As Long as We Both Shall Live
Chapter 2
When Elizabeth came to, vision still a little bleary from the suffocation and near drowning, she thought she was dreaming. A tanned man with a peculiar hairstyle composed of dreadlocks woven with beads and other curiosities was grinning down at her. Most notably, the heavy pressure on her chest was gone and she could finally breathe. That of course made her look down to see what had happened to her pretty little torture device, only for her eyes to near bulge out as she realised her present state of dress.
Or rather undress, at it was.
"Elizabeth!" Her husband's voice frantic with worry distracted her from the embarrassment. She was suddenly caught up in his arms and then held away so he could examine her for injuries.
"I'm not hurt." She managed to say, sparing a glance at her rescuer who was being held at sword point by several of the marines. "I am however, rather cold."
It was an absurd thing to say, given the stifling heat of the day, but it did help draw James's attention to her attire. He flushed and quickly shucked his coat, wrapping the heavy blue wool around her shoulders. Suitably covered, she could now turn her attention to the next most pressing matter.
"Is there a reason you're arresting my rescuer?" She asked pointedly.
At James's nod, the swords were lowered. There was a hard look in his eyes as he stepped towards the man, hand outstretched for a handshake. "I believe thanks are in order?"
When the man reached out to accept the handshake, James used the opportunity to grab his arm and push up his sleeve to reveal a brand and a tattoo. A pirate. She had been rescued by a pirate.
A normal lady might have stepped back in horror at the revelation, but Elizabeth found herself drawn closer. Her childhood fascination with pirates had never really dimmed, even after marrying a man who had made it his life work to end piracy.
Of course that made James's next actions rather predictable. As he ordered the arrest, Elizabeth pushed forward to step between the pirate and the marines.
"Pirate or not, this man saved my life." She declared. Had she not fallen, it was likely the pirate would have remained undiscovered and could have left Port Royal unharmed. No matter what he might have done in the past, she was unwilling to be the reason for a man's execution.
She could see James glare begin to soften in consideration. He was not a man naturally given to cruelty and she suspected that his prejudices against the criminals that he regularly faced in battle might have momentarily blinded him to the mitigating circumstances.
Just as she was sure she could convince him to show some leniency, there was a sudden movement from behind her and the feeling of the cold metal of the shackles around her throat.
There went any chance of mercy.
What followed was a tense standoff between the pirate and the marines, with Elizabeth unfortunately stuck between them. Caught between fear for her safety and white-hot rage, James could do nothing but comply with the pirate's requests. The pirate – Captain Sparrow, made his escape after shoving her roughly into her husband, who immediately gave the order to open fire the moment Elizabeth was out of harm's way.
After again reassuring James that she was fine, he left her in the care of her father while he and his men went after Sparrow. The governor insisted on taking her home, convinced she was in shock from the fall and near abduction. Privately she thought he might have been feeling guilty that he hadn't noticed how unwell she was before her fall, so she submitted to his coddling with as much grace as she could muster.
Elizabeth spared a thought as to what might befall her rescuer but couldn't really bring herself to feel too sorry for him. Her compassion had dried up the moment he had pointed a gun at her.
Back at the house, she paced in the sitting room, waiting for an update and ignoring Estrella's fussing that she should change into a fresh dress. When the sun began to set, a runner appeared to deliver the news that Jack Sparrow had been taken into custody, but that her husband would be late home. That was something at least.
She dined alone that evening, ordering that some food be kept aside for when James returned, and readied herself for bed with no intention to sleep until her husband was back home. Occupying herself with a book in James's study, where she was least likely to be disturbed, it was perhaps only for that reason that she heard the banging on the door in the late hours of the night followed by the unmistakable sound of a gunshot.
The noise had her freezing in horror, but only for a short moment. James kept a pair of pistols near his desk, and she immediately reached for them, checking quickly that they were loaded and ready for use. Exiting the study, she found a horrific sight at the bottom of the grand staircase. A footman bleeding out on the floor and a dangerous looking man with a spent pistol opening drawers and looking for loot.
Feeling a cold sense of calm descend over, Elizabeth aimed the pistol and let out a shrill whistle to get the pirate's attention.
"Do you know how to use that thing, love?" The pirate sneered.
Elizabeth cocked the pistol in response and raised an eyebrow. "Would you care to find out?"
The pirate looked a little less sure of himself now. They stood there tensely for a few moments, Elizabeth's finger beginning to tremble on the trigger. Finally, the pirate spat on the floor of the clean foyer. "Not worth the trouble." He grumbled as he retreated back outside. The uninjured footman immediately moved to lock and barricade the door. Elizabeth let out a breath she hadn't realised she had been holding, and slowly lowered the pistol.
Her relief was short-lived. James was out there, somewhere in the town besieged by pirates. She barely registered her own steps until she was jerked back.
"Ma'am, you can't go out there!" Estrella said frantically, pulling on Elizabeth's arm to urge her back inside. "It isn't safe."
"James is…"
"The Commodore is perfectly capable of taking care of himself." Estrella admonished. "And he certainly wouldn't want you risking your own safety for him. They'll drive the pirates off, you'll see. And he'll be back by morning."
Swallowing heavily, Elizabeth nodded and allowed herself to be guided back to her chamber. She handed the pistol over to one of the footmen, just in case. There was another in a box in her room. She, Estrella and Eloise huddled together until morning, the two maids managing at some point to fall asleep. Elizabeth could not, wracked with worry as she was.
By sunrise there was still no sign of James. Not bothering to wake the maids, Elizabeth put on a simple dress and hid the additional pistol in the folds of her skirt, just in case the battle was not yet over. Hurrying through the town she could see signs of the attack, but the fires had been put out and the injured taken away to the hospital. She ended up walking all the way to the Fort, where she found several of the men including Groves and Gillette arguing over something. They stopped speaking the moment they caught sight of her and after another whispered argument, Groves came to her side and gently guided her to James's office where they would have some privacy.
"Mrs Norrington…" he began.
"Where's James?" She demanded.
He hesitated before admitting, "we don't know." At her horrified look, he hastily continued. "After he dealt with the paperwork around Sparrow's arrest, he went into town. He said he had to see the blacksmith about something. That was when the pirates attacked, no one has seen him since he left."
"Is he dead?" She managed to choke out, refusing to accept that it might be true.
"We haven't recovered a body." He said in a voice that was clearly meant to be reassuring.
"Then where is he?"
"He may have been taken by the pirates, possibly for a ransom."
Quelling down a surge of panic, Elizabeth forced herself to remain calm. "So you're going after the Black Pearl, correct?" She had heard the name on the journey, in whispers that were equally awed and horrified.
Theo winced. "I'm afraid it's not that simple."
"Not that simple." Always unable to conceal his reactions, Theo visibly flinched at the ice in her voice.
"We don't have any proof that James was taken, no eyewitnesses have come forward and there are no signs of an abduction. According to protocol we have to consider that he fled of his own accord."
"James is no coward." Elizabeth practically spat. "He would have stood and fought to the end, you know that."
"Of course I do," Theo protested, "but protocol…"
"Damn protocol!" She cut him off furiously. "If it had been you, you know James would have had the Interceptor out searching for you by now, and both that ship and the Dauntless are still docked."
"There's also the issue of chain of command…" Even he knew she wasn't going to accept that excuse with the way he said it, already sounding defeated and miserable.
"Chain of command…" She repeated in disbelief, and then had to turn and leave before she throttled him.
Elizabeth nearly screamed with frustration when it became clear that there would be no official help coming for James, at least not immediately. Time was of the essence and they still had not had any word on a possible ransom. Privately, she did not think the ransom would ever come. All the talk had described the attacking ship as having black sails, just like the one in her dream. She couldn't help but think the medallion and the ship were connected, and the medallion had been in James's possession when he had been taken. If that had been what they wanted, there was no telling how long they would keep him alive once they retrieved it.
Unbidden, the face of the pirate who had saved her and threatened her came to her mind. She had overheard two of the sailors speaking of him and his fantastical claims of the Black Pearl. He was the only she had ever heard not dismiss the ship as a myth or legend before the attack that night. Perhaps he might be able to help her.
Decision made, Elizabeth returned home as quickly as her feet could carry her. She ignored the enquiries from the maids about whether or not she was well, instead locking herself in James's room. Digging through his off-duty clothes, she picked out a shirt and set of breeches and grabbed a brown jacket from his wardrobe.
With the help of a needle and thread, and a brief prayer of thanks to the governess who had forced her to learn to sew, she quickly and haphazardly shortened the sleeves of the shirt and length of the breeches. They were still too big on her. Taking up James's spare sword belt, she used a knife to poke a few extra holes in it and with her adjustments was finally able to tie everything together into a loose but functional outfit. She braided and tied her hair up and out of the way.
James's pair of pistols had been returned to the box on a shelf by his desk. Elizabeth took them out and strapped them to the belt, along with his old sword that he had stored away when her father presented him with a fine new replacement at his promotion ceremony.
She snuck out of her house through the servant's quarters, stealing a cap and a pair of boots that looked as though they might fit as she passed through. Jamming the cap onto her head, she carefully tucked any loose strands of hair underneath it and at the exit stopped for a moment to fit on the boots. A little too tight, they pitched her toes, but they would do.
A plan began to form in her mind, but one that she could not hope to carry out alone. Checking the street to make sure no one had noticed her, she pulled the cap a little over her eyes and kept her head down as she walked to the blacksmith's shop.
Will wasn't so easily persuaded as she might have thought.
"Why do you want to find him?" He asked, baffled. "I would have thought you would have been pleased. You never wanted to marry him in the first place."
Elizabeth flushed, partly out of anger but also out of embarrassment. There had been a night, only a few days before her wedding where she had snuck out of the Governor's House and gone to seen Will and begged him to help her escape. She'd had silly childish ideas about running off to Nassau and enlisting on a pirate ship. Will had not been able to give her an answer before Mr Brown had woken up from his drunken nap, and then Will had been pushing her out of the shop before the blacksmith could catch sight of her.
"Things change Will!" She snapped heatedly. "And besides its your stupid medallion that's caused this in the first place." To her own shame she could feel the prickle of tears coming on and angrily blinked them away.
"What?" He looked stunned.
"Your medallion." She repeated. "The one you were wearing when we found you. I thought it was proof you were a pirate, and I hid it before the soldiers could see. James was going to return it to you the night he was taken. I'm sure it has something to do with his kidnap."
Will's face closed off. "You had no right." He said, more coldly than he had ever spoken to her before.
"James has already scolded me." She interrupted him before he could go on. "And I would dearly like to have him tell me off again, but that won't happen if he's dead. So, would you please help me?"
There was a moment's pause before Will visibly softened in the face of her desperation.
"What do you need me to do?"
It was surprisingly easy to sneak into the prison where Captain Sparrow was being kept, but then again Elizabeth was well aware of the patrol schedule and she and Will managed to organise a suitable distraction to keep the guards occupied for the time they needed to help Jack escape. Will had agreed to help with the prison break, after her assurances that she would smooth the affair over with her father and guaranteed he would face no consequences for his criminal act.
When they reached the cell, Sparrow looked her up and down boldly, scrunching up his face in recognition. "You look familiar, have I bedded you before?" Beside her, Will made an offended noise on her behalf.
"No, but you have held me at gunpoint." Elizabeth said drily.
"Ah the Commodore's wife!" Sparrow crowed. "I didn't recognise you without your finery… or lack thereof." He examined her again, more slowly as though imagining the way she had looked with her shift clinging to her wet body. "But there's no mistaking it when you speak, you sound just like him. It's actually a little terrifying. Do you practice imitating him? Or is his surliness just contagious?"
"How familiar are you with the Black Pearl and her crew?" Elizabeth asked, ignoring his comments.
"Very familiar. She's my ship, after all."
"Is she?" She challenged. "If I recall you were stuck in this cell when she attacked Port Royal?"
"A temporary situation, and one I intend to rectify at the earliest opportunity." He stood and closed the distance between them, slipping his arms through the bars casually. Eyeing her calculatingly he asked, "does that have anything to do with your impromptu visit?"
"They have taken my husband prisoner." She said, cutting to the chase. "I intend to find that ship, rescue my husband and bring him home."
"I see." He intoned mockingly. "And just how do you intend to accomplish that?"
"With your help. After all, if you are so familiar with the ship and her crew, surely you must have an idea of where they might be heading?" Elizabeth raised an eyebrow as though daring him to dispute that fact.
"I might." He leaned back and appraised her. "But there isn't much I can do confined as I am, savvy?"
"That's what Will is here for. He helped build the prison." Will stepped forward and opened his mouth, as though to explain how he planned on helping Jack escape his cell, but Elizabeth held her arm out to stop him. "First, I'll need you to give me your word that you will help."
"Not that the word of a pirate means much." Will muttered.
Jack made a face. "Is he always so distrusting?" Will scowled and Jack sighed loudly. "Fine. Mrs Norrington, was it? I give you my word as a pirate that I will help you rescue your dashing Commodore in distress. Good enough?"
"Will, if you would be so kind?" Elizabeth stepped out of the way to allow the blacksmith to complete his task. He used a chair to lever up the door and it fell to the floor with a crash. Captain Sparrow stepped through and scrutinised Will strangely.
"What's your name?"
"William Turner." Will responded shortly. The pirate made an 'ah' sound.
"Named after your father, were you?"
"Yes," Will frowned, "how did you-?"
"We're in a hurry, aren't we?" Jack said, this time addressing Elizabeth. "I'd rather not be here when the guards return."
"Nor I." Elizabeth said, adjusting the cap she had filched from the servant's quarters to make sure her long hair was still hidden underneath. "Let's go."
She was surprised when instead of heading back to the blacksmith's in town, Will followed them.
"I wasn't aware you were so invested in James's safety." Elizabeth commented.
"I'm not." Will replied stonily. "But I won't conscience leaving you alone with that man."
As nice as the sentiment was, she couldn't help but feel there was more to it than that. Will kept shooting curious looks over at Captain Sparrow, as though there was a burning question on his mind. Curiouser still, Jack kept a careful eye on Will, as though to make sure he was still coming along but was at pains to try to keep him unaware of it. If Elizabeth wasn't sick with worry over James's current state, she might have been interested in uncovering whatever was going on between the two men, but truthfully she found herself unable to care.
Sparrow and Will talked for a while, which she mostly tuned out until Will said something that caught her attention.
"We're going to steal a ship? That ship?" The ship in question was the Dauntless. Elizabeth rounded on Jack with flashing eyes.
"No." She said firmly, like a mother telling off a naughty child. Beside her Will gave a sigh of relief.
The Dauntless was James's baby. He would wish for his own death before letting anything happen to her.
"The Interceptor is faster, we can steal that one." She finished, eliciting a choked sound of surprise from Will, who had clearly thought she was vetoing the stealing of any ship, rather than a specific one.
"Very well, my lady." Sparrow gave a mocking bow. "But we will need to briefly, just briefly, use that ship to trick our lovely navy friends into letting us take the Interceptor."
"Fine. What do you have in mind?"
The plan was exceedingly simple, but brilliant in its execution. Jack and Will took the lead of threatening the men on the Dauntless at pistol point while she stood behind them with her arms crossed. Gillette initially looked relieved at the sight of her but that quickly faded.
"Mrs Norrington," he began entreatingly, "surely you cannot be willing to go along with this insanity?"
"Have you resolved your chain of command issues?" She asked sweetly.
He looked embarrassed. "No, but we're sure to hear back from the Admiralty within the next week."
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Captain Sparrow, please proceed with removing these men from the ship."
Jack obediently cocked his pistol and aimed it at Gillette. "You heard the lady, now off you get."
"You understand this ship cannot be crewed by only two men. You'll never make it out of the bay." Gillette said, in final attempt to reason with them.
"Two men and one woman." Jack corrected. "And we'll see about that."
A few more insulting gibes and the men finally disembarked. Following Jack's orders, she and Will began to act out the motions of getting the ship ready to sail.
As expected, Groves noticed the ongoing theft and immediately readied the Interceptor to chase after them. Once the ship caught up with them, they waited hidden while the men on the Interceptor swung across to the Dauntless, and as soon as the ship was emptied they quietly moved over to the other ship. She and Will immediately began to sever the lines the men had used to cross over, while Jack raised the foresail.
"Sailors, back to the Interceptor!" They heard Theo call out, desperate and panicked as he realised what had happened. But the distance between the two ships was already too great. One overconfident sailor attempted to swing across only to fall into the water several feet behind the back of the ship.
Jack tossed a few parting insults over to the Dauntless, seeming pleased as punch that he had outsmarted them.
"You look rather pleased considering you've just been seen aiding and abetting a pirate in the theft of a naval ship." Will commented, coming to her side and resting his arms on the railings.
"They will have to send the Dauntless after James now," Elizabeth explained. "Those idiots may not have been able to figure out who was in charge in James's absence, but at least they'll be able to agree how bad it looks for them to lose the Interceptor. We may need their help when we find the Black Pearl."
"Remind me never to make you angry." He joked, just before Jack called them over to help with the sails.
Author's Note: I did promise an AU! I haven't really messed with the events of the films too much, just changed a couple of details around. Hope you're still enjoying it :)
