Wow this chapter was hard to write. But there's still more to come so don't worry.
After I finish up At World's End I'm going to be spending a lot of time rewriting and editing the first two sections of this fic, meaning that it'll take a while before we see the beginning of the first of my original plots with the Swann sisters. As always, reviews/subs/favs are appreciated and thanks again for sticking with this fic for so long.
It took one week to sail from Shipwreck City to the outskirts of Port Royal. During that time Elizabeth and Will spent their time on the Flying Dutchman enjoying their newlywed bliss for what time they had. After all, it wasn't as if they would be seeing each other for the next ten years, and Will was going to places that Elizabeth couldn't follow. Yet she still made time to come over to the Black Pearl and see her sisters, especially Lydia and Alice. It was no secret to Alice that she would never see her or Kitty again after they returned to Port Royal. Lydia wouldn't be completely absent from her life, but the times they could see each other would be sparse because of the grudge between their partners that no amount of time could ever mend.
It took nearly five days for Alice to build the strength to get out of her bed and walk around the deck for a few hours a day. It was the biggest relief to finally be able to see the glittering sea and feel the warmth of the sun's rays. She wished they could always sail like this; Barbossa and Jack having their spats, Lydia separating them with columns of seawater, Kitty playing the fiddle to keep the crew entertained, Norrington of all people watching over Connor when everyone else had duties to attend to...
It felt ideal. It felt perfect.
But Alice knew it wasn't real. She knew that this idealism that she'd grown fond of would end this in less than an hour when they finally reached Port Royal. Kitty, Norrington, and Elizabeth would return home forever. Lydia would settle affairs and come back to Tortuga, but eventually, she and Barbossa would leave for their own adventures. Alice had never expected to see her sisters again when she first ran off with Jack over three years ago, but now that she had them back in her life... she didn't want to let go. She didn't appreciate the time she had with her father, and she always regretted it. She didn't want to waste what time she had left with her sisters.
She wished she could keep her sisters with her forever on the Pearl, just how they were right now, but she knew that was selfish thinking. Kitty had a son to go back to and a husband who could never live his life as a pirate. Elizabeth was done with her adventures and had a new life to build. Lydia had her own loose ends to tie up and her own experiences to begin with her future husband. And Alice herself had a daughter to care for and a lost limb she needed to come to terms with.
She stood on the deck of the ship, staring out into the ocean and looking at Port Royal off in the distance. It felt so hard to believe that three years ago this was her home. Three years ago she was playing jokes on her sisters, she was rolling her eyes at Lydia's timid nature, she was teasing Elizabeth about her feelings for Will Turner and doing the same with Kitty about James Norrington. Her father was scolding her and telling her to grow up and asking her why she couldn't be like her sisters. She would argue back and then run off to docks and spend time with her best friend, Mariah. She didn't even know how Mariah was doing or if she finally married and had a child.
So much had happened in three years. She became a feared pirate and a mother. She was the lover of the infamous Jack Sparrow, an adventurer in her own right, a notorious woman of the sea. She was an amputee who had yet to come to terms with her new disability, and she was significantly more mature than she was at sixteen. Was she still a brash and reckless woman? Of course. She still had an unquenchable thirst for adventure and a fire in her very soul that could never be put out. But she thought before she acted now. Even if she didn't think that long, she still thought.
Elizabeth was no longer a proper woman who would put aside her happiness for the sake of propriety. Kitty was no longer the delicate little songbird who was content to be ignorant to the world and her own surroundings. Lydia was no longer a scared mouse who feared the sound of her own voice. The four Swann sisters had grown and changed so much over the last three years, and Alice wished they could continue to watch each other change and grow and become stronger with each passing day. Even if this chapter of their lives was coming to an end, Alice didn't doubt that they'd create their own legacies in the years to come. The Swanns of the seas would go down in pirate history, perhaps even world history.
Kitty and Elizabeth would make themselves influential in some way, she had no doubt. Lydia already had men quake in their boots at the mere sight of her. Alice almost didn't want to imagine how powerful her eldest sister was capable of becoming, especially with a man like Hector Barbossa at her side. As for Alice herself, she'd continue to uphold her infamous reputation and keep Jack in check whenever he had any stupid ideas, which there most definitely be. Jack would always be searching for new adventures, new stories, new treasures, new enemies...
It was never a boring life and Alice relished it. She'd, of course, also do her damnedest to make sure Connor was always safe and learned how to be as resilient and independent as every other Swann woman. She'd grow up hearing the stories of her aunts and aspire to be like them. Of that, Alice was absolutely certain. Connor would be the type of girl who could shoot any man who crossed her and have the ingenuity of her father when it came to escaping slippery situations. She would be loved and feared and respected, and she would be a notorious pirate, just like her mother and father.
"What's on yer mind, shrimp?"
Alice glanced over at saw Barbossa standing next to her, arms crossed with a smirk across his face. She let out a deep breath and let out a smile.
"Three years," Alice said. "A lot's happened. A lot's changed."
"Aye," Barbossa replied softly. "Ne'er could've imagined everything that happened after the night I attacked here. Not me death, not meeting me wife," he let out a snort and said, "Not meeting a feisty little shrimp who would make the absolute wrong choice in naming me the godfather of her child." Alice let out a laugh and felt herself earnestly smile for the first time in awhile. "I don't like the idea of Lydia going back, even if it is to tie up loose ends."
"I know," Alice said. "I don't like the idea of any of them leaving."
"It's unavoidable, though. You know that." Both Barbossa and Alice turned around to see Lydia approaching them. She wrapped her arms around Barbossa's middle and rested her head on the back of his shoulder. "I'll be in Tortuga before you know it."
"One month," he murmured. "If ye aren't there in a month I'm sacking Port Royal again." Lydia let out a huff and let go of him.
"Please don't," she said. "I'll be there in a month, one way or another." Alice let out a chuckle and rested her right arm on the rail.
"I don't think you could stop him," Alice said.
"She's right, y'know," Barbossa said. "You couldn't." Lydia rolled her eyes and pursed her lips.
"It was worth a try, at least," Lydia said, stepping in between the two of them. She let out a sigh as she looked out across the sea, the faint outline of Port Royal in the distance. "Can I have a moment alone with Alice?" Barbossa didn't say anything. He just pressed a kiss to the side of her head and walked off, most likely to make sure people were actually doing their jobs. Lydia turned to Alice and immediately embraced her in a tight hug. Alice hugged her just as tightly, knowing that she wasn't going to see Lydia for quite some time. "I'm going to miss us all being together."
"Me too," Alice whispered back. Suddenly she felt another set of arms wrap themselves around her. Alice looked over to the side and saw none other than Kitty standing there.
"I had to join in the sister hug," Kitty said.
"I'd hug both of you, but seeing how I have only have one arm..." Alice let out a laugh and rested her head on Kitty's shoulder.
"Can I join in?" All three sisters looked up and saw Elizabeth tentatively standing there. Alice wasn't going to lie to herself; she was definitely still infuriated by the role Elizabeth played in Jack's death. At the same time, though, life was too short for grudges. Seeing her father sail away into the afterlife taught her that, and the last thing Alice wanted was to regret not making amends when she could. Alice nodded her head and smiled at Elizabeth.
"Get over here," Alice said. Elizabeth almost immediately rushed up to them, and the four sisters were embracing each other for what they knew would most likely be the last time. "I love you. All of you." She wasn't sure who started crying first, and she wasn't sure it mattered. It felt as if the four of them all started crying and telling each other that they loved them at the same time. Time was passing by too fast and not at all. Alice felt herself get flooded with childhood memories with her sisters; every fight, every hug, every laugh, every tear, every smile...
"Promise me you'll write?" Kitty asked, her voice rough from their crying.
"I'll try," Alice said. "I'll send letters whenever we dock."
"As will I," Lydia said, her grip on her sisters tightening. "Write to us in Tortuga. We'll always end up in Tortuga at some point." Alice let out a smile nodded. Maybe she and Lydia would cross paths in Tortuga in the years to come. She wasn't entirely sure what she and Barbossa even planned on doing after they married. She didn't doubt Barbossa would once again try to commandeer the Black Pearl, but Alice would never let him. That ship was Jack's and would always be Jack's. No amount of fondness for Barbossa would change that for Alice.
She suddenly heard a cough from behind them. The four sisters separated just enough to meet the eyes of Gibbs and Norrington. Alice's eyes darted to the dingy that hung in the air behind them, ready to be lowered into the water. It was time... Alice didn't want it to be time. She wanted more time with her sisters, but she knew this was unavoidable. It was time for them to go back to Port Royal, whether they were ready or not. It was time for this part of their lives to come to an end. It was time for Kitty to return to her family, Elizabeth to start hers with Will, and for Lydia to get her affairs in order. Yet it wasn't an ending, not truly. It was a new beginning for all four them, but a beginning without each other.
"Your chariot awaits, your Highness," Gibbs said. Elizabeth looked over at the boat and let out a deep breath. Alice felt Lydia's arms tense as she looked at the boat. Gibbs' smile fell as he said, "The oars are inside." The four sisters parted and descended the stairs to the main deck. The entire crew was lined up to give them their farewells. Alice almost immediately made her way to Jack, who was holding Connor in his arms. Alice smiled down at her daughter, who was cooing at her surroundings.
Elizabeth stopped in front of Barbossa, who merely smirked and said, "Mrs Turner." Alice let out a soft smile. She caught the subtle homage to their meeting when Elizabeth claimed her last name to be Turner. Now it truly was Turner. Funny how everything seemed to come full circle. She moved on, giving small acknowledgements to everyone on the crew she'd journeyed with over the past three years. Kitty followed closely behind her.
"Take care of Lydia," she said to Barbossa softly.
"Always," he replied. "I wish ye well, Mrs Norrington." Both Kitty and Norrington gave him a final nod of the head and followed Elizabeth.
Then came Lydia. Jack the Monkey seemed to immediately understand that Barbossa's shoulder wasn't the place to be and leap out of the way. Alice knew Barbossa to be a man who didn't do public displays of affection unless he was drunk off his ass. But in this case, she could understand why he immediately pulled Lydia into his arms and kissed her with a ferocity that made Alice smile. Lydia was just as fiercely embracing him, her arms draped over his shoulders and her body flush against him. His arms were wrapped around her so tightly that it was obvious he never wanted to let go of her. Alice watched as he took her hand in his and subtly slipped a gold and sapphire ring out of his pocket and onto her thumb. He laced their fingers together and broke their kiss, resting his head against hers.
"It may not be a proper ring, but it's what I can do," Barbossa said to her. Lydia laughed and held his face in her small, pale hands.
"It's perfect," she said, pressing a small kiss on his lips.
"One month," he said. "I'll be waiting for you at the Faithful Bride."
"I'll try to be there sooner," Lydia whispered. "I love you."
"And I you," he murmured back. "Come back to me, Lyddie."
"Always," she whispered. "Nothing will keep me from marrying you." Barbossa gave her one last long, lingering kiss before letting go of her. They held onto each other's hands for as long as they could before her hand slipped out of his own. Elizabeth stood in front of Jack and let out a smirk.
"I'm sorry, Jack," she said. "It would have never worked out between us." Jack let out a ghost of a laugh and smiled at her. Even Alice let out a laugh at that. Everything always kept coming full circle for them.
"Keep telling yourself that, darling," he said. "At least it's been working out with your sister."
"Mostly," Alice added with a smirk. "The whole knocking me up and dying thing put a bit of a damper on our relationship."
"Alice," Elizabeth said. "I... I want you to know that I'm sorry for how everything happened." Alice took a deep breath and place her hand on Elizabeth's shoulder.
"Look, I may still be mad about you killing Jack," she said. "But... But I don't want us parting on bad terms. I forgive you for what happened." Elizabeth hugged Alice tightly. "Now go have your one day with Will. I mean it in the best way when I say I hope I never see him again." Elizabeth laughed as she let go of Alice. Kitty almost immediately swooped in to give Alice a tight, final hug.
"Stay safe, little sister," Kitty said. Norrington approached her as soon as Kitty let go and cleared his throat.
"We may not have gotten along over the years, but somehow I'm going to miss you," he said. "I wish you all the best. You and Connor, both."
"Thank you," she said. She smirked and added, "Borington." He scoffed at the old, childish nickname and rolled his eyes.
"Still the immature one, I see," he said.
"Of course," Alice replied. "Good luck, Norrington. I hope you figure out what you want out of life."
"Oh, I'd say I have a fairly clear idea," he said with a smile, wrapping his arm around Kitty's waist. He glanced over at Jack and, with a tensed jaw, nodded at him. "Sparrow."
"Borington." Norrington didn't even deign a response to that, though Kitty let a small giggle escape her lips. They stepped to the side and finally allowed Lydia to approach Alice and Jack.
"Well, Jack, I hope we never end up trapped in eternal purgatory ever again," Lydia said. "It wasn't fun."
"Definitely not," he replied with a smirk. "But there could've been worse company. Too bad you're marrying my sworn enemy. We could've been good friends... or slightly more."
"Jack," Alice warned, seeing the slightly murderous look from Barbossa out of the corner of her eyes. "Remember, sisters are off-limits."
"I'm just teasing," he said. "I'll be seeing you in Tortuga then. No doubt Alice'll want to stay for the wedding."
"You're damn right I do," she said. Alice smiled and gave Lydia a one-armed hug. "Don't be long."
"I'll try not to," Lydia replied. She took a deep breath and looked at her three sisters. Alice stepped forward and took in the sight of her sisters one last time. This was it. After this moment, they were never going to all be in the same place at the same time. "No matter where we are or what we're doing, we're always sisters. We'll always have that bond. This isn't an ending... this is the start of a new part of our lives."
"I love you," Alice said with a sad smile. "All three of you. Come here, we need one last Swann sisters hug." The four sisters held onto each other so tightly, Alice's arm was starting to ache. She didn't care, though. She wanted to memorize the feeling of her sisters' hug. She tried to remember this feeling for the rest of her days. They finally let go and looked at the dinghy. She knew they couldn't put off their departure any longer. "Good luck. I'll send word when I can."
"You'd better," Kitty said with a smile. "And Little James will grow up hearing stories of his Aunt Alice, the most fearsome pirate in the Caribbean, and his Aunt Lydia, the powerful Nereid who can command maelstroms."
"And Connor will hear stories about the Swann sisters," Alice said. "She'll learn about how undead pirates kidnapped her aunts and set so many adventures into motion."
"Goodbye, Alice," Kitty said. "I love you." Norrington let out a smile and gave Alice one final nod before leading Kitty towards the dinghy. Elizabeth followed the two of them inside, telling Alice one final goodbye and 'I love you.' Lydia smirked and gave the ship one last, long glance before locking eyes with Barbossa.
"I'll meet you at Tortuga. This isn't goodbye, simply farewell," she said. She looked at Alice and said, "Keep him in line for me."
"I will," Alice said.
"I'm capable of keeping meself in line, y'know," Barbossa said, crossing his arms. "It's as if ye don't trust me."
"I love you, but there are certain things I'll never trust you with," Lydia said with a smirk. "Don't act like you wouldn't try to take the Pearl the moment Jack turns his back." Barbossa let out a huff and tensed his jaw. He knew she was right, and he hated it. Alice let out a laugh and gave Lydia a last, one-armed hug.
"I hope you get everything done you need," Alice said. "Maybe bring me some things from home if you can. I never got a chance to pack, after all."
"I will," Lydia said. She kissed Alice's cheek before turning around and climbing down into the dinghy. Alice didn't let herself cry again until she saw that small dinghy disappear into the shoreline. She felt Jack's arm wind around her waist as he led her into their cabin. Lydia was right, after all. They'd be sisters for all of time. Nothing could ever break their strong bond; not this adventure ending, and not the beginnings of their adventures to come. For now, it was time to leave Port Royal behind once and for all.
Tortuga awaited.