Hey everyone! Thanks for the reviews!
for those who might of forgotten: Anthony is Captain Conner's first name!
Enjoy!!!
Jack sat at the head of the dinner table, as always, and noted that everyone was there. He looked at each spot at the table only to see that the one chair that was empty was the doctor's old chair and no one had sat down in it. It looked so dispiriting, just sitting there, empty. The boat swayed back and forth and the empty seat was sliding with it.
"Would you like me to remove the chair sir," Killick asked in a lightly gruff voice. Killick stepped forward to remove it; all the men went silent to see what Aubrey might say.
"No, Killick, you may leave it," Jack said hoarsely.
"Yes sir." Killick stepped back and returned to the kitchen to retrieve the cooking dinner. The men remained silent for just a moment more, as though unsure if they should begin conversation. Jack could sense this tension and decided to talk first, just to show that it was okay.
"Men, as you all know I have called you here for one reason, we need to make a decision as of where we need to go next. Before the doctor's...passing, we were heading to no particular place, and now, I believe we should head back to port in England to find a replacement for him." Everyone around the table lifted their heads and looked over at him quizzically.
Mr. Mowett leaned forward to get a better look at the captain. "But sir, what about Mr. Higgins? Is he not a creditable surgeon?"
"No he is hardly a surgeon, he is but a tooth extractor, which I am sure, is surgery in itself, but he would not be readily prepared to operate on any patient in need of something more complicated than that." Jack sighed and leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table. "No, we'll just have to find another surgeon to replace our dearly departed friend."
Jack looked around the table as now his friends were chatting amongst themselves after their dinner saw that Mr. Blakeney look distressed, as though he were suppressing some sort of pain or anger within himself. The growing concern within the captain made him hold back the young sir into his cabin for a word when the rest of the guests had left.
"Mr. Blakeney, I have noticed a very pained look that has come over. Pray do tell me what is troubling you."
The young man looked up at Jack and breathed in. "Sir, I find it troubling that you are already talking about replacing the doctor. He has only been gone for four days!"
Jack gave a small smile and replied, "Well we can't go very well without a doctor, now can we? The crew, no, the ship needs a surgeon and it is better to get one now so if anything happened, God forbid, the men could be brought back to health."
"Sir, I find it very offensive that you are trying to 'replace' him. He was somewhat of a father to me throughout our voyages together. You can't just find another man. It isn't right!" Mr. Blakeney was now red in the face after verging on screaming the words he had let out.
"Mr. Blakeney..." Jack caught himself and tried to calm himself. "Mr. Blakeney, I know that this a hard time for you, as it also is for me and the rest of the men, I'm sure, but you must not lose your temper! Do not mistake that for one second I find it easy to talk of finding a new doctor! No one can possibly replace Stephen, not ever. And do not think that he is not on my mind." Jack's voice and expression had softened as he continued, "Dr. Maturin was and will always be one of my greatest companions that I have ever had the privilege of knowing." He looked down at the young man with a subtle expression and said in a soft voice, "This has been a troubling past couple of days, but we must be strong. That's how he would want us to be, strong. We just have to give ourselves time, this grief will come to an end and when we think back upon Stephen we will smile at all those memories we had the opportunity to share with him."
Mr. Blakeney looked down and whispered, "I know sir. I am sorry sir, I shouldn't have done that."
Jack gave a soft smile and said, "Don't worry Mr. Blakeney, you are forgiven. Now why don't you go to your quarters and turn in, it has been a trying day."
Captain Conner sat looking over the men sitting at his table which was different today because they had an extra chair at the table. Julian was sitting next to the captain and enjoying himself at that. The other men at the table thought Julian curious, but who wouldn't?
"This is very good!" Julian exclaimed, "What is it?"
There was a bit of chuckling around the table and Anthony replied with a smile, "Why, my friend, that it soused hog's face!"
Julian's face suddenly became serious as though in deep thought.
"Julian? Are you okay?"
Julian snapped out of his trance and looked up at the captain. "I'm...I'm fine thank you," he said airily, "It's just that, somehow, soused hog's face rang a bell there. I think it was somewhat of a favorite or important dish to someone that I knew, maybe, even, possibly it was to me."
The men at the table looked at the captain, whose face was a light with hope that his friend might grab some sort of memory.
"I don't rightly know though," Julian said softly. Anthony's expression faded a little at this, but he managed a smile.
"Well, soused hog's face, at least we know a little about your past, even if it is a bit sketchy." There was a pause at the table and so he continued, "Let us give a toast then shall we." The men picked up their glasses and the captain cheered, "To soused hog's face!"
The men cheered and laughed and put their wine glasses together. The young midshipman, John Riley, stood up and said, "I propose a toast," he said with a smile on his face, "To the English port; our final destination!"
Again the men cheered and took a drink of their wine.
It was late that night and Julian lay in his hammock in his cabin they had given him, dreaming.
Julian saw himself lying down on what seemed to be a wooden bench. His face was covered with a book and his knees were bent, one of his arms was on the book and the other lay at his side. A man approached his sleeping figure with a smile on his face. The man had fair skin and longish blond hair, which he seemed very familiar, and from what the man was wearing, which looked like what Captain Conner wears, Julian could see that he was a captain of the Royal Navy.
The man lifted the book from Julian's head and gave a deep chuckle and playfully let the book drop down on Julian's resting face. Julian gave a jump and looked at the man with a somewhat annoyed look on his face.
"I see you have taken a break from reading," The man picked up the book and read, "The Guide to Understanding Worms, now doesn't that sound interesting?" the man asked sarcastically.
"Oh it is very interesting, so interesting, in fact that I have picked up this book many times" Julian said.
The other man gave a taken back look. "Really?"
"Yes," Julian replied drolly, "I keep picking it up because I can't get passed the third page."
The blond man began to laugh huskily. "That was a good one doctor!"
The scene disappeared and nothing but darkness filled Julian's mind. He snapped out of his dream and looked around to find himself alone.
Julian muttered, "Doctor?" The other man's face stayed in his mind.