A/N: Yeah, I know, I really suck because it took me too long to update. I'm sorry, really. Or not, whatever you prefer to believe. I still don't own PotC. Just Grace, her family, and her locket.

Chapter 2- A Bitter Homecoming

Elizabeth Turner stood, alone, on a cliff overlooking the sea. She watched as the sun sank lower in the sky. She had thought, long ago, that she would always look forward to this day. But now her heart was filled with confusion and torment. Elizabeth had been faithful to her long-gone husband, never once thinking of another. But the open water called to her. Everyday she felt its pull, as if it was begging her. It was so enticing, and sometimes Elizabeth wondered how she resisted it. But that's when, every time, without fail, Will's face would pop into her head. And she would feel guilty. Because she knew if she left to go out to sea she would never come back. Not even for Will. Not for anything in the whole world. But she couldn't do that to him. Even though she wasn't even sure of her feelings towards him anymore. If the circumstances had been different, Elizabeth knew she would've been happy, even blissful with her husband. But he was nothing more than an unseen burden now. A burden that kept her close to shore and miserable. It was like living in Port Royal all over again, pretending to be a proper lady when all she wanted to do was go out to sea and never return. She yearned for freedom, and even though she knew Will would do anything to make her happy, she couldn't ask him to go out to sea. He was nearing the end of a tenure of ten long years at sea, and surely he needed rest. He needed to come here, to a home where he could start his life with his wife. But maybe I'll feel differently once I see him. Maybe I could love him again. I don't want to hurt him, but…I long for freedom. I need it. All I feel is this dull ache. But perhaps it is because of his absence. Perhaps when I see him again I will forget the sea, and its call. I will be lost again in his arms. She thought these things, but she couldn't even convince herself that they were true. Yet, she held a silly, childish hope that maybe everything would turn out alright. Maybe we can both move on. Maybe his love for me falters as well. I can only hope…Elizabeth was pulled out of her thoughts by a green flash. We shall soon see what will become of this. I can only hope that I will not break his heart.

William Turner II rushed to the side of the ship. He could barely make out a figure standing on the distant cliffs. He grabbed something to hold onto, not really paying attention to anything besides the view in front of him. The figure, no doubt, was his wife, Elizabeth. He smiled as he came closer and could see her, standing there, waiting for him. She ran out of sight, and for a minute Will thought she was running from him. But he simply forgot that thought when he saw her, completely out of breath, on a small beach under the cliffs. Elizabeth had only come closer, and Will could see her properly now. And she looked lovely. Half of her long, blonde streaked hair was pulled away from her face, while the rest fell in waves down her back. Her honey colored eyes sparkled, and the corners of he perfect lips were turned upwards in a smile. Her eyes looked a bit funny to him, but he supposed that he had forgotten exactly what they looked like. As he continued to gaze at her, he couldn't help but notice that there were a few lines in her fair face, and that she no longer had that look of youth about her. She had aged ten years. And while he still thought her beautiful, Will knew that she might be a bit uncomfortable. He hadn't aged a day, after all. Would she feel old? Ugly, even? He couldn't be sure, and all of a sudden Will felt horrible. This is Elizabeth you're talking about. She is the most beautiful, confident woman you've ever met. I think she is more than capable of dealing with an aging difference that doesn't even really exist. And even if she does care, you love her and that's all that matters now. You'll live with her for the rest of your life and she deserves better so you shouldn't be worried about silly things like this. Will was pulled from his silent scolding by his father, who pulled him from down and smiled a slow, sad smile.

"Ready to go ashore?" Bootstrap asked. "I know it's been awhile but she loves you son. She's waited for you all these years. Go back to her."

Will looked down at the deck, hoping to ward off any tears. He had spent the last ten years getting to know his father, and now he had to leave him behind. For good. Bootstrap was going to stay on the Dutchman, and Will was going to live with Elizabeth. The odds were very slim that they would ever see each other again. He had grown to love old Bill Turner, forgiving him for leaving all those years ago. And even though he was more than happy to start his life with Elizabeth, he couldn't help but wish that he had more time with his father. He lifted his eyes up only to find his father genuinely smiling at him now. Will furrowed his brows and Bootstrap laughed in response.

"I am happy for you, far happier than you could ever imagine. You are free, and that's all that matters to me. Don't worry about me. I'll see you one day, I know it. But until then, be happy, my son. There is nothing more you can do for me."

"But Father, I'm sure I could figure out some way-"

"No." Bootstrap interrupted. "My life is at sea now, and it has been for years. But you still have a chance of having a real life, and I forbid you from throwing that away for some old man like me. Because no matter what you do, one day I'll pass on. So don't waste your precious time on me. Go."

Will looked at his father before replying, "Thank you."

"Go." Bootstrap repeated before pulling Will into a hug. The young man was shocked, but he patted his father on the back a few times before turning away. He nodded, and without a look back Will went ashore to see his wife.

Bootstrap smiled as his only son turned away and dived into the water. He laughed at the young man's impatience and eagerness. Will obviously wasn't waiting for any dinghy to take him ashore. Saying goodbye to him had been difficult, and knowing that Elizabeth might leave Will made it even harder. But it had to be done. He could no longer try to protect his son, much as he might want to. His son was truly on his own, and no one could help him anymore. This was his life, and he no longer had grand adventures or tedious duties tying him to the sea. Not that Will disliked sailing. In fact, Bootstrap could tell that his son enjoyed being at sea. But he had been away for so long that no one could blame him for wanting to "retire" from sailing, at least for awhile. He looked up, only to see Calypso, the heathen goddess that, in Bootstrap's opinion, had started this whole mess.

"He is free." She whispered. She looked exactly as she had when she had been Tia Dalma. That made him shiver a bit. He could clearly see her hands as she extended them out to him, giving him that cursed locket.

"Damn," he muttered, and Calypso furrowed her brows before speaking.

"Dat locket will find him, and you will be sorry dat you tried ta hide it. It is his destiny." She looked to shore once more before whispering something unintelligible. Then she disappeared completely.

Elizabeth watched from the beach as Bootstrap hugged his son, who then turned and dived into the water. It seems that Will is anxious to be with me once again. And before she could even think anything further, a figure rose from the waves. Will. Her breath caught in her throat. He looked exactly as he had when he left, except that the scar over his heart had faded somewhat. But he was truly breathtaking, in every sense of the word. She had thought that perhaps her eyes deceived her when she first saw him, because Elizabeth was sure that ten years had gone by. But, looking at him, she couldn't tell. He approached her, slowly and cautiously, as though asking for permission. Tears filled her eyes, and when he saw this he looked heartbroken. Suddenly she ran to him, and he caught her in his arms as she sobbed. It took her a good ten minutes to calm down, but Will was content just holding her in his arms. But, by some unseen force, he had the wind knocked out of him, and he fell, with her right on top of him. Elizabeth looked up at him, and he looked back with the same expression, one of confusion and slight amusement.

"What-" Elizabeth began. But she gasped before anymore words escaped her lips. Her hands were on Will's chest, and she could feel his heartbeat.

"Your heart." She whispered, hardly daring to believe it.

"My…heart? Oh!" He said, surprised and pleased. He brought his hand up to where hers was, and she moved so he could feel it for himself.

"The chest…do you still have it?

She nodded in response.

"Then…how?" Will paused before smiling gently. "Calypso."

"Calypso? What's she got to do with it?" Elizabeth asked. "Oh, never mind. She has everything to do with it." She paused. "And yet, I am not at all curious as to how she did this. She's very…difficult, isn't she? I don't believe that anyone can explain any of her actions."

Her words faded into silence, and they stayed still for a long while. It was awkward, to say the least. Finally, Will couldn't handle it anymore so he tilted her chin up and brushed his lips ever so slightly against hers. She shuddered, involuntarily, and allowed him to actually kiss her. It felt familiar, and yet Elizabeth could taste the salt on his lips. In the past, his perfect lips were enough for her. But she enjoyed the subtle reminder of the sea, and allowed the kiss to deepen as she tried to block out everything but the taste of it. When she realized what she was doing, Elizabeth gasped, effectively breaking the kiss. Will looked down at her, confused and then, looking into her eyes, sad. He could easily see that something was wrong with her. She hadn't looked this tormented since she'd killed Jack. Maybe that's what was wrong with her? But no, as he looked into her eyes, he found that something was missing. He couldn't explain what it was, so he sat the both of them up, and she began to sob again. But this time Elizabeth didn't want to be held, in fact she shied away from his touch. So Will sat there, looking out into the horizon, even though the sun had set long ago. He was waiting for her breathing to steady, and when it did, he turned to face her.

"You must have some sort of home here. How about we go there now, and you can get some rest?" Will looked over at her hopefully. She didn't respond, and he began to help her up. But when she was back on her feet, Elizabeth snatched her arm from him.

"Why do you have to be so perfect?" She screamed. Will looked at her, perplexed.

"Don't you understand, Will? I…" She faltered, looking into his eyes, before whispering, "I don't love you anymore."

Will felt as though he was being stabbed through the heart all over again. His newly returned organ throbbed in protest, as though it too remembered what had happened. He staggered back a few steps, as though he was on a ship his first time at sea. A sudden realization came to him. Love. That's what had been missing from her eyes. She had cried when he'd come ashore because she knew, even then, that their relationship couldn't be salvaged. And she broke their kiss because she didn't want him to get carried away. And she cried now because she knew that she'd have to break his heart. There was no way around it. He still loved her, but her love was long gone. She had been hoping to avoid destroying him, but Elizabeth knew that allowing him to believe the lie that was their love would be even more detrimental to him in the end. So she told him now.

Will's eyes and face were completely blank. Elizabeth saw this and was sickened by the thought that she had done this to him. She reached out to him, but he didn't even blink when her hand circled his wrist. She tugged him a bit, and he stumbled forward a step or two, with the same expression on his face. Elizabeth was scared now. She let go of Will, and he fell backwards, landing on his back. That seemed to bring him out of whatever dark place he had ventured to, and he sat up, only to find Elizabeth sitting in front of him, whimpering.

"Will, I'm so sorry. I just…couldn't lie to you. Please say something. Don't just sit there; it kills me to see you like this."

"Does it?" He asked.

His cold manner brought more tears to her eyes. But when he saw this, Will immediately felt ashamed of himself. He still loved her, despite what she had done. And he probably always would. He had still loved her even when he had foolishly thought that she loved Jack. Nothing could change how he felt about her, it seemed.

"Shhh." He whispered, pulling her close. Elizabeth tried to fight for a moment, but gave up and allowed him to console her.

"It's alright. Everything will be alright. I promise." He whispered into her hair, barely loud enough for her to hear over her own muffled cries. He stroked her hair, one strong arm around her waist, holding her to him. She was shaking, so Will began to gently rock back and forth, hoping to calm her.

"No," she whispered into his chest. "I've ruined everything, it's all my fault! I-I just-"

"It isn't your fault. It's not like you tried to forget about me is it?" Will tilted her chin up.

"Well, no but-"

Will interrupted her again, saying, "But nothing. If it wasn't your intention to do this, then no one can blame you for it. You're far too hard on yourself."

"You're far too good. You're supposed to hate me. Any other man would've despised me. But not you. Maybe one day…" Elizabeth's voice trailed off.

"Maybe one day what?" Will asked

"I don't know. I mean, I really want to go out to sea again. I really miss the sea."

As she continued to talk, Will watched her eyes, noticing the love in her eyes as she talked about the ocean.

"But anyway, maybe after awhile, after I've had enough of the sea…but no. I can't have you waiting for me. You deserve better than that."

Will looked her in the eyes, completely solemn. "You waited for me."

"Yes, but you didn't want to go. And I do."

"I can wait." Will protested. "If there's one thing I've learned over the past ten years, it's patience." He laughed. Elizabeth, who was still in his arms, could feel his laughter, and it calmed her further. She pulled away and sat half an arms length away from him. He looked over at her and shrugged a bit to show he didn't mind.

"I'm not making any promises." She said. "But I feel that we…may have a second chance. Someday. In the mean time, I think…I think I should use my father's name again."

She looked over at him to see his reaction. His chocolate eyes showed hurt and understanding and total defeat.

"I suppose." Will paused. "So this is really happening then?"

"Yes." Elizabeth whispered. "I do have a ship, if you want me to-"

"No, I think I should find my own way to get wherever it is I decide to go." Will replied.

"You're right."

They both stood up. Will held one of her hands in both of his before whispering, "Then goodbye, Miss Swann."

And he turned away without uttering another word.

Elizabeth's eyes widened upon hearing Will's last words. He hasn't called me Miss Swann since…the day I met Jack…that was the day of Norrington's promotion ceremony…when I was twenty! That's fourteen years ago! I do hope he'll be alright. I know it was wrong to give him hope like that, but who knows? Maybe I will be able to love him again. Sighing, Elizabeth turned away, hoping beyond hope that Will would be alright.

"Damn."