The woman fell on the captain's neck like she had not seen him in years, rather than weeks, unabashedly kissing him right in front of everybody. His furious blush proved he was not quite as unconcerned about their audience as his wife.

She let him go at last and curiously looked about her on the ship. "Who are you?" she asked Rose, but moved on to Jack Sparrow before she could answer: "And what are you doing here?" Her voice was refined, sounding much like the posh, upper class Londoners Rose and her mother had mingled with during their Europe trip, the journey that had ended with their returning to America aboard the Titanic.

Jack shrugged. "Ask the eunuch," he suggested.

"I'm not–"

"You're just jealous." She turned to Will. "Why is Jack here?"

Captain Turner quickly filled her in on what had happened, and introduced her and Rose to each other.

"Rose Dawson."

"Elizabeth Turner."

They shook hands, smiling. Rose instantly liked the other woman, admiring her openness and bossy behavior.

Will asked Rose to show the necklace, and she pulled it out from its hiding place in her bosom. Elizabeth looked at the jewel with interest. "It's beautiful!" She stroked the blue diamond. "And this belongs to Calypso?"

Will nodded. "Jack knows how to summon her, but he needs a ship."

His wife was still regarding the object, looking thoughtful. "It must be very powerful if it pulled her back in time. Interesting. I wonder..." Then she seemed to have registered what Will had said. "A ship?" She turned to Jack. "Tsk, tsk. You lost the Pearl again." She shook her head at him. 

"I will get her back," he muttered, giving her a dark look.

"He wants to borrow your boat," said Will.

"My boat? But it's just a fishing boat."

"It will do," said Jack, regarding the vessel critically where it bobbed gently by the pier.

"You will break her. Or lose her. You seem to be good at losing ships."

"I will do no such thing. I am Captain–"

"...Jack Sparrow, yes I know. Alright, you can borrow her–"

"Oh, great!"

"–but then I come along as well."

"No!" said Jack and Will simultaneously.

"Yes. It's not negotiable." She crossed her arms.

Rose kept her silence but secretly cheered on Elizabeth. It would be a relief to not be alone with the pirate.

"It's not safe," said Will earnestly. "I won't survive if anything happens to you."

"I can take care of myself. I have to for another ten years," she said. He flinched at that, looking a combination of sad and ashamed.

"Why can't you live together here on the boat?" asked Rose. It seemed stupid they should be apart for such a long time, when they were obviously so much in love.

"The Dutchman must be put to work. Even now the souls are gathering, waiting for me all over the world. I'm delaying, I have lingered on the surface too long." Will rubbed his hair in exasperation, dishevelling his scarf. 

"It's the curse," added his wife. "If he doesn't do the job properly he will lose his humanity and become one with the ship. That's what happened to his predecessor."

"Ugh," said Jack Sparrow, sticking out his tongue in disgust. "That was no pretty sight."

"Will, I see how stressed you are," said Elizabeth softly, stroking back her husband's hair and correcting his scarf. "Go. Take care of those poor souls." She cupped his cheek. "I can handle this. I'll keep an eye on Jack and make sure this whole summoning is properly done."

"I don't need babysitting," Jack huffed.

"Then you shall have no boat. I'll figure out how to summon Calypso and do it myself."

"That's a good idea," said Rose.

Jack first scowled at them, but then his features changed and became shrewd. "Alright then, tag along if you must. But stay away from my rum, savvy?"

"I don't like this." Will shook his head, but he made no more objections.

The captain and the rest of the crew were anxious to leave and resume their interrupted soul gathering before the curse hit them, so it was time to say farewell. Rose found it the most painful to leave Bill who had been so friendly and kind. There had been too many separations in her life recently, too many people she would never see again, and now she had to add more names to the list. She could not hold back her tears when she shook his hand.

"Don't worry, miss. Everything's gonna be alright." He clasped her hand in both of his. She only nodded, not trusting her voice.

If Rose felt sad to leave the Flying Dutchman, it was nothing compared to Elizabeth. For a long time she and Will were just holding each other close, and even after she had gone ashore the two lovers' gazes were locked until the ship began to dive. Captain Turner waved one last time before the ship disappeared under the surface. It was heartbreaking to witness and Rose felt new tears trickle as she considered the unfairness of it all.

Elizabeth remained on the pier a long time afterwards, and Rose delicately turned her back to allow the other woman some privacy. Jack meanwhile rummaged around aboard the fishing boat, muttering to himself.

She went to join him. "So, now that you have a boat, what do you need to summon the sea goddess?" she asked.

"Rum."

"I asked what you needed for the summoning, not what you wanted to drink."

"That's what we need." He shrugged. "Lots of rum, and some other things."

"What things?" Elizabeth had come back to join them, looking composed now, her jaw determinedly set. Only a slight redness of her eyes betrayed her previous emotions. "If you're coming along on this quest I'll not have you toying with us, hiding things, tricking us. Spill it out."

"Ouch." Jack acted hurt. "I liked you better before you became king."

"You're a king?" Rose stared at the other woman.

"King of the Pirates' Brethren Court, yes. It's a long story." She smiled stiffly and turned back to Sparrow. "Well? I'm waiting." She had crossed her arms and even tapped her foot. Elizabeth seemed to be an imposing woman, she was unlike anyone Rose had met before. Even Molly Brown, the unladylike widow she had made friends with on the Titanic, had not been anywhere near this formidable.

"A pig," Jack muttered sourly. "A black one, mind you. Won't work if it's pink, savvy?"

"That's it? A black pig?" Her eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"A black pig, drenched in rum, burnt and stabbed with a silver sword. Also, we must do it in a lagoon so Calypso can't escape. There. Happy now?"

"Where do we find all that?"

"Tortuga." He smirked. "Everything can be found in Tortuga. You ladies coming aboard, or?"

"I have to pack my things. And you will take a bath before I share a boat with you. You stink, savvy?" She turned with a swirl of her dress and went back to the cottage.

Jack gave Rose a sad smile. "See how bossy she's become? That's what marriage does to a woman. She used to be such a sweet girl, but then she burned all my rum and married the whelp." He tried to swallow some of the mentioned beverage, but now his bottle was empty. "Why is the rum gone?"

"You should probably take that bath."

He gave her a calculating look and his lips quirked up rather naughtily. "Aye. I probably should." His dark eyes trapped hers as he deliberately slowly began to unbutton his vest and slipped it over his shoulders. Rose knew she ought to look away but his gaze was nearly hypnotic in its intensity.

His fingers moved on to his shirt, popping up one button, and another, revealing a smooth, brown chest.

"Enjoying the view, love?" He was grinning now, flashing his gold tooth as the shirt fell down on the boat deck.

That broke the spell and Rose quickly turned away. "Wash your clothes before you put them on again," she quipped, trying to sound as bold as Elizabeth. She heard him chuckle to himself, and then a splash as he dived into the water.

When Elizabeth returned with a large seabag, Jack had finished cleaning himself and sat wringing out his unkempt tresses wearing only a pair of knee-length pants. His shirt, vest and socks hung on the railing to dry.

"Really? Those are all the clothes you got?"

"My change of clothes are in my sea-chest, in my cabin, aboard my ship. Which right now is suffering at the hands of a certain bilge rat called Hector Barbossa."

"The first thing we do in Tortuga is clothes shopping."

.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.

Between themselves, Jack and Elizabeth soon had the Barnacle going at a steady pace towards the infamous pirate town, her sails billowing at an angle from the starboard wind. Their familiarity made it clear the two went way back, and they worked well together despite their constant bantering.

Since Elizabeth seemed not to mind the undressed state of the pirate, Rose was determined not to either. At least he smelled better now, salty water and sun warmed skin instead of sweat and stale alcohol. And she had to admit the sight of his strong arms and broad shoulders were none too unpleasant, at that. She could get used to it.

Soon Rose's chest and face were beginning to sting painfully from the sun, and she found herself a spot in the shadow to sit. Her skin felt burning hot to the touch. Again she wished she had had a hat like the other two, even if those triangular headpieces were rather ridiculous.

Jack gave her a critical look in passing. "Ouch. You look like a boiled crab." He turned to Elizabeth behind the steering wheel. "I'll take over that, the girl needs seeing to."

Elizabeth reluctantly handed over the wheel. "Don't break her."

He stroked the smooth wood tenderly, trailing one of the spokes with his fingertips. "I'm always gentle with the ladies. She's safe with me." His voice was a seductive purr.

"You're disgusting." She shook her head and disappeared into the narrow space below deck.

Jack chuckled and turned his gaze to Rose. "She used to like me, you know. We had a thing going on."

"Did not!" Elizabeth's reply was slightly muffled.

"Did too. You even kissed me."

"Well, that I did." She returned up carrying a small chest and sat down next to Rose. Inside were bandages and some glass bottles containing medical looking liquids. She opened one and poured oil in her hand, carefully rubbing it on Rose's burned skin. It felt nice.

"Aren't you gonna relate what you did after kissing me?"

"Afterwards I chained you to your ship and left you to be devoured by the Kraken," she said remorsefully.

"What?" Rose stared at her. "He's dead too?"

"Aye," said Jack.

"We went to Davy Jones' Locker and fetched him back," Elizabeth explained.

Rose's head hurt again. This place, this world was so confusing. She would not have believed any of it, had she not been dead herself.

"Look at that, so white!" Elizabeth had slid down Rose's dress a little over her shoulder to reach better with the oil. There was a razor-sharp edge between her flaming red chest and the pale part that had been protected by the dress. "I used to have a complexion like that once, too." She sighed wistfully.

"But your skin is beautiful," Rose protested. Elizabeth looked exotic and healthy with her tan, and it suited her dark brown eyes so well.

"Thank you." She smiled. Rose smiled too, again immensely thankful to have her around. She had never had many friends and Elizabeth was easy to like.

The Barnacle was a single-masted cutter, small enough to sail all the way into the Tortuga harbor. Rose still felt raw from her sunburn and volunteered to stay and guard the boat while the other two went to buy clothes for Jack and ask around for black pigs and silver swords.

The sun was beginning to set but it was still hot and very humid. Rose rested her back against the mast. It felt so good to sit down a little, just rest and not think. Her eyes soon became heavy.

.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.

"Lookie what we have here." The leering voice made Rose's eyes pop open. A face was close before her, belonging to a bearded man with pale blue eyes and a hideous breath. "Hello poppet. Taking a little nap, are we?"

Rose looked around, her heart beating quickly. It had become darker, but Jack and Elizabeth were still not back. She was alone with this man, this stranger who clearly had no good intentions.

"Get off my boat," she said. Her voice sounded frail and thin.

The stranger's smile widened. "I don't think so. I like it here." He reached out to touch Rose's hair but she evaded him.

"My friends will be back any moment. They are pirates."

"In Tortuga everyone's a pirate, poppet. I ain't afraid of nobody."

Rose tried to back away but he caught her arm in a vise-like grip. His fingernails dug deep into her flesh when she tried to wrench herself free.

"No fuss!" He pulled an ugly-looking pistol. "See this here?" He waved it and she flinched, fearing he might accidentally pull the trigger. "This darling can make your brains blow out of your ear faster than it takes me to say 'undress'." He loosened his grip of her arm and began to fondle it. "So soft... so tender." His voice was a hoarse whisper. She did not dare to pull away, not with a pistol aimed at her head. Bile rose in her throat. Where were Jack and Elizabeth?

"Please, let me go," she begged. "I have money."

"I shan't hurt you, love. Just relax." He lifted the hem of her dress, revealing her bare thigh. "Ah... white like a lily, quite the English lady. That's why I love redheads so much."

"I'm not English."

"I don't care. Now shush." He was breathing fast, his dirty fingers trailing up her leg.

"Let go of her!" called a high-pitched voice.

They both turned their heads towards the speaker. It was the little boy Rose had met that morning, the one who had guarded her dinghy.

"Go away Tom, this is nothing you wanna see." He pointed his pistol at him. To Rose's dismay the boy promptly obeyed, running away along the jetty.

The man smirked and turned his attention back to Rose. "Now, where was I?"

A/N:

I love cliffhangers, sorry! *hides*

Calypso from the Pirates movies is thought to be based on a Haitian folklore spirit called Èrzulie Dantòr. When I made up the summoning items for this story, I was inspired by Èrzulie's favorite sacrifice; black pigs and rum. All according to Wikipedia, which must be a very good source, considering how fond my students are of it. ;)

Image Credits:

Screenshot from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End