Heart To Heart

James closed his eyes as admitted defeat. Damn, damn, damn! he thought as he cursed himself. That will teach you for falling for one of Katherine's bloody tricks…He swallowed hard and brought his hand up to slowly move Katherine's blade away from his throat. Katherine smiled triumphantly as James gathered himself up to return inside. He sheathed his saber and looked at her, flashing a smile, though inside he was all but smiling.

Katherine saw him hesitate, and promptly sighed as she looped her right arm around his left and held it securely as she led him inside. James stopped and stood by the chair as she turned away to remove her gloves and place her saber on the floor. They both sat and paused for a moment. The smile faded from Katherine's face, as she could not help but notice James's grim look of foreboding. She refused to give in, however; she was going to get him to open up if it took every gun on the Dauntless to do so.

Katherine sighed and flashed another one of her smiles at James, hoping to get him to relax. "So…feel free to tell me any thing that has been troubling you James," she started. Silence.

Norrington crossed his arms and shrugged, signifying that he had nothing to say. "What would you like to know?" he asked innocently, though he knew perfectly well what his sister was trying to achieve.

Katherine rolled her eyes and let out a frustrated breath. "Please don't play these games with me, James! Talking to you is like trying to scale the outer wall of that damned fort of yours."

"Well it has worked out quite well for us thus far," he mocked in reference to the walls of Fort Charles. A broad grin grew on his face as he toyed with his sister and delayed the purpose of the conversation. Katherine, however, was not amused. She was attempting to have an honest conversation with her brother, and his attitude was not getting them anywhere. She leaned forward and rested her elbows on her knees as she stared at the floor in disappointment.

"I know what you've been going through, James. There's no sense in pretending it did not happen or had no effect on you. So let us just dispose of the damned pretense, shall we?" Katherine looked up in time to see her brother sink deeper into his chair. James's expression quickly changed from sarcasm to frustration as he looked around the room. He slowly removed his hat and let it fall in his lap as he rested his head in one hand. Norrington felt like a caged tiger, being forced to sit there and discuss something he normally went out of his way to avoid. Growing up in the shadow of his strict father had taught him one vital lesson: there was no room for emotion. Duty was duty and one's personal feelings did not have a place in success. James had lived with that during the most influential years of his life and quickly discovered it had become part of him. His demeanor was emotionless and focused both shipboard and on land. They were traits that served him beautifully at sea and in his duties, but hindered him greatly when trying to make a personal connection with anyone. And here was perhaps the one person he had ever felt any real connection with – his sister, Katherine. She, too, knew what it was to grow up in that household and knew the reasons for why James behaved the way he did. She looked at him now, slumped in his chair, and felt sorry for him. Is it really that hard? she thought. Of course it is…knowing what he has to deal with, I suppose he's used to communicating strictly in orders. Katherine shook her head and pitied James for his obvious discomfort.

"Good God, man, I'm not interrogating you," stated Katherine of James's grim expression. She smiled slightly as she moved over on the couch and bid James to join her. He paused for a moment before rising and moving across the room to join his sister. Once he was seated, Katherine moved closer and took hold of his left arm and placed it on top of the couch as she leaned up against him, eventually resting her head on his chest. She remained silent for a moment as she studied the elegant, gold-trimmed lapels of his uniform. She opened her mouth to continue, but decided against it. Instead, Katherine wrapped her arms around James and buried her face in the brilliant fabric of his uniform.

"What on earth are you doing?" he asked suspiciously.

"Nothing. I…" Katherine paused as she turned her face so that she could look out the window. "I just remembered that it's been eight years since we've spent any time together, and here I am badgering you. I'm sorry James - I do not know what you've been feeling, but trust me when I say that I am here whenever you need me and want to discuss something," she said softly. She left it at that, as she knew James was equally as stubborn as she was, and the only thing to come out of a forced discussion was frustration on both their parts. Now that she was here, her brother would open up and seek her out when he saw fit.

Norrington's gaze shifted from Katherine to the darkening horizon as he put his feet up on the coffee table and sighed. She felt better know he was more at ease. Discussion would come later – right now she wanted nothing more than to be close to the one friend she had so dearly missed over the past decade.

"I suppose I was quite beside myself," Norrington started softly, his voice monotone. Katherine glanced upward, but refrained from sitting up. She would let him say what he wanted to without being disturbed. "Elizabeth was the only woman I had ever loved. But then again, the problem was that she did not love me. I did everything I thought was right, and she still said no…" Katherine flinched as James's words trailed off. She held him closer as he sighed and spread his right hand in an expression of repressed confusion.

"I was so sure of her motives when she accepted aboard the Dauntless that day, but did not want to admit them to myself. She only accepted my proposal in order to save that boy, not because she had any feelings for me – it makes perfect sense." Katherine's eyes shot wide open. Elizabeth accepted his proposal!? He never mentioned thatHow could someone do such a thing with no intention of keeping that promise? Even if she did marry James, she would never love him as he did her. That is a damned lie in itself, she thought furiously. Katherine drew a breath and tried to relax as her brother continued. It was as if he was talking to no one – his gazed was focused on the window, his tone unwavering and soft. She watched as he lightly dragged his fingers along the arm of the couch.

"I figured she could learn to love me, but when I saw the way she looked at the damn boy I knew, I just…" Norrington sighed sadly before continuing. "I had to let her go. The entire mess was a bloody lie…"

Katherine was at a loss for words. It was one thing to be rejected, but another to be led on. James had suffered far worse treatment than she had thought. She lifted her head and turned to look at him, then leaned down once more and rested her head back on his chest. When she finally spoke, her tone was soft and hopeful. "There's someone out there for you, James."

"I should hope so…otherwise I'll be likely to end up a miserable wretch like father, only miserable and alone."

Katherine slowly shook her head. "You'll never end up like father. You're too good for that. You are a fine man, and the only reason why you do not have a line of fine women is simply because there are too few on this silly island, that those who do dwell here cannot get their noses out of the air long enough to notice."

Soon after that came dinner.  Upon completing the fine meal, Katherine took her leave and went to bed. It had been a long day for the both of them.