Disclaimer: I don't own Pirates or anything associated with it (though if whoever does own it wants to get rid of it, I'm very willing to take it off his hands...). I'm not making any money off of this story (because if I were I would be in the Caribbean, not posting a fanfic about it).


Chapter 1: 1 1/2 years later, Tortuga, morning.

Elizabeth Turner woke up with a splitting headache. I haven't been drinking, have I? she wondered. She had made a point to refrain from drinking--not an easy task in Tortuga--and she didn't remember drinking anything except water... but then a throbbing in her ankle reminded her of exactly why she had such a headache. Last night she had tried to get someone to take her back to Port Royal, but she had been lucky to escape with her life.

But she had to keep trying. She had come way too far to give up now. Carefully, she stood up, testing her weight gingerly on the injured ankle. It hurt, but she was able to stand. She did her best to straighten her tattered dress and pulled the straw from her hair--she'd slept in a barn loft, hoping to be left alone--and carefully climbed down. Apparently the ankle wasn't broken, because it held up all right, but she would have to be careful with it; it was still very weak.

She took a deep breath to steel herself and went out into the town, squinting in the morning light. The streets were fairly empty at this time of the day, mostly because everyone who was out having a good time the night before was still trying to sleep off the pain that followed the kind of entertainment they pursued. The only people who were out were the locals who owned the few non-pub businesses and some sailors who'd arrived early in the morning and hadn't had time to sample some of Tortuga's finest entertainment.

Elizabeth wasted no time. She walked up to the nearest sailor and tapped his shoulder. "Excuse me," she said. "Are you planning to depart today?"

He eyed her suspiciously. "Aye. This afternoon, weather permitting. What for?"

"Can you take me to Port Royal?" she demanded.

"What?" he asked incredulously. Then he started laughing. "Sure, missy, I can take you to Port Royal. But I wouldn't sail into that port to save me life. Don't you know that Commodore Norrington sails from Port Royal? A pirate'd have to be daft to go there on his own free will!"

Elizabeth wasn't about to give up that easily, though. "I know the Commodore personally, and I can guarantee your safety if you are with me, and don't try to threaten me," she told him. "I promise, no harm will come to you."

"Yeah, well, if it's all the same to you, I'd just as soon not take the risk." He slung a sack over his shoulder and made as if to leave. "Now, will ya just get lost?"

"But you don't understand!" Elizabeth cried, moving to stand in front of him and block him from leaving. "I haven't been home in a year and a half! I have two children who need a mother, and my husband probably thinks I'm dead!"

"Listen, lady. There's not a lot I can do about it, all right?"

"You can take me home!"

"No! I can't. Okay? Sorry, but no. I'm not goin' to Port Royal. End of story." He made as if to leave, but a word from Elizabeth stopped him in his tracks.

"What I wouldn't give to have Jack Sparrow here," she groaned, more to herself than to him.

"Jack Sparrow? You don't think he would take you to Port Royal, do you? He wouldn't go near the place if you paid him! That Commodore Norrington's almost hanged him twice, lass," the man chuckled. "You wouldn't be gettin' any rides from him."

"Captain Sparrow would take me to Port Royal. I helped save him from Norrington both times. And my husband is Will Turner. The son of Bootstrap Bill?" Elizabeth spat back.

The man laughed again. "Oh ho, and I'm Back-From-the-Dead Red, is that it? Do us a favor, lass, and go bug somebody else, huh?" Shaking his head, he walked off, muttering to himself about "crazy wenches."

Elizabeth sat down on a crate and watched him go. "Great, just great," she muttered. "Now what?"

Before she could find somebody else to try to solicit a ride from, a rough hand fell on her shoulder. She jumped, but before she could scream the hand shot up to cover her mouth.

"Hold it there, missy," said a strangely familiar voice. "I heard you talking to Captain Gossanyi over there, and I thought I heard you say that you're married to Will Turner." Elizabeth nodded slowly, and the hand dropped from her mouth. She turned to face this new man, and the sense of familiarity nearly overwhelmed her--she just couldn't figure out why. She didn't recognize his salt-and pepper beard, and she'd certainly never seen his odd, multi-colored bandanna. She noted how his tattered clothes hung loosely on his lanky frame, but he gave the impression that he had great strength despite the way he looked. It was obvious, though, that he'd seen better days. "Who are you?" she asked.

"You can call me Captain. I have no other name."

Elizabeth frowned. "Of course you have another name. You just don't want me to know it because then I would know why you seem so familiar."

The stranger laughed. "True, true. Besides, it puts me at an advantage, because if you are who you claim to be then your name's Elizabeth Turner."

"How did you know that?" Elizabeth demanded.

"I'm friends with Cap'n Sparrow. He told me a little about you and your William Turner. So. If you can prove that you really are Elizabeth Turner, I'll take you to Port Royal. But you have to introduce me to your husband when we get there. I'll want to hear his side of the story, too."

Elizabeth frowned again. What an odd request, she thought. Aloud, though, she demanded, "And how can I prove that I am Elizabeth Turner?"

Captain grinned. "Tell me, Mrs. Turner. How did Jack get off the island? He says that you and I are the only living beings who know, unless you told that Will of yours."

She smiled a little. "The first time he hitched a ride from some rumrunners. The second time I set the island on fire and Norrington found us. Good enough?"

"Aye. Come on, Mrs. Turner. Let's take you home." He draped an arm across her shoulders and began to lead her away, but she shrugged it off.

"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded, more than a little suspicious. His motives were just not enough for her--he was hiding something, and it frightened her. But if he was truly willing to take her home, wasn't it worth the risk?

He rolled his eyes as if the answer should have been self-explanatory. "If the crew thinks you're my girl, they won't touch you. And neither will I, cross me heart," he added at the look on her face. "But if they see you as just a passenger, they won't hesitate to take advantage of you. So do you want my protection, or not?"

Elizabeth grimaced, but she allowed him to put his arm back on her shoulders and lead her to his ship.


Well, there you have it: Chapter 1. Poor Elizabeth has certainly been through a lot in the last year and a half (don't worry, you'll get the basics of it later). She's starting to get desperate! Oh, and if anyone out there would like to be my beta reader, please let me know because I don't have one right now and I really need one.

To all my wonderful reviewers: thank you SO much! I was worried when I posted this that I wouldn't get a single review (since that's what happened the last couple of times I posted my fics). Thanks for the confidence boost and I certainly hope that this chapter lives up to your expectations.

Specifically, to FalconWing: Pacing is the one thing I've always had the most troubles with. I'm delighted to hear that you think my pacing was good! Sorry about the chapter length--I have troubles finding good places to stop my chapters, so they tend to be either really long or really short. But this one's a bit longer for you.

Once again, thank you all!

--JSK