Lievtenant Gillette

Lievtenant Gillette dutifully offered his right arm to Katherine as they exited the Swanns' mansion. He smiled smugly to himself, not realizing she was doing the same. They had not made 10 feet from the door when Katherine decided to strike up conversation. "My brother is quite favorable of you, Mr. Gillette. He says you are a fine officer."

Gillette's inward smile grew much larger. "I am honored to hear that, Miss Norrington. The Commodore is without doubt one of the best officers I have ever worked with in my career…"

Katherine turned to Gillette. "We may dispose with the pretense, Mr. Gillette. Please, call me Katherine," she said matter-of-factly, being careful to soften her tone toward the end. Gillette turned to look at Katherine and opened his mouth in surprise.

"Very well, Katherine. You may call me Matthieu if you so desire," said Gillette. He was pleased with Katherine's forward behavior; comical or not, calling her "Miss Norrington" sounded like he was courting the Commodore. Gillette smirked at the thought, and then quickly realized that Katherine was the Commodore's sister. Good God! You must be very careful now, Matthieu, he thought. Fancying the younger sister of his commanding officer was certainly not Gillette's idea of climbing the promotional ladder. Or climbing any ladder, for that matter. If Commodore Norrington found out Gillette's feelings for Katherine, he'd be liable to break Matthieu's damned legs. Gillette drew a hesitant breath as they started back down the road toward Fort Charles.  At her request, he began to describe his long professional relationship with James.

"I suppose it was about eight years ago now that we met.  I had come over to Port Royale on a brig out of Plymouth, and James was a lievtenant aboard the HMS Dauntless.  I was a midshipman at the time.  He was a great help to me, I must admit.  My French heritage does not always earn me favors with crew members.  James made sure no trouble came out of it."

Katherine looked up to him thoughtfully.  "No trouble comes out of it now, does it?  I've heard you are quite respected amongst the crew."

"I suppose I am.  We have good men here, and that is a blessing.  I suppose my tongue gets me into more trouble now than my blood does," he remarked with a slight grin.

Katherine chuckled.  She was thirsty for insight about this young gentleman, and was quite pleased at his genuine and kind demeanor. As Norrington said, Gillette was honorable, dedicated, highly respected amongst the crew…that paired with her judge of his character made her enthusiastic indeed. She desired neither riches nor fame; Katherine deeply wanted someone she could talk to on a personal basis, trust, and love. She looked up at Gillette – his kind, round face was now bright red with embarrassment and nerves. Katherine smiled to herself. She could not help but picture she and Gillette living a wonderful, adventurous life together. Then she snapped back to cold reality. Slow down, Katherine, she thought to herself. You've conversed with him for perhaps five minutes! Do not go making wedding invitations! She scolded herself for thinking too forward. Katherine then thought of her brother, the Commodore, and frowned. James would have a fit to hear her thinking like this, and Lord knows what he would say to Gillette. She thought it best to remain proper, for the sake of Gillette's well being and her brother's sanity. The last thing he needed at this time in his life was to discover his sister was in love with his second in command.

"You have a lovely name, Matthieu," Katherine stated as she looked on down the road.

"Thank you. My father's parents were French. Grandfather was a merchant, and he moved to England before my father was born to broaden his shipping interests," said Gillette, nodding to himself in approval. He carefully thought out every word he said to Katherine. He would hate to make a blunder in front of her. He then frowned at the subject matter. "I hope I am not boring you, Miss….Katherine. I regret my family history is not entirely thrilling."

"It's quite alright!" said Katherine with a smile. "My father is also a shipping merchant. He is looking to retire now, of course, but he was quite successful in his day. I do believe that's where James…The Commodore…gets his love for the sea," continued Katherine, reminding herself to call James by his title in public.

"He failed to mention that," Gillette said quietly.

Katherine looked down momentarily and drew a slow breath. "No, I don't suspect he would have mentioned it…He's not one to disclose personal matters to others." She paused before continuing. "Father is also the source of the Commodore's strict demeanor and damn perfectionism. Father ran the household like one of his ships, unfortunately."

Gillette tilted his head back for a moment, and then looked on ahead. It was certainly interesting to have insight into the Commodore's past. He had always wondered why Norrington was so conservative and strict - not so much on his men, but on himself. Interesting indeed. But what was more perplexing was Katherine's personality – apparently the complete opposite of the Commodore. She commanded every ounce of Gillette's attention when she was around, and he found it quite difficult to breath around her. This was only the second occasion in which he had spent any time with her, the first being short and quite guarded due to the Commodore's presence. Even so, Gillette could not help but feel a certain knot in his stomach, a sort of flutter in his heart…could it be he was in love?

Gillette quickly shook it off and reminded himself that he was escorting the Commodore's sister to the fort, not out on a social call. He stiffened slightly and put his left arm behind his back, trying to look every bit the naval officer. Katherine noticed his change of posture and chuckled under her breath. "I suppose you are probably wondering how I am possibly related to the Commodore, and why I'm here in Port Royale," she started slowly.

Gillette turned to her and paused, unsure of what to say. "No, I wasn't…I mean yes, I suppose I was. You are his sister, of that I am certain," blurted Gillette. His tongue stopped dead once he realized what had just spilled out of his mouth. His face turned bright red as he silently cursed his blunder.

Katherine merely laughed at the comment. "I am his sister, I assure you!" she managed between chuckles. "No, I meant our personalities, rather. We are quite different."

Gillette gathered his composure up once more. "I did not want to pry, Katherine. It is really none of my business," he said quietly.

Katherine flashed a smile. "You would certainly not be prying. I would like to tell you, if you did not mind." Katherine continued as she described her household, the past eight years in England and the countless number of suitors she had seen, and finally leaving for Port Royale to discover herself and perhaps find love. It nearly became a game for her – the young men competing for her while in England found a much harder catch than they were willing to fight for. A trophy wife Katherine would never be. She was destined to marry for love, whether dear Father approved of it or not.

Gillette was intrigued. "But what of your family? Should you marry someone of lesser income, would you not be cut off?" he asked, trying to remain polite.

Katherine paused and looked down. "James would understand," she said slowly. She knew it to be true. James himself had given up Elizabeth to allow her to marry for love, when he had every right to her. He knew what it was to be in love, and would never cut his ties with Katherine should she decide to follow that path. Gillette nodded. He knew that beneath the cool, expressionless demeanor of the Commodore laid the heart of a family-oriented gentleman. Very interesting, Gillette thought.

Minutes later the pair arrived at Fort Charles. Gillette led the way through the corridors toward the Commodore's office. He paused and bid Katherine to stop as well – there was something he had to say, and he wanted very much to say it without being within an earshot of Norrington. The Lievtenant paused and looked down momentarily as he carefully chose his words. He closed his eyes briefly as he drew a nervous breath. "If you will permit me, I should like to call on you again," he said with a smile.

Katherine looked up as a bright smile slowly crept across her face. "I should be delighted," she started quietly. Her tone was soft and joyful. "It has been a great pleasure spending time with you, Matthieu."

Gillette's smile grew as Katherine spoke. "Believe me Katherine, the pleasure has been all mine," he said as he gently took her hand and kissed it like a perfect gentleman. "Good day Katherine, keep well." With that, Lievtenant Gillette retreated around the corner and down the corridor. His heart raced and he was sure that if he smiled any more, his face would shatter. Gillette felt as if he was walking on air as he entered his office. He gleefully tossed his hat onto the first open chair and fell into his own as he put his hands behind his head and gazed out the window. He smiled ear to ear as he studied the glorious sunset.

Katherine watched with a smile as Gillette walked away. He looked as if he was dancing. She hastily turned around to head to her brother's office when she came face to face with the sharp, gold trimmed white and blue of a Navy uniform. I know those lapels…she thought. Katherine slowly glanced upward and flashed an innocent smile. "Hello James," she said sweetly.

Norrington stood there with his hands behind his back as he looked down at Katherine. His eyes jumped to look down the corridor, then rested back on Katherine. He drew a breath, then paused in thought and looked up. When he finally spoke, his tone was most certainly that of the Commodore, with a hint of sarcasm. "You've known the lad for perhaps 20 minutes and you are already calling him Matthieu?"