"Mamma, what was papa like?" Her five-year-old daughter asked. Elizabeth paled and closed her eyes just for a few seconds.
She had to tell her daughter some day.
"Mamma?"
She snapped her eyes open and gave her daughter a weak smile, oh she looked so much like him. So much like James.
She gently picked up her daughter and rested her on her knee as the ship sailed onwards. It had been five years ago since her lover died. Five long pitiful years.
She sighed and looked into her daughter hazel eyes.
James eyes.
"What would you like to know about him?" She asked smiling a little bit as she saw Captain Barbossa and Jack comparing telescopes with each other.
"Everything," her daughter said smiling.
She gave a gentle sigh and started to think where she should start, looking at her mother with bright eyes.
Jack shot them a quick glance before arguing with Hector about who's a better captain.
"Your father was a brilliant man. He was a commodore in the navy…" she trailed off and felt tears whelm up in her eyes. She couldn't do it. She couldn't even tell a story to her daughter.
"Lizzy? You're alright eh?"A voice she knew well asked her. She looked up and a man with dark dreadlocks was standing over her and put a hand on her shoulder.
She shook her head. Her daughter looked at her with worried eyes. "I'm sorry Mamma.."
Elizabeth hugged her daughter close to her.
"It is not your fault my darling. I just miss your father.."
"Want me to tell the story aye?" Jack asked. Elizabeth nodded.
"I'm just going to retire to my chambers, I am feeling unwell," She gave a quick kiss to Aurea and quickly closed the door behind her.
"So!" Jack said, lifting Aurea up onto his knee as he sat down on the chair that Elizabeth has just left. "What would you like to know about your father?" He asked and for once he wasn't drunk.. Maybe he should get more rum later. Gibbs was close by as he cleaned the deck floor, he rolled his eyes at Jack as he was rather lost at telling the little girl about James Norrington.
Her father.
"Well, it all t'started on a hot summer day, I was trying to steal a ship on that day you know, was a fine ship when I was trying to steal her.." Jack said drifting off a bit.
"Jack ol' boy, ya' drifting." Gibbs snapped his fingers in front of him and Aurea giggled as Jack was brought back to reality. Jack gave him a toothy grin.
"Sorry mate, now where was I?"
"You were up to the bit where you were trying to steal a ship," Gibbs said. He had an urge to roll his eyes again.
"Well anyway," he glared at Gibbs. "Your father and mother were at a party…sort off, you know how your mother, what ya call em' Gibbs?" Jack called.
"Corsets?" He suggested.
Jack nodded.
"Well, as I was saying before it was a very hot day and your parents were on a high top castle and there were sharp rocks underneath them, well your mama and dad were talking and your mama was very hot and tired and well…she fainted."
Aurea eyes widen. Her mother never fainted until now.
"She fainted?" She nearly squeaked.
Jack winced and nodded.
"And she fell right into the sea but luckily she missed the sharp rocks,"
Aurea had her mouth opened a little bit and Jack couldn't help but chuckle.
"Your father a very brave man took off his jacket and hat and dived in right after her from the very top of the wall and down into the cold sea."
"Was my father okay?" she asked worriedly. She felt proud of her father for doing a thing like this and this made her yearn for her to meet him more.
"One min, Miss, I'm getting there," Barbossa chuckled as he walked up the steps and lent against the railings listening to the tale.
"Well, your father got hit by the rocks on his left side but that didn't stop him from saving your mother. I watched from the ship and I hurriedly climbed off it and made my way to help them. At first there was no sign of your parents and I was thinking about going in after them when suddenly I heard a splash and a gasp gasping for air. I looked to my right and saw James pulling your mother along. Blood was trailing from his broken ribs and his brown hair wet. I still can't get over the fact that he tried to kill me.."
Aurea rolled her eyes.
Jack cleared his throat.
"Well, s'anyways, I helped the pair onto the deck and checked to make sure that they were still breathing. Your father was fine and he demanded me for a knife to cut your mother's dress, I gave him my knife and he did. He ripped the dress and loosened the corset a bit and he tried everything he knew to keep her breathing. He then did the mouth-to-mouth thing ya'know where you save people? Well, I never seen two lips matching so perfectly against each other before.." Barbossa gave Jack a warning look. "Jack..don't get to far, Lizzy won't be too pleased now won't she aye?" He warned. Gibbs chuckled. Jack looked sheepish for a moment.
"Sorry mate, can't help it. Anyways, he kissed her and she finally breathed and opened her eyes once again. And I definitely saw love in her eyes the way she looked at him. I quickly took my knife and put it back in my pocket where it belonged and was about to escape from your parent lovebird's moments when soldiers came and her father in front. I stopped suddenly aware that guns were pointing at me. "Hold!" I heard your father shout. I turned to him with wide eyes, his ribs bleeding like mad. "He gave me a knife to save Elizabeth, without him, she wouldn't still be able to breathe." He gasped. Your mother touched his cheeks lovingly but did nothing more. I was then recaptured when they realized I was a pirate and yet they still tried to save me from being hanged. I sort of escaped and failed and you should know the rest from there," Jack said smiling slightly.
"You're a great story teller ya'know," Barbossa said sarcastically.
Jack grinned. "I could win an award for it,"
"Sure you could." Aurea giggled when the door that led to the cabin opened and a scared and worried Ragetti came out holding a note.
Jack frowned. This wasn't like Ragetti to be worried.
"You won't like to hear s'what happened," he said sorrowfully looking at Aurea with sad eyes.
Aurea looked worried now.
"Where's mamma?" she asked.
Ragetti had his head low.
"Ragetti, where is Elizabeth?" Jack demanded.
"She's gone."
"What you mean Gone?" Jack asked, fear now in his voice.
Ragetti shoved the note in his hand and Jack ripped the envelope apart.
Another envelope fell out and Jack realized it was for Aurea. He handed it to her slowly while reading his own.
Dear Jack,
If I am writing to you now, it means..well I guess you could say dead. I have left this world to join my long lost lonely lover at last.
Yes, you probably think me selfish. Perhaps I am, leaving my daughter behind on a ship full of pirates, but I do hope you take care of my special angel Jack. I really do.
I found out I was pregnant with another child of James's and I decided that I couldn't cope anymore. I couldn't bare to look into another matching eyes of James and this was too much for me to handle with Aurea and our pirate life.
Life is cruel Jack.
Will you please look after my little angel for me? You and the crew? Please say you take good care of her..
We have had so many adventures together and I shall not regret any of them. All of them meant something special and each one was stored in my heart.
Thank you Jack, for everything.
Say goodbye to everyone else for me.
Elizabeth,
Jack looked at the note again and again, shocked at what Elizabeth have wrote. After a couple of minutes of staring he handed the note to Barbossa and he and Aurea quickly went to Elizabeth chambers.
At first, he didn't want Aurea to see her mother's body cold and still on the bed.
But he guessed it was her mother and he wanted to see her. Aurea had wide worried eyes and was very fearful. Jack opened the door and Aurea cried out and rushed over to her dead mother.
"Mamma? Mamma please wake up," Jack couldn't bare to look at the scene, it was heartbreaking. Even for a pirate.
Aurea shook the dead body lightly. "Mamma! Please be awake," She trembled, tears poured down her face and she rushed to Jack holding him by the legs and burying her face.
"Why Mamma not waking up?" She demanded.
Jack bit his tongue. Here it comes.
"Your Mamma gone to Heaven to see your father,"
"Are they coming back?" She asked shakily.
Jack shook his head as Aurea cried and went out of the room and into her own, the door slamming shut.
Barbossa and some of the others came down and all of them with shocked and sad expressions on their faces, though each one was trying to hide it, you could just see a little bit of sadness.
"What do we do now?" Gibbs asked.
"We'll look after Aurea and we shall give Elizabeth a funeral." Jack said turning away.
"Ship ahoy!" the crowman nest shouted. Jack and the crew rushed on deck and quickly got out their telescopes.
"Awk! Ship ahead!" The parrot shouted.
"What ship? I don't see a ship you idiot!" Barbossa spat.
Jack rolled his eyes and pointed it for him. "There! It's only a rescue boat ship and it's coming towards us,"
Once the rescue ship reached the boat they hauled the person on board and Jack held the man by knifepoint on the neck.
"State your name!" Jack demanded. The man was as tall as James Norrington.
"James," The man gasped. Jack heart sank.
"James who?"
"You should no by now Jack Sparrow."
Cold shivers ran up his spine and he let go.
"Are you sure your James Norrington? Not someone else?" Jack waved his arms about.
The man nodded.
Jack mouth dropped opened.
"How's-"
"I'll explain everything later. Where Elizabeth? Has she given birth yet? Is she okay? I been searching so long and hard for her-"
"Ah, that might be a little problem," Jack started. If only Elizabeth hadn't been so foolish.
"What's going on?" A female voice demanded. It sounded so grown up and yet she still was only a child. Everyone went silent.
"Well?" She asked and as she came to view and her eyes laid on James she couldn't help but gasp.