I have such a wonderful beta. I will be in Subter Astrui's eternal
debt after this story is finished. How I shall ever be able to repay her is
a mystery even to me.
Disclaimer: I own Addy and James. Everything use is property of Walt Disney INC. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Will stirred from the soft mattress and feather pillow his body and head had been resting on. His mouth was dry and his bones ached. He opened his eyes slowly and saw a pitcher of water on the table next to him. A small basket of fruit was also sitting next to it. He grabbed it and drank heartily. A moan came from next to him. Elizabeth awoke as well and accepted the cup that he handed to her.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"On a ship. Probably a merchant vessel," he replied, grabbing an apple.
"Where's Addy?" she asked, looking around.
He bent his head down and stared at the covers over his lap.
"No," she whispered, "It was a dream, a horrible nightmare. She's not gone. ADDY!"
She screamed her daughter's name as tears rolled down her face. Will pulled her close and held her as he held back tears of his own. A knock came from the door.
"Enter," he said, rubbing her shoulders gently.
A woman entered with another man right behind her. She had short brown hair that made her look boy-ish. Her uniform was that from the Royal Navy, much like Gillette's.
"I am Captain Katherine Moondust. We found you in the water about four leagues back and pulled you aboard. I hope that you are alright," she said.
Will smiled halfheartedly.
"I am William Turner. This is my wife, Elizabeth. Did you find any others?" he asked, praying silently.
"No, Mr. Turner. We only found you and your wife. I'm terribly sorry. May I ask where you were headed?" she replied, shaking her head.
"We were headed for Singapore with our daughter and two sailors. All of whom where lost at sea it seems. How far are you from Port Royal?"
"We are headed for Port Royal as of now. We will probably be there in about three weeks. You are just off the coast of Spain if you care to come up on deck."
"Thank you, Captain."
She bowed slightly and took her leave, pulling the door shut with a soft click. Elizabeth's sobs tapered off, and Will looked down and saw that his wife had fallen back into the clutches of slumber. He gently kissed her forehead and tucked her back into bed. He pulled the covers off of himself and saw that his shirt was little more than threads. He removed it and walked over to the porthole. He looked out and let his tears run down his face. The hole was showing the open sea, its blue-green water gently making the waves in the distance.
'Father, please protect her. I know she cannot be dead. She is a Turner, strong minded and strong at heart. Father, just let her be safe and free from all harm. Please,' Will prayed before he put his head in his heads and just cried.
All through the night, tears from both of Addy's parents gently hit the clothes they wore, the cold wooden floor, and the white sheets covering the bed.
~~~
A sudden lurch the next morning tossed Will onto the cold wooden floor. He groaned and pulled himself up. Another wave struck and he was thrown to the floor again.
"Bloody waves," he cursed.
A ray of morning sunlight showed through the window onto the floor where he lay. He pulled himself up once more and steadied himself against the ocean. He scanned the room. A changing screen was folded onto the wall with two strings hanging from it and a wooden peg for the person to tie them onto on the other end. A set of four drawers was set deep into the wall next to it.
He fumbled his way over and pulled the top one open. Numerous shirts were folded gently. He pulled a white shirt out and onto his tanned chest. He shut it and pulled the next one open. Three dresses were folded neatly inside of it. He closed it and opened the next. Petticoats, ribbons and corsets were set in it. He closed it calmly and pulled the last drawer open to find breeches. He selected a pair that looked to be his size and quickly changed.
He smiled at the feel of new clothes on his tattered body before pulling the third drawer open once more, selecting a black ribbon and tying his hair back.
"Don't want to have to mess with that," he muttered.
A chuckled came from behind him. He turned and saw Elizabeth's tear stained face awakening.
"And you say I'm too worried about my appearance," she stated, yawning after.
"There is a difference between not wanting to mess with something and caring too much about it," he replied.
He pulled several articles from the drawer and tossed them onto the bed before selecting the red dress from the drawer. He tossed that to the bed as well and shut the drawers.
"Why don't you get dressed then we can go have something to eat and maybe talk with the captain?"
Elizabeth looked up at the last words before smiling weakly.
"Yes, eat and a chat with the captain. Is he nice?"
Will smiled.
"She seems very nice."
"SHE?! How can a woman be a captain of a Royal Navy ship?"
"That's what I intend to find out."
"Oh. Help me?"
He smiled and kissed her check gently, moving slowly down her neck.
"Will, we need to get something to eat. Later dear heart, later."
He kissed her neck once more before helping her stand and change, lacing the back of her dress up. She fumbled with her hair for a moment, attempting to take the tangles from it before shrugging and tying it back like Will's.
"Now we match."
"Not quite. I'm not wearing a dress and don't plan on anytime soon."
She giggled and leaned on him for support as they headed for the door. He pulled it open and they guessed on the direction, emerging after a while onto the deck.
"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Turner, it's good to see you are looking better. Care for a bit of breakfast?" Captain Moondust asked from her spot at the helm.
"Yes, please Captain," Will said.
"Gibbs!" she shouted, another woman scampered up to the deck.
"Yes ma'am?"
"Hold the course, the Turner's and I are to have breakfast. Alert me if you have any problems."
"Yes Ma'am."
"'Follow me Mr..."
"Will is just fine, Captain."
"Very well, Will, Mrs. Turner..."
"Elizabeth is fine," Elizabeth supplied.
Katherine hesitated before starting again.
"All right, let's go eat, you two. Follow me."
She turned daintily on her heel and led them into her cabin. A large, bare table sat in the middle. Will led Elizabeth to a seat, helped her down before helping Katherine and sitting himself.
"So, Captain, May I ask how you became a captain of the Royal Navy?" Elizabeth inquired, sipping a glass of water a cabin boy had set before her.
"Ah, well first, Katherine is fine, no need for such formalities unless they are necessary. Second, this is not a ship of the Royal Navy. Yes, my ship is painted that way, but for good reason. Pirates will not attack a ship if they believe it is too heavily armed. They know that Royal ships are hard to beat. And the cannon holes do not all house cannons. They are merely there to scare pirates away."
"Oh, very clever," Will complimented.
"Thank you. It was my father's idea. That is how I became captain. After he died, everything was left to me. Instead of selling the ship off and attempting to become a lady and live on land, I hired a crew and became a merchant vessel. Many people are against having a woman as a captain, but I enjoy it."
"Your food, Ma'am." A girl entered the room, bowed, left and followed several others in with trays of food.
"Thank you, Rita. Could you have the cook start preparing bath water? I'm sure Mr and Mrs. Turner could use a bath after their adventure."
"Yes Ma'am."
"Thank you, Katherine," Elizabeth said.
"Not a problem, now let's eat. No need for crazy table manners. I'm hungry."
She selected several fruits and piled pancakes onto her plate before drowning them in syrup and beginning to eat. Will followed suit before tapping Elizabeth out of her staring who also began to eat.
After their meal, they talked about their lifestyle and their home.
A door opened. The girl that had taken over the helm stepped in.
"Yes, Ms. Gibbs?" Katherine asked.
"Cook says bath water is ready. They been set up in their cabin," she said.
"Thank you," Katherine replied.
"Yes, thank you," the couple complied, turning to the girl.
She bowed and shut the door as she left.
"Gibbs?" Will questioned, turning to face the captain once more.
"Yes. Mary Gibbs," she answered, "Wonderful sailor. I guess her father was a sailor of sorts as well. Her mother raised her on land. One of those your mum knew my mum's, mum's granddaughter's mum."
"Oh," he answered, trying to sort out the facts in his head.
Katherine laughed, rose from her chair and stretched.
"Well, I must get back to the helm. Call if you need anything."
"Thank you, Katherine," Elizabeth said, standing as well, "A bath does sound wonderful."
Katherine smiled and left the room. Will offered Elizabeth an arm and led her down to the cabin where the stewards had set a tub that looked to be a rather large barrel cut in half. However, it was full of steaming fresh water, and neither had any qualms with that.
"Will, there's only one tub," said Elizabeth, turning to look at her husband.
"You remember that time in Port Silver?" he asked, slowly smiling at her. He knew she wasn't ready for anything intimate, not so soon after the loss of their daughter.
"What, when I has sprained my ankle and you cared for me?"
"Exactly," he murmured. "Let me take care of you Elizabeth."
She sighed and let herself forget, if just for a moment, the heart wrenching pain she had to endure, and the loss of the joy in her life.
Please Review! Jack next chapter, PROMISE!
QueenofMercury
Disclaimer: I own Addy and James. Everything use is property of Walt Disney INC. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Will stirred from the soft mattress and feather pillow his body and head had been resting on. His mouth was dry and his bones ached. He opened his eyes slowly and saw a pitcher of water on the table next to him. A small basket of fruit was also sitting next to it. He grabbed it and drank heartily. A moan came from next to him. Elizabeth awoke as well and accepted the cup that he handed to her.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"On a ship. Probably a merchant vessel," he replied, grabbing an apple.
"Where's Addy?" she asked, looking around.
He bent his head down and stared at the covers over his lap.
"No," she whispered, "It was a dream, a horrible nightmare. She's not gone. ADDY!"
She screamed her daughter's name as tears rolled down her face. Will pulled her close and held her as he held back tears of his own. A knock came from the door.
"Enter," he said, rubbing her shoulders gently.
A woman entered with another man right behind her. She had short brown hair that made her look boy-ish. Her uniform was that from the Royal Navy, much like Gillette's.
"I am Captain Katherine Moondust. We found you in the water about four leagues back and pulled you aboard. I hope that you are alright," she said.
Will smiled halfheartedly.
"I am William Turner. This is my wife, Elizabeth. Did you find any others?" he asked, praying silently.
"No, Mr. Turner. We only found you and your wife. I'm terribly sorry. May I ask where you were headed?" she replied, shaking her head.
"We were headed for Singapore with our daughter and two sailors. All of whom where lost at sea it seems. How far are you from Port Royal?"
"We are headed for Port Royal as of now. We will probably be there in about three weeks. You are just off the coast of Spain if you care to come up on deck."
"Thank you, Captain."
She bowed slightly and took her leave, pulling the door shut with a soft click. Elizabeth's sobs tapered off, and Will looked down and saw that his wife had fallen back into the clutches of slumber. He gently kissed her forehead and tucked her back into bed. He pulled the covers off of himself and saw that his shirt was little more than threads. He removed it and walked over to the porthole. He looked out and let his tears run down his face. The hole was showing the open sea, its blue-green water gently making the waves in the distance.
'Father, please protect her. I know she cannot be dead. She is a Turner, strong minded and strong at heart. Father, just let her be safe and free from all harm. Please,' Will prayed before he put his head in his heads and just cried.
All through the night, tears from both of Addy's parents gently hit the clothes they wore, the cold wooden floor, and the white sheets covering the bed.
~~~
A sudden lurch the next morning tossed Will onto the cold wooden floor. He groaned and pulled himself up. Another wave struck and he was thrown to the floor again.
"Bloody waves," he cursed.
A ray of morning sunlight showed through the window onto the floor where he lay. He pulled himself up once more and steadied himself against the ocean. He scanned the room. A changing screen was folded onto the wall with two strings hanging from it and a wooden peg for the person to tie them onto on the other end. A set of four drawers was set deep into the wall next to it.
He fumbled his way over and pulled the top one open. Numerous shirts were folded gently. He pulled a white shirt out and onto his tanned chest. He shut it and pulled the next one open. Three dresses were folded neatly inside of it. He closed it and opened the next. Petticoats, ribbons and corsets were set in it. He closed it calmly and pulled the last drawer open to find breeches. He selected a pair that looked to be his size and quickly changed.
He smiled at the feel of new clothes on his tattered body before pulling the third drawer open once more, selecting a black ribbon and tying his hair back.
"Don't want to have to mess with that," he muttered.
A chuckled came from behind him. He turned and saw Elizabeth's tear stained face awakening.
"And you say I'm too worried about my appearance," she stated, yawning after.
"There is a difference between not wanting to mess with something and caring too much about it," he replied.
He pulled several articles from the drawer and tossed them onto the bed before selecting the red dress from the drawer. He tossed that to the bed as well and shut the drawers.
"Why don't you get dressed then we can go have something to eat and maybe talk with the captain?"
Elizabeth looked up at the last words before smiling weakly.
"Yes, eat and a chat with the captain. Is he nice?"
Will smiled.
"She seems very nice."
"SHE?! How can a woman be a captain of a Royal Navy ship?"
"That's what I intend to find out."
"Oh. Help me?"
He smiled and kissed her check gently, moving slowly down her neck.
"Will, we need to get something to eat. Later dear heart, later."
He kissed her neck once more before helping her stand and change, lacing the back of her dress up. She fumbled with her hair for a moment, attempting to take the tangles from it before shrugging and tying it back like Will's.
"Now we match."
"Not quite. I'm not wearing a dress and don't plan on anytime soon."
She giggled and leaned on him for support as they headed for the door. He pulled it open and they guessed on the direction, emerging after a while onto the deck.
"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Turner, it's good to see you are looking better. Care for a bit of breakfast?" Captain Moondust asked from her spot at the helm.
"Yes, please Captain," Will said.
"Gibbs!" she shouted, another woman scampered up to the deck.
"Yes ma'am?"
"Hold the course, the Turner's and I are to have breakfast. Alert me if you have any problems."
"Yes Ma'am."
"'Follow me Mr..."
"Will is just fine, Captain."
"Very well, Will, Mrs. Turner..."
"Elizabeth is fine," Elizabeth supplied.
Katherine hesitated before starting again.
"All right, let's go eat, you two. Follow me."
She turned daintily on her heel and led them into her cabin. A large, bare table sat in the middle. Will led Elizabeth to a seat, helped her down before helping Katherine and sitting himself.
"So, Captain, May I ask how you became a captain of the Royal Navy?" Elizabeth inquired, sipping a glass of water a cabin boy had set before her.
"Ah, well first, Katherine is fine, no need for such formalities unless they are necessary. Second, this is not a ship of the Royal Navy. Yes, my ship is painted that way, but for good reason. Pirates will not attack a ship if they believe it is too heavily armed. They know that Royal ships are hard to beat. And the cannon holes do not all house cannons. They are merely there to scare pirates away."
"Oh, very clever," Will complimented.
"Thank you. It was my father's idea. That is how I became captain. After he died, everything was left to me. Instead of selling the ship off and attempting to become a lady and live on land, I hired a crew and became a merchant vessel. Many people are against having a woman as a captain, but I enjoy it."
"Your food, Ma'am." A girl entered the room, bowed, left and followed several others in with trays of food.
"Thank you, Rita. Could you have the cook start preparing bath water? I'm sure Mr and Mrs. Turner could use a bath after their adventure."
"Yes Ma'am."
"Thank you, Katherine," Elizabeth said.
"Not a problem, now let's eat. No need for crazy table manners. I'm hungry."
She selected several fruits and piled pancakes onto her plate before drowning them in syrup and beginning to eat. Will followed suit before tapping Elizabeth out of her staring who also began to eat.
After their meal, they talked about their lifestyle and their home.
A door opened. The girl that had taken over the helm stepped in.
"Yes, Ms. Gibbs?" Katherine asked.
"Cook says bath water is ready. They been set up in their cabin," she said.
"Thank you," Katherine replied.
"Yes, thank you," the couple complied, turning to the girl.
She bowed and shut the door as she left.
"Gibbs?" Will questioned, turning to face the captain once more.
"Yes. Mary Gibbs," she answered, "Wonderful sailor. I guess her father was a sailor of sorts as well. Her mother raised her on land. One of those your mum knew my mum's, mum's granddaughter's mum."
"Oh," he answered, trying to sort out the facts in his head.
Katherine laughed, rose from her chair and stretched.
"Well, I must get back to the helm. Call if you need anything."
"Thank you, Katherine," Elizabeth said, standing as well, "A bath does sound wonderful."
Katherine smiled and left the room. Will offered Elizabeth an arm and led her down to the cabin where the stewards had set a tub that looked to be a rather large barrel cut in half. However, it was full of steaming fresh water, and neither had any qualms with that.
"Will, there's only one tub," said Elizabeth, turning to look at her husband.
"You remember that time in Port Silver?" he asked, slowly smiling at her. He knew she wasn't ready for anything intimate, not so soon after the loss of their daughter.
"What, when I has sprained my ankle and you cared for me?"
"Exactly," he murmured. "Let me take care of you Elizabeth."
She sighed and let herself forget, if just for a moment, the heart wrenching pain she had to endure, and the loss of the joy in her life.
Please Review! Jack next chapter, PROMISE!
QueenofMercury