I do not own Pirates of the Caribbean, Disney does. I only own the characters who weren't in the movies, you know, the ones I made up. I also do not own Ambassador Alexander Swann, Isabella Swann, or Count Philip Rochester, who belong to Vilofied.

"Mum?"

I looked up upon hearing the soft, yet deepened voice of my son, and smiled at him. "Hello Oliver. Come here and sit with me." I said as I pat the empty place next to me on the stone bench.

Melody had been acting very well, and quiet, so I'd decided to take her out to the gardens. The skies were a bit over-cast, and the sun a bit low in the sky. I hadn't been keeping track of the time, so I guessed that is was well past four or five in the afternoon.

Oliver limped to me, a result of what those horrid boys had done to him, and eased himself to my left on the cool stone bench. "A letter...from father." he told me. "The mail-carrier sends his apologies for taking so long to get it here. He said that some of their horses had gotten loose, and he had to lend his hand in getting them back to the stables."

I chuckled, and took the letter gently from his slightly tanned hand. Melody took a genuin interest in the parchement I merrited, and made soft baby noises as she reached out to touch the thing that seemed so new and fascinating to her young eyes.

"Look there!" I said to her, pointing at the elegant writing on the front. "It is from your papa!"

"Look at her." Oliver whispered. "She perked up instantly as though she knows exactly who you spoke about."

I glanced over at him before giving Melody my attention again. "I believe she knows more than you think. Babies are smarter than most people give them credit for."

"Aye." he nodded. "Perhaps they are. Might I hold her?"

I eased my baby in Oliver's waiting arms, and couldn't help but stare at the two for a few moments. They got on quite well, more so than one would think a young man, aged five and ten, would. He held her close to his body and stroked her soft, now deeper brown hair before placing a kiss on her little forehead. I watched them closely before remembering the letter in my hands, and opened it and began to read silently.

My darling,

It has been eight weeks, which makes up two months, I believe, give or take. Don't worry about the amount of time it takes you to write back to me. As long as I get word from you, I am happy. You have good excuses, as well. I'm certain our little girl is growing much, and you certainly must be very busy taking care of her.

You say you have an illness, my love? Is it anything like the sicknesses you had on the island? Tell me more about it, and I'll do everything in my power to get anything you need to cure it. Don't be afraid, my love. I will make my way to you as fast as I can, and then I will be able to help you through it. All I can say right now, darling, is get plenty of rest, eat plenty of fruit and vegetables, and drink much water. I can't tell you how sorry I am that I can't be with you in this difficult time. Being out here, away from you, is like slow, agonizing torture.

We draw closer and closer to the enemy each day, if that helps you to feel any better. We were a bit delayed, due to storms, but we've quickly found our pace again, and I'm doing everything I can to make sure we get to this blasted pirate threat as quickly as possible. So, to answer your question, the voyage is going somewhat well. We've not had anymore brawls aboard the ship, so hopefully that tells me I've solved that problem.

I am pleased to hear that Oliver is doing well at his temporary job. He is still doing well with it, yes? If he isn't, he'll have me to answer to. But, I know I don't have to worry about that. He is a good lad, and I expect he'll stay out of trouble.

I must go now, my love. I have duties that can no longer be neglected, or I'll have a mutiny on my hands. I cannot tell you how much I love you. My words simply cannot express it. When I return, I will allow my actions to show you my feelings. Look forward to it, love, because I certainly do. I would like to tell you things I have planned, but I fear they are far too inappropriate to write down. Just know that I love you. Again, I apologize for not being able to be with you while you are ill. I'm doing everything in my power to get back to you quickly. I must go now, darling. There are things that must be tended to, and I cannot ignore them any longer.

Your love,

James

"What does he say?"

Oliver's voice shook me from my thoughts, and I remembered where I was again. I blinked a few times, and looked over at him. "I apologize. I didn't hear what you said, sweetheart."

"The letter. What did father say?" he said quietly.

"Oh." I smiled. What could I tell him? Most of the letter was James telling of his concerns, and...things that should only be shared between James and I. "He...he is pleased to hear of how well you are doing at taking care of us, and he hopes you will continue to do that, and stay out of trouble."

"Good job?" he mumbled quietly, thinking I hadn't heard him.

My smile slowly faded, and I reached up to stroke his cheek with the backs of my fingers. "You're doing quite well, Oliver."

"I've been getting in trouble." he said softly as he allowed Melody to play with his hand.

I sighed. So he hadn't gotten over it after all. "That wasn't your fault, Oliver."

"Yes, it was." he said without missing a beat. "I didn't have to react to their words. I should have continued walking."

"Yes, you should have." I told him gently. "But, you've been doing a splended job of providing for your family. Every morning, you make sure we have plenty of food and firewood. You keep the staff happy by making light jokes, and you see to it that they stay in that mood. You make sure there is plenty of feed for the animals, and you even help groom the horses.

"You've been doing me large favors by getting up in the mornings to take care of Melody when she needs to be changed and fed. I haven't even requested you to do any of the things you do, darling! You just do them. Most young men your age don't care about anything that goes on around them, unless it affects them. You're doing a wonderful job. I'm very proud of you." I smiled.

Oliver didn't say anything, but returned my smile.

It was then that I felt a strange sensation at the back of my throat, and I began to cough. It started out as a little cough, but grew, and it felt as though I couldn't stop it. I hunched over a bit and coughed away from my son and daughter, and struggled to regain my breath after the coughing fit was over.

"Are you alright, Mum?" Oliver asked.

I could tell he'd tried to hide it, but I'd heard the worry in Oliver's voice. Had I really been coughing that hard? "I'm alright, Oliver." I whispered. "I just feel a bit weak, is all."

"Here." he said as he placed Melody back in my arms. "Hold on to her."

I held my baby securely, and didn't have time to ask what he was going to do before Oliver lifted me up into his arms and began walking toward the mannor. "Really, Oliver, I'm alright. I can walk back to the mannor."

"No, Mum. You look pale. Let me carry you."

"Sir, do you have a moment?"

Setting my quill down tiredly, I looked up at my open cabin door, and found Lieutenant Theodore Groves, otherwise known as my brother-in-law, standing just behind the threshold. "Come in." I nodded.

He shut the door quietly behind him and took a seat in front of my desk, removing his tricornered hat as he did so.

I furrowed my brows as I folded my hands atop my desk. "Are you feeling alright, Theodore?"

He smiled. I only called him Theodore when we were on brotherly terms. We were no longer officers. He was no longer a lieutenant. I was no longer and admiral or his superior officer. We were just brother-in-laws.

"Perfectly fine, sir."

"Liar." I mumbled loud enough for him to hear. With an inward smirk I reached in the bottom left drawer of my desk and removed a bottle of brandy and a glass.

Theodore chuckled lightly and took one of the glasses once I filled them, and took a small sip. "I'm not the only one lying. You're not fine and dandy either."

I also took a sip of brandy, and quirked my brows at him. "I think both of us know why." I told him quietly. "I think you have the same problem."

Whatever cheerfulness had been in Theodore's eyes vanished, and he nodded, taking a larger sip of brandy. "My wedding was suposed to be this week."

I drained my small glass and put the bottle back in the drawer, so as to avoid temptation, and gave my friend a sympathetic gaze. "I'm sorry."

"Sir!"

The loud voice in and sudden opening of my cabin door caused me to wince, and send a glare toward the door, only to find Gillett there. "We've spotted a ship, Sir. Quite large. Nearly the size of our Man-of-War!"

A pirate ship the size of a Man-of-War? Perhaps this pirate threat was worse than I'd thought it would be. "I want all men to stations, now! Load the cannons!"

In only seconds I was on my feet and out the door, followed by Theodore and Gillett. Just as expected, a large, and I mean very large pirate ship awaited us. "Where is Sparrow?" I asked in my no-nonsense-tone.

"Last I saw, he was headed below deck." Gillett answered.

"Go fetch him." I growled.

As this task was being carried out, I removed my spyglass from my coat pocket and studied the crew of the other ship. Many of the men were tall, but very skinny, their bodies covered in what appeared to be rags. I searched in frustration for the captain, or someone who appeared to be captain, but found none.

"Oi!"

The sudden shout to my left caught my attention, and upon looking in that direction I found Sparrow being led onto the deck by two of my marines. I couldn't help but role my eyes as Sparrow was deposited beside me. "Which one is he?" I snapped, shoving my spyglass in his hands.

The spyglass jumped around on Sparrow's fingertips before he was finally able to wrap his fingers around it and clutch it to his chest for fear of dropping it. "No need to throw things, mate." he mumbled. He then put the spyglass to his eye and peered at the other ship for a moment, and shook his head. "He isn't there."

"What do you mean, not there?" I questioned with a scowl. "Not on the ship?"

"No, mate." he said with his brows furrowed. "He very rarely goes to his cabin. He's usually the one at the wheel, mate. Very unusual not to see him out and about the deck."

"Would you like to know why he's not on the deck?" A rough voice asked from behind us.

I turned to find a man in a very dirty marine coat, with a long, matted black beared.

"I'm the captain of that ship." he smiled. "If you want to live, you'll surrender now."

Cliffhanger! Sorry, I know it's mean. But, I'm keeping you hooked, right? Anyway, I apologize if this chapter didn't make much sense. I'm basically running on rock music and caffine due to a late night of homework. Darn those major homework projects! Lol! Anyway, please review! Thanks!