Author: Lostiawen

E-mail: changeling@planetx.org

Rated: NC-17

Pairing: Will Turner/Jack Sparrow,

Summary: Revelations and complications occur. 

Archive: Parley.  All others please ask.

Feedback: Yes, please. Warnings : None. 

Disclaimer: The characters within are the property of Disney.  The author does not own them, and is not making a profit off of their depiction here. 

Author´s Notes: Many thanks to Jassy, for giving me this bunny, and to Elizabeth for her support and suggestions.  And I´m sorry that this was delayed again, but RL is still kicking me in the butt right now. 
Originally posted Sept.  13, 2003

"Thr..."

Bootstrap´s voice suddenly split the air. "Stop!"  he yelled. 

Jack, Will, and Elizabeth looked over to the mast. Bootstrap was awake, and he was trying to free himself from his bonds. 

Ketch swiveled around and glared at him. "Better make this fast..."

Bootstrap said, "You were right, Jack´s lyin´ to ye." 

Jack said, "Well, not exactly..."

"Shut yer mouth, Jack! If ye say anythin´, we´ll be shootin´ ye dead."  Ketch continued, "I *knew* it. Tell me what Jack is keepin´ under his hat." 

"Only if ye release the three of them and let them get back t´ the Pearl safely. Ye will not hurt them, and ye will not harm the Pearl forever more." 

Ketch glared at Bootstrap. "That´s a lot to be askin´ fer, Bootstrap. What else d´ye have to sweeten the deal? Because frankly, me an´ m´crew are in no rush to get uncursed." 

Bootstrap replied, "I vow that none o´ the Pearl´s crew nor the Captain will ever fire upon one o´ yer ships." 

Jack sputtered, "Excuse me..."

Ketch said, "Shut up, Jack! I´m lettin´ him speak for ye."  He said to Bootstrap. "That´s not quite enough. What else have ye got?" 

Bootstrap lowered his eyes and said, "All I have left is m´life to offer you." 

"No!"  Will exclaimed. 

"Quiet, whelp!"  Ketch barked. "Or I´ll be shootin´ the lass next. In fact, if *any* of yer," he glared at Jack especially, "so much breathes before I´m done parleying with Bootstrap, all of ye will be riddled full of holes." 

Will glowered at Ketch, his blood boiling because there was nothing he could do to help. 

Ketch said, "On yer honor, Bootstrap, will you tell me the entire truth if I accede to yer demands?" 

"Aye." 

"And yer worthless hide will be mine to do with as I please?" 

"Aye." 

Ketch grinned. "We have an accord. Now, tell me what Jack was withholding." 

Bootstrap nodded, "Ye need more than my blood this time. T´ get uncursed, ye need to sacrifice one of the crew." 

Ketch slyly smiled. "I see. And ye´ve given me just the person I need."  He pointed at Jack, Will, and Elizabeth. "Put the three of them in the hold until we´ve dealt with the Pearl!" 

Bootstrap said, "Ye scallywag! Ye vowed that ye wouldn´t harm the ship!" 

Ketch grinned, "That I did. But I said nothin´ about jamming the rudder, or dealin´ with the anchor chain, as Jack was about to do to us." 

As the three were bustled below deck Jack muttered, "Why are all you Turner men so terrible at parley?" 

Will said, "I thought he was being reasonable." 

Elizabeth elbowed Will hard and he gave her a confused look. 

***

Bootstrap was shoved into the Captain´s quarters and tied to a chair. Ketch soon joined him, clucking his tongue when his captive glared at him. 

Ketch said, "Don´t look at me like that, Bootstrap. I did what was needed. And the Pearl will not be hurt." 

"May the Devil bugger ye." 

Ketch put his finger under Bootstrap´s chin and tilted it up. "Is that any way to talk? I need not kill ye to break the curse. Not if ye willingly become mine." 

"And I be telling ye the same thing I told ye all them years ago: my heart belongs to Jack." 

Jack the monkey chose this time to enter, landing on Ketch´s shoulder. As Ketch petted him, Bootstrap noticed something golden hanging from its neck. 

"That coin..." he looked at Ketch. "He got a hold of one of the coins from the treasure." 

"Aye," Ketch said. "Norrington forgot about this little one in the ruckus and he picked it up whilst we were waitin´ for the hangman´s noose in Port Royal. ´twas a blessin´ in disguise: we´ve been the walkin´ dead fer so long that ev´ryone was panicking when we became flesh ´n´ blood again. 

As Ketch offered the monkey a treat and cooed at it, Bootstrap said, "What happened to ye, Ketch? Ye never used to be like this. Ye were always kind to ev´ryone. A bit too ambitious mebbe, but never cruel." 

Ketch hissed, "Ye spurned me f´r Jack is what happened. I´ve always protected ye because yer mouth got ye into a peck of trouble. I´ve lost count of how many times ye were almost thrown overboard. And then ye go and fall for that poncy bastard." 

"Back then, I always thought of ye as a very good friend, Ketch. Nothin´ more." 

"And who´s idea d´yer think it was to have ye strapped to the cannon? Barbossa was ready to have ye chopped up into pieces and scattered to the four winds. I had a good idear that ye could survive bein´ dumped onter the bottom of the sea, so I convinced Barbossa that havin´ ye thrown overboard would be more fittin´."

Bootstrap gaped at Ketch. "Ye did?" 

"Aye," Ketch said. "I´m goin´ to take m´leave now, and let ye reconsider yer decision." 

As he was leaving, Bootstrap said, "The answer´s still the same." 

"Damn ye for being honest, Bootstrap," Ketch snarled as he slammed the door. 

Ketch pressed his forehead on the door, remembering how his stomach had fluttered when he first saw Bootstrap. 

He was so different then. He had believed in adhering to the Pirate´s Code, believed that other pirates were just as honorable as he was. 

He became jealous when he saw other pirates ignoring the Code and becoming richer as a result. But he tried to stick to his guns, hoping that Bootstrap would notice. 

And then Jack took him away. As he had always done many times before in the past, Ketch wished the most painful of deaths on Jack Sparrow. What did the bastard have that he didn´t? *He* never tried to protect Bootstrap from a raging Captain. He wasn´t around to protect Bootstrap from certain death at Barbossa´s hands. 

Jack chittered at him, and Ketch petted the monkey reassuringly, murmuring, "Ye won´t turn on me, will ye? No, I never have t´worry about that with ye. Ye know what loyalty means. And ye´d never break my heart, would ye?" 

In response, Jack chittered again. "No, ye wouldn´t, luv," Ketch sighed. "Don´t worry, I´ll keep ye safe. I know that at least ye´ll appreciate my actions, unlike a certain pirate we both know." 

He made comforting noises at Jack, waiting until the monkey settled down. Once it did, he exhaled and restored the barrier around his emotions that he had carefully built up over the years. He then straightened up and walked above deck, ready to give the crew his next command. 

****

Elizabeth shook the bars of the prison. "Of all the bloody luck, I have to be locked in a cell with *both* of you." 

Jack was lolling on the straw on the floor. "No use fightin´ it. We´re stuck here for now."  He pulled his hat over his head. 

She hissed, "How can you sleep at a time like this?" 

Jack said from underneath, "Even if we did get out, we would still have t´get past guards that never tire, don´t need t´eat, can´t be killed, and are so bored that they´re lookin´ for any excuse to skewer us. Since Commodore Norrington is not here, I assume that Ketch has hidden him somewhere else on this fine ship, to prevent us from gettin´ any ideas."  He paused to yawn before he continued. 

"Also, the fine Captain has given his word that he´ll release us, and I know he won´t go back onnit. If ye ask me, luv, it´s a *perfect* time t´get some sleep." 

Elizabeth said, "I can´t believe that you´re not thinking of an escape plan!" 

"Don´t bother talking to him, he´s already asleep," Will replied. He shuffled uncertainly. 

Elizabeth fumed when she heard Jack´s soft breathing. 

"So," Elizabeth said, glaring daggers at Will, "was I the consolation prize when he ran away? You couldn´t get Jack, so you decided to settle for poor Elizabeth because she was available and stupid enough to think that you loved her?" 

He winced. "I do love you, I just don´t love you like I love Jack. I´m sorry, I was so confused when he left..."

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Men! If you had bothered to tell me your feelings from the start, I would´ve helped you, you know." 

"What? It doesn´t bother you that..."

"Of course not! Why do you think I accompanied Mr. Turner to Cabezon? When he overheard me trying to get a lead on Jack´s whereabouts, he asked me if I had seen his lover recently." 

Her voice rose. "Will, I´ve read everything I could about pirates. Talked to as many people as I could about them. Don´t you think that I know that they tend to prefer the same sex?"  She threw up her hands. "God, just because I´m a girl doesn´t mean that I´m a bloody idiot!" 

"Elizabeth..."

"Oh, shut up!"  she groused, turning to the corner to sulk. 

Will decided that the best mode of action right now would be to hold his tongue. 

***

A half hour later Ragetti came in. "Jus´ checkin´ to make sure that none o´ ye try to escape." 

Jack removed his hat from his face and said lazily from the floor, "Oh no, we´re quite happy with this fine jail you have here. No rats and very few fleas. Definitely a top notch ship you´ve commandeered." 

"If only Bootstrap hadn´t parleyed," Pintel grumbled, "we´d be enjoying sending you to Davy Jones´ locker and then sailing off to pillage." 

"Oh?"  Jack said, "I assumed that all of ye would be anxious to break the curse." 

Pintel snorted. "That was mostly Barbossa´s doin´. He was all heated up to become alive agin, and he talked the rest of us inter it, what with his speeches about the things we were missin´ by bein´ this way. Ketch made us see that we were deceivin´ ourselves. We´re too used t´being like this. We can´t live like normal men anymore; he made us see that we would enjoy ourselves much more bein´ immortal. We need never fear the hangman´s noose, and we can do as we please." 

Jack said, "If ye ask me, mate, ye still have not the greatest of situations. Ye can´t eat, ye can´t enjoy yer plunder, and ye remain unsatisfied...sounds to me like Ketch has tricked yer." 

Ragetti said, "That ´twould be the case, if´n that was the only way to stay immortal." 

"Oh?" 

"There´s another legend, y´see, that Ketch found about. A way to live forever without the curse." 

"Really?"  Jack said, fascinated. 

"Really..." Pintel started, and then he frowned. "And I´m not telling ye, Jack. Ketch warned me about talkin´ with you."  He gestured to Ragetti and the two of them left. 

"Damnit," Elizabeth muttered as they exited. 

"My sentiments exactly," Jack said as he flopped down on the straw again. 

Will said, "Do you know what they were talking about?" 

"Not off the top o´ me head, Will, but my mind is a veritable trove of information, of which, not all is..."

Elizabeth cut in with, "So you don´t have the least bit of an idea." 

"That´s a little bit strident," Jack replied, "But you are, essentially, correct." 

"Strident?"  Elizabeth said bristling, "I´ll have you know..."

Will groaned and settled down onto the straw while Elizabeth and Jack continued their conversation. He was careful not to lie too close to Jack and he tried to ignore the mild verbal sparring between the two. 

Jack and Elizabeth finally agreed to disagree, and they both lapsed into an uncomfortable silence. Jack decided to continue his nap, and he woke up when a group of Ketch´s men came down, swords and pistols drawn. 

"Time fer ye all to go," Pintel said. 

The trio was ushered above deck, and they saw that their rowboat had been retrieved. The fog had lifted, and a breeze was starting up again. 

Ketch was waiting for them and he lazily said, "Now, if ye will be so kind as to get out of my sight, I´ll be gettin´ on to more important business." 

"Oh, and what would be so important?"  Elizabeth said. 

Ketch grinned. "Unlike certain other people, I have no need to brag about m´plans so that you can foil them, missy. Now, get off my ship!" 

The trio got into the rowboat and it was lowered into the water amid several catcalls from the crew. 

As they glumly rowed back, Will said, "How long will it take for us to repair everything?" 

Jack lowered his eyes and muttered. "Long enough for them to disappear into the open sea by the time we get movin´."

Elizabeth frowned. "And they were very stubborn about giving away any information that would help us."  "Aye. And even if we do track ´em down, what do we do then? We can´t fire on each other, and we´re hopelessly outnumbered in a hand to hand fight," Jack replied. 

Will said, "Then it´s hopeless?" 

"I prefer to think of it as a huge challenge. We can´t give up now, not with William´s life at stake." 

The Pearl was now in sight and they heard Gibbs bellowing. Once they drew close to the bow, Cotton tossed down a line and hauled them up. "Captain, we were gettin´ worried there," Gibbs said. 

"We ran into a bit of trouble, Gibbs. Now, I need you and Cotton to repair the rudder. Anamaria, you´re our best deep-sea diver. I need ye to go underneath the water and untangle our anchor chain." 

Anamaria looked at Jack skeptically. "We kept watches, Captain, we didn´t see anyone approach the ship." 

"And ye wouldn´t, if they were alive," Jack replied. 

Understanding quickly dawned on them. "Aye, Captain," Anamaria and Gibbs replied. Cotton´s parrot squawked, "Pieces of eight." 

As they went about their duties, Elizabeth said, "Jack, what do you know about Ketch? You seem to have a bit of history with him." 

"And it´s not a tale t´be told sober. Let´s go to my cabin so that I c´n have a proper drink." 

The three of them went in, and both Will and Elizabeth found some comfortable seats; Jack filled a mug with rum before he sprawled on his chair. 

"I picked up Ketch at the same time I picked up William in Tortuga," he began. "The pair of them were close friends. Ketch was very wily, and William was the most loyal pirate ye could have: always good to his word, and deadly accurate with those knives of his. All in all, a good man to have by yer side. Still, he weren´t too popular with the other Captains." 

"And why is that?"  Will asked. 

"Well, he´s got a nasty habit of bein´ frightfully honest, which is not somethin´ most Captains want to hear. Me, now, I find it refreshing. Especially since yer father´s first words to me was him asking if I was trying to attract magpies to nest in m´ hair." 

Will and Elizabeth smiled as Jack continued. "Anyways, I fell for William as soon as I set eyes on him, but I kept my distance at first. The Captain´s s´posed to be married to his ship, and William didn´t exactly lack for offers to warm his bed, savvy?" 

"Like father, like son," Elizabeth said tartly. 

Will gave her a wounded look. He then frowned and said to Jack, "But you told me earlier that you and my father had been lovers ever since he came aboard." 

"I´ll be gettin´ to that. Have patience," Jack said before he continued, "Ketch was never very far from William, and he had been nicknamed ´Bootstrap´s Shadow´, on more ´n one occasion. Clever as could be, Ketch could look at most plans and immediately figger out a way to make it less risky and more profitable. He was an invaluable man to have." 

"Then why didn´t he become your First Mate, Jack?"  Will asked. 

"Well, first off, I don´t believe in demotin´ people if they´re doin´ their job properly. Secondly, most of Ketch´s shortcuts involved needless harm to innocent people. And thirdly, I smelled somethin´ unsavory about him. All it needed was the right situation for it t´come out." 

Elizabeth said, "If he was so dangerous, why didn´t you release him from duty and put him down at the nearest port?" 

"Because he was William´s friend, and most o´ the time, he was a decent man. So, I just decided to keep ´im on a short leash." 

"But you still became lovers with my father," Will said. 

Jack paused and drank his rum. "Yeah. It weren´t the best of ideas..."

Elizabeth said, "As if that´s stopped you before." 

Jack ignored her and continued, "...because Ketch carried a torch for William, but I was completely smitten. I tried my best to ignore it, but I gave up after two weeks. So, if ´n´ you want to pick nits, I didn´t haul him off to my bed as soon as he set foot on the Pearl, but it was soon enough." 

"And what happened?"  Elizabeth said. 

"We had docked at Tortuga again because of a heavy storm. I wooed him that evenin´..." Jack grinned at the memory. "´twas a night to remember, that´s for certain. 

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Mr. Turner doesn´t seem to be the type to respond to romance, Jack." 

"Erm, not at first. But never underestimate the charm of Captain Jack Sparrow."  He took another long pull on his rum. 

"Which means that he didn´t know what you were talking about until you asked him if he wanted to swive," Elizabeth said. Jack sprayed his drink out and sputtered. 

"Elizabeth!"  Will said in shock. 

She looked at him innocently. "Is my language too much for your delicate ears?" 

Will stammered, "Uh..." He noticed Jack was still coughing and decided to slap him helpfully on the back instead of answering Elizabeth´s question. 

Once Jack had regained his breath he grinned at her. "Yer a sly one. I´m definitely going to have to keep my eye on you, lass." 

He quickly took another swig of his rum, looking at Elizabeth cautiously. "As I was sayin´, after William and I became lovers, I tried to keep my eye on Ketch, seein´ as how I didn´t want to wind up accidentally becoming a casualty. I sent Barbossa to spy on him, but he reported that Ketch didn´t even bat an eyelash. And that should´ve been the end of it." 

Elizabeth said, "I have a feeling that there´s more to the story." 

Jack nodded. "Ketch started cozying up to Barbossa and becomin´ friends with him. In fact, that monkey was originally Ketch´s. He gave it to Barbossa to get in on his good side. And then he bided his time." 

"So he was responsible for the mutiny?"  Will asked. 

"Not directly. When I decided to find Cortez´s treasure, Ketch started plantin´ ideas in Barbossa´s head." 

Will said, "I wonder why my father wasn´t immediately thrown overboard with you." 

"I let Barbossa put me on that island without a fight on the condition that he wouldn´t kill or hurt William. Yer father told me the rest of the story in Cabezon. Ketch told William to low, and he told him t´ go along with everythin´ until the time was ripe for them to take control. However, Ketch had no intention of rescuing me, and William eventually figgered it out...Ye know the rest." 

"Jack, will Ketch sacrifice my father?"  Will asked, his brow furrowed with concern. 

Jack said, "He pledged his life, so Ketch ain´t gonna let him off unless we find something very valuable to parley with in return." 

Will´s eyes shimmered and he bowed his head. "I just barely found him," he whispered, "and now I´m going to lose him again." 

Elizabeth quietly got up and nodded at Jack before she left the cabin, keeping her steps soft. Once the door clicked shut, Jack gathered Will up in his arms. 

He stroked Will´s long hair as the firm body shuddered against him. Murmuring soft endearments and words of comfort, he untied the strip of cloth holding Will´s hair in a ponytail, letting the brown locks cascade over his fingers. He ran his hands through the long hair, soothing his lover. 

Will kept his face buried in Jack´s chest, his body shaking. He tried not to think about all those lonely years he spent growing up in England, wishing that his father would return. He hated himself for giving it to his emotions. His father needed him to be strong...but the whole prospect seemed so hopeless. Bracing himself, he pulled back and looked into Jack´s eyes. A single tear started trickling down his smooth cheek, and he was about to wipe it away in disgust when Jack caught his hand. 

Wordlessly, Jack reached out with his finger and captured the drop. He delicately licked it and then cupped his hand to Will´s cheek, his fingers ghosting over the soft skin. 

Will let his pent up breath out, feeling his body tremble with tension. Jack pressed his lips to his face, planting tiny kisses over the watery trail. 

"Let it go," Jack murmured. "Ye need yer mind to be clear. Let me take care of ye."  He began pressing kisses all over Will´s face and neck, tickling him with his mustache. 

In response, Will shivered, losing himself in the delicate caress of Jack´s lips. He felt very vulnerable right now, and he suddenly burned with the craving to be close to Jack, to meld with his body. 

He grabbed Jack´s face between his hands and smashed their lips together, aggressively pushing his tongue into Jack´s mouth. He hungered for intimate contact, and he wrapped his tongue possessively around Jack´s, kissing him until he was breathless. 

While Jack was moaning under his mouth, Will grabbed the front of Jack´s shirt and yanked it open roughly. Jack pulled back, surprise in his eyes. 

Will said thickly, "I want you."  His desire burned bright within him; he focused on it, replacing his despair with a single-minded need to feel Jack´s shaft within him. 

Will stripped Jack swiftly before he doffed his own clothes and tackled Jack onto the bed, pressing him down.  He devastated Jack with his kisses, breaking contact to groan loudly as their erections rubbed against each other. 

"Now, Jack," Will growled, "I need you right now." 

Jack reached for the bottle of oil. "Then take what you want," he said huskily. 

The low rumble of Jack´s voice caused his passion to burn as fiercely as a pyre. Spurred on, Will grabbed the oil and pulled the cork out with his teeth before spitting it out. He hastily poured the oil onto Jack´s shaft and quickly prepared himself. He was about to roll them both over when Jack forcefully grabbed his hips. 

"Ride me," he said roughly, positioning Will over the tip of his erection. 

Needing no further prompting, Will impaled himself completely on Jack´s length, sucking in a loud breath as his body rebelled against the sudden intrusion. He ignored it; his lust was boiling hotly within him, and he needed to slake it. He began to thrash upon Jack wildly, his loose hair spilling around his face as he tossed his head back, biting his lips to avoid moaning as pleasure flared brightly within his veins. He lost himself in the moment, becoming a creature of pure hunger, stroking himself on Jack´s hard flesh until his head spun. 

Jack bucked wildly beneath him, making incoherent guttural noises. His eyes were clouded over as if he had been swept into the vortex of Will´s primal lust. Gold teeth glinted as he pulled Will´s body down closer, latching onto the sensitive spot on his throat. 

Will was jolted to the core, and he began pumping his hips faster, biting Jack´s shoulder to muffle the howl rising in his throat. Jack continued to nibble and suck the tender flesh, stirring Will into a greater frenzy. 

Will gripped Jack between his powerful thighs, balancing himself so that he could spear himself completely on each stroke. He mewled into Jack´s shoulder, the pressure within him was unbearable, and he had to find his release *now*. He tried reaching between his legs to grab his bobbing shaft, but Jack slapped his hand away. 

"Don´t touch yerself," Jack said roughly, arching his hips to jab sharply upward. 

Will broke contact with Jack´s shoulder to keen loudly, but Jack silenced him with a hard kiss. He thrust relentlessly into Will, stroking over the sensitive bundle of nerves inside, keeping Will skating on the precipice of climax until he was choking back his cries. 

Will arched back, each muscle in his body quivering tightly. The cabin felt overly warm, and he opened his mouth to suck in fresh air as he panted, tasting sweat as he swiped his tongue over his full lips. 

His senses were scattering as Jack continued to drive into him, and his nails dug into Jack´s chest as he tried to muffle his screams. The sweet agony was almost unbearable, and his organ throbbed unbearably. As he writhed on Jack´s shaft, he managed to open his eyes in a silent plea. 

Jack reached down and grabbed Will´s erection. "Come for me," he purred, rapidly stroking the overheated flesh. 

Will bit his lip to swallow the wail that erupted from his throat. He climaxed hard, spilling over Jack´s stomach and chest, shaking for what seemed like an eternity. 

As he came back to himself, he felt Jack thrusting rapidly into him, and he was lifted off the bed as Jack gasped loudly, shuddering as he found his release. 

As the aftershocks traveled through Jack´s body, Will suddenly felt dizzy. He collapsed bonelessly against Jack, surprised when he tasted blood. As he tried to assess what had happened, Jack grabbed a cloth and wiped Will´s mouth off before he used another section to apply pressure to the swollen lips. 

"Ye bit yerself pretty hard," Jack murmured, dabbing gently at the wound. 

"Mmm..." Will replied. His tongue had suddenly grown heavy and refused to work. He tried to stay awake, but Jack´s gentle ministrations quickly lulled him off to sleep. He drifted off, letting his worries and cares melt away. 

----
end part 4

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