Note: I know perfectly well that in the film Elizabeth says,
"It's okay." But that's a screaming anachronism, so I changed it
deliberately.
*******
Will woke, his throat too dry to scream, grabbing out for anything to stop the world from spinning around him. His hand touched – someone.
"It's all right. I'm Elizabeth Swann."
He could scarcely see the face of the girl who stood above him, but he remembered his manners and croaked out, "Will Turner," in reply, before the sky began to go around and around above and he again lost consciousness.
When he woke once more, he was in darkness, but it was a familiar and friendly sort of darkness, full of the sounds of sleeping men. He was in a hammock, and at first he thought that he must have dreamed the attack on the Berenice. The pain in his head told him differently. He put a shaking hand up and tenderly felt the lump above his left ear.
It had happened, all of it. What would become of him now? Captain Kirtland was gone, who might have helped him find his father. Of even more concern, everything Will possessed in the world had gone down with that ship, except the clothes he wore. He reached for the medallion around his neck, thinking that if he had no choice, the gold might make the difference, though he would be reluctant to lose the only thing he had left of either parent. It was gone. Will felt a pang of despair. The chain must have broken, or slipped off while he was in the water. Now he had nothing, nothing. In the safe darkness he wept – for himself, for his dead mother and lost father, for the uncertainties of the world.
Morning brought more hope. The lieutenant, Norrington, told him that they had searched the wreckage, finding no survivors, but that they had salvaged some of the goods that the Berenice was carrying and Will would be entitled to a share. That would pay for his passage the rest of the way to Jamaica and still leave him a little, though he would have to either find William Turner almost immediately or obtain employment of some sort to support himself.
Venturing out on deck, squinting into the bright sun that had finally replaced the fog of the past days, the first person Will saw there was the girl from the day before. What was a lass like that doing aboard? She came to him at once, reminding him of her name, and he learned that she was the daughter of Weatherby Swann, who was journeying to be governor of the colony at Port Royal.
Will did not want to talk much about his mother, but he told Elizabeth that she was dead and that he was hoping to find his father, a merchant sailor, in the Caribbean, where he had last intended to go.
"Oh, I do hope that you find him," said Elizabeth. He thought she looked relieved, but could not understand why. "I will ask my father if he can help you. He will be able to make inquiries that you could not make, I'm sure."
"Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. I would be very grateful for any help your father could give me."
"Now," she said, "if you don't mind, would you tell me about the pirates? I think they're fascinating. I wish that I had been there."
"You don't, miss, honestly." Will shivered, even in the hot sun. "This lot were mad. They didn't even fire a warning shot, and they destroyed the ship rather than taking her. I don't know what they wanted, at all. I was lucky to escape – I saw all the rest of the crew and passengers taken prisoner."
"Perhaps the pirates were looking for someone in particular," Elizabeth speculated, "although how they could have known which ship to attack, I can't imagine."
"Nor can I."
"But did you see any of the pirates? What did they look like?" she asked eagerly.
Will had not really had a close look at any of the Berenice's attackers, but he closed his eyes and tried to remember, to please this odd girl. "They were an odd assortment," he said slowly. "Some of them were Africans, I'm almost certain – darker-skinned than any Spaniard I've ever seen. They seemed surprisingly well-dressed."
"I suppose they take their clothes from their prisoners," said Elizabeth, eyeing him. "Though they wouldn't have taken any from you, I expect."
"That is probably it," he agreed. "I was thrown from the ship before any of them boarded, though, so I had no chance to see any of them clearly. Just from across the water as they were firing on us, and then quite distantly when I was down on the water, on that hatch cover. I'm sorry I cannot tell you much more about them."
She looked disappointed. "That's all right. I suppose it's not a very pleasant topic for you anyway."
"Why are you so interested in pirates, if it's not an impertinent question?"
The girl shrugged her thin shoulders. "I don't know. Perhaps just that they seem so different from any people I've ever met, and yet I know that they are mostly Englishmen and sailors. The crew on this ship have all been very kind and polite to me – well, there is one who complains that I'm bad luck to have aboard because I'm a girl, but that's all. So what makes a man a pirate from being a decent ordinary sailor? Why would someone want to go out and do that?"
"For profit, I expect. Sometimes they begin as privateers – the crown hires them to attack enemy ships – but not all of them seem to stick to that. The temptation must be too great. That is why I thought the ship that attacked us was unusual. They did take away some of the goods in the hold as booty, but they would have had much more if they had been less careless in their methods; they could very likely have taken us without scuttling the Berenice, and then they would have had a second ship with all her cargo. You must be right, it was someone aboard they wanted. I wonder who it could have been? Unless they thought that we were you, and were after the governor?"
"Then they might come back, once they realize."
Will thought he saw excitement rather than apprehension in her face. "They might, but there's no fog any more to conceal their approach, and this vessel looks to be well-armed, even better than the Berenice was."
Unnoticed by either of them, Elizabeth's father approached. They were startled when he said pleasantly, "Feeling better, are you, lad?"
Will jumped to his feet and bowed. "Yes, sir, much better."
"My daughter is taking care of you? Not talking your ear off?"
"No sir. I mean, yes sir, Miss Elizabeth is taking good care of me. Thank you, sir."
"Father," said Elizabeth, "Will has come to the Caribbean to find his own father here, a merchant sailor. Can we help him?"
Governor Swann smiled indulgently at her. "I will do what I can, once we reach port. It would be a shame not to help out a boy who has managed to escape from pirates."
"Thank you, Father," said Elizabeth, and Will echoed, "Thank you very much, Governor."
"Now, boy, I'm going to claim you from my daughter for a little while. The captain and lieutenant would like to ask you some questions about the ship that attacked you."
Will saw Elizabeth open her mouth, then shut it again. He said honestly, "I will answer what I can, but I didn't see very much, I'm afraid."
"That's all right. Anything you can tell us will help. One of my purposes as governor is to reduce the number of pirates in these waters, you understand. Come along now."
*******
Will woke, his throat too dry to scream, grabbing out for anything to stop the world from spinning around him. His hand touched – someone.
"It's all right. I'm Elizabeth Swann."
He could scarcely see the face of the girl who stood above him, but he remembered his manners and croaked out, "Will Turner," in reply, before the sky began to go around and around above and he again lost consciousness.
When he woke once more, he was in darkness, but it was a familiar and friendly sort of darkness, full of the sounds of sleeping men. He was in a hammock, and at first he thought that he must have dreamed the attack on the Berenice. The pain in his head told him differently. He put a shaking hand up and tenderly felt the lump above his left ear.
It had happened, all of it. What would become of him now? Captain Kirtland was gone, who might have helped him find his father. Of even more concern, everything Will possessed in the world had gone down with that ship, except the clothes he wore. He reached for the medallion around his neck, thinking that if he had no choice, the gold might make the difference, though he would be reluctant to lose the only thing he had left of either parent. It was gone. Will felt a pang of despair. The chain must have broken, or slipped off while he was in the water. Now he had nothing, nothing. In the safe darkness he wept – for himself, for his dead mother and lost father, for the uncertainties of the world.
Morning brought more hope. The lieutenant, Norrington, told him that they had searched the wreckage, finding no survivors, but that they had salvaged some of the goods that the Berenice was carrying and Will would be entitled to a share. That would pay for his passage the rest of the way to Jamaica and still leave him a little, though he would have to either find William Turner almost immediately or obtain employment of some sort to support himself.
Venturing out on deck, squinting into the bright sun that had finally replaced the fog of the past days, the first person Will saw there was the girl from the day before. What was a lass like that doing aboard? She came to him at once, reminding him of her name, and he learned that she was the daughter of Weatherby Swann, who was journeying to be governor of the colony at Port Royal.
Will did not want to talk much about his mother, but he told Elizabeth that she was dead and that he was hoping to find his father, a merchant sailor, in the Caribbean, where he had last intended to go.
"Oh, I do hope that you find him," said Elizabeth. He thought she looked relieved, but could not understand why. "I will ask my father if he can help you. He will be able to make inquiries that you could not make, I'm sure."
"Thank you, Miss Elizabeth. I would be very grateful for any help your father could give me."
"Now," she said, "if you don't mind, would you tell me about the pirates? I think they're fascinating. I wish that I had been there."
"You don't, miss, honestly." Will shivered, even in the hot sun. "This lot were mad. They didn't even fire a warning shot, and they destroyed the ship rather than taking her. I don't know what they wanted, at all. I was lucky to escape – I saw all the rest of the crew and passengers taken prisoner."
"Perhaps the pirates were looking for someone in particular," Elizabeth speculated, "although how they could have known which ship to attack, I can't imagine."
"Nor can I."
"But did you see any of the pirates? What did they look like?" she asked eagerly.
Will had not really had a close look at any of the Berenice's attackers, but he closed his eyes and tried to remember, to please this odd girl. "They were an odd assortment," he said slowly. "Some of them were Africans, I'm almost certain – darker-skinned than any Spaniard I've ever seen. They seemed surprisingly well-dressed."
"I suppose they take their clothes from their prisoners," said Elizabeth, eyeing him. "Though they wouldn't have taken any from you, I expect."
"That is probably it," he agreed. "I was thrown from the ship before any of them boarded, though, so I had no chance to see any of them clearly. Just from across the water as they were firing on us, and then quite distantly when I was down on the water, on that hatch cover. I'm sorry I cannot tell you much more about them."
She looked disappointed. "That's all right. I suppose it's not a very pleasant topic for you anyway."
"Why are you so interested in pirates, if it's not an impertinent question?"
The girl shrugged her thin shoulders. "I don't know. Perhaps just that they seem so different from any people I've ever met, and yet I know that they are mostly Englishmen and sailors. The crew on this ship have all been very kind and polite to me – well, there is one who complains that I'm bad luck to have aboard because I'm a girl, but that's all. So what makes a man a pirate from being a decent ordinary sailor? Why would someone want to go out and do that?"
"For profit, I expect. Sometimes they begin as privateers – the crown hires them to attack enemy ships – but not all of them seem to stick to that. The temptation must be too great. That is why I thought the ship that attacked us was unusual. They did take away some of the goods in the hold as booty, but they would have had much more if they had been less careless in their methods; they could very likely have taken us without scuttling the Berenice, and then they would have had a second ship with all her cargo. You must be right, it was someone aboard they wanted. I wonder who it could have been? Unless they thought that we were you, and were after the governor?"
"Then they might come back, once they realize."
Will thought he saw excitement rather than apprehension in her face. "They might, but there's no fog any more to conceal their approach, and this vessel looks to be well-armed, even better than the Berenice was."
Unnoticed by either of them, Elizabeth's father approached. They were startled when he said pleasantly, "Feeling better, are you, lad?"
Will jumped to his feet and bowed. "Yes, sir, much better."
"My daughter is taking care of you? Not talking your ear off?"
"No sir. I mean, yes sir, Miss Elizabeth is taking good care of me. Thank you, sir."
"Father," said Elizabeth, "Will has come to the Caribbean to find his own father here, a merchant sailor. Can we help him?"
Governor Swann smiled indulgently at her. "I will do what I can, once we reach port. It would be a shame not to help out a boy who has managed to escape from pirates."
"Thank you, Father," said Elizabeth, and Will echoed, "Thank you very much, Governor."
"Now, boy, I'm going to claim you from my daughter for a little while. The captain and lieutenant would like to ask you some questions about the ship that attacked you."
Will saw Elizabeth open her mouth, then shut it again. He said honestly, "I will answer what I can, but I didn't see very much, I'm afraid."
"That's all right. Anything you can tell us will help. One of my purposes as governor is to reduce the number of pirates in these waters, you understand. Come along now."