Disclaimers: I don't own POTC, and neither Captain James Norrington.


When they came ashore some days later, they learned that mending the damage would take up to two weeks.

Lawrence didn't want to stay with the Daisy of the sea until they reached their final destination, they were decent enough, but that wasn't quite the life on sea she had imagined. And seeing the magnificence that was the Dauntless and its crew, she was determined to board other ships and eventually enrol in the Navy as he brother should have done. She wasn't scared of being lost among the many people that were in Cape Canaveral. She even went to some taverns to find other ships looking for new recruits, but none reached her high standards. She was determined to wait for a good opportunity, and not choose the first ship come.

Having no money, she spent her nights in her hammocks aboard the merchant ship, but by day, she roamed the streets, always carrying her bag around. 'Who knows what may happen today, better be ready.' And so she spent the three first days at Cape Canaveral.

By now, she was accustomed to the streets near the ports, what house, shop, or tavern she would find at the corner.

'Why aren't you with the rest of the crew, midshipman? We're to leave tomorrow morning, you should be helping on board!' a voice came from behind her. She turned to face a man wearing a Navy uniform. She immediately recognized the man as being Lieutenant Groves, the officer helping the Captain of the Dauntless.

'What should I say? Do I go along with who he thinks I am or do I tell him the "truth"?' She needed to answer him quick, and being true to herself, she said what seemed right to her.

'I'm begging your pardon, sir. But I'm not part of your crew, to tell the truth. I am with the Daisy of the sea that you kindly escorted ashore.'

Lieutenant Groves furrowed his brow then nodded. 'Ah yes, you're the one Captain Norrington was questioning back there. So I take it that you're a young recruit in the Navy but haven't been assigned a ship yet, am I right?'

'That is exactly my position, sir.'

'Then, why haven't you come to us sooner? As part of the Navy, we ought to take you in and see to your well-being. Come, let us find somewhere to talk first.'

Lawrence couldn't believe her luck. She didn't dare approach the Dauntless for fear of being too bold. Though becoming part of this crew was what she looked for the most, she had pushed away that idea for fear of making a fool of herself. And anyway, how would she have approached anyone there and talked about her situation? But now that she had thankfully crossed path with Lieutenant Groves, it was a dream come true.

The sun was still high in the sky, leaving us plenty of time to talk without rushing things. Lieutenant Groves had led her to what seemed the most decent tavern of the area. They both sat at the end of the room, which was pretty empty compared to the other taverns.

As the hours went by, Lawrence told him pretty much everything she dared to tell him about herself, that is to say, everything except for her previous life as Charlotte. To him, she was Lawrence, a young man anxiously waiting to finally belong to one of His Majesty's ship. She learned in exchange some things about the Lieutenant, that his name was Theodore, that he was twenty-seven and had known his Captain since he enrolled at the age of seventeen.

The more he talked to the boy, the more Groves got a good feeling about him. By the end of the afternoon, he already considered him as a kind of distant relative that he would take care of.

Then, they both came back to the harbour. Groves had to officially ask the permission of his Captain to take the boy in, although he already knew what his answer would be. Groves knew James Norrington to be a great man. To him, his Captain was what every man should looked up to: he was brave, excellent at his command of a ship, kind-hearted when needed but fair at any occasion, his education showed reproachless manners and vast knowledge in many fields, and he would certainly be married to one of the finest ladies of the colonies, seeing how accomplished he was. He knew his Captain, who was also one of his closest friends with Lieutenant Gillette, had good hopes in marrying Miss Swann, the Governor of Port Royal's daughter. He didn't personally know much about Miss Elizabeth Swann, but if Captain Norrington had fallen for her charms, then she had to be a lady of many accomplishments and great beauty.

Upon climbing on the boarding plank, Lawrence and Lieutenant Groves encountered the man they were looking for. The said man looked at his friend in surprise before locking his eyes on the youngest of them.

'Ah, it seems our paths were definitely meant to cross then, Mister…'

'Reynolds, sir. Lawrence Reynolds.'

'… Mister Reynolds.'

'I thought he was part of our crew at first, and had started to chide him, until he told me his situation. I thought we would take him with us, a Navy ship or another is the same.' His friend said, confident enough and laying a hand on Lawrence's shoulder as a friendly gesture.

'And you thought right, Lieutenant. Well then, M. Reynolds, welcome on board the Dauntless. I hope you will find yourself at home on board of my ship.' Norrington half-smiled quickly. 'Would you please show M. Reynolds the crew's quarters, Lieutenant.'

'Of course sir, follow me M. Reynolds.' Groves started climbing up the plank and stopped to wait for Lawrence.

'I thank you greatly, Captain Norrington. I shall not make you regret your decision, sir.' she said, bowing her head before following the Lieutenant on board.

James Norrington softly chuckled, both astonished and pleased to have found what seemed so far to him to be a greatly honest and polite young man.

After Lieutenant Groves left her with the rest of the crew, Lawrence quickly started to make acquaintance with some of the members of the crew.

'Ah, look there guys, we've got a green among us. Hello my pretty lad, what might be your name?' A man with a greying beard said to her upon her entrance. He was of strong built, his arms has big as tree-trunks. He gave her his hand to shake before throwing her bag on what would be her bunk. 'I'm Tim O'Weill, but most people call me Big Tim. That guy there with the ugly face is Jonny, that one's Dick,' Tim went on and on and on 'here's Ol' Crab, and that one is Simon. I think he's the closest you'll find to your age on board.' He said, showing a young man who was smiling at her. He had dark wavy hair and very bright blue eyes. True he looked the youngest here, though he must have been twenty-three or so.

'Hey there!' the said Simon said. 'Looks like we're going to be neighbours then' he laughed before rising from his bed and coming up to shake up her hand.

Lawrence was a bit taken aback by all those new face, most of them looking rather gruff or not caring a bit about her arrival among them. She was nonetheless very pleased that Tim O'Weill had instantly broken the ice as soon as she's stepped in.

She shook some hands and finally Simon's.

'Nice to meet you all. I'm Lawrence Reynolds.'

'Come Lawrence, I'll show you to the rest of the crew still on the deck and do a quick tour of the ship.' said Simon, who had taken her by the elbow.

After about two hours, she had seen most of the ship and about all the crew members. The night having fallen, she headed down with Simon and talked with him until the early hours of the morn, before soundly falling asleep.

She woke about an hour before everyone and took advantage of the sleep of the men and the night to change her clothes to her proper uniform then went back to her bed waiting for the other to wake.

In the morning, she was assigned her tasks and fulfilled them with duty. Simon was always near her, and she was glad to have so quickly made a friend of him.

On the upper deck, Captain Norrington, Lieutenant Groves, and Lieutenant Gillette were watching the young recruit.

'That's nice young M. Reynolds has made a quick friend. I was anxious he'd be left aside.'

'Yes,' said Norrington, 'it is nice indeed, although I'm not sure about his choice of friend. There is something about M. Harlow that doesn't make me feel at ease.'

'Oh come on now James, don't start with seeing ill things about members of the crew' said Lieutenant Gillette, exasperated. He was always the most cheerful of the three of them. Even when he first trained with James Norrington many years ago, when they were both about the age of young Reynolds, Andrew Gillette always tried to cheer up his friend. With the help of Lieutenant Groves, he would try to make their Captain more relaxed and confident in people other than Theodore and himself.

'Mister Reynolds does look rather young, don't you think?' Gillette continued. 'And such a fair and smooth face. If you'd ask me, with longer hair, more food in his belly, and the appropriate piece of clothing, I'd have thought him a beautiful young lady.'

At those words, Groves roared with laughter. 'Have you been drinking lately, Andrew, or has the sun already played on your mind?' He laughed again then was thoughtful watching Lawrence. 'It is true though, there is something effeminate about him. But I suppose that happens now and then until he starts to grow a beard and become larger.'

James Norrington had shaken his head at the delirium of his friends, even though he gave some credit to their observations.

The Duke of St-Simon had written in his memoirs something about the core personality of people reflecting on their face. If that proved to be true, though scientifically impossible to prove, then Lawrence Reynolds was one of the truest and kindest man he'd have ever met, not matter the age.