With Katrina

(Sequel to Including Katrina)

Disclaimer: No, I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean (characters, plot, dialogue, etc.). Any other tid-bits of creativity, however, are mine… in which I hope you will enjoy. Please be sure to read and review!

Author's Note: All right, everyone… the final chapter!!! I know you have all been waiting anxiously for this… and here it is! Please review and let me know what you think… if you have any suggestions for this part or any other part of the story, I'd love to know, so please write to me!

Well, enough said… read and on and let me know what you think of the ending! Thank you all so much for your reviews! Truly it means a lot!!!

Chapter 28

An Unexpected Ending

"You 'ave returned," a warm voice came from the familiar shack's doorway. "But Jack is no longer wid you."

Mr. Gibbs was the first to climb out of the boat and looked sadly up at Tia Dalma. "Aye."

Will then helped Katrina out of the boat, a bucket now in her hands from her stomach sickness having grown much worse.

"Jack," she whined softly. "My Jack."

Will led her as best he could up to the shack. Once they reached the porch, Elizabeth, who was right behind them, saw that Katrina was far too weak and so helped Will walk her into the small house.

"Jack," Katrina went on, tears still somehow trickling down her face as Elizabeth held her up at her left side and Will at her right. The remainder of the Pearl's crew followed into the house after them.

It wasn't until they were a few steps into the shack that Katrina seemed to realize that Will and Elizabeth were helping her walk. She looked over at Elizabeth curiously at first before anger began to boil up within her.

"Unhand me!" Katrina pulled away from Elizabeth. "How dare you touch me after what you have done!"

"Katrina," Will tried to calm her. "Don't be like that."

Katrina turned to Will with just as much fire in her eyes.

"Let go of me! I don't need you!" Katrina pulled from Will so that she was standing on her own.

"Katrina," Will began gently as he held out his hand to her.

"No! Don't!" Katrina waved a finger at him threateningly. "You're just as bad as she is!"

"What?" Will asked in surprise with a bit of hurt when Katrina said this as she pointed at Elizabeth.

"Yes! You are just as bad as she is! You were the one that convinced the crew of the Pearl that Jack 'fell behind'! Remember?! You knew everyone would follow the Code of the Brethren! And so you abandoned Jack with Barbossa at Isle de Muerta!"

"But Will hardly knew Jack all that well at that time, how can you blame him?" Elizabeth spoke up in defense.

Katrina's eyes flashed with hatred when they reached Elizabeth's. "I can't believe you're defending him after what you've done!"

Elizabeth immediately shut her mouth and backed off.

"Will hardly knowing Jack! Am I not your friend? Did you not trust in my judgment and trust in Jack? Apparently your friendship with me… and trust in me, I might add… isn't worthy of--" Katrina abruptly stopped as she felt a huge wave of sickness coming upon her.

"Katrina," Will called out gently again as he helped her stand as she emptied her stomach into the bucket she held.

"Oh, de poor child," Tia gave a sad smile as she watched the argumentative scene finally come to an end.

"Actually, Tia Dalma," Gibbs approached the gypsy. "Before Jack was… well… he 'ad asked me t' bring Katrina to you. She's been wi' this stomach sickness since the day after we came t' visit ye last. He wanted to see if you could give 'er one o' your potions or somethin' so that she could be cured of 'er sickness."

Katrina finally straightened back up again, the sickness finally having left her. Tia Dalma simply smiled all the more as she looked upon the poor young woman as she leaned against Will.

"She is not sick," Tia Dalma said lovingly as she came up very close to Katrina.

"What do you mean she's not--"

Tia Dalma held up her hand to silence Gibbs before placing it upon Katrina's lower abdomen. "She is wid child. De child of Jack Sparrow."

"I'm what?" Katrina breathed in surprise, a small smile playing at her lips as she replaced Tia Dalma's hand on her abdomen with her own. "Am I truly…?"

The mystic simply nodded with a wide, happy grin.

Katrina's eyes spilled tears once again down on her face. She tried to hold her smile as she was so happy about what Tia Dalma had told her, but all she could think about was Jack… how he wasn't there with her and how he would never know the truth of her sickness. As the thoughts of Jack overwhelmed her, Katrina slowly melted down to the floor of the shack, her blue dress pooling around her, as she cried her heart out.

"Jack! Jack! My Jack!" Katrina cried out with all the strength that remained in her. "Jack! I need you, my Jack! My Jack!"

Those of the crew came around her and exchanged looks, not sure of what to do.

"How far along is she?" Elizabeth whispered to Tia Dalma as she was about to leave the room.

Tia Dalma placed a hand at Elizabeth's cheek, making her involuntarily shiver with that much more guilt in her heart. "'bout 'alfway t'rough 'er second mont'."

The gypsy then let go of Elizabeth and walked away.

"Do ye think this explains why the Kraken tried coming after us in the longboat?" Ragetti whispered to Gibbs and Pintel.

"Katrina," Will offered, ignoring the whispering of those around him as he got on his knees beside her, opening his arms up to her. "Come here, Katrina."

"No," Katrina snapped at the blacksmith as she choked on her tears. "I want Jack! I want my Jack!"

Not having much strength to resist Will's kind embrace, Katrina found herself crying into his chest once again as he rubbed her back, trying his best to comfort her.

"Jack! I love you, Jack! I need you, Jack!" Katrina cried into Will. "Jack, please! Jack! My Jack!"

It took several minutes of rocking her and rubbing her back, but Will eventually got Katrina to quiet down. He felt awful how everything had come to this. Such a noble lady like Katrina didn't deserve this. Sure, there was the wonderful news that she was pregnant, but she was now alone. And that poor child, now never being given the chance to know his own father, not even the smallest opportunity as he had had when he was a young boy.

"Here," Tia Dalma broke the silence as she reappeared with a tray full of mugs at Elizabeth's side. "Against de cold… and de sorrow."

Elizabeth, who was seated up on a stool, changed her gaze from the now softly crying Katrina in Will's arms up at Tia Dalma and then shook her head. The mystic didn't let Elizabeth refuse and instead pushed the tray closer until she finally accepted in taking one of the mugs.

"It's a shame," Tia Dalma said kindly to Will as she lowered the tray so he could take a mug. "I know you're t'inking dat wid de Pearl, you coulda captured de devil and set free your fadder's soul."

Will carefully placed two mugs on the floor at his side as he held Katrina tightly. "Doesn't matter now. The Pearl's gone. Along with its captain."

A loud sob came from Katrina upon hearing what Will said, her face still buried in his chest.

"Aye," Gibbs said slowly as he turned from looking out across the porch and walked back inside, a mug from Tia Dalma in his hand. "And already the world seems a bit less bright. He fooled us all right to the end. But I guess that honest streak finally won out."

Katrina removed her head to look over at Gibbs, her heart still aching.

"To Jack Sparrow!" Gibbs saluted with his mug.

"Never another like Captain Jack," Ragetti said sadly as he lifted up his mug.

"He was a gentleman of fortune, he was," Pintel added as he too lifted up his mug.

Katrina shakily took hold of one of the mugs beside Will and did her best to stand up, lifting her mug up as well. "He was a good man."

By this time, Will had stood up beside Katrina helping her to balance. As everyone nodded in agreement, they all lifted their mugs higher before taking a drink. That is, everyone but Elizabeth.

Once she had taken a drink, Katrina found herself falling apart all over again. Will placed both his mug and her mug on a nearby table before taking her up in his arms again.

"Oh, Katrina," he said tenderly, holding her close as she cried. "If there was anything that could be done to bring him back…"

"Would you do it?" Tia Dalma spoke up suddenly, before looking to Elizabeth, "Hmm?"

Katrina stopped crying and turned within Will's embrace to look at the gypsy.

"What… would you? Hmm? What would any o' you be willing to do? Hmm? Would you sail to de ends o' de eart', and beyond, to fetch back witty Jack and 'im precious Pearl?"

"Aye," Katrina immediately answered.

"Aye," Gibbs nodded.

"Aye," Pintel admitted.

"Aye," Ragetti echoed.

"Awk! Aye," squawked Cotton's parrot for him.

"Yes," Elizabeth replied.

Will delayed his answer as he watched Elizabeth.

"Aye," the blacksmith finally whispered.

"All right," Tia Dalma grinned mischievously. "But if you're goin' brave de weird, and haunted shores, at world's end, den… you will need a captain who knows dose waters."

As the mystic finished saying this, the sound of heavy footsteps stole everyone's attention. The crew of the Pearl looked past Tia Dalma at the staircase. Katrina, who had wiggled out of Will's comforting hold, gasped and took hold of his hand when she saw who it was that had descended the stairs.

"So tell me," Barbossa said in a nonchalant manner as he took a bite of a green apple, his little monkey accompanying him on his shoulder. "What's become of my ship?"