Drowning

Drowning

A/N: I do not own any of the POTC characters…just like to write about them. This is a short story about what grief can make a person do. It’s a Jack/Elizabeth story. PLEASE read and review!!

Chapter 1:

It was cold that morning, colder than she ever remembered it getting in Port Royal when she finally forced her eyes open. Sighing heavily Elizabeth rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling as if waiting for it to split open or something. A soft knock on her door drew her out of her thoughts or lack thereof actually. The timid voice or her servant Martha floated through the door and across the room to her. “Miss Elizabeth might you be awake now?”

Groaning Elizabeth forced herself up onto her elbows and cleared her throat before responding in a dull tone. “Yes I’m awake Martha.”

“Might I come in Miss?”

“You may.” Elizabeth didn’t even try to muster a smile as the young mulatto woman entered her room. She scowled when she noticed the silver tray the young girl was carrying. On the tray was a bowl of oatmeal no doubt and a white cup filled to the brim with coffee. “What the bloody hell is all that Martha?”

“Begging your pardon Miss, but seeing as you haven’t had anything to eat since the day before….her voice trailed off and her brown eyes lowered to the floor when Elizabeth’s eyes began to cut into her like daggers.

“Since what?”

“I’m sorry Miss, I didn’t mean nothing at all.”

“No Martha, go on, finish what you were going to say.” The stern and icy expression on Elizabeth’s pale face left the young girl regretting that she had even opened her mouth.

“It’s nothing Miss, forget I said anything. I’m just a stupid girl who talks too much that’s all.”

“And you’ll be a stupid girl with a very sore backside if you don’t tell me what you were going to say.”

“Yes ma’am. I was just trying to help that’s all. Since you haven’t eaten a bite since before your father was exe….

“Murdered! If you’re going to gossip then get your story straight Martha! My father was not executed, he was murdered. Criminals are executed, innocent men are murdered!”

“Yes ma’am. I didn’t mean to upset you Miss Elizabeth.”

“Well you did. Now you may leave. And take that garbage with you because I’m not hungry!”

“Yes ma’am.” Without another word Martha turned and exited her room taking the tray with her. Once the girl had gone Elizabeth sank back down into the pillows on her bed. Letting out a frustrated sounding sigh she turned over onto her stomach and buried her face in the pillows. She had not cried when she had witnessed her father’s march to the gallows as Lord Beckett had demanded. No not even a single tear had escaped from her soft chocolate brown eyes as she watched her dear father struggling to take his last breath as the noose around his neck stole the last bit of precious life from his lungs.

Elizabeth had begun to wonder if something was terribly wrong with her because she still had not allowed the tears to come. At first she had insisted that she didn’t cry at the gallows because she hadn’t wanted to give Lord Beckett the satisfaction of watching her fall apart. Then she had decided that it simply had not registered yet that her darling father wasn’t coming back. It had been two days since she had been forced to watch her father hanged in the town square like a common criminal. Yet Elizabeth just couldn’t seem to bring herself to shed tears even though she knew that she wanted to and perhaps even needed to. Finally feeling like she could pass out from lack of oxygen while she laid there with her face pressed into her pillows she pushed herself up into a sitting position in the middle of her large canopy bed. Pushing the heavy blue and white quilt to the foot of the bed she swung her feet over the side of the bed and let them dangle above the wooden floor for a while.

After what seemed like an eternity of sitting there and staring off into space Elizabeth finally let the bottoms of her small feet touch the cold hard wooden floor beneath her. She winced a little at the coldness against her bare feet as she stood up and stretched. Her neck ached and so did her back for that matter. As a matter of fact it seemed to feel like her whole body had been tied in one huge knot. Padding over to her closet she opened the heavy wooden door and stared into the closet blankly. With little effort Elizabeth reached in and grabbed something that suited her mood perfectly. She pulled out a plain black taffeta dress. Carefully laying the black garment across her bed she called for her personal servant to dress her. “Katherine!” Soon an elderly woman with graying hair that was fashioned up in a tight bun on top of her head entered the room. She was a little taller than Elizabeth and was somewhat of a heavyset woman.

“You called for me Miss Elizabeth?”

“Yes Katherine, I’m ready to get dressed now.”

“Ah you’re going to get out of bed today then Miss?” Elizabeth scowled at her unpleasantly before responding.

“Being that I’m already out of bed I guess that means I won’t be staying in bed all day.”

“Of course Miss.”

“Now then, dress me.” Katherine simply nodded and began helping Elizabeth out of her white taffeta nightgown. As she reached for the corset that lay across the bench at the foot of the bed Elizabeth spoke up. “No Katherine.”

“But Miss, a proper lady always wears a corset and under dress with her dress.”

“I have no intention of wearing that horrible contraption. I can’t breathe when I wear it and it makes me itch something awful!”

“Yes Miss Elizabeth, as you wish.” Katherine just shook her head as she picked the black taffeta dress up from it’s place on the bed and helped Elizabeth into it. Once the back was laced up securely she turned Elizabeth around to face her. “There now. Don’t you look lovely?”

“Looking lovely is the least of my concerns Katherine. My father has been wrongfully hanged and the man that I was to spend the rest of my life with…..” her voice trailed briefly before she forced herself to finish. “ Well it seems that he is all but dead to me as well.” Turning to look in the mirror Elizabeth didn’t even smile at her reflection as she used to. Though she did look lovely as Katherine had said she could care less about something as meaningless as her appearance was to her now. The black taffeta dress had a square neckline that plunged low enough just to show off a decent but not inappropriate amount of her creamy white breasts. The long sleeves of the gown came to a point like the shape of the letter v and came to rest on the knuckle of her middle finger on each hand.

She sat down in front of her vanity for Katherine to fix her hair. Katherine wasted no time in fixing Elizabeth’s long caramel colored locks but this time she didn’t dare to try and make any conversation with the obviously grieving young woman. Katherine fashioned Elizabeth’s long thick hair into a braided bun and secured it to the nape of her neck with a few hairpins. There were a few short wispy strands of hair that had refused to cooperate and simply served to frame Elizabeth’s lovely face. Pulling out a dark cherry wood jewelry box Elizabeth fished out a necklace. She allowed Katherine to clasp the simple silver cross around her slender neck and smirked a little to herself when the very bottom tip of the cross nestled itself between her breasts. Sliding on a simple pair of rather worn looking black leather boots she stood and smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress with the palms of her hands.

“Now then that’ll be all Katherine, you may go.”

“Begging your pardon Miss Elizabeth?”

“Yes Katherine?”

“But aren’t you going to wear your engagement ring that Mr. Turner gave to you?”

“No I’m not. Now go.” Turning towards the French doors that led to her terrace just outside her room she started to walk towards them.

“When should we expect you back Miss Elizabeth?”

“Whenever I decide I’m ready to come back.”

“And if Mr. Turner should send a message inquiring about you?”

“Tell him I went away and that I’m no longer his concern.”

“Yes Miss Elizabeth.” Katherine watched with a saddened expression on her face as she watched Elizabeth exit through the terrace doors. No doubt the young woman was taking the stone staircase down to the beach this very moment. Elizabeth folded her arms across her breasts to give herself a little shelter from the abnormally cold breeze that gusted through the air. Yes it was December but it never really got all that cold in Port Royal. Looking up she noticed the sky was a cold and unwelcoming shade of gray and the town was unusually quiet. Oh there were people out and about but it was as if none of them had the nerve to speak to her. Which suited her just fine because she had absolutely nothing to say to any of them. Once she stepped out onto the beach Elizabeth reached down and slipped off her black leather boots. Holding them in her left hand she continued to walk along the dreary and ghostly silent beachfront. The sand felt cold and dead beneath her feet. It didn’t really make any difference because that’s exactly how she had come to feel in the last few weeks since Will had stopped sending messages to ask how she was doing. Then when Lord Beckett had ordered her father imprisoned for his part in helping her to escape when she had been jailed she felt even less alive. And then when the heartless bastard had announced his intent to have her father hanged on charges of treason to the crown for helping a known pirate, that pirate being Jack Sparrow, it had been as if the last remaining bit of life had been sucked out of her.

She supposed this dreadful feeling that had cemented itself into the bottom of her gut was that of guilt. Yes she could have done something to save her dear father from the gallows. However the thing that would have saved her father’s life would have most certainly resulted in the premature end of her own. Lord Beckett had come to visit her the evening before her father was to be hanged and suggested that they could come to some sort of agreement. At first she had been prepared to offer the man whatever amount of money he desired for her father’s freedom. But she soon found out that Beckett didn’t want money at all, no it was marriage to her that he desired. His filthy proposal echoed in her head. “You love your father don’t you Elizabeth? Of course you do. Now I’m not an entirely heartless man, and there is perhaps a way for this problem to reach a solution that would be beneficial to the both of us.”

“What sort of solution would that be Lord Beckett?”

“It’s simple really Elizabeth, if you agree to dissolve your current engagement and consent to enter a marriage to me, well then naturally the charges against your beloved father would easily disappear.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Well then I’m afraid you’ll be watching your precious father hang from the gallows tomorrow like the rest of the town. So do we have an agreement Miss Swann?”

“I would rather burn in hell then marry you, you disgusting pig!”

“I’m sure that will be arranged since you’re killing your own father. Good evening Miss Swann.”

She scowled down at the white sand angrily as she tried to force the unpleasant memory from her mind. Looking up she realized that she had walked all the way from her house down to the piers. Seeing no reason to turn back Elizabeth continued on towards the water. Walking down the worn and salty smelling piers she finally reached the end of it. Looking around she sank down to the rough wooden pier and sat down letting her legs dangle over the edge. Glaring out at the unnervingly calm water she began to chew her bottom lip. The ocean was a horrible shade of grayish blue that seemed to make her feel even more miserable than she already did. There was a time when just the sight of the sea was able to bring a smile to her face. But those days seemed an eternity away from the way things had become. Now she was alone, her beloved Will seemed to have forgotten her altogether and her sweet wonderful father had paid with his life for a crime that he was nowhere near being guilty of. And all for what, so she didn’t have to enter into a loveless marriage with Lord Beckett? Gritting her teeth she forced out lifeless sounding laugh.

“You’re a spoiled brat Elizabeth Swann and you may as well have put the noose around your father’s neck yourself!” Tilting her head back to look up into the ugly grayish and overcast sky she glanced around for nothing in particular as her mind seemed to wander aimlessly. Then out of nowhere something that Jack Sparrow had said to her once popped into her mind.

“We’re all only accountable for our own destiny love. Ye can’t be expected t’ carry everyone else’s burdens on those pretty little shoulders of yours, savvy?”

She frowned as his husky voice and slurred speech echoed in her head. Strange as it may have been his words did seem to offer her the slightest fraction of comfort. It wasn’t often that anything that came out of Jack’s mouth made any sense, but this made sense to her. Sitting bolt upright Elizabeth’s chocolate brown eyes widened as she suddenly realized what she needed. Pushing herself to her feet and not even bothering to put her boots back on she ran barefoot down the pier towards the Naval Fort in Port Royal. What she needed was freedom from this horrible hell that had become her life in Port Royal and to attain that she desperately needed to find Jack Sparrow.

She was out of breath and the bottoms of her feet hurt by the time she reached the Naval Fort but that didn’t slow her pace as she ran towards the door. The two soldiers that were posted on either side of the entrance to the fort drew their pistols but then lowered them when they recognized her. “Hello Miss Swann.”

“Yes hello, um might either of you tell me where Commodore Norrington is?”

“The Commodore is inside Miss Swann, just go on in.”

“Thank you.” Without another word she ran into the fort and headed towards the back of the building where she knew Norrington’s office was located. Not even bothering to knock before she barged into the office Elizabeth’s face reddened when she caught Norrington in a steamy kiss with Annette. The two jumped apart rather quickly and Annette moved to head towards the door. “Oh James, um I didn’t realize that you were busy.”

“No no, it’s quite alright Elizabeth. Annette was just heading home right darling?”

“Yes I was. Nice to see you Elizabeth.” Elizabeth nodded as the young woman with reddish hair left the two of them alone in Norrington’s office. Annette Moore was the young woman that James had recently asked to marry him. She was just barely eighteen years old and seemed like such a child to Elizabeth but then that was a matter that she really shouldn’t form any opinion on since she herself had rejected the Commodore’s proposal of marriage.

“So is there something that I can do for you Elizabeth?”

“Well that all depends.”

“On what?”

“If you might consider taking me to Tortuga?”

“Tortuga? Elizabeth what in God’s name do you want to go there for?” She smiled at him broadly making him roll his blue eyes in return. “Oh bloody hell I should have known that it would have something to do with that scoundrel Jack Sparrow.”

Before she could stop herself she was correcting the Commodore. “Captain Jack Sparrow.”

“Yes yes I know, it’s Captain Jack Sparrow! You can’t be serious Elizabeth?”

“Yes James I am. Please take me to Tortuga?” The way she grinned at him and then batted her long thick eyelashes was enough to make his head spin.

“Oh alright. Enough with all the batting of your eyelashes! When do you want to leave?”

“Right now?” He gave a groan of frustration as she ran over to embrace him quickly. “Thank you James, you’re such a good man. Annette is a lucky woman.”

“Indeed. You remember there was a time that you had the opportunity to be as lucky?”

“How could I forget? But we chose different paths, so it’s best we not wallow in what ifs.”

“Of course. Alright, the Dauntless has just made anchor in the harbor so her crew is still onboard. Go on ahead with Lt. Smyth and make yourself comfortable in my cabin.”

“Thank you James!” He simply waved his hand dismissing her and she wasted no time in racing out of the office to the main hall of the fort where she nearly ran into Lt. Smyth. “Oh Lt. Smyth!”

“Hello Miss Swann. What’s the emergency?”

“The Commodore wanted you to accompany me onboard the Dauntless.”

“Might I ask why Miss Swann?”

“Well he’s taking me to Tortuga.”

“Tortuga?”

“Um yes, the Commodore will explain the rest when he joins us onboard.”

“Of course, that explains everything.” She gave a small smile as Lt. Smyth offered her his arm. Accepting it quickly the two headed out of the Naval Fort towards the pier where the Dauntless had just dropped anchor. Once onboard Elizabeth hurried into Norrington’s cabin and sat down at the small round table that was there. It was filled with nautical charts and a couple of compasses lay on it as well. There was a small bottle of ink and a long white quill pen was resting in the bottle neatly. It seemed like ten lifetimes had gone by before James finally joined her in the cabin.

“Well we’re leaving port and charting a course for Tortuga. We should be there in three days Elizabeth. Now would you be so kind as to explain just why you desire to go to Tortuga?”

“It’s complicated.”

“Then elaborate, we’ve got three days. I’m sure by then you can think of a way to simply explain it.”

“Yes I’m sure I can.”

“So where’s William?”

“He’s unavailable.” Her vague answers were beginning to become rather annoying but his lingering love for the young woman made it impossible to get angry with her.

“Unavailable? How so?” She sighed heavily as she realized that she might as well be honest with Norrington since he was taking her to find Jack.

“Okay to be perfectly honest I haven’t spoken to Will in weeks.”

“Something wrong?”

“It seems as though he has more important things to worry about than me.”

“I see. So I take it the wedding is temporarily on hold?”

“Yes, so it seems.”

“And you wanting to find Jack….excuse me, Captain Jack Sparrow?”

“There is something that I desperately wish to speak with him about.” Her eyes fell back down to the nautical charts where she feigned interest in them. “Are these new maps?”

“I suppose that’s as close as you’re willing to allow me to the truth behind your desire to find Captain Sparrow?” She merely nodded. “Fine. One of the crew shall bring a cot into the cabin and I shall sleep on it.”

“But…

“No buts, you shall sleep on the bed. And don’t worry you have my word that I shall be a complete gentleman.”

“I have no doubt Commodore.” The remainder of the evening was spent in silence as Norrington left the cabin to join his crew on deck. Elizabeth climbed onto the bed on her knees and peered out the window that was on the wall just a few inches above the bed. She stared out at the choppy grayish blue waves that danced all around the ship. They would be in Tortuga in three days and then she could find Jack. “I’m coming Jack, please be in Tortuga!”