Lady Penelope + Drowning
An AU where the bros are elemental spirits!
There were rumours, in these parts. Ancient stories from long ago that had been passed down from generation to generation. About five spirits who were the embodiment of the worldly elements.
A spirit of Air, Earth, Fire and Water, and a fifth element that was a combination of them all.
They supposedly helped people, saved lives. They used their powers over the elements to cast rain and sunshine, to build mountains and grow crops.
Penelope didn't believe in any such rumours. She would only believe they were true if she had seen proof, and seeing as nobody had any proof of elemental beings, she wasn't willing to put her head out on the line to defend these children's stories.
Her mother had claimed they were real. That it was the work of the water spirit that had stopped the drought that threatened to claim the livelihood of the local farms, that it was the air spirit who helped the birds migrate each year.
Penelope claimed that it was just nature.
Little did she know that these spirits were nature.
She was a stubborn woman, she could blame both her parents for that, so she was confident she would never change her mind on the matter. As long as there was no proof, there was nothing to tell her that it was nothing more than Mother Nature that caused the flowers to bloom every spring.
Penelope didn't think her opinion would ever change, until it did.
It was during a week long holiday across the North Atlantic Ocean, in her private yacht FAB 2. She had taken the time off to recuperate after a rather stressful few months.
It wasn't her idea; rather it was her chauffeur's. She wanted to dismiss the idea, say that she didn't need the time off, but it wasn't just her she had to think about. Parker had been working just as hard as she had, and if she didn't deserve the break, he at least did.
On one of her last nights out on the sea before they reached home again, she had decided to head out onto the deck and enjoy the peace of the waves for a bit.
She sat on a chair with comfy pillows and looked up at the dark sky.
Out here, on the water, it was so clear. The light of the moon rained down on her, and Penelope couldn't help but wonder, that if the spirits were true, which one was responsible for the stars.
After she had taken in all the constellations that could be seen from this part of the world, her eyes eventually closed. She took in the smell of the salt and the sound of the water lapping against the boat, and tried not to let the way the ship rocked back and forth lull her to sleep.
Her eyes bolted open as the boat jolted suddenly. She sat up straighter and looked around to see what had happened.
From her spot in her chair, she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary, so she got up and made her way over to the railing that looked over the sea.
When Penelope looked down over the railing, she saw what the problem was. The ship had hit some rocks, not big enough to damage the boat, but big enough to still cause a problem.
She wondered why their scanners hadn't picked them up on the radar so they could have avoided hitting the rocks, but nevertheless it had happened, and now they needed to steer away before they reached any bigger ones.
Penelope reached into her pocket for her compact to contact Parker, who was somewhere on the ship, but before she could hit the call button, the boat abruptly lurched again as it crashed into a bigger rock.
Penelope tried to keep hold of the railing in front of her, but the boat tipped too much and she suddenly felt herself being thrown from the boat.
Her back smacked against the surface of the water and the air was immediately knocked out of her lungs. She tried to suck more air in, but she was already under and just chocked on water.
She was drowning. She was going to die. She needed to fight this, to push herself back up to the surface, but she couldn't tell which way was up and she just seemed to be getting deeper with every move she made.
Everything was slipping away. When she could finally see the surface, it was too far. There was a light slipping into the water, but she was just sinking into the darkness.
Maybe it was a trick of her mind as it tried to fight one final moment for its much needed oxygen, but she saw something. Something that moved across her vision.
She thought it could be a fish, coming to feast on what she would leave behind, but no. It looked too...human.
It was definitely a person, a shadowy one at that, but there was no doubt about it when it got closer. There was a chance it was Parker, who had realised what had happened and had come to save her, but then Penelope could sight of their eyes.
They were nothing like Parker's sky blue ones. These were brown and looked like pebbles she would find on a beach back in England.
Those eyes were the last things she saw.
Penelope woke up coughing. Water splashed over her chin and she turned to her side and waited for her lungs to stop burning.
When she had finally caught her breath, she sat up and looked around.
She was back on the deck. It was covered in water, but there was no sign of anybody around.
"M'lady!"
Penelope turned to find Parker running across the deck. He fell down in his knees when he reached her side.
"What happened?"
"Parker, did you see another person around?" She quickly asked her chauffeur, ignoring his question.
"No, M'lady," Parker was watching her in confusion after he also cast a look around the deck.
"So, you were the one who pulled me out of the water?" Penelope asked, finding it to be the only explanation.
"What? The water?" Parker's voice turned worried as he found out about her predicament. "No, M'lady. You were right here when I found you."
Penelope's gaze drifted back to the sea, barely acknowledging the towel that Parker draped over her shoulders. Her mind went back to those pebble-brown eyes, and she wondered just who they belonged to.
No matter who it was, she knew she wouldn't forget them any time soon, and she would do anything to see them again.