A/N: The story is alive! It's s'not rotting in the depths of Davey Jones' Locker, I promise. I've recently commandeered a few props from the beloved pirate film and let's just say, owning something that used to be in the hands and on the hands of the devilish Captain Sparrow does tend to inspire one to pick up and write on where she left off. I know it's a short, short chapter but please forgive me, there is a reason for it. It will pick up from this point on. I'm off to fawn over my new treasures now.

Bootstrap's bootstraps...

McFadden-

Chapter Two

By daylight the next morning, poor Mikey's eyes were already cloudy with tears as he stood at the harbor watching his dad help his aunt load the ship. He wasn't sure of the intricate details of why his father woke him up before dawn, but he was old enough to figure out it wasn't a good thing. Lucien stood with a sense of finality looking at the modest ship. Modest for a pirate anyway...

"Well, that'll do 'er Moira."

The pale woman's head popped out of the lower deck door, draped in a loose linen shirt. Bright scarves adorning her waist, with a yellow one tied to her head, standing out against the darkness of her hair whipping around it. Her pale skin and hazel eyes glowed with the reflection coming off of the water.

"That was fast. It's not going to sink the second I put her out to open sea, is she?"

She narrowed her eyes skeptically at her brother. Lucien tilted his head to the side and studied the ship, scratching his blonde, overgrown 5 o'clock shadow. She folded her arms challengingly and gave him the look. He smiled and spoke again.

"Are you sure you can handle sailing this thing without a crew?"

Moira looked at him for a moment as though he had said some blasphemous thing. He knew that look. She could see him holding back his laughter as he stuck the tip of his tongue out at her. Cocking an eyebrow, she replied dryly.

"I think I'll manage..."

She could hear his chuckle now as he turned to his son and patted him gently on the back. The boy looking back up at him with blue eyes, a little too sparkly to be without the help of some hiding and unshed tears lurking behind them.

Moira packed a small kerchief and folded into a package. Stepping over a crate, she made her way down the planks of wood on the dock. Kneeling before Mikey, she offered him a lopsided smile to the sad boy. She was finding it hard herself to make it look halfhearted because she was as equally upset. Mikey sniffled and wrapped his tiny armed around the much taller woman. Pushing the package into his hands, she put her head over his little shoulder and whispered.

"You don't open it now until I go, understand me?"

Feeling him nod, she smiled sadly even though he couldn't see as a tear fell from her eyes.

"I love you Mikey..."

She heard a broken sob that resembled the same words as his grip tightened. Her brother looked at her, his hand shielding his eyes from the oncoming sun.

"I'm only going to ask you this one more time; Are you sure you wanna do this?"

He really didn't mean to make it any harder for her, he was just doing his part as a brother. But Moira didn't even have to speak. Lucien could tell that no amount of begging, not even from a five year old, could keep his sister from the sea. In the past, persuading her to stay too long was always useless. She had always told him it was far too dangerous for a pirate to be on land. Secretly, with the fall of piracy, Lucien knew he had lucked out. His wife had died giving birth to Michael and with his sister's help, he was able to live comfortably. But he felt the loss of family too heavily. Within a year of piracy's end, the hangings of every blackheart began. Fearing the worst for the fate of his sister, Lucien begged and pleaded with her in letters to return home. It was only after Sparrow's death that she finally gave in. It was all over for her then. Moira would've been swinging with them too had he not kept her locked up in shadows until the suspicions died down, and her name became nothing more than a story.

Moira looked at him, knowing what he was thinking. He knew the pull the ocean had, himself being a merchant fisherman, but he was always too weak-willed to engage in piracy. She broke out of her thoughts and kissed Michael's head, grabbing his hand and walking with him to where Lucien stood. Staring at him for a good measured second, she finally hugged him tightly.

"Smile..."

Lucien chuckled despite the sailor's knot forming in his throat. Tapping her nephew on the nose, Moira tipped up her chin slightly and winked at him.

"What would Jack say, Hmm?"

What would normally be a gleeful shout from a laughing body was now deduced to a tearful choke as he tried his best not to cry infront of her.

"Keep to the Code."

Biting her lip slightly from his sad eyes, she nodded. Not finding the ability to say anything, she just kissed him and held him close, memorizing the sugary dirt smell of her nephew. Finally, pulling herself away, she looked reluctantly in her brother's direction, hating the feeling that settled into the pit of her stomach at the thought of leaving him alone. He sensed this and pulled her to him, squeezing her and kissing her on the forehead.

"I'll be fine, he'll be fine...

They both looked at his son with his poor, shaking shoulders. Lucien shrugged.

"Okay, He'll be a mess..."

Moira lolled her head back trying not to cry at her brother's joking attempts to make her feel awful. He pinched her arm and smiled.

"He'll be fine. I'll be fine, you'll be fine...We'll all be fine..."

He tried to flash his best goofy smile to cheer her up and hugged her.

"...Just go before I won't let you."

Her reply was so faint, he was surprised he heard it.

"Okay...Bye Luc."

She kissed her fingers and put her hand on her heart as walked backwards from them. A simple but notable gesture he recognized with familiarity. Only because Jack Sparrow himself had done it so many times whenever he was separated from her for even a day. Lucien wondered if his sister even realized she was doing it. Knowing better than to stay and prolonge the grief for the both of them, he scooped Michael up and walked away without looking back.

Not the same could be said for Mikey, he stared until he couldn't see the dock anymore.