The Sun and The Moon (Jack Sparrow)

22

What shocked her the most was how upset she was about this. But what was it that upset her: the false hope she had now of escaping the island, or that he lied to her?

"From the look of things," he continued, " they've long been out of business. Probably have your bloody friend Norrington to thank for that. Jack came up the steps, two bottles of rum in his hands.

Catherine's brows dipped, her arms crossed over her chest.

"So that's it, then?" Elizabeth questioned, beginning to sound upset. "That's the secret, grand adventure of the infamous Jack Sparrow. You spent three days lying on a beach drinking rum?" Elizabeth asked quietly.

Jack pressed a bottle of rum into her hands, "Welcome to the Caribbean, love."

He walked past Elizabeth, coming to a short stop when Catherine stepped out in front of him. She was mad. "You lied to me." Her voice went dangerously low. "You lied to me. Had me believing you really were some incredible pirate, someone who I was beginning to..." Jack's eyes grew pained, faint of hope glistening as her voice trailed off. Admire was the word she wanted to say but she refused. The next words that reached her throat hurt her, "It doesn't matter anymore, does it?" Jack's eyes flickered hurt, taking a step back.

"You aren't my wife; I don't owe you any truth." His words sliced through Catherine making her exhale, almost gripping her chest.

The pirate walked past her, distancing himself from the two women.

Catherine stood there, gaping at him. He had never spoken to her like that before, never. She watched him disappear, drinking away. A grunt escaped her, making her cross her arms over chest.

"Are you alright?" Elizabeth questioned softly, wrapping an arm around her cousin's shoulders. Catherine nodded, keeping her eyes on where the pirate had once been, leaning into her embrace. "You want to tell me what that was all about? Why were you pretending to be his wife?" Elizabeth moved in front.

"He did it to protect me from Barbossa and his crew. So no one would touch me or hurt me." Catherine swallowed thickly, thinking over everything that had happened aboard the Black Pearl.

Elizabeth's brows arched in surprised. "Then why didn't you admit that you really weren't his wife when I was on the plank? Why keep the lie going?"

A faint smirk came over Catherine's face, "To wipe that smug look off of his face." She was not going to admit a small part of her didn't want to admit the truth, that she'd keep to herself. No one needed to know that, no one.

Her cousin chuckled, shaking her head. "Catherine, it is amazing how you challenge any man. Pirate or the Commodore."

The smirk faded off. "Speaking of him, did you accept his proposal before you fell?"

Elizabeth's smile faded off as she glanced away, "I didn't give him an answer."

Catherine placed a hand on her cousin's shoulder, throwing her head back. "Oh thank god." She breathed out, holding her stomach. That earned an elbow to her side, making her laugh. "I missed you, cousin."

"I miss you too, Catherine."

They embraced each other, holding on to each other tightly.

When the parted, Elizabeth spoke again, "How are we going to create a signal or attract any kind of attention on here?"

Catherine glanced at Jack lounging on the beach, drinking away. She gritted her teeth, glaring at him. "We should burn the rum."

Elizabeth and Catherine snapped their heads to look at each other.