This story is fondly dedicated to my incredible beta Michelle (Princess of the Pearl), who is celebrating her birthday this weekend, with much thanks for all of her assistance. Happy birthday, love! Jack and I are sending you some rum and cake. :)

This fic takes place a little over a year after AWE. After saying goodbye to Will, Elizabeth decided to stay with Jack on the Black Pearl to learn the ropes of pirating, so to speak. Jack and Liz have grown close after spending so much time together, but no romance...yet.

I own nothing. All things Pirates of the Caribbean belong to Disney. The Portly Villager is a great little pub near where I live that serves awesome sandwiches and beer. :)

Pale moonlight illuminated the small room as two figures slid noiselessly through the window.

"Are you certain it's even here, Jack?" Elizabeth whispered, dusting herself off.

"Of course I'm certain," Jack assured her, not bothering to lower his voice.

Elizabeth's eyes widened slightly, and Jack, seeing her alarm, grinned lazily. "Not to worry, love. Anyone who's around to hear us is more occupied with…other matters, and Gibbs has strict orders to ply Leighton with plenty of rum."

Elizabeth shivered, remembering how Leighton's lecherous stare the previous evening had made her skin crawl. She, Jack, and the rest of the Black Pearl's crew had been enjoying rum and cards at The Faithful Bride when Jacob Leighton had entered and made himself known. The man obviously loved to brag, and the more rum he consumed, the looser his tongue became. He informed everyone who would listen that his ship had attacked a vessel bearing gold and jewels meant for the King of Spain himself, including a priceless diamond-and-ruby tiara that had been specially commissioned for the Queen.

"I insisted, of course, that since I was captain, the tiara should be mine, along with my fair share of the gold," Leighton announced. "I figured if I could sell that gorgeous little crown, I'd be the richest man in the Caribbean. But my crew - those ungrateful wretches - started yammering that I'd taken too much from them over the years and that the shares should be divided equally. They tossed me overboard, but not before I grabbed the tiara." He laughed loudly and looked around as though he expected applause.

Elizabeth glanced over at Jack in time to see the corners of his mouth turn downward as he muttered, "Bloody mutiny" into his rum.

Elizabeth snorted. "You can hardly blame them, if they've had to endure his company for years."

Jack looked over at Leighton, who was describing the tiara in more detail, his chest puffed out like a peacock's. "Maybe you're right," he admitted, draining the last of his rum and signaling to the barkeep for another.

Elizabeth jumped in surprise as a heavy hand landed on her shoulder. "Whatever he's paying you, I'll double it," Leighton offered, gesturing toward Jack. "I deserve some pleasurable company tonight." His gaze traveled the length of Elizabeth's body from head to toe. She seemed to meet his approval, for his grin widened.

"She's not for sale," Jack replied, tilting his chair back and resting his booted feet on the table.

"Says who?" Leighton asked, frowning.

"I say." Jack smiled easily, but Elizabeth knew him well enough to recognize the menace in his eyes.

Shrugging Leighton's hand off her shoulder, Elizabeth swiftly jabbed her elbow into his stomach. He wheezed as he stumbled backward. In an instant, Elizabeth was on her feet, her sword drawn. "Perhaps you'd better find someone else to keep you company tonight," she said venomously, the tip of her blade kissing his throat.

Leighton backed toward the door, his eyes narrowed. "We'll meet again, wench," he spat furiously. "Count on that."

When he was gone, Elizabeth sank down in her chair, her nerves still taut.

"You all right, love?" Jack asked.

"Bloody bastard," Elizabeth muttered.

Now they were in Leighton's room at The Portly Villager, one of the more expensive inns in Tortuga, searching for the aforementioned tiara, while Gibbs kept him distracted downstairs.

"I've met men like that before," Jack said as he began opening drawers and peering into them. "They can't keep a secret to save their own skin, especially when it comes to the pretty little prizes they've plundered…like this," he concluded, lifting something out of the bottom drawer.

Elizabeth felt her breath catch in her throat as she stared in awe at the object in Jack's hands. The moonlight set the rubies ablaze, and the diamonds glittered with a cold white brilliance. Like fire and ice, she thought. "It's beautiful," she remarked, running a hand over the ornate design.

"Aye," Jack agreed, tucking the tiara under his hat. "It's sure to fetch us a nice sum once we find a place to sell it."

Suddenly the floorboards in the hallway creaked, and they could hear footsteps approaching the room. Elizabeth barely had time to react before Jack had seized her by the wrist and yanked her into the tiny closet with him, just before a key clicked in the lock and the door swung open. The closet was stiflingly hot, and so small that Elizabeth was pressed up against Jack's chest. Her heart was pounding so hard, she was sure he could feel it. A sliver of moonlight shone through the crack in the door, and Elizabeth could see a flash of gold in the semidarkness as Jack gave her another lazy grin. He's enjoying every minute of this! she realized. Somehow, though, the thought didn't surprise her.

They could hear Leighton drunkenly stumbling and muttering to himself. Elizabeth uttered a silent prayer that he would leave or fall asleep before discovering that the tiara was missing. Finally, after what seemed like hours, the door closed and the room beyond was silent.

Elizabeth waited a bit before easing the closet door open and stepping out, gratefully breathing in the cooler air. Before Jack could join her, however, the door to the hallway crashed open. Elizabeth froze as Leighton's eyes came to rest on her. She took a step backward as he came toward her, a nasty gleam in his eye.

"Well, what have we here?" He leered at her. "Must be my wildest dream come true."

"No," came Jack's voice, and Elizabeth heard the sound of a pistol being cocked over her right shoulder, "more like your worst nightmare, mate." Elizabeth felt the warm, reassuring pressure of Jack's hand against the small of her back as he came forward, his pistol still aimed at Leighton.

"You again," Leighton growled. "This is no business of yours."

"I'm making it my business," Jack stated flatly.

Leighton blinked and looked around, as if he'd suddenly discovered where he was. "I knew someone was in my room," he said wonderingly, almost as if he were talking to himself. "That's why I came back." He blinked again and focused on Elizabeth and Jack. "The tiara!" he cried, enraged. "You stole my tiara!"

"Wasn't yours to begin with," Jack retorted, as he gently eased Elizabeth in a wide circle around Leighton, all the while keeping the pistol aimed steadily. As they reached the doorway, Jack grabbed a chair and dragged it out into the hallway. He slammed the door shut and propped the chair under the doorknob. The door immediately shook as Leighton rained angry blows on it from the other side.

"Come on, love," Jack said, taking Elizabeth by the elbow and propelling her toward the stairs. "That'll only hold for a little while."

The pair dashed down the stairs and pushed their way through the crowd to the door. Once outside, they raced toward the docks as if the devil were on their heels. Gibbs was waiting for them at the gangplank.

"I'm sorry, Cap'n. I tried to stop him – "

"Forget it," Jack cut him off with a curt nod. "Let's go."

Once they were aboard, the mooring lines were cut, and the Black Pearl drifted silently out of the harbor. Elizabeth sank onto the deck, her back against a cannon, and breathed deeply, wiping the perspiration from her brow. Jack plopped down next to her, uncorking a bottle of rum with his teeth. He raised the bottle toward the heavens in a toast. "To Elizabeth Swann, the finest co-conspirator in the Caribbean," he declared, taking a long swig before passing the bottle to her.

Elizabeth accepted it and drank deeply, still trying to calm her racing heart. She passed the bottle back to him and gave him a sidelong glance. "Is it all always just a game to you, Jack?"

Jack leaned back and stretched his legs out in front of him. "Don't know what you mean, love."

"Life and death," Elizabeth said, scrutinizing his face. "What if he'd had his own weapon? What would you have done then?"

"I would've figured a way out," Jack replied confidently. He flashed her a cocky grin. "I'm Cap'n Jack Sparrow."

"Damn it, Jack!" Elizabeth shouted, suddenly furious. "Be serious for once! Death isn't something to be taken lightly."

"No, it's not," Jack agreed, his expression suddenly somber. "I should know."

Elizabeth felt her anger drain away then, and the guilt she still carried deep inside trying to fight its way to the surface. "Oh, Jack, I'm sorry."

Jack dismissed her apology with a wave of his hand. "It's all in the past now." He turned to face her, and Elizabeth couldn't remember him ever looking so serious. "I'm going to tell you something, Lizzie, and I want you to listen to me very carefully. If you're going to be a pirate, you're going to have to learn that death is a certainty. That's not to say that one welcomes it with open arms, mind you…I'm living proof of that." He gave her a crooked smile.

"It may seem to you that I treat every precarious situation as a lark, but I am always mindful of the consequences of my actions, and I am always mindful of how my actions affect my adversary. The more I smile, the more uneasy they become, and they begin to believe that I must have an advantage, savvy?"

Elizabeth nodded.

"In time, you'll come to see what I mean. You'll be able to read your opponent and see how best to gain the upper hand." Jack tipped the bottle again, taking a few long swallows of rum. "So in answer to your earlier question, no, it's not just a game to me."

Elizabeth was silent for a long moment before asking her next question. "Do you fear death?"

Jack shuddered, the memory of Davy Jones' voice and his not-so-distant past making him feel cold all over. That voice still haunted his most disturbing dreams; there were nights when he awoke soaked with sweat, convinced he was back in the Locker…

Elizabeth was waiting for his answer.

Jack swallowed and looked over at her. "You've no idea."