She's a Pirate (Jack Sparrow)

31. Life

Narissa let out a relieved sigh. Jack had brought her there, for some reason. She knew she was safe as long as he was around.

"Who are you?" she finally asked, confused.

"The woman that saved you from death. Call me Tia Dalma, for now." With a smile, she showed her blackening teeth. It was as if everything about her was dark.

Narissa held back the urge to grimace and asked. "Saved me?"

Tia Dalma nodded and leaned over to pet the monkey's head. "You were drowning, weren't you?"

"Yes." Her voice came out in a whisper, sounding scared of what had happened to her.

"Jack brought you 'ere just in time. Some hours later, you would not live." Tia Dalma's voice was stern. She seemed angry, but Narissa couldn't decide at who: Jack, her, or both.

"How long have I been here?"

"Four days. I suppose you don't kno' what 'appened." The younger woman shook her head in denial. "The seaglass is not somethin' to play with."

Frowning, Narissa retorted "But I can control it." She could not possibly be killed by the seaglass, right? She fitted the prophecy: "a woman of the sea with eyes of water":

"Ye' can control it, for a time. But that power is too much for any mortal. It slowly consumes the air of your lungs, 'til it finally drowns you." She stopped for a second, staring into her eyes. "Literally." Narissa was kind of relieved to know that was the reason for her coughing and burning ache, but she was still scared of her closeness to death. Tia Dalma kept talking. "I knew Jack would be foolish enough to try to find it when I told 'im about the seaglass. Now it is safe 'ere, where nobody will steal it again."

"You're the one who told him about it?!" She left the bed precipitously. "Did you somehow forget to mention that it would finally kill the person who has it, no matter that they can control it?" Narissa's voice rose until she was almost shouting. The moment that she stood up, dizziness took over her and she had to lean on the nearest wall. She had spent too much time in bed and she had stood up too fast.

Helping her to stand straight, Tia Dalma replied "I didn't mention it, but I didn't forget. I knew this would happen." She restrained a smile, but Narissa could notice it.

Narissa found herself face to face with the mysterious woman; looking into her eyes, she noticed something strange, almost magical, with a spark of playfulness. "What do you mean you knew?"

Once she could stand by herself, Tia Dalma said "I can see a person's past and future. That's how I learnt that Jack's lunacy would brin' 'im here."

Narissa could not stop looking into the woman's eyes, still noticing something singular coming from them. She then remembered that Jack had told her nobody knew more about the seaglass than this woman. "You're Calypso." Her voice came out in a whisper. It wasn't a question, but a statement. The woman didn't say anything and that was enough to confirm her thoughts. "You knew all this would happen, but you didn't tell Jack because you wanted him to come here."

"Not Jack. You."

Frowning, Narissa asked "Me?" Why her? She didn't even know her!

With her hand, Tia Dalma signaled to follow her. After founding her boots under the bed, Narissa put them on in a hurry and accompanied her. Walking through a room full of colourful trinkets, mysterious objects and different animal parts - or she hoped they were animal parts - in glass jars, they approached a door. As soon as it was open, Jack, the monkey, ran into a room.

There, on a bed, was her father's corpse. Somehow, he looked more asleep than dead.

Immediately and without a word, Narissa turned around and stormed out of the room. She felt her breath leave her lungs and, for a second, she thought that she was choking again. She took a few deep breaths as her eyes welled up with tears. What the hell had she just seen? A million questions passed through her head. After a time trying to calm down, she felt Tia Dalma's hand on her shoulder; Narissa flinched and pushed it away.