The Devil's Temptress: The Curse of the Black Pearl || Jack Sparrow

VI. Stories

Night had fallen, long gone was the safety of the sun which protected Nicolette from the truth and in its place rose the moon who's light showed what she truly was. Like always, she was seeing out the night in the cabin she shared, regretfully, with Hector.

Seeing Jack had taken her back to that night which felt so far away. Since dusk, when she had poured a cup of wine and rejoiced in the silence of the cabin, the memories started to creep back. Some were tainted with lies fed to her amongst the last decade, others flawless and untouched. If she closed her eyes she could taste the rum and the sweet Spanish wine and the salt in the air as she caught her breath on that one unforgettable night.

Then, her beloved Captain had retired and joined her. As he had sunk into the kingly seat behind the ebony desk, she had perched on the end of their marital bed, scowling.

How could the last ten years feel so painfully long but fleeting at the same time? If Nicolette focused, she could picture how they had been just months after Jack's departure. She would be draped on the bed, young in her twenties her skin had glowed and her hair had been long and tangle free, flowing down her back like a paradise waterfall. She was barely ever tired, always fuelled by adventure, and there were very few times she had not smiled. Even through the taunting and the vile tricks the crew put her through, the surrounding calm oceans always allowed her to keep smiling.

Her husband had also been a vision of enthusiasm. He lived through the seas. More often the not, Hector returned to their cabin after a good day and they drank and laughed... It had taken time to forget about the man who they had now damned but the freedom of adventure allowed her to slowly forget. Before the curse, she would go as far as to say she had been happy. Hector had managed to give her something she had always wanted overnight and she valued that.

But now, Hector was cruel more often than he was loving. The mere reminder that he could not feel her warmth against his skin enraged him so much that at times he could not even bare to look at her. The space in the bed next to her, once occupied by his beating heart was empty and his eyes - dull.

It was odd, how one could go through years learning to love someone and succeeding, only to have it slip away. How long had it been? Months? Years perhaps? When exactly had she stopped? And when was it time to stop pretending?

Nicolette was lost in her memories now, her mind jumping back and forth from good times to others she prayed to forget. But they remained, tainting the remanence of the girl she once was. In one she could remember being held by Hector and missing the warmth when he moved away, then in another she recalled the sickly goosebumps crawling over her skin as his hands roamed where only one others had.

She had hated him, but she had also loved him for a long time. Now... Now when Nicolette looked at the man she once called Love, she prayed to all the gods in existence to be released from this curse so she could be free of him.

"We can't be far now." Barbossa's husky murmur pulled Nicolette from her thoughts, when her eyes trailed to him she saw him hunched over the maps, tensed.

"You think we can trust the boy?" Nikki rose a brow and stood, taking slow steps until she was at his side. "It is Jack's word at the end of the day." Ever since that man had first opened his mouth in the caves she had known he was up to something and now like dancing monkeys they were trusting his word...mainly because it was the only word they had but still, it was not to be taken without precaution.

Barbossa stilled and tilted his head to her just enough to spy her out of one eye. "And here was me thinking you were a one for believing Sparrow's words." As she scoffed, Nicolette turned on her heel and rolled her eyes, but he continued. "The boys stupid, and he ain't lying."