Disclaimer: Don't own anything except original characters. All material (c) to respective owners. I write these for fun and make no profit. They're just random plot bunnies that live within my strange mind.

A/N: This is something I've been toying with since I had a really weird dream on night. This one should be steadily updated as long as life doesn't get out of hand.

Title from a song by Agnostic Font

Chapter 1: All Is Not Forgotten

The heat was the first thing she was aware of, beating down on her and trying to pry her from slumber. Reluctantly she opened her eyes blinking rapidly before squinting around her; naturally she was lying in a dirty street nearby a familiar building. The stirrings of those fortunate enough to not drink themselves into a coma and those leaving or going about business in town stirred her. The growing voices, giggles and general noise of Tortuga giving her reason to pause, before sighing and climbing to her feet. Slowly she dusted of her black pants, stretching her long arms above her before dusting of her blue top and black corset.

She didn't even attempt to tame her wild blond curls and just tied her bandanna around keeping them out of her way. She turned toward the 'Ladies Pride' before marching off to see if Molly was about and wanted her to work.

She walked among the streets littered with various things from garbage to animals, some of the people also litter in her opinion. She sidestepped drunks, those coming out of their comatose states and those that decided they needed to empty their stomachs for the morning. She come in sight of a peeling tan building with a half crooked sign and smiled. She had been there since she was dropped off and to that day still swore she would pay him back for leaving her behind.

She walked into the tavern aware of very few people inside and noted a woman heaving around crates, alcohol and dishes. "Morning Molly." She sounded unenthusiastic and her throat hurt.

"Morning' lass." Molly was short, plump with wild red hair that fell past her waist and the kindest green eyes she had seen after she was dumped. "You have one of those hang over's I see." She made a face before Molly placed some food out for her and some water. "You end up outside of that tavern again?" she nodded taking the food and smiling at her now closest friend in Tortuga.

"Aye and it wasn't a pleasant wakeup call I might add." Molly just smiled shaking her head.

"You're still drinking yourself silly, you be the only one here that out drink half these men. You need yourself a man." She saw the look and again shook her head. "Maddison…you may have been left her by that man but you are by no means ugly. You be a pretty lass and would make any man happy. Even an honest one."

She shrugged trying to avoid this conversation it never ended well and she hated to bring up that one man she wanted desperately to strangle. She had been stranded there for four years after her so called 'man' saved her ass from nearly drowning in the ocean. She didn't want to reflect on those events or how she met him.

"I don't much like men Molly, especially that one you're trying to not bring up."

"Switching to wenches then Maddie?" she winced giving Molly an evil glare. "Aye lassie, I know you don't swing that way, which you kindly informed me. You can't remain hung up on one man all your life, especially that man. He's a menace as you well know and very well known for just what he is."

Maddison tuned out while Molly continued to lecture her over her bad choices throughout her stay and then paused when fingers clicked near her nose. Slowly blue eyes met green ones and she sighed.

"A pirate is nothing to love Maddison, you're better than that."

"So you've been telling me for the four years I've been stranded. I've also got other reasons to throttle that man, which include several scars and such because he dumped me here." Shaking her head the tavern woman plopped her list in front of Maddison and waved her towel at her. "I'm going."

Tortuga was heaven compared to what they had dealt with over the past year or so. Glancing ahead he began to doubt going into port, it would his tenth or more time he refused to leave the ship. It was noticed and not just by his first mate, the Turners were also beginning to notice, it didn't look like it would be fairing well for him either.

"You're joining us this time right Jack?" Will startled him from his contemplative thoughts, dark eyes lingering on Tortuga's port.

He didn't think it wise to refuse this time, the odds that the girl was still there were slim. Closing his eyes he smiled slightly, she was fun when she was with him and then she went and did something incredibly stupid in his opinion. Unfortunately he wasn't any wiser. Sighing he met the eyes of the curious 'whelp' as he was fond calling will and nodded.

"Aye, I suppose whelp." Will sighed giving Jack a look indicating he wasn't fond of the nickname, especially considering he proved himself more times than he should have had to. "Lizzie coming along?"

Will still had his share of issues with Jack and Elizabeth both, the past was the past though and he was fondly married to her. He was saved thanks to the pirate at his side and his father was now lord of the Dutchman, luck always seemed to follow Captain Jack Sparrow whether he deserved it or not. Both of them had learned that over time and both chose to stay with Jack since Port Royal was no longer a home to either of them.

"Don't call me Lizzie Jack Sparrow." Elizabeth marched over to Will's side with a less than pleasant look on her face.

Jack scowled at the obvious lack of his title but didn't feel like bickering which seemed common with the couple lurking around him. He had yet to understand why he didn't leave them somewhere, but then he knew that it was because they were as close to friends as he would ever get and that they went through too much hell together. Not like he was pleased to be admitting to any of it.

Elizabeth, Will and his crew went off into Tortuga leaving him at the docks. He was having second thoughts about running around town, he knew that she hadn't had anywhere to go but with him or where he left her, an inconvenience was he left her in the town he was standing in and sadly was sure she was waiting ready to throttle him.

Will and Elizabeth reluctantly returned to the docks seeing Jack standing right where they left him, the Black Pearl's shadows consuming him as night began to fall. "Jack?"

Startled by the soft voice he glanced up at two sets of dark eyes, Elizabeth's light brown hair wildly blowing about her face and Will's pulled back strands lingering near his eyes. Both of them were far too fragile for the pirate life, but over time they had both adapted and he could see it in the way they held themselves, swords always at the ready and adventure in their hearts.

"Aye I know, I just haven't decided where I wish to go." He still had a silver tongue and could lie his way out of most anything.

Elizabeth cocked an eyebrow at this, Will and she both knew that he frequented one place in Tortuga and that was the 'Faithful Bride', it was the place all their adventured usually turned to and both were sure he wouldn't choose anything different.

"Jack what is going on?"

He saw Will's suspicion and noticed Elizabeth's also doubted his story. Shrugging putting on his famous innocent act which always failed he began to walk and the pair followed after. He reluctantly realized too much time around the Turner's made him far easier to understand in some aspects.

Maddison had done most of the errands for that day for Molly, her last being to drop off some packages to be shipped out of port. She was just coming from the office of dock supervisor when she glanced up seeing a familiar ship down the way. Her stomach felt like an anchor of emotion had just fallen there, somewhere in Tortuga he was here again and she still hadn't been able to find him.

He had slipped her for four years then and still his luck held out. She angrily turned back toward town, she needed a good solid drink and to give Molly the mail she had picked up on her way. She needed to do something or she may have very well done something she would regret, like actually starting another tavern fight or getting herself arrested. Thanks to that insufferable man she had come to loath she was also considered a pirate, just less identifiable because she didn't have a 'P' brand.

Naturally he led them straight to the last place he wanted to be, he had after all abandoned her in this very same tavern. "Come on Jack." Cringing he glanced around somehow lucky enough to avoid the usual slaps.

Deep down though he was quite sure many more were coming, worse ones at that. "Aye I'll get there when I feel the need." He watched the couple shrug disappearing within the building leaving him to gaze up at the familiar less than stable looking structure with the peeling sign. "I feel the need for self preservations more." unenthusiastically he went into the familiar place ducking the familiar scuffles and was relieved to see his table free of any threats and the tavern pretty clear of the threat he feared.

Jack began to relax, perhaps his luck would hold out this time too. He seated himself ordering his beverage of choice and began to feel more like himself. He kept his share of secrets, during his escaped from Port Royal and his less than pleasant time before going after Davy Jones heart he had stumbled across her. Things went south when she admitted she cared about his well being, they went further south when she began to get too close and that's when he decided it was time to leave her behind.

Unfortunately since that time he had a lot of thinking time and that's what he did. He thought, to a point where his madness went far worse and then a bit of reality set in when he realized she wasn't as daft as he hoped, but he would be the last to ever admit that to himself or anyone else for that matter.

Maddison come into Molly's place with such a fierce look in her eyes the woman felt like diving under the counter where she was serving several customers already that evening. Her deadly gaze froze on her long time friend and she attempted a smile, it was more of a wicked grimace which made Molly flinch.

"Drink?"

"Yes."

Molly didn't argue further, it took her a great amount of courage to offer Maddison that much. It also come to her attention that it didn't take Maddison much to down the drink either and the worst part of the whole situation was she could see a deep hurt there, one she knew well.

"Maddie? Are you alright lass?"

"No, he's here in Tortuga somewhere," she placed the empty mug on the counter. "Somewhere where I can't throttle him, that slimy git of a pirate is probably wrapped around his pretty women and…"

Molly tuned Maddison out, the girl was on a rampage and she was very sure that giving her the attention she needed would only make her angrier. She felt deeply sorry for the girl, her whole life had been that blasted man and now she was a wild vixen that not even the most insane of men wanted to table with. He had broken her spirit and yet the stupid girl still remained there hoping he would come to his senses.

"Maddison Tempest." She stopped mid rant at Molly's soft interruption. "Your very much like a tempest storm brewing and you be losing what sense you have left. Go find him and for once take your issues out on the actual problem." She felt her mouth move but she didn't manage anything intelligent. "Go one girl, go find him."

Molly was sure it was the most unintelligent thing she had ever suggested, but she knew that Maddison would never change, never move on and even if she didn't agree with it all, she needed to do something and that man was the way to fix it. She knew of him and his reputation, none of it good but since Maddison arrived she had learned that regardless of stories he had some good traits. Otherwise he would have never found a girl this hung up and willing to do anything to get back at him, she had more of an idea it was just to get back to him.

"Deities above I hope you get what you want lassie, you deserve to be happy. Even if I don't approve."

Her words were lost to Maddison she had already left to seek out the man that broke her and hopefully fix it all.