Bill Turner doesn't have to see his Captain to know that she's back on the Flying Dutchman. The ship creaks and groans, the sails seem to wilt and become more discolored. He feels the same sense of foreboding he had once felt at the approach of Davy Jones.
He glances towards Marie, who is at the helm this time, and then surveys the other crewmen. They have stopped what they are doing to look up and around, then send questioning glances his way. If anyone knows what's going on, it is usually Bill Turner; none of them is closer to Elizabeth than he is.
He only shakes his head in response; this time even he has no clue.
Elizabeth is making her way across the deck now. The crew, including poor Marie, make the mistake of staring at her as she does so.
"What are you looking at?" She snaps. "Step to, the lot of you! Prepare for a dive! You three, go down and look through the hold, we'll be making good use of the guns soon and I have a feeling we haven't got much to load them with."
The three sailors in question eache mutter and 'Aye Cap'n Turner' before heading off to do as Elizabeth has asked.
"Captain Swan!" She corrects, loud enough for all to hear. "Three lashes to anyone who dares to call me Turner again!" She continues on her way across the deck, passing Bill on her way.
"Cap'n," he says, turning to follow her, "We haven't finished taking on the poor souls from the wrecked ship and…"
"I'm afraid we have other things to worry about now." She says, and she sounds angry, distracted, and doesn't seem to really care about what she should be doing.
"But Captain we can't just…"
"Unless they are alive and could possibly become crew don't bother."
They are entering her cabin now, though she doesn't seem as though she had a reason for coming here, and he shuts the door.
"Elizabeth. Please. Listen." He says, his voice laced with worry.
She finally looks to him, and the look in her eyes only serves to unnerve him even further, but he keeps going because he knows she needs to hear what he has to say.
"I know you have somehow won the goddess's favor, but that does not mean she won't allow the full effects of the curse to come down on you, on all of us. We must continue to do the job."
She is quiet for a moment, and the anger seems to fade from her eyes a little, slowly being replaced by sadness.
"Emily has been taken. By the Company. I have to find her. I have to."
"Ah. I see. I'm assuming this is somehow my sons fault, seeing as you have just declared yourself to once again be a Swan and not a Turner."
"That has nothing to do with Emily's disppearance." Now she is just angry again. "The William Turner I know is gone; all that's left is another rum-soaked and unfaithful pirate." She takes the ring Will gave her off of her finger and stares down at it.
Bill begins to feel angry himself, which is unusual, and thinks he will have to have a talk with his son before they sail off.
"You know I will do whatever you say, Elizabeth. If Emily is in trouble then we will try to get her back. But if I notice anything off, even the slightest thing…"
"Tell me and I will do my best to keep an open mind. Let me know if there are any left alive from the wreck." She replies, in effect telling him to get out of her cabin.
He mumbles an 'Aye Cap'n' in response as he leaves.
William Turner takes another swig from his rum and stares down at the more-than-half-empty bottle with dull eyes. He wonders at how he used to side with Elizabeth on how vile the drink could be; now he's almost as fond of it as Jack. Almost.
It is night time; the Dutchman has been sailing alongside the Pearl for a while now, and he wonders just what Elizabeth is doing. Why would she be heading towards Tortuga with them? Perhaps she needed supplies; it wasn't as though the Dutchman was used to doing battle anymore.
He isn't startled when his father quietly enters his cabin without knocking. He'd been expecting a visit like this ever since he realized the Dutchman was staying around.
Will has no wish to talk to anyone. All remains silent for a moment or two.
"She's decided we're to go after Emily."
"I figured as much." Will says, and his speech is slurred and slow.
"I don't know how long she can ignore her duties before the Curse begins to really take hold."
"Perhaps her goddess will be kind enough to hold it back."
"Perhaps you should attempt to make a true apology because she is thinking more like Jones' with each day that passes, William."
"Tried already. She wouldn't listen. And my Elizabeth would never allow herself to become that."
"She's no longer yours. She threatened the crew with three lashes if they should 'dare to call her Turner again'."
Will only takes another long swig from his bottle of rum.
"Is that you're answer then, boy?" Bill gestures towards the bottle.
"Seems answer enough for me. Nothing I say to her or do for her will be good enough anymore."
Bill only stares at his son. He sees so much of himself in Will in that moment that it is frightening. A part of him is getting angry with the younger mans apathy.
"Did you know she could've been free?"
Will looks up to meet his eyes now.
"What?"
"If you'd remained faithful, as she truly believes you haven't, she could've been free when her ten years were up."
"No! She-she never told me that!"
"She shouldn't've had to." Bill retorts.
The following silence is deafening.
"Perhaps I should talk to her again." Will stands, or attempts to; the rum throws him off balance and he stumbles, clutching the wall for a moment before attempting to walk towards the door.
Bill sighs.
"Don't bother."
"B-but I…"
"You're drunk, son, and the Captain is sleeping. She wouldn't want to talk to you normally, much less now."
Will stops half way to the door and just stands there, unsure of what to do, swaying heavily on his feet.
Bill steps forward and takes his sons hand, pressing something small and round into it.
"I'm sorry." He says as Will glances down at the object in his hand. When Will looks back up, his father is gone.
He looks back down, staring at the small object for a moment as a potent mixture of sadness and anger and guilt settles in his gut.
He drops the wedding ring he had made and given to Elizabeth onto a table and stumbles back over to his bed. He snatches up the rum bottle and brings it to his lips, tipping it back, and drinks and drinks…
I know it's been a little while this time, but I've written two chapters in that time, so I hope that makes up for it. :)
Thanks a bunch for the reveiws!