Chapter 7: Faith

Hector took Helen by the shoulders and gently begun to guide her on to the deck, to the stairs and down to the captains cabin. All the other crews' members were lookikng at her with confusion, on why he had saved her no doubt, and she looked worried, and rather scared by all the new faces. Was it any wonder, he thought to himself? The girl had just died. And then suddenly she was alive again, and with the man who had walked out on her ten years before hand, with him hitting her as her last memory of him.

She looked at him, with an expression he had never seen before. She had so many emotions running through her and she didn't know what one to express to him, it seemed.

Walking over to her, he gently brushed a piece of her hair out of her face, and cupped it with his hand. She leant in to him for a moment; taking the peace he offered her. His fingers gently caressed her cheek and she felt as if she might just melt away with happiness. Every touch was still so familiar.

But then the memory of the past ten years came back to her, and suddenly she didn't feel so inclined to be friendly to him. True enough the event that had caused there split had happened because of her weakness, but it was because of him they had never talked things through.

Pulling away from him, she felt thoroughly annoyed at him. They couldn't just pick up where they had left off, both of them knew it. She didn't want him to touch her. The best thing about them had been the physically relationship. They had never been any good at talking, or sharing things. But both of them knew that the only way forward was to talk.

"You know I used to dream of this day Hector," she said to him, trying to find the courage to say what had to be said. "I didn't think it would be like this." She admitted. "I thought if I ever saw you again it'd be at the beach, our beach, do you remember?" she said and he nodded. "I thought I'd get there one day… and you'd be waiting for me. I'd run in to your arms and say how sorry I was for going with Jack, and you'd say sorry for staying away from me for so long and then the world would be right again." She said shaking her head. "I was always a fantasist wasn't I?" she asked bitterly

"Helen," he muttered, knowing how hard it was for her as it was just as hard for him. "I wanted to come back. But I couldn't."

"Because of your stupid pride no doubt." She snapped angrily. "It always kept so locked up at times. Locked up from me! I have to say I didn't think you'd keep it up for ten years though!" she said to him. "Do you know I have our children? We have a son and a daughter."

"I know…" he nodded. "Jack told me about Hector and Jane." He said and he could see the fact he knew about them aggravated her even more than she had been already. "I was touched, you called him after me."

"He's nothing like you." She shook her head. "My boy is going to be a good man."

"Our boy, Helen, ours."

"No, mine. If he was your you would have been there since the day he was born, just like I was?" She snapped. "I dunno maybe you would have run from me any way when you found I was pregnant. Not very pirate-y is it, to have a kid or two in tow? And piracy always came first to you."

"Don't immune me honour Helen. I would have been there had I known about them at the time there for you, and you know that. But life got in the way."

"We were your family. Your's Hector! How could any thing get in the way of that?" she said to him as a tear rolled on to her cheek. "Well except your pride."

"And your fear. If you'd just come on the Pearl none of this would have happened."

"Thanks, right Hector just blame me, because none of this is down to you is it?" she spat.

"Well obviously it is 'cause your snow bloody white aren't yer lass? Tell me Helen was Jack good?" he taunted her. "Was it better than us?" He said, taking his turn to be angry with her,

"Don't be stupid. You know it wasn't."

"Oh so not only am I now a bad father, I'm stupid with it!" he raged.

"I never said you were a bad father! I just said you have never been there." she said to him. "They are going to so scared. I only just told them a few days ago about your death. Now they think I'm gone too." She said, taking the heat out of there conversation, at least for the moment.

Going over to the bed she sat down. She couldn't wait to be back with her kids,. They had never been apart from for so long and she missed them so much it hurt.

"But yer not. Neither of us are." He said to her.

"I know." she nodded. "Doesn't change the way they think though, what they think does it?" she said to him. "I've tried to be a good mother to them. Tried to raise them how you'd want them to be." Admitting subconsciously he had always been on her mind and in her thoughts.

"What are they like?" he asked, interested.

"Mischievous, bright, some times a little naughty. There like all children. But I think they have their hearts in the right places." She told him gently. "They miss you. They ask about you some times and ever since I told them you were a pirate and before, Jane has wanted to sail the seven seas as a pirate. I think Hector might want to be a merchant sailor or a pirate. He wants to be a good man. He just hasn't figured out that you can be a good man and a pirate as well." She sighed.

"You talk of me to them?"

"I've had to. They see all the other kids with their papa's they wonder why they haven't got one."

"What did you tell them?"

"That'd you be with us if you could be. But you haven't been able too." she shrugged. "They were only young when I told them that and they have always accepted it to be the truth. And it is."

Putting her head in her hands she sighed in exhaustion. She hadn't had a row like that in so long.

Feeling an odd pity for her he went over and put his hands on her shoulders again, and smiled sadly at her.

"I would have been a good father." He promised her.

"You still can be. Don't you see we can go back to Tortuga?" she said hopefully. "The four of us can be together, a family?"

"Not yet we can't." He said to her.

"Why not?" Helen pouted.

"Because my sweet we have to go to the Brethren court. To get you back is not the only reason I came on this journey. Us being here together is my reward for doing what I must." He said to her.

"and what, must you have done?" she asked.

"Save Jack Sparrow from Davy Jones's Locker."

"And we are going to get him back now?" having not seen him on deck.

"No we be going back to the other world now we got him before you." He said to her.

"Ok let me get this straight. You saved the life of the man who shot you?" she asked.

"And how did yer come against that piece of information?"

"Does it matter, I know Hector. Come on lets just go home, if Jack is saved now?"

"But the rest of our world is not?" he said and begun to explain. "The east India trading company has seemingly lost its patience with us pirates and are trying to wipe us ok."

"What's new? And it is not like you don't have another home except the sea. Come back with me; move in, we can be a real family."

"That isn't what I be wanting though is it? I want the four of us on the Pearl together." He said to her. He would die at sea. He had lived his whole life on it he felt. If he had to die for it he would.

"But I – you know I am not good at sailing."

"Well you're doing it at the moment well enough aren't you?" he told her firmly.

"Only because I am distracted!" she cried.

"By what?"

"Us, you! I have barely taken my eyes off you since I got on to this ship if you hadn't noticed," she said to him.

"Are you still scared?" he asked gently and shame faced she nodded.

"Well we are really going to have ter be changing that." He said, and seeing how she had fallen silent decided it was time he tried to embraced her one again. He smiled as he realised timing had been perfect.

She shut her eyes and leant in to his chest, her hands gently laying on his back as the years washed away.

"Have I told you how much I missed you yet?"

"No darlin'" he said. "You haven't."

"Well I did." She admitted after all the anger. "You're the only one for me." She whispered. He had a terrible feeling that statement worked both ways.

"Good," he said as she yawned. "You should get some sleep." He told her.

"I can go with out." She told him. "When the twins were young I had to on nights on end with none." she exaggerated. "If one got to sleep then the other woke up half the time."

He gave a small chuckle as he took her hands in his. It felt so good, for them both. Raising her hand to his mouth he kissed it tenderly, making her blush. Nothing had changed between the two of them. Not really. "So what happens now?"

"We head for the Island of Shipwreck and the Brethren court."

"No I don't mean for the journey. I mean for us." She said. "Do we have each other?"

"We have each other always Helen." he promised.

"Then I am forgiven?" she asked.

"Yes, I think you are, providing be forgiven too."

"Of course me lord." she joked.

"Well then all be good." He said. "Now come on I have ter introduce yer to the crew." He said and the two of then went out.

She felt a lot stronger than she had been when she had first got on to the ship knowing that she and Hector were going to be ok, and were indeed going to be a family with the kids hopefully once all this was over. The dream may come true yet.

Going on to the deck was no easy thing for her to do though. When she had been in the captain's cabin she had been safe from the waves. She had been safe from the sea. She wasn't any more.

She gave a nervous smile and found her self standing on her own two feet very much alive, on the deck of a ship.

"Hello, fancy meeting you here." She said to Jack.

"Indeed. Odd occurrences… you die?"

"indeed." She nodded.

"Helen." She heard hectors voice from, behind her as he glanced her way disapprovingly as she spoke to Sparrow. Had they been back together longer then she would have teased him for his…. Jealousy? But, no it was too sooner. "Let me introduce yer to Master William Turner and Miss Elizabeth Swann," he said.

"Me and William have already met." She said to him. "Its pleasure to see you again."

Will had apart from Jack, Gibbs and Tia had been the only ones to have known of Helen before she had got on the Pearl. Knowing what she had been through he wondered how she felt. She looked happy enough but things were strained between him and Elizabeth and they hadn't even been apart lately, well not for long. Not like Helen and Barbossa. They had a lot to catch up on.

"And you." he said giving her a smile.

"Elizabeth, nice to meet you." She said noticing the girl's eyes were red from crying possible.

She silently nodded as she shook Helen's hand but that was it.

"Master William I was wondering if yer might do Helen here the honour of a lesson in swordsman ship as we go on our way to the Brethren once we are back." Said Hector.

"I won't have as need to fight though will I?" she asked panicked.

"Yer might." He nodded. In fact the thought it a strong possibility.

"But Hector I can not possible learn all that I need to know in a couple of hours.!" She said to him with pleading eyes. She did not want to fight.

"No you can't can yer? But you must try Helen. If things go wrong – yer must know what ter do. Try…for me…"

"But – ok." She said to him knowing he was speaking sense. She could not argue that.

"We have to get out this world first," said Elizabeth.

"Yes." nodded Jack as he went off. "Some one has to figure it out."

-

The day seemed to pass quietly. Much more quietly than any day had ever passed before on the Pearl.

"I guess if any one is mad enough to work it out, it is him." said Helen to Gibbs as they sat together.

The two of them had met previously when he had been living at Tortuga but only just then had he released the nature of her relationship with Barbossa. Gibbs had never been that friendly with Helen before. She had just been another bar maid. She had an ice maiden exterior that every one on the island had seemed to accept. Why should he had challenge it. But as they talked he realised appearances could be deceptive.

"Aye, captain Jack is only chance." He nodded. "If he can't get us out of here no one can." Be said as he held a bottle of rum in his hand.

"Do you think he will?" she asked.

"I have faith in him. Don't you?" he asked.

"I don't know. In my experience where ever that man goes he takes mischief." She shook her head.

"When it comes to our captain you have to remember some thing Helen. He wants to live for ever. He carries on the façade that not one thing in the world scares him. But if there is some thing that does then it is dying. Trust me, he lives for life. There is no way he is not going to get us out of here!" he comforted her.

"Good." She muttered. She could not stand the thought of being here for ever, even if she was with her love. She needed her children now.

Going up to their father on the top deck, she saw he was looking through his telescope.

"Looking for a way out?" she asked.

"Yes. There doesn't seem to be any thing about for miles gut what." He said to her. "At this rate the only thing we be going to is the locker." He said to her. She sighed and rested her head against his shoulder, tired.

It was then that Jack jumped up from where he had been sitting studying the charts and run to the side of the deck.

"What's that?" he asked the other crew members.

Going down the stairs to see what he was on about Helen run to his side, just to have him, leave it to go to the other side of the ship.

Once all of them had gone to that side of the ship, he returned to the one they had all originally been standing at.

"He's rocking the ship." Cried Gibbs.

Well that was obvious to them, all after he had said it. But if they were rocking though Helen, then they were all going to go over … in to the se3a!

"Jack stop there must be another way!" shouted Helen to him.

"Sorry love!" he responded to her as they run side by side.

"Aye! He's on to it!" said Hector as he joined the rest of the crew at the end other of the ship to Helen, running back and forth.

"But that's means we are going under water!" she said with fear

"Yeses darling!" he said to her. If nothing else this was going to have to cure her fear.

There was no way to stop running for Helen thought, if she did then she was even more likely to die.

It was not long before running across the deck felt as they were running up a hill. The moments when they grabbed the edges of the boat seemed to go on for ever. They cargo beneath them had been released.

Then it happened. At last they had rocked it so much it was going to flip.

"Now up is down." Said Jack next to her.

Helen struggled for freedom as soon as they were in the water. Where as the others who were all confident in the sea were so seemingly cool with it seemed ok, she begun trying to get air. But there was none.

Jack upon seeing her terror moved his hand from the railing do it was over hers to try and keep her there. If she let go now she'd be left behind, left to the locker.

Her eyes met his as she dared to open her eyes and he gave her a tiny smile.

Then in a moment where she didn't even get to think suddenly they plunged through the wasters and were up in the air again. That was when Helen realised they had made it back.

"Are you ok?" She saw Hector mouth to her as they both got up off the floor where they had ended up.

"Fine." She said back to him and he nodded.

This was where the real adventure begun.

"Sun rise." She heard miss Elizabeth not to far away and she looked to the where the sky was brightening by the moment.

Helen had rarely been up early enough to witness some thing so beautiful. It was so utterly stunning. Smiling over at Hector it wasn't long till she found her self back in his embrace. Faith had brought her this far, she thought to herself, and faith would take both of them back to the twins.