Chapter 16

"I never saw him again after that. I didn't even know who he was until now, but it's all so crystal clear at this moment. How could I have been so blind? I tried to push her into the high society life, was so sure she'd prefer that to a life at sea. But I guess a father doesn't always know what's best."

"What do we do now, Governor?" Will asked.

"I'm afraid, dear boy, there's nothing we can do. Elizabeth made her choice a long time ago and she kept it a secret from all of us. I simply cannot hurt my daughter. This is the path she has chosen and this is something we'll all have to accept."

"But how do we know for sure? Perhaps Sparrow kidnapped her?"

The governor stood up and walked over to his daughter's night stand, he picked up a worn piece of parchment that was set on top and began to read.

"Gallant Captain, show some mercy

To a lady in distress

Leave me not within this city,

I shall die of heaviness"

Will frowned at this. "Governor Swann?"

Weatherby raised his eyes and offered a slight grin. "She always kept this by her bed, she told me it was her favorite and that she'd read it every night because it reminded her of her mother. Her mother taught this to her so perhaps it did. But I think deep in her heart, she read it because it reminded her of him. She was calling to him, pleading to him to return to her. This was not a kidnapping, Will. She loved him."

"But what if Sparrow doesn't love her? He's a pirate, he'll fall out of love at the very next port that even hints of wickedness We must go to her!" Will sounded adament.

"He loves her too!" Norrington spoke up.

Both Governor Swann and Will turned and looked questioningly at the Admiral.

"Once we returned to England, I joined the British Navy. It was during my first voyage as a military man that I met Jack Sparrow, he was a helmsman of an East India Trading Company ship called The Wicked Wench. Without getting into the particulars, let's just say we had words and during that moment he revealed to me his plans to woo a young woman of high society. Elizabeth, at the time, was still quite young so I wasn't concerned for her welfare. As much as I loathed this man, I could tell by how tenderly he spoke that his intentions were honourable. He never mentioned exactly how he planned to achieve this feat of winning the heart of a woman who was clearly above him in station, but he hinted that he'd do whatever was necessary to reach his goal. I never saw him again until..." he turns to the governor..."Do forgive me. I never saw him again until our crossing from England to Port Royal. One of our younger officers looked vaguely familiar and I couldn't quite figure out why. When I did discover his identity I kept it a secret, I thought I was in control of the situation. I should have told you Governor Swann, right then and there, but I felt my position as a member of the Royal Navy was in jeopardy. I couldn't have the King finding out that the man who had been sent to eliminate pirates, had been fooled by one himself. I was surprised to see that Sparrow had turned pirate. I thought perhaps his plan to win the lovely, upper class, society woman had failed and in his grief he had turned to piracy as a form of revenge. I was wrong."

Will, surprised to hear the admiral finally confess to those events that happened so long ago, said nothing, nor did Norrington ever implicate him in these events. Will was grateful for this, he had worked hard to build his career and put an equal effort into winning the hand of Elizabeth, he didn't want his efforts thwarted.

Will swallowed. "What do you mean?"

" I mean, Lieutenant, that Sparrow did not turn pirate from having his heart broken. He turned pirate because he was doing what he knew he had to do in order to win that high society girl. Now that I've heard the governor's story, it all makes sense. He knew of Elizabeth's mother's love of the sea and he could see the transference into her daughter. He turned pirate, because he knew it would please her and because he loves her." Norrington's voice trails off as the reality of his words finally sink in. Norrington loved her too, but it took something like this for him to finally realize the depths of his love. He laughs to himself at the irony. The thing he loved most about her - her free spirit and independent nature - was what took her away from him. Now all he has, are memories of what might have been.

Will starts to let it all sink in as well, it's difficult for him to accept that the woman he loves is in love with a pirate and probably always has been in love with a pirate. What's more, is that a pirate is in love with her, so much so that he was willing to do "whatever's necessary" to win her. How did he do it? How could a pirate succeed at winning the heart of a girl like Elizabeth? He didn't understand, he'd done everything properly, followed all the rules of propriety ("The only rules that really matter are these - what a man can do and what a man can't do.") but still he failed to win her heart, yet a filthy, dirty pirate managed to accomplish years ago what he had been struggling to do just recently. He simply did not understand.

Governor Swann interrupts Will's thoughts.

"So you see, Will. Going after her would be futile, there's nothing any of us can do except love her. I learned a long time ago that there are just some things you can't take, and even if you managed to secure them in your possession, you can never really have it as your own. We can't take back what has never belonged to us, son."

The three men look back towards the sea, each realizing that they have probably lost the most precious thing in the world to them but also realizing that they love her enough to allow themselves to lose her. They have redeemed themselves. They have set her free.