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Chapter two

It all started on a warm evening in the Spanish Main, many years earlier...

Will had worked in his blacksmith shop for the better part of the day, practiced with his beloved swords
for a while, and was sitting there, beside his donkey now, watching how the fire slowly died down
along with the glowing of the sword he had worked on.

His life was the same, always the same, working in his smith shop, practicing with his swords
and occasionally taking a walk with Elizabeth or talking with the Governor over a cup of tee. That he was
allowed to be so often in the company of Elizabeth and her father was something he had earned after
the thing with the Black Pearl, as well as the few kisses he had stolen from her and the promise
of engagement and marriage.

And sadly, that was all.

Pretty words and shy looks.

They had planed to officially get engaged and marry as soon as possible, but missed over all this
plans and the happiness, that the time went by without doing anything of what they wanted to do so
badly. Elizabeth, seemingly, did not care as much as Will did, over all this and often, simply said, that
they were young and that there would be plenty of time in the future.

I some way Will did not really believe this, he had never done that in the last two years.

He was reminded of this thoughts, every time when Elizabeth called him her Pirate or kissed him on
the cheek or his lips. There was never again something like the passion they had shared the first time
they had kissed, with the ocean under them, behind them guards standing around and the shadow
of the Black Pearl vanishing on the horizon.

Perhaps his problem was the Black Pearl and Jack.

On one side the black sailed ship and her captain had managed to show Will that pirate's blood
was running in his veins, giving him the skills, passion and heart to fight for his beloved Elizabeth,
on the other side, was this change that came for the little adventure on the deep blue sea.

A change in mind and soul that made him think about anything what had been his life in the
past years, the Blacksmith shop, the life he had lived in Port Royal and all that
what he had learned about his father and his past.

He came to the understanding that his love for Elizabeth was more something along the lines of a
crush for a face he more would love to see as his sister instead of a Wife. As well as his job, which had
always been something to keep him from getting insane about the many questions from his fathers past
and destiny, but now, was nothing more than a mere job to spend time with.

It was sometimes so confusing for him that he would have killed for a good advice or at least a small
talk with Jack, who had seemed to know so much, even with his insane and queer behaviour
and the obvious addiction for rum.

Will sighed and went up swallowing the thoughts, he had to get ready for another meeting with
Elizabeth and the Governor, there would be a small concert in the Governors palace tonight and it
was already pretty late.

It was a matter of perhaps an hour, or a bit more, before he was dressed properly, and on his way
up the hill to the palace the Governor lived in. Some of the richer residents where driving past him in
their carriages, showing off the money they had, as If the night as the cursed Pirates of Barbossa had
attacked Jamaica never happened. They forgot to easily about dangers and demons.

He waited on the steps before the front door for a moment to look down into the harbour where the
ships of the British navy rested, guarding the merchant ships, which thought this place would be save
to anchor.

The fantasy of Jack and the Black Peal, sneaking up on those innocent little ships, bouncing around
the poor sailors in his normal manner, only to leave them bound to the mast of an empty ship, was
hilarious and made him smile. He really missed that insane bunch of pirates.

Sometimes he even had dreamed of being one of them himself, using his skills in swordfight for a good
plunder and a bottle of rum.

"Are we dreaming of being a pirate, Mister Turner?" The Voice of Commodore Norrington called him
back from his thoughts.

Will turned to the man behind him, and bowed his head slightly. Swallowing his dislike against this
snobbish male with a bitter smile.

"I just marvelled at the ships in the harbour... that is all..." He lied; he would rather die than admit to
this man that his guess was right.

"I see..." The Commodore smiled in his annoying rich boy way. "I would suggest to hurry now; we don't
want Miss Swann to wait for her future Husband...do we?" The man said with a bit too much sarcasm
for Wills taste and walked off into the house.

This man still tried to charm Elizabeth, not hesitating to show that he wanted her and that he
sometimes had the better cards in this game. His status as Commodore, his noble behaviour and all
the other stuff the man never missed to present around Will the blacksmith. Will would never be able to
watch Elizabeth waste herself to this man. Never. That was one of the silent vows that kept him
close to her, even when he was not really sure about the thing between him and her anymore.

It was not hard to find her. She was standing on one of the huge Windows that lead to the garden
behind the house, and talked to another woman. As ever properly dressed in wide and flowing skirts
and a literally breath taking corsage, both in a icy blue colour. The blond hairs up in curls on her head
and in three curls falling down around her neck a small matching coloured feather completing the
perfect outfit. He could be proud of this woman, she truly was wonderful and beautiful and everything
he could ever dream of.

The other woman seemed to have caught Elizabeth in an interesting conversation, so interesting that
Elizabeth did not see him at all. Opposite to the woman who looked directly into his direction. She
seemed not much older than Elizabeth, dressed in a Blood red dress, in the same style as that which
Elizabeth's wore, only that her black hair were falling almost open down over her back, only caught from
a small peace of jewellery out of Black Pearls. Her eyes where something he never had seen before, not
special in colour, but in that what seemed to be hidden behind them.

The Woman slightly titled her head and a smile sneaked over her lips, just as Elizabeth turned to
finally take notice of Will's presence.

"Will, finally!" She came over to him, taking him on one arm and dragging him behind her over to the
Woman again. "You have to meet our guest... she is fascinated from what I told her about you..."

Will sighed and played along.

"Here... That is Will Turner Miss Adams..." Elizabeth explained to the other Women, hanging on one of
Wills arms. "Will... that is Valeria Adams... she is giving the concert tonight... she even played for
Royal and noble audience... and tonight she plays for us... isn't that great!" Elizabeth smiled brightly.

"Nice to meet you..." Will greeted the woman in front of him.

She just smiled and watched the young man. "For me too, I heard a lot from Miss Elizabeth about
you Mister Turner and of course about your adventures as pirate..." she smiled. "I never meet a
pirate...till today... I think..."

"I am not exactly a pirate... I am a Blacksmith..." he corrected the woman with a nice smile.

"Ah there you are... " The Governor appeared from outside and came over to the three." Miss Adams
the guests are already waiting..." He smiled and took her arm carefully.

"Than we should not let them wait any longer..." She grinned, gave Will a last bow of her head and
went outside with the Governor.

Will had to admit that this Miss Adams had something he had never seen on a woman, something
he could not deny. But seemingly he was not the only one who had fallen for the charms of the fine
woman. The whole audience was waiting in the garden, sitting on benches and in chairs arranged
around the instrument, as If a spell was cast to keep them quite and listening. Even those two older
Women, who never were quite, not even in the church on Sunday morning when the choir was singing,
didn't make a sound. He took his place standing beside a chair in which Elizabeth was sitting and
waited as well for the woman in red to start.

Not even a bird dared to sing in this time, the only thing was the music, coming from Valeria's fluent
motions over her instrument.

It was in some way hypnotic to listen to the voice that sounded much older than he ever thought
possible.

It was hard to pay attention to the text. The figure and the voice in the light of the beginning evening
made it even harder.

Was nobody paying attention to what she was singing? This kind of song was not really
common for such concerts. At a closer look, not even fitting for a pirate shanty.

But there was definitely something wrong with what she was singing.

It was as if she would draw the people into her mind so that nothing mattered for them anymore.

He really asked himself why nobody of the stupid grinning people around him, not even Elizabeth
or her father, noticed what was going on.

He looked up to meet the eyes of Valeria who was singing with a slightly amazed look, she
seemingly found strange that he could hear the real words of her odd song.

The amazement turned to a self confident grin at the younger man after the music had ended.
And between the applause from the audience and Elizabeth talking about how great the music
had been, it dawned on young Will that perhaps this odd woman was exactly the person for
who he had waited all the time.