Disclaimer: I do not own Beauty and the Beast, Pirates of the Caribbean, or Assassin's Creed.

Robin, 2017

The warehouse room where the Animus was stored looked exactly the same.

"Somehow I expected it to have collapsed, with the driving force behind it gone," Robin remarked as they entered. Her nap in the helicopter had made her somewhat more energetic.

"You've seen too many bad action movies," Kyle said. "Things like that only happen in the metaphorical sense."

"We've seen so many other things that happen only in movies, I was thinking…"

"Anyone would think you wanted this place to collapse. Don't you want to find out what happened to Adam and Vanessa?"

"Of course I do. Although I could always do it the old fashioned way and look it up in a history book. That's where you found Vanessa in the first place, isn't it?"

"If you don't want to use the Animus again—"

"I do!" she said quickly, though she could tell he had been teasing her. He probably wanted to see what happened as much as she did.

"Not now, though," he said. "We're both too tired. I'm not sure how long this will take, and your mind needs to be rested to sustain the link with the machine."

Robin wanted to argue, but she couldn't resist his logic. They had waited this long to find out what happened, and now there was no one breathing down their necks.

Kyle insisted on sleeping with his head on the conference table in the main room while Robin slept on her bed, despite Robin's objections that there was no need for him to be uncomfortable. When she grew tired of arguing, she threw her pillow at him and curled up on her bed without it. She half expected him to throw it back at her, but instead she heard his footsteps retreating. Evidently he had decided to give up at winning half the battle.

He was already up and at his computer by the time she came out of her room the next day.

"How long?" Robin asked with a yawn.

"Good morning," he greeted her. "Surprisingly, we both slept almost twenty hours. You beat me by half an hour. I had someone bring in breakfast, if you're hungry." He indicated the stack of pancakes on a plate on the table, along with butter and syrup. Another plate sticky with crumbs indicated he'd already eaten.

"Are these gluten-free?" she asked as she sat down and helped herself.

"No, actually."

She turned to stare at him. "No? But…"

"I'm trying an experiment. The touch of the Fountain's water is supposed to cure any ailment as well as injury. I wanted to see if it worked on genetic disorders as well. So far so good, but then, it hasn't been very long." He laughed at her expression. "Don't worry, I haven't poisoned myself. Even if the Fountain hasn't worked, I'll just get tired and maybe feel some intestinal pain. I'll know whether it worked or not. Trust me."

"All right. I guess you know what you're doing." Robin turned to her own pancakes. When she had finished, she got up and walked over to the Animus. Kyle, anticipating her, was already there to help her up.

"Ready?" he asked, going back behind his computer screen. Robin nodded. As soon as the dome had closed over her head, she felt a deep sorrow begin to creep over her.

This must be what it would have felt like if Kyle had died out there yesterday in that helicopter, was her final thought before her mind slipped into Vanessa's.

-0-0-0-

Vanessa, 1767

"Adam, Adam…" Vanessa rubbed his webbed hand against her cheek. Her eyes burned, but she had nothing left inside her to cry. She was no longer aware of anything but how still he was. "My fault…all my fault."

Carefully, she laid his hand down on his chest and lifted his heavy head into her lap. She stroked his cheek with her fingers, not minding the roughness of the skin. "Adam, my beloved. Please come back. I promise…I will never leave you again. Please."

His mouth was slightly open, exposing the ugly points of his teeth, but she was past caring. Gently, she leaned down and fulfilled his only request to her. The one that had driven them apart and would now bring them together for the first and final time. She kissed him.

She had expected to at least feel some pain on her lips from his teeth, but did not. Distantly, she heard Edward gasp. Only a small part of her mind noticed either of these things. She did notice, with all her being, when Adam took a small breath.

She leaned back immediately. "Oh, Adam—" she began joyfully, and then stopped.

He was lying precisely where Adam had been; she had just kissed him, but it was not Adam. The man's head, which was on her lap, was covered with curly brown hair that spilled onto her soaked dress. His skin was not sickly white, but as tan as any European's who lived a life in the islands. He had eyebrows, for Heaven's sake. She could only stare.

His eyes blinked open; they were a deep, clear green without a trace of blank emptiness. They flickered around the room and then focused on her face. "Vanessa?" he whispered. His eyebrows knitted when she did not respond. "What's the matter?" When he spoke, she could see his teeth: ever so slightly uneven in the front and far from perfect, but certainly not razor-sharp. The voice was familiar, however, down to its slight French accent.

"You…you… Adam?" she stumbled.

"Yes?" He sat up slowly, clearly unnerved by her strange behavior. "How did you get here? Are you all right?" When he moved, she got a better chance to study his face. This was enough for her to find features she recognized: sculpted cheekbones and a strong French nose. All that had been left of Adam's human face, masked as the Leviathan's animal features had overtaken his own. She was looking at his true face, for the first time.

"You're…" She held up a hand and wriggled her fingers to indicate that he should look at his.

His puzzled expression became one of shock as he looked at first one no-longer-webbed hand and then the other. He ran a hand over his face, pausing to press one thumb gently against a tooth to test its sharpness. Then he threaded fingers through his hair, rubbing some of the curled locks between thumb and forefinger.

He looked at her. "Is this a dream?"

Slowly, she reached forward and replaced his hand on the lock of hair he had just been fingering. "Is it possible to be in the same dream?" she asked.

Someone cleared his throat. Vanessa and Adam jumped guiltily apart and turned to Edward. He raised his eyebrows at his daughter, and she could feel herself flushing. She had forgotten his presence entirely. "Papa…you remember Adam?"

"I don't believe we were ever properly introduced," Edward said, with laudable dignity. "But if we are foregoing all propriety, then perhaps introductions are unnecessary as well."

Vanessa was the first to realize what Edward was hinting at. Adam had transformed from his shark shape when he had been wounded, which meant that even now that he was fully human he was still not wearing any clothing. So used to seeing him without a stitch on, Vanessa had failed to notice. "Adam, perhaps you should don your—" she began.

"Ah!" he cried, plunging one hand onto the small underwater ledge in the Fountain with one hand while attempting to cover himself with the other. Vanessa and Edward politely turned their faces away, though it seemed a useless gesture after spending several minutes staring at him, albeit not due to his lack of clothing.

There was some splashing, and then a few soft dripping sounds. Adam made a small, startled noise, presumably at the unexpected chill of soaked cloth on human skin. "All right. I am decent," he said.

He was sitting with legs crossed when Vanessa turned back to him, running the tip of one finger over his palm as if he had never seen it before. "I still can't believe it is real," he said in an awed voice. "How did it happen?"

"I haven't any idea," Vanessa said. She took the hand his finger had been tracing. "We brought you in here and put the water on your wound. You healed, but then you didn't come round. I thought you were…"

"I cannot remember." He paused, and put his free hand on top of hers. "The last thing I recall is seeing you at the ship's rail, and then a terrible pain in my side. But I must have been moments from leaving this world. The Fountain, powerful as it is, cannot restore the dead to life."

Vanessa bowed her head. "I am so sorry, Adam. I missed you every minute after I left. And then to watch you nearly die before my eyes, without ever having the chance to tell you…"

"That's it!" Edward exclaimed. Both Vanessa and Adam stared at him. The look of excitement he wore was akin to the one often on his face when he had realized what would make an invention work.

"What?" asked Vanessa.

"Don't you see, daughter? To break the pact with Calypso, Adam had to find something to tie him to the mortal world with an unshakable bond. He found it in you, and the pact was broken when you promised never to leave him again and meant it with all your heart."

Adam turned to look at Vanessa. The sparkle of hope in his startling green eyes made her heart race. "Is this true?"

"She kissed you as well," Edward added helpfully.

"Papa!" Vanessa flushed. She could hardly glance at Adam, though he still held her hand in his; her face felt as though it were on fire and she could feel the sweat on her palm. "I…"

Through her tangled hair she saw Adam's gentle smile. "I will spare us both the embarrassment of asking for another for me to remember. But…perhaps some other time?"

"Oh, yes, of course!" Vanessa exclaimed, though her face felt even hotter and she heard Edward chuckle.

Adam stood, drawing her to her feet with him. The moment he let go of her hand she impulsively flung her arms around him. She felt him stiffen beneath her for a moment, unused to the contact, but then he slowly put his own arms around her. He leaned down and whispered, "I thought I could learn to live without you. I thought, once you were gone, things would return to the way they were before. It took me a mere ten seconds after your ship was off the horizon to realize what a fool I'd been."

"And then every waking moment ached," she whispered back. "Adam, I did mean it when I said I would never leave you again."

He tilted her chin with one finger. "Did you? Even when you knew I was a monster trapped here for eternity?"

"You were never a monster, and it took me far too long to realize it." It occurred to her that, with their faces so close, it was silly to wait for a later time because of a small thing like embarrassment at her father's presence. She stretched up on her toes and kissed Adam. This time he did not stiffen; nor did he seem particularly surprised. His hands slid up to cup the back of her head. The kiss was everything she had come to expect from Adam: gentleness backed by a careful, almost hesitant strength. It was like no kiss she had experienced before. There was nothing forceful or hurried about it. They had all the time in the world.

Edward looked smug when they finally drew apart. "It seems we are throwing propriety out the window. May I presume this means I am to gain a son-in-law in the near future?" Vanessa and Adam glanced at one another; it was Adam who nodded. Edward smiled. "Excellent. I am glad to see your intentions are honorable towards my daughter. I give the pair of you my full permission and blessing." He glanced around. "Though I never imagined it would be under such circumstances. Come; we should return to the ship before Captain Sparrow decides to sail without us."

"Captain Sparrow?" Adam repeated. "Is he in command of that vessel that attacked me?"

"No!" Vanessa exclaimed, at the same time her father said, "Yes."

"At the moment," Edward elaborated, taking pity on Adam's confusion. "He assumed command after you were wounded."

"Who was in command?" Adam wanted to know.

"Captain Kerry. The same man who captained the ship that brought us to the Caribbean in the first place. He found us in Port Royal, kidnapped us, and forced us to come back here to search for the Fountain." Vanessa paused. "He wanted to use me against you. When I refused to give him information about you, he tied us to the mast."

Adam's green eyes clouded. "If I had sunk that ship…"

"You didn't. It no longer matters," Vanessa said quickly. "We should get back. I'm grateful to Captain Sparrow for all his help, but I still do not trust him."

"Good to hear, miss mouse. A lovely creature such as yourself should never trust a pirate," came Jack's voice from the cave entrance.

"What are you doing here? And who is commanding the ship?" Vanessa demanded.

Sparrow grinned. "Opportune moment, love, just like I told you." Vanessa just waited. "Seems an old mate of mine managed to get herself in a bit of a bind, along with most of the crew, in owing a debt of sorts to your charming Captain Kerry. While she wasn't as pleased to see me as one would hope, considering the circumstances," here Sparrow paused to rub his chin ruefully, "she has promised not to leave without us. So—"

Adam leaned down to whisper in Vanessa's ear. "Is there a point to this?"

"Eventually," Vanessa sighed.

Sparrow was still talking. "—ship's in good hands till I get back. Just got one thing to take care of and we'll be on our way." He started walking towards the Fountain, reaching into a pouch on his belt as he went.

"What are you doing?" Vanessa asked.

"Thought it was quite obvious, mousey. The charts showing the way here have always been mine, savvy?"

Vanessa crossed her arms. "I didn't know you had ambitions for immortality."

"The immortal Captain Sparrow. Always liked the sound of that." Sparrow shrugged. "But there's always a catch, especially with the Sea Goddess, and I'm not one for gills. But Calypso owes a friend of mine a favor, and she'll pay it readily enough."

"A friend?" Adam repeated. He sounded surprised. Vanessa remembered him saying once that he had never seen a man come here for the sake of another.

"Don't sound so—" Sparrow stopped, and examined Adam as if seeing him for the first time. "Oh, hallo, beastie. Didn't recognize you without the fins. Well, what says Calypso? Will she repay her debt or are you going to do something stupid?"

"Until five minutes ago I would have been obligated to do so, but it appears that I no longer speak for her." Adam smiled at Vanessa and took her hand.

It took Sparrow only a few seconds to process this. "Ah. Well then, if you three'll excuse me…" He pulled a small brown bottle from his belt that looked more suited to holding liquor than magical water. Vanessa looked with a small amount of alarm at Adam, but he did not seem inclined to say anything further. It seemed he had decided if the Sea Goddess did not want Jack Sparrow to have the water, she would have to stop the pirate herself. To Vanessa's surprise and intense relief, nothing supernatural happened as Sparrow drew the water into his bottle, corked it, and tucked it safely back into his belt. He turned to the other three with a grin. "All hands to the boats!"

Adam and Vanessa exchanged one last glance, then left the Fountain cave after Jack. Edward brought up the rear. Vanessa noticed that Adam did not look back. She herself kept looking around nervously as they made their way through the woods. The whole island felt far less friendly than it had at any time during her several-week stay. She could only guess that they were being encouraged to leave, now that there was no Leviathan to give them his goodwill to be there. All things considered, she was glad to reach the shore and find the two small ship's boats waiting for them.

In order to spare their energy, it seemed logical to pair off. Surprisingly, Edward dragged Adam to one of the boats. Apparently he wanted a private word with his future son-in-law, and trusted Jack Sparrow enough not to do anything dishonorable to his daughter in the meantime. Vanessa thought this trust was probably misplaced, but she didn't argue. She had a few questions for Jack in the meantime. Maybe if she kept him talking he wouldn't have time to do something…untrustworthy.

"Who is this person you plan to take the water to?" she asked as soon as they were out of the worst breakers. "Why does he need it?"

"She," corrected Sparrow.

"You seem to have quite a few lady friends," Vanessa observed.

"That I do," Jack agreed with a provocative grin. "However, the woman into whose personal business you're now prying is of the married persuasion."

That was enough to shut Vanessa up for a few minutes. When they were about halfway to the Siren Princess, she asked, "Why does she have need of water from the Fountain of Youth? Is she dying?"

"Aren't we all, love?" Now Sparrow was being deliberately vague and enjoying her frustration.

"Is she dying of some ailment, or a wound?"

"The better question is who is not dying." He let her puzzle over this for a few more minutes. Eventually, he relented a little. "Let's just say you and the beastie are lucky. Tia's never been one for loopholes. A contract with her is a lifelong one."

"Tia?"

"One of a few names I've known the Sea Goddess by over the years." Sparrow's shrug was mostly hidden in a pull of the oars. Vanessa didn't feel any closer to discovering why this married friend of the Captain's needed to be eternally young based on his frustrating hints. Now that she thought about it, however, Adam had once mentioned others served his mistress, under similar terms. He had spoken about the Flying Dutchman…

"Is the captain of the Flying Dutchman immortal?" she asked.

"Very good, little Mouse. Need I give away any more secrets?" Vanessa shook her head. It was fairly obvious, now that it had all come together in her mind. Sparrow must somehow be acquainted with the apparently mortal wife of the Flying Dutchman's captain. The water was for her.

Sparrow was unusually quiet for the rest of the trip. Vanessa used the time to ponder what she had just learned. Compared to the situation of this friend of Sparrow's, she and Adam had gotten off lightly. She hadn't had to give up her own mortality to be with him. Though she would have done it, had that been the only choice.

Adam and Edward had already reached the Siren Princess by the time Vanessa's boat arrived. She watched the two of them climb the rope ladder that had been dropped down the side. Even from a distance there was something sinuous about the way Adam moved with the rocking of the ship that reminded her very strongly of a fish. She wondered if he would lose that over time.

She climbed up first when she and Jack Sparrow pulled up against the ship themselves. Adam was there at the top to take her hand. Most of the visible crew were huddled together on deck, staring with wide eyes. Vanessa was willing to wager they were as superstitious as Captain White's crew.

A dark-skinned woman of about thirty years stood between the newly boarded four and the rest of the crew. She was dressed in a simple rough-spun skirt and tunic, with a kerchief kept her long, flowing hair from her face. She crossed her arms.

"I see you found them, Captain Sparrow."

"So I did, Annamaria. And you kept things all ship-shape while I was gone. Knew I left her in good hands."

The woman called Annamaria smiled, but other than that did not seem much affected by the flattery. "It wasn't that difficult. Most of the crew had been going to mutiny within the next few days as it was."

"What about the ones loyal to Kerry?" Edward wanted to know.

"They were easy enough to pick out." Annamaria shrugged, her lips twisting in a slightly smug expression. "The biggest, dumbest, ugliest ones." The rest of the crew chuckled behind her. "We were going to put them in the brig, but it seems to have been almost destroyed in the fight with the unnatural shark. So I had some of the men build a new one. They should be almost done now. We can cast off whenever you like, Cap'n."

"And Kerry?" Vanessa found herself asking. She was almost afraid to hear the answer, either way.

"Down below. He ain't dead, but he's not much longer for this world." Annamaria's eyes went to Jack. "We should expect a visit from the Dutchman sometime on the voyage."

"Right. Cast off, then. Let's give ol' Captain Turner a bit of a chase. Just for old times' sake."

Annamaria rolled her eyes. "This bucket of tar ain't the Pearl, Jack Sparrow. He'll catch us easy." She turned to the crew, and bellowed, "Hoist anchor! Ready the sails!" The crew jumped to obey, though they gave Adam especially a wide berth. Jack hopped up the forecastle to what seemed his most comfortable place: at the wheel. Unusual for a captain; they tended to let one of the mates steer for them, but then Sparrow was a pirate and unlikely to be conventional about anything.

Edward ushered the younger pair into the forecastle. "Best we keep out of the way and let the crew do their work."

It took some searching, but they finally found the passengers' cabins. There were three of them, so each of the group picked a door and opened it. Unfortunately for Vanessa, the one she chose was already occupied by the inert and bandaged form of Captain Kerry. She backed away with a small shriek, which not only brought Adam and Edward peering into the room to see what had troubled her but seemed to rouse Kerry somewhat. His eyes opened and rolled towards the door. He made a gargled noise that sounded like "You."

Not certain what made her do it, Vanessa stepped into the room. "Yes, it is us."

"Nessie—" Edward started.

"How likely do you think it is that Jack Sparrow could be persuaded to give up his vial of Fountain water to save him?" she turned to whisper, hoping Kerry couldn't hear her.

"Not likely," Edward and Adam said at the same moment.

"I don't think it likely, either. That being the case, not even someone like this deserves to die alone. It wouldn't be right."

There was a slight pause. Adam said, "I will see if I can find you a chair or a stool."

"Thank you."

A stool was found, and brought. Edward did not seem inclined to participate in the vigil and slipped away to the galley, promising to bring something back for all of them—even Kerry, though odds seemed low he would be able to take even water. Adam settled on the floor next to Vanessa's stool with his back against the berth where Kerry lay. The former Leviathan took Vanessa's hand in one of his and stroked it in a reassuring manner. For his part, Kerry's eyes had closed again and his breathing had become more labored. It was apparent from the placement of the bandages Jack Sparrow's shot had hit him in the chest. Even knowing he would have felt little remorse at sending herself and the two men she loved most to the grave, Vanessa could not help feeling a bit of pity for him.

Little changed in the next few hours. Edward came and went. Not even the smell of broth brought Kerry around again, and Vanessa was grateful for Adam's silent support. Every time she looked at him, she was amazed that he was there, sitting so calmly, free at last because of their devotion to one another. She had never dreamed she could feel so happy about the future.

It was night when Kerry took a turn for the worse. Vanessa had climbed off her stool and was curled up in the circle of Adam's arm when they were both roused by someone straining for a last gulp of air. In moments, the pair were on their feet.

An eerie sight met their eyes. It was nearly pitch black in the cabin; almost no moonlight was making its way through the tiny porthole. The only things that could be seen where the whites of the dying man's eyes. His choking noises seemed almost deafening in the absence of sight.

An icy hand gripped Vanessa's wrist, and she bit back a cry. Adam must have felt her shudder of surprise and fear because his arm tightened around her shoulder in a protective manner. Kerry managed to gasp out a few last sounds before falling limply back onto the berth. Shuddering, Vanessa pried his fingers from her wrist and laid his hands gently onto his breast. Then she turned to look at the outline of Adam's face, floating above her in the darkness.

"Did it sound as if he said…'my wife, son?'" she asked tentatively.

"Indeed," Adam agreed. From what she could see, his expression was troubled.

"He was married?" Vanessa could not suppress another shudder. This made his interest in her even more revolting. Still… "I wonder if he wanted us to find them?"

"We should worry about this later," Adam said soothingly. "Now, let us go and find your father and alert someone on duty."

-0-0-

Blue mist is slightly blinding after the near-pitch blackness. It swirls peacefully, and eventually the characters concealed within it come into better focus.

"Fast-forwarding memory to a more recent one."

Author's Note: Another super-long one for you. I wrote the beginning of the Vanessa section the moment I finished chapter 21 so that when I got back to Vanessa and Adam it segwayed perfectly. I was also eager to write that transformation scene and the reaction to it. The rest of this chapter was built around that.

A few notes about the Pirates of the Caribbean stuff. I missed Annamaria from Black Pearl in the Dead Man and World's End; she actually seemed to be someone who could keep Jack in line. So I had her return for a brief cameo. Some of you who bought At World's End may want to remind me that according to some of the commentary, Will should be freed from captainship of the Dutchman if Elizabeth stays faithful to him for the first ten years. I would like to think that this is actually the case and they will eventually get their happily-ever-after, but as this is contradicted within the movie itself I unfortunately have to look for other alternatives in my romantic mind to keep them together. I have been planning for Jack to take water from the Fountain to Elizabeth ever since I introduced him into the story. It's my way of at least attempting to fix what I found to be an unsatisfactory ending to At World's End. Some of you may disagree, and that's fine. I'm leaving it up to Elizabeth (and your imaginations) whether she chooses to drink the water or not, and when.

The next chapter is the final one, and will hopefully (unless I've forgotten something) wrap everything up. It's mostly written at the moment except for the very end, so expect it soon!

Thanks, as always, go to Cywyllog for editing my stunted Jack-speak into something believable. She somehow manages to take what's in my head and make it sound like Jack Sparrow. Lucky for her, this is the last time.

SamoaPhoenix9