Will glanced at his wife over his cards, watching as she considered them before sliding them together into a stack and setting them face down on the table. Her face was perfectly composed, a slight smile on her face as she tossed a couple of chips in. "I'll call."

"Yer bluffin'." Samuel didn't even look up from his cards.

"I am not."

"Yer face is too calm, ye can't lie with a calm face. Yer givin' yerself away."

Ana pursed her lips. "Well, how exactly am I supposed to lie?"

"Look at Will," Samuel gestured towards him, and Will couldn't help a bit of pride. It had taken a long time for him to learn to bluff well, most of which included Lights constantly pestering him or trying to get at his cards to see what he had. So Will kept an easy smile on his face, eyes darting to Ana's for a moment. Her's narrowed, and she snorted. Samuel rapped on the table, "Show yer cards, I told ye that ye'd be out if ye couldn't bluff."

Ana flipped over a two and an eight, matching two of the cards on the table. "Honestly, I don't see why it matters. Ladies aren't even supposed to play cards you know, aside from bridge and whist."

"My daughter-in-law will." Samuel grumbled, shuffling the cards again. "Will, do ye have any comment on yer wife's card playing?"

He looked over at her, seeing that little furrow between her brows as she watched the cards fly back and forth in his hands. He chuckled, reaching over and brushing his fingers over her hand. "I think she's come along just fine for two days of study, although if you keep her at the card table for the entire voyage the other passengers may begin to talk. We wouldn't want them to think Ana's going to gamble away the money they paid her to get onboard."

"She hardly bets at all, son." Samuel flicked the small pile of chips in front of him, "Ye've got to get her to be a bit more confident."

"I am plenty confident!" Ana smacked her hands on the table, standing. "Just because I can't lie about cards does not mean I'm not confident!"

Will reached over, tugging on her hand. "I know love, although perhaps cards should be done for today?"

"I suppose," Samuel sighed, sliding the cards back into their pack. "I would nae mind a trip to the bridge." Will shared a look with Ana at that, and the two of them chuckled. If there was one place that Samuel could be found onboard, it was the bridge. Captain Rogers had been quite happy to have a second hand to help him, and he had encouraged his officers to pester Samuel with any questions they had about his experience.

Will held Ana close as they stepped out onto the boat deck, a fresh wind was blowing and he was glad for his greatcoat. He pursed his lips, looking at the sky. "Looks like we may a have a storm blowing in."

Samuel paused, following his gaze to a line of clouds. "Aye, they are lookin' rather dark."

"We'll need to check the barometer." Will muttered, earning a glance from Ana. When they reached the bridge he drew her over to the chartroom, briefly explaining how they could tell if a storm was coming in by the level of the mercury. He even showed her the log where they kept measurements, "You can see, it fell each hour since the morning. We should expect a blow."

"A storm, really Will?" Ana's voice quavered slightly, "Will it be a bad one?"

"I'm not sure," He replied, twisting his fingers around her hand when she slipped it into his palm. "I'm sure we'll come through fine though, we're not on a small ship."

"The Star isn't small either." She muttered, but shook her head. "Is there anyway to prepare for it?"

"Aye," Captain Rogers called from the bridge. "You can start by telling all the passengers to get their portholes closed. This is gonna be a bad one, I can feel it in my bones."

Samuel, coming in from one of the wings, raked his fingers through his beard. "And comin' fast, the swell's already growing'." Will glanced to Ana, seeing her pale a bit and she gripped his hand tighter. Will glared at his father, wishing he would notice that his wife was growing distressed. But Samuel apparently didn't notice, for he was looking at a chart when he spoke up. "Best get her back to the cabin, and then we'll be needin' ye up here."

"The cabin?" Ana's voice was small, and she stepped closer to him. "Will, I don't want to be locked in the cabin during the storm."

Captain Rogers looked away, "It's the safest place for you, ma'am. And we could use William's help, he'll be fine."

"I'll see Ana to her quarters." Will tried to stop himself from snapping, but it still came out harsh. His father shot him a glare, but turned back to Captain Rogers as Will swept Ana out. The ship was already pitching worse as they moved along the boat deck, and Ana gripped his hand so tightly it almost hurt. When he glanced over he could see her lips were pursed, and he sighed. "At least you still have your sea legs."

She blinked, "Oh, yes. I guess I do."

"You don't have to stay in the cabin, you know." He shivered slightly as the wind picked up. "I'm sure the lounge will be alright."

"Can't I stay on the bridge?" She stepped through the door when he held it for her, "I'll be out of the way, I promise."

He clutched her a little closer as the door slammed behind them. "Ana, I know you're worried."

"I'm not worried!" Ana turned on him, her eyes wild. "But we could take a wave wrong, we could capsize and I wouldn't be near you. I wouldn't know if you were safe and Rigel, and-"

Will grabbed her shoulders, "Ana, calm down."

"But Will-"

"Let me talk," He pulled her closer, his voice low. "I know you're scared, I was too when I faced my first storms. But you need to trust in the ship, in your crew. We've been through hundreds of storms between all of us, we know how to deal with them." Ana looked up at that, and Will couldn't help himself. He leaned down, pressing a kiss to her lips. "You trust me, right?"

Her fingers curled around the back of his head. "Always, Will."

"Why don't you let the other passengers know about the storm and tell them to stay inside? You can even make sure they close their portholes." He leaned his head against her, hugging her close. "Ana, it will be fine. I promise." She nodded into his shoulder, and Will gave her one last squeeze before stepping away. Ana would stay safe and warm inside while he returned to the cold and the wet, and she would realize that she was safe onboard.

He clutched his coat to himself, the skirt of it whipping around his legs and the wind tearing through his hair. It was certainly going to be a rough blow, and Will staggered as the wind shifted. That would be a danger, it could make it difficult to point the ship into the wind and ride the waves instead of being pummeled by them. He voiced his thoughts when he had regained the bridge, and Captain Rogers nodded as he looked out towards the bow. "Aye, I can't say it will be easy. But Mrs. Murdoch is alright?"

"Yes," Will glanced over to his father, conferring with another officer by the wheel. "Although I told her she can remain in the lounge, she gets a bit nervous being in small spaces during storms at sea."

Captain Rogers shrugged, "So long as she stays inside, I would hate for anyone to go overboard in this."

"Perhaps we should don our lifebelts, as a precaution?" The officer Samuel had been speaking to piped up, "Just in case they're needed."

Will's fingers were digging into his palms, his lungs tight. He couldn't wear one of those again, not unless he was in the water. It would choke him, and he'd be stuck back in that night and useless to everyone. His father saved him, "Ye shouldn't wear then until they're needed, 'twould cause panic in the passengers if one of us went through their quarters wearin' one."

"Yes," Will agreed quickly, "We save them until they're required." Captain Rogers nodded, and then it was down to the business of getting the ship ready. Deckhands rushed out to ensure the hatches were secure, cranes were position for them to best ride out the storm and doors were shut as tightly as they could be. A fresh pot of coffee was in the chartroom, and the steward for the crew was already in the pantry preparing more.

Will watches as his father poured himself a cup, grimacing as he sipped it. "How do these Americans drink this swill?"

"It's an acquired taste," Will shrugged, "I've come to enjoy a cup every now and then." Samuel snorted at that, and Will looked down at the charts spread on the table. Their course had been traced out, placing them smack in the middle of the North Atlantic. Will spent a bit of time trying to figure out exactly how long the storm would delay them, feeling the ship begin to heel over farther as the storm began to hit.

Eventually he stood, moving back out to the bridge. The quartermaster at the wheel was straining to turn it, and he glanced over to Will. "Mr. Murdoch, sir, can you help?" Will nodded, and between the two of them they were able to wrestle the ship back onto course. The man looked to him after, his knuckles white. "Sorry about that sir, sometimes she sticks. Perhaps you could ask the engineers to look at the steering? We're going to need it."

"Of course." Will nodded, flipping his coat collar up as he stepped out of the bridge. Rain lashed against him, and he ducked his head as he bulled across the deck until he managed to fumble a door open. Captain Rogers had given them a tour of the ship their first day at sea, and Will vaguely remembered the path down to the engine room. Fortunately, even if he couldn't remember the exact path, most ships were designed the same way, all he needed to do was to head down and towards the stern.

The lights in the engine room flickered for a moment, before stabilizing and revealing the men at work keeping the ship barreling through the waves. Men in dirty shirts climbed up catwalks to apply grease to moving machine parts, more hustled over to a steam gauge that was whistling as some steam escaped. Will could see the chief engineer, standing on a small platform and ordering his men around. Will called up as he started up the ladder, "Request from the bridge, sir. Could you send someone down to examine the steering equipment, she's sticking something fierce about the rudder?"

The man cursed, "Goddamnit, of all the time for her to act up." He waved his hands at Will, "Get down, I'll come check it myself. Come with me." Will trailed in his wake as he made his way through the various equipment, his men not even saluting but merely moving aside as they headed through. The chief engineer barked at some of them, collecting a small crew as they arrived at the steering gear. Will couldn't keep up with all the technical talk that ensued, but a torch was thrust into his hand and he found himself lighting up various areas of the room as needed.

Will couldn't tell how long he was down there, the ship heeling and righting herself over and over again. Aside from that, it was easy to forget that there was a storm on. No wind blew, no rain came down, even the temperature was tolerable. But Will knew that for all the comfort, he was in the most dangerous place to be. If the ship went over, there was no way out. He bit his lip to draw himself from those thoughts, turning back to the engineers in front of him adjusting portions of the gear. A voice called out, drawing Will from his focus on the work. "Mr. Murdoch, you're needed on the bridge."

He looked up, seeing one of the other officers on a catwalk above them. "I thought I was needed here?"

"Sir, it's your wife." Will didn't hear anything after that, racing up ladders and back through the ship. Ana, he had to get to Ana. Did something happen to her, was she swept overboard? No, she was supposed to stay in the lounge. But what if something fell and hurt her? What if a glass had cut her up? The other officer was right on his heels, and when Will burst through the bridge door, was already speaking. "I brought him Captain!"

"Thank Christ," Captain Rogers came over, turning Will around so he faced the chartroom. "She's in there, go on."

"Sir?" Will barely got the word out before his hand was on the knob and the door was open. He could see his father knelt by a chair, his lips moving quickly, but he couldn't hear what he was saying for Ana was stuck somewhere between weeping and crying. Will's heart fairly broke at the noise, and he rushed over. "Da, what happened?"

Samuel, his own eyes wide, looked over. "She came up to the bridge, right when we took a wave on the port side. It soaked her through, may have almost dragged her over." He stumbled back as Ana launched herself from the chair, wrapping her arms around Will. He couldn't help the gasp that came out of him, she was freezing and her soaked clothing was still dripping.

Will clutched her to him briefly, "Ana, good God. Here," He dislodged her for a moment, fingers flying over his greatcoat buttons. He swung it over her shoulders, watching as she slipped her arms into the sleeves. "There, that will help."

"Where were you?" Her voice was a mere whisper, and even more muffled as she buried her head in his chest. "I came up to find you, I wanted, I wanted to tell you that all the portholes are closed."

"Oh Ana, you didn't need to do that." He tried to brush the strands of her wet hair back over her shoulders. "I was in the engine room, they needed help."

"The engine room?" Ana squeezed her arms around him so tight that he could barely breathe. "No, no, no. Will, you're not going back there."

"Ana, I won't-"

"Please!" She looked up, her eyes wide and her fingers digging into his arms. "Stay with me Will, please!"

He shifted, trying to shake her fingers off before she drew blood. "Alright, alright Ana. I'll stay, just breathe." Samuel appeared frozen for a moment, but he didn't leave. Will ran his hands over her back, "That's it love, breathe. Just breathe, we're almost through the storm." He tried to control his own breathing, but it was threatening to speed up. Why had Ana gone off like that? He could understand her being upset about being soaked, God only knew what memories that cold saltwater had brought up, but why was she that upset about him being in the engine room? The sobs against his chest tore at his heart, he could feel her tears on his waistcoat.

"Aye," Samuel put a hand on her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "It's already calmed down from what it was, ye can feel it." He gave a chuckle, "Has William ever told ye about the storm we went through when we came 'round the Horn one year?" Will frantically looked up, trying to communicate to his father that Ana did not need to hear that story right now. But Samuel simply snorted at him, "There were waves far bigger than this, and we made it through fine. Although we were all sick as dogs after." That was putting it lightly, Will had been convinced no less than three times during that storm that it was over for all of them.

Ana shivered in his arms, and Will glanced over. "Has it calmed down enough to take her back to the cabin?"

"Let me take a look," Samuel slipped out, coming back in a moment. "Aye, and make sure she gets warm. 'Tis awful cold outside, would be a shame fer her to get sick." Will bit his tongue, his father didn't know how terrified he was of Ana getting sick. But he was right, Ana had been in those cold, wet clothes for God only knew how long.

Will chivvied her up, putting an arm around her shoulders. "Yes Da, I'll make sure she gets warm. Thank you for sitting with her."

"Ach, 'twas nothin' at all." Samuel shrugged, walking with them. "Get the both of ye some dinner too." The officers looked away as Will stepped onto the bridge, turning to look instead at Captain Rogers. The captain kept himself focused on the business of his ship, although he did give Will a nod as they stepped back out. Will trembled as the cold wind whipped through his shirt, but what hurt the most was the small gasp Ana gave as she stumbled.

Will caught her quickly, "Shhh, it's alright. It's not too far, I've got you." She was trembling when she pressed her head to his chest, but she nodded. It took a bit of his will to keep himself from shivering as cold rain lashed down again, soaking his shirt, but he wasn't in it for long. When he opened the door, he was glad to see that most of the other passengers were in their own cabins and only a few stewards were in the passageways. He caught one's arm, "Bring a pile of towels to the Murdoch cabin, and whatever the cook has managed to make during all this." He kept his voice firm so it was clear that this wasn't a request, it was an order.

He didn't like ordering a steward around like this, but he had more important things to worry about at the moment. Ana was growing even more pale, and he could hear her sniffing. Will got her in the cabin and was immediately assaulted by Rigel. The dog was already on the bed, and jumped down to rush over and sniff loudly at his mistress. Will pursed his lips as Ana sobbed slightly, and turned to the dog. "Keep her warm." Will hoped the wag of the tail meant Rigel understood, and he turned to the electric heater and cranked it to its fullest.

When the steward knocked on the door with the towels, a tureen of chicken soup and a plate of rolls, Will thanked him and sent him off. He put all of it down by the heater, and turned to his wife. "Ana, we need to get those clothes off." Her hands came up to brush her hair back, her brown eyes wie as she nodded, but her fingers shook when she turned to the buttons of his greatcoat. He stepped forward, "Allow me."

Her voice was barely a whisper as he lifted the coat from her shoulders. "Thank you, Will."

"Of course, sweetheart." He whispered back, "Shall I take care of the rest?" At her nod he moved to the back, unbuttoning her wet dress and sliding it over her shoulders to let it pool on the floor. Her brassiere joined it, as did her petticoats, drawers and stockings. Will shoved them to a corner, grabbed a towel from in front of the heater, and began to briskly rub it over her skin. "Now, this should get you nice and warm, oh," He stumbled for a moment when Ana suddenly wrapped her arms around him, sobbing as hard as she had before. He let out a small chuckle, "Ana, Ana it's alright."

"I'm sorry," She mumbled, "I was just so scared, and then you weren't there, and when you said you were below," Ana shuddered, drawing in a shaky breath. "All I could see was Father and I-"

"Quiet now," Will curled his arms around her, rocking with the motion of the ship. "That's all done, it's all over. I'm here now, as is Rigel." The dog was tight against her legs, whining as he couldn't reach up to lick her. Will gave her a squeeze, "But you need to get warm." It was no wonder the thought of him in the engine room had terrified her, the thought that he might have suffered the same fate as Gareth, trapped in a sinking ship, must have terrified her.

Her fingers twisted in his shirt. "So do you."

"Well, just give me a moment then." Will picked the towel back up, and traded it for a dry warm one. "I just want to tend to you first." Ana still sniffed loudly as he used every towel that had been brought to dry her, although Will drew a giggle out of her when he threw a towel over her head and rubbed her hair into a mess. But that just meant he got to sit her down and gently comb her hair out after slipping her nightgown on. He watched as her eyes slipped shut, her breathing slowing, and Will pressed a kiss to her shoulder when he finished.

His own drying took much less time, although he was glad to slip into his pajamas and sit down to eat with Ana. For every ladle of soup he put in his own bowl, he put two in hers. Rigel was given a roll, a few choice bits of chicken and the tureen to lick, and Will couldn't help but sigh as Rigel launched himself onto the bed after. "I don't suppose we could get him down?"

Ana shook her head, nibbling on a roll. "He's warm."

"That he is," He had to agree on that, "Although I'd be glad to warm you." Truth be told, that was all he wanted. He wanted to wrap his arms around Ana and hold her through the night, to soothe her into a restful sleep and not have her cry anymore. His heart broke when she sobbed, when she clutched at him like she was drowning. But now she was dry, full and tired. The one other thing he wanted to see was her laugh, so he scooped her up and plopped them both of them down into bed. Will chuckled as he drew the blanket up over both of their heads, "Warm enough?"

She didn't reply, but moved closer to him and he wrapped his arms around her. Rigel snuffled along the bed, coming to lay between Ana and the wall, which meant that Will felt like he was half off the bed. He gently prized Ana up, pulling her to lay herself down on his chest. He sighed, smiling. "Ah, now, isn't this better?" There was a brief nod against him, and he ran his hand down her back. "Shhh, love, it's all done with. Nothing but calm seas from here on out."