Midnight on the Ship of Dreams

Dénouement

AN-

Many thanks to my loyal readers. This story has accumulated over 1,400 hits, and I never expected that it would be clicked on that many times! Special thanks to Nutzkie for his help keeping the facts straight, and for being as layout savvy as I try to be!

Also thanks to everyone else who reviewed, particularly PreciousPrincess and ArtemisKey, who have stuck with the story for a little while now!

I dedicate this last installment to all of you.

[April 17th, 11:34 UTC]

It was quite a spectacle. Ruth could not recall having seen something so strange, and then hearing so many people chattering around her about it. She had opted to take some air on the boat deck and no sooner had she paused at a rail than the sun had gone dark for no more than a couple of seconds before it had returned. Some man was ranting about a "solar eclipse" and when his wife asked what that meant, he explained that the moon had come between the earth and sun, before continuing on it's rotation. It hadn't lasted for more than a couple of seconds, and yet it was all they could talk about.

Ruth's hand clenched tightly on the railing. That goddamn moon felt like it had the right to just shove it's way between the sun and the earth. That just wouldn't do, for a few seconds or otherwise. It was time to set things right. It was finally time to get things back to the way they had been before. Hockley's betrayal wouldn't matter , when the girl had no moon to eclipse her, she would do the right thing and perhaps he would be able to live with a wife who had already experienced the things Rose undoubtedly had in all this time in steerage.

He had risked this much for them as it were, after all.

The 16th had been bliss. There was no commiserating with the wealthy and no table manners and no god awful gossip. They had spent the entire day just enjoying the cool air on deck and the ale down in the general room. They had started the day out the right way, up on the poop deck under a blanket, sharing smuggled breakfast goods between laughs when they too witnessed the marvelous eclipse. Something about it seemed terrifying to Rose, to see the sun vanish like that, even for so brief of a time. She looked at Jack as soon as it was over with a frown creasing her brow. "I have a bad feeling…"

"We make port today, you better not!" He joked, pressing a kiss to her temple. "It's gonna be okay. I promise." One of his hands dropped to clasp hers gently, and she smiled softly at him, leaning to share a gentle little kiss.

"Ah!" They jumped in unison at the sound and looked up with sheepish smiles. Thomas Andrews approached with a subtle little smile that grew when he was sure he had recognized them. "Jack, Rose. I was hoping to catch you before you disembarked." Several other members of the guarantee group that he was apart of had trailed behind him, chatting over the last few things they had worked on, oblivious to the couple in front of their boss. "Is there anything about Titanic that you would see changed?"

Glancing at Jack and reading his expression she smiled and returned her eyes to the shipbuilder. "Mr. Andrews, I think I can speak for everyone on board when I say everything is perfect. You did a wonderful job."

"Nicest ride in third class I've ever had," Jack agreed, winking as he tightened his arm around Rose's shoulders. "Although I wouldn't complain about having a little more freedom to roam."

Andrews said nothing to that, he knew Jack was joking as best as he could. Changing the way classes ranked on board a vessel would not change the way they behaved period. But he appreciated the honesty and nodded his thanks. "I truly hope you find what you're looking for, you're both very kind." He sighed, glancing around himself. "I myself look forward to getting back home for a bit. I miss my daughter terribly."

"You have a daughter?" Rose inquired, sitting forward a little, her interest clearly piqued. Jack chuckled and Andrews nodded, his smile widening by the moment.

"I do, Elizabeth. We call her Elba, because E-L-B-A are her initials it's. . ." He blushed slightly. "Well it's silly I suppose but I adore her. Very much."

"Mr. Andrews? Captain Smith has asked to speak with you."

Jack and Rose looked at the officer requesting him and waved their goodbyes as he bowed slightly with a wink. "I hope we see one another again."

"I plan to be building ships for many more years to come, Young Rose. You will always be welcome aboard one of those vessels," Waving, he excused himself and followed the officer, his little crew in toe to the bridge. Rose watched for a moment, wondering why all men of their station could not be more like Thomas Andrews before she turned her attention to Jack as he stood and snatched up her hand.

"C'mon. Let's get changed and start packing up. Molly invited us to lunch up above."

Seeing him standing there, his face bronzed from all his recent sun, blonde hair flipping around in the breeze, Rose realized how lucky she was. He was truly the embodiment of the freedom they so sought. She used his hand to help herself stand and linked her arm with his, allowing him to lead her down to their room so they could get ready to eat their last meal aboard the RMS Titanic.

Rose had urged Jack to go ahead and collect Molly from her room, and had promised to meet him at the top of the Grand Staircase. Jack had spent the time in between arriving at her room and walking Molly there sputtering about how he didn't understand how a woman of any 'class' could take so damn long getting ready. Molly was particularly sunny about it, and simply said that it would be worth his while today. Jack didn't understand that. Being with Rose was worth it any day, but for some reason, he felt like going with it.

He was less than pleased to see Cal waiting on the landing as well, but he simply glanced at Jack before turning his attention back to the Countess of Rothes, whom seemed to be discussing something of great importance with him. Jack shook his head and leaned against the banister, stuffing his hands into his pockets. He didn't really understand this whole culture but he supposed none of them, Rose excluded, understood him either. There was a fair balance there. He didn't know why he kept agreeing to exposing himself to it all.

There was an audible gasp among the people standing with them and he glanced up to the entrance to see Rose standing there, beaming at him. She was wearing one of her fancier dresses, in all white, with elaborate beading and lace that reminded him of her dinner outfits and her hair was hanging down her back, unpinned. Just the way he loved it. There were two delicate looking white flower pins in her hair, and he had never seen her so…radiant. Molly nudged him, and he approached, smiling. "Wow. You look incredible, Miss Dewitt Bukater."

"Yes she does," Cal chimed in, stepping forward. "But something is missing." He drew The Heart of the Ocean from his pocket and strolled over to step behind his former fiancee. She tensed visibly but remained still as he fastened the necklace around he neck, patting her shoulder. "Something blue, I think."

Jack was perplexed at first, wondering how Cal had ended up with the necklace again in the first place and why he was marking her with it in front of him. And why Rose wasn't stopping him, and that's when it dawned on him. She had wanted him to. She wanted him to symbolically give her away. She wanted to marry Jack.

"Rose?" He said, his voice quivering a little. "I…you planned this?"

"I did, after dinner last night I went to see Cal and Molly." She took a few steps toward him to take his hands and Jack saw the chaplain appear in the doorway, smiling at them. "I thought what better place for us to be married than the grandest ship in the world?" She smiled up into his face. "The Ship of Dreams."

Staring into her face, he realized this was as much for him as it was for her. Jack had had the crumby end of everything his whole life. Rose was giving him another little taste of her world, but she was there. That was what mattered. That made it count. He bent to kiss her and as their lips met, the chaplain blessed the union and Jack made a brief mental note to pick up a ring for her as soon as they docked. They were asked to sign a license, which would have to be notarized in New York.

Just as Jack finished scribbling his name on the correct line, the entire party that had witnessed the event as well as the bride and groom turned to look down the next level as they heard a scuffle ensue. "NO! This is not HAPPENING!"

Rose groaned. "Mother…"

There were more gasps, this time, frightened ones as Ruth pushed her way up the stairs. An officer was yelling from where she had just come, and she was waving his Webley pistol at the group, leading the ladies to leap out of the way. Jack immediately crossed the gun's path to block it from pointing at Rose, and Rose immediately began to struggle to overpower him so she could protect him as well. "No! Mother, stop this! Just leave us be!"

Ruth laughed out loud at that, her hand still quivering with the gun. "Rose, darling. I have one thing left in this world, and that is you. I won't see you wasting your life away carrying penniless spawn in a drafty shack with only water and bread to sustain yourself. You were born to be better than that. I wanted you to have more of a life than that."

"You wanted me to be a slave! You only pushed for the marriage because…"

"Rose, not another word."

"Because we're WORTHLESS, mother, and everyone knows it by now. That's why you were stealing from me and that's what Lovejoy would have told the purser if you hadn't shot him like a mad dog!"

Ruth's eyes were filled with tears and her hand shook more intensely. Here she was, ripped to her core by her own flesh and blood, and the man who had defiled her and brainwashed her to act this way was standing there claiming his right as her husband. Her stomach knotted in complete disgust and she cocked the gun. As she did, the sound jarred Rose into a panic and she shoved Jack with all of her might. He toppled to the ground just as Ruth pulled the trigger and there was another tussle as someone took Ruth down to the ground.

The Countess screamed in horror and Rose hit the floor. She heard Jack scream her name, but she couldn't move. Couldn't think. Couldn't feel. How ironic life was, today she had become Jack's wife. Titanic was going to dock at any given moment and her own mother had slaughtered her in cold blood while trying to kill Jack. Perhaps cold blood was a literal term, as she felt nothing but cold heaviness on her chest. Jack crawled over and touched her face, squeezed her trembling hand and rand his hands along her chest and shoulders. "Rose, Rose, darling, sweetheart…" He gasped. "You're okay!"

"I..I am?" She asked, finally finding the courage to look at her chest. No blood. No gaping wound. Just that god forsaken necklace, and the diamond, having lost some of it's glisten, looked scratched. She exhaled shakily, her eyes filling with suppressed tears as she choked back a sob. "I…I am! I'm okay, I…"

She heard a wheeze and some gasping and looked to her left to see Cal lying just a few inches away. His hand was covering the leftmost side of his stomach, and Rose saw blood ooze up through the cracks of his fingers as he tried desperately to remain calm. She called his name and scrambled over to him, noting how pale he had already become, and the massive amount of blood that was trickling down the magnificent wooden staircase. The Countess was nearby, on her knees, her face covered in tears, but she dared not touch him in that state. Rose felt absolute disgust at her behavior.

"Caledon," She crawled to him and dragged him slightly to lay him across her lap, careless of the blood that was now staining her beautiful white dress. "Cal, I'm here. It's me." She sort of remembered the feel of him diving in front of her too late, but the bullet had hit 56 carats of blue diamond rather than her skin. That lucky of a miss, and yet not lucky enough. Cal was not going to be okay. She knew from his eyes and how desperately he tried to hide the severity of the wound from her. "You should have stayed still."

He scoffed, his voice shaky and weak. "And risked…seeing you killed on your wedding day?" He stumbled for his breath momentarily and then he smiled, his teeth stained with blood. "Never."

Rose choked on a sob and bent to kiss his cheek, her hand covering his on the wound. She looked around desperately, her eyes shining with tears. "Can we get a doctor over here please?" She looked back to him. "It's going to be okay, all right? Help will come. There has to be a doctor on this goddamn ship."

"No need for language Rose…" He joked, his eyes fluttering.

"Cal! No. Stay awake!" The sobs were coming harder as he faded away. "Someone help, please!"

She heard Jack a little further off and realized he had run to find help. "Clear the way! Move, please! I have a doctor here, please move! GET THE FUCK OUT OF THE WAY! Thank you!" She smiled down at him and suddenly felt his hand go limp under hers. He wasn't trying to stave off the bleeding. He wasn't breathing. His mouth hung wide open and his body was still. "No, no, Cal…"

The doctor was standing over them and he looked grim, shaking his head. "Even if we get his heart pumping again, what little blood is left in his body will just pump out as well. He's gone, Miss." She felt Jack's hands on her shoulders and she allowed the doctor to remove Cal from her lap before Jack helped her stand and pulled her tightly into his arms, kissing her head.

"I just didn't want him to die alone…"

"Rose," He winced, kissing her. "I'm not angry with you. You have a heart of gold. I get that." Somewhere in the near distance Ruth was calling her name and so Rose just buried her face in Jack's shirt, lamenting, privately, the loss of someone who in the end, turned out to be a decent human being. He had been willing to save her life, and had sacrificed his own to do it. Perhaps Caledon Hockley was not the self righteous pig she had assumed he was.

Jack didn't pause to wait for anyone to come for them. He swept her up in his arms, stuck the marriage license in his shirt, and carried her back down to their room to wait out the final couple of hours aboard the ship in peace. He held her to him as she cried for a little while and when she was done grieving for Cal, and in a way, for her mother, he lead her up to where the gangway door was for third class so they could be one of the first pairs off of the ship.

It wasn't what he would have expected from a honeymoon, but it meant something. That counted too.

"Miss?"

Rose blinked and looked up at the steward that was trying to get her attention. "Ma'am I mean. The master-at-arms wants to escort you to the nearest police precinct, so you can tell him everything you saw. About what happened today."

"Thank you," She said softly, her hand automatically searching for Jack's near her. He caught it and smiled reassuringly at her, kissing the back. Officer Bailey appeared with a grim smile, and lead them down the gangway to a waiting car. Rose paused and turned to look back at the ship, and realized it didn't look as glorious and brand new as it had when she had boarded with Cal and her mother. It seemed dingy and old and dark, and she wouldn't like to ever go back again.

Up on the boat deck movement caught her attention and she realized it was Mr. Andrews waving to her. She couldn't help but smile, ever so slightly and waved back. She was happy that at least he could go and see his child. She only wished he somehow could have stopped that horrible afternoon from having come to pass. Jack helped her into the car and they were driven to the police station to finish up with that chapter of their lives.

Jack had brought the paper home a week later, having been out job hunting, and Rose had felt her heart break all over again just looking at the front of it. The headline burned into her like a hot iron that might have been forgotten on a shirt too long.

TITANIC SINKS! GREAT LOSS OF LIFE!

Apparently they had struck an iceberg on the trip back to Southampton. Rose instantly remembered the lifeboat capacity she had discussed with Mr. Andrews and that the ship had been fully booked back to England, despite the two grisly murders committed on board during the first leg of the maiden voyage. Reading further, she learned a great deal of the crew lost their lives along with Mr. Andrews himself. Halfway home and halfway to Elba, he was gone in less than two hours time.

It hit hard, but it was not the end of their world. Rose was just grateful that it had not happened when they had been on board. She couldn't imagine she would survive a ship sinking from under her. Her understanding from the papers was that most of the people killed were third class, and they were men. Women and children, while not without a few men, were given priority for the lifeboats. Captain Smith, who had been lovely to her when she had met him, was gone too. What a way to retire.

Months later, life went on, and Ruth was awaiting trial. Rose didn't keep up with it much at all. She had so many more things to be concerned with. Jack had begun work in a bookstore near to there little apartment and was still sketching on the side. Rose had returned the necklace to Nathan Hockley at Cal's funeral, it felt like the least she could do after he had given his life for her, and despite his obvious disdain for her now, he had thanked her curtly before walking away. Rose wondered if a man like him hurt for the loss of his son. But she didn't think she'd ever find out.

She did suspect that Jack would be greatly pained at the loss of their child. Even being gone from the house eight hours a day, he would returned smelling like musty old books and would immediately duck to kiss the swell of her belly. "Hello, little mouse, I'm home!" He would always say, making her laugh and hug him close to her, grateful to have him in her world after everything that had happened. He would always hug her quickly, kiss her and say "All right, tell me everything you did or read or saw or heard today!"

Years later, life was rather perfect. Rose was working in pictures, and Jack had opened a little studio to work in and sell his artwork in. The children were almost old enough to start school and would spend their days chasing their mother on the beach overlooking the Santa Monica pier before she had to go and work. They were all frequent models for Jack's work, which had expanded into watercolors and other paintings. His biggest sell had been a picture of Rose sitting in the sand pointing out at the ocean with their elder son, Tom, in her lap.

When their daughter had been born two years after Tom, Rose had given him creative license over her name. And what with her having named the boy after both his friend, whom he rarely got to see and the shipbuilder that had helped bring them together, Jack only thought it was fair to name their second child after the person who had given Rose her life. Calliope Dawson was like her brother in that she was a good mix of her parents look wise, but she had her mother's burning personality. And she had him wrapped around her little finger.

Five years from their wedding day, Rose was sitting on the porch, having given up, for now, on learning lines. She had opted to just enjoy the way the breeze made her hair flip around, and remembered watching the way the wind had made Jack's do the same. Something cold touch her hand and she opened her eyes to see Jack was offering her a great big glass of beer. Laughing, she took it and took a few good chugs from the mug before wiping her mouth. Her husband laughed.

"Still can't believe you drink like that." He took a modest sip from his own mug.

"I still can't believe what you've done to your hair." She retorted, smirking over at him.

"What! I like it!"

"I hate it!" She laughed, reaching to touch his chopped tresses. "But I suppose I can get used to it if you get used to the way I drink."

"Eh, I guess to each his own."

Rose peaked around the corner to the front door. "They went down fast. Did you bribe them or something?"

"Twenty dollars a piece," He joked, winking at her before sitting down next to her. "So did you decide about whether you want to go to New York next week?"

She shrugged. "Not really. They didn't go down in New York, it just seems silly to hold a service there." Jack nodded but remained silent. Rose glanced over at him, reaching to run her fingers down his cheek. "You're getting old." She mused, and he raised his eyebrow at her. "You need to stop getting so old."

"Well I can't help that you age at the rate of a snail," He joked, planting a generous kiss on her cheek. "So five years. Any regrets?"

"Aside from letting you get that haircut?" She tapped her mouth thoughtfully with a finger, then downed the remainder of her beer before setting the mug aside. "Nope." Her answer was short, but appropriate and stated with true conviction. They laughed and she asked, "How about you?"

"Hmm," He shrugged. "Wish I had written a strongly worded letter to the White Star Line when I had the chance. But then I remember that you married me on their doomed ship and life is all right." He dragged her to sit in front of him so he could slip his legs around her, planting little kisses on her neck.

"It really is, isn't it?"

"Couldn't be better," He agreed, moving his line of kisses to her jaw. "What's say we go inside and you can punish me for my oh so awful haircut?"

Rose shook her head. "All right, but if you wake up the kids, you're sleeping with them in their room tonight." Taking his offered hands, she pulled herself to her feet and swept right past him when he reached to be helped up by her in returned. He laughter sounded through the screen door as he sat there, dumbstruck, amused and aroused at her playfulness. Perhaps even after all this time, things could continue to get interesting after all.