My dearest Frances,

I truly ignore if you will ever contemplate the tremendous amount of letters and transcripts we've been gathering over the years to permit you to share our best and worst moments. However, I decided a few years after you were gone to allow you to know what became of us, and worked hard to fulfill that promise. Sometimes I worry that if this ship sinks all our efforts would be lost in the immensity of the ocean, but after all the captain being lucky Jack does improve the odds, doesn't it? I have to admit that writing to you has been a comfort, as if you were there again beside me. I sometimes felt like you would show up and sneak behind me, put a hand on my shoulder and scare me to death for the sake of laughing out loud in this beautiful voice of yours. I would be overcome with joy and we would start again our endless debates and give a better shape to the world. Unfortunately that dream was never fulfilled, and I had to keep going knowing that I would never see you again. I trust you with this secret of yours, and believe in what you told me. Therefore you are beyond our reach for ever.

As you asked I never fully disclosed your secret to our dear Captain, but he also respected my vow by not asking twice. He however participated a bit in the writing at my insistance. Surprisingly, he never made fun of me over this unusual idea. Him being tactful is not every day, but he insisted on bringing his contribution because he has a bright souvenir of you. I think he took quite a liking in your character. As I told you so many times, I never doubted you were a particular lady, but I was surprised to realize that I had underestimated the influence you have left behind. Jack speaks about you with great respect, and I never saw him thrilled about a woman's abilities as a warrior. You should be in history books for this miracle, but I know how secret you would like this to be. I'm sometimes trying to refrain the kids for talking too much about you to high officials but I can hardly manage this since speaking of you in this manner seems so appropriate. It feels good to remember things we have in common with the crew, it makes you alive again. Anyway, I do not know if your time here will have an impact of the way Jack sees women, but if it does I am accountable to tell that you are the only one in the world that could have done this.

Please be assured that I will cling to this work as long as I will live because you, my fair lady, will stay forever in our minds. Sometimes my spirit wanders around around as I remember your straight forward ways and shining smile. The brightest souvenir of you I kept hidden for years. Speaking of it lifts the veil over my soul, and once again dances before me the fearie who stole my heart. This vision I had the first day never left my mind, and I am forever grateful for this tremendous demonstration of strengh, elegance and beauty altogether. I was not aware about you being friend or foe at that time, but I prayed not to be on the wrong side since you showed us how dangerous you could be. Doom or victory was coming, but I had no idea which one you would bring, but still I already admired you. I swear to the lord I will always remeber that encounter, because it was the first time I saw a woman stand proud in front of an angry Captain Aubrey. I know you would blush, and I would beg you not to since you are the most incredible lady that ever crossed my path. You contribution to my philosophical issues and naturalist life have been more than valuable. I dearly miss our discussions but the souvenir of you shall always push me forward. I sometimes wonder what quite of question you would ask yourself, and while I try to convince myself that I was right I realize how miscarried I was in my assumptions, or how right were my intuitions. There still is this haunting presence of yours guiding on the path of knowledge.

I have to admit that I have mourned for long this possibility you never gave me to learn more than my share. Now the frustration has passed I can fully grasp the consequences it could have generated if you had not witheld your knowledge. Now that I know how to dig the deep of my heart, I also realize that I miss you dearly. All of this was part of you, and I miss everything that was you, but still I miss your ways more than your secientific background. You taught me how to love fully aside from a passionate obession, and I mourn for you today, but do not regret any of it. I have felt guilty for so long for putting my passion for nature before human feelings, but I recently cured this heartache by remembering that you pushed me a lot in the path of naturalism, and this was also part of our friendship… love? I do not realize how much this must have been a burden to you to witheld things when you wanted to speak to me, to lose an argument while you knew you were right, to dance around notions that I didn't know of yet… I couldn't have done it, being myself and eternally enthousiastic I would have spoken and shared and the face of the world could have been changed for my carelessness. I admire you for the strenght you've shown resisting my insistant questionning. Sometimes it seems to me it wasn't the first time you came back, like if it was a habit… I never asked about your first husband again, but I start to wonder if he wasn't someone from another travel again. You never said he was dead, you said he was lost to this world.

The drum is beating to quarters, I have to go and face the butchery of war. Your friend and husband forever, Stephen Maturin

My dearest Frances,

You might be the first and the last woman I will ever be writing to apart from my dear wife Sophie. I have been asking Stephen when he will be giving you all those letters, but I got a cryptic response. I am however not really surprised to see that the mystery that covered your presence here is also there to mark your absence. My friend is protecting a secret that I will respect since you have been bound before God and in love. I do respect his protection of your life. He has asked me to cut this questionning loose and accept the poor information I was given. You know that as a captain I can be more than curious, but I have learnt beside you that everything you kept secret could not harm my crew. This tiny bit of wisdom belongs to me now. Therefore I do accept not to be in the confidence of this secret you entitled Stephen to protect, but still I know that I will never see you again. I do not fully understand why, since we travel around the whole world and there is always a chance to meet if we wanted to. How could you possibly get this letter if we can never find you? I first though you didn't want us to see each other again, but Stephen got angry and very sad about me thinking this rubbish, and I actually felt guilty since I really love you like a daughter, and seeing him suffer is more than I can bare. I though you loved me too, and felt bad to let you go forever. However Stephen explained me that this mission required that things were this way, and so as I understand the sense of duty I promise never to think ill of you again… I am called, I will write soon. Your friend sincerely, Captain Jack Aubrey

My dear wife,

I do not know if I still deserve to be called your husband and am in a great distress right now. I have some important news to share with you and do not know how to break them in fear of hurting you. When you left you begged me to get a new life again somday, and not to mourn you until the end of times. Those last years have been tough since your smile left our ship, and I still love you like the first day. However, the ache and emptyness that tortured me for so long have turned into other feelings now that time has passed over so much time. Now I feel honored to be your husband and to have shared those moments with you, and even if your name still calls longing in my heart, I feel happy to have known you. There is not so much sadness anymore, and I feel ready to continue my life with this strengh in my heart to have been your mate, even though for a limited time.

Recently I met Captain Aubrey's cousin, Diana, and realized after years or knowing her and ignoring her that she could actually be a match for me. She is a bit wild, and a bit unconventionnal. In some ways she reminds me of you, but at another scale. Her attempts to get free from usual conventions of society are humble, but I still admire her for this because I know how hard it might be. I do not seek to replace you, but I am aware that her character sometimes matches your traits. However, she is not kind like you were, and much more selfish. I do not know what you would think of her, especially since she ignores me so much. I know that you would say that I am worth much more, that I am a good man and deserve a loving wife, but I am sure that she can love me if given the chance.

Aftrer weeks of incertitude I decided that it was only fair that you would know, first of all because you asked me to get a new life and that this movement is the first since you left in that direction. I wanted you to be reassured on my account. I hope you will not feel hurt because I feel extremly bad about telling you of my feelings for another woman. I would never hurt you on purpose as you well know, and my heart bleeds to know that you might feel betrayed. I however assure you that I feel in debt for your generosity since I am aware of the heartache it must have been to push me in this direction.

Today I am finally ready to go forward. I have gotten old and lonely, lost between grief and hapiness to be your husband after all, and have declined everything until here. When I met Diana and this wild character of hers, I realized she could be the one to pull me out of this. She will never be as caring as you were, but this is not what counts the most. There will never be someone like you in my life again, so I should stop searching for one. Your origins and unique personality will always be unreachable to the ladies of this world. My heart forever belongs to you, but I wish to try to rebuild myself as you asked. It is in honor of your memory that I will 'kick my ass' as you used to say, and get myself to know this woman. Jack disapproves of her, partly because of this bright souvenir of you, and partly because she didn't even realize I existed. My dear wife, I know you would feel sad for me since the woman I took fancy on barely acknowledges me. I miss your confort and wise words dearly. However, after all those years alone, I have finally made a choice and hope you wil be proud of me for doing so. As a wife, I have no clue about your reaction, but as the fantastic friend you have always been I know you enought to know that you would support me. It always amazed me to realize how much you believed in me, so much more than anybody else and especially myself. Today, it gives me the strength to continue with my life and I thank you once more for it. I will ask her to marry me, wish me the best of luck and maybe I can have a descendance to give you those letters one day.

I love you and will never cease to,

Take care, yours forever, Stephen Maturin