(All right, I skipped Will's heroic sliding-down-the-sail-and-escaping-the-Kraken-attack due to the fact that I believe that scene speaks for itself. Oh, and I did not enjoy the fact that they never mentions Will's beating again. I mean, dude, its gonna leave some scars and wounds for quite a while. So glimpe into his pain. Can I hear a great big "aw! poor will!" Hehe. Willabethers... Appreciate the reunion because I stepped past my own boundaries and went ahead and wrote the majority of the scene between Jack, Elizabeth, Norrington, and Will... Up until a little after his arrival that is. Ah, the reality exists. The compass was always pointing to the chest and I tried to add hints. Enjoy!
P.S. Not sure which way I'm going... But more than likely I'll walk my readers through the Kraken attack and maybe a longer conversation between Will and Elizabeth or something. Nothing entirely cohesive leading to the Kiss of Death, but a little something. We'll see.)
Elizabeth trudged over to the staircase, the deck of the Black Pearl empty and the sails flailing in the wind. It had been three days since her faltered thoughts on Jack and Will, and she had awoken the night before with frightening nightmares. Will had commanded in a level yet scorching tone, at their ruined wedding no-less, that if she yearned for Jack's company, then she should not resist. He would step aside if that is what his loved one desired.
But it isn't! Elizabeth had shrieked as Will strode away, fully knowing that he only wanted what was best for her.
Now, her own ghastly voice tainted her thoughts. It wasn't what she wanted! It isn't! She loved Will body and soul, but when she had glanced at the compass the previous evening, it had spun sporadically, never resting on one direction. She refused to gaze at the contraption throughout the day and avoided Jack's entrancing presence. Elizabeth would never deny that there was always chemistry between them. That wild, untamed and yet honest stripe through Jack and Elizabeth's hearts would forever reappear and bound their actions, but it did not resemble the relationship with William. The pair could catch the slightest glimpse of one another and almost immediately distinguish the other's plan.
And what if, like in her dream, their marriage was shattered by that stupid... That irreverent... That completely reliable...compass? She could not bear the thought.
Footsteps made her eyes swivel to the railing and then return to the deck of the Pearl. Jack seated himself a couple stairs down from Elizabeth, his eyebrows raised in curiosity, and his lips forming those charming unrelenting words that threw Elizabeth repeatedly into imprudent actions... For the most part.
"My tremendous intuitive sense of the female creature informs me that you are troubled." He said swiftly, his body pressed gently against her arm.
Elizabeth only paused for a moment, her eyes welling with possible tears. "I just thought I'd be married by now." Her heart quivered along with her voice. Jack was so close. Too close. But her thoughts did not become eschew. Will was still there, his soft eyes comforting, but his figure far away. "I'm so ready to be married."
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Will clung onto the teeth of the Flying Dutchman's gaping mouth, his lashings stinging like bees as the vessel bounced through the waves, nose-diving into a few. He plastered himself against the narrow wall several times, avoiding the curious mutated sailors who heard his occasional screeches when seawater leaked onto his wounds. Although his body was consumed with surviving the bounding ship's movements, he began to contemplate the beautiful embroidered gown he had clutched to his chest, absorbing the woman's lingering scent. So Elizabeth had escaped and was now roaming the seas in one place or another. He should have guessed that his loved one would not withstand waiting for his return, and it was fortunate that she was rash enough to take her leave. The man allowed a sleight smile to creep at the corners of his mouth. He could now find Jack (with the unintentional significant aid from Davy Jones), stab the heart, rescue his father, and restore his and Elizabeth's marriage vows. Yes, that is exactly what he would do.
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The quartet climbed out of the ebony colored longboat, and the throng watched Jack tenderly arrange the jar of dirt against the seat. The woman shook her head in incredulity. What was his attachment to... dirt? Norrington merely ignored the spectacle, grasping both shovels and shoving one into Sparrow's hands with an indignant grunt.
"Guard the boat, mind the tide... Don't touch my dirt." Jack commanded in utter seriousness, waggling his fingers at Pintel and Ragetti, who rolled their eyes. "This way!" Jack beckoned James and Elizabeth, waving his hand, but then halting for a moment, gesturing for Elizabeth to lead the way.
The trio padded along the beach in silence, straying further and further away from the longboat and twitching with every twirl of the compass. Elizabeth screwed her face, unsatisfied with the constant eclectic pattern. Within a few minutes, a decayed majestic chapel came into view, and the Port Royal natives paused in fleeting awe.
"I didn't expect anyone to be here." Norrington noted as they resumed their stride.
"There's not." Elizabeth answered pointedly, her eyes leaving the red dial and glancing at Jack's ambling figure, who apparently did not wish to hear the tale.
James' head tilted as he surveyed the lush island. "You know this place?"
Her nose was not wedged in novels throughout her girlhood for naught. Whenever there was a lapse between pirate fantasies, Elizabeth had taken to perusing documents concerning the surrounding cities and then begging sailors for the fascinating myths and legends. Of course, who could refuse the curious little miss (whose father could dismiss them at a moment's notice)?
"Stories," she replied confidently, rattling the compass like a magic lamp in frustration. "The church came to Isla Cruces and brought salvation to its followers...And disease and death. They say the priest had to bury everyone, one after the other. It drove him mad, and he eventually hung himself." Elizabeth narrated nonchalantly, snarling useless side-comments to the navigational device and looking up and down at the captain. The arrow erratically whirled to the left, then to Jack, and then to the shoreline. She immediately thought of the limits she had pursued with Jack only a short while ago, and her haunting dreams echoed through the chambers of her mind. Elizabeth snapped from her reverie when James spoke, his tone bitter.
"Better mad with the rest of the world than sane alone."
What had he become? Had James, honest and noble James, become this horrid person who clung to mistakes and refused to mend bridges? She stared at him inquisitively as she allowed her hands to drop to her waist. "James," she responded gently, almost brushing against him. "How can you believe-"
After thrusting the shovel into Norrington's hands, Jack interrupted Elizabeth. "No fraternizing with the help, love." He said hastily, trotting in front of the sandy-blonde woman and correcting her posture. With his eyes locked onto hers, Jack lifted both of Elizabeth's hands and curled her fingers around the black and tan compass. "Now which way, Miss Swann?"
Elizabeth glowered at the kohl masked eyes for a moment while pondering the sound of her formal name. If only it was Mrs.Turner... The compass rotated and then settled on one direction with Jack's gleaming smile hovering over her shoulder. The woman swerved from her original path, pursing her lips in concentration and stepping over vibrant green ferns. The men followed her, but eventually created stations on either side of the woman as she paced in a consistent triangle.
To the left... Now backward... Now to Jack! Now to the shore!
The damn compass was teasing her mind. It was pointing in the correct position only moments ago, was it not? She halted, her eyebrows furrowed, and she spun around again. She heaved out a sigh, feeling the eyes of Norrington and Jack on her.
"Take your time, love." Jack voiced lightly, although when she gazed into his looming eyes, she witnessed a furious haste.
Elizabeth stared at the compass, and it too was glaring at Jack and then at Norrington. She thought of his name, could feel it on her lips... And yet, it pointed once again in Jack's direction and then swiveled around. "This doesn't work." she yelped angrily, plopping down in criss-cross position and tossing the compass to her side. "And it certainly doesn't show you what you want most." Oh, that infuriating man. Where were Will's arms? Why wasn't he here to guide her through the obstacle course?
Captain Sparrow bent at the waist, squinting as he gazed at the compass. "Yes, it does." He answered keenly. "You're sitting on it!"
With piercing eyes, Elizabeth inquired blankly, "Beg your pardon?"
"Move." he demanded palpably, whistling for her to shift positions.
Elizabeth scooted from her seat, and Norrington instantly took her place, thrusting the shovel into the gritty sand. She joined the excavation, plunging her broken nails into the earth and sliding mounds of sand away from the site. Realizing her hands could not match James' motions, she pulled away and stood up. The woman grimaced as the captain plunked into the lotus position, his thumb and index fingers gently pressed against one another and his eyes closed in apparent concentration. Silly man. What could meditation serve? She then turned her attention to James, whose shovel clanged against something solid. The chest.
The trio knelt down and carved their way through the malleable sand, their eyes bright with anticipation. The men lugged the shabby brown container from its grave and wiped the particles to the ground.
"It's real!" Elizabeth squealed, glancing at Jack in complete admiration. She had never thought that Jack was dishonest by any means, but the ol' captain had his ways of winding the truth around possible relatable lies.
James' swallowed down the gulp of faux credulity and stated, "You actually were telling the truth."
Jack answered with poise, eyeing his cohorts with a sense of pride. "I do that quite a lot," he said, "Yet people are always surprised."
"With good reason!" A voice boomed behind them and heavy breathing followed the exertion. Will eyed the blonde hair that hung over the back of a woman... His gorgeous Elizabeth's back... And barely suppressed a smile.
"Will!" Elizabeth exclaimed, hopping to her feet and galloping into his arms. Yes, she thought fondly, it had pointed to the beach because he was coming! "You're all right! Thank God! I came to find you!"
Her elongated journey was now summed up in a few words, and Will quickly wrapped his arms around his lovely damsel who was dressed, not surprisingly, in men's clothing. They gazed into one another's eyes for a moment, and then their breath merged, and their lips firmly compressed. Will's arms swung around her upper back and waist, while her hands felt the back of his neck, disregarding the moist leather and consumed by her beloved. Will had waited for this moment and had dreamed of her touch during those days at sea while battling the Kraken and confronting a squid-faced Davy Jones. Elizabeth had longed for the contact, for the undulating rhythm she could feel in his mouth, and the sweet surrender her mind descended into whenever he spoke. Those quivering emotions for Jack now flushed into eternity, and all she desired was for another kiss and another place and time.
"How did you get here?" The pair turned to Jack, who was confused by Mr. Turner's sudden appearance.
She leaned into William's body, directing a tight smile to Jack, and then back to Will as he narrated his own journey. "Sea turtles, mate." Will uttered stiffly, obviously jesting about a situation Elizabeth had never heard. "A pair of them, strapped to my feet." Mr. Turner now wanted to corner Jack, to pin him like Bootstrap lashed his back.
"Not so easy, is it?"
"But I do owe you thanks, Jack." Will answered, ignoring Jack's quip and baring his teeth. He would not allow Sparrow to lead Elizabeth in deceit, as Will assumed the captain already had.
Jack awkwardly inquired, "You do?"
"After you tricked me onto that ship to square your debt with Jones..." His voice rumbled, eyeing Jack at a level plane. Elizabeth interjected, as he supposed she would, dumbfounded by this discovery.
"What?"
Jack replied in a high falsetto, mocking Elizabeth's clarification. "What?"
Will continued, "I was reunited with my father." He slid Elizabeth to the side, but she was already wriggling from his grasp, casting a gratified glare at William. She could not believe him! Every single word...
"Oh, well you're welcome then." Jack nearly smiled, and it pushed Elizabeth to confront the pirate.
The woman stalked toward Jack, her step infuriating and her eyes stone-cold. "Everything you said to me... Every word, was a lie?" She asked the question, but she knew the answer. Oh! How could she ever think she esteemed this wretched man? He lied to her. He lied to her about the most important thing in the world. That horrid pirate!
"Pretty much," he replied, shrugging without woe, "Time and tide, love."