To be a Father

Title: To be a Father
Rating: M
Disclaimer: I do not own PotC
Summary: Takes place after first movie. After pursuing Sparrow for a few months, Norrington captures a pirate ship and finds a sick toddler hiding on board.

A/N: I’ve decided that as long as I’m enjoying writing this, I’ll keep it up. The one review I did get was encouraging, so since I don’t have people telling me to stop I guess I’ll keep going. I do hope that if you are getting any enjoyment out of this whatsoever you will take a few seconds to let me know.

JSparrowLover, this is dedicated to you. You opened an account just so you could leave a review! That my friend is worth 50!


Chapter 3

The commodore was relieved that he wouldn’t have to leave Penny with them, but at the same time he had a dreadful feeling that his time with her was coming to an end.

Surely Alice would recognize her daughter, but what then? Would she take Penny away? Would she move back to Spanish Town?

Norrington had just put Penny down for a nap when someone knocked at the door. It was Gillette.

“Commodore,” the Lieutenant greeted him.

The commodore invited him into the parlor and poured them a couple of drinks.

“I just came by to check on Penny,” Gillette said, clearly anxious.

Norrington suddenly felt bad about not keeping him informed. He explained everything that had happened since their return.

“So, the woman is coming next week? Will she take Penny away?”

The commodore shrugged.

“I don’t know. But I can’t see her leaving Penny her with me,” he admitted.

Gillette thought that over for a moment.

“Well, the child would be much better off with you in a home like this than in some little shop in Spanish Town,” he said, frowning.

“Away from her mother? Don’t be ridiculous. Anyway, I doubt the governor will allow me to extend my leave long enough to raise a daughter,” he said ruefully.

But Gillette shook his head.

“Oh, but Governor Swann did that himself, didn’t he? I bet he’d be much more lenient than you’d think.”

Norrington frowned.

“Yes, that is why he allowed me to take a leave of absence in the first place. He believes it is worth the crown’s time and resources to reunite Penny with her mother. I have no doubt that had he not had Elizabeth he would have never considered allowing it. And once child and mother are reunited, he will want me back at the fort. We have pirates to catch, remember?”

The two men shared a smile. Despite the hard work that being a member of His Majesty’s Royal Navy required, they really did love their jobs.

Gillette stood and stretched.

“I should be getting home. You’ll notify me once you know anything more?” He asked, hesitantly.

Norrington nodded and walked him to the door.

“Well, Penny might have a mother, but according to the witch, she doesn’t have a father,” Gillette commented, the alcohol had loosened his tongue a bit.

“She’s a midwife, not a witch,” the commodore insisted.

Gillette shrugged.

“Midwife then. Point is, Penny hasn’t got a father, which means her mother doesn’t have a husband…” he trailed off and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Norrington looked affronted.

“I don’t even know the woman!”

“Just something to keep in mind, Commodore.”

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Penny and Norrington had fallen into a nightly ritual. After dinner, he would clean her up with warm, moist cloths, dress her in a nightgown and tuck her into bed. He would then head to his own room get ready for bed, and by the time he was ready to slip between the sheets, she had left her bed and crawled into his.

The first few nights were spent constantly carrying her back to her own bed. After the third night, he gave up.

Normally, the commodore was a very restless sleeper. Most mornings he woke up shivering because he’d kicked the blankets off in his sleep. It was for this reason that he did his best to keep Penny in her own bed. However, it seemed that even as he slept, he was aware of her presence and barely moved through the whole night. His subconscious forcing him to remain still all night made him sleep better, and mornings had become much more pleasant.

Penny would sing when she woke up. He couldn’t understand many of the words in her songs, but the tunes were pretty and he’d find himself humming one as he went throughout the day.

That night after Gillette’s visit he was unable to sleep, despite the warm little body curled up beside him. Gillette’s words were ringing through his mind.

‘…Penny hasn’t got a father, which means her mother doesn’t have a husband…’

Could he do it again? Could he put himself out there like that again? Or was the pain of Elizabeth’s rejection enough to keep him from trying again? He was no fool. He knew Elizabeth had only agreed to marry him to save Will, despite how hard he tried to convince himself otherwise at the time. Had the whole incident with the pirates not happened, she probably would have said ‘no’ anyway. Because of Will. But, if she hadn’t been in love with Will, would she have considered him?

There was only one person who could answer those questions, but did he have the nerve to ask them of her?

Penny sighed and turned over in her sleep.

If it meant the chance to keep Penny with him, then yes, he would ask her.

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So a few days later, Elizabeth Turner graciously accepted an invitation to join him and Penny for tea.

Norrington decided that that would be the best way. He didn’t want Will around, and Penny would do better in his house than the governor’s mansion.

“I was very glad to get your invitation, Commodore Norrington. With everything that has happened, I had hoped we could be friends one day,” she said, after he had invited her in.

Friends? Really, he was only talking to her as a last resort.

“That’s nice, Mrs. Turner. If you’ll come with me to the parlor?”

She put a hand on his arm.

“James, you should call me Elizabeth.”

He was quiet for a moment as he considered her.

“Absolutely not. You are Mrs. Turner, and I am Commodore Norrington. Maybe we will be friends one day, but I am not ready to allow you such a personal liberty as using my first name.”

Elizabeth looked at him like he’d struck her, and he sighed.

“The whole port thinks I’m still mooning after you. I invited you here to ask for your help, but even our short visit today will have tongues wagging, no doubt.”

“You would let gossip bother you now?” She asked, disbelievingly.

He looked down at Penny who was playing with some wooden blocks on a blanket in the parlor.

“For her sake, yes.”

Elizabeth looked back and forth between him and the child.

“You mean to keep her!”

Norrington didn’t bother to deny it.

“I hope to.”

Elizabeth’s eyes flashed at him angrily.

“Absolutely not! I will not help you kidnap a child!”

He let out a slight groan and rubbed his temples with his fingers. It was funny; he didn’t remember Elizabeth being so thick headed back when he was courting her.

“Elizabeth, please calm yourself. I would never do anything so despicable.”

She frowned and narrowed her eyes.

“What do you mean to do then?”

“I… Well, according to the midwife, Alice is unmarried. Penny has no father,” he said, hoping that she would catch on.

No such luck. Elizabeth just continued to stare blankly at him. He sighed, again.

“I want to marry her and adopt Penny,” he said slowly.

She made a face.

“Marry some woman you’ve never met? That’s not like you at all, Jam-er Commodore!”

He just blinked at her.

“I mean, what do you really know about this woman other than she had a child out of wedlock?” She asked, nastily.

Norrington had never had such a strong urge to hit a woman before. He had to turn and walk away from her to calm down for a moment.

It only took one sweet smile from Penny to melt the anger away. What did Elizabeth Turner know anyway? She married a blacksmith.

He took a deep breath and turned back to face her.

“I don’t really care to hear your unfair judgements of a woman you’ve never met.”

Elizabeth’s mouth opened in shock, but no words came out.

“The fact is, I love that little girl in there, and will do anything I have to, to keep her in my life. I don’t care that Alice is an unmarried mother, or that she uses herbs to heal, or even that she apprenticed a physician in Greece. I will offer her a home and financial security. Unless she is already in love with another, I see no reason why she wouldn’t accept,” he looked at her meaningfully.

She considered his words carefully before nodding slowly.

“All right. I think understand… But what do you need my help with?”

The moment of truth had finally come.

“You never wanted to marry me, even when you did accept. I need to know if your love for Turner was the only reason that you didn’t want me. Or is there something else about me I should change… Was there anything about me that put you off?” He asked, unable to look her in the eye.

She took a few steps away from him to gather her thoughts. Norrington had hoped she’d do the polite thing and just say ‘no’, but then this was Elizabeth.

“It wasn’t you, Commodore. Really. I just… You wanted a wife. A woman of high social standing that would settle down and give you children. I didn’t want that. I still don’t… Will truly loves me for me. He also loves adventure as much as I do. We aren’t planning to remain in Port Royal forever. Maybe in another year or so we will leave. There are so many things I want to see and do before I settle down and have children.”

“Right, fine. But what about me?” He asked, annoyed that she’d rambled so much about herself.

She bit back a grin.

“Well, it sounds as if this Alice has already seen a good deal of the world. And as she is already a mother, well I really think she’d be completely daft not to accept you.”

Norrington gave her a skeptical look.

“You really think she could want me?” He asked, feeling more vulnerable than he had ever felt in his life.

“Of course,” she answered in a strained voice.

“I should be going.”

She turned and headed for the door but stopped with her hand on the knob.

“You know, I never meant…”

She looked back at him, and he was surprised to see the tears on her cheeks.

“I didn’t set out to hurt you on purpose.”

He opened his mouth to protest but she raised a hand to stop him.

“I did not even realize until this moment just how badly I had hurt you. But I swear to you, Commodore, I will make it up to you. I will help you convince Alice that being with you is the right choice for her and Penny. It will be an easy task.”

It was perhaps the kindest thing that anyone had ever said to him.

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Elizabeth returned early one morning a few days later with four maids. She swept by him when he opened the door, the maids following timidly.

“Mrs. Turner, what is the meaning of this?” He asked, holding tightly to his patience.

She turned and smiled at him.

“Alice arrived last night, and she’s absolutely darling. I think the pair of you will make a fine match,” she said, eyes sparkling with mischief.

The commodore reddened slightly and cleared his throat.

“That doesn’t explain why you and four maids have invaded my home.”

Elizabeth blinked at him as if she was surprised that he hadn’t figured it out himself.

“Martha’s been away for over two weeks now. We need to get the house ready for Alice, Commodore. We have to get her to like the house if you have any hope of getting her to stay here,” she pointed out, then turned to give orders to the maids.

“You’re bringing her here?” He demanded.

“Hmm? Oh, yes of course. You’ve invited us for dinner tonight.”

“Well that was nice of me. Anything else I did that I should know about?” He asked, ruefully.

Norrington gave a mental groan as she proceeded to contemplate his question.

“No, just dinner,” she said smiling.

“Just dinner? You expect me to cook a dinner for four people?”

“Five counting Penny, and no I don’t expect you to do anything. My cook will arrive sometime this afternoon. All you have to do is stay out of everybody’s way, and have yourself and Penny ready by seven tonight.”

The plan itself wasn’t bad; he just hated being blindsided. Was it too much to ask that she consult him first? Apparently so.

After a quick breakfast he bundled Penny up and left the house. He had planned on going to the dressmakers to pick up a few more things for Penny anyway. After that, they paid a visit to the midwife.

She was very glad that Alice had been found, but did seem a bit concerned by her amnesia.

“Commodore, she’ll need things that are familiar to her to come out of it.”

Norrington frowned.

“I thought seeing Penny would snap her out of it.”

She laughed.

“The mind is very complex. She may ‘snap’ out of it, but she may not, and you should be prepared for that.”

He nodded thoughtfully.

“She lived here for a few years. You should bring her by. I would love to see her again.”

After that, they went back home, packed a picnic lunch and headed for the beach behind his house.

He hated the fact that Penny had to wear the mask, but it didn’t seem to bother her.

They spent an enjoyable afternoon on the beach playing in the sand, and collecting seashells. Norrington couldn’t help but think that this might be the last day he got to spend with her. The slight ache that had started in his chest the day he learned of Alice’s existence had grown considerably.

All too soon Penny was yawning, and he knew he needed to get her back home so that she could take a nap before dinner.

A sleepy Penny was much easier to bathe, so he cleaned her up before settling her in his bed for a nap. He cleaned himself up after that and joined her in the bed.

The smell of grilled fish woke him a few hours later, and he was surprised to see how late it was. They had less than an hour before their ‘guests’ would arrive.

He took great pains to dress them both impeccably, going so far as to slip a small pair of white gloves over her hands. She didn’t like them, and a battle of wills proceeded. Of course Penny won, and so it was with bare hands that they made their way to the parlor to wait.

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Norrington was surprised to see a butler waiting near the front door. He hoped that Alice didn’t think him too wealthy. Though he did have some money, he was nowhere near as well off the Swanns.

The position of Commodore was more than just status. He had received a nice raise with the promotion. In fact, the raise had been much more than what was appropriate, but then the governor had hoped to have him as a son-in-law at the time. Always honorable, Norrington had privately told Governor Swann that his pay had probably been miscalculated and that he understood if it needed to be cut back. Not surprisingly, the Governor would hear none of it. He had admitted that though he was disappointed that he would not be gaining Norrington as a real son, he’d always thought of him as one since their time together on the crossing from England.

The Commodore had been touched by the sentiment, realizing at that moment that he was much closer to the Governor than he ever had been to his own father.

Even with the increase in pay, Norrington was not one to go out and throw it away on nonessentials. In fact, he had spent more money in the few weeks that Penny had been with him than during his entire time at Port Royal. What was the point of having so many servants for just himself? His house was not tiny by any means, but it was empty, and several of the rooms had never been opened.

Norrington would never admit it, but when he had acquired the house several years ago, he had always thought to have it filled with children one day. He had forgotten that idea until he met Penny. Would Alice like it? Would she want more children? Or was she more like Elizabeth wanting adventure in far off countries. Perhaps Port Royal would not be exciting enough for her. Maybe she would see what a nice environment his house would be for her daughter and even if she couldn’t bring herself to stay, she might leave Penny behind with him.

He was jarred out of his thoughts by the knocking on his front door. He headed toward it, Penny on his hip, only to have the butler step in his way.

“Perhaps sir would like to await his guests in the parlor?” The older man asked respectfully.

Norrington could feel his face heating in embarrassment. Was that how it was done? He had never had a butler before, and wasn’t sure of the protocol.

“Yes, thank you,” he said, turning on his heel.

Once he had reached the parlor he turned to Penny and murmured, “I just want to make it through tonight without making a fool of myself.”

Penny smiled and leaned forward to kiss his cheek.

He marveled, not for the first time, at how much the little girl seemed to understand him. He held her close, smelling the sweet smell of her hair. Her little arms came up around his neck.

“My comdore,” she said, hugging him tight.

They broke apart at the sound of footsteps in the hall.

Penny looked at him nervously, and he gave her a small hug to reassure her. He then put her on her feet, and held her tiny hand in his.

“Mr. and Mrs. Turner, and Miss Clark have arrived sir,” the butler announced as he showed the small group into the room.

Elizabeth, as usual, was the picture of grace and beauty. Her stylish gown fell in waves around her slight frame, while her hair, was piled high on her head with strategic ringlets falling down throughout. The dark blue gown accentuated her lovely brown eyes, and the soft light from the candelabra hanging in the middle of the room gave her smooth skin an ethereal glow.

Will seemed extra possessive of her, constantly keeping in contact with her body in some way. For a split second, Norrington imagined himself in Will’s place. What would it have been like to have a wife so beautiful that you were afraid to let go of her for fear that she would be swept away by another? Especially someone as wild and risk-taking as Elizabeth.

Looking back later, Norrington would realize that it was at that moment that his heart completely let go of her. It was then that he completely forgave her for the pain she had caused him. He actually felt sympathy for Will and the heartaches that would surely follow the young couple through the years of their marriage.

Before his very eyes Elizabeth’s beauty seemed to fade slightly as his mind officially rejected her as being desirable.

Norrington greeted them, shaking Will’s hand and kissing Elizabeth’s.

Mrs. Turner turned and motioned Alice forward.

“Commodore, I’d like to introduce to our friend, Alice Clark.”

The woman stepped forward slowly, and he had the absurd urge to laugh.

Alice looked nothing like Penny. Her dark auburn hair was piled on her head much the same way Elizabeth’s was, but that was were the similarities ended. She was a head shorter than Mrs. Turner, and her skin was rather pink and splotchy. She must have the kind of skin that doesn’t tan no matter how long she was in the sun. All in all she was rather average looking, except for her jewel green eyes. The loveliest eyes he had ever seen, even putting Elizabeth’s to shame.

But it wasn’t her looks that made him want to laugh, so much as how she looked this evening. The dress Alice was wearing had obviously been borrowed from Elizabeth. It was so long it dragged the floor, and he could already see hem starting to fray. The bodice of the dress was much snugger than was conformable, and she looked like she was in slight pain from it. Someone, probably Elizabeth had tried to even the skin tone on her face with rouge, but while the color matched Elizabeth’s skin perfectly, it made Alice’s skin look decidedly two-toned.

“It is a pleasure to meet you Miss Clark,” he said, holding out his hand.

Her eyes shifted to Elizabeth then back to him before slowly placing her hand in his.

He dropped a quick kiss to her knuckles, noting that they trembled slightly. At first he wondered if he had somehow intimidated her, but she seemed to relax when he gave her fingers a slight squeeze before releasing her.

“And you, Commodore Norrington,” she responded politely.

Suddenly, Penny shot out from her hiding place behind Norrington legs and ran straight for Alice, crying and lifting her arms to be picked up.

“Oh my. Aren’t you a pretty thing,” Alice said with a smile as she picked the child up.

Penny hugged her tight and pressed kisses onto Alice’s face.

Alice gave him a slightly bewildered look.

“You have a very affectionate daughter, Commodore.”

End Chapter 3

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