Author's note: Hello everyone! I've been reading stories here for a while, but this is my first time posting. Not only is it my first time posting, but it's my first PotC story and my first fiction written in first person. So please review and give me some constructive criticism to work with:-)
Disclaimer: I don't own anything I didn't create. I don't own anything belonging to Disney. I did not create anything belonging to Disney. Therefore, I don't own anything in this story that belongs to Disney. Savvy?
Chapter One
My earliest memories are of a sunny day in Port Royal; of sitting on the docks watching the ships with my best friend Elizabeth Swann; of the shocked expression on her pretty face when I stripped to my petticoats and slipped into the water for a swim; of her father's anger when he learned I had persuaded her to join me. Those were innocent days, and not so long ago. I was eleven years old and she was thirteen, and we were inseparable.
I remember when we would sneak away to the blacksmith's shop to watch the young apprentice, Will Turner, work with the hot metal to create beautiful, deadly weapons. I would giggle at the adoring way he glanced at Elizabeth; it was blatantly obvious to me, even then, that he was in love with her. Nobody knew much about Will, except that he had come with Elizabeth on a ship from England, with no relations or background. If Lizzie knew anything more, she wasn't about to tell anyone - which annoyed me to no end.
I remember the day I turned fourteen. Elizabeth's father forbid her to come out and play, so I wandered aimlessly until I reached the old, familiar blacksmith's shop. It was too early for work to be happening - the blacksmith was still suffering a hangover from his nightly drinking binge, so Will was left to his own devices; but he was usually too busy anyway to play with me. I crept inside the back door and sat watching him practice his swordplay skills. To me, he seemed one of the best fencers I had ever seen. He was also very handsome. I decided, in my romantic mind, that he and Elizabeth must be married some day. What did it matter if he was only a blacksmith's apprentice? I couldn't think of anybody else for Lizzie. Her father would see that soon enough.
Suddenly my reveries were interrupted, as Will noticed me and stopped practicing.
"I'm sorry...I didn't mean to bother you," I stammered helplessly. He smiled in a friendly way, and I breathed a sigh of relief.
"Come here a minute, Rachel; I have something for you."
I hesitated a moment, but he beckoned to me and started to walk, so I hopped off my seat and followed quickly. He led me to a small shed, from which he removed a large object wrapped in brown burlap.
"Try to guess what it is."
I couldn't guess, and I was fairly bouncing up and down with excitement and curiosity. Finally he gave in and handed the package to me with a smile. I set it down, ever so carefully, on a table and began to unwrap it.
Inside was the most beautiful short-sword I had ever seen. I stared at it, then at Will, with total awe.
"This is for me?"
He nodded, picked it up, and handed it to me. "If you'll come back sometimes, in the mornings, I'll teach you how to use it."
I was ecstatic. I set the sword lovingly back into its wrappings, threw my arms around Will, and planted a kiss on his cheek. Suddenly he looked shocked, embarrassed, and happy all at the same time, which made me laugh. "Thank you!"
"You're very welcome - but I think you'd better be going now," he replied, with an uneasy glance at his master stirring restlessly. I flashed him another grateful smile and fled with my treasure.
I got into my father's house without being noticed, and hid the sword, still wrapped in burlap, in the bottom of a drawer. From that point on, whenever I could find time to go to the blacksmith's Will would give me lessons in how to use my new short-sword. It was terribly difficult at first, but soon it became easier to handle. I practiced in my own room, with the door locked against our nosy maid, whenever my father was out of the house. I dreamed of one day becoming proficient, though I didn't ever stop to think what good it would do me. I was destined to be a lady, like Elizabeth, and the thought was very unpleasant.
She was sixteen now, more beautiful than ever. She never escaped to go exploring the city with me any more, nor to watch Will at work. In fact, I hardly ever saw her, except when her father allowed her to visit me for tea; but we both hated the formality of those occasions, and they had become more and more infrequent.
I knew things were about to change for me, too. My father and his acquaintances seemed to expect more of me every single day. I dreaded the talk with him that I knew must come, and suddenly wished, for some unknown reason, that my mother were still alive. I even sensed something was wrong from the way Will packed as many lessons as he could into each session, though he as well as I knew that in my new life, there would be no need for any skill with a sword.
I knew my life was about to change. I was fatally mistaken as to the nature of that change.
