I took a little journey to the unknown.
~●~○~●~
A few days before, Narissa wouldn't have imagined that she'd find herself in this situation. She thought that she had renounced piracy forever. But there she was, in her room, looking into her wardrobe, unsure about what to take with her. She didn't have many clothes, but she couldn't fit all of them in her bag. A big smile was on her face; she was yearning to leave Port Royal and be a pirate again, and to be with Jack and see what their affair would lead to.
There was a knock on the door; Will entered the room after Narissa allowed him. She looked at him and noticed his wide smile and dreamy eyes. She suspected what had put him in such a mood.
"Did you kiss her?" she asked, already presuming what he would answer.
"Yes," he replied with a content sigh and an enamoured smile, still not believing what had happened to him.
"Good. It only took you eight years." She chuckled.
He noticed then her bag and some clothes on the bed. "Where will you go?"
She shoved two shirts and a pair of trousers into her bag. "Tortuga, Jack told me to meet him there." The tavern where we met, he had said; she would never forget that place.
"When are you leaving?"
"Tomorrow." Her smile fell for a second. "I have to be there in five days and the trip takes from three to five."
They were silent for some seconds until the man spoke again. "I'm very happy for you." He gulped, feeling a knot in his throat. "But I'm going to miss you a lot."
After hearing those words, she hugged him tightly. "I'm going to miss you too, William. I'll come to see you and Lizzie if I can, I promise."
Putting some distance between them, Will added "Be careful, please. And write to me when you can."
She nodded, her eyes starting to moisten with tears. "I will."
~●~○~●~
The next morning, after sharing an emotional goodbye with Will, Narissa picked up her bag and some food for the journey and went to the Governor's mansion.
A maiden opened the door and guided her into the living room, where Elizabeth sat with a cup of tea. It was not the first time that she had been at the mansion, but it always felt strange to her. The place was completely oppossite to her own house. It was decorated with fancy white couches and expensive wooden furniture; large windows allowed the sun to light the room. There were no flames in the big fireplace; it was simply a piece of decoration during most of the year, since it had no use in a place with a tropical climate such as Port Royal.
Hearing footsteps behind her, Elizabeth turned around and quickly left the cup on the small table in front of the couch. She dashed to her friend.
"I'm leaving to Tortuga to meet Jack," said Narissa in a bittersweet tone. "I wanted to say goodbye."
Elizabeth's arms flew around her body, enveloping her. A few tears escaped her eyes. "I'll miss you."
"Me too, I'll write to you and William." She wiped some tears from her friend's face. "I suppose you two are courting now, right?" She nodded, blushing. "I wish you both the best." She was really happy for them. After so many years not daring to express their feelings, her friends finally seemed to have a merry ending.
"How are you going to get to Tortuga?"
Narissa smirked. "I have my ways."
~●~○~●~
With one sword hanging from each side of her hip, her father's and Will's, her pistol tucked in her belt and her dagger attached securely to her thigh, Narissa headed to the docks.
Her eyes scanned around, inspecting the ships and boats deliberately. She finally focused on a small fishing dory with a single sail. It wouldn't be the fastest transport, but she could hijack it and lead it by herself. Fortunately, its owner didn't seem to be around. She noticed, however, that the marines Murtogg and Mullroy were guarding that area. She smirked, they would be no problem for her.
"Hello, men," she greeted once she was standing in front of them. "I'm afraid I won't be seeing you any time soon." She faked her most somber look, but she would actually miss having so much fun by messing with them.
"We know, Miss Mur-Barbossa," Mullroy said sadly, correcting himself, and his companion nodded in agreement.
"Goodbye, boys." An idea popped in her head. She looked at them taunting. "Before I leave, though... Why don't you guess which of you is my favourite one?"
"Me!" both of them exclaimed at the same time with a proud grin. Immediately, they glared angrily at each other. As she had expected, they started arguing.
While they were immersed in their bickering, Narissa walked to the small boat that was her target, indifferent about their conversation. They didn't even notice her walking away. However, as she was about to get into the dinghy, the old harbormaster ran to her, followed closely by his young assistant.
"I'm sorry miss, but I don't think that boat is yours!"
She rolled her eyes, reaching for a small leather bag that she kept in the pocket of her blue coat. She took a few coins from it and placed them on his open palm. "How about seven shillings in exchange of your silence?" She had been saving money during her ten years in Port Royal. She had given some to Will before leaving, and took the rest with her.
The harbormaster seemed surprised, but didn't refuse to take the money. With a polite smile, he simply said "Bon voyage" before turning around and walking away.
She looked at her compass and, in a matter of minutes, she was leaving the town where she had lived for ten years, but had never felt like home.
~●~○~●~
On her fourth night at sea, Narissa finally saw lights coming from the pirate island in the distance. She sighed, relieved. There had been an storm during the last hours, so sailing had been difficult. Her little boat had almost been knocked over a few times. She was soaked from head to toe, but the storm looked like it was going to end soon.
She docked the little boat as lightnings struck behind her, the sound of thunder ringing in her ears. She saw the Black Pearl anchored far away and smiled to herself. After picking up her bag and making sure that she had all of her weapons with her, she ventured into the town. Her wet hair stuck to her face as raindrops hit her heavily. There weren't many people in the streets because of the heavy storm. She was sure that everybody was sealed in the many taverns of Tortuga, but people would come out as soon as the weather improved.
She walked hurriedly with the bag over her shoulder, knowing perfectly the route to the tavern that Jack had told her to go, the place where they met for the first time: The Rusty Anchor. She was surprised to realise that, after so many years, she still recognised every street, every building and every alley.
Finally, she found the building she was looking for. She identified the small wooden door with a green sign above it; The Rusty Anchor was written on it with yellow letters. She got in the tavern; it hadn't changed much in the last years.
~●~○~●~
~ 10 years before ~
A seventeen-year-old Narissa followed her father closely through the streets of Tortuga, Pintel and Ragetti walking behind them, bickering with each other as usual. She was miserable, she had lost everything; the only thing she had was her sword. They had been the only survivors of the attack on the Cobra, their ship. Another pirate crew had sunk Barbossa's ship and now they were left with nothing. She would be forever in debt with Pintel and Ragetti. They had saved her father when he tried to rescue his little monkey, Polly, risking his own life. The poor animal didn't make it. For a moment, she had thought that she'd lose her father, only less than three years after finding him.
After losing their ship, they spent two days at open sea; some pieces wood from the sunk vessel helped them to float. They were rescued by a passing ship, whose captain agreed to leave them on land the next time they made port. Once there, they heard rumours about a mad young captain who was recruiting a crew in Tortuga.
And that was the reason they were there, desperate to have somewhere to go. They found out that the captain, who went by the name of Jack Sparrow, was gathering sailors for his ship in 'The Rusty Anchor'. Once inside the tavern, they spotted said captain, sat at a table with a dark-haired, bearded man by his side: his friend Joshamee Gibbs. Both men had an almost empty jug of rum in front of them. The four pirates walked up to them.
Narissa looked at the captain with curiosity. He was young, not older than twenty-five. His shoulder length hair, messed in a bunch of threads, was decorated with all kind of trinkets. There was a barely visible stuble on his chin and jaw, as if he was trying to grow a full beard but was unable to. His dark eyes studied the group of four pirates intently as they approached, until they fixed on the young woman who lingered behind her father shyly, her eyes staring at the floor and only moving from there to look at him from time to time. She was certainly lovely. Her eyes were a strikingly beautiful shade of blue and her dark brown hair flowed behind her with every step, like waves.
"Are ye Jack Sparrow?" Hector Barbossa asked once he stood in front of the young pirate.
"Captain Jack Sparrow," the man corrected instinctively, barely paying attention to Barbossa. "And who are you?"
"I am Captain Hector Barbossa." He gave a theatrical bow. "We are a group of honorable pirates who lost their ship weeks ago, sunk by other pirates."
"Isn't that against the Code?" the man beside Jack asked before gulping down his drink.
"Apparently those pirates chose not to follow the Code," Barbossa replied.
Jack nodded slowly, thinking. "I suppose you want to join my crew, aye?"
"Aye. The four of us. We were the only survivors of my ship, the Cobra."
Jack had heard about the Cobra, it was supposed to be one of the most dangerous pirate ships of the Caribbean. It was said that the captain's first mate was a woman as fierce as the sea itself. He looked at Narissa, wondering if she was that woman. She didn't look like it, being so silent and hiding herself. "Who might be the lass?"
Coming out from behind her father, Narissa kept her head bowed down, looking at her hands to avoid the captain's gaze. She was not in the mood of chatting after what had happened to them; she feared that her words wouldn't be very nice. Her father looked at her proudly and said "She be my daughter and first mate, Narissa."
Jack eyed her from head to toe. His friend leaned into his ear and whispered something to him, to which he nodded. "My mate here says it would bring me bad luck to have a woman aboard."
"Narissa has brought us the best of luck since she joined my crew!" Barbossa protested, his hand resting on his daughter's shoulder.
The young captain smirked. "In that case, why is your ship sunk, mate?"
This infuriated Narissa, who closed her hands tightly in fists and said "And why don't you have a crew yet, Captain? Are you always so obnoxious that nobody wants to sail under your command, Jack?" She crossed her arms defiantly as she pronounced his name. Her Italian accent had almost disappeared completely, but she'd let it escape when she was angry.
His smirk was removed from his face immediately. There was a short uncomfortable silence between them. Pintel and Ragetti felt nervous in such a tense atmosphere. Clenching his jaw, Jack repeated "It's Captain for you."
Narissa didn't stop staring at him in anger. The smallest smirk adorned her expression. "Not until you hire us, Jack." She put more emphasis on his name this time; his previous reaction didn't go unnoticed. This time, the captain smiled a little and let out a short laugh.
Barbossa intervened. "Narissa will go where I go," he stated.
The captain took his time to think about it. He wanted the best crew he could find and, if the stories of the Cobra were true, both Hector and his daughter would be a fine addition. She was still looking at him, defiantly. He would have never guessed, when she had entered the tavern, that she would have this attitude. Stuck to her father's side and keeping her mouth shut, she had looked to him like a complying collected damsel. She had certainly proved him wrong. He preferred that unruly side of her, actually. The woman intrigued him, she seemed smart enough and, if her sword was as quick as her tongue, he would be glad to have her aboard. Finally, he nodded, extending his hand to the man before him. "Alright, welcome to the Black Pearl."
~●~○~●~
The tavern was full of people. Raising her head, she searched for him. Instead of Jack, she spotted Gibbs next to the bar, holding a jug as he walked to a table. A huge smile appeared on her face when she saw Jack sitting there. His legs rested on top of the table, next to his brown hat; she couldn't even remember when he had lost it, but was glad that he had it again. He had a bottle in one hand and his compass in the other one. He was staring at the needle, impatiently waiting for it to move. Quickly, Narissa squeezed herself between the sea of people, eager to reach the pirate.
The last thing Jack saw was the needle pointing in his direction, before a pair of hands covered his eyes. He was startled at first, but instantly relaxed when he heard a voice he loved teasingly whispering next to his ear "Who am I?" Hadn't she been so close to him, the noise in the place wouldn't have let him hear her.
He quickly set his compass and his bottle on the table and stood up abruptly. Without saying a word, he grabbed her waist with one hand, the back of her head with the other, and pulled her body to his to give her a passionate kiss. He didn't mind that her body and clothes were damp. She dropped her bag. His lips made her head spin and her knees shake. She laid her hands on his shoulders and melted into the kiss, smiling against his mouth.
He finally broke the kiss without letting go of her body, resting his forehead on hers. "Hello, love," he whispered with a smile. The back of his hand caressed her cheek getly. He knew she would come, never had a doubt.
She looked at him with fondness. "Hello, Jack."
Gibbs watched happily as the couple reunited. Any trace of distrust on the woman had faded away when Jack told him the truth behind their story and now, he was glad to see his captain had somehow settled down with the same woman that had stolen his heart years before. "I'll be back on the ship, cap'n," Gibbs informed him before leaving them alone.
"Don't wait for us," Jack said without taking his eyes off Narissa. Once his friend had left, he told her "I paid for a room at The Maiden inn, if you want to go."
"Of course," she said, unable to remove the smile on her face.
Narissa picked up her bag from the ground and Jack took his compass and his hat. Grabbing her hand, he led her out of the tavern and to the nearby inn. His room was on the first floor. He unlocked the door to reveal a simple bedroom. A big bed with white sheets was facing the window; it looked incredibly comfortable. A small wooden wardrobe stood next to the entrance. Another door led to a small bathroom.
The first thing Narissa did was dropping her weapons and her bag, taking off her boots and her coat and jumping onto the bed, faced down, spreading her limbs on the mattress.
Jack chuckled softly. "Tired?"
She hummed against the pillow; it had been a hard journey. He sat on the bed by her side and ran his fingers through her still wet hair. She closed her eyes and sighed in delight, feeling herself drifting off.
"Maybe you should take off your clothes," he commented. Looking at him, Narissa raised an inquiring eyebrow and he explained himself. "Because they're soaking wet, love. But I won't oppose if you have something else in mind." There it was, his smirk. She felt an urge to kiss it away.
She laughed and stood up, untying her bodice. Jack watched hungrily as she took off her clothes. Once her body was totally exposed, she bit her bottom lip and said "Why are you still clothed, Jacky?"
~●~○~●~
Hello, mates!
Hope you liked this chapter. I'm trying to update once a week.
Also, would anyone be interested in me doing a face reveal??? I feel like doing it, but idk if anybody cares lol
Thanks for reading & share your opinion in the comments!
D.Xx