OK, it really took a lot outta me to write this, because I started it ages ago, but couldn't finish it (don't ask why) so finally getting it done means a lot to me, and if you like it, a review would really be appreciated :)
Enjoy!
Among the Fields of Gold
You'll remember me, when the west wind moves,
Among the fields of barley...
Elizabeth Turner steps out of the little cottage on the hillside and watches as Victoria, her young six-year-old daughter, runs ahead of her. Elizabeth walks slowly down the path, reliving all the wonderful memories she has spent with him as she looks upon the fields of gold that mean so much to her.
It was there when she'd first seen him; two years out of the ten she'd have to wait had already gone by as she gazed into his dark eyes and he kissed her so softly in that field. He hadn't said hello, or even announced his presence, he'd just tapped her on the shoulder, and she'd spun around in surprise, right into his outstretched arms.
He'd kissed her, and they'd broken apart. Elizabeth had had tears filling up her blue eyes, and she cried into his warm chest, hearing his heartbeat next to her ear. What a relief, to hear a heartbeat that didn't belong to her eternally damned husband. It would be a lie to say that he had never captured her heart, and therefore her love, because she loved him more than she knew she'd ever loved Will.
Oh, she remembers him. She is positive with every fibre of her being that she'll never forget him.
You can tell the sun, in his jealous sky,
When we walked in fields of gold.
She casts a glance up at the sky, the sun almost burning down through her eyes into the core of her soul, half blinding her, but the pain that causes her physically does not even equal to one millionth of the physical and emotional pain that had wracked her at his loss. Maybe it was the jealousy of the sun, who could never be with her moon, that caused him to be so severely torn from her, leaving her edges frayed where parts of him still clung on. Or maybe it was just that she'd had her time with him, but like everything else in this world, she'd lost him too.
So she took her love for to gaze a while,
Among the fields of barley...
Taking his hand, she'd led him to her cottage to ask him about his life in the past couple of years. He'd talked to her animatedly for hours as she sat with attentive ears in front of her scorching fireplace. Details weren't missed, and to this day, Elizabeth could still remember the general gist of the stories.
Afterwards, the evening had been settling in with the inky sky, and, holding his hand tightly, she'd lead him to the edge of the cliff to admire the spectacular view. Leaning her head against his shoulder, it had been then that he'd told her he loved her.
"I love you, too."
And, yes, she'd said it right back, hesitation forgotten in light of his confession. He said it had taken two years to plan out how the day was going to go, not to mention to find her again, and that everything had come naturally when he'd seen her. The sunset before them slowly faded and the sky turned black. He'd turned towards her, and kissed her again, this time with more power behind it.
In his arms she fell, as her hair came down,
Among the fields of gold.
They'd started walking back to the cottage, but only managed to make it halfway there before they were in each other's arms with a new ferocity, undressing each other with eager hands. She fell into his arms and he lowered her gently onto the cool grass of the field. The night was humid around them, but their passion created a fire that burned both of them. Neither regretted it. Neither forgot it. Both treasured it.
Will you stay with me?
Will you be my love, among the fields of barley?
She'd begged and pleaded the next morning for him to stay with her. She told him time and time again that she loved him, and he'd assured her that he loved her too. He agreed to stay for a week, and then he'd return to her after another four months away. The week had passed without much thought, and she'd only remembered his promise the morning she awoke to only wrinkled sheets where his body had lain the previous night. He'd gone. He'd left without saying goodbye.
And you can tell the sun in his jealous sky,
When we walked in fields of gold.
The week was sunny; the weather magnificent, and they'd spent most of their time in the fields. Elizabeth liked it there; it was calm and peaceful, and with him already by her side, it was everything else she needed. The sun beat down on the pair as they danced with joyous laughter, recalling a certain night some four years ago. This time, though, there was no rum.
I never made promises lightly,
And there have been some that I've broken...
She felt, unwillingly, that his promise to return had been hollow, as he'd never been the sort to make promises and stick by them. She was thoroughly surprised, then, when she saw him strolling up the path again, unaware that she was lying in a field crying, thinking he'd gone for good. Wiping her face, she'd run upto him and curled her embrace around him. He laughed when he caught her expression.
But I swear, in the days still left,
We will walk in fields of gold. We'll walk in fields of gold.
Returning once again to their favourite field, they'd celebrated his return in their own special way. Afterwards, they lay curled up in each other's arms, and she whispered into his ear, asking him where he'd been. He evaded the subject, telling her it didn't matter; it wasn't important at the minute. It was something for the future. Elizabeth wondered what this could mean, but as he kissed her again, she forgot all about it. For the next three weeks, she forgot about it. Then he had to leave again.
I never made promises lightly,
And there have been some that I've broken...
This time she believed his promise of returning three months later. Again, he surprised her by coming back a week early. Her elation could not be described, and they retreated once again to their fields, as they'd christened it, for a 'welcome back' celebration. This time, he'd stayed for four long months. Her joy could not be masked. But she managed to mask the shock when she realised it had been a year, almost to the day, since she'd seen him again. The time had just flown by.
But I swear in the days still left,
We will walk in fields of gold. We'll walk in fields of gold.
The joy was once again shattered when he left again, this time with no explanation, and she set back to her normal life without him, thinking he'd gone from her life forever. When he returned, three months later, she was stunned to have him back, but this time there was something wrong. He was pale, and his body seemed a lot thinner. She wondered if it had anything to do with where he'd been going when he left her for those long periods of time. Had he been hurt?
When she voiced her suspicions out loud, she came face to face with a defeated man. His life was being taken over by an illness caused by too much sun, and the wrong diet (not to mention the rum). She'd never forget that day, because from that day onwards, a loud ticking clock could be heard inside her head, counting down the seconds of life he had remaining. He was dying, and he only had nine months left. He gave her a letter, to be read only on the day of his death, and it was heavy; there was something inside it.
Each day was special; precious, because the doctor who'd told him of his condition had said that nine months was a rough estimate, so there was no telling really. Almost every night was the same; they slept together in the fields if the night was breath-taking. The worry had almost been driven from their minds because of their happiness. But, the doctor had been right. Nine months later, he was gone, brutally ripped away from her by an unseen force. She'd wanted to lash out at the thing that had taken him from her, but she found herself alone, helpless, and with child.
She was pregnant.
It had been three years since he'd first come back to her, and yet it had seemed like such a short amount of time. Elizabeth had started to feel young and carefree again, but his death tore all that up right before her eyes. Everything she'd ever cherished was gone from her, and the whole world seemed like a darker place now he was gone.
She buried him herself in the special field where she'd conceived his child, and the blisters that stung her hands from the shovel seemed like constant reminders of the pain that he'd endured when he'd known he was dying, but found himself unable to tell her. Her feeble hopes of him coming back were evaporated, just like the tears that fell on the disturbed soil he lay beneath.
Over time, Elizabeth had forgotten about the note and its gift, but on the day of his death, she read it. She'd never cried so much in all her life.
She'd never see him again. That knowledge was the hardest she'd ever had to live with. She only had the memories. But, God, memories had never been so sweet.
Many years have passed, since those summer days,
Among the fields of barley...
Six years on, Elizabeth finds herself still walking down the path towards the edge of the cliff to meet her husband after his ten long years at sea. They have one day before he leaves again, a concept she is all too familiar with. Victoria runs ahead of her, a constant reminder of the man she still loves. She has his eyes. Sometimes she can hardly bear to look at her daughter because of the pain that fills her heart whenever those big, brown eyes smile up at her.
Elizabeth finally reaches the cliff-side and finds William Turner already sitting waiting for her. She says nothing, but clasps her daughter's hand tightly. Her small voice asks if this strange man is her father, but Elizabeth doesn't answer. Will senses her attitude and comes forward, studying her child curiously. Suddenly, everything makes sense; the child isn't his.
"I see," is all he says. Elizabeth stands tall, but the tears already threaten to give her away.
"Is she...his?" he asks quietly. Victoria looks up at her mother, confused. She asks what the man is talking about, but Elizabeth shushes her.
"Yes," she replies, her voice cracking. "I love him."
"Where is he?" Will goes on. Elizabeth is starting to get tired of his questions.
"He..." she starts, and takes a deep breath before choking out, "...he died."
Will can tell from her voice that she isn't lying about any of it. The hurt has permanently filled her eyes now, and there can be no-one else to repair that. The only person who held that power has gone.
"Of all the things I was expecting when I saw you again," he tells her, "it wasn't this. I suppose I should go."
"I think you should," Elizabeth whispers sadly, the tears have already broken free from their confines. She turns to her little girl. "Vicky, you run back home, okay?"
Victoria gives a little smile and a nod, and starts running back up towards their cottage. Elizabeth turns back towards Will.
"He made me happy," she explains, "and now she's all I have left of him. I'm sorry, Will."
He nods, clearly defeated, but accepting his loss. "Goodbye, Elizabeth."
"Goodbye, Will."
And without any warning, the flash of green erupts, and Will is gone. The sun is setting.
See the children run as the sun goes down,
As you lie in fields of gold.
Elizabeth walks back upto her cottage, and can still faintly make out her daughter's form running for home. She smiles faintly, looking back over to the fields of gold she loves so much. He still lies there, beneath the grass and the flowers. She visits him every night, while their daughter sleeps. At least she still has that to keep them close.
You'll remember me, when the west wind moves,
Among the fields of barley...
You can tell the sun in his jealous sky,
When we walked in fields of gold.
Without even realising it, Elizabeth finds herself home, and it is already nightfall. She is pleased to find Victoria asleep in her bed, and so she goes to her own bedroom, a lit candle still burning on the nightstand. There is his letter; the letter that Elizabeth has read so much over the past six years that she can already recite it word for word.
Dear Elizabeth,
Please don't feel the need to cry. I enjoyed my life the way I lived it, and the sun only shone brighter when you came onto the scene. I'm not sorry, Lizzie, like you never were. I know you're sorry for that day, and I forgive you. I forgave you the moment you tore your pretty lips away from mine. But if there was a tiny shred of hope that you'd be back in my life after that, I was bloody well going to stick to it.
I love you, Lizzie. I've loved you since the first day I met you. I don't know why we met that day, but if I believed in such things, I'd like to say it was fate. But I don't believe in those things, so I have no explanation. I can only be thankful that I met you.
As you've probably guessed by now, I gave you something with this letter. It's for you, Lizzie, and I want you to keep it. It's for a beautiful, graceful Swann, who was kind enough to take a chance on a lowly Sparrow like myself. Birds fly free together. And I hope with all my heart that you'll let me join you on your flight.
I love you, Lizzie, don't ever forget that.
All my love, as ever,
Captain Jack Sparrow x
She reads the letter through over and over, and she's surprised that her endless tears don't smudge the ink or his delicate handwriting. She looks to her wedding finger, and sees the ring that Jack gave her. It is a solid silver band with a ruby encrusted in the centre. Engraved on the metal are the words, 'The Swann & the Sparrow' with a small love heart on either side of the writing. She smiles.
Looking up at a noise, she sees her young daughter standing in the doorway. She wipes her eyes, still smiling, and beckons Victoria closer. For the first time ever, she shows Victoria the ring.
"It says 'The Swann & the Sparrow'," she tells Victoria.
"What does that mean?" Victoria mumbles tiredly, but still interested.
"I'm the Swann," Elizabeth whispers.
"Was daddy the Sparrow?" she asks, suddenly excited.
Elizabeth sniffs slightly. "You bet daddy was the Sparrow."
Victoria's face lights up at this revelation. "What am I, mummy?"
Elizabeth looks into her brown eyes again. "You're a bit of both. The Sparrow and the Swann always go together. But if I had to choose which you'd be, I'd say you would always be the Sparrow."
"Why?"
"Because Sparrows are everything anyone could ever want to be," Elizabeth explains, crying throughout, "and I love Sparrows more than anything in the whole world."
Elizabeth stands up and walks over to her bedroom window, which gives off the perfect view of the field. Victoria follows her.
"Where's daddy?" she asks quietly.
Elizabeth doesn't tear her eyes away from the field. His body lies there, but his soul and spirit cannot be kept from freedom, even in death. Elizabeth knows that.
"Oh, he's out there, somewhere," she finally whispers. "And one day, I'm going to join him."
When we walked in fields of gold,
When we walked in fields of gold.
OK, how was that? Good? Bad? Awesome? Dreadful? Let me know, please!
ThePirate'sBride out .x.