"James Norrington," Will Turner said to Rose. "That's the name of the Commodore you encountered this afternoon. He's an enemy to pirate-kind and has sent orders for Jack to be executed at dawn tomorrow."
"What a wretched man," said Rose. "And the woman he was with? The Governor's daughter?"
"His intended," he replied bitterly. "They're very much engaged to be married."
"The Pirates onboard the Pearl made off with her, correct?" Ben asked.
"Aye. She possessed the missing medallion. She took it from me when we were children, and the pirates mistook her for a Turner. They needed Turner blood, you see, to—" Suddenly, Will stopped. Standing erect. "How much do you know of Isla de Muerta?" he asked them.
"All too much," Ben replied with a snort. "I was a mutineer."
Will narrowed his eyes, "But…how did you escape?"
"Years ago. Been living out the curse in solitude until recently," he said, casting a look at Rose, which Rose purposefully didn't return.
Will followed Ben's gaze and asked Rose, "And you? Also a mutineer?"
Rose paused before answering him, recalling Jack's advice from many years back never to tell anyone how they were related. That information could easily be used against her, as Jack's enemies were vast and varied. She carefully answered Will, "Jack's survival is in my best interests."
Will narrowed his eyes distrustfully and edged closer to her. "That could mean a great many things when it comes to Jack. You could wish to free him merely to kill him yourself, for instance."
"Do you think me a woman scorned?" Rose smirked.
"There must be some reason why you would walk in front of a moving carriage to get to Jack..."
"I'm sorry, Mr. Turner," Rose said simply, "You're going to have to trust that my intentions are pure."
Will gave a small laugh, then continued marching up the bluff. Rose and Ben, confused as to if this meant they should follow him, exchanged a glance and raced to catch up with him regardless. Will stopped once he reached the top, and extended his arm out toward the horizon once they caught up with him. "No," he said. "They'll have to trust that your intentions are pure."
Rose followed his arm to where he was motioning, then all breath left her body when she saw it. Sailing towards the island in the car distance was a small, black speck, but Rose was no fool. She knew how large and terrifying the vessel was up close. She knew because she had spent years of her childhood searching for this ship every day only to be met with disappointment. The sensation of pure elation she felt then when she finally saw its presence grace Tortuga's docks was comparable to the joy she felt now. The Black Pearl, in all its glory, was sailing for Port Royal.
Rose turned to Ben to share in the elation, but Ben looked terrified. Quickly, he asked Will, "If the curse on the Pearl is broken, who's captaining her?"
"Worry not," Will said. "With my blood and Jack's bullet, we killed Barbossa."
Rose was floored. "He's dead? For certain?"
Will nodded. "For good." Turning to Ben, he continued. "For the time being, the acting Captain is Joshamee Gibbs. Do you know him?" Both Rose and Ben shook their heads. "He's a good man," Will corroborated. "Jack has trusted him with being his first mate."
"And the rest of the crew?" asked Ben.
"A ragtag group we picked up in Tortuga. A bit unorthodox, I'll admit, but they're loyal enough."
"So how can we help you free Jack, Mr. Turner?" Rose asked.
Will paused a moment, considering this. "You won't," he finally said. "I was able to communicate with Gibbs before we departed Isla de Muerta. They will skirt the island until daybreak, in which they'll approach so they can pick up Jack. I suggest that you make your move then as well and escape. That's the best I can offer."
Rose was surprised by this. "No, you misunderstand. That is very generous of you, but we wish to help you free him. What's the plan?"
Will smiled good-naturedly. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to keep that information to myself."
Suddenly, Rose understood. Will had learned from Jack, much as she had, to never trust a pirate. She nodded, but said, "I need reassurance that you will succeed in freeing him."
Will motioned to a palm tree behind them. Pointing, he said, "Do you see that knot in the tree?" Rose nodded, and before she could blink, Will's cutlass was jettisoned from its sheath and lodged directly into the center of its target.
Will grinned proudly, "How's that for reassurance?"
Rose nodded, smiling, "That'll do."
"Er... Will?" Ben's voice asked uncertainly from behind them. They turned to see what he was referring to; A parrot flying rapidly towards them from the direction of the Pearl.
"Ah, yes," Will said expectantly. Once the bird finally arrived, Will extended an arm out for it to land and perch upon. "What news?" Will asked it.
"RAW. Batten down the hatches!" it cried in response.
Rose, with eyes wide at this multitalented stranger, asked, "It's saying to…prepare for a storm?"
Will laughed. "Cotton, one of our men, has this parrot speak for him, and his vocabulary is limited. Using him is how I was able to communicate the plan to Gibbs as we sailed for Port Royal," turning to Cotton's parrot, he said, "All is ready, and expect two more passengers."
The parrot squawked and flew off once again, presumably to deliver the news back to The Pearl's crew.
Will's gaze followed the bird as it flew back to its destination, saying to Ben and Rose, "I would hijack a rowboat if I were you. Make off for the Pearl either tonight or tomorrow morning. Do you have a place to stay overnight?"
Ben spoke up. "We already have a boat, but…we don't have a place to stay anymore…"
Suddenly, Rose realized the truth in this statement. Now that the Governor and Elizabeth were back on the island, they quite clearly couldn't remain as stowaways in their pantry. She looked to Ben in concern. "If we make off tonight," she asked, "Would you be strong enough to row?"
He examined how far off the Pearl was from the island, then shook his head in dismay. "I could most likely make half the trip, but no more than that."
To Will, Rose explained, "Ben's weak from the toll the curse took on him, and I cannot see in dark. We seem to be in a quandary." She turned to Ben with a new thought. "Unless I row and you direct me…"
"No no," Will interrupted. "Just depart at first dawn. The Pearl will be closer and you both will have strength and sight restored. I can offer you a place at my blacksmith shop for the night. I know it's not much, but it's the best I can do, as it is my place of employment." Rose grinned, extending a hand to Will and shaking his. "We're in business then, Mr. Turner!"
Will had walked Rose and Ben into town and to his blacksmith shop. As Will had left his job without any prior notice to rescue Elizabeth, he had quite a bit of explaining to give to his employer to account for his absence and offering residence to two new faces. Will's employer, however, seemed to be a bit of a drunkard and did not stay lucid for long, thereby allowing permission for them to stay the night. Will asked Ben and Rose to surrender their weapons, as was only fair seeing as he did not know either of them well, and provided them shelter in the barn.
"It's not much," Will had said, "But will it do for just a night?" Rose and Ben accepted gratefully, and with that, Will returned to the shop to tie up some odds and ends that were left over from the time before Elizabeth had been kidnapped.
Rose and Ben settled into their new habitat silently, Ben forming a place for them to sleep and Rose refastening the buckles on her belt to ensure that all of her herbs stayed in place throughout the voyage in the morning."
After awhile, Rose's anxious thoughts at the notion of seeing Jack once more took over. "I have no idea where I'm going to go," she said absentmindedly, unaware that she had voiced her concerns out loud.
"What do you mean?" asked Ben quietly.
Rose gulped. "I mean my future. When I find Jack and fulfill the prophecy, then what? This has been my only thought for months now. Now that it's almost here...then what?"
Silence for a moment. Ben then answered, "You could stay with me."
Rose sharply turned to look at him, brow furrowed. "What?"
"Once we see him, what's say you and I go off together?"
She shook her head. "Where?"
"Anywhere! Does it matter?"
Rose pursed her lips, struggling to find the right words between the internal fight she was having with herself. "But…the other half of the prophecy was to 'keep him safe.' I must stay with Jack!"
"Jack has been fine on his own for how many years now?" he protested. "He can go on surviving without you!"
Her jaw tightened. "I don't think I can," she whispered. "It doesn't feel right."
Ben snorted, shaking his head. Though incredulous, his tone was still kind as he said, "And you're still so certain that Jack even wants you aboard?"
A pang of fear pulsed through Rose, as she had been trying deeply to push aside the notion that Jack had never truly intended to keep his promise to her. "Is it Jack's wrath that you fear?" she asked him, deflecting from this thought. "I'm his sister, I can ensure that he will bear you no malice for the past!"
Ben pursed his lips. "No. I fear losing you." He moved closer to her side, looking directly into her eyes. "Every moment I have ever spent with you, you have been dead set on finding your brother. When you both are reunited, you'll have no further use for me, I know this."
"Of course not! Ben, you mean more to me than just a means by which I find Jack! This is a prophecy I must fulfill, you must understand!"
His gaze dropped from her face, and he slowly nodded in understanding. After a moment in silence, he murmured, "Do you reckon it would cause any trouble for you if the Pearl received one passenger instead of the two that Will reported?"
Her mouth fell ajar. "Ben, stop this! Why…why can't we be together on the sea?"
He took a deep breath. "All I ever wanted was to live a life of adventure. I got all of that and far more than I ever bargained for. Now I have been granted a second chance to live with a purpose. You cannot simply think that us finding each other once more was chance! It was fate; Together, we have a chance to live happily, free from danger, free from uncertainty… free from the sea. Please!"
She reached her hand out to grasp his. Her heart felt heavy from the conflict she felt. Ben was offering her an ultimatum; It was him or Jack. She could not have both. But Ben did not understand that this choice was far more difficult than merely her saying aloud one of their names. All of her life, Rose had wanted two things; To sail with her brother and to have the love of Ben. One without the other was nearly unfathomable to her.
But then again…there was only one thing that made her decision easier. As she looked into Ben's eyes, the love inside of them suddenly changed into the malevolent pair that stared at her the night before, when Ben physically and emotionally abused her, yet appeared to have no recollection of those deeds at dawn's light. Jack had never performed an action that would deliberately cause her harm, whereas Ben had. She wondered if she could ever fully trust Ben again.
She spoke carefully, pleading one final time with Ben. "You're right. It wasn't simply chance that that we were united again. You have been granted the opportunity to live the life you wanted back then and the life you want now if you come with me."
Ben pulled his hand slowly from underneath Rose's. "So…you're going to leave then?"
"Aye."
He nodded slowly, then stood.
"Where are you going?" Rose asked.
"To tell Turner that only one passenger will be going aboard in the morning," Ben murmured quietly. With that, he turned and left the room.
Rose collapsed her head into her hands, feeling deep regret. The only thing that reassured her of the decision she had made was knowing that she could survive without Ben. She was not so certain that Jack could survive without her, however.
