Forward Thinking

"Come on Will! Hurry up," Elizabeth called. She glanced over her shoulder and saw him struggling to keep up with her. She laughed and continued to run, letting the mild breeze whip her hair around. It had been four days since they had met, and Will and Elizabeth had grown into close friends.

She glanced back at him again and saw that he had slowed down. His fever was beginning to diminish, but it still caused him much trouble. His cut was still mending as well, which often slowed him down. Elizabeth smiled and decided to take pity on him. She ran back to him and grabbed his hand, starting to pull him along. "Come Will, you know how I terribly loathe waiting."

"Elizabeth, please," he sighed. "I can walk on my own."

"But that is just the problem," she replied. "We must run, and since you refuse or simply are not capable of it, I must help you."

He sighed again. "That's ridiculous. Of course I can run."

"Then you are refusing to," she said, pulling him harder.

"That is not true," he said quickly. "I promised you that I would do what you asked of me. If you wish me to run, then simply say it."

"Alright," she said with a satisfied grin. "I wish you to run."

Will smiled at her. "Very well." He shifted his hand so that it was now around her wrist, and then dashed off. Elizabeth screamed as she was pulled behind him, but then she began to laugh. She held up her dress with her free hand so that she could run faster and managed to run alongside him.

"Will, let go of my wrist so that I may race you to the bow."

"As you wish." He released her and she instantly darted ahead. "Hey, wait for me!" he yelled as he struggled to catch up with her.

"Why would I do that?" she called from ahead. "If you have forgotten, we are racing. And waiting for you to catch up with me would ruin my victory. Besides, I have told you of my dastardly impatience. I wait for no one."

"But I am sick!" he said desperately.

She laughed. "You would not be able to catch me if you were well. You should not have agreed to a race."

Will stopped to catch his breath. He had decided to give up, for she was nearly at the bow. When he looked up a minute later, she was standing on the railing, looking out at the ocean. He walked up to her and stepped up onto the railing beside her. "I did not know you were so fast. I was not expecting it."

She turned her head to look at him. "As I have said before, you should not presume things of other people." She grinned. "Especially not of me. It will do you no good."

"I have learned that now," he said, still a bit breathless. After a small pause, he smiled. "You are certainly full of surprises, Elizabeth."

"I rather like surprises," she said, turning back to the ocean.

"So do I."

There was another pause before she spoke. "Look. It is so beautiful."

Will followed her gaze. She was staring directly at the horizon, where the sun was beginning to set. The sky around it was splashed with radiant oranges and reds, and the surrounding ocean reflected the colors so that they were twice as strong. Elizabeth was marveling at the splendor of it all, sighing and gasping every time a new color lit up the sky. Will smiled at her and replied, "It sure is."

She turned to face him and waited for him to do the same. Once their eyes were locked, she asked, "Will, can I ask you something?"

He smirked. "You just did."

She smacked him lightly on the shoulder. "Oh, be serious."

"Alright." He nodded. "Yes, you may ask me anything."

Her eyes lit up. "Do you believe in what cannot be seen?"

Will raised his eyebrows, for her question was certainly unexpected. "You mean like the supernatural?"

She nodded vigorously. "Yes."

"I do not know. I have never really thought about it. Why do you ask?"

There was silence for a minute, and then Elizabeth gazed back over the railing. "No reason in particular."

"I do not believe you. What are you keeping from me?"

She sighed. "It is nothing."

"But now I must know."

She smiled at him. "It is just something I read once. An old sailor's myth." She shook her head. "Utterly foolish. It cannot be true."

He looked at her curiously. "What did it say?"

She shook her head again. "You will think me quite irrational."

"I promise I shall not." He nodded. "I promise. Just what is it?"

She sighed. "It was just a story about a man named Davy Jones. He once was a wonderful sailor, but then he fell in love with a goddess. Calypso was her name. She forced him to work for ten years as a psychopomp, sailing the Netherworld and ferrying souls who died at sea." She shook her head. "It is a rather foolish story. But I have always been drawn to those sorts of things, much to the displeasure of my father." She looked up to see Will staring at the ocean with his eyebrows furrowed, obviously deep in thought. She reached out and gently touched his shoulder. "Will, are you alright?"

He flinched slightly at her touch, for it brought him back to reality. After a minute, he replied, "Yes, I am fine. It is just…I cannot help but think that I have heard that story before. But I cannot think where." He turned and looked at her, and concern clouded his eyes. "It is almost like I have always known it." He shook his head. "It is the strangest feeling. And I do not know how, but I know the rest."

Her eyes widened. "You do?"

He furrowed his eyebrows again. "I think I do." He turned back out to the ocean. "Jones willingly paid his debt and after ten years he returned to the shore where they had last met. She had promised him an eternal life with her if he had proved himself loyal. She had given him a ship, The Flying Dutchman, and a crew that would follow his orders. Jones served Calypso without complaint, for he knew of the reward that would come. But when the time came, she was not there." Will sighed. "He became distraught and carved out his own heart, for he could not bear the pain. He locked it in a chest and hid it somewhere known only to him. He returned to the Dutchman, but no longer followed his duty to the dead. His purpose became corrupt, and he as well."

Will sighed again and looked back at Elizabeth. She was gazing at him in mild shock. Slowly, she whispered, "I did not know the end. Is it really true after all?"

He shrugged. "I cannot be sure. It feels so right, but I do not know." He shuddered slightly. "It feels as though there is more to it, but it has not yet happened." He looked back out at the sun, which had nearly set. "Perhaps it will someday."

Elizabeth watched him solemnly. "Come Will, let us go inside. It is getting rather cold out here." She gently took his hand and together they began to walk back towards her quarters, where the cook had promised to serve them a fine dinner. Their backs were turned to the railing, so neither of them noticed a brilliant flash of green light on the horizon as the sun completely disappeared.

(A/N:) Okay, the deal with this is that this story was my original chapter 5 for Unbreakable. That's why the beginning is the same. After I wrote it though, I decided against using it because it would change the course of the story. I would have to completely redo all my ideas to fit around the notion that Will and Elizabeth can almost know what is to come when they are older. So I changed it a bit and well...you can read what I did in Unbreakable. Sorry...I know I'm horrible at explaining things. ;) But anyway, I liked this too much to delete it, so I'm posting it up as a one-shot. Enjoy! Please review!