The Twinkling of an Eye: What if?
The Twinkling of an Eye: What if? 4/4
Summary: James and Elizabeth are still stuck on the island.
Characters: James, Elizabeth, Poochie
Pairing: Norribeth, Willabeth
Rating: PG-13 Adult Content
Disclaimer: This is totally AU. Disney owns everything and Ted and Terry are wonderful guys so please don’t sue!!!
Comments: aquaseamage wanted to know what would have happened if the end of The Twinkling of an Eye was slightly different…
Chapter One: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/9887.html
Chapter Two: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/10168.html
Chapter Three: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/10300.html
The original story: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/282.html
Chapter Four
Elizabeth knew James was thinking the same about having the wedding as soon as possible and they started preparations. His hair was cut so it only reached his shoulders and his beard became a more respectable length by her hand and the small blade she’d found. After some cajoling, she convinced him to cut her locks to the scandalously short length of just as long as his.
Then, they also bathed which she was forced to admit she needed help with because she couldn’t reach her feet. Then, they did their best to wash the rags they wore so at sunset, they both sat on the beach with Poochie right next to them.
“Elizabeth Swann, will you have me whether I’m a penniless pirate or an affluent Admiral, to have and to hold for as long as we both shall live?”
“I do,” she answered, “but James Norrington, as someone who did great wrong by your heart and gave mine to another while I had promised it to you, will you still have me? Will you still trust me with your heart?”
“Always,” he replied and they kissed as the sun dipped below. The dog barked before licking them both. Their wedding night wasn’t exactly as she’d pictured, but even without physically joining, they lay naked in each other’s arms. Her eyes studied every inch of his body from the scar on his eyebrow to the circle on his chest from getting shot to the mole on his buttocks.
She fell asleep in her husband’s arms…her last coherent thought was how nice that sounded.
Elizabeth couldn’t remain still. Two weeks had passed since their wedding and if she was sitting, then she wished to be standing. If she was standing, she felt as though there was someplace she needed to be yet she was on an island, where was she supposed to be? The feeling couldn’t be shaken as she paced from one end to the other.
Even her worsening backache couldn’t deter her movements although the dog’s constant barking was getting on her nerves. She was relieved when he left her except he returned with James in tow.
“What are you doing?” he asked and she a thought of what to say.
“I do not know,” she complained and then felt liquid rolling down her legs, “And I think I’ve pissed myself.”
Her husband looked down and remarked, “Oh!”
“Oh?” she questioned, not being able to tell what he was thinking.
“I believe it’s the baby,” he explained, the breeze playing with his brown hair. The baby, she liked this reasoning until he added, “It’s coming.”
Out, she thought and looked down, it’s coming out. That’s impossible. She shook her head.
“I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can, you’ve faced undead pirates,” he reminded her.
“I’ve faced undead pirates,” she repeated as James unbuttoned her shirt. Then, he laid it upon the sand and motioned for her to sit on it. He frowned and elaborated, “My mother had a chair.”
What was she supposed to do? Now that she knew what the pains were, they made much more sense. It wasn’t a constant pain. They came and went.
“Lay back,” he told her and she obliged, but after staring at her nether regions, he admitted, “I’m unsure what to look for.”
“A head?” Elizabeth suggested and they both laughed because it was preferable to being incredibly scared. The dog merely barked.
“No, no sign of a head,” he confirmed and she decided to follow her natural instincts which were telling her to push. She held up her hand so he would take it and he did, kneeling.
After an eternity of pushing when the pains were coming much more often, he let her go and stood up.
“Where are you going?” she asked, not wanting him out of her sight.
“I should have made a fire, I should have…we’re so…unprepared,” James rambled and she noticed he had the folding knife, “but we need a fire.”
“Why?” she questioned, her mind seemed incapable of coherent thoughts other than pushing, pain and wondering when it would end.
“We’ll need to cut the cord and the doctor on the ship would always fire his instruments before cutting,” he explained, leaning down for a quick kiss on the forehead before running off. Every second he was gone felt excruciating and there were a lot of seconds. The pain was worsening so that she began uttering every curse that she knew.
She reached between her legs and felt what had to be the top of the head.
“James! James!” she screamed, needing him there immediately, “JAMES!!!” There was the sound of very fast running and he appeared along with Poochie that she hadn’t noticed had left her.
“The fire took longer than I…,” his words trailed off and he spoke in an awed voice, “There’s a head now.”
Although she was exhausted, she felt certain that if she could push harder that the baby would come out. What she wanted was for him to hold her hand, but he was poised to catch.
Her brown eyes met his green ones and he placed a single kiss on the thigh above her knee. Elizabeth grabbed her knees and pushed as hard she possibly could.
“Almost…,” said James. Almost, she thought, all that work and almost?
“I’ve faced…,” he started and she knew what he wanted her to say.
“I’ve faced undead pirates!” she stated and tried again. She’d closed her eyes in the effort but after hearing some strange sounds, she opened them again. Her husband held the baby and smacked its bottom so it cried.
“It’s a girl,” he said, cutting the cord and tying it. Then, he just knelt with her in his arms and she noticed a tear rolling down his cheek.
“James, can I hold her?”
“Yes, of course,” he agreed as if coming out of a trance and handed her the baby. From holding various infants of important parentage, she knew to support the head. It was unreal that this baby had been growing inside her all these months and now she was in her arms. She began looking her over from her ten toes to her ten fingers, wispy blond hair partially covering her head and bright blue eyes.
All of a sudden, she started weeping over everything and felt James’ strong arms surround her.
“I love you,” her husband whispered and kissed her on the lips. Hours passed and she smiled at how James had barely left their side. The only reason the baby wasn’t in her father’s arms was because she had demanded Elizabeth’s breast. She finished and fell asleep. Elizabeth repositioned her despite the tenderness in her breast from the feeding.
She grimaced and remarked, “She likes taking her pound of flesh.”
The thought hit her that their daughter needed a name as he swept the sweat-dried hair out of her face.
“How about it? Portia? For her name?”
“Merchant of Venice,” James spoke, “The name of my mother came from that: Jessica.”
Jessica…Jessica Norrington did sound nice. The sun shone down on the three of them.
Three months went where Jessica Norrington grew and Elizabeth was able to wear her old clothes again although she doubted she could still pass for a boy. Her body contained new curves and fullness that hadn’t left when the baby had. She was delighted that her breasts were every bit as big as the ones the whores had.
The baby sat on the soft ground of their enclosure and clapped. It’d been a full year since they’d first washed ashore and she was reminiscing when James came running to them.
“There’s a ship!” he cried, “headed this way with no signs of changing course.” Although she shouldn’t hope after all this time, Elizabeth quickly dressed and tossed her husband his slightly stained shirt and coat. Then, she gave him the pearl necklace from her breeches pocket. They waited on the beach as the longboat approached.
The men gave them a strange look as they stepped onshore. Elizabeth held Jessica in her left arm while her right hand curled around the compass.
“We will pay for passage off this island,” said James, holding up the pearls. The two other men gazed with distrust at her, the baby and the dog, but the Captain appeared to be considering his options.
“You give me possession of that necklace and I’ll see that you reach wherever you want to go,” he agreed, “as well as cleaner clothes.”
“You will receive it once the agreement is met,” the taller man confirmed and helped Elizabeth and their child into the boat. Poochie jumped in on his own. They were on open water and she’d never have to see that island again. She felt almost faint with excitement, but then other thoughts surfaced as well.
The island had been a refuge where she and James could do as they liked yet now they would be under the scrutiny of everyone else. Will was a prisoner of Davy Jones and that was her fault. Her father was possibly a prisoner of Cutler Beckett and that was her doing as well. If only she had accepted James’ proposal in the first place…then, she never would have loved him, she realized and hated the realization that Beckett was right about fate.
She popped open the lid and pointed where the arrow did, not sure if it pointed to Will or her father.
“That way,” she announced and James nodded to the Captain to do as she said. The Captain gave them a look although he complied and she wondered where they would end up. Almost two weeks later, a familiar coastline emerged and the Captain bought the ship to a complete halt.
“I cannot go any further, take the longboat and leave,” he ordered the small group.
“Captain Davis, we had a deal,” James reminded him.
“The East India Trading Company was never part of our deal and that’s Beckett’s ship docked at Port Royal Harbour!” the other man replied back in an angry tone, “Do you know what he’s done with the Governor?”
Her insides turned cold at what was said and she could tell James was the same.
“He’s been sentenced to death for helping a fugitive escape justice,” the Captain elaborated and Elizabeth couldn’t conceal her gasp. They hurriedly left into the longboat with her double and triple checking that the dog still had his keys. She clutched Jessica and tried to stop the awful thoughts from coming, she kept seeing her father led to the gallows.
“We will rescue him,” James spoke, determined and she wished she could share his optimism.
“What? You’re not suggesting us fugitives from justice walk into the jail and break my father out with a three month old?”
“Yes,” he said quite calmly.
“You’re mad!” she accused even though she kept glancing at Poochie’s mouth.
“We are unrecognizable as our former selves and we have the keys,” her husband explained and she couldn’t argue with him. Her hair was the color of the sun while his hair was incredibly long, plus she was dressed in men’s clothing and he had a new wardrobe as well although he insisted on keeping his ratty coat.
The streets were empty and an odd chill was in the air.
“They’re having a hanging,” James stated and she had to believe him.
“Oh, James, he wouldn’t…” she started and couldn’t finish her thought.
“At least the fort will be unguarded,” he said and they made their way inside, down into the cells. These appeared empty, but the dog ran ahead and they followed to the very last set of bars.
“Father!” she cried, both elated at seeing him alive as well as horrified when noticing him without his wig and with a beard.
“You’re not real; you’re a figment of my hopes,” he uttered in a way that broke her heart. She handed Jessica who was babbling to James and took the keys from Poochie. After opening the cell, she took her father’s hand and led him out.
“Elizabeth, is that really you then? You appear as an angel yet dressed as a sailor,” he spoke, delighted although not entirely himself.
“It is me,” she replied and hugged him.
“We must go,” said James and their daughter continued speaking nonsense.
“James? Whom is the baby?” her father asked and then shook his head, “No, we need to stop Beckett. He’s trying to take over the seas by kidnapping William, that Sparrow or making some Brethren meet.”
“Will? Why, Will?” she questioned since she still believed him to be on Davy Jones’ crew.
“He has some sort of key,” he explained, holding out a hand to touch the infant, “but we could travel to world’s end and never find him, he could be anywhere.”
“Except that I have a compass,” Elizabeth argued, gesturing to the object that always hung from her breeches. Jessica stared at her grandfather with inquisitive blue-green eyes which made Elizabeth smile. She shared a look with her husband and they began to leave the fort for their next adventure.
Summary: James and Elizabeth are still stuck on the island.
Characters: James, Elizabeth, Poochie
Pairing: Norribeth, Willabeth
Rating: PG-13 Adult Content
Disclaimer: This is totally AU. Disney owns everything and Ted and Terry are wonderful guys so please don’t sue!!!
Comments: aquaseamage wanted to know what would have happened if the end of The Twinkling of an Eye was slightly different…
Chapter One: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/9887.html
Chapter Two: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/10168.html
Chapter Three: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/10300.html
The original story: http://ericadawn16.livejournal.com/282.html
Chapter Four
Elizabeth knew James was thinking the same about having the wedding as soon as possible and they started preparations. His hair was cut so it only reached his shoulders and his beard became a more respectable length by her hand and the small blade she’d found. After some cajoling, she convinced him to cut her locks to the scandalously short length of just as long as his.
Then, they also bathed which she was forced to admit she needed help with because she couldn’t reach her feet. Then, they did their best to wash the rags they wore so at sunset, they both sat on the beach with Poochie right next to them.
“Elizabeth Swann, will you have me whether I’m a penniless pirate or an affluent Admiral, to have and to hold for as long as we both shall live?”
“I do,” she answered, “but James Norrington, as someone who did great wrong by your heart and gave mine to another while I had promised it to you, will you still have me? Will you still trust me with your heart?”
“Always,” he replied and they kissed as the sun dipped below. The dog barked before licking them both. Their wedding night wasn’t exactly as she’d pictured, but even without physically joining, they lay naked in each other’s arms. Her eyes studied every inch of his body from the scar on his eyebrow to the circle on his chest from getting shot to the mole on his buttocks.
She fell asleep in her husband’s arms…her last coherent thought was how nice that sounded.
Elizabeth couldn’t remain still. Two weeks had passed since their wedding and if she was sitting, then she wished to be standing. If she was standing, she felt as though there was someplace she needed to be yet she was on an island, where was she supposed to be? The feeling couldn’t be shaken as she paced from one end to the other.
Even her worsening backache couldn’t deter her movements although the dog’s constant barking was getting on her nerves. She was relieved when he left her except he returned with James in tow.
“What are you doing?” he asked and she a thought of what to say.
“I do not know,” she complained and then felt liquid rolling down her legs, “And I think I’ve pissed myself.”
Her husband looked down and remarked, “Oh!”
“Oh?” she questioned, not being able to tell what he was thinking.
“I believe it’s the baby,” he explained, the breeze playing with his brown hair. The baby, she liked this reasoning until he added, “It’s coming.”
Out, she thought and looked down, it’s coming out. That’s impossible. She shook her head.
“I can’t do this.”
“Yes, you can, you’ve faced undead pirates,” he reminded her.
“I’ve faced undead pirates,” she repeated as James unbuttoned her shirt. Then, he laid it upon the sand and motioned for her to sit on it. He frowned and elaborated, “My mother had a chair.”
What was she supposed to do? Now that she knew what the pains were, they made much more sense. It wasn’t a constant pain. They came and went.
“Lay back,” he told her and she obliged, but after staring at her nether regions, he admitted, “I’m unsure what to look for.”
“A head?” Elizabeth suggested and they both laughed because it was preferable to being incredibly scared. The dog merely barked.
“No, no sign of a head,” he confirmed and she decided to follow her natural instincts which were telling her to push. She held up her hand so he would take it and he did, kneeling.
After an eternity of pushing when the pains were coming much more often, he let her go and stood up.
“Where are you going?” she asked, not wanting him out of her sight.
“I should have made a fire, I should have…we’re so…unprepared,” James rambled and she noticed he had the folding knife, “but we need a fire.”
“Why?” she questioned, her mind seemed incapable of coherent thoughts other than pushing, pain and wondering when it would end.
“We’ll need to cut the cord and the doctor on the ship would always fire his instruments before cutting,” he explained, leaning down for a quick kiss on the forehead before running off. Every second he was gone felt excruciating and there were a lot of seconds. The pain was worsening so that she began uttering every curse that she knew.
She reached between her legs and felt what had to be the top of the head.
“James! James!” she screamed, needing him there immediately, “JAMES!!!” There was the sound of very fast running and he appeared along with Poochie that she hadn’t noticed had left her.
“The fire took longer than I…,” his words trailed off and he spoke in an awed voice, “There’s a head now.”
Although she was exhausted, she felt certain that if she could push harder that the baby would come out. What she wanted was for him to hold her hand, but he was poised to catch.
Her brown eyes met his green ones and he placed a single kiss on the thigh above her knee. Elizabeth grabbed her knees and pushed as hard she possibly could.
“Almost…,” said James. Almost, she thought, all that work and almost?
“I’ve faced…,” he started and she knew what he wanted her to say.
“I’ve faced undead pirates!” she stated and tried again. She’d closed her eyes in the effort but after hearing some strange sounds, she opened them again. Her husband held the baby and smacked its bottom so it cried.
“It’s a girl,” he said, cutting the cord and tying it. Then, he just knelt with her in his arms and she noticed a tear rolling down his cheek.
“James, can I hold her?”
“Yes, of course,” he agreed as if coming out of a trance and handed her the baby. From holding various infants of important parentage, she knew to support the head. It was unreal that this baby had been growing inside her all these months and now she was in her arms. She began looking her over from her ten toes to her ten fingers, wispy blond hair partially covering her head and bright blue eyes.
All of a sudden, she started weeping over everything and felt James’ strong arms surround her.
“I love you,” her husband whispered and kissed her on the lips. Hours passed and she smiled at how James had barely left their side. The only reason the baby wasn’t in her father’s arms was because she had demanded Elizabeth’s breast. She finished and fell asleep. Elizabeth repositioned her despite the tenderness in her breast from the feeding.
She grimaced and remarked, “She likes taking her pound of flesh.”
The thought hit her that their daughter needed a name as he swept the sweat-dried hair out of her face.
“How about it? Portia? For her name?”
“Merchant of Venice,” James spoke, “The name of my mother came from that: Jessica.”
Jessica…Jessica Norrington did sound nice. The sun shone down on the three of them.
Three months went where Jessica Norrington grew and Elizabeth was able to wear her old clothes again although she doubted she could still pass for a boy. Her body contained new curves and fullness that hadn’t left when the baby had. She was delighted that her breasts were every bit as big as the ones the whores had.
The baby sat on the soft ground of their enclosure and clapped. It’d been a full year since they’d first washed ashore and she was reminiscing when James came running to them.
“There’s a ship!” he cried, “headed this way with no signs of changing course.” Although she shouldn’t hope after all this time, Elizabeth quickly dressed and tossed her husband his slightly stained shirt and coat. Then, she gave him the pearl necklace from her breeches pocket. They waited on the beach as the longboat approached.
The men gave them a strange look as they stepped onshore. Elizabeth held Jessica in her left arm while her right hand curled around the compass.
“We will pay for passage off this island,” said James, holding up the pearls. The two other men gazed with distrust at her, the baby and the dog, but the Captain appeared to be considering his options.
“You give me possession of that necklace and I’ll see that you reach wherever you want to go,” he agreed, “as well as cleaner clothes.”
“You will receive it once the agreement is met,” the taller man confirmed and helped Elizabeth and their child into the boat. Poochie jumped in on his own. They were on open water and she’d never have to see that island again. She felt almost faint with excitement, but then other thoughts surfaced as well.
The island had been a refuge where she and James could do as they liked yet now they would be under the scrutiny of everyone else. Will was a prisoner of Davy Jones and that was her fault. Her father was possibly a prisoner of Cutler Beckett and that was her doing as well. If only she had accepted James’ proposal in the first place…then, she never would have loved him, she realized and hated the realization that Beckett was right about fate.
She popped open the lid and pointed where the arrow did, not sure if it pointed to Will or her father.
“That way,” she announced and James nodded to the Captain to do as she said. The Captain gave them a look although he complied and she wondered where they would end up. Almost two weeks later, a familiar coastline emerged and the Captain bought the ship to a complete halt.
“I cannot go any further, take the longboat and leave,” he ordered the small group.
“Captain Davis, we had a deal,” James reminded him.
“The East India Trading Company was never part of our deal and that’s Beckett’s ship docked at Port Royal Harbour!” the other man replied back in an angry tone, “Do you know what he’s done with the Governor?”
Her insides turned cold at what was said and she could tell James was the same.
“He’s been sentenced to death for helping a fugitive escape justice,” the Captain elaborated and Elizabeth couldn’t conceal her gasp. They hurriedly left into the longboat with her double and triple checking that the dog still had his keys. She clutched Jessica and tried to stop the awful thoughts from coming, she kept seeing her father led to the gallows.
“We will rescue him,” James spoke, determined and she wished she could share his optimism.
“What? You’re not suggesting us fugitives from justice walk into the jail and break my father out with a three month old?”
“Yes,” he said quite calmly.
“You’re mad!” she accused even though she kept glancing at Poochie’s mouth.
“We are unrecognizable as our former selves and we have the keys,” her husband explained and she couldn’t argue with him. Her hair was the color of the sun while his hair was incredibly long, plus she was dressed in men’s clothing and he had a new wardrobe as well although he insisted on keeping his ratty coat.
The streets were empty and an odd chill was in the air.
“They’re having a hanging,” James stated and she had to believe him.
“Oh, James, he wouldn’t…” she started and couldn’t finish her thought.
“At least the fort will be unguarded,” he said and they made their way inside, down into the cells. These appeared empty, but the dog ran ahead and they followed to the very last set of bars.
“Father!” she cried, both elated at seeing him alive as well as horrified when noticing him without his wig and with a beard.
“You’re not real; you’re a figment of my hopes,” he uttered in a way that broke her heart. She handed Jessica who was babbling to James and took the keys from Poochie. After opening the cell, she took her father’s hand and led him out.
“Elizabeth, is that really you then? You appear as an angel yet dressed as a sailor,” he spoke, delighted although not entirely himself.
“It is me,” she replied and hugged him.
“We must go,” said James and their daughter continued speaking nonsense.
“James? Whom is the baby?” her father asked and then shook his head, “No, we need to stop Beckett. He’s trying to take over the seas by kidnapping William, that Sparrow or making some Brethren meet.”
“Will? Why, Will?” she questioned since she still believed him to be on Davy Jones’ crew.
“He has some sort of key,” he explained, holding out a hand to touch the infant, “but we could travel to world’s end and never find him, he could be anywhere.”
“Except that I have a compass,” Elizabeth argued, gesturing to the object that always hung from her breeches. Jessica stared at her grandfather with inquisitive blue-green eyes which made Elizabeth smile. She shared a look with her husband and they began to leave the fort for their next adventure.