Pirates of the Caribbean: Before it all began
Summary: You know how Elizabeth and Will met on the ship. But what happened in the eight years before they met Jack Sparrow?
Disclaimer: I still don't own POTC...
Chapter 3- The HMS Dauntless
"The boy is merely Elizabeth's age!" the governor said. "The chances of him engaging in piracy are quite low." Elizabeth felt the knot in her stomach uncoil slightly at this answer. Her father would convince the lieutenant to spare Will.
"I am still unsure. Where would he stay?"
"We have an extra bedroom in our home. He could stay there." Elizabeth almost cried out in joy at the thought, but remained silent so as not to be heard and discovered. But her new friend, staying in her very own house!
"Very well, Governor. It's not really my choice to make." said the lieutenant's gruff voice.
Elizabeth heard someone exit the room. She rushed over to the bed so that whoever it was would not know that she was eavesdropping. The door opened, and she was caught in mid-step by her father. She slowly turned around and faced her father. "Elizabeth Swann, have you been eavesdropping?"
Elizabeth knew that it was wrong to lie to her father, so she had to answer "Yes." shamefully.
"Well, I suppose I don't have to tell you then." he said. "The boy will be staying with us."
"Father, I am so happy!" she nearly yelled, leaping into his arms. "Thank you!"
At that, the boy awoke with a start. "Where am I?" he inquired. "How did I get here?"
Elizabeth answered. "You are on the HMS Dauntless. We rescued you from the ship wreckage.
"The Dauntless?" he asked. He sat up quickly from his bed and immediately fell back down with a hand on his back. "Oh," he cried out, "My back aches."
"I'll leave you two alone." the Governor said. "I trust, Elizabeth, that you can explain to the boy what happened."
"Yes, father." Elizabeth nodded, and the governor left them alone.
"Why am I here?" Will asked again. "Wait... I remember. There was a ship. With black sails. I was in the brig, but I got out. Through a hole. There was a battle, and I fell..." Will said, struggling to remember what happened next. "My mind is blank after that."
"We found you on a wooden board near the ship wreckage."
"Ship wreckage? With black sails?" he excitedly asked.
"No," said Elizabeth, "It was one of the British Navy." Suddenly, she took note of his words. "Did you say, black sails?" she asked.
"Yes," he said. "Why?"
"Nothing, it's nothing." she lied. She didn't want to trouble the boy unnecessarily. But black sails! The ship she had seen had had black sails! How did he know of the ship? Well, she thought, it's probably unimportant. With that, she tried to forget about it altogether.
"I remember waking up here, but I probably went unconscious again because my memory is black." the boy remembered. "What was your name again?" he asked, changing the subject to Elizabeth's relief.
"Elizabeth." she answered. "Elizabeth Swann. And you?"
"William. Or Will if you like. Will Turner."
"Well, Will, can you get up?" Elizabeth asked. "You can come up on deck if you like."
"I can try." he said. He sat up, but started to fall again. Elizabeth rushed over and grabbed his hand.
"Careful," she said. Elizabeth slowly pulled the boy up. "There!" she said proudly, though it was the boy who had made most of the effort. "Now that you're standing properly, let's get you some clean clothes. She dug around in the drawers until she found something suitable for the boy to wear. She gave them clothes to the boy, and stepped out of the room. Once he had them on properly, she helped him up once again to take him up to the main deck. Once he was up she slowly helped him to the door.
Suddenly, she remembered the small golden treasure that hung about her neck. She couldn't let Will see it! She'd taken it from him! She helped him to the door, and told him to lean against the ship wall and wait outside. She rushed back into the cabin and removed it. She opened the bag filled with her belongings and put the medallion in a secret pocket she'd sewn on. This would do for the time being, but she'd have to find a better hiding place when they get to Port Royal. She returned outside to Will's confused face. "What was that all about?" he asked her.
"That?" she replied, groping for an answer. "That was nothing, nothing." He raised his eyebrows at the answer, but accepted it and said in a confident attitude, "Now let's get to the main deck!"
"Come on, we're almost there. Careful now, don't slip." Elizabeth encouraged Will as they made their way up the steps to the deck. "What did you do anyways, to make it so hard for you to move?"
"I do remember falling. I must've hurt something then. That was before you rescued me." Will explained.
"Well you're going to need plenty of rest to get better." As she said this, they climbed the final stair, reaching the main deck. "Here it is," she said "the HMS Dauntless. Come; I'll acquaint you with everyone."
Suddenly they heard a voice behind them. "Well, well, well, if it isn't that the boy has awoken."
Will turned and found himself standing next to Lieutenant Norrington. He didn't know the man, but knew that he was of some high-class status by the look of his clothes and Navy uniform. He didn't know how to act around a man of such a stature, and embarrassed himself by not knowing what to say. "Hello, I mean, g-good evening sir, I mean Lieutenant, I'm, uh, delighted to, meet you, I mean, uh, make your acquaintance, my name's, um, Will, I mean..." Elizabeth took over from here.
"Lieutenant Norrington, this is my new friend, Will Turner." she said with ease, but stressing the word "new" so as to secretly tell the lieutenant: I don't need you anymore, because I have a new friend! As stuck up as it seemed though, it was true; Lieutenant Norrington was almost an adult! Norrington seemed to take no heed of it, though.
After introducing Will, Elizabeth turned to him and said "Will, this is Lieutenant Norrington."
"Pleased to make your acquaintance Mr. Turner." the lieutenant said as he held out his hand.
"And yours as well," Will said, finally finding his words.
"Well, I mustn't dally here, I've work to do." Norrington said. "I shall see you two children later." And with that he walked off.
Elizabeth and Will did the same. While no one was looking, Elizabeth whispered in Will's ear, "You mustn't be frightened of Lieutenant Norrington. He's just a bit arrogant is all."
"Elizabeth!" he said jokingly, "That's a Navy officer you're talking about!" They both laughed, and moved on around the ship. This was the beginning of a great friendship.
Later that night, Elizabeth and Will were back in their cabin, readying for bed.
"So, do you like the sea?" Elizabeth asked, trying to make conversation. "I figured, since that's where we found you."
"Yes, actually, I do love the sea. I grew up on an English port just off the coast. I was born on a ship, too. My father was a merchant sailor, and he met my mother at a port in the Caribbean. They were sailing up to England when I was born." Will explained. "What about you? Do you like the sea?" he asked.
"Well, this is my first time on a ship, and seeing the sea for that matter. I lived in London before, where my father was involved in the government." she said. "But I have gotten quite accustomed to life on the sea. It's been weeks since I've seen, or set foot on, land. I suppose I'd better get accustomed to living by the sea like you, since Port Royal, where we'll soon live, is a port in the Caribbean."
"Don't worry," he reassuringly said, "you'll learn to love it."
"I hope so." she said. "I hope it's not as boring as life on the ship."
Will laughed. "No, I think life on land would be better. At least better than a Navy
ship. But what I would want to do, is be on a pirate ship." he said grinning.
"A pirate ship?" she asked, astonished.
"Yes," he said, "a pirate ship. You could take all you wanted, go wherever you wanted, and sail under no rules! And-"
Lieutenant Norrington sat in his office, supposed to be mapping out a safe course to Port Royal. But he couldn't concentrate to save his life. The waves were rough tonight, and the ship would constantly rock back and forth.
Besides that, his room was right next to Elizabeth's, and now that boy William as well, since they were sharing a room. There was something that the lieutenant didn't like about the boy. He had a certain air to him, a trait that Norrington just couldn't place his finger on. He pondered this for a minute, then tried to return to his work.
The two were having a conversation keeping Norrington up. They should be in bed by now he grumbled. Little snippets of it wafted through the walls; "the sea," "first time on a ship," "living by the sea like you," and "Port Royal" was all Norrington could hear. They were obviously having a conversation about the voyage, nothing that need concern him.
But suddenly, he heard the word "pirate" come from Will's mouth. The lieutenant listened more intently this time. He heard Will say, "all you wanted, go wherever-, no rules! And-" To Norrington's dislike, the boy's sentence was suddenly cut off. But there was no doubt about it; Will was talking about pirates. Maybe he wanted to be one. Maybe he was one! What should I do with information like this? he wondered. He thought about his options. He could tell Elizabeth's father. He stood up to leave. No, he thought, that would never do. With this, he had to wait till just the right moment...
"Hush!" Elizabeth quietly said, cutting Will off.
"What? You interrupted." he said.
"Yes, but Lieutenant Norrington's office is right next to our room, and he absolutely hates pirates!"
Suddenly, they heard footsteps outside and a knock on the door. "Who is it?" they both timidly called in unison.
"Elizabeth, it's your father," the governor replied.
They sighed, glad that the lieutenant wasn't there to get them in trouble, especially Will, who actually was the one talking about pirates. "Please, enter," they said, once again in harmony.
"Still awake?" he asked, stepping into the room. "I thought you'd be in bed by now, tired after such a long day."
"Yes," Will answered. "But we've so much to talk about. Are we really staying in Port Royal? I heard about the new port the British were establishing back when I lived in England."
"Did you? Well, it is true, I will be the governor there. And you will be staying in our home."
"Really sir? Wow! I never though I'd stay in a place like that!" Will answered. "Back in England, we'd stay in a humble cottage!"
"Well, worry you not, I'll make sure we have a fine house to stay in. Now, it really is getting late. You two should be getting off to bed."
"Yes sir." Will replied.
"Yes father." Elizabeth said, climbing up onto her bunk bed.
"Goodnight Elizabeth. Goodnight Will." the Governor said, blowing out the candle and leaving the two.
A/N: Will is staying in Port Royal. Yay for him! Argg, I hate the Norrington's attitude. My friend says he has issues. He he he! Anyways, R&R!