I present you with my new Pirates of the Caribbean story. Ideas came to me a few days ago and they kept driving me crazy, so I decided to get it over with and just write it down. My muse can be a real bitch sometimes. It's set right after AWE.
Title: Caribbean Wind
Pairing: Jack/Elizabeth, a little bit of canon!Willabeth
Rating: T for now, it may go up later.
Beta: howlong (thank you honey, you're the best!)
Disclaimer: Sadly, I don't own them.
"Caribbean Wind"
Prologue
And them Caribbean winds still blow
from Nassau to Mexico
Fanning the flames in the furnace of desire
And them distant ships of liberty
On them iron waves so bold and free,
Bringing everything that's near to me nearer to the fire.
"Caribbean Wind", Bob Dylan.
xxx
The Winds were whispering tonight, telling the tales of the Seven Seas to the stars glittering on the dark firmament above. They told the stories of old, speaking of the times when the world was still young, and when the Gods ruled the seas. Lifetimes had passed; the Gods had been replaced by men and now men called themselves the masters of the oceans. But you cannot tame the untamable, and so many had died while trying to harness the strength of the merciless Lady Sea.
There were still heroes though, who, like the ancient Gods' favorites, had learned to respect and praise the majesty of the Oceans. They would not bow before anyone but their magnificent mistress; they would never show fear or weakness, for they would always find their peace in the gentle song of waves crashing against the ship's bow, and this song would follow them anywhere they went. It was the power only they possessed.
But upon the heroes' life there laid a curse of its own. They were born with hearts yearning for the Sea and therefore were bound to live a bittersweet, lonely life, knowing that what they desired most could never be truly theirs.
Their hearts were cursed with this sweet longing, and in their souls there was no place for different kinds of love, for the Sea was as a jealous woman, who would never agree to share her men with anyone.
But the Sea was also generous; the heroes were offered great gifts. Their names would never be forgotten and the stories of their life would grow to become legends. Yet the price they had to pay for this was great; they all would never know the sweetness of true love's first kiss, or the feelings which come when you hear the cry of your firstborn son. Not knowing that, they were, however, spared the feeling of regret. That is why all of them loved the Sea and never yearned for more. All that is, except one.
The Winds were telling a new tale tonight, a tale of lust, betrayal and death; a tale of rebirth and forgiveness; a tale of love sacrificed for greater purposes. The gentle breeze from the South brought a delicate rain, as if the Sky itself was crying at the story; as if it were the tears of a young girl waiting ashore for a lover, who would never return to her from the sea.
For the history had changed and there was born a man whose heart was big enough to contain the love for both the Sea and a mortal woman, fierce like Lady Sea herself. The woman bewitched him and then chose another, but she already had the hero's heart in her possession, though she did not know it at the time. So he sailed away, letting her live the life she chose, not aware of the torment of her soul; because with him he took a part of her too.
And it happened that the long forgotten Gods, who observed the matters of living, guiding them to follow their destinies, noticed the despair of the two broken souls and decided to forgive the woman who stole the sailor's heart from the Sea and claimed it as hers, and to forgive the man who dared to give his heart and soul away, challenging Fate.
The Winds blew delicately, filling the worn-out sales of a little dinghy floating somewhere south from the Bahamas. The warm fingers of the breeze traced the face of the man lying on the bottom of the boat, filling his nostrils with exotic scents familiar only to him; scents bearing memories and bringing vivid dreams in which he saw what he feared would haunt him till the end of his days.
The dinghy bowed gently on the waves, and then spun slowly so that it faced the opposite direction. When the gust filled the sails again, the boat began its new quest, taking the sailor back to the Caribbean; back to the place where his heart truly laid; back to the woman who could make him whole again.
The first rays of the Sun enlightened the horizon. The Gods were happy with their doings.
xxx
So, what do you think? Comments and constructive criticism are welcomed. Oh, the next chapters will be longer, I just wanted to start with something different from my usual writing.