ManEater

A/N: Hey Guys! Sorry for the long wait! I think you will like this chapter! This signifies the end of the first part of my fic, part 2 will have more surprises! So read and enjoy!
________________________________________________________________________________________

Elizabeth

It was now mid-morning…In just a few hours or so, Jack and his crew will be leaving. They’re setting sail late this afternoon for the Leeward Isles. Will and I would be going, but he told me that Jack had banned him from the Pearl because of the fight. I guess since I am with Will, I am also banned. Now Will can’t lay any claim to unoccupied land. It’s always been one of his many dreams to have land of his own. It’s a shame, though…I’m sure that this trip would have been a grand adventure for us all, but that will never be. Things have drastically changed between the three of us and I don’t think that we will ever get back to how things used to be.

I sat alone on the balcony, thinking about what had happened last evening. I couldn’t sleep at all last night, for my heart was heavy with the burden of love, guilt, remorse, and all other insufferable emotions. Of course, I was glad that Will and I’d managed to resolve our issues, but I couldn’t get Jack off of my mind. I couldn’t stop thinking about all of those horrible things we’d said to each other. I didn’t mean what I had said, but I wasn’t sure if Jack meant all that he’d said.

I was mortified when Will asked me if I loved Jack. I didn’t know how to answer him, or if I should return an answer. Coincidentally, Father came into my room to invite us downstairs for dinner as I was about to answer Will. I was relieved that he interrupted us, for I didn’t want Will to know the truth. During dinner last night, Will had a questionable look on his face. He was too quiet for my comfort. When our eyes met, I tried to smile at him reassuringly, but he only returned me a halfhearted smile. I knew that he was still upset about the fight. Maybe he was wondering if I still loved Jack. I just hoped that he wouldn’t ask me again. After dinner, we went upstairs to my room. We barely spoke, only sat in utter silence. I nearly cried again, but Will wrapped his arms around me when we were in bed and said those all too familiar words; “I love you.”

My heart wrenched every time I’d heard him say that, for I knew that I didn’t deserve his love. I’d hurt him badly, but I believed in my heart that Jack was hurting even more. A part of me wanted to reconcile with Jack, but another part wanted to forget about him and move on with my life. He’d shown his true colors with his callous insults. No one has ever spoken to me with so much venom and hatred. Even though I’d upset him and possibly broken his heart, he still should have never said those awful things to me…

I truly wanted to die last night from all that pain and embarrassment. I could only blame part of it on myself. If I hadn’t made love to Jack and stayed with Will, then none of this would have ever happened…But I do not regret what has happened between me and the infamous pirate Captain. I do, however, regret our fight. Why should I even care if we never spoke again? I knew why…because I loved him, and I didn’t want to lose him. It’s too late now to mend my relationship with Jack. He’s leaving in a few hours, and he’d clearly moved on to another woman…I guess it’s for the best. I felt my heart breaking again, hot tears welling up in my eyes. I tried to hold them back, but they forced themselves out. I began to sob uncontrollably. At the same time, I heard footsteps walk up behind me. Two hands came down to rest onto my shoulders. I quickly wiped my face and kept my back turned, for I didn’t want Will to see that I was crying. He was quiet for a few moments. I wasn’t sure if he was still upset, or if he was waiting for me to speak first. Just then, he began to speak. And what he had to say took me by great surprise…

________________________________________________________________________________________

Jack Sparrow

I woke up to the bright rays of the sun shining in my eyes. I sat up in bed and noticed that Carmen wasn’t lying next to me. I looked across the room and saw that my clothes were neatly folded on the sofa, with my effects on top of them. A wicked smile spread across my face, as I remembered what Carmen and I did last night. I got out of bed and walked over to the sofa and began to dress. My eyes lit up when I noticed a new rum bottle sitting on an end table beside me.

“The rum’s for you, Captain Sparrow.” Carmen’s voice said suddenly. I turned around, but I didn’t see her.

“Where are you?” I asked, peering around the corner.

“I’m in the next room.”

At the same time, I heard the sound of water trickling in the distance. Carmen came out of the adjacent room with a towel wrapped around her body. She had just taken a bath. She stepped closer to me and smiled.

“I see you’re finally awake. Did you sleep alright last night?”

I grinned cunningly and ran my fingers through her wet, curly hair. “I slept better than I had in the past two days. All thanks to you, love.”

She smiled and leaned into my face, planting a chaste kiss on my lips. “You’re welcome. I guess you should be heading back to the Pearl now, aye?”

I nodded my head as I placed my pistol in my sash. “Aye. I’m leaving mid afternoon for the Leeward Isles. The whelp told me there’s unclaimed land just twenty miles south of those islands.”

“Whelp meaning your friend, Will?” She asked.

“He’s not my friend, he’s a eunuch.” I replied through gritted teeth.

“Are he and Ms. Swann going with you on your trip?”

I paused for a moment, for I remembered that I told Will not to step foot onto my ship ever again. I never told Lizzie that she couldn’t come on board. But I knew that since Will wouldn’t, she’d do the same as he.

“No. I don’t think either of them will be joining me…anymore.” I said the latter quietly under my breath. For a mere second, I was starting to feel sad that they wouldn’t be joining me on my journey. I then woke out of my thoughts when Carmen placed her hand on my shoulder and smiled reassuringly.

“Oh…well I guess it’s for the best.” She then walked away and began fixing her hair.

I watched as she dried her hair with another towel, while struggling to keep the other towel around her body. How I wished that damned thing would fall down so that I could see her glorious body once more…since it would be the last time I would see a naked body for a while.

She turned around and grinned at me, for she noticed that I was watching her. She walked over in my direction and stood in front of me with a mischievous smirk.

“You see something you like Captain?” She asked, brushing her lips against mine.

I grinned and wrapped my arms around her waist. “As a matter of fact, I do. I see one thing I like and another thing that I detest.”

“Oh? And what’s that?” She asked, eyeing me questioningly.

“I like you, but I do not like this ghastly garment that’s around your body...it’s obstructing my view.”

Carmen smiled and took one step back. “And what do you suppose that I do to correct the situation Captain Sparrow?”

I grinned wickedly and stepped closer to her, looking her up and down suggestively. “Take it off.”

She smiled and curtsied. She held my gaze and slowly let the towel drop to the floor. She was absolutely beautiful, even more beautiful than last night. I took a few more moments to admire her flawless body before I grabbed her into a passionate kiss. As I was kissing her, my heart began to feel empty all of a sudden, as if it was telling me to stop what I was doing. I saw memories of Lizzie and I together…in my bed making passionate love. Those fond memories quickly changed into the fight we’d had last night and the day before that.

Why am I being plagued by these awful, yet special memories all of a sudden? Could it be because I’m leaving Port Royal in a few hours? Or was it just because I knew in my heart that I didn’t want to leave…I didn’t want to leave Elizabeth. I had to…there’s nothing between us anymore. I quickly shook off those horrible emotions and focused my attention back onto Carmen. I could feel her body trembling with want. My body was also trembling...but it was from something else. Even though I wanted to take Carmen right now, I knew I couldn’t. My heart wouldn’t let me. I broke away from her soft, full lips and cupped her face. She smiled at me and placed her hands on mine. I knew from the expression on her face that she knew what I was feeling.

“I think we’d better stop before it leads us back to bed again.” She said sweetly. “I wouldn’t want to stall you from your journey.”

I smiled and nodded my head, and held her hands. “You’re right...I suppose we let out all of our anger last night, aye?” I replied with a sly grin. I then picked up my coat and my bottle of rum as I made my way out the room. Carmen followed behind me. As I approached the front door, I remembered my hat. I quickly turned around to retrieve it from the room, but I was stopped by Carmen. She smiled at me and brought her hand from behind her back, with my hat in her hand.

“You almost forgot your hat. A Captain needs his hat.” She said as she placed my hat firmly on my head.

“Thank you. I’d forget me cock if it wasn’t attached to me body.” I replied as I looked into her unforgettable eyes.

Carmen chuckled. "We wouldn't want that now, Captain Sparrow."

We stared at each other for a few moments. She leaned in closer to my face and kissed me.

“I know you still love her, Captain Sparrow. I can see it in your eyes.”

I was taken aback for a moment, but then realized that she was right.

“Not only do you love her, but you’re in love with her. Even though I may be young and haven’t experienced all the joys of life, I do know one thing.”

“And what’s that, love?”

“I’ve realized that love can be like medicine and poison to us. It will either cure us from loneliness or kill us from despair and heartbreak. But we can’t live without it. We can’t let the ones we love slip away…no matter the consequence.”

Her words went straight to my heart, and then to my gut. She was right. I couldn’t live without love…I can honestly say, (this is very hard to admit) that I couldn’t live without Lizzie. It was pure bliss between us at the beginning of this week and then it went straight to hell. But somehow, I knew that we belonged together. It’s too late now. She’s with the whelp now and I’m off to continue on with my life…I looked at Carmen once more. I tried to keep my eyes on her face, but they kept drifting down to her nakedness. She smiled and cupped my face.

“Jack…did you hear what I just said?”

I smiled and nodded my head. “Yes love, but you know you are still naked and I find that quite distracting. Carmen laughed and planted one more soft, lingering kiss on my lips.

“You should be off now, Captain Sparrow.” She replied, opening the door. I tipped my hat and headed out the door. As I was about to head down the steps, Carmen suddenly called my name.

“Captain Sparrow!”

I turned around and noticed that she was standing on the porch nude, holding something in her hand. I walked over to her and grinned.

“You do know you’re out in the open naked for everyone to see your goods.”

Carmen laughed. “No one will mind. Besides, there’s no one out here.”

She gently grabbed my hand and placed something in it. It was a gold ring with a large sapphire stone. From the looks of it, it used to belong to a man. I looked at her and smiled.

“It used to belong to my ex-fiancé. I figured since it’s so beautiful and rare, it would be better off with someone who possessed its same eccentricities.” She smiled.

I placed the ring on my thumb and examined it. It was a real beauty. “Thanks love. It goes great with my vast collection.” I replied with a smile.

“I know. Being as though you seem to collect trinkets when you partake in physical recreations with women, I thought it’d be a nice gift…or something to remember me by. It’s a token of my appreciation.” She smiled.

I grinned guiltily at her, for I thought it hilarious that she was on to my exploits. I was going to give her the ring back because it represented something I used to do with women before I bedded Lizzie. It was a past fancy that didn’t bring fulfillment to me anymore. I then looked into Carmen’s hazel green eyes once more, for I knew I wouldn’t see them again. It was at that moment that I decided that I’d keep it. It was too much of a beauty to give it away.

“Thank you, love...” I gave her another kiss on her lips. I tipped my hat and turned around, walking back down the stairs and onto the sand covered road. I turned around once more and waved at Carmen, who smiled and went back inside the house. A part of me knew that I’d miss her, but she was just like any other tryst I’d had with many other women. I’m sure she felt the same way about me. There were no feelings attached, so it was easy to say goodbye. However, I knew in my heart that it wouldn’t be so easy to say goodbye to the woman I loved…
________________________________________________________________________________________

After an hour or so walking on the beach, I saw my beloved Pearl just a few feet ahead. The crew was working diligently, stocking the ship and making repairs. I saw Gibbs barking orders at them. I quietly stepped behind him and smiled.

“Mr. Gibbs!”

He jumped and turned around in surprise. “Jack! You nearly scared the piss right out of me! It’s dangerous ta be sneakin’ up on someone ya know. Ya could’ve stopped me bloody heart!”

I laughed at his dramatics. “Seems like you have everything under control, mate. The Pearl’s lookin’ better than I’ve ever seen her.” I replied, patting him on the shoulder. I then noticed him looking at me strangely.

“Is there a problem Gibbs?” I asked, frowning my face at him.

“What happened to yer eye, Capn’? Looks like someone gave ya a good lickin’!”

I sighed and began walking onto the Pearl. Gibbs walked with me. I didn’t feel like recapping the events from last night.

“Got into a lil’ scuffle with a eunuch.” I replied through gritted teeth. Gibbs began to laugh.

“I’m supposin’ this eunuch be Will Turner, aye?”

I turned to him and nodded my head. I then looked at him with a serious frown. Gibbs immediately stopped laughing. “Just so you know, Mr. Gibbs, because Mr. Turner assaulted the Captain, he’s not allowed on me Pearl anymore.”

“What be the cause of tha assault dare I ask?” He asked, eyeing me in confusion. I gave him a stern, knowing look. He thought about it for a moment and nodded his head when he realized what caused the fight between Will and I. “Oh…I see. I guess this mean’s he won’t be joinin’ us today then, aye?”

“Aye…” I replied through gritted teeth. “Mr. Gibbs, just because I’m left with battle scars doesn’t meant that he doesn’t have ‘em, too. I did a good number on ‘em. Just so you know.” I said with squinted eyes as I took a swig of rum. Gibbs smiled halfheartedly, for he seemed a little disappointed about what I’d told him.

“So does it mean that Ms. Swann won’t be joinin’ us?” I glared at him. The very mention of Lizzie’s name made me upset. Not because of my anger towards her, but because of the fact that I wouldn’t be seeing her anymore. I was about to say something mean, but I held my tongue.

“No…not anymore. Tell the crew to hurry up and finish stocking the ship. We leave in a half hour.” I replied as I walked over to the rail. Gibbs walked away and began barking orders at the crew once more.

I stared out onto the sea. My mind drifted off to the events that happened this past week. It pained my heart that Lizzie and I are no more and that I was going to sail away…possibly never returning to this blasted port. I can’t come back, for it would be too painful. I took another swig of rum, hoping to drown out painful memories of what was and what could have been. The only good thing that happened to me here was shagging Carmen and getting this beautiful ring. But even that didn’t make me happy. for my heart felt hollow and dead. I couldn’t feel it beating anymore. I quickly shook myself away from sulking. I was acting like a bloody eunuch! If it wasn’t for me falling in love with that blasted girl, I wouldn’t be this way! Buck up Jack, there’s no need to be carrying on about some wench! I chided myself. Just as I was feeling a little bit better about my whole situation, Gibbs walked up behind me.

“Capn?” He said in a slightly disturbed tone. I didn’t bother to turn around, for my mind was still adrift.

“What is it Gibbs?”

“Er…um…it seems that we have a slight problem.”

"What? A problem!" I quickly turned around and looked at him. His face was twisted in distress. He nodded his head to the side so that I could look over to the left behind him. I slowly shifted my eyes away from him and saw what he was talking about. My heart nearly exploded into so much emotion that I didn’t know what to do. I was frozen in place as my eyes locked onto the other person’s glare. Gibbs leaned into my ear and whispered as we both stood in shock, well I was more in shock.

“What do we do now Capn?”
________________________________________________________________________________________

A/N: So how did you like it? Any guesses as to who or what came on the Pearl? Let me know in a review! Thanks for reading and reviewing!