The Teardrop Of Immortality

Disclaimer: I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean.

Chapter 17

‘All my life, my heart has yearned for a thing I cannot name.’
~Andre Breton

Nerissa watched as the crewmen sat, talking amongst themselves with their heads lowered. The sky was getting dark and a light veil of fog was falling over the Pearl, covering it into darkness. The wind was strong and it was propelling the ship forward, closer and closer towards Oak Island.
Nerissa’s hearing was beyond adequate. She could hear as the men talked, whispering about what had happened a few hours ago. They were upset, scared…fearful of the wrath that was lurking about. Nerissa shifted a bit and hugged her knees tighter to her chest. She had received numerous stares, and she could see that even if no one had actually said it out loud, everyone was feeling rather reluctant to obey Jack Sparrow’s commands. No one, really no one wanted to go to Oak Island after what had happened. Superstition was high among sailors, even among pirates.
“Lass?”
She looked up when she saw Gibbs emerging from the Captain’s cabin. She offered a small smile.
“Mr. Gibbs?”
“The Captain wants to see you.” The older man said as he pointed towards the cabin door.
“Alright…Mr. Gibbs?” She called as she started sitting up. Her legs wobbled a bit, but she stayed upright.
“Aye?” He paused on his way to the helm.
Nerissa wiggled her hands a bit before she approached, “The men are worried…Someone must talk to them.”
“Eh, I know.” Gibbs nodded as he looked around with narrowed eyes.
“They don’t want to go to Oak Island.” She said quietly as she leaned against the staircase.
“Aye. Not after what happened.”
“Shouldn’t someone talk to them?” She frowned.
“Tell that to Jack. He’s as stubborn as a mule at times. Maybe you can get some sense into his head, eh? I need to head up.” He said softly and Nerissa blinked.
She shook her head in confusion and then slowly turned and made her way into the captain’s quarters.
She pushed the door open just as Jack was shrugging out of his soiled from salt and water shirt. She paused and cleared her throat just as he was ready to tug off his breeches. He turned to look at her from over his shoulder and he smirked, his eyes glimmering as he took her in.
“Come in, love.” He said as he beckoned her closer.
Nerissa shut the door as he leaned down into the open chest and produced a long wrinkled shirt.
“Here!” He threw it at her and she caught it. He smirked, “It’ll refresh you.” He told her.
She quirked an eyebrow, “No breeches?” she asked and he chuckled.
“You don’t need them, love. This covers everything up.” He informed her as he placed his hands to the front of his breeches and started pulling at the strings. Nerissa turned around with a faint blush.
He smirked, “I don’t mind being watched.” He told her and she smiled a bit.
“I do.” She said as she leaned against his desk a bit. She could hear the rustle of fabric as he removed his clothes.
“You shouldn’t.” He said as he stepped towards her. His hands came to rest upon her shoulders and they gave a small squeeze. Nerissa frowned a bit as he turned her around to face him.
“You’re lovely.” He murmured and she averted her eyes. She noticed that he had put new breeches on.
“You don’t need to flatter me, Captain. I’ve already succumbed to your charms.” Her eyes went to the ring around his finger. It glimmered softly. Why did it do that?
“Ah, but I have to if I want you to do so again.” He rubbed his thumbs across her collarbones and smirked, “Aye?” He leaned forward and pressed his weathered lips to her forehead in a kiss that made her wonder of his feelings for her. She couldn’t understand him. She just couldn’t.
Almost reflexively she leaned into him and he threaded a hand in her hair while he stated rubbing her back with his free one.
“Are you alright, love? You seem…distracted.” He murmured and she took a deep breath.
“I am curious.”
“Of what?”
“Of her motives.” Nerissa breathed and Jack pulled back.
“Your mum’s?”
“She is not my mother, Jack!” She hissed and he cocked an eyebrow.
“I think we have made sure that she is…You look the same.”
“And so? Do you honestly believe that she’s getting into all this trouble just to help me?” She asked as she shook her head.
Jack thought about that and then nodded his head, “No.” he said at last and she stared, “I do not.”
“Then why are we going there? Erik and Angelica are not here. We can just turn around now.” She said hopefully.
Jack frowned and pulled back, “I cannot do that, love.”
“Why?”
He pulled his hands away from her and clasped her chin, “I need that tear. Bugger, I need the treasure.”
“Alight. You need the treasure. But why the tear? If this is about me, I tell you now that I don’t care what happens to me.”
Jack inhaled sharply and took a step back, “I do.”
“Why?” she exclaimed, “This is just an illusion. You helped me because you had to!”
“Exactly.” He hissed from between clenched teeth, “If I turn back around, right now, she’ll hunt as down and kill us. The Pearl won’t take another fit of hers.” He pulled his hand away from her chin and regarded her coolly, “I have to keep going.”
“The men don’t want to go to Oak Island. They are frightened.” Nerissa said as she tightened her hold on the shirt she had clasped in her hands.
‘I know that.” Jack scoffed and placed his hands on his hips. The bloody ring glimmered more sharply in the candlelight.
“Then just stop. Is treasure worth it?” She whispered.
“Are you so intent on making a saint out of yourself? Sacrifice your life and freedom for the sake of a few smelling pirates?” He asked her, evading her question.
Nerissa stared at him, silent for a few minutes before she answered, “Yes. All life should be treasured. What is my life when compared to all those men out there? I should have died long ago. She,” she looked upwards, “should have helped me when I was first captured. I don’t trust her.”
“Darlin’, this is not about trust. This is about survival. She got rid of the siblings because they were interfering with her plans. They wanted the tear while she wants it-…”
“But it’s not for me.”
“What if it is?” He challenged.
“You are going to risk your life, your crew and your ship for an if?” she asked him with shock.
“Yes.” He replied through gritted teeth.
“Why?”
“I have done worse.”
“Obviously.” She nodded and he smirked, “But why for me?”
“It is not just for you. If everything goes according to plan, I’ll have the treasure…And you, in the long term.” He grinned.
Nerissa could only stare at him, “Is this because you want something from me?”
He chuckled softly, “Love, I want a lot of things. You are one of them.” He looked into her eyes with his searching, wicked gaze.
Nerissa blinked, “Why? I do not belong in your world.”
“Maybe you will make it a better one. There is no magic in these waters…Hell, there is no magic. End of sentence.” He informed her as he stepped closer again.
“Is this because I was a mermaid?” she asked him and he pursed his lips as he placed his hands on her waist and pulled her closer, pressing his hips against her stomach.
“Perhaps.” He smirked.
“But I am no longer one.”
“You have legs. Far more practical.” He squinted.
“They don’t suit me. They never will. I am not one of those women that will keep your interest.” She shook her head and he grinned.
“And how do you know that?”
“Jack,” she whispered his name, “This is just because of the ring…or-…”
“It’s because of you, love.”
“No, it’s not. You don’t love me. If we do not get that tear, I’ll probably die.”
“What is love?”
“I am not sure.” She shook her head.
“Neither am I.”
“No one knows what love is, Captain. You can only see manifestations of it.” She shrugged, “Love is not something you can touch. It’s not made of something solid…It’s abstract, vague, obscure…”
“You’re using new words.” He told her with a laugh.
She flushed, “I am.”
“Has Gibbs given you his infamous dictionary?” He asked with a twinkle in his eyes and she smiled.
“Maybe he has.” She looked away, “You’re not going to listen, are you?’
“Nope.” He brought her closer.
“You really want that treasure-…”
“It is not the destination as much as the journey.” He informed her with a raised finger.
“I don’t understand you.” She whispered.
“That’s a compliment.” He raised his eyebrows.
“It is…I think.” She murmured and he smiled.
“Don’t worry your pretty little head with my ways. Now,” he started as he grasped at the hem of her shirt and started pulling it up, “How about I help you out of these, aye?”
She grabbed his hands to stop him. He frowned, but she could tell that he already knew what she was going to say.
“Do you think they’re dead?” Nerissa asked quietly and he bit his lip sharply.
“I don’t know, love.”
“I don’t think it is fair.” She said and he tilted his head to the side as he stared at her with his dark eyes. He startled a bit when she placed her hands on his arms to steady herself. He grabbed the clean shirt before it fell onto the cabin floor.
“What isn’t?” He asked her.
“It is not fair to play with other people’s lives. It’s cruel…no matter who the person is. She should be stopped.”
Jack smiled, no smirk, but a smile.
“Darling, you are not your mother’s daughter that’s for sure.” He told her and she blinked.
“I hope I am not.” Her eyed flickered to his ring, “Why is it glimmering? Do you know?” She motioned to his hand.
“Aye…The glimmering is getting stronger as we approach Oak Island…I think this is useful to her, not to you.”
“What do you mean?”
He sighed and pulled on her shirt until she let him remove it. She flushed, but held onto him.
“I have a sneaky suspicion that she’s using it to pick up our trails…Why else would it glimmer as we approach that wretched island?” He threw the soiled shirt away and his eyes roamed her upper half before he quickly pulled the clean shirt over her head to cover her up.
“She is watching over us.” Nerissa whispered.
“Nah. She is more concerned of our honesty. She wants to know if we will really follow her commands.” He smoothed the shirt down her sides and then slyly slipped his hands inside the waistband of her breeches.
She gasped and grabbed onto his shoulders as he started pulling the garment down her hips.
“If she really wanted to help, she should have given me the option to decline her offer.” She murmured and he hummed in response.
“Love,” he started as he pushed the breeches down her legs, “I will get you that tear. I swear on my ship. To tell the truth, I don’t trust her. I never did. Not even when she was Tia...But she has helped me a lot…Now I understand why. She wanted me to owe her…Now she wants payback.” He grabbed hold of her thighs and pulled her off the floor. He groaned when she wrapped herself around him and smirked.
“And I’ll try to deliver.” He murmured huskily.
Nerissa’s hand slid down and she brushed her knuckles over his beard in a slow caress. His eyes darkened as she did so and she gulped.
“What if she wants something that you’re not willing to give-…”
“Then I’ll have to improvise…like most times.” He said as he turned and started walking them towards the bunk.
Nerissa tilted her head to the side and studied his face. He laughed.
“What’s that face for?” He asked and he was a bit surprised when she did not complain for his manhandling.
“Nothing…”
“Ask it. I know that you want to.” He smirked as he let her fall on the bed. He followed her immediately and nestled between her parted legs. He held himself up with his elbows.
“She has slept with you, hasn’t she?” She asked and he cocked an eyebrow.
“Jealous?”
She shook her head and his smirk dropped, “Now that’s a bit insulting.”
“No, I mean…It was obvious.”
“How?” he narrowed his eyes at her.
“She touched your face…Not many have the intimacy to do that.” She whispered and his mouth twitched in obvious amusement.
“Intimacy…Aye. Since we are on that topic…” He trailed off as he covered her lips with his own.
His moustache and beard tickled her face, but the sensation was not irritating; it was grounding. She parted her lips and let him deepen the kiss. She heard his satisfied hum and when his hands moved between their bodies and slipped lower, she let him, accommodating him by parting her legs further. He grinned against her lips and when he pulled away to kiss and suck at the skin of her neck, she arched her back. Weaving the fingers of one hand through his thick hair she let her fingertips run down his throat. He jerked against her and groaned, and when her lips found the skin under his ear he bit down sharply on her shoulder. The knot that had been lodged in her throat slipped lower and as his kisses and caresses intensified it started burning her insides, twisting her stomach into a tight knot that begged to be released.
So, when his hands found her wrists and pushed them against the hard mattress underneath, she let him; and when his obvious arousal nudged her inner thigh, branding her with its warmth and solidness, she gasped and clasped her legs around his hips in invitation.
As she was lost in the sensation of his lips and hands on her, she missed the minute widening of his eyes that gave away his surprise. As he took her for his own again, he buried his face in the crook of her neck, hoping, but failing to hide the overpowering voice that spoke hoarsely in his mind.
Mine.
The word was hissed into his head with every deep thrust of his hips against her. He only clutched at the sheet under him tighter and bit his tongue hard enough to bleed as she accepted him inside her over and over again. By the time he was done pushing inside the divine softness that was her, his mind was reeling from the possessive rage that had clasped him in its clutches.
As she gasped her release into his mouth, his lips and tongue soothed her, his hands slowly rubbing at her thighs before he rolled away from her. He opened his eyes and looked at her. His shirt was wrinkled as it rested bunched up around her waist and her legs were still invitingly parted as she tried to regain her ability to breathe properly. Her hand moved and found his and as her smooth palm covered his, he tugged her closer until she was lying on her side. Pressed up against him as she was, he could smell the sea on her; the scent burning his nostrils and messing more with his head.
His hand found purchase at the dip of her lower back, just above her bottom and he pulled her closer. Nerissa nestled close to him as he fastened his breeches and covered her with the sheet. His throat bobbed as she laid her head upon his chest and when her fingers traced the two identical bullet scars at his chest his eyes narrowed.
He looked down at her and he noticed with some shock that she had fallen asleep. Out of curiosity, and hating himself for it, he raised the hand with the ring up to his face. The ruby was glowing a bright crimson. He sharply hid it under the covers and shut his eyes. He did not sleep.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Jack shook Nerissa awake. She opened her eyes with a start.
“Oh.”
“We’re here, love. Better get dressed.” He murmured and Nerissa frowned at him as she sat up.
“Something wrong?” She asked him and he shook his head, before he reached out and placed his fingers against her neck. His thumb traced over the purple mark his lips had left on her skin and when she flushed he smirked.
“Do I have left any more?” He asked her almost teasingly and she slapped his hand away when he tried to peek into her shirt.
“Jack…You’re evading the question again.” She told him and he groaned.
“I have decided to follow your suggestion.” He informed her as he passed her a pair of breeches.
She took them from his hand and nodded, “What suggestion?”
“The men are reluctant to step ashore…” he craned his neck, “So it’s just me, Gibbs and you.” He told her and she blinked.
“I did not make a suggestion-…”
“But you did mention that the men are afraid. So, I have decided that we’re going alone…”
Nerissa blinked in surprise, “That’s safer…I guess. But I did not suggest that. You just care about them.”
“Do I? Because to tell the truth love I’d rather turn my ship back and head the other way. But I can’t. Not after…” he stopped himself short and closed his eyes, his lips set into a childish pout, “Anyway. Get ready.” He told her softly and with a nod she did as she was told.
As she started getting dressed, she couldn’t help but wonder what he meant with his unfinished sentence.
She remained silent however and only watched as he grabbed his compass and tied it to his belt.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

“Grab hold of these, mate.” Jack thrust three pistols in his first mate’s hands and patted his back, before he walked ahead.
Gibbs eyed Nerissa who stared back, before they got into the longboat behind Jack.
Nerissa stumbled a bit, but Jack’s hand shot out to steady her, before he pulled her down to his side.
Gibbs settled across from them and the grabbed the oars. It was dawn and it was still slightly dark. The island ahead of them was misty and there was a tall mountain near the centre of the land. The air smelled of salt and honeysuckle and Nerissa frowned at the combined scent. It was unsettling. The two scents did not compliment each other. They were contradicting, out of place and totally odd.
She turned to look at Jack, but he had his eyes upon the island. His hands were lying on his knees, but as they got closer he wrapped his right one around his gun.
Nerissa shivered as the wind howled and when the longboat slid sharply across the shore she jumped a bit.
“We’re not alone.” Jack said quietly as he turned to look at his first mate.
Gibbs nodded, “Aye…Someone’s watching us. But who?” he muttered.
“Atargatis, mate…She is there.” Jack motioned towards the mist that had veiled Oak Island and Nerissa grasped Jack’s sleeve.
“Love?”
“Maybe we should just head back.” She whispered and Jack opened his mouth to speak, but a loud thunder cut him short.
The three of them looked up at the gray sky and Jack smirked mirthlessly.
“Too late, darlin’. Too late. Mama’s here.” He told her as he jumped out of the longboat and offered her his hand.
Nerissa hesitated, but when another lightning lit up the sky she quickly took Jack’s hand. As his roughened palm slid across hers, she closed her eyed and breathed in deeply. The salt and honeysuckle invaded her senses again and her heart thundered against her chest. She heard the sound of Jack’s compass as he slid it open and licked her suddenly dry lips.
Feeling as if she was a walking corpse, she followed closely behind Jack. Her fingers dug into his hand, but he did not complain as they made their way towards the misty woods that dominated Oak Island.

End of chapter 17

Author’s note: Thank you for reading! I will try and post the last chapter soon. A few comments would help!!! Thank you for sticking with me! What do you think will happen in the last chapter? Hmm? Is Atargatis telling the truth? Will Nerissa live or not???
Until next time!
O
Xxx Lina ;o)