My Heart Will Go On
I remember the day that I lost Will. Even though I know my great-grandchildren's grandchildren, I still remember. I shall tell you the story that I've passed on from generation to generation of my children.
I'll give you some background information. William Turner's father was none other than Bootstrap Bill Turner, late best friend of the great Captain Jack Sparrow. Jack helped Will save me from a group of cursed pirates that couldn't die, and, in doing so, managed to get his ship back and still stay alive, all in one go. However, to get the latter to happen, Jack had required some help from Will and I, and so that left a sort of debt to us (unlike most pirates, Jack had a sense of honor, or at least it seemed that way to me). The fact that Will was his best friend's son helped a great deal. So whether it was the debt or the fact that he just liked us (I wasn't sure that he had a sense of honor then), but every once and a while Captain Sparrow would take me and Will and our children on a little trip around the Caribbean, occasionally being in a sea battle, but nothing serious. Will loved every minute of it.
No, Will wasn't a pirate - on the outside. On the outside, he was a blacksmith, the greatest blacksmith in my opinion. On the inside, he was a pirate. He stole my heart, and he still has it to this day. Occasionally, his true self shone through, thus the little trips took place. Our daughter, Rachael Elizabeth Turner, and our sons, James Daniel, Jack William, and John Paul, always came with us as they had piracy in their blood as well.
About once every two years (he came two years straight, when me and Will were twenty-four and twenty-five and when we were twenty-nine and thirty) Jack would come. Me, Will, Rachael, James, Jack (called Jay), and John Paul would go and have a little trip around the Caribbean. Father was reluctant at first – he didn't think Jack was trustworthy. I think only the fact that he knew my husband would die before he let anyone hurt or touch me allowed us to go.
He also was calmed by the fact that half way through, James Norrington would meet us all at Port Adria. He let us ride on the ships that carried families from England to Port Royal. I memorized the route, and the map in James Norrington's office had had a faded spot on the line that marked the route from the many times I traced my finger along it. But I'm getting off subject.
I still remember Jack. He was so carefree. His brown eyes, lined with kohl, were always bright and alert and happy, for he had his beloved ship. Once, when he was drunk, he found out that the night before, he had directed the Pearl above some rocks that scratched the bottom (he had been drunk then, too – or at least I think he was) by a screaming AnaMaria, his first mate. He had strode – or swaggered, you pick – over to the railing, patted it, and said, "I did? Oh no! Poor Pearly!" His neck made a creaking sound when AnaMaria slapped him.
He had had black and gray hair, always in tangles and part of it in a pony tail and some more of it in a tar jack, with a bunch of beads, coins, trinkets, and I think even a bone threaded in. He wore a red scarf around his head, a red and white sash with a sort of belt over it around his waist, navy blue breeches, brown boots, a white, baggy-sleeved shirt, and a dark vest that was so long the sash and belt-like thing went over it. He always, of course, wore a captain's black coat. He looked a lot younger than he actually was, and he had a lot of energy for a fifty-six year old man. But then again, life had always been good for Jack. He always managed to get some fortune out of everything he did.
I remember that, on every trip, he would called Will 'whelp' at least five times. I also remember that Jay would always say "I wanna be just like Uncle Jack," and John would say, "Oh no you ain't! I'm gonna be like Uncle Jack!" and then Jack would say to Will and I, every time, "Yer kids are already fightin' over me, mates. Looks like there's gonna be no fame left fer you two!" Then he'd tell them a story. After the end, Will would say, "God, I hope neither of you get into as much trouble as Jack!" and Jack would say, while blushing, "Aw, go pound some steel!"
That reminds me. Will Turner, the one that I saved when we were twelve, and the one that saved my life when we were twenty. I remember his tan face, his warm brown eyes, and his dark hair that he used to tie back with that pesky red rag. I remember how he used to laugh and comfort and cry and smile. He was a wonderful father, and I bet he would've made an excellent grandfather.
Rachael had been fourteen, James had been thirteen, Jay had been eleven, and John had been nine the night that I lost Will. James had been so brave, just like his father. He had comforted Jay and John, and Rachael, with the warmth that came from her father, had cared for us all, thinking that since she was the eldest, it was her responsibility to comfort me and keep the family together.
The accident hadn't happened on the Black Pearl. It had happened on the H.M.S. Dauntless.
It had been on another trip with the Commodore. We were on our way home from England, with another family on board and a whole load of sailors.
It had been a pirate's attack. They had killed countless men – Commodore Norrington and Lt. Gillette luckily hadn't been killed – and then had blown our ship up.
I had made sure the kids were safe. Luckily, Rachael had gotten on a piece of driftwood by herself, and Jack had led James and John on a piece of wreckage as well, and had gotten on it himself. They had been looking for me and Will.
Will himself had made sure that I was safe. He had killed as many pirates as he could, keeping them away from me and the kids. But in the very end, a few daggers had found their way to his back. I remember seeing him, in the water. He had spotted me, and, despite the pain that the daggers were giving him, he'd swum over. He had made sure I was safe, and managed to find me a piece of wreckage big enough for my whole body to be on.
He had yanked the daggers out after that, but the damage was done. His back was ripped and torn, and to this day, I can still remember the blood. It was surrounding the water around Will. He himself had tried to get on, but we found that the piece of wreckage almost tipped over, so Will just lifted half of himself onto the wreckage, to keep the wound out of the salty water. He had held my hand, all the way until the last ounce of strength and life was out of his body. I remember what he made me do…
"Elizabeth," Will whispered. He was hurt so bad, and so cold, that he couldn't say his beloved's name. "I want you to pr-promise me something. You're the m-most beautiful, the most k-kind and loving and brave and caring woman I have ever met. I love you, an-and Rachael and James and Jay and John, more than anything, even l-life itself. I'd even give up that same life as l-long as I knew you all would be safe." He started rubbing his hands over mine, to make them warm. "You know I'm a man of my word, but now, I'm starting to wish that I wouldn't have to keep th-that promise, but it looks like I'm going to have to do it. I'm dying, Elizabeth, and I know it. I'm not going to pretend. But if there's one thing I want you to know, is that I love you and the kids, and I will forever and ever."
"No!" I choked. "No! You're going to be all right!"
"No, Elizabeth, I'm not," said Will, shivering. "You are going to die an old, old lady. Not now, Elizabeth. You are going to go home, with C-Commodore Norrington, and you're going to look after the kids, an-and watch them grow, and then watch their children too, and even their gr-grandchildren. You will pass on in a bed, warm and s-safe. Not here, Liz, not here. And we'll b-be waiting for you, me and C-Captain Jack and my father and mother and your father and mother. And then all of us will wait for Rachael, and James, Jay, and John! Promise me that, Liz. Promise me, you won't die here! Not t-today, not this week, not even this year. Promise me, please!" He held my hands in a tight grip, and pleaded with his eyes. His lips were slightly blue, and his normally tan face was very pale.
"I promise," I whispered. "I promise you, Will."
"That's good!" Will murmured, looking into my brown eyes with his warm chocolate ones. "I love you, Elizabeth. And I always w-will! Never forget that! Promise you won't forget me?"
"I won't!" I said, kissing his hand. "I promise. I love you Will, I could never forget you. I'll miss you, but I'll never forget you." Will smiled.
"I'll miss you, too," he whispered, and closed his eyes. His head went limp, completely leaning his head sideways. I remember crying my eyes out. I still held his hand, and slowly, I pulled off the small, sapphire-pattern ring that was on Will's finger, his wedding band. It shows that our love will go on forever.
I smiled. I took off my own, and then my wedding ring. The band was identical to Will's, but the ring – oh, the ring was so beautiful! It didn't look like much to others that said I deserved better, but I thought it was wonderful. It had a small sapphire in the middle, and, on each side, a very small diamond. Will made it himself. Well, he had admitted that he bought the jewels, but he had designed and made the ring. I clutched the three rings in my hand, and then, after a moment, I put Will's ring back on his finger, after holding it for the last time. But I swear, as I had held that ring, that it was as warm as that poker in Will's shop, despite the cold water and the cold finger that it had been around. I added my own band, but I kept my wedding ring. I was scared then, that I'd forget him if I didn't. I was foolish – I realize now I could never forget Will.
I distantly remember what happened next – you could say I was in a daze. James Norrington had survived and was in a rowboat, searching for survivors. How he got the rowboat, I have no idea. There was also another one, too, right behind it. A few British soldiers, the wife and one of the kids from the family, and Lt. Gillette were in that one. The one James Norrington (we named our son after him) was in had a few navy soldiers, and Rachael, James, Jay, and John (Commodore Norrington was very fond of our kids, particularly James). He immediately saw me, and then he saw Will. I remember Jay and John and even Rachael crying, and James furiously trying to wipe away tears when they all saw Will.
They got me on the boat, along with Will, and then we waited for a long time until another merchant ship came by. They let us on board, in exchange for a few coins that James had come up with.
I remember the funeral, too. It was a small one, of course. I was there along with my children, my father Governor Swann, James Norrington, a few of Will and I's friends, and Captain Jack Sparrow, along with his crew of miscreants (my father had given them clemency for the day without a second thought; he'd grown onto Will a few months after Will saved me and realized me and Will's love for each other wasn't just puppy love). The minister was the only other person there.
I had ordered a handsome wooden coffin, along with Jack's help. I remember his face. His face was no longer carefree, his eyes no longer twinkling and cheery. They were dull and sad, and also slightly wet, and I remember seeing him wipe his eyes a lot when he thought no one was looking. It was the only time I'd ever seen Jack cry.
I had put in Will's most prized weapon: his sword. It was a very beautiful weapon, sapphires and diamonds adorning the hilt and pommel, but incredibly sharp and sufficient. He had taken it on every trip that we had gone on. I had also given him one last kiss, right on his lips. On his hands, which were folded on his lap with the sword held in them, were our wedding bands. There was only one other object with Will in that coffin apart from that dagger: a golden sparrow medallion that Jack had put around his neck. Jack had always thought Will of his surrogate son, so it only made sense that his medallion would go to him to his death.
My life went on, my heart went on. But it never got back the piece it lost the night Will died. I watched Rachael get married. I watched James's, Jay's, and John's weddings too. Jack gave Rachael away at her wedding. He was her godfather anyways, not to mention he cared for us almost as much as Will had. I saw John continue with the blacksmith shop. I saw Jay's longing for the sea, and after a few years, his wife-Monique, bless her big heart-finally allowed him to get his own ship and crew, which was made up of his closest childhood friends, Richard, Almanzo, Stanley, Theodore, Mitch, and of course his brothers James and John (John didn't join until after a little longer), and once and a while Rachael. I watched them leave for the first time, and I watched them return for the first time after a month. They return for a month after two months of being gone, because Richard, Stanley, and Mitch had wives and kids in Port Royal, too. I watched my nine grandchildren grow, and have seen a few of my grandchildren's children (there are six so far; two of them are twins, Elizabeth and Will).
I also remember Jack Sparrow's funeral. He had died from old age at seventy years old, fourteen years after Will died. He managed to live long enough, however, to see Jack, James, and John as pirates, not to mention some of them and Rachael's kids. The funeral had been quiet. Anamaria and the rest of the crew (except Mr. Cotton and Gibbs; Cotton'd died six years before Will and Gibbs four years before Jack had) had came, along with James, Jay, John, Rachael, and all of their kids that had been born all ready (Jay had all ready visited them and told them stories). James's, Jay's, and John's wives were not told about it at all, and Rachael's husband was clueless.
However, James Jay, and John's crew came. Stanley, whose father was a minister, acted as one, and after I, Rachael, James, Jay, John, Anamaria, and Gibbs had all said something, we buried Jack on a part of Jamaica near Port Royal, where no one lived. There was even a small stone above where he was buried. Nothing was written on it. Instead a sparrow flying across a sunset and above the ocean is carved, a carbon copy of Jack's tattoo, along with the initials 'J.S.'
I'm almost eighty years old. I've lived a long, long time. I've attended many funerals, weddings, church meetings, and birthdays and dinner parties. But I've never, ever attended another pirate hanging. All of Jack's crew are dead, either because the Black Pearl had been attacked, and then had been blown up by another pirate clan, or they'd been killed in some accident or left and got hung. I remember hearing about the attack, and my heart had skipped a few beats. Pirates have been hung, so that there are barely any left. But there are still a few, namely my sons and their friends. But they are thinking of retiring, too. Thankfully, they don't have that 'P' mark on their arms, so it won't matter. They'll probably become merchant sailors, or move to the colonies. America won it's independence from Britain, so many people are moving there from the Caribbean. But I, Elizabeth Rachael Swann, will stay here, till the end of my days. And I have a feeling that the end is coming closer and closer.
I feel cold. My eyes are starting to get heavy, my heart starts to get faint. I've written this all down as I've told it to you. Well, Will, I did what you told me to do. I've seen my family slowly grow. I've done what I've promised to do. I rub my marriage ring around my finger once. It is time, I know, for me to join the person that gave me that ring. He and I and his father and Jack will all live together, in heaven, because I know Jack will be there, too, even if he wasn't a pirate. I believe in the saying, 'It does not matter how you live, but you die.'
Well, Jack died a fine death after a long and healthy life – not an exciting death, as he had probably hoped, but he'd died a death that shocked the entire world, including myself: old age. That would've made him smile – he had always prided himself on shocking people.
It's time for me to join them, and then I will wait for my children, and then my grandchildren, and then my great-grandchildren. Forever, in peace and harmony, I will live with my true love, William Turner, a pirate in disguise of a blacksmith.
Love, Elizabeth Turner
Elizabeth lay down her quill, folded her note, put it in an envelope, sealed it with wax, and pressed a crest (a sparrow was on one side of a giant, solid 'T,' its wings joined with the swan that was on the other side,two swords closely crossed underneath it all) against the wax. Then she changed into her nightgown, crawled into bed, and closed her eyes as she slowly felt herself go cold.
When she opened them again, she felt healthy and strong, like she had when she'd been young. There was Will, smiling the smile she'd missed so much. He was exactly like Elizabeth had last seen him, but she'd heard that in heaven, angels don't get any older. It was then that she knew that she was dead. She looked down at herself, and her thoughts were confirmed. She was now as young as she had been the night she'd lost Will.
"Hello, Elizabeth," Will said, reaching out his hand. Elizabeth took it. His feet left the ground, and so did hers. Together, they flew to the golden gates of heaven. To open them, Will took off Elizabeth's marriage ring, and he took of his wedding band as well as hers. He put them so that they touched, and they formed an enormous sapphire and diamond studded gold key.
He put the key in the shining lock on the door, and Elizabeth put her hand over his to open the gates. Elizabeth gasped. Heaven was truly a beautiful place.
There were flowers all around, and big castles and houses, and a wide, blue ocean that went on into the sunset, a pier where the Black Pearl and the Dauntless were docked at the very beginning. There were trees and bushes and shrubs all over, planted along a brick road. And all over, halos over there heads, were all sorts of people. Elizabeth's father and mother, James Norrington, his wife Laura, AnaMaria, Gibbs, and Cotton made up a few of them. She saw all of her friends, some she hadn't seen since she was a child. And she saw Jack, grinning at her, dressed in his usual peculiar clothes and swagger, and a man that could only be Will's father, Bootstrap Bill, who bowed his head slightly, his arm around a lovely woman with Will's smile.
Elizabeth laughed and kissed Will. She hugged everyone, including her dead mother that had died when she was eleven, Bootstrap, and of course Jack.
She was back with Will, her true love. She was back with her friends and family. Her heart was now whole, the piece that she'd lost so many years ago now returned, because she'd found Will again.
And now, as she gazed down on her children and their children and their children's children, Elizabeth smiled again. She could see James and Jay and John and all of their crew on the ocean. She could see Rachael, who was nestling her youngest grandchild on her lap. She'd all ready watched them earlier go to her funeral, which seemed only a minute ago, but was really two months ago. Because you see, there is no time in Heaven, which means that Elizabeth and Will have all of eternity to be together, with their friends and family, waiting for the rest to come. Elizabeth changed back to the look she had when she was thirty-eight. Her hair was now the caramel color it was before, her face young and smooth, with her strong jaw set into a smile and her chin sticking out, and her eyes brighter than ever. She was young and fit again, and she'd stay that way forever. Heaven had this ability to stop you from aging once you entered the gates, so that you could choose whatever age you wanted at any time, though Elizabeth never changed her age except when she was to greet her children and grandchildren and she'd change into what she looked like before, so they'd recognize her.
For the rest of eternity, Elizabeth's heart will go on beating, whole once more. She doesn't care. She's with Will, Jack, James Norrington, her parents, Will's parents, her children, and all of her friends. She'll have forever to talk with the friends she'd not seen since childhood, sail among seas that no living person will ever see, and walk among any sight she wished, from a beautiful garden to a clear, grassy field. She would stand by her beloved's side forever, watching over her descendants on Earth. She still does to this day.