"𝔑𝔬𝔱 𝔞𝔩𝔩 𝔱𝔯𝔢𝔞𝔰𝔲𝔯𝔢 𝔦𝔰 𝔰𝔦𝔩𝔳𝔢𝔯 𝔞𝔫𝔡 𝔤𝔬𝔩𝔡, 𝔪𝔞𝔱𝔢."
Evelyn Swann has always wanted a life of adventure and freedom. As the governors daughter, she's not allowed to have either of those. Until a certain pirate comes barrelin...
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The sea was covered in fog. I could barely make out the small waves that rippled away from the ship as we sailed forward. I was looking out over the bow of the royal navy vessel we were currently sailing on, accompanied by my sister, Elizabeth. She was less than two years older than me but she never let me forget it.
"Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me." Elizabeth's soft voice rang out through the dead silence surrounding us. "We extort, we pilfer. We filch, we sack. Drink up-" Me and Elizabeth both gasped as a hand grabbed her shoulder.
"Quiet, Missy." Mr. Gibbs whispered. "Cursed pirates sail these waters. You don't wanna bring them down on us." Actually, the thought of pirates sounded pretty intriguing to me.
"Mr. Gibbs, that will do." A posh British accent made Gibbs turn around.
"They were singing about pirates." He snitched. "It's bad luck to be singing about pirates with us mired in this unnatural fog. Mark my words."
"Consider them marked." Lieutenant Norrington replied. "On your way."
"Aye, Lieutenant. It's bad luck to have women on board. Even miniature ones." Mr. Gibbs made himself scarce leaving me and my sister with Norrington and our father, Governor Swann.
"For the record, Elizabeth was the one singing, father." I tried to stand up for myself.
"That's enough, Evelyn." My father scolded me. Lizzy has always been his favorite.
"I think it would be rather exciting to meet a pirate." My sister stated making my eyes widen. I had the same thought but I wasn't going to say it in front of the men.
"Think again, Miss Swann." The Lieutenant patronized her while walking over to us and looking out at the fog. "Vile and dissolute creatures, the lot of them. I intend to see to it that any man who sails under a pirate flag or wears a pirate brand gets what he deserves...a short drop and a sudden stop." Meaning the hangman's noose, a truly cruel method of punishment.
"I appreciate your fervor," My father came over. "but I'm concerned about the effect this subject will have upon my daughters."
"My apologies, Governor Swann." And with that, Lieutenant Norrington returned to his post.
"Actually, I find it all fascinating." Elizabeth told father.
"As do I." I added.
"Yes. That's what concerns me." My father walked away and I turned to my sister.
"I really do hope to meet a pirate one day, El."
"Me too, Evie." She smiled excitedly at me.
We turned to look out over the water once more. My eyebrows furrowed together when I noticed a parasol floating upside down just in front of the ship's bow.
"Lizzy look!" I grabbed my sister's attention and we followed the parasol as it glided through the water on the side on the ship. It floated out of sight and I turned my head back to the front of the boat, not expecting to see a boy laying on a piece of driftwood.
"Look! A boy! There's a boy in the water!" Elizabeth shouted having clearly seen the boy as well. The men on board rushed over to the side of the ship.
"Man overboard!" Norrington yelled causing the other officers to spring into action. They eventually got the poor boy up onto our ship and set him down gently. "He's still breathing."
"Mary, Mother of God." I heard Mr. Gibbs whisper. I looked out to find a ship, or what's left of a ship, going down in flames. Various bits of debris floating around the wreckage.
"What's happened here?" My father asked no one in particular.
"Most likely the powder magazine." Norrington answered. "Merchant vessels run heavily armed."
"Lot of good it did them." Gibbs added. "Everyone's thinking it, I'm saying it. Pirates."
I tuned everything after that out as I made my way over to the boy, my sister following me. The crew suddenly started rushing around and shouting at each other. One of the men came over and picked the boy up.
"Girls, I want you to accompany the boy. He'll be in your charge. Take care of him." Our father softly commanded. We nodded and followed the crew mate that took the stranded child.
Elizabeth stared down at the still unconscious boy. She reached a hand down to move his hair out of his face causing his eyes to shoot open with a gasp. Me and my sister both jumped from his sudden awakening.
"It's ok." El whispered. "My name's Elizabeth Swann. This is my sister, Evelyn." I gave the boy a small smile when he turned his head towards me.
"W-Will Turner." The boy, Will, managed to stutter out between breaths.
"We're watching over you, Will." Elizabeth smiled before the boy collapsed again. She reached for the chain hanging around his neck and we found that an intricately carved gold medallion was attached to it.
"He's a pirate!" I whisper shouted to my sister.
"Has he said anything?" Norrington interrupted us. Elizabeth startled and hid the medallion behind her back as we turned to face the Lieutenant.
"His name's William Turner. That's all we found out." I told him.
"Take him below."
The men took Will down into the infirmary on board, once again leaving me and my sister to our own devices.
"Can I see it?" I held my hand out to her expectantly. She laid the medallion in my hand and I held it up to the foggy horizon. My eyes wandered as I looked past the piece of gold and spotted the fleeting image of a ship before it disappeared...
