Disclaimer: I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean, or any associated items.

A/N: This fic takes place towards the end of the first movie, as shown with later events. There will be a further A/N at the end, so I hope you enjoy this fic. :)

Warnings: Slight angst, one-sided Elizabeth/Will and hints of Jack/Will SLASH. Please don't read if any of this offends you.

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Too Soon to Say

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It was too soon to say really.

Too soon; it had only been a couple of weeks, and Elizabeth had only watched their interactions for a quarter of it.

She had seen the tension that lay between the two; a grudging admiration on Will's part, and a cock-sure attitude that lent itself towards desire on Jack's. She'd seen the way they danced around each other; seen the annoyance, the fire in Will's eyes as Jack gleefully stirred him up and pressed him to do better, to be better – a better pirate, that is.

And strangely, shockingly, Will had responded to the dare that the older man had given, and had thrived.

Of the two, Elizabeth would have expected her to be the one that adapted so quickly, that took to walking aboard a ship like a babe takes to its' mother, and to slot into the crew with nary a disturbance; but she wasn't. Despite the fact that she had been the one fascinated with pirates since she could grasp at the understanding, Will was the one that learnt (no – not learnt; he hadn't needed to be taught, he had already known) to be a pirate.

He lived for it.

Oh, Elizabeth had heard him protest it, deny it, and he even meant it, at a certain level. But he couldn't hide his eyes; eyes that she had seen burn with a fierce happiness upon the ship, but was never present when his feet were firmly planted upon the land. Strangely, his eyes reminded her of Jack's then, and it had nothing to do with their colour.

She couldn't help but think that if he had been the one stranded upon the rum-smugglers island with Jack, and he had been the one to listen to Jack's drunken, honest-to-God sincere speech about the Pearlbeing freedom, than Will would have agreed with him whole-heartedly (unconsciously, of course), in a way that she hadn't been able to.

She had seen Jack's point, listened to the words and thought them pretty, but couldn't help wishing (no matter how much she hated herself for it), that she was back in her bed and not marooned on a God-forsaken island with a drunk and smelly pirate, and only one idea to hinge her survival off of. Listening to Jack speak of something so beautiful, something she could not comprehend, had made her feel like a small girl again, seeking out her father for answers that only a parent can provide.

But Will, she knew he would have understood; she saw the same soft wonder in his eyes every time he paused to look out at the sea, and feel the ship move under his feet. And every time she saw it, she couldn't help but feel a small niggle of jealousy scratch at her heart.

Will had come out of their adventure (though she hesitated to call it that) bouncing; happy and finally complete, having found something that fulfilled him in a way that blacksmithing never had.

Will didn't know it yet, but Jack did.

She saw it in the way he egged Will on, daring him to do one better and the way he continually referred to Will's father, and the way that pirating was in his blood (but this wasn't entirely true; pirating was in Will's very soul, she knew).

She saw it the time that Will was staring out at the sea and Jack had come over to join him and silence stretched between them. Nothing was said, though Elizabeth had seen words spoken; only expressed in the crash of the waves against the hull, and the salty wind that filled the billowing sails. Nothing was said, but she saw the message pass between them anyway, and knew that something was changing.

Elizabeth saw how they drove each other on; pushing and pulling until they had nothing left to give, but then pushing even more until they gave everything.

She watched, in the scant amount of time she was allowed, as they circled each other in the way that spoke of wary hostility, but also of a curious fascination with the other.

And she watched as they grew closer (with heels dug in and jaw stubbornly turned the other way on Will's part, and a teasing, indulgent yet uncertain air on Jack's), and inexplicably, she felt lonely, and desperately jealous. Will was supposed to be hers.

They reached Port Royal, and she watched as Will sagged; feet planted on a surface that didn't rock, and Jack being dragged away clad in chains. She hesitated a moment before going up to him and squeezing his arm; while he smiled at her, his shoulders didn't lift.

The next morning dawned clear, and the sun shone down on the stage of Jack's intended execution.

Jack stood up on the hastily constructed platform as they read out his crimes, muscles loose but holding a tension that he didn't hide quite well enough. Elizabeth saw his gaze flicker to the high walls, where the waves could be heard, and then back to a particular spot in the crowd that she knew held Will. It was subtle, but it was there, and so she wasn't that surprised when Will emerged from the milling people and told her he loved her.

Her heart leapt and caught somewhere in her throat as she read the truth in those words. He meant it, he really did, but he didn't love her as much as he thought he did.

It was as clear as day when he immediately turned and went to Jack, leaving her behind to try and re-capture her stolen heart.

It was expressed so plainly when the two of them, surrounded, stood back to back and ready to fight.

And Will almost said it when he stood before Norrington; "My place is between you and Jack."

Will didn't see Jack's expression (shock, pride, and something that resembled the look he reserved for the Pearl), but Elizabeth did, and her heart broke all over again.

Will stood in front of Jack with a fierce determination, and the fire that blazed within his eyes spoke of his feelings in this, even though he wasn't yet aware of them himself.

But she wasn't ready to give him up yet, and so stepped up with him, taking her place by his side, and trying to convince herself that she was always going to be there.

Her heart pounded as she and Will watched Jack swim away, and some part of her expected him to leap in after the pirate. But he didn't; he stayed with her and she convinced herself that he would always choose her (even though he had already chosen Jack), and that he wouldn't find himself back on a ship and consorting with pirates within a few months (even though his eyes foretold that he would).

Elizabeth wasn't ready to give Will up yet; not to the sea, not to pirating, not to freedom, and certainly not to Jack Sparrow, even though she had a niggling feeling that he was already lost to her, and had been from the day she had found him, so long ago.

She convinced herself that the little things she saw were just the tricks of her stressed mind, and that it was really too soon to tell.

And she turned away when she saw the fire go out of Will's eyes as he stared out at the empty sea, and tried to convince herself that she could be everything he needed.

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Fin

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A/N2: So, there we go. :) The scene at the end there is in the movie, and I've proabably mis-quoted it. Please feel to correct me if I'm wrong. I tried to keep Elizabeth as in-character as possible, as I think she's a good, strong character, but I've probably failed that too. :)

If you could leave a review telling me how I could improve, what you liked or didn't like, or even that I'm on the right or wrong track, I would be very grateful. Thank you!