rum

�Beaumont,
crafty, devious devil that he was, took himself to England
and volunteered his services on finding the treasure, creating a smoke screen
so to speak. He turned Privateer and was
busy being a nuisance for about four years, being relatively protected by the
navy and thus making sure he was never captured by any other pirate and made to
give up the treasures resting place.� He kept his eyes on her face as he spoke.

�Well, to be certain a few pirate captains got a bit fed up
with his treachery and decided to put a stop to it by banding against him,
thereby capturing him and obtaining the information needed to liberate said
fortune. Unfortunately not everyone was
listening when orders were given and one ship managed to sink the Dormant with
all hands lost. Of course with the
death, or supposed death of Beaumont, and his crew, the knowledge of where the
treasure was kept had been lost. Several
times the treasure has been searched for but has never been found.� He stopped
and his hands hung in the air, fingers flexed as if ready to start gesturing
again.

Nell struggled with this information as he talked her own
mind racing ahead of him this time.
�So you think he survived and had the
map tattooed onto my back.� She said and set her hands on his table. It was cluttered with maps, parchment and all
sorts of other things that were still sprayed with droplets of rum. She reached out and picked up a ball shaped
object and studied it without seeing it.
Her mind busy on everything that had been hurled at
her.

�I think when you fell from the horse he saw an opportunity
and took it. A paper copy of a map can
get lost, destroyed, misplaced. But a
person and one under his complete control?� he shrugged and reached forward to
take the ball from her hands.

�That�s a gunpowder ball.� He offered and put into his desk.

Nell nodded not registering his words. She reached forward and picked up his
compass.

�So you think he staged his own death so that he was the
only one who knew where the treasure was, thus keeping it to himself.� She
snapped the compass open and shut her eyes staring at it as her mind whirled.

�That�s about it.� Jack nodded �Now please don�t make me tie
your hands together.� he sighed and reached forward to rescue his compass.

Nell looked up at him and frowned not paying any attention
to his threat.

�However, he didn�t imagine you hightailing it out of the
convent. Well, now we are aware of why
that merchant ship was coming towards us.
I am certain that the good guardian was on that ship and intent on
reclaiming his lost ward.� He said and put his compass into his pocket.

�But how would he know where I was? How would he know I was here?� she asked,
struggling now, it was starting to get a bit too hard to believe. Too much had happened and her brain
threatened to shut down.

�Well, one thing you weren�t exactly secret about being a
nun. You boarded the ship as one, he
probably thought you�d try and go back to the one place you knew about; Port
Royal. It wouldn�t take a
genius to ask around, learn which ship you boarded and take one of his own and
come after you. The ship probably picked
up the sailors from the �Rose�; they would have told him everything he needed
to know.�

�But you said he had died, or at least everyone thought he
had.� She frowned trying to work it through in her mind �How would he get away
with that in England? He was a well known man.�

�Probably concocted some story about being the only
survivor, I have no idea how he wangled that one, but I will be sure to ask him
when we meet.�

Nell�s eyes widened and she gasped.

�You aren�t going to give me back to him are you?� she asked
fear coursing through her.

�You are jesting.� He replied blandly �On your back darlin� is the road to my fortune. I�m not letting you go anywhere.�

Nell was slightly relieved at not being handed back to Beaumont
but disturbed to think he would keep hold of her.

�Can�t you just make a copy of it and let me go.�

�No.� he shook his head and the beads clanked together. �If
I loose the map what would I do then?
And if he got hold of you before I found the treasure?� he held his
hands wide, palms towards her and Nell absentmindedly realised that on his
right hand it wasn�t rings he wore but some sort of contraption strapped to his
wrist.

�Surely he would know where it was without the map.� She
frownedilliilling to think about what he would do to her should he ever get
hold of her again.

�He probably knows roughly, but it was ten years ago and
from looking at the tattoo it�s not an island that can be found easily.�

Nell bit her lip and covered her face with her hands. She had had enough. Her life had gone from incredibly boring to
almost hysterical in the space of two days and she wasn�t sure how much she
could handle without turning into a carbon copy of the mad pirate in front of
her.

�It�s nott bat bad luv.
Think of all the quality time we�ll spend together.� He didn�t want a
flood of tears. He could handle angry
women, he could handle angry men, he could even handle a whole line of naval
officers and a hangman�s noose, but he couldn�t handle tears. At least not from her and
not now.

Ordinarily if a woman got tearful on him he merely beat a
hasty retreat without blinking an eyelid.
But if she started to cry? He knew he couldn�t retreat, there wasn�t
anywhere he could go, and for some unknown reason, he just didn�t want to see
her cry.

She looked up at him and he was pleased to see not tears but
anger in her eyes.

�Kneeling for five hours at a time praying seems more
appealing than spending any longer here.� She hissed her anger at what had been
done to her at him.

His hand clasped over his heart and he pouted at her.

�You wound me.� He grinned at her.

�You have no heart.� She replied �No heart and no
conscience.�

�Perhaps not.� He seemed to think
about it before shrugging �But the fact remains that you have to get used to
being aboard the Pearl because you
aren�t going anywhere else.�

�And what of Lady Clarence?� for the first time her thoughts
included the other woman.

�We�ll drop anchor at a nice secluded private island and
wait it out for a few days and then we�ll sneak back to Port Royal,
drop her off and sail off undetected.
Her ladyship and whatever her husband is called with be united again and
live happily ever after. We�ll be free
of the constant whinge that comes forth from said woman, leaving me free to
discover the treasure with the aid of your enchanting back. Robert�s your uncle and Fanny�s your aunt!�
he grinned happily at her his hands in a gesture of appeal. He looked so innocent but Nell could see the
gleam in his eyes and she knew he was hatching a plan in that devious mind of
his. It worried her.

�And if I refuse?� She said quietly and held her breath.

He looked at her sadly and then grinned widely, ever the
actor, ever the intelligent fool.

�Unfortunately that�s not one of the two options open to
you.� His head moving in that weird circular motion that was
all his own.

�And just what are the two options?� she inquired angrily,
her nerves at breaking point.

�Give in gracefully and you shall be a guest of my ship,
resist me and you shall remain locked in your cabin as my prisoner for however
long it takes.� He swung his feet to the floor and leaned forward over the desk
�Will you acquiesce to taking the first course of action?� he hesitated for
just the right time and added quietly �Please?�

Nell knew he meant exactly what he said and to be perfectly
honest she preferred her chances better with Captain Jack Sparrow and his
motley crew than if Beaumont were
to get his hands on her.

�I acquiesce.� she finally said and sighed.

He smiled pleased with her response.

�Good. Then we have
an accord.� He held out his hand to shake on the deal.

She reached out and placed her hand in his slender one. He gripped her hand tightly and shook
it. She looked up at him, meeting his
eyes. Her fingers curled around his hand
and it suddenly became more than just a handshake.

�I will protect you from him.� He said quietly.

Nell stared into his liquid black eyes and felt a warmth
rush over her. It started where her hand
joined his and crept up her arm and over her, making her feel secure and
safe. He leaned forward again and turned
her hand over in his. He bent his head
over their hands and pressed a kiss into her palm, not loosing eye contact with
her. A shiver ran down her spine and she
heard her intake of breath.

He smiled slightly and released her hand to stand up. He took up the bottle of rum and beginning to
whistle swaggered out of the cabin, leaving her sitting there staring at her
palm.

He would protect her� or so he said.

Nell believed that he had meant what he had said, he would
protect her, and it was in his best interests to do so if he wanted to be a
very rich man.

But Sir James Beaumont knew where she was and she knew he
was coming for her. She shuddered as she
remembered the man who had come to her home, a home she barely remembered now,
and taken her away. She had been rtbrrtbroken at the loss of her parents. Her mother, her
wonderful, soft, gentle mother and her caring, kindly father. But even they had faded in her mind, leaving
only impressions behind. But she would
never forget her guardian, no matter how many years passed before she saw him
again. He had been tall, handsome and
extremely cold. He had made it known to
Nell from the first moment he laid eyes on her that she was an inconvenience
that offered nothing but irritation. He
had made his plans for her wellwn. wn.
The moment she hit fourteen he would marry her off, he didn�t even care
if it was only a farmer that would have her, he would have done his legal right
by her and that would be that. Except it hadn�t. She
had fallen from a horse that had been spooked and his plans had to alter. And alter them he had.

Nell closed her eyes and resting her arms on the desk buried
her head in them, ignoring the pain from the cuts and bruises. Her heart was hurting more.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

A/N:

First thing I�d like to say is thank you to everyone who
reads this and has got this far! And
thank you for all your wonderful reviews� fair swoons with pleasure!

Secondly, I have to admit to anyone reading this on FF.net
that I have also posted this story on Adultfiction.net. On Af.net it�s rated an R because I would
like to take it that far later on, but I also want to keep a PG13 version. Any chapters that are R will be posted on Af.net . I will put a
note in FF.net to say that I�ve posted them there, but for anyone under 13 it
won�t matter because I will make sure that nothing goes into the R chapters
that would make the PG13 harder to understand (i.e
it�ll only be scenes of a sexual nature and nothing plot wise�. What plot?)

There if you understand that you�re a better person than I
am androterote it!

Thirdly: I forgot to
mention last time that all the info about the Jolly Roger and the code and the
bit about having hens aboard the ship all came from a great site. Pirateinfo.com. It makes for a really fascinating
eye-opening read.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed. It means a great deal to me and helps inspire
me.

KrissXed: Thank you for your lovely review and
I�m glad you think he�s in character. I
have to admit that I find writing his sentence structures hard. I forgot to say last time that the info about
the Jolly Roger and the code can be found at pirateinfo.com which makes for
fascinating reading and if half the reason why Nell acts the way she does. She knows what pis cas can really be like and
what they can really do if they choose to.
She has never heard of Captain Jack Sparrow and so has no idea that he
wouldn�t do that sort of thing. Thanks
again and I hope you continue to enjoy this.

Jules: Thank
you. I love reading reviews and yours
was lovely. I hope you continue to enjoy
it!

Braveheart:
Thanks for the lovely review, you make me happy! Jack at the moment views Nell as nothing more
than a diversion, another female to conquer so to speak. on�ton�t think he�s a player as such, I just
don�t think he�d pass up on the challenge she presents. I hope you continue to enjoy it!

Hellyn: Thank you for your lovely review, you make me
happy! Jack hasn�t fallen for Nell yet
though, and he won�t for quite awhile.
He doesn�t see her as anything except something female he can try his
hand at. I think you�re right though,
it�s hard to read a story where he falls at first sight. I personally believe only in �lust at first
sight� and not Love at first sight. I
actually didn�t even like my husband when we first met (we�ve just had seven
years together) but I know that some people do believe it. My dad always said he fell for my mum when he
first saw her and they had 35 happy years together so I guess it can
happen�.? But I don�t think Jack is the
type to fall for someone, after all at first sight all you see is appearance
and that�s not what people fall in love with.
Am I rambling? Profuse apologises
I do tend to waffle a little. I�ll shut
up now and just say that I hope you continue to enjoy this.

Beak: Thank you *blushes* I�m just glad you like
it. I hope you continue to like it!

Pirate: Thank you *now face rivals a tomato* I have to agree with you about the way Jack
speaks, I�ve read some stories and had to give up cause I can�t work out what
anyone is saying. I thought he was
rather precise and definitely tones of a Londoner in there! I�ve tried to keep
my other characters understandable as well.
I�m actually falling for Hock at the moment so he might appear a bit
more. I just realised how insanely sad
that is�..

Suslin:
Thank you! I love cookies, especially
choc chip ones! Sir James will be
appearing shortly and there will be more tension. I hope you continue to enjoy it.

Adultfiction:

Cami: Thank you! I hope you continue to like it!

Lktwoozee:
Thanks for you email. I was grinning all
night! You inspired me to get this
posted rather than let it sit on my hard drive.

Clonesofconfusion:
Thank you! I hope you continue to enjoy
it. Great name!

And lastly and most importantly: Wherever you are have a
great day!
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The Map