A Birthday to Remember
Disclaimer: I don't own Pirates of the Caribbean. But I do own the Patterson family; Doctor Thomas, Diana, Bradley and Jane. Mark Fitzpaine also belongs to me.
The day of May 6th was always an important time in the life of young William Turner, III. It was his birthday. This year had added significance. He was turning 10-years-old. His single-digit years were officially over. And he was one step closer to becoming a man. Most important of all, this was the first time that William would spend his birthday with his whole family. It would be him, his mother and his father.
His father, Will Turner, woke him up on that day. Will quietly walked into his son's room. William was still in bed, sound asleep. But he was slightly smiling in his sleep. He evidently know what today was. The sight made Will smile.
That's my son, he proudly thought to himself. My beautiful son. I love him more than he'll ever know. I am extremely happy and grateful to be his father. Then Will gently nudged William's shoulder, to wake him up.
"William", he said. "Son? It's me, Dad. Time to wake up now." William rolled over onto his back. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes. They fluttered a few times, before fully opening. The boy sat up. He stretched, with a yawn. Then he looked at his father.
"Hi, Dad", said William. "Good morning."
"Good morning, William", said Will. "And Happy Birthday."
"Thanks", said William. "But how did you know that today's my birthday?" he asked.
"Your mother told me", said Will. "Now hurry up and get dressed. Then come downstairs. She has a surprise for you."
"Okay", said William. "Just give me a moment, and I'll be right there."
"Good boy", said Will, as he left the room.
When William was left alone, he quickly jumped out of be. He went over to his closet. He picked out some nice and comfortable clothes. These included his favorite white shirt and black pants. William also grabbed a red wool sweater.
Then William sat back down on his bed again. He slipped his pajamas up over his head. He put on his shirt, pants and sweater.
Before leaving the room, William put on his shoes. He didn't like them. He really whished he had a pair of boots. It was his belief that having boots would make him feel more manly. His mother, however, insisted that he wear the shoes. She told him that they had belonged to his father, from when he was a boy. This made William feel a little better. But he still hated wearing the shoes.
Then William left his room. He ran downstairs as quickly as he was able to. His parents were already waiting for him. He hugged them.
"Hello, William", said his mother, Elizabeth.
"Hello, Mother", said William. "Father said you have a surprise for me."
"I do", said Elizabeth. "Well, it's two surprises actually." First of all, I made you your favorite breakfast."
"Grape jelly on wheat bread", said William. His stomach let out a faint growl. His mouth started watering too. He didn't have this meal very often. Only on special occasions, such as this. "What's the second surprise?" asked William.
"Eat first", said Elizabeth. "Then you'll get your present."
"Yes, Mum", said William. He sat down to eat. He ate quickly. After eating, William turned to his mother. "Now can I get my present?" he asked.
"Yes", said Elizabeth. "Now you may have your present."
"Finally", William said, with a sigh.
"Close your eyes", said Elizabeth. William shut his eyes tightly. "Now hold out your hands" William held out his hands. Elizabeth handed something to him. It was heavy. William had to struggle to keep from dropping it. But he managed to set it on the table. "You can open your eyes now", said Elizabeth. William opened his eyes.
"It's a box", said William.
"Open the box", said Will. "You never know what may be inside it. William opened the box. His mouth dropped open when he saw what was inside. It was a pair of boots. And they were brand new ones, too.
"Thank-you, Mum", said William. "This is what I've always wanted."
"I know", said Elizabeth. "Why don't you try them on? See how they fit."
"Don't mind if I do", said William. He sat down at the table. He took off his shoes. He put on the boots. Then he stood up.
"How do they feel?" Elizabeth asked.
"They feel a little big", said William. "But I really love these boots. Can I keep them?"
"I feared they may not exactly fit", said Elizabeth. "However, I know that you are going to grow into them. So yes, you may keep them."
"Now I have something for you", said Will.
"Really, Dad?" asked William. "Why didn't you tell me before?"
"If I had told you, it wouldn't be a surprise, now, would it?" asked Will.
"If you had told me", said William, "I still would have acted surprised."
"Hmm. Very funny", said Will. "Now wait here for a moment. I have to go get it." Will walked out of the room.
About five minutes had passed. Will came back. He was carrying a long, narrow case. He set it down on the table.
"Allow me to open this", said Will. He opened the case. He took out a sword. William smiled when he saw the sword.
"Is this for me?" William asked, with expected disbelief.
"Of course it is", said Will. "I made it just for you. I'd been working on this ever since I returned home. I've been wanting to give it to you for a while. I guess now is as good a time as ever to do so."
"Thank-you, Father", said William. "This is a wonderful gift. I shall treasure it for as long as I live."
"William, dear", said Elizabeth, "why don't you bring your sword and boots up to your room?"
"Alright, Mum", said William. He turned to go up the stairs. Then he heard a knock at the door. "I'll get it," he said.
William quickly ran to answer the door. He opened it. It was the Patterson family. Doctor Thomas Patterson and his wife, Diana, were good friends of William's parents. They, along with their two children, Bradley and Jane, lived right next door to the Turners.
"Uncle Thomas! Aunt Diana!" William exclaimed. "It's great to see you. Thanks for coming. I'm happy you came."
"We're happy to be here", said Diana. "Now where are your parents? I would like to talk with them."
"They're in the kitchen", said William. Thomas and Diana walked into the kitchen..
"Happy Birthday, my friend", Bradley said to William.
"Thanks, Bradley", said William.
At 15-year-old, and about 6-feet-tall, Bradley Patterson looked like quite an intimidating and formidable young man. But actually, he was really very nice. Bradley was William's best friend. These two boys had been friends ever since they were young.
Jane was Bradley's little sister. She was 12-years-old. Jane was also a friend of William's. The girl suddenly did something very unexpected. She pushed Bradley out of the way. She walked straight up to William. She leaned in, and gently kissed him on his left cheek.
William was so shocked by this. No girl had ever kissed him before. He wasn't sure how to react. He blushed. He felt his face and palms get sweaty. His heart beat wildly from inside his chest.
"Um, h-hello, Jane", said William, his voice wavering. "W-what was that for?" he asked.
"To say hello", said Jane. "And also for luck. Since it's your birthday." She winked at William. The wink caused William to blush even harder. But he quickly regained his composure.
"Bradley, would you like to see the gift my father gave me?" he asked.
"Yes, I would", said Bradley.
The three kids walked into the kitchen. William went up to his mother.
"Mum", he said, "may I show Bradley my sword?
"I see no reason why not", said Elizabeth.
"But be careful with that", said Will. "It's sharp."
"Don't worry, Dad", said William. "I'll be careful. I promise." He gently removed the sword from it's case. Bradley's face lit up with interest when he saw it.
"Well, William", he said. "That's really great. A sword is much more interesting than what my father gave me on my tenth birthday."
"Ah, yes", said William. "The stethoscope. How can I ever forget that? Even though I was only five at the time."
"And tell me Bradley", said Doctor Patterson. "Where is the stethoscope?" he asked. "I haven't seen it quite some time. I'm beginning to wonder if you even still have it."
"Of course I still have it", said Bradley. "It's just that I keep it hidden in a very secret place. That way, no one will be tempted to steal it, nor will I lose it." Then Bradley cupped his hands over William's ear.
"Between you and me", he whispered, "I threw the stethoscope into the ocean a few months ago. I didn't like it very much. And you know that." William tried to stifle a laugh.
When night fell, Elizabeth brought out a cake. It was a chocolate cake. She got it for William's birthday. William loved chocolate cake. Everyone sat down the table. They were just about to eat, when there was a loud knock at the door.
"I wonder who that could be", said Will. "And what they're doing here at this hour of the night."
"Oi! Let me in!" shouted an all-too-familiar voice.
"I just had to ask", Will grumbled. He walked over to the door. He opened it. The one and only Captain Jack Sparrow sauntered through, with his trademark stroll.
"Thank you for letting me in, Will", said Jack.
"You're welcome", said Will. "But what are you doing here, Jack?"
"I heard it was your son's birthday", said Jack. "I knew I couldn't miss this."
William came rushing out. He ran right into Jack's arms. Jack embraced the boy in a tight hug.
"Uncle Jack", said William.
"Hello there, little whelp", said Jack. "And how old are you today?" he asked.
"I'm ten", said William.
"You're growing up fast", said Jack. "I have a something for you." Jack removed something from the inside of his coat. It was wrapped up. But William could still tell that it was in the obvious shape of a bottle.
"I think I know what this is", said William. "It's one of those ships in a bottle. Mark Fitzpaine has a lot of those. I'm slightly jealous of him because of that."
Mark Fitzpaine was a boy who went to William's school. Mark's parents were richer than most people in the neighborhood. They could therefore afford to buy their son these types of luxuries. I was rumored that Mark had a collection had a collection of about 20 of ships in bottles.
William briefly wondered how Jack was able to get something like that. Then he remembered Jack was a pirate. He had ways of acquiring those types of things.
William unwrapped what Jack had given him. He was disappointed by what he saw. It was indeed a bottle. But it didn't have a ship inside of it. Instead, it was filled with an amber liquid. William's brow furrowed in confusion.
"What is this?" he asked.
"This", said Jack, "is what turns a boy into a man." It was at that moment when Will stepped in. He took the bottle from William's had. He gave it back to Jack.
"I appreciate you generosity, Jack", he said. "But I'd prefer it if William became a man on his own terms."
"Fine", said Jack. "I just wanted to help." Then Elizabeth walked into the room.
"Jack", she said. "This is a pleasant surprise. Would you like to stay for cake?"
"That depends on what kind of cake it is", said Jack.
"It's not a rum cake, if that's what you mean", said Will. "It's chocolate."
"Ah, chocolate. My second favorite flavor", said Jack. "I'd love to stay. But I'm afraid I can't. I'm sorry. I just stopped in to say hi. Now if you'll excuse me, I must be going. I've got places to go, and things to steal." Then Jack left almost as quickly as he had arrived.
Everyone sat down at the table. Elizabeth cut the cake. She gave the first piece to William. It was a rather large piece. Then everyone else got a piece too. When they were all severed, they began to eat. Most of the meal was eaten in silence.
"How's the cake?" Elizabeth asked.
"It's great, Mum", said William. "Very tasty." Then he yawned.
"I guess someone's getting a little sleepy, huh?" asked Will. William nodded.
"If William is getting tired", said Diana Patterson, "then we'd better go. We wouldn't want to bother him." The Patterson's left the house.
"Go on up to bed", Elizabeth said to William. "Your father will be up in a few minutes to tuck you in." William went upstairs. He held on tightly to his sword and boots.
When William got into his room, he found a good place to put his presents. Then he pulled back the covers on his bed. He was about to get under them, until his father knocked at the door.
"Come in, Dad", said William. Will walked into the room. William quickly got under the covers. Will pulled them up over his son's body. He pushed a stray lock of hair from William's eyes, and then kissed his forehead.
"Did you like you party?" asked Will.
"I did", said William. "And I also liked my presents."
"Which one was your favorite?" asked Will.
"The sword", said William.
"I thought so", said Will. "You are my son, after all. And you what they say. Like father, like son."
"Are you going to teach me how to swordfight?" asked William.
"That's the plan", said Will.
"When can we start?" William asked.
"I was thinking about sometime next week", said Will. "But I must talk to your mother first. See what she thinks of the idea."
"Alright", said William. "Goodnight, Dad."
"Goodnight", said Will. "I love you", he said, as he closed the door.
"I love you too", William whispered in response. Soon after his father had left, William quickly fell asleep. Thoughts of the day filled his dreams. It really had been a birthday to remember.
The End.
Author's notes:
1. The reason I made William's birthday be May 6th is that is the birthday of Dominic Scott Kay, the boy who played him. I know it's a custom for fanfic writers to make certain character's birthday's the same as the actor or actress who portrayed them. This would explain why a lot of stories that mention Will's birthday put it as January 13th. Which is Orlando Bloom's birthday.
2. You may notice the birthday song is missing. This is because that song, "Happy Birthday to You", wasn't written until 1893, by two American sisters. That was way after the perceived time period of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. I've always thought the movies were set sometime during the 1700's.
3. I did mention birthday cake and presents, however. Those traditions have existed for many centauries.
4. Yes, Jack's gift to William was a bottle of rum. I couldn't resist adding that in. It felt appropriate. I mean, who else but Captain Jack Sparrow would give rum to a 10-year-old child?