THE SHIP OF DREAMS
Chapter Twelve

"Coddie Anna?"

Coddie Anna stood in the tiny cabin bathroom, staring at the shiny oak door blankly. She had gone in there to…she frowned. What had she gone in there for? She didn’t remember now.

"Coddie? Are you all right?"

"Yes, Mother!" Coddie Anna replied in an irritated voice, and turned on the sink, splashing cool water onto her face, and then lifted her head to look into the mirror. She was not ready for tonight at all. Not at all. Coddie Anna was still sore with her mother for having invited the steerage passengers, of all people, to have dinner with them…well, technically it had been Cal who had issued the invitation, but she knew that her mother had had some influence on the situation.

She could hear the horn being blown, announcing that the dinner hour was beginning, but still Coddie Anna couldn’t bring herself to leave the bathroom. If they just left her in there for the rest of the night, she would be perfectly fine.

"Oh, come now, Coddie. You’re being ridiculous." Rose sighed as she called for her daughter again. Coddie Anna was stubborn. There was no doubt about that.

"Please come out of the bathroom, dear." It was her grandmother’s voice she heard next. Well, Coddie Anna thought, blowing out her breath. I might as well humor them. That does not mean that I have to speak to him. She grasped the brass knob and pulled the door open, facing both women with weary eyes. They did not appear angry…in fact, they were smiling softly at her.

"Now, please try and be civil, dear," Rose told her daughter seriously. Coddie Anna scowled even deeper.

"I do not have to speak to him," Coddie Anna snarled.

Rose sighed. "Well, I suppose that is better than making rash comments." She shook her head. "Mother, you do not have to wait for me. Cal is escorting you tonight." She turned to Ruth, who was watching them with slight concern.

Ruth nodded. "Very well…we shall meet you in the dining room, then." She left the room, leaving Rose alone with her daughter, and raised an eyebrow at the half-dressed child before her.

"All right, Coddie. Let’s finish getting ready…I do not want to be late meeting him."

Without a word, Coddie Anna turned around and allowed her mother to finish hooking up her gown and tying her sash. Coddie Anna watched as her mother finished getting herself ready, before they made their way out into the corridor.

*****

"Great…how are we supposed to watch them in first class?" Michael asked in disbelief, as he, Callista, and Sam followed the Dawsons all the way to the entrance to the first class section of the ship. Unfortunately, the guards had no legal way into first class…this was obviously not something the Tsar was expecting.

"Well, we might have to trust him for now," Sam grumbled, as they leaned against one of the walls. "He hasn’t gotten them into any scrapes so far."

"Which I doubt he will," Callista told Sam, raising her eyes. "Jack seems very strict with them when he needs to be."

The guards held their breath and hid around a corner when Jack, Mac, and Anastasia came towards them. When they were out of earshot, Callista let out her breath in a great sigh.

"We might as well go back to steerage for now…there’s nothing we can do here." She turned to Sam with a sympathetic expression. The guards agreed, and turned, heading back towards the steerage section of the ship. There was nothing they could do if anything happened to Anastasia in first class, and at least they would have an excuse if anything did. When at the palace, their job, if anyone approach one of the grand duchesses, was to interrogate the person, asking why they had wanted to speak to her, etc. If they did that here, they would give her identity away, and it was best to keep it hidden, as usual.

*****

Jack, Mac, and Anastasia were silent when they reached the double doors that led into the first class section of the Titanic. Two men in tuxedos stood on either side and smiled at them, opening the doors for them. "Good evening," they greeted cheerfully as they walked through. Jack looked at the girls, who were gazing around the place in awe. There was an enormous grand staircase when you first walked in, and against the wall on the first flat, Mac saw a great marble clock. Even Anastasia, who had seen plenty of splendor in her lifetime so far, was very impressed.

"You look a bit pale, Mac." Jack chuckled when he glanced at his daughter. "Are you all right?"

Mac raised her eyes. "Yes. I’m fine," she lied. She felt as though she were meeting a member of royalty all over again. She grasped her father’s hand tightly, feeling a little better. She noticed a man and a woman making their way down the stairs, chatting, and Mac caught the words Hockley Steel as they walked past them.

Jack bent down and whispered into Mac’s ear. "That," he began, "is Rose’s fiancé…"

Mac did a double take and looked over her shoulder so she could get another look at them. The man was tall and thin, but not quite as thin as Jack, with hair the color of ebony and dark eyes. She felt a shiver go down her spine when she was in his presence. "Who’s that woman on his arm?" she whispered back, and Anastasia looked over her shoulder as well.

"That must be Rose’s mother, I think."

"Here she comes. I see her," Anastasia whispered, nodding towards the stairs, and everyone lifted their heads. Sure enough, Rose was descending, dressed in a black and red sequined gown. Her beautiful auburn hair was pulled up into a loose bun fastened with a silver clip. Mac noticed a young girl behind Rose who looked almost like an exact replica of her mother, dressed in a midnight blue gown, her auburn hair smooth and up in a French braid. Rose came down to the last step, and Mac and Anastasia watched as Jack made his way over to her and took her hand, kissing it gently. Had they been in the palace instead of the Titanic, Anastasia surely would have giggled aloud.

"I saw that in a nickelodeon once, and I’ve always wanted to do it." Jack chuckled when he looked back up at her, and Rose laughed.

She looked behind her at the new girl, and stepped to the side. "Jack, this is my daughter, Coddie Anna," Rose introduced.

Mac and Anastasia looked at one another with raised eyebrows, and Anastasia whispered, "Oh, she looks like a barrel of laughs." Coddie Anna was not smiling at all, and stood stiffly on the step, her eyes fixed on Jack.

"It is my pleasure," Jack told Coddie Anna politely, smiling. Coddie Anna did not smile back. Anastasia grimaced. She had no idea how anyone could be so cold to Jack. He was kind-hearted from the start, and she remembered her sisters falling for him instantly when they saw him for the first time. Even Olga, who hardly opened up to anyone easily, was able to just sit and talk with him for hours about whatever she was thinking about. Jack did not force Coddie Anna to speak to him…he just turned to Rose, who was giving her daughter a warning look, but then the two adults smirked at each other.

They walked in the direction of the dining room. Mac walked beside Anastasia, who held her held high and kept her back straight. Coddie Anna walked beside her mother, stealing glances at Jack every so often. The more she did this, the more she began to almost like him. He was handsome…there was no mistaking that. It was very odd, though, that he knew exactly how to behave with this particular crowd.

When they entered the dining room, Mac’s mouth dropped. There were dozens of large, round tables covered with fresh, white linen tablecloths. She recognized the rather complicated table setting from the palace. "Start from the outside and work your way in," she remembered Tatiana telling her the first time she had eaten a formal dinner with the family. Of course, Mac had been so nervous that she had started using the meat fork instead of the salad fork, much to Alexandra’s amusement, but the Empress had not said anything about it, only smiling softly, her usually sad eyes twinkling. Olga, at one time, had kicked her under the table when she’d made the same mistake again, but luckily the girls had been eating alone in their quarters that time, or Olga would clearly have been scolded.

Rose led them over to Cal, who was chatting with a few other very well-dressed gentlemen, and she gently tapped him on the arm.

"Darling?" she asked softly. "Surely you remember Mr. Dawson?"

Cal turned around and nearly did a double-take, much to Mac’s amusement. "D-Dawson?" he stuttered. "Well, it’s amazing! You could almost pass for a gentleman!"

Anastasia glanced at Mac, who was beaming, and he gave a nod. "Almost…"

Ruth DeWitt Bukater was eyeing him suspiciously, yet she said nothing.

"Extraordinary," Cal added with a slight smirk, as he glanced at Rose again before leading Ruth to their table. Jack and Rose grinned at each other before starting to walk again, and Rose began pointing out the different people she knew.

"That is Benjamin Guggenheim and his mistress, Madame Aubert...his wife is at home with the children, of course." Mac watched as waiters pushed carts filled with spectacular food and drinks, starting to actually feel rather hungry at this point. Her nerves were dying down now that she was actually in the dining room, though she still felt uncomfortable around Coddie Anna, who was not looking at her. "…and that’s John Jacob Astor…the richest man on the ship."

Mac gasped and tugged on Anastasia’s sleeve, pointing, and Anastasia leaned her head sideways. "That’s him! The one I was telling you about on the train. Remember? I knew he’d be here."

Jack shook his head at his daughter and touched her shoulder tenderly. Rose brought them over to meet the Astors, much to Mac’s delight, though she was startled to find that they behaved like everyone else. She especially liked Mr. Astor’s wife, Madeline, who, as Mac found out, was pregnant. Madeline was very sweet, and she had to hide giggles, because when Jack was speaking with Mr. Astor, Madeline leaned towards Rose and whispered, "It’s a pity we’re all spoken for."

At last, it was time to sit down. There were quite a few famous names sitting with them…Thomas Andrews, the ship’s builder, Mr. Ismay, the ship’s designer, Molly Brown--Mac liked this woman as well…and found her rather amusing to listen to--the Countess of Rothes, and Colonel Archibald Gracie. Mac sat down between her father and Anastasia, who immediately spread her napkin on her lap and nudged Mac’s arm, telling her silently to do the same. She felt her father give her hand a gentle squeeze under the table, and Mac smiled at him. Everyone at the table was looking at the newcomers with great interest, and much to Mac’s relief, were quite friendly when the conversations began. Molly Brown, of course, praised the girls to no end, telling Jack how beautiful they were and how absolutely charming. Mac saw her father blushing furiously, and knew he was pleased. Anastasia kept silent most of the time, only laughing when was appropriate, though she found herself staring at Coddie Anna, who refused to look at either of them. Mac was startled when Anastasia asked for a glass of wine when the waiter came around with drinks, and he agreed to pour her half of a glass.

"Thank you, sir," Anastasia told him politely after her drink was poured, and he headed on his rounds again.

"So, tell me of the accommodations in steerage, Mr. Dawson. I hear they’re quite good on this ship." Ruth DeWitt Bukater finally spoke up, startling him a bit. Anastasia and Mac looked at him and then looked at each other.

"The best I’ve seen, ma’am," he replied thoughtfully. "Hardly any rats."

Anastasia nearly spit out a mouthful of wine.

"Mr. Dawson is joining us from the third class. He was of some assistance to my fiancée last night," Cal explained to the others at the table, who nodded in understanding.

Another waiter came to them and began to serve small appetizers. Mac immediately refused the caviar and the, as Cal explained, foie gras or goose liver. Mac felt a little bit sick when she heard it. Anastasia, of course, took just a spoonful of caviar for herself. "How can you refuse it?" she asked with surprise. "It is quite a rare delicacy."

Cal looked at her. "Do they serve caviar in third class now?"

Anastasia turned red, but said nothing.

When the waiter turned to Jack and asked if he wished for caviar as well, Jack shook his head. "No thanks…never did like it much." He glanced at Rose, who was smiling at him over her glass of champagne. Mac liked Rose very much already, even though she hardly knew her.

"And where exactly do you live, Mr. Dawson?" Ruth spoke again, her voice rather cool.

Jack leaned back in his seat. "Well, right now my address is the RMS Titanic. After that, I’m on God’s good humor."

"And you find that sort of rootless existence appealing, do you?" Ruth asked him, her eyes narrowing.

Mac scowled, and so did Anastasia, who was tempted to slam her wine glass down on the table and jump up to say, "He worked for the Tsar!" Yet, she knew better. She could see the expressions on her elder sisters’ faces if they had been here and were listening to this woman. However, Jack remained calm, keeping his voice natural.

"Well...it's a big world, and I want to see it all before I go. My father was always talking about going to see the ocean. He died in the town he was born in, and never did see it. You can't wait around, because you never know what hand you're going to get dealt next. See, my folks died in a fire when I was fifteen, and I've been on the road since. Something like that teaches you to take life as it comes at you. To make each day count," he replied, and Anastasia grinned, proud of him, though she remembered when he’d told her and her sisters and brother about his parents and his wife dying, and they had all been in tears by the end of the story, hardly able to speak.

"Well said, Jack," Molly told him thoughtfully, raising her glass.

Rose raised her glass as well, and looked Jack straight in the eye. "To making it count," she announced, and at that point, everyone else raised their glasses.

"To making it count."

At last, after what seemed like forever, the meal was finally served. Roast duck, beautiful snow white mashed potatoes with a thin gravy, asparagus--Anastasia secretly took the asparagus from her friend’s plate when the others weren’t looking, as Mac was not fond of it. She and Maria had gotten into the habit of helping their friend this way, sneaking bits of food away and giving her some of their own when Olga and Tatiana weren’t looking. Even Alexandra had switched Mac’s hard piece of bread for her favorite softer doughy piece at teatime once, much to Mac’s surprise. The bread basket had been empty, which was why she had switched their pieces. Ruth, however, had not given up interrogating Jack as they began to eat, and continued asking him personal questions. One in particular made Anastasia’s heart nearly stop in mid-beat, and her fork remained still in mid-poke.

"And how is it you have the means to travel?"

All heads turned toward him. "Well, I work my way from place to place…tramp steamers and such. But I won my ticket on Titanic here at a lucky game of poker…"

Mac couldn’t believe her father had said that. Where he had come up with that response, she had no idea, and she wondered if the others would believe it. Anastasia had nearly spit out a mouthful of wine again, and was holding her cloth napkin against her lips so that she did not get any on her gown.

"All life is a game of luck," said Colonel Gracie.

Cal shook his head. "A real man makes his own luck, Archie. Isn’t that right, Dawson?"

Jack nodded. "That’s true." He glanced at Mac, and smiled when he saw that she was eating well, and had almost finished her supper.

"And how old are you, dear?" the Countess asked Anastasia with a small smile.

"Twelve."

"You look nothing like your father…"

"Oh…he is not my papa…he is my uncle," Anastasia explained.

"Do you all live in the same state?"

Jack nodded. "Yep…Wisconsin."

Now, of course, Anastasia had never heard of any of the states in America, and repeated the word Wisconsin in her head over and over again…it had a funny sound to it, that was for certain. It sounded like a type of cheese, almost. "That’s Swiss cheese you’re thinking of," Mac whispered, when Anastasia told her that, and both girls were giggling quietly to themselves.

Swissconsin would later be a joke between them.

The rest of supper passed by rather smoothly, Ruth giving up on asking questions as Jack answered them with such ease that was shocking to the rest of the group. Rose got into a conversation with Mr. Andrews, eventually snatching his tiny notebook from his hands and teasing him about it. "I always see you writing in this little book everywhere you go," she told him, grinning and opening it to see what he had written. "Increase number of screws in hat hooks from two to three…you built the grandest ship in the world and this preoccupies you?" she asked in disbelief, looking down when Coddie Anna tugged on her sleeve. "Yes, dear?"

"Might I go back to the cabin, Mummy? I’m quite tired."

Rose sighed and nodded. "Cal, would you escort her back, please?"

"Of course. Are you coming back as well?" He stood up.

"No. I’ll stay here."

"Would you like to join us for a brandy in the smoking room after supper, Jack?" Colonel Gracie asked politely, once the party began to break up.

"No thanks…we’d better be heading back."

Rose looked rather disappointed that he would be leaving, but tried to look as cheerful as possible when he walked over to her. "Jack, must you go?" she asked quietly when he took her hand. He nodded.

"Time for my carriage to turn back into a pumpkin…" He kissed her hand again, and then it appeared to the girls as though he had put something into it once he set it back down on her lap again. "Good night, Rose." He turned towards Mac. "Let’s go, you two." He put a hand on both of their shoulders and led them out of the dining room. Rose sat for a moment, watching them leave, and then she opened her hand, noticing a tiny slip of paper in it folded in half. She looked around her quickly before unfolding it. The note read: Make it count. Meet me at the clock.

Chapter Thirteen
Stories