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The End of the Line
May. 21st, 2007 12:28 pmAuthor: Ericadawn16
Rating: PG-13 for ANGST and character deaths
Pairings: Willabeth, Norribeth
Summary: From Gibbs’ Point of View, it takes place about ten years after the end of AWE and has the repercussions of that film.
Yes, the title is a Coupling reference which should be a clue as to who may show up...
SPOILERS!!!
One day, not more than ten years after that fateful day that he’d witnessed the pirates unite together for a single cause; Mr. Joshamee Gibbs was scrubbing the deck. Not an uncommon occurrence except that he felt pain in his chest. Earlier his arm tingled and his breath had been hard to catch, but now it felt as though his body was fighting him. Now, he felt as though he was being crushed from inside. He couldn’t breathe and his legs gave out so that he fell to his knees.
Marty and Cotton came to his aid as best they could which wasn’t much. The pain grew more and more intense until he was forced to close his eyes. When he opened them again, he was relieved to find that the pain was gone although he hadn’t noticed being picked up. It was odd that they were taking him to Jack’s cabin.
However, the realization soon hit that not only could he not feel the pain anymore, he couldn’t feel anything anymore. Nothing and a couple of the crew members kept referring to someone as…dead. Not him though, there had to be another explanation. Barbossa had described a similar feeling when the under the curse of the Aztec gold. Gibbs couldn’t recall taking one lately or any other mystical items.
Then, there was a sound so familiar yet he couldn’t place it and everyone rushed onto the deck quickly. He could only listen as there were excited shouts before the door opened. Jack lead in another man, none other than William Turner. Now Captain of the Flying Dutchman, Will was very changed from the boy he’d help rescue at sea all those years ago. He was wearing the same bandana as the last time he’d seen him, but the eyes were hard and the face set into a worn expression despite the youthful look. Although catching a glimpse of Jack before the captain turned away was more disturbing. The brown eyes were watery and Gibbs thought he heard a bit of sniffling as Will looked right at the old seaman. There was a slight smile as he said, “I’ve come to take you on one last adventure.”
It was true then, he really was dead. The younger man took his hand and Gibbs could immediately feel again as well as have strength returning to him. He rose from the bed of his own accord and Jack clasped his shoulder, “I’ll see you around, mate.” Gibbs knew this was an empty promise, considering that Jack was doing his best to never die again, but he appreciated the thought.
The rest of the crew saluted him as they walked onto the deck. He’d tried not to think that he may never see them again. Instead, he listened as Will asked the Captain of the Black Pearl, “Have you seen Elizabeth?”
There was a pause before Jack nodded. The young man’s brown eyes lit up at this and he stated, “Please tell me of her.”
The older man smirked in an almost involuntary way that was good to see since he’d just been crying and replied, “As Pirate King, she has many responsibilities and I can honestly say that she is never alone.” There was that smirk again. Gibbs had only seen a smirk like that on one other man and he was reminded of the fact that if Will had not seen Elizabeth since they parted, he knew nothing of young William James Turner. The boy had been barely more than a babe when they had seen them, but his brown eyes and hair clearly took after his father although Elizabeth referred to him as Jamie.
Silence followed for a fleeting second before Gibbs was given a questioning look. He knew what the question was without it being asked, took one last look at his fellow crewmates and nodded. With an odd popping sound, the two of them reappeared on the deck of the Flying Dutchman. He ran to railing so he could have one last glimpse prior to diving to the depths of the ocean. Marty and Cotton waved.
Gibbs wasn’t the only one on this journey. Others had been picked up ahead of him: the whole crew of a ship that had crashed into rocks, another man as old as himself and a young man with bright blue eyes who’d made some foolish mistake of inexperience. Some more came aboard along the way and all were given the choice of enjoying one last voyage on the sea or joining the crew until they reached the destination. The latter was what Gibbs chose rather than think about what fate he was doomed to endure for all eternity. He prayed it was Fiddler’s Green but that seemed so out of reach. Even Will appeared more anxious than he could ever recall seeing the man be as he looked at him and the young man was accustomed to touching the sword by his side at these times. Gibbs knew that sword very well. It was legendary.
However, the surroundings were becoming familiar and it wasn’t long until they approached the waterfall. He remembered last time he’d encountered it that the ship had not made it. However, the Flying Dutchman was not any ordinary ship which was proven when Will called for them to dive with the water and they resurfaced without a scratch below.
Gibbs was almost beyond reach now. He found himself wondering what Jack and the crew were up to. What crazy scheme was he missing? His thoughts also turned to London, had his niece married by now?
All too soon, their destination was within sight and then, they were docked. Unlike when they had rescued Jack, the land was so dazzling bright that it was hard to make out and a euphoric feeling was coming from it. He watched as one by one of those onboard disembarked except for himself, Will, his father and a few others including the young man with blue eyes. The captain came closer and spoke, “It’s your turn.”
No, there must be some sort of mistake. After all those years of pirating and drinking and other moral offenses, he’d had the sneaking feeling that he’d end up at the other one. Will put a comforting hand on his shoulder and Gibbs asked, “You must be mistaken?”
“No, not anymore,” he answered before looking down at his chest and the huge scar it bore.
“What about joining your crew? You let the boy join and I already know the work” Gibbs pleaded as a fear of the unknown overwhelm him. He had never been close to his parents and his sister was still living.
Will shook his head and said, “It’s time is coming to an end.”
In a softer voice, he added, “My time is coming to an end.”
He let go and the hand went to his sword again. His face was sad and asked, probably to himself, “Will she still even have me?”
“Will, that girl would happily have you for all eternity. She loves you,” Gibbs spoke and Will gave a half-hearted nod before looking at his father. A thought occurred to the old man about what the end of Will’s servitude might mean. Without a captain to steer it, there would be no need for the Flying Dutchman to continue or a crew to man her.
“He’ll die?” the man guessed. The younger man nodded.
“But you did save him as you promised,” Gibbs reminded him and Will agreed, “I did save him.”
This was intriguing, there was a story there. He gave him a look until the captain explained, “There was another that I looked for, but his boat was already gone.”
The older man had a good idea of who that was, but his reverie was interrupted by the drawing of a sword.
“This is another reason not to hire you,” Will said, holding the sword out, “I would like you to do something for me.”
“Anything,” Gibbs answered and the weapon was pressed into his hand.
“Give this to him when you see him,” the younger man requested as his brown eyes became watery.
“But it’s your sword now…”
Will shook his head, arguing, “No, I made it for him. It belongs with him.”
The older man nodded and held the sword close to his chest. Then, he was struck by an impulse and hugged Will despite the sword in his right hand. The captain hugged him back and Gibbs walked down the gangplank before he could become scared again. He walked through the brightness and was able to see. It turned out that the source of the light was the clothing of the denizens themselves that were just past the man at the beginning of the dock so he joined the queue that led to it.
“You’re not Peter, are you?” asked Gibbs of the man in front of him once he reached the front of the queue.
“Why yes, yes I am, son,” answered the man with a smile, “And you are Joshamee Gibbs.”
A blush came over his face and he felt odd for bringing a sword in.
“No need for that here,” Peter spoke and came toward him, “You belong here.”
The sailor started to give him the sword, but the other refused, saying, “No, I know of the sword. What I meant was for you to put your fear behind you.”
With a hug from him, Gibbs did feel lighter in spirit and he saw that his clothes had changed to a luminous whiteness despite still being the clothes he had always worn.
“You will find the man you seek if you follow the river to the lake,” Peter said, pointing to a river that fed into the water that made up World’s End. Gibbs did as suggested and as he walked along the water, there was no one he recognized yet everyone was so friendly that he found himself smiling. Then, he started to hear laughter as though from a group and the sounds of splashing. As he neared, he realized he recognized the deepest of the laughter. When he turned the bend, he saw them. With a little girl in each arm was the once Admiral James Norrington.
He almost didn’t want to interrupt the scene except that he remembered Will’s face.
“Admiral?” he called so that the man could hear him.
“No, not anymore,” James answered with a grin although he wore a sparkling white version of his admiral’s uniform.
“Jamie, were you an admiral?” asked a girl with his same green eyes and brown hair who came up to his waist.
“Yes, I was,” he admitted and explained, “Mr. Gibbs, this is my twin, Rose.”
“Jamie is the best big brother,” spoke another girl with the same green eyes but red hair. In fact, it seemed as though James were surrounded by girls, five in all.
“Now, now…” the man spoke as though going to correct her, but another man beat him to it. This man had the same brown hair except with blue eyes and couldn’t have been more than twenty as he asked, “And what does that make me? Being Jamie’s big brother and all?”
“You the best big brother,” uttered the smallest girl who was missing her front teeth and had red hair as well as blue eyes. Gibbs couldn’t help but notice how James was the only one of the seven siblings who appeared older than twenty. He now knew that James had never mentioned his family because they were all here.
“William wanted me to give you this,” he said and held out the sword. James set down the two smallest girls and Gibbs noticed an older couple watch from under a tree as the Admiral took what was rightfully his. It was hard to read the expression on the man he once served under, but finally James whispered in a choked voice, “Thank you.”
“Is that your sword, Jamie?” questioned what had to be the eldest sister whose looks were considerably different; black hair and grey eyes.
“Yes, it was given to me when I became Commodore,” he informed them and they gathered round to see it. Gibbs started to walk away from the Norrington gathering when James yelled as he sheathed the sword, “Mr. Gibbs, stay and meet my family!”
Still, after that was done, including the parents who had been under the tree, the admiral had a new question, “what has become of Elizabeth?’
“Well, she became the Pirate King, married Will,” he spoke, “And has a little boy now that she calls Jamie.”
James laughed and nodded with a smile before taking little Lily, the five year old and tossing her in the air so that she squealed in delight. Gibbs couldn’t remember ever seeing the man so happy.
Rating: PG-13 for ANGST and character deaths
Pairings: Willabeth, Norribeth
Summary: From Gibbs’ Point of View, it takes place about ten years after the end of AWE and has the repercussions of that film.
Yes, the title is a Coupling reference which should be a clue as to who may show up...
SPOILERS!!!
One day, not more than ten years after that fateful day that he’d witnessed the pirates unite together for a single cause; Mr. Joshamee Gibbs was scrubbing the deck. Not an uncommon occurrence except that he felt pain in his chest. Earlier his arm tingled and his breath had been hard to catch, but now it felt as though his body was fighting him. Now, he felt as though he was being crushed from inside. He couldn’t breathe and his legs gave out so that he fell to his knees.
Marty and Cotton came to his aid as best they could which wasn’t much. The pain grew more and more intense until he was forced to close his eyes. When he opened them again, he was relieved to find that the pain was gone although he hadn’t noticed being picked up. It was odd that they were taking him to Jack’s cabin.
However, the realization soon hit that not only could he not feel the pain anymore, he couldn’t feel anything anymore. Nothing and a couple of the crew members kept referring to someone as…dead. Not him though, there had to be another explanation. Barbossa had described a similar feeling when the under the curse of the Aztec gold. Gibbs couldn’t recall taking one lately or any other mystical items.
Then, there was a sound so familiar yet he couldn’t place it and everyone rushed onto the deck quickly. He could only listen as there were excited shouts before the door opened. Jack lead in another man, none other than William Turner. Now Captain of the Flying Dutchman, Will was very changed from the boy he’d help rescue at sea all those years ago. He was wearing the same bandana as the last time he’d seen him, but the eyes were hard and the face set into a worn expression despite the youthful look. Although catching a glimpse of Jack before the captain turned away was more disturbing. The brown eyes were watery and Gibbs thought he heard a bit of sniffling as Will looked right at the old seaman. There was a slight smile as he said, “I’ve come to take you on one last adventure.”
It was true then, he really was dead. The younger man took his hand and Gibbs could immediately feel again as well as have strength returning to him. He rose from the bed of his own accord and Jack clasped his shoulder, “I’ll see you around, mate.” Gibbs knew this was an empty promise, considering that Jack was doing his best to never die again, but he appreciated the thought.
The rest of the crew saluted him as they walked onto the deck. He’d tried not to think that he may never see them again. Instead, he listened as Will asked the Captain of the Black Pearl, “Have you seen Elizabeth?”
There was a pause before Jack nodded. The young man’s brown eyes lit up at this and he stated, “Please tell me of her.”
The older man smirked in an almost involuntary way that was good to see since he’d just been crying and replied, “As Pirate King, she has many responsibilities and I can honestly say that she is never alone.” There was that smirk again. Gibbs had only seen a smirk like that on one other man and he was reminded of the fact that if Will had not seen Elizabeth since they parted, he knew nothing of young William James Turner. The boy had been barely more than a babe when they had seen them, but his brown eyes and hair clearly took after his father although Elizabeth referred to him as Jamie.
Silence followed for a fleeting second before Gibbs was given a questioning look. He knew what the question was without it being asked, took one last look at his fellow crewmates and nodded. With an odd popping sound, the two of them reappeared on the deck of the Flying Dutchman. He ran to railing so he could have one last glimpse prior to diving to the depths of the ocean. Marty and Cotton waved.
Gibbs wasn’t the only one on this journey. Others had been picked up ahead of him: the whole crew of a ship that had crashed into rocks, another man as old as himself and a young man with bright blue eyes who’d made some foolish mistake of inexperience. Some more came aboard along the way and all were given the choice of enjoying one last voyage on the sea or joining the crew until they reached the destination. The latter was what Gibbs chose rather than think about what fate he was doomed to endure for all eternity. He prayed it was Fiddler’s Green but that seemed so out of reach. Even Will appeared more anxious than he could ever recall seeing the man be as he looked at him and the young man was accustomed to touching the sword by his side at these times. Gibbs knew that sword very well. It was legendary.
However, the surroundings were becoming familiar and it wasn’t long until they approached the waterfall. He remembered last time he’d encountered it that the ship had not made it. However, the Flying Dutchman was not any ordinary ship which was proven when Will called for them to dive with the water and they resurfaced without a scratch below.
Gibbs was almost beyond reach now. He found himself wondering what Jack and the crew were up to. What crazy scheme was he missing? His thoughts also turned to London, had his niece married by now?
All too soon, their destination was within sight and then, they were docked. Unlike when they had rescued Jack, the land was so dazzling bright that it was hard to make out and a euphoric feeling was coming from it. He watched as one by one of those onboard disembarked except for himself, Will, his father and a few others including the young man with blue eyes. The captain came closer and spoke, “It’s your turn.”
No, there must be some sort of mistake. After all those years of pirating and drinking and other moral offenses, he’d had the sneaking feeling that he’d end up at the other one. Will put a comforting hand on his shoulder and Gibbs asked, “You must be mistaken?”
“No, not anymore,” he answered before looking down at his chest and the huge scar it bore.
“What about joining your crew? You let the boy join and I already know the work” Gibbs pleaded as a fear of the unknown overwhelm him. He had never been close to his parents and his sister was still living.
Will shook his head and said, “It’s time is coming to an end.”
In a softer voice, he added, “My time is coming to an end.”
He let go and the hand went to his sword again. His face was sad and asked, probably to himself, “Will she still even have me?”
“Will, that girl would happily have you for all eternity. She loves you,” Gibbs spoke and Will gave a half-hearted nod before looking at his father. A thought occurred to the old man about what the end of Will’s servitude might mean. Without a captain to steer it, there would be no need for the Flying Dutchman to continue or a crew to man her.
“He’ll die?” the man guessed. The younger man nodded.
“But you did save him as you promised,” Gibbs reminded him and Will agreed, “I did save him.”
This was intriguing, there was a story there. He gave him a look until the captain explained, “There was another that I looked for, but his boat was already gone.”
The older man had a good idea of who that was, but his reverie was interrupted by the drawing of a sword.
“This is another reason not to hire you,” Will said, holding the sword out, “I would like you to do something for me.”
“Anything,” Gibbs answered and the weapon was pressed into his hand.
“Give this to him when you see him,” the younger man requested as his brown eyes became watery.
“But it’s your sword now…”
Will shook his head, arguing, “No, I made it for him. It belongs with him.”
The older man nodded and held the sword close to his chest. Then, he was struck by an impulse and hugged Will despite the sword in his right hand. The captain hugged him back and Gibbs walked down the gangplank before he could become scared again. He walked through the brightness and was able to see. It turned out that the source of the light was the clothing of the denizens themselves that were just past the man at the beginning of the dock so he joined the queue that led to it.
“You’re not Peter, are you?” asked Gibbs of the man in front of him once he reached the front of the queue.
“Why yes, yes I am, son,” answered the man with a smile, “And you are Joshamee Gibbs.”
A blush came over his face and he felt odd for bringing a sword in.
“No need for that here,” Peter spoke and came toward him, “You belong here.”
The sailor started to give him the sword, but the other refused, saying, “No, I know of the sword. What I meant was for you to put your fear behind you.”
With a hug from him, Gibbs did feel lighter in spirit and he saw that his clothes had changed to a luminous whiteness despite still being the clothes he had always worn.
“You will find the man you seek if you follow the river to the lake,” Peter said, pointing to a river that fed into the water that made up World’s End. Gibbs did as suggested and as he walked along the water, there was no one he recognized yet everyone was so friendly that he found himself smiling. Then, he started to hear laughter as though from a group and the sounds of splashing. As he neared, he realized he recognized the deepest of the laughter. When he turned the bend, he saw them. With a little girl in each arm was the once Admiral James Norrington.
He almost didn’t want to interrupt the scene except that he remembered Will’s face.
“Admiral?” he called so that the man could hear him.
“No, not anymore,” James answered with a grin although he wore a sparkling white version of his admiral’s uniform.
“Jamie, were you an admiral?” asked a girl with his same green eyes and brown hair who came up to his waist.
“Yes, I was,” he admitted and explained, “Mr. Gibbs, this is my twin, Rose.”
“Jamie is the best big brother,” spoke another girl with the same green eyes but red hair. In fact, it seemed as though James were surrounded by girls, five in all.
“Now, now…” the man spoke as though going to correct her, but another man beat him to it. This man had the same brown hair except with blue eyes and couldn’t have been more than twenty as he asked, “And what does that make me? Being Jamie’s big brother and all?”
“You the best big brother,” uttered the smallest girl who was missing her front teeth and had red hair as well as blue eyes. Gibbs couldn’t help but notice how James was the only one of the seven siblings who appeared older than twenty. He now knew that James had never mentioned his family because they were all here.
“William wanted me to give you this,” he said and held out the sword. James set down the two smallest girls and Gibbs noticed an older couple watch from under a tree as the Admiral took what was rightfully his. It was hard to read the expression on the man he once served under, but finally James whispered in a choked voice, “Thank you.”
“Is that your sword, Jamie?” questioned what had to be the eldest sister whose looks were considerably different; black hair and grey eyes.
“Yes, it was given to me when I became Commodore,” he informed them and they gathered round to see it. Gibbs started to walk away from the Norrington gathering when James yelled as he sheathed the sword, “Mr. Gibbs, stay and meet my family!”
Still, after that was done, including the parents who had been under the tree, the admiral had a new question, “what has become of Elizabeth?’
“Well, she became the Pirate King, married Will,” he spoke, “And has a little boy now that she calls Jamie.”
James laughed and nodded with a smile before taking little Lily, the five year old and tossing her in the air so that she squealed in delight. Gibbs couldn’t remember ever seeing the man so happy.
