Disclaimer – I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean…If I did, I would not be sitting here writing fan fiction, and I would be making more movies. Or at least letting the writers know about the mistakes…and the third movie DVD would have movie commentary.
Memories. Memories and longings were the only things that existed in the middle of the night. Will Turner never let himself dwell for long during the day; he made sure to put his job first, along with his crew, and his own feelings second. During the day he was fairly good at forgetting how he felt, but when the hustle and bustle of the day was over, he had nothing distracting him from the thoughts haunting him.
Will tried unsuccessfully to sleep. Normally it was thoughts of Elizabeth and his wishes that things could have happened differently that caused him to toss and turn, but not tonight. Tonight he thought of Jack Sparrow and how everything he did had affected Will's own outcome.
Will grimaced as he considered all the times that if something different had happened, anything different, everything would have changed.
A memory began to surface and slowly the image came to Will's mind. A prison inside a fort, a desperate need for a direction to look and the last person that Will wanted to ask.
"Yes," thought Will, "at that time, I think the only person who hated pirates more than me was James Norrington….which explains why I was the only one of us who was willing enough…or stupid enough to ask a pirate for directions."
Will had known that a pirate named Jack Sparrow was in the fort's prison. He also knew that without Jack's help, Elizabeth might be lost forever. He took the risk and went to Jack for answers. He was not only able to tell Will where to look, but would take him there. The price? Will had to free him from the jail cell.
Will had agreed, knowing that this might be the only way to save Elizabeth. He didn't stop to consider the consequences. Nothing could be worse than Elizabeth's death.
Looking back, Will still could not see anything else he could have done, but that was not what plagued him this night. No, it was the fateful conversation that took place in the prison.
The words rose unbidden to reverberate loudly in Will's head.
"Sparrow," Will had said, "you are familiar with that ship the Black Pearl?"
"I've 'eard of it," was Jack's neutral reply.
"Where does it make berth?" Will asked, keeping the desperation out of his voice.
"Where does it make berth?!" said Jack in surprise, "'ave you not 'eard the stories?" Will frowned, obviously he had not. "CAPTAIN Barbossa and his crew of miscreants sail from the dreaded Isle de Murta. It's an island that can not be found... except...by those who already know where it is."
"The ship's real enough," said Will, grasping the knowledge excitedly, "therefore its anchorage must be a real place. Where is it!!"
"Why ask me?" said Jack unconcernedly.
"Because you're a pirate," Will said, finally unable to keep some frustration out of his voice.
"And you want to turn pirate yourself, is that it?" said Jack grinning, for he was sure that this was not something that Will would want.
"Never!" Will had said passionately.
Will sighed. "If only," he thought. The word 'never' and the way he had said it echoed mockingly inside his head. "My simply being there, practically begging Jack for help was the start of my life as a pirate. Right after that I helped him steal a ship, commandeer as Jack put it, went to Tortuga, and betrayed a man to get what I wanted…"
Will sighed again. Now here he was, Captain William Turner of the Flying Dutchman, only allowed to go ashore once every ten years.
"If only Jack had done something for someone else without needing some profit from it, just once! So many things would have been differ-"
Will was cut off mid-thought as someone knocked loudly on his cabin door.
"Enter," he called as he sat up on the edge of his bunk and consulted his internal clock. (Will always seemed to know what time it was in the water between the worlds.) He was shocked to realize it was almost dawn.
The cabin door opened and Bootstrap Bill Turner, Will's father, walked in.
"Will," he said, sounding slightly surprised, "I thought you would be up by now, prowling the decks. The crew and I have almost come to expect it, knowing what day it is."
"What?" said Will confusedly. It was a little before when he usually got up and the crew had informed him with subtle (and not so subtle) hints that he was allowed a late morning from time to time.
"Will," asked Bootstrap kindly, "don't you know what day it is?"
Will continued to sit for a minute, thinking, and then he was hit with a beam of enlightenment. "Oh," he said quietly, understanding. He stood slowly, then walked to the desk where lay a single piece of parchment. He gazed at it sadly, counting the record he had made in tick marks, 361, 362, 363, 364…
"Another year…gone," said will sadly as he picked up the paper and set it into a drawer with several others like it. He then pulled a fresh sheaf of parchment out and made the first tick mark on it.
"Aye," agreed Bootstrap, "the 'xact day it happened." They both knew he was referring to Will's heart. "Will," he began, "we'd all understand…if you'd rather spend the day…alone."
Will considered it, he truly did, but he knew it wouldn't change a thing.
"Just a few more minutes," said Will as he turned to his porthole.
"Aye Cap'n," said Bootstrap understanding. He left, pulling the cabin door shut.
Will stared out the window, watching the sun rise, knowing as he did, Elizabeth would be watching it set.
"Only another year," he whispered to himself, as if she could hear him through the sun. "Wait for me, it's one more year."
A/N – So this is my first fiction, so please review! But don't be kind because it is my first! See you again soon!