Ch. 1

21 years later…

Marie fidgeted impatiently, struggling to maintain an interested expression. Visits with her grandfather were always exceedingly boring, but at seventeen she was too old to fall asleep like her brothers had. To make matters worse, it was extremely hot, and even her grandfather's well-ventilated parlor was becoming unbearable. "Marie?" Governor Swann suddenly said, drawing her attention away from the patterns of the rug.

"Huh?" she blurted out, earning a chastising look from her mother. "I mean, excuse me?"

Her grandfather sighed in obvious disapproval. "I asked you a question, dear," he said. "You really must stop daydreaming so much. It's quite unbecoming for a young lady of your age."

"Sorry, Grandfather," Marie muttered.

"I was wondering if you had read any interesting books lately. Your mother tells me you've become quite the avid reader."

"Well, I'm currently reading a book on p-"

"Proper etiquette for young ladies," her mother interrupted, giving Marie a warning glance. "She's found it quite interesting. Isn't that right, dear?"

"Fascinating…" she lied. It still didn't make sense to her why they needed to impress her grandfather. So what if he knew that she spent all her time roaming the streets and daydreaming about pirates? It made little difference, in her opinion.

"…I still do not see what draws you to that dreadful town, if that's what you call it," her grandfather was saying. "It cannot be the most conducive atmosphere to raising a family."

"Father, not this again…" Elizabeth said wearily.

"I am simply saying that I question the wisdom of exposing your children to-"

"With all due respect, Governor," Will interrupted quietly but firmly. "Elizabeth and I know how to raise our children. While your concern is appreciated, we will decide what we do and do not want our children exposed to."

Elizabeth glanced out the window at the setting sun. "We should probably be going," she murmured to Will.

He nodded and stood up slowly. "Our ship leaves at dawn, so we'd better get a good night's sleep," he explained. Going over to the two boys, who were still asleep on one of the couches, he shook both of them lightly and whispered, "William, Lil' Jack, we're leaving. Come say goodbye to your grandfather." Obligingly, the twins stood up and went over to briefly hug him.

"Goodbye, Father," Elizabeth said, hugging him and lightly kissing his cheek. "We'll try to visit again soon."

"Goodbye, my dear," he replied. Turning to Marie, he said, "Goodbye, Marie. I look forward to seeing the results of your studies next time you visit."

Will hesitantly extended his hand. "Thank you for your hospitality, Governor," he said simply.

"A mere trifle when it comes to family," Governor Swann assured him. "Will…do take care of my daughter."

Will nodded as they headed out the door. "I have for twenty years, sir."

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As soon as they were out of sight, Will untied the ribbon that was holding back his hair and ran his hand through the dark curls in frustration. "I swear, your father hates me, Elizabeth," he muttered.

"He doesn't hate you," Elizabeth argued. "He just…"

"Hates me?"

"No, he's just…very, very protective," she said. "I'm still a little girl in his eyes."

"And I'm still the lowly, unpredictable blacksmith's apprentice," Will added. Sighing, he paused at a corner to get his bearings, then continued on.

"Remind me who we're staying with?" Elizabeth asked as they made their way down the darkening streets.

"Andrew, an old friend of mine," Will replied. "He was apprenticed to the printer two doors down from Mr. Brown's shop. Good man. I'd trust him with my life." As if suddenly remembering something, he turned around to face William and Lil' Jack. "Boys, we're going to play a game."

"What kind of game?" Lil' Jack asked curiously.

"A new one. We're going to pretend for one whole day that I'm not a pirate. If anybody asks you, I'm just a blacksmith. Andrew's playing it too, so if he says anything about it, you have to play along and pretend. He's helping me judge you two, so he might try to test you. If I think you both did a good job, you'll get a surprise when we get back home. Savvy?"

"Yes, sir!" they chimed in unison.

"I thought you trusted him with your life," Elizabeth commented mildly when Will turned back around.

"I do, but it's better safe than sorry." Pausing to make sure it was the right house, Will knocked quietly at the door. After a few moments, a red-haired man opened it and motioned them quickly inside. Nobody spoke as they made their way down the hall.

Finally they reached the kitchen, and the man broke into a wide grin. "Will Turner! How are you?" he said cheerfully, clapping Will on the back. "I see you got quite a family going."

Will smiled and gestured to his family. "You remember my wife Elizabeth. This is Marie, our oldest, and the twins are William and Lil' Jack."

"A pleasure to see you again, milady," Andrew replied, bowing slightly to Elizabeth. "I see you're still putting up with Will. When we were naught but lads, he'd go into some kind of trance every time you just walked by…"

Will hit his friend's arm roughly. "Shut up, Andrew."

Andrew just grinned, his blue eyes shining mischievously. "Well anyway, you all must be worn out from your visit with the governor. The children will be staying upstairs, and Will and Elizabeth can share our guest bedroom. My wife Clara will have supper ready in a few minutes."

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Marie felt much better after letting her hair down and changing into more casual clothes. When she made her way downstairs, she found that everyone had begun eating without her. "There's some stew in that pot o'er on the hearth, dear," a woman, who she assumed to be Clara, said cheerfully. "And we have bread an' butter on the table. It's not much, but we'll make do. Help yeself." Marie obeyed and took a seat next to her mother at the table.

"So, how's business going?" Andrew continued.

Will shrugged. "As long as people need weapons and tools, I'll be in business," he replied casually. "Not much to be said for it. Clara, would you be so kind as to get me a bit more to drink?"

As Clara poured more water into Will's glass, Andrew leaned back slightly in his chair. "Actually, I was, uh, referring to your other business, Will."

"Does a blacksmith hold two jobs now?" Will asked, still feigning ignorance.

Andrew shrugged. "He does when he's a pirate," he replied mildly.

"Alright, who told you?" Will asked, leaning forward against the table.

"I didn't say anything!" William insisted, throwing his hands up in surrender.

"Me either!" Lil' Jack added.

Andrew just smiled at the twins. "Everybody and nobody," he said, turning back to face Will. "You all but made headlines here in Port Royal. 'Local mild-mannered blacksmith marries governor's daughter and runs off to go on the account.' You're quite the local celebrity."

Will frowned in concern. "Does anyone know we're here?" If they did, someone could have already tipped off Norrington and his men…

"None o' the women are gossiping 'bout it, and we're always the first to hear anything," Clara assured him. "Andrew and I were careful not to say anything 'bout you visiting." Standing up, she and Elizabeth began clearing the table. After a warning look from her mother, Marie joined them.

"I believe it's bedtime for little boys," Elizabeth said when they were finished.

"But Mama, we're not tired!" Lil' Jack complained.

"Can't we stay up?" William chimed in.

"No," she said sternly, placing a hand on their shoulders and leading them over to the stairs. "We have to leave very early tomorrow, and you can't be tired. Your sister will be up in a few minutes. I except her to find you both in bed when she gets up there."

A/N: Hope this began to clear things up a bit...I think my prologue confused a few people as to the setting of this story, so let me explain: Marie is 17 in this story, as the summary suggests. The prologue happened just after POTC: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and will come into play later. Sorry if these first few chapters confuse you, but like I said, you're just going to have to trust my logic on this. Other than that...ok not much other than that. Um...review, please!