WriterFreak001:

Nothing new really, but there IS a very important note at the end of the chapter.

If you haven't, check out my newest short fic, "Because of Ralph."

The Scorpion

Written by WriterFreak001

Chapter 10:

Inceptum Finis

'The Beginning of the End'

~ SCORPION ~

"Walter, wait!" Megan exclaimed as she chased after her brother. "Walter, slow down, please!" Despite his desire to run as far away from Paige as possible, he found himself stopping as his sister caught up to him. "Walter," Megan inhaled deeply and placed a hand against her chest to catch her breath, "As much as I respect Paige and her privacy, there's something you should know."

Walter remained silent and refused to look at his sister so she took his quiet response as an invitation to explain further.

"You have to know… Paige, she's… she's absolutely smitten with you. Last night, she couldn't stop talking about you, and her eyes never stopped sparkling every time she spoke your name." Megan paused to see if she caused a reaction from Walter, but when she detected no change in his expression, she continued. "I know… I know it's hard to believe, but you have to understand that Paige's life is not an easy one to live. I've seen firsthand how her mother and fiancé treat her, and if I didn't want to be arrested, I'd clobber them for treating her so poorly. Her mother is a very intimidating woman, and as I was about to check in on Paige this morning… after her fiancé struck her, I overheard her mother demanding her not to see you anymore."

Finally, Walter spoke. "Is it such a bad thing that I'm not rich enough for her?"

"Trust me, Wally," Megan touched his arm gently. "Nothing is wrong about you. Everything is wrong about Paige's mother and fiancé. They have no respect for us, but believe me when I say this; there is nothing wrong about not having money. We get by just as fine as any first class family; we just have to work for our living, and that's not a bad thing, either. And Paige knows that; she doesn't care about your lack of money; if she did, the poor girl wouldn't be crying her eyes out."

"If she didn't care about my financial status… or lack thereof, why would she tell me she can't see me anymore? Why would she push me away?" Walter shoved his hands into his pockets and started walking again, and Megan felt so sorry for her younger brother. Never had she ever seen him so defeated.

Megan followed him and squeezed his arm, prompting him to stop walking. "Give it time, Walter. Writing that letter wasn't her decision. She was against it from the start."

Walter suddenly looked at his sister, unsure how to react to her comment. "Why… How… I… I don't understand."

"Her mother can be intimidating, remember?" Megan gave her brother a small smile. "Paige is protecting you, Wally. She knows that if she's caught with you, her fiancé will do everything in his power to have you arrested. He's a twisted megalomaniac who can't stand to lose to anyone." She pressed a soft kiss to her brother's cheek and lightly smacked it with her palm. "Don't give up, okay?"

Walter inhaled a deep breath and then nodded. "Okay."

He suddenly knew what he had to do.

~ SCORPION ~

Paige lagged behind her mother and fiancé as they followed Mr. Quinn along the top deck, determined not to pay attention to anything around her. Because of her mother's insistence that she never see Walter again, she was as empty as she felt when she boarded the Scorpion, slaved into a world she no longer wanted to be part of.

If only she could run away and never look back.

"Paige," her mother barked, "stop sulking and hasten your pace."

Paige looked up, not realizing they were already at the stern, and she slowly glanced over to the space underneath the docking bridge, remembering the way she and Walter kissed in the darkness. It was only hours ago he was in her bedchambers, kissing her senselessly before she ruined the moment and demanded he leave immediately. She inhaled a deep breath and blinked back her tears, not wanting to give her mother the satisfaction of breaking her further. "I'm sorry," she spoke quietly, "I think I'm still ill. Perhaps it's best I rest until lunch."

She turned to leave, but her mother swiftly walked over to her and grabbed her hand. "You will do no such thing. You slept almost all morning and missed church. Mr. Quinn has so graciously agreed to give us a tour of the Scorpion when he could be doing other things. I will not allow you to embarrass us any further."

Paige scoffed and ripped her arm out of her mother's strong grip before marching towards everyone else. As an attempt to avoid speaking to Drew and to her mother, she approached Patrick Quinn and said, "Mr. Quinn, I did the sum in my head, and with the number of lifeboats times the capacity you mentioned…, forgive me, but it seems that there are not enough for everyone on board."

"About half, actually," Patrick replied in agreement and then smiled admiringly. "Paige, you miss nothing, do you? In fact," he added with a chuckle, "I put in these new type of davits, which can take an extra row of boats here. But," he frowned, "it was thought, by some," he glared at Bruce Ismay, "that the deck would look too cluttered. So I was over-ruled."

Drew laughed loudly. "Waste of deck space as it is, on an unsinkable ship!"

Patrick ignored Drew's comment and gave Paige a soft smile. "Sleep soundly, young Paige. I have built you a good ship, strong and true. She's all the lifeboat you need."

Paige forced a smile and turned towards the horizon, watching a group of birds flutter by and wishing, so desperately, she could do the same thing too. Seconds passed, and she eventually resumed her stroll, slowly following the group once again. Thankfully, this time, her mother did not reprimand her.

They passed seven life boats before she felt a tap on her shoulder. She immediately whipped around and found Walter, in disguise, gesturing her to follow him. She quickly glanced at her mother and noticed the prude woman wasn't paying any attention to her anymore. Almost instantly, she cut away from the group, hoping no one would notice, and slipped through the door Walter had opened. Walter, following closely behind, carefully closed the door behind her and took her hand, dragging her away from the windows.

"Walter," Paige protested even though she was inwardly delighted to see him, "This is impossible. I told you already. I can't see you."

"Can't or won't?" Walter gazed into her eyes, and it took every bit of strength for her not to cave into her desires to grab his face and kiss him as if her life depended on his breath breathing into her.

"Can't," she repeated, and he cupped her cheeks gently but firmly.

"Screw them and what they think," Walter leaned in closer to her, and Paige softly bit her lip. "You can do whatever you want, Paige. Don't let your life be defined by birthright."

"Walter," Paige lightly pushed him away from her and stepped backwards, pressing her back against the wall. "It's not as easy as you think. I can't… I can't just leave."

"Paige," Walter stepped towards her and gripped her shoulders. "You're no picnic. You're a spoiled little brat even, but underneath all of that, you're a strong, pure heart, and you're the most amazing, most astounding woman I've ever known and –"

"Walter, I—"

Walter pressed his index finger against her lips and quietly shushed her. "No, wait. Let me try to get this out," he paused, wanting so desperately to shut up and kiss her and just show her what he's trying to tell her, but he knew… he anticipated… that if he wanted to get anywhere with her at all, he needed to be honest with her. He needed to use his words so that was exactly what he was going to do. He slowly removed his index finger from her lips and whispered, "You're amazing…, and I know I have nothing to offer you, Paige. I know that. But I'm involved now. You jump, I jump, remember? I can't turn away without knowing you're going to be all right."

Paige's eyes stung with tears, not expecting Walter's honesty. No one, not even her own mother, had ever been so honest to her before Walter. She exhaled a shaky breath and combed her fingers through her bangs. "You're making this very hard…. I'll be fine, Walter, really."

"I don't think so," Walter muttered lowly, sending eliciting shivers down Paige's spine. He leaned closer to her, almost pinning her against the wall with his hands sliding down her arms slowly. "They've got you in a glass jar like a Danaus plexippus."

"A w-what?"

"Danaus plexippus. Genus species for Monarch Butterfly. Anyway," Walter shook his head, needing to refocus his mind, "if you don't break out, you're going to go back to that state I found you in two nights ago. Maybe not right away because you're a strong woman, but sooner or later, the fire within you is going to burn out…, and I can't… I can't let that happen."

Paige pinned her bottom lip between her teeth as tears threatened to spill. "It's not up to you to save me, Walter."

"You're right," Walter agreed swiftly as he gently pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Only you can do that."

Paige suddenly felt cornered and inwardly began to panic. As much as she wanted to be with Walter and run away with him, she didn't know how. She didn't know how to leave the only world she's ever known, and that frightened her immensely. "I-I'm s-sorry," Paige pushed Walter away from her and ran towards the door. "I have to get back, they'll miss me. Please," she turned around and gave Walter a defeated look as her voice cracked with more emotion than she wanted to convey. "Pl-Please, Walter, f-for both our sakes," she swallowed thickly, "leave me alone."

And without another word, Paige slipped through the door, leaving Walter alone in the dark.

~ SCORPION ~

Paige stared lifelessly at the elegant table in front of her as her mother chatted away with her friends. Once again, she was bragging about the details of her future wedding with Drew, and Paige was growing very tired of her mother's strange gossiping talent (perhaps the only talent her mother possessed). She didn't want to hear her mother's jokes and stories about her wedding. She didn't even want to be there, sitting at the table, pretending to be enjoying herself.

Walter was right.

She couldn't keep up her pretenses anymore, and it was only a matter of time before she was going to burst again.

Paige slowly turned her attention to a young mother and her little daughter having tea. The four-year-old girl wore white gloves and was daintly picking up a cookie as her mother corrected her on her posture and the way she held the teacup. The little girl, from what Paige could tell, was trying so hard to please her mother, and the young woman could relate. She spent an entire lifetime living in her mother's shadow, trying to be the perfect daughter for her, but even her attempts were never praised. Only critiqued. It was always about what Paige could do better, and even though she was almost a grown woman, she knew she would never be the daughter her mother always wanted.

She was not a bird in a cage.

She was a free spirit, and she wanted to be a free spirit, consequences be damned.

"I'm sorry, Mother," Paige suddenly rose to her feet, "I have somewhere I need to be."

As Paige started dashing off, her mother excused herself and chased after her. "Paige!" She grabbed her daughter's arm and squeezed it as hard as she could. "I told you not to see that steerage boy again!"

"I'll do as I please," Paige frowned as she ripped her arm away from her mother's strong grip.

"You're getting married in a few weeks! You'll ruin everything," her mother hissed.

"I don't want to marry Drew, and I won't," Paige shook her head and stepped away from her mother. "I don't love him…, and even if I don't love Walter now… even if I just met him… I can see myself, one day, loving him. I'm happy being with him, Mother, and if you can't respect that… if you wish unhappiness on me for the rest of my life and force me to be with Drew, I won't hesitate to take my life. I almost did it once before, but then Walter saved my life and gave me a reason to live. I don't want to be miserable anymore, Mother. I just want to be happy."

"Paige," Ruth grabbed Paige's sleeve, accidentally tearing it at the seam. "I can't allow you to do this! We need the money."

Paige ripped away from her mother, tearing the sleeve even more. She didn't care though. "If you want the money so badly, then you marry Drew yourself! I'm done torturing myself, Mother. And there's nothing you can do to stop me."

Without another word, Paige scampered off to find Walter.

She made a big mistake earlier, and she hoped it wasn't too late.

~ SCORPION ~

Walter didn't know how long he had been staring at the sunset as the water swelled the ship underneath him. He stood at the apex of the bow railing, just inches away absolute peril if he ever accidentally leaned forward enough, and gazed outward, watching the sleepy sky paint the water with warm red, orange, and yellow colors as the sun dipped just below the horizon.

He didn't even notice the quiet footfalls stopping behind him.

"Hello, Walter."

Walter, completely surprised to hear her voice, spun around to find Paige smiling at him. He grinned, drinking in the sight of her. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, her dress a bit torn, and her hair blew gently about her face. She was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen.

"I changed my mind."

Walter suddenly grinned wider as she stepped towards him.

"Toby said you might be up h—"

"Shhhh," Walter didn't need an explanation. "Come here."

Paige complied without protesting, and he slid his hands around her waist, pinning her against him. He leaned forward slightly as though he was going to kiss her and whispered, "Close your eyes."

"Okay," she laughed, and he turned them around before facing Paige away from the ship and towards the horizon. He stood right behind her and raised her arms outward like a bird spreading her wings. He lowered his hands to her waist and tugged her closer to him as he placed a kiss on the back of her shoulder. "Okay," he breathed against her skin, "Open them."

Paige slowly fluttered her eyes open and immediately gasped, seeing nothing but sky and water. She felt as though there was no ship under them at all, like they were freely soaring in the wind, not having a care in the world. The water below them hissed against the ship, and a wide smile colored Paige's lips. "I'm flying!"

She leaned forward carefully, arching her back, and Walter kept her steady so she wouldn't plummet to her death while he was romancing her. Paige closed her eyes and felt herself floating far above the sea. For the first time in her life, she felt free of the world she was born into, and she wasn't scared anymore. Walter was right there, with her, prepared to face every obstacle they face together.

Paige gently leaned back and pressed the back of her shoulders against Walter's chest as he pushed forward slightly against her. Gradually, Walter outstretched his arms and lace his fingers with hers, intertwining them slowly. Their fingers flutter together, caressing through and around each other like the bodies of two lovers, and suddenly, they were oblivious of the world around them.

Walter tipped his face forward into Paige's blowing hair, and allowed her scent to overwhelm him, wanting to surround himself with her in any possible way. As his cheek rested against her ear, Paige turned her head until her lips hovered in front of his and then lowered her arms, turning further until there was no space between them. He wrapped his arms around her from behind, pressing her firmly against him as his mouth molded perfectly against hers.

Paige finally felt like she was home.

…

Paige's frail hands shook as her memories of her first and only love washed over her, longing, still, to return to that time in her life, just to feel Walter's soft lips touching hers once more. She wrapped her arms around her body and blinked back her tears, muttering, "That was the last time the Scorpion ever saw daylight."

~ SCORPION ~

WriterFreak001:

I am in a pool of feels right now.

ANYWAY onto the important note: A few chapters ago, I made an announcement, saying that I wouldn't kill off Walter like Titanic killed of Jack. When I initially wrote the first chapter, I was planning on killing him off in a similar fashion but changed my mind, n0t remembering how I initially set up the story. I tried thinking of an outcome of where Walter could survive without changing the storyline at the beginning, but I couldn't think of anything creative or believable.

That being said, prepare for a large amount of feels because I am planning, when the chapter comes, to return to my initial decision to kill Walter off. This is not a spoiler alert, but a trigger warning for the rest of the story. If you don't think you could handle character death, I won't be mad if you stop reading now. However, if you choose to continue reading, please no flames when it happens.

Thank you.