#turnington

made a picmix of my guys. my dudes. my boys.

James startled at the sudden tug on his coat. As he looked behind himself he found young William Turner, with his eyes wide open and mouth agape. “I’m scared…” he whined.

James’ mind immediately flashed back to the same scene he found himself in as a child, and winced at the memory of his father’s scolding.

“And what are you scared of?”

Will’s face flushed and he quickly turned away mumbling under his breath.

“William!” The boy had made quite a habit of mumbling and stammering around, and as much as he adored it, James saw it his duty to correct this behavior.

Stretching to stand at the very top of his toes, which got him to about James’ shoulder, Will leaned in.

“…p-pirates.”

James had a hard time not showing how his face lit up. Pirates! He knew a thing or two to say about pirates! He crouched down to continue his talk.

“A fear of pirates, Will, is only reasonable. Quite good, I dare say even!”

The boy stared dumbfounded. “How is being scared good…?” He asked in disbelief.

“You see, young Master Turner,” Will glowered at that, he despised being reminded that he'd have to talk to James in all formality one day, “You are only scared because you know how dangerous pirates are! And you need to know how dangerous they are, to fight them!” A sense of triumph rose in James’ chest, this was getting good!

“You remember Miss Swann, do you?”

Will’s lips rose into a soft smile, “Of course! Sometimes she even sneaks out to come play with me!” Will wouldn't have told anyone else about it, because Elizabeth had made him promise that, promise on all the seashells he hid under his bed, and such was a promise to honor, but he knew he could trust James.

James however felt inner turmoil at that, he should most likely tell Governor Swann, the Governor trusted him, and he admired him too earnestly to lie to his face. But after all it was Miss Swann, and she was quite untamable, and the glue to their odd trio.

Will stopped himself in his dreamy stare to add, “But Miss Swann is not scared of pirates at all!”

Solemnly James nodded along, “That's quite right. And if she's not scared, then what’s stopping her from just going along with them?”

The boy gasped “Oh no! She cannot go with the pirates!”

“But if she does, then, William, then you'll have to go and save her! Because you know to be scared of pirates.”

“You should save her instead! You're not ever scared, James! AND you know how to fight!”

Something deep inside of James’ chest twisted painfully. He was scared, all his life he was scared.

He held Will by the shoulders.

“But one day Will, I won't be here. I will be busy or far away or old or even dead. And you will have to do all the saving.”

Will’s eyes got all glassy and their was a weight to it when he nodded.

.

By the time Will was 14 years old he had already forgotten his birthday. He had to work hard alongside Master Brown, and what little time was left inbetween he was alone, as the old drunkard busied himself someplace else with a bottle. There was no opportunity to think, much less talk about personal matters.

And so it was a horribly humid night, with air so thick it stuck to your skin like seaweed does, when the young apprentice made his way towards the docks. Cloaked in darkness neither Mister Brown, nor the red-clad soldiers sparsely guarding the ships, could make out the boy hurrying past them.

For the past years James had made it his duty

.

He was fully aware of what he would be getting himself into, but it was the last thing he had left to offer. “You were the one telling me this would be the only right thing!”

“You were a child, Turner, surely you haven't forgotten that you are too old to still believe that that would be the right course of action.”

“So you lied? Is that it? You lied to a child?”

“Turner–”

“No! I don't believe for a second that you weren't speaking in earnest back then! You’ve changed, Commodore, you let fear take the better of you!” Will’s voice sank dangerously low and became strikingly quiet. “You live a horrible life, and you hate yourself, you always have! You take the bits and pieces that aren't yet tainted and polish them up until you're the richest and most respected man across the seas, all just so no one can see that deep inside you're just as much a scared child as you are a bitter old man!”

By the end of his sentence his voice had turned into a hiss, and his finger accusingly bored itself into Norrington’s chest.

For a moment he was afraid he had gone too far.

The Commodore only sighed and turned away.

“This would be a suicide mission, you might as well kill yourself right this instant.”

“Then come with me!”

A sort of tortured expression overcame Norrington.

“Does she really mean this much to you?”

Will nearly gasped in disbelief.

“Of course! Anyone would mean this much to me!” And in that moment Will felt as if a part fell right in its place, and he let his face soften. “Even you…” He pushed himself a bit closer to the Commodore and let his hand splay over the shining new uniform. “But this will never happen, because you're too scared…” He tilted his head and moved ever so slightly. It would’ve taken only a breeze of air to join their lips.

Norrington didn’t budge, not at first, not under Will’s watchful eyes. But his lack of reaction was answer enough. He was hesitant.

Under the supple blue fabric adorning the Commodore Will could feel the racing heart, and the struggle to even his breath.

The weight of Will’s fixed gaze pushed Norrington under the surface of his own emotions, until they flooded his lungs, too heavy to breathe, and filled his ears, impossible to ignore, and his body ached under the force. All James could do now was avert his eyes and gasp for air, hoping he wasn't too far gone to keep his heart beating.

Space and time between them seemed to stretch indefinitely, stranded on their own island far out there, so close, so helpless.

Will peered deep into sea green eyes, searching for something that was there, something too big to speak, something that wasn't just fear.

Fear? Was that it? The climax of their time together? The grand confession of hushed truths?

In all his grandeur all that Norrington, all that James, could ever bear revealing, was fear?

The child in Will refused to believe that there was nothing more to his hero, his friend.

But Will could only find fear. Until that deep green sea was stirred up again, clouding itself into an impenetrable shield.

The Commodore’s face twisted back into his usual sneer, the one Will never had to see directed at him until last year. Until he was too old to be forgiven for the crime of being worth less.

“Mr. Turner, you are not a military man. You are not a sailor. You are a blacksmith. And this is not the moment for rash actions.”

As Norrington stepped past him, Will felt his own hand grasping at the Commodore’s coat. This didn't have to be the end!

With a pointed look towards the Governor Norrington added, “Do not make the mistake of thinking you are the only man here who cares for Elizabeth.”

.

It had been only his second day at sea when Will realized the wind was far from favorable, neither for their trip to Tortuga, nor for Will’s state of mind.

The entirety of his first day onboard he had spent learning a maneuver that allowed them to sail against the wind. A tedious, and frankly tiring, process for a two man crew on a ship the size of the Interceptor.

By the time he had grown confident in his own movements he couldn't stop his mind from wandering anymore.

He didn’t dare think about Elizabeth, all alone aboard a ship not only with one scumbag pirate, but a whole crew of them. So he pushed the thoughts aside, but new ones arose.

Thoughts of James.

The image of him standing at the bow of the Dauntless, watching as Jack sailed of with Will, it had burned itself tenfold into his memory, haunting every waking moment. But Will knew it was the right thing to do.

Wouldn't the Turnington Ship be The Interceptor?