I received a few reviews for the last chapter saying I'm confused which is fine, next time please put why because that confused me :P this is an alternative universe where Mary never Died and her Daughter is Edward's. Mary is out of character shes softened, Edward is slightly but mainly based on the final sequence with Jenny :) hope you enjoy thanks for all the follows, favourites and reviews. Also Merry Christmas! hope everyone has an amazing day, if you don't celebrate Christmas I hope your day is just as amazing
November 17th 1720
As promised Edward waited a month and then came back for us, the sails of the jackdaw are visible for a while before the ship reaches the docks. Charlotte has been asleep all morning and I hope that she stays that way for the journey, God only knows what a one-month-old is like on a ship. I gave all my weapons back to Ah Tabai hoping that I would reclaim them in a few years, he insisted I keep my hidden blade. That and Charlotte is all I have when I stand near the harbour waiting for the crew to dock, the gangplank reaches out from the ship and he walks off it making a beeline straight to where I stand. However when he realises how fast he's walking he almost stops, I feel a pang of guilt for him so cover the rest of the ground between us.
"Kenway" I nod stuck for words he answers with a simple nod "What's the matter, cat got ya tongue?"
"I suppose I don't know what to say because the whole way here I feared you might have changed your mind" what?
"Well its not about what I want any more" looking down at Charlotte asleep in my arms "Its about what she needs" I look back up to see his eyes planted firmly on his daughter "You wanna hold her?" his gaze lifts and he looks like a broken man, I never thought for one minute it would affect him like this.
"Aye, I can't believe how fast she's grown!" I hand over my daughter and start walking to the ship "Mary" he calls after me, I turn to find him rooted to the spot "Its one thing to hold her, but I don't feel comfortable walking at the same time" I know exactly what he means, I walk over to him and shift her so she lies flat on his chest
"Put one hand on the lower part of her back and the other where ever you feel fits best" he swaps his hands around one cradling her head "now try walking" we both head to the ship
"I can't believe how much hair she has" running his fingers through it, little things I'm so used to already.
When we reach the ship he hands her over to me and goes to the helm, cradling a now awake Charlotte I go and sit at the back of the ship. I notice Edward isn't actually captaining the ship instead he's acting as a quartermaster, clearly so he can leave his post if he wants to. The ship sets out to sea and I give Charlotte a running commentary on what the crew will be doing she gurgles away to herself until she lets out a sharp squeal, I chuckle that fills me with joy its a sound I always hear but Edward rushes over his face covered with panic.
"Edward she's alright, if anything is wrong I'll shout okay?" he hesitates but stands as if to leave
"I thought I might sit with her?" he crouches down "We could go sit in the captain's cabin if you'd prefer" I was going to ask if I could, she'll be hungry in under an hour
We head down to his cabin and I'm surprised to see 2 armchairs in there, his desk and everything else has been pushed back to the far wall. I sit in one chair and lie Charlotte on my chest whilst Kenway sits opposite me.
"Were you not gonna tell me?" I thought I heard his voice falter if it did he regained his composure quickly
"It wasn't a matter of not wanting to, at first I never thought I would get the chance. I should have died in that prison and you would have to, then there was the fact I didn't know if you even remembered that anything happened in the first place!" a smile crosses his face which confuses the hell outta me.
"There is one particular morning I remember waking and being covered by just a blanket, all on my own on a beach with bottles and a fire as the only things left from the night before" this makes me smile "I'm guessing that Charlotte is the outcome of that night before? Am I right?"
"Aye, my persuasive powers meant the rum was flowing freely. I think we may have had too much and the rest as we say is history" earlier than I expected Charlotte starts moaning "If you don't mind Kenway I'm gonna need some privacy" he gets up to leave stopping just before the door
"It's not like I haven't seen it before" he smirks but leaves out of respect, Cheeky sod.
When Charlotte is fed and sorted she lets out a small yawn, looking around I notice nothing I could put her in. Both of the chairs in the office have solid arms so I pull them together and make a makeshift crib, inside I place my jacket and then lay my daughter onto it. I sit for about 20 minutes just watching her sleeping, I could sit for hours watching her tiny chest rise and fall, in fact, most days I find myself doing exactly that. There's a knock at the door so I somehow tear myself away from her to open it, Edward stands there as if when he left he stayed right outside.
"We're done now you can come back in" I shut the door behind him "Although the smallest person in the room has taken up both of the chairs" he goes over to Charlotte, the same look of awe crosses his face "I find myself watching her all the time"
"I'm glad I didn't get to miss everything, why wouldn't you stay at Inagua? Surely you felt more comfortable giving birth there?" he pinches the bridge of his nose "I'd even found a doctor who specialised in childbirth to come to the Island for you!" I can't believe he did that for me!
"I was angry, the way you looked at me when you find out you were gonna be a father scared me" he looks shocked and starts playing with his hands "I know I was wrong to not tell you straight away, but the way you smashed your room at the manor was what made me leave!" I go over to him and place a hand on his shoulder "I truly am sorry Edward"
"If I'd have known Mary, I" he pauses for a while "I'd have looked after you both" he takes my other hand a plants a kiss on it then pulls me into a hug, it feels odd but I embrace him anyway. If this is going to work neither of us can afford to be hostile "That night Anne bought you in, I was coming to talk to you. To see you lying there so fragile and bandaged scared me. When I reached for your hand on the bed, she kicked me as if to tell me to sort myself out. I sat there talking to her for ages, that's why I panicked when you woke I thought it had been my fault" I smile at the thought of Charlotte waking me up trying to get her parents to talk, its a nice thought but its only a thought.
"Aye she liked to wriggle, I always thought I was having a boy because she shared so many of your traits" it makes me laugh how I used to call her William.
"She looks like you though" We stand two parents staring down on the most precious thing we have ever seen "She has your hair"
"Aye, but she has your eyes. Not that I needed to but when she was born and she looked at me I knew she was yours straight away" I hear him chuckle lightly
"Like my eyes do ya then? Is that how I charmed you"
"No, I prefer my daughters to yours and anyhow I don't think your eyes did much of the work that night to be honest"
"I Truly wish you had said something sooner Mary, or at least told me what had happened. I would like to have thought we would have tried to make it work" I look gone out
"On the destructive path you were set on, I fear it would have thrown us further apart" Charlotte kicks her legs out mid-dream which softens my anger "I suppose I should thank you for that night though, without you I wouldn't have the most important person in my life right now" I kneel next to the chair and stroke her hair, I want to do nothing more than just hold her somehow I refrain.
She stays asleep for the rest of the journey until the call for land goes up, startled she lets out a wail. I try to soothe her but its no good, Kenway looks worried which makes me laugh.
"You want to try?" I don't give him a choice so I lie her on his chest like I did earlier, her screams calm to a murmur "I'm going to look outside" without giving him a chance to complain I leave the cabin and watch the shore get closer.
It feels almost good to be back.