Times of Trouble
by Lady Dawson
Chapter Eight: Memories
There was nothing they could do, nothing any of them could do as they stared helplessly from the longboat, watching as the kraken took the Black Pearl down to the depths from which she had been raised. But this time, she took her captain down with her. It was the agreement that Jack Sparrow had made with Davy Jones and now the debt had been settled. The matter was over and done with, as the crew watched their captain go down with his ship.
They said nothing as they watched, a feeling of unknowing grief weighing down upon them. Arianna turned away, unable to watch Jack's final moment, and stared ahead of them. Elizabeth didn't look much better, from the look in her eyes. Jack Sparrow was gone, body and soul, and his crew moved away from his final resting place, heading towards land, to safety.
Arianna stared ahead of them, memories of the past year filling through her mind as they rowed. Finn Warren was the love of her life, the man that she would choose above all others, but forced apart by people who would condemn her for simply being who she was. Because there was no denying now that she was a pirate, body and soul, mind and heart. It was now part of who she was destined to become.
And as that thought swam through her mind, memories of Finn seeped through, allowing her to soak them up, hold on to them. Because now, they were all she had left of him.
"Do you ever miss it?" Finn asked her as they sat together on the parapet where several months earlier Jack had jumped off and towards freedom. "Just going off and having an adventure? Do you ever think about going back out there?"
"Sometimes," Arianna admitted as she pulled her legs up underneath her. "But it's not as bad as it was before. I mean, I had Will, but there wasn't anything really holding me here, some reason that I shouldn't. Now I do and I'm not going to give that up."
Finn grinned as he drew her around him. "You know, I have to say that when we first met that day Sparrow escaped, I never would have expected we'd end up here, feeling like this," he remarked as he twirled a strand of her brown hair around his finger. "You're so beautiful."
"Stop," Arianna said with a laugh, feeling her face heat up. "Flattery will get you nowhere, you know."
"I was actually telling you the truth," Finn told her as he gently turned her blushing face towards his. "You're the most beautiful woman that I've ever known, Arianna, and I've known a lot of beautiful women. But none of them has ever shown the passion and courage that you have shown me. It's what makes you so different from any other girl and I think that's what entrances me so."
"Entrances you?" Arianna was actually intrigued by this. "Really?" He nodded with a grin. "Well . . . maybe flattery will get you somewhere."
Finn laughed. "You've cast a spell over me, Arianna Turner," he told her softly. "You're in my every thought, every dream, every moment of my waking hour and sleeping one." He bent over her, pulling her into a deep and tender kiss. "I love you," he whispered.
Arianna stared up at him, shell-shocked. It was the first time that he'd ever said that to her. She had never imagined that anyone would ever say that to her, especially from the man she loved back. But now, things were different. She understood what love was.
"I love you, too," she whispered, wrapping her hands around his neck as he kissed her again. And like every time before that, his kiss sent a wonderful blissful feeling down her spine.
--
With a joyful smile at the man she loved, Arianna watched as Finn slipped the ring onto her finger, looking at her with pure joy. There was no one there on the parapet, save for the two of them. The sea glistened behind them and the sun was slowly rising higher into the sky. At that moment, it felt like they were the only two people in the entire world.
"Arianna Turner," Finn said with a smile at her, "will you marry me?" He sat there like a little schoolboy, as though asking if he could have sweets. The question deserved an answer and they both knew what her answer would be. They had known it from the moment they met each other, months ago, what her answer would be.
"You're asking me now?" she asked, a playful smile crossing her lips. "Here?" He nodded.
"This is our spot, no matter what happens," Finn said with a shrug. "It's the place where our story began, the two of us. Where you set free a pirate condemned to death, attacking several soldiers with your brother in the process."
Rolling her eyes, Arianna made a face at him. "Thank you for reminding me of that," she told him. "To be honest, I was actually trying to forget about it."
Finn laughed. "And it's also the place where we confessed our love for each other," he said softly. She smiled, remembering that moment as though it were yesterday. "So, now, it's where you can agree to become Mrs. Finn Warren. All that's left for you to do, Anna, is say yes."
She smiled at him, staring down at the ring that he had put on her finger. "I gave you my answer a long time ago," she whispered, reaching out and touching his cheek.
With a smile that was wide enough to spread all the way across the Caribbean, Finn swooped her up and kissed her more passionately than he had in the past year. She held on to him, kissing him back, and although she didn't say anything, she knew that their happiness was not going to last. If only she could have known why . . .
--
"Get out of this house!" Mr. Warren shouted, grabbing his gun and pointing it towards Arianna. Her eyes widened as Finn hurried down the steps, looking shocked at the scene that met his eyes. "I will not have you stay here and corrupt my son! Get out!"
"Dad, what are you doing?" Finn yelled at him, managing to pry the gun away from his father. "All right, you need to go lay down. Nancy!" he yelled towards one of the maids. She appeared, looking fearfully towards them as she saw the situation at hand. "Can you take my father upstairs and get him a cup of tea, please?"
"Of course, Lieutenant," she said with a curtsy. She looked towards Arianna. "Miss Turner," she added with another curtsy as she steered Mr. Warren away from them.
Finn shook his head. "I'm sorry, Anna, I don't know what that was all about," he remarked as he took her hand. "He didn't scare you too badly, did he?" Finn asked, looking at her pale face. She shook her head. "I'm sorry about that. Let's go for a walk."
She didn't complain as they walked away from the Warren house. Neither one spoke as they walked together, but she sensed the beginning of the end.
--
"I told you before to stay away from him!" Mr. Warren roared at her. "It's not my fault that you didn't listen and had to go and get involved with my son anyway!" Arianna stood helplessly at the door, staring him down.
"I still don't understand why you did this to us!" Arianna snapped, her temper rising. "You gave your consent to Finn so he could court me, you even let him propose to me! And now you're saying that he can't marry me? Why? I need to know why you suddenly have this intolerable hatred for me!"
"I'll tell you why," he said coldly. "It's because a woman needs to know her place and you can't seem to do that. Oh, I'll admit you're a beauty and it's no mystery why he would want to have you as his wife, but you've too much spirit. Too much longing for a life that is unsuitable for a young lady."
"Finn never complained," Arianna retorted. "And shouldn't who he wants for a wife be his own choice?"
"He's young and known to make mistakes," Mr. Warren responded. He stepped closer to her. "And here's the main reason why I won't allow for you to become Finley's wife: I will not have a pirate for a daughter-in-law." Without waiting for her to reply, Mr. Warren slammed the door into her face, letting Arianna to stand there, crestfallen, before finally trudging home with tears pouring down her face. As she walked through the blacksmith's shop, she walked straight into her brother's arms, allowing herself to be comforted.
--
Arianna sat alone in the cell, shivering slightly as she tried to ignore the catcalls and whistles from some of the men in jail. Finally, she gave up, stood up, and turned towards them, her eyes blazing with fury and anger. "If any man here even so much makes one more disgusting remark like that," she said, her voice quiet but carrying with power, "then I will personally make that man a eunuch. Am I understood?" she asked, glaring at them.
The men all stared at her, then backed away from the enraged girl, conversing amongst themselves. "I thought so," Arianna muttered as she sat back down, pressing her head into her knees.
She glanced up when she heard clapping and looked up, her heart giving a painful twist when she saw Finn standing there. He was grinning slightly as he closed the cell door behind him, joining her on the ground. "That was nicely handled," he commented.
"What are you doing here?" she said quietly, not really in the mood to talk to him. She didn't look at him, couldn't look into his green eyes with it hurting too much to bear. "I didn't think that your father would allow you down here, Finn. Especially not after this."
Finn reached out and lifted her chin so that she was forced to look up at him, straight into his green eyes. "This isn't what I wanted, Arianna," he told her quietly. "I wanted you to be my wife, I told you that when I started courting you. Believe me, if I'd known that my father was going to react the way that he did, I wouldn't have put you through that. I would've just let you be, if only to not cause you the pain that you're going through."
"You could have stood up for me," Arianna pointed out. "Finn, you could have said that you were going to marry me, no matter what he said."
"I did." Arianna glanced up at him as he spoke, sea-blue eyes confused as he sighed, leaning back against the cell wall. "I did tell him that, after you ran out in tears, Arianna. You . . . you are the one that I want, not anyone else and that is never going to change." He cupped her face in his hands, drawing her in close. "You're my heart and soul, Arianna. My Anna," he added softly and she smiled slightly at the private nickname that he called her.
"Finn . . ." she began, but she was incapable of saying anything after that as he kissed her. The flood of emotions poured through her, coursed through her veins as she remembered why she loved him so much. He had never once judged her, never condemned her because of the way she was. And he had never tried to change her, just accepted her for the way that she was. The only two people who had done that before were Will and Elizabeth.
"I love you," Finn whispered. "And I always will. You are the one that I will choose above all others, Anna." He caressed her hair as she looked up at him, heart almost spilling over with happiness. "But I'm not so sure that we'll be able to find a way to be together. Don't get me wrong, I want to," he said quickly, reading Arianna's expression. "But Beckett is more dangerous than even the most bloodthirsty pirates. I'm not so sure we'll find a way. I've just got to find a way to get you out of here."
Arianna stared up at the sky, knowing Finn was somewhere, underneath the same sky and staring up at it. I love you, Finn Warren. Don't forget that. Do not forget about me, Finn. I am yours until the end of time.
