Author's Note: Nope, still no copyrights for POTC in my possession.

Sandlover: It was hard coming up with her tragic life, I knew I wanted it to be sad, but not so sad that she was just a ball of depression. I think I did ok! ( Thanks for being my faithful reviewer! - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - --

It was obvious to Jack and Will that Ana had not gotten much sleep the night before. Her eyes were puffy and red and had an empty look to them. Jack knew better than to question it but Will was deeply concerned for her. "Are you alright?" he asked, approaching her in the galley as she was searching for something to feed them for breakfast. "Fine," was the short reply. Will decided to leave her be.

After the men had left the galley after their breakfast of dried fruit and a bit of water, Ana found her scarce belongings and decided to change her clothing. It was grimy from nervous sweat and dust from sitting in the barrel the morning before. She unfolded a course gray bodice and brown overskirt, before searching for her chemise. As she reached for a faded black one, something shiny fell out of the folds and dropped to the ship's planks. Ana bent over to pick it up and was struck speechless. Lying on the dark wood, was a gold ring with a small bit of silver protruding at one side. She laid it in the palm of her hand to examine it more closely, a small smile playing on her lips. The bit of silver was a small rose, the flower that shared its name with her mother. She traced one finger around the band, remembering how she had admired this ring on her mother's hand when she was a child. She had removed it before she and her brother had sent their parents' bodies into the ocean's depths but she had never felt the right to wear it. Now, however, she slipped it onto her own finger, trying to imagine how her mother must have felt when her father had put it on hers on their wedding day.

Realizing she still had not dressed, she slipped hurriedly out of her dirty clothes and into the cleaner ones. She balled up the grubby garments and put them into the empty barrel she had snuck on the ship in. Taking one last moment of solitude to examine the ring again, she hurried up to where Jack and Will were watching the ocean's waves.

"Are we making good time?" she asked Jack. "Good time, yes. We'll be there by evening, I expect," he said as if the matter were of little importance compared to the feeling of being in charge of a ship again. "Did you sleep any?" she turned and asked of Will who was absentmindedly playing with a pulley over his head. "Some, though not very comfortably. Doesn't look like you had much either," he said, daring to try and broach the subject. "I'm fine," she said in the same steely manner she had used that morning. She turned back to Jack, "Were you up here all night, Jack?" "You think I wouldn't take advantage of this, love?" he asked playfully. "Go and rest, Jack. She's steady on her course, isn't she?" Jack nodded. Ana put one hand on her hip, "Then I want you, Jack Sparrow, to go to the captain's quarters and have a lie down. I'll come and get you when the sun starts to sink." Jack saluted her, "Aye aye, my lady."

Ana shook her head slowly as she watched Jack disappear down the steps. "Sharp of you to bring a second dress. Must be nice," said Will, peering through his wind swept hair. "Bet you wish you had done the same?" Ana smiled. 'As long as he doesn't want to bring up what we talked about last night, I'll be fine,' she thought. It seemed Will was thinking along the same lines, because although he noticed her pale face and heavy eyes, he made no mention of her appearance. "Would you at least like to tie your hair back?" she asked. "That would be good," he said as he struggled to keep the loose strands from being blown about by the sea air. Ana went back into the galley, thinking, 'I'm spending way to much time in this place,' grabbed the strip of cloth that had wrapped the dried meat she had given Will the night before and brought it back up to him. She shook it out and handed it to him. He nodded his thanks and did his best to control his flapping hair. He wasn't very successful but it was better than nothing.

The day passed uneventfully with Ana and Will questioning each other about their life in Port Royal.
"How is it that you always let your master, that drunken Mr. Brown, take credit for your craftsmanship?" Ana asked, sitting comfortably on the ship's deck with one arm through the helm to keep the ship on course.
"How did you know...?" Will looked stunned.
Ana wanted to laugh out loud. "I always heard someone hard at work, banging and clanging in that workshop, even when Master Brown was down at the pub. Not to mention I'd see you covered head to toe in soot at the end of the day. A simple apprentice wouldn't get that dirty, no matter how bad he was." Will smiled sheepishly, "They wouldn't believe I had done it." "I bet they would, if anyone cared to see what the working class did in Port Royal. I've seen your work, it's very beautiful. You should be proud." "Thank you. How is it that you came to have a shop such as yours? Two goods in one?" he inquired. "Oh, that. Well, I was taught those talents when I was young. They both came naturally to me and I figured if I failed at one in Port Royal, I'd at least have another to fall back on." "Smart plan." "Thank you." And so they passed the time with idle conversation until the sun started to burn a bright orange in the Caribbean sky. "Guess I should go and get Jack, ay?" she asked, looking at the stunning sunset. "You said you would," Will reminded her. "Aye, that I did," she said as she struggled to get to her feet. "Would you do me a favor, Master Turner?" Will cocked his head in a reproving tilt. "Ok, ok, Will, could I ask a favor of you?" He raised himself to his full height, "Yes, if I can manage it." Ana laughed. "Oh, I don't know then, it's very difficult, this. I am going to need you to stand here and make sure the ship doesn't take a course of her own. Can you handle keeping a grip on the helm in this gusty weather?" she looked around in mock concern at the still atmosphere. "Hmm, that does sound a bit difficult, but I dare say I can manage it," Will returned in mock determination. Ana was still laughing as she approached Jack's door. From inside she could hear the deeply satisfied snores of one who is in such a deep sleep that a simple knock on the door would not rouse them. Ana knocked, though, not expecting an answer, before opening the door. Jack was sprawled out on his stomach, his limbs reaching for each corner of the fancy bed. "Jack!" Ana said loudly. A grunting snore was all she received in reply. She stepped up to the side of the bed and said even more loudly, "JACK!" This time, Jack raised his arm and dropped it, signaling that he would either be up in a few minutes or for her to go away, Ana didn't know how to interpret it. Growing impatient, she grabbed the pillow that Jack had buried his face in, yanked it out from under his head so his nose went smashing into the mattress, threw it back on top of his head and shouted, "JACK SPARROW!" Jack, startled, sat right up and yelled back incoherently, "CAPTAIN! CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW!" One hand on her hip, Ana looked down at the disheveled man and said, "Captain or not, you will not be lying there until the second coming." "Second coming of what?" Jack asked in confusion. "Oh, never mind, just get up," Ana said as she grabbed his arms and started to pull. He got to his feet, grabbed his hat from the table beside the bed, and swaggered to the door. He put his hat on his head, tipped it towards Ana and walked out. Ana growled quietly in annoyance but she couldn't helped but grin at his cheekiness.

Back on the upper deck, Jack had taken over from Will who had gone back to simply staring at the waves. "Never gets old does it?" Ana asked with a small bit of satisfaction. "At least it's always changing," he answered. Ana walked to Jack and asked, "How long until we arrive?" "Not long, love, look," he said as he pointed to a dark spot on the horizon. "Tortuga?" she asked. "A bit of the outer cove," he nodded. Ana returned to stand by Will but faced the dark fleck on the horizon, watching it grow bigger as they approached.

The sun had fully set when they docked in Tortuga and the dark sky was littered with stars. Walking out of the seaport, Ana begged Jack to let her go and see her father's ship. "Please, Jack, I won't be long. I just need to see it, just to be sure it's still here." After much begging and pleading he finally agreed that they would all go to the holding docks so Ana could see the Old Glory. Sure enough, the ship was tied in the outer part of the shipyard and Ana's heart leaped with joy at the sight of it. The sight of the tall masts caused her to forget herself and she ran full speed to the pier that ran parallel along its side. She stood half way down its length looking up with longing at the boat. A harbormaster approached her and the two men that had followed her. He, too, looked at the ship but with a kind of melancholy playing on his face. "Beautiful, isn't she?" he asked. Ana smiled and nodded. "Bit of a shame, really," he continued. "Shame? Why?" she looked worried. "Our storing rates raised about three years ago and the poor girl who left this ship left no way to contact her so the money she deposited for its keeping 'as run out. It's in the possession of the wharf now." All the color from Ana's face drained, "Is there no way she can get it back?" "Oh, I'm sure there's a way but it will take a long time and a lot of money to convince the possessor. Shame, really, there's still a lot of life left in it." "How much would it be to get it back in personal possession?" Will asked. "More than my life is worth, I imagine," he said chuckling, "A ship like that won't be let go of too easily." "No, I don't imagine it would," Ana said quietly, her insides on fire. "But now, was there anything, you'd be wanting here tonight?" the harbormaster asked. "Yes, I'd be wanting my ship back!" Ana finally exploded. "Your..." he trailed off, realization dawning on his lined face. "Now, girl, you had better start saving your earnings, it'll be a while before you can buy it back. But it's not going anywhere." "It better not," she growled, "Who's in charge of the deposits of regaining the contracted ships?" The harbormaster swallowed, "That would be I." Ana reached into her bodice and withdrew a dark leather pouch. She thrust her hand in and pulled out several large gold coins. "Take this, and put it into my account as a notice that I intend to once again own this vessel," she instructed as she forced the currency into the man's hand. "V-v-v-very well, lass, I'll do that," he stuttered in stress. "Be sure every coin is accounted for," she ordered. "Y-y-yes ma'am," he said. Ana could hardly contain her emotions. She didn't wait for her two companions but marched right back down the pier and into the outskirts of Tortuga. "Are you alright, love?" Jack eyed Ana with concern. "I'm fine," she answered shortly. In truth, it was hard for her to focus on any one thing she was thinking or feeling as she studied her mother's ring on her hand. "I will get it back," she said through gritted teeth. "Of course, you will," Jack said soothingly and Will nodded, "You've put down a payment and that's a start." Ana thought about this and said, "Yes, you're right, and as long as I've got a start, I've got something, ay?" The two men nodded. Ana drew herself up and squared her shoulders, "Come along, gentlemen, I daresay Tortuga is awaiting us." She linked arms with both men and steered them further into the town.