Disclaimer: If you recognise it from the movie Pirates of the Caribbean then, sadly, it is not mine.
Chapter 1: Wedding Day Blues
Captain Jack Sparrow made his way through the streets of Port Royal with more stagger than swagger, grateful for the day's grace he had been granted by Governor Swann and Commodore Norrington. He was pleased to have been invited to the wedding of Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, particularly since he regarded himself as being instrumental in getting them together. Left to his own devices, young Will would never have made his move, he told himself. The wedding itself had been tedious, but the reception had been extremely grand. The Governor had apparently spared no expense for his only child on her big day, and the food and the booze had been exceptional. Jack belched loudly as he weaved his way down to the dock where his ship waited. It wasn't often he got to indulge in such a feast.
Boarding the Black Pearl, he ran one hand lovingly over the railing. This was his woman. All the woman a pirate could ever dream of possessing. And he was still revelling in having his beloved ship restored to his command. He nodded to the man on watch and headed for his cabin. It was more than time to sleep. When the watch changed, they had orders to take the ship out of port and put as much distance between the Pearl and Port Royal as possible – he didn't trust Norrington to give him more than the one day before heading out after him – but they were capable of doing that themselves.
Fifteen minutes saw Jack stretched out on his bunk staring at the ceiling. Somehow, sleep didn't seem to be swift in coming this night. In his mind he could see Will and Elizabeth gazing into each others' eyes as they made their vows. What would it be like to have someone look at you like that? In the past, he would have said it would be incredibly scary and entirely unwelcome. He was a pirate, a sailor who called no port home and spent his time and money on less than wholesome pursuits. To have a woman dependant on him simply didn't have a place in his life.
Now, however, he wasn't so sure. Both Will and Elizabeth had looked so happy, and he had overheard them talking to some of their friends about their plans to set up house and start a family. Neither option particularly appealed to him, but there was something in their voices that struck a chord with him and was now plaguing him with strange thoughts.
What woman would put up with you, Jack Sparrow? he asked himself wryly. And it was a valid question. He drank too much, he had a devotion to his ship that few women would understand or appreciate, he had a history of spending time with loose women in ports like Tortuga, and he had a wild streak a mile wide that was frequently landing him in trouble. The fact that he always managed to get himself out of trouble was probably irrelevant to a prospective Mrs Sparrow. Jack shook his head and closed his eyes, willing sleep to come quickly and put an end to this useless musing.
As he cleared his mind and finally slipped into sleep, the image of a face came to him. It was a face he hadn't thought of for several years. A face he had done his best to put out of his mind. Yet now that it came back to him it triggered vivid memories that would shape his dreams that night...
