These seas are full of old magic; don't ever let anyone tell you differently. Why, everyone has heard of the curse of the Black Pearl by now… a crew of the damned led by one so terrible that Hell itself spat him back out. Some have seen evidence of the chaos always left in her wake, but the point I'm trying to make here is that if you are willing to believe in one curse, don't you by default acknowledge the possibility for others?
I saw one work its terrible vengeance on a solitary man, a man who had once been fine and noble, but who had been driven to madness by nothing more dangerous than a woman's scorn.
We were doing what pirates do best, you see, and attacking the merchant liners that frequented the exotic ports for local riches to take back to merry old England. Just so happens that one of the passengers on our latest find was an English baronet who seemed to be running from someone or something. There was no getting any true sense out of him, after we'd taken him prisoner. He amused the captain because he babbled about some of the strangest things.
The thing I remember most, however, was the ring on his finger. It was a beautiful emerald, clasped by two hands. He couldn't be shut of it soon enough, an odd thing, but the Captain didn't see fit to question it, as he relieved the man of the most expensive article on his person. He kept claiming that it had been a ruby once, but that his princess had cursed him for being unfaithful to her, and jealousy had stolen over the stone.
His stay wasn't a long one; he went completely mad and attacked the captain in a short-lived duel, screaming much as he had every night since we'd taken him, as though all the devils in hell were ripping out his innards. The crew was unsettled enough by his talk of curses to stand back and let events take their course, which ended in the baronet's death. Strangest thing was…he was right. After he'd breathed his last, the ring went back to being a ruby. Never would have imagined such a thing in all my days…and it lingered.
So I did some checking around and found out that the man had indeed been married to a Romanian princess of some reputation. When she caught him cheating on her, she apparently gave him the ring as a condition for taking him back. The poor sod never had a chance, since he couldn't keep his hands to himself to… well, save his life.
No, my advice to you is never to tangle with the Romani, for they have a tendency to make promises stick, and for the sake of all that's holy, never put on that ring, it's got a very limited worldview, as you can well imagine, and cheating is any intimacy without a vow to back it up. That ring is better left back on Isla del Muerta, where it can't do anyone any further harm.
Jack Sparrow looked out over the empty sea where his ship had been sitting at port when they arrived, and realized that once more, The Black Pearl had gone somewhere without him. Dimly, Elizabeth's apology registered with him, and he nodded his head, knowing what was to come.
"They done what's right by them, can't expect more than that." He assured her, as though this sort of thing happened to him all the time. Looking to Will, then back to Elizabeth, he shrugged his shoulders, "Look, William…Elizabeth, if the only way back for me is aboard the Dauntless, they're not going to let me keep my selection of trinkets, savvy? I think you both would benefit by hiding the things and keeping them set back for times when you might need them." So saying, he began to pull off all of the jewelry, from necklaces to rings to the ridiculously ornamented crown that adorned his head, wrapping them all in a fancy cloak that had somehow made its way into the boat with them. The last item he parted with, feeling strangely reluctant to take it off, was the ruby ring clasped by a pair of golden hands. He tossed it into the top of the small pile and twisted it all into a bundle before handing it to Will. "Hide it beneath the seat, boy, and take it with you when we make port, aye?"
Will, still not certain of Jack's motives, eventually nodded and took the bundle, stowing it as instructed beneath the seat.