Almost three weeks had passed since they boarded The Dauntless and left Port Royal, en route to England.
Elizabeth -who had been quietly laying on the bed of his quarters- stretched lazily and finally moved her gaze away from the book and towards the vast expanse of ocean on the outside. She could hear the constant break of the waves against the side of the hull. It was an almost lulling sound.
When a cool breeze came in, she closed her eyes pleasantly, and mumbled to herself "It´s a nice weather"
Her words made him look up from his place on the table and follow her gaze out the window. 'Nice' wasn´t really the word he would use to describe the weather. Winter's cold was upon them now, and the further north they moved, the more noticeable it became. The sky had remained clouded for the past three days, and the sea was acting temperamental.
There was truly not much to admire.
And yet none of that seemed to have a negative effect on Elizabeth. In fact, her mood had been especially spirited the past few months.
So he hummed in agreement without much thought.
He knew it was likely the result of her unsanctioned trips aboard The Dauntless.
Sometimes he questioned whether letting her do as she pleased in that regard was the right thing to do; but Elizabeth was happy. And what scared him most was causing her to live a life of misery at his side.
He knew how much she loved being at sea, and he could understand completely. Whenever he looked at her enticing eyes sparkle as the rays of sun reached them, he could remember the child he'd been. The one that had shared her immense happiness at being allowed on a ship. The one who was called by the endless expanse of clear blue, the one who delighted at the gust of wind pushing the sails and looked over the deck attempting to memorize everything he could.
That same vast ocean had become his sole companion and consolation from the moment he was left alone in the world.
All of it was still clearly embedded in his memories.
And yet, when his duties and responsibilities had overshadowed the simple desires of a child for adventure and recognition, his adult self had neglected all enjoyment for it. Adventure and exhilaration had become second to discipline and fortitude and eventually the former were completely forgotten as the latter grew.
It was difficult to remember how that had happened, but it was probably the result of the determination of the same naïve child that had wanted nothing most in the world than to make his stoic father turn his way with a proud smile... such an impossible task to accomplish after committing the unforgivable crime of being rescued from death by a pirate.
Shame had been all he was capable of evoking in his father after that day, and no effort on his part had been enough to change or mitigate that.
He had carried that reminder all through his life but, somehow, now he couldn't remember why it had been so important before.
'It doesn't matter anymore' such simple and direct words, and yet so true. They persistently echoed inside him every time he thought of the man, as if enticing him to believe them. And he couldn´t help but to.
None of the past mattered anymore.
Taking so long to realize it was almost humorous. Truly, how utterly hopeless he'd been.
What was truly important to him was her, Elizabeth. So, all that he wanted to do was keep her safe and happy.
Instead of continuing to read her book, she chose to turn onto her stomach and rest her chin on her hands, and felt her eyes stay on him even as he resumed with his work. She'd told him once that the sight of him working inside his private cabin without his uniform was a rather incongruous image to her. Even when she´d seen it several times, it somehow still seemed to hold her intrigue.
"It feels sort of strange to be on The Dauntless without wearing my disguise. I worry what would happen if someone starts asking about me" Elizabeth continued musing out loud, sounding so preoccupied that it made him smile.
When his eyes landed on her prone figure tangled in a mess of sheets, James' head was completely occupied by the thought that he couldn´t care less about her disguise, as he was sufficiently satisfied seeing her don nothing but one of his shirts while she obliviously kicked her legs in the air.
He had to wondered whether she was aware her actions and appearance constituted a transgression against the promise she made not to distract him; although it was most likely her actions were not deliberate. This time.
Forcing himself to redirect his attention away from her bare legs when she turned his way with a smile, he answered with an arched brow. "You don't truly believe that works, do you?"
Her expression morphed into adorable scowl as she pushed her upper body off the bed, locking those precious eyes on his while looking upset "Whatever you mean? Of course it does! For your information John is a valuable member of the crew"
"John?" he could barely hold the smirk back as he asked.
"I needed a name, didn't I?"
"Elizabeth there is no way you pass as a man, even if you wear unflatteringly loose men´s clothes" he said, chuckling at her stubbornness and having a laugh by antagonizing her.
In the beginning he had felt quite a bit of concern about the idea of his wife wandering around a ship full of men -even if they were his men- and being recognized, but then his concern quickly shifted to worrying about the level of stupidity displayed by the entirety of his crew at being unable to recognize the Governor's daughter in trousers and a hat.
"The only reason you can recognize me so easily is because you are too familiar with me" she argued "I look nothing like myself when I'm out there"
In all fairness, he could admit that might be a correct statement. Even if in his eyes Elizabeth always appeared as nothing less than a beautiful woman, he could understand how that might not be the case for the rest. It was probably impossible for most men to conceive that a proper lady of society would confidently stroll around the deck of a naval ship the way his wife did. To him, her actions were as disconcerting and as oddly appealing as ever.
He smiled at her "While they might not be the most brilliant crowd, my men are not complete morons"
Gillette definitely was. She thought immediately, having the sense to not voice it out loud. Murtogg and Mullroy didn´t stand much of a chance... Groves might not be a complete lost cause.
"I've taken great pains not to be alone with anyone for long" she huffed grumpily, dropping back on the bed "And I always sneak in here when there is no one around"
"Or maybe they simply don´t want to admit that an aristocratic lady has been putting them to shame every time you decide to join in on their squabbles"
Those words made her preen instantly.
He hadn´t really been trying to praise her, just making an observation. Objectively speaking, Elizabeth was quite talented with a sword. She was nimble and centered, knew exactly how to find her opponents weak spots and how to take advantage of them, exploding them to the best of her abilities.
"He was the one who challenged me!"
"You broke the stand of our bell" he reminded her patiently, offering her a pointed stare of disapproval as he did. It had taken a week to get it repaired.
Her expression twisted with indignation at the accusation "Why do you always accuse me!? He was the one who fell on top of it"
"Because you punched him, Love"
Instead of accepting it quietly, she scowled at him harder, arguing back "And how would you know that? You weren't even there"
He didn´t even bother responding to her obvious attempt to deflect the accusation, simply staring at her unimpressed.
She exhaled harshly and relented with annoyance "Fine, but it still wasn´t my fault!"
He exhaled with some exasperation at her logic, but held his tongue, waiting for what was sure to be an enlightening explanation.
Elizabeth did not disappoint. "He insulted me, calling me effeminate and other insults" she remarked, gesturing wildly as she did.
James looked truly baffled by her explanation "You are a woman"
"Of course, but he doesn't know that, he was merely seeking to offend me. I couldn´t let my honour be mocked in that way"
What honour?
"But I assure you, they don't suspect it's me. Stop worrying about it" she repeated with obstinate confidence.
There was no point in continuing the discussion any further, he seldomly won either way. Deciding to change the subject of their conversation, he asked her with sudden interest "Is there any particular place you wish to visit while we are there?"
Her brow wrinkled in surprise for a moment but she thought about his question with a serious expression before she shook her head lightly, letting it fall down on the pillow as she replied "Not that I can think of. I really don't remember much of anything"
"What about your relatives?" he tried again.
But she shrugged nonchalantly "I don't remember England that well and I wasn't particularly close to anyone before I left so… I'm not really interested"
"That´s fine then. If you think about someplace you wish to visit, make sure to let me know. We´ll only be in London for a couple of days" he offered, going back to tracing the route on the chart in front of him.
"My father should have just accompanied us. He´s the one who likes England the most"
"The Governor has plenty of duties to attend to as it is. Now that pirates are not crawling around, Jamaica is developing rapidly. Getting England's notice is something to be proud of, but I do not believe it is necessarily the most convenient time for leisure. The amount of exports and imports that we receive is much larger now as well. There is much work that needs to be done and your father is in charge of it"
Elizabeth seemed uninterested on his explanation, as she ignored it all and instead asked with an amused smirk "Why do you continue referring to my father as 'Governor'? He adores you like a son"
James could feel the heat going to his ears and had the urge to rub the back of his neck "He is still the Governor and I´m the officer in charge, I need to be a certain amount of respect maintained in the way I address him."
She rolled her eyes at him "James, your way of thinking is so cumbersome sometimes"
After a while of silence, she spoke again abruptly. "What about your family?" she blurted out, making his attention return to her.
"What about my family?" he repeated with confusion.
"Well, isn't there someone you want to see?" she asked tentatively.
He thought about it for a moment before concluding "You know my parents have already passed, there really is no one left there that I would want to meet." He looked straight in her eyes and added "You are my only family now"
The way he said the words, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, was what made her stomach flutter uncontrollably, suddenly feeling terribly shy and unable to hold his gaze for much longer.
Elizabeth hid her head back on the pillow, avoiding his eyes as she hummed her agreement. "Fine, then" she eventually muttered, peeking back at his profile as he went back to his map.
She ended up falling asleep soon after that.
Leaving the ship after finally mooring on Dover, pleased her immensely. Staying confined inside a ship for so long turned out to be quite a bit more strenuous than she remembered. As a child, the excitement of the adventure, had made the voyage from England to Jamaica seem like nothing short of amazing.
Her first impression of London it was that the city was... big and busy. Extremely so. The Thames was occupied on both sides by docked were ships along its length. There were so many buildings and even more people. It was a fairly impressive sight, if not for the murky water was and the smoke-clouded sky.
Most of the men aboard looked sincerely happy to be back on English soil. But she hadn´t been lying when she told James she couldn't remember much about her life before Port Royal; while she didn´t dislike it, she also didn't remember England with any particular fondness.
Now, after stepping on it´s soil after almost a decade away, the only thing holding her attention was the persistent sensation of still swaying in place. There was no much time to be irritated by it, as she had to climb on a carriage almost right after descending the gangplank.
As the carriage moved into the city, she snuggled against James´ side while staring outside the carriage door´s window, hoping to see something interesting outside, but it was too foggy in spite of the sun still being up in the sky. And it was making her grumpy.
"How are you liking being back in England?" James asked with a ribbing tone when he noticed her souring mood.
Elizabeth offered him a mild glare before turning back to look outside, scowling with deliberation at what she saw. It was getting late enough that flickering lights outside every building were starting to appear. Even with the harsh weather, there were still plenty of people moving about on the streets.
There wasn´t much else too contemplate at the moment. It wasn´t completely terrible, although...
"I don't care much for it, it's dark and gloomy" she complained, trying to hide her exposed skin under her clothes. "And gelid. I can´t feel my cheeks" she informed him with obvious discomfort, pressing her numb face against his neck.
He let out a small snort before wrapping his arm around her waist.
"How can you possibly not be cold?" she mumbled, confused by the pleasant temperature inside his embrace.
"I am cold" he refuted, using his free hand to capture her leg and pull her onto his lap "Could you be kind enough to warm me up?" he pleaded against the side of her head , begging for her attention as one of his hands slipped under the hem of her dress and made his way all the way up her thigh, making her smile wickedly.
She hummed as if considering his request, right as the carriage gave a sudden jump, nearly making her fall off his lap. "Maybe later" she promised with a snicker, loosening the strong grip shed had on his clothes.
She was not sure which part of the city they were in, but she could still see a glimpse of the mast of the largest ships. The buildings were bigger and more ostentatious as they went, but less people walked around. Even her Father´s mansion was small when compared to some of the buildings surrounding them.
The carriage kept advancing through the cobblestone path until it eventually stopped in front of a large, two story building. As soon as she stepped foot on the ground, she felt the hem of her dress moisten. Looking down she could see her dress getting muddy, which made her face scrunch with distaste.
"At least Port Royal´s streets are dry" She pointed snobbishly, picking up her skirt and letting it drop on the wet ground again.
James followed her gaze and smirked while lifting an eyebrow.
Her eyes rolled upwards, but she conceded "Mostly"
He leaned down towards her ear and teased with "I could carry you if you'd like?"
She looked back at him and answered dismissively "How thoughtful of you Dear, but fortunately for you that will not be necessary. I am not that spoilt" she assured him, taking his hand and pulling him towards the entrance of the Inn they had stopped in front of.
"I must confess this is not what I had been expecting. This doesn't seem like the kind of place officers would use to spent the night" she mumbled to James as they made their way up to their room through the well decorated corridor. The place was more elegant than what she would have expected.
"What kind of place would that be?" he asked with confusion and curiosity.
Elizabeth scrunched her nose at him "I don´t know, something much less…" that's when he opened the door to their accommodations "pompous" she finished with a raised eyebrow as she stared at the room inside.
She had never spent the night in an Inn before so she couldn't tell if this was normal, but it looked almost as well decorated as one of the rooms on their home.
"James, why are we staying here?" she aske while walking inside and looking around the room "You're only here for your audience, there is no need for us to stay in a place this grand"
He followed her gaze, then looked back at her appearing a little offended by her last comment "I am perfectly capable of affording it"
"No, no" she rushed to his side, trying to correct him "That's not what I meant" Elizabeth assured him with a apologetic smile, pulling him inside the room and wrapping her arms around him "I swear I didn´t"
"Then what?"
Looking around the room once again, she shrugged innocently "I don´t know"
"You´re too accustomed to cabin ships" he observed, sounding amused, and a little regretful.
"I should inform you that I like them quite fine. They´re cozier" she grinned mischievously "But I confess I had expected to be taken to the barracks or something"
"You... expected me to clandestinely bring you inside one of the barracks?" he was chuckling even as he said the words.
"Maybe" she answered, pleased by his good mood. "This place is so excessive, it feels like intruding in someone else's space. Besides this is not a trip for pleasure"
His eyes glinted attentively at her as he used his arm to pull her close, lowering his mouth to kiss her neck. "Oh, it's not?"
Her mouth opened, unable to decide what she wanted to say for a second "My apologies. I´ll take back what I just said. We should definitely make it pleasurable" she corrected, wrapping her arms around his neck.
James' hum of agreement made her ear itch, but he moved away much too quickly. "I'm sad to inform you I'm quite certain women are not allowed anywhere near any of the Royal Navy sleeping quarters" he said with pretended remorse. "...but I think we could find a nice, dirty tavern on the outskirts of the city, or maybe a barn would be more to your liking? We could even find some criminals to gallivant together with all night long" he added, somehow managing to sound completely serious and innocent at the same time.
"Stop making fun of me" she ordered, slapping his chest at the comment and trying to get out of his arms.
But he wouldn´t allow that. His arms tightened around her more, and his face came down to her level giving her cheek a soft kiss "I´m sorry. Don't be mad" he begged, continuing to offer apologetic pecks to her face.
She wasn't truly mad, and they both knew it, but she still enjoyed his way of apologizing. "You´re going to have to do whatever I want for the remainder of our stay after you have your meeting" she warned him.
His mouth pulled into a smirk.
Edit: Thanks for all the comments! glad to know you liked it.