April 10, 1912
11:30 a.m.
Among the many docks of Southampton, the Harland & Wolff shipyard was bustling with hundreds of men, women, and children, for the grand RMS Titanic was setting sail to leave for America. Cars were dropping off First Class passengers, and Third Class families stood in queues for health inspections. Cargo was being lifted onto the ship, and servants were carrying baggage of the rich folk. It was a busy place, even so in the nearby cafes and stores.
One such girl, by the name of Ella Dawson, was emerging from a vehicle and standing in awe of the ship that many people deemed "unsinkable". She personally believed that no ship could be unsinkable, but she hardly had time to reflect on this thought, for her brother, Benjamin Dawson, came to her side and remarked, "She's a beauty, isn't she?"
Ella turned to her brother and replied, "Too bad mother and father didn't come to Europe with us."
Ben shrugged and went over to talk to their maid and servant, Alice and Horace, to bring their luggage. With the two of them holding their possessions, Ben held his arm out to Ella, and they began their walk to the First Class gangway.
"Are you excited to be back in America, Ben?"
"Certainly! I've had enough of England, and my friends are expecting me," he said with a wink. Ben had been courting a girl back in Boston, and he knew that she didn't want him to travel, but much to her reluctance, he did travel, and he did miss her.
"I wish I had good friends! All Marissa ever does is talk about her parents' wealth and suitors," Ella said. Marissa Williams was Ella's friend by family, and her parents owned many jewelry stores, making them rich.
In spite of living in a family of abundant wealth, Ella was often unhappy at times, and she wished for a carefree life in Third Class, but she knew that her parents wouldn't let her do such a thing. Frankly, Ben felt the same way, so they always talked amongst each other about snobbish First Class ladies.
As they were nearing an officer at the door of the ship, they took out their boarding tickets and held them out toward the man.
"Welcome aboard!" the officer said to them with a smile. He was a tall man with trim brown hair and light blue eyes that reflected the clear skies.
Ben chuckled and responded with a hello. Ella, on the other hand, went to shake his hand. "And a welcome to you as well!" she responded.
In reply, the officer gave his name. "Second Officer Charles Lightoller," he said with a friendly grin.
"Ella Dawson, pleasure to meet you," she said with mirth in her bright blue eyes, and with that they walked on board the ship.
As Ella was catching up with her brother and their servants, Ben gave her a confused look. "What was that for?" Ella asked.
"You didn't need to have a conversation with him. Just show the ticket is all!"
She rolled her eyes playfully and said, "Just trying to be friendly."
Ben shook his head with mirth in his calm green eyes and linked his arm with hers. "You can be crazy, but you're my favorite sister!"
"Your one and only," she giggled.
They approached the Grand Staircase and glanced back at their tickets. "I believe we are in B-59 and B-61, " he said.
Ella nodded, and the four of them caught an elevator up to B deck. Upon leaving, Ella gave a kind thank you to the operator, and they trudged along the elegant white corridor.
Once they reached their rooms, Ben inserted the keys into both of the rooms, and Ella immediately rushed into her suite. The walls were a rich wood with golden fixtures, and a lovely marble fireplace was set against the wall. Ben and Ella each had a main room, bathroom, master bedroom, and adjoining bedroom for their servants.
Ben entered his room and said to Horace, "Please put my clothes in the wardrobe, and adjust the beds." Horace nodded and began to unpack the abundant baggage which he had carried in.
While Ella was gazing at the dock through her main window, Alice had already put away the dresses in the wardrobe and approached her lady. "Will you be needing any more assistance, m'lady?"
"No, thank you," Ella replied. "You may do as you wish. I will need your assistance before lunch."
Alice curtsied and exited the room. Upon her exit, Ben came strolling into the room. He stood beside Ella gazing out the window until she turned to face him.
"Would you like to join me on deck for departure?" he asked. Taking out his pocket watch, he said, "It's a quarter to twelve."
"Of course," she replied with amusement, and with that, they locked the doors and walked down the corridor to the staircase.
"What are you wishing for on this journey?" Ben asked as they were walking.
"Perhaps I could make a new friend," she said. "After all, there are hundreds of people onboard, and I'm bound to at least bump into anyone."
At that moment, she accidentally bumped into a gentleman on the way up the staircase, escorted by a girl. Instantly, Ella said, "Pardon me," to the unknown man. The man turned to face her and shook his head with understanding.
"No use, dear. My apologies," he replied with modesty and a gentle smile. The man was assumingly in his late thirties, and his escort was a beautiful brunette girl with lovely brown eyes.
The girl turned to Ella and gave a friendly smile. "This is my daughter, Elizabeth, and I'm Thomas Andrews," the man replied.
"Pleasure to meet you, Mr. Andrews, and to you, Elizabeth," Ella replied. "I'm Ella Dawson, and this is my brother, Benjamin."
Benjamin, at the time, was looking at Mr. Andrews as if he looked familiar. He also glanced at Elizabeth with a priceless expression, perhaps of interest.
"Thomas Andrews, you say?" Ben asked with surprise.
"Yes, young man," Mr. Andrews replied without a condescending tone.
"You must be the shipbuilder!" Ben said with excitement in his voice. "It's an honor to meet you in person, sir." Ben shook his hand earnestly.
Elizabeth and Ella were chuckling in response, while Mr. Andrews expressed gratitude to Ben.
"I daresay it's a honor to meet you, Ben," Mr. Andrews said. "I've heard a lot about your family's business. The Boston Dawson's, if I'm correct?"
"Yes, sir," Ben said.
"I've met your father when he visited the docks of Liverpool. You've inherited his eyes."
Ben was taken aback by this, and nevertheless was blushing a light shade of pink. Elizabeth took notice of this and looked away with blush on her cheeks as well, noticing Ben's green eyes.
Mr. Andrews took out his pocket watch and read the time. "Excuse me, but it is already ten to noon!" Mr. Andrews remarked with amusement. "I must be heading up to the bridge on deck. Would you all like to join me?"
Ben, Ella, and Elizabeth agreed, and the four of them continued the ascent to the top floor. On the way, Ella was making conversation with Mr. Andrews, while Ben and Elizabeth were having their own chat.
"Mr. Andrews, your ship is truly a wonder," Ella replied with awe. "I'm bound to get lost in the halls!"
"Thank you, Ella," Mr. Andrews replied modestly. "And if you need any help, you can find me or a crew member."
"How does it feel to be the daughter of the ship's architect?" Ben asked Elizabeth.
"It's nothing extreme," Elizabeth said. "But I love my father to death, and I find Titanic to be absolutely splendid!"
Ben nodded and smirked. "Have you ever been to America before?"
"Oh, yes," she said. "My grandparents live half an hour away from New York. I've always loved stopping by."
At this moment, the four had walked onto the crowded deck of the port side of the ship. Children stood against the railing, waving to loved ones, and some men were even cracking jokes to each other to pass the time.
Mr. Andrews turned to the other three and asked, "Would you all come with me to the bridge once the ship is clear of the harbor?"
The other three nodded, and they sat down upon nearby deck chairs. Mr. Andrews was jotting things upon his precious black notebook. Ella was looking up into the sky and closing her eyes, feeling the warm salt air on her face with fervor. Elizabeth was doing the same as Ella, and Ben … he was engaged in the lovely sight of Elizabeth.
Mr. Andrews noticed the three and smiled with amusement. He found it to be a priceless moment.
Further down the deck, Captain Edward J. Smith was standing upon the deck of the bridge, looking out with delight at the weather perfect for sailing. Beside of him was a middle-aged man with gray eyes and an officer uniform.
"Wilde," Smith said to his partner. "Are the engines ready?"
"Yes, sir," The man identified as Wilde said. He was formerly known as Chief Officer Henry Wilde. "Should be any time now."
Smith nodded and walked inside of the wheelhouse, at which another crew member was at the helm. He checked the readings of the equipment and walked back upon the deck. He nodded back to Wilde, and Wilde notioned for the hornmen.
Suddenly, a long honk emitted from the Titanic, and the propellers began the endless cycle of spinning. Alas, the ship began to move, and a crow of cheers erupted from the dock people and the passengers alike. Tugboats pulled the giant towards the open seas, and ship made its way toward ocean.
Two officers were standing side by side on the starboard side, gazing out at the empty waters, save for the tugboats.
"Can you feel it, Harry?" one officer said to the other. "It's finally the moment we've been waiting for for the past month!"
"Indeed," the officer identified as Harry said in a Welsch accent. "And your mummie isn't here to see it, Jimmy."
The officer known as Jimmy chuckled and nudged Harry. "Neither is yours," he said with amusement.
Another officer came to the two and rested his hands on the railing. "Hello, fellows," he replied with mirth.
"Lights!" Jimmy screamed as he gave the man a bear hug. At this, other passengers on the starboard side looked at them with puzzlement. Lights shook his head with a chuckle as he returned the hug. "Jimmy, you're too much."
Jimmy ignored this and responded, "Are you just sad that I'm better at it than you?"
"Who said anything of the sort?!" Lights said. Harry and Jimmy looked at each other and burst out into a fit of laughter. Lights noticed this and shrugged. "Oh, all right."
"How were the First Class people?" Harry asked.
"They were full of themselves, typically," Lights shrugged. "But one girl did manage to greet me."
Jimmy nudged him playfully and said, "Sylvia won't be happy to hear this. You might just walk home with a new wife at this rate!"
Lights hushed him and said, "And what about you, Jimmy, in Third Class?"
"Normal," Jimmy said, "but a blonde boy and Italian came at the last second. Amusing, if you ask me." He shook his head with a chuckle. "And Harry?"
"There's nothing special about just walking around," Harry said with a dismissive wave of his hand. "All I did was crack a few jokes with Fleet." He gestured up to the crow's nest, at which two crew members were laughing and nudging each other playfully. With a smile, he said, "They want to plan a prank."
"On who?" Lights and Jimmy asked at the same time.
"I'll tell you later," Harry said. "It looks like we have company."
Indeed, an officer was walking in their direction. The officer pulled Lights aside and whispered in his ear. Lights nodded and turned back to face the men.
"Well , it looks like Herbert and I are off for our own plans," Lights said. "See you around."
The man identified at Herbert waved at them, and the two were off walking down the deck.
Looking after them, Harry asked Jimmy, "So what do you want to do?"
"I've got two hours until my rounds," Jimmy said. "So I suppose we head down to the mess hall and grab a bite."
"Sounds good," Harry said, and with that, they walked to the crew stairs.
I hoped you enjoyed! Ella and Ben are of the Boston Dawsons that JJ Astor was referring to (in the movie), and Elizabeth is Thomas Andrews' daughter (of course, older than in real life). There is more to come of both scenes, so stay tuned! This is my first Titanic fanfic, so I'm not quite used to the characters just yet. I would greatly appreciate any reviews, and I hope you find this story to be entertaining. There will be POV's coming up, but I just wanted this first chapter to be narrative. There will be romance involved, so I would like to hear any thoughts you may have.
Side note: Ryan Gosling inspired my image of Ben, Britt Robertson for Ella, and Emmy Rossum as Elizabeth (just in case you guys wanted to know).
Disclaimer: I own Ella and Ben, and AU of Elizabeth, but all other characters are by James Cameron and real life!